Meet the Exquisite Quill Authors


Saturday, August 9, 2014

Author Interview: Kayelle Allen



EQ Welcomes Kayelle Allen!


EQ: Welcome to EQ! Tell us a little bit about yourself!

Kayelle Allen is a multi-published, award-winning author, and the founder of Marketing for Romance Writers. She holds an honorary lifetime membership to Outlantacon, and is the owner of and a graphic designer for The Author's Secret, an author support company. Her unstoppable heroes and heroines include contemporary characters, futuristic immortals, covert agents, and warriors who purr.

EQ: Tell us a little bit about your most recent release.

Kayelle: My new book is non-fiction. The Tarthian Empire Companion will release later in August. Long before I wrote my first Science Fiction book, I wrote ten thousand-plus years of future history. It spanned Earth and its colonization of the galaxy, focusing on the big picture. The result of that detail is seen in the coherent aspect of both series set in the Tarthian Empire, and the Colonies of Man. There is a sense of history, time, and place in all the books. The Tarthian Empire Companion is a collection of my worldbuilding notes, tables, and details. It's an illustrated peek inside the magic that makes my worlds tick. There are no spoilers, but readers who always wondered about certain details might find a few answers.

I have books set in several places. They are a series for that reason, but can be read in any order. The Tarthian Empire series is set on the far side of the galaxy from Earth. The Colonies of Man series is halfway between there and Earth, and coming soon, I have a Scifi Suspense series set in the Terran Crescent. All these books exist in the same universe and time, and are contemporary to one another. Meaning, if you read a book set in the Tarthian Empire, it's happening at the same time as the books in the Colonies of Man or the Terran Crescent. Why do it that way? I have immortal characters who bounce between the various points, and this enables me to move them where I need to at will. Besides, it's so much more interesting to know the same villain who stirs up trouble on one planet might be the good guy on another one! I love a great twist.

EQ: What was your defining moment as a writer?

Kayelle: I was a guest speaker at Outlantacon, an Atlanta-based scifi convention for the "gay geek." It was the first year of the con, and I didn't know quite what to expect. The night of my first book reading, when my turn came, I held up the book I was going to read from and announced the title. A young man in the audience jumped up and said, "You wrote Wulf? I have to give you a hug." He started running toward me with his arms out, came right up, and grabbed me. We both attend that convention every year, and we see each other. He's become a friend. His reaction showed me that no matter what you write, you can have an effect on others that you would never expect.

EQ: What is the biggest risk you’ve taken in your writing?

Kayelle: This sort of goes with the answer above. It was writing Wulf. It was my first gay romance. I'd had two male/female romances out in the previous year or so, and decided to go with a book that I longed to write for me, whether anyone liked it or not. I figured if it was a flop, I would go back to writing male/female vs. male/male. Wulf turned out to be one of my all time bestselling books, exceeded only by another male/male romance, Surrender Love.

EQ: What is something nobody would guess about you?

Kayelle: I'm a former Toastmaster member. If you haven't heard of this group, you owe it to yourself to look them up. Toastmasters International teaches people how to get over being afraid to speak in public. I'd still be a member if there was a chapter close enough for me. I was a member for about seven years, and held every elected office within the club, plus was an Area Governor over six clubs. I held the Advanced Toastmaster Bronze level. If asked to speak to a crowd of people, I get excited instead of scared. You know that feeling you get when you're about to do something a little risky? That butterflies in the stomach feeling? Toastmasters taught me how to make those butterflies fly in formation. If you ever need someone to jump up and make an unscheduled announcement in a crowd, I'm the one to grab. Although, now that I've said that, I'm thinking maybe I should have kept that to myself. *grin*

Find Kayelle Allen at these places:
The Edge of Peril - the immortal's world http://groups.yahoo.com/group/edgeofperil/
Unstoppable Heroes - Kayelle Allen's Blog http://kayelleallen.com/blog

