Q&A with Kat Kronenberg

 

 

 

Kat Kronenberg is the author of the new children's picture book Live Big with CATCH-M, the latest in her Live Big series. She lives in Austin.

 

Q: What inspired you to write Live Big with CATCH-M?

 

A: CATCH-M has been part of my Live Big series from the very beginning. He represents the power of our smile and the gift of love that lives in every heart—rooted in the wondrous truth that we are all made of stardust from the very beginning of time.

 

I’ve always found that fact magical and humbling: something millions of years old is alive inside me, connecting me to everything around me. What a powerful story to tell and make relevant to all of our lives.


 

Plus, I created, CATCH-M, a plush, light-up star toy, to pair with my books, and the love, photos, and heartfelt stories people shared about it made me realize CATCH-M needed his own book. His impact was too great not to give him a more prominent place in the Live Big series.

 

Q: What do you think Jomike Tejido’s illustrations add to the book?

 

A: Jomike’s illustrations are extraordinary. They bring the story to life with creative imagination, vibrancy, and a beautiful sense of cohesion. While I could picture it all in my head, I can’t even draw a stick figure—so watching Jomike translate those visions onto the page was pure joy.

 

He created an entire universe that blends the wonder of nature with the wildlife of Africa, and he even gave unique personalities to all the CATCH-Ms. To me, these fun personalities reflect some of the ways love shows up in each of our lives.

 

Q: How did you come up with the idea for CATCH-M?

 

A: It may sound unusual, but I didn’t actually come up with CATCH-M—he found me because I was willing to listen. CATCH-M is hope, truth, love, and light, and his mission is to help us all celebrate the gift of life on Earth.

 

Over the years, especially during life’s storms, I’ve sometimes lost sight of those things. But CATCH-M has quite literally woken me up at 4:00 a.m. for years, nudging me to remember the wonder of love and to share it with the world. His story is a reminder that we can all “catch” CATCH-M together and build our braveheart’s treasure—every single day.

 

Q: What do you hope kids take away from the book?

 

A: I hope kids walk away choosing love every single day and actively building their braveheart’s treasure—so they can live big together with the amazing world around them. I hope they start each day saying, “I am extraordinary! I am loved! I can do good!” And I hope they have a blast catching CATCH-M along the way, using love’s three powerful secrets as their guide.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I’m creating the Live Big Playbook—a workbook and daily journal for all ages. It’s designed to make building your braveheart’s treasure both fun and intentional, helping us practice, every day, what it means to live big extraordinary stories together.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: I believe these books found me because, as a little girl, I didn’t have the life skill I needed to navigate life’s storms. When hardship came, I felt surrounded by shadow thoughts: scared, small, and alone.


 

As an adult, I’ve studied psychology and sought out people I call heroes—individuals who have faced storms far greater than mine and still chose to live extraordinary lives. My stories are the culmination of the wisdom I’ve learned from them: the courage to say “YES” to life, to live big, to dare to dream, to love, and to think beyond ourselves so we can celebrate wondrous lives, no matter the circumstances.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. This Q&A was conducted in partnership with Kat Kronenberg. Enter this giveaway for a chance to win a complete hardcover set of all four books in Kat Kronenberg's inspiring Live Big series!