Find Out Friday: Catherine Miller
11/25/2011 9:30:07 AM
Welcome to this week’s edition of Find Out Friday, with writer Catherine Miller.
The first time I met Catherine was at six o’clock in the morning, at a petrol station on the M3. It was dark and Catherine had no idea what car to look out for. The fact I was meant to meet her at the service station is neither here nor there, but I overshot the main car park entrance and decided the well-lit BP garage was my best option.
We travelled together toWatfordfor the Festival of Romance having previously only met on Twitter. As I recall, Catherine, there was plenty of awkward driving, but never an awkward silence.
I think it’s fair to say, that set the tone of our friendship.
Right. Down to business. The first thing I’d like to discuss is your battle with dyslexia. Tell me about it.
I guess I don’t see it as a battle it’s just part of me. It was classed as brain-damage associated dyslexia which sounds scary but I came off lightly after being born breech, getting stuck and my heart stopping a few times. My Mum was told at that point I would be born with severe mental and physical disability (cerebral palsy) so when I finally popped out screaming she knew she had a fighter on her hands.
How did it impact upon your school-life? Did you enjoy school?
I’ve always loved learning but not as much as I love my Mum for fighting my corner. Aged 7, I could only write upside down and back to front. She fought my infant school to provide me with specialist teaching (after my teacher told her I would never amount to anything) and by the end of the year (so my mum proudly tells me,) I had the reading ability of an 11-year-old. Every school report I ever had says something about me being a day dreamer and I was, but not the void of nothingness some teachers seemed to think was going on. My 11-plus was interesting. I passed on Maths and failed on English by about 3 points. Passing both would have meant going to grammar school, but my junior school didn’t appeal and neither did we. Looking back, I’m glad. I really enjoyed secondary school and was in the top sets of my subjects. That helped my confidence whereas in grammar school, I may have struggled.
You went on to train as a physiotherapist. What drew you into this particular field of medicine?
I always wanted to work with people. I first thought about physiotherapy when I saw a video on hydrotherapy in Science class. I was also considering becoming a teacher, but when I went on a two week placement, I realised it wasn’t as one-to-one as I’d hoped. I went on to study Science: Health Studies at college and became a volunteer at a hospital inCanterburyin the physio department once a week. From there I knew I would love it.
Sadly, you had to leave physiotherapy behind. Why was that?
In my college years I had clouded vision in one eye. My other eye was compensating so it was only when I was washing my face with the good eye closed, I realised the problem. It turned out to be Uveitis, an inflammatory condition of the jelly in the eye. It was treated and it went away, but after qualifying as a physio and in my first job as a junior, it came back, this time with a host of other symptoms. It is believed the Uveitis is being caused by Sarcoidosis, an auto-immune disease. In the early days, the doctors thought it would burn out and go away, but it never has and I have to take medication for my eyes to this day. It was when I went onto immunosuppressants that it really affected my career. I was working in elderly care and was catching chest infections and colds. It got to the point where I decided I needed to make a decision. It was the hardest thing to do at the time, but the improvement in my own health shows it was the right thing to do.
Was it at that point you decided to develop your writing skills? How did you get started?
When I made that decision the biggest question was: What am I going to do? I had options available relating to physio. My department had offered to move me to out-patients, or I could have moved into training or lecturing, but I don’t think I would have been happy not working in the area I loved. But there was this other option nagging away at me – become a writer! It wasn’t completely out of the blue. I’ve written since I was a teenager. My first book attempt was at fourteen, then another whilst I was at University and it continued in my early physio days. Soon I was too busy with my career for writing and I hated not doing it. Being ill was a strange blessing giving me a permission slip to get on and follow my dream. I wrote my first short story when I was off sick and it was accepted by a local magazine. It gave me the strength to take the plunge.
You attend Writing Buddies on a fortnightly basis. How do you feel this helps with your writing?
Writing Buddies is different in that it’s not a critiquing group. Each fortnight we meet and we each say what we’ve been up to, followed by a general discussion on writing matters. In my early days there I compared it to going to Weight Watchers in the sense you wanted to be able to report you’d been writing in between those meetings. The group is incredibly encouraging and it is always great to see how everyone is getting on.
And please explain about the book launch last Saturday (19th November). It’s all very exciting and we want to find out about it!
For the first anniversary of the Writing Buddies group, Penny Legg, founder of the group, organised a competition. I was amazed when all four pieces I entered got placed. A year later and all the winning entries have been published in an anthology and the book was launched last Saturday. It was surreal to be at an event featuring your own writing. The Major of Southampton attended and he talked about my drama piece, Permanent Ink, in his speech. He’d read it and really enjoyed it which left me a bit gob-smacked.
Where are you with your Work In Progress?
After a helpful report from the New Writers’ Scheme I have just started re-writing, Miles Between Us. It’s going to be a lot of hard work, but then I’m beginning to understand that’s what being a writer is about.
