Continental DIY at Search Magazine (and MOAR!)

 

It's not too late to get your copy of the #GoingGlobal Issue of Search Magazine featuring my DIY Vintage Trunk How-To! Be sure to stay tuned for upcoming issues with more of my quarterly articles at @SearchMagSF.

Simply put, I haven't done as many DIY crafts and lengthy sewing video series because I've had so many other deadlines this year thanks to writing work, podcasts, and several guest appearances. It keeps me busy and away from projects, but I'm grateful for the opportunities I continue to have. If you're an outlet or website looking for written and audio or visual collaboration, my 2025 is already getting full! Here's a short bio detailing my expertise:

Kristin Battestella writes articles, editorials, and reviews for several websites, magazines, and print publications including I Think, Therefore I Review, Search Magazine, and Keith Loves Movies. Previously a traditionally published author of speculative fiction and the Fate and Fangs vampire novels, Kristin's DIY Halloween how-tos and Kbatz Krafts articles have been featured at HorrorAddicts.net and in two Horror Addicts Guide to Life anthologies. In addition to sewing and @KbatzReviews Youtube vlogs; Kristin can be heard on the Women InSession podcast at InSessionFilm.com alongside her written classic film discourse. For Kristin's latest happenings, follow twitter.com/vampfamwriter.

There's more to come, but in case you missed everything at I Think, Therefore I Reviews, here's a quick rundown of my guest Podcast and Video Appearances in 2024:

The Jay Days YouTube Channel – Jack Irish, Bound, The Convert

Bubba Wheat's Podcast – Bedtime Stories

Making Tarantino Podcast – House of Dark Shadows

For more trash to treasure crafting adventures, visit Kbatz Krafts on Instagram or for step by step progress photos of our DIY Vintage Trunk, follow our Kbatz Krafts Facebook!

Peruse our Kbatz Krafts Archive for more upcycle projects including:

Autumn Chandelier

Cardboard Halloween Banner

Halloween Shoe Wreath

Re-Purposed Black Topiaries

ICYMI: Horror Addicts Guide to Life Book 2 Press Tour

 

Still riding on the press train for the Horror Addicts Guide to Life Book 2? Here's a round up of my appearances supporting several of my Frightening Flix editorials and Kbatz Krafts featured in the Horror Addicts Guide! 

Interview at Tomes and Tales

Horror Addicts Featured Instagram Author

What Inspires Horror: Kristin Battestella

Horror Addicts Interview: Kristin Battestella

Kbatz Krafts Excerpt

Get YOUR copy of Horror Addicts Guide to Life Book 2 on Amazon! 

Horror Addicts Guide to Life Book 2 Press Tour!

 

It's Friday the 13th and time to talk about the Horror Addicts Guide to Life Book 2! 

Your Friendly Neighborhood Kbatz is featured with several Kbatz Krafts articles as well as Frightening Flix horror film editorials. 😱

Here's the Official Blurb:

Do you love the horror genre? Do you look at horror as a lifestyle? Do the "norms" not understand your love of the macabre? Despair no longer, my friend, for within your grasp is a book written by those who look at horror as a way of life, just like you. This is your guide to living a horror addict’s life. Our month-by-month almanac with important dates, movie lists, puzzles, crafts, articles, and recipes will guarantee your whole year is occupied with delightful horror activities. Don’t miss our monster guide with articles about vampires, zombies, ghosts, and some creatures that just can’t be categorized. Enjoy interviews with creators of horror content and hear perspectives from different cultures and backgrounds. Read stories of real hauntings, nightmares, and vile vacations. Allow us to curate your horror lifestyle.

With articles by: A. Craig Newman, A.D. Vick, Alyson Faye, Angela Yuriko Smith, Brian McKinley, CM Lucas, Camellia Rains, Carrie Sessarego, Chantal Boudreau, Courtney Mroch, Crystal Connor, D.J. Pitsiladis, Dan Shaurette, Daphne Strasert, Dee Blake, Emerian Rich, Geneve Flynn, H.E. Roulo, H.R. Boldwood, J. Malcolm Stewart, James Goodridge, Jaq D Hawkins, Jeff Carroll, Jonathan Fortin, Kate Nox, Kay Tracy, Kerry Alan Denney, Kieran Judge, Kristin Battestella, Ksenia Murray, Lee Murray, Lionel Ray Green, Loren Rhoads, M.D. Neu, Mark Orr, Martha J. Allard, Michael Fassbender, Mimielle, Naching T. Kassa, Pamela K. Kinney, Priscilla Bettis, R.J. Joseph, R.L. Merrill, Rena Mason, Renata Pavrey, Rhonda R. Carpenter, Russell Holbrook, Selah Janel, Steven P. Unger, Sumiko Saulson, Tabitha Thompson, Theresa Braun, Trinity Adler, Valjeanne Jeffers.

