Born in a small Pennsylvania town called Altoona.
Story telling came natural ask the nuns at Sacred Heart Church.
Because of You, is her debut novel, the first of a series.
PODCAST TRANSCRIPT
Transcript generated with Sonix
[00:00:01] Toni Kirkland
Hi, I'm Toni with the Hidden Bookshelf Club, and I have with me author Rene Pellegrino. That's it.
[00:00:12] Renee Pellegrino
That's good.
[00:00:13] Toni Kirkland
Yay!
[00:00:15] Toni Kirkland
So how are you doing today, Renee?
[00:00:18] Renee Pellegrino
I'm good. I've had better days, better moments. But I'm good. Thank you.
[00:00:25] Toni Kirkland
So Renee lives in Pennsylvania. Is it? We had down here in Atlanta, we had a cold snap over Christmas, but it's starting to warm up.
Is it getting any warmer up there?
[00:00:39] Renee Pellegrino
We got that cold snap, too. We got that. But it did I mean, it did so much damage to a lot of the houses. Like there is like so much
plumbing issues like like like all of our I mean, it's like hard to get a plumber here because it did so much damage to the plumbing, like
some of the place. Like it happened to me, too. It happened to us, too, because I'm waiting for the plumber to come in and fix my
problem. But there's a there like like two or three months backed up because that's how many places got ruined through that because
of that storm.
[00:01:13] Toni Kirkland
Is that just from the pipes casting?
[00:01:17] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah. Yeah. Pipes burst. It was like almost. I mean, it was it's been like they're, they're like three months behind. I mean, they're like
because so many because it happened, because it did so much damage to so many places. Yeah, it was pretty bad. It is still pretty
bad because some of the people are still don't have water because of the pipes burst. Yeah.
[00:01:38] Toni Kirkland
That is awful. And I know a lot of pipes bursted down here, but nothing like that, like our plumbers are. Working overtime. But it's.
They're not three months back.
[00:01:50] Renee Pellegrino
Up next.
[00:01:51] Renee Pellegrino
My next door neighbor needs a whole new set of pipes. They're four weeks out. It's going to take her four weeks to get water.
[00:02:01] Toni Kirkland
Oh, wow.
[00:02:02] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah. And just like, really, how do you live with I mean, and it's hard because, you know, you don't realize how much water you use.
You know, you use water to wash clothes for showers to flush the toilet. You know, I mean, it's just like, man, water is such a big,
important, essential part of living. It's just like without it, it's just like, oh, God, what do I do now? But I mean, you know, so luckily,
hopefully tomorrow, because the plumber's coming tomorrow, hopefully I'll have water by the end of the day. So I'm hoping.
[00:02:39] Toni Kirkland
I am crossing my fingers for you because, yes, water is like essential to life at this point. Well, it's always been essential to life, but it's
even more so now.
[00:02:47] Renee Pellegrino
I spent so many I have so many bottles of I, I spent so much like I bought me because I have the dogs, too. I worry about the dogs I
have to drink too. And I was just like, Man, I've never spent so much time on buying a whole bunch of bottled water, you know, So
But yeah, it's been the summer was pretty. I mean, this winter was pretty bad. Christmas was pretty nasty.
[00:03:11] Toni Kirkland
Yeah, I can't imagine what it got down up there because it got down to eight degrees down here. On Christmas.
[00:03:21] Renee Pellegrino
It was negative three down here. Yeah, it was negative three. And, and then there was, it was so the windshield was so bad that if
you had like a crack in your door, like a little open, you know what I mean? Like the little like, you know how the door is if you didn't
have a complete, if you had like cracks or whatever smoke was coming, like the cold, the cold air was coming through the cracks. It
was really it was really weird and bad. I've never seen anything like it.
[00:03:50] Toni Kirkland
That is extreme cold.
[00:03:53] Renee Pellegrino
Yes, it was. And it's just like, oh, time to move to Florida. So.
[00:03:59] Toni Kirkland
I saw pictures of Florida. They even had icicles on their trees. And I was like, That's not what.
[00:04:08] Renee Pellegrino
But I mean, we got through it. And it's still I mean, it's been like 60 something now, and it's just like, please don't go back. Just say like
this for the rest of the winter. Please. You know, it would be really cool if it did.
[00:04:21] Toni Kirkland
That would be really cool. Yeah. So. Um, you mentioned buying the water because partly because of the dogs. I know that you are a
German Shepherd lover and have worked with them for many years.
