Biography

I am a strong believer in fate and destiny. I had been writing steadily for six years, but I could not seem to break into publishing. After 99 rejections and more than ten novels under my belt, I was ready to give up.

As fate would have it, I was in attendance at NJRW's (New Jersey Romance Writer's) January meeting last year. Author Amanda Harte announced to the group that one of her publishers, Avalon Books, was about to start accepting manuscripts for their new historical line. While I was excited about the prospect, I had reservations. All three of my historicals were 100,000 words, and Avalon's word count could not excede 60,000. I was not used to writing within stringent guidelines, and Avalon has a specific audience (the library market across the United States), and guidelines.

But I was determined to give it one last shot. I have always loved watching Westerns…John Wayne and Gary Cooper are favorites of mine…but I had never written one before. For some reason, I could just imagine a feisty Irish immigrant…Margaret Mary Flaherty…traveling cross country by herself, in a bid to help her brother save his ranch, and getting into more trouble than she bargained for. When I'd finished the first three chapters and the synopsis, I said a quick prayer and sent it off to Avalon.

I received the partial back, with a letter advising that if I was willing to cut down on the number of religious references, that they would be willing to look at the partial again. I really didn't think I could, after all Margaret Mary Flaherty was an Irish Catholic immigrant! She was religious. During a lunch date with two writer friends, Terri Brisbin and Terri Castoro, I told them my news. They immediately asked when I planned on doing the revisions. I told them I didn't. They were incensed on my behalf, and by the time lunch was over, I was convinced that I could do it.

This time I didn't receive my partial back; I received "The Call!" There are many friends that I have made since joining RWA and NJRW in 1995, if not for them, I would have given up long ago and made quite a bundle on the garage sale I planned on having selling all of my research books. But I would never have known the joy seeing one of my stories published, knowing that my words will be read by others, and maybe, just maybe make a difference in their lives…if only to take them away on a mini-vacation back to 1870s Colorado.

But fate wasn't through with me yet. Another Avalon author, Kathryn Quick was showing us her latest book…Jessie's Wedding…and explaining that the adorable cover photo of a ring-bearer and flower girl, was indeed her now grown-up son. I asked her how she convinced her publisher to use the photo on the cover. She simply said, she asked them.

My main character is named for my great-grandmother. I have a beautiful cameo photo of her that sits atop my mantelpiece, and I thought…why not ask? It wasn't as if I hadn't heard the word "No" before. <g> My editor said she'd see what she could do. I'm delighted to say that they incorporated Margaret Mary Flaherty's cameo in the cover art. She was nineteen or twenty at the time…I believe somewhere around the late 1890s/early 1900s.

Fate, destiny and love-at-first-sight play a large part in The Marshal's Destiny, but they also played a major role in my life twenty-seven years ago. I saw Dave for the first time, and cannot explain the feeling other than to say, "I knew he was the man I was going to marry." Four years of dating and twenty-three years of marriage have not dimmed the love I feel for him. He is the hero in all of my books. Each and every hero I write about has a few of Dave's best qualities, his honesty, his integrity, his compassion for those in need, and his killer broad shoulders (I'm such a sucker for a man with broad shoulders <g>). We've been blessed with three wonderful children, two sons and a daughter in the middle. As we prepare to send our oldest off to college in the Fall, I wonder if he, like his father, will come home on break from college and meet his destiny.

~C.H. Admirand

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Do you have some old dolls in the attic? If you have an old doll that's just collecting dust, or that's stored away in a box somewhere... Author Laura Mills-Alcott and her daughter restore old dolls from the 1920s - 1940s. They are currently buying dolls for a very special project, and may be interested in buying YOUR doll(s).  To find out more click here.

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