Robyn Donald

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Robyn Donald
BornRobyn Elaine Donald
(1940-08-14) 14 August 1940 (age 81)
Warkworth, New Zealand
Pen nameRobyn Donald
OccupationNovelist
NationalityNew Zealand
Period1977–present
Genre Romantic novel
SpouseDonald James Kingston
Children2

Robyn Donald (born 14 August 1940) is a prolific New Zealand writer of romance novels since 1977. Her books have print runs of up to 500,000 copies at a time. [1] [2]

Contents

Biography

Donald was born in Warkworth where her father owned a dairy farm. She trained and worked as a teacher. [3] In 1960, she married Donald James Kingston. She now lives at Kerikeri in Northland. [4]

At a time when her husband was suffering from a heart attack, he encouraged her to finish the manuscript she was writing at the time, and send it off. She was not convinced, but since his doctor had asked her to humor her husband, she finished the manuscript, and sent it to the editors. Three months later, she was surprised to receive a letter from the editor saying that if she made a few revisions they would buy her novel Bride at Whangatapu. [5] Donald has written over 85 published novels for Mills & Boon that have been translated into 25 languages. [6]

Her first romance titled Bride at Whangatapu was published under the exegesis of Mills & Boon in 1977, and her fiftieth novel The Mirror Bride was published in 1996. [3] She writes for the English Mills and Boon romance series, and all her books have also been re-edited under Harlequin Enterprises Limited series. They are largely urban Auckland-based romances set in the elite of corporate executives, property investors and lawyers with feisty independent career-oriented heroines and apparently callous and dominating heroes; compared to the earlier South Island-oriented Anglophile romances of Essie Summers. [3]

Bibliography

Single novels

Hollingworth Series

  1. Long Journey Back (1986)
  2. Captives of the Past (1986)

Love's Reward Series

  1. Love's Reward (1989)
  2. A Bitter Homecoming (1989)
  3. Some Kind of Madness (1991)

Pagan Surrender

  1. Pagan Surrender (1993)
  2. Paradise Lost (1993)

Dacre Series

  1. Tiger Eyes (1994)
  2. Surrender to Seduction (1998)

The Marriage Maker Series

  1. The Mirror Bride (1996)
  2. Meant to Marry (1996)
  3. The Final Proposal (1996)

Royal Weddings Series

  1. The Prince's Pleasure (2002)
  2. His Pregnant Princess (2004)
  3. By Royal Demand (2006)

The Royal House of Illyria

  1. By Royal Demand (2006)
  2. The Rich Man's Royal Mistress (2006)
  3. The Prince's Convenient Bride (2007)

The Mediterranean Princes

  1. His Majesty's Mistress (2008)
  2. The Mediterranean Prince's captive virgin (2008)

A Year Down Under Series Multi-Author

Too Hot to Handle Series Multi-Author

Secrets Series Multi-Author

Dangerous Liaisons Series Multi-Author

Bride's Bay Resort Series Multi-Author

2. Indiscretions (1995)

Nanny Wanted! Series Multi-Author

Passion Series Multi-Author

Foreign Affairs Multi-Author

By Royal Command Multi-Author

Mistresses Who Marry Series Multi-Author

His Virgin Mistress Series Multi-Author

Bedded By Blackmail Series Multi-Author

The Royal House of Niroli Series Multi-Author

Royal and Ruthless Series Multi-Author

Collections

Omnibus in collaboration

Non fiction

Related Research Articles

Emma Darcy is the pseudonym used by the Australian husband–wife writing team of Wendy Brennan and Frank Brennan, they wrote in collaboration over 45 romance novels. In 1993, for the Emma Darcy pseudonym's 10th anniversary, they created the "Emma Darcy Award Contest" to encourage authors to finish their manuscripts. After the death of Frank Brennan in 1995, Wendy wrote on her own. She lived in New South Wales, Australia.

Sheila Holland, née Sheila Ann Mary Coates was best known under the pseudonym Charlotte Lamb as a prolific romantic novelist. She signed her novels with her married or maiden names – Sheila Holland, Sheila Coates – and under the pseudonyms Sheila Lancaster, Victoria Wolf and Laura Hardy. She was married to Richard Holland. They had five children, including a set of twins: - Michael Holland, Sarah Holland, Jane Holland, Charlotte Holland and David Holland.

Anne Mather is the pseudonym used by Mildred Grieveson, a popular British author of over 160 romance novels. She also signed novels as Caroline Fleming and Cardine Fleming.

Carole Mortimer is a popular British writer of over 150 romance novels since 1978. She was one of Mills & Boon's youngest authors, and now is one of their most popular and prolific authors.

Margaret Way is an Australian writer of romance novels and women's fiction. A prolific author, Way has written more than 120 novels since 1970, many through Mills & Boon, a romance imprint of British publisher Harlequin UK Ltd., owned by Harlequin Enterprises.

Anne Ashurst, who wrote using the pseudonym Sara Craven, was a British author of over 80 romance novels. Her novels were published by Mills & Boon from 1975. In 2010 she became chairman of the Southern Writers' Conference, and the next year was elected the 26th Chairman (2011–2013) of the Romantic Novelists' Association.

Miranda Lee is a popular Australian writer of over 75 romance novels. She published her novels in Mills & Boon's since 1990.

Lynne Graham is a Northern Irish author of over 100 romance novels. She published her novels in Mills & Boon since 1987.

Sara Wood was a popular British writer of 49 romance novels in Mills & Boon from 1986 to 2004.

Helen Bianchin is a New Zealand-born Australian writer. Since 1975, she has written over 55 romance novels for Mills & Boon.

Cathy Williams is a British writer of romance novels in Mills & Boon since 1990.

Sharon Kendrick, née Wirdnam is a popular British writer of over 100 romance novels published by Mills & Boon since 1993. Her books regularly top the sales charts for romance fiction on both sides of the Atlantic.

Margaret Mayo is a British writer of over 80 romance novels since 1976.

Kate Walter was a popular British writer of 50 romance novels in Mills & Boon since 1984.

Violet Winspear was a British writer of 70 romance novels in Mills & Boon from 1961 to 1987.

Catherine Spencer is a popular Canadian writer of over 40 romance novels in Harlequin Enterprises Ltd from 1986 to 2009. She also signed her books as Kathy Orr.

Daphne Clair de Jong, née Williams is a popular New Zealand writer of over 75 romance novels since 1977 as Daphne Clair and Daphne de Jong, and under the pseudonyms Laurey Bright, Clair Lorel, and Clarissa Garland, and she also publishes poetry and articles.

Jacqueline Baird is popular English writer of over 30 romance novels since 1988.

India Grey is a British writer of romance novels since 2006. In 2009, her novel Mistress: Hired for the Billionaire's Pleasure won the Love Story of the Year by the Romantic Novelists' Association.

References

  1. "The reality of romance". The Southland Times. 20 June 1998.
  2. Erakovich, Lena (3 May 1998). "Romance queens revealed". Sunday News (New Zealand). p. 25.
  3. 1 2 3 Sturm, Terry (2006). "Donald, Robyn". In Robinson, Roger; Wattie, Nelson (eds.). The Oxford Companion to New Zealand Literature. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acref/9780195583489.001.0001. ISBN   978-0-1917-3519-6. OCLC   865265749 . Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  4. "A helping hand for fledgling writers". The Northland Age (Kaitaia, New Zealand). 20 September 2018. p. A11.
  5. OpenLibrary.org. "Robyn Donald". Open Library. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  6. Anderson, Natalie (10 December 2011). "The write stuff (according to romance royalty)". Waikato Times. p. B6.