When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
When I was in the third grade and read Little Women for the first time. I wanted to be like Jo March.
What genre do you write and why?
I write everything from young adult to historical romance to whatever I get paid to write, with hopes that after I meet all my deadlines I’ll have time to write more historical romance and more YA paranormal books.
Tell us about your latest book.
It’s a YA paranormal trilogy that I’m co-authoring with J. Gabriel Gates. It’s all magic, martial arts, forbidden romance, fallen angels and nephilim stirred into an exciting supernatural feast. I think I’m actually in love with Orias the bad-boy nephilim (son of a fallen angel and a human woman).
What marketing methods are you using to promote your book?
Because my co-author is a young, cute guy that teen girls will better relate to (I’m more their grandma’s age), he does all the personal appearances in bookstores, libraries and schools. I do a lot of promotion on the web.
What formats is the book available in?
The Tracks Trilogy is available in print and as an ebook from HCI Books. The first two are on sale now – Dark Territory, followed by Ghost Crown. We’re working on the third and final installment, Shadow Train, which will be released in the spring. J. Gabriel and I are very excited because the trilogy has just been optioned for a web/TV series.
What do you like to do when you're not writing?
Watch TV and try to recover from a ten-hour day of ghostwriting, or work on my own stuff.
Who are your favourite authors?
Stephen King, Peter Straub, Catherine Cookson and Jude Devereaux.
What advice do you have for other writers?
Read – a lot. Especially Stephen King’s On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft and the book he wrote with Peter Straub, The Talisman. I’ve read it at least 13 times and every time I discover something new about structure and character development.
What's your favourite quote about writing/for writers?
I love having written. (Dorothy Parker)
What's the best thing about being a writer?
I can go to work in my pajamas.
Where can people find out more about you and your writing?
Just Google me or search me out on Amazon.com. My website (which is woefully out of date) is www.charlenekeel.com
Anything else you'd like to add?
Whatever you want to do in life, don’t give up. Like the old song from South Pacific says, “You gotta have a dream. If you don’t have a dream, how you gonna make a dream come true?”
author interview
Charlene Keel
interview feature
J Gabriel Gates
Jo Linsdell
writers and authors
YA paranormal trilogy
Young Adult Literature
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