It's been over three months since the last blog post and I apologize for that. I hope you enjoyed reading about my last guest whose books and career are very fascinating. In the interim between the last post a lot has happened. The best thing is I won a silver award from Reader's Favorite for my Young Adult novel: If I Could Be Like Jennifer Taylor. During the summer I took part in some book festivals and though I didn't sell a ton of books I got great feedback about the book. At one of these events a woman came up to me and said that her daughter would not forgive her if she didn't tell me how much she loved the book and that she wanted to read the second one. And at one of them recently, a teen bought the book and started reading it immediately. These things tell me that it was worth writing my book. These days people don't read very much but I am happy that my book is getting the kind of attention you want from readers.
The happy news is that I am publishing a second book and it will be out very soon. We are deciding on the cover and that is the main problem. Hopefully, this will be solved and it will be coming out within the next month, fingers crossed. It is called: Who Is Jennifer Taylor and will be published by Griffin Publishing. I will be revealing the cover as soon as it is completed.
This month my guest author is someone I know and she is a member of my Letters critique group in Greenwich Pen Women as well as a member of the Poetry Group there. Let's meet Catherine T. Horn, author, poet, and friend.
BIO:
Where were you born Dobbs Ferry, NY and where do you live now? Greenwich, CT
· Who or what influenced you to begin writing?
Life! I have expressed my thoughts, feelings and ideas through writing for as long as I can remember - starting with diaries as a child, poems as an adolescent (and still today), children's stories as a mother, and memoir/personal essays as an older adult. Two English teachers I had in high school were positive and encouraging.
· Besides writing do you have any other occupation?
Not another occupation, but I spend most afternoons caring for my two granddaughters while my daughter and her husband work.
Do you have any hobbies and what are they?
Playing with and reading to my granddaughters! When I am not writing, I am often reading fiction or critiquing the work of other writers. My husband, Bill and I love to travel.
· Why did you decide to become a school psychologist?
After working as a self-contained special education teacher for several years, I decided to further my education to become a school psychologist. Teaching for ten years, led me to want be more more involved in diagnosis and treatment plans for children with special needs. I was fascinated by evaluating students and actually enjoyed report writing which allowed me to analyze all of the information and data and synthesize it so that parents and teachers understood and knew what it all meant in terms of how best to support the child.
· How has your work in this field influenced your writing?
Working with children throughout my career has kept me inspired. Experiencing life through the eyes of children (my own, my students, and now my granddaughters) has kept me focussed on joy, love, and laughter.
· What inspired your latest book: Taking a Ride on Butterfly Wings?
When my children were young, at bedtime we would talk about things they could think about as they were trying to fall asleep. That inspired me to write a poem that, at the time, I called Sweet Dreams. My favorite phrase from the poem was Taking a Ride on Butterfly Wings so I changed the title to that and focussed on that as the lead image for the book.
· Please describe the story of Taking a Ride on Butterfly Wings for our readers.
Taking a Ride on Butterfly Wings follows Lulu and Lainy on an imaginative journey traversing the seasons in New England as they explore peaceful and calm places and activities with their family and friends.
· You also have written a memoir. Are you planning to publish this?
I started writing the memoir pieces after I retired in 2016 and took a class at Greenwich Library called Crafting Life Stories led by Joan Motyka. From the first prompt ("I was one of those kids who...") my pen hit the paper and I haven't stopped yet. I realized how much a house fire at our family home when I was a child changed our family significantly, so I suppose that is a central theme - the idea of home, what it means, and how to rebuild and move forward when everything seems lost. I am writing it for my children and granddaughters, as a way of capturing my life stories and the strength of endurance but other writers have said it may have a wider appeal. I'm not sure that my life experiences are vastly different from any one else's, made up of love and loss, but I'll consider it when I am finished. My message, and the title is Love + Loss = Life©.
· How is writing poetry different than writing prose?
