Episode Summary

Holly sits down with Kari A. Kilgore, an indie author who is celebrating a remarkable milestone: her 50th book and 10th anniversary of publishing — all in the same year.

Kari A. Kilgore is an independent author and publisher based in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, living on 250 acres deep in the woods with her husband (also a writer), two rescue dogs, and a collection of rescue cats. She began publishing in 2016, has released 50 major titles across nearly every fiction genre, and has written over 300 short stories. A former IT professionaland technical writer, she brings the same love of learning to indie publishing that she brought to her previous career.

What We Talk About

Dictation & How They Met

Kari and Holly both found their dictation practice finally clicking after taking a class with Sarah Elizabeth Sawyer. Kari shares how she's been using dictation for journaling and fiction, finding it dramatically speeds upher output. Kevin J. Anderson (author of several Dune books) was an early inspiration — the image of him dictating while hiking through Death Valley touched Kari's creative heart years before she found her own groove with it.

Meet the Dogs: Pebbles & Dana

Kari has two rescue dogs — Pebbles, a pit bull (aka "the Pibble"), and Dana, a Great Dane, named creatively for "two riders in the house." Today they are inseparable, pair-bonded best friends who snuggle, wrestle, and make regular appearances in Kari's Zoom calls andcreative life. They've both been featured in her fiction.

Animals as Creative Muses

Nearly every rescue animal Kari has had since age 19 has found its way into a story — as a character name, a spaceship, a planet, or a full protagonist. Her cat Zortia inspired a holiday romance with a magic cat that sold and has been reprinted twice. That single story grew into a world withseven or eight tales, all featuring real cats she's lived with. She's also written a story specifically about Pebbles and Dana's rescue.

50 Books in 10 Years

Kari published her first books in 2016 and has since released novels, novellas, short story collections, anthologies, and over 300 short stories (which she doesn't even count in that total). She works across virtually every genre — historical fiction, science fiction, romance, high fantasy, mystery, urban fantasy — and often doesn't know the genre until the story is finished.

The Joy of Independent Publishing

Kari is a passionate advocate for indie publishing. She loves cover design, page layout, sales copy, merch ideas, Kickstarters, and running her own Shopify store. She describes indie publishing as "a multifaceted satisfier" — there's always something new to learn and create. She ran her first Kickstarter last year and is planning an October Kickstarter to celebrate her 10th anniversary.

Current Project

Kari is deep into a historical fiction novella (started as a shortstory, now approaching 30,000 words) set in 1880s Virginia, featuring a woman who flees Richmond after the Civil War and stumbles into a mysterious mountain community. A real astronomical event — the Great Comet of 1880, which wasvisible in daylight — plays a central role. Research rabbit holes include horseshoe-making and frontier soap production.

Four-Legged Heroes — Special Edition

Kari's collection Four-Legged Heroes: When PetsRescue People — five stories written in five weeks for a workshop — is now available as a special edition ebook on her website, with exclusive artwork not available through retail platforms like Amazon or Kobo. She also showed off a beautiful custom sticker designed to accompany the book.

Connect with Kari

Learn more at KariKilgore.com.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kari.kilgore.1/

Ramblings from the Little Shed is hosted by Holly B. New episodes drop regularly. Subscribe, leave a review, and come back soon — Rogan will return eventually.

Season 1, Episode 13

Episode Description

Join host Holly B. and co-host Rogan for an inspiring conversation with Alexia about building creative community, multidisciplinary art, and the power of poetry. Discover how one person's vision to find community transformed into a thriving arts organization that's bringing emerging and established artists together in innovative ways.

Pets & Creativity (02:25)

• Meet Toulouse, Alexia's half-Persian, half-Turkish Angora cat

• How pets influence creative perspective and writing

• The dynamic between Toulouse and Rocky the dog

The Birth of Anaphor (10:23)

• From open mic series to non-profit organization in months

• Building community through identifying local needs

• Events maxing out capacity within 20-30 minutes of posting

The Anthology Project (07:51)

• 24 poets paired with 28 local businesses

• Poets create work inspired by or for their sponsor businesses

• Publishing summer 2026

• Supporting arts while highlighting community businesses

Collage Poetry Workshops (18:42)

• Blackout poetry, acrostic projects, and found word poetry

• Working with available resources to maximize impact

Current & Upcoming Projects

• Monthly open mics

• Punch card workshop for artist goals and self-care

• Surrealism workshop combining painting and collage

• Future: Cat-themed multidisciplinary art exhibit (2027)

Poetry Reading (32:21)

• Alexia shares "Everything Falls Towards"

Connect with Anaphor Sudbury

• Instagram: @anaphore.sudbury

• Facebook: Anaphore Sudbury

Season 1 Episode 12

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Join Holly and Rogan for another fun-filled episode where they share their "Thing of the Week," discuss Holly's newly published book, reflect on their recent guest, and explore everything from skating with properly fitted skates to the Rideau Canal's freezing challenges. As always, they close with their signature sign-off and a call for listener engagement!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS EPISODE

Holly's Book is Here!

Holly shares the exciting moment of holding the physical copy of her book North of Broken & Furever Home, for the first time. A true "Thing of the Year" moment that she modestly calls her Thing of the Week.

Skating Pro Tips

Rogan's endorsement of the week: buy skates that actually fit you! He shares how much better skating becomes when you're not struggling with uncomfortable rental skates and discusses the joy of skating as a preferred mode of transportation.

Episode Reflection

Holly and Rogan reflect on their recent conversation with guest Julia, discussing her medium, potential live collaborations, and suggestions for Holly's upcoming book launch.

Ottawa Winter Culture

Discussion of the Rideau Canal skating tradition, its challenges with freezing, and the status of Winterlude.

Listener Appreciation

The hosts continue their tradition of acknowledging those who stick around to the end of the episode, showing genuine gratitude for their dedicated audience.

THING OF THE WEEK

Holly's Thing: Holding the physical copy of her published book for the first time North of Broken & Furever Home (even though she initially forgot what her Thing of the Week was!)

Rogan's Thing: Buying skates that actually fit - a game-changer for anyone who loves skating.

DRINKS OF CHOICE

Holly: Diet Coke with Lime from a Wendy's machine, with a splash of cherry vanilla.

Rogan: Americano at 8 PM (because he needed a pick-me-up after a long workday)

ENGAGEMENT CHALLENGE

Are you Team Black Cat Energy or Team Golden Retriever Energy?

Comment and let us know which one describes you best!

CONNECT WITH US

Website: www.ramblingsfromthelittleshed.com

Instagram: @rambling_from_the_little_shed

Email: ramblingsfromthelittleshed@gmail.com

Novel: North of Broken & Furever Home

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave us a review! Your support helps us reach more listeners and keeps us motivated to create great content.

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Bye for now!