Welcome back to another episode of great writing advice on the CRAFT OF WRITING blog. This year we’re focusing on Genres. We’ll be looking at approaches to writing thrillers, mysteries, romances, and more. Each month I interview an accomplished author who writes in a particular genre, so get ready to learn from the experts!

Today’s guest is the accomplished and prolific author Kelly Irvin who gives us insight into the craft of writing women’s fiction. Kelly has published more than thirty novels in the Amish, Romantic Suspense, and Women’s Fiction genres. Her latest novel, The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos is pictured below. Click the image to go to the Amazon page.

 

The Craft of Writing Women's Fiction with Kelly Irvin Share on X

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Many thanks to my good friend and master craftsman Dr. Steve Hooley who has provided me with another unique and fabulous “Wilbur and Orville 1903” propeller pen. Hand crafted by Steve, the pen is made from Ash, one of the woods the Wright brothers used to build their first aircraft. The market value of this beautiful creation is around $80.00.

The name of each person who enters a comment will be put into the drawing for the pen. So join the conversation and earn a chance to win. I’ll post the name of the winner after 9 PM Central Time tonight. (Previous 2025 winners are not eligible to win.)

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Welcome, Kelly, and thank you for being on the Craft of Writing blog!

 

What is your definition of women’s fiction? Does it mean it’s written by a woman author? About women? Or for women?

The definition of women’s fiction has been the topic of much debate, some of it heated. Some authors will hotly deny they write women’s fiction—even if it fits the definition. That may be because some critics want to draw a straight line from chick lit and beach reads to the genre. Some want to call it other names such as family fiction or relationship fiction. I can only share what my definition of the genre is. Women’s fiction is a story about an emotional journey of the protagonist. It can be written by a man or a woman, it can share elements of other genres, but the primary focus is on an emotional journey that somehow changes your character’s worldview in a dramatic way.

How are women’s fiction books different from other forms of fiction, especially the romance genre?

There may be romance in women’s fiction, but that romance serves the emotional journey, rather than the other way around. Women’s fiction doesn’t guarantee the happily-ever-after that is required in the romance formula. You can have multiple protagonists, dual timelines, historical settings, sci-fi, really any genre as long as the focus is on the character’s story arc and how she is changed by her experiences.

In your opinion, what’s the most important aspect of a women’s fiction book?

For me, it’s being able to see how the events throughout the journey shaped the character into who she becomes and how she’s better for it. The events can be devastating, usually they are, but she arrives at an understanding of why she had to traverse that journey. She’s stronger and braver and tougher and more compassionate. At least that’s what I like to see in the women’s fiction I read. She doesn’t need a man for that transformation, but if there’s one along the way, that’s a nice perk.

Why did you decide to write in the women’s fiction genre?

I wrote more than 25 Amish romances and 5 romantic suspense novels for a publishing house, each edited by the same phenomenal editor. My Amish stories weren’t the typical sweet romances readers in that genre expect. They always had a bigger issue, whether it was overcome disability, the inability to forgive, domestic violence, postpartum depression, loss of a spouse, etc. My editor mentioned a number of times that she believed I was a women’s fiction writer at heart. When they decided to phase out Amish romances and my romantic suspense novels didn’t sell as well as they’d hoped, she suggested I use the opportunity to write a women’s fiction novel. I jumped at the chance. I chose to write a story close to my heart—how a cancer diagnosis impacts on marriages and family relationships. As a woman living with metastatic ovarian cancer for nine years, I had done all the “research” already. The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos is a book of my heart that proved itself in resonating with readers with similar experiences in some form or fashion. Considering the cancer statistics, just about every reader has either experienced cancer herself or has a family member who has. Being the daughter, sister, mother, friend, and grandmother of a family member makes this a story that can hit close to home.

Can you give us a brief outline of the process—from concept to completion—that you use to write your books?

