2021 Mentee Interviews

Tell us a little about yourself. Who are you, what do you write, and what are you working on right now?

Hey all. My name is Katharine, and I predominantly write young adult fiction, but I’ve recently delved a little into new adult fiction. The current book I’m revising with my mentor is young adult and deals with the themes of love, obsession, and possession.

What kind of stories are you interested in exploring in your career as an author?

I’m interested in anything that studies the complexities of human behavior in a compelling way. Villains interest me more than anything, because no one sees themselves as a villain. Every character has their own motivations and goals, and studying that with fiction is one of my favorite things to do.

What's the best thing about you as an author?

I’d say the best thing about me as an author is that I’m constantly looking for the ultimate truth in all my stories. I focus on the one aspect that is central and pulls all the characters together.

How have you developed as an author during this mentorship period? Is there anything that you didn't think before about the craft that you think now?

Working with Grace has helped me tremendously, both as a writer and a self-editor. Before, I could look at my manuscript and tell something was wrong, but I had no idea what. Now I can identify specific issues, and I’m better prepared to fix them. Overall, it’s given me much more confidence in my writing. Sure, it’s not perfect (and never will be, sadly), but I feel better prepared for revising when things aren’t perfect. I now know I can work with a deadline, even when the revisions seem steep.

If every book is a book baby, then it takes a village to raise a book. Are there any people who stand out to you as people who helped you in your writing journey?

Of course Grace is a standout for a person who has helped me on my writing journey. She chose to mentor my manuscript and gave me hope with it when I had been about to give up, and now I’m so glad I didn’t. It’d be remiss of me not to talk about how much my fiancé, Mike, has helped me, too. On every one of our morning runs, he listens to me harp about whatever story I’m working on, asks questions to help me think more about why that conflict won’t work, and provides the most support I could ever hope for. In addition to being the perfect sounding board for ideas, he also pauses his IT videos anytime I want to read him a passage that cracks me up. He doesn’t always laugh as hard as I do, but we can’t all have perfect senses of humor. And last, but certainly not least, are my critique partners. They don’t always tell me what I want to hear with my writing (that it’s perfect), but they tell me what I need to hear, and that’s much more important. Their support and investment keeps me motivated and ready to tell the best stories I can.

What do you think is the biggest necessity for a group of writing friends?

There are a lot of necessities for a group of writing friends, but I think one of the big ones is the ability to give honest feedback given in a respectful way.

Any parting words for young writers looking for guidance, or a community?

Definitely don’t be afraid to seek out fellow authors and critique partners. I feel like writing is such a solitary activity, but it doesn’t have to be a lonely journey. Finding like-minded, creative people to discuss and share your work with is key in staying motivated and positive.

What about your own craft, interests, and abilities drew you to your mentee and their work?

I really fell in love with Katharine's work due to both the similarities and differences from my work! I really liked that it was a novel with a lot of dark themes, that might not necessarily have a happy ending (not that I want to give too much away!) While this leans towards dark contemporary YA and I write YA horror, I still felt like a lot of the vibes were the same, and that a lot that I value in my own work really resonated in hers, so I felt like I really understood the novel and wanted to help her elevate it. She also has the opposite issue from me, in that I tend to not describe settings and people enough, and Katharine sometimes really wants to emphasise actions and settings! I felt like recognising this meant that hopefully I'd be able to help her with it - she's fantastic at subtlety when she lets it breathe. There's really just so much to love about it, and I'm so excited to see where we end up!

Do you have a message for anyone interested in your mentee's work?

I mean, obviously you should read it when you get the chance! Katharine has written such an ambitious novel and absolutely managed to pull it off - three distinct POV characters with individual voices, a dark and twisty narrative, and a wide range of character depth and backgrounds. It's very unpredictable with a lot of depth to it, and even better, it's one of those novels which you can read and reread and find new joy in it each time.