December 2023
Happy Holidays from Barbie and me! Read about my writing process, judge my music taste, and (hopefully) enjoy an original flash piece.
Writing Updates
I’m currently in an interesting spot: awaiting edit letters for my two 2025 books, While We’re Young and Untitled Swiftie 4. It has been nice to take a step away from those characters, but I’m eager to return to their stories with fresh eyes and guidance from my editors. Revision really stretches me as a writer; my head spins at the beginning, but once I get in a groove, I am obsessed (and occasionally kept up at night). The cover process has also begun for a book, but my lips are zipped for now. All I’m saying is that I love its mood-board.
I’ve also been brainstorming concepts/ideas/tidbits for my 2026 books. Nothing is locked in yet, except for a certain love interest—are you happy, Eva Michelle?!—but they will be part of the KLW Universe, so you can expect cameos!
For reasons, I’m researching glass-blowing. It’s mesmerizing. My Gentleman Caller and I are also going to Milan this winter, so my plan is to spend time exploring the city for a future book.
My Writing Process
I’m discovering that my process shifts a bit with each book, but I always start with a place. Settings are so important to me; I love a strong sense of place in my stories, wanting the setting to feel like its own character. I cherish writing about places I know intimately. Maybe Meant To Be is a love letter to the boarding school chapter of my life (see throwback photo below). The Summer Of Broken Rules unfolds on Martha’s Vineyard, where my family has been going on vacation for over two decades.
Characters always come next. I think about how they connect to the setting, and from there, the themes I want to explore and a plot for how to best do that. Plot is the most mind-expanding for me. I usually build its foundation from a piece of my own life—or a loved one’s life (ie: my dad’s senior prank for What Happens After Midnight)—and then I do a lot of brainstorming with the Unholy Trinity: my literary agent, my mom, and my godmother. They are the best sounding boards.
Once all that is scribbled into a notebook, I switch into inspiration-mode! I love Pinterest boards; I have a general “writing inspo” board where I pin things that I find out of the blue. This photo of Timothée Chalamet and Saoirse Ronan has been on there forever, but I haven’t met the characters who embody them yet!
And then, the boards get more specific as the book develops. This quote is Swiftie 4-coded…
I’m also a huge playlist person. I have playlists for each book, and sometimes for individual characters. I don’t listen while I write, but they are constantly on a loop while I go on runs and long walks and whenever I’m driving somewhere. Two of my favorites are below.
Writing: I used to be a dedicated plotter, but now it depends on the book. For While We’re Young, I sketched out outlines before writing each chapter, but I leaned into the pantser lifestyle for Swiftie 4 (translation: I knew The Big Picture, but I didn’t outline at all; I let everything unfold organically). No matter what, I always write chronologically and edit as I work. At the beginning of every writing session, I reread the previous chapter to reorient myself and do some light revision.
I never track my word-count. While it’s an ingredient in so many writers’ magic sauce, I tried it for Swiftie 4 and it wasn’t my jam. Just because I hit a certain daily word quota didn’t necessarily mean the story hit a certain point. So I now focus on reaching various plot-points instead of a word-count.
I love to be cozy while working. I light a candle and put on an endless crackling fire video on YouTube. I usually wear a beanie. I drink everything from coffee to tea to hot cider. And yes, I have my Stanley tankard. #StayHydrated
I start writing around 9:15 AM and then pause around 2:00/2:30 PM to eat lunch and exercise. Running is really helpful for a.) reflecting on what I’ve written so far that day, and/or b.) getting rid of writer’s block.
And I always, always stop working by 6:00.
Otherwise, insomnia strikes at night.
7 Questions
I got so many fantastic questions for this month! If you don’t see yours, please know I am so appreciative and have banked it for another newsletter.
What was the first story you ever wrote?
