Interview with Katt Anderson

Happy Monday, Reader Friends!

Thanks for stopping by to check out my interview with Katt Anderson. Katt’s stopped by to talk about her latest novel, Smoky Mountain Brides. Don’t you just love the title? Let’s find out more!

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About the Book

The Blurb: “Kyla Porter and Becki Hunley had been friends since childhood. They had gone to church and school together and had graduated from the University of Tennessee. They parted ways when Becki moved to Nashville to enter the country music field while Kyla continued her education in veterinary school and eventually moved to northern Mississippi to practice veterinary medicine.

Scarred by a tragic ending to a relationship, Kyla finds it hard to trust any man, even the handsome teacher she meets at Graceland, who seems too good to be true. Becki finds the perfect man for her, a handsome doctor she meets at church, and both she and Kyla become engaged within a few months of each other. They had always dreamed of being each other’s maid or matron of honor when they married, but their plans are in jeopardy when their wedding dates are in conflict. Will they be able to solve their dilemma, or will their dream die?”

Links: Amazon, Goodreads

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Interview

Toni:  Welcome, Katt! Thank you so much for joining me today. Let’s talk about your novel, Smoky Mountain Brides. What an interesting premise! What made you decide to focus on best friends?

Katt: It was a “what if?” moment. What if best friends, who had moved to different parts of the world became engaged at approximately the same time and set their wedding dates on almost the same date. These two characters had planned since high school to have each other as their bride maid/matron of honor. I don’t think I ever had a best friend that close. It was a fun idea.

Toni: It is a fun idea! What’s it like writing with another person? How does that process look?

Katt: It was fun working with Pam. We think alike and she was very easy to work with. We talked about our synopsis and coordinated our facts. We are good friends so that helped. Pam is our Grammar Queen at Mantle Rock Publishing, so I feel I know her pretty well. We had a basic idea of each of our characters, but the hard part, and the rewriting, came at the end. We had to coordinate the times of things happening like the engagement. That was a little tricky because Kayla and Colt dated longer than Adam and Becki did. The funniest thing was the wedding dresses. I picked out Becki’s dress and took a picture to our writers group. Pam and I discussed our dresses as the members were coming in. We had to explain it was a character in the book, not a family member. I would do it again, but I don’t think I could do it with anyone but Pam.

Toni: Sounds like a neat experience! Do you have any personal experiences that helped you in writing this novel? If not, how did that effect your research?

Katt: Since Becki was in the music industry in Nashville, TN I had to do some research on a publicist. A cousin of mine who passed away last year was a song writer. Several of his songs were recorded by Garth Brooks and Joe Diffy, so I guess I had that experience of knowing a little about the music industry. We have a country music playhouse, Kentucky Opry, here in Benton, KY. My husband and I had been to several of the shows and a couple of the ladies at church work there during the performances taking up tickets, etc. I contacted the owner who is a consultant and teaches up and coming performers. Clay Campbell was very nice to talk to me and answer a lot of my questions. Of course the internet is a great place to do research.

Toni: The internet rocks! Did you listen to Christmas music for inspiration or do you require complete silence when writing?

Katt: I have to have complete silence when I write. Office door closed a lot of the time. My husband respects my office space. If I do listen to music, it’s Celtic instrumentals. I will listen to Celtic Woman, and I think I did play one of the Christmas albums during the writing.

Toni: I’m a big music listener when writing. 🙂 What are three elements that are always present in your writing and why?

Katt: Clean fiction because the world is filled with too much filth.
A pleasant outlook on life, again there is too much violence in the world.
Although I don’t preach in my novels, I like to put something about the characters faith in God. As a Christian I couldn’t write any other way.

Toni: Amen! What is your favorite thing about Christmas?

Katt: Family. It’s hard to get all of us together at one time, and we have to coordinate between our in-laws families. I love it when all members of the family are together and talking and laughing. I sit in my recliner and think how blessed I am.

Toni: What would Christmas be without family? Do you like pumpkin spice or apple?

Katt: At Christmas and Thanksgiving it has to be pumpkin pie. But we love apples and we make apple butter outside under an open flame in a brass kettle. Love the spices and smell.

Toni: My stomach is growling. 🙂 Coffee or tea and how do you doctor it?

Katt: Definitely coffee with Vanilla Caramel creamer. I’m Southern, so sweet tea is next best. Coffee is still the favorite.

Toni: 3 cheers for sweet tea! Thanks again for joining me today. Before you leave, can you tell us what’s next in your writing journey?

Katt: I don’t have a lot of time to write with the publishing company we own. When I can put the company to bed at night, I’m working on a romantic suspense. It’s completely different from anything I’ve written so far, and I’m having to do a lot of research. It may take me over a year to get it finished.

Toni: Well praying words and fun in writing!

Katt: Thank you, Toni for having me on your blog. Since I do have a publishing company, you can visit me at www.mantlerockpublishingllc.com. We are always looking for writers and readers.

Toni: Thank you so much! Readers, do you have any questions for Katt?

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About the Author

Kathy Cretsinger writes under the name of Katt Anderson. She lives in Kentucky with her husband of fifty plus years. They have two grown children, four grandchildren, no cats or dogs, but a few squirrels who live around the walnut trees. When not writing, you’ll find Kathy people watching, reading, enjoying her flower garden, going to activities her grandchildren are involved in, or helping authors with their manuscripts. Kathy also speaks at writers conferences. She and her husband, Jerry, are owners of Mantle Rock Publishing LLC. You can visit her at www.mantlerockpublishingllc.com.

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