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Kristen Arnett is an author from Orlando, Florida. She went to Winter Park High School and grew up in a family that loves to hunt for the majority of their lives. So, she enjoys writing about places and she considers herself a place-writer. 

The best selling novel in the New York Times is her latest book ‘Mostly Dead Things’. 

She mentioned that she loves writing fictional novels and writing about things that she experiences personally. Also, she got to write with other authors in her community to learn and gain knowledge.

“I’ve been writing for publications since 2012. But my whole life I’ve been working on writing stories, poems, essays, and journals,” said Arnett.

Arnett’s work has appeared in many known places such as The Normal School, Gulf Coast, PBS Newshour’s, Bennington Review, Tin House, Buzzfeed and elsewhere. She loves to research and writing about things that are consistently on her mind.

“I write stories to submit them and there was a workshop, like a fellowship I really wanted. And when I got that fellowship, it was such a long shot getting it. I didn’t think I was going to get in.” Arnett stated. 

When she writes, she believes that writing is the hardest part of writing. She spends most of her time editing when she writes.

Katherine Wilson is a student that attends CF and she attended this event and shared her thoughts on how it went.

“I think Kristen is a good writer, she wrote her story well and liked that she was able to read her book because it helps me understand how she feels and understands her personal opinion,” said Wilson.

Wilson explained that she’s not a big fan of the because she didn’t have the same experience as the author growing up in Florida. But, Wilson believes that Arnett’s latest is a good novel.

Katherine’s sister, Christianne Wilson, also attended the event and offered her opinion about Kristen Arnett.

“Her novel isn’t my style and I can’t relate to her experiences but I appreciate the way she that she read her book herself. She lets her artistic self fit into words to be able to write her novels,” Wilson explained.

Kristen Arnett has many great achievements but the one that stands out the most is when she was awarded ‘The Ninth Letter’s Literary Award’. 

Her book called ‘Felt in the Jaw’ was awarded in 2017, the Coil Book Award.

From being a librarian to an author, having your work published and is the best selling novel in big places is a huge achievement in Arnett’s life.

Story & photos by: Auzree Thomas