Pump Up Your Book Chats with Baby Boomer Kay Marshall Strom

Kay will be right in this very spot live on Thursday, Jan. 7 from 8 a.m. until 11 p.m., answering any questions you may have about her book. Leave a question or comment (along with your email address) anytime (get in early!) between now and 11 p.m. on Jan. 7 and you may win a free copy of her book, The Second-Half Adventure: Don’t Retire – Use Your Time, Skills and Resources to Change the World.  One lucky winner will be announced on Jan. 8.  Thank you and good luck!

Kay Marshall Strom has written thirty-six published books, numerous magazine articles, and two screenplays. Four of her books have been chosen as book club selections, eleven have been translated into foreign languages, and one was optioned for a movie. Her writing is also included in numerous volumes and compilations, including the bestselling Conversations on Purpose for Women (Zondervan 2005) and various editions of the NIV Devotional Bibles.

In addition to her writing, Kay taught writing classes through the California State University system for ten years, and still teaches at writers conferences around the country. In 2008, she was invited to India to teach writing in order to give a voice to those not normally heard.

A sought-after speaker, Kay is in demand for retreats and special events throughout the US and around the world.

Kay and her husband Dan Kline make their home in the Pacific Northwest.

You can visit her website at www.kaystrom.com.

Thank you for this interview, Kay.  Do you remember writing stories as a child or did the writing bug come later?  Do you remember your first published piece?

I certainly do remember writing stories as a child.  My first piece of renown was Tommy the Turtle published in my fifth grade class newspaper.  My eighth grade teacher gave me a dictionary for junior high graduation and told me that one day I would be a writer and that she would be first in line to buy my books.  She lived to see my first book in print.

What do you consider as the most frustrating side of becoming a published author and what has been the most rewarding?

For a newbie writer, I think the most frustrating this is trying to get an editor to look at your work.  That’s why I’m such a fan of good writers’ conferences—which is where I got my start, by the way.  The most rewarding is feedback from readers.  My first letter was from a little girl named Nicole who read my book (a children’s book).  She added this P.S.:  “Are you dead or alive?  If you’re dead, you don’t have to answer this letter.”

Are you married or single and how do you combine the writing life with home life?  Do you have support?

I am widowed from my first husband and remarried to a man who is extremely supportive.  I have been writing for quite a few years now—while my children were growing up, while holding down a job, during the years I was caregiver for my first husband.  As a writer, sometimes you get support and sometimes you don’t.  If it’s important to you, you will find a way to do it.

What do you like to do for fun when you’re not writing?  Where do you like to vacation?  Can you tell us briefly about this?

Both my husband and I like to travel.  I especially enjoy exotic places—like India and West Africa—as well as comfy romantic places—such as the Hawaiian Islands.  At home, I like to walk, to explore, to read, and to watch movies with my husband.

The Second-Half Adventure by Kay Marshall Strom (click on cover to purchase)

If you could be anywhere in the world for one hour right now, where would that place be and why?

Oh, tough question!  Actually, I can’t think of anywhere I’d rather by right now than right here at home.

Who is your biggest fan?

It’s a tie—my husband, my daughter Lisa, and my older sister Jo Jeanne.   But I think I will have to go with Jo Jeanne because she has read every one of my books straight through, and I don’t think anyone else has done that.

Where’s your favorite place to write at home?

I have the greatest home office—roomy and light, with a super library, two sweet cats to keep my company, and a husband who makes me hot cocoa from scratch every morning.  What more could I need?

What’s your favorite library and why?

On line, hands down!  How well I remember the days of having to trek over to the city library to do my research, and still not always finding what I needed.  Ugh!

What’s your favorite bookstore and why?

That’s a hard one, because I absolutely love bookstores.  It sounds boring, I know, but I think I’ll have to say Borders because they make it so comfortable and there are so many good deals to lure me in.

Do you have any pets?

Two sweet kitty cats—Twinkle, who is pure black, and Owen, who is a tiger striped tabby.

What are you reading right now?

I just finished Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China, by Jung Chang, about three generations of a family who endured unbelievable tragedy through China’s revolutionary upheaval.  It was a painfully wonderful book.

Tell us a secret no one else knows.

I am a horrible speller!

What’s the first thing you notice when you meet someone?

Whether they are interested in me or just eager to have me read the manuscript they’ve had stuffed in their bottom drawer for the past five years.

Have you ever won anything?

Yes.  When I was young, I used to enter a newspaper drawing contest every week in San Francisco called O’Copper’s Corner.  I won so many neat things, including my first camera.

What’s on your to do list today?

Prepare a talk, get my eyes checked, and get two chapters written on my next book.  Of course, I never get everything on my to-do list done.  If I did, I’d figure I hadn’t set my sights high enough.  How pitiful is that?

I understand that you are touring with Pump Up Your Book Promotion in January and February via a virtual book tour.  Can you tell us all why you chose a virtual book tour to promote your book online?

Not only is it the practical way to tour, but it is by far the most effective way to reach people.  Even if I had the time and resources to log the endless miles across country on a traditional book tour, I could never get the energy going that springs up with blog talk.  Virtual book tours are the way to go!

Thank you for this interview, Kay. Good luck on your virtual book tour!

Thank you for allowing me to share this time with you.  It’s been great fun!

To find out more about Kay and her book, The Second-Half Adventure, visit her official tour page here!