Jo Hackl’s debut YA novel, Smack Dab In The Middle Of Maybe, is the story of Cricket, a resourceful girl with quite a bit to manage in her young life. Wrestling with the loss of her father and disappearance of her mom, she sets out on an adventure in the nearby woods, surviving by her wits and a battered book of outdoor strategies tucked into the pocket of her father’s hunting coat.
Jo Watson Hackl was born in Biloxi, Mississippi, not far from Ocean Springs, where her favorite artist, Walter Anderson, lived and once painted a secret room. When Jo was eleven, she moved to a real-life ghost town, Electric Mills, Mississippi, and spent the rest of her childhood exploring the woods and encountering signs of the former inhabitants. Mr. Anderson’s secret room and the ghost town were Jo’s inspiration for this debut novel. Jo lives with her family in Greenville, South Carolina, where she raises fruits, vegetables, and many, many weeds. You can find her online at www.JoHackl.com.