I'll be having some tour appearances with my fellow Horror Addicts Renata Pavrey at Tomes and Tales and Selah Janel later this May so stay tuned and get your copy of the Horror Addicts Guide to Life 2 on Amazon!

(Clicky it's big!)

Conferences, 'Grams, and Craziness

We're 1 WEEK away from the HorrorAddicts.net Online Writers Conference coming February 25-27! Are you ready to chat with authors near and far and get your writing brain on in your pajamas from any and all time zones? 🙋

On one hand, it's much easier to plan an online conference than a real world one. Last year I didn't participate in or host and cover any writing events. Was I too busy, were there not that many events anyway, and did real life just get in the way for a lot of my local literary friends? Time, surgeries, families, travel, work, and more can all impact the energy and inclination to just sit down and write.

We've all been there. In fact, one of my workshops for HOW addresses real world setbacks and finding inspirations. There is of course, a different apprehension that comes with an online event. You begin soft promotion in December inviting participants, but people can have a change of plans in the coming months, forgot about it, sign up and not come back, or just plain forget. With an online event, sometimes people don't realize it is a real thing until you tweet about it fifteen minutes beforehand while I panicking and pray there are no technological issues as people continually ask where is it, what is it, and how does it work? 😕

HOW is just a forum message board, presenters post workshops, articles, and writing tips and you can comment and they will get back to you. There are real time Shout Box live chats with publishers and authors, so the platform runs on ye olden time boards and chats, you know, like what us oldsters used before social media - leave a message and I'll get back to you after the beep and party lines with everyone talking at the same time.  ☎

(on top of the crazy, exercise for Lent!)

On that note, somehow I made the decision to join Instagram as Kbatz Krafts. Of course, after the fact I realized making it two Zs would have been cute, but meh. In no doing Craft DIY articles and Halloween How-To videos year round, I need another place to put photos and step by step documentation. The trouble is, when you are doing a project, I find it very difficult to...stop and take photos and document everything step by step. I don't use a smartphone - gasp get over it - so I video and photograph with my tablet. I'm not in the habit of taking it everywhere, and for me, projects aren't about stopping to show everyone everything at all times. Accomplishing a goal is reward in itself, and as a writer first and foremost, my second joy comes in then writing down everything that I've done.

To me, one reading how I did it is what's the best part, not waiting for the little heart thing on Instagram to light up. It's a little extra craziness to keep refreshing to see who liked a picture or how many views a Youtube video has. Look at that SPAIF segue there! I've never been one to seek attention and validation, so all these like me, please like me social media promotions to highlight my work still feels weird to me, oldster that I am. 👵

This month almost feels like it is more craziness than I can handle. The heck with timeliness and deadlines! Kick rocks 2020! Yeah right. So join HOW if you can, morning, noon, or night, and follow me on instagram, subscribe to my youtube channel, and follow me on twitter but above all, read what I write, mkay? 🙏

Crafts, Capes, and Carols, Oh My!

Tis the festive season my friends, and that means like most of us, it is the busy, busy, busy time of the year for me. Most of that I brought on myself in making Christmas gifts, baking, baking, and doing yet more baking, and did I mention there's more baking yet to come? Pizzelles, people, pizzelles. 

Some of my efforts, however, can be found at HorrorAddicts.net, as I've taken my crafting skills from Halloween into the merriment with some kind of pseudo Victorian ensemble featuring an outrageously tacky bonnet, shiny red cape, and a goofy little muff made with the leftovers. Oh, there's a bell brooch, too, so I can jingle all the way. What I thought was going to be a day's worth of hot glue and done turned out to be a quadruple fold project that took more than a week. You can head over to our Horror Addicts Facebook Group and discuss how I rolled with the sewing punches and made my lemons into some spicy ye olde wassail or you can laugh at my video of the glue gun drama. Whenever I actually get to finishing the video and putting it on Youtube, that is. It should have been today!

Naturally, this means a lot less of priority number one aka writing has gotten done this month. For me the point of documenting projects and making crafts, videos, audio, and all the other bells and whistles is to notify each audience of the writing behind it – the how to article, reviews, and essays. So, it's tough to balance doing everything in December when all the happy festivities intervene moreso than the rest of the year when real life obligations always push the pen and paper to the back burner. My fellow authors know exactly what I mean! Will the craziness chill by time we get to the next Horror Addicts.net Online Writers Conference in February 2020? I hope so.