[00:04:41] Renee Pellegrino
Yes, I have. My I, I think that's my dad loved German Shepherds and he just passed it on to me. So. And they're like, Oh, why don't
you try a different breed? And I'm like, No, I'm good with with what I'm you know, I did try once to rescue a golden retriever. And if you
have a German shepherd and you have a golden retriever, and the difference between the two of them is German shepherds are not
in your face to where goldens are. And it's just like, okay, that's enough. But they're like constantly, like at you. And I was like, No, I
have had German shepherds. That's my shepherds don't do that. So I was like, Nope, can't do it, can't do it. And people will probably
say that about shepherds, too. Some people don't, you know, it's just about your preference, that's all. But shepherds have always
been who I chose to live with, you know?
[00:05:33] Toni Kirkland
Yeah, I. Saw that you. Are getting a new puppy soon.
[00:05:45] Renee Pellegrino
Puppy. No, we were. I want to. But because of my mom passing, we're kind of not going to. It's kind of. Kind of on hold. She wanted
one, and we were working on it for her to come home. But because that that's not going to happen, it's going to be held off for a while.
[00:06:14] Toni Kirkland
So sorry.
[00:06:18] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah, just a little sad about that. But, you know, that was that was always her. She always she wanted another puppy. So but, you
know, now she's with her dog. She's with her dogs now. So I'm okay with that.
[00:06:37] Toni Kirkland
We're definitely sorry for the recent events.
[00:06:41] Renee Pellegrino
Thank you.
[00:06:45] Toni Kirkland
So talking about your books, you. Have written or been a part of, I think, 11 books. Yes, so far. And in your debut was because of
you?
[00:07:01] Renee Pellegrino
Correct? Yes.
[00:07:07] Renee Pellegrino
I wrote that. That story started I was in college and we were supposed to write a suspense story and and I thought, well, everybody's
going to be going on, don't like killing. And they're going to do like a horror, like a ghost story and stuff like that. All of a sudden, these
two people popped in my head. One was in the hotel room and one was standing outside and it was raining. And these two people
loved each other. And it just compelled me to to wonder what had happened. Why? Why are they separated? And then the story just
came alive and I just absolutely fell in love with it. And then I think, like any anything any other writer has, it's like you're meeting like
your characters for the first time and you have to learn about them. And this story was just it just turned out to be it was just so much
fun to write. I, I enjoyed it. And I was only going to do one book and then I did the other one and then I did another one. And it's just
like I just couldn't. I found it hard to leave that place, that that storyline. So but yeah, I was, I was I loved writing that story. It was so
much fun.
[00:08:27] Toni Kirkland
So I know in that story the characters moved between Pennsylvania and Kentucky. Do you have I know you have a connection to
Pennsylvania because you live there. Do you also have a connection to Kentucky?
[00:08:41] Renee Pellegrino
Not really, no. I always wanted to go. I, my friend Cindy, always said that my heart is in Kentucky because. No, I just I, I wanted to go
to college there, to the University of Kentucky. I wanted to go there instead of going to Penn State. But. I couldn't go because I
couldn't afford it, because it's like out of state and stuff like that. So I just stayed at Penn State because like, I was like, Penn State is
not much of a. For writing college, and I wanted to go to a place where I could extend my writing, get like, you know, learn different
things with writing and stuff. And I. I want and I wanted to go to the UK and that's just how that story popped up about her going to the
UK. It's just the same thing. It's just like her and I actually went down when I was I was supposed to meet one of my friends, Cindy
Carver, and and she's also she also wrote Missing Locket with me. We went and I went down to meet her and I actually it was so neat
because I took the same road to Danielle did, and it was just so neat for me to actually do that. It was just cool the way that it was just
cool the way that how it went, because I actually went the same the same way that Danielle would have went to go back to her, start
her new life, you know? So it was a lot of fun. And then I just fell in love with Kentucky.
[00:10:12] Renee Pellegrino
You know. Yeah.
[00:10:16] Renee Pellegrino
And plus, there's lots of there.
[00:10:19] Toni Kirkland
So I know. And that missing locket isn't available on Amazon anymore. But the characters from Because of You are in it. Was it? Was
there any challenges in writing it in a different. Story in setting kind of way.
[00:10:42] Renee Pellegrino
What we when we when we started work, when we started, when we wrote the missing locket, because like I said, Cindy Cindy
Carver also wrote it also, Coco co-wrote it with me. What we wanted to do is, is because we wanted like, she has her psychic. It's her
her psychic detective, and it's my character's going to seek an answer. And that's where we want it. Because even though it has two
different styles to it, two different voices, we kind of wanted it to be like that, to actually have people see, okay, well, they're here, and
they could go and look at Cindy's book or they could go look at my book if they like the characters. And it was just to expand. It's just
kind of like what we call a bridge novel so that they could see two different it's two different types of characters are coming together
for one short story.
