Livia J Washburn's first story was published in 1978 in Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine. Her first novel was published in '83 by Fawcett as by Livia James. In the eighties she had several westerns published in hardback by M. Evans, while she was writing mysteries for TorBooks under her maiden name Washburn. It wasn’t until recently that Livia went back to her first love, mysteries with the October 2006 release of A PEACH OF A MURDER.