Meet David A. Kelly | Author of the Ballpark Mysteries series

We had the good fortune of connecting with David A. Kelly and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi David A., how do you think about risk?
I don’t love risk, but I take risks all the time in my professional and artistic career. Starting my Ballpark Mysteries series of children’s books in which my main characters Kate and Mike solve mysteries in different Major League stadiums was a hug risk for me because I’d never a book before, I hadn’t gone to school for writing, and I never considered myself very imaginative.

But it was a risk I was comfortable taking because I had a day job and could invest the free time on the weekends and nights to make it work. Over three years, I read lots of children’s book, took classes, met other writers and editors, and wrote and revised over and over again. Eventually, I succeeded.
It’s been a risk that has paid off–the series has gone to sell over 1.5 million copies, including the latest book, The Atlanta Alibi.

However, not all the risks I take work out. There are plenty of times I’ve written a story that works for me, or seems like it could sell, only to have my agent turn it down. Over the years I’ve learned that there’s always a market for dinosaur books, but they’re incredibly hard to sell. And that potty training books are perennials, but they’re always written by editors at the publishing companies. And that some of my stories just aren’t engaging enough to find a publisher or audience.

Even though I’ve been lucky enough to sell a lot of books over the past ten years, every time I sit down to work on something new it’s a risk. I try to mitigate the risk by learning as much as I can about the publishing market, networking with other writers and illustrators, making sure I have a solid financial plan in place, and pushing myself (within reason) to try new things and to keep writing.

Most importantly, I keep writing, developing multiple books at the same time. For me, the biggest risk would be putting all of my eggs in one basket or one book. As soon as I finish a draft of one, I start work on another one. That way, I reduce the risk of failure and my stress levels by ensuring I only need 33% or even 25% (if I have four books in process) to sell if I want to be successful. It turns out, risk can be pretty motivating!

– David A. Kelly, www.davidakellybooks.com, author of the Ballpark Mysteries series of children’s books from Random House

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
As a children’s book writer, I’m most proud of my Ballpark Mysteries series of chapter books for readers in elementary school. They’re mysteries set in MLB stadiums, with an Atlanta Braves mystery, The Altanta Alibi, as the latest. Each book includes some non-fiction information about the teams, stadiums, and towns.

They’re a lot of fun to read (and write), but it wasn’t easy figuring out how to do it. To start with, I wasn’t a great writer–I had gone to college for computers. So, I had to spend time research, writing, and revising–and revising is the hardest part. It’s really hard to get feedback or edits on writing, but its such a critical part of the path to success. Two of the lessons I’ve learned over the years is persistence–you absolutely have to stick with it, and listening–you have to listen to editors, reviewers, readers, and figure out ways to address their concerns/feedback/issues in ways that still support the story.

My advice to aspiring authors is to always continue to look for ways to learn. Learn about the market, learn how to understand different levels and reading requirements, learn how to develop a creative social network that can help nurture you, learn how to revise, revise, revise, and learn how adjust your goals and expectations to what’s possible.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
One of things that’s great about writing mysteries set in major-league stadiums is that I have to travel to each city and stadium that I write about, so I get to explore new cities and places all the time. For my Atlanta Braves mystery, I had an incredible time traveling all over Atlanta to explore possible settings for my characters to visit. In addition the the Atlanta Braves’ ballpark (which is a blast!) I had a lot of fun (and learned a whole bunch of things) at the Atlanta History Museum (which also has a great coffee shop/cafe in it for relaxing!).

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d like to dedicate my success to my wife, Alice, who’s been with me every step of my writing journey and (luckily!) is incredibly hard to please!

Website: www.davidakellybooks.com

Instagram: davidakellybooks

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidakelly/

Twitter: davidakelly

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ballparkmysteries

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1F0pFhl5lX3yAnOXhHdc3w

Image Credits
David A. Kelly