Susan Elizabeth Phillips received a B.F.A. in theater arts from Ohio University and became a teacher after graduation. She taught high school drama, speech, and English before deciding to become a stay-at-home mom. She wrote her first novel, The Copeland Bride, with a friend under the pen name of Justine Cole, but soon started a solo career. Her other works include Glitter Baby, It Had to Be You, Heaven, Texas, Kiss an Angel, Dream a Little Dream, and The Great Escape. She received the Romance Writers of Americas Favorite Book of the Year award twice and the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award.