Shining a spotlight on author Katheen Hayley
Welcome to my blog Kathleen, it’s so great to have you here. So, lets get right down to it and find out about you and all about your writing.
Bio:
A former academic, I took up writing romance recently and quite by accident. In early 2022 the right elements conjoined—my love of villains, my taste for high comedy, and my pull towards strong women. Now I can’t stop cooking up plots and drawing new characters. Though I write mostly dark romance, I invariably weave plenty of reality into the fantasy. My preference for lone wolves, quirky characters, and intense plot results in what my reader and author friends call romance with teeth. I live in Berkeley, California with my dachshund-Chihuahua, Pooh-bah. When I’m not writing, I love traveling, cooking, playing piano, and cycling in the nearby hills.
Aww. Pooh-bah sounds cute, I wish we had a photo to share.
Looking through your bio and doing a little bit more research I discovered just how many books you have out there! Congratulations.
I love to read about strong women, but underneath it all there is often a vulnerable side, so I’m really intrigued to find out more about your new release, The Sense of Depravity.
The Sense of Depravity, comes with a spicy heat rating .
Blurb:
Nothing about our interactions is comfortable, yet he comforts me as no one can.
Years ago I gave up on love. Shackled with past traumas and driven to succeed professionally, I keep a tight rein on my desires and ignore my needs. But when I collide with a magnetic Scotsman at a sex club, my carefully balanced world begins to totter. He seeks legal representation, and my boss insists I oblige. He wants me, and my body urges me to comply.
Yet he’s off limits in every way. For one, I’m his lawyer, and he’s my client. For another, we’re searching for the woman he loved—possibly still loves. What’s more, he’s a heartthrob, completely out of my league. And most disturbingly, he makes me crave things I’ve never dared to imagine, subduing me with one word, one flick of a brow.
The more he wears down my defenses, the more I suspect the real hurdles keeping me from love are my own fears. Can I conquer them before they undo me?
She’s in my bloodstream; I breathe her in like oxygen.
Brushing past a hawthorn bud on the branch, I pluck her and make her mine. Sweet, fierce, and passionate, she opens up into a flower under my ministrations. Yet at every turn she needs me to seize control and confiscate her will. She doubts herself, doubts love, and doubts men. I plan on shattering her walls and teaching her to listen to her body.
But my past dogs me, refusing to let me enjoy my sweet bud in peace. Once forced to serve traffickers, I now vow to bring down the remnants of their organization. I’m bound to search for a woman I promised to protect who’s suspected of murder and other crimes. Some say I’m trying to run with the hare and hunt with the hounds.
As one woman draws me toward my future and the other pulls me toward my past, I have to confront the wrongs I’ve committed head-on. Can I beat the odds and claim my forbidden love?
LG: Kathleen, I know many of my readers will be intrigued by your journey to publication, and what pitfalls you found along the way, so thank you so much for sharing. It is much appreciated.
My writing journey:
I started writing romance novels in March 2022 and quickly became addicted to it. At first I only tried to find representation with an agent so I could be published by a big press. But after 500 some submission letters, I felt I’d hit a brick wall. I tried indie publishers as well, with little success. Then I experimented with self-publishing in September 2023. I’ve gone that route for 1 1/2 years.
While I love the freedom and control this process allows me, I am frustrated with how little exposure I get. My author friends and I wonder how to break through to widespread exposure without breaking the bank.
LG: Well, you have succeeded where many have fallen, and I congratulate you on your perseverance and tenacity.
How you describe the promotional side and how financial costs are a burden to the writer is something I doubt many readers are aware of. For example, I am often asked about what I am getting in royalties and it makes me smile. It’s certainly not a get rich scheme. The craft of writing can be a lengthy process, not just to write and edit to get to its shiny best, but finally, after being published the hard work that comes next – marketing your book. Even traditional publishers these days do very little marketing on behalf of the author. In a way that surprises me, as they have spent time and money producing your work – the final push is required by both publisher and author and it can be exhausting.
LG: Anyway, exciting times are here. Your book is about to be released and there can be a bunch of emotions, from – will it be out on time, to I can’t wait to hold an actual copy in my hand. The biggest thrill of all is the thrill of someone, an actual reader, owning their own copy of your work, which we are all looking forward to reading.
Thank you so much, Kathleen for joining me today and I wish you every success in your continued writing journey.
But that’s not all folks! If you’d like to connect with Kathleen, you will find her links below. We would also love it if you would like to make a comment, all things writerly of course – which you can find at the bottom of this page. Many thanks again for joining us Kathleen, and to my readers another huge thank you, and we are looking forward to hearing from you.
Amazon links to my books:
He’s Digital, I’m Analog https://a.co/d/hjBhCHz
The Scornful Heart https://a.co/d/dPOGGYo
The Vulnerable Heart https://a.co/d/73qdJEi
Keeping You Captive https://a.co/d/gcT9Oek
The Smell of Fear https://a.co/d/aIbovb5
The Taste of Deceit https://a.co/d/cOnGK1E
The Feel of Possession https://a.co/d/06DyRnt
The Sound of Power https://a.co/d/8w2Wdt9
The Touch of Wickedness https://a.co/d/i9Ly2ix
Margrave Manor https://a.co/d/7x9nBgT
Conflict of Desires https://a.co/d/0ygUeg4
The Dating Wars https://a.co/d/1FmuXWK
Dangerously Possessed https://a.co/d/hCV7d72
The Sight of Obsession https://a.co/d/i5Brmr8
The Sense of Depravity https://a.co/d/fFQs5Ow
The Sight of Obsession (audiobook) https://a.co/d/6twvnPj
Crow Feathers https://a.co/d/39p8sT5
Thank you once again for joining us.
Comments (4)
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Kathleen Haley
Thank you! I've heard for a lot of authors it takes 20 years or so. But I'll keep slogging away at it!
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Lucy Kubash
Congratulations on having your work out there. I've been at this for over forty years, and the one thing I've learned is that it's all about perseverance. And not expecting to make a lot of money, lol! Best wishes on your books' success.
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Ilona Fridl
Your book sounds like a page turner. Here's to getting a following!