Bestselling Author & Journalist Elise Hart Kipness on Five Things You Need to Be a Highly Successful Writer
…I read a book about Edward R. Murrow and was so taken with how instrumental he was in shaping our society and standing up to bullying. That’s what I wanted to do…
I had the pleasure of talking with Elise Hart Kipness. Elise, a seasoned television sports reporter, has made a remarkable transition into the world of crime fiction writing, captivating thriller enthusiasts with her debut novel, “Lights Out.” Released last year, “Lights Out” became an Amazon best-seller, amassing over 19,000 reviews. This initial success has paved the way for an intriguing trilogy centered around her protagonist, Kate Green, with the second installment, “Dangerous Play,” slated for release on September 17.
Drawing from her extensive background in the high-stakes world of live television, Kipness infuses her novels with authentic, adrenaline-charged narratives. “Lights Out,” inspired by her own experiences, introduces readers to Kate Green, a sports reporter navigating the complexities of crime and journalism. Kipness’s career highlights include reporting for prominent networks such as Fox Sports Network, New York’s WNBC-TV, News 12 Long Island, and the Associated Press, where she covered major events including the Olympics, NBA and NCAA Championships, and the US Open. Her vivid portrayal of the fast-paced sports world lends a unique and credible dimension to her fiction.
The upcoming novel, “Dangerous Play,” continues Kate Green’s journey, this time taking her to the Olympics as she covers the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team. The plot thickens when a renowned designer and old friend of Green’s is found dead in the locker room, propelling her into a new, gripping investigation. The Kate Green series is already generating buzz in the entertainment industry, with development underway for a television adaptation by a major studio, an announcement eagerly anticipated by fans.
Beyond her writing, Kipness is actively involved in the literary community. She serves as the President of Sisters in Crime Connecticut and holds a position on the Board of Directors of the Friends of Key West Library. Her commitment to fostering a supportive environment for writers and readers alike is evident through her leadership roles and community engagement.
Elise Hart Kipness is a graduate of Brown University and balances her professional endeavors with a vibrant personal life. She and her husband reside between Key West, Florida, and Stamford, Connecticut, sharing their homes with their three labradoodles. Kipness is also the mother of two college-age sons. When not immersed in her writing or literary activities, she enjoys reading, binge-watching thrillers, and indulging in coffee ice cream, a favorite treat she playfully admits she will fiercely defend.
With the release of “Dangerous Play,” Elise Hart Kipness is poised to solidify her place in the crime fiction genre. Her ability to weave compelling narratives rooted in her rich professional background distinguishes her as a notable author to watch. As her protagonist Kate Green prepares for another thrilling adventure, readers can look forward to more suspense-filled stories that bridge the worlds of sports and crime.
Kipness’s career in news and sports broadcasting significantly influences her fiction. As a sports reporter for Fox Sports Network, she was one of the few women interviewing players in locker rooms. Her vivid experiences provide a rich backdrop for her novels. Despite drawing on her reporting background, the murder mysteries she crafts are purely fictional but enriched by her journalistic insights.
A recurring theme in Kipness’s work is the exploration of female friendship. In “Lights Out,” the relationship between Kate Green and her friend Yvette highlights themes of trust, loyalty, and betrayal, offering a nuanced portrayal of women’s bonds.
The transition from journalism to novel writing was not without challenges. Kipness had to learn the intricacies of fiction writing, from character development to plotting suspenseful narratives. Despite the difficulties, she found the process rewarding and enriching.
Kipness’s next book, “Dangerous Play,” is eagerly awaited. This continuation of the Kate Green series delves deeper into themes of trust, female friendship, and the challenges of being a woman in sports journalism. As her protagonist navigates new dangers and personal dilemmas, readers can expect another gripping installment that blends real-world experiences with thrilling fiction.
Elise Hart Kipness’s journey from sports reporter to crime fiction author showcases her talent for storytelling and her ability to engage readers with compelling narratives. Her work continues to gain recognition and promises to leave a lasting impact on the literary scene.
Yitzi: It’s so nice to meet you. So before we dive in deep, readers would love to learn about your personal origin story. Can you share the story of your childhood and how you grew up?
