TCR: Could you tell me a little about yourself?
KR: I am
a 46 year old, married woman who leads a pretty boring life.
TCR: What do you like to do when you are not
writing?
KR: I
like to read, I also make jewelry and crochet.
I like to try different crafts.
TCR: As a reader, what do you like to see in a good book?
What do you find trite or cliché?
What makes you stop reading and discard a book?
KR:
As a reader, I like a story that
keeps my interest and that flows. I
really don’t like choppy sentences or overused slang. It is rare for me to stop reading a book once
I have started it. If I’m not enjoying
the story, I keep going because I hope that it will get better.
TCR: Do you have a day job? If so, how do you juggle everything?
KR: Yes,
I work three, eight hour days a week. It
is difficult because when I am at work, I want to be home writing.
TCR: When did you first start writing and when did
you finish your first book?
KR: I
started writing on August 29th of this year and I wrote my first
book in 18 days.
TCR: How did you choose the genre in which you
write, or did it choose you?
KR: I
have always loved the Old West so it just seemed natural for me to write a
story in that setting.
TCR: Where do you get your ideas?
KR: This
is a question that I get asked a lot.
And the truthful answer is, I don’t know. I just make up stories in my head. I may read something or watch a movie, and
characters just seem to form and then I think of scenarios to put those
characters in.
TCR: Do you work with an outline, or do you just
write?
KR: I
little of both. I do outline important
dates (because I am very bad at math) and it helps be keep track of my
timeline. Other times, I just pick up a
pad of paper and write whatever comes into my head and I sort it all out later.
TCR: Do you ever get writers block? If so, how do you knock down the wall?
KR: Yes,
I do. It was very upsetting the first
time it happened because I knew how the story was going to end but I didn’t
know how to get there. It took four days
to work itself through and then, one day, in the middle of work, I thought, “I
could have them do this…” and my block was over. It was the longest afternoon of my life!
TCR: Is there a particular author or book that
influence or inspired you in any way as a child or an adult?
KR: I
think that all books influence me, in both good and bad ways. When I read really good writing, I think
“that’s how I want to write”. And when I
read really poor writing, I think “please don’t let me write like that”.
TCR: Can you tell us about your challenges in
getting your book(s) published?
KR: There
haven’t been so many challenges as much as it is just a learning process. Twelve weeks ago I had no idea what was
involved or even how to go about publishing my book. A very good friend and fellow author helped
me with all of that.
TCR: If you had to go back and do it all over
again, is there any aspect of your novel or getting it published that you would
change?
KR: I
would like to say “no” because if I had changed anything, than it wouldn’t be
the story that it is. That being said, I
would have probably not pushed myself (and others) to release my book so
quickly.
TCR: Have you written a book you loved that you
have NOT been able to publish?
KR: No,
Here to Stay is my first novel.
TCR: Do you have a book coming out soon? If so, can you tell us about it?
KR: Yes, I
do. Hearts on Fire, the next book in the
Hidden Springs series, will be released on December 26th. It tells
the story of two more characters that live in Hidden Springs.
TCR: How did you come up with the title?
KR: For my
current book, I was trying to think of something catchy that I could tie in to
the story. My main character, Kate,
returns home and tries to convince her love interest that she is not going to
leave again. She tells him she’s “here
to stay”.
TCR: Is there anything in your books based upon
real life experiences, or is it all imaginary?
KR: It is
all imaginary.
TCR: What was your favorite chapter(s) or part(s)
to write and why?
KR: I like writing scenes with tension, romantic
or otherwise. I enjoy getting into the
heads of my character and trying to figure out how they would act or what they
would say.
TCR: Are there certain characters you would like
to revisit/further develop or a theme or idea you’d love to work with again?
KR: Well,
Hidden Springs is going to be a series of 8 books so I will be spending a lot
of time with all of the characters.
TCR: How do you market your work? What avenues work best for your genre?
KR: Marketing myself is new to me. I have found social media to be very
helpful. I have also found that I need
to not be afraid to ask people to read or review my book.
TCR: What project are you working on now?
KR: I am
finishing the final edits on Hearts on Fire and I have started writing book
three, Abby’s Choice.
TCR: What has been the toughest criticism given to
you as an author? What has been the
greatest compliment?
KR: I
haven’t been criticized yet J. The greatest compliment came from my Mom when
she told me how proud she was of me.
TCR: Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
KR: My
advice would be to stick with it. You
will have doubts about whether your book is any good or if anyone will read it;
I know that I did. But you have to be
true to yourself and just go for it. Take
a chance. You’ll be glad that you
did. Also, write authentically. Write what you want to write, don’t write
what you think your fans want you to write.
TCR: Do you have anything you would like to say to
your readers and fans?
KR: I’d
like to say thank you for choosing to read my book over all of the other
fantastic publications out there. I hope
the time that you spend with my book is enjoyable.
I even asked some very odd questions and she was kind enough to answer!
TCR:
Have you ever gone out with a shirt inside out or backwards, slippers
instead of shoes, or two different shoes and either not noticed until it was
too late to do anything about it, or simply said, “To hell with it”?
KR:
No, I don’t think that I have -
but I’m a “to hell with it” kind of girl.
TCR:
Is there any particular animal that makes you scream and run for the
hills, or a bug that you just cant’ kill?
KR:
Snakes. I hate snakes!!!
TCR:
I live in Central Florida (yes, close to the theme parks) and road rage 
ften erupts on
our roads due to all the “WONDERFUL” tourists (I usually take the bus)! Have
you ever had road rage? What pisses you
off most about other drivers?
ften erupts on
our roads due to all the “WONDERFUL” tourists (I usually take the bus)! Have
you ever had road rage? What pisses you
off most about other drivers?
KR:
People who don’t drive the speed
limit. If you want to drive slowly, use
the right hand lane.
Get your copy of "Here To Stay (Hidden Springs)!
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