Category: Books (Page 10 of 81)

Taking the Time to Play with Writing

February 11, 2021 / Katie L. Carroll

Last year, after I got my YA fantasy ELIXIR SAVED finalized and up for preorder, the goal was to take a break. Not that I wasn’t going to write, more that anything I wrote would be without a plan.

I had started my witchy middle grade back in October 2019 when I did an Unworkshop at the Highlights Foundation, but I didn’t want to dive back into that one yet. I wanted to play around and not focus on a big project like a novel, and I wanted time to refill my creative well with reading, watching, and listening to music.

That was the plan at the beginning of the year, and I got ELIXIR SAVED ready in early March just before schools shut down. And, well, you all know what we’ve all been dealing with ever since. By the time I figured out how to fit in writing time again with early morning sessions (which didn’t happen until June!), I needed to have a plan instead of play, so I opted to work on the witchy middle grade.

Then I also got the rights to the illustrations for my picture book THE BEDTIME KNIGHT, so that became my play project as I taught myself to design a picture book. And now THE BEDTIME KINGHT is a real book out in the world and my middle grade is off to critique partners!

So I am truly ready for that writing “break” I meant to take (*checks notes*) almost a year ago. I have some STEM topics I’ll be exploring and I’ll be playing around with book formats I haven’t written before. Eventually I’ll be getting back to my witchy middle grade, and then I’ll have to decide what novel I’m writing next, but it’s all play for now for me. I’m really looking forward to it.

What kind of play or work (writing or non-writing related) have you all been up to?

Happy Book Birthday to THE BEDTIME KNIGHT by Katie L. Carroll & Illustrated by Erika Baird

January 26, 2021 / Katie L. Carroll

I’m so happy to have THE BEDTIME KNIGHT out in the world today! This book was first released as an ebook for a picture book app way back in 2012 (see “The Bedtime Knight” Is Born”), and it’s exciting to have it out in print for the first time.

Erika Baird, the illustrator, really did an amazing job of using the pictures to tell the story along with the text. And I love the purple color scheme she chose. The original layout was the text on one side and the illustration on the other, much like this page in the version releasing today.

That wasn’t going to work for the entire picture book for a print version. The design would have gotten stale, and the number of pages wouldn’t have worked. When I purchased the illustration rights from Erika, it was for the originals, so I had to bring my own design skills (or lack thereof) to the table.

Wow, did I learn a lot in the process of designing a picture book. If I never hear about adjusting page size for bleed again, I will be a very happy person indeed! One of my favorite spreads is this one with the closeup the young mouse character. It’s hard to see in this screenshot, but the illustration has a white border around it, and it was fun page to design.

This book is all about facing fears, especially the ones in our own heads. The mouse daughter keeps imagining the shadows in her dark room are scary things (like a giant on the ceiling). When Daddy Knight shines the light on them, they discover the shadows are just ordinary objects (like a ceiling fan). Then together, they use their imaginations to turn those everyday things into something else (like a friendly sea creature).

As the story progresses, the young mouse grows more independent in using her imagination, until finally at the end, she is alone in her room (with Daddy watching from the doorway) and reimagines the shadows all by herself.

As a person with a very active imagination, I often see things in the dark that scare me, especially when I was child. I love the way the dad character in the book so lovingly guides his daughter to see things (literally) in a new light and empowers her to reimagine them.

THE BEDTIME KNIGHT is available in print and ebook from Bookshop, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, IndieBound, and other book retailers.

Also a quick reminder that I’m teaching a virtual ShopTalk for the New England SCBWI called “What to Expect When You’re Self-Publishing” this evening, Tuesday, January 26, at 7:00 p.m. (ET). This is going to be packed with information! I’ve also added a Self-Publishing Resources page to my website for anyone interested in exploring more on the topic.

No New Year’s Resolution, But Hitting the Ground Running In 2021

January 4, 2021 / Katie L. Carroll

It seems I say the same thing at the beginning of every New Year: mainly that I’m always in the middle of things and a resolution doesn’t make much sense. Well, 2021 is no exception, so my plan is to keep moving forward on what I’ve been working on.

I’m so very close to finishing this big revision of my witchy middle grade novel, which finally has a title (not sure if that will end up being THE title, so not sharing right now). I think my next move is printing out a copy to do smaller line revisions before sharing it with critique partners.

I’ll also be presenting a Virtual ShopTalk with the New England SCBWI called “What to Expect When You’re Self-Publishing” on January 26, 2021 from 7:00 – 8:00 pm. Having booked this workshop has finally given me the motivation to work on setting up a page on my website for resources on self-publishing, so keep an eye out for that.

