An Interview with Karen Tartaglia

For years, I had a dream. I wanted to write a book. Stories swam around my mind heading in no particular direction. Then one Christmas season, our elves came to visit. A little story began to brew in my mind and grew throughout the month. Then another lockdown hit us. This time, in January, I decided to tell the tale to my daughter Kayla on one of our frosty January walks. I went home and jotted down what I thought would be a simple eleven-chapter story. When lockdown ended, this dream was put to one side but remained in both my heart and my mind.

Life continued on in the way it often does. Then the moment I had been waiting for but dreaded happened. Whilst preparing to undergo treatment for lymphoma in December 2023, I transformed nine nights of uncertainty into purpose, finally putting pen to paper on the story that had been living rent-free in my mind for ages. I spent the next six months writing on my good days and resting on my bad ones. Reading it to my daughter as I wrote, it was an attempt to keep both our spirits up.

Born in Reading, England, and raised across four American states before returning home, I bring an international perspective to my storytelling. My professional life has been devoted to children’s education, holding a degree in early years and education and spending a decade as a learning Support assistant in a local school.

Now in remission and determined to turn my experience into something positive, I write from my home in England, surrounded by the family who inspired my journey from dreamer to published author. I believe in the power of stories to heal, distract, and bring joy — lessons learned first-hand during one of my most challenging chapters. This is my first novel.

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What inspired you to start writing this book?

When my daughter was eight, I became ill. Without going into too much detail, over the course of twenty months, I went through five biopsies in three hospitals under four consultants. To make matters worse, this all occurred between September 2019 and May 2021. I do believe the lockdown inhibited getting answers sooner. You simply cannot tell your eight-year-old that every doctor you see tells you that you have some form of lymphoma but they just cannot tell you which kind because every biopsy they do comes up with no answers. That is, until they insist that you don’t have lymphoma, you have something else, again not being able to prove it. What you can do is distract her. Her favourite part of Christmas was always the elves. They would promptly arrive on December 1 and then give her a month of joy and little surprises. I couldn’t give her the truth, but I could give her a story. I could extend the fun. In January, the elves had gone and another lockdown was in place. We were no closer to answers after my fourth biopsy than we were after my first.

In a bid to cheer her up after another day of horrible home-schooling (she hated it, can’t say I enjoyed it much myself, trying to juggle the work I needed to do for my kids at school alongside hers) we went on a walk. I can still feel the way the slight scattering of frozen snow cracked under my boots as I told her I had a story about an elf who I had named Kayla. I can still see her jumping up and down as we walked through the woods near our house, asking me to tell her the story. As I began to tell her the tale, she had her own little thoughts and spins to put on it. Many of which I added to it. I went home, jotted down what we had talked about. We continued to talk about the story in the coming weeks. I got two and a half chapters into writing when lockdown ended, and the busyness of life returned.

Tell us the story of your book’s current title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

I don’t actually remember coming up with the title for this book. As it was about an elf named Kayla and she went on a lot of adventures the title just seemed to fall into place. I think I was planning to change it to something else, but it seemed to describe it so well that I just left it.

Describe your dream book cover.

I dreamt it and it became a reality. The book is now ready for publication and I think the part I found most fun was describing to the illustrator exactly what I wanted. He got it spot on. I like pictures to look almost real to life. He got Kayla to a T. From her long plaits, right down to the gold buckle on her dress. He also drew Annalee and Max’s characters exactly as I wanted them. The cover gives a hint to part of the story and when reading, it will become very clear where the children are, which may be a little surprise to the reader. On the back cover there is a picture with Kayla and her family. I really love this, as I managed to slightly combine my little family into that portrait. Again, there is a hint in the story from this picture, and once the reader gets to that part of the book, the picture on the back will become clearer.

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree has to top the list, followed by every Christmas song know to elf.

What books are you reading (for research or comfort) as you continue the writing process?

I love the Thursday Murder Club books and I’m still working my way through them. The Man Who Died Twice was very poignant to me, as once the title was understood, it put me in mind of my lovely dad. The title also intrigued me, as I wanted to understand it all the way through the book. I had my predictions and they were incorrect until almost the end of the book.

