Season 1; Episode 8: Becoming Known
Meet Catherine, a writer, editor, art therapist, book reviewer, artist, and a chaser of dreams. In this episode, Catherine and I talk about being a self-employed creative, how to stay on track and find motivation when you struggle with ADHD, the fear of being known, how to let go of what you “should” do and do more of what you want to do, and the importance of being a cat.
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Castbox, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and RadioPublic
As Catherine and I sat in her bright office to record this episode, she sat cross-legged on a comfy chair in the corner, hands busy knitting some mittens, without any pattern in sight. Catherine is a multi-faceted creative, she reviews books on Instagram, is a writer and editor, writes lovely blog posts, creates videos for YouTube, sells paintings and more on her Etsy shop, is the author of multiple books, and writes a newsletter. She is also the editor of a couple of different magazines, including Wingspan and Cider Press Review.
Catherine graduated from the University of the Fraser Valley with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in psychology. She went back to UFV to major in creative writing, and finally to Simon Fraser University to get her Bachelor of Education. After realizing she didn’t actually want to be a teacher, she got a graduate degree in art therapy and is now in the process of opening up her own art therapy practice.
Catherine and I first met when we were working for UFV’s student newspaper, The Cascade. We became even closer when I briefly rented a room in her mom’s house and got to know her family and the countless rescue cats that inhabit every corner of the house. Catherine has three cats of her own, but only one was brave enough to come out from hiding for some photos. This handsome fellow is Norton, and I was completely enchanted by him.
In this episode, Catherine and I talk about:
How to stop doing what you think you “should” do and start doing more of what you want to do
Her brief teaching career during COVID and her swift realization that was not the path for her
Her decision to become a therapist and what it’s like going to school for art therapy
The ins and outs of being a self-employed creative who is diagnosed with ADHD, such as how to manage your time, how to find the motivation to write, how to come up with content ideas, and how to overcome social anxiety and the “fear of being known”
The Artist’s Way journey and her Year of Creativity
The magic of Tumblr and the weirdness of parasocial relationships
How to choose a career path that brings you both meaning and joy
The pros and cons of Instagram and other social media platforms
The importance of being a cat at least one day a week
“The fear of being known is erased when people see the deepest, darkest parts of you and they see your ugly crying. They hear the things you’re most ashamed of and they love you anyway. And recognizing that like, there’s no way to be unknown to everyone.”
