FANFICTION WINNER FEATURE: Allie's Tail by Katelyn Bobbitt
Meet Katelyn (and fur baby Virginia), our 2018 Ending Series FanFiction winner!
Katelyn in an avid reader, student, dreamer, and writer at heart. Team Lindsey loved Allie's Tail because it was a creative approach to exploring the world of The Ending, different than anything we'd ever thought about before. You can read Katelyn's story, Allie's Tail, here, but first, we wanted to get to know Allie's creator, so check out our author interview with Katelyn Bobbitt.
1. How long have you been writing and/or have you written anything before this piece?
I have actually only written one other short story before for a fiction class I took in college. I’ve always enjoyed writing, but being a dental student doesn’t leave me much free time! When I originally saw the information about the contest, I wanted to write something but decided I didn’t really have the time I needed, and I let it pass out of my mind. But the Lindseys posted it on Facebook again in early October, and it still sounded so fun that I knew I had to try to submit something. I couldn’t start writing until I finished my dental board exams on October 25th, so I definitely didn’t leave myself much time to write in those last few days before the deadline! It was several incredibly late nights to get it done in time, but it sure was fun!
2. Why did you choose to write from a cat’s POV?
When thinking about the Ending Series and what I wanted to write about, I realized that the stories didn’t talk much about the pets after the ending – did they find pets in the houses they entered? Were they alive? Were they finding pets who had been trapped inside and died? I have two cats, and I’ve had cats my entire life. My husband tells me I AM a cat, so I felt pretty qualified to write from a cat’s perspective and show what their journey might be like!
3. What is it that has drawn you to The Ending Series so much that you would want to write a story in the same world?
I love any story about diseases, survival, or that’s post-apocalyptic, so that’s what originally drew me to this series! But I fell in love with the characters when Jason had such a visceral reaction to seeing Dani in such bad shape. I’m a sucker for a bad boy with a heart! All of the characters are so different. Each story could go in many directions, so I think it’s really fun to read and to write in this world!
4. What is one of your guilty pleasures?
I’m not sure that I feel adequately guilty about it, but I’ve definitely been known to open a can of vegetables (or sometimes even soup or raviolis…) and eat it – straight out of the can and cold! Seven years of marriage has me pretty reformed from this habit since my husband is always making me put them in a bowl and heat them up. Can you believe it?! I also definitely take hot dogs out of the fridge and eat them cold and bunless. Yeah, yeah, I’m a monster. ;-)
5. What was your favorite book of 2018?
Typically my favorite book in any year is the newest in the Sigma Force series by James Rollins. This year’s was amazing, as always! If you like post-apocalyptic, definitely check out his books that SOUND post-apocalyptic, but it’s happening now and is chillingly only a slight stretch of true events.
6. Do you plan on writing anything else?
Haha I don’t have any plans to write anything beyond journaling at the moment, but I keep saying I’d leave dental school today if invited to write Ending series novels! ;-)
7. If you wrote a book, who would you dedicate it to?
My husband Scotty has endured all my varied and changing passions for years – I have always warred with myself about whether to pursue science or literature. He has always been supportive of whichever direction I was heading at the time, and now he’s putting up with four years of dental school, a huge debt load, an incredibly stressed wife, and he still encouraged me to take some time out to write this story. He’s the best!
8. If you could cast any actors you wanted in your story, who would they be and which characters would they play (cat included)?
Hmm…Jessica would definitely be played by either Jennifer Lawrence or Anna Kendrick because I love them both and want to be their best friend haha. Maybe the other could be Rachel! For Jerry, I’d choose someone gruff but lovable – maybe Mark Harmon! Beth would be some new young actress who was trying to break into acting to give her a chance maybe others wouldn’t give her. Allie would have to be my cat Virginia! She’s got what it takes to be a survivor, and she’s pretty sassy, too!
9. We have more Ending World stories coming out this year, as well as World After, which takes place in Dani and Zoe’s timeline. Is there anything specific you hope to see or find out?
I have been waiting to read World After since I finished the series! I can’t wait to see what happens with Dani, Zoe, and the rest of the gang. I’d love to see Zoe and Jake get to settle down and truly get to open up to each other and build a life together. I’m really looking forward to reading The Darkest Winter and the new authors’ works in the Ending world, too, and seeing what fresh perspectives and characters are in store for us Endingers!
Oh, and meet James, Katelyn's other partner in crime.
