I’m so glad I had a chance to chat with
this morning about her new novel, The Fated. It’s the first time either of us have done a Substack Live, which was nerve-racking (and a huge step out of my comfort zone!) but we made it through and had a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone who was able to join us live!
Here’s a peek at our conversation:
Her first book:
I feel like looking back is interesting because you can see your influences, especially your earlier work, like what really influenced you more. Whereas I feel like when you get more experience, right, you can tell, but it's not so much, I mean. Because I love Lord of the Rings and I wrote a book that was .. there weren't hobbits or a Shire or anything, but …. when I read back, it’s like, 'Ooh, this is heavily during my Lord of the Rings era. But for that one, it was just written [with] a pencil in a notebook that I carried around in middle school.
Her decision to leave her agent and self-publish:
It's fantasy, but it's such a kind of cross genre; it has elements of paranormal, elements of magic realism, and I think the marketing for that they needed more. One of the editors even said … it was a great book but it was kind of in between fantasy and … speculative fiction [as far as] marketing that they just weren't sure … how to market it.
Her inspiration for The Fated:
I took a trip with my parents after graduation of college that went through the Bermuda Triangle … At that time, I didn't know all the lore behind it. I knew it was infamous, obviously, but I purposely did not look at everything that happened before we sailed right through it.
…
When he went through that Bermuda Triangle, we went by this most fantastic lightning storm I've ever seen. The Captain … we didn't go right through it, thank goodness. But we went right … it must have been on the edge because it was so dark, I couldn't see the clouds, but I could see like the planets, Venus and Mars, and the moon in the sky. And then, below that point, there was lightning. And then, I remember there were two other smaller boats out there in the waves, and it was just the most eerie kind of beautiful scene I've ever seen.
There’s a lot more, including Katelynsam’s mindset in treating self-publishing as a business. She shares an excerpt from the novel at the end, too, so be sure to listen to get a taste of her bewitching prose and a glimpse of the story awaiting you in The Fated, along with a special offer!
You can learn more about The Fated, including where to buy it, on Katelynsam — Author, Graphic Designer, Dreamer. You can also subscribe to her newsletter:
If you’d like to see more live interviews like this with fantasy authors1 in Magic & Ink, please subscribe! Or buy me a chai to support my work.
Obligatory promo for the Substack app, since that’s the only way to watch these interviews live:
If you’re a fantasy author who would like to do a live chat, please reach out!
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