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The Saga Quest

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She said you write ✍️ stories

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 16 She said you write stories.” Yes…I do,” I answer cautiously. Because I don’t know this woman at all. Cautiously. Because I’m sitting in the middle of my nieces’ 3rd birthday party wearing velveteen mouse ears while a live-action version of Encanto plays...
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11 days ago • 3 min read
‘You don’t need to be thinking about everything, everywhere all at once. Just focus on the one most important thing that NEEDS to happen in your story.’ — Kat Vancil, “She said you write stories”, The Storytellers Saga
‘Reading for me at the time was still about as arduous as a trek up Mount Everest. Doable, but not without the potential of losing a limb. Or at the very least a finger in the process.’ — Kat Vancil, “For reals, this book changed my life”, The Storyteller

For reals, this book 📖 changed my life

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 15 Well hello there, Reader. It all started on a swelteringly hot June Sunday in 2009… I weave through the crowded ballroom on the Avenue of Stars. Past aspiring authors, and would-be children’s illustrators. Beyond fans of books that would go on to...
17 days ago • 4 min read
‘It is never easy to start over. But at the same time, it is only as devastating as you let it be.’ — Kat Vancil, “It started with a broken foot”, The Storytellers Saga

It started with a broken foot 🩼

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 14 It started with a broken foot, Reader. Then an allergic reaction to yet another antibiotic. And then like that my whole life spiraled into something nightmarish. Simple things became grueling arduous tasks. An outing to the grocery store felt like I...
25 days ago • 4 min read
‘…if you only compare yourself to others or even the you of yesterday, you might never realize just how far you’ve come.’ — Kat Vancil, “Who wrote this? Oh wait…me”, The Storytellers Saga

Who wrote this? Oh wait…me 😬

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 13 Ugh this feels so wrong,” I groan to my husband as we sit in our living room a few Sunday’s ago, both working on our own projects. What does?” he asks. I gesture to my Macbook. “Writing this way?” Writing what way?” In past tense.” He looks justifiably...
about 1 month ago • 4 min read
‘They spend hour upon hour searching desperately for that one perfect word…when instead they could have…magicked new people out of thin air who never existed before that moment.’ — Kat Vancil, “I’ll just fix it in post”, The Storytellers Saga

I’ll just fix it in post 🎥 😬

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 12 What’s this here?” my husband asks. He’s been editing one of my upcoming publications for me. What’s what where?” This asterisk next to a misspelling of ‘guard.’” Oh that. That’s a placeholder.” A…placeholder?” Yeah for a character that didn’t have a...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
‘More often than not, trying something completely outside of your wheelhouse actually ends up turning into an unexpected pleasure for you.’ — Kat Vancil, “I just sat in the corner until…”, The Storytellers Saga

I just sat in the corner until…

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 11 Well that’s what happens when you use a fire elemental to power your stove—it eventually burns down your inn!” Me to our paladin as we stand watching the remains of said inn collapse into smoldering ruins. We’re in the Elven equivalent of San Francisco...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
‘Maybe it’s not all you planned to accomplish that day, but it will still leave you feeling like you accomplished something and moved forward on your creative project.’ — Kat Vancil, “When you’re down sick and still want to be creative”, The Storytellers

When you’re down 🤒 and still want to be creative

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 10 My week started off with a trip to the hospital, Reader. But such is life when you live with rare chronic illnesses. You can be fine one moment and then BAM you wake up in the dark hours of not quite morning and everything just feels wrong. 😵‍💫 Now if...
about 2 months ago • 5 min read
‘Are you also gatekeeping yourself? Letting fear lock your stories away until they’re SUPER done? Until they’re “perfect”?’ — Kat Vancil, “I’ve been hoarding them”, The Storytellers Saga

I’ve been hoarding them

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 9 I’ve decided maybe I’ll just release it now and upload a new cover later when it’s done,” I announce to my husband while we’re doing the Wordle and having coffee ☕️. Well, I’m having coffee—he’s having tea 🤢 My husband doesn’t say anything. He’s...
2 months ago • 3 min read
‘Pop culture has led a smear campaign against them and branded these watery maidens a bunch of nymphos.’ — Kat Vancil, “The siren call of pasta carbonara”, The Storytellers Saga

The siren call of pasta carbonara 🍝

KAT VANCIL THE STORYTELLER'S SAGA QUEST 8 It started on a rainy Saturday morning, Reader. Me, my husband, and our kitty Akimi 🐈 all on the bed doing Wordle. Akimi “helps” by knocking the Scrabble titles off my box cover with her tail. Oh, I use physical titles when doing the Wordle because I...
2 months ago • 2 min read
‘To have friends. To have found a place to belong. To be going somewhere beyond Ditchwater. To have a life of my choosing…I didn’t think it was possible. I wasn’t delusional enough to even hope. Not like…him.’ — Halden, “Beyond” They Come at Night

🧑🏾 + 🍻 + 🌌 = Ep 8: Beyond - They Come At Night

KAT VANCIL THEY COME AT NIGHT EPISODE 8 To have friends. To have found a place to belong. To be going somewhere beyond Ditchwater. To have a life of my choosing…I didn’t think it was possible. I wasn’t delusional enough to even hope. Not like…him.’ Halden, “Beyond” They Come at Night Well hello...
2 months ago • 5 min read