Kathryn Shay has published 25 books with Harlequin Enterprises and 11 with The Berkley Publishing Group. Her first a mainstream novel, THE PERFECT FAMILY, will be released in September 2010 from Bold Strokes Books. She’s won several awards in the field of romantic fiction. Her work has been serialized in COSMOPOLITAN MAGAZINE and quoted in PEOPLE and THE WALL STREET JOURNAL. There are 5 million copies of her books in print.
You can visit Kathryn’s website at www.kathrynshay.com.
Q: It’s rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a ‘real’ job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you’ve had in your life? Have they influenced/inspired your writing?
I had a long and successful career in the New York State school system teaching English. For ten of those years I wrote full time. (I wouldn’t recommend doing both.) But I loved teaching and it did affect my writing: I’ve written several books about teachers and students. Reviewers have said I do teenagers well. I hope that’s true in THE PERFECT FAMILY.
Q: What compelled you to write your first book?
I always wanted to be a writer. When I was fifteen, I wrote my first short story and kept writing all through college, taking many independent courses. My wonderful professor told me I was a good storyteller. I was all set to embark on a writing career when I graduated, but I’d taken education courses because my mother insisted I had to have something to fall back on.
A requirement was practice teaching in my senior year and the minute I stepped into a classroom, I fell in love. So I pursued that career while writing mostly short works, but teaching was my vocation. After several years, I decided if I was ever going to write a book, that was the time. Then one was published and the rest came along. I never regretted teaching because of the thousands of lives I affected, but I’m glad I took the path to being an author, too.
Q: Tell us briefly about your book.
The book follows the story of the Davidsons: they’re an average American family with a good life and they consider themselves lucky to have each other. Then their seventeen year old son tells them he’s gay and their world shifts.
They have no idea what they will go through after Jamie’s disclosure: Jamie’s father Mike can’t reconcile his religious beliefs with his son’s sexuality. His brother Brian is harassed by his jock buddies and angry at Jamie for complicating all their lives. Maggie, his mother, fears being able to protect her son while struggling to save her crumbling marriage. And Jamie feels guilty for the unhappiness his disclosure has caused. The book is full of both struggle and love, ending on a redeeming note.
Q: How did you feel the day you held the copy of your first book in your hands?
It was like having a child: I cried when I saw it, I held it reverently, I checked its pages, cover and content carefully (like examining fingers and toes) and I couldn’t believe I created it.
Q: How do you balance out the writer’s life and the rest of life? Do you get up early? Stay up late? Ignore friends and family for certain periods of time?
This was very difficult when I taught and wrote full time. I got up at four a.m. to write before school, did email and business things after correcting papers and getting the kids to bed, stopped watching TV, and was basically focused on writing. Now that I’m not teaching, I have time to sleep, play and spend more time with my family and friends.
Q: The main characters of your stories – do you find that you put a little of yourself into each of them or do you create them to be completely different from you?
Yes, I always do this. I find my values and some events of my life creeping into what I write.
THE PERFECT FAMILY touches on some of the issues and events that happened when my own child came out gay, and the main character is definitely based on my son. Because of this, a copy of one of his CD’s with gay themes (he’s a songwriter and performer) is being offered free with purchase of the book at http://www.boldstrokesbooks.com/products.php?product=Perfect-Family%2C-The-%252d-by-Kathryn-Shay. It will be available on my website at www.kathrynshay.com.
Q: What about now: who is your favorite author and what is your favorite genre to read?
I can tell you my favorite books: Judith Guest’s ORDINARY PEOPLE; John Irving’s THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP; Margaret Atwood’s A HANDMAID’S TALE. In the world of women’s fiction and romance I like Nora Roberts, Linda Howard and Susan Elizabeth Philips.
Q: When they write your obituary, what do you hope they will say about your book/s and writing? What do you hope they will say about you?
That I contributed to making a better society through my books, my teaching career and my volunteer work.
Q: What is your writing space like? Do you have a designated space? What does it look like? On the couch, laptop, desk? Music? Lighting? Typing? Handwriting?
After I’d made some money with Harlequin, we added a bonus room in an existing space. It has two skylights in its pine ceiling, lots of windows so sun is always streaming in, built-in shelves for all my books and a desk area and a sofa bed.
Awards I’ve won and paintings that people have bought for me that relate to my writing are on the walls. The room has a raspberry rug and a leather chair in a big bay window. It’s perfectly lovely and I like that everything was all paid for with my writing money.
I have both a desk top computer which I use for everything but writing. I write my books on a laptop so I can take it when I travel or want to sit on the porch and write.
Q: Have you ever had a character take over a story and move it in a different direction than you had originally intended? How did you handle it?
Yes, many times. I find that a lot more fun than planning everything out.
Q: Do you have any book signings, tours or special events planned to promote your book that readers might be interested in attending? If so, when and where?
I’m doing a Virtual Book Tour and the schedule is up at http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2010/07/12/the-perfect-family-virtual-book-tour-august-september-10/. I’ll also be doing some signings and events in my home town, dates to be determined and posted.
Now, use this space to tell us more about who you. Anything you want your readers to know. Include information on where to find your books, any blogs you may have, or how a reader can learn more about you and writing.
Professionally, I have a long backlist on my website—37 books. Some are out of print, and I’ll be putting my nine single title romances up on Kindle and Smashwords by the time THE PERFECT FAMILY comes out. Those bigger books (longer than my Harlequins) are heavy on external plot and theme with some gritty, real life situations portrayed. I also have some options in the works with publishers but haven’t signed anything yet so I’m waiting to announce them.
Personally, I’m a pretty ordinary person. I married my college sweetheart, live in the suburbs where I raised two kids, taught high school and made a lot of friends who I value very much. I take yoga and walk (with my little dog) as much as I can. I like to travel and have been to Italy, Paris, London, Spain and Greece, so far. We plan to do more.
My children are grown but still live in the area so I spend time with them. I’m very involved in my church and do volunteer work regularly. I feel we need to give to others who aren’t as fortunate as we are. Basically, I’m lucky in that I have a great family and have had two careers that were/are very fulfilling.
Thanks for having me on your site. I’d be glad to check back if people have questions or comments.
