Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Interview with Elle Kay




Abandoned by her dearest friend, Stella is running-scared. Life and death decisions force her to re-examine her faith, as well as her priorities. The handsome, Jason, only exacerbates her anxiety. Should she trust him? Something is amiss in the quiet town of Edinsville. How will Stella fare as her world gets turned upside down?

Pick up your copy here...
https://www.amazon.com/Stella-Endless-Mountain-Book-1-ebook/dp/B01BZGKC28/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1497973610&sr=8-1&keywords=stella+by+elle+e+kay


What prompted you to start writing?
In my thirties I was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. I couldn't find a patient oriented support resource for someone newly diagnosed, so I decided to write one for others. I'd always been interested in writing, but hadn't taken it seriously until I wrote and published that non-fiction book, "Zebras of Hope." I was surprised at it's success. And it helped me to build the confidence I needed to move forward.

About a year later, my husband badgered me to write a children's book called "There's a Goat on My Porch. I did. Having accomplished those two writing tasks, I tried my hand at my first full length fiction novel, Stella. I expect to release the second in the series later this year. 


Why did you choose this genre?
I chose to write romantic suspense because it's the genre I read the most, so it came naturally as I began to write. I'm also working on a women's fiction novella. 


How did you choose your characters names?
In the Endless Mountain Series, they just came to me. I didn't put much thought into them. I did have to change some minor character names due to confusion before finalizing the book. In the novella I am writing, I researched the meanings of names to choose ones appropriate for the characters.


How much of yourself do you write into your characters?
Quite a bit. The beginning of Stella is based loosely on my own experiences as a young adult. Claudia's wild side is also based on me. As a teen and young woman, I was combination of Stella's introverted shyness and Claudia's desperate desire to fit in. I incorporate a good deal of my own life into all aspects of my writing. 


What is the most important thing you hope readers will take away from reading Stella?
I hope they will grow closer to God as they accompany Stella along her journey. She must face things she'd never dreamed possible and only the strength she derives from her relationship with Jesus get her through. I pray that my reader will feel the power of God through Stella's struggle. The theme of Stella is forgiveness. Forgiveness is what unlocks the door to a closer relationship with the Lord and it's that nearness we all so desperately crave, even if we don't know what's missing in our lives, we feel that emptiness until we ask Him to fill it.


If you could have one superpower what would it be and why?
I hate seeing people suffer, so I would love to have the power to heal. Yet, I wonder if it's a good choice. Our suffering is often what brings us the closest to the Lord. When we reach the end of our own strength and are at our weakest, we lean on Him the most and come to recognize His strength and comfort.


I am a dog lover tell us about your pets if any.
Don't get me started! We have a hobby farm in Pennsylvania's Endless Mountain region. We lost our younger dog, a boxer-pit mix, Brandy, a few years ago during bladder surgery. Our older dog, Sammy, a lab-pit mix is seventeen and frail, so we haven't introduced any new puppies for fear it would be too much for him. We would like to get German Shepherd puppies and will someday. We have nine goats, three sheep, ten rabbits, thirty chickens, two turkeys, and two ducks. I absolutely adore our animals. 

Our goat, Vicky Van Goat, is the star of her own children's book series "The Adventures of Vicky Van Goat." There are only two books out so far, but I expect it will be a long running series. The kids really seem to enjoy them. My nieces and nephews get a kick out of Vicky being a real goat that they know personally.  

We're looking for a property with more acreage, so we can also get horses and a mini-donkey. 


Who is your favorite author?
That is a difficult question. There are so many that I love. I enjoy Teri Blackstock and Patricia Bradley, who both write suspense, but there are so many great authors out there. I read in many different genres. 

Tell the blog readers where they can keep up with you.
My website is updated with the latest information about my upcoming books. http://www.elleekay.com/. I also have a blog, where I write mostly devotional posts based on traditional hymns http://www.elleekay.com/blog/. I'm on most social media platforms. Here are my links:

14 comments:

  1. Loved the interview! I would love to have a farm. So many sweet animals! Thanks, Mary, for sharing this author with us. I'll be checking her work out!

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  2. I love reading about the authors in these interviews. Thanks Mary

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  3. I like the sound of this book. Elle sounds like a country gal.

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  4. It's nice to get to know an author. Great interview.

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  5. That's a different cover. Power to heal. I like that.

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  6. Great interview and the book sounds like one that I would love to read. Thanks Mary!

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  7. Elle is new to me. The cover of her book is intriguing and the interview was great! Thank you for sharing, Mary.

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  8. I plan on telling my wife about this . It sounds like her kind of book.

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  9. I liked this interview, I think I will check out this book too.

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  10. I love this cover so I think I will want to try this book out. The interview was really good. I am a country gal the more land the better I say.

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  11. Awesome interview! Thanks for sharing!

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