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

I began working with children when I was thirteen and got my first babysitting job. Something these days that would never happen. In fact, I remember having my daughter and thinking I would never leave her alone with a thirteen-year-old. Having said that, her older sister did look after her for very short stints from time to time, never for the length of time I was left with multiple children. Still, back then, things were different. I just worked out that means I have worked with children mostly on, occasionally off, for thirty-nine years. Now I feel very old! I have worked in nurseries, schools, and a children’s centre. In my early twenties, I did work at Marks and Spencer in the catering department. I did enjoy that, and cooking for over 120 people a day became the norm. I often think of the family meals I could prepare if I had the facilities that kitchen had! I was also an estate agent in my early twenties; that did not last very long, as I learned I was a terrible salesperson. I would probably struggle to sell ice lollies on a hot summer’s day. Well, if there were children around, maybe I could do that. I could never stray too far from children. I love their innocence and wonder at anything new. I would say that my greatest achievement in life has been being a mother, a stepmother, and an aunty. One role I created, the other two I was lucky enough to carve out of the situations life gave me. I gave birth to one child, but I often think of six wonderful individuals as ‘my children,’ just some were borrowed. They may not be a profession, as such. However, I see them, now mostly adults, as a great accomplishment. Now I have the pleasure of experiencing a new role: Grandmother to two beautiful granddaughters. I cannot wait to watch them grow and hopefully write stories for them too.

Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

My lifelong love of storytelling began when my mum first suggested I become a writer after hearing my imaginative tales. I can still remember the story I told her. There was a wasp or perhaps a bee that had got hurt. It was crawling around on the decking of our house in Pennsylvania. I said to my mum that I could imagine a little ambulance driving up and fleet of ants hopping out. They had a stretcher and put the wasp on it then drove off. She told me I should write my stories out. At the time, I found writing to be a physically painful experience. The two contributing factors were my hand and my inability to spell. It didn’t stop my imagination. At home, this was fine. At school, it was a different matter. I remember on one occasion the windows were open and I could hear the sweet sound of the birds singing outside. Due to this also being when I was in Pennsylvania, it was most likely a blue jay or a cardinal. I imagined the bird as a blue jay, as they were my favourites. I could see in my mind a bird preparing a nest; he was making a home for him and his future wife. She would have the babies in the nest as he went in search of food. There was probably a lot more detail to the story, but I am remembering an event from when I was around eight years old. The main thing I recall was suddenly becoming very aware that I was not actually in the land of the birds but in Mrs. Lambert’s third grade class. She was a no-nonsense sort of teacher that I spent a year disappointing in almost every way imaginable. Her words had missed my ears completely as the story was neatly unfolding in my mind. With my attention back in class, I remember becoming extremely anxious she would call on me and expect an answer to a question I had failed to hear. Luckily, that time, she didn’t. Nor did she call on me when I got lost in thought about what size knickers she must wear. I was deep in thought, wondering what shop supplied such a size. Had she called on me in that moment I may just have asked her. Once again, becoming aware of my actual surroundings, I was grateful to be left to my thoughts. At this school, in this era, corporal punishment was still a thing.

When it comes to books that have inspired me, I have to go with the classics. I read many of them as a child and couldn’t wait for my daughter to reach an age that I could share them with her. A Little Princess, The Secret Garden, and the Narnia tales all topped my list of must-read books to her. We also shared all of the Anne of Green Gables books as well as the Harry Potter books together. I am a lucky mum, as Kayla was a good sport and let me read to her far longer than I should have. Reading to her, some of my best memories. Writing a story for her, one of my greatest accomplishments. Sharing it with the world, one of my biggest dreams.

Where is your favorite place to write?

I usually write on my sofa. I like the sound of music from the past being played, as I find it both soothing and inspirational. I find I get my best ideas when I am away from it all on holiday. I can let go of the day to day duties of life and get lost in my own imagination.

What advice would you give your past self at the start of your writing journey?

Write when you are inspired. If you have a thought, no matter how little, get it down on paper or you will soon forget. Take a note pad wherever you go. It doesn’t matter if the story is just for you or for the world. Write it anyway. Don’t stress on the days you don’t feel up to it. Those feelings won’t last. You will get better and you will write, so don’t worry. Just enjoy the moments you can. This goes for writing as well as living during treatment. Also, when treatment ends, everything will get better.

What’s one thing you hope sticks with readers after they finish your book?

I want them to take a feeling with them. A warmth and a happiness. I want them to laugh, learn, and enjoy as they read, but I hope the feelings in the book remain with them long after the last page has been read.

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