| With
the beginning of each New Year come resolutions
that we all hope to keep. Whether it is a lifestyle
change or maybe just adhering to healthier eating
choices, it's refreshing to be able to
get a chance to start over. It seems like many
adults are doing just that, but instead of limiting
it to exercise, they're opening themselves
up to a wider playing field, their careers. How
many people do you know have made a significant
change in their employment? The numbers
are staggering.
I'd have to admit, I fall into that category. I
graduated from college with a double major in
French and Secondary Education with the intention
of retiring from the classroom after my required
twenty-five years of service. Never would I have
imagined that I would find myself in the publishing
business interviewing authors and writing book
reviews. If I could do it all over again,
would I change anything? Absolutely not! I loved
my teaching career, all six years of it and I
know I made the right choice in leaving it behind
to stay home and raise our sons.
 This month's Jen's Jewels' author
has a similar story although much more interesting
than mine! I first heard of Kelley St.
John through Romance Writers of America, an
organization we both belong to and one in which
she serves as secretary. When I asked her
if she would be willing to be interviewed, she
enthusiastically agreed. Although we have never
met face-to-face, I feel as if I really know
her. We email each other with tidbits of news
and have kept in touch even after the interview
was completed. As part of her interview, she
has agreed to give away five books to my lucky
readers. So, don't forget to answer the
trivia question at the end of the column.
As a special perk for being a loyal Jen's
Jewels reader, you have a unique opportunity
this month to determine the future of an up and
coming author. At the end of the column, I have
attached the first three chapters of her manuscript. You
be the judge! Is it a hit or a miss? Please read
it and then email me at jensjewels@gmail.com to
share your comments. Who knows? You may be reading
the manuscript of the next New York Times
Bestselling Author! Only you can determine
that! I hope you enjoy this new feature and I
look forward to your feedback. If any agents
or editors are interested in this author, feel
free to contact me as well.
Now, go grab a cup of hot chocolate and get to
know my friend, Kelley St. John.
JEN: Please tell us
briefly about your educational and professional
background.
KELLEY: At the time I graduated college, NASA was actively recruiting college
graduates with degree concentrations in Computer Science and English, my two
fields of study. My position involved writing technical manuals utilized
to obtain elevation data of the earth's terrain. I worked with cartographers,
engineers and programmers on a daily basis and truly enjoyed the enormous learning
curve involved with the position, as well as the endless amount of information
supplied by those knowledgeable individuals. Writers love information;
that position was a goldmine for plotting ideas.
JEN: How did you go from
being a senior writer at NASA to becoming a romance
writer? Since writing seems to be in your genes,
what (or who!) finally gave you that push to
go for it?
KELLEY: The NASA offer after college gave
me an opportunity that I couldn't pass up,
both financially and professionally; however, I
always had that dream to publish my own work. I've
loved the romance genre since I was a teen reading
Rosamond du Jardin and falling in love with her
characters and with romance in general.
Two people are actually responsible for giving
me that push: my sexy Cajun hubby and the
amazing author Raven Hart. My husband knew
Raven Hart and happened to mention to her that
his wife wrote romance too, but that I hadn't
shown my work to anyone. She asked him if
I would let her read my material. I nervously
sent her a full manuscript, and she wrote me one
of the most wonderful emails defining everything
she loved about the book. She then told me
to get my behind in Romance Writers of America
and get my work to an agent pronto. I followed
her advice, joined RWA (I'm actually on the
RWA Board now), got an agent and have just sold
my seventh book. It's been an amazing
ride, and I'm still shocked that the dream
is actually reality.
 JEN: I've read
that you are able to plot an entire novel in
the time it takes you to drive from Atlanta to
Orlando. Please tell us about your writing process.
Outline? Plot first? Characters?
KELLEY: Generally, I begin with a basic premise,
such as the alibi agency in Good Girls Don't,
or the curvy woman who needs to embrace her curves
in Real Women Don't Wear Size 2. Then
I think of possible scenarios, characters and settings
for that premise. After that, I go for a
drive. Seriously. Almost all of my
plotting occurs on the interstate. Driving
relaxes my mind and allows the characters to speak
freely. Find this book in our catalog.
After driving, I type the basic plot for my story,
then immediately start writing. My characters
become more defined as the book progresses, so
my second pass through the entire manuscript allows
me to add those details that surfaced as I learned
more about each primary and secondary character. By
the third pass, I know them so well that dialogue
tags aren't usually needed; their voices are crystal
clear and ready to be heard (and submitted to my
editor).
The easiest part of writing is generating the
basic premise. I've never had a shortage
of ideas for books. The most difficult part
of the writing process is waiting for publication. You
become very attached to your "baby" and
are anxious to share it with the world.
JEN: Please tell us
about your first novel, Good
Girls Don't. From conception to completion,
how long did it take for you to write and then
get it published? Has it won any awards?