[00:11:42] Renee Pellegrino
And we kind of wanted it to make there because she was a psychic, because Tracy was a psychic. And Danielle and Kelly wanted to
find what happened to Sam's mother. And that's how that they come together for it is to find out what happened to Elaine.
[00:12:03] Toni Kirkland
I definitely sounds like an interesting story and kind of fun to.
[00:12:08] Renee Pellegrino
It was it was head locking because she would say one thing and I would do it something different. I'd be like, No, no, no, no. It was
fun. And there was a few there's a few times that we got mad, not mad at each other, but okay, time out, Time out. But, you know, but
it was fun. And it was we finished it and we got it out there. So it was. It was. And it also bridges to her stories, her future stories and
my future story. So we also did that as well. It's through that short novel. It was just something we wanted to try to do something
different.
[00:12:45] Toni Kirkland
But I'm all for different. And that definitely is a fun way to be different.
[00:12:53] Renee Pellegrino
Or do you send it to anybody that's interested into it? I can send it to them. We did take it down and I can send it to them because we
do do it for my newsletter. I do it as a since they sign up for my newsletter, they do get that book. They do get that short story for free.
[00:13:12] Toni Kirkland
All right. You all heard it here. Sign up for our newsletter so that y'all can get. The free book of Missing Locket.
[00:13:21] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah, that's the only way. That's how I have it set up, because different stories, you know, we just, you know, I just we just talked
about it and we just say, well, we'll just do that because it's only a short story. It adds a little bit longer than a short story, but it is. We
just wanted to see if we can't get if we can't. No, this book is really good. And it was. And that's what it was intended to was to bridge
to the other stories. So and, you know, we actually when we went out, when we went down to where in Carlisle, she came we came
for a book event, we gave one of the stewardess the book. She came in the next day and said, You had me bawling. And Cindy and I
gave each other a high five. So you know, some things you're proud of when that happens. Just like, yep, that's what we wanted.
Good. And it was a high five, so we felt, you know, you feel good about it when when people read your stuff and they actually
comment on it, you know? Yeah. You know, when they said that to us, we heard we waited until the stewardess walked away and
gave each other a high five.
[00:14:35] Toni Kirkland
So it's nice to be able to wait until she was walked away.
[00:14:39] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah, we did wait.
[00:14:40] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah, yeah, we did wait. We waited, you know, and we looked at each other and we went, Yeah.
[00:14:46] Renee Pellegrino
Because that's what we wanted.
[00:14:48] Renee Pellegrino
So. But little things that we did. Little things we did that was just funny because I remember that it was just like we looked each other,
went give each other high five. So it was, it's kind of neat.
[00:15:03] Toni Kirkland
It's awesome. So not directly collaborating together on the same story, but collaborating with other authors. You've been in five
different anthologies or collections at this point. I think I got that number right. How is. How is that? How is working with different
authors?
[00:15:30] Renee Pellegrino
And I think because you really don't talk to the other authors, do you? I mean, your anthology is yours, like your story is yours. And
I've never like Carla North like her. And I became like her and I started talking and she's need to talk to you. And but as for, like,
working with a different, I think that everybody, when you're working as an anthology, you know, working for an anthology, I think
you're so worried about your story that there's no time to there's no time to really socialize with the other authors if you if that makes
sense. You know, I haven't had I mean, I mean, I've had friends. I've gotten friends like talk to other people in different stuff like that.
But as to working with other authors, you know, I was excited when I was excited for my very first one anthology, and it was called
Cabin Fever. It was with the writing Support Sisters. I don't even think that it's online anymore. It used to be on Facebook, but that
was our first anthology and I had known everybody, so it was kind of really cool because we all got along, you know? And when we
released it, we were so excited. But then I was like, Oh, I like anthology. I liked writing the anthology. And I thought, Oh, I have to go
find more. So and that's how I branched out.
[00:16:54] Toni Kirkland
We created a monster.
[00:16:56] Renee Pellegrino
Yes, yes, yes. So, yeah, And I was just like, you know, you want, you know, and it also when you're going with a different anthology
and and different types of genres expands you as being a writer, as an author, because it's sometimes it gets boring when you write
the same type of story all the time, and the anthologies give you an opportunity to change it up a little bit. And you as the writer
creating it, it it, it doesn't make you bored either, you know? And that's how I think about it, because, like, I didn't know anything about
a romcom and I'm like, What is it? And so I had to go figure it out. And I thought, Oh yeah, I can do that. I just didn't want to. I just
don't want to put myself in a set, a set corner. I just whatever pops in my head is what I really like to do. You know, this is how things
go. This is how I do it, you know?
