Kelly Irvin is the author of two romantic suspense novels, A Deadly Wilderness and No Child of Mine, published in 2010 and 2011. She is contracted with Harvest House Publishing for two Amish romances, To Love and To Cherish, which will debut Feb. 12, 2012, and A Heart Made New, to hit bookstores Sept. 1, 2012.

Her mainstream suspense manuscript, “The Dead Parent Society,” finished second in the 2007 Molly Contest sponsored by the Denver Heart of Romance Chapter of Romance Writers of America, while her romantic suspense manuscript, “Mine to Avenge,” was a finalist in the 2006 American Christian Fiction Writers national Genesis Contest. Other fiction-writing credentials include publication of the short story, “Fast Food,” in HiCall  Sunday School Magazine. Her poem Twenty-Twenty Vision was published in the San Antonio Express-News.

The Kansas native is a member of ACFW, Sisters in Crime, and Alamo City Christian Writers. In addition to the ACFW annual conference, she has attended the Glorieta Writers Conference in Glorieta, New Mexico. She also serves as secretary of the ACFW San Antonio local chapter Alamo City Christian Fiction Writers.

A graduate of the University of Kansas William Allen White School of Journalism, Kelly has been writing nonfiction professionally for thirty years. She studied for three semesters at the University of Costa Rica, learning the Spanish language. As a journalist, she worked six years in the border towns of Laredo and El Paso, where she was exposed to culture and language that serves as fodder for her fiction writing. She has written hard news, features, entertainment pieces, restaurant critiques, editorials, and weekly columns. Writing awards include the Silver Star Award from the Texas Mental Health Association for articles pertaining to mental health and numerous awards in news, feature, and editorial writing from the Texas Press Association and Texas Press Women.

When her children were small, Kelly made the switch from the newspaper business to public relations, where she has labored for more than eighteen years. She also proofreads trial transcripts for court reporters. Kelly has been married to photographer Tim Irvin for twenty-four years, and they have two young adult children, three cats, and a tank full of fish. In her spare time, she likes to write short stories and read books by her favorite authors.