Welcome to our New Faces column, where you can meet some of the newest romance authors on yoru local bookshelves. This time we're chatting with Elizabeth English, whose first release is The Border Bride, a Jove historical romance.

Welcome, Elizabeth! Tell us about yourself.

I spent most of my childhood in a small town in northern New Jersey, a place with plenty of woods and streams and rolling hills. Then my family relocated to San Diego, where we lived on the edge of the ocean. I have always been an avid reader and as a child, I used to imagine that one day a frog would actually hop up and start talking to me...or a mermaid would surface from a wave...or a pirate would swing in through the classroom window with a cutlass in his teeth. But for some odd reason none of those things ever happened. Instead, I grew up, traveled for a bit, then went to college and began a series of jobs.

These days I live outside Philadelphia with my husband and son and our assorted pets, and I'm lucky to have my two sisters, various aunts and uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews nearby. Now that I'm officially a writer, I have an excuse to indulge in my favorite hobby: lying around, cup of tea in hand, and staring into space. Other hobbies include playing with my son, folk dancing with my husband, and playing the recorder.

Are you coming to romance writing from another job?

In the past I have worked as an accountant, a bartender, and a door-to-door canvasser for an environmental group. I finally found my niche as a technical writer and editor with a consulting firm outside Philadelphia. My co-workers are fascinating people and they're all incredibly supportive of my fiction writing (including the staring into space thing, which I try to keep to a minimum during working hours).

What led you to write romance?

Romance, historical fiction, fantasy, mysteries--I read them all as fast as I can get my hands on them. To me, genre isn't nearly as important as character. Give me a character I care about, and I'll be turning pages until the story's done. I started writing when I couldn't find exactly the story I wanted, and it was truly a magical experience. There they were, all my old friends--the frogs, the mermaids, the pirates; in different forms, maybe, but still recognizable to me. They sprung to life, just as I somehow always knew they would. My first short stories were fantasy, but as I developed as a writer, I was increasingly drawn to romance, which is one of my very favorite things (in real life and in fiction).

Tell us about your road to publication.

When I finally got up the nerve to submit my first short story (helped along by a hefty push by my family) it was accepted by Marion Zimmer Bradley for her Fantasy Magazine. Since that time, I've had two stories and a novella published in the magazine Romance and Beyond. But even as I was working on those stories, there were these Scottish characters clamoring for attention...so between work, family life, and short story writing, I began The Border Bride.

I had no idea what to do with the manuscript until I joined Romance Writers of America, an organization I cannot praise too highly. These people genuinely want to see new writers succeed and are always ready to go out of their way to provide encouragement and advice. I listened, learned, polished, and revised, then entered RWA's Golden Heart contest. After that, things seemed to happen very quickly. When my entry finaled, it brought me to the attention of my agent, Jenny Bent, who sold the manuscript to Cindy Hwang of Berkley/Jove, one of the contest judges. By that time, I had written the sequel, and I was thrilled when they bought that, as well.

What kind of research was involved for your first book?

In a way, I've been researching this book all my life. Since reading Anya Seton's Katherine as a teenager, I have been enthralled by fourteenth century England. I read everything I could find on the subject--fiction and non-fiction--and during college did several papers on Chaucer and his times. Thomas Costain's The Three Edwards and Barbara Tuchman's A Distant Mirror are two books I revisit regularly.

My interest in Scotland was inspired by the Scottish folk band, "Old Blind Dogs." I fell in love with the stories, the music--and, of course, the accent. I began researching Scotland for the fun of it, and when I sat down to write my own story, it felt natural to combine the two.

Who are your influences as a writer?

There are so many! A quick glance at my "keeper" bookshelf and I see...Alexander Dumas, Norah Lofts, Edmund Rostand, T.H. White, Anya Seton, Robert B. Parker, Jayne Anne Krentz, Dick Francis, Miranda Jarrett, Ellis Peters, Marion Zimmer Bradley, J.R.R. Tolkien, Susan Howatch, Norah Roberts, Agatha Christie...I could go on and on.

What does your family think of having a romance author in their midst?

One of my sisters is my Constant Reader, editor, and source of endless good advice. My other sister bought me my first Writer's Market and insisted I take my writing seriously. But the honors go to my husband. Not only is he my inspiration, he is also the hero who picks up the slack while I'm drifting off into the fourteenth century. My son is still too young to get the whole picture, but he understands how important my "own work" is to me and does his very best to be patient.

Tell us about plans for future books.

Laird of the Mist (sequel to The Border Bride) is the second in the Highland Fling series and is scheduled for release in January 2002. After that...I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

How can readers get in touch with you?

I would love to hear from readers! My address is P.O. Box 539, Kimberton, PA 19442

Elizabeth, thanks for joining us,a nd best of luck! Readers, we have a review of The Border Bride o our Historical page.

November 10, 2001