Writing Archives - Page 4 of 6 - A.J. Cattapan

Help me name my next travel blogging adventure!

May 28, 2015/6 Comments/in Spin Cycle, Travel, Writing/by AJ Cattapan

As I write this, there are only eight days of school left. Normally, I teach summer school, but for the first time in my teaching career, I’m going to take the summer off!

And you know what that means . . . it’s time to travel! Last year, I fit in a two-week trip to study Italian in Rome after the summer school session ended. I blogged every day I was there and dubbed my trip the Speak, Pray, Cook tour. This year, because I have more time off, I’ve expanded the trip, but what should I call it? “Speak, Pray, Cook Part 2” seems sort of dull.

So here’s what I’ve got planned so you can help me come up with a name:

two weeks in Rome studying at the same Italian immersion school I studied at last year
a Saturday cooking class (a different cooking school than the one I went to last year)
finally doing the Scavi tour at St. Peter’s where you get to do down into the excavation site where they found St. Peter’s actual tomb! (Only a few people are allowed to do this each day, and my friend and I have tickets!!!)
hopefully a trip out to some catacombs (I’ve been to Rome three times but never seen any catacombs.)
a one-night trip to Siena (As a writer, I’ve got to visit the hometown of St. Catherine of Siena–now that woman could write! Her writing persuaded a pope and all sorts of influential leaders.)
one week in Florence studying at one of the satellite locations for the Italian immersion school
and then because I’m traveling with a friend who speaks Spanish . . . four days in Spagna . . . uh, Spain! (Sorry, getting a head start on my Italian there.)

So what should I call this grand adventure????

I’m coming Rome! Save some sunshine, gelato, and cappuccino for me!

I’d really like my Italian to progress to a point where I can listen to some Italian and not feel like I’m really straining just to catch a word or two here and there. I also want to have some fun before buckling in for the doctorate program in the fall.

Got some summer plans you want to share? Hook up with the Spin Cycle this week and share your blog post! Click on the button below to link up.

Leave your suggestions for a trip name in the comments below and maybe I’ll pick you up a little something in Italy or Spain. 🙂

And no, sorry, I can’t bring you back a man.

Spin Cycle: Teaching and Writing

May 22, 2015/1 Comment/in Angelhood, Spin Cycle, Writing, young adult/by AJ Cattapan

With all the book launch craziness going on lately, I haven’t had much time for blog posts, but I promised my launch team friend Ginny Marie that I’d get back on this blogging business! This week’s Spin Cycle topic of teaching seemed like a good time to do so.

I certainly know something about teaching. I’ve been doing it for . . . well, never mind how long I’ve been teaching. I was just excited today when my sixth graders found out I’ve been at our school for eight years, and one of them said, “Really? I didn’t think you were that old!” I’d give the kid an A for that comment, but he’s already getting one! 😉

I’ve debated quite a bit about what exactly to say. On a recent guest blog post, I’ve already talked about how my careers as a writer and as a teacher have overlapped, so I thought I’d take this topic one step further and talk about what exactly has been happening lately.

The regulars around here know that last month my young adult novel Angelhood was released by Vinspire Publishing. It’s been an exciting time, but I haven’t been sharing it with my students. Some have wondered why not. Aren’t they my target audience? Couldn’t it create some teachable moments?

I have, in the past, shared some of my writing successes with my students. For example, several years ago, I had a Highlights magazine article published about a former student and the experiment he had on one of the final space shuttle missions. It was a perfect story to share with the students because it was about one of their peers!

When I was published in a Chicken Soup for the Soul book two years ago, one of my coworkers insisted on printing out the local newspaper article and having it hung outside the school office. To be honest, I cringed a bit. The story itself had nothing to do with school and was really aimed at a more general adult audience. Nonetheless, there was nothing inappropriate in the story, so I let it go.

