1. Let’s start at the heart of it. Who is Keshia C. Willi in your own words?
I’m a country girl who loves to daydream under the stars and tell stories that challenge me to question everything. For me, I write to live. My experience of the world has often been shaped and molded by words. I can’t think of any better life than one filled with delicious words and new worlds to explore.
2. You meld fantasy and horror into genre-bending stories. What draws you to blending these worlds instead of staying in one lane?
I’ve never been one to follow a set path, so mixing genres just feels right to me. I love fantasy as a whole, and horror as well. They have always been the mainstays in my creative endeavors and what I consume the most as a reader. Much like the traditional fairy tales that we all know, blending fantasy with horror creates a perfect storm of darkness and light that helps us understand our own humanity more clearly. It allows us to touch on difficult and often terrifying subjects at a distance, without breaking the magic of the tale. Fantasy and horror go well together, and they always have. But I am here to tell whatever stories come to me. The genre doesn’t matter, but I must tell that tale
3. You were raised in the mountains of Virginia, which clearly influence your work. How does that landscape shape the stories you tell?
The mountains in which I grew up taught me that safety, strength and struggle can often be bundled in the same nest. These mountains represent lifetimes of love, loss, and true grit. There is so much depth to this mountain soil, and it’s rich with tales to tell.
❄️ About In the Cold, Cold Winter
4. In the Cold, Cold Winter is steeped in secrets, ancestral voices, and ancient magic. What was the initial spark that inspired this story?
I was very close to my grandmother as a young child. She lived beneath the shadow of the Virginia mountains, and her love for its beauty and its magic greatly impacted me. She taught me how to utilize the natural world in ways that I now recognize as old Appalachian folk medicine. She was always teaching me, and those lessons stuck with me. For Winter, I wanted to tell a tale that was close to my heart, in a landscape and a world that I knew well.
5. Jaelle Bennett is haunted by visions and ancestral whispers. How did you approach writing a protagonist who is both chosen and burdened?
Personally, I feel that every “chosen one” is also burdened with the weight of their destiny and the choice of good over evil. Having grown up reading books like Lord of the Rings, where the same can be said of the ring-bearer Frodo, I feel that showing a weak and flawed person who is the key to that world’s moral balance is a far more realistic take on the “Hero”. My character Jaelle is overwhelmed with the roots of the past and the delicate vision of the future. Either one could crush her, but she welcomes both in order to find herself within the chaos.
6. The novel explores abuse, jealousy, lust, and murder alongside magic. How do you balance dark realism with supernatural elements?
Winter delves into some heavy topics. It shows a very dark side of life, love, and family ties. The element of magic in the story acts as a healing balm that soothes some of those deep shadows and allows a little light into the characters’ lives. It connects all the characters in very real ways, and allows the story to breathe when it seems darkest.
 7. The mountain itself feels like a living presence in the story. Was that intentional, and what does it represent to you?
 It was very intentional. For these people, the natural world carries a lot of weight in their lives. It gives them life and doles out death in the same breath. Everything they have is dependent upon their environment. So the mountain stands as both a safeguard and a threat to all those who live beneath it. Not only does it bring forth what is necessary for their livelihood, but it also carries their secrets. Everything they have is buried in its roots.
🔥 Themes & Characters
8. Your work often explores anti-heroes and the idea that all heroes have a dark side. What fascinates you about morally gray characters?
 I think my goal in every story that I write is to show a realistic protagonist, one that can be very flawed and at times in it for the wrong reasons, but they still captivate us and we’re willing to root for their survival. I think that by making our heroes more human, and by delving deeper into what makes them perhaps morally gray at their center, it allows us to look inwardly at our own selves and see that flawed does not mean less than. It means layers of color that more people can understand. I’m fascinated by the facets of a person’s character, what makes them unique in their ideology, and also what makes them choose good or evil. There are no purely good people, just as there are no purely evil people. We are fragmented pieces of the same glass, all muddled together in the gray matter in between these two extremes, and the choices that we make will decide what side we will fight for.
9. The ancestral women play a powerful role in guiding Jaelle. What does generational power and inherited trauma mean to you as a storyteller?
