The Ultimate Kelly Oram Interview

The Obvious:

I love to write & I’m a ginger.

The Basics:

I wrote my first novel at age fifteen–a fan fiction about my favorite music group, The Backstreet Boys, for which my family and friends still tease me. I’m obsessed with reading, talk way too much, and like to eat frosting by the spoonful. I live outside of Phoenix, Arizona with my husband, four children, and all the endless voices in my head.

The Fun Stuff:

1. I love to sing.
2. I’m addicted to Diet Coke. Don’t ask me if Pepsi is okay instead. Pepsi is never okay instead.
3. I love to watch professional soccer and baseball. The World Cup is my Superbowl.
4. I broke my head as a kid and had to wear a hockey helmet to school as my cast.
5. I own my own 10-sided dice for role-playing that no one but me is allowed to roll.
6. I’m left handed.
7. I’m a total true crime junkie.
8. I love road trips. Best vacation I ever took was a three-week coast-to-coast-and-back drive with my father.
9. I was a Backstreet Boys fangirl in high school. (Like obsessed.) I still have a whole collection of fan paraphernalia. I was a Brian girl in case you’re wondering.
10. I took both golf and bowling classes in college to fulfill my PE credits. (I still suck at both.)

The Personal Stuff:

I was born March 5^th 1981, in Mesa Arizona. I grew up with two amazing, loving parents and two brothers and two sisters that I only realized were amazing after I grew up and moved away from them. My childhood was crazy and chaotic at times but fun and full of love. I have no complaints.

We moved around quite a bit, but I spent the majority of my childhood in Colorado. I graduated from high school in Canton Michigan in 1999. I was heavily involved with choir, I was on the student council, I played on the volleyball team freshman year, I wrote for the school newspaper senior year, and I worked in a children’s indoor playpark (think Peter Piper Pizza or Chuck E. Cheese) where I was a birthday party hostess. I loved my job.

I went to Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho. (Now knows as BYU Idaho.) I had three different majors in as many semesters and dropped out without graduating to move to Los Angeles when I got married.

My husband’s name is Josh. We were married in Oakland, California on September 15, 2001. We dated for about 2 weeks before we got engaged and were married about two months later. We lived in Los Angeles for seven or eight years before ending up back in Arizona. I have four children—three boys and one girl.

The Bookish stuff:

What do you like to read?
I read a bit of everything as long as it also has a good romance. I’d say it’s 50/50 between contemporary and sci-fi/fantasy. I also read a good mix of young adult and books for grownups. But I have to admit, I avoid most “classic” literature like the plague.

What is your favorite supernatural creature?
Dragons! And shifters! (Dragon shifters being the ultimate, of course.) I can never turn down a good shifter book. Can’t do it. I also love the fae. I’ll take a trip to faerie anytime.

Who are some of your favorite authors?
There are so many. Mariana Zapata, J. Bengtsson, Pippa Grant, K. M. Shea, T. A. White, Stephenie Meyer, K.F. Breene, Chloe Neill, Meg Cabot, John Green, Simone Elkeles, Cinda Chima Williams, Kristin Cashore, Julianne Donaldson, Karen Lynch, Stacey Marie Brown, Jennifer Armentrout… This list could go on forever.

What are your top five favorite books?

1. The Host by Stephenie Meyer
2. From Lukov With Love by Mariana Zapata
3. Cake by J. Bengtsson
4. Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson
5. The Mediator Series by Meg Cabot

Who are some of your favorite book characters?
Mr. Darcy is a classic. I love him so much I named my cat after him. I also love Phillip from Julianne Donaldson’s Edenbrooke, Daemon from Jennifer Armentrout’s Lux series, Suze Simon from Meg Cabot’s Mediator series, Beka Cooper from Tamora Pierce’s Beka Cooper series, Merit from Chloe Neill’s Chicagoland Vampires series, Jace Wayland from Cassandra Claire’s Mortal Instruments series, and of course, Edward Cullen.

And speaking of characters, who are your favorites from your own books?
It’s a tough choice because I love them all for different reasons, but I think Ellie Westley from Serial Hottie is my favorite girl, and Russ Devereaux from the Supernaturals books is my favorite boy. Ellie is just fun and silly and crazy, and she’s explosive. And Russ… *swoon* I love that he’s so strong yet can be completely vulnerable at the same time. He’s got the biggest heart and he wears it on his sleeve. He’s emotional, but he’s also such a badass. He’s fun! I love writing his character!