[00:17:58] Toni Kirkland
Yeah, No, I agree. It's definitely. Fun to be able to go to different genres and see what you come up with. Or like you said, if you're
just sitting there and an idea pops in your head to be able to run with it instead of just being like, Oh, well, that's interesting, but I don't
know how I would do that. So. You just write it off.
[00:18:27] Renee Pellegrino
I was sitting at McDonald's one day and a story just popped up in my head. I mean, I was waiting for a coke. There was like a long
line and I just wanted to I'm a I'm a McDonald's Coke junkie. And I was waiting in line. I was waiting in line at the drive thru to get one.
And the story popped in my head and they're like, you know, And I didn't realize it was my turn. I didn't realize it was my turn to make
the order. I was too busy trying to write this story because it just popped in my head waiting for it. And I was like, And they're like, And
there's people behind me honking at me. So and it was like, Oh, sorry, you know? But it was just kind of funny that that story just
popped up at a McDonald's drive thru. Yeah.
[00:19:14] Toni Kirkland
I think the best story is just kind of pop out of nowhere.
[00:19:18] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah, you could be walking and boom, there's a story.
[00:19:22] Renee Pellegrino
You know?
[00:19:25] Toni Kirkland
Um. So you also have to stand alone. The Rewrite and Karma girl.
[00:19:33] Renee Pellegrino
Yes, Karma Girl is going to someday expand into an actual bigger novel. Karma Girl is basically based on actually her name is
Karma and she goes in and she she is hired like, say someone. I actually have it. Lancelot is actually her first victim and he's sitting in
a bar and he's like a womanizer. Like he dumps people, Like he only goes like two weeks out with someone and he dumps that
person. And so what I did was, is someone hired her to give back to him what he's done to other women. And that's how the story
gets started. And so there is this newspaper guy, Phillip. He is actually he's looking for the next story. He's like, kind of like looking for
something to excite him. And so he goes into this bar and he actually gets so drunk, he has to go into the woman's bathroom and he
sees this this carving in the bathroom stalls want revenge called Karma Girl. So he he gets curious to see what he gets curious to
find out who this woman is and if she really exists. And that's how the story goes.
[00:21:02] Toni Kirkland
I like it.
[00:21:04] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah. You know, like, actually, you know, karma is supposed to be your judge and jury. So she actually karma is is his judge and
jury. You know, she passes on to him what he has done to others. So, yeah. And rewrite was it's actually based on it's kind of like a a
past life story. And what it actually is is that this woman, she was young and she she met up with this guy named Michael. And she
always like the very moment that they sat together, the very moment that they met, she remembers a past life with him. And so even
in this life, like she tries to like they have, like she remembers a story and starts to write this story about her and Michael. And what
happens is, is that he doesn't love her that way. So they both go on to their own lives. And then at the very end of he gets into a car
accident and basically he asked the universe, where have I gone wrong? And then that's when that's when Savannah comes back in
his life. And it's basically Savannah that what he did to Savannah was where was where he went wrong telling Savannah that he
didn't love her and when he actually did so. And that's how I have that story written.
[00:22:44] Renee Pellegrino
Hmm.
[00:22:46] Toni Kirkland
I'm I'm pretty sure that I've asked the universe a couple of times, where did I go wrong to get where I am?
[00:22:51] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah. I mean, it's like he's like Michael's like, he works for, like, a plastic shoe, like a shoe factory or whatever. I can't really.
[00:22:59] Renee Pellegrino
Remember. Right.
[00:23:02] Renee Pellegrino
He can't really remember. I mean, he can't he like his life is like and he has, like, this old beat up car and he and he doesn't have a
girlfriend anymore. He went through three different wives. He was married three times. And so he asked the universe what he did
wrong. And so the universe gave him the answer, you know.
[00:23:25] Toni Kirkland
Well. That was nice of you to. Write him a rewrite.
[00:23:32] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah. And then basically that's what she says to him. I've always wanted I, you know, she was waiting for him to come back to her,
you know? I mean, she always wanted to change that one moment of him telling her that she didn't love him, that she always wanted
that rewrite. So and that's how that story got done.
[00:23:52] Renee Pellegrino
So.
[00:23:55] Toni Kirkland
All right. Well, that's close to about our time. But I want to jump back on you researching romcoms because you were part of a.
