161. Interview with Kathryn Nelson, Fantasy Novelist

“So you see that the main characters’ relationship develop. You see how their country's changing, their themes of mental health and women's rights, social justice, there's magical gems. There's Ice Giants, elves, yeah, all of the good things.“ - Kathryn Nelson

From Ice-giants, fantasy worlds, to the power of fantasy in addressing real-life issues. In this How To Write the Future episode, host Beth Barany talks to fellow fantasy Novelist Kathryn Nelson, where they discuss writing about matriarchal societies within their novels, including why there is a need for strong character role models. Plus, Beth and Kathryn explore positive futures through storytelling. 

ABOUT KATHRYN NELSON

Kathryn Nelson is a writer of honest fantasy, genuine heroines, and wellness wisdom. She lives in Northern Ireland with her husband and Irish red setter and spends her time sitting at a sunny desk overlooking her wild garden when writing every day. She enjoys long walks in the hills and by the coast, whilst conjuring dragons from the sky, questing for selkie in the sea, and conversing with fairies in the woods.

Website: https://www.kathrynnelsonwriter.com/

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ABOUT BETH BARANY

Beth Barany, an award-winning fantasy and science fiction novelist, teaches novelists how to write, edit, and publish their books as a coach, teacher, consultant, and developmental editor.

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• SHOW PRODUCTION BY Beth Barany
• SHOW CO-PRODUCTION + NOTES by Kerry-Ann McDade

c. 2025 BETH BARANY

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Episode Transcript

BETH BARANY (00:00):
Hi everyone.
Welcome or welcome back to Howto Write the Future podcast.
I'm your host, Beth Barany, andI am a science fiction and
fantasy writer and, writingcoach, teacher editor, and
filmmaker.
I run this podcast because I'mvery interested in talking to
authors and other futurists andother people who care about the

(00:23):
future because I believe withstory, with our stories, we can
help people reshape how theythink of what could be possible.
And my big focus is on helpingus be new humans.
How can we change the way weinteract with others and also
with ourself?
And my focus is on positive,optimistic futures because why

(00:47):
not?
Our creativity is incredible.
Why not use it to create worldsand relationships that would
benefit all of us, everybody andall living creatures on this
planet.
So I'm very excited today tobring to you a special guest, an
author, a fantasy novelist,Kathryn Nelson.
Kathryn, welcome.

(01:08):
So glad you could be here.

KATHRYN NELSON (01:10):
Lovely.
Thank you for having me.

BETH BARANY (01:11):
And I understand you're calling in from, Northern
Ireland, is that right?

KATHRYN NELSON (01:16):
yeah, that's right.
It's quite warm over hereactually at the moment.
Not too bad.

BETH BARANY (01:19):
I'm in the foggy San Francisco Bay area this
morning.
So with the magic of technology,we can connect in real time.
It's so wonderful.
So everyone, I'm gonna read toyou a little bit about Catherine
so you can get to know her, andthen we're gonna dive into our
interview.
So Kathryn Nelson is a writer ofhonest fantasy, genuine heroines

(01:39):
and wellness wisdom.
She lives in Northern Irelandwith her husband and Irish Red
Setter.
And spends her time sitting at asunny desk, overlooking her wild
garden when writing every day.
She enjoys long walks in thehills and by the coast, wilts
conjuring dragons from the sky,questing for silky in the sea,

(02:01):
and conversing with fairies inthe woods.
What a beautiful bio.
Welcome again, Catherine.
So glad you could be here andI'm really excited to talk to
you about, I know something wehave in common with our fiction
is featuring strong, interestingwomen in the leading role.
That's so wonderful.

KATHRYN NELSON (02:19):
Yeah,

BETH BARANY (02:19):
definitely.
Yeah.
so good.
so you obviously bring yourIrishness to all that you
create.
I could just tell from your bio.
So I was wondering if you couldanswer for us: How can the
fantasy genre provide a uniqueperspective on issues close to
home?

KATHRYN NELSON (02:39):
I think fantasy genre is really interesting
because you can make up thesekind of different worlds and be
different magic and differentorganizations for society and
whole new planets, and then youcan get this whole different
perspective at issues close tohome.
So I write about, social changeand parenting and family stuff,

(03:02):
and relationships and it's setin this fantasy world.
And at one point they go visitthe ice giants and their whole
society is a matriarchy.
So just really interesting whatif, what if question, I think.
And sci-fi as fantasy and sci-fias well, vehicle for those sorts
of questions.

