Author Kimberly McMillan knows how to write enjoyable, relatable, and heartfelt fiction. Her debut novel, Never Enough Time, launched in early 2023 with Warren Publishing, and readers have used all three adjectives to describe the novel. Other readers praise different attributes. One Goodreads reviewer wrote, “I love stories like [this]—stories that have flawed characters who are forced to make difficult life choices, stories that leave the characters needing redemption and forgiveness, and finally stories where the author gives it to them so graciously.” Another reader shared, “what an ABSOLUTE treat this book was to read!” Sounds like both authors and readers alike can learn a thing or two from Kimberly. She’s waited a long time for her turn in the spotlight, and I’m grateful for her patience!

Welcome, Kimberly!

Christina: Your debut, Never Enough Time, is described as “an emotional coming-of-age story that demonstrates the power and complexity of family relationships.” Where did the idea for the story come from? Did anyone inspire the main character, Marni?

Kimberly: As a mother and an avid reader, I started to notice the types of content filling my Kindle, aware that my almost teenage daughters had access to our joint reading account. I was not reading smut, but it felt like the authors of these stories wanted to shock the reader with unnecessary explicit scenes and vulgar language. It was exhausting. I was not looking for G-rated books because those aren’t authentic, either. I wanted to read emotionally charged stories that I could confidently recommend to others without a warning. Plus, I didn’t want my girls to accidentally read something inappropriate. So, I naively decided to write a story my kids, parents, and friends would enjoy reading. Easy, right? (I’m laughing right now.)

My first step was enrolling in a six-week online creative writing course. This was my litmus test for determining if I truly wanted to write novels. Spoiler—I loved it! Marni’s story bloomed from a weekly writing assignment prompting us to blindside our protagonist. After receiving positive online feedback, my family read my submission and quickly encouraged me to develop it into a book, which became Never Enough Time. Funny enough…the first question my girls asked after reading an early copy of my manuscript was, “What aren’t you telling us?” They were convinced Marni’s story somehow tied into our family history—it does not. However, I have been told by many readers whose families have been impacted by surprise DNA findings that Marni’s story hits very close to home.

There was no specific person or story that inspired Marni. She is purely fictional and took on a life and story of her own. When I started writing my manuscript, my girls were navigating middle school. We had kids in and out of our house and cars constantly. It was chaotic, but so much fun! I watched as my girls and their friends reacted to the drama and people around them. The biggest takeaway I incorporated into my writing was Marni’s perspective and understanding how her emotional and physical reactions correlated to her injustices, both perceived and real. Because this story focuses on three generations of women with deeply complex and delicate layers, I wanted to uncover what bound them together despite their generational gaps. The one thing I found to be true despite a woman’s age, to a measured degree, is our uncertainty. Hidden beneath layers of emotions, needs, wants, dreams, and insecurities, we are all uncertain about something. Whether it’s in our circumstances, appearance, relationships, intelligence, ability, or the great unknown, women fight this invisible monster of not being enough. So, while Marni is a figment of my imagination, she is relatable. We experience her fears, heartache, and uncertainty in a family and world she never knew existed and who might not want her.

Christina: Family relationships are certainly complex. What draws you to writing about them? What lessons have you learned and applied to your own relationships by writing about them? 

Kimberly: I truly love people and am always curious to know everyone’s story. We all have a unique story that shapes and molds us to act and react to the world around us—this always intrigues me. Overcoming hardships, stereotypes, health prognosis, loss—that’s life. Women’s fiction is the epitome of complex relationships because it mirrors real life, real people, and real circumstances. Who hasn’t struggled with some sort of family drama, secret, disappointment, illness, or tragedy? Because we all contend with problems, these stories are incredibly powerful and relatable. At least in fiction, I get to write satisfying endings we want and deserve.

Writing flawed, authentic relationships is cathartic and healing since none of us live perfect lives. But my favorite is flipping the script—righting the wrongs I’ve seen or experienced. In Never Enough Time, I was able to give Marni a relationship I always wanted, but never experienced. Through this story, readers can endure difficult circumstances from a safe distance while experiencing positive character growth. There is hope knowing people can overcome, forgive, heal, and move forward. Life is never easy and notoriously pushes us down paths we never intended. But we get up, dust ourselves off, and keep going. So why write stories about complex family relationships? Because overcoming, whatever it may be, and choosing each other shows strength of character and stamina—it’s a beautiful message to share.

One lesson I learned a long time ago: We don’t know what’s happening behind closed doors. Because if we did, maybe we’d better understand the “whys” and “how comes” that hurt us.

Christina: Never Enough Time also features strong female characters. How important to you is it to write strong females? What do you hope to impart with these characters?

