The team behind Kindred is here to give you some pointers on your magical journey. It’s time to get in touch with your witchy side!

The Community Team has been dreaming of another magical book! Tell us, what exactly can we expect in Kindred?

Cat: Kindred is the first book I ever pitched for Choices, almost five years ago. It's gone through a lot of changes since its first draft, but the heart of it has stayed the same: it's a story about sisterhood, magic, and a whole lot of mystery.

Sara: In addition to the challenges and wonders of mastering magic, managing family, and falling in love, you can expect cool technical effects! We wanted to make magic look and sound, well, magical! Keep an ear out for new tunes as well — we had a blast weaving the personalities of your love interests into their theme songs.

Potions, creatures, spells, and more! Are there any items we can expect to collect in Kindred?

Cat: Yes! There are a lot of magic items you can collect, from candles to chalices, each of which will help prepare you for the battles ahead. No witch's altar is complete without some very important items!

Icy: The items you can collect for your witch altar have many wonderful stories and adventures attached to them. Have fun and I hope you'll enjoy the stories paired with each as I did.

Sara: There’s also a handy dandy magic shop, Amaranth Apothecary, for all your mystical shopping needs.

We absolutely can’t wait to go shopping! Are there any particular characters that will put a love spell on us?

Sara: Nobody is who — or what — they seem in this book. An ordinary coffee shop encounter could be the start of a beautiful love story… or you might prefer to walk on the wild side and flirt with danger. Personally, my heart is fully claimed by Gus. Can’t wait for you to meet her.

Icy: I'm not going to say much but be on the lookout for that special someone. They sure will stir up a love potion when you least expect it.

Were there any pieces of magical media that inspired you when writing this book?

Cat: We were inspired by Charmed, Practical Magic -- even slightly lesser-known witch titles like The Secret Circle and the Witches of Eastwick TV show. But as queer people, some of whom only have brothers (*cough* me *cough*), it was really important to us to take the concepts of "womanhood" and "sisterhood" that are established in these awesome stories and expand on them.

Sara: I play a lot of TTRPGs (tabletop roleplaying games) with Cat and other friends, and the spells, magic, and camaraderie certainly inspired my writing in Kindred. All in all, this book reflects little pieces of all my favorite stories growing up, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the Circle of Three books.

If you could cast a spell on yourself, what would you use it for? (Time-traveling, super speed, mind reading, etc.?)

Icy: Duplicate myself or be able to extend time! There are so many things I want to do in a day and just feel like there is never enough time to do so.

Cat: Teleportation, and it's not even close. Being able to teleport to work or a friend's house without sitting in traffic? That's the dream.

Sara: Teleportation is a real contender. Being able to zip back and forth to visit my mom in Ohio would be a major boon. BUT if I could turn into a bird, that would also speed up my commute… so shapeshifting still wins in the end. I’d turn into a cat to hang out with my four cats and see what they’re really saying when they’re meowing loudly at 3 AM. I need to ask Tater Tot what is so great about licking plastic.

Teleportation and duplication seem the way to go. We wouldn’t mind teleporting ourselves to get some boba! Thank you all for answering our questions. We look forward to our magical adventures!

BONUS CONTENT:

Fun fact: One of Sara’s cats, Julian, was used as a reference for some of Gus’s markings. Look out for Gus in Kindred!

<3 The Choices Community Team