Kathleen Marentes–Interview

For the next couple of days, I will be featuring author Kathleen Marentes. I loved her first book, The Shadows Breathe, and the second one, The Shadows Fall, just came out on Kindle! Paperback coming soon.

First, let’s find out about the author herself.

What do you do when you’re not writing?

Thinking about writing! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve caught myself mentally adding narration to a conversation I’m engaged in. I also can’t listen to music without writing scenes to it. But when I do manage to focus on something else, I enjoy baking and spending time with my kids. Lately, they’ve gotten me into making those rubberband-loom bracelets!

What was your favorite book as a child or teen?

I had several versions of Black Beauty as a child, but Anna Sewell’s was always my favorite. It’s such a beautiful story from the horse’s point of view, and so perfectly embodies the story of a horse’s life. They have no choice in their path, and it’s not always a good one. One year my father surprised me with a pocket-sized copy of the original with a note from him written inside. I still have it and love it!

Do you write with an outline or just write?

I start out by finding music that fits the mood/voice/feel of the book and listen to it repeatedly. I find that by doing that whole scenes and new ideas will come to me. Then I write an outline. I like to have it so I know the general direction I’m heading in. But the outline is flexible and often changes drastically during the actual writing.

Are there certain characters you would like to go back to, or is there a theme or idea you’d love to work with further?

Erica Arnolds stands out in The Shadows Breathe, because she’s the zany friend who insists on being called a sidekick and isn’t afraid to jump into some crazy scheme to help out her friends. I think she could have a good story of her own, and I may have to experiment with that down the road. I also have something of an alternate-reality version of the story in mind, but until the series is complete, I can’t elaborate too much!