Kim’s TL;DR bio
Kim Imas received degrees in engineering and urban planning, from Duke and Harvard respectively, before pursuing a career as a writer. Her work appeared in Boston Magazine and The Boston Globe Magazine before she turned to longform fiction. Her first novel, a romance, was initially published under a pen name and earned praise from Publishers Weekly for its “smooth prose and witty dialogue.” A former Oregonian, Kim now lives with her family outside New York and tries to do in novels what Dolly Parton does in song: deliver stories of women’s struggles in a way that’s too damn delightful to ignore. She loves a good crossword.
Kim’s long-@$$ bio
Kim grew up in Delaware, the middle of three kids. She wasn’t as good of a swimmer as Harry is in Beast Mom, but she did spend a LOT of time in the pool.
Kim majored in civil engineering at Duke, and has masters degrees from Harvard in urban planning and design studies. There were early signs, however, that her career would bend in a different direction: As an undergrad, she won the Best Essay and Best Critic awards in an advanced English course. Her masters thesis, according to her advisor, “reads like a thriller.”
She gravitated toward writing opportunities in the working world, too. She contributed to draft legislation and co-authored an op-ed, but it was the pithy meeting minutes she wrote for an important task force that caught the attention of a Boston Globe reporter. He praised them and told her: You could be writing anything.
She wrote her first articles for trade magazines that serve the planning and design professions. Then she branched out and wrote short reviews of movies, bars, and restaurants for an alternative weekly and other local pubs, and would later contribute to Boston and Boston Globe magazines.
After relocating to Oregon with her soon-to-be husband, Kim gave copywriting a go. She was pleasantly surprised—and humbled—when this work streamlined and strengthened her prose.
A few years later, she gave birth to premature twins and became a stay-at-home mom. Writing fiction at night—and reading a helluva lot of Romance novels—helped her get through these challenging years.
It’s not uncommon for new moms to become debut novelists, and in 2018 Kim joined that club when a small press published her first book. Written under the pen name Willa Ramsey, EVERYTHING BUT THE EARL is part-Regency Romance, part-screwball comedy. Publishers Weekly praised its “smooth prose and witty dialogue,” and fellow authors called it “Austen-ish,” “delightful,” and a #MeToo narrative that “lingers, making you think for days after.”
A couple years ago, Kim and her family said goodbye to the Pacific Northwest and resettled in the greater New York area. She is neurodivergent.
