Welcome to the 2023 ARIA Author Showcase and Giveaway Event! 

  

  

How to enter – Comment on the daily showcases to enter the daily giveaway. Comments close one week after the initial Showcase post. GRAND PRIZE drawn on Dec 8th (1 -$250, 1 -$100, or a 1 -$50 Amazon gift card. One grand prize pp) – For every showcase you post on, you automatically gain one entry to the grand prize. 30 Authors = 30 entries.    

 

On to the Showcase! 

 

What name do you like to write under?  Katherine Itacy 

Where do you call home? Warwick, RI 

What genre(s) do you write? Creative non-fiction/Memoir 

What genre(s) were you drawn to when you were younger? I wrote a short story in elementary school or junior high about a young girl who stumbles upon a ghost in the woods. It was entitled "A Loving Mother," and it was published in a student anthology book. It was almost "The Sixth Sense" before the film was even made. I thought I was being so clever to have the older woman the girl meets actually be a ghost at the end. I'm not sure what inspired me to write the story, but I'm most certainly not a fan of ghost stories/horror anymore! 

What were some of your favorite books growing up? Why? I grew to love memoirs or biographies about impactful experiences in the human existence. "Assata: An Autobiography," by Assata Shakur, was my absolute favorite book in college. I've read it repeatedly since then 

What are some of your favorite books today? I continue to devour memoirs today, but I'm also in a number of different book clubs, so I get to enjoy a wide variety of different genres as well. Some of my favorites of late have been "A Man of Two Faces," by Viet Thanh Nguyen, "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian," by Sherman Alexie, "The Measure," by Nikki Erlick, and "The Executioner's Song," by Norman Mailer. 

What inspired you to become a write?  I was forced to retire from practicing law because of a disability, and I had to mourn the loss of my identity and chosen profession at the age of thirty-three. Writing my memoir was a truly cathartic experience, and I was inspired to hopefully help others who might feel alone in some of their experiences. 

 

Relentless 

Katherine Itacy was born deformed and, by the age of four, had developed both a dangerous spinal disorder and an incurable disease. Yet, thirteen years later, she’d amassed five state and eight national high school championship titles in track and field. She went on to compete in the Division I NCAA Championships and, later, to graduate fourth in her law school class. By twenty-five, she was operating her own law firm and by twenty-nine, was serving on three boards of directors for civil rights and criminal justice non-profit organizations. Persevering through hate mail, public ridicule, a death threat, two sexual assaults, and diabulimia, Katherine believed sheer will could get her through anything. Until her medical conditions proved that, sometimes, mind over matter just won’t cut it. In her self-help memoir, Relentless: From National Champion to Physically Disabled Activist, Katherine writes from the heart about the lessons she’s learned from living with a diseased body– from denial to resistance to, finally, acceptance, understanding, and the desire to help others. 
 
 

Tell us a little about how "Relentless” came to be. Did it start with an image, a voice, a concept, a dilemma or something else? As I mentioned above, I was forced to retire from practicing law because of a disability, and I had to mourn the loss of my identity and chosen profession at the age of thirty-three. Writing my memoir was a truly cathartic experience, and I was inspired to hopefully help others who might feel alone in some of their experiences. Whether it's believing love will be enough to sustain a relationship, or you've been forced to let go of your goals or profession and find a new purpose or passion, or you've sacrificed your health or mental well-being for someone or something else, or you've been dismissed or misdiagnosed by a medical professional, I wanted others to be able to identify with my life experiences and know that there's a way through and a happy, healthy life still ahead of you. 

Which scene, character or plotline changed the most from first draft to published book? Since it's a memoir, most of the content included in the memoir remained the same. That being said, how I chose to organize the chapters (by life lessons I've learned around the subject matter) was something that continuously changed throughout the various drafts. 

Which character was the most challenging to create. Why? I'd say that the chapter most difficult for me to write was the chapter about sex and my experiences with sexual assault. I knew some of my family and friends would be reading the book, and I had to come to peace with sharing such vulnerable, intimate details about my life with them. 

What do you like best about being a writer?  I really enjoy the creativity I can explore by writing, whether that's creating new worlds and characters in my fiction writing, or sharing my life experiences with my readers in a way that helps them identify with the narrative. 

If you could collaborate with any author past or present, who would it be? What would the title of the book be? (If possible) - Give us a one sentence blurb. I"m currently working on two separate crime novels at the moment, so I'd really enjoy collaborating with the author Meg Gardiner, who's written some really compelling, exciting crime novels. The book's working title would be "Indefensible," and it would be about a female criminal defense attorney who's being stalked by a former sex offender client of hers. 

You can follow Katherine Itacy here - 

https://katherineitacy.com/ 

https://www.facebook.com/authorkatherineitacy 

https://www.instagram.com/katherine.itacy/ 

Katherine is giving away a free audiobook of “Relentless” To enter comment below --> Changing gears in life is never easy. Have you ever found yourself having to do so? If yes, are there any words of wisdom you’d like to offer? 

(Comments are open for one week)