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CURRENTLY BLOG HOP - SUMMER 2016 - DREAMS, INSPIRATION of a writerly life

6/15/2016

10 Comments

 
My writerly pals and I are sharing breezy summer hopes and dreams in the C*U*R*R*E*N*T*L*Y Blog Hop - Summer 2016.  Please have a read and enjoy.  Then check out the other #Gr8Blogs listed at the end of this post for more  C*U*R*R*E*N*T*L*Y inspiration.
Currently Blog Hop - Summer 2016 -catmichaelswriter.com

CURRENTLY Loving
Growing up on the New England coast and swimming since I could walk, I am in heaven when the outdoor pool opens for the season!  

​Besides keeping in shape, swimming laps is major stress relief.  My mind takes a holiday gliding through the water.  Sometimes, story ideas pop into my head.  The trick is to remember them when I get out of the pool, and write them down without dripping all over my trusty notepad. 
​

via GIPHY

CURRENTLY Reading
Usually, I read a couple books at once, but sometimes my library reserves become available at the same time, and I hit the jackpot.
Currently Blog Hop - Summer 2016 - catmichaelswriter.com
Trio of summertime reads
The Martian, by And Weir
...Super fun (though I skip over detailed, tech parts, like nailhead sizes, potato types, and such), and I love Matt Damon in the film. How did it win the Oscar in a comedy category?!?

Cinder, by Melissa Mayer
...Fresh and creative, Cinder is the first of Mayer's awesome fractured fairy tale/syfy mash-up series, The Lunar Chronicles.  ​I'm hooked. Just call me a lunar-tic.

Cinder is a poor, lonely orphan, who also happens to be a cyborg. There's  a mean stepmother, evil queen, and handsome prince, just like the original fairy tale.  Cinder is a perfect audiobook for exercising --- wanting to hear the next chapter keeps me going longer.   

Seraphina, by Robert Beatty
...Nah, I'm not bias because Seraphina is set in Asheville's Vanderbilt mansion, one of my fave places in North Carolina AND written by another NC author.  (Well, maybe a little bit bias.)  

​This middle grade tale featuring plucky female protagonist Seraphina, Chief Rat Catcher at the mansion, is NOT for sensitive young readers.  More like a Stephen King for kids, the book has downright scary encounters with other-wordly creatures, but it's a rompin' stomping' good yarn with a bit of 19th-century history thrown in.
​CURRENTLY Watching
I quasi-watch season 6 of Game of Thrones, fast-forwarding past scenes of excess violence and skin.  Sometimes deleting entire episodes.
Currently Blog Hop - Summer 2016 - catmichaelswriter.com
I devoured all Martin's books. But since the TV series show progressed beyond his published tome, I have no idea what will happen to the characters.  

​Can't wait to see how showrunners pull the plot together as the series winds down.

via GIPHY

​Hey, how about that unexpected Jon Snow come back?  And poor Hodor <sniff-sniff>.
CURRENTLY Thinking About
My WIP is constantly on my mind these days.  
Currently Blog Hop -Summer 2016 - catmichaelswriter.com
A fluke tech glitch wiped out my entire manuscript and  its cloud backup Yep, months of research and writing all gone.  Zip. Zilch. Zero. I spent weeks re-writing lost chapters and popping aspirin. 

I learned my lesson - now quadruple backing-up and printing daily work (though I hate killing trees).  I hope this loss never happens to you. Please, please please make multiple back ups of all that's dear to you.

CURRENTLY Anticipating
Spouse and I are motoring four hours west to the Blue Ridge mountains later this summer to celebrate his milestone birthday.  

​We love staying in edgy Asheville.  This artsy, outdoorsy community is a magnificent escape from summer's heat and humidity in our NC flatlands.  Can’t wait to explore trails, eateries, and creative places.  Just breathe that mountain air .... ahhhhhh!
Picture
Edgy Asheville: street scenes, storefront
​CURRENTLY Making Me Happy
This fall, I will be a great-auntie TWICE!  Both boys....One in September and the other in November.  You know I will be looking for sales on all things blue.  
​

via GIPHY

​CURRENTLY Seeing in My Camera Lens
A Taste of the South
Pepsi
Readers know the city of New Bern, NC,  as the setting for Nicholas Sparks'
A Walk to Remember.  (You can even take a W2R walking tour in New Bern of sites mentioned in his novel.)  

