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K.M. Weiland: One-Word/One-Line Interview

April 14, 2010 By Sandra Heska King

I’ve been stalking K.M. Weiland for some time. Hanging out at her website. Dogging her around the blogs. Soaking in life advice and writing wisdom. Admiring her gifts of detail and discipline. Immersing myself in the middle ages in her new book, Behold the Dawn. And she has such a sweet spirit. I want to be like her when I grow up.

So since I wanted to get to know her even better, I asked if she could stop by my blog and answer a few brief questions.  And she agreed!
Since Katie’s novel is set in the set in the 12th century, I decided to ask her 12 questions in 2 categories.
K.M. Weiland in One Word
1.  Where would you go on the ideal vacation? 
     Hawaii.
2.  What was your first paid job?
     Secretary.
3.  Would you prefer to swim or ice skate?
     Swim.
4.  What is your greatest weakness? 
     Impatience.
5.  When it comes to “stuff,” are you a keeper or a tosser?
     Tosser.
6.  What musical instrument are you?
     Drum.
7.  What would Marcus Annan say is your greatest strength?
     Battles!
8.  At a theme park, do you head for the roller coasters or the shows?
     Coaster.
9.  Who was your childhood hero/heroine?
     Cowboy.
10. Where do you behold God?
      Details.
11. Would you prefer to eat (peasant) bread or (elderflower) cheesecake?
      Cheesecake!
12. What one-word message did you take away for yourself from Behold the Dawn?
      Perseverance. 
K.M. Weiland in One Line
1.  What is one of your favorite quotes from Behold the Dawn?
     “In the corner, flint struck against steel, sparks danced airborne for a moment, and then the expected flame burnt a golden hole in the darkness.”
2.  Would you prefer to travel by car or plane and why?
     I much prefer car travel; airports are exhausting.
3.  What do you battle?
     Myself; impatience and tactlessness are two of my banes.
4.  When you are feeling down, what lifts you up?
     A bouncy song, a good movie, sunshine, chocolate, and above all, the knowledge that God is in control of the little things and the big things alike.
5.  When you’ve been away, what do you like best about coming home?
     My own bed!
6.  If you were to die today, what song would you like sung at your funeral and why?
     Nicole Nordeman’s “Legacy” comes to mind: “I want to leave a legacy / How will they remember me? / Did I choose to love? Did I point to You enough / To make a mark on things?”
7.  If you could live in any period of history, when would it be and why?
     Probably the 1940s, though I may be a bit prejudiced right now, since I’m working with a new story idea set in that period.
8.  What was a good word of advice someone gave to you?
     What people think of you isn’t as important as what God thinks of you.
9.  How would Lady Mairead complete this sentence for you? I wish . . .
     . . . she wasn’t so mean to her characters!
10. When did you know you were a writer?
     It was a gradual awakening, I guess, since I’ve always told stories; probably the “official” realization was when I was about twelve.
11. What has your past taught you?
     To look outside the box, keep an open mind, and never settle for an easy answer.
12. What is your favorite writing outfit and why?
     Jeans, sweatshirt, and fuzzy blue slippers–because I gotta be warm to write! 
K.M. WEILAND ON ONE THING
What one thing would you like to say to your readers or future readers?

Thanks for being there! In the cutthroat world of publishing and marketing it can sometimes be easy to lose sight of why I’m doing this. But whenever someone tells me they loved one of my books or that they were encouraged by a blog post–that makes my day. That’s what it’s all about. Being able to touch the life of someone else, even if for only a moment, means I’ve accomplished something worthwhile.

What one thing would you like to say to your fellow writers or aspiring writers?

Don’t give up, and don’t sell yourself short. Writing, first and foremost, is a mode of self-expression, of reaching out and connecting with the world around us. Being published, being read, making the NYT best-seller list, that stuff is just icing on the cake. You’re a writer even if you never accomplish that. But, at the same time, don’t allow yourself to settle for less than the best. Discipline yourself, drive yourself to become a little bit better every time you sit down at the keyboard. Success only visits the dedicated.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Synopsis: Marcus Annan, a tourneyer famed for his prowess on the battlefield, thought he could keep the secrets of his past buried forever. But when a mysterious crippled monk demands Annan help him find justice for the transgressions of sixteen years ago, Annan is forced to leave the tourneys and join the Third Crusade.
Wounded in battle and hunted by enemies on every side, he rescues an English noblewoman from an infidel prison camp and flees to Constantinople. But, try as he might, he cannot elude the past. Amidst the pain and grief of a war he doesn’t even believe in, he is forced at last to face long-hidden secrets and sins and to bare his soul to the mercy of a God he thought he had abandoned years ago.
The sins of a bishop.
The vengeance of a monk.
The secrets of a knight.

