Lisa Kleypas

Lisa Kleypas (born 5 November 1964 in Temple, Texas) is a best-selling American author of historical and contemporary romance novels. In 1985, she was named Miss Massachusetts 1985 and competed in the Miss America 1986 pageant in Atlantic City. Lisa Kleypas was born on 5 November 1964 in Temple, Texas, to Linda and Lloyd Kleypas, an architect. She began writing her own romance novels during her summer breaks from studying political science at Wellesley College. Her parents agreed to support her for a few months after her graduation so that she could finish her latest manuscript. Approximately two months later, at age 21, Kleypas sold her first novel.

The same year she sold her first novel, Kleypas was named Miss Massachusetts. During her competition at the Miss America pageant, Kleypas performed a song she had written, earning her a "talented nonfinalist" award.

Kleypas has been a full-time romance writer since 1985. Her novels have ranked high on major best-seller lists, sold millions of copies around the globe and have been translated into fourteen different languages.

In October 1998, Kleypas's Texas home flooded within a matter of hours after heavy rains inundated their town. She and her family lost everything except the clothes they were wearing and her purse. Within days, her colleagues at Avon sent boxes of clothes and books to help the family recover. For Kleypas though, the defining moment was after the flood, when she and her mother (whose home had also flooded), made a quick trip to the store to purchase toothbrushes, clean clothes, and other necessities. Separately, each of them had also chosen a romance novel, a necessity to them in helping them escape the stress they were currently under. To Kleypas, this realization validated her decision to write romance novels instead of more literary works.Though primarily known for her historical romance novels, Kleypas made an announcement in early 2006 concerning her momentary departure from historical romances to delve into the contemporary romance genre. Kleypas has since written two additional historical romance series: "The Hathaways" and "The Ravenels", as well as an additional contemporary romance series, the "Travis Series."Kleypas lives in Washington with her husband, Gregory Ellis, and their two children, Griffin and Lindsay.