I
started writing and selling travel articles geared toward families in the early 1990s. I
didn't get rich by a long shot, but my husband and I discovered some wonderful places and
enjoyed a few mini-vacations as I researched destinations like Bushkill Falls in the
Pocono Mountains, Old Fort Niagara at the junction of Lakes Erie and Ontario, NY, and the
wineries and lighthouses along Lake Erie. A
friend told me his sister, Lauren
Nichols, a novelist, belonged to Pennwriters,
Inc., a multi-genre writing organization based in Pennsylvania, and urged me to
contact her. Calling Lauren was the smartest thing I've ever done for my career. I joined
Pennwriters after one conversation with her and I can't thank her enough! I owe my
education and success to this organization!
My urge to write fiction grew stronger, so I wrote a
romance novel, acquired an agent at a Pennwriters conference, and joined RWA, the Romance Writers of America.
My early fiction appeared in the Star magazine in the late 1990s, and my first novel,
Driven To Love, was placed with Virtua Books, a now-defunct electronic publisher. Hard Shell Word Factory contracted
Driven To Love and it's available in four formats.
I expanded my non-fiction writing to include how-to
articles for writers. My first writing article appeared in Bylines Magazine for Writers in
March, 2002. Two of
the biggest thrills of my career were selling an article to Novel Writing, a Writer's Digest Magazine, October 2003
issue, and being included in the 2004 Writer's Novel and Short Story Market, part of the Writer's Market annual guides. I
love writing novels and short stories, and my friends' names often appear in my fiction.
You can follow this link to the Writers
Unlimited website to read some of my previously-published short stories.
In May, 2003, I received the Pennwriters Meritorious
Service Award, the highest honor bestowed by the organization. I served as the Area One Representative in 1998 before being
appointed vice-president in 1999. I became president of the organization in 2001.
I'm a member of
Pennwriters, Inc., CataRomance,
a writing haven for romance writers and readers, WritersUnlimited,
a web community for readers and writers, and The Ditzy Chix, twelve talented and funny writers who've become some
of my best friends in the world. I belong to my local volunteer fire department, but there's no truth to the rumor
that my penchant for telling people where to go is the reason I'm a member of fire police.
Well, maybe a little bit of truth, but......
Some personal information:
Birth date: After the era of the dinosaurs, before space
travel
Residence: NW Pennsylvania, USA
Likes: My incredible and wonderful husband, my kids (most days) my grandkids, summer, any
kind of chocolate, the color blue
Dislikes: Snow, taxes, stupidity, meanness
Memberships: Pennwriters, Ditzy Chix, CataRomance, RVFD
