Karly Lane

We caught up with Karly Lane to discuss rural fiction.

Q. Karly you have written and published nine successful books over just a few years. How did you get started as a professional writer?

It was a very long process. I enrolled in an online writing course when I was first married, and found it  helpful to get feedback from a tutor, but between starting my first manuscript and becoming published, it tookwell over twelve years. I joined the Romance Writers of Australia about 12 months prior to signing my first  contract with Allen & Unwin, and it was through attending conferences and workshops that I finally found my writing skills improving. I got my big break through Allen & Unwin’s Friday Pitch, which I’d heard about  through the  RWA, and was lucky enough to have my manuscript for North Star accepted by them.

Q. All your books seem to combine suspense with romance in exotic bush settings. What drew you to this  rich combination? Is this your real world or is it the world with which you most identify in our dreams?

I’d like to say that my real world was ‘exotic’ but I’m pretty sure it’s not! I think because I combine      enough real life in my settings, and base the town in my stories on actual places, people find they can relate to them easily. Rural Australia is what I’m most familiar with, having spent my entire life in it, so really, it was  probably only natural that I was drawn to it and set most of my books there.

Also, I think the bush is such an awe-inspiring setting for any genre but it works especially well with suspense. The landscape can be breathtakingly beautiful, and at the same time rugged and dangerous.In the right situation the bush can be a beautiful place, full of clean, earthy smells that can invigorate your senses and peaceful, soothing sounds, that calm a hectic mind, but in the wrong situations it can be terrifyingly isolated and intimidating.

Q. Are most of your readers women? Why do you think readers are drawn to romance as a genre?

The majority of them are, although having said that I do have a growing fan base of male readers, which, I  think is a testament to the fact that my books have something for everyone, they’re not just romances or just  suspense, there’s something in them that appeals to a wide audience.

Q. Your books also address social issues. For example, in your book Second Chance Town, you explore what  it is like to be a single mother, supporting a teenage daughter, while trying to find a new and meaningful  life. Do you think that reading fiction can help their readers to understand and cope with their own personal challenges?

I’d like to think that readers who may be going through the same kind of experiences as the characters in my  books, would be able to relate to the characters and feel a kinship with their struggles. I like to write my  characters as ordinary, everyday, kind of people. I think that’s why readers enjoy my books so much.They can  identify with these characters because they may have been in the character’s situation before. 

Q. Many of your books also explore universal themes, such as duty, for example in your book Gemma’s Bluff your heroine explores tensions associated with personal liberation, her future and what is expected of her  in terms of duty to family. Which themes are most important to you as a writer?

I’m drawn to themes that involve family, but also that involve women saving themselves to some extent. I  don’t think it’s necessary for a female character to have to wait on her Prince Charming to come and find her, I think women are more than capable of working out ways to help themselves and find their own strength. 

Q. From the way you write about the Australian country I feel that you have an enduring passion for the  bush. Tell us a little about your feelings for the bush.

Rural Australia is where I’ve lived my entire life. Small country towns are amazingly complex places and they  breed some really interesting characters and situations. I couldn’t imagine living in a big city, and thankfully  nowadays, technology makes it a lot easier to remain in the country. I also love living in a town where my family goes back over five generations. That connection to a place is something very special.

Q. Finally a personal question. What do you like to do on your days off?

Days off? What is this concept!!!! Days off for me are usually spent with my family. Luckily staying at home  and enjoying our little piece of paradise on the Mid North Coast of NSW is how we like to spend our free time. Our animals keep us pretty much tied to the farm, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. 

Thank you Karly. Looking forward to meeting you at the St Albans Writers’ Festival.

(Karly Lane’s next book Third Time Lucky will be published in December.)