Q. Tell me a little bit about your life before you became a full-time romance novelist.
A. I grew up in the area and mostly attended Miamisburg schools, though I graduated from what is now Miami Valley Career Technology Center back in 1993, with a focus in animal care. After that, I had a variety of jobs—everything from working in a pet store, selling clothes in a department store, and working as a server at Outback Steak House, where I happened to meet my husband. In the midst of all of that, I attended the Ohio Institute of Photography and Technology and earn an Associates' Degree in graphic design.
I worked several administrative jobs and then became a PartyLite Home Décor Consultant. That was my first experience working full time from home, and I have to say, I became hooked on the flexibility of working from a home office. That was good training for the discipline to work at home as writer!
Q. That's a great background of experiences to draw from for a writer!
A. I like to call myself a "former job-hopper!"
Q. I'm assuming you were also a reader during this time?
A. Oh, yes! But I was a reader who did what you're not supposed to do — judge a book by its cover. As a teen, I loved horror books. The scarier, the better—Stephen King, Dean Koontz.
And frankly, I looked at the covers of romance novels and thought that I wouldn’t care for them.
But when I was 22, during a visit with my grandmother in Florida, I discovered that grandma and many of her friends loved romance novels. I got a kick out of how they shared books with one another. I’d run out of reading material and was desperate to read something, so I picked up one of my grandma’s romance novels. And then … another one. Grandma sent a grocery bag full of romance novels home with me. After that, I was hooked!
I read romance novels for more than ten years before I decided to try writing one.
Q. Reading in a genre is the best education for how to write in that genre. How else did you learn about the craft of writing romance novels?
A. In 2009, I was among the PartyLite consultants awarded a vacation for outstanding sales. The trip was to Cancun, Mexico, and that happened to be the year of the terrible swine flu outbreak. So, our trip was cancelled.
PartyLite did give each of us a cash award, but I was still disappointed —I was really looking forward to a break from daily life! So I made my own vacation — I curled up for a full week, and read all four of the Twilight books by Stephenie Meyer.
After that, I was inspired to re-focus on writing. I pulled out a novel I’d started a few years before, and began writing again. I joined the Cincinnati chapter of the Romance Writers of America — that chapter is no longer in existence, but writers interested in the romance genre should check out the Columbus chapter.
Anyway, I went to all the craft sessions that I could. I learn best by doing, and by doing badly for a while, so I spent two and a half years writing six novels before I finally had one that I thought might be publishable.
Q. Was that "Tempting the Billionaire?"
A. Yes.
Q. How did you go about finding a publisher for that novel?
A. At the Romance Writers of America chapter meetings, I'd become friends with other members, some of whom were already publishing regularly. I talked with a writer friend, who sent my query letter to her agent via email.
Eleven minutes later, the agent emailed me and asked for an exclusive look at my novel for a short time period. Two weeks later, I signed with her. Two weeks after that, she had interest from three publishers, and sold the novel shortly after that.
I feel as though I’ve finally found what I’m meant to do as a career, what I was born to do.
Q. What is your writing routine line?
A. I write in the morning, and try to draft 3,000 words a day, 5 days a week. Afternoons are spent on marketing on social media—Facebook, Twitter, Instagram—and on editing. After a novel is accepted, there is still a lot of work to do before it's published. For each novel, I incorporate my editor's comments and suggestions, then I go through the copyedits from the copyeditor, and finally, there's a last proof.
Q. Why do you think, as both a writer and reader of romance, that the genre is important and relevant today?
A. Romance novels give readers a vacation from the day to day. Readers can relate to the characters' struggles—finding the right job, recovering from a broken heart—but also find hope as the characters ultimately find love. Romance novels are very hopeful, and I like that.
And for readers who think they won’t enjoy a romance novel, I suggest giving one or two a try. They might be surprised once they give romance novels a chance. I was!
Q. Any tips for aspiring romance writers?
A. Yes! Finish the book! You can't edit a blank page. No matter how bad the writing seems in a first draft, keep going. Just get it down and fix it later. Then, be proud you finished that first novel… but write another one. You'll learn as you go. And finally, if you really want to do this, don't give up.
About the Author