And did I almost forget about our Horror Addicts special holiday Pumpkin Podcast? Yes I did. 

Fortunately, for those two of you who have missed my literary events, author panels, and speaking engagements, I will be taking part in A Christmas Carol reading alongside a Carol Hymn Sing at the FUMC Hammonton! If you are looking to belt some old time Christmas tunes or are just local Dickensian trash like me, feel free to join us 6 p.m. Sunday December 15. My spats, pocket watch, and top hat are ready!

"Wake Me on Christmas Morning."

Halloween Crafts at HorrorAddicts.net!

It's that time of year again!

Time for Yours Truly to take over HorrorAddicts.net with another batch of How-to, Do It Yourself, Cheap and Loving It Kbatz Krafts!

October's burning Daylight Savings, so let's cut the fluff and get to all the crafts from this year and last because there's even MORE to come:


How to Make Cardboard Tombstones Video

Re-Purposed Black Topiaries
Halloween Candle Clusters
Yogurt Turned Ghost Candlesticks
Pumpkin Ottomans, Oh Yes

It's a Pumpkin Cat House (that the cat didn't like but at least I'm not bitter...)
Creepy Cloches
Tea Stained Labels and Spooky Bottles
How NOT to Make a Spooky Spell Book
How to Make Stuffed Pumpkins Video

Visit HorrorAddicts.net or join our Facebook Group for new and upcoming crafts and decoration conversations including:

DIY Cardboard Coffin
Mini Coffin Trays
Cardboard Tombstones Photo Shoot
When in Doubt, Paint it Black

Whew! We're NOT stopping until Thanksgiving, either, so stayed tuned for MOAR Podcasts and Audio Specials thankyouforyourtime.

South Jersey Writers Conference Media and Mayhem!

Was YOUR November busy? 

Ditto, in no small part thanks to the South Jersey Writers Conference that was November 7&10. This 2 day conference is the inspiration that keeps on, well, inspiring thanks to the wealth of photos, videos, and media captured by Yours Truly!

To those who didn't want to be photographed and were reluctant to be on video, I am so, so glad we have your words of wisdom and author stories now saved for posterity! 

 

But enough grandstanding! Here is a complete rundown of the videos and playlists from the South Jersey Writers Conference on my Youtube Channel, and dual coverage can also be found at HorrorAddicts.net.


Networking Night speaker Ilene Schneider

Brainstorming 101 Workshop

Authorship 101 Workshop

NaNoWriMo Community speaker K.A. Magrowski Part 1 and Part 2

Paranormal and Horror Author Panel Parts 1-5 Playlist

Fantasy and Speculative Fiction Panel Parts 1-5 Playlist


You can also follow along with more happenings from the South Jersey Women Authors or visit the South Jersey Writers Conference on Facebook for MOAR!

 (Meta...)

In case you haven't heard yet, we're also taking the Conference theme one step further, as Horror Addicts.net is hosting a Free Online Writers Conference this February! If you're interested in participating, visit the HOW (get it?) forum. Register early and join the Pre-Conference area or submit your workshop!

Keeping it simple, right? http://horroraddictswriters.freeforums.net/



And lastly, my article on Military Records Research is feature in the latest All Veterans issue of Search Magazine. Hip, hip huzzah!

Festive Fall Appearances!

October tis the season for Horror Authors, amirite?! 

Saturday October 13 I am jumping back into the talking shop foray at the Indie Authors Day, 11 a.m. at the Heggan Library in Sewell. 

Yes that is tomorrow. Yes I realize I didn't blog about it until now. But who really reads a blog for the latest these days? Get with the social media, I've been tweeting and posting about this all over the place! If there is a real world event, and no one posts about it on social media, did that event really happen?

And now here is my obligatory picture:

If you follow my social media, you will also notice the hullabaloo everywhere about my November event. The Mount Holly Conference is now The South Jersey Writers Conference. New Name! New Venue! Even More Writing Inspiration! Our Dates are still the same with chances to Mingle November 7 in addition to an entire Conference Saturday November 10 and a Dinner Reception, however our venues are now in Berlin. 

Is it short notice to change a conference a month a way? Yes. Did I accomplish planning in a day what our old venue complicated for over a month? Also yes. The folks in Mt. Holly were great to help us start the conference, but we had a feeling it was time to leave the nest and expand, so we did. 

