How a Childhood Nickname Became a Character

The idea for Kathryn the Grape® to be a children's book character originally came from Kathryn Cloward’s mother, Mary. In 1999, Mary shared with her daughter a desire to write a children’s book centered on a character named Kathryn the Grape— the grade school nickname Cloward affectionately acquired from her softball coach, the late Nello “Mr. P” Pierozzi. At age 11, Cloward welcomed the fitting moniker, a fun adaptation from "Catherine the Great," because she loved the color purple and wore it every day. While mother and daughter had discussions about bringing the stories of Kathryn the Grape to life, the momentum wasn't there yet. It simply was not the right time.

Messenger of Love

It wasn’t until 2009, when Cloward was experiencing significant life changes that the messages and purpose for the Kathryn the Grape character became clear. As Cloward journeyed through a season of tremendous personal change, she started to develop authentic and unmasked self-love. It was during this time that she was infused with the purpose to help her son and children everywhere have the tools to nurture self-love, too. With a vision for Kathryn the Grape mounting in her heart as being a messenger of love, and inspiration being channeled through her, Cloward listened to her intuition and starting writing because she knew the purpose of Kathryn the Grape was of tremendous importance for everyone.

Rippling Loving Kindness

Cloward invited a variety of collaborators to join her in rippling loving kindness throughout the world through Kathryn the Grape, including talented artist Christine Winscott. In less than three years, the ripple effect of Kathryn the Grape has expanded to be embraced by children worldwide with three award winning books, a gold award winning music CD, a weekly teen-hosted radio show, and resources.

About the Author

Kathryn Cloward is purposeful about rippling messages of loving kindness, compassion, and acceptance into the world. Bringing her childhood nickname to life has been the most fulfilling projects in her life thus far, and is the manifestation of living out her true purpose. An award winning author, songwriter, and entrepreneur, Kathryn is passionate about creating and sharing engaging messages with the intention of helping kids of all ages (yes, adults too!) develop authentic and unmasked self-love. She is the founder and president of Natural Kidz, Inc. and Kandon Unlimited, Inc., which is home of Kandon Publishing and Kathryn the Grape Company. Kathryn has been recognized for her entrepreneurial and inspirational endeavors by being honored as one a San Diego Magazine's Woman Who Moves the City (2012), the featured Mompreneur on the cover of San Diego Family Magazine (May 2011), honored as an Inspirational Woman by the Speak for Success Women Changing the World Awards (2010), and was selected as one of San Diego Metropolitan’s top 40 Under 40 (2010). Kathryn lives in her native San Diego with her family where she enjoys hiking, reading, and spending time in daily meditation.
You can find out more about Kathryn at www.KathrynCloward.com.

About the Illustrator

Christine Winscott is the award winning illustrator of the Kathryn the Grape series. It has been through her creativity and detailed work that she has helped Kathryn the Grape become a loved character with children and parents. Christine is an artist with a diverse background whose enthusiasm for creating has led her to explore various media over the years. From paint to pencil and computer graphics to photography, she has been a commercial artist for over 26 years. Christine is most passionate about her family, friends, and the ongoing pursuit of art that makes people giggle. Bringing Kathryn the Grape to life has fulfilled her lifelong dream of illustrating a children’s book. Christine lives in the Chicago-area with her husband, three children, and two dogs.