Now, however, I have a young adult novel published. It’s the story of a troubled girl who finds herself in the position of being a guardian angel after her own tragic death. Since it deals with guardian angels, it’s filed under the category of “Christian fiction” on Amazon. Since it deals with difficult topics such as suicide and drug use, it’s definitely more “young adult” than “middle grade.” For those two reasons, I am not discussing the book at my public middle school with an extremely diverse student body.

I treasure my role as a teacher. When I’m there, it’s my job to help my students reach their potential. It’s not my job to sell books when I’m at school. I’m there for my students, not to toot my own horn.

Nonetheless, you can never underestimate the Googling abilities of middle school students. I’m not sure who started it, but somebody found me . . . perhaps on Instagram or Twitter or Facebook. Or maybe they just found this website. Either way, there are murmurings at school about my book.

A few students have been bold enough to come right out and ask about it. Sometimes I have a little fun with them when they ask something like, “When is your book coming out?” and I respond, “Oh, you mean my Chicken Soup book? That came out two years ago.”

And other times, when I feel like they’re asking just to change the topic in class, I say, “We’re not talking about that right now. We’re talking about your writing. Now let’s get back to it.”

Lovely gifts from some lovely students for teacher appreciation week!

Teaching is a really special career. It can be frustrating, demanding, and heartbreaking, but it can also mean lots of wonderful moments watching kids blossom in ways you’d never expected or finally seeing that light bulb go on over their head. I wouldn’t want to do anything to take away from that. Therefore, when it’s appropriate, I’ll discuss my own writing in class, and when I feel it’s not, then I’ll hold back. In the end, I’m going to do what’s best for my students, and that means focusing on their writing, not on mine.

More reviews, blog tour stops, and giveaways!

May 3, 2015/0 Comments/in Angelhood, Book Reviews, Giveaway, Writing, young adult/by AJ Cattapan

First, thanks to everyone who turned out for the Facebook party and Twitter contest last Thursday night. I had a blast! I’ll be blogging about the experience on the Seekerville blog on Memorial Day, so stop by then to find out a bunch of behind-the-scenes workings of a Facebook party.

In the meantime, the blog tour and giveaways continue! Here’s a roundup:

On April 24, Pegg Thomas wrote this lovely 5-star review of Angelhood on The Sheepish Scribe.
On April 27, Pegg Thomas interviewed me over at the Quid Pro Quills website. Hope you didn’t miss that giveaway!
On April 30, I guest blogged over on Johnnie Alexander’s blog about my collection of angel paraphernalia.
Also on April 30, Rabia Lieber wrote this awesome review of Angelhood on her blog.

Coming up this week:

On May 4, I’ll have an interview and giveaway (paperback if you’re U.S. or ebook if you’re outside U.S.) on Emilie Hendryx’s blog Thinking Thoughts.
On May 5, there will be yet another ebook giveaway of Angelhood on Patti Shene’s Teens of Today and Tomorrow.
On May 6, I’ve got a guest post on Ginger Solomon’s blog.

And still more to come!

Blog Tour for Angelhood

April 10, 2015/0 Comments/in Angelhood, Writing, young adult/by AJ Cattapan

We’re getting really close to the launch of my young adult novel Angelhood, so it’s time to start looking at all the blogs that are taking part in my blog tour.

What’s a blog tour? A chance for an author to “tour” around on different blogs to talk about her upcoming book. Often these include interview questions, guest posts, and behind-the-scenes info about the book. There are also many giveaways, so be sure to check out these blogs in the near future!

