salt air, and the deadline at my door
book news, IRL event, and my best friend's baby
Writing Updates
I am still writing a book, and now am officially racing against the clock. One month to my deadline. Cross your fingers for me, okay?
Because I need to type.
Book News
Two items to discuss!
While We’re Young
I am so excited for WWY to hit shelves, so much so that C has banned Goodreads and NetGalley because I should not be reading Midge’s witty commentary or Rose’s thoughts on the romance(s) or Susie’s three-star rating with basically no explanation, or Abe’s long-winded critique when I’m supposed to be writing a new book (or, to be honest, reading them at all). But, in my defense, WWY has been in the pipeline for what feels like forever, so I can’t help but wonder what people think.
Now, here’s the thing: WWY was supposed to be released in February…
It is now publishing a month later, on March 4th, 2025.
I was kind of bummed when I got the news, but something fantastic is coming from this delay. An item on my author bucket list is being checked off! I’ll share more when I get the green light, but heed my words: You will want a copy from the first printing.
An almost foolproof way to make sure that happens is to preorder the book, by clicking the button below.
A First Time for Everything
The title is officially out! No more “Swiftie 4” placeholder! I hated typing in all lowercase letters (autocorrect is the bane of my existence), but it was totally worth it; I loved posting AFTFE inspiration photos and leaving some old school Taylor Swift-style clues in their captions. It was so much fun to watch you guys speculate, and see some of you correctly guess the title extremely early in the game!
AFTFE will be published on May 6, 2025, and you can preorder it now! Like all my books, it is a standalone that exists in the KLW Universe. It’s mostly set in Pennsylvania, but we do some traveling to places like Stone Harbor on the Jersey Shore and the Finger Lakes in New York. Its main characters are first mentioned in While We’re Young (Mads lives in the same town as the WWY gang), and you’ll recognize some beloved characters from other KLW books. I definitely consider this book a “companion” novel to TSOBR.
While its cover is still in development, below is the blurb and a button to add it to your Goodreads!
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Summer of Broken Rules comes a fun new coming-of-age romance full of dating disasters, powerful firsts, and the importance of family.
Madeline has always been extremely close to her family, so she is shocked when her older brother gets engaged without including them (or even giving them a heads up!). Mads has never been the biggest fan of his fiancée, Katie, so in order to remain one happy family, she is determined to bond with Katie before the big day, which includes reluctantly agreeing to be a bridesmaid.
During a late-night bridesmaids-only game of "Truth or Dare" Mads is cornered into revealing she has never been kissed or even been on a date, which spurs the other girls to unite on a quest to find Mads the perfect plus-one for the wedding. Next thing she knows she’s navigating a series of disastrous dates that include some major misunderstandings and mishaps.
All of a sudden Mads finds her heart tugged in different directions: to Connor, the boy next door who knows her best. To Marco Álvarez, the former classmate who knows how to push all her buttons. And to some of the new suitors who surprisingly aren’t all bad.
As the wedding draws nearer, Mads has to figure out who she wants most as a forever dance partner, while also making sure her brother isn't making the biggest mistake of his life.
In closing: WWY and AFTFE are my love letters to Pennsylvania, where I lived for twenty something years. My memories there will forever be cherished, and I did my best to pour all that love into these books.
Upcoming meet-and-greet
Yes, you read that correctly. I’m going big—bigger than just dropping by a bookstore with my hair in a messy bun to casually sign my books.* On Wednesday, August 14th I will be live and in person at Bunch of Grapes Bookstore on Martha’s Vineyard, ready to chat it up with readers from 1 to 3 PM. Signing books in my happy place is pretty much a dream come true, so if you’re on-island, I’d love to meet you!
(After the event, I will be spending a small fortune on books and other various treasures).
*Special shoutout to C for encouraging me to reach out to Bunch of Grapes. We are building up that confidence brick-by-brick, people.
Martha’s Vineyard
I am going to the Vineyard in less than two weeks, and I’m the happiest camper. Seriously. To echo every homeowner in Beach Cottage Chronicles, I can’t wait for my blood pressure to drop.
Reader Q&A
As always, I solicit these questions on my Instagram stories! I can’t express how much I love getting these; they are truly a highlight of my month, and make me feel so connected to all of you.
What do you write on? Paper, docs, or is there a secret author writing site you use?
I am a combination! I have a notebook where I jot down ideas and draft sparse chapter outlines, and then I always write on Microsoft Word. I switch between my laptop and the beautiful blue iMac I bought myself as an apartment-warming gift.
Favorite Disney movie-musical?
The competition is stiff, but I’ve always been a huge Hercules fan. I remember when I was little, my mom and I dressed up in pink dresses one summer evening so we could perform “I Won’t Say (I’m In Love)” on our back deck for my family.
What’s something people would be surprised to learn about publishing a book?
Authors don’t always come up with their own titles! Speaking from personal experience, I almost never come up with my titles…and it has taken time for me to “fall for” certain titles. My agent and I brainstorm ideas and recruit her husband to help (thanks, Tom!), but publishers definitely have their own titling process and the final say. And some books are harder to title than others! For example, While We’re Young IS a Swiftie book, but it was titled so early and seamlessly than I never needed to use the “Swiftie” placeholder. A First Time for Everything, on the other hand… it took longer to find the best fit. These days, I temporarily name my projects after my protagonist and don’t think about titles until we hit that stage.
