#author: katya de becerra

[darkwithasharpenededge]

YA Horror Is Not My Thing: A Review of When Ghosts Call Us Home by Katya de Becerra

Rating: 55/100

Summary: I read the whole thing in like two and a half hours, and only sort of enjoyed it. What is it with YA books and a tendency to have just the vaguest outlines of characters? It just was not very good, weak characters, like the author ran down a list of characters needed for a YA novel and included them all. Scheming adult, love interest, blah blah blah. None of the characters other than the main character receive any real character development. I liked the horror movie framing of the whole thing, but it was by no means a good book, or even a bad book that's suited to my tastes. I spook easily, and while this wasn't too scary for me (I would have DNFed it if it was), it was just on the edge, so I read the whole thing in a state of nervousness for when it would become too scary for me and I would have to ditch out, which I'm sure makes me more critical to the book overall. It also has that YA writing style that I dislike so much. Someone remind me why I decided to read this again instead of doing something I would have liked better.

Final Verdict: If I read another horror book this year, point me at this review.

Review Word Count: 221

[karen-carlisle-off-the-artboard]

Anthology News: It's official!

https://karenjcarlisle.com/2024/04/05/anthology-news-its-official/

A while ago, I wrote a short story and submitted it for an anthology – a collection of stories written by women, where Sherlock identifies as a woman. I wrote a classicly-set story (with an Aussie connection): The Case of the Toxic Teacake. Since then, I’ve been waiting to announce the news. And today is that day!

Pre-orders are now open, and I can now reveal the cover of Sherlock is a Girl’s Name, edited by Narrelle M Harris and Atlin Merrick. The anthology is to be published at the end of April, and you can pre-order (with 20% off) via Clan DeStine Press (Australia) or Improbable Press (UK).

Blurb: What would the Great Detective be like if Sherlock Holmes was a woman? In the tall tales of Sherlock is a Girl’s Name we answer this question, following Sherlock into deep space, 1990s Russian, Victorian London, contemporary USA, worlds of magic, and more.

And My story, The Case of the Toxic Teacake is one of them!

Here is the full wraparound cover reveal – showcasing each of the Sherlocks in the book. Can you guess which is mine?

Authors include: Tansy Rayner Roberts, Eugen Bacon, Sarah Tollock, Verity Burns, Dannye Chase, Kenie Lapping, JD Cadmon, Stacy Lawhoren, Katya de Becerra, Narrell M Harris, Atlin Merrick, and myself!

[hollymbryan]

Blog Tour: Spotlight on WHEN GHOSTS CALL US HOME by Katya de Becerra!

Welcome to Book-Keeping and my stop on the TBR and Beyond Tours blog tour for When Ghosts Call Us Home by Katya de Becerra, which released on Tuesday! I've got all the details on the book and author for you below.

About the Book

title: When Ghosts Call Us Home author: Katya de Becerra publisher: Page Street release date: 3 October 2023

Haunting of Hill House meets found-footage horror in this edge-of-your-seat thriller that explores the power of family ties and the trauma that lurks there. When Sophia Galich was twelve, she starred in her older sister Layla’s amateur horror movie Vermillion, which recorded raw footage of her very real reactions to scenes her sister concocted in their old Californian house on the coast–Cashore House. In the years after the film’s release, Sophia’s relationship with her sister became more strained, while her memories of the now-infamous house fueled her nightmares. Vermillion amassed an army of fanatical fans who speculated about the film’s hidden messages, and it was rumored that Layla made a pact with the devil–her soul in exchange for fame and arcane knowledge. Sophia dismissed this as gossip…until Layla disappeared. Now, Sophia must study the trail of clues Layla has left behind, returning to the very place where it all began. As she gets closer and closer to Cashore House’s haunted heart, she must once again confront the ghosts of her childhood. But the house won’t reveal its secrets without a fight.

