To Georgette (#12): It was my suggestion that the first three books of the Huxtable series be brought out one after another in paperback. It is always a good way to arouse reader interest in a series, and I was prepared to put in the hard work of getting the books ready in time. It was a little hectic, though, when Bantam/Dell decided to bring out Book 4 in hardcover right after the other three! It took me two years of hard writing to get the four books written. I conceived the whole quintet as a whole in the sense that I created the three sisters, a brother, and a second cousin as the heroes and heroines of the five books and included them all in all the books. I didn't plan the individual stories, though, until I started to write them.

I am British. But I have lived in Canada for longer than 40 years. And my publisher is American. So I am a bit of a hybrid. On the whole, I would say, British writers like to keep their plots and characters as true to the historical time as possible. I try not let my characters say or do anything that real Regency people would not say or do. Some American writers are a little more relaxed on this and prefer to have their heroes and heroines behave more as 21st century Americans would behave. This makes them more sympathetic to modern readers but less true to history. This is only a generalization, however, and not true of all British or American writers.

To Tiziana (#13): Asking me who my favorite characters are is a little like asking me who my favorite children are! However, of the Bedwyns, I suppose I am most attached to Wulfric, Duke of Bewcastle. I fell in love with him as soon as I created him in A SUMMER TO REMEMBER and kept building his character through the first 5 Bedwyn books. By the time I got to writing his book, I was as eager as readers to discover just who he was and who his true love would be!

My favorite hero of all? I am particularly fond of Wulfric, Kit Butler (A SUMMER TO REMEMBER), Sydman Butler (SIMPLY LOVE) Constantine Huxtable (A SECRET AFFAIR, not yet published). But I am partial to all my heroes as I create them.

To Lisa (#17): RWA (Romance Writers of America) is a huge organization of writers, mostly in the U.S. There are annual awards for both published and unpublished writers. I used to belong. One year I had three books in the finals, two in one category and one in another. Finalists had to send more copies of the book by a certain date. The Post Offie sent my books off to the wrong place, and they arrived in the right place one day late. They were disqualified! I withdrew my membership. I really haven't missed it. It is sales and placement on bestseller lists that are important to building a career. Awards are pleasant, but by the day after the awards ceremony no one can remember who won except the winner herself! I know--I have won numerous awards.

Mary Balogh