Write what you know is something people say a lot, but it’s a piece of advice I haven’t been able to take to heart quite yet. Why? The simple truth: for me it would be boring. It’s not that I don’t love my life, because I do. I’m an Air Force Wife, and I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to stay home with my kids for the last ten years, but none of those are things I’d really want to read about myself. Which means writing about them doesn’t sound the least bit interesting.
So what’s the best piece of advice I can give someone who wants to write a book? Write a story you can get lost in. Whether that happens to be a novel about a stay-at-home mom or an alien invasion or a horde of flesh-eating zombies, just be sure the story you write is something that will keep you up all night. That it gets inside you and becomes a living thing, and that you don’t mind reading it over and over and over again, because that is the only way you will be successful.
For me, that means writing based on my mood. Some days I need to open my computer and get swept away in a romance, and other days I feel like zombies should grace the screen of my MacBook. I’ve created whole new worlds and different futures, wiped out the human race over several chapters, and even taken my characters back to my home of Dayton, OH.
In the case of my newest book, NO REGRETS, I decided to bring my story to Charleston, SC where I not only spent four years of my life, but where my youngest two children were born. Charleston is a city where history meets culture and the daytime carriage tours give way to rowdy clubs and bars, where families spend their days relaxing at Folly Beach and college students spend their nights dancing. It not only has a little something for everyone, but it’s the kind of place you can’t get out of your system, even after years of being away.
No Regrets
College is supposed to be fun…
Go to parties
Pick up guys
Maybe get in a little trouble
On the surface Cami is your average, wild teenager out to have a good time, but inside she’s struggling. Almost a year ago her best friend was in a car accident, an accident Cami feels responsible for. Since then, she’s made it her personal mission to experience everything life has to offer, both for herself and for Julie, who will never have fun again.
Then she meets Liam, her cousin’s sexy roommate. Hooking up with a hot British dude seems like the perfect way to start off the school year, but the more time she spends with him, the more she finds herself actually liking the guy. Which totally screws up her plans to live life with no regrets…
About the Author
Kate L. Mary is a stay-at-home mother of four and an Air Force wife. She grew up in a small town just north of Dayton, Ohio where she and her husband met at the age of twelve. Since their marriage in 2002, they have lived in Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, and California. She currently resides in Oklahoma with her husband and children.
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