Member Snapshot: Christina Katz

by Christina Katz

This restless Writergrrl has lived in the Northeast, the Midwest, the Southwest and even France. But she's finally come in for a landing in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon and thinks she just might finally settle down.

Where do you get your news?

I subscribe to The Oregonian, since I live in Oregon and recently started writing for them. This is probably the first time in my life I've read the newspaper anything like regularly and I can't say I read it everyday. When I do, I skim the headlines, snarl and gripe about G.W.B., then seek solace in the living, arts, food and the magazine sections. You know, the important stuff. I also subscribe to a variety of writing-related e-mail newsletters.

What's your order in a coffee shop?

A few times a month I get a Grande Extra Hot Mocha from Starbucks, but most mornings I make coffee at home on the little Krups we got as a wedding gift. This doesn't explain all the receipts in my wallet from Starbucks, though. I shouldn't even be drinking coffee because I have erratic blood sugar. But, for now, I do. And Stash tea—green or black—in the late afternoon.

If you knew you could not fail, what would you do?

I would become a speaker / author / writing instructor. And hey, what do you know, I'm doing it!

Where do you get your ideas for writing?

For The Oregonian, I talk to people I already know and ask who they know because I write regional recreation articles and neighborhood profiles. We are new in the community and it forces me to get out and about when I might otherwise be too reclusive. For the Bellingham Weekly, I look at what I've already written about and ask, "Is there more on this?" I also consult an ongoing list of ideas to write about in the future. I always like to be writing about something that inspires me.

How did you learn about Writergrrls?

I heard about you from my old Bellingham friend Kelly, who now lives in her own place in Seattle. She and my husband Jason both went to Western Washington University for degrees in Theatre Arts. I'm so glad Kelly told me about Writergrrls. It's great to be part of a productive online community of women writers.

Describe your writing routine.

Lately, I bring my daughter to childcare, rush home and work like crazy for four hours. I'm trying to break my projects down into smaller steps each day and get away from just powering through one project at a time. It never seems like I have enough time, though, which means my work bleeds into my down time and my family time and my time with my daughter, and when you're on a deadline that just sucks. I feel guilty about spreading that pressure around. In response, I am starting to take my daughter in earlier to childcare, but let's just say right now my writing routine is under construction. I do write my daily "Morning Pages" a la Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way and that helps me keep my balance.

What are you currently reading?

I've always been the kind of person who checks out as many books from the library as I can carry. So I'm reading several things. Here they are: three back issues of Writer's Digest, Wayne Dyer's The Power of Intention, The Art of Possibility by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander, SARK's Eat Mangoes Naked, The Highly Sensitive Person's Survival Guide by Ted Zeff and The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp. I just grab one off the pile while my daughter is napping and pick up where I left off.

What's your favorite book this week?

Oh, that's tough. My favorite book this very moment would have to be Moira Allen's Starting Your Career As A Freelance Writer because I was just rereading a few chapters that are helping me get my taxes done with more confidence.

What's your best quality?

Oh gosh, I suppose I am the eternal optimist. Deep down I believe in the essential goodness of myself and others and creativity and nature and maybe even the U.S and the world. Even though sometimes it seems like we all get awfully sidetracked. I do too, though, and it always seems like it's never too late to make a comeback. Here's hoping...

What would you change about yourself?

Maybe nothing. I mean I could stand to lose some weight and eat better and get in shape and all kinds of stuff like that. But would I change anything essential about myself? At this point I'm really just trying to do the best I can with what I've got.

Have you ever sold out?

I have sold myself short a thousand times but I'm not sure I've ever "sold out." That sounds so permanent and utterly devastating. I prefer to see everything as a process. For example, I've been stretching myself a bit too far lately but if I were to frame it as "selling out," I'm not sure how productive that would be. Maybe what's more helpful is to use my discomfort to inform my vision of how I'd like to be, then set clear goals to realize that vision, and then take small concrete steps towards those goals. I sincerely believe I have gained from my mistakes. Not that I would want to repeat them.

Have you ever been a bestseller?

I have been wondering what that word is supposed to mean lately. I saw a blip in Writer's Digest that said that "Bestseller" in reference to a book is actually denotes the number of books shipped out, not the number of books sold. So here we are, back again in the land where perception is everything. I am quite sure I am "Bestseller" material, although I have yet to actualize the common meaning of that word.

Christina Katz grew up in New England, attended prep school when the Preppie Handbook was popular, survived the Ivy League and tried, unsuccessfully, to become a yuppie. That's when she decided to put herself through graduate school in creative writing. Even so, her writing career has developed at a remarkably slow and steady pace. But that's okay, because at some point she committed herself to the process no matter what or how long it takes. She meets many kindred spirits along the way in her class "Writing and Publishing Nonfiction Articles" and has decided, thanks to this interview, to become a bestseller. Her Internet shingle is http://www.christinakatz.com.