Week 41: More evidence that the indie community is the best community

It is week forty-one of 2026. How’s the writing going these days? I did my Q4 planning on Monday and can see the full shape of the next twelve weeks in front of me, and they are packed to bursting as fall always is: a full editing calendar, plus two conference talks and the Kickstarter wrap-up and fulfillment. But at the end are three solid weeks to regroup, reflect, and rest. Here in San Francisco, we’re hearing that an epic El Niño year is in store for us, which means a stormy winter, and I’m going to be extra-ready this year to hunker down and be cozy.

Here at the garret, I’ve been working on two different cozy mysteries, one set in a village in rural Dorset, England, and another set in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston—a different kind of village. Both of them happen to be new first-in-series novels from authors I’ve worked with on previous series, and it’s been thrilling to see them invent entirely new worlds from scratch again. These new characters feel like cousins to those in the previous series: some family resemblance, but also entirely their own people.

As promised, I’ve got a breakdown below of the Kickstarter campaign, with my tips for those of you planning a campaign of your own. The Kickstarter ends on Tuesday, so if you’d like a copy of the new Novel Study book before January, go check it out! I just announced a last stretch reward as well: a pop-up Novel Study Book Club in November and December for a novel backers nominate and vote on if the campaign reaches $5k. We’re closing in on that goal and I think we might hit it!

I also spent some time this week building a new landing page for the Novel Study Book Club, which will relaunch in January. You can join it early via the Kickstarter and get the chance to shape the genres we’ll read, as well as the first novel, but you can also join the waitlist right now and you’ll get an email on January 4 when the doors open.

I know many of my readers are considering or actively planning a Kickstarter campaign for their own book, so I wanted to give you a peek behind the curtain of my campaign. I learned so much from the experience, advice, and generosity of other authors (one reason I love being part of the indie self-publishing community!), and this is a chance for me to help others the way I was helped.

Numbers so far

I’m writing this a few days before my campaign closes, so these aren’t final numbers. Kickstarter sends some automated last-call messages, and I have one more round of social media posts planned. However, I think the campaign will clear the final stretch reward, which I set at $5,000. As of Saturday, October 10, it’s at $4,735 from 127 backers.

The average pledge is about $37, and this number shows you one big advantage of Kickstarter: Many times buyers are spending more (and getting more) than they would on a single book purchased via a traditional launch. (Note, though, that none of these numbers take into account costs like printing, taxes, Kickstarter’s fees, and payment processing; shipping is charged separately after the campaign ends.)

Read the full piece →

A few favorite things about the book

⭐️ The memoir is James Herriot meets David Sedaris—a mix that is sheer delight
⭐️ Anecdotes about a horse named Kevin and a dead emu that made me literally LOL
⭐️ Underneath the jokes, it’s a coming-of-age story about tenacity taking you further than you thought it could

Congrats, Matt! Learn more and buy Chomping at the Bit on Amazon.

A few favorite things about the book

⭐️ If you like wine and winemaking, you’ll love this novel, which is full of juicy details and lots of tasting
⭐️ The company of Jaz, a whip-smart female detective with a passion for justice (and a world-class palate for wine)
⭐️ Jaz’s new love interest, a coroner with a cat named Billie (always trust a man with a cat!) and a habit of delivering deadpan one-liners

Congrats, Lyle! Learn more and buy Deadly Vintage on Amazon.

I love speaking to writers and editors—check out my Speaking page and get in touch if you are interested in having me speak to your group.

I have two things of joy for you this week. As an SF Giants fan, this baseball season was a rough one, but after a few weeks off I’m ready to get invested in the playoffs—especially to start rooting for the Brewers to knock off the damn Dodgers! Watching this video of Red Sox pitcher Payton Tolle (the Nick Offerman of baseball players?) tag out a Mariners batter by giving him a hug on the first base line helped get me back in the mood for more baseball.

And then last weekend was all things-of-joy all weekend long as I spent three nearly perfect days in Golden Gate Park listening to music during Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. One of my very favorite moments of the whole weekend was when the Irish group Dug made everyone at the Horseshoe Hill stage get up and dance, and then incited what they called a “folk mosh pit.” Here’s an Instagram video that captures the scene. 🎶 “God’s a dancer, baby. Why don’t you dance?” 🎶 My other favorite moment was playing miniature Bananagrams between acts at the Rooster Stage. (Great stocking stuffer for any word nerd in your life!)

Stay well, y’all, and keep fighting the good fights.

Kristen