Meet Kristin Harmel
Kristin Harmel admits that writing can be a hard life. But Harmel, like many out there, had no other dream.
Well, she had a brief phase of wanting to be a pianist (at age 3) and a singer (around age 6 or 7).
“I have very little musical talent, so you can see why the other two ideas didn't work out!” she said.
So she followed her dream and became an international best-selling author.
“Some people are lucky enough to ‘make it’ right out of the gate, earning six-figure and even seven-figure advances for a debut novel,” Harmel said. “But most of us start at the bottom and have to work our way up.”
Harmel was working full-time as a magazine writer while she wrote her first six novels.
“It took a lot of hard work and long hours to get to where I am today,” she said.
Her advice to anyone who wants to follow their own dreams to become an author is to “work hard and believe in yourself.
While writing her first novel, Harmel said she woke up an hour early every morning to get sixty minutes of writing in before the day started. Following that routine allowed Harmel to finish a draft in just six months.
“It’s doable on any schedule, you just have to keep persevering,” she said.
Harmel said she typically researches topics that interest her, such as World War II, and lets her imagination run from there. Her novels center around real events, but with fictional characters.
“I try to keep their challenges as real and as easy to identify with as possible,” Harmel said.
We asked Harmel if she could be a character (her own or another), who would it be? Her answer was Ernest Hemingway in a Moveable Feast, which is a memoir of his life in Paris in the 1920s.
“I've always had a great passion for Paris—and for Hemingway's writing—and I think it would have been glorious to see Paris through his eyes during that time period, before World War II changed the city forever.”
Kristin Harmel is an international best-selling novelist whose books have been translated into numerous languages and are sold all over the world. A former reporter for People magazine, Kristin has also freelanced for many other publications, including American Baby, Men’s Health, Glamour, Woman’s Day, Travel + Leisure, and more.
Her latest novels—The Sweetness of Forgetting, The Life Intended, How to Save a Life, and When We Meet Again—are out now from Gallery Books, a division of Simon & Schuster. Kristin lives in Orlando, Fla., with her husband and son.
Well, she had a brief phase of wanting to be a pianist (at age 3) and a singer (around age 6 or 7).
“I have very little musical talent, so you can see why the other two ideas didn't work out!” she said.
So she followed her dream and became an international best-selling author.
“Some people are lucky enough to ‘make it’ right out of the gate, earning six-figure and even seven-figure advances for a debut novel,” Harmel said. “But most of us start at the bottom and have to work our way up.”
Harmel was working full-time as a magazine writer while she wrote her first six novels.
“It took a lot of hard work and long hours to get to where I am today,” she said.
Her advice to anyone who wants to follow their own dreams to become an author is to “work hard and believe in yourself.
While writing her first novel, Harmel said she woke up an hour early every morning to get sixty minutes of writing in before the day started. Following that routine allowed Harmel to finish a draft in just six months.
“It’s doable on any schedule, you just have to keep persevering,” she said.
Harmel said she typically researches topics that interest her, such as World War II, and lets her imagination run from there. Her novels center around real events, but with fictional characters.
“I try to keep their challenges as real and as easy to identify with as possible,” Harmel said.
We asked Harmel if she could be a character (her own or another), who would it be? Her answer was Ernest Hemingway in a Moveable Feast, which is a memoir of his life in Paris in the 1920s.
“I've always had a great passion for Paris—and for Hemingway's writing—and I think it would have been glorious to see Paris through his eyes during that time period, before World War II changed the city forever.”
Kristin Harmel is an international best-selling novelist whose books have been translated into numerous languages and are sold all over the world. A former reporter for People magazine, Kristin has also freelanced for many other publications, including American Baby, Men’s Health, Glamour, Woman’s Day, Travel + Leisure, and more.
Her latest novels—The Sweetness of Forgetting, The Life Intended, How to Save a Life, and When We Meet Again—are out now from Gallery Books, a division of Simon & Schuster. Kristin lives in Orlando, Fla., with her husband and son.