BETH BARANY (03:22):
I totally agree.
That's wonderful.
And is it the ice giants thatare matriarchal?

KATHRYN NELSON (03:27):
Yeah.
Yeah.
They've got a matriarchy, butalso it's more of like an
anarchy, but like in the bestsort of way they've put this
which is do what you want andyou take personal responsibility
for your actions.
yeah, some interestingconsequences for the story kind
of progression.
And then, the main characterscome from what was, starts off
in the story as like a militarytyranny, dictatorship, and then

(03:49):
it transitions into monarchy andthen she visits the neighboring
country and more a communiststyle government going on.
And then she goes, the Ice GiantSociety.
How she can then take theselessons back to her country.

BETH BARANY (04:02):
I really love that.
I'm doing something, similar inmy science fiction space station
mystery series, where my maincharacter gets to see different
kinds of societies, but I'mdoing it one book at a time.
Why in your opinion, do youthink we need to see real people
navigating living in thesefantasy worlds?

KATHRYN NELSON (04:23):
I think it's really important because they're
role models that archetype andthey for me, like I find, like
I'm influenced by what thesecharacters do.
Do in this situation.
Okay.
Admire them and what they do.
And I just see a lot of not verygood role models sometimes in
public culture.
Not just books, but culture ingeneral.

(04:44):
And I just find it really part.
Sometimes like bad stories aremore inspiring for me because
I'm like, oh, that's soannoying.
Like I really wanna that storyin a better way.
where, the women's got more of avoice that, is, yeah, just a
better role annoys me whenwomen, then like really wi.

(05:14):
when I was reading that stuff,as a teenager, I'd be like, oh,
I'm not like that.
that's just not realistic.

BETH BARANY (05:18):
Yeah.
Yeah.
And then it's like there's noway that you could ever aspire
to that because it's completelyunrealistic to how real people
operate.
Yeah.

KATHRYN NELSON (05:29):
Yeah, definitely.
And.
Bad relationships for the sakeof drama or the sake of the
story, but they actually madmodeling, really core behavior.
And that sets up in yourexpectations for you.
The relationships you have inreal life yeah, it's not

(05:52):
helpful.

BETH BARANY (05:53):
Yeah.
So you're really pointing tosomething that I really, love
also about stories is that usingyour stories to, model.
The best of humanity, even ininside of a fantastical setting.
I love that.

KATHRYN NELSON (06:08):
Yeah, definitely.
And yeah, I don't like anythingtoo dark, there's enough dark
stuff going on in the world,like there could be excitement,
but yeah, definitely a happyending.
I've been reading a lot of cozyfantasy recently, which is just
really nice.
Just like people being nice toeach other, nice things
happening.

(06:28):
It's just really, yeah.
Nice.

BETH BARANY (06:29):
I've read a few cozy fantasies.
I've really enjoyed them.
I do read a lot of cozymysteries.
My favorite are the cozy mysteryfantasies.
Putting that all.
Okay.
Yeah.
Oh, that's great.
And this really segues us to thenext question, which is how can
fiction, that explores solutionsinspire a brighter future?

KATHRYN NELSON (06:51):
I think it's what we've been talking about
role models, about, or they whatif questions, I wrote a series
of short stories a while ago,not published, but just as like
thought exercises about kind ofenvironmental problems and
visioning.
what would those solutions looklike?
So about growing food in citiesand rewilding rivers and, what

(07:12):
would neighborhoods at the timethere was talk about, oh.
You can't do and you've gotta dothat and all like real negative
stuff or do and gloom stuff.
And I was like, let's thinkabout what this could look like
and try and do it in a reallypositive way because what you're
imagining is what's gonna happen

BETH BARANY (07:28):
I so agree, you're reminding me of this movement
that people are creating art incalled Thrutopia.
Are you familiar with Thrutopia?

KATHRYN NELSON (07:36):
Oh, I heard the phrase the other day.

BETH BARANY (07:38):
It was coined by, I believe, an activist who, and
then I learned it from, AmandaScott, who's a writer, a British
writer who then taught awonderful class that I was a
part of a few years ago wherewriters are and other artists
are using their creativity andimagination to write stories
about, what if positiveenvironmental change, and how do

(07:59):
we not utopia, which is.
When everything is all workedout, but how do we get there?
How do we go through the presentmoment into the kind of world we
wanna create?
So how do people come and worktogether?
How do collectives makedecisions to benefit the
community?
I watch a lot of YouTube, so Iwatch videos about, oh look,
they took a plane.

