CHAT WITH KATIE METTNER

Katie Mettner writes small-town romantic tales filled with epic love stories and happily-ever-afters. She proudly wears her title of ‘only person to lose her leg after falling down the bunny hill,’ and loves decorating her prosthetic with the latest fashion trends. She lives in Northern Wisconsin with her own happily-ever-after and her three mini-me’s. Katie has a massive addiction to coffee and Twitter, and a lessening aversion to Pinterest now that she quit trying to make the things she pinned.

Time to chat with Katie!

What is your latest book? Is your recent book part of a series? What are the special challenges in writing a series?

I have a new book ready to release in August. It’s called The Secrets Between Us and it will be part of the Kindle Storyteller contest (So tell your friends). It’s part of a series called The Rutherford Brothers. There are only two books in this series, but they are something really different from what I usually write. There are a lot of surprises in this book about life, love, and what we perceive as mercy and forgiveness. I intended to write the book to a very specific genre, reader group, and publishing vein, but as usual, the characters took me somewhere else. Hayes and Mercy had their own ideas and rather than fight it and turn out a book that kind of sucked because I had to force it, I let them run free. They told their story the way they wanted it to be told. The second book will be about Haye’s brother Caleb Rutherford. I am, and always have been, a series writer, so for me, writing a stand alone is MUCH harder. I have no problem writing books about the same characters, town, or family. I actually find that easier than trying to create a new world and family each time.

How did you choose the genre you write in? Or did it choose you?

This genre definitely chose me. After my amputation, I sat down and just started writing Sugar’s Dance. It became this story about loss, love, grief, rebirth and the idea that no matter where we are in life, love will fix a lot of things. That book spurred four more in the series and I truly, truly, truly, miss Sugar every day. From there, I ran with the romance/romantic suspense genre because the way I wrote it resonated with readers and they wanted more.

Have you ever written characters that you truly despise?

I’ve written several! The bad guy in Sugar’s Dance was truly despicable, so I killed him 😉 Winifred in Liberty Belle and Wicked Winifred was another one, but in the end, I was compelled to tell the reader why she was the way she was and I redeemed her. It was the same with Tabitha Dalton in Inherited Life. She wasn’t someone the readers liked, UNTIL they read her story and then the ‘Aha’ moment for them came and their whole axis about the Dalton family changed. *I* think that is super important when writing. Shift that preconceived notion the reader has and sit them up on end so they see the world in a different way.

Authors, especially Indies, are constantly trying to understand why some authors sell very well while their talented fellow authors have a hard time of it. It’s an ongoing conundrum. What do you make of it all?

Luck. That’s it. It all comes down to luck. You need luck in this industry whether it comes as a prime date for a free BookBub ad, a publisher grabbing your manuscript at the right time, the book falling into the right reader’s hands who then talks about it to the right person, or whatever it may be, you need luck. Sure, you need to back that luck up with a quality product, but there is no true way to get there without luck, at least not a REAL bestseller. I’ve seen groups of authors who buy their way onto the list with anthologies. That’s not luck, that’s just spending a lot of money for a title that really means nothing anymore as everyone is a best-selling or award-winning author at this point. There are authors claiming they’re best-sellers when their book was FREE. No, that makes you a best-giverawayer.

Here’s the thing, if you’re in the writing business to make money, you’re going to be disappointed. If you’re in the writing business to be famous, you’re going to be disappointed. If you’re in the writing business for accolades, you’re going to be disappointed. Eventually, hard work, perseverance, knowing the market, knowing the genre, knowing the reader, and knowing yourself will be what gets you where you want to be. However, you won’t get there with the first book, or the second, or the third, unless you have luck. Even then, if you haven’t taken the time to perfect your trade and provide the readers with a quality product, your luck won’t last for long.

Please, tell us about your experiences with social media. What are your favorite and least-favorite parts of it?