That is one of the biggest most important things about being an author - going with your gut. I could have delayed and risked a time with winter weather or played it safe with a sub par event, but the time was now! When you are a writer, you have to decide if you are going to write right now, sign on with that agent asap, or accept that publisher's contract. There is no time to twaddle. 

That's all my free nuggets for today. If you want more from even bigger and better and more fancy authors than me, See You at the Conference! RSVP: facebook.com/groups/southjerseywritersconference/

Mount Holly Writers Conference November 18!

Still Kicking, My Literary Friends! Kicking and getting my feet wet again with HORROR+ The Mount Holly Writers Conference!


On November 18, The New Jersey Authors Network, South Jersey Writers Group, and South Jersey Women Authors are teaming up with the Mill Race Village Arts & Preservation to present this 1 Day Author Conference at Robin's Nest Restaurant in the Downtown Mount Holly.

Writers Young or Old and New or Experiences are invited to Dine and Inspire your NaNoWriMo with Local Authors discussing Paranormal, Young Adult, Horror, Mystery, Thrillers, and Romance Writing, Marketing, and Publishing in Three Panels:

10 a.m. – Writing Paranormal and Young Adult Books with Laura Kaighn, Kerry Gans, Jennifer Eaton, Marie Gilbert, Caridad Pineiro, and D.L. Cocchio

2 p.m. – Trends in Horror and Thrillers with Krista Magrowski, Brian McKinley,  Tim Meyer, Gary Frank, K. Edwin Fritz, and Dina Given

4 p.m. – Publishing in Genre and Romance with Terri Brisbin, Tina Gabrielle, Ginny Nescott, Stacey Wilk, and Myrtha Jasmine



Tickets cost $30 and includes all 3 panels and Lunch. Sign up online at 

http://www.thewitchesball.com/horrorplus/


For more information, also check out Our Facebook Event:

https://www.facebook.com/events/475214832862092/



See you at the Conference! 

 

Writerly Happenings and Videos!

It's September Everyone!!!! That means all the fall and horror shenanigans are afoot at last! Not that the summer wasn't busy, because the sunshine was torturous for this vamp!

(Hey look I match the spooky swirly background!)

You can catch up with some of the recent South Jersey Writers Group happenings including recaps of our Morning Coffee What to Watch segment with guest and fellow local blogger Glenn Walker....

SJWG June Roundup
SJWG July Roundup
"Marvel" Morning Coffee 
"Star Trek" Morning Coffee





 
....Or you can get your horror film insights on with my special RadioVision Network interview with the delightful Emily DiPrimio, director of the new slasher picture Carver.

 

Now then, are you bitten by the writing bug yourself? Never fear! The New Jersey Author Network's "So You Want to Write a Book" Q&A Panel is for you! Join us 7 p.m. Thursday September 17 at the Mullica Hill Branch Library for this informative discussion.

Wooohaaaaa!

More Coffee and Appearances!

My fellow writers, don't forget to join the next New Jersey Authors Network Panel 1 p.m. Saturday August 8 at A Novel Idea in Vineland! This is your last chance of the summer to get your copy of Horror Addicts Guide to Life!!

8/8 NJAN Panel, Vineland

njauthorsnetwork.com


Can't see us locally? Gasp, maybe you're not into horror! Never fear, we get our comic book film conversation ON during the latest episodes of the What to Watch segment on RadioVisionNetwork.com's Morning Coffee!!

morning_coffee on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free

Watch live streaming video from morning_coffee at livestream.com

Tune in LIVE 10 a.m. eastern Fridays for more of the What to Watch shenanigans or read our latest reviews at I Think, Therefore I Review!

The Vampire Family Chronicle: Here, There, Everywhere, Vampires Galore!

My fellow fiendish friends! There's no time like the hot, sunshiny summer to stay indoors and catch up with Fate and Fangs: Tales from the Vampire Family



Up first, you can read my featured interview on Horror Addicts.net!  

Want to get in on the action here in South Jersey? Don't forget the New Jersey Authors Network will be visiting the Millville Library TOMORROW Wednesday July 15 for a Teen Writing and Young Adult Authors workshop! Catch the NJAN at the A Novel Idea Bookstore again in Vineland August 8, too.


NJAN Panel July 15, Millville
 NJAN Panel Aug 8, Vineland


njauthorsnetwork.com 




Last week Radio Vision Network's Morning Coffee Talk Show also got a dose of vampire goodness. Remember to tune in 10 a.m. est every Friday for our recommendations and visit the video archive for more!
 

Read the whole scoop at The Vampire Family Chronicle: Here, There, Everywhere, Vampires Galore!

  

More July Appearances and Events!

