WHAT THE *BLEEP* IS A CAT WRITER? by Mollie Hunt, Cat Writer

Today is the final day of the 25^th Annual Cat Writers’ Association Conference, and I’m sad for it to end. The time went by fast, with presentations, networking, and good meals among old and new friends. People won awards, made connections, and learned things about cats and cat writing. I enjoyed it all, from the fiction panel in which I participated to the book sales and signing event. If you are a cat writer, artist, blogger, photographer, or pursue any creative aspect of the cat, you, too, might consider joining the Cat Writers’ Association. It has been very helpful for me. (And fun, too!)

But what exactly is a cat writer, you ask.

When you Google Cat Writer, you really don’t get a whole lot of joy. Most of the links go to various paws of the CWA. But there you have it: If there is a Cat Writers’ Association, then it logically follows that there are cat writers. That these fur-tive storytellers are difficult to define makes perfect sense when you consider the mysterious and unique nature of the animal they emulate.

It’s really very simple: cat writers write cat-centric books and stories. They write both fiction  and non-fiction, anything that features felines in a majority of the content. (A cat on the book cover or sitting on Grandma’s lap in chapter seven does not a cat book make.) Cat non-fiction includes but is not limited to cat memoir, cat help, cat poetry, and cat behavior. Cat fiction can be just about anything: cat mysteries, cat cozies, and cat sci-fi are only a few of the more popular sub-sub genres.

Why write cat? What is it about the feline species that propels it to such literary popularity? When did writers first begin to introduce cats as a vital part of their stories? Why do readers lap them up like a saucer of cream?*

Do you have a favorite cat book or cat writer? If so, let me know, and I will do my best to reply. (Be aware that I’m still having problems with that. For some reason, no matter how many times I log in to Blogger, it doesn’t recognize me and my comments just disappear! I’ve tried everything short of a new computer, which isn’t going to happen. Sometimes it works perfectly though, just to drive me crazy.)

*(PS: milk products, including cream, are not good for adult cats and will likely cause diarrhea)

Check out more blogs by Mollie Hunt, Cat Writer at:

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BACKLOG, by Mollie Hunt, Cat Writer

 If you don’t count a brief obsession when I was in fourth grade or the scifi novel I started when I was a hippie, my writing career began in 1994 when my husband went to work in Japan, leaving me alone in Portland, Oregon.

We were having new carpeting installed in the bedroom, so the bed had been moved into his office, directly across from his computer. Not used to being on my own, I often couldn’t sleep and would stare at that blank, black monitor screen. I loved reading mysteries and had a few thoughts of writing one; now here was my chance!

            I considered for several nights more, then during one post-midnight awake session, I got up and began. I didn’t know anything about computers, having only used one on rare occasions, but I found a writing program (WordPerfect 0.00001 or some such), inserted a floppy disk so I wouldn’t use up space on the hard drive, and began to type.

            Then, as now, I came up with the title first: The Oldest House. It was a story of a thirty-something antiques and collectible dealer who finds a framed print with a picture of an old house hidden behind it. Off she goes on adventures; there is a murder; she meets a man who is either the murderer or the prince of her dreams; she gets herself into danger and is almost killed… It was a basic plot, but I loved it and I loved writing it. Before I knew it, I had a full forty-five pages! There was no turning back.

            The page count grew into 450, and I began the process of querying agents and publishers. I got one personal response that I took to heart: the murder should happen in the first ten pages. I rewrote the beginning, sent it back, and received a rejection slip, but I didn’t care. By that time I had started my second book.

            The second mystery, Broken Roses,  was a tough one with a complex plot that spanned several decades. I found myself incorporating details from my own life, including the basis for the book, a letter by a young jilted girl that we found in the walls of our house. In my story, the woman goes a little crazy. There is a rape scene, which I wrote with tears streaming down my face as I recalled my own abuse. It was cathartic though, and I didn’t regret the scene.

            This book was not picked up by publishers or agents either.

            Next, I tried something lighter, first of a would-be series called Catts and the Seven of Swords. L.E. (Elly) Catts is a West Coast photographer, who along with her assistant Ryan and his cat Medusa, finds the usual, and some unusual, trouble concerning the witches, the Tarot, and a body on a slab. This was the first time I’d incorporated the cat.

