Charline Ratcliff Interviews: Cathy McGough, Author of: ‘A Mathematical State of Grace, Book One’

A MATHEMATICAL STATE OF GRACE

CATHY McGOUGH

Hello and welcome, Cathy. I’m very happy to feature you on my blog, and to help get the word out about you and your books! Speaking of which, while I’ve discovered a lot about your various books – I wasn’t able to discover as much about you, the author.

Thank you Charline for this opportunity.

Now, I did see that you currently live in Stratford, Ontario in Canada. Have you lived there you entire life, or is this a more recent transition?

I was born here in Stratford and lived here for the first 25 years of my life. Then I met my husband (who lived in Australia) and moved there. We moved back and forth a few times, and I always wanted to move back here to Stratford but it just didn’t work out.

When my son was born my husband was offered a position in Sydney, Australia so we moved there in 2000 and stayed for 13 years. In November of 2013, we returned to Stratford for Christmas and decided to stay here in Stratford where I started up a magazine called Stratford Living Quarterly Magazine.

I am the oldest of 5 children, so I have a brother and two sisters here, two nieces, and my Dad who turned 80 last Christmas. I have another brother who lives in B.C.

Wow, that’s a lot of ‘to-ing and fro-ing.’

What was Canada like for you as a child? What sort of things did you enjoy when you weren’t at school? Outdoor activities or curling up somewhere with a good book?

I loved to play baseball. Our team won the championship one year for Softball – we were called The Gypsies and I was catcher. I loved ice skating on the Avon River and at the rink.

Stratford really celebrates all seasons – one thing I missed when I was in Australia was the seasons.

I read a lot. Wrote poems and song lyrics. We have The Stratford Festival Theatre here, and this is where I my passion for writing and seeing words come to life was born.

Being an author, I’m certain that you have a special love for books. What were your favorite books as a child? What are your favorite books now?

My all time favourite book was E. B. White’s, Charlotte’s Web. I still cannot read it without sobbing.  When I read Freedom Train – The Story of Harriet Tubman by Dorothy Sterling (I think it was in Grade 5 or 6) it really made me want to become a writer because it inspired me so deeply.

Enduring Love, by Ian McEwan, inspired the title of my current book A Mathematical State of Grace. He is an amazing writer, such beauty and purity – everything he writes.

I love the entire Harry Potter series – as I read them to my son when he was younger and he grew up with this series. I have read Wuthering Heights about 15 times – so I guess that qualifies for my favourite book.

When did you first discover that you had a calling for writing?

I don’t know about it being a “calling” – but it is something I have to do, and I am miserable if I am not writing. The ideas come easy for me, the creativity of it, but the technical parts of it (drafting and redrafting) I find to be a difficult part of the process.

Since I was a little girl I have always written something, whether it be a poem or a song. I guess it has always been a part of me.

So tell me about your upcoming release, A Mathematical State of Grace. What is the premise of the story?

This is my first venture into the YA genre. It’s about a sixteen year old girl named, Grace Greenway who is a mathematical prodigy — who lives only for numbers (hence she doesn’t spent much time socializing). However, she does have a massive crush on Vincente Marino who is an all-star sporty type of guy (who she meets because she helps him with his homework).

They are thrown together by an event, which results in them having to battle the elements and to learn to work together as a team. And of course, there is the falling in love.

What was the idea that prompted you to write this book?

The characters of Grace and Vincente – and in particular the ending of the book just presented itself to me in a flash. I feverishly recorded what I saw, and then had to figure out how to get my characters to that place.

What, if anything, do you hope that the reader takes away with them once they have finished the read?

Never give up hope. That is what I hope they will take away.

And, of course, I hope they will want to know more about my characters and they will want to follow along their path with me. The ultimate goal is to entertain – and hopefully to provoke some discussion especially after reading Book 2.

Remembering to never give up hope is certainly an important and inspirational message.

Last, but not least — what’s next for you in the writing world? Any other books in the works?

I am working on the final draft of Book 2 for A Mathematical State of Grace. It should be released in July or August of this year; I hope. Then, I have a novel called Ribby’s Secret which is a Thriller and definitely not in the YA genre.

Cathy — thank you again for taking the time to sit down with me. I certainly wish you the very best in all your current, and future, writing endeavors!

Thank you so much for this opportunity. It has been fun and insightful. 🙂

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Cathy McGough lives in Stratford, Ontario, Canada with her husband, son and two cats, Rosie and Layla.

Cathy is the published author of three novels: Three Friends, Interviews With Legendary Writers From Beyond, and A Mathematical State of Grace, Book One, plus a book of poetry: Painting With Words and several short stories including: Death Wish.

Cathy is the Publisher of a quarterly magazine which is distributed in print and digital form called: Stratford Living.

For information on Cathy’s writing visit her website: www.cathymcgough.com.

For information on Stratford Living www.stratfordliving.ca.

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Excerpt, A Mathematical State of Grace, Book One:

Vincente looked into the cars; hoping to see a person behind the wheel in one of them, but he eventually gave up on this venture. They were all running, in driving position, but person-less. And it wasn’t just cars—there were transport trucks, taxis, police cruisers, and ambulances idling in the street. Vincente even saw some planes along the way, all in left in the position: abandoned. Each and every one of them still had their engines running. The smell of exhaust fumes polluted the air en masse. It was like something out of a Stephen King novel. An absolute apocalypse.

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