Merry Christmas! I am beyond pleased to announce that the first three parts of Six Days 'Till Christmas, a holiday-themed short story set in Timothy's world, are up and available to read on Wattpad! The rest will be available on Christmas Eve. This story has been two years in the works. When I wrote What Is and Could Be, I realized that I finally had an opportunity to write a Christmas short story that really felt like Christmas to me. I read A Christmas Carol almost every December, so the concepts surrounding Victorian Christmases are also inextricably linked to my ideas regarding the holiday. Grant you, my family doesn't have roast goose and plum pudding to celebrate our Savior's birth, but there are few things that put me in the mood to wish peace on earth and goodwill towards men faster than cracking open my copy of A Christmas Carol. And since love is at the very core of this holiday we celebrate every December (John 3:16 begins in the manger), I thought there was no better canvas for the story I wanted to tell than Timothy's relationship with his favorite cook's assistant. With that said, I think it's fair to warn you that this story does contain massive spoilers for To Live and To Breathe, so if you haven't had a chance to read that one yet I'd recommend picking it up first! As always, I hope this story blesses you. - Katelyn It's been months since that fateful night on a doorstep when Timothy accidentally blurted “I love you” to his favorite cook's assistant. Ever since that moment, Timothy has been a dead man walking—at least, in his own estimation. How could he break the news of their understanding to his parents and live to tell about it? And yet, the date is set: December 24th, Christmas Eve. He has six days to prepare himself. Six days before what's unknown becomes known, and he'll find out whether the Christmas he's read about in books could be real.
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Happy April 1st, everyone! The first three parts of Sam's Yarn are available on Wattpad! Sam was a side character that stole my heart, and I thought it was only fitting that he got his own story after I finished writing To Live and To Breathe. When we first meet Sam, he appears to be an over-confident wannabe doctor who lacks the impulse control that would've let Timothy shoo him away. And yet, he has clear baggage where insults to his intelligence are concerned. It made me wonder how such an apparently bright character would've been labeled as subpar. That was the thought process that led me to write Sam's Yarn—and it became an exploration of how two seemingly incongruous aspects became united in one character. I hope you enjoy it. Sam Paine knew exactly two things: That Mrs. Oliver was in the family way, and that the bump on his head was there to remind him never to congratulate expectant mothers again. It wasn’t the first time someone had had an adverse reaction to something Sam said, but it was the first time a chain of gossip ended with a report card burning a hole in his pocket, some yarn, and an idea—an idea that maybe Sam was bound for more than counting change. P.S.
This isn't an April Fool's Day joke—Sam's birthday is April 1st. P.P.S You can read this story without having read either What Is and Could Be or To Live and To Breathe! Once upon a time, a college student who was very tired of math and very tired of essays sat down to write on a bench outside of her math classroom. She had about forty minutes between that class and the start of her work shift, and decided that since it was not really enough time to make satisfactory progress on homework, she could be forgiven for indulging in a flight of fancy in the interim. So she sat down and began to write on her phone. The resulting story surprised her; it was quiet and bookish and earthy and damp, and most of all it was for no one's eyes but her own. But when she finished that first draft she realized that something very unexpected had happened: the story she'd written for comfort and for fun was one that she wanted to share. What Is and Could Be made its subsequent debut on Wattpad on September 15, 2019—and from there the rest is history. Today the story that no one else was meant to see is releasing worldwide in both print and eBook editions. I want to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for putting this story on my heart and seeing that it didn't stay there. I want to thank my family for being my first supporters and the last. And lastly, I want to thank everyone who's been a part of the process or supported my writing in any way—because just like Timothy, we all need community. Timothy Wright’s life revolves around stories. Ever since he had his accident, books have been his only window to the outside. The characters inside are family—he’s sailed the high seas in quest of a white whale, plunged through rabbit holes, and been scolded by the ghost of Christmas present. But when a cheerful Veridan maid comes into his family’s employment, he begins to remember that life could be more than what happens between the pages of his books. In fact, it may be that of all the adventures he’s called home, the most frightening, exhilarating, and rewarding one is yet to come. A couple of notes about the price: For some reason Amazon has decided to list the print price as $16.38 this morning (11/20/21) without my permission, but if you want to get it for $9.99 (the price I set) you can find that under the “buy new” link below the $16.38 price. Or you can purchase it from Barnes and Noble!
