Author Q&A Katalin Patnaik

Born in Hungary, living in England and married to her Indian husband, Kati has a broad overview of how different cultures can live and work together. An ex-IT-manager, a mother of two boys, Kati is a proud member, endorsed reader and an ex-chairperson of TABI – The Tarot Association of the British Isles. She is the founder of MAKKÁSZ – Magyar Kártyajósok Szövetsége – The Felloship of Hungarian Tarot Readers, and she has contributed to many international tarot projects, like the ‘Triumph of Life Tarot‘, the 1917 Tarot and the TABI Tarot decks.

1. Tells us about your writing/ published book(s)

I have many short stories and poems published in various platforms, but my first traditionally published, full length work is ‘The Little Book of Tarot’ by Welbeck. It is a short introduction into the world of tarot in the guise of a gift book, that discusses tarot history, myths, card meanings, has a how-to guide and then some more. I’m really proud of it because although it was commissioned, I’ve managed to add a personal touch to it and I believe it has something for beginners and seasoned tarot readers alike.

Currently I am working on another book on tarot in collaboration with my friend Moti Black. It will discuss ways of using the cards to aid authors in the writing process; written by two authors! It’s an exciting project and we will start working on it more seriously as soon as our current, private manuscripts are polished to perfection.

My main work in progress is a posthumous/paranormal fiction novel that has the working title ‘Take Me Home’. It revolves around dealing with emotions surrounding death as we follow Katie the poltergeist on her journey of finding new meaning, new love, friendships, and of course, revenge.

 

2. Have you always wanted to write?

Yes! I have always loved stories and I’ve often made up fanfiction about my favourites, even before I learned to write. I finished my first novel when I was fifteen – it is sitting safely in a drawer where it belongs, but maybe one day I will get back to it and slap it into a presentable shape. Back to the question: I love the written word and becoming a published author has always been my dream.

 

3. Do you do research for your books? If so, what kind of research?

I love doing research because I write about things I am interested in. I do most of my research online, but I often buy books and go to the library too. For tarot writing I mostly use printed books I own. For fiction, I need the internet’s help because the information I need could be about anything: geography, maps, recipes, cultures, languages… once I’ve spent hours listening to classical music just to choose one song for a minor scene! (It’s Hungarian Dances #4 by Brahms – the rest is a secret!) Another time I was reading up on WW2 Germany and the Birmingham Blitz – and found out that one of my characters in Take me Home matches a real person who lived at that time (no he isn’t anyone famous!). That was quite a shock! Anyway… I like to keep my stories as realistic and organic as possible and I would hate to be called out on inaccuracies.

 

4. Would you want your book made into a film?

Take me Home could easily be adapted to a TV series. I would love to see my characters come to life as long as the producers stayed true to the original message of the book. I would want a say in the casting too – my characters mean a lot to me. A film would be too short for conveying the same feeling; it would feel too rushed, and the book is anything but that.

 

5. How do you fit writing into your everyday life?

Not ideal and since schools have opened it’s been a little easier, but when my kids were at home, I used to write late into the night – on my phone’s email app! Now that they aren’t around all the time I can actually sit at a laptop and type like a normal person. Well, when I’m not taking care of the household, that is. Fun fact: The Little Book of Tarot has been written mostly on my phone!

 

6. Tell me about your current work

As mentioned before, Take me Home revolves around emotions surrounding Death. Katie, my protagonist gets murdered and her ghost is looking for her killer. This situation is the catalyst but the real focus is on dealing with grief on both sides of the  Veil that separates the world of the Living from that of the Dead. It does sound grim and melancholic, but Katie’s tongue in cheek tone and the small stories within the main thread will balance it, I promise.

I want this book to have something for everyone to take home with them (unintended pun!), and I want people to have fond memories when thinking about it. I would like to have the feedback that it has helped readers through tough times.

You can find Kati on Twitter.