Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Susan Elizabeth Phillips (born December 11, 1948 in Cincinnati, Ohio) is a romance novelist from the United States. She is the creator of the sports romance and has been called the “Queen of Romantic Comedy.”

Phillips was born on December 11 in Cincinnati, Ohio to John Aller Titus and Louesa Coate Titus. After receiving a B.F.A. in theater arts from Ohio University, Phillips taught drama, speech, and English at a local high school until her first child was born, then became a stay-at-home mother.

In 1976, the family moved from Ohio to New Jersey. There Phillips and her neighbor, Claire Lefkowitz, often discussed the books they liked to read. Together they wrote a historical romance, The Copeland Bride, which was published in 1983 under the pen name Justine Cole. After Claire and her family moved, Phillips began writing by herself. Her subsequent novels, were published under her own name.

Phillips and her husband, Bill, met on a blind date while in college. They have two grown sons, and live in Chicago, Illinois.

Phillips is the only five-time winner of the Romance Writers of America Favorite Book of the Year Award. In 2001, she was inducted into the Romance Writers Hall of Fame and in 2006 was a recipient of the Romance Writers of America's Lifetime Achievement Award.

• Natural Born Charmer - Quill nominee for best romance of 2007
• It Had to Be You: 1995 Rita Awards Best Novel winner
• Nobody's Baby But Mine: 1998 Rita Awards Best Novel winner
• Dream a Little Dream: 1999 Rita Awards Best Novel winner
• First Lady: 2001 Rita Awards Best Novel winner

• Lundin, Leigh (2011-11-20). "Wellerness". Humour in Writing. Orlando: SleuthSayers.