A Groom Worth Waiting For
Steeple Hill/Love Inspired
November 2001

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A Wall Street Journal article changed Crystal Stovall's life. As a branch office manager of a New York Stock Exchange member firm, one of her responsibilities was to read The Journal each day for information pertinent to client portfolios. What caught her interest instead, on a snowy February morning, was an article reporting the rising sales of paperback novels.

Though reading fiction had always been at the top of her hobby list, Crystal had never considered writing as a profession. A college graduate, with a combined major in psychology and sociology, she went on to co-own several businesses with her husband, Jim.

While still working at the brokerage firm, Crystal began writing part-time. She sold several short stories and placed in many writing contests. She was named Tulsa Nightwriter of the Year. Her nonfiction articles were published in Woman's Day, The Writer, Woman's Enterprise, Country Women, and Reminisce.

Once she started working on the novel, Dream Givers, Crystal discovered her passion for writing was more than a casual interest. She left the brokerage firm and began writing full-time — a decision she's never regretted. In 1990, her unpublished manuscript, Dream Givers, was a finalist in the Romance Writers of America's annual Golden Heart Award. Then in 1991, Dream Givers, won the prestigious Golden Heart. Pinnacle books bought both Dream Givers and Silent Partners. In 1998, Dream Givers won the Oklahoma Writers' Federation award for best novel.

After her editor at Pinnacle was fired, Crystal found herself without a publisher. Discouraged by a difficult book market, she never gave up on her writing dreams. The turning point came in 1999 when she was challenged by a speaker at the annual Romance Writers of America's conference to go back to her writing roots. As a teenager, she'd fallen in love with Grace Livingston Hill's inspirational romances. She instantly knew she needed to follow up on the idea of writing inspirational romances, and when she did, it led to several contracts with Love Inspired.

She feels blessed to be able to pursue a career she loves by writing for Harlequin/Silhouette's inspirational imprint Steeple Hill/Love Inspired. With All Josie's Heart was published in January 2001, followed by A Groom Worth Waiting For in November 2001, and Gifts of Love in April 2002.

Though Crystal writes inspirational romances, it's not her intent to be preachy. She thinks of her books as quality-of-life stories. First and foremost, she wants to write a heartwarming romance novel. Into this foundation, she weaves compelling life situations with an element of faith.

When not writing, Crystal enjoys traveling, downhill skiing, photography and--most of all--shopping. Though she's lived in Tulsa for twenty years, she's still an Easterner at heart. Her frequent visits to her upstate New York hometown--especially a certain boulder on the edge of Cayuga Lake--provides her with the inspiration and perspective she finds essential to her writing career.

Crystal and her husband, Jim Stovall , live in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Jim is a motivational author and speaker, as well as the president of the Emmy-Award winning Narrative Television Network. Crystal is currently writing her fourth Love Inspired novel.