Kat Kronenberg On 5 Things You Need To Be A Successful Author or Writer

Read. Read. And then read some more. And have new experiences, whether that’s through physical travels or reading. When you read, you experience worlds beyond your imagination — places you may never travel to.

Some writers and authors have a knack for using language that can really move people. Some writers and authors have been able to influence millions with their words alone. What does it take to become an effective and successful author or writer? In this interview series, called “5 Things You Need To Be A Successful Author or Writer” we are talking to successful authors and writers who can share lessons from their experiences.

As part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Kat Kronenberg. Kat is a multi-award-winning best-selling author whose Live Big series inspires kids to embrace the power of love, connection, and living extraordinary stories together. Her vision began with a smile she calls “A U-Shaped Bridge” that can connect us to everything — our head to our heart, our lives to one another, and our dreams to the hope of something greater. Her Live Big series features, DREAM BIG (2017), LOVE BIG (2019), THINK BIG (2020), and the upcoming release of LIVE BIG WITH CATCH-M (August 26, 2025).

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’ and how you got started?

I don’t think my backstory reads too much like your typical author. Most writers will tell you how they always dreamed of becoming a writer when they were little or how they would make up stories and poems — that kind of thing. My story is different. I grew up in Fort Worth, Texas, and am the youngest of four kids. I had a pretty typical childhood. When I was 15, my oldest brother didn’t wake up one morning. No cause. Then some years later, the same thing happened to my sister. We later discovered they both suffered from an arrhythmia.

My parents, as parents who have lost a child do, had a tough time dealing with our loss. I bumped around through the rest of high school, but knew I had to find my ‘yes.’ My parents had lost theirs. Finding and believing your ‘yes’ is one of the key points in my life and throughout my books. I fought to find my “yes” because I knew I still had life to live and joy to experience, despite the hardships and fears we all had to face. It wasn’t until college where I found Christ and my “yes” and the joy of service. There is something greater than ourselves, and we are here to help one another live to our fullest potential — that is the power of our “yes” and the “smile” we can share with one another.

It was ten years ago that I knew I had to write. My husband and I were at a symphony. I was listening to the orchestra. I closed my eyes to take in the power and the beauty of the music. I don’t know if you would call it divine inspiration, but it was like something whacked me over my head and said, “Kat, you need to write a story about the power of a smile to inspire us all to live their best lives.” S.M.I.L.E — See Miracles In Life Every day. Smiles enable us to connect and live our best lives together. So, ten years later, here we are with the book series that aims to inspire and teach children just that. To smile. To believe in themselves. To find their inner light and shine and share it everywhere. Smiles, joy, peace, happiness, those kinds of things are contagious. Who doesn’t like to catch a smile or good feelings to help them along their way? A simple smile can go such a long way in a day and give so much.

Can you share the most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your career?

I’ve had a lot of magical moments, but I think my favorite is of this little boy I met in 2018. I met him on a boat and felt a tap on my heart to gift him one of my DREAM BIG books. Years later, in May of 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic and shutdown, the little boy’s mother found me on Facebook and messaged me. She said her son was on Dr. Oz’s show and had gotten recognized by President Obama. The book I’d given him, DREAM BIG, inspired him to go to hotels and collect over 6,000 PPE materials to donate to hospitals. He wanted to give back to the healthcare staff that had taken such good care of him when he was sick a few years prior. He said he had a big dream in his heart to give back to the hospital workers because they’d saved his life.

That was such a highlight — a light during the quarantine and a highlight in my writing career. We never know the impact we can have on one another.

This really goes to show how far a personal touch can go and that human heart-to-heart moments matter. The ripple effect from that day on the boat makes me smile. These are the kind of things you hope for as an author. Knowing they are dreaming big because they read your book is such a gift. It’s a blessing, a full-circle moment, to overcome the pain and trauma from my past, to help someone else. I am so thankful.

What was the biggest challenge you faced in your journey to becoming a writer? How did you overcome it? Can you share a story about that that other aspiring writers can learn from?

We inspire and encourage children to dream big and go after it, but as adults, it can be very scary and challenging. You realize all the things you may not know, and so your journey begins.

I had never met an author when I got the inspiration to write a book. I’d never met one before because I’d never even considered writing a book. I knew nothing about being a writer. I didn’t know anyone and had no idea how to begin. So, to overcome this challenge, I started meeting authors, joining writing groups, and reading. I read a lot. I met a lot of people. I traveled. I committed myself to learning the craft. And gradually, it slowly but surely became clearer and started to come together.

I’ve met many great people who have helped me along the way. Writing really is a team sport, and the edits, ideas, and feedback I’ve received always improve my stories.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

It’s kind of hard to say. I don’t really believe in mistakes. When things don’t go as planned, is it a mistake or a learning lesson? If there was something I would consider a mistake, it was listening to an editor regarding my writing. Against my better judgment and instincts, I changed what I wanted to say, and it was not well received. That mistake, or more so, the lesson was to trust myself. Trust my voice and my instincts. When you have a vision or a story, who best to tell it, write it, speak it, tell the story other than yourself.

In your opinion, were you a “natural born writer” or did you develop that aptitude later on? Can you explain what you mean?

Not at all. I really had to work at it. Once I said yes to that ‘whack’ over my head to write, I knew I had no idea what I was getting into, so the work began. I just started reading everything and anything. And I took classes. Writing workshop, after writing workshop, after writing workshop.

Although I knew I had to write these books, it was tough. The story did not fully reveal itself. I had to write it a thousand different ways. I had to work. I had to explore, learn, meet new people, have new experiences, mentors, and set goals in everything.

