In addition to her love for people and animals, Rachel is a talented musician. During her high school years, she entertained the family with her violin practice at 5:00 a.m., accompanied by the dog's howling, the cat's yowling and the cow's mooing. She has taught music lessons and written arrangements and obligatos for strings.

However, Rachel is most widely recognized for her writing. Rachel grew up with a passion to read. If her mother couldn't find her to complete chores, she was tucked in a closet somewhere reading a book. She has won contests for her poetry and now has several books of her own published.

Rachel has been in the nursing field for over 20 years and hopes you enjoy delving into the nursing world with her as she shares her true life stories in her books, A Nurse's World: Volumes I, II & III.

(The following is an excerpt from an interview with NurseZone)

1) What inspired you to become a nurse?

I grew up on a farm caring for animals and loving all living creatures. One of the stories in my new book is "Nursing Practice" and it deals with how I learned to care for others by working on animals. I actually received a music scholarship to Arizona State University. During my second year there I contracted bilateral pneumonia. I had to drop out. After recovering I obtained a job at a small rural hospital in a neighboring town in an on-the-job nurses' aid training course. I liked it so well, that when I returned to school I applied to the nursing program at Yavapai College in Prescott, Arizona, and was accepted. The rest is history.

2) Why do you think it's important to share your nursing experience with others?

I noticed in nursing school that those students who came without any experience had a tough time during clinical rotations. In fact, when some of them got out of the sterile environment of the textbook and into the real world of bed pans, blood, and vomit, they decided nursing wasn't so glamorous and dropped out of the program. I would like students to have a clearer picture of the choice they are making, patients to understand the person in the uniform, and the public to respect the job we do day in and day out.

3) What did you enjoy most about putting the book together?

Writing the stories was a catharsis for me. It also helped me use some of my creative self that was left behind when I chose nursing over a music major.

4) What's your favorite "story" in your new book coming out?

"Farmers and Music Therapy." I think this story illustrates the real me, and a lot of my background.