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Cathy C. Hallhttps://cathychall.wordpress.com/I write, write, write. Then I rewrite, rewrite, rewrite. THEN I submit all those polished-up words out into the world and sell 'em. It's a plan that's worked pretty well.

Fame, Fortune, and the Annual Dad Dilemma

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Folks often ask (and by often, I mean once, possibly twice), “Say, Cathy C. Hall, what do you do with all that Fame and Fortune?”

Well, Fame is fleet. Or is it fleeting? The point is, it’s not that easy to hold onto. But Fortune you can actually grab and throw around the dance floor! Fortune comes in pretty handy around the holidays, when I attempt to show the Beneficent Mr. Hall just how much he is appreciated . Nothing says “Please don’t make me get a job where I’d have to wear actual clothes/ Merry Christmas!” than a swell gift under the tree. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy to find a swell gift for Mr. Hall. You can find out why if you read “The Annual Dad Dilemma” from this month’s Modern Senior Living.

So, that leaves a bit of Fortune left for me to share with friends like you in the Hall of Fame Holiday Giveaway! Today I’m adding a record coaster just like the one I use for my cuppa. Um, when I can find my coaster. Anyway, if you look closely, you can see that this coaster is, in fact, an actual record (Kenny Rogers’ “The Gambler” to be exact). I love that song. And I’m kinda fond of Kenny, too. But I’m giving away “The Gambler” ’cause it’s such a great story song. And I’m all about writing here at the Hall of Fame.

So, don’t forget to comment to get your name thrown in Santa’s hat for the Giveaway at the end of the month! Remember, any comment on any post in December will get your name included. And more than one comment will get your name included more than once. Why, you could be as famous as Cathy C. Hall around here. And win a merry fortune, too!

Finding Neil Gaiman in Decatur

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A friend (who just happens to be a photography wiz) worked on my Neil Gaiman photo and wheee! Now you can tell it really, truly is neilhimself!

The other night I dashed down to Decatur and heard him speak. But apparently, I didn’t dash down soon enough, as I was watching and listening from a balcony seat. That may have wreaked havoc on my photo, but it didn’t matter when it came to Mr. Gaiman’s delightful discourse. Following are a few things I learned:

If I lived next to a graveyard instead of the suburbs, I may have written The Graveyard Book.  Now I know why all my characters have names like Mark or Tiffany and hang out in boring, old playgrounds.  I’m just kidding about that- I’d never name a character Tiffany.

Neil Gaiman may return to DragonCon someday. Probably not.

Mr. Gaiman’s daughter was the inspiration for his book Coraline. He told a charmingly, funny tale about his little girl and her make-believe world and how one thing led to another, including those weird button eyes. Actually, he could not remember how he came up with the eye idea. But he wishes he could.  Not to beat a dead horse, but if my daughter had told me creepy/funny stories I could have written Coraline.  Instead, I’m stuck with Girl Scout stories. Which, now that I think about it, had a couple of scary GS leaders.

Mr. Gaiman doesn’t think all that tweeting he does helps him write. I think he just likes to tweet.  Sometimes about things he probably shouldn’t. (Sign up on Twitter and you can follow him. And me! neilhimself is probably a tad more interesting.)

Thank goodness, the Little Shop of Stories participated in a promotional competition for The Graveyard Book and won. Because Neil Gaiman is witty and exceptionally generous and how would I have known that, if I hadn’t been sitting up there in the balcony in Decatur, Georgia?

(You can read my sad tale of having to leave before getting my book signed by neilhimself over at Cathy C.’s Hall of Fame. But Mr. Gaiman stayed till 1:18 in the morning, autographing books.  And I heard he was charming and witty till the very end!)