*drumroll* Ladies and gents—the time to spill the beans has come. I am beyond excited to announce that What Is and Could Be will be published in both paperback and eBook forms on November 20th! Timothy doesn't know what all the fuss is about (in fact he rather can't see why anyone should want to read a story about him), but the overwhelming support shown by Wattpad readers has made this journey to print a very special one, and I am so thankful for each and every one of you. God really used this project to help me fall in love with writing all over again, and the way it has touched lives beyond my own has left me floored. And with that, let's take a look at the new cover for What Is and Could Be! Susie at Poole Publishing Services did a beyond-amazing job and brought this project to life in ways that I never thought possible. (I actually teared up the first time I saw it!) What do you think? Timothy Wright’s life revolves around stories. Ever since he had his accident, books have been his only window to the outside. The characters inside are family—he’s sailed the high seas in quest of a white whale, plunged through rabbit holes, and been scolded by the ghost of Christmas present. But when a cheerful Veridan maid comes into his family’s employment, he begins to remember that life could be more than what happens between the pages of his books. In fact, it may be that of all the adventures he’s called home, the most frightening, exhilarating, and rewarding one is yet to come. P.S.
Want to read it sooner? Sign up for an advance review copy here! I've been trying for weeks—no, months—to think of something to say in this post, but I've come up empty every time. Sometimes things that only garner a passing feeling of interest in some people mean more than words to others, and this is one of those things. This is the first time that publication of a story wasn't truly up to me. It's the first time one of my stories has landed in an anthology with works written by other people. It's the first time I'll have "published published" a short story (meaning it's for sale). It's a lot of firsts. And so I haven't really got anything to say except thank you to everyone who's been involved. Thank you to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for giving me the desire to write. Thank you to my family, for putting up with your resident weirdo. (Especially my sister!) Thank you to the Twitter writing community for helping me to not feel so alone on this writing adventure. And thank you to the Phoenix Fiction Writers for selecting "The Timekeeper's Daughter" to rub elbows with so many other amazing stories in Timely. Ticking. It’s all that Annora Prevoir has heard since the day that the Author gave her the unwanted gift. No matter what she does, sleeping or waking, the passage of time echoes inside her head. Most suppose that her gift is particularly well-suited to her job as Royal Timekeeper, but it doesn’t tell her what to do about the drought lowering the river that powers the Clock’s water wheel. For centuries, the people of Epoque Pacifique have looked to the Clock to tell them how to regulate their day. But Annora can’t stop the shrinking river, or the ticking that haunts her every waking moment. With Timely's release coming in just five days (I'm not screaming you're screaming!), it is my tremendous honor to be able to write a spotlight post about the very first story in the anthology: the "Clockwork Toymaker" by Olivia Cornwell. Centering around a broken-but-loving father searching for the courage to visit his daughter in the hospital, this is a story with heart. I found myself drawn to it in the same way that I am with many of my other favorite stories, and I enjoyed it as much the second time I read it as I did the first time. It's bursting with sweet father-daughter love, as well as that special kind of whimsy that comes with airships and clockwork mechanics. It might be easy, in a story like this, for Liam to come across as a bit of a coward—after all, Sylvia is the only family he has left and he’s delegated all hospital communications to a friend. But Cornwell does a great job of painting him as a realistic, three-dimensional father with very human fears and flaws. He wants what’s best for his daughter, even if he can’t quite face up to the fact that their life is never going to be the same. But, ultimately, he does—with the help of a little girl named Maggie, who allows him to sit with her until he feels brave. Liam and Maggie’s unique friendship is another sweet highlight of the story, with Maggie providing an ear that is enough like (and unlike) Sylvia’s that Liam finally finds the courage he needs through talking to her. All in all, this is an excellent start to a wonderful anthology, and I can't wait for y'all to read it! When I was planning this post I thought it would be fun to interview Cornwell, (because who knows a story better than its writer?), so without further ado I present to you the author herself! Interview 1. What inspired you to take the "Clockwork Toymaker" in the direction of steampunk? In its very first draft years ago for a college course, I remember loving the idea of a toymaker whose toys consist of clock parts. Steampunk is a genre I also really love, and I’ve wanted to explore further. So it was my first foray into the genre, and I gave it all the gears and steampunk-ness I could muster. 