            Again, no one wanted the book, and I bought an accordion folder to house my mounting collection of rejection slips. I knew I wasn’t working hard enough on the interminable chore of query letters and synopses, but I only had so much time, and I’d rather spend it writing stories.

I moved on to something completely different, the series that turned out to be what I consider my masterpiece. The idea for the Cat Seasons tetralogy began with my old cat Dirty Harry sleeping under a hosta plant in the heat of summer. Twitching in his sleep, dreaming his cat dreams, the scifi-fantasy Cat Summer was born, followed by Cat Winter, Cat Autumn, and Cat Spring. The idea was basic— cats saving the world— but the premise was fascinating, and soon I’d woven a rich tapestry of time travel, alternate universes, and a devil without a soul. Now, many edits later, I’m proud to announce the first of the tetralogy, Cat Summer, will be published sometime this year by Fire Star!

            I still think of that backlog of first books, The Oldest House, Broken Roses,  and the L.E. Catts series. Sometimes they call to me, and every once in a while, I listen.

Check out more blogs by Mollie Hunt, Cat Writer at:

Mollie Hunt: Crazy Cat Lady Mysteries and more

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CAT STUFF, by Mollie Hunt

I don’t consider myself a collector. The idea that I purposefully go out seeking cat objects is ludicrous. Yet when I look around me, at my desk, my shelves, my bookcase, my jewelry, even my clothing, I have to wonder. From every side, round furry faces with pointed ears and bright gem eyes stare back at me. Plush, wood, ceramic, paper – there are cats. Cats everywhere. But I’m not a collector. 

There is something about the fluid shape of a cat, the perfect symmetry (or in some cases, perfectly imperfect) that pleases the eye and soothes the soul. When I am sad or lost for words, I run my gaze over the long back and shapely tail. When I am anxious, the serenity of a sleeping cat calms me. And when I’m just here and present, I enjoy looking at their form. To me, cats are flawless.

I’m picky about the cat items with which I surround myself. I can tell whether the artist has a true affinity for cats or he is just doing a design job. Cutsie kittens or uncat-like caricatures are not my preference. On the other hand, I enjoy the strange colors of the whimsical post-war MIJ figures, the Oaxacan carved totems, and the Japanese maneki-neko, because the pieces embody the personality of a real cat. 

I have many pictures of cats, portraits of cats-gone-by, photos of my beautiful current cats. There is an original wood block print by San Francisco artist Louise Gilbert and a linoleum print made by an unknown child. In my office is a wall calendar, a day planner, and cat-a-day. Over my living room couch hang 6 photos by Best Friends Sanctuary photographer Clay Meyers. I once sent him a snapshot of my kitty Harry lounging on the couch back in front of his work.

Though I don’t keep them on my bed like a starry-eyes teenager any more, I have a number of stuffed plush cats, One growls when pressed; another walks, driving my real cats crazy; yet another is in itself a cat toy. I also have a tribble who trills, given to me by author David Gerrold, but that’s another story. 

There is more – much more: cat lamp, cat needlepoint, cat tile, cat vase, cat cup, cat salt and pepper. But I assure you once again, I do not collect cat stuff. Ask me about my Star Trek autographs. Now that’s a collection!

Check out more blogs by Mollie Hunt at:

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THE SCARY THING ABOUT CAT EDITORS, by Mollie Hunt

Editor Cat-There are Days, by Rogena Mitchell-Jones Manuscript Service

Tinkerbelle is looking at me from her bed behind my monitor where she does her best editing. She knows what I’m thinking. She knows I don’t have a clue what I’m about to write, and she knows I’m going to fudge my way through in spite of that. Cats know these things, but…

How do they know?

 

Tinkerbelle, Prime Editor

I turn slightly and see Tink is not alone; Little is also watching. She wants to see what I do next. She looks exceedingly smug, knowing that if she doesn’t like it, she will drift her feathery fur across my touch screen and make it all disappear in a fizzle of pixel-fire.

 “No, Little, no! It can’t be that bad. Can it?”

Little, Hands-on Editor

There has been a lot of buzz on the internet lately about cat editors. You think we’re kidding? That the phrase, cat editor, is just a cute way of saying we like to work with a cat on our laps? Not true. Cats know a good story when they hear one, and since they are essentially telepathic, they often know a writer’s work before the writer does.

