Garner, Sharon K.

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GARNER, Sharon K.

(Marie Kaye)

PERSONAL:

Born in Altoona, PA; father, a truck driver; mother, a homemaker; married a welder; children: one son. Ethnicity: "Irish, German, and a little Shoshone Indian thrown in to make it interesting." Politics: "Democrat in a den of Republicans." Religion: "Reluctant Lutheran." Hobbies and other interests: Reading, walking aerobics, Tiffany-style lighting, collecting crystal figurines.

ADDRESSES:

Agent—c/o Author Mail, Thorndike Press, P.O. Box 157, Thorndike, ME 04986. E-mail—sharonsbooks@penn.com.

CAREER:

Writer. Also worked as a librarian. Member of local volunteer fire company auxiliary and local friends of the library.

MEMBER:

Romance Writers of America (Kiss of Death chapter), PennWriters.

WRITINGS:

River of Dreams (romance novel), Thorndike Press (Thorndike, ME), 2000.

Lokelani Nights (romance novel), F. A. Thorpe, 2002.

Sanctuary, Five Star (Waterville, ME), 2004.

Work represented in anthologies. Contributor to periodicals, including Woman's World, Grit, Affaire de Coeur, Romantic Interludes, Romantic Bower, Confessions, Young American, and Positively Kids. Some short stories appear under the pseudonym Marie Kaye.

WORK IN PROGRESS:

The Spaniard's Cross, a romantic suspense novel set in Cornwall, England, publication by Hard Shell Word Factory (Amherst Junction, WI) expected in 2004; Pele's Tears, a romantic suspense novel set in Hawaii; research on Hawaiian coffee and Hawaiian flower farms.

SIDELIGHTS:

Sharon K. Garner told CA: "I'm a reader and an ex-librarian, so holding a copy of a book I'd written in my hands was powerful inspiration. I kept diaries as a girl, always good for blackmailing my sister.

"One of my favorite authors is Barbara Michaels, especially her 'Amelia Peabody' series. Daphne du Maurier also played a big role in inspiring me to write. When I'm reading and a passage grabs me, I analyze it to see how the author did it. I mostly read English mysteries these days.

"I dither while writing. I waste vast amounts of time, then write like a fiend. I wish I could reach a happy medium. I intersperse writing novels with writing short stories.

"Warm, exotic places fascinate me. Many scenes, even book ideas, come to me while I'm researching such places. And England calls to me. It always has. I have pen pals I've written to there since I was thirteen. Also, love and danger are a powerful mixture, one that makes my imagination kick into overdrive."