Featured Interview With Cathey Graham Nickell
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I am a writer, mother, and wife living in Houston, Texas. I’m best known as the seeing-eye-person for my little blind dog named Cricket. Cricket is a Havanese, and I love her, especially since she does not shed! I was born in New Orleans, raised in Shreveport, Louisiana, and I’ve lived in Houston since 1998. I moved to Houston to marry my wonderful husband, Kevin, and together we have a blended family of four children. Three are grown, and one son is still in high school. I self-publish under my business, Twenty-Eight Creative, and I launched my first children’s picture book, “Arthur Zarr’s Amazing Art Car,” in November 2015. After taking a few years off to raise four children, I started freelance writing again in 2012 when I was hired by the Institute for Spirituality and Health to research the history of this Houston non-profit organization. “Uniting Faith, Medicine and Healthcare: A 60-Year History of the Institute for Spirituality and Health at the Texas Medical Center” was published in 2015. The book is used as a marketing and communications tool, and all financial proceeds benefit the Institute (not me). Now I’m spending my days marketing and publicizing my children’s book about art cars! I graduated from Baylor University with a BA in Journalism in 1985; I earned a Master of Arts from Louisiana State University-Shreveport in 2013.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I started writing when I was about 5 or 6 years old. I was the type of kid who was always stapling papers together to make “a book” or punching holes in the left margin to tie a ribbon that would hold it together. I made so many books, and I still have them all. They’re silly, such as the one called, “Susan and the Snail” or “Sherlock Hemloc.” I love that I kept them all, and I still have fun going back and reading them. Perhaps I’ll update a few and self-publish them next!
My first professional writing job was while working at Baylor University for “The Lariat” — the daily campus newspaper. They actually paid me money to write, and I had a blast working there during college. My first REAL job was as a reporter/journalist for “The Shreveport Times,” a daily newspaper in my hometown. From there I moved into the field of Public Relations. I took a few years off to raise my children, but now I’m back in the writing biz.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I recently read Stephen King’s book, “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft,” and it was one of the best books I’ve read in a long time. I’m also reading Liz Gilbert’s “Big Magic” right now, and I am crazy about it. Memoirs are some of my favorites, such as: Jeannette Walls’ “The Glass Castle,” and Carole Radziwill’s “What Remains.” I’m a sucker for a great page-turner novel such as those by Gillian Flynn, Maria Semple, Paula Hawkins, Kathryn Stockett, etc. I’m also a huge Young Adult fan! I have read every book that John Green has written (“Looking For Alaska” is a favorite); I recently discovered Robyn Schneider (“The Beginning of Everything” and “Extraordinary Means”); and Rainbow Rowell (“Carry On”) was a fun read as well. Finally, you cannot replace the beautiful classics by Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Louisa May Alcott, L.M. Montgomery, and all those amazing writers, and I re-read those books over and over.
My writing is inspired by my own life experiences. Friends, family and children I come across often inspire my writing by something funny they might say. I jot down funny quotes and dialogue in a small journal that I always keep in my purse.
The books I do not read are self-help and poetry — I just cannot get into those genres and probably never will.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is a children’s picture book called, “Arthur Zarr’s Amazing Art Car.” Like many of you, I’m inspired by experiences that have happened in my life. For instance, when I moved to Houston 18 years ago, I had never heard of an art car, but I began to learn about this creative form of artistic expression. Now, I love art cars, and I enjoy snapping photos of them around Houston. One day while carpooling my son to school, I thought of the idea for “Arthur Zarr’s Amazing Art Car.” I couldn’t waste a minute, and I rushed home to write that story. Over the next few months I explored my options and chose to self-publish. That took me on a two-year journey that, when I hold my beautiful book in hand, I don’t regret. I just launched the book in November 2015, and in the first two months I have already sold 490 books! I think I made the right choice to self-publish and self-market/sell my book. It’s been so much fun. Houston is home of the first and largest Art Car Parade, and we also boast the country’s first Art Car Museum. It’s exciting that I’ve written and produced the FIRST book for kids that explains about an art car!
Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles
Cathey Graham Nickell’s Website