*readers are idly reading various blog post title in their blogger feed* 

*Catherine unobtrusively places a new title on her feed billboard*

*and goes off to put the letters back* 

*Diva comes by and glances at the title* 

Diva: Ha! Look at this - this tag was all the rage last year. And now, she's getting around to giving us her version?

*causal reader slips next to diva* 

Casual Reader: Well, we all know that Catherine is a little old-fashioned....

Diva: If you mean, perpetually being 6 months behind the blogging times..... *checks nails*

*other readers see the title and start filing past them into the dark lecture hall*

Casual Reader: Aww, come on - Catherine can't help it if the dairy cows sucked six months of her life away!

Diva: Then she should ask for them back.

(believe me, Diva, I wish I could. We seem to be having some co-moooo-nication errors on that end.)

*Casual Reader looks into the auditorium*

Casual Reader: Hey, it looks like it's starting. Wanna go in?

Diva: *looks askance* Why?

Casual Reader: Oh, I don't know. Maybe she'll reveal some secrets we don't know about.

Diva: *looks interested* Oh? Like maybe what she looks like?

Casual Reader: Why don't you go in and find out? 

*"Casual Reader" Catherine follows the Diva in and disappears into the dark to make her introduction* 

Greetings to you, my dear readers!

I've come with a long-awaited and much-anticipated post for you today: The Get to Know Me, Writer's Edition Tag!

In this lovely morsel, I shall divulge several previously unknown facts about myself, which will hopefully be of interest to all parties. I will have to ask the hackers and the con-men to leave the room however - you can check yourselves in with the nice security guards posted around the room. Thank ye very much.

Now that has been said, we shall now proceed to the usual perfunctory reading of the tag rules.

*Catherine opens her magnificent scroll while the audiences groans*

Yes, yes, I know, it's a bother. However, rules are rules, and I have to abide by them if I'm to retain good standing in the community. And believe me, I worked hard for that standing.

*Catherine clears throat*

And now for the Rules:

1. Link back to the person who created the tag (Savannah @ Inspiring Writes).
2. Thank the person who tagged you. 

Okay, here goes.....

THANK YOU TO:

• Gray @ Writing is Life
• Jeanne68
• Faith @ A Writer's Song
• Julian @ Saver of Memories
• Rachel @ R's Loft
• Anyone else that tagged me that I forgot to record in here!!! 

YEAH. I was tagged for this one by a loooooootttt of people. While I've been double-tagged before, being quint-tagged is definitely a first!!!!


3. Share the tag graphic (optional!)

I decided to forego using the original and created my own instead, being the rebel that I am, LOL.


4. Tag eleven bloggers.

Good heavens, practically everyone that I know has been tagged for this one. I literally have lost track of who has and who has not done this tag so....I'm going to do this:

If you were part of the Pen Dragons' Hangout this past November

or....

You are a reader of my blog who writes (anything from fiction to poetry).....


and you haven't done this tag....


you are now officially tagged.


There. Now that the growly rules have been satisfied, let us move on to the fun stuff!





(Pen) Name: Catherine Hawthorn.

Nicknames: Cath (by Ivie, heehee), little lady (several people, because I'm short...), and Sylvester (by my grandfather, because I can do a smashing imitation of him).

Birthday: In the bleak mid-winter. That's all you need to know right now....

Hair Color and Length: Dark chestnut brown, which has blond and red tints running through it. It has natural waves in it - I apparently inherited the curly-hair gene of my mother. It's very long....right now it's waist length, but at one point it was almost hip length. 

Eye Color: Hazel. Mine change according to my mood from blue to green. When I'm happy, it's almost a turquoise color. When I'm mad, they turn a bright snapping green. And when I've been crying, they turn a bright blue.

Because I'm the Avatar Queen (and I'm not comfortable sharing my photo), I created an avatar based on myself. Lia, my sis, gave her stamp of approval on the likeness.

Braces/Piercings/Tattoos: I did have braces a couple of years ago, but they are off. I do wear a clear splint retainer all day. I have no piercings (not even on my ears!) or tattoos.

Righty or lefty: Ambidexterous! I can write with both hands, but I tend to write with my right hand more comfortably. I tend to use my left hand for shooting, opening doors and holding things....while my right hand has been proven to be better at bowling, cutting things, and other random stuff.

Ethnicity: To put in simply, I'm an American Caucasian. In reality, I'm a Heinz 57 when it comes to ethnic make-up...

