Check out this new author profile on Kathleen Jones, author of Love Is the Punch Line, on author Christopher D. Schmitz’s blog, Inside the Inkwell:

 

Author Feature: Kathleen Jones

Posted on February 22, 2019 by authorchristopherdschmitz

 

https://authorchristopherdschmitz.wordpress.com/2019/02/22/author-feature-kathleen-jones/#more-4507

 

A graduate of the University of Toronto and Ryerson University’s Certificate in Publishing Program, Kathleen Jones toughed it out in the corporate world for over thirty (long) years, chiefly as an editor for various Canadian book publishers. Some of the time, she had the opportunity to do the type of work that she enjoyed . . . but too all often, she didn’t. Towards the end of her corporate career, the type of work that interested and challenged Kathleen began to slip away, and she became less and less happy.

Then one day, Kathleen realized something: creative, out-of-the box thinkers like her didn’t belong in the corporate world, and if she wanted “meaningful” work, she’d have to create it for herself.

That was when Kathleen decided to pursue the only work that she’d ever really wanted to do since she was a child: the work of a novelist!

 

Tell us about your stories:

I published my first novel, “Love Is the Punch Line,” with Moonshine Cove in April 2018. The novel is a quirky, funny, and somewhat serious midlife romance set in the world of standup comedy. I am currently working on a second novel.

 

What kind of success have you had?

Against great odds, I was able to sell my first novel to a publisher. Once the novel was published, it received a number of 5-star reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. Also, a number of middle-aged readers were happy to find a romance novel featuring characters their own age; far too many romance novels are based around young, beautiful, and rich people.

Are your characters pure fiction or based on something/someone.

Some of my characters are loosely based on real people. However, I usually base them on more than one real person.

 

Give us an insight into a time you wrote a scene with feeling.

Josh Steinberg, a plump, balding, and middle-aged male standup comedian who has been unlucky in love, spies Holly Brannigan, an attractive middle-aged woman, while performing his act in a comedy club. When Holly’s cell phone accidentally rings, Josh confronts her, and Holly, who’s also attracted to Josh, becomes upset and throws a glass of water into his face. Holly retreats to the washroom to cry, but when she emerges, Josh is waiting for her. He apologizes for getting angry, she invites him out for a drink, then she takes him home with her . . .

 

Final Thoughts?

This novel appeals to a much broader audience than the traditional audience for romance novels: the characters are realistic and complex, and the book has both strong male and female characters. In other words, it doesn’t fit neatly into the romance genre, or into any one genre.