It’s one of the cardinal rules of parenthood—don’t play favorites with your kids. I think I did a pretty good of obeying that one when I was raising my family. My husband I used to tease our son and daughter when they were cranky or acting spoiled. One would ask the question, “Why did he/she get to do XYZ?” or “How come he/she got this or that gift when I only got this?” Our answer was always the same: “Because we love him/her more.” Yeah, no one said it was easy growing up with two parents who loved to mess with their kids. But they both knew that they were loved, and when they stopped to really ponder upon whatever the situation was, I’m sure they had no doubt that we never played favorites. But when it comes to my characters, well, I can’t say the same. I have to admit, a couple of my heroes and heroines rise to the top. Lucy and Dex from THE SURROGATE HUSBAND are definitely way up on that list. Lucy was speaking to me before I’d even plotted out the story! I envisioned her naturally black hair dyed hot pink, half a dozen…

Gifts come in many shapes and sizes, but I believe the most precious ones are those delivered from the heart. It’s easy to get caught up in the mayhem of life, particularly during the hustle and bustle of the Holidays, but every day, there are people amidst the chaos who help you, who take time out of their busy lives to make a difference in yours. This year, why not return that gift? This holiday season, as wrapped gifts exchange hands, I ask you to pause, reflect on those who’ve truly made a difference in your life, and if possible, find a special way to say thank you. This can be a simple gesture—something like a greeting card, a bouquet of flowers, or a heartfelt poem. Maybe you could bake someone their favorite cookies? Or, present them a coupon book filled with everyday chores, which they can tear out and give you to do on those trying days when they really need a helping hand. The absolute best gift you can offer another person is one given from the heart. And when special-delivered, without any strings attached, it touches their own. This Christmas, I’m making gift baskets filled with my…

I’m so excited to visit Fresh Fiction again and chat about my latest release and how I finally got a chance to apply some of the graduate school classes I had about ten years ago. You see, I work as a web developer now, but before that I was a graduate student in information systems. A lot of my studies were related neural networks, artificial intelligence, that kind of thing. Wow, I gotta tell you I lived in front of the computer reading academic papers and right now its so much easier to write a story than write a dissertation. The sheer amount of research was mind-boggling. (Not that I still don’t have to do research, but it’s a totally different level.) I have a feeling some would disagree, but that is a story for another day. In essence, UNDER MY SKIN is science fiction fantasy about a young woman’s fight to free herself from a man who wants to take over her body. He is a relentless general who is bent on living forever and she must learn to be courageous when she never had to be. When I was writing UNDER MY SKIN, I wanted the technology behind…

As any writer will tell you, the ideas are the (kind of) easy part – it’s the writing that’s difficult, the (sometimes magical, other times not so much!) slog that can make you lose your mind. This is (kind of) true of my debut Regency-set romp, The Hope Diamond Trilogy. I’ve wanted to write historical fiction for as long as I remember; I’ve been a fan of all things sparkly and bejeweled for almost long. (Ask my mom: when I was little – we’re talking bald baby here – I’d raid my grandmother’s jewelry drawer for her clip-on dangly earrings.) I don’t remember, exactly, when these two interests – history and jewels – crossed paths. I’m pretty sure I was researching potential ideas for my novel and came across a tantalizing morsel. Turns out the stone we would later know as the Hope Diamond materializes, mysteriously, in 1812 London after disappearing some two decades before during the tumult of the French Revolution. No one knows how the diamond – known as the French Blue, a part of the French Crown Jewels – got to London, or why, or who bought it; the next time it presence was recorded was much…