And our Sue's Clues Mystery Author is:

Our Mystery Author this round is Kimberly Lang.

Fairly new to the market, Ms. Lang has taken time to let us get to know her a little better. When you are done getting acquainted here, be sure to visit her at her website: http://booksbykimberly.com/

Thanks, Kimberly!

1. Tell us about your family?

My Darling Geek was my college sweetheart, whom I met while I was studying at the University of Manchester in England. We just celebrated our 14th anniversary this month! Our Amazing Child is eight – she’s a very bright and clever girl who manages to balance out the artistic side she got from me with the geekiness she inherited from her father. Both of them have been very supportive of my writing since the very beginning – willing to cook and clean on their own while I’m under the deadline gun – and they’re both very proud of what I’ve accomplished. It’s almost embarrassing to go into a bookstore with them because they’ll drag strangers over to show them my book.

2. Are you still a school teacher? I believe I saw that you taught English?

I taught Composition, Literature, and English as a Second Language at a couple of local Universities for five or six years. I liked teaching, but I didn’t like grading very much, and sadly, that’s part of the job. I was slowly getting out of teaching as I started to spend more time on my writing, and I taught my last class just a couple of weeks before I sold my first book. It sounds terrible, but I don’t miss it at all. Patience is not one of my virtues, and it’s a necessity for successful teaching. I far prefer being a writer!

3. When did you decide to start writing?

I said I was going to write romance all the way back when I was in high school, but so many other things seemed to take precedence: college, grad school, “real” jobs, motherhood… But in 2004, something just seemed to finally give me that push I needed to put myself in a chair and actually write the story in my head. I wish I knew what that magical thing was, but I remember thinking, “Okay, this is it. You’re going to write.” And I did.

4. It really hasn't been too long since your first book was published. What was that like - getting 'the call', book signings, seeing it on the shelf?

I got my “call” on May 2, 2008 (at 10:15 a.m. – not that I made a note of it or anything), and it’s been the most amazing roller-coaster ride since then. The exhilaration of having my dream validated, the terror of realizing thousands of people are going to be reading my book, the thrill of holding my book and opening it up to see something I wrote on the teaser page. I’ll admit I got a little teary the first time I saw my book on the shelf. There are downs, too – less-than-stellar reviews, readers who didn’t like something – but the sheer joy of writing (and getting paid for it!) totally makes up for that.

5. In your photo gallery I see you went to Scotland. That is on my 'do before I die' list (hopefully, I'll do it sooner than later). What should I do when I get there? Any recommendations?

This may sound like bragging, but I go to Scotland every year. My Darling Geek grew up outside Glasgow, and his parents now live in the northwest part of the country. As the best daughter-in-law ever, I take my daughter over every summer to spend time with her grandparents. Even with my frequent trips, I still haven’t seen half of what I’d like. Really, you can’t go wrong no matter where you go in Scotland. Edinburgh has the history, Glasgow is very cosmopolitan, and the Highlands are simply beautiful and awe-inspiring. I recommend you get a car and drive through the Highlands and just stop in whatever village catches your eye. Go to the local pub and talk to folks – the people are friendly and hospitable and they’ll point you in the direction of the neat things to see in the area. And, of course, make sure you see a few castles.

6. Tell us about living in Alabama. My oldest daughter has decided she wants to live there- and she only drove through going to New Orleans – and I'm curious what could have made her decide this. What makes it so special?

I love Alabama, as odd as that might sound to folks who’ve never been here. We have mountains and lakes in the north and beaches in the south and the best food ever in-between. It’s hot and humid in the summer, but pretty mild otherwise. (I recently wrote a post for the Pink Heart Society blog about Alabama on 9/22, extolling the wonders of my home state: http://pinkheartsociety.blogspot.com/2009/09/travel-tuesday-sweet-home-alabama.html) I actually live in North Alabama, home of NASA and the Space and Rocket Center, so we’re pretty techie up here. Lots of engineers and physicists. But the state offers a little bit of everything for everyone—Old South or New South.

Your oldest daughter has excellent taste. We will welcome her with open arms and a glass of sweet iced tea.

7. Any hobbies? What do you like to do when you are not writing?

I’m very rarely not writing these days, and on those few days I’m not, I’m usually trying to catch up on everything I let slide while I was writing! I don’t really have a hobby (and now I feel a bit strange about that). I read a lot, I’m addicted to the internet, and I take ballet classes when I have time. I’m trying to teach myself to knit, but that’s been a total disaster so far.

8. What and who do you like to read?

Oh, that’s a dangerous question. My TBR pile has reached astounding heights that seem to defy gravity. I read all the Modern Heat releases, of course, and I’m a long-time addict of big, fat historicals. But my tastes are varied, so I have everything from Harlequin Blazes to Linda Howard’s newest in the queue.

9. Tell us about your upcoming release, THE MILLIONAIRE'S MISBEHAVING MISTRESS?

I love this book. It’s very southern in subject and tone, and I felt very much in my comfort zone as I wrote it. I have a fascination with etiquette, so there’s a little bit of me in my heroine, Gwen. I had a lot of fun writing it, and I just hope readers love the characters as much as I do. The book blurb does a good job summing up the story: Perfect, polite…and passionate!

As Dallas’s most eligible bachelor and heir to his family’s fortune, billionaire Will Harrison knows how to handle the paparazzi – but his little sister Evie is a worry…

Miss Behavior, etiquette expert Gwen Sawyer, has only three weeks to work her magic on Evie before a society ball, and so moves into Will’s luxurious penthouse. However she discovers too late that etiquette is the last thing on devilishly handsome Will’s mind…