KYLE, Susan (Spaeth) 1946-

(Diana Blayne, Katy Currie, Diana Palmer)

PERSONAL: Born December 12, 1946, in Cuthbert, GA; daughter of William Olin Spaeth (a college professor) and Maggie Eloise Cliatt Spaeth (a nurse and journalist); married James Edward Kyle (a computer consultant), October 9, 1972; children: Blayne Edward. Education: Piedmont College, B.A. (summa cum laude), 1995; graduate work at California State University. Politics: Republican. Religion: Presbyterian. Hobbies and other interests: Archaeology, anthropology, herpetology (iguanas, monitor lizards), gardening, blues piano, astronomy, music.

ADDRESSES: Home and office—P.O. Box 844, Cornelia, GA 30531-0844. Agent—Maureen Walters, Curtis Brown Ltd., 10 Astor Place, New York, NY 10003. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Times, Gainesville, GA, district staff reporter, 1969-84; Tri-County Advertiser, Clarkesville, GA, staff reporter, 1972-82; Atlanta Constitution, district staff member, late 1970s. American Heart Association, member of board of directors of Habersham County chapter, late 1970s-early 1980s, county publicity chair, early 1980s; American Cancer Society, member of board of directors of Habersham County chapter, late 1970-early 1980s. Novelist, 1979—.

MEMBER: Authors Guild, National Geographic Society, Cousteau Society, American Museum of Natural History, Custer Battlefield Preservation Society, National Cattleman's Association, Smithsonian Institution, American Archaeological Association, Metropolitan Opera Guild, American Federation of Herptoculturalists, Lionel Railroaders Club, Star Trek Fan Club, Piedmont College Anthropology Club.

AWARDS, HONORS: Awards include numerous bestseller awards; Reviewer's Choice Award, Romantic Times, 1985, for The Tender Stranger; three Silver Pen Awards, Affaire de Coeur, 1985, 1988, and 1989; silver certificate, Affaire de Coeur, 1988, for Tyler; gold certificate, Affaire de Coeur, 1988, for Diamond Spur and Fire Brand; regional Maggie Awards, Romance Writers of American, for Soldier of Fortune and Diamond Spur; Series Romance Storyteller award, Romantic Times, 1988-89.

WRITINGS:

NOVELS; UNDER NAME SUSAN KYLE, EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED

(As Susan S. Kyle) The Morcai Battalion (science fiction), Manor Books (New York, NY), 1980.

(Under pseudonym Katy Currie) Blind Promises, Silhouette Inspirational (New York, NY), 1984.

Diamond Spur, Warner Popular Library (New York, NY), 1988.

Fire Brand, Warner Popular Library (New York, NY), 1989.

Night Fever, Warner Popular Library (New York, NY), 1990.

True Colors, Warner Popular Library (New York, NY), 1991.

Escapade, Warner Popular Library (New York, NY), 1992.

After Midnight, Warner Popular Library (New York, NY), 1993.

NOVELS; UNDER PSEUDONYM DIANA PALMER

Now and Forever, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1979.

Storm over the Lake, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1979.

To Have and to Hold, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1979.

Sweet Enemy, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1980.

Bound by a Promise, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1980.

Love on Trial, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1980.

To Love and Cherish, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1980.

Dream's End, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1980.

If Winter Comes, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1981.

At Winter's End, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1981.

Heather's Song, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1982.

The Cowboy and the Lady, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1982.

Friends and Lovers, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1983.

Fire and Ice, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1983.

Snow Kisses, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1983.

Darling Enemy, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1983.

Diamond Girl, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1984.

The Rawhide Man, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1984.

Lady Love, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1984.

Roomful of Roses, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1984.

Heart of Ice, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1984.

Passion Flower, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1984.

Cattleman's Choice, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1985.

Love by Proxy, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1985.

The Australian, MacFadden Romances (New York, NY), 1985.

Eye of the Tiger, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1986.

Loveplay, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1986.

Rawhide and Lace, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1986.

After the Music, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1986.

Champagne Girl, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1986.

Unlikely Lover, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1986.

Rage of Passion, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1987.

Fit for a King, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1987.

Betrayed by Love, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1987.

Woman Hater, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1987.

Hoodwinked, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1989.

His Girl Friday, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1989.

Lacy (historical novel), Ivy Books (New York, NY), 1991.

Trilby (historical novel), Ivy Books (New York, NY), 1993.

Amelia (historical novel), Ivy Books (New York, NY), 1993.

King's Ransom, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1993.

Calamity Mom, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1993.

Secret Agent Man, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1994.

The Savage Heart, Fawcett (New York, NY), 1997.

Once in Paris, Mira (New York, NY), 1998.

Paper Rose, Mira (New York, NY), 1999.

The Texas Ranger, Mira (New York, NY), 2001.

Desperado, Mira (New York, NY), 2002.

(With Lenora Worth and Loree Lough) Blessings in Disguise, Steeple Hill Books (New York, NY), 2003.

(Author of foreword) The Black Moth, by Georgette Heyer, Harlequin Books (New York, NY), 2003.

Also coauthor, under pseudonym Diana Palmer, with Debbie Macomber and Judith Duncan, of the story collection To Mother with Love; and with Jennifer Blake and Heather Graham, of the story collection With a Southern Touch, Mira Books (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2002.

"DIANA PALMER DUETS" SERIES; UNDER PSEUDONYM DIANA PALMER

Sweet Enemy [and] Love on Trial, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1990.

Storm over the Lake [and] To Love and Cherish, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1990.

If Winter Comes [and] Now and Forever, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1990.

After the Music [and] Dream's End, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1990.

Bound by a Promise [and] Passion Flower, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1990.