When writing, do you write chronologically or jump around?
There’s a point in every draft where I want or try to jump around, but because I edit/lightly revise as I work and because a lot unfolds organically as I write, it never lasts. I am, 100%, a chronological writer. I need to feel somewhat “finished” with a chapter before moving on to the next one, and I don’t feel that way if I’m leaving behind a highlighted sentence reading, “MAKE THIS F*CKING GOOD!” I also use the parts I’m most enthusiastic to write as “rewards” for writing the not-as-fun scenes.
What was your favorite thing you saw in Jersey? ( - a Jersey Shore native)
Just a perfect day in Stone Harbor. My mom and her siblings grew up spending summers there, and now the extended clan spends a week together. I love how early Uncle Stephen wakes up to claim a prime spot on the beach. I love the trenches Jack digs around our camp. I love reading a romance while soaking up the sun. I love seeing Nell, Scout, and Wells play field hockey in the sand. I love seeing Aunt Kate needlepointing a Christmas stocking. I love how my mom and Uncle Greg tell wildly different versions of the same story. I love how Aunt Sarah makes Aperol Spritzes using a coffee pot as a pitcher. I love the group pilgrimage to Springer’s after dinner. I love walking around the streets at night, pretending to house hunt for our future multimillion dollar-home. I love Mary Lou and Ross, my grandparents, so very much.
Top 10 Taylor songs?
This is an evil question! I’m going to give you the first ten that come to mind, in no particular order…
august
Cue C reading over my shoulder and asking, “Why is ‘august’ not capitalized?” (he still has much to learn)
All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version)
Enchanted (Taylor’s Version)
champagne problems
Style (Taylor’s Version)
You Belong With Me (Taylor’s Version)
So Long, London
Peter
You’re On Your Own, Kid
Our Song
Who is your favorite character you’ve ever written?
Luke Morrissey (Maybe Meant to Be) lives in the penthouse of my heart, but While We’re Young’s James Barbour is another gem. We have approximately zero things in common (except our love of ice cream), which made him so much fun to write. He’s a mess yet charming and thoughtful, keeps things real, and so freaking funny. I think he’s also the only character I’ve totally and completely abandoned myself to write. It was freeing to take a break from being Kaethe, because one of James’ “co-stars” asked for a lot of Kaethe. And I also really love Mads from A First Time for Everything, but we can dig into her another time…
Do you have a favorite micro-trope to write?
According to my agent (who may or may not have needed to tell me what a micro-trope was), it’s glasses.
Favorite couple you’ve ever written?
That’s for me to know and never tell you, but you’re welcome to speculate.
What things are you most looking forward to for the rest of the year?
The Vineyard, a potential trip overseas, writing another book, and most importantly, meeting my best friend’s baby! She was born a couple weeks ago, and I am in love with her, as you can tell from this text sent to her mother.
My Bookshelf
With the best of intentions, I started Ashley Poston’s A Novel Love Story, but pretty quickly determined I wasn’t in the right *mood* for it, so it has been bookmarked for the time being. Doing that gave me time to absolutely devour Alice Winn’s debut In Memoriam, which is the very best book I have read in a very long time. It’s beautifully written—poignant, romantic, heartbreaking, brutal. But also, funny. I am a sucker for witty dialogue, and the chemistry between our main characters and the ensemble just crackles on the page. I finished it at 11 PM and then said hello to my best friend Insomnia because I needed to process everything!
I reread While We’re Young when my physical ARCs arrived; I do that with all my books. I love reading them as books at least once (or tbh, several times). WWY still makes me feel all the feelings, and even laugh out loud. I also just finished an ARC of the awesome Liz Lawson’s upcoming Murder Between Friends. I was craving a mystery and this delivered.
My Playlist
Plot twist: I’m recommending a podcast! Elin Hilderbrand, one of my auto-buy authors and biggest writing inspirations, started this podcast with Tim, her “work husband,” last summer and I’m serious when I say I’ve listened to episodes multiple times. They interview authors, book influencers, publishing insiders, etc. about their author origin stories, writing process, and love for reading. As both a writer and a reader, I find each discussion both entertaining and fascinating. Start at the beginning if you’re interested in getting to know Elin and Tim and their backstories, but if you want to jump right in, Taylor Jenkins Reid’s interview is a great place to start! Season 1, Episode 2.
Click here to check it out!
Bonus Content
None this month, but I have a lot of new subscribers, so I’m linking previous content. Just scroll to the end of each newsletter!
Now it’s back to the writing cave. *gulp*
Cheers,
Kaethe
I love the Peter representation 🥲 and so interesting to learn about titles! I’m working on revising the first draft of my first novel and have been so stressed about what to call her!
I know you take questions for the newsletter on Instagram but as I don’t have it, I hope I can ask here as well. Do you have any plans to make merch (specifically clothes) for any of your books?