Our Origin Story

Amid a downpour of trepidation and self-doubt, K.L. Kolarich originally established Rogue Kite during the uncertainty of 2020 to later self-publish her debut novel, House of Bastiion—the first installment in her now award-winning flagship series, The Haidren Legacy.

While her epic saga made a splash with its trailblazing launch, most readers would never realize that success was preceded by the stormy five-years it took for her to finally release it.

Writing inside the snug, dusty corners of empty coffee shops, Kolarich assumed her passion for the make-believe was destined as mere hobby, never really envisioning a career outside her common yet comfortable cubicle. As she hid her daydreams away in chunky, unread binders, chapters continued to bleed onto those secreted pages, until one day, a decision had to be made; a seductive choice to accept this curious phenomenon, wherein daydreams were the reality and said cubicle the make-believe.

But like the fork-in-the-road posed to most fledgling authors, imposter syndrome stifled that choosing again and again. It robbed the writing, undermined the imagination, imprisoned the wonder and discouraged the wrestle. Eventually, all that remained were some phantom paragraphs haunting Kolarich. Yet despite that incessant haunt, she still considered those precious tidings a flight of fancy.

For years Kolarich kept her work stunted; grounded where aspirations were knowable. Controllable. Devoid of risk.

One fateful night, buried beneath a mountain of blankets on their very lived-in couch, Kolarich’s husband challenged this paralyzing cycle. Heralded as the “kite” in their marriage, he is often considered the carefree partner who helps them look up toward a brightening sky, while she functions as the “stake”—habitually grounding the pair to both reason and prudence. But according to her husband, Kolarich was no longer meant to play that pragmatic role, and instead invited her to entertain something more rebellious. To lift off the safety of rationale and fly. To defy her nature. Her every instinct.

To become a rogue kite.

One who flies, even when her entire being screams it isn’t designed to.

Breaking free since the summer of 2020, Kolarich has spearheaded Rogue Kite Publishing into a new horizon. With her debut novel hitting bestseller lists, attaining features in numerous subscription boxes, and garnering special edition printing, the real story has barely begun.

It never belonged in a cubicle anyways.