What do you find romantic?

The scent of lavender, a single rose, the chords of Moonlight Sonata and Pachelbel Kanon, talking in the dark with the moon overhead, holding hands.

Why do you like reading and writing romance?

Both reading and writing romance give hope and offer an opportunity to take a breather from the hectic reality of everyday life. As a reader, I get a happy ending, and as a writer, I give one.

Your first published book was a historical, Innocent Betrayal. You also write contemporary, as well. What unique qualities do you enjoy in each subgenre?

When I write historical, I visualize a heroine who’s feisty and determined which puts her at immediate odds with the Regency Era. And of course, I usually throw in a hero who expects a lady to act like a lady not a ‘hoyden’ - Nonetheless, the hero finds himself attracted to her, hoyden and all, which really baffles and highly irritates him. Once I set up these two personalities, the list of possibilities and adventures is endless.

Writing contemporary lends itself to a bit more introspection on the part of both hero and heroine – whether they like it or not! I choose to deal with modern issues and create strong characters who can handle them.

What characteristics do you like to give your heroes and heroines?

Hero - A physically strong male, filled with integrity and honesty with a weakness, usual internal, whether it be ability to trust, or love, which can be overcome and conquered only with the help of one woman.

Heroine- A mentally strong female with a firm belief in right, who’s been hurt, usually by another man, and who can only heal through the love and trust of one man.

How does the personal experience of a situation or environment help a writer make a story better, more realistic?

Sometimes we draw from experiences, a thread at a time, and create a beautiful tapestry, which is our writing, and the threads are so tiny, so interwoven, that we often don’t recognize them or realize that we’ve seen them before…they are pieces of our life. I think that allowing ourselves to feel- really feel emotions – good and bad- help us when we create a scene or situation that is similar to a real life experience. For me, I remember and I revisit those feelings, those memories, and the writing gets richer and almost palpable.

Tell us more about your upcoming release, "Simple Riches."

I am so excited about Simple Riches – it’s a story of values, family, and tradition. Simple Riches’, Alex Chamberlain is a cosmopolitan woman whose uncle taught her to discard everything but the bottom line on the balance sheet. She’ll do anything to earn his affection and approval, including making certain she excels at her job – select small towns to be bought up, flattened and replaced with luxury resorts. 

When Alex decides to investigate Restalline, Pennsylvania as a potential site for the next resort, she enters the town under the same guise she always uses; that of researcher gathering information for a documentary. It should be easy, routine. But this town is different, from Edna Lubovich, Alex’s zany landlord, to Stella Androvich, the matriarch of the Androvich clan to Nick Androvich himself, the town doctor with a battered heart who questions Alex’s motives yet can’t deny his attraction to her. Alex and Nick must face the truth about each other and themselves as they search for their own simple riches.

What other projects are you currently working on? Do you have any new books on the horizon?

The Butterfly Garden is a contemporary romance due out January 2003 from Kensington. It’s the story of two sisters, forced to redefine themselves and their values after a near fatal accident leaves one of them in a coma. Jenny Romano is the carefree, spirited, west-coast sister, who travels the world taking pictures of famous people and avoiding anything that even hints of a personal relationship with a man. 

Grace Clarke is her older sister, the dependable one, much admired for her role as wife, teacher, dutiful daughter, and mother of two. She's always been there for Jenny, offering guidance, a strong shoulder, and most of all unconditional love. But when Grace crashes her minivan into a tree, her husband is killed and she’s left in a coma, forcing Jenny to examine the one-sidedness of her sister’s love. And then there’s Elliot Drake, the psychologist who’s helping Jenny’s nieces deal with their father’s death. Elliot just might be the kind of man who can make Jenny want to stick around, make a commitment ...

I am also in the process of writing a proposal to tell Adam’s story from Paradise Found and have begun a new piece that I’m very excited about- but that’s for another interview…

What are your three favorite bookmarks?

www.merckmanual.com – I use this website for research purposes to collaborate what I write about medical conditions, drugs, accidents, diseases, etc.

www.excite.com – My husband has this page personalized so I can read about the latest news in a glance.

www.Borders.com – I like to look through here to read about other books of all genres.

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