April 13, 2015: Book Review on Lemon Drop Pie
April 20, 2015: Interview on Novel Rocket
April 21, 2015: Interview on author H. Schussman’s blog
April 23, 2015: Interview on The Scriblerians
April 23, 2015: Interview, recipe sharing, and ebook giveaway on Peering Through Life’s Window
April 24, 2015: Guest post and giveaway on Let’s Talk
April 27, 2015: Interview on Behind Every Story
April 27, 2015: Interview on Quid Pro Quills
April 30, 2015: Guest blog post on my collection of angels on Johnnie Alexander’s blog
May 4, 2015: Interview and giveaway on Thinking Thoughts
May 4, 2015: Interview on Gretchen E K Engel’s blog
May 5, 2015: Interview and ebook giveaway on Teens of Today and Tomorrow
May 6, 2015: Guest post on Ginger Solomon’s blog
May 8, 2015: Interview and giveaway on Sara Ella’s blog
May 8, 2015: Book Review on MommiFried: A State of Motherhood
May 13, 2015: Four Facts & a Fib on Marissa Shrock’s blog
May 19, 2015: Excerpt Tuesday on Allyson Carter’s blog
May 25, 2015: Guest post on “How to Throw a Launch Party” on Seekerville
July 16, 2015: Guest post and giveaway on Jo Huddleston’s blog

One month until Angelhood releases!

March 31, 2015/1 Comment/in Angelhood, Writing, young adult/by AJ Cattapan

Only one month until my young adult novel, Angelhood, releases from Vinspire Publishing! What’s on the horizon?

Lots of blog tours. I’m lining up a series of blog interviews, guests posts, and even some recipe sharing. I’ll also have some podcast interviews for you to listen to. Many of these will have giveaways attached, so be sure to stay tuned and check them out.

Also, on the official release day (April 30, 2015), we’ll be having an online launch party on Facebook. We’ll have lots of fun games and giveaways!

Then on May 17, we’ll have the in-person launch party. If you’ll be in the Chicago area, you can check out the details for that party here.

Looking forward to sharing all this fun with you!

Spin Cycle: 28 Inspirational Quotes

February 27, 2015/5 Comments/in Angelhood, Spin Cycle, Writing/by AJ Cattapan

For this week’s Spin Cycle, Ginny Marie of Lemon Drop Pie is asking us to list 28 of . . . well, whatever we’d like! We’re just celebrating that the 28-day month of February is almost at an end. (One of my former principals used to call it the “armpit of the school year.”)

For my post, I’ve decided to list 28 inspirational quotes. In the comments, tell me which one was your favorite or if you have a favorite that I didn’t list!

Quotes on Success

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Funny Quote

This one made me laugh. I guess it’s the Spanish version of “If someone hands you lemons, make lemonade.”

7.

8.

Quotes about kindness

9.

10.

11.

12.

Quotes about Hope

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

Angel Quotes

Thanks to my book Angelhood coming out in two months, my friends are sending me lots of angel quotes. So here’s a whole set of them.

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

26.
27.

28.

Stop by the Spin Cycle to see what other kinds of lists other bloggers came up with.

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Help me pick a headshot!

January 24, 2015/8 Comments/in Uncategorized, Writing/by AJ Cattapan

In getting ready for my book release, I had some new headshots taken last month at Popio Stumpf Photography. Chris Popio did such an awesome job that I’m having trouble choosing. Can you help me pick a headshot to use for my book and social media? I got it narrowed down from 300 shots to 12 for you! 🙂

Headshot A

Headshot B

Headshot C

Headshot D

Headshot E

Headshot F

Headshot G

Headshot H

Headshot I

Headshot J

Headshot K

Headshot L

poll by twiigs.com

Spin Cycle: Lost

January 17, 2015/2 Comments/in Angelhood, Middle Grade, Spin Cycle, Writing, young adult/by AJ Cattapan

This week on the Spin Cycle, Ginny Marie is asking us to write a post prompted by the word lost. I have a great fear of getting lost. Many of my childhood nightmares had to do with getting lost. I am a map fiend. If you’re in a car with me and we’re traveling some place new, please give me a map so I can keep track of us at all times.

But for this post, I’d like to talk about a different kind of lost. In the past year, I’ve lost track of a lot of the blogs I used to follow. You see, way back in the early days of my blogging. I followed my favorite blogs through a blog reader called Google Reader, which was extremely popular at the time, but then suddenly disappeared. When that happened, a lot of us hopped over to Feedly. However, I never quite felt comfortable with it, especially after tablets came on the market. I had trouble flipping back and forth between reading my blogs on my laptop and reading them on my iPad. Then to make it worse, I lost my password and couldn’t even get onto Feedly anymore.

