#WOTR22 #attendingauthor #Spotlight – Kate Hawthorne

Kate Hawthorne

Tell us your name and then a bit about yourself.

Hi! My name is Kate and I’m your friendly neighborhood LGBT romance author. I was born and raised in California and lived there over three decades before relocating to Louisville (for my other job). We’ve (me, my husband, daughter, and dog) have been in KY for two years now, and while I miss the food and weather in CA, I love it here. Speaking of food. I love it. I’m a super food motivated person and the way to my heart is with books, wine, and good snacks.

When you are writing a book, which is harder? The first book in the series or the others after it?

I definitely think the subsequent books in a series are harder, but the first book comes with its own kinds of pressure. In the first book, you’re really tasked with setting up a world that’s interesting enough to keep readers coming back for the rest of the books ON TOP of the relationship story you’re trying to tell. But then the follow up books rely so much on the characters, you can’t really fall back on the world like you could in the first one. So, I guess they’re hard in different ways.

When writing a series how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?

I like to keep things fresh by turning reader expectations on their heads. I think it’s a lot of fun to keep at least one character a little secretive and drop hints about him. Readers will start to form ideas and opinions about who his love interest will be or what his back story is, and then I get to write him completely differently if I want to! I think as an author it’s really important to listen to your characters and what they’re telling you, and being in tune with them and their stories keeps me on my toes, too!

Writing can be an emotionally draining and stressful pursuit. Any tips for aspiring writers?

Place value on your time. Being an author is a job, even if it’s something that you’re doing in your spare time/on the side. Your time is valuable, and you need to be responsible with it. Know what your priorities are, make schedules, and be respectful of your own time.

On a typical day, how much time do you spend writing?

A handful of hours. Since I have another full time job (that pays much more), my time is split. I write at least an hour in the morning while I have my coffee, and then I write over lunch, and then again at the end of the day.

Do you have a favorite character that you have written? If so, who? And what makes them so special.

I think it would be impossible to choose. So many of my characters are important to me for different reasons. The one that is standing out to me right now is a character in my book Unfettered. His name is Heath, and I put a lot of my own history into his character development, so he has a special place in my heart, for sure.

If any of your books were to be made into a movie, who are the celebrities that would star in it? What book and who?

This is so hard to choose!!! If I could turn my FIRST book, His Kind of Love, into a movie I would totally cast Oscar Isaac as Gabriel and Freddy Carter as Joel.

What is your definition of success?

I think success varies widely from person to person, and it even varies for me from day to day. I don’t think all success should be financial. For me, being happy with the work I’m doing is success. Being recognized by my peers for being good at what I do is success. Touching readers lives…also success.

What are your social links?

FB – http://facebook.com/authorkatehawthorne
FB Group – http://facebook.com/groups/hawthornesharem
Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17636987.Kate_Hawthorne
Patreon – http://patreon.com/katehawthorne
BookBub – https://www.bookbub.com/authors/kate-hawthorne
Twitter – http://twitter.com/katewriteswords
Website – http://www.katehawthornebooks.com

What are your buy links?

http://author.to/katehawthorne 

Want to buy tickets to Writers on the River?

go to www.WritersontheRiver.com

VIP is $45. 12-1 VIP signing Time, Swag bag and 1-4 general signing time.  Plus includes After Party.

Early Access is $25. 12-1 VIP signing time, Swag bag, and 1-4 general signing time.  No After Party.

General Admission is $10. 1-4 General Signing Time ONLY

After Party is $35. After Party 7:30-11:30 ONLY

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