Elise: Yeah, absolutely. I grew up on Long Island, in Great Neck, and I always wanted to be a reporter. I read a book about Edward R. Murrow back then and I was so taken with how instrumental he was in shaping our society and standing up to bullying. That’s what I wanted to do. I went to Brown University and worked at the radio station, then worked my way up into the media field. By the time I got there, it wasn’t quite Edward R. Murrow; a lot of what’s going on was different with the emergence of 24-hour news. Then I switched to sports. I had an opportunity to cover sports and that was amazing. It was so much fun. You win, you lose, there’s so much drama in sports, and so many interesting stories. When I had kids, I stopped working because I wanted to be home to raise them. And my job required so much traveling. After about five years, I really missed writing. I always thought it was the reporting, but I found a journal entry that said, “I wish I had more time to do the things I love, like writing.” So it was there in my subconscious. I had a lot to learn. I used to write one page; it’s short when you’re a journalist. I had to learn how to write a whole story, with elements like plot, characters, setting, and suspense. My first draft I wrote as a reporter: who, what, where, when, why. There was no suspense. It was totally boring. I had a lot to learn, but I loved it and was so happy. And now here I am.
Yitzi: So we’d love to learn a little bit more about how you broke into becoming a sports reporter and how that started. How did that develop?
Elise: My journey into sports reporting was different than most. I had been working in news when a producer asked me if I could help out covering the NBA lockout. I thought it would be a great opportunity. And a nice break from covering crime. So I jumped at the chance. And, as they say, the rest is history.
As for how I broke into television reporting,I would tell people you just have to keep trying. Back in the day, it was VHS tapes. I’m dating myself, but I would send out tons of audition tapes. You’d find someone willing to record you and send it out. You just have to keep persevering and be open to critique. There are real skills you have to work on: your voice, your presentation, and your writing skills. It’s very important. You just have to keep going and also be ok heading to areas where you may not expect to live. There’s a bit of moving around.
Yitzi: Amazing. You probably have some amazing stories from your career in journalism, but also from your success as an author. Can you share with our readers one or two of your favorite stories or anecdotes from your professional career?
Elise: Of course, I have a couple of sports stories I can share with you. First, you can’t see, but I’m really little. I’m five feet tall. The first sport I covered was the NBA. My producer always carried around a milk crate. Even with a milk crate, my arms were all the way up trying to reach the players. I was interviewing Shaquille O’Neal when he came to Madison Square Garden. He has a big personality and is very funny. When I turned to do my shot into the camera, he was behind me making faces, sticking out his tongue, and waving his fingers. Everyone was laughing. I wasn’t happy at the time, but looking back, it was really funny. I even incorporated that element into my first book.
Another story has to do more with being a woman in the sports world, which wasn’t always easy. It was, and probably still is, a man’s world, which came with its challenges. I was covering the U.S. Open golf at Pinehurst, and the public relations person just didn’t like women. It was my first encounter with him, but he blew me off every time. I needed to get the interview with whoever won. He kept promising I’d get it but I was nervous. And if I didn’t get the interview with the person who won the U.S. Open, I suspected I could get fired.
Payne Stewart won that year. The PR person was leading him around, sending him to all the other outlets and putting me off. Finally, my cameraman was like, “you need to do something,” The PR guy was leading Payne down a hall we didn’t have access to, and I screamed, “Payne, please do the interview!” Payne stopped the PR guy, who had his hand on Payne’s arm, pulling him away from me, and said, “No, I want to do this interview.” Payne turned around and did the interview, saving my job. At that time, I didn’t realize how wrong it was that I was in that situation. I just felt huge relief and gratefulness. Looking back, I feel a lot of anger about moments like that. But I’m happy Payne Stewart was so gracious and amazing.
Yitzi: Well, it’s beautiful. So let’s talk about your work. You have two successful books behind you. I’d love to hear about your projects you’re working on. Let’s hear about your new book. Why do we have to buy it and read it?
Elise: So my second book, which comes out September 17, Dangerous Play, was really fun to write. It’s about Kate Green, who’s trying to reestablish her career. The Olympics have come to New York City, and Kate’s assigned to cover women’s soccer, which makes a lot of sense since she’s a former Olympic gold medalist. She played with the head coach of the women’s team, Savannah Baker. Kate wasn’t sure she would get the assignment because, even though it’s one of the highest-rated events, she’s not one of the highest-rated employees right now.
Then things take a dark turn. A woman’s body is found in the women’s locker room during a match. It’s someone Kate hasn’t seen in decades but knows from her time playing as a youth player, someone Savannah also played with. Kate let this victim, Alexa, down in the past and vows not to let her down again. She starts investigating the murder, raising the possibility that she’ll have to expose some pretty dark secrets from her past and put herself in danger. And then, drum roll, da da da da.
Yitzi: It sounds very cinematic. I heard that they’re working on turning your work into a screenplay or…?
Elise: Into a TV series. Yeah, it’s very hush-hush right now, but yes, it’s in the works.
Yitzi: So how do you balance the authentic sports journalism that you’re experienced with, with the suspenseful and sometimes not realistic twists of crime fiction? How do you balance both?
