Welcome Khloe!
You write paranormal romance & romantic suspense. What attracted you to these genres?
I've always leaned toward reading both paranormal and suspense/mystery type books, so when I started writing it was natural to go in that direction. I was in my early teens when I discovered Point Fiction, and once I'd read all my rural school's library had of those, moved onto Stephen King. I liked how evil always lost in the end in books, and I was a pretty lonely kid and teen, the romance in romantic suspense always seemed to be the protective, all in type of love, and that was something my younger self craved.
Also, as an adult reader/author, I really do believe the HEA is that much sweeter when they've had to "earn" it, so to speak, with by surviving some trouble!
Why do you think MC romances are so popular?
In part, I believe it's the forbidden nature of it. Being the "old lady" to a biker feels so taboo to anyone who is not involved in that world. However, at least for me, the biggest draw is that evil always loses. The bad guys always get what's coming to them. And bikers are limited by the law. The worse the crime, the worse the torture before death.
No matter how dark and twisty the story gets, in the end, love wins. The men, and women are all in for those they care about, and "ride or die" is real. That all in, all consuming love that will have a man, or woman, doing everything they can to keep the love of their life safe and protected. It's the fantasy of that, when in reality, much like most paranormal readers don't actually want to meet, let along hook up with a vampire or shifter, most of us more independent, alpha type women would no doubt go nuts within minutes of having all the rules and protections around us. It would mostly likely feel more like being suffocated rather then love. But in the pages of a book, we can get lost in the fantasy of letting the big strong alpha male come in and save the day without having to let go of any of our hard won independence. Although, in basically all my books, my ladies do often save themselves, at least in part, but the men do come in handy! ;)
I believe every woman, no matter how independant, somewhere deep inside has a fantasy of being taken care of. MC romance, more often than not, takes that to the extreme, so readers who are looking for it, know they'll get it within the genre.
Are you a plotter? Panster? Or somewhere in-between?
When I first started writing 14 years ago, I was 100% a pantser. But over the years, I've had to start plotting more. I laughingly call myself a "Planster". I never plot the whole story out, but generally plot maybe 1/3 of a book at a time before writing it, as it often goes off track and it's a waste to plan more than that. Also, I have discovered if I plan the end of a book my muse thinks we're done and wants to move on. I have a few books that I was so excited to write, but plotted them out too much and now can't get them fleshed out because my ADHD muse has moved on now she knows the ending.
What is your favourite part of the writing process?
Hmm. Hard question! Each part has it's good and bad parts. I absolutely love researching things, I'm AuDHD and my autism is all over researching anything and everything. As far as the actual writing part, I love once a story starts flowing. The characters are doing their thing, and I can hyperfocus and just let my fingers fly as I follow them along. It doesn't happen often enough these days, but I'm working on getting back to having it happen more often.
What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
Be brave. Dream big. Be kind to yourself.
Surround yourself with supportive friends and family, don't let the negative ones drag you down. You can achieve your dreams, your passion will shine through. Unless you allow others' negativity to drag you down and stop you from trying. I had one person close to me who I knew would be negative. I made the very difficult choice to not tell them I was writing a book until after it was done and under contract. By that point, I could handle the negativity because I had outside proof they were wrong.
How do you fill the creative well?
It turns out I'm very good at dipping into my creative well, but not so great at refilling it. I'm currently doing "The Artist's Way" with a few writer friends, and have discovered that doing some art just for arts sake has been really filling my well. I was a teenager the last time I just painted or drew for the hell of it, and doing it now once a week as an "artist date" as The Artist's Way suggests, has really helped my creativity bloom.
Another way is attending events and retreats, although those are a bit of a double edged blade because while they can recharge, they can also drain your well dry.
What is next for you?
I've been battling mental health issues, and some phycial ones for a number of years now, and my writing has suffered so much as a result. What's next for me is working on returning my writing mojo and getting back into authoring. 2026 brings with it the 10 year anniversary of the first book in my Charon MC series, so I intend to make a big deal out of that. Part of which, hopefully, will be a number of new books in the series releasing this year. I know many of my readers, including my daughter, are hanging out for Sparrow and Jazz to get their act together.
What is your next release and your inspiration behind it?
My next release is something different for me. I've been invited to write in the Littles of Rawhide Ranch world. My first book, Captivating Little Calla will release early March and I'm excited for it. While I have written a few books with some kink, I've not written Daddy Dom/Little Girl romance before. The heroine, Calla is non verbal Autistic, which has been so wonderful to write after my and my youngest's recent diagnosis (although, both of us are chatterboxes!). The hero of the story is Dr Eric Maestro, who my readers may recall from Forging Blade in the Charon MC series, as the doctor who treated Blade's burns in an L.A. hospital before being taken and tortured for it. Writing his redeeming story has been wonderful, as he was a total ass prior to his kidnapping.
Khloe Wren
USA Today bestselling author, Khloe Wren, lives in rural South Australia with her husband, two daughters and an ever-changing list of animals! She started writing in 2012 and has published over 50 romantic suspense books since then. She writes both paranormal and contemporary stories, including her best-selling series The Charon MC. Khloe loves to lean into her AuDHD, following her muse down research rabbit holes to bring diverse characters and storylines to life.
Find Khloe at: khloewren.com
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