On May 14, Avery Dow-Kenny hosted her first event as a self-published author. The UFV student celebrated the publishing of her debut novel Keirling (2025), with an author meet-and-greet at Clearbrook Library. A table was set in the sunlit foyer, with a few stacks of her novel, bookmarks, and business cards, as well as yellow flowers to round out the display — the presentation speaking to Dow-Kenny’s artistry.
Following the event, after clearing the table, and sitting outside to chat with The Cascade, Dow-Kenny said she felt good about the turnout, seeing more people than expected, selling a number of books, and even taking a photo with a reader. Dow-Kenny started the novel three years ago, but the decision to self-publish came in 2024, during her last semester as a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) student, inspired by one of her professors.
“I took John Carroll’s English 405, [a] creative writing [and] novel writing class, all his feedback encouraged me in that whole class environment. It’s really what made me have the courage to self-publish it. I put him in the dedications for it. If I didn’t take that class, I probably wouldn’t have tried to publish it.”
Dow-Kenny is an artist of many talents. She not only wrote the book, but also created the cover art, map, and illustrated chapter headings. She also created themed bookmarks, which she handed out during the meet-and-greet. The only part of the project she out-sourced was the editing. In comparing writing to visual arts, she said, for her, the approach is different.
“Writing is definitely more like I need everything. Like I have 40 page documents. Like this is the plot by bullet point. These are the characters. This is all this. Art is more just like a scribble, figure it out.”
While Dow-Kenny finished her BFA in 2024, she is not done being a student just yet. Now enrolled in the Library and Information Technology (LIBT) diploma program at UFV, she is pursuing library work alongside her creative ventures. Dow-Kenny explained that knowing more about books and libraries has been fun and has helped in the writing process, including giving her inspiration to include a fantasy library in a future project.
Dow-Kenny currently has two more books in the works, with one of the manuscripts recently completed. According to Dow-Kenny, it is currently at around 130,000 words. She is ready for editing, prepared to trim it down before trying to query the project to a literary agent in order to pursue the traditional publishing route. The second book that she has in the works is still in the conceptualization stage, but is inspired by Game of Thrones (2011-2019).
While all of her current works are fantasy, Dow-Kenny says she’s open to branching out of her primary genre, and integrating even more of her visual arts background.
“I’ve had ideas for contemporary fiction ones, children’s books even. That would be so fun … comics too.”
Wrapping up the interview, the conversation turned back to the focus of the event: Keirling. Dow-Kenny speaks passionately about what she wants readers to take from the book.
“…it’s a lot about learning to overcome traumas because both of the main characters … have lots of traumas they need to work through. So it’s a lot about overcoming traumas, learning to deal with the main character. She’s got [a] PTSD type of trauma … And then it’s also about being brave enough to do the right thing, even if it scares you.”
Keirling is a young adult fantasy novel inspired by Icelandic landscapes, including elemental magic and a bit of romance. The story follows Ryka, a Keirling, which means that she can harness nature’s magic. Her people have been persecuted by the Krafatians for centuries, and now Ryka has been kidnapped by one. On her quest to return home, Ryka is faced with a treacherous landscape and the challenge of learning how to trust and work together with the very Krafatian who kidnapped her before they drive each other to ruin.
Keirling is available now on Amazon as well as to borrow from Fraser Valley Regional Public Library.