Skipping over my elementary school publications (my fourth grade teacher spent more time on creative writing than on math or pretty much everything else), I wrote my novice manuscript during my sophomore year of college as part of my fiction-writing workshop. Katherine “Kitsey” Carmichael—the Maybe Meant To Be twins’ older sister—was the protagonist, and the book flashed back-and-forth between her Bexley School tenth reunion and her senior year. Parts of it still make me smile.
How do we get the character art?
Honest answer: I do not know. My publisher commissioned the pieces for YALLFest and a potential future giveaway, so I would reach out to @sourcebooksfire on Instagram to show-shout-scream your interest. I know you guys really want it!
How are Mer and Wit?
They are busy buying Christmas presents and organizing the Fox family’s first White Elephant gift exchange. It was Wit’s idea!
What inspired you to raise awareness for diabetes in What Happens After Midnight?
A very close friend of mine, as well as my cousin. They both have Type 1 diabetes, and I too have a chronic condition so we’ve had many conversations about there being a lack of representation on the bookshelf. I hope that changes. I felt it was not only important to shine a light on Tag’s diabetes, but even more important to emphasize that his entire personality isn’t “Type 1 diabetic.” It is only a fragment of who he is as a character. Just like it’s only a fragment of my friend and my cousin as (fabulous) people in real life. Just like epilepsy is only a fragment of me.
What’s your favorite part of a rough draft/starting a new story?
I really love the first conversation between my protagonist and the love interest! The banter!
What characters would be friends from different books (ex. Luke & Alex)?
I think about this a lot, especially when creating new faces. Nick Carmichael, from Maybe Meant To Be, has the best judge of character in the KLW Universe. Hands down. For every new book and every new love interest, I ask myself, "Would Nick be friends with this person?”
Three pairs I think would get along: Charlie/Alex (though I think they would exhaust people after a while), Luke/Lily, and Meredith/Mads (whom you’ll meet in 2025). I would also say that Leda and Josh would love Aunt Rachel and Aunt Julia, but they already go out on double dates since Aunt Rachel teaches at Ames (ICYMI)!
Which character of yours would you like to be a for a day?
James Barbour, from While We’re Young (2025). Simply because he is nothing like me. He is a chaotic mess and I love him.
5 Songs
All of these have appeared on secret writing playlists…
Thread- Keane
marjorie - Taylor Swift
Absolutely Smitten - dodie
Sweetest Human Being Alive - George Ezra
Kill You To Try - Daisy Jones & The Six (Yes, they are a real band in my head!)
3 Books
Last: I read Lynn Painter’s The Do-Over in tandem with A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab. I couldn’t resist the B&N exclusive edition’s sprayed edges, and ADSOM didn’t deserve to sit in my TBR pile any longer; V.E.’s prose is just too gorgeous.
Now: Raiders of the Lost Heart by Jo Segura. Jo is an agency sibling of mine, and I have been so excited for this book! The winks and nods to Indiana Jones are so clever and I’m loving the banter. All hail a badass heroine, too!
Next: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, because the holiday season is officially upon us! I read this book every December. If you like historical fiction shimmering with magic and all-consuming love, treat yourself to this!
Bonus Content
This month, we have a twist: you have not met these characters. They have been mentioned, but you have not read their story. To this day, I am invested in so many of my secondary and shelved characters.
Here are two quotes for some context; even if you have not read Maybe Meant To Be, this excerpt is still very much me.
“To be perfectly melodramatic, the Bexley School was in my blood. It had been up and running since 1816, and from then on, the boarding school had dealt with generations of Carmichaels wreaking havoc across its campus…the latest diploma belonged to my sister, Kitsey.”
-Charlie
“‘Who’s this?’ Luke pointed to a photo. ‘With you?’
I stiffened at the shot. It was an old one, taken on the Vineyard…of me and Cal. We were in Edgartown, Mad Martha’s Ice Cream in the background. Cal licked his cone beside me, his wheat-colored hair shining in the sunlight…
‘Carmichael?’
