Kat Ellis writes… a newsletter
Be the first to hear all my latest news! My monthly newsletter is sent out on the first Friday of every month, and each issue contains all my latest adventures, bookish recommendations, and a mix of interviews with other authors and exclusive short stories.
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CATCH UP ON PREVIOUS ISSUES
May 2023: A Point Horror chat, a visit to Flint castle, and an interview with Claire Fraise about her YA supernatural thriller, They Stay, where Shiloh races to find her kidnapped little brother and the only ones who can help are the ghosts haunting the local cemetery.
‘I have always used writing as a way to explore things in life that scare me’ – Claire Fraise
April 2023: An anthology announcement, a trip to Snowdonia, and an interview with Melissa Welliver, author of My Love Life and the Apocalypse – a post-apocalyptic romcom about a girl who crashes to Earth and the AI who helps her search for her lost family.
‘I like to imagine that the End Of The World wouldn’t really be the end of the world… There is something weirdly appealing which draws us all to the idea of shaking off the usual problems of 21st century living and having to go back to basics.’ – Melissa Welliver
March 2023: A visit to my favourite cemetery, some Canadian Harrow Lake fan art, and an interview with J.P. Rose about her chilling YA horror, The Haunting of Tyrese Walker, about Tyrese’s visit to his Jamaican relatives following the death of his father, and the terrifying events he encounters there.
‘…the beauty of horror is that you can explore difficult emotions through the genre, and I thought it was the perfect backdrop to explore death.’ – J.P. Rose
February 2023: A Wicked Little Deeds milestone, a book club pick, and an interview with Tess James-Mackey about her debut YA thriller, Someone Is Watching You, where Nia gets caught up in a dangerous situation when her friends dare her to explore an abandoned prison.
‘I wanted it to be high-stakes, high-action and the sort of novel you could read in one sitting...’ – Tess James-Mackey
January 2023: My new year’s reading and writing goals, a writing room renovation, and an interview with Naomi Gibson about her brand-new cyber-thriller, Game Over Girl – where newly-orphaned twin Lola is sent alone to a new boarding school and invited to join an exclusive group in testing an addictive new VR game…
‘I love discovering what will push characters to fall down a rabbit hole and cling to it because they feel they have no other choice.’ – Naomi Gibson
December 2022: A visit with author Cynthia Murphy, a trip to a museum of deadly diseases, and a festively frightful short story: Christmas Lights.
Excerpt
The box of Christmas decorations rustled as Ellie shifted its weight in her arms. She ought to open the door under the stairs and just shove it all in, but something stopped her reaching for the door handle. Maybe it was the way the keyhole seemed to wink at her darkly, like it, too, was thinking about the day Gran gasped out of existence on this very spot.
“Never open the door under the stairs. I barely got it out of me…”
READ ‘CHRISTMAS LIGHTS’ HERE
November 2022: News about my new Middle Grade horror story, a trip to the forest to hunt for fly agaric, and an interview with Nicole Lesperance about The Depths – a story about a girl trapped on a mysterious, haunted island riddled with underwater tunnels, ancient secrets, and a heartbeat of its own.
‘I’ve always loved the idea of writing a mysterious, creepy, sentient island…’ – Nicole Lesperance
October 2022: The Halloween edition! I share my best dragon face, see an impressive Viking turd, and interview Aislinn O’Loughlin about her debut Big Bad Me – an action-packed paranormal YA, brimming with werewolfish fun and romance.
‘I’m a huge Buffy fan – the first seeds of Big Bad Me actually came from a dream I had after binging some very Oz-centric episodes…’ – Aislinn O’Loughlin
September 2022: A Harrow Lake announcement, Halloween plans, and an interview with Rosie Talbot about her brilliantly spooky debut, Sixteen Souls – where Charlie, a teen seer, has to team up with infuriating (and hot!) new boy Sam to investigate when York’s most famous ghosts begin to disappear.
‘Charlie’s voice was a bright beacon in my head from the moment I sat down to write that first chapter…’ – Rosie Talbot
August 2022: Wicked Little Deeds turns one, I go axe-throwing (not related), and I interview Katharine and Elizabeth Corr about their stunning duology opener, Daughter of Darkness – inspired by the tale of Orpheus, this book is perfect for any reader who loves Greek mythology, adventure, and Underworld heists. Can you tell I’m excited for book 2?
‘We started with the idea of wanting to write about characters who could travel between life and death, and then decided to incorporate our love of Greek myth…’ – Katharine & Elizabeth Corr
July 2022: Fun times at YA Thriller Con; I horrify Cynthia Murphy and Georgia Bowers – authors and co-hosts of Delete My Browser History – with some facts about leeches, and I interview Aneesa Marufu about her sweeping YA fantasy debut, The Balloon Thief, where Khadija takes to the skies to escape an arranged marriage, and becomes part of a revolution involving forbidden magic.
‘Hot air balloons became almost symbolic with escapism and my longing for adventure…’ – Aneesa Marufu
June 2022: I venture inside a 3500-year-old copper mine, take a bookish trip to Manchester, and interview Holly Race about the epic conclusion to her YA urban fantasy trilogy, A Midnight Dark and Golden – where Fern, Ollie and the rest of the Knights face their greatest challenge yet as they defend Annwn, the realm of dreams.
‘I love the idea of unicorns grazing alongside the deer in Richmond Park, or being able to spot sea monsters in the Thames…’ – Holly Race
May 2022: I celebrate an author milestone, visit Gladstone’s Library with Dawn Kurtagich, and interview Tracy Darnton about her gripping new YA mystery-thriller, Ready Or Not – in which Millie tries to find out what happened to her best friend Kat after she disappears during one of their traditional holiday celebrations.
‘…puzzles, subtext, foreshadowing and misdirection are all very appealing to me. I get huge satisfaction from writing a good ending – that’s definitely my favourite part of the process.’ – Tracy Darnton
April 2022: Vive le bookish news – Wicked Little Deeds heads to France! I also explore some ancient castles and a shrine, catch up with a coven of horror authors, and interview Gina Blaxill about You Can Trust Me – a twisty YA thriller about a girl whose best friend gets spiked at a party, then realises the drink was meant for her.
‘…part of [Alana’s] journey was to gain a greater awareness of what is and isn’t OK, and that there are many completely different ways in which to advocate for female rights.’ – Gina Blaxill
March 2022: I share a brand new foreign book cover, visit my favourite cemetery, and interview Jennifer Killick about her latest Middle Grade horror-comedy, Dread Wood – a brilliant story about a group of kids trapped at school for weekend detention who uncover a terrifying secret.
‘Horror comedy is my favourite genre because it’s all about having fun. I love the slow creep of suspense and the thrill of being jump-scared.’ – Jennifer Killick
February 2022: I talk secrets and lies with Ben Oliver, M A Bennett and Tracy Darnton, fail epically at a quiz, and interview Josh Winning about The Shadow Glass – a fabulous retro fantasy about Jack, who gets dragged into a world of living puppets when he inherits his movie-maker father’s estate.
‘…there’s something really fun about letting rip with a character who is unapologetically and irrefutably evil.’ – Josh Winning
January 2022: I shared fun news about Wicked Little Deeds and the Harrow Lake audiobook, gave a few hints about my latest project, and interviewed Kate Brauning about The Ballad of Dinah Caldwell – a speculative YA thriller about a girl who’s out for revenge when a ruthless tyrant kills her family.
‘…there’s something captivating and so human about writing characters on the edge of no return.’ – Kate Brauning
Kat Ellis Writes 