Deborah Klée

I have always told stories, not whoppers, although I expect I told a few of them too in my teenage years, but imaginary tales. First, to my younger brother and then to my daughter. Tell me a story about… they would say, and I’m sure they suggested the craziest things they could think of, but I loved the challenge. In those quiet hours, as I sat at the end of a bed and made up a tale, not knowing where the beginning would lead me, I felt a profound sense of calm and fulfilment. 

Becoming an author was something I dreamed of, but as a girl might dream of becoming a princess––an unobtainable fantasy.

Instead, I enjoyed a fulfilling career in health and social care. When The Borrowed Boy was published in 2020, I took early retirement to focus on writing. I had been the main wage earner for thirty years and it felt like the right time to follow a different path––to make my dream a reality.

Although it seems as though I have one book published each year, it took several years of writing and learning the craft before my first novel was published. It wasn’t the first novel I wrote.

I describe my first four books as ‘Uplifting page-turners about friendship, community and emotional courage.’ They are stand-alone stories.

The Secrets of a Sunken Village series is historical romance spanning WW1 to 1960s. I enjoy the research of historical fiction and might well write more in that genre.

When I am not writing, I host a podcast, The Mindful Writer and a YouTube channel Castaway Books, where I interview other authors.

I am a director of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, a committee member of the Frinton Literary Festival, and a member of several local writing groups. I love being part of a community of writers – local, national, and international.

Community life is important to me – as is living by the sea! I am fortunate to live on the Essex Coast, where I love to walk by the sea or the surrounding countryside. On these walks, I fill my pockets with shells, and acorns, and my head with stories. I hope you enjoy reading them.