Cathy Liggett: She found love at her ten-year high school reunion

I'm so excited to have Cathy Liggett visiting Everything Writerly today. Thank you, Cathy, for stopping by.

For those of you who don't know Cathy, grab a cup of coffee and pull up a chair and read her bio below:

Cathy Liggett is the author of Beaded Hope, the 2011 Carol Award winner for Women’s Fiction in 2011, also nominated for Best Inspirational Novel of the Year in RT’s 2010 Reviewer’s Choice Awards.   But as much as Cathy enjoys writing women’s fiction, she can’t resist writing romance, too, and has several to her credit.  However, she didn’t have to do any kind of romantic plotting when, at her ten-year high school reunion, she re-met and quickly wed a childhood sweetheart.  Married nearly thirty years now, their two grown children are spread across the country, thankfully in cities that are wonderful to visit.  Luckily, too, almost two years ago, she and her husband rescued a boxer-mix named Chaz. Now they have another creature to spoil and keep their house hopping.


Here's a blurb about her latest novel: 

Sometimes love throws a curveball.

 Megan O’Donnell has everything under control: her job as a physical therapist, single motherhood, and anything else life throws her way.  She has to. . .since her husband walked out on her and their son when Sammy was born with cerebral palsy – taking with him her trust in men and God too.  Resilient, Megan’s heading up All-Stars Sports Day, an event for special needs kids like Sammy. But her planning meeting is hijacked when MacNeill Hattaway, former mega-star pitcher for the Tri-state Hawks, shows up—with a news crew, no less!

Out for the season, recovering from an injury, MacNeill hopes to heal physically and spiritually.  He’s also hoping his celebrity status might help with Megan’s event.  But that’s only if he can get her to believe he isn’t up to a self-serving publicity stunt, and he isn’t the womanizer he used to be.

As the two unite for the kids’ sakes, their hearts begin to meld.  But without God’s guidance, are they out of their league when it comes to long-lasting love?

And now for the interview with Cathy!

What genre do you write in?

Andrea, thank you for letting me share on Everything Writerly!  I write contemporary, both light-hearted romances and more serious women’s fiction.  I find I’m happy doing one or the other. I guess we all pretty much have both extremes churning inside us, don’t we? 

How much spirituality do you weave into your story?

Weave is the perfect word.  I know I don’t like it when I get clobbered over the head by someone else’s views or doctrines, no matter what the subject.  So I try to tailor (no pun intended!) the spiritual theme so that it matches the character’s personality and personal growth.  For example, in A Wedding Homerun in Loveland, Ohio, the heroine Megan doesn’t really pray much or delve too deeply into spiritual matters.  She’s too busy trying to be a Super Mom and control everything all on her own (hmm, wonder where I came up with that idea?) But by the end…well, guess I shouldn’t tell the ending, should I?

What is your general purpose as an author?

Forever ago, when I was in junior high, we had to write a short story that used the opening clause, “It was a cold and rainy night, and…”  My story ended up being about a dad who got killed in a car crash when he went out in the awful weather to buy a birthday present for his little girl (could I be any more gloomy?)  Anyway, when my paper got read out loud, the girls in my class cried.  But it wasn’t until years later, that I realized that I liked that.  I like to try to write things that make people feel something – make them smile, or cry (not too much though!) – just feel.  And if I can win over people with a story that touches them – and then at the same time get them the least bit interested in searching out a relationship with Christ – wow!  That would be wonderful.  But as I’ve come to learn, especially through my journey in writing Beaded Hope, that’s truly God’s department.  He knows a reader’s heart – I don’t.  He knows what a person  needs to glean in between the words on a page that will bring that person closer to Him – whereas again, I don’t.  He has all of that totally under control.  Often, it has little to do with me.

What message do you hope to convey to readers, either in this latest book or in all your books?

I suppose if there’s one message I’d like to convey it would be hope – to remain hopeful in Christ no matter what’s going on in life.  It’s something I’m always needing to remind myself of! 

But just because I’m the one doing the writing, the messages don’t always come from me necessarily.  My dedication in A Wedding Homerun in Loveland, Ohio, goes to people in my community of Loveland who have inspired me and the book.  So many of the messages in this book (and others I’ve written) aren’t mine – they’re theirs.  Nuggets of wisdom I’ve recalled from a pro ball player, a ladies Bible study facilitator, a boy with cerebral palsy who was my son’s childhood friend.  I love sprinkling in their messages of faith onto my pages the same way they have sprinkled them into my life.

Did you ever have a memorable book-signing?

I’ve had such fun at book-signings, meeting wonderful new people, catching up with old friends, or even interesting times sitting there alone making out a grocery list, trying to look like I’m all involved in some new story. But I can still remember how I felt at my Pitter Patter signing in 2005.  It was with 400+ other authors at the RWA conference in Reno. I sold one copy of my sweet romance- thanks to an equally sweet RWA chapter buddy.  But all the while I was teary-eyed and giving thanks to God, feeling so humble and happy to be sitting in such a huge ocean of talent.  Honestly, I could’ve cared less if anyone knew I was there.  I did, and that was more than enough for me.

Is there a person in your life who made a remarkable difference in your writing? 

No doubt about it, my critique partners, who are also my very dear friends.  A few of them have come and gone over the years, but I’ve been sharing bagels and chapters with three core ladies – Shelley Shepard Gray, Heather Webber, and Hilda Knepp – every other Friday morning for nearly ten years now.  I didn’t know what POV or voice or so many other things were when they first invited me to be a part of their group.  They have prodded, plotted, coddled, edited, cried, and celebrated with me through so many writing experiences and life experiences too.  They are an incredibly huge part of both!

What’s next for you as an author?

I have some proposals out there for both romance and women’s fiction, so I’m crossing my fingers -- and saying lots of prayers, of course!  I’m also especially excited about running into a writer I used to share editorial duties with at a gift product company many years ago.  We’re now working on an exciting (I think it is anyway!) devotional series that should be ready to pitch this fall.  It’s been so enjoyable to write. I really hope an editor will love the project as much as we do.

FOR MORE INFO ON CATHY – and to see where Megan met Mac from A Wedding Homerun in Loveland, Ohio, first met and fell in love – please visit her website at www.cathyliggett.com

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Thank you, Cathy, for that great interview. I'd like to inform our readers that Cathy will graciously give a copy of her latest book away so leave your name and email address in the comment section. The drawing will be held on Thursday morning. 

                                                                                                                        ~AKB