We Each Have a Story to Tell by Kat Harrison

Kat Harrison celebrated her book birthday with an interview here on the Mitten blog last month. The idea for her picture book, Surgery on Sunday, grew from her own experience with chronic illness. We asked Kat to return to our blog to share some tips about writing from your own personal experiences, owning your story, and using your challenges to fuel your writing.

Here's Kat:

Telling your story to the world is like cracking your chest open and saying, "Here's my heart. Go ahead and take a look around." It's unbelievably scary and there isn't a lot to hide behind. But I've also learned how incredibly empowering it is to let your imperfect self shine, and I hope to encourage you to do the same.

(Quick note before we continue: My own story isn't why we're here, but in case you need some context -- you can head here or here.)

We each have a story to tell

The most beautiful part about life is that each one of us is uniquely spun from beginning to end. And while that can bring on feelings of loneliness and othering, I find so much hope (and writing material) in that. Try and tap into your experiences when you feel blocked. What have you been through? Who changed your life? What emotions have carried you this far? What small things bring you the most joy?

Share what you're comfortable with

I didn't share my story for the longest time. I felt deep shame about being so sick during "the best years of my life." But as I've come to share more and more of myself with the world and with readers, it's vital to acknowledge that I've done so on my own timeline -- no one else's. The same goes for you. Only tell your story when you're ready. Tell as little or as much as you like. The beauty of opening up is that most people won't know what details you're leaving out. It's OK to protect your heart as you're the only one who has to live with it beating inside your chest.

Prepare for impact

The freedom I've experienced with embracing what I've been through is second to none. I finally feel like myself in a world that tells me I should be a walking Instagram filter. But what I've learned is that when you channel every single speck of who you are into a written product, you're also opening yourself up for criticism. People won't always like what you create -- that's the underbelly of what it means to be an artist. But it's a tad bit harder to swallow when what they're critiquing is rooted in your inner fabric. It's almost as if they're rejecting who you are as a person as opposed to your finished product. But I hope you don't let that stop you.

I'll leave you with two final tips about how you can approach this:

1. Lead with vulnerability. Create a platform around what you've been through. It feels like I've told my life's story a million times and then I decided to write a work of fiction. Most people know me for my health advocacy and now I'm hoping they'll get to know me as an author.

2. End with vulnerability. Create a story around your story. Let the details of your life inspire characters or the plot. Even just plucking out meaningful conversations or events can bring shape and color to an otherwise fictional telling. Let people get to know you as an author and then surprise them with your dimension as a human being.

Whatever you do, I hope you know how much better your story makes this world. I'd love to hear it when and if you're ready.

Kat Harrison is a writer, editor, and chronic illness advocate. Her writing has been featured in various print and online outlets such as Real Simple, New York Family, The Mighty, and Yahoo. She lives with a not-so-fun buffet of chronic health conditions and has recovered from fourteen surgeries, but she keeps her sense of humor thanks to an incalculable amount of coffee and brightly colored headbands. Surgery on Sunday (Warren Publishing, 2020) is her debut picture book. You can visit her website at katwritesforyou.com or follow her on Instagram @xokat.

Coming up on the Mitten Blog:

Diversity Dialogue, Book Birthday interviews, and our quarterly Hugs and Hurrahs. We want to celebrate your good news:

• Did you receive a "champagne" rejection letter, a request to revise and resubmit?
• Did you sign with an agent?
• Did you win a contest?
• Do you have a cover reveal?
• Did you sign a contract?
• Do you have an online interview, article, or event to share?
• Did you sign up for or complete a class? An MFA program?
• Did you meet a goal in your work-in-progress? Did you set a goal? Put it in writing and we'll help keep you accountable!

Your steps of progress inspire and motivate us too! Please email your writing/illustrating/publishing news to Sarah LoCascio by June 22nd to be included in the next Hugs and Hurrahs roundup later in June.

Did you notice we have a new spring/summer blog banner created by Rebecca Howe? Thank you, Rebecca! You can read her interview and see our previous Featured Illustrators here.

Look for the next Diversity Dialogue post in mid-July. Jack Cheng’s blog post, On Silence and Action, will focus on what we in the kidlit community can do, from our own respective lanes, when current events stir us to do something. He'll approach it from a more universal, ongoing perspective, rather than focusing on one event.

Publishing Opportunity! 

The Mitten Blog is seeking submissions from SCBWI-MI members. This is a great opportunity for novice writers to practice polishing and submitting their work and for experienced authors and illustrators to add to their platform. Your input helps all of us to learn and improve our craft and business and support our community. Here are the submission guidelines:
https://scbwimithemitten.blogspot.com/p/submissions_18.html