Lauren Royal is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling

historical romance Historical romance is a broad category of mass-market fiction focusing on romantic relationships in historical periods, which Walter Scott helped popularize in the early 19th century. Varieties Viking These books feature Vikings during the Da ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

. She's a self-proclaimed

Angels In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

fan and

Ducks Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form t ...

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

fan who lives in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

with her family and their constantly shedding cat. Her books are set primarily in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

in the 17th and 19th centuries (the

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

and

Regency A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

periods). In third grade, she decided that she wanted to become a writer after winning a "Why My Mother is the Greatest" essay contest and seeing her entry published in a major regional newspaper. Royal began buying books about history, and she became fascinated with that topic as she became a

teenage Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...

r. Among the non-history writers she preferred were

Ira Levin Ira Marvin Levin (August 27, 1929 – November 12, 2007) was an American novelist, playwright, and songwriter. His works include the novels ''A Kiss Before Dying (novel), A Kiss Before Dying'' (1953), ''Rosemary's Baby (novel), Rosemary's Baby'' ...

and

Robert A. Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein (; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific accu ...

. When Royal was fourteen, she took a book from her uncle's collection: the book, " Forever Amber," would make a difference in Royal's life, as she became a fan of

restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

era romances. Royal attended the

University of California, Irvine The University of California, Irvine (UCI or UC Irvine) is a public land-grant research university in Irvine, California. One of the ten campuses of the University of California system, UCI offers 87 undergraduate degrees and 129 graduate and pr ...

, later on transferring to

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. She was able to get hands-on experience with professional writing there, as she majored in

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

and

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

production. After being told that it was too difficult for a novelist to get published, Royal opened a

jewelry Jewellery ( UK) or jewelry (U.S.) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the clothes. From a western ...

store, which she soon moved to a local mall. For the next fourteen years, she was a dedicated businesswoman, helping her store expand into a chain of seven stores around Southern California. She married and had three children. However, as company owner, she spent many hours reading and writing, which allowed her to practice her writing skills. She wrote employee manuals, company newsletters, newspaper and radio ads, and pretty much anything else the company needed written. Her small chain of stores was bought by a larger, national chain, and Royal decided to stay home and pursue her childhood dream of becoming a writer. In between watching her children and taking care of the house, she was able to finish her first book, "Amethyst" (in which the heroine was a jeweler—as Royal says, "write what you know!"). "Amethyst" was followed by "Emerald," "Amber," "Forevermore" (her contribution to the anthology published as " In Praise of Younger Men"), "Violet," "Lily," and "Rose," all of which are set in the

era. Then she wrote "Lost in Temptation," "Tempting Juliana," and "The Art of Temptation," which are all set in the

Regency era The Regency era of British history officially spanned the years 1811 to 1820, though the term is commonly applied to the longer period between and 1837. George III of the United Kingdom, King George III succumbed to mental illness in late 18 ...

. She is currently working on young-adult versions of her books with her daughter, Devon, as well as new YA books set in the Renaissance (Elizabethan) era (16th century).

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal, Lauren American romantic fiction writers Writers from California Living people Year of birth missing (living people)