Farewell to a friend

Here at Buckeye Crime Writers, we recently received news that our beloved friend and supporter of many years, Karen Harper, has passed away. For us, Karen will always be that OSU football fanatic, tireless in her love and care of her family, and a pillar in our local writing community. In addition to her writing and appearances, Karen was a co-founder of COFW (a local romance chapter, established in the 1980s) and held a chair on the advisory committee for the OSU library for ten years. Though she usually wintered in Naples, Florida, in recent years she’d moved back to Ohio on a full-time basis and became a more active BCW member. She was our first-ever speaker for our Holiday Luncheon, and spoke to our group anytime we invited her. Her work ethic and ability to professionally survive in the ever-changing landscape of publishing inspired us. Prolific in several genres –contemporary romantic suspense, Amish mysteries – her love for all-things-British was undeniable. Over her thirty-eight years of writing, her work, an impressive list of over seventy books, hit both the NYT and USA Today Bestsellers Lists. Always friendly, full of writerly wisdom, and energetic, her presence will be greatly missed across the Columbus writing community. We hope to honor her by continuing to read and promote her books (she has a new release: DEEP IN THE ALASKAN WOODS, and an upcoming, highly-anticipated release in May: THE QUEEN’S SECRET). What an enduring legacy. What a lady. Rest well, Karen.