1--What’s the name of your latest release?
Little Wonders, arriving today: Tuesday, March 17!
2--What is it about?
It’s about the parent-eat-parent world of preschool, and how being a mom today is nearly impossible, because you aren’t just told you can have it all – you are told that you must have it all.
Here’s the blurb:
When Quinn Barrett’s son refuses to wear his hand-crafted costume to the Little Wonders Preschool Happy Halloween Parade and Dance Party she loses it -- complete with stomping, screaming, and costume-destruction galore. Not her best day. And caught on viral video. Yep, “Halloween Mom” is now internet famous.
The posting culprit: tattooed, blue-haired, west-coast transplant Daisy McGulch, out of place in the posh New England town and unable to blend with the other perfect mommies of Little Wonders Preschool.
While she couldn’t care less about organic snacks (paleo-preferred) or the winter quarters of the Little Wonders chickens, she’s not about to admit she’s the one who accidentally brought Quinn’s worst moment to the entire world--she’d be kicked out of town!
But when Quinn and Daisy find themselves unlikely cohorts in the fight for Little Wonders Parents Association supremacy, they also discover they have more in common than they expected. . . but the internet is forever. Can Quinn live down her new reputation? And how far will Daisy go to keep the truth from coming to light?
3--What words best describe each of your main characters?
Quinn: Gets-Shit-Done
Daisy: Uncertain Underdog
4--Why did you decide to focus on female friendships for this novel?
This dispatch is coming to you from the parenting trenches, and my friendships are what have saved my sanity time and again. Women are uniquely capable of understanding and empathizing with another person’s situation – and of lifting up their sisters when times get tough. And when you feel lost and alone and a 3 year old is looking to you for all of the answers to everything, one thing that helps is having someone say, “honey, I’ve been there, let me help you through it.”
5--Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?
At the beginning of the book, that’s a question Daisy and Quinn both face. Quinn is absolutely convinced that she doesn’t need help, that she can handle anything by herself – even when her entire sense of self gets undermined by an unflattering video going viral, which threatens every aspect of her life.
And Daisy *has* a support network. . . but they are 3000 miles away. She’s deeply unsure of herself in this new environment, and doesn’t really know who to turn to about her insecurity – her husband is wonderful, but he’s a little oblivious. There’s not a lot of people who can truly understand how she’s feeling.
Thank goodness Daisy and Quinn find each other.
6--What do you love about the setting of your book?
Preschool is a trip and a half! It’s amazing for kids - its an age of growth and learning and making friends in it’s purest, sweetest form. But for the grown-ups, it’s a bewildering labyrinth of mandatory volunteering, PTA meetings, and parenting politics, all while you’re just trying to make sure your kid is growing and happy – which is hard enough!
7--Are you a plotter (follow an outline) or a pantster (write by the seat of your pants)?
I used to think of myself as a pantster, with vivid daydreams about lounging about in breezy linen, letting the muse take me where it would. But the reality is I am a hardcore plotter. The most important bit of writing I do is my outline – it’s the roadmap that keeps me on course. My outlines vary in detail, but they always leave enough room for me to be surprised by my characters, which is usually when you know you’re on the right track.
8--What is an ideal writing day for you?
Well, let’s pretend that I don’t have kids – or let’s pretend they are capable of getting up and ready for school on their own. An ideal writing day would start with me and a cup of coffee and my handwritten journal. I’ve found that if I just get my thoughts down on paper – no matter how unformed or jumbled, my writing day goes a lot smoother. Then I would get together with some friends at a coffee shop, and fueled by more sweet sweet caffeine, get the words on the page. Then I go home, and maybe do some sketching out of other ideas, some promotion work, some breaking of story. If I am really feeling noble, I’ll end the day by doing something that resembles exercise, before I have to go get the kids.
9--Do you listen to music while you write, need total silence, or do you have the TV on?
I either listen to music or have a show on in the background. I need the white noise. Usually, its something I’ve seen many, many times, so it just fades into the background. The West Wing is a favorite.
10-- How do you approach research?
