We were lucky to catch up with Catherine Berra recently and have shared our conversation below.

Catherine, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

As a single mother for many years, I avoided dating due to the difficulties of balance life, work and all that goes with raising a son alone. Once he made his way to college, I decided to try online dating and what transpired over the course of the few years I attempted this new adventure, was cause for some serious laughter. The stories I shared with friends were the topic of lots of some crazy conversations as well as a study in the human condition. These friends were constantly trying to convince me to write a book about these interactions, but I was more mortified than inspired by the nutty dates, especially as a woman in her late 40s. Although I tried this form of dating for quite a while, it was just absurd to me how many ridiculous dates occurred and how bizarre some of the interactions were with the men who showed up as “matches” on these sites. And so, I gave up.
Fast forward to the lockdowns during the COVID pandemic and these friends finally convinced me to take the risk and move ahead with writing a book about my dating dilemmas, all to provide some laughter and relatability to so many people who go through this same silly adventure. I published a comedy book about dating for older humans in January 2022, and the book has taken on a life of its own. I also joined TikTok/BookTok to passively market the book, and some of my videos about dating disasters have garnered over one million views! Needless to say, the topic of nutty dates is not only relatable, but relevant and more common than most would think!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I have been a writer/poet since the time I could first write. Writing and creating stories and poems have been a part of me my entire life and this talent has made its way in to most of the jobs I’ve held. These have included creative writing scenarios, speeches and communications for a U.S. Ambassador/Philanthropist for whom I worked for almost nine years, as a Senior Tech Writer in the Division of Cybersecurity at the U.S. Department of State, and as an author of a collection of poetry I published in 2020.

Upon my return to Colorado in 2014 to assist my aging parents, I held several jobs that allowed for flexibility with regard to keeping my schedule open for them. During this time period, I was inspired by their declining health to take stock in my life, where I had been, what my goals and dreams were with writing and how I could continue creating.

A friend of mine had self-published a book and referred me to the online publishing consultant she used, and from that point on I found the courage to just do it! I first put together a collection of poems that dated from as early as 6th grade to present and published Lucid Life: A Collection of Lyrical Poetry in 2020. This was a proud moment for me. It was not motivated by the need to earn money, but to share life experiences through my poetry.

Then, during COVID lockdowns, my friends finally convinced me to write my comedy book about online dating, again not to make excessive amounts of money, but to share relatable, funny stories and to help people know that they are not alone in their attempts at seeking out relationships in this post-COVID nutty world.

I feel lucky to be able to write stories and pivot my writing career toward the more creative side of things. I am working on several other books now and am grateful that, now in my 50s, writing has taken on a new form in my life,

The books I’ve published are my way of sharing similar circumstances and experiences with people and I hope that my words inspire or comfort others, as well as add some levity to this crazy thing called life!

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

The goal and mission of my current journey is to connect with people of all ages to share stories, experiences and relatable situations that might inspire, comfort or render some laughter. I do many podcasts about my books and am always asked for advice about the dating book. Even with the poetry I’ve shared, the common thread that I always share is that we must give each other some grace. We are all imperfect humans, we all have had experiences that have formed our opinions, behaviors and reactions and we need to give each other the benefit of the doubt. As I note in my book, we must also remember that we have baggage that is part of our journey. And as a friend reminds me often, we each pull behind us that little red wagon of baggage and need to allow that person to pull their baggage along side ours in order to see that we are all dealing with similar situations in life.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

My social media presence is not big, but I have found that TikTok is a great place to engage with people of all ages about any topic on the face of the Earth. I was not familiar with this platform but learned quickly and post three to five videos per day related to chapters in my comedy book, poetry and many topics related to what we deal with in our 50s and beyond.

My goal on social media is to present relatable content, gain followers and sell books. Within the first year on TikTok, I have gained over 7,000 followers. Once you reach at least 1,000 followers you can add your website link, which I did, and that allows individuals to click on links to all of the podcasts I’ve been on as well as links to my books on Amazon. My website is CatheineBerra.com

It has been an interesting adventure since I created my own website using Wix and have done all of the marketing for my books on my own. I used the bookBuzz: Y our Super Sticky Book Marketing Plan Book by my friend Polly Letofsky. This gives step-by-step instructions for book marketing ideas, plans and success. It has been a God send.

Perhaps it is because I am a writer that none of the facets of marketing, podcasts and social media have intimidated me. I am grateful to share stories and help people understand that we are all in the same boat and experience very similar life situations. And that is the reason I am happy to also provide some levity to the equation!

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.catherineberra.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/catherine_berra/
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@catherinerauthor