Kimberly: Extremely important. Women, of all ages, are strong in countless ways. We fight, endure, and persevere despite the struggles that life chunks at us—even if we don’t feel like it. That’s both our curse and reality. But sometimes our voices fade into the background as we cave to the demands of our busy lives, families, social media, and every other thing that pulls us in opposite directions. I want women to be confident, seen, valued, and understood by each other and the world around us.

Additionally, I wanted to illuminate the gift of generational vision. We can learn so much from the generations on either side of us if we’ll take the time to listen. I’m constantly learning from my girls, just like they’re learning from their grandparents. Experience and wisdom play a major role in multi-generational perspectives. The older generations understand the weight of regret and have seen how their past decisions have played out. They don’t have time to play games. However, the older generations, like Grumpa in Never Enough Time, are known to be stubborn and stuck in their ways which provides awkward, uncomfortable drama. The younger generations are consumed with the present and instant gratification. Their laser vision is narrowly focused on themselves and their future. Generational drama is like a 3D triangular prism where the sides oppose each other while needing each other for support. Everyone has their own space in this story, but if they want to overcome their past and move forward—they will need each other for bracing.

I’ve seen how strength and wisdom can shape a woman and her family’s story. Sometimes the situations we find ourselves in or advice we need is best received from someone two degrees removed—like a grandmother. I wanted to highlight the built-in support system of the women in our family who offer insight and guidance when we feel lost. Marni, the stepdaughter, and Lauren, the stepmother, learn from each other and the spirited grandmother, Ann. In Never Enough Time, three generations of women learn from themselves, each other, and choose love and family over all other obstacles—a measure of strength.

Christina: Let’s go back to your comment about closed doors. One of the underlying themes in your book surrounds secrets and drama that happens behind closed doors in many families. Why did you decide to expose these secrets?

Kimberly: Because when you’re behind closed doors, in the quiet spaces of your mind, your family, your home…that’s when the real you comes out. You are free to be real with the ones closest to you, including yourself. You can put out any image to craft a reality you want on social media, but those public disguises fall away once you’re behind closed doors. I didn’t want to focus solely on the secrets people and families keep…but on the lies we tell ourselves about ourselves based on misinformation, public opinion, betrayals, and how we value our own self-worth. I wanted to rip off the band-aid that mimics perfection and look closer at the circumstances and people affecting our lives. Secrets—the product of betrayals, poor decision making, unfair twists of fate, and a basic mistrust of the unknown and undesirable—felt real to me. We all know what it’s like to hold a secret so close that it becomes part of you. But what happens when it is surgically cut away? What kind of scars do they leave? Do you have a community that gets you through? How did the secret affect the innocent? These are real questions I wanted to explore through Marni’s story.

 

What’s so fascinating about exposed secrets? They tend to find a way into the light. People will always harbor secrets and families will continue to sweep their unpretty truths under the proverbial rug…all to save face. I wanted to see a southern family deal with the dirt, the pain, the stigma of being imperfect…to ride an emotional rollercoaster that Marni and the Mercer’s never imagined possible. By taking a closer look at personal growth despite heartache and pain, we realize that our responses to situations are the only thing we control.

But what if the secret keeper can’t justify herself because she took her secret to the grave? How do the affected people move forward? I’m not sure. But trying to understand why some people insist that their secret is better unsaid than discovered fascinates me. Are there secrets in my past…I’m sure more than I’ll ever know. But for Marni, writing her story was freeing for me. I got to live in a world where her mom’s secret wasn’t safe anymore, not even beyond the grave.

Christina: Which character is your favorite character and why?

Kimberly: Lauren. I relate more to Lauren. She struggles with the fear of not being enough which resonates with me, and probably most women. I think as moms, wives, women in the workforce, we need to retrain our brains to look at ourselves through a different lens. I remind myself that it’s not how others see me, but how I feel about myself and the choices I make in my life. Like Lauren, I want to be confident that I am more than enough for the people I love most in this world. I never want to disappoint anyone, but I also don’t want to be disappointed.

On the flip side, Lauren loves preparing special food and meals for her family—food is a language of love. I love cooking and baking for my family. It fills my heart to watch their faces light up when they’re excited about a special meal, an old favorite, or a coveted dessert. Lauren and I use our talents in the kitchen to love-on those around us—making people feel special and cared for, and above all—welcome.

Lauren’s heart is fragile, but big. She recognizes that she, Marni, and the whole family are the damaged fallout born from one person’s selfish decision. She fights to focus on the humanity of the situation rather than its inconvenience by choosing family over the perfect future she pictured. I love that she fights for her family…the one she intentionally created and the one she never knew she wanted.

Christina: Many readers like to hear about an author’s journey to publication. Will you share a little bit about yours?