Add to Goodreads: When Ghosts Call Us Home Purchase the Book: Amazon | B&N | Bookshop.org

About the Author

Katya de Becerra writes atmospheric young adult horror featuring determined characters, complicated families and enigmatic places. Critics called her debut What The Woods Keep “a thoughtful and compelling horror fantasy” (The Bulletin) and “a narrative that will keep readers enthralled” (Booklist), while her second novel Oasis earned a starred review from Booklist. Katya regularly publishes short fiction in anthologies and literary magazines. She is also co-editor of the anthology This Fresh Hell, which reimagines and subverts horror tropes in new and unexpected ways. As a child, Katya wanted to be an Egyptologist, but instead she earned a PhD in Cultural Anthropology and now works at a university, where she teaches and researches as well as supervises graduate students in Anthropology, Creative Writing and Education. Katya is a short version of her real name, which is very long and gets mispronounced a lot.

Connect with Katya: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

Make sure you check out the Bookstagram tour too! You can find my post here, and the full schedule is here.

[holycatsandrabbits]

Y'all I am very excited to say that I have a piece in the upcoming anthology "Clamour and Mischief" from Clan Destine Press!

Clamour & Mischief is about the corvidae family of birds (ravens & crows) and my story is a retelling of the tale "The 7 Ravens." It got downsized to only 3 ravens, but it did keep its creepy nature. <3

Edited by Narrelle M Harris @221b-hound

Artwork including spine art above by @altocello

A clamour of rooks. A mischief of magpies. A storytelling of crows.

All the corvids – the rooks and ravens, the jays and jackdaws, the crows and magpies – have the best collective nouns. A parliament and a party. Tidings and titterings, bands and trains. An unkindness.

Clamour and Mischief brings a veritable storytelling of crows to the corvidae, the bird family known for intelligence and cunning and for their connection with folklore and urban legends. These storytellers come from around the world and include award-winning and -shortlisted authors as well as emerging writers and fledgling authors in their professional debut.

This anthology’s sixteen striking stories are imbued with all the humour, darkness, wisdom, artfulness, vengefulness and magic of the birds that inspired them. Take them as a jest, a guide, or a warning – but don't, whatever you do, ignore them!

Narrelle M Harris and Clan Destine Press are proud to announce the Table of Contents for Clamour and Mischief, due for release in the last quarter of 2022.

·       “Once upon a Midnight” by Raymond Gates

·       “All That Glitters” by GV Pearce

·       “Sleuthing for a Cause” by Eugen Bacon

·       “The Past is not a Present” by Geneve Flynn

·       “Watchers” by Alex Marchant

·       “The Song of Crows” by Jack Fennell

·       “Kūpara and Tekoteko” by Lee Murray

·       “Build Another Nest for Phantom Feathers” by RJK Lee

·       “Branwen and the Three Ravens” by Dannye Chase

·       “Seven for a Secret” by Narrelle M Harris

·       “The Girl and the Crow” by R.D. White

·       “The Jackdaw Maiden” by Katya de Becerra

·       “The Language of Birds” by Jason Franks

·       “Murder of Crows” by George Ivanoff

·       “The Devil's Teeth” by Tamara M Bailey

·       “Quoth the Raven” by Gabiann Marin

___

Publisher: Clan Destine Press - https://www.clandestinepress.net/

Ao3 ~ DannyeChase.com ~ Linktree ~ Upcoming fics

[nanowrimo]

The 3 Stages of Traditional Publishing

Are you finding yourself caught up in transition time between being a hopeful writer and a published author? Today, author and NaNoWriMo participant Katya de Becerra offers insight on what it’s like to put your novel through the publishing process:

So you’re finally done with your manuscript… What’s next?

Finally finishing your manuscript could be daunting. Is the book good enough? What to do next? All authors, emerging and established, are faced with these questions.

When I finished writing what became my debut, What The Woods Keep, I only had a vague idea about what I should be doing next. I’ve heard about critique partners, but I’ve never had one. My creative process is individualistic, and I require total isolation to think and write, so it was unnerving to reach out to friends and ask them to be my first readers. 

