Kim, thanks for being our Spotlight this month. How long have you been writing romance? When did you start writing fiction?

I've been writing romance for about 10 years, seriously for about two. I made Ron get serious about his, so as they say, what's good for the goose... I no longer had an excuse NOT to write. I had to get serious if I wanted to be published. It was at that time that I told Ron that I had thought of joining RWA® for years, and here we are about a year and a half later. I started writing fiction when I was about eight. I thought I was going to be the next big thing to come along. My first serious writing project and submission, when I was about 11, was a country song I sent to Glenn Campbell. (Man, I had a crush on him.) Hmmm. Wow! It just dawned on me -- I married a Campbell. Wonder what Freud would have to say about that? Anyway, I entered song contests just about every week when I was a pre-teen. Sadly for the country music world, they were never used, at least as far as I know.  

What’s your favorite genre to write or to read?

My favorite genre to write is the western. I suppose that goes back to my Dad. He and I would watch westerns until the sun came up or the cows came home, whatever. When I was young I told my Dad once, "You aren't my real Dad. My real dad is John Wayne!" and he teased me about it until he the day he died. He even gave me an old John Wayne book and wrote an inscription in it to my mom thanking her for "that little fling in 1962. I will never forget it." And then my Dad signed it, John Wayne. I still have that book and I laugh every time I see it. It brings back great memories of my Daddy.

I love to read all genres. The first romance I picked up was Kathleen Woodiwiss', THE FLAME AND THE FLOWER. I have read all of her books and re-read them when I can. I love Larry McMurtry, Nora Roberts. I just finished Candy Havens' CHARMED AND DANGEROUS and can hardly wait for the next. I am currently reading Stephanie Bond's BODYMOVERS. There is no one special person or genre, except for Woodiwiss. 

That’s a hoot about your dad and John Wayne, and you married a Campbell. Wow, good going! Tell us something about your background. Where did you grow up?

I loved writing songs, poems and the most heart wrenching stories. I was a very dramatic child.  I was born and raised and have, except for a brief stint in St. Louis, Mo., lived entirely in Fort Worth, Texas.  I have one brother, Robert. My parents were born in Texas. We moved in the 70's to Lake Worth. I attended LW Junior high and graduated from LW High School in 1980. I have attended Texas Wesleyan and UNT and I’m still trying to finish my degree in English Literature. My life since then has been pretty exciting. I have one son, Christian. He is the third generation to attend University of North Texas and lived in the dorm that his dad, step-mom, aunts, uncles and grandparents lived in. He’ll be graduating in the spring.

My dad was so small that he had to be brought home in a shoe box. My mom was the chief clerk at the court of criminal appeals for 33 years and it was in her courtroom that George Lott went on his killing spree. Fortunately, it was payday and my mom had just walked out of the courtroom when he opened fire, killing 2 and wounding several. Christian's other grandfather on his step-mom's side is former senate majority leader Dick Armey. My cousin was just appointed as Assistant to the Ambassador of China and moved to Beijing.  My brother in law, Ron English, is an incredible artist and if you saw Super Size Me you saw his art throughout the entire movie. My sister-in-law, Tarssa Yazdani, is a writer and poet. We are just one big happy family and we all get along. (How weird is that?) Ron and I have been married for two years and have fourteen grandkids and just found out that number fifteen is due in March. (Surely, they've figured out how this is happening.)

Are you sure there’s not a President or famous bank robber in your family somewhere?

Well... now that you’ve asked, I did have an uncle, Joe Palmer. He was at Eastham serving 25 years for robbery. He tried to escape with the help of his fellow bank robbers, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. A prison guard was killed and he went to the electric chair after that little episode (Bonnie & Clyde's Revenge on Eastham). But that is it. I think.

What are you currently working on? Any submissions with agents or editors?

My first ever pitch was in Atlanta. It was terrifying. I pitched to Brenda Chin and she was just the nicest, loveliest person you could ever hope to meet. She requested a partial even though she doesn't do westerns (you will hear about that in the newsletter.) I am submitting several stories right now and working to get all the kinks out of the current ones. I am trying my hand at contemporary single title. We'll see how that goes. I have found I love to write everything. Some things are more of a struggle than others. My goal at this point is to have PRO status before the end of the year and be on my way to being published by the Dallas Conference in '07.

Kim, what do you struggle with as a writer?

My biggest problem is pretty evident; I start writing and my mind goes into overdrive. I am trying to think and type and it sometimes winds up sounding like I am rambling, too much stream of consciousness or unconsciousness. One major problem of being a constant talker.

Does it help your own writing that both you and your spouse write romance?

Since Ron is a writer it really helps to be able to bounce ideas off of him.  We will occasionally spend an evening at dinner tossing around ideas. Since he works out of the house, it helps when I get stuck if I can just holler out and ask a question. I must say, he has never turned me down when he's called on to help me "research" a scene. So I guess the answer is: it definitely helps.

What do you consider your greatest accomplishment?

My greatest accomplishment is that I was able to raise such a great well-rounded kid in such a wild time. I was a single parent for so long. It seems impossible to raise a child to be respectful of people and mindful of the needs of those around them. But, it is so much easier to raise a child correctly from the beginning than to try and raise bail for them later. I also have a fabulous marriage. Just to be in close quarters together every day amazes our family, that one of us hasn't been on the evening news recounting the "horrible explosion" or we aren't divorced. We just don't argue. We love being with each other all of the time. (Yeah, I know, barf!)     

Professionally, I haven't had a greatest accomplishment yet. I suppose getting up every morning and putting my butt in the chair is some sort of accomplishment. It is the hardest thing I have done. It sounds trite. But I'm sure I'm not alone when I say there are so many days I just want to give up, chuck it all and stay in bed forever. Never put words on paper again. I sometimes feel that all of the words sound the same, sort of like in the Charlie Brown cartoons – Waa, Waa, Waa Waa Waa.