Life & Work with Susan Koehler

Today we’d like to introduce you to Susan Koehler.  

Hi Susan, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
Today, I am a writer who loves to tell stories, but I began as someone who loved to listen to, read, and absorb stories. My parents were great storytellers, and so were many of my relatives from their generation. Of course, they weren’t making up stories. They were passing along family history and family lore. My mother’s stories about growing up in a fiercely independent mountain family with extremely limited resources were particularly captivating. Her youngest brother still lived on the Wilkes County property that had belonged to her family for generations, and he was truly the keeper of the stories. When we’d visit him during summer vacations, it was like being on sacred ground. History was palpable. I drank in the generational tales while walking the paths these people walked, holding artifacts they left behind, seeing the sun rise and set from their perspectives, and feeling the rhythms of their lives. That’s probably why when I got around to writing my first work of fiction, it was inspired by family history. I was a teacher who had already published several professional books for educators and some nonfiction books for kids, but I realized that more than anything, I wanted to tell stories. So far, I have published three works of fiction, and each one has deep ties to North Carolina. While written with young readers in mind, it’s been so gratifying that each book has acquired fans of all ages. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I was a teacher for 36 years, and I’ve been a mom for over 30 years. Both of those occupations require a huge commitment of time, energy, and passion. And I wouldn’t trade those experiences for anything. However, I had to put writing on the back burner for a long time. I journaled, I immersed myself in children’s literature, and I taught and encouraged young authors. But when my 40th birthday was approaching, I realized I needed to get serious about writing and publishing. The first logical step was to write for educators. It’s what I knew and what I breathed each day. As an author of professional materials, I got to travel and meet a lot of teachers around the country at conferences and trainings, but every trip took me away from my family, and it was tricky to schedule because I was teaching every day. I did a lot of professional development work and book promotion during the summers. During that time period, I wrote a short story that won a contest and got published in a collection. It was called “An Unfortunate Encounter,” and it was set in the North Carolina mountains during the Civil War. Writing that story and sharing it with others ignited a passion in me, and I knew I wanted my writing to migrate to fiction. But making that change was difficult. It’s a completely different world, and it took me a lot of years to learn how to navigate it. 

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
At this point, I’ve published three novels for young (and young at heart) readers, and all three are set in North Carolina. Two of my books, Dahlia in Bloom and Charlie’s Song are works of historical fiction loosely based on a time when my mother’s family moved to Forsyth County to live and work as tenant farmers in Rural Hall. That time period gave my mother some of her most treasured memories, and it always fascinated me. Of course, I created characters and fabricated storylines for them, but the authenticity comes from all those real stories, and by molding them into literature, the history of the hardscrabble lives of a particular group of people is preserved. I also wrote a contemporary mystery called Nobody Kills Uncle Buster and Gets Away With It, and that was a lot of fun. A 12-year-old kid becomes his mom’s reluctant sidekick as she travels to a funeral in Ashe County. Once he gets there, he begins to sense that the deceased may not have died of natural causes, and suddenly every quirky character he meets becomes part of his obsessive investigation. I love that book for many reasons, and one of those reasons is the cover art. My stepdaughter, Shelby Koehler, is an artist who lives and works in Raleigh. She created the cover art and even designed her own font for the title and chapter headings. I’m extremely proud to say that our family is wildly creative. My book Charlie’s Song contains an actual song. I wrote the lyrics as part of the book, but I’m not a musician. However, my son-in-law, W. Heath Fowler, is. As a true creative, he was able to tap into the ethos of the book, the simplicity of the young characters, and the musical stylings of the time and place. He recorded “Charlie’s Song,” made it available on multiple streaming outlets, and performed it live at the book launch. I absolutely love it. So, while I’m proud of my work, I’m even more excited about the fact that I can share in the creative process with people I love, and I’m most excited that I have so many ideas and I know so many opportunities lie ahead. 

How do you define success?
For me, success is rooted in what you give. For years, I was investing in my students, and I felt most successful when I had given them everything I could so that they no longer needed me. Parenting is similar, but in family, you never outgrow your need for one another. I love that my kids are smart and creative, and I enjoy being around them and drinking in their energy. They are extremely driven and independent, but they know that if they need me, I’m only a heartbeat away. And if I need them, it’s the same. With writing, success necessarily involves getting recognized. You have to promote your work and find the networks that will connect you to readers. That side of writing is a little daunting for me. However, when I receive a letter from a reader, and what I have written has touched them in some lasting way, I know I am successful. When I go to a school for an author visit, and a teacher sends me feedback about a kid who was inspired to write, I feel successful. For me, creating is living. I hope to continue creating for a very long time, and I’ll know I’m successful each time my work takes root in a reader and cultivates something new and unique. 

Pricing:

• Dahlia in Bloom, 12.99
• Nobody Kills Uncle Buster and Gets Away With It, 14.95
• Charlie’s Song, 14.95

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.susankoehlerwrites.com/
• Instagram: @susankoehlerwrites
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SusanKoehlerWrites/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-koehler-1a3b7a51/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@susankoehler3953

Image Credits
Hillary Koehler