Interview Kathy Otten Author of A Place in Your Heart
Give a warm welcome to Kathy Otten, author of A Place in Your Heart.
Pull up a chair, grab a drink of your choice from the cooler, a Chocolate Chip or Peanut Butter cookie from the plate, and let’s find out a little about Kathy Otten and A Place in Your Heart.
What inspired this particular story? In my research for a previous story I came across mention of a woman named Mary Ann Bickerdyke, who worked as a nurse during the Civil War. She fought hard for the patients, ignoring the dictates of many of the officers and doctors in charge of the hospital where she’d come to help. At the time she arrived many of the food, clothing, and supplies sent by the Sanitary Commission were being, used, sold, or eaten by the officers and orderlies at the hospital. When Mother Bickerdyke (as the patients fondly referred to her) discovered the cook and his friends had been eating food meant for the patients, she put a purgative in some cooked peaches, and threatened the sickening thieves that next time she would use rat poison. When she discovered an orderly wearing a shirt from the Sanitary Commission, she tackled him to the floor in the middle of the ward, sat on him while she pulled it off, then whirled it over her head in triumph. I fell in love with her spirit and Gracie McBride was born. The first chapter includes Gracie doing what Mother Bickerdyke did to the peaches and to the orderly.
Who is your favorite character of all the books you’ve written and why? Johnny Bodine from my book, Lost Hearts. Johnny had a difficult childhood. Raised by outlaws, she learned early to fear men. Dyslexic and used for her skills with herbs, she could never get away. Yet she had an indomitable spirit. She never quit hoping for things to get better, and she’d learned to quietly accept what couldn’t be changed.
What do you want your readers to take away from your books? I hope I’ve made my characters real enough so my readers remember them long after they finish the book. Kind of like the fond memory of old friends. Maybe even miss them enough to reread their story.
What’s your approach to writing? Are you a plotter or follow your characters flow (Pantser)? I started out as a true pantser, just put pen to paper and go, but over time that has changed. Now I take some time to figure out where I’m going. I usually have an idea of the story and character goals, and most times know that dark moment at the climax. Maybe I’ve evolved with my own writer’s arc to combine the structure of a plotter and the creativity of a pantser.
Speed Round
Favorite Movie: Newsies Live (Broadway musical cast)
Favorite Book: I Spy Something Bloody by Josh Lanyon
Last Book Read: The Business of Being a Writer by Jane Friedman
Favorite Color: Blue
Stilettos or Flipflops: Flip flops
Coffee or Tea: Coffee
Ebook or Paperback: eBook
Pencil or Pen: Pen
Streak or Not: Not
Favorite Dessert: Chocolate Ice Cream
Favorite Junk Food: Wegman’s Chocolate Covered, Peanut Butter Filled, Pretzel Bites
Favorite Thing To Do To Relax: Read
Champagne or Gin: Neither
Paranormal or Historical: Historical
Wonder Woman or Top Model: Neither
Favorite TV Show: M*A*S*H
Hot or Cold: Hot
POV: 3rd Person Past
I’d Die If I Don’t Have: Family
Review or Not: Review
Tell us a little about A Place in Your Heart.
Gracie McBride isn’t looking for love; she’s looking for respect. But in this man’s world of Civil War medicine, Gracie is expected to maintain her place changing beds and writing letters. Her biggest nemesis is the ward surgeon, Doctor Charles Ellard, who seems determined to woo her with arrogant kisses and terrible jokes.
Charles is an excellent surgeon. He assumed he would be well received by an army at war. He was not. Friendless and alone, he struggles to hide the panic attacks that plague him, while the only person who understands him is a feisty Irish nurse clearly resolved to keep him at a distance.
But, Charles is sent to the battlefield, and Gracie is left with a wounded soldier, a box of toys, and a mystery which can only be solved by the one man she wishes could love her, both as a woman and a nurse.
A sneak peek between the pages of A Place in Your Heart.
“No. I want you to go home before the death of that ten-year-old boy becomes so ordinary, that one day you wake up and realize you no longer have the ability to feel.”
She squared her shoulders and stepped toward him. “Me own husband was a doctor, sir. I’ve birthed babies and stitched wounds. I stood by William’s side during surgeries and passed him instruments. I helped him clean the intestines of a man gored by a bull, before putting it all back inside that man’s belly. Me delicate sensibilities did not send me into a swoon then nor will they here. I thank ye for yer concern, Doctor Ellard, but ’tis who I am. And by the saints, as long as I have breath in me body, I will feel, and I will care.”
Their gazes locked in that moment and something flickered in his icy depths, overshadowing his usual cynicism with what she suspected might be admiration.
