Category: Cats and Friends

Shadow Welcomes Lily the Cat to Kyrosmagica!!!!

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I wonder who that paw belongs to?  And that crystal…. I think it’s a Bloodstone… That can only mean that we have a visitor to Kyrosmagica. How exciting!

If you remember I interviewed my black cat character Shadow, (who plays an important role in my soon to be released YA fantasy novel The Curse of Time: The  Bloodstone,) recently on Kyrosmagica:

My Interview With Shadow, A Black Cat Character With A Past and dear Shadow (the fictional character in my book,) promised to ask Lily, ( a real cat, and supermodel!!!) over to Kyrosmagica for an interview date!

I know it sounds bonkers… but this is Kyrosmagica, and anything can happen here…. ANYTHING!

So Who is Lily?

Lily comes from a busy household of four cats: Charlie aka Madame La Princesse aka

Princess Charlotte Oddpaw, Lily Bee, Ting Tong Maccadangdang and Tooty

Michonne….Tooty and Lily are both black cats, Ting is Siamese and Charlie is

tabby………….

 

Marje: Tell us a little about the humans and the other cats that you live with Lily?

Lily: My human family are all right – I wish they’d learn to appreciate the mice and birds I bring them a little more, I put a lot of effort into those hunts!

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The other cats are all right, as far as cats go. It’s the 21st century though, and us felines have to adapt to living in a multi-cat household. Not always easy… apparently we also have a budgie that lives with us. I often hear him screaming but I’ve never seen him…hmm…wonder why…  

Marje: What is your temperament like? Are you an easy-going kind of feline? Or can you be a bit fierce?

Lily: I may be the smallest cat, but I think I’m the fiercest! And provided things go my way, then I’m wonderful to live with!

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Marje: Out of the cat siblings that live with you do you have a favourite?  Or do you all get along really well? Tell us about Ting, Charlie, Madame La Princesse, and Tooty.

Lily: Ting and Tooty are sisters and quite a bit younger than me, so I find them a bit immature, to be honest. Nice enough, but a bit dim, the pair of them. I used to get on better with Charlie when we were younger, but she was a bit of a bully, and can still be quite… princess-y… if you know what I mean!

Marje:  What do you think of my cat character Shadow? He thinks you’re gorgeous!

Lily: Shadow sounds intriguing…exciting… put it this way, I would definitely add his book to my collection! You may thank him for the compliment, by the way.

Marje:   Are you a home buddy or do you like to wander far? Do you have a perfect spot for a nap?

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Lily: We have quite a large garden, and a park behind us… sometimes on fine clear nights I wander further than I should and remember our wild ancestors…But mostly, I don’t go too far! The best spots for napping are generally on one of the beds, but I’m not fussy. Hey, I’ll sleep on the ironing board if I have to!

Marje:   What are you doing whilst contemplating on this slab? 

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Lily: Actually I’d just been told off for trying to catch one of the frogs that lives in the pond behind me in the picture… so I suppose you could say I’m sulking…

Marje:   Sometimes you look a bit thoughtful. I wonder what’s on your mind?

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Lily: Sometimes there are deep mysteries of the Universe that need pondering… sometimes I’m just wondering why Mother doesn’t realise none of us like chicken flavour catfood…

Marje:   What were you like as a kitten?  

Lily: Totally precious! Aren’t all kittens?

Marje: Are you enjoying modelling? Do your cat siblings get jealous? 

Lily: Ha ha! Oh yes, I’m enjoying the extra attention from the modelling! Charlie is always thought of as the “pretty” one of the family, so she’s quite jealous! She complained until our mother created an Instagram account that features lots of her pictures Samantha’s Instagram Account… Ting and Tooty don’t really understand the concept of social media… or blogs… or books.. or cameras… well, you see what I mean.

Marje:   Tell us a little about the crystals that your owner Samantha collects. And Buddha you seem to hang out with him sometimes… lol… J

Lily: I quite like the crystals our mother collects. Obsidian is pretty cool, it matches my fur, jade matches my eyes, and she did actually use pyrite to help when I hurt my paw. Yeah, Buddha’s all right – sometimes hanging out with him is the only way to get a decent conversation…

Lily with BuddhaMarje: Who is the most temperamental cat, and/or human in your household?