KELLEY: Good Girls Don't sold
to Warner in January 2005 and then hit the shelves
in December of the same year. So from the
sale date to publication, eleven months. Thanks
for asking about awards. Good Girls Don't won
the Beacon Award and the National Readers' Choice
Award! Yea!!!
 JEN: When writing a novel, what is the most difficult
part for you to write and why?
KELLEY: The ending, because I really hate saying
goodbye to characters. I get very attached
to each and every one of them. As a matter
of fact, I get so attached, that some of my characters
reappear in other books. For example, in
my next Warner release, To Catch A Cheat,
Amy and Landon from Good Girls Don't are
my heroine's neighbors. And if you
know anything about Amy and Landon, then you can
only imagine what interesting neighbors they can
be. Find this book in our catalog.
JEN: When it comes to your writing, whose opinion
do you value the most and why?
KELLEY: My agent, Caren Johnson, has an extraordinary
sense of what works and what doesn't. She
knows the industry; she knows my editors; and she
knows my writing. All three are important
qualities to give me the best possible advice for
my submissions.
JEN: What has surprised you the most about the
publishing business?
KELLEY: The time you have to wait from submitting
your novel until seeing it on the shelf. I've
been blessed that all of my books have come out
very quickly; however, when I've finished
something that's so near and dear to my heart,
I'm extremely eager to share it with the
world and see how it's received by readers. And
I love to hear from readers. I can't
tell you how many emails I've received from
curvy women who have fallen in love with Clarise
and have related to her and her story. That
means the world to me!
JEN: Currently, you serve as secretary of Romance
Writers of America. How did you become active in
this organization and what do you like best about
it?
KELLEY: As I mentioned above, Raven Hart
pointed me to RWA, and I'll forever be indebted
to her for that wise advice. The best part
of RWA is that the organization is focused on promoting
romance and supports all writers who are published
in that remarkable genre, as well as those who
are on the road to publication. I love the
fact that published authors are so willing to share
their knowledge with pre-published authors. Part
of the reason I decided to serve on the Board of
RWA is to give back to the organization that has
given me so much.
JEN: The title of your latest release, Real
Women Don't Wear Size 2, is quite
catchy. How did you come up with it?
KELLEY: Well, I'm sure you've
probably heard before that authors rarely title
their books. Or rather, we title them, but
most of the time, those titles change. I
have an article about this on my website called The
Unbridled Title. For example, with Good
Girls Don't, I submitted over eighty
titles, and then Warner came back with Good
Girls Don't. That wasn't
a title that I submitted, but I loved it. Hey,
after having eighty rejected, they could have called
it just about anything, and I'd have taken
it. But for Real Women Don't Wear
Size 2, my original title was Unmasked
Fantasy, since Clarise finally has her fantasies
fulfilled. Then, for a short while, the
title was Confidently Curvy. And
then Real Women Don't Wear Size 2. There
are way too many people involved with selecting
a title for me to list them all here, but I know
that the publishing houses select titles that they
believe are best for each particular book, and Real
Women Don't Wear Size 2 has been dubbed
a title that gets attention. If it gets readers
to pick up the book and inquire about Clarise's
story, then it's doing the job.
JEN: At the beginning of the novel, you refer
to Gasparilla Pirate Festival. What can you tell
us about the event, as well as its significance
in your life and to the story?
KELLEY: I was fortunate to have a book signing
in Tampa in January, when the city was gearing
up for the annual Gasparilla Pirate Festival. The
history of the festival dates back to 1821, when
the legendary pirate Jose Gasparilla stormed the
city. The best way to describe it is like
Mardi Gras with pirates. You can check it
all out at gasparillapiratefest.com. And
of course, you can attend Gasparilla to get the
full effect, like Clarise does in Real Women
Don't Wear Size 2.
JEN: The two lead characters have MANY steamy
love scenes. How do you manage to keep it so real
without going over the top?
KELLEY: Aw, gee, thanks! Actually,
I can thank my sexy Cajun for an endless supply
of research (he's going to absolutely love
it when he reads this). Okay, seriously,
I wrote for years while holding back on my characters' emotions. Then
I turned in a manuscript to the phenomenal Brenda
Chin, and she told me the truth: “I
can tell your characters want to go farther, and
you aren't letting them. Let them
go where they want to go.” After
that, I decided that if my characters want to go
for something interesting, I let them. The
result has been sex scenes that, to me, are very
in tune with each character. They know what
they like, and I simply let them have what they
want. By the way, I recently sold a trilogy
to Brenda Chin for Blaze and am excited to be working
with her, as well as still working with the fabulous
editors at Warner/Hachette.
JEN: Grandma Gertie plays a significant part in
the story. Is she modeled after your grandma?
