1. When did you start writing?

I think human beings are natural-born storytellers at heart, though not all of us want to write. I remember drawing pictures in crayon and then dictating the words that went with them to my kindergarten teacher. Back then, all of my stories were about people or animals who went for a walk. Thrillers, obviously! I’ve also kept journals on and off throughout my life (especially when I needed to vent about someone or something). It wasn’t until college that I realized real, modern-day people could pursue writing as a career, and I started honing my craft.

2. What was your journey towards becoming an author like?

My journey to becoming an author took forever. Quite literally decades. In one of Ann Patchett’s books, she says she knew she needed to write more than short stories in order to become successful—she had to write a novel. When I heard that, I decided I needed to do the same.

I finished my first novel when I was about twenty-eight, and I landed an agent for it pretty quickly. Unfortunately, none of the publishing houses picked it up. This was the late 1990s when self-publishing was pretty new, so I didn’t consider it an option. I was determined to win a place on a traditional publisher’s list. So I scrapped my first novel and wrote novel number two. I hurried through it, wrote something awful, and lost my agent. I would go on to write three or four more “practice” novels while raising a daughter and embarking on an editing career, before I decided to self-publish the sixth, most-marketable one in 2021: They Will Be Coming for Us. This became the first in a five-part sci-fi series.

3. What can you tell me about your latest book? (Feel free to include an excerpt.)

My latest book is Come Back and Haunt Me. It’s the first stand-alone I’ve published. It’s about the darker side of love—a dark romance between a good person (Veka) who believes she’s met her soulmate in a bad(ish) boy (Brady). All of my novels are high-stakes, very emotional stories. In this one, Brady dies an untimely death. Veka wishes he would come back to her, and to her surprise, his ghost does. He needs her to vouch for him in order to stay out of hell, which means she’ll have to meet with the very powerful “black box” and risk her own soul in the process.

Come Back and Haunt Me is a story about the lies we tell ourselves, the truths that set us free, and the bond that even death can’t break (click to learn more).

4. What sort of methods do you use for book promotion?

For book promotion, I’ve done all the basics and more: Built a website, set up a subscribers’ list, created a twice-a-month self-publishing and writing craft blog (you can sign up here.).

My biggest driver of sales has been email promotions via sites such as BookBub and Written Word Media. I often give away the first in my Jovian Universe series. Readers who enjoy the first book buy the next one, and sometimes read through the series, which is also on Kindle Unlimited. These promos result in downloads and Kindle Unlimited page reads.

Come Back and Haunt Me is a stand-alone, so I don’t want to give it away for free and will have to find other ways to promote it. I will take part in two literary festivals this fall and see how it does in those—I’m making a hardcover in addition to paperbacks because I think they will appeal aesthetically to those who enjoy holding a book in their hands. I also installed a Little Free Library in my front yard last summer, and I’m going to offer a dozen or so free copies to my neighborhood and hope that at least some of them like it, so I don’t have to hide my face in public!

5. Where do you get your ideas for stories?

I get my ideas everywhere. I’ve been keeping an eye out for stories and details since I was twenty years old, so I’ve become pretty good at recognizing the spark of an idea that intrigues me. I’ve had dreams that gave me good ideas, and I’ve been inspired by other books that I’ve read and films, documentaries, and series that I’ve watched.

6. What are you working on right now?

At the time of this printing, I will have just released Come Back and Haunt Me. The next book I’ll write is Book 2 in my vampire series called The Angel of Death trilogy. I am eager to move on to something new. After I’ve proofread a book five or ten times, I’m ready to move on!

7. Any advice for other authors?

My advice is to have patience. Good writing doesn’t happen overnight. And good writing isn’t even enough. You must tell an interesting story. When reviews come in, a few might offhandedly comment on smooth writing or beautiful prose, but most readers don’t comment on the writing at all. Readers expect writers to be good at their craft.

The story—or the promise of the story—is the reason they’ve picked up your book and decided to give it a chance. The tale you tell must be, in their mind, worth their time and energy—and the cost of the book. Believe me, they will be thrilled if they are blown away by your amazing narrative. Everyone is looking for their next five-star read.

ABOUT KIM:

Kim Catanzarite writes character-driven science fiction, dark fantasy, and supernatural suspense. Her novels are a mix of heartfelt drama, fast-paced adventure, engaging plot twists, and unique imagination. She is the author of the Jovian Universe series and the Angel of Death series. Come Back and Haunt Me is her first stand-alone novel. Kim lives in New Jersey with her husband and daughter.