First published in her teens, Barbara Dan has en-joyed a variety of life experiences, including working as an professional actress, model, night club comedienne, singer/dancer, comedy writer, puppeteer, theatrical producer in Hollywood, screenwriter, publicist, fund-raiser, real estate saleswoman, hands-on builder of houses, escrow officer, co-teacher of couples' communications workshops with her family therapist husband, as well as publisher, editor, and adjunct college professor. But by far her biggest joy has been the grand adventure of being the mother of four now grown children, grandma to five grandchildren and great-grandmother of three toddlers. With family roots planted deep in New England history, Barbara is a voracious reader of history, loves quilting, gardening, oil painting, tracking genealogies, and prowling around in old graveyards and musty museums while doing research for her latest novel. She is currently a member of Women Writing the West and Western Writers of America, Inc. Her novel Silent Angel won Best Historical Novel Award in the Colorado RWA's Heart of the Rockies competition in 1992. Besides degrees in Theatre Arts and Advanced Accounting, she earned her M.A. in Humanities (emphasis: history and literature) from California State University in 1988, but feels that life experience is the most valuable tool any writer brings to his or her work. (A good sense of humor helps, too!)