It’s THREE WEEKS until Publication Day and I could not be more excited to share A SONG FOR THE ROAD with the world! It is the story of a church musician who, a year after losing her entire family in a car accident, embarks on a cross-country musical road trip to honor their memory. It’s…
Read MoreAll articles filed in Kathleen
Novelist, composer, choir director, hobby photographer, mom of four, and budding disability rights activist--why yes, in fact I do have my hands full.
The “Daily Buzz”
One of my daughter Julianna’s IEP goals for this year is to learn to express herself in writing. We’ve always had trouble getting from her what is going on in school; she needs help learning to bring what’s in her head, well, out of it. Her absolutely fabulous teacher identified that as a real need…
Read MoreOf Stress And Gratitude
My sophomore year in college, I entered my first flute competition. As the fall wore on, I found myself lying awake at night, exhausted yet sleepless, every breath an effort. It took me a ridiculously long time to piece it together. One day the light bulb went on. “Oh!” I said. “I’m stressed!” And then,…
Read MorePublication -10 weeks: Green Bank Telescope
I am officially ten weeks away from PUBLICATION DAY! A Song For The Road is the story of a musician on a road trip across America, following a smart phone app written for her by the daughter she lost. Planning the road trip was, hands down, the most fun I had writing this book, but…
Read MoreGiving away an advanced readers’ copy!
Head over to Instagram to enter a giveaway for an advanced readers’ copy of my novel, A SONG FOR THE ROAD!
Read MoreA peek behind the curtain: revision
I had a lovely writing day yesterday. The Women’s Fiction Writers Association has been amazing on every level–community, networking, professional development, skill building. But just when I thought I’d discovered every way I could tap into its resources, I started attending virtual writing dates. I never used to need other people to motivate me, but…
Read MoreRethinking Priorities
It is time to choose next year’s classes for my three middle- and high-schoolers. Going through this process this year made me realize how much the upheaval of the last year has actually benefited me as a parent–strengthened and sensitized me, reshaped and reordered my priorities. I was a straight-A student, and as such, parenthood…
Read MoreAn Update On My Chromosomally-Gifted Girl
A few weeks ago I posted on Instagram about my chromosomally-gifted girl’s adventures in color guard costuming. The response was so sweet, it reminded me that for all my personal interests of music and fiction and photography, it’s my daughter you all like to read about the most. It’s been quite a while since I…
Read MoreFive on a Friday with Cara Sue Achterberg
As promised, we’re starting something new today! One of the great things about the publication process is how many other authors I get to “meet.” We all hear about the big, flashy books by big-name authors, but there are a host of gems we as readers may never even hear of. I’m seeing a lot…
Read MoreA little fun for Epiphany week
Normally, my husband’s and my choir does a “Farewell to Christmas” concert on Epiphany Sunday. Of course, in COVID era, we haven’t had choir, so our family decided to do the concert ourselves via the church’s live stream so the tradition would remain unbroken. My parents watched the concert and when I talked to them…
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