Please welcome award-winning author, Kelly Moran to the blog. Kelly is an author of several published books, recipient of an Editor’s Choice Award for Outstanding Achievement, inducted into the Who’s Who Book of Americans, placed as a Finalist in the 2008 Best Books Award, a Finalist in the 2009 Indie Excellence Book Awards, a respected reviewer for Bookpleasures, a former staff writer for Poetic Monthly Magazine, and a Romance Writers of America member. Whew! As if that’s not enough to keep her swamped, she also interviews authors on her blog and offers Manuscript Critique Consultations. Though most of her family is in the Carolinas, she resides in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with her husband, twin sons, and black lab. Welcome, Kelly.
Kelly: Thanks for having me, Caroline!
Caroline: How did you get into writing as a career? Do you write full time or still have a day job? If so, at what?
Kelly: I began writing when I was very young with poetry and short stories. I quickly learned that my calling was romance, though. After having kids, I began writing children's books too. I learned everything I could about the craft by reading blogs, books, and joining groups like RWA. I work part time in the healthcare field when not writing, reviewing, judging writing contests, interviewing authors on my blog, or chasing kids.
Caroline: What do you hope your writing brings to readers?
Kelly: Romance is such a hard market, though a high selling one, because you have to strive to stand out and be unique. I like my stories to not only be about the joys, but the heartache too. I incorporate illness, loss, etc. because those things are life. I hope readers can take away a good cry, and a good laugh, after reading.
Caroline: Ours is a very hard market, but I think all markets are difficult in today’s molten publishing environment. In what genres do you write? If more than one, why?
Kelly: Why would be because my brain never shuts off. I wrote a literature novella, IDLE THURSDAY (2009), two poetry and short story collections, AN INSOMNIAC'S DREAM (2005) and BEYOND THE CLOUDS (2010), two romances, WHEN THE LEAVES STOP FALLING (2007) and SUMMER'S ROAD (2011), and a children's book, THE TINY CATERPILLAR AND THE GREAT BIG TREE (2009). From here on in I'm sticking to romance and children's books, both genres of which I actively have a work-in-progress going on.
Caroline: Who are your favorite authors?
Kelly: There's just too many to mention, but topping my list are: Carla Neggers, Nicholas Sparks, Caridad Pineiro, Denise Hunter, Lisa Dale, Gina Showalter, Annie Solomon, and Susan Crandall.
Caroline: Describe yourself in three words.
Kelly: Stubborn. Organized. Tired.
Caroline: The tired I can imagine! Mothers of small children are always tired--but twins? Tell us about your writing process. Are you a plotter or a panzer?
Kelly: Plotter, mostly. Ideas will come, or characters, and from there all the plotting on how to make that work comes. There's twenty stories in my head right now. Kinda crowded up there.
Caroline: Do you have a writing schedule?
Kelly: That depends on the kids or work schedule. I usually try to fit writing in the morning or afternoon, some on weekends. I have to write in near silence.
Caroline: Are you attending any conferences this year or scheduled as a speaker? Blog tours or other promotions?
Kelly: I'm pregnant and due in July, so I am unable to travel for conferences this year. I'm am doing a blog tour in March for my new release though. See my blog or Web site for details, http://www.authorkellymoran.com/, http://authorkellymoran.blogspot.com/
Caroline: Our youngest was born in July. Very hot weather for a pregnant lady. Any guilty pleasures or vices you’d care to share?
Kelly: You mean like coffee, chocolate, hot baths and sleep? That would be it really, LOL.
Caroline: When you’re not writing, what do you do to relax?
Kelly: What is this 'relax' thing you speak of? I am not familiar with the term. Seriously, I read before bed, or take a hot bath. That's about it.
Caroline: I imagine you have very little time to relax. Amazing you find time to write. What advice would you give to pre-published authors?
Kelly: Too much to mention in great detail, but for starters, join a writer's group--enter contests, attend workshops, and get a critique partner. Read and study your genre. Do NOT query editors or agents without properly learning how. Steer clear from clichés. Most importantly, do not give up. This market changes constantly. Dreams die when hope does.
Caroline: Very sound advice, Kelly. Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself?
Kelly: If interested, I offer manuscript critique consultations for new writers. I also have helped other writers do their book trailers. Check out my site for details. My trailers can be found on my site, or on YouTube at, http://www.youtube.com/user/AuthorKellyMoran?feature=mhum
Caroline: Please tell us about your latest release.
Kelly: SUMMER'S ROAD-- Contemporary romance coming March 25th, 2011. Blurb:
After her father’s death, Summer Quinn realizes just how alone she feels in the world. With no family to fill her life now, she finds comfort among friends, but yearns for true love, contentment, and family. When her boyfriend, Matt, suggests they raise their relationship to a higher level, Summer jumps at the chance to get everything she’s always wanted. Only, she doesn’t expect the heat arising between her and her best friend, Ian – a man who never seems to settle down. A man the complete opposite of what she’s looking for. But when her estranged mother reappears after twenty-eight years, Summer’s world completely flips upside down. As secrets from her family’s past and Ian’s true feelings for her emerge, Summer’s now faced with choices she’s not sure she can make. The rest of her life’s happiness hinges on her confronting a past she’d rather deny and legitimately opening her heart to love, even if it’s not where she expected to find it.
