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Catherine Castle

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Catherine Castle

Tag Archives: Kathy McKinsey

Wednesday Writers-Interview with author Kathy McKinsey

24 Wednesday Mar 2021

Posted by Catherine Castle in Author interviews, Book excerpts, books, Wednesday Writers, women's fiction

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Author Interview with Kathy McKinsey, Book Excerpt from Gifts of Grace, Braille drawing, Gifts of Grace, Kathy McKinsey, Short story collection, Wednesday Writers, Women’s Fiction

Welcome to Wednesday Writers! Today I’m interviewing author Kathy McKinsey. We’ll be talking about her new book, Gifts of Grace, and learning some interesting things about Kathy. She also has an excerpt from the book for your reading pleasure. So without any further ado, let’s welcome Kathy to the blog!

Welcome, Kathy! I see that your new book, Gifts of Grace, is a collection of three novellas. Please tell the readers a bit about the book.

I wanted to challenge myself with this book. I grew up on a farm, and I had fun setting one of the stories on a farm. I am blind, and I wanted to have one of the main characters be blind. This wasn’t as easy as it might sound, but I found this task an excellent project to stretch my writing skills.

You’re blind? How does that work with writing and editing your work?

I use a screen reading program with my computer. With audible speech, it reads to me what I type, other people’s documents, emails and internet articles, etc. I can listen by page, line, word, individual character.

Wow! That’s interesting. I know about dictation to text computer programs or those that read to you. I use one of those programs to listen to what I’ve written, but the programs I’m familiar with don’t show punctuation. What a great tool!

So, how did you come up with the concept for Gifts of Grace?

I have found that God’s grace last much longer than the day of our salvation. He walks with us through every situation every day, covering us and helping us with his grace. I want to show stories of how God continues to pick us up when we fall and strengthen us with his grace throughout our lives as Christians.

Your web page indicates that you’ve written in several genres. Am I correct is saying Gift of Grace is women’s fiction? If so, is this your first book in this genre?

My first book, All My Tears, is also a collection of women’s fiction novellas. My second book, Millie’s Christmas, is a children’s Christmas story.

Do you have a favorite genre in which to write and, if so, why?

I write mostly women’s fiction. I like to write stories that I would want to read.

How did you get started writing?

I started writing stories at about ten and continued to write throughout my teens. Then I didn’t write much for more than 30 years, through college and work and raising a family. When I had to stop working due to health issues, I took up writing again as a new career.

Let’s get some personal info on you:

What is the farthest place from your home that you have visited?

In about 2005 or so, my husband and two of our sons and I went to Los Angeles where my sons participated in a braille competency contest.

The most fun place?

A few years ago, my two adult daughters and I went to Missouri to visit my mother on the farm where I grew up. I think that’s probably the most fun vacation I’ve ever had.

Tell us a little bit about your hobbies outside of writing.

I enjoy knitting and crocheting. I also enjoy making drawings from braille. I follow patterns which use braille symbols to draw pictures of animals, people, vehicles, holiday decorations, many, many things.

Braille drawing? Can you share a little bit about that?

In braille drawings, the pictures make an image which can be seen by sighted people as well as felt because of the braille.  Here is a site which explains this more: https://www.perkins.org/library/for-kids/braille-drawings

That’s cool! I’ve never seen a braille drawing before. Thanks for sharing. Next question—Name three interesting things most people don’t know about you.

I enjoy baking yeast bread; dogs give me so much joy; and, I love to sing.

What would I see if I peeked into your writing office?

You would see my arm chair in my living room, where I sit with my computer on my lap.

Do you have a day job? If so, what is it?

I no longer work outside the home. Besides writing, I proofread and edit for other writers.

Is there anything about Gifts of Grace I haven’t asked that you’d like readers to know?

I want Christians to know that God is always looking to welcome us back, if we’ve moved far away from him, if we turn to come back.

It’s been a pleasure having you here today, Kathy. As you say goodbye, can you leave the readers with an encapsulation of your life’s philosophy? (a quote, a Bible verse, a precept you live by or have tried to instill in your children?)

Psalm 86:5   “O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help.”

Thanks for being with us today, Kathy. I’ve enjoyed getting to know you.

