Take Five With Author Candee Fick

Today it's my honor to host Candee Fick and her debut novel Catch of a Lifetime.

And wait until you read her answer to the last question!!

Welcome to An Indie Adventure, Candee.  Tell us, what inspired you to write your book Catch of a Lifetime?

Hi, Leslie, thank for hosting me today. I love football, and it’s a good thing I do because I’m married to a coach our oldest son plays. But what if I didn’t like the game? What if I hated it? That thought led me down a rabbit trail of speculation to discover my heroine, Cassie, and imagine what would make her feel that strongly about football. Then I wondered if I could change her mind.

How do you use setting to further your story?

Catch of a Lifetime revolves around a fictional college football program, so that naturally led to scenes in places like practice fields, the sidelines, meeting rooms, and training facilities. I added places around town, Colorado weather, and even took trips to other states for road games. But this setting was so much more than a place, especially when dealing with football player egos, competitive natures, testosterone, eligibility issues, NCAA compliance officers, dreams of bowl games, the thrill of victory, and yes, the agony of defeat. I was able to glean a lot of emotion and tension for the story by bringing the setting to life.

How do you construct your characters?

I’m a visual person, so I like to start with a picture of how I imagine them looking. Then I build enough background information to motivate their story goal and explain the lie they believe, because that wound will be healed by the end of the story as the character grows and changes. Of course, I’ll add and tweak things as the story develops so I make sure to keep a cheat sheet of the facts and tidbits about each character so I can keep things consistent.

How is your main character completely different than you?

Well, um, Cassie hates football. She also has an athletic past, so I made her an Olympic caliber gymnast when I can hardly do a cartwheel, let alone the splits or any tumbling without, um, tumbling.

Tell us something about yourself we might not expect!

I’m a bit of a science nerd. While I was an elementary education major in college, my first job was actually teaching high school chemistry at a private school. For the past ten-plus years, my day job has been doing legal research for an industrial hygiene company where I read and summarize depositions in asbestos cases. I get to work from home so that’s been great, but it’s little wonder why I escape to fiction-land whenever I can!

Give us a brief summary of Catch of a Lifetime:

He breathes football. She shudders at the very mention of the sport. After a tragedy involving a football player destroyed her family, athletic trainer and graduate student Cassie moves across the country looking for a fresh start, but a change in financial aid lands her in the middle of her worst nightmare. 

Meanwhile, rookie coach Reed worries his dream career will slip away as injuries plague his players and his star receiver teeters on the brink of ineligibility. As the two work together to salvage the season, sparks fly, and Reed must eventually choose between the game he cherishes and the woman he loves.

Buy Links:

Amazon | Amazon Paperback

Bio:

Candee Fick is the wife of a high school football coach and the mother of three children, including a daughter with a rare genetic syndrome. When not busy with her day job or writing, she can be found cheering on the home team at football, basketball, baseball, and Special Olympics games. In what little free time remains, she enjoys exploring the great Colorado outdoors, indulging in dark chocolate, and savoring happily-ever-after endings through a good book.

Find Candee:

Twitter | Facebook