Lima was born in
Veracruz, Mexico, to
Mexican parents on August 18, 1986. At the age of thirteen her family immigrated into the
United States at a river crossing. Her family settled in
Texas where she struggled with the new education system. Lima has stated, "School was a new system for me, and it made me feel lonely and scared. I struggled to learn a new language to communicate, but my brain and my lips seemed disconnected, I murmured trembling words that my classmates and teachers could not understand." She graduated from
PSJA Memorial High School in 2005. In 2009, Lima graduated with a bachelor's in literature from the
University of Texas-Pan American and earned her masters's in literature the next year from the same university. In 2016, Lima co-founded Jade Publishing; a publishing company dedicated to the publication and promotion of emerging Latin American literary talent in both English and Spanish. Lima is currently the director of the Spanish Heritage Language Program at
Texas Tech University. == Writing ==