Originally from Cuba, Ali Vali has retained much of her family's traditions and language and uses them frequently in her stories. Having her father read her stories and poetry before bed every night as a child infused her with a love of reading, which carries till today. In 2000, Ali decided to embark on a new path and started writing. She has discovered that living in Louisiana and running a non-profit provides plenty of material to draw from in creating her novels and short stories. Mixing imagination with different life experiences, she creates characters that are engaging to the reader on many levels. Ali states that "The feedback from readers encourages me to continue to hone my skills as a writer.