However, cola lovers know New Bern as the birthplace of Pepsi. You can still visit the corner drugstore where the pharmacist created the soft drink in the 1890s.
Currently Blog Hop - Summer 2016 - catmichaelswriter.com
New Bern - Corner Pharmacy: Birthplace of Pepsi-Cola
Gardens
​Please enjoy a taste of my summertime North Carolina garden, too.
Cat's summertime southern garden
Cat's summer garden
'Cue
​Gotta have eastern North Carolina-style Barbecue for a true taste of the south for your mouth. Serve it up on a bun of fried hush puppies with a side of Brunswick Stew and sweet tea. 
Currently Blog Hop_Summer 2016_catmichaelswriter.com
Carolina 'Cue

Thanks for stopping by!  ​

Now it's your turn: 
What are you CURRENTLY up to this summer? Big plans?  Keeping it low with a stay-cation?  Adding books on your to-read list?  Please share in the comment section


btw, Bloggers.... why not join us on the Currently - Summer 2016 Blog Hop!  Just add your family-friendly Currently link below in the comment section.  We’ll visit your blog and give you some blog love.  And if you use #Gr8Blogs, we'll support you when you post Currently in cyberspace.

#Bloghop □□□□What's on your list of #Summer Happy❓Check out ours & hop along‼️ ➡️ https://t.co/a7FTbtFkXd #Gr8Blogs pic.twitter.com/rAJn7EYOdh

— Cat Michaels (@CatMichaelsBook) June 20, 2016
For more fun with the C*U*R*R*E*N*T*L*Y Blog Hop - Summer 2016 Blog Hop, please visit these #Gr8Blogs next.... 
 

Auden Johnson,
Dark Treasury

Corrina Holyoake, 
Venturing Into the Unknown


Julie Gorges,
Baby-Boomer Bliss

Jd Holiday,
​Jd's Writers Blog



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10 Comments
Corrina Holyoake link
6/16/2016 07:09:38 am

Ahh loved reading your blog and playing catch up with what you have been up to lately. Huge congrats with the little bubbas on their way. I get to celebrate being an Aunty too in August... can't wait. I still shudder for you reading about the loss of all that work, every writers nightmare! Sounds like a lovely summer ahead of you, enjoy! Big hugs

Reply
Cat Michaels link
6/16/2016 09:53:30 am

Thanks, Corrina. This hop is a lovely way of sharing those little bits of our life that we don't get so see in cyberspace. Had to smile because I just set up an external hard-drive as the fourth back up option for my files. Please do take care with yours, too.

So, we'll both be aunties.... one of life's greatest joys. We must share baby pix -:D

Reply
Julie Gorges link
6/16/2016 12:10:15 pm

I'm taking your advice on backing up - great tip for all writers. Nothing is worse than losing all that hard work and creativity! Enjoy your trip to Asheville. I have a childhood friend who lives there and is begging me to visit. All her photos look gorgeous and she loves it there. And oh, new babies. Nothing better. So glad we've connected - and now I feel like I know you even better. Thanks for sharing!

Reply
Cat Michaels link
6/17/2016 07:49:43 pm

Please do make multiple back ups across multiple devices, Julie. No fun starting over. Your friend is fortunate to live in Asheville. I hope you can visit that amazing place some day (and if you do, hope there is even just a moment for us to connct in person-:D).

It is fun sharing bits of life with cyber friends. Thanks for stopping by!

Reply
Icy Sedgwick link
6/19/2016 01:50:34 pm

That photo from your garden is gorgeous!

Reply
Cat Michaels link
6/19/2016 08:24:05 pm

Love sharing my garden with you, Icy. Thanks for stopping by.

Reply
Carmela Dutra link
6/20/2016 12:37:53 am

First off, I love the gifs and the bitmojis you used! Big congrats on being promoted to Great Auntie! I'm still so sorry you had to experience the tragedy of losing your work, a lesson we can all learn from. Cannot wait to see the photos you snap on your get away with the hubby.

Reply
Cat Michaels link
6/20/2016 11:02:29 am

Carmela, I'm trying to use more fun gifs and bitmojis 'so glad to know you enjoy them, too. Yes, best of times with the great auntie and worst - losing my manuscript. But all good now. Looking forward to Asheville with hubby and camera -:D

Reply
Auden Johnson
6/20/2016 09:52:07 am

I'm getting better at backing things up. My thesis presentation disappeared from my DropBox. Still don't know how that happened. I used to treat DropBox as my safety net.

I keep hearing about Cinder. I need to check it out.

Reply
Cat Michaels link
6/20/2016 11:05:38 am

Auden, do check out Cinder and the rest of the Lunar Chronicles but warning.....very addictive!

Argh! Sorry to hear about your thesis pressie getting lost. I used to treat the cloud as my safety net, too, but I have added a jump drive, portable hard drive, and email copies and print outs of of my finished work each evening.

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  • Welcome!
  • Cat's Books
    • Sweet T and the Turtle Team >
      • Just Between Sam and Me
    • Finding Fuzzy: A You-Decide Tale of a Lost Friend
    • Sweet T and the North Wind
    • The Magical Aquarium
  • Cat's Corner: Blogging About Books, Writing, and More
  • Meet Cat
  • Author Visits
  • FREE STUFF in the Kids' Zone
  • Contact Cat