I’m an organic writer, that is to say I don’t outline or write character sketches. I don’t do synopses (in advance). It’s hard to explain. With the Amish romances, I read a newspaper called The Budget that printed little blurbs from Amish scribes living in communities across the country. Little snippets catch my eye and fire up my imagination. A wildfire that affected an Amish community in Montana because a novel about a family that lost its home to the fire and how it affected their relationships. A blurb listing statistics such as births, deaths, and number of widows in a Missouri community became a four-book series about four widows, each in a different season in their lives. Romantic suspense novels often come from reading about crime in the newspaper. From there I imagine the story. I know who my protagonist is, I know what problem she faces, and I know who her love interest is going to be and what his challenge is (in the romance genre).

For women’s fiction, the books have come out of my own experiences, but are not autobiographical. The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos, features an oncologist who’s neglected her marriage and her two daughters because of her career. Then her sister is diagnosed with ovarian cancer and the oncologist jumps off the career fast track to walk through the treatment with her sister. This leads to trying to mend emotional wounds from their childhood, dealing with their father abandoning them and their mother dying of breast cancer. I knew what the conflicts were in their emotional journey, but I had to write the story to figure out how they would deal with them. Even I didn’t know how the cancer journey would end until I wrote the story. I’m often amazed by the turns the stories take. That’s the magic of it—the joy of it. I write it all in a messy first draft. Then I begin the revising and editing process, which will be intensive because I don’t outline. I may need to add and subtract to deal with threads that don’t get tied up. It’s a crazy process, but it works for me and allows my imagination to have full rein.

What advice would you give an author who decides to write a women’s fiction novel?

Pick a topic that is important to you. Be willing to dig deep. Don’t cheat the reader by taking the easy way out. Not all women’s fiction stories are like The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos. Some are light and breezy. Just not the ones I enjoy reading. Lol. Be sure this is the genre for you. I recommend joining the Women’s Fiction Writers Association if you’re serious about the genre. They have lots of webinars, workshops, and retreats that help writers develop their craft in this genre.

Besides your own novels, what women’s fiction books would you recommend?

Both authors would deny they write women’s fiction, but Kristin Hannah and Jodi Picoult’s books meet my definition of the genre. Kristen Hannah writes some amazing novels such as The Women, The Great Alone, and Firefly Lane. Jodi Picoult’s House Rules, Leaving Time, The Storyteller, and Songs of the Humpback Whale are a few examples. I think several of Charles Martin’s books qualify as women’s fiction, Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, most books by Liane Moriarty (Like Her Husband’s Secret and Big Little Lies.) Sorry! Get me started about books recommendations and I could go on all day!

Are you working on a book now?

I just finished the first messy draft of a women’s fiction novel with the working title of Bouquet of Thorns. It’s about the far-reaching intergenerational repercussions of family violence. I have personal experience with the issue. It’s a story I’ve been waiting most of my life to write. My agent plans to start pitching it in May so fingers-crossed we find a publishing home for it.

Where can we find out more about you and your writing?

My website is www.kellyirvin.com. You’ll find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/Kelly.Irvin.Author), Instagram (@Kelly_irvin), and X (@kelly_S_Irvin)

Thanks, Kelly, for being with us today.

Thanks for having me!

The Craft of Writing Women's Fiction with Kelly Irvin Share on X

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Meet Kelly Irvin

 

Award-winning author Kelly Irvin has published more than thirty novels and a dozen novellas in Amish romance, romantic suspense, and women’s fiction genres. Irvin explores themes of family, forgiveness, trust, love, and faith. A former journalist and public relations professional, she now writes fiction full-time. Having lived with ovarian cancer for nine years, she also writes blogs advocating for new cancer treatments and research. She and her husband reside in Texas. They’re the parents of two children and grandparents to four grandchildren. In Irvin’s spare time, she loves to read, write poetry, and play with her grandchildren.

 

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IT’S HERE!

Another Side of Sunshine

 

A Middle Grade Mystery featuring those two irrepressible detectives, spunky 10-year-old Reen and her shy 9-year-old cousin Joanie.

“The story excels at honoring the emotional realities of childhood without veering into sentimentality. It’s a smart, well-constructed mystery that values relationships over rivalry, process over prizes, and growth over glory.” —Prairie Book Reviews

Join the launch team for Another Side of Sunshine! Post just once about the book to social media, and you’ll be entered in a drawing for a $25 Amazon gift card. Contact Kay through the contact form on her website for details.

Click the image to go to the Amazon book page.