Then some friends recommend Bloglovin. So that’s what I’m using now. You can follow me here. The problem is that I lost track of a lot of the blogs I used to follow, so now I’m in the process of getting back to following them via Bloglovin.

For example, for years I used to follow Krista Van Dolzer over at Mother. Write. (Repeat.) She was an aspiring MG/YA author just like me, and she often had great agent interviews posted on her blog to help those of us who were looking for a literary agent. I lost track of her blog there for a while, but I was happy to see when I returned that both she and I will be debut authors this year! Her middle grade book The Sound of Life and Everything comes out a month after my young adult book Angelhood.

And then there’s the author known online simply as the “Authoress,” whose blog Miss Snark’s First Victim is widely known for its writing contests that help match up authors and agents and/or editors. In fact, Angelhood was a contestant there once and got some great feedback. Without that feedback, I’m not sure I would have had the courage to find critique partners, much less seek publication.

So I’ve lost track of a lot of blogs, but I’m trying to gain them back! What have you lost lately?

Word of the Year 2015 and Good News Jar

January 6, 2015/9 Comments/in Spin Cycle, Writing/by AJ Cattapan

For the past two years, I’ve picked a “word of the year” instead of making New Year’s resolutions. Last year, I picked the word trust, as in I was going to trust in God’s plan. Since my plans never seem to work out like I think they should, I figure I might as well give it up and just, in the famous words of Elsa, “let it go.” Amazingly, at the time I decided on that word, I hadn’t even seen Frozen yet.

So what word should I pick for 2015? The word trust worked out pretty well for 2014. I trusted in God’s plan and look what happened:

I got my first book contract.
I was picked to go on a pilgrimage to Italy for the Canonization Mass for John Paul II and John XXIII in April
I went back to Rome in July to “speak, pray, and cook” like an Italian.
I started my preparation to become a Dame of the Order of Malta.

2015 is shaping up to be no less of a roller coaster ride. Of course, I’ve learned that these plans might not go as I expect, but things God might have in store for me this year include the following:

my first speaking gig as an author (I’ll be speaking to the young adult crowd at St. Emily in Mt. Prospect on Wednesday, January 21, from 7-9 p.m. about finding your God-given creativity. If you live near Chicago and are in your 20s or 30s, come on out!)
a trip to Guatemala for spring break (Shall I blog about it? I’m thinking of calling it the Gotta Guatemala Tour.)
the release of my debut novel Angelhood on April 30 (stay tuned for details about launch parties!)
perhaps a return trip to Italy in the summer to study more Italian???
the start of my doctoral program in September??? (still waiting to be officially accepted into the program)
my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary in October
being invested as a Dame in the Order of Malta by Cardinal Dolan in New York in November

So . . . yeah . . . lots of potential for this year. What kind of word would help me survive all this? I’ve considered words like “Charge!” as well as cheating by using full phrases like “Full speed ahead” and “Bring it on!” I was almost convinced my word of the year was going to be “roll.” As in, whatever happens, I’m just going to “roll” with it.

But just now, at the last minute, I’ve decided to change my mind. The year of the word for 2015 for me will be grace. In my book Angelhood, there’s a lot of talk about grace. It’s something my main character is sorely missing in the beginning, and yet something she’ll need if she’s going to grow the wings she needs to get into heaven. Grace is something my spiritual director keeps bringing up, too. For example, when faced with a tough situation, she encourages me to think about how I can “stand in grace” in that moment. I’ll admit I’ve struggled with this a lot. To begin with, despite using the word grace repeatedly in my book, I still feel like I don’t totally have a handle on what the word means, so I’ve turned to my trusty friend Merriam-Webster to see what he was to say about the word.