On my mom's side, there is Scottish, English, Welsh, German, Mohawk, French, one Dutch ancestor. Also a possibility of Irish and Cherokee. On my dad's side, there is Austrian Polish, Russian Polish, Italian. Also a possibility of Russian and Ukranian blood in there somewhere.....



First novel written: "Heart of Gold". I should note that this was the first novel that I attempted to write. As with every single other thing that I write...it never got finished. But anyway, it was about this young French-American girl who thinks she hates dogs and then falls in love with a golden retriever. I wrote it while I was in middle school and it included all the hallmarks of a bad kid's story (ripped off characters from a French course I was taking, life experiences that are impossible now, teenage romance, etc.)

First novel completed: ehhh ehhh ehh *sobs*. Well, I suppose I could say Fair Winds since there is a first draft completed. However, it needs a ton of work....I'm hoping that The White Rose will usurp this honor for itself one of these days.....

Award for Writing: At the moment, the awards shelf for writing is...ahem....bare.

First publication: A story on Wattpad that I wrote several months ago called "The Snow Dancer of Iclyn." You can find it HERE.

Conference: None - haven't gone to a writing conference yet. I've gone to other professional conferences, though, and greatly enjoy them!

Query/pitch: None yet! I haven't even finished a first draft, never mind having one ready for pitching! I'd rather not query or pitch until I at least have a complete story.....



Novel (that you wrote): *gasps in horror* But I love all my babies.....*sigh* I suppose, at the moment it would go to The White Rose, since that one is the most docile and is the most mature at the moment....

Genre: Fantasy or historical fiction. Some days it's tough to decide between the two, though most days I lean very much into the fantasy/speculative fiction realm.

Author: J.R.R. Tolkien. That's the simplest answer. Other favorites include Laura Ingalls Wilder, Amanda Cabot, C.S. Lewis, and Shannon Hale.

Writing Music: I really like instrumental music, as well as cinematic/soundtrack music the most for writing. Favorite artists include Brunuhville, Adrian von Ziegler, Peter Crowley, Antti Martikainen, Andrei Krylov, and David Davidson.

Time to Write: Evening/night. The words flow better in the stillness of the night rather than in the rush of the day, I find. At night I just want to sit and think, whereas in the day, I'd rather be doing stuff.

Writing Snack/Drink: Trail mix, chocolate and water. I get hungry easily when I write, so trail mix is a great thing to shovel in my mouth and keep me energized. And chocolate is great for when I need a quick pick me up in the late hours.

Movie: I'm going to give you a list, since I can't pick favorites: The Man from Snowy River, Ever After, Letters to Juliet, Sense and Sensibility (1995), Tangled, Anne of Green Gables, Cinderella (2015), and The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.

Writing Memory: The orc fight during my first Camp NaNo. That was epic, LOL.

Childhood Book: Ummm, I suppose it would be Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I love the whole series (Little Town on the Prairie and These Happy Golden Years are now my favorites as an adult).



Reading: I'm not reading any novels at the moment, but I am reading a non-fiction book called Mrs. Seton by Joseph Dirven. It's a biography of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, who converted from Episcopalism to the Catholicism. Her life is so inspiring to me :).

Writing: Besides this blog post and others? The White Rose, though I haven't worked on it in weeks. I may be switching to Fair Winds for a while though.

Listening to: My motivation playlist on Spotify, most likely.

Watching: At the time of writing, it was a few episodes of Little House on the Prairie. Those were re-watches, I'm currently not watching much of anything else (no series or anything like that....). I've also been watching some episodes of The Waltons, which I love dearly. 

Learning: 4 languages on Duolingo (French, Italian, Welsh and Polish) and how not to settle when it comes to a job.



Want to be Published: Yes, when I get good enough. Which I hope will be within the next five years or so.

Indie or Traditional: I'm considering both. Some WIPs I have, if they get published at all, are really meant for a specific audience. So those will have to either be self-published or published via a niche/small publisher. At the moment, I'm more leaning towards Indie publishing because of the control factor (and I get more of the money, which is more helpful to me...)

Wildest goal: To give a speech at a writing conference. I'm an advocate at heart and I love to present and give my own ideas about things!


And that concludes the tag! It was great fun to *finally* fill this tag out!


And now, I want to hear from you! What is your favorite writing memory? Any other ambidextrous people out there? What artists do you listen to as you write? Anything in this tag surprise you? Feel free to tell me in the comments section!

Scribbingly yours,

Catherine