Interview with Keeping Hope Author, Kim Pritekel

How long have you been writing or when did you start?

–I began writing at age nine when a crazy teacher I had at the time assigned us a story due by end of the school year that had to be thirty-five pages or longer. At the time, I was furious at the assignment, I mean, for a nine year old, that was War & Peace! My story ended up being nearly sixty-five pages long and I got an A+. I fell in love with it.

What’s your favorite and least favorite part of publishing?

–Ironically, these are one in the same. Editing. I am not good with tedious work, no patience for it, and for me, editing was as tedious as it got, regardless of how utterly important it is. I HATED it. But, as my vision issues have gotten worse over these last few years, I have been so fortunate to havean amazing publisher like Chris who has been so gracious to allow my editor, Heather and I to do it over the phone. Heather does her editing magic as she normally would, then what I would have done, we do over the phone together. Heather is not only a wonderful editor, but a great person. We have a wonderful time getting it done. I’d also toss book cover design in there. Some novels I come up dry, but over all, I love coming up with the cover design.

Are there therapeutic benefits to making a character after someone you know?

–Oh, absolutely! However, for me it’s not making a character after someone I know, it’s creating a situation where my character needs to feel how I’m feeling. It may be a different scenario to my personal pain, but by that character working through that same pain, it helps me work through mine. Writing has been my therapy since I was a kid.

Author Interview Questions About Their Book:

What are your hardest scenes to write, and why?

–Really emotional scenes can betough. The reason is, I get so emotionally connected to my characters that, what they feel, I feel. So, if it’s a rally rough situation on them, I go through it, too. More than once I’ve had a full-on fall apart after finishing a scene.

How long did it take you to write this book?

–Well, I’m in the middle of one right now, so I’ll go with the one I just finished, Unbroken. It’s a historical romance that is written sort of like a puzzle. It’s not entirely chronological and the story falls together as it goes back and forth from present (1945 in the book) to various years in the past, starting at 1918. I wrote that novel in twenty-four days.

How much research did you need to do for your book?

–The current book I’m writing, Showing Mercy, is the fifth book in the Wynter series. This one takes place in the early 1940s, so I had to do quite a bit–the cars, wardrobe, lots on WWII, as Pearl Harbor is attacked smack in the middle of it.

Fun Author Interview Questions:

What risks have you taken with your writing that have paid off?

–Well, in real life I’m a psychic-medium, so I’ve done a few books with the paranormal as a theme, using some of my own life experiences as plot fodder. People seem to have really enjoyed them. It makes me feel quite vulnerable, but it’s also nice to share the crazy crap that I’ve witnessed.

If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose?

–V.C. Andrews. I began reading her books when I was about ten years old, and I learned a lot from her. I learned how to write characters, how to paint a picture with words. She was my model for a long time until I found my own narrative voice. I’d love to thank her and ask her process.

What is your writing process like? Are you more of a plotter or a pantser?

–I get a general overview idea of what I want the book to be. I come up with a few important scenes–beginning, end and a couple in the middle. Then, I par it down to chapters. Each chapter is it’s own little story that get knitted together in the giant quilt that is the entire novel. So, I talk to myself a lot, pace, work out dialogue, story points for that chapter and how it will fit in with the whole tapestry, then attack if.

Questions About Writing:

What is the most valuable piece of advice you’ve been given about writing?

–Back before I was published, I used to write online short stories and novels. I wrote one called, First that would become my first published novel. But, while still an online story, it became hugely popular.I was about twenty-four years old and freaked out, no idea what to do with the attention. I decided I’d stop writing because I was so afraid I’d never write anything as popular again. I reached out to an author I really admired at the time, LJ Maas. Sadly, she’s no longer with us, but she gave me great advice: “You’ve got Sophomore jitters and that’s okay. You’ve got to write for you, not everyone else. They like your talent and your voice, they’ll follow you, don’t follow them.” So, I sat down and wrote what would become my most popular and best selling novel for quite some time–Lessons.

Does writing energize or exhaust you? Or both?

–Writing makes me feel utterly alive! It’s literally what I was born to do.

What are common traps for new authors?

–Trying to bite off more than they can chew! Writing a novel is not easy for a seasoned author, let alone a new one. It takes time, patience,and honestly, experience. It’s easy to get overwhelmed for a new author and either want to do way too much and make it far too complicated (been there, done that) or rush and tell the whole thing in five chapters (been there, done that).

Questions to ask Authors About Other Books and Authors:

What books did you grow up reading?

–Ironically, I hated reading as a kid. But, onceI started–at around ten–I read V.C. Andrews, Stephen King and Dean Koontz.

Has any hugely popular novel left you thinking you could write it better?

–Stephen King’s It. I absolutely love that book, love the story and characters, butI feel I could have pared it down to a far more digestible story.

If you could be a character in one of your favorite books, who would you be?

–Honestly, I’d be Faith from my own novel, Finding Faith. She ends up with Wyatt, who I’ve been in love with since the moment I created her. Yes, I know, I know ....

Personal Questions for Authors:

Has writing and publishing a book changed the way you see yourself?

–Oh, absolutely! I knew from the age of nine that I wanted to be an author someday. When I was finally signed with a publisher in my mid-twenties, I knew I’d truly accomplished my life’s purpose. That may sound cheesy or short sighted, but I always knew I was here to create and tell stories. I knew that since I was a very small child. But, discovering my writing talentmade me feel whole.

At what stage (or stages) of your life have you done most of your writing?

–In my childhood, from about age nine until about thirteen years. In high school, I mostly sketched and did theater to get my creativity out. I picked up writing again in earnest in my early twenties. Over the last six years, I’ve done more writing than I have in my entire life. In 2021, I wrote eight novels alone.

Do you have other writers in the family?

–If my father writing Letters to the Editor in the newspaper to complain count. If not, then, nope. I’m the only one, though I do come from a creative family in music and art. Newest book I’d like to promote, including a book trailer for it