Writing Buddy Wednesday: Kate Belle

Today in the Taverna, I have Kate Belle. I met Kate via FB being another member of RWAus and met her in person at ARRA. She spoke at the same Meet The Author session as me and was a great speaker. 

Take it away, Kate.

Confessions of obsessions 

by Kate Belle

All writers have obsessions and I’m no exception. Mine comes in the form of a dark handsome man. Nope, not my dearly beloved. Not an ex-boyfriend either. He’s imaginary. And I’m completely, utterly, bone-shakingly in love with him. It’s weird, but it’s the twisted truth.

How did a relatively sane (?) middle aged woman allow this bizarre, secret love affair begin? 

I think it has something to do with all the fairy stories I read as a child, or one story in particular, Snow White. There’s a scene in my new book, The Yearning, where the protagonist as a little girl settles into her grandmother’s comfy side while she is read that very story. The little girl becomes excited as the pages turn ever closer to her favourite picture – the darkly handsome Prince Charming standing by his strong horse and preparing to bend down to kiss Snow White’s cold lips.

This little scene comes straight from my childhood. I got excited about exactly that picture in my Grandmother’s copy of Snow White. I remember gazing at it longingly, then going out to play in the castle out the back (an abandoned and very stinky old chook shed) pretending I was the one marrying that delightful Prince.

Something about that vision of man-hood must have struck a chord in my subconscious because I’ve been writing out my secret, imaginary lover ever since. Ask me to write about a hero who’s a fair-skinned blonde with blue eyes – (go on, I dare you) – and watch me crumble into clichés and crap. There are no blue eyed blonde heroes in my head. Nor do I think there ever will be.

The truly sad thing is when I’m not writing about this imaginary lover of mine, I’m still thinking about him. Yep, I treat him just like a real boyfriend. I catch myself smiling as I’m hanging out the washing because I’m imagining him coming home to a candle lit dinner. Or I almost miss my stop on the train because I’m imagining him sitting next to me fondly fondling my fingers. I hear him talk to me while I make a cup of tea. And when I close my eyes at night...

Am I alone? Judging by the many ‘Fictional boyfriend’ facebook pages and blogs, I think not. Their existence only emboldens me to admit to my peculiar proclivity for a pretend boyfriend. And while it might be weird to imagine he’s really interacting with me, it’s essential for my writing. While he is vibrant with life in my mind, he is vibrant with life on the page. He steams into my female character’s lives, bursting with charisma and sensuality. He seduces them, as he seduces me. I feel him leaning over my shoulder as I write, instructing me as to what he says and does next. I sense his smug satisfaction as he sees himself spilling onto the page, ready to take an unsuspecting reader in ambush. He is my devil, my god, my muse all rolled into one and I can’t do without him.

Do you have an obsession you can’t do without? 

~~~

Thanks, Kate!

Check out Kate's info below. 

Kate Belle Bio

Kate lives, writes and loves in Melbourne, juggling her strange, secret affairs with her male characters with her much loved partner and daughter, and a menagerie of neurotic pets. She holds a tertiary qualification in chemistry, half a diploma in naturopathy and a diploma in psychological astrology. Kate believes in living a passionate life and has ridden a camel through the Australian desert, fraternised with hippies in Nimbin, had a near birth experience and lived on nothing but porridge and a carrot for 3 days.

Blog/website

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Twitter: @ecstasyfiles

Books by Kate Belle

The Yearning – First love. Forbidden love. An obsession that should not be fulfilled.

It’s 1978 in a country town and a dreamy fifteen year old girl’s world is turned upside down by the arrival of the substitute English teacher. Solomon Andrews is beautiful, inspiring and she wants him like nothing else she’s wanted in her short life.

Charismatic and unconventional, Solomon notices the attention of one student, his new neighbour, who has taken to watching him from her upstairs window. He assumes it a harmless teenage crush, until the erotic love notes begin to arrive.

Solomon knows he must resist, but her sensual words stir him. One afternoon, as he stands reading her latest offering in his driveway, she turns up unannounced. And what happens next will torment them forever – in ways neither can imagine.

The Yearning is already attracting 5 star reviews. Buy links:

Amazon | iTunes | Local independent bookshops, including Eltham Bookshop.

Master of Love series featuring the charismatic lover of women, Ramon Mendez.

Breaking the Rules: Grace is a beautiful woman in complete control of her world. A long time ago she chose a career over children and marriage, and has never regretted it. Then Ramon Mendez, her new PhD student, walks into her office. Aware of the need to maintain her professional reputation, she rejects his advances, but he persists. And during their intimate supervision sessions, her defences start to crumble, for Ramon’s work is exposing desires within Grace she never knew existed.

Follow this link for a sample chapter.

Breaking the Rules: iTunes & Amazon 

Bloom: Thirty-six-year-old Emma’s life looks as perfect, but something is missing. Her husband, Gary, hardly notices her anymore and she feels frumpy and invisible. When she joins a social boot camp class at the local gym, Emma immediately recognises their instructor as the gorgeous runner she sees each evening in the park. In spite of herself Emma is besotted. One evening, when things at home have become too much to bear, she bumps into him and an opportunity presents itself. Ramon promises and delivers everything that’s missing from her marriage – passion, romance and excitement – but Emma must discover if they are the things she really wants.

Follow this link for a sample chapter:

Bloom: iTunes & Amazon

~yia~