I am delighted to be speaking with author Karen Kay today. Thanks for chatting with us today Karen and welcome to FAR!

Hi Tammy! Thank you so much for having me here today.

To start, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Okay, let's see. I've written fifteen books now which are Historical American Indian Romances. And my heritage includes a grandmother who was Choctaw Indian. (The Choctaw were in the Louisana/Mississippi are of the United States -- and most of them went West with the Cherokee on the Trail of Tears, although many Choctaw, instead of going on to Oklahoma, went up the Mississippi River.)

What can you tell us about your upcoming book Red Hawk's Woman?

Sure! RED HAWK'S WOMAN is the third book in the Lost Clan series -- this is a series about a Clan that has been doomed by the Creator to live an existence in the "mist" due to an evil act that they committed on the Thunderer and his children. In each book a hero is chosen to represent his band -- to attempt to undo the curse. In RED HAWK'S WOMAN, the hero is their band's last choice -- so he begins with a few strikes against him. In his quest to end the curse that plagues his people, he runs across the heroine, who is an archaeologist, looking for two missing artifacts -- those that might just help the hero end the curse.

On your website it says you are working to raise the standard of reading and education on the reservation with the Blackfeet Literacy Project. An you tell us more about this and you came to be involved?

While visiting the Blackfeet reservation, my husband and I were given a tour by Toni Running Fisher, who told us that one problem she was facing on her reservation was literacy. This led to my doing research to try to find a program that might assist her, which was the Hollywood Education and Literacy Project, located in Hollywood on Hollywood Blvd. It incorporates the study technology of L. Ron Hubbard. Representatives of the Blackfeet Tribe came here to LA to train on the program and then went back to the reservation to set up the project. At present, there is one person from the reservation here in training, and she has become as close to me as if she were family.

Can you tell us what the Stars In The Desert program is that your involved with?

My good friend, Grandfather George, was invited to participate in the Stars in the Desert program, which is a program sponsored by the Navajo in Tuba City. Grandfather George asked me to accompany him, and it was, indeed, a great program.

Your book The Spirit of the Wolf is available from Berkley Sensations. Could you tell readers more about it and where you came up with the idea for it?

THE SPIRIT OF THE WOLF is the second book in the Lost Clan series and this book entails a hero who is destined to match wits with the Thunderer. In the book, he wins the heroine in a game of chance. He doesn't want her with him, and he's the last thing she wants, yet there they are. The book was inspired by the true life story of Sacagawea of Lewis and Clark fame, who was won by her husband in a game of chance. The story was written to honor her, because in 2006 was the two hundredth anniversary of the last year of the expedition.

How has being published changed your life, if at all?

It has certainly made my life busy. There's seldom a moment in my life that I can garner and say it's my own. Always, I'm either answering reader correspondence, email, researching, writing, promoting...something... I would have to say that this is the main different. Goodness, but I'm busy.

How much time do you spend doing research for a story?

It never ends until that book is finally finished. I research a story originally to get the okay from my editor to write it -- but from that moment on, all of life is research, Research includes not only books, but DVD's, videos, trips to reservations, planning, plotting, etc. Until the day that book is done, it's continual.

In your opinion, what are the three most essential ingredients of an excellent romance novel?

Good question. In my humble opinion, I'd have to say that a hero who is not only sexy and dynamic, but who is also kind is vital -- to me kindness in a hero is essential -- he might be many things -- he might be a warrior, a pirate, a cutthroat, the sexiest man alive, etc., but he is always kind and always has other people's interests placed before his own. So that's number one. Second would be the heroine who make the story come alive with her personality, her doubts, her fears, her strengths -- but again, the heroine must also be kind, even when she's angry or horribly in the wrong. The third thing that makes a great story is of course plot -- it can be a mystery, a straight romance with no mystery, an historical, paranormal - whatever -- these three things must be there an must be strong. Of course it goes without saying that sex is a part of the plot -- for me, sex in a romance is like action in a thriller. Of course it must be there, be true, and be beautiful.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

Probably the one thing that has surprised me the most is the knowledge that when you write, your own values come crashing to the fore -- and if I'd ever had doubts about what I really think about life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, they certainly were put to rest when I started to write. One can't fake these things. Writing is probably one of the most honest activities one can engage in. It says a lot about the author, in fact.

When did you start writing romances? How long did it take you to get published?

One of my very best friends in High School, Becky, got me on the path of reading romance -- we'd haunt our town's library. Emily Loring was amongst the first romance authors that I read. Over the years, no matter what life threw me, I'd pick up a romance book and for a moment, I could escape my problems. At one point in my life romance novels lulled me to sleep at night. In fact, my youngest daughter claims that one of her fondest memories is her going to sleep with me by her side, reading away at my books. Shortly after that, because I was raised in a very aesthetic family (my mother was a music teacher), I felt that creative urge come over me (I was then the mother of two very young children). We were not rich, and I didn't have a piano or a clarinet or anything else there to play, and my singing voice has never been a strong point with me, but there I was with pen and paper. And that's how it all started.

It took me thirteen years to get published. So if you write, don't give up!

Is there anything else you would like to share with us?

I think that romance books are like a good friend. They are there for us through all our trials in life. They are there for us when we need them. When I write, I never forget this and never forget how these books got me through many difficult situations in life. I consider it an honor to write romances, and I consider it an additional honor to be able to write about a people who were left to history as greatly misunderstood. I love being able to dispel myths and to shine a bit of light on the true historical character of the Native American.

Thank you for spending time with us today Karen!

You are very welcome -- thank you for having me.

You can learn more about Karen and the books she creates on her website.


Interviewed by: Tammy