The Storyteller’s Saga & Kat’s Quest

Kat Vancil - Autistic Storyteller & Writing Educator

Just your friendly neighborhood storytelling Kat, here to help you vanquish your story construction obstacles, slay the imposter syndrome clawing at the back of your brain, and stomp your boredom flat with heart-pounding Queer Fiction. Join the Saga and choose your inbox obsession. Whether it’s helpful weekly advice with your storytelling. Or my monthly newsletter featuring 🏳️‍🌈 book recommendations & chapters of my ongoing magikal Dark Academia webnovel ExSpelled, to devour during your coffee break.

‘Let’s face it, we all want to be that writer speedily banging out words like they’re possessed by a muse. But sometimes we’re like, “Words. Words would be nice.”’ — Kat Vancil, “The dreaded Blank Page Syndrome”, The Storyteller’s Saga

The dreaded Blank Page Syndrome 😱

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 64 Well hello there, Reader! Right before we kicked off our bi-monthly D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) game this past Saturday, our friend asked me for some storytelling advice. “You’ve had writer’s block before, right? So how did you handle it?” She looked beyond frustrated and a bit defeated. But she’s far from alone in that regard. Because if you type “writer’s block” into Google you’ll get about 18,500,000 results. No joke. So clearly a huge amount of...

almost 2 years ago • 3 min read

‘And isn’t that the most important thing about stories? To not only entertain us, but to help teach us something about ourselves along the way? To make us feel less alone. Less alien. Less…other.’ — Kat Vancil, “I always felt like the alien in the room”,

I always felt like the 👽🛸 in the room

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 134 Just after the pandemic, I was with a bunch of my dance classmates at a farewell dinner for a friend. We’d all had a great meal and were waiting to pay when one of them bemoaned 😭 “Ugh. I should have asked for his number.” “Whose number?” I asked. “The server.” “Which one? I can go ask for you,” I offered. You see, I’m already married. And being autistic, I have zero ability to feel shame. She perked right up. “The hot one.” I looked around the...

2 days ago • 4 min read

‘A Beach Read should require minimal mental effort to consume, making them ideal vacation reads. The sort of thing you could enjoy while dogs bark on a scorching hot day, kids screech and splash in a pool, and fireworks explode in the near distance.’ — Ka

What the sand castle IS a beach read anyways? 🏖️📖

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 133 Walk into any big box store or small-town indie book shop from May to the last embers of August, and you’ll find displays dedicated to the Beach Read, Reader. But what the sand castle IS a Beach Read? 🏖️📖 Well, the designator was first used as a marketing tool by publishers in the early 90s. However, it’s now become so commonplace that, come May, the “Beach Read” is featured on the new release lists of every magazine and book site. Beach Reads are...

19 days ago • 3 min read

‘Finding yourself in a plot hole is somehow WORSE than hitting a brick wall. Because at least in the case of the wall, you can use a sledgehammer.’ — Kat Vancil, “Have you considered talking to a cat?”, The Storyteller’s Saga

Have you considered talking to a cat? 🐈

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 132 Well hello there, Reader, This past weekend, I was packing books and breakables and several bags of plushies into boxes 📦 in preparation for the friendly team of guys to finally rip out the second-floor carpet I’ve absolutely hated since we bought our townhouse. In 2009! Seriously, after 17 years, a roommate, and 4 cats, the stuff was practically a biohazard. ☣️ And it wasn’t even new when we bought the house. But…you’re probably thinking, new...

26 days ago • 2 min read

‘People too often focus on what they HAVEN’T accomplished or achieved or what they HAVEN’T created. They’re like a little mouse running on a wheel squeaking more, more, MORE!’ — Kat Vancil, “Are you floundering in project paralysis?”, The Storyteller’s Sa

Are you floundering in project paralysis? 😵‍💫

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 131 Well hello there, Reader, Last Friday, we picked our friend up at BART for another friend’s day-long birthday party 🥳 the next day. After a good 15 mins of her meandering through a wide array of topics, she finally ventured into what she really wanted to talk about. Her struggles with project paralysis. A struggle that I—and many other storytellers—have suffered from. Where you have too many great ideas and partially drafted stories, and you’re...

about 1 month ago • 3 min read

‘In a moment of cosmic WTF-ery dozens of worlds COULD have been snuffed out of existence by a factory defect.’ — Kat Vancil, “Death of a thousand worlds”, The Storyteller’s Saga

