LUCY BURDETTE: Let’s give a big JRW welcome back to Elise Hart Kipness, who inhabits the same states I do—Connecticut and Key West. (Yes, we claim that rather than Florida.) You can bet that I lobbied to get her involved with the Friends of the Key West Library as soon as I realized she was available! I can’t wait to hear about the origin story of her Kate Green books, and the second in the series, Dangerous Play, which is out next week.
ELISE HART KIPNESS: When I first considered writing a novel, I played around with the idea of writing from a lawyer’s point of view, even though I’m not a lawyer. As a fan of John Grisham and Scott Turrow, it sort of popped into my head. Writing as a lawyer did not go well for me. The effort died a quick death. I tried putting words down but couldn’t conjure up the nuances of the profession. The talks by the water cooler moments, so to speak.
I have great admiration for writers who can close their eyes and imagine a magical world. Or an imaginary world different from anything they’ve experienced. Dragons, aliens, fantastical creatures. It’s a fabulous gift. One I haven’t found. Heck, I couldn’t even conjure up an attorney and I’m married to one.
My next step was to quickly move to writing from the point of view of a reporter. Specifically, a tv sports reporter, as I reported for Fox Sports Network, after years as a news reporter. That decision clicked for me. I knew what it felt like to stand under glaring television lights and chase athletes through the tunnels of Madison Square Garden and Yankee Stadium.
I knew the smell of the news van and the talk around the water cooler.
I like to joke that my main character, Kate Green, is a way cooler version of me. We are both tv sports reporters, but she’s an Olympic Soccer Gold medalist and I’m a soccer mom. She chases murder suspects through the tunnels of Madison Square Garden and Yankee Stadium while I chase my three labradoodles around the yard. Her demons are much darker and more interesting than mine.
For me, there’s also the joy of writing about my past job. I like to close my eyes and return to the world of reporting. A big bonus is I can do that from the comfort of my home (without needing to do my hair and makeup!). I consider that a big win.
Not all of my experiences as a reporter were positive. And I try to incorporate the challenging times into my writing as well. After all, I was one of only a handful of women covering sports, entering locker rooms, and dealing with challenging interpersonal situations. But the experience of writing about those topics proved cathartic for me. And fiction lets me examine issues and stand up to bullies in ways I didn’t on the job.
When you write, do you lean into what you know or what you imagine? Or a combination of both? As readers, do you notice how familiar the writer might be with their characters’ lives?
(Quick note from Elise -- the photo at Shea Stadium is from the 2000 NL Division series between the Mets and San Francisco Giants and the photo of me interviewing Coach Krzyzewski aka Coach K was from the 1999 NCAA tournament.)
About the book: From Amazon bestselling author Elise Hart Kipness comes the next gripping story in the hit Kate Green series. A famous former teammate is found murdered, and the only way to close the case is to open old wounds.
After a tumultuous murder case that almost cost more than her job, sports reporter Kate Green is back on assignment covering women’s Olympic soccer. Between her experience with athletic stardom and days playing with Savannah Baker, head coach of the USA team, Kate is sure to get the story that will reestablish her career. She just didn’t expect that story to involve murder.
BIO: Elise Hart Kipness is a television sports reporter turned crime fiction writer. Like her main character, Elise chased marquee athletes through the tunnels of Madison Square Garden and stood before glaring lights reporting to national audiences for Fox Sports Network.
Now as an author, Elise fused her passion for true crime and sports with the Kate Green series. Her debut novel, Lights Out, is an Amazon bestseller and a Men’s Journal top 10 book of 2023. The second novel in the series, Dangerous Play, comes out September 17, 2024.
