Kim Peters is a writer based in Indiana whose professional background includes work as a Registered Nurse and Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach. She is a contemporary fiction and nonfiction writer. Her debut novel, Josie’s Closet, was released in 2026. Her path brings together experience in healthcare, writing, observation, and character development, creating an opportunity to explore how professional experience, life experiences, and creative practice can inform storytelling. In this interview, Peters is invited to discuss her journey into writing, the experiences that have shaped her approach to characters and stories, the milestones she has encountered along the way, and the direction she hopes to take her work in the future.

Kim, thank you for taking part in this interview. To begin, could you introduce yourself in your own words, tell us about your background and current work, and share what you hope to accomplish through the next stage of your professional and creative journey?

I am a retired registered nurse and health coach. This wasn’t just my career; it was my calling. I felt a strong need to help others through the most difficult times in their lives because of the care I received during a near-death experience in my late teens. I retired early after caring for my parents through their final journeys, and I finally learned that waiting for the right time to pursue my dream of becoming a published author would never materialize on its own. I had to make it happen, and I finally did. It’s never too late to chase a dream.

Your professional background includes healthcare as well as writing. What first drew you toward writing, and how has that interest developed alongside your working life?

I wrote my first “book” in fifth grade, so I have always loved writing. I have a full box of journals that span almost fifty years. My nursing career took me through clinical as well as management positions. I was the one who wrote the policies, the educational materials for patients and staff, and when I became a Board Certified in Health Coaching, I wrote visions and goals for the clients, who shared them with me.

Through it all, personal writing was my refuge, not only for my own life, but for the heartache and drama I witnessed in the lives of those I served. I also witnessed joy and happiness, and I wrote about that too.

What have you learned from working with people in different circumstances that has influenced the way you observe, understand, or develop characters?

I’ve learned that people believe what they hear themselves say. That sounds simplistic, but it’s how misperceptions, anger, and hurt get out of hand. The internal dialogue one speaks, right or wrong in terms of fact, is what shapes behavior. For example, if a person tells themself they can’t accomplish something, like writing a book, they won’t. We believe what we tell ourselves, in general. I loved coaching because it helped people “hear” themselves. I try to use that internal dialogue concept in my characters throughout their journey.

When you begin developing a character, what helps you move beyond a basic description and understand that character as a person with motivations, relationships, choices, and change?

I imagine how I would think if I were in that character’s shoes. Their experiences are not mine, but I have faced trauma and heartache and immense joy in my own life, so I can empathize and pour that emotion into the story. I also draw on real-life people I’ve encountered through my career, including several who were in the throes of delusion. I know how it looks.

Your debut novel marked a transition from writing as a long-standing part of your life to becoming a published novelist. What did the process of bringing your first novel into publication teach you about yourself as a writer?

The first lesson I learned was that writing over a lifetime did not make me a writer. I didn’t know what I didn’t know, but my instincts were to seek professional guidance in the form of a book coach. She taught me that there are no shortcuts and that there is always more to learn about the craft. The second lesson I learned about myself is that I am a lifelong learner, and the research I do for my books genuinely interests me, sometimes to the point of putting the writing aside to just read. I’ve developed more discipline at this stage in my life, so I can do both.

Looking back at the milestones you have reached so far, which forms of recognition, opportunities, publications, professional experiences, or other achievements would you choose to enumerate as meaningful to your journey, and what did each one mean to you?

Since I am a newly published author, honest reviews from non-family members are very important to me. They tend to be more honest and, so far, offer insights that I see as learning opportunities to address in future writing. They can also be validating. If I consistently get good reviews, it tells me my story resonates with readers.

My book was picked for four different book clubs, three of which I will attend in person. The feedback from these women is incredibly interesting and thought-provoking in ways I hadn’t considered as I was writing. I love the dialogue it produces and hope to do more.

How do your experiences outside writing influence the subjects, settings, relationships, or questions that you choose to explore in your work?

My oldest child is living with PTSD now, and while the storyline is not hers, the heavy emotional toll of this affliction is universal to those who suffer from it. I never share their personal lives, but to be fun, I named the dog in the book after my daughter’s dog.

Since I will never stop being a nurse, I do incorporate medical illness into some of my characters, though I try hard to avoid the clinical aspect and focus on how it impacts lives. In real life, health crises force us into a battle for survival. They are rich with stories about the strength needed to overcome and sometimes start over.

What have you discovered about maintaining a writing practice while balancing other responsibilities, and what approaches have helped you continue developing your craft?

It’s easier now that I am retired. I write every day, even if it’s only a couple of paragraphs. More often than not, I forget to take breaks. When I was working, I would write late at night after the kids were in bed and the house was quiet or go to my journal when I was mad at my husband or my boss. Those early versions were full of venting; that wasn’t really “writing,” but it was a place to put those emotions down.

To develop my craft, I took many writing classes over the years through a local university partnership for online courses. I have joined the Women’s Fiction Writing Association and the Indiana Writing Circle for continuing education and networking. I go to conferences and sign up for every free class through various platforms.

As your body of work develops, what kinds of stories or themes do you want to explore next, and what do you hope readers can take away from engaging with them?

I love historical fiction and magical realism. I dipped into that a little in Josie’s Closet and saw that the reviews I am getting point to it as a strong point of the story. I am excited to have a project in the works that fully dives into both. I don’t want to always tell stories about illness, and I feel those genres offer such exciting possibilities to pull into women’s fiction.

What advice would you offer to people who have spent years writing privately or developing creative ideas but have not yet taken the step toward sharing their work with readers?

Start putting content out there on social media. Test the waters with short pieces of work, essays, quotes, or just thoughts about writing. Remember my comment about believing what we tell ourselves? Well, this is an extension of that. Kind of a “fake it until you make it” approach. This is what I did to help others see my love of writing, so when the time came to present my book, I believed it myself because my community accepted me that way.

If you were to write your own bio, what would you say? And as your work evolves, what kind of impact do you hope it has?

Publishing my first novel aside, my significant accomplishments so far are tied to my previous nursing career (nursing scholarships awarded, Nurse of the Year Award), but I will bring that same level of dedication and professionalism to my writing career.

I hope my work going forward not only entertains but also empowers women to find their voices and understand that they can reinvent their lives for the better, even if it means starting over.

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Book Review: Josie’s Closet by Kim Peters