Lily: Most temperamental cat – without a doubt, Charlie. Definitely. She is such a princess… we have a catflap but she has to have the door opened specially for her, special beds in all the best places and when she’s in a temper she doesn’t care who she has a swipe at! Most temperamental human… we don’t really have any… they tend to know their place. Mother can be annoying, always picking me up… kissing me… brushing me… singing to me… hasn’t tried dressing any of us up yet though.

Marje:   What is your favourite pastime?

Lily: Well I do play chess – no! Sleeping, of course!

Marje:  Do you care for dogs? I hear your owner Samantha’s mum has a doggie…

Lily: My birth mother lived with three dogs and then my human mother actually had a little dog when I was younger. She’s since gone over the Rainbow Bridge, so yes, dogs, I don’t suppose I mind them. Couldn’t eat a whole one though…

Marje:   Are you mischievous, getting your paw prints on everything? 

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Lily: Not really, I just do what I have to do, and if that includes walking on the clean kitchen work surfaces , sitting in the bath with muddy paws, bringing in mice and birds – then so be it!

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A HUGE Thank you to Samantha and her son Alex Marlowe for their wonderful photos of Lily and for answering my questions!

I am so glad that  Gary @ Fiction is Food introduced me to Samantha. It has been absolutely wonderful collaborating with her. She is a true gem, just as sparkly and lovely as the crystals she collects. Do pop over to Samantha’s blog to see her beautiful cats and crystals: Samantha Murdoch Blog.

These are especially for Lily:

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Next, I will be interviewing my male character Ryder on my blog, (with some stunning photographs taken by my daughter,) so keep an eye out for that.

Bye for now from MJ…. This is my new nickname, and author initials…

 

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My social media hang outs:

Twitter: @marjorie_mallon
My New Facebook club: Authors/Bloggers Rainbow Support Club

Goodreads

Instagram

Twitter

Facebook

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Blogger Spotlight: Samantha Murdoch

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I discovered blogger Samantha Murdoch in a particularly unconventional way.

I was looking for a cat to do a bit of modelling for my black cat character in The Curse of Time, and I put out a call for help on Facebook. I received a few replies, not that many, but then I suppose it did seem a bit of an odd request. LOL !!! Then a ever so helpful blogging friend of mine, Gary Jefferies  who blogs at Fiction is Food put me in touch with Samantha: https://samanthamurdochblog.wordpress.com

Not only did Samantha have a black cat but she has two! Plus several other cats too, so if you are a cat lover, (like I am,)  she’s definitely a blogger to follow.  Then, to my delight I discovered that she wrote about crystals. How perfect is that? I love crystals too! My manuscript, (which I intend to publish this year) : The Curse of Time – Book 1 – The Bloodstone has several themes: light, represented by crystals, darkness, suggested by shadows, and a nasty old curse.. etc.

Getting back to the black cat discussion …. The only slight problem with our stunning cat models Lily and Tooty  is their gender. They are both females! Whereas, the cat character in my book is male… This I can’t change… Never mind… that isn’t a big problem!

Of the two cats, Lily looks just like what I imagine my character Shadow looks like – very panther like! Let me introduce you to Lily…. isn’t she a beautiful cat?

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This is Lily with a very artistic shadow! She’s a natural model, look how she stays so still for the camera.

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And Lily with her eyes closed, looking very chilled! Love how the light falls on her fur giving it a white glow.

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This is my favourite of Lily  looking very regal! Look at those eyes, and that glossy fur!

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This is Tooty – Don’t they look similar?

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Here’s Tooty on the move, her shadow is following…

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One way and then another…

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Finally, Tooty staying still… looking quite thoughtful.  What an interesting background.. Great photo! Mesmerising…

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Photographs courtesy of Alex Marlowe (Samantha’s son.)

Thank you so much to Samantha and Alex for allowing me to use these images of Lily and Tooty on my social media. I really do appreciate it, and a big thank you to Gary for introducing me to Samantha.

Please do pop over to Samantha’s blog to appreciate all her lovely cats, and crystals. And visit Gary’s blog too – Gary is such a helpful and friendly blogger, who likes to write, and also blogs about kindness: Fiction Is Food Kindness Challenge Sign Up

You do get a sense of Samantha’s love for cats, and crystals in the following links:

Samantha Murdoch: Danburite and Darling Cats

And her feelings about spiders….

