Rising Star Spotlight: Kimberley O'Malley!

You are a North Carolina transplant but grew up in the frozen North.  So... where exactly is the Frozen North and what was it like? I grew up in Scranton, PA-you know home of The Office but before it was known for that. I loved growing up there, but then I spread my wings and went to undergraduate in Philadelphia...and never looked back. I spent the next 20+ years in that area before moving to Charlotte, NC in 2015
Why did you transplant? Snow is a 4 letter word. I have grown to loathe winter as I got older. Being a nurse didn't help; no matter the weather you are expected in to work. No snow days! Also, my husband's family all ended up in NC. After visiting for several years, I knew I wanted to live there.
As a full-time nurse and part-time soccer mom, what inspired (possessed) you to write a book? Unlike most authors I know, I never thought about becoming one. I have always, since grade school, loved to read. In 2002, after 5 years of infertility and loss, my husband and I were deep in the process to adopt from Russia. And the waiting was killing me. At a certain point, you've done everything they've asked of you. And then you wait. I am not the most patient person in the world. One day, without thought, I came home and sat down at my desktop. And Coming Home was born. I poured all of my frustration into that book, writing about 110K in three weeks.
What happened with the adoption process? We adopted our daughter in 2002. She came home at 8 months old, happy and healthy and looking like the Gerber Baby! It went so well, we returned to Russia in 2004 and adopted her brother. He had been an 8 week preemie and weighed 11.5 pounds when we got him at 8 months! yes, 11.5. He had a bit of a rough start but is now a high school sophomore honors student playing soccer and lacrosse.
When do you find the time to write? Lacking time remains my biggest obstacle. I work full time and have a family, including two kids in high school. And then there's the soccer and LAX games... I am able to write quickly, and I don't plot, so I use the time I have. Like everything else in life, it's a balancing act.
Do your husband and kids read your books?  If so, what do they say about your second career? My husband does not read anything I write. But then, he doesn't like to read. I know, I too was shocked to hear there were people who don't like to read. My kids are too young to read some of the things I write. My daughter has read some of my cozy mysteries.
You write both contemporary romance and cozy mysteries.  What drew you to those particular genres? For the contemporaries, it's write what you know. I love to read small town, contemporary series. In a series, you get to know what happened to the hero's best friend, etc. So, I started writing that. The cozy mystery genre caught my eye after sharing a table with the amazing Sam Mc Keever at a signing in Nashville. Honestly, it's such a different thing for me, a complete departure from my contemporary series, that it's so much fun to write.

Read the entire interview in the October 2019 issue of InD'Tale magazine.

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