Author Q&A With Kelly Scarborough
After more than two decades as an attorney, Kelly began writing historical novels about fascinating women who lived in challenging times. Her debut novel, a tragic love story about two star-crossed lovers —a countess and a prince —is based on real-life characters who lived in Sweden in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars. It’s for fans of Philippa Gregory, Outlander, and Bridgerton. Kelly lives on the Connecticut Shoreline and in South Carolina’s Lowcountry, where she pecks away on her MacBook Pro whenever her husband, three stepchildren, two children, and Shih Tzu cooperate. Meet Kelly:
Did you always want to be an author? From childhood, I’ve always loved reading, but I never dared to dream I’d become an author. My first ambition was to become a translator, like those at the United Nations. I read novels about international intrigue and subscribed to journals on foreign relations. In high school, I studied Spanish, French, and Italian. That filled up my class schedule and might explain why I’m terrible at math. Ultimately, I became a trial lawyer, a career I loved. When you think about it, writing historical fiction isn’t that different from putting together a case for trial. You discover the facts, then decide how they fit into the arc of your story.
What inspired you to write Butterfly Games?
In 2014, I was writing a legal brief at 3:00 a.m. while my family slept. Exhausted, I took a break and one of my favorite historical novels popped into my mind. It was a book called Désirée by Annemarie Selinko. As a teenager, I pulled it off my mother’s shelf and ended up reading the book again and again, fascinated by the story of the French silk merchant’s daughter who was jilted by Napoleon and ultimately became Queen of Sweden. It swept me away.
“I fell in love with a young Swedish countess named Jacquette.“
That night, I did some internet searches about Désirée’s family, the Bernadotte dynasty, which still occupies Sweden’s throne. I discovered epic stories of passion and tragic love. While Napoleon’s army marched across the Continent and young Englishwomen danced at lavish Regency balls, a lot was happening in Sweden. And I fell in love with a young Swedish countess named Jacquette. I knew hers was the story I had to tell. I didn’t begin writing the book for several years but made up my mind that night to do it.
How do you hope your book uplifts those who read it? Reading has always been my favorite entertainment, my preferred escape from whatever is crowding my mind. It takes me to places I’ve never been and gives me a window into different times and ways of life. My hope is that Butterfly Games transports readers and beckons them to follow Jacquette’s footsteps along the halls of Swedish palaces, on an evening stroll through Stockholm’s King’s Garden, and to the Stock Exchange in Old Town, where she danced with Prince Oscar at Regency balls.
What are you most excited about with this book? Through the prism of Swedish history, I want readers to identify with young women in the early 1800s, who had little control over their economic or personal destinies. I hope Jacquette’s story inspires people to visualize the world at that singular moment in time, just before photography and railroads changed everything. Some of you might remember how much our world changed when the mobile phone came into use. I also hope that Butterfly Games brings up topics around women’s agency. At the beginning of the novel, Jacquette is a bullied teenager, but she evolves into someone who uses the few tools she possesses to manipulate Crown Prince Charles Jean, a legendary strongman. That fascinated me—how women found power in systems designed to silence them. They used gossip networks, they made strategic alliances, they leveraged their relationships. It wasn’t the same type of power that men wielded, but it was power, nonetheless. I think modern readers will relate to the choice Jacquette must make between working within the system and subverting it.
Being an author today is like running a business. How do you manage all your publicity and social media, and keep your engagement up with readers? I’m not going to lie—I have moments when I’m overwhelmed. At my core, I have a deep love of books and reading. I can’t resist opening a reader email and answering her questions, doing a Reel about my trips to Sweden, or writing one more article to submit for publication. When things in my writing life are going smoothly, I work on the next book in the mornings and do marketing in the afternoons. But a book launch has a mind of its own, and I must admit that spreading the word about Butterfly Games is occupying almost all of my time right now. It’s a labor of love, as they say.
Anything else you’d like to share with your readers? I’d like to thank everyone who has read my newsletter, emailed me, downloaded my short story, or connected with Butterfly Games in any way. I’m deeply honored by your interest in Jacquette and hope to bring you more soon!
Connect with Kelly Scarborough and discover her books via her website.
