Losing my job came at just the write time for me
Catherine struggled to find work but found comfort producing her first children’s book
WHEN Catherine James lost her job in her 60s, she struggled to find work in her field and had to take on a job as a cleaner.
She had been an occupational therapist for years but changes in pension rules meant she couldn’t retire.
But amid all the worry and upheaval, she has managed to become a published author and says she now feels positive about her future.
Catherine, 64, from Renfrew, had been writing a children’s novel before she lost her job.
And she said that it helped her through the difficulties and uncertainty she faced.
She said: “In a way, through losing my job and everything changing, the writing was the one thing that was constant.
“I kept writing and writing. It really kept me going throughout it all.”
She added: “I was a community occupational therapist and I was doing locum work for about 15 to 20 years.
“Then like every other 1950s woman, I got the letter telling me my pension would be delayed.
“I thought I’d just carry on working. “But when I got to 62 there were just no more locums needed in Scotland. The job disappeared and I was left high and dry.”
Catherine lives alone and can’t claim her pension until she reaches 66, so she started looking for a job.
She said: “I used my savings trying to keep a roof over my head and discovered I wasn’t entitled to any help – only Jobseekers Allowance.
“I started job searching and discovered my occupational therapy degree and my skills didn’t seem to be transferrable and I couldn’t get a job.”
But Catherine had taken an evening class in creative writing in 2016.
She said: “The class tutor gave me confidence to write. Then the characters and stories tumbled out of my head.
Cetherine finished her book last year and heard about publishers Hubble & Hattie Kids, an imprint by Veloce. She was impressed they promote compassion, understanding and respect to children.
She explained: “I loved their books and sent the manuscript to them and they said ‘Yes’.”
Since then, she’s penned two more books and continues to write during the day and works as a cleaner in the evenings.
Her debut book, Indigo Warriors – The Adventure Begins, looks at issues such as animal welfare, homelessness, environmental destruction and politics from the perspective of a group of schoolchildren.
She says she didn’t set out to include specific issues in the book.
She said: “Although the book explores these issues, it is a fun, action adventure for children. A story that children can enjoy without worrying about these things.
“The characters in the stories came out of my head with their own topics and their own interests. A lot of the things in there are things I’m interested in. As an occupational therapist, obviously disability is an issue I think about. And the environmental stuff was very important to me and I’m a vegan, so animal welfare is important.
“It wasn’t a deliberate attempt to include them – it was just to write an adventure story for children and that’s how it came out.
“But I believe that it is important that we encourage children to speak up for kindness and compassion over cruelty and greed.”
Now Catherine hopes she can make writing her new career.
She added: “The book helped me and kept me focused.
“I think it’s important for older people to do new things and keep their brains active. I had a lot to learn and even now the book’s coming out, I’m learning about publishing.
“Of course I wish I’d done it sooner. “But I’m a firm believer that things happen at the right time. “And maybe the time was just right. Maybe I wouldn’t have been ready years ago. “Sometimes I think maybe my old life with the job and everything was cleared out to make way for this – to go in a new direction.”