Kaylin McFarren is a California
native who has enjoyed traveling around the world. She previously worked as
director for a fine art gallery, where she helped foster the careers of various
artists before feeling the urge to satisfy her own creative impulses.
Since launching her writing career, McFarren has earned more
than a dozen literary awards in addition to a finalist spot in the 2008 RWA
Golden Heart Contest. A member of RWA, Rose City Romance Writers, and
Willamette Writers, she also lends her participation and support to various
charitable and educational organizations in the Pacific Northwest.
McFarren currently lives with her husband in Oregon
and visits her second home in California
once a month. They have three grown daughters and two grandchildren, and look
forward to having more.
Her latest book is the romantic suspense, Banished
Threads.
For
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Thanks for this interview, Kaylin. Can we begin by having
you tell us about yourself from a writer’s standpoint?
When not writing, what do you like to do for relaxation
and/or fun? I love traveling overseas, gourmet dining and cooking, discovering
new varietal wines, pruning and planting, visiting art museums, reading great
mysteries under a blanket, attending an outdoor concert, remodeling and
J
Do you have a day job? Or a night one?
My husband and I
founded a non-profit called the Soulful Giving Foundation, and I’m the acting
president with eight board members and ten honorary board members. We host an
annual summer music event on our 15-acre estate with 3,000+ ticketholders,
sixteen restaurants, Oregon wines
& brews, art vendors and crafters, incredible silent auction items, wine
pull, diamond jewelry drawing, and four amazing bands. This event benefits the cancer
pediatric wing at Randall Children’s Hospital and Providence
Cancer Center,
and takes eight long months to organize.
Would you say it’s been a rocky road for you in regards to
getting your book written and published or pretty much smooth sailing? Can you tell us about your journey?
I would have
to say the beginning of my journey was a bit rocky. While attempting to publish
my first book, I went the normal route (if you can call it that). I solicited
dozens of agents and more publishing houses than I care to admit. After thirty
kindly written rejection letters, I ended up with a well-known New
York agent who had claimed to be in love with my
book. I was thrilled, to say the least. However, after three months, she
decided that my book needed a complete overhaul in order to fit on a formula
fiction shelf. Unwilling to do so, we parted ways and I hooked up with a small
publisher willing to take a chance. The eBook was released, but it took three
months of convincing for this house to publish the paperback version.
Marketing was a joke and became my obsession. I tapped into
as many social groups as possible and connected with a retail outlet willing to
put my book in 300 stores, but my publisher refused to honor the initial order
because they were set up as a print on demand business and were unable to front
the cost. Long story short, I took matters into my own hands and decided to
create my own publishing company for my books. My sales spiked, I now have a
nice fan base…and 100% control over my writing, sales, and marketing, which
makes me incredibly happy.
What is it about the romantic suspense genre that appeals
more than any other genre you would choose to write?
I love creating drama and
building suspense while telling a story by compelling, complicated, flawed
characters who long for normality in their lives. This genre allows me to leave
my readers hanging and trying to determine who the good and bad guys are while the
mysteries are solved and some degree of resolution is found.
If you had to summarize BANISHED THREADS in one sentence,
what would that be? A valuable art
collection disappears turning a treasure-hunting duo into crime-stopping
sleuths willing to risk their lives to vindicate family members.
What makes your book stand out from the rest?
I believe
Diane Donovan, the senior reviewer for Midwest Review stated it best. "Mystery and thriller readers will
find Banished Threads stands apart from more singular plots as it evolves
into a gripping story of life and death told on many levels, using real living,
breathing protagonists whose actions and thoughts move beyond the art and
intrigue circles they traverse. Quite simply, Banished Threads is an
emotion-charged ride through a series of close encounters that are as
psychologically gripping as they are filled with action. Mystery and thriller
audiences are in for a real treat."
If your book was put in the holiday section of the store,
what holiday would that be and why?
Perhaps Halloween as it involves angry,
corrupt individuals and an undisclosed entity killing off characters right and
left. J
Would you consider turning your book into a series or has
that already been done?
This is the third book in my Threads series, however,
it was written to stand alone.
Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
I
tap into my life experiences and the memories of the people I meet, and often
dream up a complete story—from beginning to end.
What’s next for you?
I’m currently working on Twisted
Threads—the fourth book in my series. This story brings together the villains
from Banished Threads and Buried Threads in a fun, unexpected way and ties up a
few loose ends.
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