Charlene Keel

Publisher and Editor

At the age of eleven, Charlene Keel turned the last page of Gone with the Wind, and started scribbling her own version of that popular saga. At 21, she left her native Florida to live in both New York and Hollywood. In the 40-plus years of writing that followed, she has worked as a stewardess, a secretary, a mother, an administrative assistant, a publicist, an editor, a full-time freelance writer and as publisher of her own magazine, I’ll Take Romance! (a lifestyle and literary journal for women).

Keel is the author of 12 published novels and how-to books. Her television credits include Rituals, a syndicated soaper she created based on her own book, and multiple episodes of Fantasy Island and Days of Our Lives. She has also written, produced and/or directed such television pilots as Romance Theatre, Follow Your Heart and the first annual Mr. Romance Cover Model Pageant. Keel has also worked as editor in chief of For the Bride, a 4-color quarterly, and as editor in chief of Spice, a teen music fanzine from The Starlog Group.

Currently, she's the editor of the Parklander, a glossy little 'zine that serves an affluent, upwardly mobile community in South Florida.

“It was my work in television that inspired me to return to publishing,” says Keel, who had already written 10 books when she decided to try TV scripts. “I found myself spending more time going to pitch meetings than doing any writing; and since it’s a writer’s job to write, I needed to get back to my roots.”

In 1992, Keel was hired as convention coordinator for Romantic Times. A year later, she became managing editor of Playgirl; and after one year in that position, she left to start her own publication. “I’ll Take Romance! was a magazine for the woman interested in all things romantic,” declares Keel.

No longer in publication, the format became the basis of a short-lived, unique web site called RomanceLand.com. The brainchild of TV entrepreneur Herman Rush, the site was ahead of its time but what Keel gained in that experience inspired her to recover the rights to all her books and present them in another unique format, TantalizingTales.com.

Philece Sampler

Publisher and Producer

Best recognized by television audiences for her starring roles as “Renee” on Days of Our Lives, “Lacy” on Rituals, and “Donna” on Another World, Philece Sampler was voted by fans as Daytime’s Most Missed Character after her departure. During her time on the soaps, she also learned skills used behind the camera, from directing to producing. Before moving to Los Angeles, she got her B.A. (Speech and Drama) and a secondary teaching certification from North Texas State University, traveled around the globe on World Campus Afloat, and toured the country doing theater productions including Charley’s Aunt with Roddy McDowell, Under the Yum-Yum Tree with Bill Daily, and My Three Angels with John Carradine, and she performed on dozens of radio and television commercials.

After numerous guest-starring roles on television episodics such as Hunter, T.J. Hooker and Dallas, and her grueling, non-stop work in daytime and syndicated continuing drama, Sampler escaped to Japan for a year. Since 1991, she has focused her attentions behind the scenes, completing seven screenplays and producing, directing and abridging over 60 books on tape for Romance Alive, Audio Renaissance, Harper Audio and My Romance.

In 1995, Philece was back on stage in the award-winning production of Horton Foote’s The Habitation of Dragons; and in 1996, she associate produced Del Shores’ critically acclaimed comedy hit, Sordid Lives (which ran for over a year in Los Angeles), in which she also occasionally performed the roles of sex-crazed therapist “Dr. Eve” and hard-living, gun-toting “La Vonda.”

Philece is an active member of the LA Maddogs looping group and is much sought after in animation, voicing characters from infant to ancient on numerous shows including Father of the Pride, All Grown Up, Rugrats, Real Monsters, Digimon, Transformers, Shinzo, Dinozaurs and The Incredible Hulk. Her favorite role has been that of “Lester” on Disney Channel's hit, Stanley.

A partner in Hopeful Romantics Entertainment, Philece has joined forces with Invision Entertainment to produce films based on romance novels, as well as the magazine-format TV show, Invision USA. She is also a teacher, casting and audition director; and she is involved with the highly acclaimed Wells Fargo Radio Theater for the Gene Autry Museum as performer, writer, assistant director and director.

Robbyne Kaamil

Entertainment Editor

This native New Yorker is an accomplished performer and poet as well as a comedian, talk show host, voice-over artist, full-figured model appearing in national print campaigns for designers such as Ashley Stewart, and advice columnist. Her TV appearances include The Howard Stern Show and Queer Eye For The Straight Guy.

She began her professional career after college with a teaching post at a youth employment program but her passion for truth, her insight and her ability to make others laugh soon led her to performing on stage. Her electrifying off-Broadway one woman show, Raw and Real…Life from One Woman’s Perspective, weaves poignant excerpts from her poetry with side-ripping comedy and riveting dramatic interludes, and is currently available on DVD.

F. H. Craig

Gay & Lesbian Interests Editor

Kristen Weiser

Grace Fermier

Designer

Grace (who designs all our delightful book covers and works with Wendy on the site) has been active in the graphic arts for over 20 years. This talented watercolorist and jewelry designer is a graduate of California State University in San Bernardino where she earned a BA in art with emphasis on Visual Communications. In addition to teaching at three universities, she is a partner in TantalizingTales.com and owns her own company, Grace Fermier Design.

Eric Reivik

Webmaster

Eric is our new webmaster, and keeps the site looking good. He has over 15 years of marketing, and brings his technical talent to TantalizingTales.com.

He also owns Raining Light, a web design and marketing company in Fort Lauderdale, Florida