Unpublished Women’s Fiction
Mischief Makers
Kimberlee Esselstrom
At the 2017 Royal Palm Literary Award Banquet, author Kimberlee Esselstrom won First Place for her unpublished women’s fiction, Mischief Makers. Each year at the RPLA Banquet, authors experience the joy of earning accolades for all the hard work that is often done in the privacy of the home with little to no recognition. We’re showcasing the best of the best with our First Place winners spotlight. Not only does RPLA recognize extraordinary talent, but we’re giving readers an opportunity to sample excerpts from the winning stories.
Mischief Makers. Tom and Ruth long for an empty nest but their chicks have flown back home. They enlist their friends, the Mischief Makers, to cook up a feather-brained scheme.
Kimberlee Esselstrom’s eclectic works have been published in the Christian Science Monitor, Highlights, Knowonder! Mom Writers Literary Magazine, KU Center for Testing & Evaluation, FWA Collection, and many others
Click here to read an excerpt from Mischief Makers.
An interview with the author:
Q. Where do you get your story ideas?
Mischief Makers grew from a conversation with my critique group. We all knew of adult children who treated the family home like a revolving door. I’m also inspired by travel. People who sit next to me on the airplane are likely to play a starring role in my next story.
Q. Anything in particular about your award-winning RPLA entry that you’d like to share?
In Mischief Makers I quoted a local kindergartener. The boy made his mom take a photo of page 162 because now he was famous! Ha. Even non-writers love to see their own words in print.
Q. Who do you credit with inspiring your writing?
My mom and Pippi Longstockings. (Okay, Astrid Lindgren, the author.) Mom allowed me to fill my head with the likes of rebellious little Pippi as long as I was reading. She emptied a closet under the stairs and gave me a desk and chair—my first writing studio. I wrote a three-page novel, something about a monkey.
Q. Any tips for new writers?
Read books, newspapers, even your cereal box! Listen to every sound and everyone around you. Take classes, attend conferences, and learn about the craft of writing. But start writing now! You can only improve your writing by writing. A critique group will be the key to polishing your work and getting it into the hands of your adoring fans! Yes, they are out there.
Kimberlee’s webpage: www.kimberleeesseltrom.com
