20 Years of Writing Romance

It's hard for me to believe but this October will be twenty years since my first romance novel was published.  Happily it was published by Harlequin (then Silhouette) Desire.  My first book was called THE BACHELOR NEXT DOOR and I still love it.  It's about a single mom, a sexy neighbor and a kid who's a little too smart for himself.  It was the culmination of three years of writing and submitting and the third manuscript I'd completed.  Here is the cover.

At the time Desire was celebrating their 15th anniversary and had this cover design that was different from their normal ones.  I loved it but then again any cover with my name on it would have beautiful to me!

I was part of a special promotion at the time called Woman To Watch.  I got to do a bunch of interview questions that were included in the book.

Here is the interview:

What was your inspiration for THE BACHELOR NEXT DOOR?

KG: My family.  In developing my hero and heroine, that importance of family came across.  I especially needed a key to who Rafe Santini was.  Rafe had a strong sense of family…so I took his away from him and left him with the guilt of their deaths.  The want of family is still strong within Rafe, but he beleives he will destroy anyone he cares for.

What about the Desire line appeals to you as a reader and as a writer?

KG: It’s fast paced, sometimes serious and sometimes funny, but always sensual.

Why is this book special to you?

KG: Because of Rafe Santini. I fell in love with the lonely playboy who lives across the street from the heroine and her son.  While I was writing this book, for the first time I was able to deal honestly with the emotions my characters were feeling.  I learned a lot about myself as a writer from it.  I set the story in Florida where I was born and raised, because I love this state.

Any additional information about yourself or your book?

KG: After I won the Georgia Romance Writers Maggie award for this book, I was serenaded by an entire Marine Corps unit in the bar.  It was very exciting and fun.

All of that made my first release very special.  I was so excited about the book coming out I took the day off from work (I was a secretary at Walt Disney World in Florida) and my mom, my five-year-old daughter and infant son drove to all the WaldenBooks in our county (I think there were 5) and took a picture of the book on the shelf at each one.

On October 1st I will release my 69th book from Harlequin and I'm just as excited as I was when my first book came out.

I started writing because I wanted to be able to stay at home when my kids were growing up and I loved to read.  I feel so lucky that it has become my career. I can't imagine life without writing.

Tell me something you are passionate about and I'll enter you to win an autographed copy of my latest release BILLIONAIRE'S BABY BIND.