An Interview With Author Cathy Cassidy
A Popular Writer for Girls Discusses Her Writing Process
May 19, 2009
Popular British writer, Cathy Cassidy has produced ten books for girls aged 8-12 in the last five years. Suite 101 interviewed her in April 2009, and asked her about her writing and publishing process.
Publishing Your Book
Q. How did you find your publisher, Puffin Books?
A. When I finished my first book Dizzy, I was too scared to send it to a publisher! I wanted so badly to be a published author that my nerve just plain failed me. I sent it to an agent instead, on the advice of a friend. The agent loved it and soon had six children's publishers all wanting to buy it. Dream come true stuff... except that the dream took 20 years longer than I imagined to happen! Puffin were the ones I chose to go with, and that was 100% the right decision... they are FAB and very supportive.
Q. Your books have a very distinct look. Did the publishers decide from day one that your name would be branded?
A. When Dizzy and then my second book, Indigo Blue came out, my name appeared in very small letters. As the books began to sell more, the name got bigger! Although they are not a series, the books do have a 'look' but I think this is the norm for all publishers now. It's a way of helping kids to 'find' the book they want, I guess.
Writing Fiction
Q. Your training is in art. How has this transferred into your writing? Did it help you with structure or in any other way?
A. I think it does help. My stories are never, ever planned on paper. They begin as daydreams, and develop slowly until they are a little like a movie running through my mind. My refusal to 'plan' on paper means I sometimes write myself into a dead end, but that's a price I'm happy to pay for keeping the door open to new ideas and sudden inspirations.
Q. Do you start with a situation or conflict that you want to explore, or do the characters present themselves and demand to be heard?
A. Usually either the characters or the title come first... and the rest unfolds from there. A title or character can suggest a theme, and from that grows a plot...
Marketing and Selling Books
Q. How many copies of your books do you sell on average? Is any one more popular than the rest?
A. I am hopeless at keeping tabs on sales figures... numbers don't mean a whole lot to me, and anything over a few thousand sounds great to me! However, the books tend to have sold around 100,000 copies each... some more, some less. I think Dizzy has sold the most, perhaps because it has been out for the longest, and Gingersnaps has probably sold the fastest if that makes sense.
Read about how Cathy Cassidy wrote one of her most popular books, Gingersnaps.
You can find a list of Cathy Cassidy publications on the Puffin Book Website.
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