Interview with Kay LeGrand

by

Judy Boettcher

1. It is my pleasure to interview author Kay LeGrand. Your new novel, “Only Yesterday” tells of a young woman returning to her hometown, only to find the town is not quite the same as the day she left. Can you tease us a bit more with your story line?

It's not only the town that's not the same, it's the boy she loved with all the passion teenagers have for love. He's not the man she expected him to be, and to make matters worse, he seems to resent and even hate her for reasons she doesn't understand. And as time goes by, some really ugly and hateful rumors begin to surface about him, and her, and… but that would be telling too much!

2. How did your idea for “Only Yesterday” develop? And please tell us about the Thousand Islands of New York!

I was fourteen the summer my parents rented a little place in Alexandria Bay, in the Thousand Islands... exactly the age Kathy was when she was forced to leave Alex behind. And I fell in love with the place right away. I just loved to sit on the porch of that tiny little cottage and watch the water and daydream. That was when I actually wrote the book, which had a completely different title then… it's had so many, I don't even remember the original. Of course the story's changed and improved with the years, but the basics of it are exactly as I hand wrote them in a couple of spiral-bound notebooks that summer in the sixties. The Thousand Islands are just beautiful, and Boldt's Castle is a dream made real.

3. Is there a part of you in each of your heroines, or do you attempt to make each one different from yourself?

I think each one of them definitely has a part of me. I wasn't a happy teenager--always felt something was missing in my life, and I think that's reflected in Kathy's yearning for Alex and her dateless existence away from him.

4. Do you believe every romance novel should have a happy ending? By this I mean, are authors cheating the reader if they surprise them with an unhappy ending? And might the novel not get published in the first place?

It seems plenty do get published these days with a less than happy ending. But I personally feel cheated by them. Life can be depressing enough, so I don't believe it's fair to depress my readers with bitter endings and terrible loss.

5. You live in Denver, near the Colorado Rockies. How have the mountains inspired any of your stories so far?

It's strange. I haven't actually used the mountains in any of them, though Tall Dark And Western was set in Wyoming. But that's flat. Still, I think the mountains are behind everything--I only have to step outside my front door, and there they are, gorgeous in any kind of weather or any time of day. They buoy up my spirits like nothing else ever could.

6. Where do you see your writing taking you in the future? Can you envision your name listed among the New York Times Bestsellers list?

I can wish!!!!! I think e-publishing is going to be a lot like Topsy. It's just going to grow and grow. And I hope I'll keep up with it, having been one of the lucky ones to start at the very beginning.

7. Where in the world would you like to locate a future novel that you haven’t done so far?

Hmmmm. Hawaii--the old Coco Palms Hotel that was so incredibly beautiful, but is now in ruins. And Tasmania--fascinating place. I have one nearly finished now that's set in Pittsburgh, where I went to college and got married, and hopefully it will be acceptable to the nice people at Wings. And of course, Denver. I have a really great gothic started that's set in--what else?--a spooky old mansion right in the middle of Denver. Because of course a person can be isolated even in the middle of a crowd…

8. I see your next novel for Wings Epress, “Lightning On The Beach” is in the paranormal gothic category. Tell us something about this upcoming novel, Kay.

This one started with a really terrifying dream about a staircase on a cliff that appeared and disappeared at will. I thought it was some kind of message, so I just started writing. And of course, over time all the other gothic requirements just sort of developed--the troubled, distant hero, the bewildered heroine, the remote house with some doubtful residents. And my ghost, including the staircase, of course!

9. Are you back at flying yet?

No. Flying is one of those vicious circles. If you have the time, you don't have the money. And if you have the money, you don't have the time. And I don't seem to have either, right at the moment!

10. Readers and fans are so very important to novelists. I’ll let you tell them yourself.

I just appreciate so much everyone who's bought my books and enjoyed them. Writing the stories are only half the process, and sometimes I think they're not the most important half. Because without someone to read them, they become like a couple of real disasters (we all make mistakes!) that I have tucked away in the bottom of the storage closet--just so much wasted paper and ink. So that makes readers pretty darned important. I love hearing from them, and treasure each and every letter or e-mail I get. It's a very good feeling to know some little part of something I've written has touched someone and maybe even changed their outlook on something.

Thank you Kaye. The best of luck with your career and future sales!