KATHLEEN DENLY
BIOGRAPHY
Kathleen Denly writes historical romance to entertain, encourage, and inspire readers toward a better understanding of our amazing God and how He sees us. She enjoys finding the lesser known pockets of history and bringing them to life through the joys and struggles of her characters.
California, a favorite setting in her stories, is also her home. She lives there with her loving husband, four young children, two dogs, and ten cats. As a member of the adoption and foster community, children in need are a cause dear to her heart and she finds they make frequent appearances in her stories.
When she isn’t writing, researching, or caring for children, she spends her time reading, visiting historical sites, hiking, and crafting.
Kathleen is also a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and the award-winning author of the Chaparral Hearts series.
AUTHOR INTERVIEW
Where do you get your inspiration for your stories?
Many different things inspire my stories. The initial idea can come from anywhere, but often it comes from something I stumbled across in my historical research. For example, I was reading about mail delivery in California during the gold rush when I wondered what it would be like to have a loved one so far away (many men left their families behind when they went to hunt gold) and not receive correspondence from them for extended periods of time. What if their letters stopped altogether? That led to my debut novel, Waltz in the Wilderness. With Sing in the Sunlight, the inspiration came from my discovery that San Diego had once been struck by a hurricane. That event just begged to be included in a novel. Harmony on the Horizon, book three in the Chaparral Hearts series, was inspired by a true story often told by docents during tours of the old schoolhouse in Old Town San Diego.
When you’re not writing, what do you like to do?
Well, we’re a homeschooling family, so much of my non-writing time is taken up by teaching my four children. However, I’m a very crafty person, so when I have time, I enjoy several mediums of art. Some of my favorites are Bible journaling, junk journaling, sewing, knitting, and diy projects. In fact, if you look closely at my office in my YouTube videos, you can spot several of my diy projects in the background. These include a custom marker holder, a phone holder, and my latest junk journal. More recently I’ve begun teaching myself digital drawing. I’m always working on new projects to include in my Kathleen’s Readers’ Club Freebie Library. If your readers would like access to my KRC Freebie Library, they can sign up at http://bit.ly/KRCMemberSignUp .
What authors/books have influenced your writing?
Wow. That’s a tough question. There are so many books that have influenced and inspired me, I couldn’t possibly list and explain them all here, so I’ll focus on the first two that come to mind. One is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen simply because it’s the book I’ve read the most often. I learned a lot about the rhythm of a novel, the power of humor, and the beauty of romance from that novel. The second would be Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers because it opened my eyes to what Christian romance could be. Christian fiction has the power to tell hard stories through the lens of God’s redeeming love.
Are you a plotter or a panster?
I think I fall somewhere in the middle, actually. If I were writing for myself, I would probably just pants it and make corrections in rewrites. However, with deadlines to meet, I’ve taught myself to do more plotting and outlining in advance. That said, I have learned the hard way that if I go too far in my outlining, I kill the creative flow in myself. So I’ve learned to only plot enough that I know where I’m going but not every tiny detail of every scene.
What is your favorite part of the writing process?
Definitely the research and brainstorming stage. Because that’s the fun part where I’m just continually asking myself, “What if…?” and uncovering new little facts of history. For me, historical research is a lot like treasure hunting or thrift store shopping. I never know when I’m going to uncover a wonderful surprise.
Have you always wanted to be a writer / know you were going to be a writer?
Not really, no. I did know there was something odd about myself somewhat early on when I learned that not everyone silently added dialogue tags to things that were said in everyday life. Nor do others mentally rewrite everything they say until it just “feels right.” However, writing was just an occasional hobby until one night during my freshman year of high school when I awoke in the wee hours of the morning with the plot for a novel running through my mind. Until that moment, I’d never even considered writing anything more than super short stories and poetry for fun. Even then, I considered it something to do in my spare time, but that’s when I started dreaming of being published. It wasn’t until college that I started taking my writing seriously. My attempt to crash a creative writing course at my local community college was unsuccessful, but the assignment given that first day inspired my first historical Christian romance novel.
What do you hope readers will gain from reading your books?
First and foremost, I hope that readers will come away with a better understanding of who they are in God’s eyes and how much He loves them. Secondly, I hope they’ll have just a bit more compassion for those who’ve lived a life different than their own. I think that’s one of the best things about novels. We get a chance to “live” someone else’s life and see into their hearts and minds. What better way to learn to love them as God asks us to? Of course, I always hope that my readers are entertained by my stories, and if that gives them a moment to step back from life and take a relaxing breath, well, that’s an important blessing as well.
What book do you have coming out next?
Murmur in the Mud Caves, Book 4 in my Chaparral Hearts series is currently on preorder and will release May 16, 2023. Each book in the Chaparral Hearts series can be read as a stand alone, but characters from previous books do make appearances in later books, so I recommend reading the series in order for the fullest experience.
