Welcome Kathryn J. Bain

I met Kathryn years ago when I'd just begun writing on an ACFW critique loop. She was kind enough to read over my subs and push me to be a better writer. Today I'd like to welcome her to Sleuths and Suspects.

Kathryn J. Bain began writing more than twelve years ago. Her fifth book, Beautiful Imperfection, will be available September 29, 2013.

She is the former President of Florida Sisters in Crime and is currently the Public Relations Director for Ancient City Romance Authors.

To survive and pay bills, she has been a paralegal for over twenty years and works for an attorney who specializes in elder law.

She has two daughters and a dog named Gretchen. Her first grandchild, Hope was born in May, 2013.

Kathryn grew up in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. In 1981, she moved to Boise, but it apparently wasn't far enough south, because two years later she headed to Jacksonville, Florida and has lived in the sunshine ever since.



Kathryn, I'm sure you get lots of questions. What's one of the most popular things people ask you?


Why in the World Did you Use That?
As a published author, I’m constantly getting asked where did you come up with your ideas? Why did you use that particular item in your book?
The answers are sometimes easy. For instance, in my book Breathless, I used a shooting that occurred in my area for the reason Matthew quit his job with the DEA. In Knight & Day, the restaurants are all places I enjoy eating in Jacksonville.
The problem is when you get the not so easy plot or scenes. Ask any publisher, and they’ll tell you they want the same thing, only different. Say what? For instance for my upcoming inspirational romantic suspense book Beautiful Imperfection, I wanted my heroine to have a scar that she was uncomfortable with.
I know. I know. You’ve read these type of books before. The woman who was attacked, the guy slashed her throat, but she survived, wearing turtlenecks to hide the scar on her neck. I didn’t want what is considered a “cool” scar. You know the scar from an attack or the bullet wound the police officer has. Lethal Weapon 3 showed this hilariously when Renee Russo and Mel Gibson compared “battle” scars.
However, for my book, I wanted a scar no one else could see but my heroine. One that went to the core of her being a woman. That meant breast cancer. Teddy Federline is dealing with the depression that sometimes comes after the surgery. She feels like she’s deformed. Her former love coming back looking even better than when she knew him doesn’t help. To make matters worse, she witnesses a mass shooting. Now she’s stuck in a house under the watchful eye of this man she’d hoped would be fat and ugly the next time she saw him. But life doesn’t work that way.
Some might think I used the scar from breast cancer because I consider it an “uncool” mark. That’s the furthest thing from the truth. The more I learned from women who have survived, the more I realized just how courageous they were. They are unsung heroes who have faced a foe and won.
As my hero Sloan Michaels tells Teddy, “That scar isn’t a sign of a deformity. It’s a badge of strength and courage. You should be proud of it because you’ve conquered something horrific and made it through to the other side.”

Thanks for joining us today. Kathryn has been gracious to offer one commenter an e-book bundle of her four books. Please leave your email address so we can contact you.

Breathless, inspirational romantic suspense;

Catch Your Breath, the sequel to Breathless;

Knight & Day, a humorous mystery; and

Game of Hearts, a humorous novella.