Greetings fellow Literary Enthusiasts and Horror Mavens! 


We still have a few more summer dates for you to come say hello, talk author shop, and pick up your copy of Horror Addicts Guide to Life! 

First, the New Jersey Authors Network is making another visit to the Millville Public Library July 15 to talk "Writing By and For Teens and Young Adults."  If you missed the NJAN panel June 27 at the A Novel Idea Bookstore in Vineland due to our freak torrential weather, never fear you can stop by at A Novel Idea again August 8 for the "Which Publication Route is Right for You?" seminar. So that's...

NJAN Panel July 15, Millville
NJAN Panel Aug 8, Vineland

njauthorsnetwork.com



Whew! Can't make it to South Jersey? Don't forget you can catch Yours Truly chatting Movies, Television, Cinema, Streaming, and More 10 a.m. Fridays on RadioVisionNetwork.com's Morning Coffee Talk Show. You can watch and listen live, check out the video archive for previous episodes, or visit I Think, Therefore I Review to read yet more film articles and essays. 

Hold on, I'm not done!! Remember you can also hear my scary self on the Horror Addicts.net podcast talking terrifying television, and on the latest episode, you can also hear an electrifying excerpt from Fate and Fangs: Tales from the Vampire Family! Hot diggity! 

I Think, Therefore I Review Visits the RadioVisionNetwork!

Greetings Fellow Film Enthusiasts!


Looking to SEE Yours Truly chat about Movies and Television? Then check out my debut appearance on RadioVisionNetwork's Morning Coffee Show! 

morning_coffee on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free

Watch our Movie Chat 10 am each Friday. Read the complete scoop at I Think, Therefore I Review!

The Vampire Family Chronicle: Horror in the Summer, Oh Yes!

Greetings my Sun weary fiends! Break out the hats and sunscreen, because Yours Truly and the Horror Addicts Guide to Life anthology are part of the New Jersey Author Network's panel series at the A Novel Idea Bookstore inside the Landis Marketplace in Vineland June 27 and August 8!

Read More: The Vampire Family Chronicle: Horror in the Summer, Oh Yes! 

Local Author Party a Success!

Authors from across the state including Michele Seigfried, Kay McHenry, Darlene Beck Jacobson, K. Edwin Fritz, Joanne Costantino, Dawn Byrne, Marie Gilbert, Kristin Battestella, Jane Lueder, Tom Geden, and Laura Kaighn mingled with readers, sold books, and ate cookies to celebrate the remodeled A Novel Idea bookstore in the Landis Marketplace! 

Local writers can come and visit with the New Jersey Authors Network again at the Landis Marketplace for several writing and publishing workshops June 27 and August 8.  July 15 the NJAN will also be hosting a YA Workshop at the Millville Library!

More cookies and Horror Addicts Guide to Life will be available, of course! 

There I am! Always the photographer, hardly ever in the picture! Fortunately, there's even more literary and horror hysteria to come this Summer! Wooohaaa! 

The Vampire Family Chronicle: May Mayhem Forthcoming!!

Ignore the sunshine and join The Vampire Family and the Horror Addicts Guide to Life as we say goodbye to the old A Novel Idea and see the full lineup of authors on the GRAND RE-OPENING AUTHOR PARTY PAGE!

https://www.facebook.com/events/957779684252703/?ref=3&ref_newsfeed_story_type=regular&feed_story_type=17

Read More: The Vampire Family Chronicle: May Mayhem Forthcoming!!


 

More from My Read All About It Interview!

Last Week I spent the day at the Radiovision Network's studios for my Read All About It Interview with host Stefani Milan, and obviously, we talked about books, talked with our hands too much - and yes, I wore all black! 

A half hour really isn't enough time to talk about books, is it? Stefani had some great questions for me on the writing craft, inspirations, and literary marketing. There were a few moments to introduce the new Horror Addicts Guide to Life anthology, too. 

The video isn't out yet, but you can keep up with all of Stefani's guests as well as her book and more from Radiovision!

https://www.facebook.com/StefaniMilanauthor

http://www.radiovisionnetwork.com


And what garnered the most attention, you ask? My shoes! The fierce is real.

South Jersey Women Authors on Read All About It Show!

"2015 is off to a busy start for several ladies for the South Jersey Women Authors thanks to the new Radiovision Network show Read All About It, hosted by fellow local author Stefani Milan!

First MaryAnn Diorio visited the studio, followed by Kristin Battestella discussing the new Horror Addicts Guide to Life anthology…"

Read the full report and stay tuned for more at the South Jersey Women Authors Blog!