Anthology that came out the last day of December. Misfire at midnight.
[00:24:13] Renee Pellegrino
Oh, yeah. That story is it's called The Great Gamble, and it's about Sophia Jones. She doesn't have a job and she's broke. And so
she needs to get a job. And she does. So she comes back to her hometown and she she wants to do it. She wants to do a different
job. So she decides that she's going to be a wedding planner. And what happens is they said, well, that's not no one's going to
believe you because you're basically mayhem and havoc to that town. And no one is going to you know, no one was going to do it.
So she decided that the only way to to get people to see what she can do is to actually do a real wedding. And the only thing is that
she doesn't have the groom. So that's how I have that story started.
[00:25:09] Toni Kirkland
Well, that could be problematic.
[00:25:11] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah. And basically so she hires somebody and that the person that she hired actually was Harrison. And basically and I kind of
looks like a young Harrison Ford. I it popped up in my head he had to because I love Harrison Ford when he was in Star Wars. So I
had to do that. I had to do that part. I had to put a Harrison Ford in there. I don't know why. So basically he comes back to marry her
to do this fake wedding. And at the very end, I'm not going to tell you about the end. It turns out that basically, basically. Them. That
he finally realizes that he did love her So and then basically the the fake wedding, you know, they get the fake wedding. So and other
things happen in the story, too.
[00:26:07] Toni Kirkland
The homecoming, is it? Coming out this month.
[00:26:13] Renee Pellegrino
It's coming out next month. I because of my current situation, because it was kind of it's been kind of hard two months, I had to
postpone it. I kept being able to get it done. So it is coming out in February nine. It is almost done. But I had a little bit of a delay and I
can't wait for people to read it. It's actually based on a true story. It is based on and the 2005, a guy came and a guy came into a bar.
There were three people there. And basically because it was 2:00 in the morning, they couldn't serve beer. So he got mad and left.
And actually he waited for these people and shot these people. And the thing is, is no one has actually said it, but it was basically the
mafia. It was basically a mafia hit that that goes back to the 1973. It's kind of like there's a whole bunch of different there's a whole
bunch of different stories. There's a storyline that that the guy who shot everybody is basically getting back for what? Getting them
back. Getting this this family, this mafia back to. He's trying. He's trying to revenge. It's basically a revenge shot shooting. So and
then I basically go into that. And that's the part of the story that brings everybody back together. Mateo, is he? Him and Lydia have
been friends. They've been boyfriend and girlfriend for years. And basically when she decides that he asks her to marry him and she
wanted to go to college and he wanted to see the world. And so when she comes back after her brother was shot, they start to
rekindle their relationship through all of. Learning about the mafia, the connections to the Mafia, what her family has, connections to
the Mafia and. And so that's how the story goes.
[00:28:23] Toni Kirkland
Okay, so everybody mark February 9th, because that sounds really interesting.
[00:28:29] Renee Pellegrino
It is. And like I said, it is a true story. It is based on a true story. No family members. It is based on just in case that they read this one,
if they're listening to this one. There's no family member that I related it to. So don't worry, guys. But yeah, it's been really different
because I put a lot of my family's traditions. I put a lot of my family traditions in there because I am Italian and because there is like an
Altoona. The there's traces of the way, like how different cultures were based on and what basically there was like a like a part like a,
like a section of Italians and there was section part of Germans, German, Germans, and you could actually see it and there's only a
little bit left of it, but you can still see where segregation actually happened. And it's just kind of neat the way that that's the way
Altoona was set up. And it was just kind of it's just kind of neat to go back, you know, back into the history and actually see now what
Altoona and what your family is, you know.
[00:29:42] Toni Kirkland
That sounds like really intense, but very interesting research.
[00:29:50] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah. And my cousin Theresa was actually the one that helped me. She's the family historian. If it wasn't for her, I probably wouldn't
know. But I basically, if she sent me all the information that I needed because she. Because actually our. My uncle was the head of
the mafia, so he was my half uncle. And so that's how I. That's how we knew all this stuff, because we kept everything and all the
information and stuff like that. So, yeah, my family was in the my uncle was, so I wasn't. None of my family members were, but he
was a part of. The Mafia like in 1973.
[00:30:30] Renee Pellegrino
Yeah.
[00:30:32] Toni Kirkland
All right, So nobody make Renee mad. She's got connections. But I want to thank you, Renee, for taking time out to talk with us and
tell us a little bit about more about you and your books and let us know about the person behind the stories.
[00:30:56] Renee Pellegrino
Thank you for for letting me talk about them. I could talk forever about them. So thank you.
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