Kate Rivet

If you follow my Twitter page (or see the posts to your right here on my page), you’ll see that I posted this link yesterday about pop/punk/emo/whatever you’d like to classify them albums turning 10 this year.  10 years ago, I was 18/19 and this music was one of the most important things to me at the time.  Back then, I was trying to make the transition from schoolkid to real adult, and it was really a hard time for me.  See, I went to college for a semester and it was very rough.  I graduated early from high school, and I had really hoped to make some new friends, since that’s the big thing you hear about college: you’ll make some of the best friends of your life there.  That, unfortunately, did not happen for me.  I had a really tough time of it, mostly because I was at a school I was not happy attending.  I hadn’t gotten into my first (and honestly, only) choice school, and instead of working for a semester and reapplying to other schools I could have been happy at, my mom insisted I go to one that was notoriously a party place.

Now, I’m not a partier at all — I prefer to keep to myself and just go out to events that appeal to me.  As a result, on a party school campus, there’s not a lot for a girl like me.  My first roommate was horrible to me, and my second one was great, but she and I had completely opposite lives as she was a junior and I was a freshman.  I know I was lonely a lot, and I spent all my time on my computer, chatting to all of my online friends in their different locations all over the world.  Back then was when the bands I was into were still small and close with their fanbases, and it wasn’t uncommon for me to spend my nights chatting on AIM to these various musicians.  I’ve seen a good few of my friends from back then blowing up in huge ways, and I regret that most of them and I aren’t nearly as close as we once were.  There are a couple of bands on that list that I actually consider friends, even though I haven’t had a face to face conversation with them in years.

I spent last night listening to one of the albums from that list that I find to be one of the most perfect of that era: it’s Volcano by Gatsbys American Dream.  Gatsbys created an entire album around the central theme of human emotions being like a volcano (namely, Pompeii), and there is not a single bad song on that record.  As I listened to these familiar songs that I’ve still listened to often over the past decade, I found my mind racing back ten years and all of those memories flooding over me.  I felt the same pain my 18 year old self felt realizing that I was so out of my league at that school, and I felt the same joy that I felt being in the middle of a crowd and singing along to the songs that truly rescued me from myself back in those days.  After Volcano ended and after the various Gatsbys songs I played after had also closed out, I went into my current writing project and banged out almost 4,000 words.  Today, I’ve got another album on: A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out by Panic! at the Disco.  I actually attended quite a few Panic! shows over the years, including their first-ever show in Chicago (a place that I called my second home for many, many years with one of my best friends and her amazing family).  Once again, these memories are rushing over me and I find it’s hard to keep from tearing up as I remember how these musicians and the friends I had in those days really kept me together when I really could have lost everything.

I am truly, truly indebted and thankful to these musicians who helped shape my life into what it is now.  Although I may not get to talk to these friends, both musicians and the actual friends who kept me sane back in the mid-2000’s, I owe the fact that now, in 2015, I’m chasing my dreams to watching them chase and achieve theirs.  So go ahead: check out that list and pick your favorite album (mine are, obviously, Volcano, A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out, and also From Under the Cork Tree) and remember who you were a decade ago.  It may be happy memories, sad memories, or a combination of both, but you’re stronger now for who you were back then.  I know I had a tough time of it sometimes, but I wouldn’t change a single thing.

Until next time,
Kate

Hello once again! While I should be writing right now, I’m instead working on this website! You’ll notice a few changes up top if you’ve been here before: I took down the playlist page for now, but I’ve added a reading list page. There, you’ll find a page with all the books I’ve read so far in 2015 and I will continue to update it regularly! There’s more of the story on the page, so go ahead and check it out if you’re interested.

Other than that, I don’t have a whole lot to update about on the writing front. I read a really good book the other day, then got sucked into the series and as a result, I spent this week reading instead of putting down my own words. I’ve vowed to myself to spend this next week working on writing, though, so hopefully by the end of the week, I will have at least doubled my present 6,733 word count. I also have to constantly remind myself that this isn’t a NaNoWriMo story, though, and that I can take my time if I want!

I hope 2015 is going well for you all so far, and I hope you all read some great books this year just like I hope to do myself!

Until next time,
Kate

I have to run shortly, but I just wanted to say welcome to my new home on the Internet!  This is my new official site at KateRivet.com and if you haven’t yet updated your links, make sure to do so!  Otherwise, you will miss out on my latest news!  I’ll write another post later, but I just wanted to get something quickly written to show this is my new home!

Until next time,
Kate

As I write this entry, I’m almost 6,000 words into my next book! It’s crazy to imagine, especially since I still have edits and changes I should make to the one I’ve published, but I find that it almost always happens this way. I put a story to bed, vow to myself that I’m taking a break, but my mind gets jumpy with an idea that I can’t resist toying with.

