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Born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, I endured your average childhood with two brothers to annoy and parents to baffle. I was a bookworm right from the start. I cut my teeth on The Hardy Boys, Trixie Beldon, Judy Blume and Madeline L'Engle books. As I hit my early teens, I discovered the world of romance through the books of Georgette Heyer, Phyllis Whitney, Victoria Holt, and others. Soon thereafter, I was checking out from the library any and every romance novel I could blushingly (did I mention I was shy?) slide onto the librarian's desk. Along with the romance novels, I also gained an appreciation for some of the classics. Jane Austen and Shakespeare were my favorites; Austen for her grasp of character and Regency manners, and Shakespeare for his unparalleled mastery of the language. I still go back to them today. Throughout school, I worked on the newspaper and literary magazines, thereby earning a certain notoriety for funny columns, right along with the geeky brain image I seemed to cultivate with no effort. (Again with the nose in the book; what do you expect?) Afterward, I attended the University of Missouri-Columbia, where I earned bachelor's degrees in English literature and magazine journalism. I enjoyed college life, made friends, relished the intellectual challenges tossed at me by some excellent teachers. Somewhere along the line, however, I came to the terrifying conclusion that being a reporter or technical writer really was not an attractive prospect, at least not for me. But I tried. I moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, right after college, did some business and technical-type writing, married my adorable engineering geek, then quit the tech writing job to churn out babies. (They're smart, funny and adorable -- but will remain anonymous to the general public because I love them dearly.) At home full time and uncomfortable in June Cleaver mode, I decided to try my hand at book-length fiction. And that's when I wrote and sold the Great American Novel, became an overnight bestseller, and went on to make seven-figure advances and field interview requests from all the network morning talk shows. Of course I made that up. Remember? I write fiction. |
My fifth book, Pandora's Box (to be released in February 2008) is the first in a series of funny paranormal romances to be published by Dorchester for its Love Spell line. Sequels are scheduled for release in August 2008 and February 2009. When I'm not writing, I'm chasing and torturing two children, a loving husband, and a shark masquerading as a puppy dog; jogging and doing Pilates too early in the morning to contemplate; and generally planning for my future millionaire lifestyle. It's gonna be great.
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