We chat with author Kate Korsh about Never Seen the Stars, which is a deeply authentic and moving story that doesn’t shy away from the realities of grief and love.
Hi, Kate! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! I have been writing various genres of children’s books for over ten years. In former incarnations, I was a public school teacher and a marriage and family therapist. I’m originally from upstate New York, where my YA is set, but I moved to Los Angeles as soon as I finished college and have been here ever since. I live with my husband, who is a TV writer, and my two teenagers. This past Spring I overcame a not insignificant fear of heights and went on a hot air balloon for the first (and probably last, lol) time with my son. But the most interesting thing about me right now is that I’ve just adopted two long-haired kittens named Agnes and Enid that are undoubtedly the cutest creatures on the planet.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
When I was in high school, I read Judy Blume’s FOREVER and was completely enamored with it. But it wasn’t a series, and I needed more! So I started writing my own sequels, what I guess would be called fan fiction now, but it was just for me. I had a big sheaf of notebook papers filled with my additional scenes stuffed in the back of my closet. I think it all got tossed when my parents moved, which is too bad, because I would love to go back and reread!
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: WHOSE MOUSE ARE YOU? by Robert Kraus (I didn’t know how to read yet, but I had it memorized from so many read-alouds)
- The one that made you want to become an author: Like I said above, FOREVER was a mind-blower. But I think the book that inspired me to pursue YA publication as an adult was ELEANOR AND PARK, by Rainbow Rowell.
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: HOW TO LOVE, by Katie Cotugno. I like it when romance is really complicated, when even the reader is going back and forth about whether they want the main characters to be together.
Your latest novel, Never Seen the Stars, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Let’s do H’s! Heart-rending, healing, hopeful, (a little bit) hot, hilarious!
What can readers expect?
Even though most people don’t have a genetic eye disease like my MC, I think readers can expect to find her journey extremely relatable. Her relationship with her parents, her tracking of her peers and sensitivity to their opnions, even the fact that she has to find a unique path towards her hopes and dreams, are all topics with a universal vibe. Readers can also expect to relish the romantic moments of this book—everything from the snarky banter to a tender touch. In fact, they can expect that just when they are feeling the most moved by the story, one of the quirky characters might say something outrageous that will make the reader burst out laughing. My goal was to evoke tears of all kinds through this story, to tap into the full emotional spectrum.
Where did the inspiration for Never Seen the Stars come from?
There is quite a bit that’s autobiographical in this story. My dad is actually blind, and I inherited the condition, called Retinitis Pigmentosa, from him, although for me right now it mostly affects my nighttime and peripheral vision. I also really had a friend in high school who had epilepsy and mysteriously drowned. A common writing adage is “Write what you know,” and so I tried to do exactly that.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
My absolute favorite thing to write is dialogue. To be more specific, I love revising dialogue. I love reading a scene I’ve drafted between two characters aloud, and then tweaking the words to what I think sounds more like how people actually talk. I repeat this process, tweaking and reading and tweaking, until I can really hear it cinematically in my head, as if I was watching two actors play the scene. Writing the Richard scenes was especially fun, because (spoiler-alert) his role shifts from love interest to villain over the course of the story, so I needed to make everything he said believable through both the dreamboat and jerk lens. I loved that challenge.
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
Because so many of the foundational aspects of this story are autobiographical, I would occasionally feel pulled away from the fiction of it all and get a bit hemmed in by reality. I had to remind myself a few times to follow what was true for Hattie, my main character, and leave behind what actually happened out here in the real world.
This is your YA debut! Were there any changes to your process or how you approached writing Never Seen the Stars?
So, when I started writing children’s lit in earnest, my first focus was picture books. Then I published a series of chapter books for elementary students called OONA BRAMBLEGOOP’S SIDEWAYS MAGIC, and then I became obsessed with YA. One of the obvious differences in these genres is word length, and I found that the longer the piece was, the more structured I needed to be or I would easily get lost in the weeds. So although I was orginally a pantser—just writing by the seat of my pants without knowing where it would lead—I can’t even imagine doing that now. Now I always do an outline first, and I find that the more detailed it is the easier the draft will flow out of me.
What’s next for you?
I am working on another contemporary YA that I’m really excited about. It draws on a lot of experiences I had and perspectives I gained working as a supervisor at a teen-to-teen mental health hotline, and it also explores the self-imposed pressure of being a perfectionist. Plus, it’s got a love triangle or two, which are always fun to write!
Lastly, what books have you enjoyed reading this year? Are there any you’re looking forward to picking up in 2026?
This is not technically YA, although there are a lot of young adult characters, but my favorite thing I read this year was Lily King’s book of short stories, FIVE TUESDAYS IN WINTER. She is my favorite author; I find her writing gorgeous and transportive and inspiring. Similarly, I enjoyed Rainbow Rowell’s SLOW DANCE, which, although it is also adult contemporary, has chapters that alternate between the main character’s present adult life and flashbacks to her highschool years, so that the reader can really see how things change and how they stay the same.
It was published a few years back, but I finally read Neal Shusterman’s SCYTHE this year, which I am just in awe of, because the premise is so original and compelling, and the world is completely fleshed out.
I am currently reading WE ARE OKAY, by Nina LaCour, and am really enjoying the poetic language on the line level, but am also intrigued by the mystery with a small ‘m’ that’s everpresent surrounding the MC’s grandfather’s death. I am going to guess that the she is blaming herself for something that is not really her fault, but I have to finish it to find out!
After that, I’m going to read the new E. Lockhart book, WE FELL APART, because I loved the previous two books in that series. As for 2026, it will depend on what jumps off the shelf at me at the book store!
