About Us

Two authors, writing as one.  Cary Morgan and Deborah O'Neill Cordes invite you on a journey to worlds of ancient splendor and unbridled adventure . . .

 
Deborah (L) & Cary (R)
Photograph by Adam Clark/Crawford's Photography

 

A chance meeting at a writers' conference brought Cary Morgan and Deborah O'Neill Cordes together, two award-winning authors who connected because of a mutual love of timeswept fiction. Collaboration ensued, the search for a pen name the first step in their working relationship. Their maiden names provided the solution – and "Morgan O'Neill" was born.

Since that first meeting in 2002, Cary and Deborah have produced eight time travel novels together. Their backgrounds are uniquely suited to writing stories steeped in atmosphere and history: Deborah has a master’s degree in history; Cary is a talented linguist in French and is currently a student of Latin. They've traveled to Europe’s ancient and medieval sites many times, with Cary living on the Continent for five years.

Deborah's research in genealogy provided the inspiration for several of their plots; discovering she is a 32nd great-granddaughter of Queen Adelaide and King Otto sparked the creation of The Other Side of Heaven and Time Enough for Love, while finding a direct descent from King Alaric I of the Visigoths led to the story of the Roman princess Galla Placidia for their Roman time travel series. And Cary's love for Elizabethan and Tudor England led to the creation of the Elizabethan novels. It was only after Cary and Deborah were several months into writing about Elizabethan England that Deb discovered she's related to three of King Henry VIII's wives: Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr. This, of course, makes her a cousin of Henry and Anne's daughter, Queen Elizabeth I, who figures prominently as one of the main characters in the Elizabethan time travel series. Recent genealogical research also points to the possibility Cary is a distant cousin of Deb's, making her another descendant of medieval kings and queens. Stay tuned to see if further research ascertains if Cary is also Elizabeth's cousin!

The Morgan O'Neill time travel novels have received a number of literary awards, including double finalist wins in the 2013 Booksellers' Best Awards (for Love, Eternally), two semifinalist wins in the William Faulkner-William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition, first, second, and third place wins for the Mainstream Novel with Strong Romantic Elements category of the Golden Rose Contest, a top ten finalist award in the Pacific Northwest Writers' Conference Zola Awards Literary Contest, and a top ten finalist win in the Orange Rose Contest.

 

 Our personal websites:

Deborah O'Neill Cordes Website

Cary Morgan Website