So much of who we are as people is passed down by the actions of those who came before us. As much as we’d like to believe they don’t affect us, they do. In Winter, I wanted to show those deep-rooted family ties and the damage they can create, while also showing that it is possible to break those cycles. We have the power to create a better world for ourselves and those we love, and we can also cause more damage too.
10. Is there a character or moment in In the Cold, Cold Winter that challenged you the most while writing?
Wow! I would have to say, this story as a whole was the most difficult and emotionally draining project I’ve ever worked on. Jaelle’s story is so powerful and full of such deep emotion, I often found it difficult to write. I felt this story so deeply, it truly became a part of me. But I don’t know that I could write it again. That is not a journey I’d take twice.
⚡ Rapid Fire (Quick Vibes)
11. Fantasy or horror if you had to choose just one? Horror – I feel that fantasy is having its moment now, but horror still feels like an untapped Pandora’s box of potential. I love that.
12. Plotter, pantser, or somewhere in between? Â I am a plotter for all of one day for every project, and then my characters throw me for several loops and all plotting is in their hands. I have no say in what happens, I just go along for the ride.
13. Writing atmosphere: silence, music, or ambient noise? Always music...and the sounds of my four dogs barking at anything and everything.
14. One word you hope readers use to describe this book. Â Haunting
🖋️ The Author Journey
15. Four of your novels have appeared on Amazon’s Top 100 Hot New Releases. How did that recognition impact you as an indie author?
 It really meant a lot to me as an indie author. You put your heart and soul into your work, and you’re never sure how it will be received. It makes it feel worth it, knowing that my stories have been recognized and seen.
16. What advice would you give new indie authors navigating book events, festivals, and in-person promotion?
It’s so important to go out into your community and meet your readers. Attending book events, festivals, etc. is a great way to help your books be seen by the public, and to gain a rapport with your local bookstores and event organizers. While an online presence is great and has many advantages, presenting your books in-person allows you to better understand what readers are looking for in a book and what attracts them to certain genres and stories. I have learned so much from in-person events that have helped shape what I write and who I write for. Also, I would say, don’t limit yourself to book-related events. I get my best results and sales from events and festivals that are not book-related, but match the theme of my books.
17. What has been the most surprising part of writing dark, genre-bending fiction for today’s readers?
 I’ve been so surprised by the reaction to my dark little tales, especially Winter. This book seems to really resonate with readers on a very personal level. I’ve had readers tell me they cried all night after reading Winter, and that it reminded them of their own family situations. Some even had nightmares. But the overwhelming reaction is one of understanding. Darkness reaches everyone’s lives in some way or another, but that glint of light and hope, which I try to capture in this story, is what truly matters.Â
đź”® Looking Ahead
18. What can readers expect next from you? More mountain magic, darker stories, or something entirely unexpected?
I’m currently working on a Southern gothic horror novel. It has elements of mountain magic, gothic thrills, and much more. I’m really excited about this story and I can’t wait to share it with everyone.Â
19. Is there a theme or trope you’re excited to explore in future projects?
A theme that I’d love to explore more centers around the proverbial “wolves in sheep’s clothing” and the cunning used to twist and mar the innocent.
đź–¤ Just for Fun
20. If In the Cold, Cold Winter were adapted, would you prefer a movie or a limited series?
 I would prefer it to be a movie, and I’d love to write the screenplay for it!
21. Which character from the book would you most want to sit down and have a conversation with — and why?
I would love to sit down with Jaelle’s mother, Kit. She’s well-versed in the old ways and the mountain magic of her ancestors. She’s wise and a bit of a firecracker. She speaks her mind, and I admire people who stand against the wind and the expectations of society to be their authentic, true selves. She can read people and their intentions very well, and I feel like I could learn so much from her, if she’d let me cross the threshold of her home.Â
22. When readers close the final page, what feeling do you hope lingers with them the longest?
The ending of Winter is probably very different than what people might expect. It leaves much to the reader’s interpretation, while still bringing the story full circle. Not to sound overly dramatic, but I hope that readers close the book with a feeling of breathless unrest and longing, because real life is so unexpected. Nothing is as it seems.