KELLEY: Oh, man, I love Granny Gert. She's
modeled after one of my grandmothers, a woman whose
primary goals in life were to meet Jeff Gordon,
Vince Gill and Bear Bryant. She attended
Talladega once, for her seventy-fourth birthday,
and saw Jeff Gordon. She also went to a Vince
Gill concert, and accomplished that goal. But
her pride and joy was a photo of her standing with
her arm around Bear Bryant and grinning like she'd
won the lottery. I could describe her, quite
simply, as a “Mass of Sass.”
JEN: Is Clarise modeled after anyone in particular?
What message, if any, are you sending to your readers
through this character?
KELLEY: Clarise isn't modeled after
a specific woman; however, she is modeled after
a particular type of woman. She's the
girl who was everybody's best friend in school,
the one who all the boys liked, but none of them
dated. Clarise is beautiful, but she has
her own interpretation of beauty, and that interpretation
has left her out of her self-defined box. In
this book, Clarise learns that she is truly desirable,
and that, in fact, all women are, regardless of
size.
JEN: What do you like best about the two lead
characters, Clarise and Ethan?
KELLEY: I love the fact that they were so
in tune to each other before their sexual relationship
ever began. They were the closest friends
first, for three years, which made their passion
for each other even stronger. They truly
knew each other, so they already had the intimacy
of friendship to build upon when forming the intimacy
of romance.
JEN: If the book were to be made into a movie,
who would you like to see play Clarise and Ethan?
KELLEY: I see Clarise as Kate Winslet or
Minnie Driver, and Ethan as Jude Law or Matthew
McConaughey.
JEN: Any chance for a sequel with Babette and
Jeff as the main characters?
KELLEY: I've written the proposal for
Babette and Jeff's story and truly hope to
take them further in their relationship. There's
way too much fire between them to leave it unexplored.
JEN: Are you writing another novel? If so, what
can you tell us about it? When do you anticipate
it being published?
KELLEY: I just turned in the manuscript for To
Catch A Cheat, a novel about a woman who has
had more than her share of cheaters and decides
to make them all pay by documenting their crimes
(serial cheating) for the world to see on the net. Problem
is, she goes back too far, all the way to the guy
who cheated on her at the Sadie Hawkins dance in
junior high, and he's none too thrilled about
being ousted as a cheater, particularly when he
hasn't seen the girl since he was thirteen. Naturally,
he's determined to get her back, and they
end up in a world wide web war. It's
a hilarious book with two very strong, very sexy
characters. I believe To Catch A Cheat should
be released in the second half of 2007 or early
2008.
I also recently turned in a paranormal trilogy
for Blaze. Those three books will come out
in May, July and September of 2007 and star three
Louisiana cousins who help ghosts that are having
problems crossing over. Everything's
hotter in Louisiana, you know (says the woman who
married a Cajun). I'm very excited
about that series too! Titles for those
books are Kiss and Dwell, Ghosts and
Roses, and Shiver and Spice.
JEN: Looking back, if you could change one thing
about your writing career, what would it be and
why?
KELLEY: I would have started writing fiction
right after college, instead of waiting twenty
years. But then again, I gained a lot of
experience at NASA and totally plan to use that
experience in my writing, so I suppose all things
happen for a reason, right?
JEN: Do you have a web site? If so, what can you
tell us about it?
KELLEY: My web site is www.kelleystjohn.com and
always offers a contest giveaway that usually consists
of a trip to a location of my current release. I've
given away a weekend to Tybee Island, Georgia and
two trips to Indian Rocks Beach, Florida, near
Tampa. I also have over 150 stories of “The
Call” from many of your favorite authors. These
short stories provide the details about when each
author received the call that his/her manuscript
sold, what they did to celebrate, how they got
their foot in the door, etc. Please
visit the site, check out the call stories and
register to win an exciting vacation!
JEN: Any book signings or upcoming appearances?
KELLEY: I have several book signings scheduled
for the upcoming year. So far, I know I'm
scheduled to sign in Tampa, Birmingham, Atlanta,
Dallas and New York, but I'm sure I'll
add more cities as time progresses. Check
out the “Events” section of my site
to see the list.
Thank you, Kelley, for such an awesome interview.
Your books are so entertaining and I look forward
to reading your next release. Best of luck
with your writing career!
Okay, it's that time!! The first five readers
to answer the following trivia question correctly
and email me at jensjewels@gmail.com will
win a copy of Real Women Don't Wear Size
2! Good luck!
What is the title of the first book in
her paranormal trilogy set to be released in
May 2007?
Thanks to everyone who responded to this question.
The free books are gone. Winners are Kelli C, Sherri
M, Kelly H, Kathy D, Stacy B
Now that you have hopefully just won a book, now
it's your turn to read a brand new manuscript
anticipating publication in early 2008. Just click
on to
read it and then send me an email with your feedback
at jensjewels@gmail.com.
The results will be revealed in the March Jen's
Jewels column.
I'd like to wish all of my readers a Happy
New Year! Next month, I will be interviewing an
old friend of mine, Laura Pedersen. You won't
want to miss it!
Until next month……Jen |
Meet
the Author: featuring Jen's Jewels