Sunday, June 26, 2016

Introducing A. Catherine Noon, Co-Author of Cat's Cradle



RW :       How many hours a day do you spend writing?
ACN :     I write every day, and I spend anywhere between thirty minutes to four or five hours writing. I write on the keyboard and by hand, about equally. I like to tell stories on the computer, and I journal by hand.

RW :          Who are your favorite authors?
ACN :      That’s a tough question. In terms of fiction, I’d say Ursula K. LeGuin, Lois McMaster Bujold, and Steven Brust. In terms of writing books, Lynda Barry, Julia Cameron, and Natalie Goldberg.

I tend to read a lot more non-fiction than I do fiction, these days, because I write so much that I want a break from the imaginary worlds. When I do want fiction, I tend to turn to Netflix; my standbys are mysteries and crime dramas.

RW :          What makes a good book?
ACN :       Interesting question! I think it depends on the reader. In terms of literature, scholars have definitions by which they define “good book,” but for me it’s about whether the author pulls me into the world they’ve created. If I “go somewhere” while I’m reading, and feel bereft when it’s over, then I feel like it’s a good book. I love David Eddings’ Belgariad and Malloreon series for that. It’s twelve books in total; five in two series each and then two standalones. It’s a lot of fun because the world really pulls you in as the reader and forms around you.

RW :    How do you celebrate the mile-markers of publishing?
ACN :      That’s a tough one. I have trouble celebrating. Any milestone, not just writing, is tough for me because once it’s accomplished, it no longer feels real. I’ve been practicing with making a point of celebrating, but I don’t really know how—what does one do to celebrate? For our last book, we went out to dinner. It still didn’t feel celebratory enough, so it’s a work in progress.

RW :         Where do you hope to be five years from now?
ACN :      That’s easy—writing full time and living in Seattle, Washington!

RW :          Why did you decide to write?
ACN :        I’ve been a storyteller my whole life.

RW :         How much of your personality and life experiences are in your writing?
ACN :        Depends on the story.

RW :          Do you feel humor is important in fiction and why?
ACN :     Yes, absolutely. Humor is all around us, and it draws us in. It makes horrible things bearable and allows us to get closer to tragedy. I think humor is necessary in fiction because it allows the dark moments greater horror and impact.

RW :     What do you do to relax and recharge your batteries?
ACN :       Um… This would depend on whether I relax and recharge. J I knit. A lot. I also do calligraphy, yoga, and other forms of textile art.

RW :     Bubble baths or steamy showers? Ocean or mountains? Puppies or kittens? Chocolate or caramel?
ACN :       Bubble baths. Ocean AND mountains. Puppies AND kittens. Chocolate. That’s not even a question. Definitely chocolate.

Cat’s Cradle

When you’re a former Marine tiger shifter, love comes with a high cost—is it too much to pay?

Mitchell Brayden is a former Marine tiger shifter looking for love in all the wrong places. When he decides to rescue a young ocelot shifter from a rich, spoiled playboy, he embroils himself in a conflict that goes back generations.

Guadalupe Salazar grew up as a pampered pet of a benevolent patron. After his patron’s untimely death, he stays on with the patron’s son—a self-centered, weak man who got ensnared by the drugs and fast living in the States. One night, it goes too far, and Lupe is beaten nearly to death. He is taken to a secret shifter clinic where he meets an unlikely knight in tarnished armor.

Together, Mitch and Lupe confront the playboy and his friends—but will their actions draw the rest of the jaguar familias, not to mention the ocelot clans, into a battle over Lupe’s future? Will the delicate balance of power destroy everything that Mitch’s small band of tiger shifters has built in Chicago?

Bio:

My official bio came to me when mulling over my two main passions: words and yarn. It hit me that they’re the same thing: “For author and textile artist A. Catherine Noon, it’s all about the yarn, both metaphorical and literal—spinning a yarn, knitting with yarn, weaving, sewing, painting, sharing stories and good times over a cup of coffee with dark chocolate.”

I’m a born storyteller. I love to talk and I love to write. I sometimes feel, in my heart of hearts, that the internet was developed by and for people like me—natural networkers who love to talk with anybody about anything. After Y2K, the world belongs to the geeks. Teaching is a natural extension of that instinct. I find I’m just as passionate about helping other people get onto the page as I am about my own writing.

I’ve written all sorts of things: fantasy, science fiction, autobiography, cooking, spirituality, and a host of other topics. I recently rediscovered a love of poetry, because it uses words to express the inexpressible. Essays, too, have fascinated me for a long time, though I didn’t know what name to call the style of writing I liked—it certainly wasn’t the dry-as-bones “essays” from high school days. Phillip Lopate did a lot of good for the field of letters in general, and me in particular, when he published his ode to the essay, The Art of the Personal Essay. Turns out, I’m a fan of Montaigne. Now that I’m an author and have to promote myself, I get to write essays for my different blogs. I even have a basket of topics on which I feel confident to write.

Finding one’s voice can be a lifelong pursuit. I know it has been for me. Being able to own that voice, and speak in that voice, takes practice and gentleness. A word at a time, we learn to get, and stay, on the page. The same goes for knitting. It’s a very Zen process of accumulating stitches and those stitches turn into a garment, or art object, or soft furnishing, or a toy, or anything the knitter can conceive.

Buy Link—Amazon: 

Contact Catherine:

Author Website:  http://www.noonandwilder.com

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