Lyn's foray into book-length fiction began in the early '90s, and she signed her first contract with Harlequin Historicals on Valentine's Day, 1996. "Flowers, candy, kisses, and a book sale, too! There will never be another day quite like that one!" she says. "I always loved to write and even got excited about doing reports and term papers. I neglected other homework just to make that short story for English class as riveting as I possibly could." Even so, she never really considered writing as a career until much later. Instead, Lyn studied art and worked in Europe while she visited the places she now writes about in her historicals. At that time, she was painting those sights and selling pictures. While working at Boeing as an illustrator, she had the idea of trying to freelance book covers. Since she liked to paint faces and figures, romance novels seemed a logical choice. However, the field of cover art is highly competitive and she discovered it would take a great deal of research and preparation. While studying the market on covers, she became firmly hooked on the contents of the books and decided to try writing instead. "Definitely one of my better decisions," she admits. She is still an avid romance reader and manages to read an average of four per week in addition to one or two books outside the genre. Lyn feels a special affinity for England and Scotland with their wonderful castles and intriguing history. The American South and Southwest are her favorite settings for contemporary adventures. She and her husband, Allen, both natives of Georgia, live in North Alabama near their two children and four grandchildren. "The family contributes to my research," Lyn says. "They buy me books, clip articles, sketch costumes, and sometimes act out scenes. Even the grandchildren serve as inspiration for the younger characters."