And our Sue's Clues Mystery Author is:

Are you looking for a good modern day romance with a hero that reminds you of a good ol' fashioned cowboy? Or maybe a good contemp where the characters are dealing with raising, not one, but two, three or even four babies? Maybe you want a good love story that features a single Dad looking for that special lady to make his family complete. If that is the case, you'll want to pick up one of Tina Leonard's 17 novels. Her special blend of humor and realistic characters make her an author worth reading!

If you would like to taste-test one of her books with a nice, spicy western flavor (bad pun, I know lol), you're in luck. If you pop over to http://www.eharlequin.com/cms/onlinereads/readsIntro.jhtml?pageID=030714rd01001 you'll be able to sample this lady's writing. "Cowboy Lover" is a featured Online Read at the site, available for free to visitors, with a new chapter added every weekday.

Also, Tina has begun a new series, Cowboys by the Dozen. A dozen of them? Yep, 12 brothers - the Jefferson boys who live in Union Junction, TX a.k.a. Malfunctin Junction. (lol I love that... ). The first book of this series, FRISCO JOE'S FIANCÉE, is available now - just released in July 2003. Our lucky winner this round is truly lucky, indeed. We have the honor of being the only website who will be giving away an autographed copy of this book! I can't begin to tell you how flattering that is! *BG*

Tina also took the time to answer some questions so that we could all get to know her better.

1. Are you a native Texan?

I was born in Pensacola Florida on a military base and haven't been back, to my knowledge! But I'm sure I'd like it there! We then moved to North Carolina, and then to Texas, when I was two, I believe.

2. How long have you been writing? Have you always wanted to be a writer?

I always wrote. I won two Texas State Competitions for Original Poetry Writing in Spanish when I was in high school, so I guess I would write anything in any language, even nonsense if necessary. I have books and books of inspirational poetry I wrote in my teens. I'm afraid my kids are going to find them! I don't think writing is something you necessarily decide you want to do; most people realize they've been doing it for always. At least that's what happened to me. I went from shoebox lids to manuscripts.

3. What do your friends and family think about your writing?

They wish I'd write more.

(I'll bet there are quite a few readers out there who would agree with them!)

4. How old are your children? What do they think?


My kids are now ten and fourteen. They help me with my business. Lisa takes care of the mailing and Dean helps me by running around to stores when I have books out. They're both very supportive. Again, they wish I'd write more, so they could help more. I get about four books out a year, but I'm shooting for more. It's a great way to have a family-owned business.

( Can I borrow your kids?? LOL I have a hard time getting mine to pick up after themselves!)

5. I see that you have written several books that basically involved being the parent of multiples (twins, triplets, quads). How did you go about learning what a parent in this situation goes through? Do you have friends or family in this situation or did you do any specific research?


We actually know several families with twins and one with trips. But additionally, it was important to do research. My husband always said he'd freak if I got pregnant with twins, though. We could only handle one baby at a time, so we have immense respect for those families who have more than that.

6. Your books are contemps. Have you any plans to write a book set during a different time period?

I started out writing historicals, believe it or not. A wonderful agent, who wasn't my agent, but whom I'd submitted to, asked me to try a contemporary. After that, I was hooked. Every once in a while, I do a historical or time travel synopsis and maybe some chapters, but those things I never submit. They're my sordid little secrets.

7. What are you doing when you aren't writing? Do you have any particular hobbies?

I play tennis, play with my kids, think about my next projects. I always have to have something going through my mind about projects or I get nervous. Guess it's a compulsive thing. But because I have a lot of friends and family and kid stuff, my plate's always over-full, so that keeps me balanced.

8. Did you go to college?


I went to the University of Tennessee. Go Vols! Got a degree in Fashion Merchandising. It's been immense help in my career. All that time I spent in Richmond, Va as an asst. buyer and dept. manager has helped me with what I'm doing now. Originally, I thought I wanted a degree in some type of communications. Weird, huh?

9. What did you do before you started writing?

Before I started writing for a living? Well, I'd gotten married and moved to Oklahoma to be with my husband. There the pay rate was very small for anything secretarial; in fact, you could become a doctor's aide kind of person who would draw blood and stuff for about $5.00 an hour. I was pregnant, and we were young and poor, so I decided to try my hand at secretarial work, which paid $7.00 an hour for me, because I could pick up the programs of whatever company needed help. Back then, there was no Word. This has been fifteen years, so I don't think there was even Wordperfect at the time. Law firms used Wang, etc. So I learned the programs so I could get sent on jobs. But then I felt I could do more, and so I went to work for Estee Lauder as a cosmetician. I made better money then, even if I was standing on my feet a lot. I had to quit in the last month of my pregnancy, though, which upset me, because I knew we needed the money. The night before I had the baby, my husband came home and told me we were being transferred to Dallas. I was so not happy! Two weeks after I had the baby, we moved to Dallas, in with my husband's folks, and I began to look for someplace to live. When Lisa was four months, my husband came home and said I needed to go back to work. But I felt very grateful that I'd been able to stay home for four months--a lot of people never get that long with their baby. Then I did secretarial work and cosmetic work again, and then I worked in a daycare because by then my kids were getting older, like five years and 1 year, and I wanted to be with them. In a daycare, I could earn money and be with my kids. All this time, I was writing the eight complete books that would never see the light of day. I really loved the kids in the daycare, but I sold my first book one fall, and I quit my job. Not because I thought that I would go on selling but because I felt that my life was changing. It was time to focus on the thing I loved to do--write.

10. Tell us about your hounds, Shep and Betty. It sounds like they are as much a part of the family as your kids and hubby?


Well, we lost Shep last year, finally, the old man had to go away. Very traumatic on my kids. We have Betty, the barking Basenji, and two guinea pigs, whom we adore, and barn swallows, and a squirrel that the neighborhood people love to let their little dogs chase up the tree. I, however, am devising a sprinkler system to protect our little junior squirrel. :)

11. And I have to ask this - Are the minnows you mentioned at your website still alive? *G*


The minnows have long since become fish food in the bush graveyard. However, as you see above, we have plenty of pets. But those minnows did survive FOREVER!

(heh heh... had a goldfish like that once that my daughter won at the fair. It lived forever, too... even forgot about it for awhile, and I mean for a month or so. When I remembered we even had the thing, I had to wait until my daughter was out playing to check on it - I was sure it would be floating. Doncha know the dern thing was alive and well? It had even grown!

Now, minnows? Well, with a hubby who loves to fish, I'm sure they wouldn't have stood a chance!! *G*)

Thank you so much, Tina!

If you would like to contact Tina or learn more about her and her books, you can visit her at www.tinaleonard.com and www.eharlequin.com