<strong>Lu Clifton</strong> writes adult novels set in Oklahoma and Texas Panhandle, with a mingling of Native American cultural beliefs and traditions thrown in. She became interested in those cultural traditions while tracing her mother’s Choctaw roots. She was born in and spent her early childhood in southeastern Oklahoma, then moved to the Texas Panhandle with her family. She completed an associate degree at Amarillo Junior College in Texas and a B.A. and M.A. in English at Colorado State University. She now resides in Illinois.<br>Writing for adults and children, she is a member of the Oklahoma Writers Federation, Mystery Writers of America, and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. The first book in the Sam Chitto mystery series, <em>Scalp Dance, </em>was a finalist for the 2017 Oklahoma Book Award in Fiction and the second book, <em>The Bone Picker, </em>was a finalist for the 2018 Oklahoma Book Award in Fiction. The third book, <em>The Horned Owl, </em>is a finalist for the 2019 award. She has three middle-grade novels in print. Her middle-grade novel, <em>Freaky Fast Frankie Joe, </em>received a Friends of American Writers Award for Juvenile Fiction in 2012, and <em>Seeking Cassandra </em>won the 2017 Oklahoma Book Award for Young Adult Fiction.