Tinkerbelle is purring as she pushes me for full disclosure. Okay, I admit my title is misleading: I don’t find cats scary, and certainly not my own little clowder.

Keep Writing or the Claws Come Out, by Jordan L. Hawk

No, I’m not afraid of cats or their arsenal of arcane abilities. Bring them on, the more the better! (Limited only by my finances and how many litter boxes I can clean in a morning.) Their talent for reading my mind and at times, influencing it, is a good thing; after all, what would a cat writer be without cats?

The fact that my books revolve around cats doesn’t seem strange to me.

When sometimes I find myself writing from their perspective, well, that isn’t so weird, is it? Someone needs to tell their stories.

When I have crazy cat lady dreams and wake up with a cat on my head, that’s just normal, right?

But sometimes when I close my eyes, I begin to purr…

 

Be afraid! Be furry afraid!

 

Tinkerbelle, the black floofy female with one white whisker, is a 15 year old rescued stray who until recently worked with me as a therapy cat. Little, also female, black (with a pendant), and a rescue, is 9 and sassy. Big Red, the orange tabby male, adopted me. His age is thought to be around 12.

 

 

Check out more blogs by Mollie Hunt at:

Mollie Hunt: Crazy CatLady Mysteries and more

 

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THE WILLING SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF by Mollie Hunt

 

 “Suspension of disbelief or willing suspension of disbelief is a term coined in 1817 by the poet and aesthetic philosopher Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who suggested that if a writer could infuse a "human interest and a semblance of truth" into a fantastic tale, the reader would suspend judgement concerning the implausibility of the narrative…” ~Wikipedia

 

Without what is known as the suspension of disbelief, there would be no story. At least there would be no fiction, and I bet a good percentage of essays and memoirs would take a hit as well. Suspension of disbelief is the leap of faith the reader must take to enter into worlds not their own.
 

Without suspension of disbelief, old ladies could not be young again in the arms of the handsome prince, stranger, outlaw, bad boy, bad girl, or alien. Without suspension of disbelief, space ships couldn’t zoom across space “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” Without suspension of disbelief,  a small New England town couldn’t sustain a murder a week for 12 years. Without suspension of disbelief, zombies couldn’t apocalypse, heroes couldn’t save the world, cats couldn’t talk, and pigs couldn’t fly. You get the picture.
 

 

 

How does a writer achieve suspension of disbelief? It’s far more complex than tossing out a quirky plot to see where it lands. A reader must be drawn in gently as if into a trap, inch by inch without ever realizing they are being led. That requires a preliminary foundation, baby steps down the rabbit hole.

 

 

FANTASY FAIRY KITTEN CATS

by Artist Cyra R. Cancel

 

In my sci-fantasy series, Cat Seasons, I need my reader to believe cats can save the world from alien and otherworldly threats. To do that, I first must convince my reader that cats can talk - within the first chapter! I personally have no problem accepting miraculous cat behavior – I wait longingly for Tinkerbelle or Little or Red to say something! Anything! It doesn’t have to be profound or prophetic, just a hi, how are you would be fine - but some readers need more convincing. It turns out my protagonist does, too. As the cats convince her, they convince the reader as well. It’s not just dialogue, though – “Hi, I’m a talking cat” doesn’t cut it. There has to be more. Environment, a dream-like state, an intense sensitivity to scents and sounds,  and a sprinkle of deviant moonlight all help to persuade. I try to create a picture so compelling, the reader wants to believe.

 

In my Crazy Cat mysteries, I parallel  a truer universe, one where people work and volunteer and pay bills and go to the bathroom. But then suddenly the path takes a twist into the unfamiliar, landing the reader in the midst of murder and mayhem, where hopefully, they don't in reality go.

 

 

Mystery Cat by LadyTashigi

 

Suspension of disbelief is in the details, the mix of fact and fantasy. It’s in the description, both what is offered on the page and what is left out. It’s in the presentation of evidence that, unlike law, is not beyond reasonable doubt. It is the miracle of possibility.

 

Do you believe? Do you want to?

 

 

Elf Ranger by cypritree

 

 

Check out more blogs by Mollie Hunt at:

Mollie Hunt: Crazy Cat Lady Mysteries and more

 Happy reading!



