Featured Interview With Cathy MacRae
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Growing up in the hills of Tennessee, I backpacked along the Appalachian Trail and canoed nearby rivers. I now live in the foothills of the Arbuckle Mountains, many miles and a climate away. It’s pretty clear I’m more of a mountain than beach person, though I love both. I enjoy taking the dogs (three German Shepherds) along when my husband and I go on vacation. Last year we only had 2 dogs, so this summer looks to be rather interesting.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have always been an avid reader. Getting sent to my room as punishment was never a hardship, lol! I could spend hours with just a book for company. My second favorite place to read was sprawled on my sturdy pony’s back, book propped on her wide rump. She never minded.
I’ve always been a story-teller, but put pen to words when I was in high school. There my best friend and I re-wrote such classics as Romeo and Juliet as Julian and Ramona. It gave us a cool way to read and interpret Shakespeare’s story without simply hitting the Cliffnotes. And our classmates enjoyed it, too! Years later I would start writing with an eye to publishing my own works.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I love reading historical fiction. I tend to gravitate to more medieval books, but really enjoy WWI and WWII stories as well. Just recently, my husband introduced me to the urban fantasy genre, and I have to say I’m intrigued. Some of these new-to-me authors include Patricia Briggs, JR Rain, and Faith Hunter. A few of my comfortable favorites are Grace Burrowes, Kathryn le Veque, and Margaret Mallory. I’ve been known to toss back a few romantic suspense and thriller novels, too.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book, co-authored with long-time critique partner DD MacRae, is The Highlander’s Crusader Bride. DD has a knack of picking out a period in history that has an intriguing turn of events and suggesting a story based on this. In The Highlander’s Crusader Bride, DD had been studying the Crusades, and wanted to know how a young woman raised in the Holy Land would fare in Scotland. More than clothing and climate differences, we wanted to explore culture, food and religion. How would the Scots perceive her? How would she perceive them? Could we take a dyed-in-the wool Scotsman and entice him to fall in love with a hard-headed woman who’d grown up on adventure and intrigue? What on earth would have to happen before she fell in love with him? And, to tell you the truth, after creating Arbela MacLean and Caelen MacKern, I was a bit unsure either would change their prejudices enough to enjoy their HEA.
But I absolutely love this book. So much, that it took a little over three months to complete this book. That’s a record for us that might never be contested, lol! As Arbela grew emotionally from a confidant (perhaps arrogant) warrior into a woman who was not afraid to give her life to another, Caelen lost his narrow-minded view of women and learned his wife was strong and honorable–and he possibly was unworthy of her.
I’ll leave it to you to read how this happened. I think you’ll enjoy their journey.
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