Indie Author Interview with E. E. Kellogg - Author of the Literary Fiction / (Small Town) Romance Novel Full Circle.
E. E. Kellogg has been writing in one form or another since childhood, and professionally for over two decades.
Interview with E. E. Kellogg
 |
| Author E. E. Kellogg |
E. E. Kellogg: My parents were both writers, and I grew up with books everywhere. Writing was something you did, whether you wanted to make a profession of it or not. I wrote a little play about Eleanor of Aquitaine with my best friend when we were 12. Professionally, I guess it started when I was 18 and had my first office job - I rewrote some pretty badly written letters as I typed them, and soon everyone wanted me typing their letters. I've done writing and editing as part of any job since.
Who are your favorite writers, your favorite books, and who or what are your writing influences?
I love the sanity of Jane Austen, and the gentler satire of Angela Thirkell. Robertson Davies and A.S. Byatt are awesome - their abilty to juggle huge and complex worlds while writing pure golden prose is spectacular, though they have very different tenors as writers. All Austen's novels (except Mansfield Park), Davies' The Lyre of Orpheus, Murther and Walking Spirits (this was a big influence on the world of Full Circle), The Cunning Man. A.S. Byatt, my favorite so far is The Children's Book, which also influenced Full Circle. Mystery novels - old ones especially. I love Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe books.
"[...] beginning to introduce original characters, learning to write dialogue in difference voices, and gaining confidence"
When did you first know that you wanted to be a writer?
I had toyed with the idea for years, with no results. But I got involved with reading some excellent fan-fiction (my young writing mentor writes nothing but that), and had and impulse to write a little of my own. My husband, reading it, suggested I should write original material, but I knew I had work to do, and wrote fan-fiction for a while, beginning to introduce original characters, learning to write dialogue in difference voices, and gaining confidence.
Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?
That was another effort with my best friend (we're still best friends), a satire piece called Penny From Heaven. I'm not sure we finished it, though I know I still have it somewhere.
Tell us about your writing process. Do you have a writing routine?
I write mornings, mostly, in the early hours, though if inspiration strikes, I will write any time. I do a lot of musing, researching - it's amazing how much research it takes to write even a fairly contemporary novel about a setting I know well.
"Easiest is once I've started. Hardest is getting started."
What do you find easiest about writing? What the hardest?
Easiest is once I've started. Hardest is getting started.
What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
That I have created and continue creating a world. That's what I've always loved about fiction, the imagined and realized worlds. Finding and writing my characters' individual voices. I love my people so much. They are so real to me.
E. E. , please tell us a little about your Literary Fiction/Romance Novel Full Circle.
Full Circle is a tale about a small-town in Maine and its people. Love - romantic, familial, friendly, communal. Different people growing, different sorts of thriving, different modes of adversity to overcome. Family and families are central, heritage. Traditions, holidays. And food. Definitely food.
 |
| Click to Read an Excerpt |
What inspired you to write the book?
My best friend (yes, the same one, 50 years later) suggested I try my hand at a mystery series. I liked the idea, and began researching the writing of mysteries. Got my characters outlined, backstories. And I found I had no taste for mystery-writing, though I enjoy reading them. So I just wrote the story of the people and their relationships. And there is Full Circle. The story continues with follow-up novels.
Who do you see as your target audience?
I guess the book appeals more often to women than to men, though a good number of men have enjoyed it. It seems to appeal to both small-town and city dwellers, and a variety of ages.
"[...] a variety of appealing but flawed human beings as characters"
What makes your book special?
I think it's a combination of good and accessible writing, a variety of appealing but flawed human beings as characters, and a pretty classic, universal story of circumstance-crossed love.
How would you describe the success of your self-published books so far?
Well, readers love them, so that is success. Getting the word out so people know about them is the hard part.
"Make a point of writing. And let yourself write badly - you can fix it later."
Can you give some advice for other Authors regarding the writing process?
If you want to write, write. Don't put it off until you've "time," or until "X" gets done. I know a lot of people who have told me for years and years they want to write, and have produced nothing, because it always gets put on the back-burner. Make a point of writing. And let yourself write badly - you can fix it later.
Are you working on another book project? Can you tell us a little about it?
I am currently working on Root and Branch, the third novel in the Season's Turn series, of which Full Circle is the first. The second is Crossroads. They take us further down the roads of my people, as life moves on.
Where do you see the book market in 5 or 10 years? Will there be only eBooks and will book stores disappear like record stores disappeared?
I don't believe physical books will die. There's something about holding a book in one's hands, turning the pages, smelling paper. I hope bookstores won't disappear, but people still listen to LPs, though record stores are few.
What is your e-reading device of choice?
Either my PC or tablet - the latter is what I use to edit my own writing when I'm away from my house.
"I take care of my almost-18-year-old do [...]"
Do you write full-time or do you have a day job? When you're not writing, how do you spend your time?
I have a part-time job (it entails a lot of writing). I take care of my almost-18-year-old dog, stay in touch with friends, cook, read a lot, and watch films.
How can readers connect with you?
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/E.E.Kellogg/
Twitter @SylvieFeather
email to LocusNOLA@gmail.com
Thank you very much for the Interview, E. E.
About the Book Full Circle
 |
| Click to Read an Excerpt |
Gwen Hardie, the headstrong, red-haired girl next door, cooks like nobody’s business, and calls Seth her favorite ‘brother.’ Seth’s feelings for her are not brotherly, but what he wants for himself has to go on the back burner, and Gwen is sent to college in Boston. There, she finds the new life – and the opportunities – her parents want for her.
But tragedy strikes, and, heartsick and homesick, Gwen returns to Haven Point. Will Seth find the words to tell her how passionately he’s always loved her? He’s used to keeping his secret. If he does, can Gwen come to see him as something more than her best-beloved brother?
Or will the revelation wreck the closeness they both depend on?
- "A spectacular read! Ms. Kellogg’s gift for prose has long been known in her essays, and here she unleashes these gifts in creating characters and places about which the reader wants to know more and more. Her characters draw you into their lives and her depictions of life in rural Downeast Maine are authentic, compelling and come from the heart of a Mainer. I’m not usually a reader of romance novels, a la Austen, but 'Full Circle' kept me wanting more. Gorgeously written and perfectly paced." - Reader Review
Links to the Book
Link to the Paperback Full Circle on Amazon
Link to the eBook Full Circle on Amazon
Please, share with your Friends!
