Members

Donnell Ann Bell
Donnell Ann Bell is a two time Golden Heart finalist, once in 2007 for Walk Away Joe and, this year, in 2010 for Deadly Recall.  She loves romantic suspense, and loves being a member of Heartbeat. because let’s face it, you have to have a lot of medical expertise (and camaraderie) when you’re bumping off bad guys and victims. A former court reporter and medical transcriptionist, and the daughter of a R.N., Donnell feels right at home in RWA’s one and only Medical Chapter. 

Barbara Burnham
Barbara Burnham is a nurse editor who currently works in a medical ICU in Northern Virginia. Her previous nursing experience includes neonatal and cardiac intensive care as well as home health. Her editing experience includes a term as editor of the Baltimore/Washington, DC Metro edition of Nursing Spectrum and a semester as a reporter on Capitol Hill. Some of her favorite stories include Herb of Peaches and Herb fame searching for his longtime signing partner and a contest that awarded elementary school children a prize and cover photo for their definition of what is special about a nurse. Barbara is currently working on contemporary series medical romance and women's fiction with medical themes.

Marie Campbell
Marie Campbell wrote seriously for awhile then put everything away for a very long time. Now she's dragging it all back out again, determined to seriously pursue this dream. She actually entered a few contests in 2008 and has been encouraged with the results. On the other hand, a very polished first chapter does not a novel make, so at this point please refer back to her 2009 resolution: write, write and write some more. Marie is a nurse with many years of experience in lots of different areas, wife to her own wonderful workaholic hero, mother of two grown children, new grandmother of one beautiful little girl, and the endlessly optimistic trainer/slave to two huge canines usually found snoring at her feet.

Deb Dufel
When Deb Dufel isn’t running after her Houdini incarnate beagle, searching the laundry for her husband’s missing socks, having in depth discussions with her sons on the value of cooking, slowly and not her norm, "let's get it done." She'll be found in her office where she brings back to life the legends of Pictii heroes, Roman warriors and scrumptious Highland Lairds.

 

Nia Fishler
Nia Fishler has written three romantic suspense and adventure novels, three novellas and is currently at work on a fourth novella. One day, she wants to write some traditional romances and medical romances, but as she learns the craft, she feels more comfortable with car chases, explosions, murder and lots of kissing, of course! She lives in California, in the Bay Area, with her husband and golden retriever. Having grown up in Squaw Valley, at Lake Tahoe, in a house on the ski slope, she remains an avid skier, a sport she luckily shares with her husband. All it took was a pair of skis with a bow around them under their first Christmas tree for her to convert her Brooklyn boy fiancé into a ski bum. That, and a few lessons, from real instructors, not Nia, whose advise was, "I don't know. Just bend your knees and point the skis downhill. Like this…"

Louise Groarke
Louise believes that dreams definitely can come true. As a registered nurse and busy mum she spent her waking hours doing things for other people. Only in her dreams was she able to dedicate time for herself to write stories and play with words. Then one day her (fairy god-) mother suggested she babysat while Louise went to a creative writing class on her evenings off. It was here Louise learnt about craft, plotting and motivation and began to develop the tools with which to craft her first novel. As a winner of RomAustralia's Hi 5 contest, a finalist in 2009 Gotcha! and a winner of the 2010 Medical Romance Editor Pitch contest, Louise hopes that her ultimate dream of seeing her stories in print will eventually come true.

Nancy Holroyd
Nancy Holroyd arrived home from her first day of Kindergarten and announced she would not go back because she was not taught to read during the two and a half hours she was in school that day. Once she learned to read she discovered it is hard to put books down. The adventures that her two favorite storybook nurses, Cherry Ames and Sue Barton, took propelled her into a nursing career. She graduated from Ellis Hospital School of Nursing and, unlike them, she focused on pediatric nursing, including working on several general pediatric units, a Peds intensive care unit, a Pediatric cardiology/oncology unit, a pediatricians’ office and as a school nurse in an integrated special education preschool—which she has done since her youngest daughter entered school. She started writing shortly after her middle child with Down syndrome was born and has had several articles and personal essays published. Now that her children are adults and she is looking down the road at retirement she is determined to find more writing time.

Jacqui Jacoby
An award winning writer and a ten year veteran of martial arts, Jacqui Jacoby's career is multi- faceted. With her trusted computerized day planner, Miguel, by her side, she is able to work in many aspects of the writing community: as an aspiring author and contributor to the Kiss of Death as well as RWR Magazine; as a chapter volunteer and contest judge, and as a workshop presenter, both live and online.

Wendy Marcus
I graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh with a Bachelors Degree in Nursing in 1986 and later received a Masters Degree in Health Care Administration from Western Connecticut State University. After years of working in hospitals, homecare, administration, case management, then in my own healthcare consulting business, I have taken a radical turn to writing romance. My article: My Harlequin Moment, was chosen as one of Harlequin's favorites and was published in their Simply Books Magazine. I am a PRO member of RWA, Heartbeat RWA, and Hudson Valley RWA. To learn more about me, I invite you to visit my blog: http://wendymarcus.blogspot.com.

Amy Strnad
Lured by the promise of adventure, Amy Strnad left a thriving Pediatric practice in Florida and headed for the Alaskan Bush. Currently she lives in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota but continues her work with the Yupik people on a part-time basis. When she is not in Alaska working, she is home with her children, helps her husband in his ongoing, one-man construction of their dream home, and spends the wee hours of every morning indulging her obsession with writing romance.

Kitty Taylor
Kitty Taylor grew up as one of two girls in a career Navy family. Many military brats in similar situations swear they never want to move again, but not Kitty. After graduating from the University of Virginia School of Nursing, she moved to Seattle for two years, and then took a position as a Department of the Army Nurse in Stuttgart, Germany. When she found that the military would provide better pay and health benefits, she joined the Air Force and stayed in for 25 years. Throughout her professional career she became increasing intrigued with writing, but the demands of her career didn't lend itself to trying story telling. Now she's retired and determined to become a published author.