Kelly Irvin Interview

Q: How did you get your start writing fiction and what genre do you predominantly write in?
A. I’ve always wanted to write fiction, but I earned my college degree in journalism, figuring it would be easier to make a living writing for newspapers. Then I got married, had children, and worked full-time. It seemed I would never have my dream of publishing a novel. The day I turned 45, I woke up with the realization that if I didn’t write that novel then, I never would. So I wrote nights and weekends while working a full-time job in public relations, raising two middle schoolers, and being a wife. It took three years to get an agent and another four to get that first contract. I’ve published 22 Amish romances, 10 novellas, and six romantic suspense novels.

Q: What does your writing space look like?
A: I’m blessed to have a wonderful office with two big windows that allow me to stare out at the empty field across the road full of big trees. My office is filled with bookshelves and everything I need to spend my days writing. Pictures of Amish folks given to me by a reader grace one wall and a needlepoint of a typewriter created by my daughter in law. (It reads “Be care or you’ll end up in my novel!”)

Q: What part of a writing career do you find most difficult?
A. It varies, depending on my mood, lol. Recently it’s been the marketing, particularly what’s required in terms of social media. As we all know social media can be toxic. It’s also the easiest, most direct way to reach many of my readers. I enjoy corresponding with them on Facebook. I have to remember, though, to not get sucked into scrolling through all the negative posts and absorbing the stress they can cause.

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release Her Every Move?
A: This book came out of my love of libraries and librarians. I wanted to create a strong, smart, athletic librarian who shatters all the stereotypes. Plus it allowed me to feature the San Antonio Central Library, which is an iconic landmark in downtown San Antonio. This library is a perfect example of how wonderful and important libraries still are today. The story allows me to explore some of the issues we face today as well. Here’s the back cover blurb:

He’s a cop trying to stop a serial bomber. And she’ll stop at nothing to clear her own name.
When a deadly bomb goes off during a climate change debate, librarian and event coordinator Jackie Santoro becomes the prime suspect. Her motive, according to Detective Avery Wick: to avenge the suicide of her prominent father, who was accused of crimes by a city councilman attending the event.

Though Avery has doubts about Jackie’s guilt, he can’t exonerate her even after an extremist group takes responsibility for the bombing and continues to attack San Antonio’s treasured public spaces.

As Jackie tries to hold her shattered family together, she has no choice but to proceed with plans for the Caterina Ball, the library system’s biggest annual fundraiser. But she also fears the event provides the perfect opportunity for the bomber to strike again.

Despite their mistrust, Jackie and Avery join forces to unmask the truth—before the death toll mounts even higher.

Bestseller Kelly Irvin is back with a nail-biting romantic suspense where nothing is certain until the very last page.

Q: What did you enjoy most about writing this book? Least?
A: I loved writing about San Antonio’s iconic landmarks, its rich cultural history, and libraries in general. Being able to draw on the uniqueness of the setting was lovely. The hard part was in the plot details and the romance. I ended up doing a huge rewrite after my editor sent me an extensive development edit letter. The romance needed a lot of help! I enjoy writing, but I’m a “seat-of-the-pants” writer so I don’t outline. With romantic suspense that can lead to some serious plot holes that have to be filled.

Q: What is the main theme or spiritual message of this book?
A: People sometimes aren’t who we think they are. Even the most stable, loving person can be driven to commit awful acts because of tragedy. We shouldn’t judge without knowing how we would react in similar situations.

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?
A. I just turned in my next romantic suspense novel, Trust Me, to my editor. It involves two murders that occur ten years apart, but are tightly connected. Here’s the elevator pitch: When Delaney Broward finds her best friend stabbed to death a decade after her brother suffered the same fate, she must confront her painful past in order unmask a killer who isn’t done yet.

Q: If you could have dinner with 2 people, who would they be?
A. That’s a tough one. It’s hard to narrow it down. I think Corrie ten Boom and Martin Luther King. What a conversation that would be!

Q: Do you have a favorite hobby?
A. Reading. When I’m not writing, I’m reading. I love mysteries, suspense, romantic suspense, and thrillers. When I need a break from those genres, I read historic fiction.

Q: What is the most rewarding thing you have ever done?
A. Gosh, that must be a trick question, lol. It’s hard to put a measuring stick to the most important things in life. I loved being a mom and I’m proud to have raised two good, decent, hard-working children who now have families of their own. Being a Christian fiction writer is tremendously rewarding. My books are my way of sharing God’s love, His Word, and salvation with the world. All the while entertaining readers with good stories—I hope.