Amanda Kyle Williams is in the House!

      “An explosive read . . . Amanda Kyle Williams sets the classic private eye                   novel on fire.”—#1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Child.

Photo credit Kaylynn Gilstrap Photography

Last October I had to good fortune to meet Amanda in Palm Springs, and had the opportunity to spend some time talking with her. I knew she wrote thrillers, (her first “The Stranger You Seek”) but I was rather self-absorbed with my own writing and hadn’t read her work.   That all changed after spending some time getting to know more about her. I bought her second book (“A Stranger in the Room”) at the airport on the way home and found what I had been missing. It taught me some lessons, which I shared in a review A Cautionary Tale.   I happily looked forward to her third book in the Keye Street series,“Don’t Talk to Strangers” which, debuts–TODAY–July 1, 2014. [*you may win one of 3 free copies to this new release from names drawn randomly from commenters.] Now, here’s why I’m blogging about this. Due to health concerns, Amanda was unable to attend the numerous promotional events throughout the country. So getting the word out about her book by personal appearances was curtailed.  I offered her a short interview as a way to reach a few more people. And she graciously accepted. If you knew Amanda, you’d know she’d do the same, should the need arise. Without further ado, let’s chat with Amanda Kyle Williams: Gourmand, Creator of Savage serial killers, and Patron Saint of Animals.  Your success is inspiring and well deserved. I have followed Patricia Cornwell for a long time and I’m happy to have another strong, unique female protagonist on the scene. -As a newbie writer, I am curious about process, craft, and balancing writing (the part we love) and the part where we have to market the books… AKW: The promotion stuff can get in the way of writing when there’s a new release. It took me a little while to find the balance. Now I plan for it. I know it’s just part of getting a new book out there in a sea of other new books. You’re not finished when you type the end. I really enjoy the entire process now. I love the prerelease jitters, the early reviews from media and from reader’s sites like Goodreads and Library Thing. And once the book drops, being able to talk to readers is a blast, fan mail, social media, conferences, Skype and Google Hangouts, indie bookstore appearances, book clubs, media—it’s all a big rush, and the exact opposite of the writer’s real life, which is to sit alone in a room with a keyboard and maybe some animals. When the first book in the series, The Stranger You Seek, launched to great reviews and landed on a couple of shortlists for literary awards, I was both ecstatic and utterly terrified. I was writing the 2nd book on a deadline. I was writing fulltime for the first time, and I didn’t have the discipline yet or the confidence. I was convinced the first book was some sort of fairy-dusted fluke. So, I had to force myself into my chair every day. But then, as always, when I spend enough time building the framework, however awkwardly at first, the ideas begin to pop. That’s when inspiration hits for me, a few hours into the excruciating process of hammering out a foundation word-by-word. Of course, the foundation is full of holes and my 1st drafts are flat out awful, but I’m a lot calmer now about the process. I build the shell, I go back, refine, expand on ideas, discard others, and then I start putting meat on those bones—details, a timeline that makes sense, adding tone, adding place and setting to the dialogue I’ve roughed out so my readers can see what my characters are seeing and feeling, what it looks like, smells like, feels like on their skin. This is where the magic happens for me and where I get the most enjoyment and satisfaction from writing—in the revision process.   -So, Book 3 in the Keye Street thriller series, “Don’t Talk to Strangers” will be released July 1st—Whoot! Are you excited? I know your readers are, and early reviews have been great. AKW: Really exciting time for me. I love the fanfare around a release. I mean, come on, this is the payoff. The reviewers have been good to me this year. The librarians have been great. They embraced Keye from the beginning of the series. This time around the support has been amazing—buzz on social media and in ALA publications like Booklist, which starred the review of Don’t Talk To Strangers. I’m so grateful to them, to the book bloggers who have taken me under their wing, and to the readers that have been patiently waiting for the 3rd installment. Great reviews in major publications are huge. But there’s nothing like one reader, or one bookstore owner, or one librarian, recommending the book to someone. -Would you describe the “birth” of a new story, or your process? i.e. Do outline extensively? Or Do you start by creating the mystery? Badguy? And just rough out the story?   AKW: I outline as much as I’m forced to outline. My contract requires me to submit an outline for approval. So I do that. It’s barebones. But I think my editor has come to trust that things will open up for me during the writing process. If I veer off too far from the original idea, I let her know, we brainstorm. And let me tell you something, there’s nothing like brainstorming with the great Kate Miciak. I dedicated the book to her. She’s brilliant. As for where I start, I get a working title first. The glimmer of an idea usually follows.  I rough out a first scene, then a final scene, because I need to decide early on where I want it to end in terms of tone even if I haven’t plotted it yet—where my character is emotionally at the end, and how I need to write that final scene so that readers feel what she feels when they close the book. And then, it’s about the 120 thousand words in between. Easy, right?   -I was intrigued by this quote:  “It takes time and work to find that unique voice as a writer, and for that voice to reach pitch.” Would you please say more about how you did this and what you mean by pitch? AKW: By pitch I mean, you’ve found your voice as a writer. You’ve found a way to get something authentic and honest out of your neurotic, insecure, scrambled writer’s brain. I like to think of it as tuning a guitar. You’re finally in the right key, you know? Took me a long time to find my voice as a writer. Not that I feel my voice has reached its zenith. I just finally found the right slot and the right character to help me begin to develop my craft. And your question was how did I do that. I know that it was years before I could put a character on the page who’s struggling, questioning, wrestling down the little demons on her shoulder—selfishness, self-indulgence, jealousy, envy, self-pity, heartbreak, addiction, the petty and heroic deeds humans commit every day.  