Now, here’s a peek at Kathy’s book.

Gifts of Grace

by Kathy McKinsey

Tammy needs a new goal to fill her empty nest, and she needs to find forgiveness for her heart.

Three novellas. Three women search with hungry hearts, and God shows them surprising answers.

Mourning the loss of her baby, Judy flees to the home she abandoned twelve years ago. The family farm. Is something new waiting for her at this old home?

Iola, who is blind, struggles to prove herself as a professional and to be the mother her sixteen-year-old daughter needs during a rough time.

Watch as God opens doors these women would never expect.

Excerpt:

“All right, my family.” Chris clapped his hands. “Let’s get this tree decorating party going.” He pulled the lid off a box. “Here, we have a plethora of stars to choose from to shine at the top.”

“A plethora, huh?” I wound my way through the clutter on the floor to join him. “That means we probably have some that’ll go in the throw away pile too. Evan, go tell Sony to come down and join the party.”

Esther screeched.

“Oh no, I stepped on the kitty’s tail.” Stooping, I grabbed her up and gave her a squeeze. “It’s your own fault, cat. You know better than to get in the way of my feet.”

“Here’s something that’ll cheer the kitty up, a whole chain of bells.” The ringing concoction sailed across the room as Chris tossed it, and Esther hurried to jump out of my arms.

“I hope it wasn’t something we wanted to keep.” I grinned. “We’ll never see it in one piece again.”

“Mama? Daddy?” Evan’s feet raced down the stairs. “Sony’s not here.”

“What? Of course, she’s here. I just saw her half an hour ago.” I scrunched my nose. “Maybe an hour.”

“Check in the basement.” Chris made his way to the tree. “I’ve found the perfect star. Ev, she’s probably doing laundry.”

“Sony, Sony, Sony.” Evan screeched his way down the basement stairs.

“I didn’t hear her go down.” A prickle of fear touched the back of my neck.

“She’s not there.” Evan slammed the basement door. “Sony, where are you?”

“Chris?”

“I’ll check her room.”

He was back in an instant. “Her wallet’s gone. Her keys. The shoes she wore today.”

Want to read more? You can find Gifts of Grace at Amazon

.

About the Author:

Kathy McKinsey grew up on a pig farm in Missouri, and although she’s lived in cities for more than 40 years, she still considers herself a farm girl.She’s been married to Murray for 33 years, and they have five adult children.Kathy’s had two careers before writing—stay-at-home-Mom and rehabilitation teacher for the blind.She lives in Lakewood, Ohio with her husband and two of her children. Besides writing, she enjoys activities with her church, editing for other writers, braille transcribing, crocheting, knitting, and playing with the cat and dog.

Connect with Kathy on her website

Wednesday Writers–A NaNoWriMo Challenge Revealed by Kathy McKinsey

23 Wednesday Oct 2019

Posted by Catherine Castle in Children's Fiction, Christmas Reads, Wednesday Writers

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

animals in fiction, Catherine Castle's Wednesday Writers blog series, children's Christmas fiction, Christmas fiction, Kathy McKinsey, Millie's Christmas, NaNoWriMo

 

Wednesday Writers’ guest today is Kathy McKinsey. She’ll be sharing an excerpt from her NaNoWriMo children’s Christmas story Millie’s Christmas. Welcome, Kathy.

 

Thanks, Catherine.

This story was a delightful surprise to me.

I had heard about NaNoWriMo, a challenge many writers take in November to write an entire novel. I didn’t feel ready for that, but I decided in December to see what kind of Christmas story I could come up with.

I normally write women’s fiction. When my kids were little, I did love reading and making up stories for them, but I only remember ever writing one children’s story.

This month I had the idea of writing a story told from the point of view of a kitten with two best friends—a six year old girl and the family dog.

Though I never work out a fully detailed outline for my stories, I usually have a basic idea of how the plot will go. Not this time. I started out just to see what I could come up with each day.

It was a gift to me that opened up more each day. Fun dog and cat activity, and a happy, fun-loving, energetic little girl.

I named the story for my daughter Rebecca’s cat Millie, and Millie gave me a fun addition to the story. Rebecca put up a Christmas tree, decorated it, and woke in the morning to find that Millie had knocked it down and scattered everything.