I do most of my research when I still ruminating on an idea or in outline mode – basically I try to integrate it into my research into the earliest stages of writing, because once you’re in draft mode, you can’t be trying to back track and wedge research in to try and fit your story. Sure, there might be little details here and there that you can google, but on the whole, research should be foundational.
11--What is your publishing journey story?
I always loved stories. I read constantly as a kid, as well as absorbed movies and TV – I worked at the movie store in the mall in high school, and by the time I went to college, I knew I wanted to be a storyteller in some form. But for me, that meant studying film and TV. While I was working to pursue that dream, I began writing a book – because I was being paid bubkis and writing a book is free. A year later, I had a book finished. It took me a bit of time after that to figure out how to edit it, how to submit it to agents, etc, but eventually, that became my very first book, Compromised (written as Kate Noble).
Every since then I have been lucky to write both books and television. For me, they feed each other more than they compete with each other – I learned how to write action in novels, I learned how to write dialogue in TV.
12--Do you have critique partners/writing groups you want to give a shout-out to?
I have a wonderful group of writing friends – we sit in coffee shops together and type, and read each other’s work and basically support each other on this crazy journey.
13--What’re the most frustrating things about being an author?
Feeling like I have all the control and also no control over my career.
14--What’s your favorite scent?
Clean spring water.
15--What movie will you watch no matter what if it’s on TV?
E.T., Jaws, West Wing, The Wire.
16--Do you like breakfast, lunch, or dinner best?
Breakfast – because I always know what I’m going to have and I’m satisfied by it. I don’t have to go through the agony of trying to figure out what to make.
17--What’s one thing you wish you knew more about?
Cons and heists.
18--What’s the silliest thing you’ve recently done?
I annoyed my son into waking up in the morning by singing the entire score of Oklahoma!
19--What can readers expect from you next?
I have a new idea in the pipeline, a little bit of a throwback to my Jane Austen/romance background – but also very modern. It’s still in the early stages yet, but I’m excited!
20--How can readers reach you?
I love hearing from readers! I’m on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as @NobleRorick – or you can email me through my website www.katerorick.com.
If you like SMALL ADMISSIONS by Amy Poepell or CLASS MOM by Laurie Gelman you will love this novel about super mommies, private schools, and getting your worst moment plastered across the internet.
Her mommy meltdown is seen around the world!
When Quinn Barrett’s son refuses to wear his hand-crafted costume to the Little Wonders Preschool Happy Halloween Parade and Dance Party she loses it -- complete with stomping, screaming, and costume-destruction galore. Not her best day. And caught on viral video. Yep, “Halloween Mom” is now internet famous.
The posting culprit: tattooed, blue-haired, west-coast transplant Daisy McGulch, out of place in the posh New England town and unable to blend with the other perfect mommies of Little Wonders Preschool.
While she couldn’t care less about organic snacks (paleo-preferred) or the winter quarters of the Little Wonders chickens, she’s not about to admit she’s the one who accidently brought Quinn’s worst moment to the entire world—she’d be kicked out of town!
But when Quinn and Daisy find themselves unlikely cohorts in the fight for Little Wonders Parents Association supremacy, they also discover they have more in common than they expected…but the internet is forever. Can Quinn live down her new reputation? And how far will Daisy go to keep the truth from coming to light?
Hilarious, clever, and unforgettable, Little Wonders offers a glimpse into the high-pressure world of modern momming, with natural toys, scrutinized playdates, PTA politics, and social media gone amok.
Literature and Fiction [William Morrow Paperbacks, On Sale: March 17, 2020, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780062877215 / eISBN: 9780062989949]
Emmy Award-winning writer Kate Rorick is the author of THE BABY PLAN for William Morrow. She is also a television writer and producer, most recently for TNT's The Librarians. In 2014, Kate wrote for the You-Tube internet sensation, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, and co-authored two books based on the series, The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet, and The Epic Adventures of Lydia Bennet.
In her vast spare time, she moonlights as the bestselling author of several historical romance novels written under the pseudonym Kate Noble.
Kate lives in Los Angeles with her family.
And yes, her hair is naturally curly.
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