You may have seen my surprise announcement (see “The Journey of Self-Publishing the Picture Book THE BEDTIME KNIGHT”) that I have a picture book coming out as well. THE BEDTIME KNIGHT, illustrated by Erika Baird, officially releases January 26, though I know some of the pre-orders went out early (long story!). I’ve added THE BEDTIME KNIGHT to my Books tab, so you check that out for details on how to order.

All in all, lots of good stuff going on. I’ve thought about doing a 2020 book wrap-up post, but like everyone else, I’m kind just ready to move on and not look back. I hope the New Year brings you and yours health and happiness, and I’d love to hear your resolutions or plans for 2021.

The Journey of Self-Publishing the Picture Book THE BEDTIME KNIGHT by Katie L. Carroll, Illustrated by Erika Baird

December 7, 2020 / Katie L. Carroll

Surprise! I have a picture book coming out soon. While I wait for all the files to be finalized, I figured I’d share the journey of self-publishing this book and once again giving another one of my titles a second life.

Way back in 2012, my picture book THE BEDTIME KNIGHT, illustrated by Erika Baird, released on an ebook platform. I had entered the manuscript in a contest, and it didn’t win but the publisher offered me a contract all the same. It was really exciting to go through that process and seeing how the illustrator brought my words to life.

It was a positive experience in general, but a few years later when that company got bought out by a bigger publishing company, I opted to have my rights reverted back to me. There were several factors for that, but mostly I didn’t care for the terms of the contract and made the tough decision to walk away.

Fast forward a few years, and I had self-published my middle grade novel PIRATE ISLAND and found I really liked the process. I thought about doing that with THE BEDTIME KNIGHT. But publishing a picture book required design skills I did not have and I would have to get the rights from the previous illustrator or hire a new illustrator. I was also focusing on self-publishing my YA fantasy ELIXIR BOUND and writing the sequel ELIXIR SAVED. So once again, my little picture book about being scared of the shadows in the night was set aside.

Then one day, my sister and I were out on a hike with our families. We got talking about what writing project I was working on, one of which was a picture book inspired in part by her family. The conversation turned to what had ever happened with THE BEDTIME KNIGHT. I don’t remember her exact words, but she said something about how she had really liked the book and hoped it would be available again one day. I know she’s my sister, but we’re not the kind of people to compliment each other and not mean it, so I knew she was being sincere in her praise.

As a traditionally published author turned self-published one, it’s been hard not to doubt myself. Hard not to wonder if my work is good enough. And very hard to find an audience. So many books come out every year, and it’s often hard to find readers even with the backing of a publishing company, never mind when you’re doing it all yourself. So the fact that my sister enjoyed my book and wished it to be out in the world again meant something. It reminded me that my books–even when they’re only reaching a small audience–are important.

So I slowly started thinking about republishing THE BEDTIME KNIGHT. This time I wanted to have a print version, not just a digital one. I eventually reached out the to the illustrator and asked if she’d be willing to negotiate for the rights to use her illustrations. And she was!

We came to an agreement, and I taught myself how to design and format a picture book. This was all done in between other projects, and learning a design program can be a time-consuming process, so writing out the process sounds much less complicated than it felt while doing it. But I did it.

Now I’m super excited to announce that THE BEDTIME KNIGHT will be coming out in paperback and ebook very soon. Stay tuned for links!

Indie Author Day Children’s Panel Today & ELIXIR BOUND Sale

November 9, 2020 / Katie L. Carroll

I have a fun book announcement coming up next week (check out my site’s header for a hint of what it’s about). Quick post today to let you know that at 3:00 p.m. I’ll be on the Indie Author Day Children’s Authors Panel with the Norwalk Public Library.

Carol Gordon Ekster, Allia Zobel Nolan, Amy Oestreicher, Eric Sondergeld, and Frederick Thurber, and I will be on the panel discussing indie children’s publishing and our books. I’ll be reading from my latest YA fantasy ELIXIR SAVED. This will be the first time I’ll be doing a reading of this book! And this is a good opportunity to check out my virtual author visit space live, which I recently blogged about setting up.

You can email Cynde Lahey at clahey@norwalkpl.org to join the Zoom directly or join us live on the Norwalk Public Library’s Facebook page.

Last order of business is to share that ELIXIR BOUND is on sale for $0.99! Also, if you have purchased any of my paperwork books, I’m happy to send you a signed bookplate. Signed books make great holiday gifts. Just send me an email.