Carla Hughes, writing as C.J. Ingram, grew up on the Gulf Coast of Florida. At the age of eight she watched a biography of Marco Polo and decided then that she wanted to accomplish two things in life: travel and write books.

After earning a Bachelors degree in International Studies from the University of South Florida, she set out to see the world, including a year spent teaching English in China. Building on those experiences, she began writing four years ago. She loves passionate stories with compelling, nearly impossible conflicts and has found that Historical Romance is the perfect vehicle to create lush settings and vivid characters.

A 2004 Golden Heart winner, she has won numerous writing contests sponsored by RWA chapters around the U.S., and hopes to be published very soon.

She lives with her family in Florida, but is always planning her next trip...and plotting her next story.