Kellie’s in the House! Please Welcome Kellie Wallace to the Blogathon!

Welcome, Kellie! Tell us all about you! What would you most like your readers to know?

I live in Australia and been writing for as long as I can remember. Writing gives me an outlet – transports me to another time and place. I’ve written and published seven books and currently writing my eighth. I’m the type of writer who can’t stick to one genre. I like to dapple in a few and see what I like.

Are you one of those writers born with a pen in your hand and ideas flitting through your mind, or did your interest develop later?

I remember writing my first story at aged three about a fairy. After that I can’t really pinpoint the moment I decided to write novels. I penned my first published book in 2007 and started to write again more fluently. I’ve written books back to back since 2011. My brain doesn’t stop working over ideas, plots, characters.

When did you become serious about seeing your name in print and begin writing your first romance novel?

I first became serious when I self-published my first novel. I knew it was my love and passion and adored the idea of being a novelist.

How long did it take you to complete your first manuscript? Did it fly from your fingertips, or did the story emerge slowly?

If I count my first traditionally published book, it took me 12 months to write and research. Looking back I invested so much on it, that I fell in love with my characters and mourned them when I finished writing it. I love the research process. I learn so much about history.

Tell us about your writing process. Soft lights and music? White noise? Child-and-pet confusion? Locked in a room alone? What sets your writing mood and pushes you forward?

I have to be in the mood to write. If my mind is distracted and lucid, I can’t write. I don’t have an office at home so I write on my bed while watching TV as background noise. Ideally I prefer to write at the desk in silence so I try to write on my lunch break at work.

What are some life experiences that have infiltrated your stories?

Any author will tell you a little bit of their life appears in their work. I do inject some aspects of my life, but mostly about the people I meet and their stories.

Literary Inspiration: throughout your life, what novels have lifted you, made you think, “Someday I want to create something like that . . .”

Hands down, that’s Cry Wolf by Tami Hoag. I’ve read that novel 40-50 times over 10 years. Tami’s characters are so lifelike and believable. I felt for them, loved them, cried with them. That’s a great author. She changed my view on writing and really inspired me to write.

Let’s talk about romance. How do you set the mood for your characters, what do you draw from that helps your H/H achieve oneness with each other? And how much conflict do you give them, along the way?

I try and create likable and relatable characters with realistic relationships. I draw inspiration from books, movies and songs I listen or watch. Once I finish a draft I always hand it over to beta readers who will always help me flesh out the relationships.

What shining moment in your journey stands out the most as a real turning point for you as a writer?

When my first book sold copies!

Five vital things surround you as you create. What are they? What makes them special to you?

My laptop, my phone, Internet, Kindle, and notepad. They all add to the creativity and creation of my work.

Writers face many time-constraint challenges. What are some of yours? What do you do to overcome them?

I get distracted very easily, so I try to focus and work hard to open my laptop and continue writing. Of course it all comes down to my mood too. I’m a big believer in not forcing yourself to write.

What is the most thrilling aspect of the writing process for you?

Finishing the first draft!

What aspects of the writing process do you find most difficult?

Research and believing the work I create is good enough.

How do you begin a story? Do you just sit down with an idea in mind and start writing, or are you a person who wouldn’t dream of starting without a detailed outline, character sketches, and pages of research data?

At first I have a plot idea and stem it out from there. I might take bits and pieces of ideas I jotted down ages ago and create my novel piece by piece

Tell us a little about what you’re currently working on.

It’s currently a thriller with sci fi elements called ‘I Am Seth.’

How about some faves of yours?

Tami Hoag – Cry Wolf

Kellie’s current release with Soul Mate, Edge of Tomorrow:

Twenty years after The Great Global Riots and the collapse of humanity, Alex Locke struggles to save his family, and his home colony of Pena, from starvation.

When a letter from the corrupt Govern arrives dictating a game of survival penning local colonies against each other, Alex must trust a childhood friend, and seven others, on a certain death march to win the bounty or lose the only hope left in a war-ravaged world.

BUY LINK: AMAZON:

 

Thanks so much for visiting with us today, Kellie!