About the Author: K.M. Weiland writes historical and speculative fiction from her home in the sandhills of western Nebraska. She is the author of the historical western A Man Called Outlaw and the recently released medieval epic Behold the Dawn. She blogs at Wordplay: Helping Writers Become Authors  and AuthorCulture.

Reposted from Beholding God–11/18/09

Copyright © 2009 by Sandra Heska King

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Filed Under: interviews, stories and reflections, writing

Comments

  1. Phy says

    April 15, 2010 at 1:41 am

    Cool interview, Sandy. It's always interesting to get to know writers as people (and people as writers!).

  2. Sandra Heska King says

    April 15, 2010 at 7:57 am

    Thanks for dropping in, Johne. I agree!

  3. Liberty Speidel says

    April 15, 2010 at 8:49 am

    Great interview! Katie's a great gal, I'm glad you got a chance to interview her. 🙂

  4. Sandra Heska King says

    April 15, 2010 at 9:04 am

    Thanks. She is. Me, too. 😉

  5. K.M. Weiland says

    April 15, 2010 at 2:22 pm

    Thanks for having me back, Sandra! And thanks for popping by, Johne and Liberty. 🙂

  6. T. Anne says

    April 19, 2010 at 12:24 pm

    I love K.M.!!! I think Behold the Dawn is masterful written!!! I'm one of her biggest cheerleaders. =)

  7. K.M. Weiland says

    April 19, 2010 at 12:34 pm

    Thanks, T. Anne. You know how to make a girl's day! 🙂

  8. Sandra Heska King says

    April 19, 2010 at 12:45 pm

    Yup, T. Anne. Me, too! She is an inspiration. Thanks for stopping in.

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Then he asks if I've had any symptoms. "Well, I don't know. Maybe. I felt a little dizzy out of the blue a couple times. And felt like I couldn't catch my breath. I wouldn't have paid any attention if I didn't know I was supposed to be watching for symptoms. I DID walk all over Israel and up a bunch of steep hills, even all the way up to the Golan Heights--against the wind--without anything but normal fatigue.

He laughs. "I created a monster." Ummm, yeah.

"Have you been exercising?" 

"Well, yeah. We walk a couple miles a day. I'm back on my Nordictrack Strider." I didn't tell him I'd been lifting some light weights and some very heavy boxes and other items during this renovation, though I was told in December not to.

So he listens to the beating of my heart. Then he says, "Well, I don't think the valve is ripe yet. I don't expect you to have symptoms for three or four years. You don't need to come back for a year."

Wait! So you ask if I have symptoms. But you don't expect symptoms--yet. And when I do have symptoms, someone is gonna do something. And then I'll be older and maybe weaker. Or what if I have some sudden and silent symptom and boom! And now I have to worry about that. 

(In other news, my oldest grand texts me the other day, and our conversation runs like this...
Last weekend we were in northern Michigan. And the Last weekend we were in northern Michigan. And there were lilacs. They even shook their heads over tornado-induced devastation. Look for the beauty and sweet scents in the midst of the mess. I miss the lilacs.
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If not, take a peek at @mlivenews .

My great-nephew, not quite 12, had just gotten home from school when the EF-3 came down the street and left its mark on every home. My niece frantically tried to find her way from work through debris and blocked roads. My sister was 30 miles away visiting my dad in rehab. I don't want to know how fast my brother-in-law drove. 

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We plan to fly up Thursday--already planned to celebrate my dad's 95th birthday. 

Also, if anyone feels led to help, the Otsego Community Foundation and Otsego County United Way are accepting donations. Note “Tornado Relief.” Beware of any other fundraising requests.
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https://www.tweetspeakpoetry.com/2016/07/27/regional-tour-holocaust-memorial-center-farmington-hills-michigan/
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