Kim Zylinski admits that her debut novel was not the result of some burst of inspiration from the literary gods.

In fact, she'll be the first to tell you that her book, published just last month, was born out of boredom.

"I was working as a switchboard operator at Duquesne University. In between directing calls, I often would watch TV, something that the boss didn't like. I needed the job for another year, so I asked her what I should do with the gaps of time that could become boring."

The boss answered that she was sure Kim would find something to do, and she did: She wrote "Rules of Vegas," a romance/drama/comedy that centers around a stepbrother and stepsister who, out of economic necessity, share an apartment for a year of college, even though they do not start out sharing anything in the way of standards, lifestyles or goals.

Aside from a few fiction writing classes taken as an undergrad, this was new territory for Kim, who holds a bachelor of arts degree in psychology as well as a master's degree in school counseling. But by the time she had written 35 pages, she thought to herself, "I'm onto something here!" By May, the novel had grown to nearly 100,000 words -- 232 pages in manuscript -- and the search for a publisher had begun.

"I submitted the book to five publishers. I was rejected by the first three, never heard from the fourth one, but was accepted by number five, the P3 Press from Dallas, TX.

Kim explained the basic concept of the novel, which she calls "…definitely a chick book, just in time for summer reading!" She said that the book title refers to the adage, "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas." Andy is the character making all of the rules of the household. She describes him as being "a ladies' man, a partier," with the plot unfolding through Annie's point of view.

Kim, who grew up Kim Kohler of Emsworth, now lives with her husband Michael "…just on the edge of Bellevue."

She remains undecided about future writings. "Maybe a sequel to this book, or maybe a 1920's who-dunnit type work."

She's sure about one thing, though, and that's if she has enough down time, she'll produce something new.

"It's amazing what you can do when you're bored," she said.