The Storyteller
When people ask me what I do for a living, I tell them: “I write stories.” But what I really want to say is…
I create stories about boys who kiss boys. Some of them take place on spacecraft racing through a sea of distant stars. Some take place in lush urban sprawls, rich with the spices of a thousand far-off places that exist only in my mind. And some take place in the halls of a coastal city high school that is…and isn’t like any other in America.”
And what I also really, really want to say is…
“I help aspiring storytellers vanquish the demons of imposter syndrome, navigate the ruinous quagmire of story construction woes, and build a sustainable story creation habit that won’t leave them at the mercy of a fickle muse or burn them to ashes.”
I’m Kat Vancil—and as you’ve probably guessed, storytelling is what I do. I craft stories about boys in love, run my own independent publishing studio with my husband, and aim to guide aspiring storytellers on their own quests of story creation.
People come to me when they feel unwelcome in the “established” places of story learning. Either because they feel overwhelmed by the advanced offerings of academia. Or because they’re looking for someone who thinks the same way they do that’s easy to understand.
I have 14+ years experience in independent publishing, book design, and storytelling. I’ve worked with independent storytellers, small publishers, and the bigs like Amazon and Writer’s Digest. I’ve created stories in the medias of words, imagery, living history, dance, and theater over the last 30+ years.
To date, I’ve published 4 novels and 3 novellas. I’ve also had 1 novel published, 4 stories published in anthologies, and articles published in 2 industry guidebooks.
As featured on:
Curious to know more?
Or just looking for something to read to kill time in between Netflix binges? Here are 10 random facts about me…
10 Fantastically Random Facts
1) I didn’t learn to read until just before the 3rd Grade (I’m dyslexic and autistic. Neurodiversity FTW!).
2) The first article I ever pitched for publication was to Writer’s Digest. Logically I should have been rejected. Instead my article was featured on the cover of said guide and the book was sold in bookstores across the English-speaking world. Further proof that if you say yes to yourself, others, might in fact, also say yes.
3) I was born on a temporal nexus point—the exact day, month, and year that the initial Terminator movies take place. Crazy right?
4) I collect plushies, especially miniature ones. I have over 53 in just this one room alone. I do not have a problem.
5) The first book I ever wrote was for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) 2010. I wrote 53,000 words in 30 days with the idea prompt “boy wakes up to learn he accidentally married girl” and like zero plan. I sat down each day and just asked myself “Okay so then what happens next?” That project went on to be a 325,000-word trilogy that was mentioned on USA Today.
I’m gonna be releasing a special 10th Anniversary Edition soon which you can learn more about here.
6) I was once in the background of an Amanda Palmer music video. (If you don’t know who Amanda is, here’s the short version: performance artist, singer-songwriter of Dresden Dolls, Evelyn Evelyn, the Grand Theft Orchestra, TEDTalker—Neil Gaiman’s wife.)
7) I have worn the same necklace pendant pretty much every day since I was 12. It’s an Egyptian Wadjet. A 5,000-year-old talisman that’s supposed to protect the wearer in life and in death. This one came from a New Age bookstore that WAS kitty-corner from the San Jose Egyptian Museum. (It’s now a Starbucks.) And was molded from one “discovered” in Pharaoh Tutankhamun’s tomb. He’s the guy most commonly called King Tut.
8) I was in 25 musicals before I was 18 and have been on stage since I was 3. I still dance every week. (I am sooo not a gym person.)
9) When I was a senior in high school I represented my hometown of Santa Clara in our competition tour on the Hawaiian island of O’ahu. One of our iconic performance stops: the deck of the WWII battleship Missouri in Pearl Harbor. The ship where Japan famously signed its surrender. We were awarded one of the ship’s flags which still remains in my home town’s city hall 20 years later.
10) I am living proof that even if you are told that something is beyond your abilities. That you are “incapable” of it. You can ALWAYS overcome the limitations others place on your life to achieve your dreams and goals. My proof? I am a dyslexic autistic who couldn’t read until she was 9 and yet I am a professional storyteller. Never let anyone else dictate the story of your life, because—
You are the Legendary Character of your own saga!
Story Writing Prompts
A YEAR OF PROMPTS
Currently experiencing Blank Page Syndrome? Or in need of ideas for your daily writing? Maybe you’re feeling like you’re stuck in a creative rut? Then join my Storyteller’s Saga!
You’ll gain access to my Story Prompt Archive when you join + a new set of daily prompts at the beginning of each month. And it’s all completely FREE!
These prompts are designed to inspire creativity, encourage positive and healthy writing habits, and challenge you to approach your creative process in new ways!
GET A YEAR OF STORYWRITING PROMPTS!
You’ll also get my advice for storytellers delivered to your inbox once a week. Yes, you’re totally welcome to leave the Storyteller’s Saga at any time.
