Kendall McNutt has been chasing stories since she was old enough to lie about where she’d been. A lifelong devotee of the weird and wonderful, she writes urban fantasy that finds the magic hiding in the mundane.
Based in the Pacific Northwest—where it rains less than you think but you rarely see the sun—Kendall balances her time between authoring novels and toiling in the public education system. In her spare moments, she is likely adventuring with family or negotiating with cats. She has too many, but she can’t get rid of any of them because they’ve formed a co-op with very strict by-laws.
I started Out Of The Way Things more than 25 years ago. I intended to write an anthology of related short stories. The principal character, Max, had the incredible ability to read everything about a person with only a moment of eye contact. I wrote the story that introduced him and his unsettling gift. From there, my plan was to write more stories with Max appearing throughout the book. With Max introduced, I sketched out another short story: The story of a woman who experiences something quite extraordinary in an abandoned house. I wrote copious notes, but no story.
I wouldn’t write another word of this story for more than a decade. I talked about it over the years. It changed shape in my mind, a larger world grew around it. At some point along the way, I lost the original story. But I remembered the idea. At the prompting of a friend, I started writing it again about five years ago. I didn’t want to rewrite what I had written years ago, I was convinced I would find it, and that I might be able to salvage something from it. Instead, I started with the outline I had written as a teenager, the story of the woman and the house. I wrote Win’s story. And it went no further than the house.
I still planned for a book of interconnected short stories. I tried to go back to Max. I tried to write a third character to tie the two of them together. For years, I tried to move past Win and the house. But I couldn’t write Max. Poor guy. The third character I had in mind didn’t have a name, let alone a story.
In 2023, I joined a writing group and I decided to pick up the story again. This time I wrote with the intention of finishing it. I had a solid twenty five pages.
I realized quickly, I couldn’t write Max, because this was Win’s story.
Max is a great character. I love him. But I wanted to walk through the door to an extraordinary world with someone who would experience it the way that I would. Win enters this story like Dorothy enters Oz, like Alice enters Wonderland. She asks the questions I would ask. She experiences the same surprise and curiosity and wonder that I would, if I were in her shoes.
From there the story came quickly, four months later I had my first draft. It is a great honor to share this story with others.
As a matter of Fact, I DO have pictures of the cats...
Meet Juno Junnifer Louise McNutt (Junie), the eldest. No, her one true love was not lost at sea. She has resting The-Call-Is-Coming-From-Inside-The-House face. Yes, that is a calming collar, our girl is REAL nervous.
Junie is a sweet, little girl whose ideal day begins with a gravy based cat food, with crunchies in a separate dish. From there, Junie likes to lay down, ideally on a warm lap, but the back of a couch or a window sill will suffice in a pinch. After that she may choose to lay somewhere else. In a single day, she may choose up to five different locations in which to lay down, before finally bedding down for the night.
Little Junie’s Likes Include:
- Churus (she calls them churros, we don’t have the heart to tell her she’d got the name wrong).
- Sedate pets on the head or back.
- Watching TV.
- Tiny Boxes
- Scritches.
- Birds in the yard.
- Making biscuits at her biscuit makin’ station (pictured here)
- Taking naps on humans taking naps.
Junie’s Dislikes Include:
- Being picked up.
- Strangers.
- Being picked up by strangers.
- Car rides.
- Cat carriers.
- Suitcases.
- Vigorous activity.
- Ear drops.
- Wrestling.
- High quality cat food.
It is my honor to introduce Margaret Mae Jemison McNutt (Maggie Mae), the middle child. Just one month younger than her sister, Maggie Mae is twice her size. Her impressive stature doesn’t stop her from leaping onto every surface and cabinet in the house.
Maggie Mae is the cat equivalent of Buddy the Elf. She is energetic, playful, happy, and genuinely helpful. She would make the perfect cat for the dog person who wants to venture into cat parenting. But too bad for them! She’s my girl!
Maggie Mae’s Likes Include:
- Food (any kind).
- Play (any kind).
- People (any kind).
- Helping out (rarely effective, but always appreciated).
- Heights.
- Big Boxes.
- Getting harnessed up for a backyard walk.
- Being held belly up.
- Popcorn (she steals it, we do not give it to her).
- Cat yoga.
- Snuggles.
Good Girl Maggie Mae’s Dislikes Include:
- Car rides.
- Cat carriers.
- Closed doors with cats behind them.
And finally, meet Alexander Hamilton (Mr. Baby Kitten), the baby. It’s a good thing he’s so cute, because he is a busy little boy with no boundaries at all.
Baby Alex idolizes his big sister, and well-behaved little sweetheart that she is, Maggie is a great example for him. Though sister Junie hasn’t yet fully embraced tiny baby boy, she has groomed him at least twice. True, she usually just bops him on his cute, fluffy head, but they are working toward an understanding.
Alexander prefers to keep his internal monologue on the outside; he is chatty as all get out. He is still learning the art of conversation.
Alexander’s Likes Include:
- Me.
- Attention.
- Attention from me.
- Wrestling Maggie Mae.
- Playing with every toy in the house.
- Playing with anything that appears to be a toy.
- Playing with anything that is on the floor.
- Playing with anything that could be placed on the floor.
- Clubhouses in all forms.
- Food. All of the food.
- People who are not me.
- Being carried upside down (I had to try it).
- The car.
- Cat carriers.
- Remaining in cat carriers when he might as well escape.
- Not getting attention.
- Not getting attention from me.
- Me giving attention to other cats.
Why, yes, I DO have pictures of the beautiful Pacific Northwest!