To Have and Hold [and] The Cowboy and the Lady, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1990.

"MERCENARY" SERIES; UNDER PSEUDONYM DIANA PALMER

The Tender Stranger, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1985.

Soldier of Fortune, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1985.

Enamored, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1988.

"LONG TALL TEXAN" SERIES; UNDER PSEUDNYM DIANA PALMER

Calhoun, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1988.

Justin, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1988.

Tyler, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1988.

Sutton's Way, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1989.

Ethan, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1990.

Connal, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1990.

Harden, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1991.

Evan, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1991.

Donovan, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1992.

Emmett, Silhouette Romance (New York, NY), 1993.

"MAN OF THE MONTH" SERIES; UNDER PSEUDONYM DIANA PALMER

Reluctant Father, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1989.

Hunter, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1990.

Nelson's Brand, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1991.

The Best Is Yet to Come, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1991.

Night of Love, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1993.

"MOST WANTED" TRILOGY; UNDER PSEUDONYM DIANA PALMER

(And part of the "Man of the Month" series) The Case of the Mesmerizing Boss, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1992.

The Case of the Confirmed Bachelor, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1992.

The Case of the Missing Secretary, Silhouette Books (New York, NY), 1992.

NOVELS; UNDER PSEUDONYM DIANA BLAYNE

Color Love Blue, Dell (New York, NY), 1984.

Tangled Destinies, Dell (New York, NY), 1986.

Denim and Lace, Dell (New York, NY), 1990.

"CANDLELIGHT ECSTASY" SERIES; UNDER PSEUDONYM DIANA BLAYNE

A Waiting Game, Dell (New York, NY), 1982.

A Loving Arrangement, Dell (New York, NY), 1983.

White Sand Wild Sea, Dell (New York, NY), 1983.

Dark Surrender, Dell (New York, NY), 1983.

Contributor of short stories to anthologies published by Silhouette, including Silhouette Christmas Stories, 1987, and Silhouette Summer Sizzlers, with Sherryl Woods and Patricia Coughlin, 1991.

WORK IN PROGRESS: A mainstream novel set in the South, for Warner; a historical novel which takes place during the first part of the twentieth century in east Texas, for Fawcett; research on different historical time periods.

SIDELIGHTS: Susan Kyle has penned numerous novels in several genres under her own name and using several pseudonyms. She is best known, however, for her many romance novels as Diana Palmer. As a writer for Twentieth-Century Romance and Historical Writers observed, "Palmer has a special talent for developing disagreeable heroes, then letting them be changed by love. Although her novels are generally short, she manages to make this reversal of character believable."

Though, as Palmer, she has published under the auspices of Silhouette, Fawcett, and Ivy, as the twenty-first century approached she began putting novels out with Mira. Among these is 1998's Once in Paris. Brianne, its young heroine, gets sent to Paris to study by her stepfather. While there, she falls in love with a much older man—a man who is involved in under-cover espionage. A Publishers Weekly reviewer, discussing Once in Paris, commented that "the dialogue is charming, the characters likable and the sex sizzling." In 2001, Palmer's The Texas Ranger became available to her fans. As in many of Palmer's romances, the hero and heroine have had a more or less disastrous encounter earlier in their lives, and circumstances bring them back together. In this case, Texas Ranger Matt has testified against Josette during the trial of a man who assaulted her, but now they must work together to investigate a murder that may be linked to organized crime. The following year, Palmer published Desperado. In this tale, the couple is a man and his foster sister. According to another Publishers Weekly critic, "Palmer's compelling suspense and beautiful visuals keep the reader interested."

Kyle once told CA:"I was born in Cuthbert, a small rural southwestern Georgia town where the majority of the people were farmers. For the first five years of my life, while my parents completed their college degrees in Atlanta, I lived with my mother's parents on their tenant farm in Calhoun County, Georgia. It was while following my grandfather's plow across the fields that I collected arrowheads and developed an interest in prehistoric indigenous Americans.

"As a young girl, I was privileged to experience a way of life which is now found only in history books. We had no modern amenities on the farm, which meant that we had to draw water from a well, cook food on a wood stove, and go to bed by kerosene lantern. This glimpse of the past gave me a wonderful background in the hardships of nineteenth-century life. I have used it to great advantage in my writing.

"From the time I was thirteen years old, I wanted to be a writer. I joined the staff of two newspapers when I graduated from high school, hoping to improve my style and learn more about gathering information. After I married in 1972, my husband John never minded helping me with housework and with our son, Blayne, so that I had enough time to write while working full time as a reporter every day. There were editors who taught me to polish my style, librarians and friends and a loving sister who encouraged me. Later when I was published, I found myself with a wonderful following of loyal readers whose kindness and loyalty helped me through some very hard times. They are my family, and they come in a rainbow of colors, religions, backgrounds, and viewpoints. I love them all.

"God willing, I hope I can keep writing books for a long, long time. If, through my work, I can bring joy to one heavy heart, or surprise a laugh from a throat tight with pain or grief, then I will feel that my life has been worthwhile."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Twentieth-Century Romance and Historical Writers, 3rd edition, St. James Press (Detroit, MI), 1994.

PERIODICALS

Kirkus Reviews, May 15, 2002, review of Desperado, p. 694.

Publishers Weekly, November 2, 1992, review of Escapade, p. 66; December 14, 1992, review of Trilby, p. 54; November 2, 1998, review of Once in Paris, p. 79; July 2, 2001, review of The Texas Ranger, p. 57; May 13, 2002, review of With a Southern Touch, p. 57; June 17, 2002, review of Desperado, pp. 43-44; June 16, 2003, review of Lawless, p. 50.

ONLINE

Diana Palmer Home Page,http://www.dianapalmer.com (July 17, 2002).*