I find social media to be everything that’s wrong with our world today. That might sound harsh, but if we stop and think about it, it’s the truth. That doesn’t mean that we don’t make great connections and friends through social media, because we do, but I really do abhor what it has become. I LOVE making connections and friends who I talk to on a daily basis. I LOVE connecting with my readers and learning about them and their families. I LOVE that I have immediate access to news, music, and book releases.

I hate the HATE on the platforms. I started distancing myself from social media the last year because the negativity started to weigh on me after so many years of doing this kind of work. I wish there was a happy, positive social media out there! Personally, while it isn’t exactly social media, I find BookBub to be the best place for authors to connect with readers in a positive way and where reviews are taken with high regard by other readers. I’ve been cultivating a following there to help build my brand. Since there is no messaging option or posting option for promotion, it’s a truer climate for people who want to find good books and connect with their favorite authors.

How much research was involved in writing your book? How did you go about it?

Because I write about characters with disabilities, all of my books require a ton of research. I want them to be an accurate representation of the condition the character has and I don’t romanticize the downsides of those conditions. As an amputee myself, I know that while we all live normal lives, we still face challenges others don’t understand. I don’t want to hide those things from the reader. They make us who we are. As a medical transcriptionist for years, I was exposed to a lot of unique conditions and as I typed those reports, I often wondered about their lives and how they deal with such conditions while finding love. While I might fancy myself a bit of an expert, I’m not, and I’m lucky that I have a lot of contacts in the medical world who can answer my questions. They help me make these books an accurate representation of the condition and how the character reacts to it.

Having our work out there to be judged by strangers is often daunting for writers. Do you have any tips on handling a negative review?

Remember to take negative reviews with a grain of salt. Why? I like to compare it to food. Not everyone likes key lime pie. Some LOVE it and rave about it. Some HATE it and rail against it. It’s much the same with books and music. Our books aren’t going to be everyone’s key lime pie. A third of the people will love us, a third will hate us, and a third will be indifferent. Remember to write to the third of the people who love what you do and don’t worry about the rest! Also, remember to just walk away from negative reviews. DO NOT respond. That’s always, always a bad idea. I really despise negative people and refuse to let them ruin my day, so I just stay away from reviews in general. Also, don’t visit Goodreads to see how your book is doing. TRUST ME on this. Just don’t.

Have you been involved with the Kindle Direct Program? If yes, do you believe it’s worthwhile?

I’ve been part of KDP and Kindle Unlimited for eight years now. As a romance author KU is important because romance readers read so many books in a month, they usually belong to subscription programs like this. If I wasn’t part of KU, I wouldn’t be read nearly as much as I am. They do a good job of recommending books to readers and letting them know about new releases and sales. It has its downsides, of course, but I know without it I’d never have found the readers that I have.

We all know the old saying; you can’t judge a book by its cover. This is true. However, how much importance do you place on your book cover design?

Honestly, if you don’t have a professional-looking book cover, you won’t get very far for very long. I’ve done the whole making my own book cover thing, and honestly, we aren’t a good judge of what kind of cover will sell our books. We’re better off handing it off to someone else to make, or even to buy a premade cover, for the book. There are SO many designers out there to choose from, but be careful. Make sure you’re using someone who understands the genre you’re writing in and isn’t an author just throwing out covers on MS Paint to make extra cash. Find a designer and if you can’t afford one of them, use one of the many premade cover sites that will get you a full wrap cover and the eBook cover for under one hundred dollars. That is money well spent, I promise! Every reader will judge your book by the cover, so make sure the cover says what you want it to say about the book. It reflects on you as the author and you want to put your best face forward.

Have you ever wished that you could bring a character to life? If so, which one and why?

Every day I wish I could bring Sugar Dubois from the Sugar Series to life. I created her to be one of those people who regardless of what she’s going through in her own life, she’s always positive and there for her friends. You want to sit and have coffee with her because she’s just one of those people who would fill your soul up so you could go out and fly again without falling. She’s super woman, strong, weak, flawed, and hurt, but so filled with love and positivity it just spills out of her without her even trying. She also loves a good rumba and I’m all about the rumba. 😊

A lot of authors are frustrated by readers who don’t understand how important reviews are? What would you say to a reader who doesn’t think his or her review matters?

