iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

🧡🏝️ COVER REVEAL 🧡🏝️ I am so thrilled to share the stunning cover for WORTH PLAYING FOR, my debut romcom novel 🎬 Coming 4/27/27 from @penguinrandomhouse.bsky.social ! Credits to Chris Ede (illustrator), Jeanne Reina (art director), and Angela Pettingill (cover designer) Available for preorder now!

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 16/06/2025

Allow me to reintroduce you to WORTH PLAYING FOR (fka as RIVAL ISLE), my adult romcom complete and headed for editors’ inboxes very soon. #editors, if you’re ready for the adventure of a lifetime, feel free to interact or reach out to Aurora Fernandez at Trident Media Group 🏝️🧡

An editor’s guide to WORTH PLAYING FOR
A 91k word adult romcom

The pitch

While pretending to be her concussed identical twin on a survival competition show, twenty-six-year-old Willa must fake a romance with her rival—who happens to be her long lost love—to win viewer votes and the cash prize that will save her family’s board game café.

What to expect
- second chance romance
- reality TV/beach setting
- quarter life crisis
- challenges and eliminations
- complicated sister relationship
- zany cast of side characters
- fake dating
- secrets and yearning
Comps
- Survivor
- The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
- Love Island
- Crash Landing by Annie McQuaid

Excerpts:
“My mom is attempting to Heimlich maneuver a meatball out of me when my sister bursts through the front door of our store and announces she’s going to be the next big reality television star.”

“I feel safe now because of you.
His words are heavy, tangible, as though the letters are digging their heels into my heart. I know he means safe in the game, but my mind takes me back to eight years ago when I first realized what falling in love meant to me: pure, unadulterated safety. The safety of knowing I could be wholeheartedly myself, flaws and all, and he would only find more reasons to adore me. The safety of knowing on days I didn’t particularly like myself, he would still never like anyone else more.
Maybe that’s why the end hurt so badly. It was danger infiltrating a place of peace.”

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

SURVIVOR x THE PARENT TRAP While pretending to be her concussed twin on a survival competition show, Willa must fake a romance with her rival–who's also her ex–to win viewer votes and the cash prize that will save her family’s board game café 🧡🏝️ #OS soon #AG #A #R #editors #QuestPit

Moodboard for my book RIVAL ISLE
Photos include:
- A cameraman and boom mic
- A ropes course in the jungle
- A pinky promise
- A couple kissing in the water
- Lit torches
- An island
- The text: "“My eyes land on the last rival in the row—number nine—and my stomach and heart switch places. It’s Noel Hudson. The only person to have ever broken my heart.”

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 19/04/2025

✨on sub soon✨ SURVIVOR x THE UNHONEYMOONERS Willa’s goal: win RIVAL ISLE and use the $ to save her family’s board game café The issue? She’s pretending to be her twin, and her old flame is a fellow contestant. Editors, feel free to reach out! #PosterPit #PosterPitA #A #R

Movie poster for my romcom "RIVAL ISLE" an adult romcom on submission soon
- A novel by Katie Gergel, represented by Aurora Fernandez at Trident Media
- Second chance romance, twin switch, riddles and challenges, fake fating
- Images of an island, a reluctant couple, a kiss, a helicopter, a pinky promise, a secret, and a torch
- "test your limits" and "adventure awaits"
- "In the rut of a quarter life crisis, Willa takes her twin’s spot on a survival reality show where she fakes a romance with her rival–who happens to be her long lost love–in order to win viewer votes and earn the cash prize that will save her family’s dying board game café."

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 19/04/2025

HIGMA and yap katiegwrites.substack.com/p/higma-or-a...

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 27/03/2025

I’m very excited to share that I’m now represented by Aurora Fernandez at Trident Media! Beyond excited to work together to bring my Survivor-inspired romcom to life 🧡🏝️ So grateful for the opportunity and everyone who has helped along the way!

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

Introducing my #agentguide to RIVAL ISLE, my adult romcom I #amquerying! #litagents, if you’re ready for the Adventure of a Lifetime complete with romance, humor, and a knock-off Jeff Probst, feel free to interact 🧡🏝️ #WritingCommunity

RIVAL ISLE

An adult romcom complete at 95k words

THE PITCH

A twenty-six-year-old survival reality show contestant fakes a romance with her rival—who happens to be her long lost love—in order to win viewer votes and earn the cash prize that will save her family’s dying board game café.

