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$$PLAIN_TEXT_PREVIEW$$
What’s New With Katrina Kittle
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I like my scary stories
to be fiction, please.
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We made it to October—one of my favorite months, because I love all things spooky! Mind you, I like my spooky stuff to be made up, thank you very much, not the present horror show of current events. The only terrifying orange monster I want to see is a Jack-o-lantern. September felt rough—the days dark, the news so heavy and disheartening. Every time I get a news update, I feel like I’m getting the wind punched out of me. For that reason, I’m jumping straight into Reasons to Be Happy again—I know, I know, I sound like a broken record, but you have to take care of yourself when times are tough. Keep fighting the good fight, but be sure to savor the good stuff: the nip in the air, ghost stories, pumpkin spice everything, scary movies, the scuttle of leaves across the sidewalk, and that cornflower blue autumn sky.
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Jimmy Kimmel’s “return” monologue (This was so moving and powerful, and I didn’t realize how much I needed it. My favorite line, of many lines: “This show, this show is not important. What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this.”) Hot pretzels dipped in cheese The grapefruit basil martini at The Florentine in Germantown, Ohio Seeing a favorite comedian in person (We saw Steve Hofstetter at Dayton’s Funny Bone, and it felt so good to laugh hard and to share that laughter with a live audience. Be sure to check out his special “The Recipe” on YouTube.) Head bumps from a cat Sleeping with the windows open Sidewalk chalk messages
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The NPR podcast Wild Card with Rachel Martin (Once a week, famous guests pull questions from a deck of cards and open up about the kind of stuff we all think about but rarely say out loud. A few of my favorite guests have been Mike Birbiglia, Michelle Obama, Wanda Sykes, Brett Goldstein, and Uzo Aduba. But the Ann Patchett interview was a thing of total beauty. This podcast is described as “a joyful, grounding reminder of our shared humanity,” and I couldn’t agree more.) The crunchy edges of a brownie Remember: When you seek happiness, happiness shows up! Making these lists helps you notice more happiness, even when the world—and our democracy—seems to be burning.
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Reminder: The antidote
to anxiety is action
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I saw this gorgeous helpful list on Chasten Buttigieg’s Facebook, and I love it. If you’re looking for actions that could help keep you grounded and sane and help others in these trying times, check out his suggestions: Mind the screen time. Thank a teacher or librarian. Ask if they need anything. Write to a local library, public radio station, or leader (they often only hear the negative). Support a local bookstore. (Donate the book?) Take care of yourself. You can’t pour from an empty cup. Get outside and breathe deeply. Invite a friend for coffee and put the phones away. Sign up to volunteer. Donate to orgs you appreciate.
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Bruce Holsinger wrote two of my very favorite books of the last decade: The Gifted School and The Displacements. Culpability, an Oprah Book Club pick, is now on that list, as well. This suspenseful family drama about moral responsibility in the age of artificial intelligence is so timely and important, but also fantastic, page-turning entertainment. A family’s autonomous minivan collides with an oncoming car, killing two people. In the fallout, each family member harbors a secret, implicating them all in the tragic accident. The characters are complicated and multi-layered, deeply flawed, yet sympathetic. This would be a fantastic book club book! So, so much to discuss. Culpability explores a world newly shaped by chatbots, autonomous cars, drones, and other nonhuman forces. It’s challenging, troubling, and thrilling all at once. Bruce is a nice, genuinely good guy (he’s actually been a reader for me on an early manuscript), and I am so overjoyed for him that he got that miraculous call from Oprah! I love it when great things happen for good people!
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WHAT IS YOUR GO-TO SNACK WHILE WRITING?
Apple slices with peanut butter (and endless coffee) WHEN/WHERE IS YOUR IDEAL WRITING TIME (AND WHEN/WHERE DO YOU ACTUALLY WRITE EVEN WHEN THINGS AREN’T IDEAL)? I am a very early riser—5–7 a.m. is my ideal and usual writing time. I'll sit on my couch with very bad posture, then, later in the day, if I have time, I'll head to a neighborhood coffee shop for another stint. WHAT ARE THREE THINGS GIVING YOU JOY OR DELIGHT THESE DAYS?Playing clawhammer banjo, visiting art museums, and drinking good wine with friends WHAT ARE THREE THINGS YOU FIND TO BE PET PEEVES OR LOATHSOME THESE DAYS? Politics, politics, and occasionally my otherwise adorable cat IF YOU ARE PROCRASTINATING/AVOIDING WRITING, WHAT WOULD WE MOST LIKELY FIND YOU DOING? Doomscrolling or going on long walks IN ONE SENTENCE, CAN YOU CAPTURE WHAT INSPIRED CULPABILITY? Culpability was inspired by my fascination with the many nonhuman forces shaping our world in this new era of artificial intelligence.
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CAN YOU TALK ABOUT WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO GET THE CALL
FROM OPRAH? Utterly life-changing! It's a moment I will never forget, and the weeks since publication have been the greatest ride of my writing life. CAN YOU SHARE ANY SECRETS WITH A FELLOW CREATIVE WRITING PROFESSOR ABOUT CARVING OUT WRITING TIME DURING A SEMESTER? (Bruce teaches at the University of Virginia.) Prioritize, prioritize, prioritize. In my case it doesn't hurt to be an insomniac. But more seriously: I take a notebook, my laptop, and/or my phone everywhere I go. In the waiting room at the dentist's office, I'm writing. Waiting to meet a friend at a bar or coffee shop, I'm writing.
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Annie Cat’s
Halloween Reminder
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Black cats are not bad luck. If a black cat crosses your path, count your blessings. We love our little goblin girl. In her irreverent way, she reminds her humans, “I don’t bring bad luck. Your lives were already a complicated mess. Put down your phones and play.”
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Ready to draft
your own novel?
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My next “Writer’s 12-Step Program,” taught through Word’s Worth Writing Connections, begins on Tuesday, January 13, 2026, with the goal to help you write the first draft of a novel in one year. Class meets monthly on Zoom, with lots of online interaction in between. Registration is now open and filling quickly. This would be a lovely holiday gift for a writer you know. Click here for a full description and registration details.
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You’re invited to ask me questions—about writing, about one of my books, about one of my pets … pretty much anything! Just email me at katrina@katrinakittle.com and you may end up in the next newsletter.
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BONUS EDITION The aroma of camp fires on the evening air After-dark dog walks on cool, autumn evenings when you need a sweatshirt Dogs hanging their heads out of car windows Reese’s Peanut Butter Pumpkins Taking a solo road trip fueled by Combos, Coke, and the new Sirius Maximum Metallica station The fact that Fat Bear Week is a wholesome, fun, uplifting thing Jax the dog, who is the official Stamp Licker at the Post Office in Portree, Isle of Skye, Scotland (Check out the Dodo story of this Very Good Boy and his important public service.) Halloween decorations (like this fabulous creation)
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Thank you for reading and subscribing, and for all your support! I’m grateful! Be good to yourselves and each other, and stay safe out there.
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Check out my website to read about
and purchase my books.
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