Welcome to BookEnds, Kate McMurray!
- By: admin | Date: Aug 17 2017
What can I say, it’s been a busy summer here at #TeamMoe and I’m thrilled to welcome Kate McMurray to the team! She absolutely hooked me with her taboo m/m romance and she’s a great addition to the team. Many of you may know her already she once served as president of Rainbow Romance Writers (the LGBT chapter of RWA) and is the current president of the NYC chapter of RWA! So come meet Kate in her own words (and don’t you love those earrings?)
Tell us a bit about your writing process. Where do you write, and how often?
I try to write every day. I live in a small Brooklyn apartment, so my “office” is really just a nook off my living room where I put my desk (and even then, “nook” is a generous term). Although I also often write with my lapdesk in my lap while sitting in a comfortable chair. Probably not the best for my back.
What do you love about writing contemporary and historical romance?
I love research and learning new things. Even with contemporaries, I often write about people who work in industries I’ve never worked in, so I end up doing a lot of research and really immersing myself in whatever I’m writing about.
If you’re not reading or writing, what would we catch you doing?
I freelance as an editor, mostly in educational publishing, so odds are pretty good you’d find me doing something with words. I also love to knit and I sometimes play the violin.
Do you belong to any writing organizations?
I’m currently the president of my local RWA chapter!
Where can readers find you on the web and social media?
My website is at www.katemcmurray.com. I’m on Twitter at @katemcmwriter and Facebook at facebook.com/katemcmurraywriter
Plotter or pantster?
I am 100% a plotter. My books have outlines and spreadsheets and diagrams and drawings before I sit down to write.
Drink of choice when writing? When not writing?
I am a total coffee snob, so that’s always on-hand. Otherwise, I am mostly fueled by Diet Coke.
What excites you most about joining the BookEnds family?
I’m already somewhat established as an author, but I’ve been wanting to level up my career. I’m thrilled to be working with Moe because I think we can do that together.
What advice would you give to other authors in the query trenches?
Hang in there. The agent or editor who loves your work is out there. Also, don’t write the book you think people want. Write the book you love, that you’re passionate about. I like to tell fledgling writers to write like anything is possible, because you never know what the next big thing will be.
If you could meet any author, living or dead, who would you want to meet and why?
Through conferences, I’ve gotten to meet (and geekily fangirl) a lot of my favorites. (At this year’s RWA, I got to just hang out with Suzanne Brockmann for a couple of hours, which was the best.) But if I could meet someone I haven’t yet, it would be Toni Morrison, who I wrote my thesis about. She’s brilliant, one of my writing idols.
Kate, I’m in awe that you took on another president’s role after having served as one previously – and still manage to get books out! I was on the RWAustralia executive committee for many years and it certainly swallowed a lot of my writing time. I still have the cork from the bottle of Moet I popped at the end of the AGM where I stood down. It sits on my desk to remind me to say ‘no’ (a concept I struggle with).