I'll readily admit I get off on manipulating other peoples' lives. However, since my kids don't share my enthusiasm for such things, I decided, in the interest of preserving family harmony, to manipulate people I make up instead. Actually, my characters are more prone to simply popping up in my brain, unannounced and irritatingly demanding, before I ever have a chance to shake out my bag of Character Traits and piece them together. But being able to dump them into situations and see what they'll do is immensely satisfying. There are days, of course, when the characters are as sullen and stubborn as my EIGHT-year-old and refuse to clue me in as to what they're thinking. And those are the days when I wonder what on earth possessed me to think I could be a writer. But more often than not, I'm continually delighted, surprised and amazed by the things these phantoms of my imagination come up with. And when a scene that's been eluding me for days. . .weeks. . .months finally "clicks", well, that's a little bit of heaven, folks.

But why do I write romance novels? Quite simply, because I believe there's nothing more precious me than when two people not only find each other, but are willing to work through the obstacles trying to keep them apart. Of all the plot devices humankind has reworked a million times since the dawn of storytelling, none have endured more than the love story. And I'm proud to be able to contribute to that time-honored literary tradition, to maybe make you laugh or get all choked up as my characters stumble along on their way to a happy ending that I truly believe everybody deserves. For the most part, my stories are about ordinary people -- people with kids and pets and mortgage payments and perhaps "jobs" instead of "careers". . .people like your own sister or father or the real estate agent who sold you your last house. I find endless fodder for stories in the minutae of human experience, and firmly believe everyday life has every bit as much potential for high drama as a high-stakes car chase.

So. That's what I do, and why I do it. As for who I am. . .well, I'm one of those ordinary people, a typical American mutt living in suburbia with five sons, THREE cats, a husband and a minivan. I do laundry and yell at my kids and bake cookies and wrap a gazillion presents at Christmas. I have a degree in Costume Design, but I also studied art, ballet, drama and voice back in my pre-Mommy days, and ran a successful mail-order crafts business for nearly ten years before the writing bug finally bit hard enough that I could no longer ignore it. I completed my first full length adult novel in 1995, quickly followed by a second. Not knowing any better, I figuratively knocked on Silhouette's door in early 1996, said I had these two books, would they like to see them? Eleven months later, they actually bought one. Since then, I've sold SIXTEEN books (FOURTEEN to Silhouette, one to Scarlet Publishing in London, which is now defunct, and one to Red Dress Ink), with several more in the works. For the curious in the audience, there's a link to my entire backlist, including blurblets and ISBN numbers. My more recent books/upcoming releases have their own pages with excerpts and everything (can you stand the excitement?). Those books still available new are linked to Barnes and Noble.com. And please, please, PLEASE -- I absolutely adore hearing from my readers! So don't be shy about pressing the little "Contact" thingy over there and saying "Hey". I pass along all the good stuff to my editor (who's an absolute doll and without whom I'd still be doing crafts shows in school gymnasiums), although I promise, I don't divulge names. Ever. So enjoy browsing, and let me hear from you!

So enjoy browsing, and let me hear from you!