Let me introduce you to my friend Katherine. It’s a *loooong* story, but we lived not far from each another for many years, and our paths never crossed. (She wrote “The End” on her first novel while living in Peoria!) I worked with her husband for a time, and we have several mutual friends.

But God saw it fit for our paths to finally cross via the interwebs after she moved to Texas. Then, we met in person the summer of 2024 as she was back in Peoria visiting family. I helped organize a book signing at the Peoria Barnes and Noble, and she also presented at the Farmington Area Public Library. Then we reconnected again at the 2025 Realm Makers conference.

Katherine has been a great source of inspiration and encouragement for me, and I’m excited to introduce her to you.

Thank you for sharing a “behind-the-pages” look into your life as an author. Can you share a bit about your author journey from unpublished to published?

Thank you for inviting me to this Q&A interview, Elise! My author journey started when I was three years old. I enjoyed drawing picture stories in spiral notebooks with my crayons, and my first character was a blue three-eyed monster. My mom kindly wrote the words down for me.

When I was a teenager, I had the opportunity to take a year of One Year Adventure Novel, a creative writing curriculum still in print today. This taught me a lot about the elements of story. I continued my classes with Jerry B. Jenkin’s Christian Writers Guild and the Young Writer’s Workshop. I began writing and submitting short stories for publication, attending conferences, and reading in my genre, and I pitched The Eternity Gate and its sequel to Enclave Publishing while attending one of these conferences.

Where did you find your inspiration for The Threshold Duology?

The Threshold Duology was inspired by a character with a very dangerous gifting. He morphed into an important side character, and then an image popped into my head depicting a handmaiden braiding the princess’s hair. She became Seyo.

The inspiration for the elemental gifting system occurred to me while writing an initial opening chapter, which was later rewritten and relocated to a different place in the narrative.

Building a fantasy world can be a challenge, but you managed it beautifully. Tell us more about your setting and magic system.

Thank you for your kind words. I believe “truth is stranger than fiction.” I try to ground my worlds in our world, which encourages me to continue exploring Earth (Ever heard of a fire tornado? They’re real!). The landscapes in both The Eternity Gate and The Immortal Abyss are a blend of places I’ve visited in real life, tweaked and at times exaggerated, of course.

For magic systems, I like “magic” that follows rules and fits into the nature of the story world. In Seyo‘s and Tol’s countries, it’s assumed that one will be born with an elemental gifting. It’s part of their DNA and heritage. Whether they like the gifting they receive or not is a different story.

While writing, did your characters run away with your plot, adding in unsuspecting twists and turns? Or did they stick to the script?

I’m a plotter, and still my characters do run away with the story. I take that as a good sign and adjust the plot accordingly.

Do you have a favorite character? If so, who?

I love all my characters. Seyo is fun because she’s a history nerd and linguist trying to hide a secret and keep the peace, and circumstances won’t allow her to do either!

Geras has my heart. <3

Tol in The Immortal Abyss was incredibly fun to write. I love her courage and determination. She is inspired by my younger sister Jessica, who is also a courageous overcomer.

What was the weirdest Google search you did while writing these books?

Buahaha I love this question. Sometimes I wonder how many watchlists we writers grace.  For The Threshold Duology, I searched for the discoloration of corroded metals and how to clean them. I learned how to do a fireman’s carry. I searched for survival skills necessary to survive a certain forest journey. I read an entire book about the desert and Google searched alongside that looking for reasons why sand could be the color of charcoal (and was able to visit a real-life example in Hawaii).

What do you enjoy most about writing fantasy? And what did you find the most challenging?

For writing fantasy, I enjoy that the genre asks, “What if?” Fantasy breaks down assumptions and helps us see our lives through fresh lens. I love how it reminds us that we are all part of a bigger story.

For challenges while writing fantasy, cause and effect is a big one. I like stories that make sense and ring with authenticity, and I try my best to offer this in my own stories. This can be a fun challenge when including fantastical aspects such as the ability to hold light or fire.

What advice would you give to a new author who is writing their first book?

Finish your first book. Revisions and edits are part of the creative process and will make your story better. Be patient and fight to maintain the fun of writing. Take risks.

Do you have a recent young adult, 5-star read you would like to recommend? What did you like about it?

Oh, there are many! Today, I’ll mention Glass Across the Sea by Sara Ella. It feels so rich and full, the chapter endings are excellent hooks, the romance is so sweet and has the unique take of existing from page one, and there is a nobility to the story that I sometimes find missing in stories.

What other up-and-coming projects do you have in the works? Where can people find you online to follow along on your author journey?

I’ve never had so many stories in my mind at I do now (one is even science fiction instead of fantasy!), which has been interesting to juggle. I’ve settled on one and am halfway through the first draft. The worldbuilding and theme have been a challenge for me, which I consider a good thing because the story is making me grow.

I love to connect through my newsletter. You can join that at www.katherinebriggs.com and I hope you enjoy the short story collection welcome gift.

I also post on Instagram at @katherinebriggs_author

If you’d like to read more, I also highlighted Katherine’s duology in a blog article for the Storyteller Squad, of which I am one of the contributing bloggers. Dynamic Duology: Why you should read and write them – The Storyteller Squad