EVERY review matters. I always say it can be three words like, “I loved it!” “It was great!” “Loved this book!” The few minutes it takes to review a book like that truly helps not just the author, but other readers! There are SO many good books out there that get buried by the bigger author’s books who are better promoted. Don’t let others miss the hidden gems by not reviewing them! You can review on Amazon, Google Play, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, Goodreads, or Bookbub!

What genre have you never written in that you’d like to try?

I’m in the middle of writing a middle grade book. Weird for a romance writer, right? I just love that age when kids discover they can read longer, more complex books and enjoy them! I want to be part of that discovery and enjoyment of literature in just a small way.

Do you know anyone who has ever received any auto DM on Twitter (with a link) who was happy about it?

Not a single soul! They’re the most ridiculous tools of promotion in the world. Just because I RT someone’s tweet doesn’t mean I want to read and review your book.

Would you like to write a short poem for us?

It might surprise you to know I’m absolutely terrible at poetry! It’s painful how terrible I am! But I’ll try, because I’m always about trying! I wrote this for a friend who was feeling down. Like I said, I SUCK at poetry, so be kind!

It’s hard not to feel used.

It’s hard not to feel jealous.

It’s hard not to want more.

It’s hard not to feel guilty.

It’s hard to keep doing when no one else does.

Deep breath.

You are appreciated.

You are worthy.

You are loved beyond measure because you are you.

Where do you live now? If you had to move to another city/state/country, where might that be?

I currently live in Northern Wisconsin, but if I had a choice, I’d move to Duluth and live on the shores of Lake Superior. The Lady of the Lake calls to my soul. She will always hold me in the palm of her hand until the day I die.

Care to brag about your family?

I mean, duh! Of course, I want to, but I’m not sure your readers want to hear me brag about my kids. I have 3 teens, two boys and a girl. My daughter, who is actually an adult now, is starting her second year of college for choral education. If I do say so myself, she’s incredibly talented in music. She’s one of those people who understands music on a level very few of us do. My middle child, Edward, just graduated from high school and will start college this fall, at 16! He’s motivated, driven, and loves singing, playing the bassoon, computers, and driving. My youngest is fourteen and a junior in high school. He plays the saxophone and tuba, and sings as a tenor in the choir. I’m pretty sure you can see the music theme in our lives. My husband is a teacher in a local school district I can’t name due to a recent high media case there and teaches fifth grade at the middle school. Together we love going to Duluth, Two Harbors, Cloquet, and one day hope to get up to Thunder Bay to the amethyst mines.

If you had a million dollars to give to charity, how would you allot the funds?

This one is super easy for me. I believe charity starts with our youngest citizens. I would set up a diaper and formula bank for infants. I do this low key for the immigrants in our community right now and the need is SO HIGH. Knowing the little ones are happy, fed, and dry is the start to great things in this world!

If you could have one skill that you don’t currently have, what would it be?

This one is easy. I wish I could play music the way my kids do. I can play the piano enough to plunk out a few songs, but not like my kids. I really wish I had the mind for music the way they do.

What might we be surprised to know about you?

You might be surprised to know I lost my leg due to a fall on the bunny hill when I was thirteen. The surprising part was it was the first time down the hill! You might also be surprised to know that I suffer from a disease called gastroparesis. That means the nerve that makes our stomach grind and digest food no longer works. I eat a liquid diet and have lost over 80 pounds in the last couple of years.

Have you ever walked out of a movie? If so, what was it?

Hahahaha I chose this one because YES! I walked out of A Star is Born. When the main character was wetting his pants on stage, I looked at my friend and we were like, “We out!” I don’t know why people thought that movie was the bee’s knees. It was boring, tedious, and a train wreck. We Googled the ending and when we read it, we were like, ‘oh hell no!’ LOL I suppose we should have checked that out BEFORE we went!

What are three things you think we can all do to make the world a better place?

Be kind.

Be charitable.

Love. Love. Love. Just Love.

 

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