 

#NewRelease--NINE DEADLY LIVES An Anthology of Feline Fiction--#Giveaway!

From magic to murder, from felines to faeries, the authors of NINE DEADLY LIVES spin thirteen tales featuring those sometimes aloof and occasionally dangerous but always adorable creatures we know and love as cats! Whether it's mystery, fantasy, historical, or romance, these cat tales provide plenty of entertainment and thrills!

As a Hollywood stuntwoman, Beth Hallam follows in her famous dad’s footsteps. But can she measure up as a private eye, as well? In Livia J. Washburn’s SECOND NATURE, Beth must solve her first attempted murder case—on a cat!

Can Dominique dare to hope she—the girl everyone shunned—could win the love of sexy Bran MacKenzie, the most popular guy in town?  In Deborah Macgillivray’s SHOES, SHADES, AND FAERYDUST, it might happen! Take red shoes, a pair of sunglasses, and sprinkle liberally with golden faerydust, and you have a magic spell in the making…

Lovey Villines’s cat, Mr. Fred, is the only witness to her possible murder. Brady Rowe, a veteran police officer, searches for a key that will open MR. FRED’S TREASURE BOX and possibly clear everything up. But what will become of Mr. Fred in Cheryl Pierson’s tale of squabbling siblings and “treasure” to be had?

When cat lady Lynley Cannon discovers a stray kitten trapped in a gym bag, she finds herself pursued through Portland’s warehouse district by gun-wielding thugs.  Lynley is not about to give up the kit to those crazies, so the race is on. Will Lynley survive? Come find out in Mollie Hunt’s CAT’S CRADLE!

In Isabella Norse’s THE NERD IN SHINING ARMOR, working girl Abby needs a hero. Ryan, her neighbor, needs an assistant. Can a battle-scarred tabby with a penchant for quoting from Star Wars bring them together?

Rochelle Spencer’s tale, THE CAT ON COOGAN’S BLUFF, involves a cranky detective who uncovers secrets about baseball, Harlem, and cats. The clues are scarce, and hinge on Harlem’s mysterious residents, a blue-eyed Persian, and an old love gone bad. 

In MISSING LYNX, Clay More pens a story of supernatural tragedy that seems to never end. It is 1926, and the world mourns silent movie heart-throb Rudolph Valentino who has tragically died at the age of thirty-one. But Rudolph’s death is only the first in a series of tragedies in this supernatural feline murder mystery tale from the silent movie era.

C. A. Jamison’s story, DREAM WEAVER, has California newcomer Mary Price being given the impossible task of reading three romance novels in three days. Mary is in disbelief when her newly-adopted cat has her dreaming the outcomes of the stories. The handsome blue-eyed stranger is the hero in each novel, and Mary has no idea she is falling in love with her new boss.

In Mariah Lynne’s CLAWS FOR JUSTICE, two spunky shelter cats, Shurlock and Wattson, learn their time at the shelter is up. The furry duo finds a clever way to escape their fate, only to find their caretaker, Robby, dead. They now must make it their mission to find Robby’s killer and bring him to justice before they get caught again.

WHO LET THE CATS OUT? That’s the question in this story by Faye Rapoport DesPres. When a mysterious fire tears through the main house of the Jane S. Dooley Cat Shelter, Adalyn, the shelter’s director, vows to keep the shelter open. Now, Adalyn has two mysteries on her hands: Who set the fire, and who let the cats out?  

In Brandy Herr’s tale, after Larry's wife walks out on him, the sudden arrival of a mysterious calico cat appears to be just what he needs to lift his spirits.  But appearances can be deceiving. Will THE CALICO be a blessing... or a curse?

Angela Crider Neary pens a supernatural story about an enchanting cat named ANGEL, a series of suspicious fires, and a Colorado sheriff who finds himself wondering if cats really do have nine lives—and trying to figure out who the next victim will be.

Bill Crider’s THE EASTER CAT—When Hollywood private-eye Bill Ferrel gave a ride to the Easter Bunny, he thought he was just doing a friend a favor.  How was he to know he’d wind up chasing a cat through the jungle and trying to prevent a murder?

Be sure to leave a comment to be entered into a drawing for a free ecopy of NINE DEADLY LIVES!

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