President John F. Kennedy said the above words in one of his many great speeches. As of late, I have adopted his quote as my own personal mantra.
I won't go into the depressing details, but earlier this year, I was reminded of how finite life is and, as I'm sure you are well aware, in our ever-changing society, there are no guarantees of what tomorrow will hold.
I'm sure most people have a bucket list of things they want to do before they-well- kick the bucket. Mine is constantly evolving. As I cross an item off, I add another in its place. When I want to do something, I ask myself the words of JFK, "If not now, when?", then I make plans to do it.
I try to go to as many concerts as possible., especially since we lost so many opportunities to experience live music during the lockdown. Missing out on seeing Tom Petty live is one of my few regrets in life.
My tastes in music vary widely and so far in 2023, I've seen David Nail, Ashley McBryde, Harper O'Neill, Chicago, Styx, Slaughter, Child's Play, Vixen, Heavens Edge, Quiet Riot, Britny Fox, Firehouse, Winger, Lita Ford, and several others. Additionally, I am looking forward to seeing Kiss, Aerosmith, and Kix on their farewell tours/performances later in the year.
As my friends and loyal readers of this blog already know, I enjoy hiking. I've managed to get a few hikes in so far this year, but I need to find some new trails, as I seem to be hitting the same ones over and over. Natural Bridge in Virginia is on my bucket list, and I plan to hit it later in the summer.
In April, I took a trip to Blacksburg, VA to see my beloved Lady Vols softball team compete against Virginia Tech. Plans are underway to attend many more University of Tennessee sporting events, both in Knoxville and on the road.
I won't run down the entirity of my bucket list, but as I cross items off, I will do my best to document them here and on Instagram. Tyler Cates (@tylercatesauthor) • Instagram photos and videos
In other news:
As was recently announced, I will be appearing at the Fredericksburg Independent Book Festival on June 17, from 10am until 4pm, in Fredericksburg, Virginia. I hope to see you (Yes, you!) there. For more information, visit Fredericksburg Independent Book Festival (fredbookfest.com)
Plans are underway to re-release "Dead Man's Breath" and "The Raven Conspiracy" in hardcover. Fingers are crossed that they will be ready by June 17.
I have received a couple of questions to answer.
When will the next Clay Sullivan book be out?
This is a question I get quite often, and the answer is always the same: I don't know. Since it has been almost 2 years since "The Raven Conspiracy" was released, I do feel like I should elaborate.
When I started the third Clay Sullivan book, I based it on the death of a friend. The "bones" of the book came together very quickly, since it was based on a premise that I was very familiar with. The downside of that is that it was I was too close to the story, and I had to labor over "fleshing" out the book. Writing it was awkward, painful and quite simply, I got stuck, bogged down in the emotion.
A few weeks ago, I realized why I was stuck. That night, I worked on the manuscript until 5am, making some key revisions. Things are flowing much better now, and I think I can commit to having more Clay Sullivan out in 2023.
Where do you get the quotes that you post? (in reference to my FB, IG, & Twitter posts)
The short answer is, I read. A lot.
The longer answer is I tend to seek out writings that will help me process thoughts or circumstances that I am dealing with, at any given moment. If these quotes help me, I pray that they will help others. Sometimes I just stumble upon on something that resonates and decide to share it.
I've slacked off on these, so here goes....
What am I currently reading?
I continue to work my way through Michael Connelly's bibliography and I'm up to "The Scarecrow". To keep up on what I am currently reading, follow me on Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/tyler_cates
What am I currently watching?
Aside from watching a lot of Tennessee softball and baseball, I am not watching much, as most shows are on summer hiatus. I'm very much looking forward to "Justified: City Primeval" coming to FX on July 18. This limited series is a continuation of the original series that was based on the Elmore Leonard works.
Also, the second season of "Joe Pickett" debuts on Paramount+ on June 4. This series is based on the novels by C.J. Box and the first season was very good, in my humble opinion.
What am I listening to?
I recently stumbled across an up-and-coming artist, Alex Key, who is a throwback to 90's country music. Here is one song but if you are a fan of that era of country, you will want to check out more from this fellow. Alex Key - Tomorrow I'll Be Over You (Official Video) - YouTube
Thanks for reading and I'll talk to you soon.