Meet Author: Katie Passerotti

Kara M. Zone
Sep 19, 2025
4 min read

Updated: Sep 27, 2025

Katie Passerotti (she/her) is an educator by trade and an author by choice.

Her fantasy stories feature fierce girls on fantastic journeys to discover their truest selves and the found family that welcomes them.

As an educator, Katie has taught in a high school Language Arts classroom for over 15 years. She utilizes her knowledge of educational theory and best practices to help her students think critically, find their voices, and become lifelong learners.

Her passion for teaching was the catalyst for creating The Scribbler’s Den—a place where writers can share their craft knowledge with fellow writers and receive guidance on how to sequence and pace their lessons to develop a meaningful curriculum.

When Katie’s not writing or designing curriculum, she’s exploring the forest with her Irish Wolfhound, Bellamy, or curled up with a warm cup of tea and a good book.

Meet Katie Passerotti:

What’s one piece of advice you wish you’d known when you first started writing?

That traditional publishing has zero rhyme or reason to it, and the entire

query process is more about luck and timing than anything else. Every writer

works hard, but hard work doesn’t always pay off in the writing world. I was

so convinced that if I just wrote more and worked harder, I would get

published.

I pushed myself hard and teetered on burnout. Now I’ve made peace with the randomness of publishing—it still stinks to get those passes from agents, but I don’t take it personally anymore.

I just keep moving forward and working at my own pace because I know that one way or

Another, I will have a published book out in the world one day!

What’s your favorite show to binge-watch?

My comfort show is The Magicians. I probably watch it all the way through 2-3 times a year.

I really love how irreverent the show is while still managing to tackle some pretty big topics. And the characters are the absolute best, they’re messy and flawed, and their arcs are just *chef’s kiss,* and from a plotting perspective, it's so cool how everything adds up.

Each time I rewatch, I pick up on more details and make more connections.

It makes my heart happy and helps me to refill my creative well.

What are some helpful tips you would give a fellow writer who’s having a hard time plotting, developing, etc.?

My advice is to step away and give it—and yourself—some time to decompress. More often than not, when I’m stuck it's because I’ve gotten tunnel vision and can only see one way forward—the wrong way.

If I just leave it alone and stop poking at it directly, the solution will present itself.

My other favorite strategy is to talk to one of my writing friends.

This is usually just me DMing them all the details, and oftentimes by the time I’m

done telling them all about it, I have a way forward, and they might not have

even responded.

But if they do, they offer that outside perspective that I need to see more options for my story.

What is something that you’ve learned and grown from over the last year?

This past year, I started my own business—The Scribbler’s Den, and that experience has really helped me to see just how capable I am.

Not only have I learned and leveled up my writing craft, but I’ve also found a great outlet for

sharing that information with other writers and building community.

It’s also helped to reinforce that obstacles are only temporary and that if I stay dedicated and focused, I’m capable of accomplishing absolutely anything.

What’s the best way to tackle challenges?

One step at a time.

I love breaking down big tasks into bite-sized chunks and then whittling away at them. In my classroom, I start with the final product or skill I want my students to demonstrate, and I work backwards from there to develop my lesson plans and activities.

I apply the same concept to any challenge I face, whether it’s a manuscript, starting a business, or building a sandwich. Being able to picture exactly what I want the end result to be really helps me figure out how to achieve it.

Indoors or Outdoors?

Both! I love love love the outdoors. I spend a lot of time gardening over the summer and love to hike through forests—I think trees are some of the most magical things on our planet, and being in their presence and thinking about the lives they’ve lived and what they’ve seen is so comforting to me.

My biggest problem with the outdoors is bugs—I really hate bugs of all kinds.

I respect that they have their best little bug lives to live, but I don’t want them on or around me. I love being indoors when I’m someplace cozy and warm, either reading a good book or hanging out with friends. I try to keep a lot of plants in my house and classroom to help create an outdoorsy feel, but without the bugs!

If you had a soundtrack to your life, right now, what would the first five songs be?