Nicole Jordan (born Anne Bushyhead in 1954 in Oklahoma) is a best-selling American author of romance novels. Jordan's historical romances have appeared on best-seller lists, including the New York Times, USA Today, Waldenbooks, and Amazon.com. She has been a finalist for the Romance Writers of America RITA Award and a runner-up for RWA's Favorite Book of the Year. Jordan has won the Dorothy Parker Award of Excellence for best historical.^[1] Jay Leno pretended to read aloud her novel Touch Me With Fire during a skit on The Tonight Show.^[2]

Biography

Nicole Jordan was born in Oklahoma. Her father was in the US Army, so the family moved frequently. She graduated from high school in Germany.^[3] She credits her mother with instilling her love of romance novels, as she began reading aloud to her from Pride and Prejudice and The Scarlet Pimpernel when Jordan was ten years old. Before long, she was reading Victoria Holt and Mary Stewart romances.^[2]

Jordan earned a degree in civil engineering from Georgia Tech.^[1] She then spent eight years working as a manufacturing manager for Procter & Gamble making disposable diapers and toilet tissue. After reading the novel Tears of Gold by Laurie McBain, Jordan began dreaming of writing her own stories.^[2] After attending a goal-setting workshop with the theme "Do it now -- don't wait until you're too old to explore your dreams," Jordan went home and began writing one of her ideas down in long-hand.^[3] After four years of part-time writing and editing and many rejections, Zebra books purchased this first story in 1985.^[2][3]

Jordan and her husband moved from Atlanta to Utah.^[1] She owns a horse, Irish Outlaw, which is an Irish Thoroughbred. Jordan often competes with him in shows. Jordan has no children.^[4]