For this week’s Neverending Blog Tour, I interviewed Karen Fowler, the woman who writes under three separate names!
She chose to write under different name to keep the neighbors from gossiping about her more “controversial” books, so I won’t dime her two noms de plume out in public!
Of all Karen’s books, I featured “Still Life Paintings,” a collection of short stories that explores the relationship between art and life for three different people.
What I loved about this collection was Karen’s use of art to reveal complex emotions both to the reader and to the characters themselves. Her poignant visual cues and uncluttered writing style produced not only a careful illustration of the human soul, but had me taking notes about how to work similar portrayals into my own writing.
I also really appreciate – and agree with – her philosophy of writing “true” to oneself! In this day and age, where writers often feel pigeon-holed into a specific subgenre, it’s refreshing to hear someone still to what they love.
About the Author
LF: Tell me what readers should know about Karen Fowler, the woman with three names!
KF: Karen is possibly schizophrenic, or in the very least has a touch of multiple personality disorder, as evidenced by the way she leap-frogs from one genre to another- all while being a wife, mother, graphic designer and pro photographer.
LF: What inspires you to write?
KF: For me, inspiration is in the details– the sound of glass breaking or the smell of burgers on the grill- from there my mind goes off on a tangent creating an entire story around something small and seemingly insignificant.
LF: If you had a perfect writing outfit, what would it be?
KF: A glittering tiara, plush royal robe and my Queen of the Keyboard sash, of course!
LF: How do you define success as a writer?
KF: To be a successful writer one needs only to write often and “true” to themselves, honing their craft along the way. Everything else (sales, fortune, fame) is just icing on the proverbial cake.
LF: Does your family read your books?
KF: I don’t really share my writing career with close family and friends (I’m too thin-skinned for that) so if they are reading my work they would have stumbled across it somehow.
LF: What’s the #1 piece of advice you’d like to give other indie authors?
KF: Keep writing– don’t wait for the sales to roll in or glowing accolades to rain down on your skull– just write!
LF: What’s the hardest part of writing a novel, in your opinion?
KF: Hammering that first draft out because that’s the part where confidences wain and the agony of editing looms ahead.
Karen’s books and noms de plume
LF: When I first visited your website, Quirky-Gurl Media, I had no idea that all three authors featured on your site were you! What made you decide to write under different names? If it is because each name specializes in a different genre, what are the genres each is known for?
KF: Originally I was just going to put everything under my own name, but then the reality of small town living derailed me. I decided to keep everything mainstream and non-offensive under my real name, and the rest (anything that might set the local tongues a’waggin) would be housed under another name. I subdivided those to keep a reader from stumbling onto something they don’t like to read, or could be offended by.
LF: Many of your books are short story collections, and the topics on which you write range from erotica to heart-warming literature. Do you choose what to write, or does the story choose you?
KF: The stories seem to choose me, no matter the genre, but I find it great because I can work on several projects at once without getting bored. I do have several full length novels close to publication, so I started with the short story collections as a way to test the waters and build name recognition well ahead of their releases.
LF: You appear to do much more than writing! Tell me a little bit more about your other pursuits.
KF: Well, I’m a portrait and event photographer, with a strong interest in Fashion and fine art images, and I’m also a graphic designer by day, which has been especially handy for my book covers.
LF: Choose a story from this collection that really spoke to you when you wrote it. Which story did you choose, and why?
KF: The first story in the collection, Abstract Remembrances, moves me the most because it explores the way a person’s mind can fracture in the face of tragedy. Not everyone turns to alcohol or destructive behaviors to forget, some just paint.
LF: What’s the story’s main message?
KF: I’m going to go with the message that guilt can be as invasive as a weed, and one you let it take root, it’s almost impossible to pull out. And then it spreads.
LF: Who is/are the main characters?
KF: The main character is Kady, a young mother hospitalized after a tragic event– who paints the same image day after day, never really seeing the subject she obsessively paints.
LF: Which character do you admire from this book?
KF: Dr. Erikkson, who despite the gloomy circumstances, does his best to help poor, fractured Kady. It takes a devoted person to do that sort of thing for a living.
LF: Which character surprised you when you wrote him/her?
KF: The orderly caught me off guard, as did his role in the ending. I totally didn’t see that coming.
LF: If you could be stranded on a desert island with one of your characters from this novel, which one and why?
KF: I’d pick the mother from the second story, Different Strokes. She’s the most like me, and if I’m going to talk to myself for all of eternity, I’d prefer to get some answers every now and again.
LF: Which one would you definitely NOT want to be stranded with and why?
KF: I wouldn’t want to be stuck with Kady for any length of time. She’s too broken and fragile. I’d spend my time tending to her instead of frolicking about like the kids from Blue Lagoon.
LF: What did you learn about yourself when you wrote this book?
KF: I learned that some things in life can be overcome, but living beyond the trauma is a choice, not an obligation. Morose, I know.
LF: What other projects do you have planned?
KF: My alter-ego Alex is close to releasing the novel Blood Chord (paranormal) and I suspect that Emma will continue on with more of her tantalizing shorts. As for myself, I’ve trying to decide which novel to birth first, and the lucky tome should make it’s debut this fall.
Where can we find your books?
Curiosity Quills is a gaggle of literary marauders with a bone to grind and not enough time for revisions.
