Wednesday, April 15, 2009

The Writing Porch Author Q&A with Caron Goode


Dr. Caron Goode is the author of Raising Intuitive Children: Guide Your Children to Know and Trust Their Gifts (2009, New Page Books) and The Art & Science of Coaching Parents (2007). A licensed counselor and psychotherapist in Fort Worth, Texas, Goode has written 10 books. Her 15-year psychotherapy practice served dozens of people considered to be intuitives. In 2003, she founded the Academy for Coaching Parents International, which provides training and certification for professionals to run parent-coaching businesses.
Her co-author is a certified coach for parents of intuitives, Tara Paterson of Round Hill, Virginia.


How did you get your start in writing?
In fourth grade, my teacher, Mrs. Mendenhall said that if any students wanted extra credit, we could complete a writing project. I went home that Friday afternoon and spent six hours writing a child's poetic accolades to Catholic figures: "Dear Mary, dressed in blue. I love you." I woke up early saturday morning and rode my bike across town to deliver my book of poetry. I surprised her at her brunch, but she was gracious and accepted my efforts. In high school, creative writing classes kept my interest alive. And my employers always encouraged my writing creativity at work. I started writing professionally for others besides myself when I worked for Special Olympics International and interviewed athletes, collected research, but mostly was inspired by the success stories of the athletes. Thereafter I authored my own books in the educational an trade fields. As recently as 2003, I started ghostwriting for others, again fascinated by human history and people's stories. I've complete forty ghost-written projects, mostly nonfiction, parables, and several family sagas.

What does your writing routine look like?
I write six days a week. I am "creatively compulsed" at this phase of my life.

Tell us some writers whose work you admire and why.
I admire Danielle Steele because of the intricacy of her plot details. I love Taylor Caldwell's story telling ability because I felt I was there in her scenes.

What are you working on next?
I am currently writing 'Kids Who See Ghosts' for a fall, 2009 release.

What made you decide to write this book?
I determined to write this book about four years before I actually did. I had always taught the special needs children who might have been intuitive, right brain thinkers, or learned differently from the left-brain oriented educational models. Then as a psychotherapist, I seemed to attract families who had sensitive children, psychic children...in some way intuitive. Over the years this model developed, and I felt Raise Intuitive Children would provide insight for parents about how their child learned and how to nurture and encourage those sensitives and intuitives who break the mold for educational and traditional parenting models.

What challenges did you face with this book?
Knowing when the time was right. I couldn't think this book...it evolved in its own time, and when birthed, was sold overnight to a publisher who also saw that the time was right.

What advice would you have for other writers/would-be writers?
Work from intuition, that is where I find the passion.

Favorite Links:
www.parentingintuitives.com
www.academyforcoachingparents.com
http://www.raisingintuitivechildren.com/

EDITOR'S NOTE: J. Louise Larson, blogmistress for The Writing Porch, interviews published authors. To be considered, email her at jackielarsonwrites (at) gmail (dot) com. Larson's work has been published in a number of newspapers and magazines, including the Dallas Morning News and Entrepreneur Magazine. She is the managing editor of the Ennis Journal and a contributor at the Waxahachie Daily Light, and she has received the top award for series writing in Texas, the Texas APME, as well as a silver from the Parenting Publications of America. She co-authored a nonfiction career guide for FabJob Publishing in 2006, and is revising her new novel, 'At High Tide.'

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