Read these titles by Kayelle Allen:
BOOKS AVAILABLE NOW
Tarthian Empire series:
Wulf: Superstar Wulf Gabriel must depend on the one man he swore he would never trust again. The most powerful and feared man in the empire - the Harbinger. Lust. Power. Forgiveness. A Chosen loves forever. Amazon http://is.gd/GaySciFi_Wulf
Alitus: The empress asks her trusted spymaster, Alitus, to discover if a friend's lover is having an affair. The truth could alter age-old alliances and rock the empire to its core. Passion. Submission. Loyalty. A Chosen bares his heart forever. Amazon http://is.gd/GaySciFi_Alitus
Jawk: When immortal Luc Saint-Cyr arranges a ménage with Wulf and Jawk, he gets far more than he bargained for. Pleasure. Trust. Possession. A Chosen's betrayal is forever. Amazon http://is.gd/GaySciFi_Jawk
Colonies of Man series: (male/female)
The Last Vhalgenn: Duty to king and country has shaped Raik's life since birth, but to protect them, she must perform a ritual that betrays all she holds sacred. Amazon http://is.gd/SciFiFantasy_Vhalgenn
Trailing Kaiwulf: Find an invisible man in another dimension? All in a day's work at TRAIL. Amazon http://is.gd/SciFiFantasy_Kaiwulf
CONTEMPORARY NOVELS:
Keeper of My Pleasure - Rai trusts Koo to submit. To keep him, she must trust her heart. Amazon http://amzn.to/1qN5A6E (male/female)
Fifty Gays of Shade - Shady Business, the hottest gay BDSM club in town. No good deed ever goes unpunished. Amazon http://is.gd/50gaysshade (gay)
COMING SOON (as self-published titles) http://kayelleallen.com/Books.html
The Tarthian Empire Companion
At the Mercy of Her Pleasure (Antonello Brothers 1)
For Women Only (Antonello Brothers 2)
Crystal Clear Truth (Antonello Brothers 3)
Bringer of Chaos: The Origin of Pietas
Return of the Vhalgenn

19 comments:

Kayelle Allen said...

Thank you for hosting me today. I'm excited to be here. I often drop by during the week to read blurbs and see what's up. EQ is a great place to find new books, so it's a treat for me to be on the other side of the screen this time. :)

Denysé Bridger said...

Awesome interview, as always, Kayelle!! Love the story about how Wulf came about, and the reaction to it - just goes to show, you have to follow what your heart wants to create for it to resonate with readers. Hugs and love, Denyse

Rose Anderson said...

Thanks! You do so much for authors, Kayelle, it's our pleasure. I have to say your Marketing For Romance Writers help was much appreciated by this new author. I was floundering through those early days and not knowing what I should do next.

I love that your reader gave you a hug for Wulf! How sweet.
Thanks for joining us today. :)

Jane Leopold Quinn said...

Gee, Kayelle, why don't you do something to keep yourself busy. ;-) Honestly, your work is amazing and impressively creative. Great interview and welcome to EQ.

Kayelle Allen said...

Thank you. That event is one of the highlights of my career. I agree -- go with what you love.

Kayelle Allen said...

Aww, thank you Rose! I remember those days. You were so earnest and sincere and wanted to learn. You did it all right too. :) I'm so glad MFRW was there to help. That's what it is all about.

Kayelle Allen said...

LOL Thanks, Jane. I know. Such a slacker! I need to get going, right? :)

E. Ayers said...

Hi Kayelle, great interview. Anyone in the romance field should know who you are. If they don't, they are hiding under a rock. You are one of the behind-the-scenes movers and shakers of the industry. How you even have time to write or do anything else is amazing. Thanks so much for coming to our blog today. And a big thank you for sharing your knowledge with everyone. MFRW is a must for anyone who is an author. https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/MarketingForRomanceWriters/info

Unknown said...

Great interview Kayelle. Thanks for all you do for your fellow MFRW authors. I really appreciate it. Good luck with all your endeavors. Ashley Ladd

Kayelle Allen said...

You are the sweetest thing. Thank you Elizabeth. I'm blushing. :)

Kayelle Allen said...

Awww, thank you! I'm so glad you came by. :)

Anonymous said...

Loved getting to meet you here, Kayelle, and finding out more about you and your novels. Thanks so much for all you do for MFRW. The group has been a great help to me. Good luck with all your projects!

Sydney Jane Baily said...

Wonderful to get to know more about Kayelle. You are multi-talented and we all appreciate MFRW. Thanks!!

Angela Smith said...

Great interview and I agree that you are a mover and a shaker in the industry for sure. You are a huge help for authors and we appreciate you! Thanks for sharing!

Unknown said...

Great, informative interview Kayelle. Thank you for all the endeavor behind MFRW. We all appreciate it. Just wonder how you can find the time for what you love best - writing.
Best of luck with it!

Kayelle Allen said...

Always good to meet a fellow author. I'm so glad MFRW has been a help to you. That's what I envisioned for it. Thanks for letting me know.

Kayelle Allen said...

Thanks so much, Sydney. :)

Kayelle Allen said...

Angela, thank you for the kind words.

Kayelle Allen said...

People often ask me how I find the time. The truth is, I don't find it. I make it. Carving out the time to do what is important is hard work, but it can be done. Thank you for posting, Carmen.