Interview with Kirsten Fullmer, Author of Hometown Girl Memories

What can you tell us about your new release, Hometown Girl Memories?

I wrote Hometown Girl Memories for several reasons. Many of my readers have requested a man for Winnie, the town matriarch and beloved, elderly, widow. What a great idea, as well as a huge challenge! I also wanted to write more about Tara and Justin, the leading lady and man from book one of the series. They are fun characters who come very natural to me; maybe because their relationship reminds me of my husband and I. As the book formed in my mind, featuring Winnie and Tara, it became a tale of women supporting each other through all the stages of life and love. Winnie remembers her college days in 1968, her lost loves and friends, while Tara deals with the modern day problems of juggling her relationship with Justin, motherhood, and her career. I’m very happy with how the book came together. It’s a tale of loss, love, and laughter, across the years.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

I had to retire early due to health problems, at which time I began traveling full time with my husband for his work. I had hours alone, with nothing to do, far from friends and family, and yet limited space for craft projects. (I had to come to terms with that issue, lol) I read a lot of romance novels, my favorite genre, but I was frustrated with female characters who were saved by millionaire men. I was also frustrated by kick butt women who were super warriors and stronger than any human. I had to wonder where stories about all the normal women are, the women who are successful in their own right and struggling to fit romance into their busy lives? I started writing to create the books I wanted to read.

What’s on your top 5 list for the best books you’ve ever read?

Tisha by Robert Spect
Mrs Mike by Benedict and Nancy Freedman
The little House on the Prairie Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Enders Game by Orson Scott Card
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Say you’re the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

I would invite Laura Ingalls Wilder (can I do that if she’d dead?) because she didn’t start writing until she was older, like myself. I loved her books as a child, and I read them my kids when they were young. Now I look forward to reading them to my grandkids. They are timeless. I love her easy, descriptive writing style, and I would ask her what prompted her to write and how her books were received at the time.

What’s your favorite thing about writing?

I love to create Characters who come alive and do their thing as I write. My characters are very real to me.

What is a typical day like for you?

Coffee, post to social media, word games or puzzles to wake up my mind, review writing from the day before, begin writing! Some day involve packing up and moving cross country, writing has to wait.

What scene in Hometown Girl Memories was your favorite to write?

My favorite scene in this book was near the climax of the story, where Tara confronts her husband. She doesn’t realize that her three friends find themselves overhearing the whole conversation. Of course, the friends are torn between revealing that they are there and waiting to see what will happen. The whole scene felt very real, emotional, and was fun to write.

Do you have a motto, quote or philosophy you live by?

Move forward, being calm, confident, and assertive (stolen from Cesar Millan)

Kirsten Fullmer is the author of the new book Hometown Girl Memories.

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