Meet Avalon Author Jean C Gordon

Jean C Gordon



Q: Tell us the first thing that pops into your head when I say: Tell us about yourself. Give us a brief biography in your own words.

I’m a family person. I grew up in a small rural village in Western New York with three brothers. (Yes, there are many places in Upstate New York with populations of 3,000 or less that are not suburbs.) My husband and I met during our freshman year in college, married after our sophomore year and moved to Los Angeles so he could attend art school there. I finished my journalism degree at Cal State Los Angeles. Two years in LA was enough for us, so we moved back to Upstate NY, outside of Albany. I completed a Master’s Degree in Public Affairs with a concentration in public law at SUNY Albany and started working for the financial publisher in Albany that I still work for. I also hold the Certified Financial Planner® designation.


We have one daughter, a son adopted from Korea, a son-in-law and two grandchildren, Caelin and Dru. My husband and I own a 170-year-old farmhouse on about twelve acres with my daughter and son-in-law, three dogs, three cats, two sheep, a flock of chickens, and about a dozen pigs. Someday we hope to have the house all restored.


Q: When did you know you wanted to be a writer? What was the biggest influence on this decision?

It seems like I’ve always written. I was a reporter for my high school newspaper and on the yearbook committee. But, I didn’t decide I wanted to write as a profession until my first semester of college. I went off to college thinking I wanted to be a special education teacher. When I got there, I realized I wasn’t cut out to be a teacher. I’ve always loved reading and just kind of gravitated toward writing. I can’t pinpoint any particular influence.


Q: Tell us about the first thing you ever wrote.


My first published piece appeared in the weekend magazine of the Buffalo Evening News as part of a holiday contest. I must have been about 12. I wrote about my family’s holiday traditions, including our Little Christmas celebration. My dad always made donuts with coins in them.


Q: Tell us about the genre in which you write and why?

I write sweet, family-oriented contemporary romances. Most of my books are set in Upstate New York.


Q: Tell us about your latest book. Is it with Avalon or another publisher? What is your most recent or next Avalon Book?


The book I just completed, Everlasting Vows, is the biggest book I’ve written. It’s a reunion story, one of my favorite types of romance. Here’s my pitch line for it. Everlasting Vows is a story of young love given a second chance, forgiveness, and trust in God’s ultimate plan. The hero is an injured motocross racer and the heroine is a physical therapist. My agent, Diana Flegal of Hartline Literary Agency, is shopping it around.


My most recent Avalon book is Mara’s Move which came out in June 2009. Its set on a cruise ship to the Bahamas and is a companion book to Candy Kisses, published in 2008. They’re both fun, chicklit-ish books. The heroines have been best friends since preschool. Mara's Move is my fifth Avalon book.

Q: What do you like to do besides write?


As I said, I love to read. I also like to spend time with my family and travel and fix up our house with my husband. I walk daily with a friend at work, bowl with Caelin and Dru and the past few summers I have had a vegetable garden. And, since it’s tax season, I’ll admit to liking to prepare taxes. I do returns for everyone in the family.


Q: What would you like us to know about you or your writing above anything else?


As my son-in-law says, writing gives me my own little pretend world that I can go to where there’s always a happy ending. Seriously, my fiction writing gives me a lot of pleasure, not to mention a pleasant break from the financial writing that I do in my day job. I’ve met a lot of great people through my writing, including my wonderful critique partners from the Capital Region Romance Writer’s chapter. In addition to CR-RWA and Romance Writers of America , I belong to the Faith, Hope, and Love Chapter and the American Christian Fictions Writers.


Q: Where can readers find you?


My website is www.JeanCGordon.com. Or you can find me on FaceBook, where I spend far too much time playing FarmVille.