YRW News & Blog

Hello everyone! Sharon Lathan here. My turn to speak up and continue the “get to know your YRW members” serial. Sheri’s idea to share a bit about ourselves is a fabulous one, although letting her go first may not have been a wise move since her blog will be a difficult act to follow!

Most already know that I am one of the published authors of YRW. I have six full-length novels and one novella as part of an anthology that have been released. My series is a sequel to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Currently I am under contract with Sourcebooks for my seventh novel, a romantic historical fiction about Dr. George Darcy, a physician in Georgian Era India, that will be released in early 2013. Since relating all the details about my writing would take up way too much space here, head over to my website where I have pages devoted to the task.

Sharon Lathan, Novelist

Sharon Lathan’s novels 

Sharon Lathan’s “About Me” biography 

That will tell you a little bit about me. At least the basic details. Here are a few random facts, in no particular order–

1. My daughter Emily was recently married and will be moving to Washington DC in a few days. *Sob! I have one other child, my son Kyle who is 19 and still at home. My husband is Steve and we have been married for 25 years now. He is my Mr. Darcy!
2. I am the co-founder of Austen Authors, a group blog that I created with fellow Jane Austen novelist Abigail Reynolds. If you are an Austen fan take note of our ongoing event called P&P200 which is a behind-the-scenes/other-POV real time story for Pride and Prejudice. Plus, in February we are celebrating Regency Romance all month with guests and special fun events.
3. I was born in Mississippi but have lived in California since I was a toddler. I did live in New Mexico for one year shortly after college, moving with my family who still live there.
4. I grew up in Frazier Park at the top of the Grapevine and in the midst of the Las Padres National Forest. Once upon a time “The Hill” was a popular place for film crews to come. Frazier Mountain was the location shoot for Daniel Boone, Bonanza, and The Waltons to name a few. In fact, Walton’s Mountain IS Frazier Mt. and Walton’s ranch was the home of the Cuddy family, who were good friends of ours! Over time I met all the actors from the above shows. Pretty cool!
5. Until a few years ago the last romance novel I read was a Danielle Steele when I was in high school. Fantasy, sci-fi, and “serious” novels were my standard fair. I was one of those people who thought romance was fluffy and/or full of smutty sex! Now I am a big fan of the genre, have a totally different attitude, and don’t mind the fluff and hot sex all that much.
6. I have a weakness for dangling earrings and scarves. Over all I am not a big jewelry person, but when it comes to earrings I can never have enough.
7. My favorite place on earth is Disneyland. Seriously! We are proud annual pass holders and went to the Magic Kingdom 5 or 6 times last year. My daughter was proposed to while at Disneyland! I am SO happy that the next RWA is in Anaheim.
8. I am a bit of a techy. I love working on computers and creating websites. This blog, the YRW website, my website, and Austen Authors were are designed by me and I manage the inner workings of all four. I am constantly learning new stuff and I love it!

Q – What was your first job?

A – As a youth it was babysitting and working in an antique store. Tax-free but quite lucrative! At least to a teenager. My first “real” job was in a grocery store as a checker. I actually loved that job. Met lots of nice people, including the really hot firemen from the station nearby.

Q – Tell us about your hobby.

A – When I have time to indulge in a hobby (and that is rare) I love to scrapbook. I have tons of supplies, both paper and digital.

Q – Who influenced your life in a positive way? What part of your character do you attribute to this person?

A – Hands down, no debate, the one person who has most influenced my life in a 100% positive way is Jesus Christ. I came to know the Lord when I was 9 so can’t say for certain what my character would be if I had never known Him. I can imagine based on my family’s choices and my own stupid decisions now and again, and I don’t think it would be pretty! I owe everything to Jesus and am very glad He is still working on me.

Q – What’s your favorite movie and why?

A – I have to say two. My all-time favorite movie is the original Star Wars series. I know that is 3 movies, but they go together so it counts as one! I was young when George Lucas released Star Wars, saw it on the big screen and was blown away by what was at that time a revolutionary cinematic creation. All these decades later, the original series holds up as a remarkable story by a true visionary.

Secondly, again lumping 3 movies as one, my favorite is The Lord of the Rings. I am a Tolkien fanatic and have been since I was 12 when my sister handed me The Hobbit. Peter Jackson and crew performed a miracle as far as I am concerned. If I had the chance to hang out with Mr. Jackson for a day I would be in heaven.

Q – If you had a time machine and could take one trip to any time in history, where would we find you?

A – I love all history so would have a hard time picking one place only, but considering what I write, the choice would have to be Regency Era England. Gotta see if we Regency romance novelists are truly getting it right! Personally I would be looking for the scandalous, just to prove people 200 years ago were just as human as we are!

So there you have it. Or at least as much as I can share in a small space. Gotta leave some mystery, right? Thanks for joining me and the gang on YRW. Feel free to ask more questions of me, and check back in a few days for another YRW member to tell her tale. Fun, Fun!