Operation Awesome: #AtoZChallenge K is for Kate Larkindale #giveaway

Operation Awesome 2023 #AtoZChallenge theme is interviews of established authors

Established Author Name: Kate Larkindale

1- April 13 is Celebrate Teen Literature Day. How could we best promote and cultivate the love of reading among teenagers?

I think the best way to make and keep teens reading is by ensuring that libraries, especially school libraries, have books that speak to as many different experiences and realities as possible. Kids need to see themselves represented in the books they read and if the only books available don’t reflect their lives, they’ll look somewhere else. Teens are at such a fragile point in their lives where the person they will grow up to be is forged, so they need to see and understand that their feelings and experiences are not theirs alone. That they are not freaks. I’m horrified that at a time when publishing seems to be finally catching up on the fact that diversity and representation matter, conservative leaders in all kinds of communities are demanding that the books demonstrating diversity are being removed from library book shelves.

2- In what category/genre do you write? Why?

I write YA for the most part. Maybe because I’ve never really grown up…. But I feel like there’s so much you can do in the YA space. It’s such a tough time as well as being an exciting one. It’s a time of life where new feelings can be overwhelming. The changes happening to one person may not be the same as the changes that happen to another. Friendships that have endured throughout childhood may be strained to breaking point when friends change in different ways and find new tribes that better suit their new interests and ideas.

It’s a time in life where the adult you grow up to be is formed, often through trial and error, experimentation and failure. Hormones run wild and with them come confusing feelings and possibly even attraction to someone - maybe not the person you’ve always believed you’d end up with. I love to write these big emotions and characters who still believe they have the ability to change the world and be whoever they want to be.

3- What part of one of your stories was the most fun to write? The most challenging?

I think I had the most fun writing Stumped. My main character, Ozzy, is a really funny guy, even though he’s a total douchebag at the beginning of the book. I had a great time throwing him into all kinds of horrible situations and as a result, he finishes the book as a fairly decent human.

The most challenging is probably the book I’ve been working on (off and on) for the last couple of years, tentatively called A Stranger to Kindness. The main character is electively mute, and as someone who uses dialogue to do a lot of the storytelling, having an MC who doesn’t talk at all is a whole new way of thinking about writing a novel. The subject matter for this one is pretty challenging too, hence why I’ve only been working on it sporadically.

4- Would you please, in 160 characters (not words) or less, give a #WriteTip ?

Don’t try and write a book (or story) that will sell. Write something you’re passionate about, something you want to read.

5- You spent a lifetime traveling the globe. What was your favorite place so far?

That’s such a hard one! I have so many favourite places for so many different reasons! I love New Zealand because it’s been my home for the last 17 years and where I’ve raised my kids. But I think my favourite city overall is Berlin. Or maybe Melbourne. Or New York….

6- What do you love and hate most about being a published author?

I love knowing my books have made a difference to readers. I’ve had some beautiful emails from people who have read my books and reached out to tell me how much they meant to them. And these aren’t reviewers or anyone I’ve asked to read the books - just average people who happened to pick one up and found something to connect with.

I don’t think there’s anything I really hate about being a published author. There are certain things I find irritating (like the fact my publisher’s style guide doesn’t allow semi-colons and I really like to use semi-colons in certain situations - a comma or period changes the rhythm of the sentence and that then changes the whole rhythm of the page), but hate is a really strong word.

7- Do you publish traditional, self, hybrid, other? Why?

I’m traditionally published, mainly because I’d rather not deal with all the minutiae that goes into getting a book out - the cover design and ISBN number and loading it up to retailers and typesetting and stuff like that. I have precious little time to write as it is, without adding all that business stuff into the mix.

8- What question are you dying to answer?

How long does it take you to write a book?
That depends on if you mean drafting or finishing. The last time I did NaNo (in 2020) I wrote the 60K words in about 8 days, but it’s taken until this week to get the book to a point where I’m ready to think about querying it.

9- Would you please ask our audience an intriguing question to answer in the comments?

What book are you a total evangelist for? Why?

10- Which book would you suggest readers start with?

I don’t write series, so you could read any of my books at any time. An Unstill Life is my best-selling title, but it’s not my favourite of my books. As I mentioned earlier, I had so much fun writing Stumped, I think that’s my personal favourite. And The Sidewalk’s Regrets is very personal to me, so that one will always have a very special place in my heart.

I recently signed a contract for a new book which will be out later this year. It’s called My Murder Year. So keep an eye out for that one. I wish I had a cover to share, but it’s a little early for that.