Today’s special guest is children’s author Katherine Pendergast, AKA Kat Socks. She’s chatting with me about her new picture book, Goodbye Bella, A Pet Loss Story.
Bio:
Katherine Pendergast’s beloved 11-year-old Great Dane, Carmela, passed away on February 19, 2022. Katherine and Carmela were a certified pet therapy team for the majority of Carmela’s life. They volunteered, working with children in their community. Carmela always knew it was time to work when she wore her uniform. She was an incredible dog and brought a smile to many children throughout her career. Katherine’s other Great Dane, Meadow, passed away on May 5, 2022, just shy of her 11th birthday. Meadow was a spunky Great Dane with a big personality who could make anyone smile with her goofy antics. Katherine dedicated her newest book Goodbye Bella, A Pet Loss Story, to Carmela and Meadow, the gentle giants.
Katherine lives with her family in Bismarck, North Dakota. She has also written several other books, including award-winning and number-one bestsellers. Her works include Pickles the Dog: Adopted, Pickles the Dog: A Christmas Tradition, Pickles the Dog: Goes to School, and Babies of the Badlands. She has also coauthored I’m a Spinosaurus: Bigger Than a T-Rex, In Loving Memory: A Child’s Journey to Understanding a Funeral and Starting the Grieving Process, and In Loving Memory: A Child’s Journey to Understanding a Cremation Funeral and Starting the Grieving Process.
Welcome, Katherine. What do you enjoy most about writing short stories/children’s books/novellas?
I enjoy taking tough topics and putting them into simple, kind, and gentle words for children. I have written on topics such as pet adoption, pet loss, human loss, and grieving. I love seeing how many families the books have helped.
Can you give us a little insight into a few of your short stories – perhaps some of your favorites?
I have a special spot in my heart for my first book, Pickles the Dog, Adopted. Mostly because it was the first one, and I had no idea if or how it would all come together, but I am so glad I did!
I wrote the book I’m a Spinosaurus, Bigger Than a T-Rex with my son. One day we were driving, and my son asked if he could write about like me. At the time, he was in kindergarten and was just learning to read. I asked him what he would want to write about and of course, he wanted to write about his favorite dinosaur, the Spinosaurus. I remember thinking, that’s a good idea, so I asked what would you put in the book? He wanted it to have fun facts about the dinosaur and wanted it to rhyme, as he had just learned about rhyming in school.
I believe we are never too young or too old to have big dreams, so I’m a Spinosaurus, Bigger Than a T-Rex was born, and my son’s dream came true.
What genre are you inspired to write in the most? Why?
Children’s picture books. I love how excited children get over a great book with beautiful illustrations. I love seeing children laugh when listening to my first book, Pickles the Dog, Adopted.
I also love seeing children’s eyes light up when they learn something new from a book. Whenever I read my book Babies of the Badlands, I love seeing the children learn what each baby animal is called. I think the baby snake is their favorite.
What exciting story are you working on next?
Goodbye Bella, A Pet Loss Story was just released, and I am so excited about it! I work in the funeral industry, and a friend of mine who is a funeral director, together we wrote a set of books to help children when a loved one passes away. We had so many requests to create a pet version, so Goodbye Bella, A Pet Loss Story was created to help families with a pet that will pass away soon.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I never dream of being an author. But, I had a story I wanted to share with the world about a dog named Pickles, which inspired me to write my first book, Pickles the Dog, Adopted. The real Pickles was at an animal shelter during a major flood, and she kept getting returned to the shelter. A family member of mine ended up with her, and it turns out she was such a wonderful dog. In my first book about Pickles, she gets adopted by a family that lives on a farm. Pickles has never been to a farm before, so she gets into some mischief. A young girl named Kat figures out how to train and teach Pickles to be safe on the farm.
How do you research markets for your work, perhaps as some advice for writers?
I work full-time for my day job, but whenever I can find the time, I love being part of author events, book signings, and school visits. Interacting with children and inspiring young readers and authors is a tremendous honor for me. My advice would be to try a few avenues and see what works best; go in the direction that is working.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
When I became an author, I always thought I would write fun stories about dogs. My writing career changed quite a bit when I started writing about sad topics, it’s not what I thought I would write about, but I love how many families the books have helped during tough times and enjoying writing about difficult topics.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I have loved dogs my whole life and always wanted a dog. I also enjoyed helping people, so I dreamed of training dogs to become seeing-eye dogs. I never lived out this dream, but I had the wonderful opportunity to train Carmela, my Great Dane to be a certified pet therapy dog. We volunteered to help children in our community for most of her life.
Another dream I have had since I can remember was to have my own business someday. I was excited when I started my first business in 2017.
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
Life is too short not to pursue your dreams, new or old. I love the saying, “Don’t die with your music still in you.” If you have a story to share, get it out there, you never know what you can do until you try.
Katherine, what a wonderful author story you are living! I really enjoyed reading about writing with your son. And it’s so great that your stories are helping families through difficult times.
And thank you Lisa for sharing Katherine’s story!