Caroline: Your book's cover is beautiful. Makes me want to step in and enjoy the peaceful scene. Can you share an excerpt with readers?
Kelly: Here’s a PG excerpt:
Summer stepped onto the pier and gazed out over the ocean. Nighttime here was different than back home. There weren’t any city lights to disguise the stars. The ocean looked black, as dark as the sky above, so that across the horizon, she couldn’t tell where the sky ended and the water began. It was kind of like looking into heaven, like looking into the earth’s soul.
The drum of footsteps behind her broke her from her reverie. Turning, she saw Ian coming toward her. Shirtless, he hadn’t even bothered with the button on his jeans, he strode closer in bare feet with a bottle of wine in one hand and glasses in the other.
All she could think was how damn delicious he looked in the moonlight. Heat pooled in her belly and spread throughout her body like a wildfire. Ian Memmer. Not good.
“You shouldn’t be out here by yourself,” he said, pouring a glass of white wine and handing it to her, the look in his eyes saying it looks like you need this.
She took the glass from him and sipped before answering. “That’s the point, to be by myself.”
He raked a gaze over her. “And if you fell in?”
Maybe it was the moonlight. Maybe it was the call of the ocean. Whatever it was, something made her want to test the boundaries between them again. Matt or not. Friendship or not. Consequences be damned. “Then you’d save me. You always do.”
Caroline: Wow, great excerpt! Where can readers find your books?
Kelly: All of my books can be found at the usual retail sites like Amazon, B&N, etc. Here is the link to my Amazon Author Page, http://www.amazon.com/KellyMoran/e/B002BOHE8Y/ref=sr_tc_ep?qid=1299343054
Caroline: Kelly, your life sounds complicated and hectic, but readers like me are glad you find time to write. How can readers learn more about you?
Kelly: If interested, you can find trailers, reviews, my books, and more on my Web site at http://www.authorkellymoran.com/,
or my Blog at http://www.authorkellymoran.blogspot.com/. I'm also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/authorkellymoran,
Myspace at www.myspace.com/authorkellymoran,
Goodreads at www.goodreads.com/authorkellymoran, and
Twitter at www.twitter.com/authorkmoran.
Caroline: Is there anything else you'd like to tell readers?
Kelly: It is with great sadness that I announce my previous blog is gone. I woke up Sunday a.m. to find the blog, my 500 plus followers, my 100 plus author interviews, and my 200 plus reviews gone. Blogger gave no explanation. I have reloaded the interviews and reviews, plus redesigned the blog. But if you could, please hit the "follow" button so I can reclaim the fellow bloggers I miss. Please also pass the link around and spread word for me.
http://kellymoranauthor.blogspot.com
Caroline: Kelly, that's tragic for any author. I scooted over and "followed" you again. I'm sure many others are doing the same thing. Best wishes for continued success!
 |
| Author Kelly Moran |
Please welcome award-winning author, Kelly Moran to the blog. Kelly is an author of several published books, recipient of an Editor’s Choice Award for Outstanding Achievement, inducted into the Who’s Who Book of Americans, placed as a Finalist in the 2008 Best Books Award, a Finalist in the 2009 Indie Excellence Book Awards, a respected reviewer for Bookpleasures, a former staff writer for Poetic Monthly Magazine, and a Romance Writers of America member. Whew! As if that’s not enough to keep her swamped, she also interviews authors on her blog and offers Manuscript Critique Consultations. Though most of her family is in the Carolinas, she resides in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with her husband, twin sons, and black lab. Welcome, Kelly.
Kelly: Thanks for having me, Caroline!
Caroline: How did you get into writing as a career? Do you write full time or still have a day job? If so, at what?
 |
| Kelly's children's book about friendship and forgiveness |
Caroline: What do you hope your writing brings to readers?
Caroline: Ours is a very hard market, but I think all markets are difficult in today’s molten publishing environment. In what genres do you write? If more than one, why?
 |
| A Romance |
Caroline: Who are your favorite authors?
Kelly: There's just too many to mention, but topping my list are: Carla Neggers, Nicholas Sparks, Caridad Pineiro, Denise Hunter, Lisa Dale, Gina Showalter, Annie Solomon, and Susan Crandall.
Caroline: Describe yourself in three words.
Kelly: Stubborn. Organized. Tired.
Caroline: The tired I can imagine! Mothers of small children are always tired--but twins? Tell us about your writing process. Are you a plotter or a panzer?
Kelly: Plotter, mostly. Ideas will come, or characters, and from there all the plotting on how to make that work comes. There's twenty stories in my head right now. Kinda crowded up there.
Caroline: Do you have a writing schedule?
Kelly: That depends on the kids or work schedule. I usually try to fit writing in the morning or afternoon, some on weekends. I have to write in near silence.
Caroline: Are you attending any conferences this year or scheduled as a speaker? Blog tours or other promotions?
