Interview with Kaitlin Collins

 

Biography

Kaitlin is an elementary teacher and avid traveler based in the Kansas City, Missouri area. She lives with a menagerie of pets, including her bunny (Artemis), leopard gecko (Bruni), and puppy (Ringo). Books and writing have been her escape for years. When she isn’t creating stories in her head, she is daydreaming about her next trip.

Credit : Amazon.com: Kaitlin Collins: books, biography, latest update

Questions

What do you like the most about romance?

That fuzzy feeling you get in those meaningful and intimate moments between the characters. When they say or do something that just makes you swoon. To me, that’s what romance is all about.

Why did you choose to write about Scotland?

When I came up with the idea of Falling for Scotland, I was deep in the Outlander series (both the TV show and books). So when I had a dream about being pulled on stage at a Scottish show by a handsome man and decided to turn it into a book, it seemed only fitting for Edinburgh to be the main location. It’s such a magical place and the perfect setting for a cozy romance.

What advices will you give to a new author?

Write for yourself. If you aren’t enjoying the process and the story, it’s not worth it. In addition to that, write when you feel called to and it will be more fun. There are authors who take years to write one book and others who publish several books in one year. Follow the timeline that works best for you.

What struggles did you meet when you wrote your first book?

I did not write Falling for Scotland with the intention of it being published. In hindsight, it was my way of working through some difficult experiences of mine. However, when I finished it, I realized I actually enjoyed it and would at least publish it for myself and a few friends/family members. It snowballed from there and that is when the struggles began. I had little to no knowledge about how to properly publish a book, so there were a lot of mistakes I made. Then I was having to learn how to market a book and even more difficult, a book that had already been published.

All of these learning curves have helped me with my next book, though, and I’m even more excited for its release than I was my debut.

Do you listen to music when you are writing? If yes, do you have a special song?

I do! I’ve never been able to work in silence, but I prefer instrumental music when writing. While writing Falling for Scotland, I listened to strictly Celtic instrumentals to get me in the Scottish mindset even when I was in Midwest, USA.

What are your next projects?

The second book in the Falling series, Falling for Ellen, comes out on September 17th. Falling for Ellen is a historical romance set in 1960s Scotland that tells the love story of Fergus and Ellen, the grandparents of Alec Morgan from Falling for Scotland. While the stories are connected, it can also be read as a standalone.

While I have other projects I’ve at least somewhat started on, like a hockey romance and set of folk-lore inspired fantasies, I don’t want to put the pressure on myself to constantly crank out books. So I am going to take my advice from earlier and write when I feel inspired to do so.