Up Close and Personal with Author/Speaker Kathi Macias

by Peggy Blann Phifer @pegphifer

Today I am pleased to welcome one of my favorite long-time friends whom I’ve never met . . . Author / Speaker Kathi Macias. Kathi is also one of my fellow Helping Hands Press authors. She’ll be sharing a bit about herself with us here. So, let’s get started, shall we?



Kathi Macias (www.kathimacias.com) is a multi-award author of more than 50 books, as well as countless short stories and magazine articles. A wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, Kathi is a popular speaker at writers’ conferences and women’s events. She lives in Southern California with her husband, Al.

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Hi, Kathi, and welcome!

As a writing reader, do you find it difficult to read for pure enjoyment without a critical eye?

Absolutely! I keep telling myself to take off my editor hat before putting on my reading-for-fun hat, but it’s tough to do.

I am insatiably curious about my fellow authors’ writing habits and quirks. For example, I almost always have some music playing while I write. Instrumentals, though, no vocals. And I’m a snacker. So, how about you? Do share.

I want complete quiet, though that’s tough to come by, I’m afraid, especially with a retired husband under foot. But we work it out. (I’ve drawn boundaries.) And yes, I too am a snacker, especially when it’s been a long day and I still have a way to go before I can quit. That’s when I need something to give me some “wake-up” energy.

What was/is the problem with writing that was/is your greatest roadblock and how did/do you overcome it?

Eons ago (when I first became a writer of articles/short stories/newspaper columns) I had bought into the myth of “writer’s block.” I’d find myself stuck, waiting for the so-called “muse” to whisper. Then I landed my first regular writing gig (for the local newspaper) and discovered the meaning of deadlines--i.e., if you don’t meet the deadline, you don’t get paid. Newspaper writing, which often had to be done immediately if not sooner, was the best remedy I ever ran across for moving past writer’s block.

If you could lay out the perfect day for writing, just the way you’d love it to be, describe it for us.

Get up late (for me, that means 7:30 or 8:00); have a cup of tea (or two) while I read my Bible and pray; go through emails, Facebook messages, etc.; then straighten the house, take a shower, etc., before diving into that first line of writing. After that, just some peaceful time to write without unreasonable deadlines--though I find I do my best work under pressure.

What are you working on right now?

I have recently turned in my 2016 Christmas novel (A Husband’s Christmas Prayer) and am working on some freelance editing, as well as pulling things together for a couple of upcoming writers’ conferences (classes, fiction-writing track, keynote, etc.). After that I plan to take some extended time off--the perks of being “semi-retired.”

What can we look forward to from you in the future?

A Husband’s Christmas Prayer is scheduled for a Fall 2016 release.

What book would you like to talk about?

• Title: Return to Christmas


• Publisher: New Hope Publishers


• Release Date: Fall 2015


• Genre: Contemporary fiction


• Back cover blurb: Will his tough Marine exterior prevent him from experiencing the great Gift of all?

Purchase links:

• Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Return-Christmas-Novel-Kathi-Macias-ebook/dp/B0145SKJ9Y/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458585782&sr=1-6&keywords=Kathi+Macias;


• ChristianBook.com: http://www.christianbook.com/return-to-christmas-kathi-macias/9781596694422/pd/694422?product_redirect=1&Ntt=694422&item_code=&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCP;


• Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/return-to-christmas-kathi-macias/1121268292?ean=9781596694422

Where can readers find you on the Internet?

• Facebook personal: https://www.facebook.com/kathi.macias


• Facebook (Author page): https://www.facebook.com/Kathi-Macias-75996188045/ 


• Twitter: @alandkathi


• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kathimacias/

Kathi, thank you so much for being my guest today, and for taking the time to answer my interview questions. It’s been a pleasure having you here.

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