First place (GOLD) winner in the Romance category of the 2013 Independent Publisher (IPPY) awards for THE LAST OF LADY LANSDOWN. I was born and raised in Fresno, California, where I graduated from Fresno High School. I lived in Canada for many years, enjoying skiing and riding horses, and am a graduate of the University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada with a B.S. in Computer Science. I've had many jobs in my lifetime, including working for several years as a computer programmer/analyst. However, my true passion has always been writing, so I quit my day job (something you're never supposed to do) and started writing Regency romances. After publishing several Regencies with Ballantine, Signet, and Camel Press, I switched genres. Now I'm writing western romances for Kensington Lyrical Press, all taking place in the Gold Rush days of the 1850's. I love this period of time. There's so much to write about! With my shelves full of research books, I doubt I'll change genres again. I have two daughters and am forever proud of their accomplishments—and grateful, too, that both are the kind of loving, supportive daughters every mother hopes she'll have. I live in Las Vegas, Nevada, where I belong to the Las Vegas chapter of Romance Writers of America. I love hearing from my readers and can be reached at mailto:shirleyken360@gmail.com