Kelly: I'm pregnant and due in July, so I am unable to travel for conferences this year. I'm am doing a blog tour in March for my new release though. See my blog or Web site for details, http://www.authorkellymoran.com/, http://authorkellymoran.blogspot.com/
Caroline: Our youngest was born in July. Very hot weather for a pregnant lady. Any guilty pleasures or vices you’d care to share?
Kelly: You mean like coffee, chocolate, hot baths and sleep? That would be it really, LOL.
Caroline: When you’re not writing, what do you do to relax?
Kelly: What is this 'relax' thing you speak of? I am not familiar with the term. Seriously, I read before bed, or take a hot bath. That's about it.
Caroline: I imagine you have very little time to relax. Amazing you find time to write. What advice would you give to pre-published authors?
Kelly: Too much to mention in great detail, but for starters, join a writer's group--enter contests, attend workshops, and get a critique partner. Read and study your genre. Do NOT query editors or agents without properly learning how. Steer clear from clichés. Most importantly, do not give up. This market changes constantly. Dreams die when hope does.
Caroline: Very sound advice, Kelly. Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself?
Kelly: If interested, I offer manuscript critique consultations for new writers. I also have helped other writers do their book trailers. Check out my site for details. My trailers can be found on my site, or on YouTube at, http://www.youtube.com/user/AuthorKellyMoran?feature=mhum
Caroline: Please tell us about your latest release.
 |
| Available March 25th from The Wild Rose Press |
Kelly: SUMMER'S ROAD-- Contemporary romance coming March 25th, 2011. Blurb:
After her father’s death, Summer Quinn realizes just how alone she feels in the world. With no family to fill her life now, she finds comfort among friends, but yearns for true love, contentment, and family. When her boyfriend, Matt, suggests they raise their relationship to a higher level, Summer jumps at the chance to get everything she’s always wanted. Only, she doesn’t expect the heat arising between her and her best friend, Ian – a man who never seems to settle down. A man the complete opposite of what she’s looking for. But when her estranged mother reappears after twenty-eight years, Summer’s world completely flips upside down. As secrets from her family’s past and Ian’s true feelings for her emerge, Summer’s now faced with choices she’s not sure she can make. The rest of her life’s happiness hinges on her confronting a past she’d rather deny and legitimately opening her heart to love, even if it’s not where she expected to find it.
Caroline: Your book's cover is beautiful. Makes me want to step in and enjoy the peaceful scene. Can you share an excerpt with readers?
Kelly: Here’s a PG excerpt:
Summer stepped onto the pier and gazed out over the ocean. Nighttime here was different than back home. There weren’t any city lights to disguise the stars. The ocean looked black, as dark as the sky above, so that across the horizon, she couldn’t tell where the sky ended and the water began. It was kind of like looking into heaven, like looking into the earth’s soul.
The drum of footsteps behind her broke her from her reverie. Turning, she saw Ian coming toward her. Shirtless, he hadn’t even bothered with the button on his jeans, he strode closer in bare feet with a bottle of wine in one hand and glasses in the other.
All she could think was how damn delicious he looked in the moonlight. Heat pooled in her belly and spread throughout her body like a wildfire. Ian Memmer. Not good.
“You shouldn’t be out here by yourself,” he said, pouring a glass of white wine and handing it to her, the look in his eyes saying it looks like you need this.
She took the glass from him and sipped before answering. “That’s the point, to be by myself.”
He raked a gaze over her. “And if you fell in?”
Maybe it was the moonlight. Maybe it was the call of the ocean. Whatever it was, something made her want to test the boundaries between them again. Matt or not. Friendship or not. Consequences be damned. “Then you’d save me. You always do.”
Caroline: Wow, great excerpt! Where can readers find your books?
Kelly: All of my books can be found at the usual retail sites like Amazon, B&N, etc. Here is the link to my Amazon Author Page, http://www.amazon.com/KellyMoran/e/B002BOHE8Y/ref=sr_tc_ep?qid=1299343054
Caroline: Kelly, your life sounds complicated and hectic, but readers like me are glad you find time to write. How can readers learn more about you?
Kelly: If interested, you can find trailers, reviews, my books, and more on my Web site at http://www.authorkellymoran.com/,
or my Blog at http://www.authorkellymoran.blogspot.com/. I'm also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/authorkellymoran,
Myspace at www.myspace.com/authorkellymoran,
Goodreads at www.goodreads.com/authorkellymoran, and
Twitter at www.twitter.com/authorkmoran.
Caroline: Is there anything else you'd like to tell readers?
Kelly: It is with great sadness that I announce my previous blog is gone. I woke up Sunday a.m. to find the blog, my 500 plus followers, my 100 plus author interviews, and my 200 plus reviews gone. Blogger gave no explanation. I have reloaded the interviews and reviews, plus redesigned the blog. But if you could, please hit the "follow" button so I can reclaim the fellow bloggers I miss. Please also pass the link around and spread word for me.
http://kellymoranauthor.blogspot.com
Caroline: Kelly, that's tragic for any author. I scooted over and "followed" you again. I'm sure many others are doing the same thing. Best wishes for continued success!
