Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
They call me Rachel Kelly…probably because that’s what my parents put on my birth certificate back in New Bern, NC back in the early ’80s. I grew up the child of two Marine Core parents in Eastern North Carolina. I went to College as FAR away from my hometown as I could get in a little known place called Cullowhee. It’s an unincorporated town…not even a real town. The “barber” is the unofficial mayor.
I fell in love with a guy while teaching how to count down his cash drawer at the end of the night while working at Walmart. After finally convincing him to ask me out, he tells me to choose between marriage and breaking up a week later. I say, “Sure, lets do it,” and we have made 4 really good looking children.
I was whisked away by my true love to California where I had two of my kids as he got a Masters of Divinity and started a Financial Services Company (exotic, I know). The stock market crashed and we left California about as broke as a family of 4 could be and moved back to North Carolina.
After 2 years in NC, the stock market crashed again. But we still had 2 more kids (Can’t stop true love).
Tired of being broke and having the stock market wreak havoc on our lives, Brad moved out to the Oil Mecca of Williston, ND. After nearly 3 months I decided being a single Mom of 4 was waaaaaay overrated and I packed up the family, threw 1/2 our stuff in storage, rented out the house, and headed for the Great White North.
With no one to call a great friend (just yet) I hunkered down to write my fingers off in ND. The scenery inspired me and I got VERY serious about Colorworld. I fell in love with the rolling plains, the bitter cold, and the amazing people coming from all over the world to change their fortunes forever.
So, as I mentioned, Colorworld is the name of the series and Book 1 is now out in print and ebook:
http://colorworldbooks.com/
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Colorworld Book 1: Colorworld is the 1st Book in the series.
The initial idea came to me in a dream. The rest of my inspiration comes out of philosophical texts and religious lore. Religious lore isn’t quite scripture, but it’s part of the tradition.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
If I have writers block I do one of two things:
1) Lock myself in the closet with the lights off.
OR
2) I trot myself upstairs to take a nap. I keep my notebook under my pillow and ponder whatever plot element is bugging me as I start to drift off. In the place between asleep and awake, my brain stops obsessing and starts testing ideas outside the box. I wake up to jot them down and repeat the same process. I pretty much get no sleep at all, but I am rewarded with fantastic scenarios and new directions.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
LOVE C.S. Lewis The Great Divorce. Love Albert Camus. I am a huge fan of post apocalyptic, dystopian, and paranormal stuff.
My style is influenced by non-fiction creative essays. I took a non-fiction class as part of some coursework for a Masters I was working on. Since then, when I want to get inspired, I read creative non-fiction. The Touchstone Anthology is my current go-to work at the moment.
What are you working on now?
Editing, editing, and more editing. Specifically, over-used words in Colorworld Book 2: Teleworld. It has an April release date so it’s game on right now to meet all my deadlines. Book 1 is also in audiobook production right now. Book 3 is up on the block right after Book 2 is done. All 3 will be out by the end of the year, as well as Audiobooks for Book 1 and 2.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Goodreads is probably the premier website for authors and readers. I have been impressed by how active our Colorworld Fans are on our Facebook page as well. I really like being able to target certain posts to demographics or geographies with Facebook.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write for yourself, not for the audience. When you write to an audience, you write inauthentically. Write for yourself. Loyal fans will find you.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write a lot. Read a lot. Publish lots of content to build a loyal fan-base. Having several works out there makes it so that authors have a greater chance being found by great fans and fans can trust that you will be consistent enough to meet their demands.
What are you reading now?
I am Malala
Touchstone Anthology
What’s next for you as a writer?
Books 2-7 of the Colorworld Series.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Considering I’d have a lot of time on my hands:
Critique of Pure Reason by Immanual Kant
Process and Reality by Alfred North Whitehead
(Because in order to fully-grasp these books I would need a LOT of time to re-read them)
And then to cool my brain down, I’d probably have a couple books by Kim Harrison. Because her stuff never fails to make me laugh.
Author Websites and Profiles
Rachel Kelly Website
Rachel Kelly Amazon Profile
Rachel Kelly’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account