a real life mom @ work A Real Mom@Work: Karen Kingsbury by Laura Christianson When people spot best-selling author Karen Kingsbury with her six children, they ask, “Are you a daycare? Are you a summer camp? Are you a church group?” No, replies Karen, with a laugh. We’re just a family. While strangers appear befuddled by the array of skin tones represented in Karen’s family, she doesn’t even notice. It’s been four years since she and her husband, Don, adopted three boys from Haiti. Their new sons EJ, Sean and Josh joined their biological children, Kelsey, Tyler, and Austin. “To me, we look normal,” says Karen. Family First For Karen, who writes four or five books a year, answers 500 letters a week from readers and maintains a busy speaking schedule, family comes first. “I’m mostly in my life,” she says. I’m not mostly in the life of a writer.” Karen’s top priority is spending time with her family. She goes on dates with her teenage daughter, Kelsey, whether it’s shopping, to a play, or to a concert. She attends her kids’ theater, music and sporting events and leads a Bible study with Don at their church in Vancouver, Washington. Writing Fast She says that God has given her a special gift that helps her balance motherhood and a demanding career: she writes fast. Very fast. Karen drafts a 100,000-word novel in two-to-three weeks. She explains that drafting a novel is like “watching a movie in my head.” Karen gets an image of a story and simply fills it in, like weaving in the threads on a tapestry, “so that when you read it, you see it like a movie in your head, too.” Granted, during the week or two she’s drafting a novel, Karen doesn’t spend a great deal of time with her family. “I need my husband’s help completely…and my mom’s help, and my sister’s help.” She sequesters herself in her writing room for 10 hours a day, emerging, bleary-eyed, to eat dinner with her family. If one of her children knocks on the door to her office and wants to show Mom a flower or a special rock, Karen takes time out for conversation and a hug. But generally, she writes with great intensity, listening to soothing instrumental music on her headphones as she types. Karen even times herself. When she puts in a CD and hits Start, she writes down her word count. When the CD stops, she takes a break and writes down the word count again. “I try to keep breaking my own personal best on how many words I can get in an hour.” Karen usually writes from 1,500 to 2,000 words an hour, and her record is 24,000 words in one day. Her 13-year-old son, Tyler, who’s “into theatre,” told Karen, “When I’m older, I’m going to be on stage, acting and singing. But I just might write novels in my spare time like you do.” When Tyler made that comment, Karen says, she breathed a prayer: “Thank you so much, Lord, that that’s how it comes across.” “The Queen of Clean” For Karen, fast writing doesn’t mean shoddy writing. She explains that the faster she writes, the cleaner it is, and the better it ends up sounding. Karen’s novels dominate the Christian bestseller list – in November 2005, four of her books were ranked among the top 20 fiction bestsellers, and her book, Forgiven, was the number-one ranked title. Dubbed “America’s #1 Inspirational Novelist” and winner of a 2005 ECPA Gold Medallion Book Award for fiction, Karen’s 36 books have sold more than 3.3 million copies. Karen describes herself a character-driven writer. “It’s crucial to bring characters to life. They have to have something that sets them apart or it all blends together and it’s mush,” she explains. For example, in Like Dandelion Dust, (to be released in June 2006 by Warner Center Street), Karen unfolds the story of a couple who adopt a child. “They’ve had that child for four or five years. Everything is wonderful; everything is happy.” Suddenly, they learn that someone forged the birth father’s signature on the adoption papers and now the birth father has resurfaced and is demanding custody of the child. The parents are devastated by the news. They consider running away with their son – just disappearing like dandelion dust. Once inspiration for a story line hits (in the case of Like Dandelion Dust, it came from a news article she’d seen) Karen begins filling in the pieces. “I ask myself, Who are these people and how will this story change them?” Karen’s children have taught her the importance of giving her characters individuality. “We’ve raised our kids all the same. We love them the same. Yet they have different love languages,” muses Karen. “And they are so different.” “ A Novel Fundraiser Karen even involves her readers in creating characters – or at least, in naming them. At auctions for nonprofits, Karen “donates” the right for the auction winner to name a character who will appear in a future novel. “Forever in Fiction™” garners an average of $2,500 per auction, and has earned nonprofits an estimated $100,000 during the last two years. “I’ve donated this item to all sorts of groups – schools, YWCA organizations, church groups, adoption agencies and sports clubs,” says Karen. Dilemmas of Life and Love The close relationship she nurtures with her readers is evident in the hundreds of e-mails and letters she receives each week. A reader from New York wrote, “I have shared your books with friends struggling with the same issues in your story line: depression, adoption, sudden loss, hurting families.” Pastors and counselors tell Karen that they use her books to reach the hearts of their clients. Readers comment that Karen’s books have comforted them, helped them heal from difficult situations, and most importantly, encouraged them to forge new relationships with God. A reader from Illinois wrote, “When I finish reading one of Karen Kingsbury’s books, I not only feel connected to the characters and the events, I feel that I have walked in the presence of Christ and that He has spoken mightily to me.” Life-Changing Fiction™…and Non-fiction…and Children’s Books While readers love Karen’s Life-Changing Fiction™, they also enjoy her non-fiction collections and children’s books. Her “Treasury of Miracles” series includes five books that tell miracle stories about women, teens, friends, adoption and Christmas. Her children’s book, Let Me Hold You Longer, is all about connecting with your kids. “The book isn’t intended to burden anyone with guilt, but it helps create an awareness in parents that precious moments get lost. “If you can just hold on longer and make time for your kids, you’ll have no regrets.” “Be mindful of the fact that your kids won’t be around forever,” advises Karen. Her next children’s book, Let’s Go on a Mommy Date (to be followed with Let’s Go on a Daddy Date) is intended to remove some of the guilt that mothers experience. The book will take readers through some wild ideas of adventures, but then will come circle, with the child holding Mommy’s hand. “Your hand is in my hand. We’re right here. This can be our Mommy date,” explains Karen. That simple act of hand-holding is so important, she believes. “Make eye contact with your child,” Karen advises. “Hold their hand. It may not be a Hallmark Moment, but that’s okay. To learn more about Karen Kingsbury, visit www.karenkingsbury.com. ### Laura Christianson (www.laurachristianson.com) is a freelance writer from Snohomish, WA. > back