Absolutely. I discovered The Boxcar Children in the second grade, and turned into a voracious reader who had to be told books were not acceptable at the dinner table. When asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always answered "an author." I couldn't imagine anything better than creating the stories that I loved so much. Sure enough, eventually my love of reading evolved into a love of writing. English/Language Arts was always my favorite subject in school. And though I was a Political Science major in college, all of my electives were Creative Writing related.

Did you always know you wanted to be a writer?

the interview:

I'd love to say that I followed my writing dreams immediately, but the truth is I let myself get sucked into "real world expectations" after graduating from college. I entered the corporate world, and for several years, I told myself that having a stable income and 401k was "good enough." My life became a loop of counting down to Friday, only to immediately start dreading Monday.  For years, I made a lot of noise about how I wished I could be a writer. If only I had more time! And the right space! And none of these pesky other obligations! From age 22-28, I did a lot of daydreaming about writing, and excuse-making for why I didn't have the time. I did not, however, do a lot of writing. In 2011, I got sick of being the woman who always talked about wanting to publish a book, but never put in the actual work. I finished the book on nights and weekends while still at my day job. Only With You was published in 2014.

When did you start writing novels?

I'm not sure it ever really occurred to me to write anything else! Long before I discovered that there was an entire billion-dollar industry devoted to books with a romantic focus, I was reading Nancy Drew for the too-few Ned Nickerson references, and avidly scouring the Sweet Valley books for Todd & Elizabeth moments. I even read Dickens for the romance, and I'm still ticked at the ending of Tale of Two Cities! By the time I discovered Nora Roberts, Sandra Brown, and Judith McNaught in high school, my writing fate was pretty much sealed. Of course, back then, I didn't realize the intense scorn the romance genre is subjected to. But even had I known I was signing up for a lifetime of listening to "friends" and strangers deride my books as trash, porn, smut and fluff, I wouldn't change a thing. I write about love, relationships, and happiness. I can't imagine a more lovely career choice.

Why romance?

It starts at 5am. The alarm goes off, coffee gets made. I grab my journal and whatever nonfiction book I'm currently reading, and that's my first hour.

The laptop opens around 6am, and I get started on my work-in-progress. I usually write from bed because that's where the words seem to flow best. Though, with each passing year, I wish The Muse cared a bit more about ergonomics!

I used to try to write every single day, because that's what the "experts" said real writers do. And I thought it was the only way to be a Real Writer.

But these days, I embrace my natural rhythm, which is more of a "binge writing" model. I like to get the first draft done as quickly as possible while it feels fresh. I generally write 5-10k per day while working on a book, and finish a first draft within a couple weeks. I wish someone told me when I started out that there's no "one right way" to approach writing a book. It's whatever works for you.

What's your writing day look like?