Apart from writing, about what are you passionate?
I love travel and food. I try to squeeze in as much as time and money will allow. My other hobby is comping. No it’s not a spelling error. I enter competitions and class it as a hobby. It started at a wedding fair where, as part of a budgeting talk, the audience was told to enter wedding competitions. I did, along with a few other competitions and then received a phone call telling me I’d won a holiday toAustralia! (Part of my novel is set where we travelled to.) After that I was hooked and when I took such a big pay cut, the only way to go on holiday was if I won one. Since then I’ve won holidays toRussia,FranceandGermany. I’m one of those people that always have to be doing something and filling in competition forms provides a nice break from writing and you never know where you might end up.
I imagine, like the rest of us, you have a large TBR pile. Who and what is in it?
There are two piles, plus the book shelves! I’m a pretty fast reader but I just keep adding to it. There’s quite a mix, so I’ll name a few. The Somnambulist, by Essie Fox, Blue-Eyed Boy by Joanne Harris, and The Birthday Party by Veronica Henry.
Finally, are you a pen and paper gal, or a straight to computer person?
Straight to the computer. I often find my writing makes much more sense if I move sentences about and it’s so much easier with copy and paste. I plan on paper though.
Catherine, it’s an absolute pleasure being your friend and I wish you well with your writing.
You can follow Catherine on Twitter @katylittlelady, or at www.katylittlelady.com
Comments:
Debs Carr:
12/24/2011 10:18:30 AM
Great Interview.
Thanks for the in depth interview and here’s to your writing going from strength to strength in 2012.
Jan Brigden:
12/7/2011 7:56:37 PM
Better late than never!
Just catching up with these great Find out Friday features, Laura. Thanks to both you and Catherine for a really interesting interview. Quite humbling. Determination will out, as they say. Very inspiring indeed! X
Henriette Gyland:
12/5/2011 12:26:47 PM
Great interview.
Catherine, what an extraordinary journey you’ve been on, and are still on. Your positive attitude in the face of various medical issues is humbling, and I think it’s wonderful you’re doing so well with your writing despite dyslexia. As you put it, it’s just a part of you.
Also, I truly didn’t know one could enter competitions for a living… Absolutely brilliant!
Henri x
Deborah Rickard:
12/1/2011 4:13:57 PM
Interview.
Thanks both for a really interesting interview. So lovely to learn more about you ‘in-depth’ Catherine!
Laura E James:
11/30/2011 6:14:58 PM
Thanks.
Thank you all for your lovely comments. Catherine’s story is very inspirational.
The next edition is with Sue Fortin.
Lucie Wheeler:
11/30/2011 9:29:40 AM
Latecomer.
Sorry, I’m a real latecomer to this interview. What a lovely insight to your life, Catherine. Thanks, Laura, for such a fantastic feature. I look forward to next week’s! x
Talli:
11/27/2011 10:59:40 AM
Wonderful!
Great interview, ladies. Catherine obviously has buckets of determination, and I’ve no doubt she’ll be successful as a writer!
EmmaPass:
11/25/2011 7:44:38 PM
Interview.
This is such an inspiring story! Thanks for posting such a great interview, Laura, and thanks for sharing your experiences, Catherine. I really enjoyed reading this post.
Bluestockingmum:
11/25/2011 7:42:10 PM
That’s what makes us stronger…
Another splendid interview, Laura. Lovely to hear Catherine’s journey and the challenges which we both relate to, eh?
Uveitis is one of the primary symptoms of my Behcets disease but thankfully, I’ve had less than a handful of flare-ups in my lifetime.
Catherine, you are a strong soldier. Keep battling, and with your writing, braveheart.
Wonderful to have met you (both 😉 )
xx
Anita Chapman:
11/25/2011 5:06:45 PM
Hello.
Hello Laura and Catherine,
It was lovely to meet you both at the RNA Party last week. Laura, I always enjoy your Find Out Friday posts and Catherine, it’s interesting to find out more about you. Your story is inspiring and I wish you much luck with your novel- great title too.
Anita X
Sue Fortin:
11/25/2011 2:13:37 PM
Great Interview.
Really interesting interview – just shows what you can achieve despite what the ‘experts’ say! Well done ladies.
Catherine Miller:
11/25/2011 11:51:43 AM
Kate.
Hi Kate, I agree, although I didn’t always realise. It’s like your brain is freed up. And, yes, the typos/mistakes that slip through can really bring a different meanings.
Kate Allan:
11/25/2011 10:12:29 AM
Interview.
I’m dyslexic and I know there are several authors who are. Personally I regard it as a gift as I know it means I can get from A to C without needing or worrying about B. And computers with spell checkers seem to sort out most jumbled letter situations although occasionally hilarious things do appear in manuscripts.