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More about Margaret

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Award-winning author Margaret Moore actually began her career at the age of eight, when she and a friend concocted stories featuring a lovely, spirited damsel and a handsome, misunderstood thief nicknamed "The Red Sheik."

Unknowingly pursuing her destiny, Margaret graduated with distinction from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature. During that time, she also became a Leading Wren with the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve, where she learned to use a variety of weapons and had the weepy experience of being tear-gassed.
In addition to being a wife and mother of two, she's also been an award-winning public speaker, synchronized swimmer, an archer, and studied fencing and ballroom dancing.
Margaret sold her first historical romance and the premiere book of her Warrior series, A WARRIOR'S HEART, to Harlequin Historicals® in 1991. Since that time, she's written over 40 historical romance novels and novellas for Harlequin Historicals®, HQN Books and Avon Books, as well as a young adult historical romance for HarperCollins Childrens Books.

Her books have been published in France, Italy, Germany, Great Britain, Australia, Belgium, Switzerland, Brazil, Korea, Japan, Sweden, the Netherlands, Russia, Poland and India.

Margaret answers some frequently asked questions:

Do I have to read your series books in order?

No. Of course, I think it's better if you can, but I don't assume my readers have read all the books in a series. I don't want any reader to be scratching her head, feeling like she's not "in" on an "in-joke." If you've read previous books in a series, and characters from previous books appear, I think of that as a bonus for you.

How long does it take you to write a book?
It varies, depending on several factors. If it's a sequel, that's a faster write, because I've already "met" at least one of the major characters. It also depends upon what else is going on in my life, and of course, deadlines. I HATE missing deadlines, so I do my very best not to.

Do you have a favorite among your own books?
That's a really tough question! The books that come easily (and I've had three out of thirty!) are generally remembered more fondly, and that tends to go hand in hand with a really vivid character.

So which of my books seemed to be like gifts of the gods?
A NORMAN'S HEART (the first time I wrote about Sir Roger de Montmorency, he was just THERE, fully formed, in my head). A WARRIOR'S BRIDE was fun and easy -- but I'd known Sir George for at least two books, so he was really rarin' to go. And lastly, THE OVERLORD'S BRIDE. Lord Kirkheathe (aka The Voice) was so vivid to me, I couldn't wait to write about him -- and in fact, I started his book when I was supposed to be working on another, which caused me to make a somewhat panicked call to New York! Fortunately, my editor was okay with the change in schedule.

Do you have a writing schedule?
The short answer is, No. This varies with what else is going on in my life, and where I am in the process. The first draft is a slower process, because I'm making decisions constantly. Once I've got the first draft done (so I have a solid idea -- finally -- of what's going to happen), the subsequent drafts go faster. And I do at least two more complete drafts, and many, many rewrites/edits/revisions of individual scenes.

Want to know what books Margaret uses for research?
Look in her Library.

Are you an aspiring author and want to know if Margaret has any advice?
Check out her articles for aspiring writers.

If you can't find the information about Margaret or her books that you wish, you may email Margaret at maggiejmoore @ yahoo.com (no spaces).
FYI, Margaret has been advised not to respond to requests for autographs or autographed items.