Maureen Child is a native Southern Californian who is still waiting for evidence that autumn actually exists. She's written 40 books since making her first sale in 1990, and is as excited about writing today as she was then.

When she's not writing, Maureen and her husband like to travel, and usually drag her parents along for the ride. There's nothing quite like a road trip with three people reading different maps and shouting instructions to the poor driver, Maureen's long-suffering husband. But all that traveling gives her a lot of research material for more books.

When she's at home, Maureen rides herd on a busy house filled with two grown children, their assorted friends, and the world's most confused golden retriever, Abbey. Abbey, unfortunately, is afraid of the wind. She knows something is out there, but she can't see it, and refuses to leave the shelter of the house alone on windy days. So look for Maureen on cold, windy nights. She'll be in the backyard, holding Abbey's paw.

Maureen loves to hear from fans. You can write her at: Maureen Child, P.O. Box 1883, Westminster, CA 92684-1883.


Heather grew up in Dade County, Florida, and attended the University of South Florida at Tampa, majoring in theater arts and touring Europe and parts of Asia and Africa as part of her studies. After college, she acted in dinner theaters, modeled, waitressed, and tended bar. After the birth of her third child, she was determined to devote her efforts to her writing: her dream. She sold her first book in 1982.

Today, this author's success is reflected not just by reader response and the over 20 million copies of her books in print, but in many other ways. In addition to being a New York Times bestselling author, Heather has received numerous awards for her novels, including over 20 trade awards from magazines such as Romantic Times and Affaire de Coeur, bestseller awards from B. Dalton, Waldenbooks, and BookRak, and several Reviewers' Choice and People's Choice awards.

Heather has appeared on Entertainment Tonight, Romantically Speaking, a TV talk show that aired nationwide on the Romance Classics cable channel, and CBS Sunday News. She has been quoted in People and USA Today, been profiled in The Nation, and featured in Good Housekeeping. Her books have been selections for the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild. She has been published across the world in more than 15 languages and has published over 70 titles, including anthologies and short stories.

Somehow, this prolific author manages to juggle it all-- family, career, and marriage -- while reaching a level of success to which few can aspire.


Barbara penned--well penciled, actually--her first major work of fiction at the age of eight. It was entitled How the Giraffe Got His Long Neck and was released to rave reviews. Unfortunately, the print run of one copy hindered distribution. But the experience whet her appetite for celebrity and acclaim.

Three years later she became a reporter for the venerated publication The Berry Street Times. With a circulation of 11, this forum allowed Barbara to reach even more faithful readers.

After writing her first romance manuscript, she discovered the efficiency of word processing and email distribution. Her beleaguered friends and relatives courageously plowed through each and every story, continuing to provide encouraging feedback.

When Harlequin offered to publish Barbara's stories under the Duets and Temptation imprints, it was a dream come true. Not only are her friends and relatives still compelled to read her stories, but they now enjoy the privilege of paying for them and placing them in prominent positions in their homes. Barbara knows this, because she routinely checks their bookcases while listening to their effusive compliments and wondering what could possibly have caused all those peculiar facial tics.

If you'd like to visit Barbara's web site, please go to www.barbaradunlop.com. She loves to receive email. The address is bdunlop@yknet.yk.ca.


Emilie lives in North Carolina with her college sweetheart husband and four sons. Her love for romance novels developed when she was 12 years old and her mother hid them under sofa cushions each time Emilie entered the room.

Emilie grew up riding and showing horses and chasing after her older brothers. More often than not, she had to bribe her way into being included.

She's a devoted baseball mom during the season and can usually be found in the bleachers watching one of her sons play, or at a Durham Bulls game. If there's a rodeo in town or on T.V., you'll find her watching.

Emilie's hobbies include quilting, cooking (especially baking cheesecake), and anything cowboy. Emilie's a country music fan because there's an entire book in nearly every song. Her favorite T.V. shows include ER, CSI, Boston Public, and the Discovery Channel's medical and nature programs.

A sucker for any stray, Emilie has been known to bring home orphaned squirrels, bunnies, and kittens, much to her sons' delight. She is also a lover of anything cute and fuzzy, which explains the incredible variety of pets her children have had. Thanks to her older brothers, she's also not quite intolerant of the not so cute and fuzzy reptile pets.

Letters can be mailed to Emilie at P.O. Box 20145, Raleigh, NC, 27619, or via email to EmilieRoseC@aol.com.


While still in her teens, Anna DePalo began her first novel. She wishes she could say this early manuscript went on to receive numerous accolades and bring her fame and fortune. Instead, that first attempt--well, all three pages of it--hit the trash heap, and she understood why many authors throughout history have burned their papers for posterity.

Anna went on to live in Italy and England, graduate from Harvard, earn an advanced degree in political science, practice intellectual property law, and marry the man of her dreams.

One day, Anna decided to give fiction writing another try, believing that having done some more living would help her tell the truth about life in the pages of made-up stories. This time she didn't stop at three pages--or even 93. Writing during weekends and evenings, after working long days as an attorney, she finally typed her first "The End." That first finished manuscript, Having the Tycoon's Baby, soon sold to the Silhouette series, became a bestseller and award winner, and has been published in over 10 countries to date.

These days, Anna has happily traded a lawyer's navy-blue suits for a full-time writer's blue jeans and is given to toasting new story beginnings while ensconced in front of her home-office computer. Readers can contact her through her web site at www.annadepalo.com or directly at anna@annadepalo.com.

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