A love story perfect for fans of Nina LaCour and Jandy Nelson about a girl who moves cross country and finds herself falling for someone new who throws her whole life out of order.
We chat with debut author Kate Sweeney about her recently released YA novel Catch The Light, along with writing, inspiration, and more!
Hi, Kate! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Sure! I live in the Bay Area of California but grew up in many different places, including Georgia, Southern California, and Upstate New York. My husband and I have an art framing business in San Francisco, which is my day job. I’m the youngest of four kids. I’m also a mom and musician in the band Magic Magic Roses.
As the year draws to a close, how has 2021 been for you?
It’s been such a rollercoaster. Lots of ups and downs. My family is safe and healthy and my kid just started kindergarten and my book is coming out so lots to celebrate. But I have depression and anxiety and this has been a challenging year for getting my bearings. Also, the world!
When did you first discover your love for writing?
My dad was a writer and he died when I was eleven years old. The summer after I graduated high school I gave a speech at my sister’s wedding, and afterwards several people came up to me and said that I sounded just like him. That was when writing started to feel magical. I felt like it was the tie that connected us, even though I didn’t remember him very much.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
Babysitters Club Little Sister #2: Karen’s Roller skates; Song of Solomon; The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
Your new novel, Catch the Light, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Melancholy, Cozy, Romantic, Messy Relationships
What can readers expect?
Catch the Light has a solid love story, but the heart of the book is really about grief and memory. It’s a very messy portrayal of coping with death and change and the main character, Marigold, is imperfect and makes a lot of mistakes.
Where did the inspiration for Catch the Light come from?
The premise of this book is very much based on the emotional experience of losing my own father, although I was only eleven when it happened and did not have a hot, charming love interest waiting for me in upstate New York. But really, it was an opportunity for me to explore my own grief and the nature of my memories of my father, which was really amazing to get to do as an adult.
Can you tell us a bit about the challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
I wrote the first draft of Catch the Light during NaNoWriMo in 2018. At the time my son was two and a half and I was working full time as an elementary teacher at a public school in California. I had to wake up really early in the morning and write during any tiny little bits of time I was able to find during the day. It was exhausting but something inside me felt like I had to write this book. I felt like I was losing myself to my family and job and I needed something that was mine.
Were there any favorite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
The romance between Marigold and Jesse was definitely my favorite part. I didn’t really have a serious boyfriend until my twenties, and in my teen years I was always pining away for people who were not interested. So it was fun to imagine a very dreamy guy for Marigold.
What’s the best and the worst writing advice you have received?
The worst writing advice came from a visiting professor in a senior writing seminar at college. It was more criticism than advice but he told me that while I had a great skill for language, I didn’t know how to write a story. I took that to heart and didn’t write any prose for over ten years! It really makes me sad to know that professors like that are out there crushing people’s dreams. The best advice was from the Artist’s Way, which is that if you just sit down every day, it will come. For me that has been true.
What’s next for you?
I’m working on editing my second book, which is out in Spring 2023, and simultaneously trying to draft a third one. It’s been super slow going but I’ve been just trying to write a couple hundred words a day and it’s been fun to see it unfolding.
Lastly, what have your favorite reads of 2021 been?
Honey Girl, by Morgan Rogers. I love the dreamy writing style of this book so much. I also got really into fantasy this year and loved The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna and The Ember in the Ashes series by Sabaa Tahir.