I think as new writers we tend to be self-conscious. We desperately want to be liked, to impress. It took me a minute, oh wait, it took twenty-five years, to get real, to be willing to strip a character down to their flesh and bones. And there’s still so much to learn. You never stop growing as a writer. You’re always a student.   -By now, you have some regular characters, a familiar locale, and a strong protagonist. Was book 3 any easier since you have developed the framework for the series?  AKW: Well, I wanted to shake it up a little in this book and step away from the formula. I didn’t want to rely on that cast of characters I’ve developed for Keye to bounce off of. I didn’t want to depend on Atlanta, which is an important character in the series. I wanted to take my protagonist away from the city, her lover, her family and coworkers, all the characters we’ve gotten to know in books 1 and 2. I wanted to pull the safety net out from under us both. I wanted to see if Keye was strong enough to carry a private eye novel without the props I set up in the first two novels. And I wanted to surprise readers. The book was a confidence builder for me. I don’t mean a pound-on-my-chest, I’m-so-great kind of confidence. I mean confidence in the writing process. I know now that I can write the story, whatever it is, if I just sit down, get still, shut off the noise in my head and start, one word at a time.   -Have you started the next book and how is that going?  AKW: Book 4 is currently under construction. Working title, A Complete Stranger. I’m excited about this one. It’s terribly creepy. And it’s going verrrry slowly. I’m a terribly slow writer, anyway. I haven’t delivered a book on time yet, though I try. I want to be considerate of my editor and publisher’s time. I’m just not one of those whistle-while-you-work people who spit out ten thousand words a day. This year has been challenging for me, as you well know.  I was diagnosed with endometrial cancer in March. I had surgery, and now I’m in follow-up treatment. On the bright side, I haven’t had drugs this good since I was 25. Downside-I can’t go on tour to promote Don’t Talk To Strangers because of immune system issues. My publicist and publisher have been fantastic. We’ve arranged some Skype events with libraries and living room book clubs. On July 8th I’ll be live steaming at 7PM ET on BookTalk Nation via Google Hangouts. We are finding ways, thanks to the Internet, to promote, and it’s a way for me to interact with readers, which I absolutely love doing.Friends on social media sites have been helping to get the word out, too, sharing book links and book trailers and reviews. Cancer challenges you on so many levels—physically, emotionally, and financially—that it takes a lot of what I’d be pouring into my book right now. It doesn’t leave you much some days. But it does force you to find some interior calm. When you’re first diagnosed, it’s like stepping into a hurricane. Your life, your schedule, it’s not yours anymore. You’re just a passenger on this crazy, swirling ride. But eventually, you dig down deep and you take the wheel again, take control of your emotions and thoughts and life and healthcare, and decide this is temporary and you’re going to climb out of this hole. I can’t wait to be on the other side of this. And I want to thank everyone for the support.   -You have a huge social media presence, which I think has greatly added to your popularity. I’m envious! How hard is it to maintain that consistently and are you coached or monitored by your publisher? Do they help with your promotion?  AKW: Random House marketing is the admin on my Facebook author page and they are a huge help with creating giveaways and posts that build excitement and attract attention when it’s time for a new release. On pub day, they’ve planned a great giveaway package of all three Keye Street books. They write the posts, install the buttons, pick the winner, and handle fulfillment. It’s fantastic. But that’s only around publication of a hardcover or paperback. I write 99% of the posts myself. I like interacting with readers and friends. And yes, I’m loosely monitored. Big Brother is watching on all my pages, my personal page included, but this is a good thing. I’ve had a couple of gentle notes in the last few years just reminding me to always put my best foot forward. Sometimes I’ll share something before it’s approved—artwork, a book cover, a review before it’s released—and I have to pull it back. It’s good to have someone nudge you from time-to-time and reel you in. In terms of a presence, my numbers aren’t where I want them but engagement is huge. What I learned about social media early on is that you have to develop relationships. It can’t just be about promotion. You have to be sincere (not boring) and you have to put yourself out there (with your filters on), let people see your heart. That’s when people want to know you and your work, and they will forgive you for the occasional self-promotion. They will help you promote and support your career when they’re invested in you as a person. I try to make all my pages accessible, public, fun, funny, non-political, and I don’t talk about who I’m pissed at or who’s bickering or who said what. Never, ever hang your dirty laundry on Facebook or Twitter. You may not lose followers in numbers, but they’ll check out. You’ve lost their respect. Biggest rule for a happy social media experience, don’t be a negative, gossipy jerk. People are attracted to positivity, to success, and to humor. I try to give my social media family a place to land that makes them happy.   -You’ve said that you’re happy with the Keye Street series; do you ever get uninvited ideas for something completely different? Would you consider writing something like comedy, historic, dystopian, or dinosaur porn?  AKW: I don’t know a damn thing about dinosaurs, Jeanne. How about just porn porn? Seriously, Keye is the voice in my head right now. I’m sticking with her as long as the voice is still strong and fresh. Right now, with the third book about to drop and the fan base still building, it doesn’t feel like the time to make a change.   -What’s the best thing about reaching the level of “successful author”?  AKW: Being able to be a full time writer and buy the groceries.  -Thanks, AK www.amandakylewilliams.com   Thanks for joining us, and Please leave a comment for Amanda for a chance to be entered in the drawing.You may choose the format. We’ll pick 3 winners Friday afternoon!