If you could pick one, which one of your books would you make a movie based on?
Hmm. I think it would be a toss up between Serial Hottie and Cinder & Ella. Serial Hottie is just fun and I can totally picture it being done similarly to The Burbs, or Suburbia. A fun quirky murder mystery romance. I’d love it. But I’m also a HUGE sucker for anything Cinderella, and it’s always done so well in the movies. Seeing Brian and Ella on the big screen would be so awesome. Also, I think the Jamie Baker series would make a great TV show.

If you could meet any of your own characters, who would it be?
That’s easy. Russ Devereaux from my Supernaturals series. The handsome, smart-alecky, warlock who’s always ready to stir up a little trouble. I think I’d like to meet him of all my characters because he’s the most likely to take me on some wild & crazy adventure that I’m likely never to forget. (Of course, he’s likely to get us arrested too, but…)

Do your family and friends read your books?
Some of them. The ones who enjoy reading do. I never expect people I know to read my work, and I only encourage them if I think they will genuinely enjoy my stories. As a writer, I know not everyone is going to love my work, but my friends and family don’t always believe me when I say it’s okay if they don’t like my books. I’ve had friends read my books because they were curious but who don’t normally read the YA romance genre and then they felt really bad when they didn’t like it. It’s really okay. But it’s also fun when someone I know comes up to me and says, “OMG I finally read one of your books and I loved it!”

If you couldn’t be an author, what would your ideal career be?
Uh… are there other options? Kidding. Well before this I was a stay home mom and it worked well for me. I’d also love to give musical theater a shot. Broadway would be fun!

The Writerish Stuff:

When did you develop an interest in writing?
I think I was born this way. I’ve written stories for as long as I can remember. My mother says that even before I could read or write, I would draw pictures and the pictures would tell stories. I had a wild imagination as a kid and writing was a great outlet for it. I’m also a bit of an insomniac and writing stories was something to do during my sleepless nights.

Tell us about your early works—what was the first thing you ever wrote?
I wrote fan fiction for years before I started writing actual novels. My first novel was a fanfiction about my best friend and me meeting the Backstreet Boys who then put us in their music video and fell in love with us. Oh, yes I did. And it was laughably awful! I also wrote in several other fandoms such as Firefly, Supernatural, Smallville, NCIS, and Veronica Mars.

How did you come up with the idea for your first book?
My first published novel was Being Jamie Baker. Coming up with the idea for that was nothing special really. I love superheroes. I love characters with special powers and decided I wanted to write about a girl who had powers, so I sat down and brainstormed. I came up with several ideas and sort of mashed a couple of them together and volia! Jamie Baker was born.

What is your favorite theme/genre to write about?
Young adult is my favorite. I love coming of age stories and first loves. I enjoy writing both contemporary and fantasy. I love each genre for totally different reasons and could never stick to just one or the other. I jump genres but no matter what I write they are always romances. I could never write a story where no one falls in love or—heaven forbid—has no kissing in it.

Which one of your books did you enjoy writing the most?
My favorite to write were actually the Nora Jacobs books that I wrote under the penname Jackie May. I have so much fun with them. They were more of a challenge for me to write because they were adult and a little bit darker than my usual stuff, and also because of the world building and the ensemble cast. But I had so much variety with the characters, and I got to live in an amazing world with magic and monsters for a while. I am a huge fantasy geek!

What is your writing process? Do you follow a regular routine? Do you use pen and paper or computer? Work at home or at the library/Starbucks, etc?
My laptop is like my 5^th child. I usually do a basic outline on paper and then have files filled with notes. I usually write from home but if I need to get out of the house for a bit I love to go to the library. If my small town had a Barnes and Noble, I’d probably be a live in resident.

How do you balance writing with other aspects of your life?
Balance? I wish!! I go crazy trying to balance everything. If I ever get it figured out, I’ll let you know.

Do you write every day, 5 days a week or as and when?
It used to be whenever I could find the time, but now I get to write full time. My brain can’t last a full eight hour day, so I usually get in about 4 or five good hours of work while the kids are at school.

What has been the most surprising reaction to something you’ve written?
I was completely floored by the dozens upon dozens of letters I received after I published V is for Virgin. I had so many people write to tell me how much they appreciated that book, and who shared their own personal struggles/stories about virginity and bullying. There are some amazing people out there and I was completely flattered and shocked to know that I’d touched their lives in such a way.

Have you ever received negative criticism? How do you handle it?
Every writer receives negative criticism. It’s part of the job, and honestly, it’s necessary for us to grow as writers. The key is to accept that not everyone is going to like your work. Then learn to ignore the negative hurtful criticism and use the constructive feedback to make your work better. Beta readers are one of the most valuable resources a writer has.

