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Katie Mishra of Menlo Park has always enjoyed reading and writing stories. Now 12, and a seventh-grader at Castilleja in Palo Alto, she is the author of the self-published "Gukky Tales: The Quest for the Golden Quarter."

She hopes to inspire other young writers when she talks about her new book at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 7, at Kepler's Books, 1010 El Camino Real in Menlo Park.

The character in the story, Becka Donovan, is an 11-year-old who is also known as a GUK (grown-up-kid). "Gukky Tales" is the story of her summer adventure when she searches for clues to locate the mysterious "Golden Quarter." To find the elusive quarter, Becka must solve challenging puzzles, travel across the country and avoid sneaky villains.

Katie was encouraged to finish writing "Gukky Tales" after earning honorable mention two years ago at a Pitchapalooza writing competition at Kepler's. The recognition encouraged her to finish writing a 125-page draft of her book that summer. She spent the next year rewriting the book, after receiving feedback from a reviewer of middle school books.

She also reached out to her fourth- and fifth-grade teachers at Oak Knoll School, Mr. Kline and Ms. Sanchez, to enlist their help in identifying students in their classrooms (her target audience) who would read and critique her story.

Katie is the daughter of Stephanie and Allan Mishra of Menlo Park.

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