Different (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781975752330)

Valerie Gale was born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa. She began college shortly after high school but took a break to serve our country in The United States Army from 1991 to 1996. During her time as an active member of the military, Valerie was mainly stationed out of Fort Drum, New York and completed a stint overseas in Seoul, Korea. In 1999, she obtained her Bachelor of Liberal Arts and Sciences degree from Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa after an honorable discharge from the service. Valerie started working security for an agricultural tire facility as her first civilian job out of the Army. Eventually, she moved inside the tire plant to work for another 15 years. On the morning of June 24, 2016, Valerie was involved in a horrific work accident. Her right hand was caught in a moving machine on site and traumatically amputated as she helped a coworker finish end of shift tasks. The accident changed Valerie's life in numerous ways, forcing her to relearn the most basic of tasks since she lost her dominant hand. She weathered the storm and became a new and improved side of herself with the help of her loving wife. Valerie had started writing here and there in 2013 for fun, as it was always a childhood dream to one day create a piece she could share with the world. The accident was a blessing in disguise in many aspects, and one of which was providing unlimited time for her to do self-exploration, research, and creative writing. Different is her debuting novel that reveals some complex issues from her childhood to young adulthood in a fictional rendition.