Kimberly: Publishing in this ever-changing industry is never cut-and-dry. When I started writing my manuscript, I had the naïve notion that you write, edit, edit some more, and publish. If the writing was solid and the story was engaging, landing an agent shouldn’t be so hard. Right? Wrong. It took about a year to write my book, then another year to self-edit—which was much harder than expected. Apparently, some of the English rules I learned decades ago have changed—imagine my surprise. Then, I printed out twelve copies of my book and handed them to trusted beta readers. I asked these readers to read for content, flow, and story enjoyment. My goal was to decide if I should pursue an editor or stopping wasting my time.

With their positive feedback and encouragement, I combed through acknowledgments of favorite authors in my genre and recorded the names of their editors. After contacting multiple editors for freelance editorial work, I received three positive responses. Then I interviewed the editors and offered Karli Jackson, editor for Lauren K. Denton and formerly with Harper Collins, the job. Her phenomenal editing eye not only improved my novel, but also educated me on the editing processes and industry standards. She talked me through the different avenues of publishing: self-publishing, hybrid publishing, and traditional publishing. The catch with the traditional route is being agented, which is still on my to-do list. I sent query letters and polished manuscript chapters to countless agents, unsuccessfully. My first rejection letter thrilled me. I remember calling my family and friends to let them know I was in the club because don’t all successful authors get rejected at first?  But that initial excitement didn’t last long.

Karli encouraged me to investigate selective hybrid publishers. There’s a fine line between a hybrid publisher that only wants your money and one that really believes in you, your career, and your book. Thankfully, Warren Publishing is highly selective—accepting up to twenty percent of their annual submissions. Because they are so discerning in their representation, they pour all their resources and amazing people into each project. I spent a year with Warren’s team, their editors and marketing team, preparing for my successful debut launch.

How do you launch a debut into the world and onto bookshelves with no set guidelines? It felt overwhelming until Warren’s marketing team created a plan of action, PR materials, sell sheets for bookstores, and offered hours of industry-specific marketing expertise. They assisted me in setting up book events throughout the south. Although, for any author just getting started, marketing yourself is really your job. You must be willing to make cold calls and step inside new bookstores to form relationships with book buyers and future readers. Since I do not have a publicist, I diligently contacted bookstores around Texas and throughout the south and southwest with great success.

Warren continues to maintain a personable and engaging relationship with me as I promote my debut and work on my next manuscript. I’m so thankful they believed in me and my book. They made my dream a reality! I can’t find the words to explain what it means to see your book on a fiction bookshelf, highlighted on bookstagrammer’s social media posts, or reviewed on multiple reading platforms. I love talking about books and hearing what people are reading. Of course, I want everyone to read my book, but most importantly, I want people to read!

Christina: You studied broadcast journalism at the University of Texas at Austin. How did that background help in writing this novel? What other life experiences did you bring into writing the book?

Kimberly: In journalism, you ask hard, uncomfortable questions intended to uncover a story. You dig, search, and interview knowledgeable people hoping to reveal hidden truths and facts. Writing a fictionalized story is not so different. In bringing this story to life, I dug to find the right story angle, searched out my character’s motives and stakes, and diligently pursued the story. Thankfully, though, writing fiction is a creative endeavor that focuses on character development, dialogue, emotions, and the citing event—not hard, cold facts.

I have always been a collector of stories…without trying. Ask my husband, he’ll tell you that strangers consistently approach me in public, telling me whatever is on their mind—from troubles to triumphs. I love these snippet conversations with strangers. They are never dull!

After writing this book, I decided to add a prologue and epilogue that proved to be therapeutic for me. Grumpa’s volatile relationship with 14-year-old Marni was very personal. For decades, I harbored pain and guilt over my grandparents’ rejection. We lived in the same city but were never close. When Warren Publishing took on my book, my grandfather was at the end of his life. I knew nothing would change between us—it was too late. Since I couldn’t change my past, I decided to give Marni the ending I would have loved. I needed to see family choose each other instead of prioritizing their own agendas, prejudices, and pride. I corrected my story’s ending through Marni. And, yes, there were lots of tears as I wrote those pages. But what a gift, experiencing a grandfather’s love and acceptance through Marni.

So why the title? Do we ever have enough time to make everything right or check all the boxes? Absolutely not, but that is not the message. Time is never a guarantee; it’s a gift. When it’s all said and done, time will run out. If you’re lucky, you will measure the time you were gifted against the memories you made with the people you love. Marni’s realization that there’s “never enough time” doesn’t signal a personal regret. She is blessed knowing the people she cherishes the most love her equally, if not more. It might not have been enough time for Marni, but it was enough time for her to know, without a doubt, that she was loved. Is there a more beautiful gift to give someone?

Christina: You’re an accomplished photographer. Does photography scratch the same creative itch as writing? Do you feel like one fulfills you more than the other, or is the fulfillment just different?