I’m glad I did! Receiving insightful comments aside, friends reading my work (and loving it) gave me an enormous confidence boost that propelled me toward the next step: finding an agent.  

1. The Query

Querying agents can be soul-crushing. Curating agent lists as well as carefully researching each agent I approached, meant that each query I’ve sent out was tailored and targeted. It also meant it’s taken me a long time to prepare and email each query. I could only do 2-3 a day, and 10 was the most queries I’d have out at any given time. Though time-consuming, this process worked for me, allowing me to receive feedback from each “batch” of agents before I’d approach new ones. Being rejected based on query alone meant the pitch needed revising while rejections based on pages indicated there could be something to tweak in the manuscript itself. Though, in the end, it’s important to keep in mind that the subjective element is strong in publishing. “You only need one yes” sounds like a cliché but it’s true. In the end, all it took was one agent’s interest and, before I knew it, I had representation for my weird, genre-bending book.       

2. Submission

Depending on how editorial an agent is, a manuscript could go through one or many rounds of revision before it’s deemed ready for publishers. 

The only advice here is to trust your agent. They chose to represent you – this means they believe in you and your work. Even if you don’t hear from them with regular updates, agents are working tirelessly, hyping your work. I had to wait for about eight months before I had an offer for my first book! But it was absolutely worth the wait. My publisher and editor are perfect for me and the types of books I write and want to keep writing.

3. The Waiting Game

Here’s where the real nail-biter starts: the waiting! Some books sell quickly. Some take months—or more—to find its home. Being “on sub” is a surreal time of being stuck in limbo and trying to go about your regular life while nervously checking your inbox or staring wistfully at your phone. My second book, Oasis (forthcoming in January 2020) was a NaNoWriMo novel! I’d written it while I was on submission with my first book, and it sold alongside my debut. At the time of writing Oasis, I wasn’t sure what was to become of it and was seriously considering self-publishing it during those 8 agonizing months that I was waiting for my debut to sell.

While my pathway to publication is rather traditional, it’s not the only way to be published. Indie publishing has grown and evolved so much over the years. It allows creators to take full control of their books and become their own publisher. So many traditionally published authors these days become “hybrids” combining different modes of publication. There’s no right or wrong way, but rather a way that’s right for you and allows you to achieve what you set out to achieve.  

Katya de Becerra was born in Russia, studied in California, lived in Peru, and then stayed in Australia long enough to become a local. She was going to be an Egyptologist when she grew up, but instead she earned a PhD in Anthropology and now works as a university lecturer and a researcher. Her genre-bending debut What The Woods Keep was published in 2018 and her second novel Oasis is forthcoming in January 2020. 

Top photo by Joshua Earle on Unsplash.

[amytipton]

ONIGHT! 7PM! I get to see/meet the amazing author, Katya de Becerra! Her YA, OASIS, just published & I am thrilled the world can read it! (Yes, I agented her/this book & yes, I am still proud & supportive of my ex-authors [sob-ex...]. I’m glad to call her a friend though!) If you’re in LA, you should come by!

The details: Come to celebrate the release of Oasis, Katya de Becerra's second novel. There'll be drinks, snacks and a fun conversation between Katya and Adalyn Grace, the author of All The Stars and Teeth. About OASIS: In this young adult thriller for fans of Lost and The Twilight Zone, a group of teens are saved when they come across a mysterious oasis. But who will save them from the oasis? Once Upon A Time bookstore 2207 Honolulu Ave Montrose, California 91020

[fiercereadsya]

Find out which 5 books What the Woods Keep author Katya de Becerra recommends if you like to read spooky books all year long!

[booksofwonderevents]

Books of Wonder is delighted to host the launch event for Oasis by KATYA DE BECERRA in conversation with SARA FARING for The Tenth Girl.