I enjoyed the family as they opened up in the story, and I found they had problems as families usually do.

But, through their faith and fun and love, not to mention the behaviors of the cats and dog, they came through with a joyful Christmas.

What started out as just an exercise to get me to write every day turned into a story I grew to smile with every day I worked on it.

 

millie’s christmas

by Kathy McKinsey

 

Ruthie says Millie will love Christmas. Ruthie is Millie’s best friend, so she’s sure Ruthie’s right, but why does Millie keep finding Ruthie and her brother Jake crying?

Millie, an orange kitten, shares about her first Christmas. Her best friend Ruthie, six years old, teaches Millie about Christmas—food, decorations, music, presents, and Jesus!

Millie’s friend Bruce, the family dog, also helps her celebrate Christmas, and sometimes gets her in trouble.

When Ruthie’s big brother Jake breaks his ankle, Millie learns about sad things, like divorce, when Jake can’t visit his mommy for Christmas. Millie watches Ruthie’s family love each other through the sadness, and find joy in Christmas.

EXCERPT:

Something exciting happened today. Ruthie picked me up, squeezed me, and ran all over the house yelling, “It’s Christmas time. It’s Christmas time. Millie, you’re going to love Christmas.”

“Meow, meow,” I yelled back. I didn’t know what Christmas was, but Ruthie was excited, so I was too. “Meow.”

Ruthie kissed my face and whirled through the house, making me dizzy. “At Christmas we have lots of fun food, and candles, and decorations, and visiting, and candy.” She rubbed my ribs. “You’ll love it, Millie.”

I didn’t know what most of that stuff was, but it made Ruthie happy, so I knew it would be great.

Daddy and Jake brought home what Ruthie called a Christmas tree. It didn’t look like any of the trees out in the yard, with long sticks on them. This tree was bushy all over and really sharp and prickly, and they pulled it out of the ground from somewhere. Strange. But it sure smelled good.

“Now, Millie.” Ruthie carried me over to the Christmas tree. “We’re going to hang ornaments all over this tree. Please don’t bother them.”

Hmmm. I wonder what ornaments are. They must be something fun to play with.

In the middle of the night, Mama and I went to the Christmas tree and nibbled some of the branches. That was fun, and yummy, but Mama said we shouldn’t do it much, or the parents might get mad. I’d never seen them get mad, but Mama’d been around for Christmas before and knew what she was talking about. Mama was really smart.

Ruthie’s mommy started playing Christmas music. Daddy said, “Already?” Mommy just laughed and sang along with the music.

The music did sound fun—bouncy and happy. Many of the songs were about Jesus. Ruthie told me, “Jesus is the most important part of Christmas.” I didn’t know who Jesus was, but Ruthie was excited about him, so I was too. I hoped I would get to meet him.

Other Christmas songs were about snowmen and reindeer and silver bells and sleigh rides and presents and more about snow. Everything sounded like so much fun. I ran around the house with Ruthie, jumping on and off furniture. Christmas was great!

Want to read more? You can find Millie’s Christmas here

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Kathy McKinsey grew up on a pig farm in Missouri, and although she’s lived in cities for nearly 40 years, she still considers herself a farm girl.

She’s been married to Murray for 32 years, and they have five adult children.

She’s had two careers before writing—stay-at-home-Mom and rehabilitation teacher for the blind.

She lives in Lakewood, Ohio with her husband and two of her children. Besides writing, she enjoys activities with her church, editing for other writers, braille transcribing, crocheting, knitting, and playing with the cat and dog.

Connect with Kathy at:

https://www.kathymckinsey.com/

Check out Kathy’s Women’s Fiction novel All My Tears at Amazon

 

Wednesday Writers–All My Tears by Kathy McKinsey

10 Wednesday Apr 2019

Posted by Catherine Castle in Christian fiction, Wednesday Writers

≈ Comments Off on Wednesday Writers–All My Tears by Kathy McKinsey

Tags

All My Tears, Christian fiction, excerpt from All My Tears, Kathy McKinsey, stories of hope healing and love, Wednesday Writers, women's fiction

Today’s Wednesday Writers guest is author Kathy McKinsey who will be sharing about her book All My Tears and how her faith journey applies to her novel. Welcome, Kathy!