WHAT TO EXPECT

second chance romance
fake dating
reality TV/beach setting
zany cast of side characters
complicated sister relationship
challenges and eliminations
quarter life crisis

COMPS
Survivor
The Unhoneymooners
Love Island
Name Your Price

EXCERPT

The audience would probably love that shit, anyway. The only time I ever voluntarily participated in voting for a reality show was my sophomore year of high school when I fired off ten text messages every Tuesday night for my favorite Dancing with the Stars pairing because I was convinced they were knocking boots behind the scenes.
Turns out they hated one another. They did win the season, though.
Wait a second.
My head jerks up so quickly I pinch a nerve in my neck.
A lightbulb in my mind burns to life at the same time a separate piece of advice from Bernie bounces between my eardrums: “Make yourself vital.”

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

SURVIVOR x THE UNHONEYMOONERS Willa’s goal: win RIVAL ISLE and use the prize $ to save her family’s dying board game café The issue? She’s pretending to be her twin, and her old flame is a fellow contestant. 💕 romcom 🤫 fake dating ❤️ second chance 💪 mid 20s identity struggle #P2PPit #Q soon #A #R

Mood board for RIVAL ISLE:
- beach scenes
- torches
- sunsets
- couple kissing
- ropes course
- plane
- megaphone
- “stay tuned”

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 10/01/2025

On today’s episode of tabs I left open from previous writing sessions and forgot about:

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 02/01/2025

Powering through the final round of dev edits for this baby (fueled by incredibly helpful CP comments), and then it’s just a line level pass before #querying! Agents: RIVAL ISLE is coming soon to an inbox near you! 🏝️

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 08/12/2024

A Sunday snippet to celebrate finishing draft two of RIVAL ISLE! 🏝️🧡 There’s still work to be done, but I’m getting closer… and changing from past to present tense was no small undertaking 😂 Now time to dive into my next project: taking a damn break!!! #WritingCommunity

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 03/12/2024

Draft two of RIVAL ISLE isn’t quite finished, but early reviews have been rolling in…. 😂 (Shoutout to my amazing CPs who make me critically think and laugh out loud in equal parts) #WritingCommunity

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 24/11/2024

Five chapters left in this HEFTY revision round 🥵 can I do it by the end of November??

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

🏝️ four out of context quotes from my #wip RIVAL ISLE 🏝️ Writing these characters and this story is SO much fun. Can I use not wanting the fun to end as an excuse to procrastinate on my revisions? 😂 #writingcommunity #queryingsoon

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 19/11/2024

My incredibly talented friend @izmartinsen.bsky.social brought to life my bbs Noel and Willa from RIVAL ISLE 😭 My first time ever getting character art and it’s so thrilling!! She got Willa’s hideous outfit down PAT 😍

Character art of Noel and Willa from RIVAL ISLE

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 13/11/2024

There’s a vote tonight! Download the RIVAL ISLE app and vote for the rival you most want to keep in the game 🏝️ The rival with the fewest votes is at risk of getting kicked off the island… unless they have an exemption totem 👀 #UnhingedPit #R #RC #W #A

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 11/11/2024

Moving onto column 3!! Really pushing to get this round of edits done by the end of november 💪

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Katie 🏝️🧡 @katiegwrites.bsky.social · 11/11/2024

First post in this space!! Gotta dedicate it to my #Survivor inspired #wip RIVAL ISLE An adult romcom with… 💕 second chance romance 😉 fake dating 💛 mid-20s identity struggles 👯 twin switcheroo 🏝️ tropical reality TV setting 🔥 challenges, idols, eliminations Querying in early 2025 🤞🏼

Moodboard mocked up to look like CBS Survivor web homepage.

Text says: "RIVAL ISLE--premiering early 2025.

After an accident forces curmudgeonly 26-year-old Willa to take her twin’s spot on an adventure competition show, she’s determined to lie, cheat, and steal her way to the cash prize that will save her family’s struggling board game café.

But when it’s revealed that viewers help influence players’ fates, Willa plans to steal America’s hearts (and votes) by faking romance with rival Noel--who happens to be her past flame.

After all... who doesn’t love a love story?"

Images include:
- obstacle course
- group sitting around a campfire
- couple kissing in the ocean
- bird's eye view of an island
- couple walking on the beach
- torches
- airplane
- individual rock climbing
- group standing in ocean
- lit up treehouse in the jungle

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