203: Adele Holmes - Author of Winter's Reckoning

This week’s guest is Adele Holmes (Winter’s Reckoning, She Writes Press, August 2022). We discuss the complexity of not only writing three-POVs of different age groups and gender in her debut novel but also setting it in a tumultuous time period (the rural south of 1917 America) when the KKK was resurging and both women’s rights, civil rights, and secondary education were under attack. A former pediatrician, Adele shares how her creative well had become depleted, how more experienced writers shared not only their advice but also their audience with her, and how marketing remains her least favorite part of the writing journey. Adele Holmes graduated from medical school in 1993. After twenty-plus years in private practice pediatrics, her unquenchable desire to wander the world, write, and give back to the community led her to retire from medicine. Her fun-loving family includes a rollicking crew of her husband Chris, two adult children and their spouses, five grandchildren of diverse ages and talents, a horse, and a Bernedoodle. Winter’s Reckoning, Adele’s debut novel, won Honorable Mention in the 2021 William Faulkner Literary Competition and first place in the 2021 Chanticleer International Book Award-Goethe Award. Kirkus Reviews called it “A notable tale that offers the hope that even small actions can lead toward greater good.” She is currently at work on her second novel in her resident town of Little Rock, Arkansas. To learn more about Adele, click here.