Justine Dare
Pseudonym: Justine Davis.
http://www.justinedare.com
Author biographies are supposed to give you all those
statistics, books written, awards won, etc. and I will, I
promise...but first let me tell you about this ornery little
tomboy (back then, the boys had all the fun...) who was
always the one to make up the stories the neighborhood kids
would "play". For those who came of age in the
computer game era, this is something that was done usually
in the backyard, by any number of summer-bored children,
with props where appropriate. (Did you know a 55 gallon drum
tied to a picnic bench makes a very cool horse?) It wasn't
until much later that this tomboy realized two things: A)
not everyone made up stories in their heads all the time,
and B) in real life, the boys that had already had all the
fun now seemed to always be winning.
But I digress. I was born on a farm down in
Iowa....well, not quite, but close; Boone, Iowa is in the
middle of farm country, but I arrived at a hospital. In a
snow storm. Make that a blizzard. My sister tells me she
knew my destiny when I was very young, because when I first
saw the Disney classic Old Yeller, I was apparently so upset
that I promptly went home and rewrote the story. In my
version, the dog lived, of course. Should have been a clue.
Possibly in response to that blizzard I was born
in, I've been a West Coaster since before I was a year old,
and intend to stay that way. I have a history of staying. I
started my first full time job right out of school (well,
there was a very brief sojourn at a place where they made,
among other things, burial vaults, but I prefer not to
recall that one...) and stayed for twenty-one years. I've
been married to the same wonderful guy for going on two
decades now. We lived in our last house for seventeen years.
(I won't even mention how many dumpsters we filled moving
after that long....)
Readers seem as fascinated by my first career as
they are with my writing. My time in law enforcement was
many things, exciting, nerve wracking, and irritating, but
most importantly never, ever boring. It was fascinating
enough that I didn't think about writing seriously for
several years. I kept a journal, and wrote long letters,
collected quotes, mentally rewrote movies, and still made up
those stories in my head, but never dreamed of actually
writing for publication. I was having too much fun helping
to catch bad guys, and being continually amazed at the
situations people get themselves into. And eventually I
walked away with a wealth of background and story ideas, and
knowing some truly great people who work very hard to keep
all of us safe. I'm proud to have been one of them, and I'm
very aware that I have had the great good fortune of having
had two jobs in my life that I love. Many people don't get
even one.
But now that I'm in the delicious position of being
able to make a living telling those stories in my head, I
promise my readers two things: A) I'm staying—I'll keep
writing as long as you keep reading, and B) in my stories,
the girl—tomboy or not—always wins!
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And now, the official stats:
Justine Dare Davis sold her first book in 1989, and
followed that up with the sale of nineteen novels in less
than two years. Her first four books were published in 1991,
and she saw all reach the finals for either the Romantic
Times Reviewer's Choice Award or the Romance Writers of
America prestigious RITA Award. She has since won the RITA
award four times, along with several Reviewer's Choice
awards and three Career Achievement awards from Romantic
Times. At the 1998 national conference, Justine was inducted
into the RWA Hall of Fame, making her one of a very select
group of just eight writers. She also had four titles on the
Romantic Times "Top 200 of All Time" list. Her
sales now total more than 45, and her books have appeared
regularly on best seller lists, including the USA Today
list. She has been featured in several local newspapers and
nationwide by Associated Press, has appeared on CNN, and on
two episodes of a cable television series on romance. She
has given workshops for many chapters of RWA, has spoken at
several regional and international conferences and has
taught at the UCLA Writer's Program. She is also featured in
North American Romance Writers, an academic reference on the
romance genre.
Her limited free time is spent on reading, music,
photography, watching the eagles near her home, and driving
her restored 1967 Corvette Roadster—top down, of course.
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Books
A Stockingful of Joy
October 4, 2005
Enjoy the magical spirit of Christmas in four timeless
romances created especially for this holiday collection.
The Best Husband Money Can Buy by Mary Jo
Putney
An unexpected legacy sweeps a governess to a Read more...
Avenging Angel
December 1, 2002
Now in her most powerful romantic thriller to date, Dare
follows the trail of a killer who makes men pay for their
crimes—with their lives. Newspapers dub him The
Avenger, Read more...
High Stakes
November 5, 2001
Stocking Full of Joy
November 1, 1997
Just in time for the Christmas season--four of romance's
best-loved writers contribute timeless, passionate stories
created especially for this collection! Bestselling authors
Jill Barnett, Mary Jo Putney, Justine Dare, and Read more...
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