 

Thanks, Catherine.

I became a Christian when I was seventeen. Although I’ve had times in my Christian life where I felt like I was growing in my faith, I’ve also had many struggles and falls. Sometimes I felt like I was only holding on to God by my thumbnails. I realize now that during those times, truthfully, God was the one holding on to me.

My book, ALL MY TEARS, is a collection of five novellas. Each story follows a woman through a struggle, an illness, a fear—a time when she needs to find God’s strength and comfort

These stories are not autobiographical. However, I have dealt with depression for many years. I know what it’s like to fear God can’t forgive me. I am familiar with the struggle to keep a marriage and family strong.

And I know how it feels to find my Father God waiting for me, running to greet me, when I turn back to him. I know how his grace and mercy support me through my daily walk. I want to share this hope of forgiveness, healing, and strength with my readers.

Plus, I wanted to make the stories fun. I like relationships between siblings; with children and adults, not just children and parents; relationships with young adults and elders. I enjoy bringing humor into the stories any time possible.

 

All My Tears

By Kathy McKinsey

Meet five women who struggle with life’s deep sorrows. Beth fights to recover from alcoholism and to mend her relationships with her family. Ann doesn’t believe God will forgive her. Kathleen wrestles with a years-old fear and with saving her marriage. Cassie needs to learn to deal with chronic depression. Martie finds herself the single parent of the eight-year-old niece she barely knows when the child’s parents die in a car wreck.

See how God gives them the gifts of hope, healing, and love

 

Excerpt:

One Sunday at lunch, Naomi’s best friend Mark sat down next to me in the restaurant we’d gone to after church. “You know, Cassie, it’s way sad you’ve let yourself get stuck in that old people’s Sunday school class that Jeff and Sharon go to.”

“Really?”

“Oh, yeah. Almost everybody over thirty, most of them married. Stuck in their ways. Boooring.”

“Yeah, boring,” Tommy said.

“I’ll show you boring.” Sharon laughed as she spread a napkin in Tommy’s lap then tickled his neck.

“I hadn’t thought about that.” I slid a straw in Naomi’s drink.

“You’re a young person,” Mark went on. “You need to be with other young people, in a more vibrant, exciting group.”

“I’m young.” Naomi popped her head around me to look at Mark.

“Yes, you are.” I kissed her head. “If I don’t want to be in Naomi’s class, how could I find such a group, I wonder.”

“Funny you should ask.” Mark bent down to pick up a fork Naomi dropped on the floor. “I happen to be in just such a class at our church.”

“No.” My eyes widened.

“Can you believe it? A lot of singles, only a few married couples, almost nobody over thirty. People who are excited about the Bible. About life.”

“Young, vibrant people,” I suggested, catching Naomi’s drink before it also went on the floor.

“Exactly. You’ve got it.” Mark slapped his hands down on the table.

“And what Mark isn’t even bragging about”—across the table, Jeff reached to steal one of Tommy’s fries—“is that he is the teacher of the class.”

“I don’t like to think of myself as a teacher.” Mark shook his head. “Too old school, buddy. I like to think we can all learn from each other. I’m just like a … a discussion starter.”

“Hmmm, discussion starter,” Jeff said, reaching his hand toward Tommy’s plate again. “Sounds like a good excuse for not having to prepare what you’re studying beforehand.”

Tommy clapped his hand down on top of Jeff’s. “Hey.”

I nodded at Mark. “You’re right. It does look like Jeff is getting pretty old.”

Want to read more? You can find All My Tears at Amazon.

 

About the Author

Kathy McKinsey grew up on a pig farm in Missouri, and although she’s lived in cities for nearly 40 years, she still considers herself a farm girl.

She’s been married to Murray for 31 years, and they have five adult children.

She’s had two careers before writing—being a stay-at-home-Mom and working as a rehabilitation teacher for the blind.

Now she lives in Lakewood, Ohio with her husband and two of her children. Besides writing, she enjoys activities with her church, editing for other writers, braille transcribing, crocheting, knitting, and playing with the cat and dogs

Follow Kathy on her blog and Facebook

 

 

 

 

 

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