Bestselling author Shelley Kassian has been writing timeless love stories filled with romance or dark fantasy (romantasy) for more than twenty years, novels that include her recent true love story, A Mountain Leads Home, which is loosely based on her daughter and son-in-law. A history enthusiast, she’s traveled far and wide to explore secret gardens and medieval castles, having an avid interest in the Tudor period. Her prose has been described as “near rhapsodic,” “pitch perfect,” and “stylishly straightforward, rarely relying on complex turns of phrase.” Reviewers have said her narrative conveys “imaginative fantasy,” “fascinating characters,” and “refreshing romance.”
Shelley’s taken creative writing courses, holds board positions within professional associations, and retains a Professional Editing Certificate. Drawing on her expertise, she has mentored novice writers, but her passion comes alive while scribing her stories into novel-length fiction. Shelley shares her life with her husband, adores her adult children and three grand pups, and when not relaxing at her seaside cottage, lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Education
Shelley has completed a Professional Editing Certificate at Mount Royal University, where she received a B+ for a final Capstone editing project. Education is imperative when editing documents. I am knowledgeable in copyediting, but my flair for language construction leans toward stylistic editing. When utilized in a document, style editing shapes sentences with clarity, precision, and grace.
Shelley is completing a Screenwriting Certificate at George Brown College. The program has four courses: Screenwriting One, Screenwriting Two, Screenwriting Three and Dialogue.
Professional Affiliations
Bookkeeper of When Words Collide (WWC), a festival for readers, writers, artists and publishers of commercial and literary fiction, including genre, YA, children’s books, and poetry. During my tenure at WWC, I’ve also served as Vice President.
Member of the Calgary Association of Romance Writers of America (CaRWA), an association whose main purpose is to further the careers of romance writers. During my tenure at CaRWA I’ve served as President and Past President.
Member of Romance Writers of America, Published Authors Network
Member of the Alliance of Independent Authors
Member of Book Industry Study Group (BISG)
Current Publications
Books by Shelley
Contemporary Romance
Places in the Heart:
A Sea for Summer, Book 1
A Mountain Leads Home, Book 2
The Women of Stampede:
The Half Mile of Baby Blue, Book 2
The Thurston Hotel:
A Lasting Harmony, Book 5
Historical Romance
A Gentleman for Christmas
A Heart across the Ocean
A Sacrifice for Love
Books by Abby
A Reign of Blood and Magic:
The Scarlett Mark, Book 1
The Ebony Queen, Book 2
The Immortal Blood, Book 3