Kayla Perrin was kept in the dark with her Midnight Dreams.

First by Harlequin Books, the publisher who re-released her 1999 novel last year and didn't tell her.

And then by the 10,000-member Romance Writers of America, who neglected to inform her that Midnight Dreams had earned her one of its most significant awards.

In fact, the Hamilton author almost missed the awards presentation at the RWA conference in San Francisco last month because she didn't know she was on the agenda.

"I got there on Tuesday, and on Friday morning, someone said 'Congratulations.' and I didn't know what they were talking about," says Perrin. "Apparently it was in the program, but I didn't see it, and nobody had told me. It was being presented that day at lunch, so I cancelled my lunch plans and sat at the back of the room."

She was there in time to hear that her recurring Dreams had won the Waldenbooks/Borders 2007 Bestselling Multicultural Romance award, putting her in the company of some of the most prolific and successful romance writers in the world.

A greater surprise than winning was the fact that Midnight Dreams was one of her earliest efforts -- only the fourth or fifth book she'd ever written.

"I probably wouldn't have chosen that one," says the 37-year-old Perrin. "It was an early book, and you get better over time."

Readers and publishers seem to agree. When her erotic thriller, Obsession, is released this month, her list of titles will stand at 32. The Borders award confirms her growing popularity in the multicultural genre, a category that includes Asian and East Indian authors and characters, but primarily African-American.

"But it's really not about the colour," says Perrin. "It's the story. I want my readership to be as broad as possible."

She is trying to broaden herself, too.

Last year, the mother of five-year-old Chloe turned out four new books plus an essay in a "chick lit" anthology called Everything I Needed To Know About Being A Girl I Learned From Judy Blume. She co-wrote the comic mystery How To Kill A Guy In 10 Days and is now writing more for Spice, a naughtier line of romance novels from Harlequin.

The cliffhanger ending of her Single Mama Drama angered readers who expect books with a nice happy ending. They want "I hate you and I never want to see you again," and two pages later, "Oh well, we've worked it out."

But it got readers talking and virtually guaranteed an audience for the sequel, Single Mama's Got More Drama, due in December.

"I'm playing around outside the genre," she says. "I don't want to write 'boy meets girl, conflict, happily ever after' forever. I love suspense and mystery. Romance is bread and butter for a lot of writers, but I want to reach out into suspense in a big way."

Perrin's own love life is nowhere near as exciting as those of her characters. Writing is a solitary business, and she's not into the bar scene.

There are too many distractions to work at home, so she usually packs up her laptop, hits the local Starbucks, orders a coffee, tunes out the noise and writes merrily away.

Maybe someday ... a tall dark stranger ... a cinnamon dolce latte ... a longing gaze across the crowded coffee shop ... Who knows?

mnolan@thespec.com

905-526-4689