Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I grew up in a Texas suburb, and after college, hightailed my way to the big City! I've lived in the same area for a long time.
At age 9 for extra credit, the assignment was to write a poem. So I did! And wrote poetry for a long, long time.
And I was a voracious reader. My mom tells the story about taking me to the library and when I presented my stack for check-out, the librarian said I couldn't have that many. Mom saw my downcast face and took matters into her hands, saying I would read them all in two weeks, probably twice, and read what my sisters checked out as well. The staff handed them over. Happy camper me!
Who are your favorite authors?
As a kid, I read lots of mysteries. Give me a Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden. I moved from them to Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, Mary Stewart, and Agatha Christie. After my son's birth, I discovered DICK FRANCIS. I gobbled his work like M&Ms. When Handsome asked me why, I told/confessed I wished I could write like him. It took me twenty years to try.
In my early teens and in the doldrums of summer break, my mom gave me Emilie Loring books--my first sweet romances--to read. I love these books! After college, I discovered Kathleen Woodiwiss and Rosemary Rogers. Romance has so many genres. Sigh.
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