Talkshow Thursday: Meet Multi-genre author Kelly Irvin
Linda: Thanks for joining me today. You’ve written
more than a dozen Amish books, and last month released the second in your Every
Amish Season series, Beneath the Summer
Sun, available on Amazon. Here’s the book blurb:
Jennie Troyer knows
it’s time to remarry. Can she overcome a painful secret and open her heart to
love?
It’s been four years since Jennie’s
husband died in a farming accident. Long enough that the elders in her Amish
community think it’s time to marry again for the sake of her seven children.
What they don’t know is that grief isn’t holding her back from a new
relationship. Fear is. A terrible secret in her past keeps her from moving
forward.
Mennonite book salesman Nathan Walker stops by
Jennie’s farm whenever he’s in the area. Despite years of conversation and
dinners together, she never seems to relax around him. He knows he should move
on, but something about her keeps drawing him back.
Meanwhile, Leo Graber nurtures a
decades-long love for Jennie, but guilt plagues him—guilt for letting Jennie
marry someone else and guilt for his father’s death on a hunting trip many
years ago. How could anyone love him again—and how could he ever take a chance
to love in return?
In this second book in the Every Amish Season
series, three hearts try to discern God’s plan for the future—and find peace
beneath the summer sun.
Where did you find your inspiration for this story?
Kelly: Beneath the Summer Sun is part of a
four-book series that examines the role widows play in Upon
a Spring Breeze, is about a young, pregnant Amish woman who suffers a
terrible tragedy. Beneath the Summer Sun focuses
on Jennie Troyer, a thirty-something widow with seven children. The third book
features a grandmother and the fourth book, a great-grandmother. The different
seasons of life. It’s been a pleasure to write this series. Each heroine is so
different, and I love writing older men. So much fun.
LM: The age-old
question for writers – are you a planner or a “panster,” and what is your
favorite part of the writing process?
Kelly: I’m
totally a panster. I’ve gotten a little better about thinking ahead but mostly
I know who the main characters are and what the central conflict is. After
that, I let my imagination go wild. I love having a new character pop up or
learning something about my heroine that I didn’t know until it appears on the
page. That’s my absolute favorite part of writing. I have to do a lot of
editing and some rewriting, but it’s working it to have that creative process
unleashed.
LM: You write Amish
fiction which requires an extra layer of research to ensure accuracy about
their culture and beliefs. How did you go about researching Beneath the Summer Sun and did you
discover any extra special tidbits of information?
Kelly: Regardless
of the genre, a lot of research is necessary to get the details right. We’re so
fortunate to have tons of information at our fingertips through the Internet.
With all my Amish stories, I go to Donald B. Kraybill’s The Amish to better understand issues of faith, how they’ve been
affected by changes in the mainstream world, and many details of day-to-day
life. I read The Budget newspaper for
glimpses into daily life as well. The Amish scribes are wonderful about sharing
about family and community life. It’s a fantastic peek into their world. I
enjoy reading Amishamerica.com’s blog which also includes great photographs to get
a good visual of how things look in different communities. My husband and I
went to Jamesport, Missouri, where this series is set, a few years ago and
attended their school fund-raiser auction over Fourth of July weekend. I
observed their buggy styles, clothes/colors, whether they had phone shacks,
took a look at the schools, and learned about setting. It’s an on-going process
of learning.
LM: How did you
get started as a writer, and how did you decide to seek publication?
Kelly: I always
wanted to be a writer. I decided in high school to become a newspaper reporter
so I could write and make a living. I did that for about 10 years, before I
jumped into public relations, but I always wanted to write novels. When I
turned 45, I realized it was now or never. I spent a few years writing,
learning the craft, going to conferences, and finally got an agent. It took
another three years to get my first book published, a romantic suspense novel
called A Deadly Wilderness. My agent
suggested I try writing an Amish romance. She ended up selling my first one, To Love and to Cherish, before I
finished writing it. I’ve loved every minute of writing these stories and have
been blessed to get them published by Harvest House and Zondervan publishing
houses.
LM: You live in a
beautiful area of the world, a place many people visit. If money were no
object, what is your idea of the ultimate vacation?
Kelly: I’d love
to do an extended tour of Europe, with stops in France, Spain, and England. I
have a physical disability that makes traveling a challenge, but I’ve always
wanted to visit Paris, Madrid, and London.
LM: What is your
next project?
Kelly: I’m
finishing editing the fourth book in this series, With Winter’s First Frost so that I can jump into a new project. I
recently signed a contract with Thomas Nelson Publishing to write two romantic
suspense novels. The first one, Tell Her
No Lies, will debut in January 2019. It’s already written, but I need to
get started in January on the second one, which is due in August. I’m thrilled
and excited to get back to my first love, romantic suspense. I’ll continue to
write Amish romances too. It’s the best of both worlds and writing in different
genres helps keep me fresh.
LM: Where can
folks find you on the web?
Kelly:
Website: http://www.kellyirvin.com
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/irvin0739/
Twitter: @Kelly_S_Irvin
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