Other than your family, what has been your greatest source of support?
My husband! I know you said other than my family, but seriously, I couldn’t do it without him. Other than that, my writer’s group. They started out as just critique partners, but have since become some of my closest friends.

Where do you get your story ideas?
Anywhere and everywhere. Song lyrics, movies/TV shows. Books I read. Random things my kids say. The dark, scary corners of my mind that should never be allowed to function….

Do you have a specific writing style?
I typically write in first person, and I tend to be sarcastic. I’ve been called “fluffy” before, and I’m okay with that. My favorite thing in the world is a book filled with witty banter, just enough heart to make you get choked up once or twice, and a happy ending.

How do you develop your plots and characters?
Do you use any set formula? It varies. Sometimes I have a great idea that wants to plot itself while others I’ll want to write a specific kind of story and have to come up with a plot. Other times I’ve just had a great character I wanted to use and had to come up with a good story that suited them. I tend to use the basic five act structure: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. I get the basic plot points down and then fill in the smaller details as I go.

Are you a “plotter” or a “pantser” (do you plan/outline the story ahead of time or write “by the seat of your pants”)?
I am definitely NOT a pantser! There have been rare occasions (very rare) where something just comes to me and flows with ease, but it’s not typical. I need to have an outline, and I swear the more books I write, the more outlining and plotting and character developing I do before I start writing the book.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging to write?
Description and heavy action. I don’t really have the patience for a lot of description when I read or write, and action is just hard for me. It’s definitely one of my weak points. I’d say my strengths are dialogue and voice.

How do you deal with writer’s block?
Cry. Pull my hair out. Avoid my manuscript with things like Instagram. Cry some more. Go to therapy… (Nope, not kidding.) Also, sometimes I try to go back to my outline and figure out why I’m stuck. Usually, my writers block stems from a plot hole I haven’t discovered yet. Fortunately, I don’t get blocked very often, but if I’m ever really truly stuck, the best thing for me to do is put my manuscript away. I’ll read a book or work on a different story for a while. I usually have at least 2 or 3 works in progress at one time. Sometimes, if I pull away for a bit, I can come back to whatever my problem is with a fresh set of eyes and I can usually fix whatever’s holding me up.

How long, on average, does it take you to write a book?
It depends, but I’d say on average, if I get to work consistently, it’s about a three or four-month process from first idea to completed first draft. But then there are re-writes and edits. I’d say I usually finish about two to three books a year.

The Words of Wisdom Stuff:

Tell us about your route to success – how/when did you decide to self-publish? Did you query an agent first? How did you handle the editing, proofreading, cover design, etc?
I did query 3 or 4 agents at first, but I didn’t even wait to hear back from them before I decided to self-publish. My husband just really wanted to try it, so I let him. It’s worked out well for us. I have a couple of different beta readers and a wonderful critique group that I give my manuscripts to that give me feedback and help me with story editing. Then I outsource my copyediting. It’s taken me several tries to find an editor I like, but I finally found one who is great. Other than that, my husband does all my formatting and cover designs. The man has mad skills. I wouldn’t have tried to self-publish, if I didn’t have him to help me with everything. We’ve had to smooth out the kinks over the years but now we’ve got a system down that works really well for us.

What are the most important elements of good writing?
This one is hard to answer because I think “good” writing is learning how to have a balance of all the elements. I don’t necessarily think one is more important than the other. Though an author’s voice, and great characters probably catch me the most as a reader. Those are usually the things that stand out to me and that I remember the most after I read a book. All of my favorite authors have become my favorites because I’ve fallen in love with their individual style/voices or their characters. But there will be people who prefer action, or prose, or a deeply developed world above voice and character. Everyone is different.

What do you feel is the key to your success?
Tenacity! Writing is a job, like everything else. You can’t just write a book and expect it to become a success on its own. You have to make it a success by creating the best product you can and then getting it out there. Market and promote like crazy. If someone turns you down or doesn’t like your book, go find someone else to share it with. I’ve had to learn a lot about marking and the publishing industry in order to make my books sell. I work very hard at it. Sometimes I feel like I’m so busy being a writer that I don’t have time to write! But without that, I would never make any money selling books.

And finally, what advice would you give to aspiring writers?
READ! Anything and everything you can get your hands on. The more you read, the better your writing will be. Also, WRITE! Practice makes perfect. Chances are that first draft of that first book you write will not be publishable. That doesn’t make you a bad writer. It makes you normal. I had completed dozens of novels before I had one I felt was good enough to be published. Writing is just like anything else. It takes time, patience, hard work, and a lot of practice.