Dr. Florence May Weinberg grew up in a family of educators, and upon learning how to read, she discovered the significance of reading and loving books. With an innate interest in languages, she attended Park College and received a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and French language and literature in 1954. Years later, she earned a master’s degree in Spanish language, history and literature from the University of British Columbia in 1963, and a PhD in French language and literature from the University of Rochester in 1968. She commenced her career at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, New York, as an instructor of modern languages in 1967, and soon was promoted to the ranks of assistant professor, associate professor and full professor. Remaining as a full professor of modern languages until 1989, she concurrently served St. John Fisher College as chair of the Department of Modern Languages and director of international studies.
In 1989, Dr. Weinberg joined the faculty of Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, as a professor of Spanish and French. Retiring from her dual roles in 1999, she also served the university as chair of the Department of Modern Languages and Literature for six years. Since 1999, she has committed herself full-time to the craft of writing, having authored four scholarly books between 1972 and 2000 and 11 historical novels since 2005 in such genres as fantasy, historical romance and mystery.
Dr. Weinberg’s books have appeared in English, French, German and Spanish, many of which are set in 18th century New Spain. Her novels have received much acclaim over the decades, receiving accolades such as the 2012, 2014 and 2015 Pinnacle Book Achievement Awards, the 2012 Arts & Letters Award from the Friends of the San Antonio Public Library, and the 2011 New Mexico Book Award.
Other accolades to Dr. Weinberg’s credit have included finalist placements for the 2010 and 2012 Indie Next Generation Book Award in Historical Fiction, the 2009 International Eric Hoffer Award, the 2007 and 2008 New Mexico Book Award, and the 2006 WILLA Literary Award. She also earned the Alumna of the Year Award from Park University in 2008 and has received grants from the Ludwig Vogelstein Foundation, a grant-in-aid from the American Council of Learned Societies, and two grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, one of them a senior fellowship.
A member of the Modern Language Association, Renaissance Society of America and PEN America, Dr. Weinberg was born in Alamogordo, New Mexico, to parents Steven and Gladys Byham on December 3, 1933. Drawing upon an early interest in the wilderness, she fostered her love for nature in her passion for reading and writing, and published her first poem in a children’s magazine when she was 4 years old. Married to the late Kurt Weinberg from 1955 until his passing in 1996, she enjoys cooking, swimming, hiking, horseback riding and gardening in her spare time.