2. What’s your favorite thing about the story? Liam is probably one of my favorite things about the story. I love his character, and his arc. I love the way he interacts with children, and how he can connect with them. 3. Did the story ever change in unexpected ways during writing? Originally, Sylvia wasn’t going to survive the accident. But I realized that original draft I’d submitted for school was an incredibly depressing “Christmas time” story, so Sylvia survived. I’m really glad I changed that! 4. What was the most challenging part of writing it? Probably as I was writing the first draft. I wrote it in a little notebook during my preschool students’ naptime. So I had a small window to write in, mixed with trying to keep my students from going nuts. 5. Do you have any “fun facts” you’d like to share about the story? This short story is within the same world/setting as a longer novel I wrote during my first ever NaNoWriMo! The novel focuses more on a relative of Noah’s, but Liam is a major character, and there’s a murder mystery element and Liam being generally adorable. 6. If you could meet any of the characters from the story, who would you pick? I’d love to meet Liam. Mostly to give him hugs and tell him it’s all gonna be okay, but also maybe to watch him work and snoop around his workshop. 7. What do you hope readers take away from reading The Clockwork Toymaker? To not waste the time God has given us when things look dark and lost. There is hope, and we can use the time left to us to get up and heal. To be brave enough to choose to keep moving forward to healing. After a tragic airship accident, clockwork toymaker Liam Killian is left with a broken heart and a surviving child, but no courage to go visit her. He throws himself into his work only to find that his hands won't stop shaking. When he finally makes it to the hospital, he befriends a little girl named Maggie, who gives him the courage to face the future, with all its pain and uncertainty. There's a lot to look forward to in this anthology. (You can grab your copy of Timely starting June 26th!) On January 8th, 2020, I began writing To Live and To Breathe. I had been daydreaming about the sequel since before What Is and Could Be was finished, beguiling the time I spent shifting books in my college library with the characters that had become like family. I thought it would be a fairly quick first draft, like its predecessor had been. I thought I would have finished it by the time summer rolled around. But suddenly COVID hit, and Timothy wouldn’t talk to me. “I don’t know what I’m doing,” I fretted. “I bit off more than I can chew trying to write a murder mystery.” Between adapting to pandemic life, grieving the lost opportunities we faced all around the globe, and preparing to transfer to university, I was lucky if I wrote for more than fifteen minutes at a time. I’d write, and I’d stop, and the guilt would drive me back to re-read the previous chapters just to reassure myself that it wasn’t total trash. And you know—like any first draft—it wasn’t. It needed work, but it had merit. So I kept at it through spring, and summer, and winter, and when 2020 was almost over I wrote “The End” on the book that had stayed with me the whole year long. It’s a story about struggle, and not being able to see the light. It’s about the hunger for the good and right and true things, even when life doesn't reflect any of it. But most of all it’s a story of hope, even when the faith you thought you had seems hard to find. As always, I hope it blesses you. Timothy Wright spends his days reading, writing, and arguing with his favorite parrot. But sometimes, scraping out a living at the nearest newspaper leaves him feeling more drained than rewarded. He wants to write stories about the things that matter, not news articles about the latest fluctuation in fruit prices. But when an aspiring doctor trying to fund his education on a reporter’s salary appeals to him for help keeping his job, Timothy finds himself drawn into a web of murder, intrigue, and dark family secrets that leave him wondering at the difference between living and breathing—and whether he’ll ever have the courage to do the things that frighten him. The first two chapters of To Live and To Breathe are live on Wattpad! After this week, I plan to post new chapters on Fridays and Sundays. Follow me on Wattpad or Twitter to receive updates when they come out! Some of you may know that I’m a college student, and like many college students, I have a somewhat perverse streak in me that will unaccountably jump at any opportunity to temporarily avoid homework. Don’t get me wrong—homework is important—it just isn’t so important that I can resist the siren call of any excuse to write something new (and fictional) when essays have been on the menu for a while. To those of you who have read What Is and Could Be, this story might be beginning to sound familiar... and you’d be right. About midway through the term the student leadership decided to host a flash fiction contest, and wouldn’t you know—I thought, “Why not?” It wasn’t as if I didn’t already have enough to do. So I wrote ”Once” around the feeling you get when you’re standing somewhere and you begin to realize that the walls around you have seen lives pass them by—some good, some bad. They’ve witnessed happiness and sadness, and maybe a little grief. Maybe nothing extraordinary ever happened there, but people were there, and that was enough. I hope this story blesses you. OnceIt was one of those white-hot summer days—the ones when the cicadas humming in the trees make someone want to do nothing but drowse in a shady hammock. I couldn’t have told anyone why I went for a stroll along that blistering sidewalk, or why I found myself at the old Abel place. It wasn’t as if there was anything to see but rank weeds, a broken lawn chair, and a roof missing shingles, but something drew me there as sure as curiosity killed the cat. Some say the place is haunted, but I think it’s only rats, skittering their tiny claws over the roof beams to scare the kids.