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?

LIVE BIG WITH CATCH-M (2025) will be available this coming August, and it has been magic to create. It brings CATCH-M from my other books to the center by telling his story. CATCH-M began as a pure, little love spark who was all alone and scared of the dark. CATCH-M hears love’s whisper and listens. The more he listens, the more love grows in CATCH-M’S full, braveheart until he explodes to shine and share love’s extraordinary power everywhere. The miraculous wonders that happen as a result make it a must-read for families and classrooms.

Here is the main question of our interview. Based on your experience, what are the “5 Things You Need To Be A Successful Author or Writer”? Please share a story or example for each.

1 . Read. Read. And then read some more. And have new experiences, whether that’s through physical travels or reading. When you read, you experience worlds beyond your imagination — places you may never travel to.

Reading is the heartbeat of great writing. It breathes imagination, structure, rhythm, and empathy into your craft. For me, reading wasn’t just about enjoying stories — it was how I experienced the world, especially during a lonely childhood filled with what I now call “shadow thoughts.” Reading helped me dream of faraway lands, especially Africa, which later became a real journey that inspired characters like Baby Cheetah and Zebra. Each book I read was like collecting a piece of stardust to shine into my own story.

2 . Trust your voice. Take what you like and keep it. Throw the rest away. Your voice is your most powerful tool as a writer. For me, finding my voice meant turning down the volume on doubt and fear and listening instead to the whisper in my heart: “You are extraordinary.” That whisper became the heartbeat of CATCH-M and my books, where even a scared little spark finds courage by listening inward. Writing from that space — where imagination and intuition meet — has led me to stories that heal, connect, and inspire.

And once you find that voice? Protect it. There will be advice, trends, and opinions trying to shape your story. Take what lights you up and gently release the rest. I was told my themes were “too big” for kids, but I trusted my gut. Now, thousands of children pound their chests and say, “I AM extraordinary,” because I honored the story only I could tell. When you trust your voice, you don’t just write — you help others find theirs.

3 . Find things to be grateful for and live in gratitude. When you have gratitude, it brings even more good things to you. During the hardest seasons of my life, when I felt alone or overwhelmed, I started a practice of naming one thing I was grateful for each morning — even if it was just the sunshine or the sound of my boys’ laughter. That simple act shifted everything. It’s the same reason CATCH-M’s heart grows bigger each time they choose love and joy over fear. Gratitude turns darkness into light — it’s the spark that helps us live big.

Gratitude draws more good in because it teaches us to see the good that’s already there. As a writer, I’ve found that the more I write from that space of thankfulness, the more powerful and healing my stories become — for others, and for me.

4 . Find and believe your yes. It’s the fuel of your soul. It’s that deep-down knowing — often quiet at first — that you are here for a reason. For me, finding my ‘yes’ meant believing that my voice, my pain, and my joy all mattered. But when I finally said ‘yes’ to writing, to sharing my story, and to dreaming big, everything changed. That ‘yes’ became the heartbeat of my books and the message I now bring to kids and adults everywhere: You are extraordinary. Your ‘yes’ matters.

When you find and believe your yes, it doesn’t just light you up — it ignites everyone around you. It’s the beginning of becoming the star of your story.

5 . And last, but definitely not least, smile. Wake up and smile. It will change the course of your day. Smile at others. Smile at yourself, even and maybe especially when you are feeling low. I believe our smiles are U-shaped miracles that connect our heads to our hearts, our lives to one another, and our dreams to something greater. I’ve woken up on days heavy with shadow thoughts, but choosing to smile — even when I didn’t feel like it — and it shifted everything. It’s not about pretending everything’s perfect; it’s about choosing love, hope, and light anyway.

When I visit schools and ask kids to smile while shouting “I AM extraordinary,” their entire energy changes. That simple act opens hearts. And sometimes, smiling at ourselves — especially when we’re feeling low — is the bravest thing we can do. It’s a daily reminder that love lives inside us, and we can choose to share it. So yes, wake up and smile. Smile at your reflection. Smile at a stranger. Smile like your story matters — because it does.

What is the one habit you believe contributed the most to you becoming a great writer? (i.e. perseverance, discipline, play, craft study). Can you share a story or example?

I have committed myself to learning. Enjoying the process. Traveling. Reading. Engaging in new things, reading, all these things, they all teach you something. We write from experience, and as long as we live, we are learning and growing. And you have to be persistent. I can’t think of a particular story because it’s more of a way of life. I apply learning and enjoy what I do. It becomes a habit you apply across the gamut of writing and living.

Which literature do you draw inspiration from? Why?

Victor Frankl’s book, Man’s Search for Meaning, is super important to me. It taught me to find my ‘yes’ that I spoke of earlier. The book’s original title in Frankl’s language is “Nevertheless, Say Yes to Life.” That really hits home for me. It is how I try to approach my life, and the message I want to share. “Yes” is a big stepping point for me in my work and personal life. In my books, we watch every animal believe their ‘yes’ when they are at a hard crossroads. When life gets scary, when there’s a giant they may have to face, they get to choose. They get to choose their ‘yes.’

You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

Find one person a day and smile at them. Kind of like the ‘acts of kindness’ movement, if you will. A simple smile can go a long way.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

My readers can find me on Instagram, LinkedIn, or my website at katkronenberg.com. Click on the FUN tab and learn all about Catch-M.

You can also find the Dream Shop, curriculum for educators and families, and how to set up a dynamic Author Visit for schools or an engaging keynote address.

Thank you so much for this. This was very inspiring!