Elise: Hmmm… That’s a good question. You know, I’ve thought about this recently. Why am I even writing crime fiction? What led me to that? I think it’s because before I was a sports reporter, I covered so much crime. I covered the Colin Ferguson, Long Island Railroad massacre shooting, and the Joel Rifkin serial murder trial. Day in and day out, when I was a reporter at WNBC TV and News 12 LI, there was a lot of crime to cover.
I think the reason I combined my sports reporting with covering crime was to work out the darkness I saw and experienced every day. Sometimes life is stranger than fiction, so I try to make my stories as believable as possible, even though they are fictionalized. I hope my experience covering crime, combined with my experience covering sports, helps to make the stories more authentic and engaging.
Yitzi: It’s great. So Kate Green, your protagonist, has a background in sports reporting similar to yours. How do you compare and contrast your personal character with Kate? How are you similar and how are you different?
Elise: OK, so I like to think of Kate as a way cooler version of me. We’re both sports reporters, but she’s a soccer gold medalist and I’m a soccer mom. She chases bad guys through the tunnels of Madison Square Garden and Yankee Stadium, while I chase my three Labradoodles around the yard. Her demons are much deeper, twistier, and darker than my very mundane demons.
Yitzi: What would you say are the main lessons we could take from the motifs and themes of your writing? What do you want society to take out of it? What are the lessons society could take from the themes?
Elise: With Lights Out, I was really exploring trust and female friendship. I also always include elements about how hard it is to be a woman in the world of sports. There are wonderful people in the field but there are moments that can also be very difficult. In Dangerous Play, which is coming out in the fall, I explore some different issues. There’s an element inspired by the show Succession, involving media moguls and their interactions with Kate and her colleagues, along with the intimidation and stress that come with that.
Another theme I explore is how one small story can snowball into a whole frenzy, which is very relevant in our society now. Lastly, I delve into bullying, intimidation, and pressure among teens, specifically female teen athletes, and how these issues play out.
Yitzi: Amazing. In your opinion, were you a natural born writer? Or did you develop that later through work and practice?
Elise: I think to be a naturally born writer, you have to just love writing. It’s something you work really hard at. In his book On Writing, Stephen King says that good writing takes mastering fundamentals. And I really believe that. If you like to write, you are probably a decent writer. Then you need to dedicate yourself to learning the, as Stephen King says, “tools” to make yourself better.
Yitzi: Beautiful. OK, so this is our signature question. You’ve been blessed with a lot of success now. Looking back on your experience, can you share with the readers five things you need to be a highly successful writer?
Elise: First, perseverance. It took me a long time and many drafts to get where I am. Perseverance is crucial. Second, be open to learning. You need to be able to take critiques and learn from them. Third, know the market. Understand where you fit in the genres and be aware of what’s out there. Fourth, be a voracious reader, especially in the type of books you want to write. Reading other books helps you solve problems and learn techniques. For example, I write in the present tense, and one issue with that is showing the passage of time without boring the reader. I looked to The Hunger Games, which is written in the present tense, to see how Suzanne Collins handled this. Finally, luck. Some of it is just luck.
Yitzi: Beautiful. Can you share with our readers the self-care routines that you do to help your body, mind, and heart thrive?
Elise: I am trying very hard in my second career, which I was not good at in my first, to balance family, downtime, and writing. It’s very important to be healthy and more productive. Doing things you love is key. I try to spend a lot of time with my dogs and walking them to get fresh air and exercise. I really enjoy spending time with my family. My younger son plays soccer, and he’s a D1 soccer player, so we go out and watch his games all the time. I’m very lucky to be close with my family, and we really enjoy spending time together, whether it’s cooking dinner, playing games, or going boating. I just think it’s important to balance everything. I love writing, so I could get lost in it all the time, and it’s not a burden. It’s very important to be doing something you love.
Yitzi: So this is our final aspirational question. Elise, because of your great work and the platform you’ve built, you’re a person of enormous influence. If you could spread an idea or inspire a movement that would bring the most good to the most people, what would that be?
Elise: I think it would align with one of the themes in Dangerous Play, which is to be mindful of where information comes from and to take a little more time to check primary sources and engage in critical analysis when ingesting information.
Yitzi: Amazing. So how can our readers continue to follow your work? How can they purchase your current book and your past books? How can they support you in any way?
Elise: Well, they can follow me on Instagram and Facebook. I have a website, EliseHartKipness.com. They can buy my book on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or any of their local bookstores. I’d love to hear from them after they read the book, and they can get in touch with me through my website to tell me what they think.
Yitzi: Elise, it’s been so nice to meet you. I wish you success and hope we can do this again when you put out your next book.
Elise: Yes, I would love that.
Yitzi: Amazing. I look forward to it.
Bestselling Author & Journalist Elise Hart Kipness on Five Things You Need to Be a Highly… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.