Rebecca Heflin (aka Barbara Dianne Farb born in 1963) is an American

women's fiction Women's fiction is an umbrella term for women centered books that focus on women's life experience that are marketed to female readers, and includes many mainstream novels or women's rights books. It is distinct from women's writing, which refers ...

and

contemporary romance Contemporary romance is a subgenre of romance novels, generally set contemporaneously with the time of its writing. The largest of the romance novel subgenres, contemporary romance novels usually reflect the mores of their time. Heroines in the co ...

novelist living in

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida, with a population of 141,085 in 2020. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gaine ...

. The name Rebecca Heflin is a

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

used by B. Dianne Farb and was inspired by her great-great-grandmother, Sarah Anne Rebecca Heflin Apple Smith. As Dianne Farb, she works at the University of Florida and runs a local

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

with her husband.

Life as Dianne Farb

Dianne Farb grew up in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

, where she lived most of her adult life. She met Ron Farb in 1993 and married him soon after. Together, they moved to Gainesville in 2001 and have resided in

Haile Plantation Haile Plantation, an unincorporated community and New Urbanist planned development, is a 2,600-household (1,700 acre) development of regional impact southwest of the city of Gainesville, within Alachua County, Florida, United States. Community ...

since 2004.

Education and law career

After graduating from high school, Farb worked in the Medicare division for

Blue Cross Blue Shield Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBS, BCBSA) is a federation, or supraorganization, of, in 2022, 34 independent and locally operated BCBSA companies that provide health insurance in the United States to more than 106 million people. It was f ...

. Her interest in

health care Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...

then led her to work for two private medical practices. At the age of 30, Farb began her college education at the

University of North Florida The University of North Florida (UNF) is a public research university in Jacksonville, Florida. It is part of the State University System of Florida and is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Sch ...

, where she received her B.A. in literature in 1997. While attending UNF, she was honored with the Award for Excellence in Literary Scholarship. She graduated from the

University of Florida Levin College of Law The University of Florida Fredric G. Levin College of Law (UF Law) is the law school of the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest operating public law school in Florida, and second oldest overall ...

in 2000 with her J.D. and a specialization in health care. She was hired by the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

in 2001 as an attorney for general higher education law and eventually became Associate University Counsel for Research and Health Affairs. Farb is a member of various legal and health-related organizations, including the National Association of College and University Attorneys, the

American Health Lawyers Association The American Health Law Association (AHLA) is a non-profit professional association for attorneys and other professionals in the healthcare field. Its membership numbers approximately 12,500. The AHLA was created on July 1, 1997, through the mer ...

, the Florida Bioethics Network, and the Applied Research Ethics National Association, among others.

Nonprofit organization

In 2002, Dianne and Ron Farb co-founded the Climb for Cancer Foundation of Gainesville, a

not-for-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

that raises funds for cancer programs by climbing mountains (similarly to organizations that raise donations through walks or runs). To date, the organization has raised more than $1 million for

cancer research Cancer research is research into cancer to identify causes and develop strategies for prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure. Cancer research ranges from epidemiology, molecular bioscience to the performance of clinical trials to evaluate and ...

and to support patients and families affected by the disease. More than a decade after the organization was established, Dianne Farb was recognized by

Santa Fe College Santa Fe College is a public college based in Gainesville, Florida, with satellite campuses in Alachua and Bradford counties. It is part of the Florida College System. It was established in 1965 as Santa Fe Junior College by the Florida Legisl ...

as one of two 2013 Women of Distinction for her work with Climb for Cancer, in addition to other

philanthropic Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

efforts.

Writing career

The beginning of her writing career was marked by a "mid-life crisis" that resulted in her seeking a creative outlet. She traveled to

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 ...

for a week-long

adult learning Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained self-educating activities in order to gain new forms of knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralp ...

course at Christ Church of

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. This trip inspired the setting for her debut novel, ''The Promise of Change'', which was picked up by Soul Mate Publishing in September 2011 and published within the year. Heflin has enjoyed participating in multiple adult learning courses at Christ Church, including programs on topics like

Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

, and the

history of the English language English is a West Germanic language that originated from Ingvaeonic languages brought to Britain in the mid-5th to 7th centuries AD by Anglo-Saxon migrants from what is now northwest Germany, southern Denmark and the Netherlands. The Anglo-Sax ...

