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Katherine Locke is the author of the Sydney Taylor Honor Award winning debut young adult novel “The Girl with the Red Balloon.”

In today’s episode, we dive into how “The Girl with the Red Balloon” was influenced by her Grandfather. She shares advice for writers new to the historical fantasy genre, how technology plays a crucial role when writing historical fiction, how to tell a story that requires emotionally heavy research and overcoming the emotional exhaustion.

Katherine walks us through incredibly helpful tips on drafting, from the first draft to the second draft, and how to work through the dreaded middle of the manuscript. You’ll learn why Katherine always tosses out the first draft and how she accepted this as part of her process. We also touch on different ways to brainstorm, how to simultaneously balance writing for different genres and age groups, and why it’s necessary to have a writing community.

For writers, to download the exclusive writing prompt she created for our community, scroll down till you see a box that says “writing prompt”. Katherine is also taking over our Instagram account and will be showing us behind-the-scenes glimpses of her writing life, from her local coffee shop where she gets her writing done and how she gets through writer’s block, to special footage from her research trip in Budapest, and so much more. We’re also hosting an exciting giveaway of Katherine’s book so be sure to follow us on Instagram by clicking here!

Say ‘Hi’ to Katherine on Twitter and check out an exclusive excerpt from “American Panda” along with an adorable cartoon that ties in with the excerpt over at her shownotes page by clicking here! For writers, be sure to scroll down to the bottom of Katherine’s shownotes page to download her writing prompt for our storytellers!

Happy Listening!

Xo,

Yin

PS. Do you know anyone who would love our conversation? Please share this episode to help spread the word!

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If you enjoyed this episode, I’d really love your support in growing our community by subscribing to us on iTunes, and leaving a rating and review. These specific steps help to increase our visibility on iTunes which really helps new listeners discover us. A huge heartfelt thank you for your time and support! You can click here to go directly to our iTunes page!

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Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your work-in-progress, and join in on other bookish talks and 88 Cups of Tea related things, join our private Facebook group! You can really feel the love and support in our community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!

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Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!

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“It’s very important to have a writing community that cheerleads and then also challenges you.” 

-Katherine Locke (Click to tweet!)

“It took me 3 years of writing it to realize it was ok to not find answers in my own book, its ok to come up with more questions. A tough emotional place to be but a really important personal place to be.”

-Katherine Locke (Click to tweet!)

“I have always considered myself a YA writer, I really do think that’s part of my identity as a writer. I just happen to also write books for adults.”

-Katherine Locke (Click to tweet!)

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WHAT YOU’LL LEARN IN TODAY’S EPISODE: 

• Advice on drafting, from the first draft to the second draft

• How to work through the dreaded middle of your manuscript

• How to tell a story that requires emotionally heavy research and overcome the emotional drainage

• Detailed advice for writers new to the historical fantasy genre

• How to simultaneously balance writing for different genres and age groups

• Learn why Katherine always tosses out the first draft and how she accepted this as part of her process to help move her forward

• Why it’s crucial to have a writing community and support

•  Different ways to brainstorm and utilizing how your brain works

• The importance of writing consistently

• How Katherine’s story for The Girl with the Red Balloon was influenced by her Grandfather

• How technology plays a crucial role when writing historical fiction