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Hey Book lovers! I hope you had a merry Christmas. Wow, I can’t believe 2022 will be here in a few days! I want to thank you all for your support on this blogging journey, it has definitely been an incredible experience!
Today I’m featuring Emma St. Clair aka Kirsten/Kiki. I started following her on instagram this past year and just love her personality. She’s seriously hilarious-she gets my humor, especially in her books! I started The Love Cliches Series a few months ago and I’m about to start the last one, Falling for Your Enemy. I constantly find myself smiling and laughing while I’m reading them which is why I’m so excited to get to know her a little better! Check out the Q&A below!
Xoxo,
Kristyn
I read all kinds of books, but romcoms are a particular favorite of mine. However, some are WAY too steamy for my taste-still great, but steamy! I know your niche is writing closed-door romcoms and you do it amazingly well without them being cheesy (for lack of a better word!) How do you decide how far to take things?
I know this is different for every author. I’ve come into this with a general idea of what’s too far for ME. I want to show real, healthy desire while still keeping the bedroom door closed. When writing my first drafts, I don’t censor myself as much and sometimes have to go back and edit. I also do listen to readers (both in reviews and when I get messages) and weigh that feedback against my own lines. I sometimes get reviews that I’m too “clean” and others that say I’m too “steamy.” Ultimately, I answer to myself but I also want to serve my readership well!
Which Love Clichés book is your favorite?
Oh gosh! That’s so hard. I like them all for different reasons. I think Falling for Your Enemy is high on the list because of all it tied together. It’s got multiple weddings and the epiclogue forty years in the future. But I love little things about all books, both the experience of writing and the characters and stories themselves.
With 5 kids (6 counting your husband) how do you write so fast? You just keep them coming!
Right now, I’m our main income, so my husband is super helpful with our littlest one, who is still home. They each are in school. For me, writing is life-giving. I’ve always needed to have a creative outlet, but it took YEARS of having kids to be able to write books. I kept trying and wasn’t able. When my youngest was two, I finally had the mental bandwidth to come back to books. I write when I can, and squeeze words in even when I’m running on the elliptical, which is when I do a lot of my writing.
You have several names that you go by: Kikimojo, Emma St. Clair, Kirsten….where did you come up with these & which one is the real you?!
In real life, I’m interchangeably Kirsten and Kiki. Kikimojo was a nickname that became my roller derby name. (Yes, I played roller derby!) Emma is my writing name, but it’s more about marketing than faking a new person. What I post as Emma is definitely my personality. But I speak of her more in the third person.
You’ve made your husband IG famous, does he enjoy the attention 🤣?
He does! My hubby is up for most things—I always ask first. He’s no stranger to the camera and has applied for reality shows like Survivor, the Amazing Race, and American Gladiators. He was supposed to be on Gladiators but it filmed when our first child was due. Rob’s brother actually went on the show and won! He starred in his first film, Santa Killer, which is on YouTube.
Who is another author you would love to sit down and chat with?
Jennifer Lyn Barnes!!! I have an obsession with The Inheritance Games. Another would be Sally Thorne. I LOVE her use of language and writing style.
Besides romcoms, what other genre do you think you would like to write?
Before romcoms, I wrote contemporary romance, some with Christian themes. I also write paranormal YA under the pen name Sullivan Gray. I LOVE vampires and wolf shifters and things that go bump in the night. I think I’ll end up writing a lot of genres in the end.
What are you currently reading/watching?
I’m between books right now though I read about one a day. Since covid, I’ve been mostly sticking to romcoms. I just started watching the two new Psych movies with my hubby and we also watch Survivor. On my own, I watch shows like Project Runway. I love creative competitions!!
What do you want your readers to know about you?
I think I’d want them to know that I’m so grateful to them for reading, and I’m always keeping them in mind while writing. And also, that typos—they happen no matter how many rounds of proofing and early readers we have.
I know a new series is in the works and I couldn’t be more excited! Can you tell us more about it?
Yes! I still haven’t finalized a name for the series, but it follows Harper’s brothers and dad, whom we met in Falling for Your Best Friend. Tank (their dad) buys a small town called Sheet Cake, Texas and wants the family to relocate there to build up their brewery. This plan meets with resistance from both his sons AND the town. There will be lots of small- town drama and hilarity but also maybe some deeper themes. And you’ll get some appearances from some of your favorite Love Clichés characters!
My favorite questions:
What’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve done in public?
In high school, I tripped over a bike rack and fell instinct of basically the whole school. I happened to be in a pleated skirt and… well. I flashed the whole school behind me. Which was most of the school.
When is the last time you googled yourself, and what did you find?
I haven’t! Maybe now I should! I’m scared.
Has any hugely popular novel left you thinking you could write it better? (you don’t have to name it 😂)
Not write it better, but I’ve definitely been disappointed or had ideas for other endings.
What’s the best typo you’ve found in one of your books?
I can’t think of any off the top of my head but sometimes I post them on Instagram. Because I write a lot on my phone, the combo of typos and autocorrect is so bad.
If you could be any character in one of your books, who would it be?
Oh man! This is hard! Maybe Princess Serafina from Royally Rearranged, because I LOVE Rafe. Or Abby, so I could throw some lobsters.
Thank you so much Kirsten for taking the time to answer these questions! I can’t wait for your new series and to read The Buy-In! I agree with your last answer…Serafina definitely, because hello…I want to be a princess…and of course Rafe!
To check out Emma on Instagram click here!
Check out her books:
The Buy-In ( A spin off of the Love Cliches series)- Coming January 15th 2022!
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