Anyway, there I stood. And there it stood. The stuccoed walls had begun to crack and crumble, giving in to the slow passage of time. As I looked at the broken windows yellowed with cobwebs and the dry brown lawn home now only to grasshoppers and lizards, I realized that the dead thing before me had once been part of someone’s life. Children had once played on this lawn. Doubtless, some daring young adventurer had skinned his knee coasting his bike down the same sidewalk that had nearly burnt through my sandals. On the left of the two-story house were a few crazy fence posts, all that remained of a garden choked by thistles. I saw a mother there picking tomatoes, enjoying the scarlet-red firstfruits of her labor before any made it to sandwiches and salsa. My feet crunched the sun-baked earth as I stepped off the curb, wading through the waist-high grass in silence. The peeling door hung listless before me, frame warped, and held on only by a hinge and a few rusty screws. How long had the house been here? Every day I ignored it, too busy to remember what had been. I stepped inside. Owing largely to college running me over like a freight train, and the next book in the series being the problem child of the Warriors of Aralan family, it has been well over two years since I published my last book. Now that the release of Eye of the Storm (yes, the problem child) is finally here, I can't even begin to describe to you what this moment means. To put it bluntly, Eye of the Storm was one of the most headache-inducing first drafts I have ever had the honor of writing. It's the kind of thing you look at later and wonder why you ever thought you could write anything at all—because if you could, how could you turn out something so awful? There were a lot of tears, prayers, and frustration along the way. But you know what? Even horrible, awful, terrible first drafts can be edited. And given enough time (read: patience), they might even turn out... dare I say it? Good. I'm not guaranteeing that you'll love it, since reading is more subjective than many people like to admit, but I did my best to create something I would want to read. So do this author a favor and grab a copy of Eye of the Storm for its release price of $0.99! Even though it's #8 in the series, you can read it without spoilers if you've also read Journey to Freedom, the book directly before it. (Which also happens to be $0.99 for a limited time.) Happy reading! - Katelyn Buxton Josiah thought that he had seen the last of his hypocritical family members. The abandoned wilds of Linfort suit him just fine, and learning to work with his hands has brought him more satisfaction than executing a new sword-fighting move ever did. But when a herald is chased into Linfort by a pack of wolves, Josiah is disturbed from his peaceful monotony and once again set on an adventure that will change his life. Will he be able to cross the Eastern Sea in time to find the cure for his brother’s illness, or will Aralan lose its only heir? What Readers are Saying
"Eye of the Storm is an engrossing blend of darkly gritty and yet somehow magical." - Squire W. "I loved how Buxton’s writing goes into the depths of the struggle in the human heart." - Erin D. "I'm just going to say right off the top, that I need the next book in this series." - Julia G. Step back about five months with me, and picture for a moment a creativity-starved student with a full load of credits about to finish up her first year of college. She was working a part-time job, volunteering in two different places, and—like most people who feel like butter scraped across too much bread—stressed. Writing had taken the back seat for upwards of six months, because at the end of the day, she only had enough energy left to curl up with a good book and disappear. The “good book” she chose to read that April was Persuasion. It served its purpose as a lovely bit of escapism, but part way through, a minor character (who never even attained to the dignity of a first name) was suddenly hurt. The boy soon recovered from his injuries, but it left her wondering... what could have happened to him, had he not been in an Austen novel? I’m sure you’ve guessed by now that the college student is me, and that even when I have no time to write, my brain simply won’t shut up with story ideas. First there is one character, then two, then a family, and a handful of scenes. It’s really out of control. So on April 17th, (a Wednesday), I opened the Notes app on my phone, and wrote the first 500 or so words that would soon grow to be a 46,000 word novel. That novel is What Is and Could Be, and it’s unlike anything I’ve ever written before. It’s my love letter to many of the classic books that have changed and inspired me. I wrote it on my phone (now moved to the Google Docs app) a couple hundred words at time, during lunch, my morning commute, or whenever I could scrape together a few spare minutes to escape. I began it without any idea where the story would lead, and finished it four months later having rediscovered my love of writing one rainy day, earthy garden, bookish MC later. Now, What Is and Could Be is going up on Wattpad. Two chapters are posted today, but in the future it will be updated every Sunday morning with one chapter. I sincerely hope that you will join me on this new adventure! - Katelyn Buxton Timothy Wright’s life revolves around stories. Ever since he had his accident, books have been his only window to the outside. The characters inside are family—he’s sailed the high seas in quest of a white whale, plunged through rabbit holes, and been scolded by the ghost of Christmas present. But when a cheerful Veridan maid comes into his family’s employment, he begins to remember that life could be more than what happens between the pages of his books. In fact, it may be that of all the adventures he’s called home, the most frightening, exhilarating, and rewarding one is yet to come. A couple of notes: What Is and Could Be is not historical fiction, despite leaning very heavily on the ways and customs of the nineteenth century. It is also fairly unedited, so keep that in mind as we travel this journey together! |
Welcome!Welcome to Katelyn Buxton Books! I'm a Christian author and blogger, with a passion for writing stories that are not just enjoyable, but also lead people closer to Jesus. Feel free to look around, and enjoy your stay! Archives
October 2021
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