Kendra Leigh Castle is the author of Call of the Highland Moon and the forthcoming Dark Highland Fire, paranormal romances about a Scottish werewolf in upstate New York. She started out stealing her mother’s romance novels and finally progressed to writing her own. She brings her love of all things both spooky and steamy to her writing, and firmly believes that creatures of the night deserve happily ever afters too. When not curled up with her laptop and yet another cup of coffee, Kendra keeps busy in California with her husband, three children, and menagerie of high-maintenance pets. For news of upcoming novels, or just to drop her a note (she loves to hear from readers!), visit her online at kendraleighcastle.com.
SFScope: When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?
Castle: I think I’ve been a writer almost as long as I’ve been a reader, and since I was reading whole books at age three, that’s a long time! But enjoying writing and deciding to try to do it for a living are two totally different things, and I didn’t really begin considering the latter until I was about twenty-seven, with two little kids and another on the way. Great timing, right? But it took me that long, even after years of people reading everything from my homework assignments to my emails and telling me “You really need to be a writer,” to take a deep breath, buckle down, and decide to really give writing a book my best shot. It’s a bigger leap from dreaming to doing than a lot of people realize, and I was, I readily admit, more than a little terrified! Of course, I’m really glad I invested the time and wrote that first book… even though that one is my “learning book,” may it live in my closet forevermore (seriously, I can’t even go back and read that thing yet… it’s, um, not good).
SFScope: Who are the writers you admire and who has influenced you?
Castle: I admire so many writers, especially now that I understand exactly how much work goes into creating a good story! There are a few writers who always end up on my keeper shelf, and my copies of their work are always sort of beat-up and dog-eared because I’ve read them so many times. They write my literary equivalent of comfort food! Stephen King is an all-time favorite, and then there’s Julie Garwood, Nora Roberts, Lisa Kleypas (I adore those Wallflowers!), Teresa Medeiros, and more recently, Gena Showalter and Alyssa Day. Each one has such a distinctive voice and style, and their characters have stayed with me long after I put down the books. My writing has been influenced by all of them, though I would say that I think Julie Garwood in particular has had a lot of influence on the way I craft a story. Her historicals are some of the most charming things I’ve ever read; whatever else is going on, it’s all about these wonderful, touching, often funny interactions between the hero and heroine, about seeing the soft heart within the Alpha Male and rooting for the clever, often accident-prone heroine to win the day. If I can get people to care about my characters the way Julie Garwood has always made me adore hers, then I’ve definitely achieved Writer Nirvana.
SFScope: When you set out to write a story or a book, how do you go about it?
Castle: Oh, I’m a total mess. My critique partner, the fabulous Cate Rowan, has the system I wish I could have. She’s ultra-organized, with outlines and storyboards and files for everything! I continue to be in awe. What I have is a notebook full of scribbled notes and character sketches and pieces of outlines that are generally either modified into unrecognizability or completely discarded. I do need a loose structure, though, because I’ve found that I just sort of flail around blindly without it. Usually, I’ll write up a one-page back cover blurb to start to put the concept together, and go from there to the disasterous notebook. Often I’ll write the first chapter before I really start to flesh things out, just to get the ball rolling. Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it’s not, but I love writing that first chapter! It sets the tone for everything that’s to come.
SFScope: Do you have a specific time of day that you write?
Castle: I wish! No, with three young kids (ages 8, 7, and 3), I have to grab time whenever it presents itself. I’m trying to work more in the morning, because my brain is on coffee at that point and I’m just generally a lot more functional. But no matter how hard I try, I can usually be found around midnight, curled up in the big chair with my laptop, plugging away at the keyboard. I really should save some of the goofy things I’ve written while half-asleep.
SFScope: Do you have a special place where you write? Please describe it for us.
Castle:I dream of a well-appointed office, but we’re a Navy family in between moves right now, so until I get out of this little rental house in California and into something larger than a shoebox in Maryland, where we’ll be heading soon, I am usually at either the kitchen table (where I am right now), or curled up in our big, overstuffed chenille chair. In my head, however, I’m decorating that future office! My husband just had copies of Call of the Highland Moon and Dark Highland Fire matted and framed for my birthday, with this sweet little engraved plaque at the bottom. That will be hung in a place of honor on walls that I’m really thinking should be painted some shade of cocoa. I love warm colors. And, of course, chocolate.
SFScope: How long does it take you to write your books?
Castle: Generally, a book takes me about six months to complete, though my current book is taking a little longer what with all of the moving (Nevada to North Carolina to California and soon to Maryland, all in a little over a year).
SFScope: Your readers love the characters you’ve developed. Do you create your characters first and then build the story around them?
Castle: Thanks! And you know, that’s the first time I’ve had this question… I’ve never really thought much about it. Probably because in the Pantsing/Plotting spectrum of writing processes, I’m definitely much farther over on the pantsing side, and thinking too deeply about how I write gives me a headache (I did mention I was a total mess, right?). But I guess my stories really do spring much more from the characters than the other way around. I always see the hero and heroine much more clearly than anything else at first, and the ideas for the plot present themselves as I’m delving into their personalities and backgrounds.
SFScope: What are your inspirations for your stories, characters, and locations?
Castle: Well, I’ve always been fascinated by Scotland. Some of my favorite books are set there, and there’s just something so magical about the Highlands. So I was determined that I would one day write some big, handsome, Highland heroes! The MacInnes brothers, Gideon and Gabriel, more than fit the bill. Making them werewolves was just the icing on the cake! What could be better than a hero with a brogue who struggles with his animal instincts? In general, I’m just inspired by the possibilities presented when you throw a little magic into the mix. I love fantasy and the supernatural, so paranormal romance allows me to really let my creative juices flow. My characters are always trying to bite one another or shift into something else anyway… the genre is a perfect fit for me!
SFScope: Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Castle: The best advice I have is just to keep writing! Write every day, or as much as you can, and always be open to learning something new and honing your craft. There’s always more to learn, and things we can improve upon, even after we get The Call. Join the Romance Writers of America, or if you write something other than romance, the national association for that genre, and join a local chapter if you have one. Writing is such a solitary profession, the networking and friendship opportunities afforded you by joining a group are invaluable. Other writers are the best resources! But the first thing, the biggest thing, is writing the book. It all starts there. And lots of us write more than one before we get published, so don’t get discouraged!
SFScope: What are some of your other interests?
Castle: As a Navy wife, mother, and writer, I’m pretty interested in getting more sleep, but I’m not holding my breath! But other than that, I still love to read; I have a To Be Read pile I can’t jump over right now, but I’m on a tight deadline, so until August all I can do is dream of it. I love animals, and am often fussing with our two little Pekingese and our gigantic, obnoxious cat. My husband just bought Rock Band for our Wii, so I can indulge my inner teenager and sing my heart out when I need to de-stress (I don’t bust eardrums, either… I was a soloist all the way through high school and used to perform in a barbershop quartet as the tenor). I buy too much music for my iPod. I watch Ghost Hunters religiously. And I try to remember to stop and enjoy the fact that I have a beautiful family, an interesting life, and that I get to do what I love for a living. What could be better than that?
Thanks so much for interviewing me, I really enjoyed it!
SFScope: I really enjoyed talking with you and getting to know you. Thanks for your time, and best wishes on all your proejcts.