Death of a thousand worlds ☄️😵

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 130 “What do you mean it won’t boot up? The thing’s only a month old!” I demanded 3 years ago. You see, Reader, I had just gotten my very first MacBook Pro that wasn’t a hand-me-down, and the thing had effectively 😵 itself the first time it updated. Oh, and did I mention it took all my data along with it? Months of story work, edits, and design assets gone just like that. Poof. Worst day ever. 😭 I had thought that me and the Universe were buddies. Or at...

about 2 months ago • 3 min read

‘Despite everything, I’ve been lucky. In a world where not everyone’s family is accepting of their choices or differences, my mom was ALWAYS an advocate for me. ESPECIALLY when I was too young to advocate for myself.’ — Kat Vancil, “Here’s to you, Mom”, T

Here’s to you, Mom

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 129 A year ago, my mother lost her battle with leukemia. And that was just a week after I learned I had lupus. It was a devastating blow to me and my family to be sure. But I’ve tried to focus on the enormous positive impact she had on my life, instead of her absence from it. I mean, she was a Reincarnationist after all, Reader. Death was just the start of another new journey in her eyes. And so, this one’s for you, Mom, and all the wonderfulness you...

about 2 months ago • 3 min read

‘By using micro-achievement rewards, a seemingly daunting task like “writing a novel” or “editing your book” instead becomes “write a thousand words today” or “edit 2 chapters.”’ — Kat Vancil, “Have you earned your brownie today?”, The Storyteller’s Saga

Have you earned your brownie today?

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 128 Well hello there, Reader! Last year, my husband baked a sheet of brownies for himself to use as rewards while redoing our downstairs bathroom. 🚽 It was a large task—the whole half-bath needed to be gutted right down to the cement foundation. But by breaking it up into small tasks (with a brownie reward), it was something he could accomplish mostly on his own. Where’d he get the idea to do such a thing? Some self-help guru? A YouTuber? A genius...

2 months ago • 2 min read

‘More often than not, trying something completely outside your wheelhouse and comfort zone actually turns into an unexpected pleasure.’ — Kat Vancil, “You never know until you join the game”, The Storyteller’s Saga

You never know until you join the game 👩🏻‍💻🗡️🧙🔥

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 127 “Well, that’s what happens when you use a fire elemental to power your stove. It eventually burns down your inn!” I point out sarcastically to our paladin as we watch the remains of said inn collapse into smoldering ruins. We’re in the Elven equivalent of San Francisco, and our fancy-ass accommodations just got burned to a crisp because of Spark the sentient Bic lighter. “You burned down another inn!” our druid wails after they return from a side...

2 months ago • 3 min read

‘If we don’t hold on to our culture, we forget WHO we are. We forget who we WERE. And if WE forget, someone else can rewrite it.’ — Kat Vancil, “Wisdom from my Irish granny”, The Storyteller’s Saga

Wisdom from my Irish granny 🍀

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 126 Well hello there, Reader! It’s St. Patrick’s Day 🍀 My grandmother always instilled in us that St. Patrick’s Day wasn’t just the fun novelty holiday it’s become. But an important celebration of our Irish heritage. Our ancestors had come to New York seeking a better life during the Great Famine. One of whom could only afford to send a single son to America, while the rest remained in Ireland. He survived the voyage across the Atlantic with only a bag...

3 months ago • 3 min read

‘Some absolutely WILD things happen in fantasy stories. Sometimes you end up getting Rip Van Winkled for a few decades while trapped in antique pottery.’ — Kat Vancil, “Why do teens get to have all the fun?”, The Storyteller’s Saga

Why do teens get to have all the fun? 🤷🏻‍♀️

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 125 Well hello there, Reader, I was scrolling through Threads a day before Horse Cover Gate when I saw a different complaint on Bookthreads. This reader was bemoaning how all the Legendary Characters (main leads) in Fantasy books nowadays were in the 14-19 age range. But how was she, a 40+ year old person, supposed to relate? Now, back when I was a newly minted adult, Reader, I remember having the exact opposite complaint. “I’m 18. I’ve just taken...

3 months ago • 4 min read

Just your friendly neighborhood storytelling Kat, here to help you vanquish your story construction obstacles, slay the imposter syndrome clawing at the back of your brain, and stomp your boredom flat with heart-pounding Queer Fiction. Join the Saga and choose your inbox obsession. Whether it’s helpful weekly advice with your storytelling. Or my monthly newsletter featuring 🏳️‍🌈 book recommendations & chapters of my ongoing magikal Dark Academia webnovel ExSpelled, to devour during your coffee break.