Interview with Elle E Kay 2026

I’m excited to welcome Elle E Kay as our Featured Author this week! Elle released Midnight Masquerade, the second book in her Toxic Truths series, in November. I enjoyed this book immensely—it kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end—and have lots of questions about the story and Elle’s writing process, so let’s dive in.

Midnight Masquerade blends mystery, suspense, and high-stakes adventure with a compelling romance. What do you most hope readers experience when they step into this story?

I hope they are drawn into the mystery and the thrill of the chase right along with the hero and heroine and that they can empathize with the characters’ struggles as they work to save the victims. I want them to have a sense of satisfaction at the end of the story that even though everything may not tie up in a neat bow, the reader was able to experience a victory along with the protagonists.

Lisa Harper, your female protagonist, carries deep trauma that led her to walk away from the Christian faith. As a woman of strong faith yourself, was it difficult to write from that perspective? How did you approach portraying her spiritual struggle authentically?

I’ve experienced similar church hurt where someone didn’t keep a confidence shared in a prayer meeting, so I was able to reach into my own experiences to help shape hers. While my faith was more grounded when this happened, I tried to put myself in the position of a babe in Christ as I wrote about Lisa’s struggle. I hope her journey conveys the forgiveness and healing that needs to happen for Lisa to put this pain behind her and draw near to Christ once more.

Midnight Masquerade features CIA, HSI (Homeland Security Investigations), and Navy SEAL operatives working both in the United States and abroad. The level of detail feels incredibly realistic. What does your research process look like? Do you complete most of it before drafting, or do you research as you write?

I research while I write. I try to get the basics down, but when specific details need to be found I hunt down the answers as I go. For example, as I was writing Midnight Masquerade, I had a completely different idea of what the area of Turkey where my main male character was located actually looked like, and that caused me a huge rewriting headache I could’ve avoided altogether if I’d followed my initial instincts and researched when it came up instead of trusting my gut. I understand the general advice to avoid getting into the research weeds while you’re writing, but sometimes it can save a lot of hassle down the road.

You’ve written contemporary romance, historical romance, and romantic suspense. Which genre feels most natural to you, and which presents the greatest challenge?

Romantic suspense and romantic thrillers are the most natural, but the vast majority of my books contain some suspense even the contemporary and historical romance novels.

Historical was the most challenging. I felt like I needed to do months of research before writing a single word. Historical readers want facts to be accurate, so seemingly simple things such as what the inside of a train looked like, what towns they stopped in, what timetables they kept need to be researched in depth. Then there are questions like when did it become commonplace for women to wear white for weddings? Or for mistletoe to be used in Christmas decorations? There are so many tiny details one must get right when writing for an audience who values historical authenticity.

Your stories place characters in situations where faith is tested under intense pressure. How do you weave spiritual growth organically into a fast-paced suspense plot without slowing momentum?

I don’t think I could write without expressing the faith of my characters. It’s as natural as breathing for me. Since it comes naturally as I’m writing, I don’t worry much about it slowing momentum. Most of the faith comes in short thoughts and snippets of dialogue, rather than in sermons or long diatribes, so it rarely has the effect of slowing down the forward momentum.

Your novels take readers across the globe. Are you an adventurer at heart? If you could travel to one location you’ve written about—but haven’t yet visited—where would it be and why?

I love that question. It would absolutely be Scotland. My great-grandparents were Scottish immigrants, and I would love to visit their homeland. My novel the Bodyguard’s Fake Bride takes place in a castle and the villain follows them there. While the main castle in that story is fictional, it’s based on a real place, and I’d love to visit there.

Living on a hobby farm with your family must require significant time and energy. What does your writing schedule look like? And would you describe yourself as a plotter, a pantser, or somewhere in between?

The critters keep me busy, that’s for sure, but they provide never-ending fodder for my weekly newsletter and my YouTube channel, so that’s a bonus.

Writing schedule? What’s that? Seriously though, I’m a binge writer. I keep trying to plan a daily writing schedule, and one of these days I’ll learn to stick to one, but normally, I’m staring at a deadline and typing as fast as I can to get my latest work-in-progress off to my editor. This usually happens in three- or four-week bursts of writing followed by a couple of months of working on other writing-related tasks.

I started off my writing career as a pantser, but I’m most definitely a solid plantser (combination plotter/pantser) now. I can’t write if my outline is too restrictive, but if I don’t have some direction, I get a bit of writer’s block and can’t get the words down on paper.

Please tell us about your current work in progress. Are you writing another Toxic Truths book, or should readers anticipate something different?

I have three books in the lineup. My current WIP is a prequel to my Pennsylvania Parks series. It stars some recurring characters that have appeared across several of my series, Grayson Garrison and Jenna Sterling.

After that, I’m going to tackle Project Citadel (starring the brother of the main character from Project Sentinel), but I do intend to write a third book in the Toxic Truths series, as well. I’m not sure if all three projects will be published in 2026, but I hope to get the writing done this year even if they don’t release right away.


Lastly, if you could only read one work of fiction one more time, what would it be?

Oh, that’s a hard one. I’m not much of a re-reader, but there are some classics that must be read more than once. I think I’d go with Frank Peretti’s This Present Darkness. It is brilliant in its reminder that we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against unseen powers. And I love the reminder that we’re not fighting the battle alone.

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At the age of thirteen, Kimberly Keagan discovered romance novels. Whenever possible, she ignored her chores in favor of a book she couldn't put down. In time, she earned a degree in accounting and enjoyed a brief career in investor relations, writing financial reports and press releases—terrific jobs, but not very romantic. By God's grace, she married her own handsome hero and raised two wonderful children, whom they homeschooled. Now, she is following her long-held dream of penning historical romance. Her debut novel releases in 2025.