GayRomLit 2017 Blog Tour Welcomes Author Kim Fielding
Hi! I’m Kim Fielding. As I’m writing this, I’m simultaneously procrastinating one of my least favorite tasks: packing for a trip. I love traveling, but the packing part is always painful for me whether I’m going for a night or five months. I don’t know why. It’s just traumatic.
This particular trip involves me and the husband running away from home. One kid is currently on the East Coast on a school trip, while the other—who graduates high school next month—is eager for the chance to stay home alone. That means we can travel kid-free yet guiltless, which is a rare thing indeed.
We’re going to Vegas. It’s generally not a city I get excited to visit. I don’t enjoy gambling, I don’t drink much, and the tackiness gets to me after a while. Still, if you’re willing to set aside certain expectations and live in an alternate reality for a time, the city can be fun. I think of it as the creation of Walt Disney’s evil twin. And this time I’ve talked my husband into a fancy hotel and two shows, so that’s good.
This trip to Vegas is also great timing because I recently signed a contract for Ante Up, a book that takes place mostly in Vegas (it’ll release from Dreamspinner in November). That book has mobster vampires, half-elf, and assorted other interesting creatures. None of which I’ll likely run into on my trip, although since it’s Vegas I’m sure I’ll see plenty of other interesting characters.
If you’ve read a few of my books, you’ve probably realized that travel is a major inspiration for my writing. The idea for Ante Up came to me on a trip to Vegas last year, Rattlesnake came to me while my family was driving through the Mojave Desert on our way to Palm Springs, and Motel. Pool. came from a different trip to Vegas, with a substantial side trip to the Grand Canyon. Hmm. Now that I think of it, the desert is apparently very fertile ground for my muse. But other locations have been good sources too. Portland. San Francisco. Croatia, Bosnia, Poland, and other spots in central and eastern Europe.
When it comes down to it, I believe every place—no matter how seemingly mundane—holds the potential for endless stories. Hell, the one I’m writing on now is set in Modesto, California, which I can assure you is one of the least exotic, least exciting places on the planet. Yet it has stories too.
So now I have homework for you! Go outside your home. Not far—a block or so will do. Take a good look around (if necessary, ignore your neighbors’ stares). What potential stories do you see right there? If nothing at all comes to you, feel free to throw in an alien invasion, a few zombies, or a pigeon who’s possessed by the soul of a long-ago-deceased Japanese emperor. In my case, if I walk a block I come to an irrigation canal, and I find myself what might be hiding in the murky water. Maybe it’s just as well I’m heading out of town.
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Kim Fielding is the bestselling author of numerous m/m romance novels, novellas, and short stories. Like Kim herself, her work is eclectic, spanning genres such as contemporary, fantasy, paranormal, and historical. Her stories are set in alternate worlds, in 15th century Bosnia, in modern-day Oregon. Her heroes are hipster architect werewolves, housekeepers, maimed giants, and conflicted graduate students. They’re usually flawed, they often encounter terrible obstacles, but they always find love.
After having migrated back and forth across the western two-thirds of the United States, Kim calls the boring part of California home. She lives there with her husband, her two daughters, and her day job as a university professor, but escapes as often as possible via car, train, plane, or boat. This may explain why her characters often seem to be in transit as well. She dreams of traveling and writing full-time.
Follow Kim:
Website: http://www.kfieldingwrites.com/
Facebook: http://facebook.com/KFieldingWrites
Twitter: @KFieldingWrites
Email: Kim@KFieldingWrites.com
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bau3S9
A complete list of Kim’s books: http://www.kfieldingwrites.com/kim-fieldings-books/
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