Writing poetry provides a certain structure within which to formulate thoughts, ideas and feelings. In some ways, that can be helpful but at other times, it is a hindrance. When trying to write something that rhymes, the thoughts and feelings can become compromised when trying to force a rhyme. Most of the time, when I have something that I've been thinking about, grappling with, and/or trying to process, I sit down to write about it and the form evolves on its own.
I have found that to be true myself as a poet. The poem creates its own form and also your frame of mind at the time helps.
Would you say your poetry has influenced your children’s story?
The book was always written in rhyme, but the poetic verses and rhyming has improved over time making it a better story and a fantastic book.
· Has your work with children as a school psychologist influenced your writing in any way?
Definitely. Children tell you what they are thinking and feeling before they learn social graces and the idea that what you say and do can impact other people, often in ways unintended. Being aware of the issues children face every day keeps me current and in-the-know so that my children's stories reflect those ideas.
· Does your story teach a lesson?
Not a lesson per se, but it does offer children things to think about when they are trying to fall asleep which is often the time of day when fears and anxieties come to the surface. The book is an example of Guided Imagery, a mindfulness strategy that can be calming. I have also added an activity page for families to create their own list of what to think about at night.
Do you think children’s stories should always have a lesson to teach?
No. Educational stories are important but so is entertainment, fun and humor.
· How have you incorporated things in your new book that will delight children?
I made sure to write about places and activities that are calm, enjoyable, relaxing, and peaceful. There isn't anything scary, disturbing, or even problematic in my book.
· How important are the illustrations of your book to the understanding of the text?
I think that more so than helping readers to understand the text, the illustrations enhance the ideas and bring them to life. They are critically important and I was lucky to find an extremely talented and creative visual artist, Martha Ratcliff, who brought my vision forward.
Yes, the illustrations in your book make you want to read it. I was at your book launch and saw the joy in the faces of the children and even adults who saw the cover. They grabbed it immediately.
· What are you currently writing and are you thinking of publishing it?
I am still writing memoir pieces and poems all the time. I hope to publish a collection of poems in the future. I have many more children's stories finished and I would very much like to publish some of them. I am also writing a novel that I think is timely and relevant, deserving to be out in the world as a catalyst for discussions around the impact of social media addiction on people everywhere.
· How has your experience with Greenwich Pen Women Letters influenced your writing?
All aspects of my writing have improved. I have learned new forms of poetry through our Poetry Group and now also write about nature in addition to people and relationships which were always my focus previously.
· Please tell our readers where they can find your book and you.
Taking a Ride on Butterfly Wings is available at many local independent stores in Greenwich (Diane's Books, Athena, Bush Holley House/Greenwich Historical Society Museum Store, Christ Church Dogwood Bookstore) as well as on Amazon and barnesandnoble.com. For more information see lululanepress.com
· Will you be doing any in person or online events in the future and where will they be?
None scheduled at the moment. A highlight for me has been when I was lucky enough to be invited to Bush Holley House/Greenwich Historical Society as a featured speaker during their Local Author Showcase series this past spring.
· Finally, my last question I always ask my guests. Are you a plotter or a pantser? In other words, do you outline or do you just write?
I am a tried and true, well-established pantser. Words flow through my fingers to the pen or keyboard and I am often amazed by what appears. An outline seems too restrictive and confining. For me, writing is the best and my favorite form of communication.
Thank you, Catherine T. Horn, for the very thorough answers you gave to my questions. Your perseverance should show anyone who wants to be an author that you should not give up. Your story reminds me of my own struggle to republish my Young Adult novel and how I wound up self publishing. It is important to keep that belief in yourself when you want to publish your book. Also, thank you for the additional information about how you published this book. It will help all who are in the same situation. Publishing is not easy but not giving up is the answer! Lots of luck with this very beautiful book that young children will love. And now you have an online presence with my blog.
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This interview will run for a month. Please comment here so the author can see how you felt about this. I do moderate comments so please no spam and be courteous. So if you comment and don't see it right away no worries. It will be there when I see it.
Until the next time when my guest will be another friend who is a poet, teacher, and an author. Her name is Cynthia Sharp. Hope you all have a great October. Here the leaves are changing and I leave you with a poem I just wrote about October:
