Interview With Author Natalie Knox
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a South African who has been living in Spain for 13 years now. I live with my husband and three children in Mijas, which is a pretty area down in the south of Spain. I have done several things in my life and two of them have inspired my present writing focus. I have been a senior primary teacher and a divorce recovery counsellor for kids. I found that there weren’t too many resources that I liked for my counselling sessions, so I decided to create my own. They were very effective and fun. A few friends encouraged me to take what I had created and share it with others, and so The Mending Chronicles of Liam and Emily project was birthed. I produced a beautiful, full-colour paperback that contained the story of Liam and Emily and activity pages for kids to process their own divorce story. It was a finalist in the 14th National Indie Excellence Awards, which was very exciting for me.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I then went on to create a partner book which was the parent guide. I felt parents needed guidance and tips on how to effectively help their kids through their transition. Many parents want to support their kids but either don’t know how or are just too overwhelmed. So, my parent guide is a short eBook that has had some great feedback and seems effective. My most recent project has been the eBook for the Mending Chronicles of Liam and Emily. The cost of the beautiful paperback was becoming more and more expensive with the rise of printing costs and distribution, especially to countries not serviced by the big-player online retailers. So, I decided to make my book digital, and the activity pages downloadable. This was quite exciting because by this time I had several therapists let me know that my activity pages were being used in their sessions with kids. With the digital format, professionals could now print off what they needed. Another problem I solved was that families with several kids were having to share the paperback as single parents weren’t able to purchase numerous copies. But, now with the digital format, it can be shared across family devices and everyone can process their story individually.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to have music and tea when I write. Perhaps not that unusual?
What authors, or books have influenced you?
In terms of spirituality, I’d say Richard Rohr. Self-help would be Brene Brown. Children’s fiction is Julia Donaldson, David Walliams and many of my wonderfully practical English textbooks with all their great activities and fun ideas.
What are you working on now?
I’m trying my hand at rhyme and I’m working on a series of picture books about greyhounds.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My blog has been a good way of drawing attention to my books. I have written about lots of issues and topics around divorce, change and children. I also find social media has been a good tool.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
I recently found a clever tip whereby I can give many options of where to buy my books with one click. There are sites that offer all the links of where your book is sold.
I use:
books2read
boook.link
booklinker
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
You may not be an expert, but you do know something, and that something is of value to someone. So get it out of your head and onto paper and don’t disqualify yourself.
What are you reading now?
A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende
Immortal Diamond by Richard Rohr
What’s next for you as a writer?
Finding an illustrator.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Divine Dance by Richard Rohr
A book of Spike Milligan’s poems
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
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