New Hair and Tumultuous Times

Taking breaks, liner notes, and a joyful stack of books

Hello! It’s good to be back in your inbox. It’s been a minute, and in that minute a bunch of new subscribers have stopped by. It’s great to have you! In this newsletter, you’ll find news from me, early access to things like cover reveals and preorder campaigns, sneak peaks of what I’m working on, behind-the-scenes glimpses of Nightbirds (and beyond), special giveaways, and more. I hope you like it. Why not hop down to the comments section and answer my favorite icebreaker question: if you woke up tomorrow and had a tail, what would it be? (Mine = squirrel).

Because sometimes tumultuous times call for drastic hair decisions. This is the shortest my hair’s ever been, no question. I cut off over 12 inches! Look, it worked for Matilde Dinatris. But what’s going to happen when I wash it?! Time will tell.

Since last I wrote, I’ve had a rocky time on pretty much every level. Lots of personal griefs and physical trauma, which have also made work complicated. There were days I could barely get out of bed, let alone crack open the laptop and create. I’m on the mend, but it’s been a journey. And it’s reminded me how unique it is, the work I do.

Back when I was a nonfiction editor, I could work through almost any problem. I could go through the motions, even if I wasn’t in the mood. When asked how they write whole novels, most authors I know say some version of: just sit down and do it. Do it consistently. Don’t wait for the muse to come and find you, because she only shows up when you do too. And that’s true, but so is this: this work is fuelled by our emotions. I don’t have to be happy to do good work, but I do have to have some emotional gas in the tank. Enough to stay curious, ready to dive into my characters’ journeys, to get excited about their adventures and immerse myself in what it might mean to be them. You can’t phone it in, or readers will feel it. It’s not the kind of work you can fake.

I love that about storytelling, though: that it demands the full attention of your head and heart to burn its brightest. The trick, I’m finding, is learning how to balance work with play and rest; knowing when to push and when to slow down. I’m also learning what an incredible gift it is to have readers actively rooting (slash impatiently waiting) for your next book to come out. If you’re one of the people who’ve told me, via message or email or at an event, that you loved Nightbirds, thank you: it’s been a source of inspiration. In this past few months of darkness, it’s helped keep the creative flame alive. I’ve especially enjoyed hearing what you hope to see in the sequel, so please feel free to tell me what you’d love to find in Fyrebirds’ pages in the comments. Who knows: I might just work it in!

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News

I popped up to Brisbane, Australia a few weeks ago, saw a great sunset, met some lovely booksellers, and signed some stock! If you’re looking for a signed copy of Nightbirds, head to Where The Wild Things Are or Dymocks Brisbane.

Nightbirds next to two of her besties at Where The Wild Things Are in Brisbane.

I’ve had some delightful conversations with podcasters lately. If you’d like to hear me talk about Nightbirds and the writing life, you can do that here on the Words and Nerds podcast and on the Readings Podcast.

I also broke out my fancy microphone and had a fun video chat with LoveOzYa, which you can feast your eyes on via the YouTube.

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Sneak peek: An annotated chapter of Nightbirds

I wish I could give you a sneak peek of Fyrebirds’ cover - I just got a glimpse of it myself, and it’s SO good. I can’t yet, but you will be some of the first people to see it when it’s ready! In the meantime, you get this annotated chapter of Nightbirds.

I’ve always loved seeing authors’ annotated chapters. It’s fascinating to see what kinds of details they decide to comment on, and it always gives such interesting insights into the way they think and write. I shared this over on Pub Dates a few months ago, but I wanted to share it again here in all its glory. Just clink on the link to download the PDF. If you like it, let me know: perhaps I’ll annotate more chapters for you, or even a whole book to give away!

For the diehard Pub Dates listeners amongst you, I have another little behind-the-scenes piece of fun. This is the very first line I wrote of Nightbird’s sequel, aka Fyrebirds. It’s not the first line of the novel, but it’s the first one that arrived when I put pen to paper. Can you guess which character’s point of view this is from?

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Meanwhile, on Pub Dates…

Listeners keep asking Amie and I if we’re going to keep producing Pub Dates episodes now that our books are out. And the answer is: you know it! We’ve loved giving you all backstage passes to our publishing journeys, sharing glimpses of our lives and work in this unique and intimate way. We have so much more to share, with the sequels to both NIGHTBIRDS and THE ISLES OF THE GODS coming out next year. We’re excited to take you behind the scenes, now more than ever.

Since last I wrote, we’ve released a series of episodes all about our audiobooks! There’s an interview with Amie’s audiobook producer, Nick, about how audiobooks get made, AND an interview with our narrators. I loved hearing what the lovely Saskia Maarleveld had to say about bringing our magical girls to life.

My publisher also let me share the book’s prologue and first chapter with you - that’s an hour of the audiobook for free, ya’ll! I loved listening to the book again after reading it on paper, and I hope the audiobooks lovers amongst you will love it just as much.

Make sure you keep your ears tuned for next week’s episode, where I answer all of your burning, spoilery Nightbirds questions. It was SO fun to record, and I can’t wait for you to hear it!

And have you listened to my women’s history pod, The Exploress?

My women’s history podcast is taking a little summer break as I pore myself into editing FYREBIRDS. So I’m going to highlight a slightly older series, but one I think Nightbirds fans will LOVE listening to. It’s a series called A Lady’s Life in Ancient Rome.

Surprised? Nightbirds’ political system was shaped by that of the Roman Republic, and I found a lot of inspiration in that time and place. These episodes are packed with ladycentric factoids about women’s bathing habits, how they went about wrapping their stolas, and why this specific group of priestesses had more power than almost anyone else. Also, did you know that it was totally acceptable to pick your ears at a Roman dinner party? They even used fancy silver spoons to do it. It’s a lot to take in, I know.

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What I’m Reading

Some of my favorite books with queer rep (you know I had to include Nightbirds).

This PRIDE month, I’ve been casting my eye over the last few years of my reading and feeling pleased by how much queerness shows up in my stacks. Contemporary coming out books can be delightful, and important, but there’s something satisfying about a book where queerness doesn’t make a big deal of itself. I love when it’s just THERE, plain to see, but so normalized that no one feels the need to make it an issue. For all the patriarchal nonsense in Nightbirds, I wanted a world where queerness didn’t need to be hidden, where you can love who you love, no questions asked. I hope it feels like a safe space for you, reader. As a teen, I wish I’d had more books like these.

Here are some other books I’ve read and enjoyed lately, all with at least a dash of queerness. Please recommend some of your favourites too.

• Gwen and Art are Not in Love by Lex Croucher

• Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross

• Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Torz

That’s it for now! Leave a comment and let me know, won’t you, what you’re reading, what you want to see in Nightbirds’ sequel, and what kind of tail you would have?

xo Kate