Today we’d like to introduce you to Deanna King.
Hi Deanna, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My Aunt introduced me to the classics when I was in the second grade- Tom Sawyer, Black Beauty, Heidi, and Charlottes’ Webb, to name a few, and I was captivated. After this came Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, then romance novels, and now it’s anything that gets my attentions and holds it. I’ve wanted to be an author since my junior year of high school, but the summer after graduation, I got married. I figured this was a pipedream I’d never pursue because self-publishing was what I’d have to do. This, back then, was a ton of money. Ten years and three kids later, with no internet or a computer, my tools were an old-fashioned typewriter and pencils/pens; I wrote when I found the time. This was back in the day of snail mail, too. I took a leap of faith and submitted an incomplete manuscript of a historical romance I had written to Harlequin, bracing myself for a predictable rejection letter. Anything was possible; that’s what I told myself.
I figured my mail was on the floor of an agent’s large slush pile. It’d be months, perhaps years before I got a reply, or maybe never. One day, my phone rang, and yes, it was a real wall phone, and no caller ID either. Oh, my lord, it was Harlequin in New York who was contacting me about my partial manuscript. This was my first claim to fame: a rejection phone call! My manuscript wasn’t what they were looking for; she wanted to urge me to continue to write because I had a very earthy writing style. Rather than receiving a rejection letter, which was the normal procedure, I got a call. This, to me, was a promising sign. My heart still beats harder when I think about that phone call.
With a 40-plus hours-a-week job, three kids, and a husband, my life impeded my life, but then I divorced the husband in 1992 and still had three kiddos and a job. All which meant little time to write. My kids graduated and moved out, and I was still single. As a single woman, I had a different type of life and thus didn’t take the time to write. I met my current husband in 2012, and we married in 2016. In 2017, my company downsized me after 16 years on the job, so now what was I to do? It was my husband, Travis’ idea to try my hand at writing a crime novel. A small traditional publisher liked my work, so I came full circle to realize a long-ago dream, and now I am a full-fledged author.
In 2022, I bought my contracts for the first three crime novels and since have become a self-published independent author. I was taking charge of my work since I had a stronger sense of concern and dedication towards it than they did. I’ve not looked back since.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No endeavor is without struggle; and any dream is worth stepping into the darkness to obtain. If you never tried, you are failing yourself. It took many years, and there was a time I even wrote song lyrics but couldn’t find a person who was serious about writing the music; I still have a book of song lyrics and a trunk full of handwritten and typed partial manuscripts. My initial struggle was my life impeding my life. The current struggle any Indie Author has is getting your work in the hands of or in front of the right person to assist you into soaring upwards to becoming a NYT bestselling author. The ocean is full of us small fishes all chasing those well-known white whales.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My first published work was actually a children’s book- Gracie’s Stories. This is still in eBook form, but I’m planning on re-writing and adding on to this story. The genre I write is mystery/suspense- Homicide and FBI, and I write YA fantasy. My first three books are about a Houston homicide detective. I wrote the first three in a year and that to me is a major accomplishment. In between, I wrote a YA fantasy, then wrote the fourth detective novel, and this was during the pandemic. Too many things were going on in my personal life, and it took a year to complete, as I did not write daily. I began the FBI novel shortly after, and it took a year. Funny, once I was done, I jumped into the squeal to my YA fantasy and wrote it in less than three months. Writing two genres affords me to go from one to the other, alternating when need be, and I believe it keeps me ‘fresh’ and not stagnate. I do not outline but keep extensive notes on a large whiteboard so there are no holes or storylines undone. I believe what separates me from most other authors is how I am such a major extrovert. Being an author is a by-yourself job and many authors are introverts; and I have never had a shy bone in my body. My readers have compared my work to several big names, which I considered one of the greatest compliments I can receive.
What were you like growing up?
Although I was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, I didn’t spend my childhood there. My father met my mom in Nebraska. He was in the Air Force for nine years and then honorably discharged to become a Baptist minister. As a PK (Preacher’s Kid), I was NOT the wild one, although with that lifestyle, we moved around a lot! I was always the new kid, which is why I’m such an extrovert. If you’re the new kid, you make new friends all the time. I loved to play softball and basketball, and I was a cheerleader once. With two brothers younger than me, I was a scraper and a tomboy. Moving so much and to various small towns, you didn’t always have neighbors or kids your own age to play with, so reading was a great escape for me. I don’t remember it because I was too young, but we lived in Japan for three years when my dad was in the Airforce. I’ve also lived in Colorado, Oklahoma, and a ton of small towns in Texas.
Contact Info:
- Website: DeannaKingWriting.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deanna.king777/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deannakingwriting
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/DKingNovelist
