Pamela Palmer http://www.pamelapalmer.net

Pamela Palmer admits to a passion for all things paranormal, fed by years of Star Trek, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Tolkien's classic, The Lord of the Rings. Though she grew up wanting to be an astronaut (until she realized the space shuttle wasn't likely to get her beyond Earth's orbit), she became an industrial engineer for a major computer maker before surrendering to the romantic, exciting, other-worldly stories that crowded her head, demanding to be told. Her writing has won numerous awards including the prestigious Golden Heart. Pamela has been a member of WRW for more years than she cares to count and has co-coordinated both the Marlene Contest and the Harpers Ferry Retreat Programs, among other things.  #

Diane Perkins http://www.dianeperkins.us

Diane Perkins has been a member of WRW since 1995 and has served as Vice President, Marlene Coordinator, Membership Chair, and Elections Chair, as well as serving on the refreshment committee and the taping committee. In 2001 and 2002 Kathy Caskie named her "The Contest Empress" because of the number of contest finals and wins she racked up. In 2002, Diane took first and third in the Marlene, first and third in the Fabulous Five, and first and second in the Fool for Love, as well as winning the Royal Ascot. She was a Golden Heart finalist in 2001 and 2003 for her Regency Historical manuscript, Unmasked. In 2003, the Mills & Boon editor who judged Unmasked for the Golden Heart, bought the book. The manuscript Diane was once told "would never sell" went on to win the 2003 Golden Heart for best Long Historical manuscript. It was released by Mills & Boon in July 2004 as The Mysterious Miss M, written under the name Diane Gaston, and quickly became a hard-to-find title. Shortly after selling that first book, Diane received a two book contract from Warner. Her first Warner Forever, The Improper Wife (November 2004), was nominated for a Romantic Times BOOKclub Reviewers Choice Award for Best First Historical of 2004 and was a finalist in Colorado Romance Writers Award of Excellence contest. Diane is now writing full-time.  #

Jo-Ann Power http://www.jo-annpower.com

A member of WRW since 1983, Jo-Ann Power has her 17th novel on the stands in September 2006, a mystery from St. Martin's Press, Missing Member! An award-winning author known for her success in "weaving suspense, politics and romance" (Publishers Weekly), Jo-Ann has written gothics, mainstream, historical mysteries and historical romance. She was a life-long resident of the Washington metropolitan area until she became a Texan in 1996. Combining her love of writing with her 9 to 5 job, Jo-Ann owns Power Promotions, a public relations company serving publishers and authors. She is delighted to return to bookshelves with her new mystery series after a true sabbatical of 7 years!  #

Emilie Richards http://www.emilierichards.com/

Emilie Richards is the author of fifty something books. She has a RITA, a trunkful of finalist ribbons and several career achievement awards from Romantic Times. She was also the recipient of an RWA award for the best romance to portray a significant social issue. Emilie writes fiction for Mira books and a cozy mystery series for Berkley.   #

Melissa Schroeder http://www.melissaschroeder.net

Since her first published book in 2004, Melissa Schroeder has had over 25 short stories, novellas, and novels with 7 different publishers in genres ranging from historical to futuristic, from sensual to erotic. She was nominated in 2005 for an Eppie in the Contemporary Romance Category for her story The Hired Hand, while also hitting number twelve on the international best seller list for ebooks in June of the same year with her contemporary erotic romantic comedy, A Little Harmless Sex. She is married to an AF major and they have two daughters, and one adopted dog daughter. She is happy to finally live somewhere the bugs die in the winter.   #

Kathleen Gilles Seidel http://www.kathleengillesseidel.com/

Kathleen Gilles Seidel has written twelve contemporary romances, the first of which was a launch title for the Harlequin American Romances line. Others have been published by NAL, Pocket, HarperCollins, and Avon. She has won every major romance market award, including two RITAs, but is proudest of Harlequin readers once voting her After All These Years as their all-time favorite Harlequin novel. She has a Ph.D. in English literature from Johns Hopkins and was the second president of WRW, serving for two years. Her first hardcover, A Most Uncommon Degree of Popularity, will be published by St. Martin's Press in March 2006.   #