Art & Life with Kate Cartia

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kate Cartia.

Kate, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I learned pretty quickly after having my son in 2011 that motherhood – or parenting, really – can be lonely. People are so wonderful for the first few months, but of course, have their own lives to focus on, and you’re sort of left wondering what the heck you’re doing. I’d scroll the internet in the wee hours of the morning, looking for something to connect to while my child slept in my arms. Thankfully, I stumbled onto parent humor accounts, and I was blown away with how frequently I thought “Holy cow, I’m not the only one!”. I’d always been interested in writing and started and stopped many blogs before finally settling on cracking jokes as an outlet. And it’s been a godsend.

Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I don’t know if I’d call what I do “art,” to be honest. That almost seems like an affront to people painting, photographing, sculpting, performing, etc. I consider myself a content-creator and freelance writer. That being said, my niche is parenting jokes and humor pieces. The “how” is easy: parenting is absolutely hysterical. There’s endless material and something new every single day. I try to take the mundane and make it relatable and funny because I fervently believe that if we can’t laugh at how crazy the raising kids gig is, it’s that much harder. My son and the amazing parents I have the pleasure of networking with provide unlimited inspiration. My sincere hope every single time I write anything is to remind other parents and caregivers that we’re in this together and mostly winging it.

What responsibility, if any, do you think artists have to use their art to help alleviate problems faced by others? Has your art been affected by issues you’ve concerned about?
The role of artists is constantly changing. That’s what makes art, art, in my very humble opinion. As for my work, while I often camp out in the humor and satire arena, I also try to avoid simply glossing over or avoiding touching on serious issues. The challenge, I suppose, is to bring people together in a world that often feels very separated. I can relate any event to parenting since we ultimately want to leave the world a better place for our kids. I’ve gotten feedback on specific pieces or posts suggesting that I shouldn’t get political or opinionated on a parenting account, and I disagree strongly. Where else would I do it? Why wouldn’t I be fiercely opinionated about world events when they no longer only impact me?

What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
I run As Kate Would Have It on Instagram (@askatewouldhaveit), Facebook (/AsKateWouldHaveIt), and Twitter (@katewouldhaveit), and my website, askatewouldhaveit.com, is under construction and coming soon. For internet content-creators, our biggest support is having our work shared! If you resonate with something you see, laugh, cry, whatever, please share it. We want to connect to people, and it’s sincerely so flattering and humbling when people just “get you” enough to want to spread your message.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.askatewouldhaveit.com
• Email: kate@askatewouldhaveit.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/askatewouldhaveit/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AsKateWouldHaveIt/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KateWouldHaveIt

Image Credit:
Kate Cartia

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