Kelly Wittmann's most recent writing endeavor with "An Authentic Experience"

Today we're welcoming author Kelly Wittmann to The Book Cove. She's the author of two novels -- the most recent titled An Authentic Experience was published February 2018 and is her first Young Adult novel.

TBC: Tell us a little bit about yourself. Where are you from? 
KW: I am from a suburb of Milwaukee, but I now live in Chicago. I am currently trying to make the leap from writing educational material to writing YA novels. Wish me luck, because I am going to need it!

TBC: How long have you been writing?
KW: I have been writing for almost two decades now. My first books, which were two middle-grade library books, were published in 2002. When I opened that box from my publisher and saw my name on those covers, it was the most thrilling experience, and off I went!

TBC: What was the inspiration for your most recent book?
KW: My benign brain tumor (I have fully recovered, thankfully!).

TBC: What was the hardest part about writing this book?
KW: It was difficult to confront all the feelings I had/have about the brain tumor that I lived with for many, many years, but creating fictional characters to deal with it helped me to get a more healthy perspective about it. And it was wonderful to know that I could still write after my surgery.

TBC: Do you often develop characters from your personal experiences or draw from that of others?
KW: Absolutely. Obviously, I know what it is like to have a brain tumor, but my new YA novel, An Authentic Experience, is about a lot more than that. It is about a family of musicians. I have never been a musician, but I was and I am a devoted fan of alternative music who has known many musicians, and I hope I have done a good job of describing that world.

TBC: Are your comfortable writing in different genres? What is your go-to genre?
KW: No! I am totally clueless when it comes to SciFi, Fantasy, Paranormal... Any of that stuff that is so popular today. I write character-driven, realistic fiction, and honestly...? That's all I know how to do. So contemporary Young Adult it is. 

TBC: Is your writing genre one that you read a lot of? 
KW: I read a lot of YA when I was young, of course. Judy Blume, Norma Klein, M.E. Kerr. I still love the genre, but I'm so busy writing and trying to publicize my own book that I haven't had much time for reading it. 

TBC: Do you have a favorite writing theme?
KW: Family. There is almost no one who cannot relate to that theme. 

TBC: When did you decide that it was time to take your writing public?
KW: When I moved to the border of Texas and Mexico in 2000 (don't ask), I suddenly had a lot of time on my hands, and I thought, "It's now or never." This was back when a lot of sites were begging for "internet content," so I became a content writer. I wrote lots of mini-biographies (two or three paragraphs, usually) about celebrities and things like that. Got paid ten bucks a pop. Then I applied to an educational publisher and was shocked when they replied, "Do you just want to do one or two books?" I gulped and said, "Two." I was scared, but it all turned out just fine. I realized, "Hmm... I really can write, I guess." 

TBC: Is writing your first job? If not, please tell us what you do when you’re not typing or writing away.
KW: It is the only thing I'm doing right now, and I hope I never have to do anything else again. Frankly, my skill set is pretty narrow. What I do, I do well, but it's about all I can do.

TBC: Writers block is inevitable. What’s something that you do to help find new inspiration?
KW: I clear my head with exercise. Do some cardio indoors or, even better, take a long walk outdoors.

TBC: What is your next writing project?
KW: My WIP is about a young man who sees the world differently after being temporarily disabled.

TBC: Now for one of my favorite requests - tell us a random fun fact about yourself.
KW: My great-great-grandfather was the ninth white man to settle in Alaska. Not sure how "fun" that was for the indigenous people there, though.

You can check out Kelly's book An Authentic Experience on Amazon.

“Wittmann writes in a sharp, funny prose that perfectly captures the angst and humiliation… A clever, well-crafted tale about parents and children.” –Kirkus Reviews

Fifteen-year-old Silver Abelli’s life has been as tumultuous as the punk rock she was raised on. Her divorced parents just don’t get along, even though they’re both musicians who stubbornly spurn the mainstream but secretly crave the limelight. Silver has always lived with her mom, Nicola, but when Nicola is diagnosed with a brain tumor, she must go to live with her obnoxious, hard-partying father, Renz. It’s a really bad time to fall in love, so you can pretty much bet that Silver will.

Enter Jake Sullivan…