We’re looking forward to introducing you to Catherine Lauria. Check out our conversation below.
Catherine, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: Who are you learning from right now?
I have a family member going through an unexpected and very perilous health diagnosis, and she has been the definition of grace and understanding. I think about what she’s facing, with two small children who depend on her and in this backdrop of negative concern for public health that puts her at a heightened risk for complications, and I’m just in awe. I feel like I’d react with a lot more viciousness, toward myself and others, but seeing her be awesome makes me feel like I can do better.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m an all-stages book editor, although developmental edits are my favorites. I also write across a wide swathe of genres–I ghostwrite nonfiction and memoir, I write novels for IPs such as Marvel Entertainment and Chaosium Games, and I indie publish queer romance under a pen name.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who taught you the most about work?
I didn’t develop a truly strong work ethic until I started working in a field I loved. I didn’t get the guts to work in a field I love until I had a child and realized my job wasn’t going to pay maternity leave or give me any benefits while I was off with my baby. While my kid was an infant, and a regular napper, I spend every hour she slept working hard to find clients and build my portfolio from a hobbyist into a professional. So in a roundabout way, I learned how to work at the job I love because of my child.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
I wish I could tell younger me to go with her gut and pursue the writing degree she wanted instead of falling back on something more saleable (ostensibly). I spent over a decade in a field I didn’t really enjoy because doing otherwise felt like failure. I was very susceptible to the sunk-cost fallacy when I was younger.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. How do you differentiate between fads and real foundational shifts?
I’ll be honest, I thought the influx of AI-generated and assisted books was going to tank my business, especially the nonfiction side of things. For a while there, clients were scarce, but now the people who want a quality product are coming back to me and going, “It turns out AI didn’t do a good job on my book, it reads mechanically. Can we work together again?” That’s not to say that there haven’t been foundational shifts with AI in creative fields, including writing, but it’s not as pervasive and catch-all as I’d expected.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I tried doing what I was told to do when I was fresh out of college, and it made me very unhappy. I’m doing the things now with my life that I dreamed about doing as a kid, and even though the hustle is hard, the payoff in my satisfaction with my life is so much better.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~011ed0832f9c06834b
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CariZee
- Other: https://bsky.app/profile/caricath.bsky.social
Image Credits
All photos are taken by me.
