An Interview with Lolisa Maria Monroe

Monroe is an award-winning children’s author celebrated for her enchanting and inclusive storytelling. Known for her ability to blend warmth and empathy into timeless tales, Monroe’s works inspire young readers to embrace acceptance and celebrate differences. With a deep love for animals and a passion for children’s literature, she crafts stories that entertain and foster a sense of compassion and understanding.

Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

Beatrix Potter and Laura Ingalls Wilder were the women who took me to another place when I was a child. With flashlights, my brother with the Hardy Boys, and me with Little House on the Prairie and Peter Rabbit, we would go to another world. The ability of a book to transport you somewhere else, for even just a small amount of time is such a gift. I hope to share that gift with another child somewhere in the world.

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

Ironically, my background is in small engine gasket manufacturing. For 27 years I worked with my brother manufacturing and distributing gaskets for snowmobiles, lawnmowers, and all-terrain vehicles all over the world from a small town in western Maine. Now, I write children’s books!

Tell us the story of your book’s title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

The Kitten That Could Not Meow came by happenstance. One of my daughters rescued a Siamese cat that had been wandering the streets of Tennessee. The shelter was having a hard time placing him as he was very scared of everything and did not meow. The thought was in my head every night and the story began on little notes I would leave myself at 2 am or on my phone. The wonderful friends I met on Etsy from the Ukraine, illustrated it from pictures I sent them. The orange kitten is my cat, Bob, from years past and Clara and Maria are from photos of my girls, holding kittens when they were little. Ironically, a year later, my ‘Grandcat,’ Simon, meows very loudly!

How did it feel when you first saw your book cover? Or when you first held your book in your hands?

For an author to hold that first book in your hands is hard to describe. All the time writing and rewriting, laying out the pages, proofreading, and wondering if it is good enough…perhaps it is!

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

“True Colors” by Cyndi Lauper

What is one thing you hope readers take away from reading your book? How do you envision your perfect reader?

The one thing I hope readers take away from The Kitten That Could Not Meow is that our disabilities do not define us. We all have a place in this world, sometimes it is just hard to find it, but never give up on Hope and the possibility of Grace.

What was the most rewarding/meaningful part of publishing your book?

Sharing such a powerful story with children and their families. It may seem so simple, but it has such deep meaning. I have had 80-year-olds call me in tears; that is a gift.

What new writing projects are you currently working on? Or, other projects that are not writing?

I am working with Patrizia Donaera in Italy to create an illustrated version of my favorite little squirrel…

Are you a writer, too? Submit your manuscript to Atmosphere Press.