. Her second novel, ''Rescuing Lacey'', was set in

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

, where Heflin had previously traveled to. Some

anecdote An anecdote is "a story with a point", such as to communicate an abstract idea about a person, place, or thing through the concrete details of a short narrative or to characterize by delineating a specific quirk or trait. Occasionally humorous ...

s in the narrative were based loosely on her own personal experiences there. ''Rescuing Lacey'' received generally favorable reviews and won several awards the year following its 2012 release. After ''Rescuing Lacey'', Heflin began working on the three-part Dreams Come True series, which yielded ''Dreams of Perfection'', ''Ship of Dreams'', and ''Dreams of Her Own''. These novels were released each consecutive year from 2014 to 2016. The author described ''Dreams of Perfection'' as "a lighthearted, comedic romance with a

Pygmalion Pygmalion or Pigmalion may refer to: Mythology * Pygmalion (mythology), a sculptor who fell in love with his statue Stage * ''Pigmalion'' (opera), a 1745 opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau * ''Pygmalion'' (Rousseau), a 1762 melodrama by Jean-Jacques ...

-type twist to it." Heflin's works are represented by Rebecca Heflin Books, LLC. The company's tagline is "Real, Sexy, Romance." Her first five novels were published through Soul Mate Publishing, a small independently owned

publishing Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

company specializing in

romantic fiction A romance novel or romantic novel generally refers to a type of genre fiction novel which places its primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and usually has an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Pre ...

in both electronic and print formats. The author's upcoming Sterling University novella series will mark her first venture into

self-publishing Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to written media, such as books and magazines, either as an ebook or as a physical copy using POD (pr ...

. All of Heflin's books are categorized within the

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

s. Heflin is a member of

Romance Writers of America Romance Writers of America (RWA) is an American non-profit writers' association founded in 1980. Its mission is to "advance the professional and common business interests of career-focused romance writers through networking and advocacy and by incr ...

, RWA Contemporary Romance, Florida Romance Writers, and Florida Writers Association. One of her greatest writing inspirations is famed romance novelist

Nora Roberts Nora Roberts (born Eleanor Marie Robertson on October 10, 1950) is an American author of more than 225 romance novels. She writes as J. D. Robb for the ''in Death'' series and has also written under the pseudonyms Jill March and for publication ...

Recognition and awards

Rebecca Heflin's novels have been reviewed by The Romance Reviews, Romance Junkies, ''InD'tale Magazine'', and several other romance publications. She has also been featured by a number of Gainesville-based news outlets, such as ''

The Alligator ''The Independent Florida Alligator'' is the daily student newspaper of the University of Florida. ''The Alligator'' is one of the largest student-run newspapers in the United States, with a daily circulation of 35,000 and readership of more th ...

'' and ''

The Gainesville Sun ''The Gainesville Sun'' () is a newspaper published daily in Gainesville, Florida, United States, covering the North-Central portion of the state. The paper is published by Lynni Henderson, the paper's Executive Editor is Douglas Ray and the edi ...

''. In 2011, ''The Promise of Change'' was recognized as a finalist for the Florida Writers Association Royal Palm Literary Award. Her debut novel was also a finalist in 2013 for the Wisconsin Romance Writers Write Touch Readers' Award. Heflin's second novel was highly praised and received several awards and merits in 2013. * Georgia Romance Writers Published Maggie Finalist * Shooting Star Award * Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence Finalist * Colorado Romance Writers Award of Excellence Winner * Virginia Romance Writers Holt Medallion Award of Merit * Florida Writers Association Royal Palm Literary Award Winner That same year, her third novel, ''Dreams of Perfection'' won second place in the Tampa Area Romance Writers TARA Contest. In 2014, ''Dreams of Perfection'' won Heflin her second FWA Royal Palm Literary Award. Two years later, ''Dreams of Her Own'', the concluding novel of the Dreams Come True series, placed third place for that same award.

Bibliography

Standalone novels * ''The Promise of Change'', December 2011 * ''Rescuing Lacey'', September 2012 Dreams Come True series * ''Dreams of Perfection'', May 2014 * ''Ship of Dreams'', February 2015 * ''Dreams of Her Own'', January 2016 Sterling University novella series * ''Romancing Dr. Love'', March 2017 * ''Winning Dr. Wentworth'', June 2017 * ''Educating Dr. Mayfield'', September 2017 Seasons of Northridge series * ''A Season to Dance'', December 2018 *''A Season to Love'', March 2020

References

External links

Rebecca Heflin's website

Soul Mate Publishing website

Climb for Cancer Foundation website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heflin, Rebecca 1963 births 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American women writers American romantic fiction writers American women novelists Living people Pseudonymous women writers University of Florida alumni University of North Florida alumni American women romantic fiction writers Writers from Gainesville, Florida Novelists from Florida 21st-century pseudonymous writers