Welcome to My Newsletter!
- kiesteralex
- Feb 6, 2025
- 2 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
From the desk of Alex Kiester
Happy February, friends!
One of my goals for 2025 is to start a newsletter to keep people up-to-date on all things writing and you're getting my inaugural one today because I thought you might be interested. I plan to send it a handful of times a year, whenever I have news, and because the writing/publishing industry is such a long game, news doesn’t happen often. Which is all to say I promise I won’t spam you.
I’m writing today from beautiful San Miguel de Allende.
The view above my laptop is a courtyard alive with hummingbirds, a tinkling fountain, and columns laced with bougainvillea. This trip marks my third annual one to escape the rabid cedar fever I get every winter in Texas. Along with my mom and Kyle and other members of our family popping in and out, I’m spending five weeks here, eating good food, playing pickleball with the friends we’ve made, and of course, writing. I feel sublimely fortunate to be able to work in a place so special.
In book news...
The Missing Half, the second book I’ve co-written with my friend, Ashley Flowers, host of the #1 true crime podcast Crime Junkie, is officially coming out on May 6th—only three months away! Our novel, about two women haunted by their sisters' unsolved disappearances, has been called one of the most anticipated mystery/thrillers of the year by Marie Claire, and it's available for preorder NOW! Preorders are the absolute best way you can support writers, so if you’re excited about the book, please consider ordering it today :) And if you can’t wait that long, here’s an excerpt of chapter one featured in People.
I’ve also been hard at work on my next project.
This one is a campus thriller with a con artist angle (think The Secret History meets Inventing Anna). I’m writing it alone (my agent calls it my solo album) and last week, I turned in the first draft to a handful of trusted readers for feedback. While it’s still rough, like a sculptor with a work in progress, I can see the shape of it beneath the stone I still need to chip away. It has the most intricate plot I’ve ever created, a character that has been my favorite to write, and social commentary I hope will engender LOTS of conversation.
Next step: review my readers’ feedback and start editing. Lucky for me, I get to do all that in sunshiny Mexico!
xo,
Alex
PS - Are you a writer in Austin? Come join me at the next quarterly ATX Write-in tomorrow, November 12th! Organized by Hembree Bell Law, this event is a great way to learn about the industry, practice your craft, and connect with other writers.
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