According to him, grace is . . .

a way of moving that is smooth and attractive and that is not stiff or awkward
a controlled, polite, and pleasant way of behaving
unmerited divine assistance given humans for their regeneration or sanctification
a virtue coming from God

And all of those kind of sum up how I hope to get through all the ups and downs I’m sure 2015 will bring. May I speak in a way that is smooth, attractive, and not stiff or awkward! May I be polite and pleasant to all I meet! And may God grant me His divine assistance through it all!

Now in addition to picking a word of the year, there’s one other thing I’ve done for the last two years, and that’s keep a Good News Jar.

A Good News Jar is simply an empty jar in which you keep slips of paper on which you write down all the good news you get, so that at the end of the year, you can open the jar and remember all the wonderful things that happened in the previous year.

You would think an entry like this would earn an exclamation point or a smiley face. I think I was still in shock by the news to add anything other than the basic fact I’d been offered a book contract!

As with the first year, I started off really strong with 16 entries in January, but then added only 10 more over the course of the rest of the year. Hmm. Still it was fun to look back over the slips of paper and recall some of the crazy things from the beginning of last year, like when I got a flat-tire during the polar vortex and was just grateful that I hadn’t been far from home when it happened!

So I’ll try again this year, and we’ll see how many pieces of good news I can accumulate in 2015! And hopefully, I’ll accept all this good news with grace.

Interested in learning about other “Words of the Year” authors and bloggers have picked? Check out the Spin Cycle by clicking on the link below.

Spin Cycle: 10 Questions

December 30, 2014/4 Comments/in Spin Cycle, Writing, young adult/by AJ Cattapan

For the Spin Cycle this week, Ginny Marie is asking us to answer ten questions about blogging. Here goes:

1. What do you love the most about blogging?

Being able to “converse” with people I don’t get to see on a regular basis–or may never even meet in person!

2. How do you find the time to keep up with all the aspects related to blogging (posting, reading, commenting, responding, etc)?

I don’t! LOL!

3. Does your family know about your blog and does this affect what you blog about?

Yes. In fact, when I was in Rome last summer and blogging every day of my trip, one of my brothers set it up so that my parents could get my posts via email every day, so now Mom and Dad are subscribers to my blog. Everybody wave to Mom and Dad! 🙂

I don’t think it really changes my posts because I’ve always used “If I wouldn’t want my mom to read it, I shouldn’t post it on the internet” as my golden rule for Internet usage. Did you know your my litmus test for blog posting, Mom? 🙂

4. If you didn’t blog, what would you be doing with that time?

Uh . . . my to-do list is so long, I won’t even begin to type it here.

5. Have you been in a blogging rut and how did you pull yourself out of it?

Not really a rut, but sometimes I don’t blog because I simply don’t have time. Like Gretchen over at Second Blooming, I sometimes come up with ideas for blog posts in my head. They just don’t make it on the blog because I have too many other things to do.

6. Have you ever considered leaving the blogging world and why? What stopped you?

Once upon a time, I had a baking blog, but I gave that up to focus more on writing fiction.

7. Show some blog love: Name another blog that you adore.

Well, of course I read Lemon Drop Pie and Mayor of Crazyville, and I’m glad to have discovered the aforementioned Second Blooming. In the writing world, I wouldn’t go without the blog of Literary Agent, Janet Reid. She’s funny, informative, and very generous with her time in answering writers’ questions. And I also really like the joint blog by my fellow ACFW young adult authors over at Scriblerian.

8. What’s your favorite social media outlet for sharing your blog posts?

Facebook. But I try to tweet, too.

9. What’s one thing you’ve learned about yourself since you started blogging?

My best writing comes when I let my fears go and just write from my heart, even if I’m scared by how people might react.

10. Any new blogging plans or ideas for the new year?

As you may have noticed on Monday, I’m going to try getting back to my Monday Book Reviews. I’ve got a whole line-up of books to read and review.

Want to see how others answer this week’s questions? Check out the Spin Cycle by clicking on the link below: