Kat Heckenbach spent her childhood with pencil and sketchbook in hand, knowing she wanted to be an artist when she grew up—so naturally she graduated college with a degree in biology, went on to teach math, and now homeschools her two children while writing. Her fiction ranges from light-hearted fantasy to dark and disturbing, with multiple stories published online and in print. Her debut novel, MG fantasy Finding Angel, is available in print and ebook. Enter her world at www.kat-findingangel.blogspot.com.
Check out how Kat went from unpublished to published author in the interview below:
How many complete novels have you written so far?
One complete novel, my MG fantasy Finding Angel. I have two more that are each about 2/3 finished. One is the sequel to Finding Angel, and the other is a novel completely unrelated to the series.
How many of those have been published?
Finding Angel released September 2011. Here's a blurb: Angel doesn't remember her magical heritage...but it remembers her. Magic and science collide when she embarks on a journey to her true home, and to herself.
Angel lives with a loving foster family, but dreams of a land that exists only in the pages of a fantasy novel. Until she meets Gregor, whose magic Talent saves her life and revives lost memories. She follows Gregor to her homeland...a world unlike any she has imagined, where she travels a path of self-discovery that leads directly to her role in an ancient Prophecy...and to the madman who set her fate in motion.
Years you've been writing:
Started in August 2007, so over four years as of now.
First thing you ever had published:
A short story called "Eyes on the Hilltop" in Christian Fiction Online Magazine's July 2009 issue. (http://christianfictiononlinemagazine.com/EyesOnTheHilltop.html)
In a paragraph or two, describe what the road to novel/book publication was like for you.
My road to publication began with a call-out for artists on the Lost Genre Guild writers loop. Grace Bridges from Splashdown Books needed a key drawn for a book cover she was preparing for publication. I answered and she used my drawing. Through emailing during the process, we talked about writing. I mentioned a few things about my manuscript, and she asked to see it.
After she first read it, she suggested I try someplace "bigger." But I'd tried the agent route and gotten nowhere. Middle Grade fantasy is a really hard sell these days. There are simply not that many agents that represent it. And there is even less room in the Christian market than there is in the secular market. But Grace is about publishing stories she loves, and when I told her I *wanted* to be published by her, that I had no interest in sending to more agents, she sent me a contract.
Describe the first time you got "The Call."
Since it wasn't the traditional query process, there was no "call." It all came about through our email communications. But of course I was elated! And it settled in more and more the closer the day came to publication. And if you really, really want to know how it all felt, you can read this short story I wrote about it: Little Book of Magic :D.
Are you a fan of writing contests? Why or why not?
Honestly, I can't really answer that. I've never participated in one outside of being a judge. I have enjoyed judging, though!
What do you know now that you wish you knew when you were first starting out?
I know a lot of things I didn't know when I first started out, but I can't say I wish I had known them back then. Much of the writing and publishing process is more daunting than I expected, and had I known a lot of what I know now, I may not have gone through with it. I dove in blindly, and by doing so I was able to bypass a lot of the caution I normally take with things. I'm glad I was a bit clueless--it got me past the gate, and once I realized where I was, I was too deep and too determined to turn back.
Three books on writing/publishing you'd recommend:
On Writing, by Stephen King
Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott
Self-editing for Fiction Writers, by Renni Browne and Dave King
How is being published different than you thought it would be?
Really, the question is, "How is it not different?" Everything is different. The marketing you think will work doesn't, and what you think won't work does. The people you think will buy your books don't, and others you think would never be interested buy a stack. Getting reviews is much more difficult than I expected. But some of the reviews I've gotten are so much better than I expected I've nearly been brought to tears. The whole experience is a roller coaster, and I spend every moment learning.
What are two pieces of advice you would give to writers who are desperately seeking publication?
Take the advice of writers you want to be like. Just because someone is published, doesn't mean their advice is for you. Stick to the advice of authors in your specific genre who are heading in the direction you want to go.
That draft you think is ready--it's not. Not if it's your first novel, and not if you haven't gotten feedback from other writers and done some serious editing. Take time away from it and work on other stuff. Try some short stories, to learn how to write concisely. Work on your craft through something other than that first manuscript. And THEN go back and tear it apart and rebuild it with all the new knowledge and skill you have acquired.
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