I was asked to pull together some fun facts for my publisher and thought you all might want to take a peek. . . .

• I was given my first horror story to read by my dad, who, impatient at my childish choices of Trixie Belden, Nancy Drew and repeated readings of Little Women, urged me to read "real literature."  I’m quite certain he never read the story first because (a) I was only eight, (b) the story was The Pit and the Pendulum, and (c) my dad is really a nice person.  Being an obedient child, I read the whole story - then didn't sleep for weeks!
  
  
• I’m not generally superstitious, but I’ve never boarded an airplane without a romance novel since surviving a scary crash landing on a small commuter jet -- during which reading a Jude Deveraux novel kept me calm when the other passengers were freaking out. 
  
  
• I’ve traveled the world, once filling a passport and a half in three years.  My favorite foreign city is London, although Rome is right up there.
  
  
• I once ate a live fish in Japan so as not to dishonor my hosts and was then called Karen-san.  Sushi is now on my "ick" list.
  
  
• I have a degree in chemical engineering and have been a product development engineer, a database designer, and a high school chemistry & physics teacher.
  
  
• I have two patents for making Metamucil taste better.
  
  
• I met my husband on a surprise blind date in 1982.  We were seventeen.  It wasn't exactly love at first sight but it all worked out and he's been the best part of my life for almost 2/3 of it.
  
  
• I’m far from fluent, but am a capable signer and I often interpret for my deaf child.
  
  
• When not writing, I enjoy karate, skiing, and sci-fi TV - Stargate is my favorite!
  
  
• I spent my seventeenth birthday in a Guatemalan prison - I was a visiting guest and only stayed a few hours, but hearing those big doors bang shut is a sound I'll never forget.
  
  
• Faves:
• Movie – depends on my mood.  For serious drama, Chariots of Fire.  For a sweet love story, While You Were Sleeping.  For one heck of a spooky scare, The Sixth Sense.  When I want to just laugh – Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure… Bogus, dudes.  Fabulous acting – The Big Country
  
  
• TV – Law and Order (the Original and SVU), Stargate (SG-1 and Atlantis), and old Mission Impossible re-runs (Barney could fix anything)
  
  
• Food – Chocolate.  Oh, you mean serious food?  Chocolate.  Oh, you mean nutritious food?  Steak.  Lobster’s also good.  Together, they’re almost as good as chocolate.
  
  
• Music – depends on my mood and my characters.  I used to be a country fan through and through, then Aidan Reagan (YOU CAN’T HIDE) liked Aerosmith and now I do too.  Vito Ciccotelli (DIE FOE ME, Sept ’07) is into opera and I discovered Josh Groban (big, huge sigh aaaaahhhhhh!!)  I’m glad my characters have a broad range of musical interests – it’s opened my ears to many new things!

 

 

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