Tall, Dark and Cowboy (29 page)

I’ve never been much for touchy-feely, self-absorbed, Oprah-type navel gazing. But I’ve surprised myself by climbing on the “gratitude journal” bandwagon lately, listing a few things I’m grateful for every morning.

Right on top of today’s list is the chance to make my gratitude public by writing these acknowledgments for my fourth published novel.

I owe that opportunity to my wonderful agent Elaine English and my amazing editor Deb Werksman, along with my visionary publisher Dominique Raccah, promotion guru Danielle Jackson, and the rest of the Sourcebooks family.

I’m grateful for the support of One Fine Pilot, Ken McCauley, who gives me love and support every day while providing me with inspiration for scenes that are sometimes funny, sometimes spicy, but always romantic. Even my sexy cowboys can’t beat the real thing.

I’m lucky to have a wonderful family—Betty Smyth, a.k.a. Mum, Donald Smyth, a.k.a. Daddy, and my smart, funny, warm sister, who is way too far away but always with me because she taught me so much. And I’m lucky to have Ken’s family, who have been enthusiastic supporters from the very start of my career. Special gratitude goes out to Scott McCauley, web genius extraordinaire, and to Alycia, Ryan, Ashton, and Kaelan Fleury. And a big “thanks, y’all” to the Southern branch of the family too!

I have a wonderful critique group that helps make my books the best they can be: Jeana Byrne, Mary Gillgannon, Heather Jensen, Liz Roadifer, and Mike Shay, along with great writing mentors and friends like Amanda Cabot and Tina Forkner. And thank you to Janice of Barnes & Noble Thornton for being a good sport about playing the villain!

Most of all, I’m grateful to have readers who let my cowboys into their lives and make them come alive. Thank you, from the bottom of my very grateful heart.

Joanne
Kennedy
is the author of four Western contemporary romances:
Tall, Dark and Cowboy
;
Cowboy
Fever
;
One
Fine
Cowboy
(which was nominated for a RITA Award); and
Cowboy
Trouble
. A transplanted Easterner, she ran away from home to the West at the advanced age of thirty-two and was delighted to discover that cowboys are real and chaps are leather pants with no seat.

At various times, she dabbled in horse training, chicken farming, organic gardening, and bridezilla wrangling at a department store wedding registry. Themes that have remained constant throughout her life are Jack Russell terriers, a tendency to confuse fiction with real life, and a stubborn belief in romance that led to multiple dysfunctional relationships with inappropriate men before she finally got it right.

Now older and hopefully wiser, she lives in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with two dogs and a retired fighter pilot. The dogs are relatively well behaved.

Joanne loves to hear from readers and can be reached through her website, www.joannekennedybooks.com.