Born and
raised in southwest Washington State, I grew up where the
living was easy and the dairy cows tended to tip over while
asleep with the help of pesky teenagers (just kidding,
Mom). I spent my days either riding my beloved horse or
lounging by the pool. And guess what I did by the pool
besides irreparably damaging my skin?
(That is, when I wasn't getting paid
for being the lifeguard--and sometimes even when I was
lifeguarding because Mt. St. Helens cracked one of the
pools I worked at when she erupted and the cold water they
had to constantly pump in kept the kiddies away.)
I read romance novels, of course.
I started with my mom's Harlequins and
Silhouettes, then when I grew older--no, really, I was
a good kid--I added the thick ones, with all the history
and sagas. Not once did I imagine I would eventually try
to write a romance novel of my own. And actually finish
it, let alone sell it. I always had a half knitted sweater
under my bed. Though, right now it's a half cross-stitched
Christmas stocking in the closet.
But when I married a man in construction
management after graduating from the University of Washington
with a degree in Communications and had to move around
some, I thought, well, writing a book beat the heck out
of watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoons (before
anyone else knew about them. Sad, I know).
Needless to say, I had a lot to learn.
But the beauty of it all is I finally
ended up selling my first book (not the first one I wrote--oh,
no, I wasn't that fast a learner) to the publisher of the
first romance novels I read. Harlequin has made a dream
come true for me, and will hopefully keep me busy for many
years to come here in Portland, Oregon while I raise my
two boys, ride herd on our golden retriever puppy, and
try not to make my husband stop and pick up dinner on his
way home too often.
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At the RWA annual Readers for Life literacy benefit booksigning in Reno, Summer 2005 (above), Dallas, 2004 (below) and
at the same event in 2002 in Denver (below). We sit in alphabetical order in a huge ballroom, hundreds of us. As Vale is towards
the end of the alphabet, no one was behind me, but I could see the whole packed ballroom. Fun was had by all. See photo from
the most recent events.
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