Suzanne Catalano Interview Published on: 27, May 2024
Where have you spent most of your childhood?
Most of my childhood was spent outdoors. My parents understood the benefits of spending time with nature and taught my sister and I to appreciate the beauty in the moment. From hiking across the meadows near Frenchman’s Lake, playing in the forests of the Trinity mountains, to splashing on the beaches up and down the coast and the scaling the craggy peaks of Mounts Lassen and Shasta, northern California was my playground.
What were some of your hobbies as a child? Do you still enjoy the same things or have your tastes evolved since then?As a young girl I was in love with horses and dreamed and schemed to get a pony of my own. Horses became a hobby that has been with me all my life. Combining my love for the outdoors with horses, not much about what makes me happy has evolved since I was a child. My favorite place to be is on the trail, riding or hiking.
What inspired you to transition from writing about your personal experiences with dogs, horses, and family to fiction novels?Fiction is where I started some decades ago. I had written two romance novels and printed the 300 plus pages each on an old Okidata DOT matrix printer. After sitting in a file box for years, I came across the manuscripts after I had written and published my first book, A Little Dog’s Adventures in a Big Dog’s World. I rewrote the stories, updated the cars and gave my characters cell phones. The fiction stories turned out to be “Sun-Kissed Mountains of Home” (Feb. 2024) and next to be published “Sunset West: Love’s Last Refrain” (in production).
Who is your target audience? What are some things you wish your readers would take away from your books?My target audience are my peers and I hope my stories connect across generations as well. I wish to inspire and entertain and want readers to relate to the characters in my fiction work as well as the personal accounts of my experiences in my memoirs. I love the idea of love and want to encourage others to never give up on happiness.
As an author now, what does your daily schedule look like?I am blessed to have no set schedule and can spend my time writing when I’m inspired or traveling for inspiration. My most creative time is early, before sunrise, when the world is still asleep. My household remains in peaceful slumber and it’s just myself and the buttons on my keyboard.
What led you to explore equine healing powers as a theme in your romance novel, “Sun-Kissed Mountains of Home”?Horses have been a healing power in my life before I even knew there was such a thing. The characters in “Sun-kissed Mountains of Home” were people who dealt with life’s traumas by finding spiritual support through horses. I am an advocate for living in harmony with animals and will speak out when faced with any situation I see as exploitive of them. Humans have so much to gain from connecting with animals spiritually and I like that my stories can show that.
What inspired you to start writing "A Little Dog's Adventures in a Big Dog's World"?My dog, Winnie, is a small dog with a huge influence on my life from the day we first met. She inspired me to do many things outside my comfort zone like nose work, traveling and trialing. Winnie inspired me to create a website for sharing our adventures and I started writing blogs. A friend and fan of the website had an idea I should organize my thoughts and write a book. With the freedom of self publishing, that is what I did.
Moving from Sonoma County to Tucson, Arizona, how has the change in environment influenced your writing style or the themes you explore in your books?In contemplating something so drastic as a move from the coastal climate to the arid inland, I didn’t think things through but the desert has welcomed me. I find the soothing warmth and slower paced nature to be complimentary to my writing. The beginnings of ideas for a novel that takes place in the desert are forming. Stay tuned.
How important do you think book covers are? Who usually designs your book covers?The cover of a book is the point where a lot of readers make a decision to either buy it or pass it by. Being artistically inclined, I have a lot of input for my book cover designers. For both A Little Dog’s Adventures and Sun-kissed, I had an image in my head and went with it. I have since learned there is a lot of skill in marketing that goes into it and readers may see a change in style with the cover for my next book,“Sunset West: Love’s Last Refrain”, currently being designed by 100Covers.
How do you balance the emotional depth of your stories with the lighter, more inspirational elements?Wanting to create relatable characters, I draw upon real life people who struggle and fall, strive to become better and thrive. Balance is what a healthy, happy life is really about. How we relate to our fellow beings, from humans to animals to trees and rocks and plants, it is all relative.
How often do you write in a week? Do you try to write a certain goal number of words or chapters a day or do you just go with the flow?I rarely quantify the work. I regularly write and once in a while I join in word count challenges with peers. Sometimes I find the meditative nature of driving to be a great recipe for creativity. While rolling down the road, I dictate my thoughts into the narrator feature on the cell phone note pad app. The wheels, they keep on turning.
Every art form is open to various interpretations and reviews. How do you handle any negative reviews that come your way?Negativity is harsh but useful. I appreciate all feedback and discount any unproductive negativity. You can please some people some of the time and some people none of the time. I write because it makes me happy and when I share and someone enjoys it, that is just a bonus.
Do you ever see yourself "retiring" from being a writer?I retired from bus driving. Before that I retired from letter carrying. In what feels like a lifetime ago, I made wedding cakes but stopped doing that, too. Those were things I did. Writing is who I am and I can’t retire from that as long I am on this earth.
What is the one thing that has changed after being an author? Do you miss anything?Being a published author has changed nothing for me. I still struggle with imposter syndrome. I don’t feel any different than I did before. After I have set my characters on their journey to the readers, I miss them terrible. It is hard to let them go when their story has been told, but knowing others can now enjoy them is humbling.
How do you usually promote your books? What has your AllAuthor experience been like so far and would you recommend it to other authors?I am uncomfortable with self-promotion, but in this new age of technology and Indie authorship, it is about fifty percent of the endeavor. I am not good at navigating an online presence, but find All Author to be an easy way to be available to readers. Having one spot to promote myself and my body of work is a blessing. I enjoy the book cover contests and have encouraged my friends to participate. Interacting with readers is a part of being an author I look forward to most.
