Meet the Author: Karen E. Osborne
Hello, readers! I have a treat for you today: an interview with author Karen E. Osborne. Ms. Osborne is an award-winning and Amazon Kindle best-selling author of four women’s fiction/suspense novels–Reckonings, Tangled Lies, and Getting It Right. True Grace, her latest, launches on September 7, 2023. Her author life followed a career traveling the world as a consultant, trainer, adjunct faculty member, and motivational speaker. Karen believes in generosity and giving back. She hosts a weekly video podcast, What Are You Reading? What Are You Writing? supporting fellow authors. She is chair of the board of directors for Easterseals Florida, helping the differently abled, and she is on the board of her local church. Native New Yorkers living in Florida, Karen and her husband, Robert, have two grown children and three grandsons.
What is your favorite part of the writing process, and least favorite part of the writing process?
The only thing I don’t enjoy is the final, nitpicking, editing phase. Reading and re-reading looking for missed errors. My second least favorite is research. Everything else is food for my soul – from character development, to plot points, to writing the action and dialogue, to workshopping the pages, to re-writing and re-writing some more. I love being a writer.
Roxy, the protagonist of your novel, Reckonings, is an aspiring writer who fits writing in around a demanding job and family responsibilities. Was that a storyline that particularly resonated with you?
Yes, Roxy’s experience resonated. I wrote my first novel, Getting It Right, on airplanes, in hotel rooms, and airport lounges as I traveled the country and the world, consulting with and presenting to nonprofits and education institutions of every type. When my now adult children were young, I wrote short stories and poems at the kitchen table while they played under it and the filled laundry basket and piled high kitchen sink beckoned. So, Roxy’s success in having her play staged in nine days from the opening of the book endeared her to me. She has many flaws, but she is a good woman trying to use her talents to make a better life for her struggling family.
Home and community are also prominent themes in Reckonings. Where is someplace you feel most at home?
Although my husband and I live in Florida, we are New Yorkers. All my books are set in New York and even though [my upcoming release] True Grace includes the Congo, London, and Jamaica, the bulk of the story is set in Harlem. Bob and I have been married 55 years this month. So, in the end, home is wherever we are together.
Tell us about someone who has inspired you creatively?
Like all writers, I’m an avid reader. The list of authors who inspire me is long. August Wilson’s plays demonstrate amazing story telling, rising action, memorable characters, and powerful final acts. I learned a lot watching (many times) and reading (many times) his plays. Kristin Hannah’s The Four Winds and The Nightingale inspired how I approached True Grace. I’m a Shakespeare nut and Maya Angelou fan. You asked for “someone” so I will stop here.
What kind of books do you gravitate towards in your own reading life?
I love a good thriller or mystery. Espionage tales. Romance/Suspense novels. Historical fiction.
What is your superpower?
I don’t know if it is a superpower, but people know me for my public speaking and teaching. I have a significant following on LinkedIn, for example, from people who heard me speak, usually more than once. It has helped me develop an audience for my novels. Also, I have a weekly Zoom show – What Are You Reading? What Are You Writing? I made it a Vlog rather than a blog because I can use my presentation and connecting skills.
One of the best pieces of advice you've ever gotten?
Writers Write. You can’t call yourself a writer if you dibble and dabble. You must write as much and as often as possible. Study Your Craft. I’m constantly learning, trying to get better. And Finish. In the beginning I had false starts. You must put your head down and finish the project you started.
Be sure to check out Ms. Osborne’s video podcast What Are You Reading, What Are You Writing, she really is a gifted interviewer. You can find links to her books at her web site, www.kareneosborne.com, or follow her on Facebook, Instagram, or BookBub.