The Next Big Thing a Work-in-Progress

The Next Big Thing!
by Kate Thompson

A Work-in-Progress
My writer friend and owl buddy,  Patrick Jones  tagged me for a ‘chain’ blog entitled ‘The Next Big Thing'. The deal is: I answer a few questions about my current work-in-progress and then I invite other authors to do the same. A bit like a chain letter, except it is only focused on an author’s work-in-progress. Patrick Jones was tagged previously by Jeff Joseph. I've included details of their blogs so you can explore their answers to the same questions. The authors I've chosen have, along with Patrick and Jeff, been tagged below my answers. So here goes:

What is the working title of your next book?

Tied by Water

Where did the idea come from for the book?

It came from a line I couldn't stop thinking about. “I wish this day never happened.”

What genre does your book fall under?

Contemporary Fiction

What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

I don’t think about actors playing my characters. Probably because I don’t watch television and I rarely go to Hollywood movies. If my novel is made into one, I want it to be an Indie. My story is set in Rivers Edge, a fictional Pacific NW Oregon town. I would cast actors who live in Oregon towns similar to my Rivers Edge. The actors won’t look like Hollywood. They will look like regular folks you see at the grocery store and at the park.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Childhood friends, Noah and Charley, are from families torn apart by the same tragedy and now, 15 years later, Noah, a rebellious pastor and Charley, a 3rd grade teacher, whose lives haven’t turned out like they expected, face another tragedy, and seek to rediscover true intimacy and a path that will make them and the ones they love truly happy.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

The short answer is my novel will be self-published. But, I remain open to opportunities that may come my way.

When I wrote the first draft, I wouldn't have considered self-publishing. No way! But the publishing industry is changing and evolving and self-published authors, many whose work is not profit driven are challenging tradition and bringing about change. Self-publishing has given voice to authors all over the world. I’m one of those authors.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

I wrote the first draft in one year. I was home-schooling my daughter and writing a paragraph here, a page there, whenever I could. If asked how many drafts since the first, I couldn't say. Who keeps track anyway?

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I would say Sheri Reynolds’ and Elizabeth Strout’s novels. Reynolds for whole, down-to-earth characters and the way she grounds the reader in place. Elizabeth Strout for an honest and hard look into tangled family ties and the empathy both authors convey.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Several events inspired me to write the book. I moved to the mid-west and back. I came out of 25 years in an all or nothing religion where women had their roles and questioning church leaders or teachings opened the door to Satan. Add hitting bottom and finding out how badly people are treated there, I found my inspiration for the book.

What else about the book might pique the reader's interest?

The book begins with a wedding, a mom no one has seen for 15 years, and a sidewalk full of protesters. Pastor Noah is officiating in spite of his dad; the pastor of the biggest church in town, promising there would be serious repercussions.

Noah is a bar stool preacher at the strip club, much to his father’s chagrin, and Noah’s wife, “The Pin-Up Girl of Pastor’s Wives,” leads a secret life. Their 3rd grader is suspended from school. Noah teaches love and compassion, but his temper could land him in jail.

Noah and Charley were childhood best friends and official Bigfoot Hunters until a tragedy took them down different paths. Charley is there for Noah now, but she has her own problems. Her husband accused her of being a thief and now her mom wants her to leave him, quit teaching 3rd grade and go to Peru with her to pick fruit.

When Noah and Charley think life couldn't get any worse, another tragedy strikes…


Tied by Water, a novel by Kate Thompson December 2013

Thanks to: 
Jeff Joseph 
Patrick Jones

You're Tagged!
TS Gwilliam
Dain Dunston

Photo: Tied by Water (working cover) by Kate Thompson 2010


Kate Thompson's novella, "The Asteroid's Daughter and the Serpent Handler's Son" is one of the 13 stories in New Halem Tales Secrets: 13 Stories from 5 NW Authors. Find more about the e-book at the New Halem Tales Website.  Kate is currently working on her second novel, Tied by Water. Dec 2013, and a third, A Family of Forgetters. She is enthralled by treasure hunter stories and pirates, pioneer women, UFOs and Bigfoot. More about Kate on her author page.