On Wednesday, September 11, 2024, author Carla Kelly began her presentation at the Oneida County Library with a short biography. She told about the many places she has lived and the many jobs she has held, all of which contributed to answer the question, “Where do you get
your ideas?” 

Carla paid tribute to two high school teachers who encouraged her writing interests. Both were very “tough” teachers who expected the best from their students. Carla admitted to being intimidated when turning in her essays, book reports, and stories to the English teacher. In fact, she thought something had gone terribly wrong when she received a paper back with no red marks on it.  Had the teacher thought it so bad that she didn’t read it?  When Carla timidly approached this teacher, she learned that the teacher thought the story was perfect, and from then on, she encouraged Carla in her writing. Carla was a writer for her high school newspaper and, again, from being unsure of her abilities as a freshman, she became a confident writer because of the encouragement of the teacher.

Carla said she has always written short stories – “too many to count.” With her degree in history from BYU and her background in English, writing stories and books came naturally to her. “I have to write,” she said. Using the first chapter of “Courting Carrie in Wonderland” as an example of her historical fiction, Carla explained how she matches real-life characters with her fictional characters so that the fictional people become more real. When President Theodore Roosevelt was in Yellowstone National Park for a visit, he was asked to dedicate the arch at Gardiner (true). When he was threatened by a drunk, Sergeant Major Ramsey Stiles stepped in front of the President, ready to take a bullet, if necessary (fiction).

Carla noted that she had always wanted to write stories about World War II.  She asked via Facebook for stories about how her readers’ parents met during or just after the War. Two responses became the foundations for her two novellas about World War II. 

Carla has won several awards for her books, including two Western Writers of America Spur Awards for Best Western Short Subject in 1978 and 1981, a Whitney Award for Best Romance Novel in 2011; two Whitney Awards for Best Historical Novels in 2012 and 2014; and two RITA Awards for Best Regency of the Year from the Romance Writers of America in 1995 and 1997.

Several publishing companies have produced Carla’s books, including Harlequin, Camel Press, Cedar Fort, and Signet.

After responding to questions from the attentive audience, Carla autographed books. The Library staff provided refreshments to end the evening.