Turning a Negative into a Chance to Live Her Dream

One of the most pleasant surprises I’ve had since getting published is meeting so many supportive authors out there. Today I’m introducing you to one who goes above and beyond to show her support for other authors. I met Nikki Walker via an online book club where she recommends reads and interacts with readers and writers enthusiastically. Sit back and learn a little more about Nikki.

Enjoy!

Hi Nikki and welcome. Tell me a little about yourself.

I am a stay at home wife and mother.  For nearly 15 years, I worked as an administrative assistant in banking and corporate companies.  I was one of the many displaced during the Great Recession. This turned out to be perfect timing for me to resume a dream I’d had for years—that of being a published writer.

It’s great that you took a negative and turned it into a positive way to live your dream. Give us some insight about your books?

My writing revolves around second chances.  I have been a person that has benefited from many chances in life.  I know what it is like to feel unloved, to feel as if you have used up every chance you deserve.  I am grateful to have people in my life that have never given up on me—even when sad to say, I was willing to give up on myself.

I have been writing for most of my life.  I tried to write what I observed from the ‘cool kids’ in my 8th grade class who already seemed so much more mature than I was.  I remember they liked it.  I did a little more writing in high school and remember writing pages as people were reading, then my life took a different direction. I moved to West Virginia to help with a bible teaching work.  My ministry became my priority and took up all of my time.

I resumed writing after I married, in my early twenties, and would hold friends and family members hostage to get their opinion.  All of these stories were longhand.  I’m sure I still have some of them.  I just can’t bear to part with them!

ISOAHP CoverIt wasn’t until nearly four years ago that I wrote, Finding You. . .when love called. This was my first story that I published on Smashwords and then later on Amazon.  Then last May it was like the desire to write completely reawakened within me.  To Find A Love Like Ours, was followed by A Love Worth Waiting For and then I began my first series. This began with, Love Through The Fire, followed by “Been There & Done That” In Flames and Hearts On Fire completed my Tested Love Series.  After this, I wrote Redemptive Acts and I am now working on In Search of a Healing Place, the unexpected follow up to it.

I still have my handwritten novels I wrote in high school. I completely understand why you wouldn’t want to give those up. Those classmates who liked my writing inspired me to go after my goals. Who or what inspires you as a writer?

Much of my writing starts with, ‘what if?’  Sometimes, it just comes to me in a desire to write and once I get in the process of writing, the story will unravel or be refined from that point forward.  Sometimes I can see it play out in my mind like a movie. It’s really good when the story comes to me like this—the chances of it being completed and not thrown into the Eternal WIP File is slim. There is some of me or an experience of mine in every story that I’ve ever written.

Same here, it’s hard to not include a part of yourself with each story. When do you make time for writing?

Lately, it’s been very late at night into the early morning.  This started out as insomnia—well that is what it is.  However, it is also the time when everything is completely quiet and when my desire to write is the strongest.

Night writing is the best with very few distractions. So I love to hear people’s reason’s for writing in their genre. What drew you to romance?

I love the idea of a happy-ending or at least the inference of one.  I like to know that there are two people put together by circumstances I created in my mind who are the perfect complement of the other.  This doesn’t happen in life most of the time.  People find a way to make it work more often than not.  In my stories, I like to include some of that practicality along with chemistry.  My objective is that the reader will not only come away happy, but perhaps find something they can personally use.

I like that you include practicality in your writing. It’s a great way to help readers relate to your characters. Now that you’ve been published, what advice do you have for other writers?

If your desire is to write then don’t hesitate to do so.  But as with everything, please maintain balance in every aspect of your life–meaning your spiritual life, your family life and time for you. You must find a way to keep your priorities straight and keep in mind what it is that you wish to achieve or you can get lost in the machine of writing and publishing and have very little satisfaction as a result.

Such great advice! It is easy to get caught up in writing and promoting, you have to unplug from it all to stay sane. Okay, last fun question, if money were no object what hobby would you pick up?

I am a creative person, there are many things I would love to learn to do. Perhaps I would take up stain glass or take knitting classes to add to my love of crochet—but writing would always remain at the heart of my creative output.

I used to crochet, but only had the patience for scarves, lol. The stain glass idea sounds like fun.

Thanks so much Nikki for stopping by today. You can learn more about Nikki and her books on her website: http://nikkiwalkerbookstore.com/