Join us at our 217 West 84th Street store to celebrate the release of this amazing new young adult novel. Come hear the authors discuss their work, answer questions from the audience, and sign copies of all their books. Tuesday, January 7th 6-8pm. Ages 14 & up.

[atlinmerrick]

Authors include Kerry Greenwood (author of the Phryne Fisher novels) and David Greagg, Greg Herren, me Atlin Merrick, Jack Fennell, Jason Franks, Natalie Conyer, Lisa Fessler, Lucy Sussex, Katya de Becerra, Jayantika Ganguly, LJM Owen, Raymond Gates, and JM Redmann.

Woohoo! Cover reveal for The Only One in the World, a Sherlock Holmes anthology coming out from Clan Destine Press!

I have a story in it – S.H.E.R.L.O.C.K. – of which I’m super proud, extra loud proud. Go have a looksee, then please pre-order!

[aislynndmerricksson]

Book Review: Oasis by Katya de Becerra

Book Review: Oasis by Katya de Becerra

As promised, here’s my longer review for Oasis. I adored the archaeology aspect! I wish we had been able to take more of a gander at the actual dig site, and artefacts. My first degree was in archaeology, and it is still near and dear to my heart. I loved the descriptions of the dig site and the camp. I appreciate when books get things archaeology or paleontology right. Seeing as the author has…

[nanowrimo]

Can a picture inspire a thousand words? NaNoWriMo investigates the power of images in our writing lives. Author Katya de Becerra describes how using an image board brought her novel’s setting to life:

For me, a book begins with a place. The feel of this place, its colors, its peculiar atmosphere–all of it has to be just right, especially early on in a new project. Whenever I start working on a new book, as I play around with the protagonist’s voice and craft the early chapters, I set up a dedicated image board. I then sift through hundreds of pictures on Pinterest, Flickr, Google, populating the board with images that make sense to the story I have slowly building in my head.

As my visual board grows, I jot down ideas. My image selection process is interwoven with those key writing stages when I’m working out my protagonist, her voice, her goals, the way her mind works. On a deeper level, the process is interlinked with the mystery at the book’s heart–a question, an old secret, an almost sentient locale where the protagonist perhaps had a reality-altering experience, or where she witnessed something she was not meant to see.

With my novel What the Woods Keep, which eventually got me my agent and later a publisher, I knew the title from the get-go. Then the book grew around it, becoming more complex with each revision. The book’s core remained stable throughout–a young woman’s emotional homecoming, her relationship with her mother, her creepy windswept hometown and the boy-next-door who stayed behind while she got to leave. With the help of my image board, the forest-locked town of Promise, where the book is set, eventually got to tell its own story, acquiring a mind of its own and interacting with the protagonist in a way a regular character would.  

Later, when I worked on the book’s revisions, my image board came in handy once again: the pictures I had so painstakingly selected as I wrote the book’s first draft shifted my mind into the right kind of mood, taking me once again back to Promise. It can be a difficult task to maintain the same feel to the book after months of working on something else, while waiting for feedback from your editor. My image board was instrumental in the task of keeping my rewrites true to the story and I can’t recommend it enough to all writers, experienced or new to the craft.

Katya de Becerra is a Melbourne-based author of Young Adult books. Her stories tend to be set in strange locales where it rains a lot and odd misunderstood things go bump in the night. She has two forthcoming books, What the Woods Keep and Oasis, both acquired by Imprint Macmillan in 2016. In What the Woods Keep, a girl inherits a riddle from her mother's estate that leads her to a strange Colorado town where her physicist father has been studying strange phenomena. Oasis, a horror-adventure with a diverse cast set in Dubai, was originally a 2014 NaNoWriMo project. Find Katya at her blog at where she talks about pop culture, urban fantasy, science fiction and monsters, and also on Twitter @KatyaBecerra and Facebook @katyadebecerra.

Images licensed under Creative Commons. See image captions for sources.