Guest Post

Guest Chick: Kimberly O’Malley

Ellen here, welcoming Kimberly O’Malley to her first Chicks visit. She shares a touching story of how becoming a mom and an author were intertwined for her.

When Writing Becomes Therapy

I never meant to be a writer. I mean I was always good at writing; it came easily to me. And that really helped in nursing school, but I never set out to be one. Most authors I know tell you they started writing in single digits. Not me. A voracious reader, yes!

In 2002, after years of infertility and several pregnancy losses, my husband and I waited to travel to Russia to adopt our now 17-year-old daughter, Jordan. And by waiting, I mean literally everyday waiting for the call. Would it be today? Tomorrow? In May of that year, they told us we’d travel by July. July came and went. I was about to lose my mind. One night, without forethought, I came home from work and sat at my computer. The grief, anxiety, anticipation, fear just poured out of me. I wrote every night for three weeks, and Coming Home was born.

We adopted our son two years later. Then, at forty, I though nursing school sounded like a great idea. Life, as you can imagine, got very busy.

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Years later, after moving south to North Carolina, I suddenly remembered I’d written a book. I worked on that book (it was terrible in the beginning) and finally released it in 2017. And that was the first in my contemporary romance series.

In April of 2018, the idea for my Addie Foster Cozy Mysteries came to me. At a red light. Literally. I pulled over and wrote in my phone’s note page. If I didn’t write it down, the whole thing would be lost forever. All the ideas poured into my phone; two fluffy dogs, the hilarious but meddling elderly aunts, the snarky BFF! But I was knee-deep in my series and planning the next! When would I ever have time to write something else? A different genre altogether!

And then I lost my Mom in the summer of 2018. And I found myself in a hotel room in Pennsylvania, trying to write a book that dealt with grief and loss. How could I write that when I was living it?

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And Addie started poking around in my brain, begging to have her story told. And so I did. And I laughed as I wrote, through my tears mind you, but these stories make me laugh hysterically as I write them.

I hope they make you laugh as well!

About Death Comes in Threes: Addie Foster, owner of Smiling Dog Books, loves her small-town life. Until someone, or rather several someones, tries to end it. What secrets is she hiding? Add one gay BFF and one dark, brooding detective into the mix and watch everything unfold. Will Addie figure out why someone wants her dead before it’s too late? Or will this be her final chapter?

About Kimberly: Kimberley O’Malley is a transplant to Charlotte, North Carolina from the frozen North. She is learning to say y’all but draws the line at sweet tea. Sarcasm is an art form in her world. She writes small town Contemporary romances and hilarious Cozy Mysteries. When not writing, she is a full-time nurse and part-time soccer Mom, but not necessarily in that order. She shares her life with an amazing husband of more than 23 years, two teenagers, and one very sweet Shetland Sheepdog, Molly.

Newsletter http://eepurl.com/dgonEX

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/KOMalley67/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimberleyomalley67/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/K_OMalley67

Website: www.kimberleyomalley.com

Amazon Author Bio: www.amazon.com/author/kimberleyomalley

19 thoughts on “Guest Chick: Kimberly O’Malley”

  1. I love your story, Kimberley! And I love that you ended up choosing adoption. I can’t imagine having to sit around and wait for that call though. Writing can definitely be therapeutic, and I’m glad it has helped you through some trying times.

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    1. Marla, ok I tried responding to this, but it did not post. Take two! I wanted to be a mother. The course didn’t matter to me. And now, so many years later, I wouldn’t change a thing. Everything that you experience in life makes you who you are. And yes, the waiting was horrible…

      KOM

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  3. Here’s a weird coincidence, Kimberly … just yesterday I said that first paragraph to someone, almost verbatim. Except for nursing school, though, insert “insurance liability claims.”

    I love your personal story and can’t wait to check out your books!

    Thanks for visiting us here!

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  5. I, too, never set out to be a writer, but somehow always seemed to have writing (and reading!) in my life. So maybe we’re (and that includes you, Becky!) not all the unusual, after all.

    Love that your books have a sarcastic slant (I describe mine as “snarky cozies”), and your series has just gone to the top of my TBR list! Thanks so much for joining the Chicks today!

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  6. What a beautiful, powerful story, Kimberly. I’m so glad that you found solace in writing and are able to share your fruits with the world. Congrats on your books, motherhood and everything! Thanks for hanging out with us today. ❤

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    1. Kathleen, thank you so much! It’s funny when I write about that time in our lives. Seems like a million years ago now that they are in high school. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Adoption rocks!

      KOM

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  7. I’m not sure why, but some of my replies aren’t posting. I tried to post to everyone, and only some came through. So, to all of you, thank you so much for stopping by and reading my story. Adoption is not something I thought about doing as I grew up, but it became our method of building our family. And I couldn’t be happier.

    K

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    1. Thank you, Cynthia! Writing helped me more than I can say. Losing my Mom is the hardest thing I have ever done. The depth of grief took me by surprise. Somehow, I thought it wouldn’t be so hard as I had been losing her by degree for years. Wrong…

      KOM

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  10. Kimberly, Great post, and thanks so much for visiting Chicks! Your books sound wonderful. I’m a “snarky” cozy mystery writer and fan also. Enjoy the holidays with your family. (And give sweet tea a chance!)

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    1. I love most things Southern; less winter, nicer people, slower times. Never the sweet tea. But in my defense, I have never been a fan of tea or coffee, which made me an oddball working nights for 16 years.

      KOM

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