This latest story I’ve started? Well, I think it really has promise! But I’ve also got two other ideas I really liked that are sitting at about that same word count mark. But I’m committing myself to this one; I’ve got a lot of research into it and I really want it to succeed!

If I keep up with it, maybe I’ll even share a teaser or two with you all soon!

Until next time,
Kate

Wow, two posts in two days!  This must be some new record for me 😉
I just wanted to post a quick message to say that I’ve added a page at the top of this one — it’s called Extras, and is my little page full of Easter eggs about my just-published novel!  Eventually, I’ll probably make a page talking about my writing and editing process, and at some point I’ll begin to chronicle my adventures in attempting to actually find an agent and get published by a real publishing house.

As always, if there are any questions about anything at all, whether it be my process or my characters’ inspirations or anything at all, feel free to e-mail me 🙂

Until next time,
Kate

Today is an important day in the Kate Rivet author world!  Why, you ask?  Well, after the past two months of blood, sweat, tears, and much profanity while thinking about chucking my laptop out of the window, I am OFFICIALLY a self-published author!

Here are some links that I want to share in one place, since I can’t seem to do it on any of the Facebook posts I’ve made:

Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/author/katerivet

Amazon book page: (I made it a shortened link to make it easier!)

Facebook author page: (also shortened for ease of use!)

Goodreads author page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/11121238.Kate_Rivet

I’d say more, but I’m too busy letting everybody know that Roads To Love, my 2014 NaNoWriMo book, is now available for sale on Amazon Kindle!  I did the 90 day exclusivity deal on Amazon, but after those 90 days are up, I’ll work on getting the book up on iBooks, Barnes & Noble, and other eBook platforms!  Now, I’m off to do some more promoting, holiday baking, and kicking back watching my grandma read my book in which she’s on the dedications page!

Until next time,
Kate

You know, I went to my local NaNoWriMo 2014 “Thank God It’s Over!” dinner last night, and my ML (who is a great girl and a friend!) and I both got to saying how we’re just really bad at blogging.  I decided I was going to update this thing, even though I do it sporadically.

On October 26, 2014, I finished writing my 7th novel, A Recipe for Love.  6 days later, I was busy working on my NaNoWriMo book! 🙂  15 days after THAT, my first draft of Roads To Love was done!  For the past two days, I’ve been working on edits to Roads To Love, because I plan on putting it up on Amazon’s Kindle page as soon as I have it to my liking!  I’ve read some not-so-great free or almost-free books lately, and I figure that my stuff is at LEAST half as good as those, plus those were supposed “bestselling authors”, so what do I have to lose?

I’ve been really excited about this endeavor with RTL.  See, I decided to do a four story compilation about best friends, and I went into my writing notes and picked four ideas that I’d never been able to completely flesh out.  With each story in the book coming in at approximately 12,500 words, it was perfect to get out smaller versions of the originally envisioned tales.  I also have a clear idea of what I want the cover to be, and I can photoshop it myself or use the Amazon cover creator when I’m ready to go.  Eventually I’ll have to figure out how to put it onto iBooks and the other platforms, but I’m okay with it being Kindle-only to start!

Other than that, I’ve really enjoyed the company I’ve shared over the past month.  I’ve been going to the write-ins near me like I did last year, but this year our group felt very tight-knit and we all really got along well.  There were some old faces and some new, and together we got a lot of work done!  At least 4 of the people who I know went to the write-ins I was at joined me in the winners’ circle, and that feels great to have others succeed with me.  As I said, I also went to the “TGIO” dinner last night, and everybody had something really interesting to read over our Italian dinners at the Spaghetti Warehouse!  It has been almost 10 years since I’ve been there, and I was pleased to see they now offer gluten-free pasta, which I heartily enjoyed.

Things are also beginning to look up at my “real” job, though I haven’t been there since the 18th of November; I spent the 19th through the 28th traveling over to London and Cardiff!  It was my first time in Cardiff, and it was a beautiful city!  I got really inspired over this trip, and I’m hoping that my next book will be set either in the London neighborhood where I stay during my visits, or maybe even in Cardiff in the area I walked through on my way back from the Bay to the Cardiff Central rail station.

I hope you all have also been having as good of times as I seem to be having after my gorgeous vacation, and I really hope I will remember to write here again soon!

Until next time,
Kate

Writers’ block.  Any author knows about it and dreads it.  It happens to the best of us at the worst of times, never when it’s convenient.  But does anyone know truly how to break through it?