‘Oh, that’s Cal,’ I said, hoping my voice stayed level. “Kitsey’s high school boyfriend.’”
- Charlie
Kitsey may only be referenced in MMTB, but I know exactly what she’s been up to during her brothers’ senior year…
LONDON
I love his apartment—or, as they call it over here, his “flat.” It isn’t very big, but every inch of it is him, a combination of Ikea furniture and Weatherly family heirlooms. The dark green Strandmon wing armchairs, the faded Persian rugs, and a thousand paperbacks and hardcovers lodged in sleek, towering bookcases. The Kandinsky painting that his grandfather and great-aunt once fought over hangs near the entryway, and the bar-cart is stocked with bottles of red wine, gin, and bourbon. Manhattans are his favorite. He’s the oldest twenty-four year-old I know.
There’s a pillow from his bed on the cracked leather couch, along with a Hudson Bay blanket that has been with him since our Bexley days. From the bedroom doorway, I shut my eyes. “Stay,” I remember whispering late last night. We were lying on his bed; I was playing with his long perfect fingers as he recalled the time we went skinny-dipping in the lake senior year. The sky was clear, the stars were shining, and the cold water cut like a knife.
But he didn’t stay. He squeezed my hand and said goodnight before grabbing a pillow and disappearing.
Now, I find Cal across the living room, at the tiny dining room table with his laptop and a cup of coffee (no breakfast, though—for as long as I’ve known him, he’s never eaten breakfast). He’s beautiful, I think as he looks up from his screen and notices me. “Good morning,” he says, formally.
“Good morning,” I say back, just as formally. Then I move toward him and run a hand through his wheat-colored hair, an old habit. He automatically leans into it, but quickly we remember ourselves—he stiffens a little, and I pull my hand back. He clears his throat as I slide into the chair across from him. My heart twists. “What are you working on?” I ask quietly, glancing out the window. A red double-decker bus honks at the corner, and of course it’s raining.
“Just emails,” Cal answers, just as quietly. He closes the laptop, and we look at each other for a few beats without saying anything. His green eyes brighten and his dimples finally appear when my stomach growls.
“Thank you,” I tell him when he presents me with an omelet, cheese and peppers and mushrooms oozing out after I slice into it. I want to laugh and ask when he learned to cook, but I don’t because his face is serious again.
“We should leave within the next hour,” he says. “Security will be a mess.”
My flight leaves at noon. It’s Saturday, and Morgan Stanley expects me back in New York on Monday to talk about how everything went. I extended my trip after meeting Cal for dinner on Wednesday. That’s my man, I couldn’t help but think when I spotted him by the bar, tall and thin as ever in a tailored navy suit. My one and only.
I’m suddenly not hungry anymore. “You don’t have to come,” I say, putting down my fork. “I can make it there on my own.”
“No, I want to come.” Cal reaches across the table and threads his fingers through mine. I take a deep breath and hold on for dear life.
“He’s going to ask me to marry him,” I whisper. “I found the ring.”
Cal doesn’t visibly react, except for a single nod. “And what do you think?”
My chest lurches, and I say, “We’re too young” as if that even begins to cover it.
“But you’ve been together five years. It makes sense.”
“I never pictured marrying him.”
“No?”
“No,” I shake my head, blinking away tears, and that’s the end of it. He finishes his coffee, I finish my food, and soon we get ready to leave. Cal locks the door behind us. And he’s right—by the time we check my luggage, the lines to pass through security are miles long.
I throw myself into his arms at the same time he pulls me into them. I bury my face in his sweater and breathe in his spicy cologne. “I love you,” I tell him. “You don’t even understand how much I love you.”
Cal hugs me closer, and whispers what he always used to say in response: “I might.”
I tilt my head back to see clouds in his eyes.
“Come back,” he says. “Okay?”
And that’s all she wrote for 2023! See you in 2024, which, frankly, does not sound like a real year to me.
Cheers,
Kaethe