Kim Wedlock, Author Biography

   On an autumn morning in 2003, just after half term holidays, I walked in through the school gates and declared to my friends "I want to be a writer." Since then, I have worked fervently on fiction and fantasy stories. In high school, I had two short stories printed in a collaboration book, chosen from across the whole student body, and a few (awful) poems printed in magazines. I always had a notebook open beside me in lessons and neglected the teachers in favour of other worlds.

   Having written 21 novellas through my teens, I started work on full-scale fantasy books in my twenties. I submitted my first book in 2012 when I was 21, the first of a trilogy. It was rejected, and it shattered my hopes. I abandoned the trilogy at that point, and it took 6 months to dust myself off and start writing again - the longest I had ever been without it. But I'd decided that I was not going to be beaten.

   After planning and scrapping multiple ideas, I finally wrote The Archguardians of Laceria, targeted at readers like myself - mature fantasy for adults and YA. Politics, war, psychological nuance. I sent it out, it was rejected, and I decided to take the plunge and self-publish it. It was a mistake. But, in rushing ahead and publishing a piece that wasn't ready (by a writer who also wasn't ready), I learned a great deal about myself and the truth of the young writer's mindset and foolish expectations. It also gave me the armour and self-awareness I needed to persevere. I have since voluntarily suspended the publication.
   Then, along with those hard-won lessons, I started work on something much better: The Devoted Trilogy.
   After following the traditional submission process and being rejected yet again, albeit with genuine compliments, the first book, The Zi'veyn, was self-published in 2018 - but warily this time. Yet it received a great response, distributing in 4 months the number of copies AGoL had in 2 years, and I'd already had the second installment of the trilogy, The Sah'niir, finished in February 2019, ready for summer release.
    With The Devoted trilogy now complete, I'm working on my next new story, the progress of which I share on my Patreon. I'm also writing monthly short stories, and have collaborated with a host of fantastic creatives.

If you believe in your work, don't let anyone stop you. Stay true to your passions. Write because you love it, and other people will grow to love it, too.

   I have taken writing courses, the most recent and valuable of which is Neil Gaiman's The Art of Storytelling. No matter how many courses or how much experience someone has in their field, they will always benefit from more tuition and guidance. New teachers with new perspectives will only enrich you, because no one's experience in life or publishing will be the same.

   I have a huge passion for nature, Slavic and Scandinavian folklore, anthropology and natural history. One way or another, these things always end up in my work, sometimes as details, sometimes as foundations. Embracing the things I love rather than trying to be conventional makes me so much more passionate about my stories, because I love writing every bit. Even the angry or heart-wrenching things. And I can only hope, above all else, that that passion and heart reaches you when you read it.