(08:20):
golf course, and they turned it,they rewild it.
Oh, look how they did that, andlook what happened.
So showing positive stories andhow the collective comes
together to make the decision,and then the positive impact
that has and how that'shappening now, or it could
happen tomorrow.
And so showing us the steps thatwe can take to, make these

(08:40):
bigger changes that affect thecommunities.
The communities that we live in.
Yeah.

KATHRYN NELSON (08:44):
Yeah.
It's amazing.
Yeah.
And amazing how stories can helpshow, show that way.

BETH BARANY (08:49):
Yeah.
I love it.
so those are some short storiesthat you wrote that you haven't
published yet?

KATHRYN NELSON (08:53):
yes.
But sorts of themes weave free,Like healthier family dynamics
and, the main charactereventually ends up on like the
governing committee in thecountry.
And she's like the first womanto do that.
female up on those higher levelsof management.

(09:16):
So yeah, those sorts of thingsthat.

BETH BARANY (09:18):
Oh, that's wonderful.
I really love that.
And that brings us to this nextquestion, which is:, why is
creating healthy role models forwomen crucial in 2025 and
beyond?
We'll start with where we areright now.

KATHRYN NELSON (09:31):
I think there can be a lot of negativity.
It's, we've been, isn't it thosepositive stories, positive role
not to like completely ignorethe less positive stuff that's
going on, and not to youacknowledge that at the same

(09:52):
time also of the story, but it'sabout, I think it's where you,
where your goes is where yourenergy flows is.
Focus what you, what you lookat.
I saw your bio.

(10:13):
You talk about neuro linguisticprogramming, like the words that
you use how you, how you talk,that self talk and how you talk
to other people.
Like it's all so important.
And if you want to go in a morepositive direction and
healthier, we need those rolemodels, stories which can help
us navigate our journey.

BETH BARANY (10:34):
That's beautiful.
I love seeing your books behindyou and I was wondering if you
could give us the short, back ofthe book blurb about your
series, about Book one to enticepeople to check out your books.

KATHRYN NELSON (10:46):
Yeah.
Gems and giant series.
there's four books in ebook,paperback and audiobook.
Syria is married to the highcommander taken the thrown away
from the king is holding thecountry in a grip of military
tyranny.
And she is kidnapped by themonarchist rebel who's go on an

(11:12):
adventure.
And so that's book one.
And then the next books are setall kind of a year apart.
So you kind see that the maincharacters relationship develop.
You see how their country'schanging, their themes of mental
health and women's rights,social justice, there's magical
gems.
there's Ice Giants, elves, yeah,all of the good things.

(11:34):
Is free if you sign up for mynewsletter.
So if you go to my website andsign up for the newsletter, you
can Yeah.
Check it out.

BETH BARANY (11:42):
Oh, that's wonderful.
And so tell us, your websitelink.

KATHRYN NELSON (11:46):
so it's KathyrnNelsonWriter.com

BETH BARANY (11:49):
Beautiful.
I encourage everyone to check itout.
I will definitely check it out.
And as we wrap up today, isthere anything else that you
would like to talk about orbring up, or say as we wrap up
our interview?

KATHRYN NELSON (12:00):
no, I think that's covered everything.
I feel like we've got quite anddifferent, you know, similar
themes in our writing.

BETH BARANY (12:07):
Absolutely.
And I love that you're dealingwith mental health issues.
I'm actually working on a TVseries that I wanna bring out
mental health issues in a waythat the group is handling well.
So I love that you're doing thatand, I presence strong women, as
my main characters in all mystories.
'cause cause, role models, weneed role models.
Yeah.
So this is wonderful.

(12:28):
I just wanna thank you so much,Catherine.
I hope that this was a goodfirst interview.
I know.
it's, we all have to startsomewhere, and I definitely
would love to hear more aboutyou and your work as it evolves.
So we'll definitely have to haveyou back.
and, yeah, that's it.
and, just wanna thank you againfor being a guest.

KATHRYN NELSON (12:47):
thank you so much for having me.
I really enjoyed it.

BETH BARANY (12:49):
that's so great.
Alright everyone, that's it forthis week.
Write long and prosper.