Award-winning humor author/award-winning children’s author Debbie Roppolo grew up in the Blackland Prairie region of Texas, where miles of grassland and her horse stimulated very imaginative adventures and served as writing fodder for later years. She had to do something with those memories; having tea parties with chickens was too good to keep to herself.
She has written for several of the Chicken Soup books in addition to various magazines and newspapers. Her children’s book titles include: Amelia Frump and her Peanut Butter-Loving, Overactive Imagination; Amelia Frump…is Cooking Up a Peanut Butter Storm (award-winning activity/cookbook); He’s My Brother.
Shortly after beginning her own family, Roppolo discovered the reason why her mother turned prematurely gray, and that a cell phone, toilets and toddler make a poor combination.
Rather than sitting in a corner, whimpering, and eating her weight in chocolate, Roppolo wrote her first parenting humor book, The Toilet is Overflowing and the Dog is Wearing My Underwear, that was based on her family’s antics. The book contains the award-winning essay “Age is a State of Mind—Too Bad I Can’t Find Mine.”
Roppolo’s father gave her two important pieces of advice when she was a child:
1. Life was filled with challenges and adversities, but almost anything
could be accomplish and overcome as long as she put her mind to it.
2. A sense of humor was important.
She realized how valuable her father’s wisdom was when he was killed shortly before her sixteenth birthday, and years later when she was in a near-fatal car accident, the latter ending her dreams of a kinesiology career.
Because of her father's teachings, tenacity replaced grief each time, and she overcame the situation--each time a little tougher, more empathetic, and an increase in wisdom. It’s her goal to assist others in overcoming adversity by offering inspiration through her personal stories.
After her younger son was diagnosed with autism, Roppolo and her husband co-founded Central Texas Autism Network, a network for persons who may have a relative or friend diagnosed with Autism, or professional that may deal with Autistic persons. She serves as an advocate for people with autism through her writing, by speaking to groups, and spreading awareness as various health-related functions.
She is currently the editor-in-chief for a small publishing company.
Roppolo has participated in radio interviews, TV appearances, and has had extensive experience with school visits promoting literary awareness and her children’s books.
Married for over twenty-four years, she resides in the Texas Hill Country with her husband and two children.