I’ve been trying desperately for a few months to get out a few of my newest novel ideas.  I know where they’re both headed, but neither one wants to come out.  I can get a paragraph, maybe two at most, then it just stops.  It’s like I’ve hit a brick wall and I can’t get going.  It started like that on Idea #1, as I’ve christened it, so I tried one of my handy tricks: start another project.  Nothing like getting those creative juices running, right?

Idea #2 started off on a high, too, but soon hit that wall.  This time, I was SURE it was going to work.  I’d open Word dutifully every night and just … nothing.  It wouldn’t come out.

I’ve just started on Idea #3, and I’m truly hoping this one pans out.  I’m definitely NOT a person who does well with proper outlines and whatnot, but I’ve mapped the heck out of this story and have serious plans for it.  And in 3 sessions I’ve come up with over 3,000 words, so that’s real progress in my world.  The only issue I’m foreseeing in this one is that I’m in uncharted territory — that is, I’m writing about a place I have VERY little experience visiting, so it’s going to be me and Google getting through this puppy.  I’m heading back to London in exactly 107 days, and I’m actually contemplating a daylong excursion to Paris, where this book is taking place.  I also speak a very limited amount of French and feel most comfortable with written French, because my accent is terrible, so I guess we’ll see how this goes!  My most trusted beta reader has gone through the first chapter, maybe chapter and a half, and says so far this is her favorite of all my works, so I guess we’ll see!

Does anybody else have any other strategies for writers’ block?  As you can tell, my “start a new story!” method has probably a 33-50% rate of success.  We can talk about it as I try to take a Google Maps tour of the 6th Arrondissement and the surrounding areas!

Until next time,
Kate

I’m still a terrible blogger and would go through the typical apology phase here, but tonight I’m here to write for a different reason.  As an author, you’d think words would come rather easily to me, but sometimes it’s difficult to find the right ones.

A few years back, I was somewhat internet-famous, if you could call it that.  I had a lot of good friends in a lot of bands (some of which are still big-time acts these days, but I’m not going to name-drop them).  Not only did I go see shows in Pittsburgh, but I went to Ohio, Kentucky, and Illinois.  It’s Illinois in particular that I’m writing about tonight.

There was a girl whom I met over the internet and formed a very close friendship with.  Her name is Kassie, and while we aren’t nearly as close these days because real life gets in the way of the fun times we had when we were young and had much less responsibility and need for bills to be paid by ourselves, she is still a sister to me.  When I was 18, I flew on a plane for the very first time since I was a child (stymying a fear of flying, by the way) and touched down at Chicago’s Midway Airport.  There, I took a taxi (also a first) into a neighborhood called Summit, one of the suburbs of Chicago proper.  It was here that I turned up at Kassie’s house for the very first time of many trips over the next few years.  It was also this evening that I met her mother in person for the first time, though we had spoken on the phone before.

Kathie took me in as her own child from that very first time I turned up at their doorstep to the very last time I waved goodbye to them at Midway Airport before becoming the lead pharmacy technician at my store and effectively ending most of my pleasure trips until 2012.  From that first time I met her, Kathie was immediately somebody that I warmed to.  She was a single mother who was raising the younger two of her children at this point, and she worked some pretty difficult jobs to try to make ends’ meet.  Over the many years and visits, we’d find ourselves up early and at the kitchen table more times than I can even remember.

I relished these early morning conversations; a lot of the time, Kathie would be exhausted from waitressing the night before, and this would be a relaxation for both of us. We’d talk about life, but we talked a LOT about books, too.  Like me, she loved to read, and she was just about as avid about it as me.  Her favorite books were those by Kristin Hannah, and although I have yet to read a Kristin Hannah book, we found a kindredship over chick lit, or women’s fiction as some would prefer to call it.

As Kassie and my lives diverged, my trips grew fewer and farther apart.  I remember parts of my last trip out to see her, but not everything.  One thing I do remember, though, is how Kathie always took me back to the airport and would give me hugs and say goodbye to me like I was her own kid leaving.  She told me more than once that she was proud of me for working hard to ensure that I would continue to thrive at work, and that sentiment sticks with me even to this day and makes me proud to be at the top of my current profession.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve noticed via social media that she wasn’t doing too well.  It was just within the past week or two that I found out that she was suffering from lung cancer that had spread.  I knew right away that I wanted to get out to Chicago not just to reconnect with my “Chicago mommy” as she was called, but to reconnect with the people who were as close to siblings as I’d ever get.  I was hoping that when the local colleges went on spring break that I could take a few days and head out.

As it would be, Kathie passed away last night and has left a hole in many peoples’ hearts.  Her Facebook page has many messages indicating many lives touched by her kindness, and I’m just one of many missing her today.  I can’t even imagine how her children feel right now, although I know that the grief I feel that does bring tears to my eyes when I recall specific events is only a mere fraction of what her family feels.

