Readers of Catnapped and my pre-publication readers for the next in the mystery series, Cat-Eye Witness, tell me that they have enjoyed getting to know the cats in my stories—especially Rags, the klepto cat. I had fun designing Rags. And I did so from cats I’ve known. I haven’t actually been acquainted with a true kleptomaniac cat. But I’ve read about them with interest. What possesses a cat to wander off to neighbors’ homes and return carrying various—sometimes large and cumbersome—items? There’s a video on YouTube as we speak showing a cat waddling home night after night carrying bras, sunglasses, tee shirts, flip flops and more. They also scan across a large display of his contraband that they’ve collected.
While I patterned Rags loosely from my mother’s beloved cat, Smokey—as far as looks and personality—I came up with the klepto angle from watching our kitty, Lily, who brings me stuffed cat toys every day while I work. We call her our little interior decorator. I pick up the scattering of toys when I vacuum and by the time the cleaning machine is cool, the living room, and entrances to my office and bedroom are re-decorated with Lily’s stuffed baby possum, hedgehog, several tiny teddy bears, a few bird toys and various other things from her toy box.
Rags is a large cat, he’s curious, confident and full of personality. Layla is a friend of Rags’s. She’s small, quiet, shy, soft and sweet—oh yes and beautiful. She’s patterned somewhat after Lily. The other cats in the story just play cameo parts and some of them represent aspects of cats I’ve known. Isn’t that how we develop our people characters, too—from people we’ve known and aspects of others we’ve met? It’s a fun process.
If you haven’t read Catnapped, the first in the Klepto Cat Mystery Series, I invite you to order your Kindle copy today. It’s $2.99 at amazon.com. In fact, here’s the direct order page: http://amzn.to/14OCk0W Read about the cats and the people who interact with them. Catnapped is a mystery involving missing cats. It’s a murder mystery. It’s a love story. Order your copy today.
