Hello and welcome to today’s Friday Five. I’m so happy to have author Karen Heenan on the blog today. Her novel, A Wider World, is available now! Let’s get started with our interview.
Describe your decision to become a writer.
I’m not sure if there ever was a decision. I just started doing it. Unlike all the other things I wanted to be as a kid – artist and ballerina were two of them – writing was something that I could actually do without special classes or art supplies or any of the things we couldn’t afford. Paper and pen were always handy, and the only real training I needed was to read a lot, which I already did.
What is your writing process like?
I envy writers who outline, but I wouldn’t want to be one of them. By my mid-fifties, I’ve come to accept my process, which is that I get an idea out of nowhere (or I read some tiny historical fact that spurs an idea) and I have to let it develop on its own. Sometimes that leads to a lot of wasted writing, but it’s not totally wasted because I’ve learned a lot about my characters, even if I have to cut.
Generally, I try to write about the first 20% of a book in order. Or mostly in order. Once I have an idea where I’m going and who my characters are, then I allow myself to write scenes as they occur to me, putting them in what I hope is chronological order. My least favorite part of writing is when I decide I might be done, and then I have to find a way to link all those scenes together. It’s not usually that bad, but it’s one of those chores that you dread, even though you know it won’t be bad.
In the last year or two, I’ve dictated a lot of my first drafts. This started pre-pandemic, but even after, it was a way to get out of the house and walk around my small town, masked and dictating into my phone. It comes out a bit rough, but then I go home and upload it onto my computer and clean it up. I can get a surprising number of words out if I’m just talking to myself, and it’s great for developing dialogue and voice.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Stop worrying about what people think, or if you’re good enough. Stop telling yourself that you’re “writing just for yourself” and actually try to do something with it. I wrote for myself when I was in my teens; I was not writing just for myself when I was forty, but I wasn’t up for the rejection of attempting to publish, and self-publishing wasn’t an option at that point, unless it was through a vanity press.
Are you and introvert or extrovert? What’s that best thing about being an (introvert or extrovert)?
A lot of people assume I’m an extrovert, and I play one pretty well online – and even in public, after years of practice. Actually, I’m an introvert. I need a lot of quiet and time to recharge my batteries after I have too much people time. It’s difficult because I’ve learned to enjoy it, but it still takes a lot out of me and I need down time after to build myself back up. I think my writing stems from how much time alone I had as a kid, and how the people in my head are never as exhausting as “real” ones.
How long on average does it take you to write a book?
I joke that if Songbird, my first book, were a child it would be accruing college debt by now. Since I wasn’t writing to deadline (writing for myself, remember?), I just kept tinkering with it and deciding it was never going to be perfect.
With my second book, A Wider World, and Lady, in Waiting, the one I’m currently working on, it’s taken me about 9-12 months to produce a draft I’m willing to show people. Which means I “finished” in 6-9 months, and edited and rearranged and tinkered for 3. Since I write historical fiction, there’s also a significant amount of research time involved, but my process there is to get a basic framework in my head, write the draft – leaving brackets with notes of what needs to be filled in – and do further research before the second draft.
Thank you so much for being on the blog today, Karen!
About A Wider World
Memories are all he has…
Now they could save his life.
Returning to England after almost five years in exile, Robin Lewis is arrested and charged with heresy by the dying Queen Mary. As he is escorted to the Tower of London, Robin spins a tale for his captor, revisiting his life under three Tudor monarchs and wondering how he will be judged—not just by the queen, but by the God he stopped serving long ago.
When every moment counts, will the journey—and his stories—last long enough for him to be saved by Mary’s heir, the young Queen Elizabeth?
About Karen Heenan
Karen Heenan was born and raised in Philadelphia. She fell in love with books and stories before she could read, and has wanted to write for nearly as long. After far too many years in a cubicle, she set herself free to follow her dreams – which include gardening, sewing, traveling and, of course, lots of writing.
Connect with Karen on her website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or sign up for her newsletter.
Leave a Reply