So tonight, I’m posting this to tell the world that she touched my life in an indelible way, and that I’m going to remember the kindness and pride she showed me on the many trips I shared in her home.  I wish desperately that I could get away for her memorial, but I don’t think that will be possible.  As it is, I will be dedicating my next book to her, and I’ve got some ideas kicking around in my head as to small things I can do to keep her memory alive as well.  Her work ethic and success at raising her children by herself is something that touched my heart, and it pushes me to be a better person.

Thank you for allowing me into your life so readily, Kathie, and I hope that you’re resting well in peace now with the siblings you lost before.  Those of us still here will not forget you any time soon.

Until next time,
Kate

I would apologize to those of you who are checking in on my little corner of the internet here, but I think I’ve already done that a few times. Hi, my name is Kate Rivet, and I’m a TERRIBLE blogger!

I can’t believe it’s been almost an entire year since my last post, but at the same time I’m truly not shocked. I’ve been on the internet since I was probably 8 or 9 years old, and I’ve had many websites over those years. Believe it or not, I used to actually be a somewhat popular webdesigner before the profession blew up, but I never really wanted to get too far into the technical end of it. I stopped writing HTML, and now I rely on precoded pages like this one to carry me along. It’s okay though, because since I’m such a sporadic blogger, I never bother to update the theme of the page!

So, what is there really even to talk about? I’m glancing over my last post, and I’m sorry to say that most of it is what I’m still dealing with. I’ve spent about 6 of the past 11 months working 6 days a week, which is great for your wallet, but terrible for your mental and physical wellbeing. Add to that thrilling schedule the fact that my stomach has never fully been right since I got home, plus I got to have my gallbladder taken out at the very end of April, I’ve been a busy bee. I did start writing a book a few months ago (my 5th, by the way), but it’s sitting on my laptop at about a 97% completion.

I’m leaving on the 22nd (a week from yesterday) to go back to Barcelona for a week with my best friend in the entire world who I rarely get to see. It still doesn’t actually feel real that it’s so close, but we’ve been planning since, oh, Januaryish?, so I’m glad it’s finally here. This is actually my very last day off of work before going, and my schedule today is jam-packed. At some point, I really should get packing!!

As you can tell, it’s November now and we all know that November means NaNoWriMo. I wasn’t going to participate this year again, but I happened to get to work with the fabulous local ML, Fox, and she encouraged me to go for it even though I’m missing out on 9 entire days. Well, guess what? As of this morning at 9:19 AM, I was at 51,174 words and am done! I’m still not sure of the title — it’s changed probably two or three times since I started writing — but I’m at least positive of the content. I really liked writing this book, because it’s nothing like what I usually write. There were really no sports involved, go figure 😉

I thought I might spend a few words here telling you all the secret to my NaNo 2013 success, and I’m hoping that it’s advice you’ll take to heart and use to help yourself on future NaNoWriMo adventures, or even to help you on this one.

I knew that I was losing the last 9 days, so that shortened my NaNo experience to 21 days. To finish in 30, you’re supposed to write 1,667 words per day. I made my personal goal 2,500 words a day. Did I always hit it? Definitely not. Did I do my best? Absolutely.

My free days this month were the weekends, so I got up in the morning and started writing, and didn’t quit til nighttime. Of course, I took breaks to eat and go see the sun once in awhile if it was peeking through, and I allowed my mind to wander during the day so that I didn’t get burnt out too quickly. The first Saturday, I wrote a little over 2,500 words by the first Sunday, I was over 10,000. Pretty good for somebody who ended the first day at 676 words, huh? Last Saturday and Sunday, I did probably around another 10,000 or so.

Another thing that truly helped me out was attending write-ins this year. Not only have I made some really great new friends, but I was able to get out of my house and write and help the others with bouncing their ideas around and finding people inspiration from the strangest but funniest conversations. I got a lot more done at both write-ins I’ve attended than I thought I would get done outside of my typical routine of listening to music/letting movies play in the background. Thursdays changed from my typical errand night to my writing night, and it was a great change. I’m going to be sad to leave my fellow WriMos behind, but luckily our local group meets up a couple times a year to edit, chat, and enjoy each others’ company. It will definitely bridge the gap to next November, and help inspire success again in 2014!

Well, I think that’s all I’ve got for you right now. Once I get back from the hair salon and possibly the nail salon to get myself looking great for my trip abroad (and a few pounds lighter than when I returned home 10 pounds less last year, so here’s hoping for leaving a few more pounds in my favorite place ever), I’m planning to finally update the books page to reflect upon the increase in my material, and maybe I’ll even finally post the first chapters of my books!

Until next time,
Kate