Interview with Kate Breslin

About the Author

A Florida girl and former bookseller, Kate Breslin migrated to the Pacific Northwest where she lives with her guitarist husband and a persnickety cat. Author of travel articles and award-winning poetry, Kate received Christian Retailing's 2015 Best Award for first time author, and her debut novel, For Such A Time, is a Christy award, RITA award, and Carol award finalist. Kate's second novel, Not By Sight, will release in August, 2015. When she's not writing inspirational fiction, Kate enjoys reading or taking long walks in Washington's beautiful woodlands. She also likes traveling to new places, both within the U.S. and abroad, having toured Greece, Rome, and much of Western Europe. New destinations make for fresh story ideas.

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The Interview

1. How did you get started as an author?  What or whom inspired you?
I wrote poetry as a child, and then a few short stories, and in my adolescence I composed song lyrics for my guitar. I was always an avid reader, but left the writing world for the corporate world and it was many years before I returned to take up the pen. I’d been reading thrillers and suspense for the most part, but then I discovered historical romance and I was hooked!  After exhausting my supply of favorite authors, I decided to try writing my own. I’d have to say most of those historical romance authors inspired me, and novels by Francine Rivers, Dee Henderson, and Linda Nichols spurred me on to write inspirational fiction. I am so grateful to all of them.

2. How many books have you written and in what genres?
I’ve published two novels, both inspirational historical romance. I’ve written two others as well, one a Scottish historical romance and the other a contemporary romance. One day I hope to pull them out the drawer and revise them for inspirational fiction, but with two more novels to write for Bethany House, that may take me awhile. :)

3. What writing projects are you currently working on?  What can you tell us about these projects?
Right now, I’m working on another WWI historical romance set close to the time period of Not By Sight. As I’m still plotting, I can’t tell you much except that it will have romance, espionage, and adventure. :)

4. What does your writing process look like?
I like to create an outline once I’ve done my research. When I start to write, I choose mornings when I’m the most creative,Monday through Friday, weekends if I’m on deadline. Each day I review the pages I wrote the day before, then try and write at least 4-8 new pages. Some days are more prolific than others, so allowing myself an average keeps me motivated. I may spot-research during my drafts, checking details or looking for something new and interesting to put into the story. And I drink copious amounts of hot Lemon tea!

5. Where is your favorite place to write?
I love writing in my office, a tower room which we added on to our house several years ago. I’ve included a view overlooking the bay, my Celtic weapons against one wall, and another wall that holds my library. I think you can tell I used to be a bookseller!

6. How important are the names in your novels? How do you choose names for your characters?  Do you have any name resources you would suggest?
Great question, Sydney! Character names are extremely important to me. I often get a mental image of a personality, perhaps from association if it’s the name of someone I know, or a stereotype that’s been set (think Popeye’s Brutus.) I usually determine the names of my hero and heroine first and use an online data base, such aswww.britishbabynames.com to find popular names for the year my character was born.

7. What authors/novels that you enjoy would you recommend?
Wow, there are so many! I’ll just list those I’ve read in the past few months: Susan Anne Mason’s, Irish Meadows; Beth White’s The Pelican Bride; Stephanie Landsem’s The Thief; Kristy Cambron’s A Sparrow in Terezin. These are amazing stories and I have more, but this is a great place to start.

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8. Where is your favorite place to read and why?
I really enjoy reading at my window seat in the morning room. I have a lovely view of the water and trees, comfy pillows, and a place to set my coffee or tea. My cat usually curls up beside me and naps, so it’s quite peaceful!

9. What period of history interests you the most?
Currently Edwardian to WWI-era Britain, since my new release, Not By Sight, and the next novel take place during that time. I love Irish and Scottish history too, as you can probably tell by looking at my office wall!

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10. If you could choose someone famous to star in one of your books made to a movie, who would you choose and for which character? (Possibly share an image of this famous star.)
For Not By Sight’s red-haired, green-eyed heroine, Grace Mabry, I have three choices—actresses Emma Stone, Eleanor Tomlinson (I loved her character Demelza in Masterpiece Theater’s Poldark) and actress Bryce Dallas Howard (director Ron Howard’s daughter.) In fact, when I created my Pinterest board for Not By Sight, I chose Bryce wearing this green gown (see photo) despite the too-daring neckline for 1917. To me, she’s the epitome of the mythical Pandora. :)

11. What inspired the idea for Not by Sight?
I love MT’s Downton Abbey and that's what originally sparked the idea for my story. I never forgot the episode in which the young footman, William, received a white feather from a local feminist crashing Lord Crawley's soldiers' benefit. I began to research the time period and my story grew from there.

12. What other hobbies do you enjoy when you are not writing?
I enjoy my daily walks, and camping when we get the chance. And when time permits, I love making my own herbal oils and vinegars. My favorites are fennel oil and rosemary garlic red wine vinegar. They make great gifts for friends or I’ll use them in my own cooking.

Thank you for hosting me today, Sydney, it’s been fun! And I enjoy hearing from fellow readers, so please visit me at www.katebreslin.com, to sign up for my newsletter, or simply click on the social media links to find me and say hello.

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Check out my review for NOT BY SIGHT.