The harsh lines of his face softened. “Saint Jude must indeed be watching over you, Mrs. McBride.”
“That he is, Doctor Ellard, that he is.” He gave her a brisk nod and opened the door.
“You’re not going home then, are you?”
She turned. “Ye know us Irish, Doctor Ellard. We don’t know what we want, but we’ll fight to the death to get it.”
About the Author:
Kathy Otten is the published author of multiple historical romance novels, novellas, and short stories. She is also published in contemporary romance and historical fiction. She is a Northwest Houston RWA Lone Star winner and Utah/Salt Lake RWA Hearts of the West finalist. A Place In Your Heart is her fourth full-length novel . Currently, she is putting the finishing touches on a contemporary young adult novel.
She teaches fiction writing online and at a local adult education center, and is a regular presenter at area events. Kathy also does manuscript assessments and editing. She lives in the rolling farmland of western New York where she can often be found walking her dog through the woods and fields. She has been married for thirty-four years and is the mother of three grown children and one grandson.
Kathy can be contacted at kathy@kathyotten.com
Web site https://www.kathyottenauthor.com
Buy Link Amazon
It was wonderful having you with us today. Please feel free to stop by anytime. Good Luck with A Place in Your Heart!
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Posted in Authors' Secrets Blog by Tena Stetler with 20 comments.
Oh, Mary Ann Bickerdyke sounds like one of the characters on the PBS show, Mercy Street! Fantastic show, and your book sounds terrific too. Good luck with it!
Thanks for stopping by Jennifer! Have a great week!
Hi Tena,
I want to thank you for having me on your blog today. I tried this morning to reply to all the comments, but nothing shows up on the page. Not sure what I’m doing wrong. I hate that your followers won’t know that I replied.
You didn’t do anything wrong. You were in moderation, I just approved everyone. Since site hacking is so prevalent, I have to approve newcomers. You are all set now.
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for stopping by. Mary Ann Bickerdyke was a formidable woman. She went right to General Grant one time and had a doctor removed from the hospital. That orderly whose shirt she removed had also been wearing socks and slippers from the Sanitary Commission. He was so embarrassed having to spend the rest of his shift barefoot and shirtless, he transferred to an active infantry unit and was not heard from again.
I had never heard of Mercy Street until I saw it on the cover of a Civil War magazine. I don’t watch much TV and my critique partners were afraid to tell me about it. I started this book almost six years ago and once I learned of Mercy Street I worried everyone would think I copied it. So for the record, I’ve never seen it. My critique partners tell me A Place In Your Heart is nothing like the show.
So I’ll leave it to the readers to decide.
I’m with you on the plotter/panster thing. I like to think I’m eclectic. 🙂 Love your Gracie! Sounds like an awesome read! All the best to you.
Hi Sandy! Thanks for popping in! I’m a panster through and through. Have fun and productive week!
Thanks Sandy,
Gracie was a fun character to write. Though she loosely began reflecting the personality of Mary Ann Bickerdyke she quickly took on her own personality.
Thanks for stopping by.
Lol to the last line in your excerpt about the Irish. Best of luck with your release!
Glad you stopped by Charlotte!We appreciate it. Have a wonderful week!
Hi Charlotte,
Thanks for stopping by. I found that last line in the excerpt from a book of Irish sayings. It took a while to find the right place to use it. Glad it made you smile.
Sounds like a feisty heroine! Gotta love it!
Thanks for stopping by Renate! Have a great week.
Hi Renate,
I do tend to write feisty heroines. I don’t really know why. I guess because when I was a kid watching old westerns I hated the helpless female characters who always sprained an ankle or otherwise got into trouble. Who knows? But Gracie does tend to take the bull by the horns.
Enjoyed getting to know you better, Kathy. All the best with “A Place in Your Heart.”
Hi Mary,
I recognize your name so I know I’ve seen you around the various social medias. Thanks for the good wishes. Appreciate your stopping by.
Hey Mary, so glad you popped in! Have a great week!
Hi, Kathy,
I’m a day late getting to my emails but I’ve got your book on my Kindle for when we take the camper out this coming week for a vacation. After reading you other books, I probably won’t be able to put this one down either! Thanks for the insights into how this book came about. Have a great day.
Hi Catherine. Thanks for stopping by. We are of the same mind. I too load up my ipad to take camping. Nothing more relaxing than lounging in a camp chair and reading a good book. LOL Have a great trip.
Hi Catherine,
Appreciate your stopping by, even a day late. 😀 Thanks for buying my book. Enjoy your vacation. 🙂