Kimberly: Both creative avenues tell stories in different ways. For me, photography is an outlet I use to capture the beauty around me while documenting my family’s lives and memories. I always love taking pictures, but I’m pretty bossy behind the lens which is why I don’t shoot anyone outside of family. My sweet spot is nature, architecture, and interesting perspectives—playing with angles, light, and focal points. Unlike writing, digital photography promises instant creative gratification.

But writing calls to me at all hours of the day—while I’m in the shower, my car, with friends, cooking, or whatever—my brain is always thinking up the next scene or story. For me, writing is a necessary brain release that fully satisfies my creative itch because these stories need to come out. Even though a picture is worth a thousand words, the picture will never relay the full story. As a reader and author, I crave story details, raw emotion, dialogue, and character journeys. Writing is the craft I continue to sharpen, but storytelling makes my heart happy.

Christina: I love asking about pets, and you have a dog. Tell us a bit about him and why he is so spoiled. Is the dog a good officemate?

Kimberly: Our black, standard poodle, Louis, is named after King Louis XIV because he is treated like royalty. What other dog has his own chair? If you come into our living room, the old leather chair in the corner is where Louis lounges, scanning the backyard for squirrels and lizards. We start our day together, walking the neighborhood and greeting all the neighbors—he is very personable. Louis is glued to my side throughout the day, especially in the kitchen. He prefers lying in front of my desk while I work. But when he thinks we both need a break, his long nose nudges my elbow, insisting I pay attention to him. At night, this seventy-pound boy becomes dead-weight between me and my husband in bed, obviously uneasy to be himself. Basically, he’s spoiled and has no idea he’s a dog, even though I do remind him.

Some Louis-isms: 1) He lifts his paws to be wiped clean when coming inside the house. 2) When I’m putting on my socks, he stands in the bathroom and howl-talks to me, encouraging me to hurry up for our walks. 3) His favorite treats are mini marshmallows, bacon, and eggs—not all at once. 4) His nose twitches to one side when he’s thinking about whatever is being said to him. 5) Louis cuddles and gives standing hugs whenever asked. 6) He is terrified of American Girl dolls. 7) He isn’t shy about placing both paws on anyone’s lap, begging to be petted …but don’t think he’ll let you stop until he’s ready.

Christina: Your Instagram description says you love “authentic Mexican food.” I’m right there with you! What are some of your favorite dishes? Do you enjoy cooking the dishes too? Any other food preferences?

Kimberly: I absolutely love street tacos. My mouth is watering just thinking about tacos, guacamole, brisket queso, and homemade salsa. In my experience, the best way to gage any Mexican restaurant is by their chips and salsa—chips must be crispy and salty, and salsa must be fresh with the perfect texture that allows it to be scooped. Big chain restaurants offer a guaranteed meal, but they’re not authentic. I prefer the small taquerias, serving local flavor with homemade touches. My go-to taco order is barbacoa and carne guisada with all the fixings!

Because we love eating Tex-Mexican, I probably prepare some type of tacos at least once a week. Some favorite tacos in my repertoire include brisket, pulled pork, carne guisada, and veggie—roasted sweet potato, black beans, and feta (A-May-Zhing)! The best part about cooking Mexican food is the leftovers. Add the leftover meat, salsa, avocado, and cheese into a breakfast taco with eggs—there’s no better way to start a day! My homemade salsa made with fresh cilantro and jalapenos can be served both warm or cold—another family favorite!  And, never forget the avocados! There’s always a reason to make fresh guacamole…snacks, sandwiches, and sides.

From the beginning of our marriage, my husband and I have always instituted family dinners, whenever possible. Of course, with kids and their ever-demanding schedules, these dinners were hard to maintain. But we did our best, turning off the television, putting phones away, and talking to each other. It was always a favorite time of day for me—bonding, laughing, and sharing over a meal. So, yes, I’ve always cooked… almost every night. Being empty-nesters now, the meals my husband and I share are now smaller and simpler. But what do I cook besides Tex-Mex? We love Asian inspired dishes, Mediterranean foods, soups and salads, southern comfort food, Italian cuisine, and backyard grilling. I’ll try anything, but I rarely follow a recipe.

Christina: What’s next for you?

Kimberly: I’m actively writing my second novel, which is unrelated to Never Enough Time. I’m on my third draft and hope to be sending it to beta readers and interested parties early this fall. It’s a romantic drama set in Waco, Texas. Follow me on Instagram and Facebook for more information!

Kimberly can be found in multiple places!
Website: https://kimberlymcmillan.com/
Goodreads: @kimberly-mcmillan
Instagram: @kimberlymcmillanauthor
Facebook: @KimberlyMcMillanAuthor

Thanks to Kimberly for agreeing to this interview! If you know of an author or artist who’d like to be featured in an interview (or you would like to be featured), feel free to leave a comment or email me via my contact page.