Samantha Murdoch: Moonstone and Meanderings, Spiders Part 4

And some wonderful poetry too!

Samantha Murdoch: Wanderer

Hope you enjoyed my Blogger Spotlight. I shall be continuing to do Author and Blogger Spotlights fairly regularly.

I will be sharing the wonderful photos of Lily and Tooty on twitter, Facebook, and my Instagram account later in the week. So keep a look out for them.

Before I go let me just say – I do find black cats very fascinating…

Black cats rule!

Many thanks to Samantha, Alex, and Gary for all being so kind, and to Lily and Tooty for being so fabulous.

Bye for now,

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A Toast To Our Furry Friends at Christmas

 

 

 

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Well let’s get into the Christmas spirit by celebrating man’s best friend

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and our feline friends too.

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So many authors  love cats and dogs, and often play tribute to this friendship by creating animal characters or quoting their love of our furry friends.

“To his dog, every man is Napoleon; hence the constant popularity of dogs.”
—Aldous Huxley (author, Brave New World)

“When the Man waked up he said, ‘What is Wild Dog doing here?’ And the Woman said, ‘His name is not Wild Dog any more, but the First Friend, because he will be our friend for always and always and always.'”
—Rudyard Kipling (author, The Jungle Book)

“Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one, is a life diminished.”
—Dean Koontz (author, Whispers)

“A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog, when you are just as hungry as the dog.”
—Jack London (author, The Call of The Wild)

“I’ve seen a look in dogs’ eyes, a quickly vanishing look of amazed contempt, and I am convinced that basically dogs think humans are nuts.”
—John Steinbeck (author, The Grapes of Wrath)

 

In fact some authors love dogs so much that they argue that they are heaven bound.

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“You think dogs will not be in heaven? I tell you, they will be there long before any of us.”
—Robert Louis Stevenson (author, Treasure Island)

“Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in.”
—Mark Twain (author, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer)

“If I have any beliefs about immortality, it is that certain dogs I have known will go to heaven, and very, very few persons.”
—James Thurber (author, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty)

“Ever consider what our dogs must think of us? I mean, here we come back from a grocery store with the most amazing haul, chicken, pork, half a cow. They must think we’re the greatest hunters on earth!”
—Anne Tyler (author, The Accidental Tourist)

And these famous actresses adore dogs too!

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“Dogs never bite me. Just humans.”
—Marilyn Monroe (actress, Some Like it Hot)

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“Some of my best leading men have been dogs and horses.”
—Elizabeth Taylor (actress, Cleopatra)

http://dogtime.com/25-famous-quotes-about-dogs.html

Dogs and cats are different, no doubt about it, and here’s why!

Owners of dogs will have noticed that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they will think you are god. Whereas owners of cats are compelled to realize that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they draw the conclusion that they are gods.”
― Christopher Hitchens, The Portable Atheist: Essential readings for the Nonbeliever

Quotes about dogs on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/dogs

Dogs may be man’s best friend, but cats are a mysterious folk:

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“Cats are a mysterious kind of folk. There is more passing in their minds than we are aware of.”  

Sir Walter Scott.

“When I play with my cat, who knows whether she is not amusing herself with me more than I with her?”

Michel de Montaigne, French author

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“Authors like cats because they are such quiet, lovable, wise creatures, and cats like authors for the same reasons.”

Robertson Davies, Playright.

“I gave my cat a bath the other day … they love it. He sat there, he enjoyed it, it was fun for me. The fur would stick on my tongue, but other than that …”

Steve Martin, Comedian

“A cat has nine lives. For three he plays, for three he strays, and for the last three he stays.”

 

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“A cat is more intelligent than people believe, and can be taught any crime,”
― Mark Twain.
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Alexander McCall Smith  seems to want to make his cat the main subject of any photo he appears in, and there are similarly cuddly pictures of PG Wodehouse, Barbara Pym, Robert Graves, Ruth Rendell, Margaret Atwood (with “Fluffy”) and on and on and on.
Nobel prize–winning author Ernest Hemingway’s former home in Key West,  is now open to the public as a museum, populated by as many as 60 descendants of his famous polydactyl cats. Here’s the link to find out more: http://hemingwayhome.com/
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A polydactyl Cat.
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Hemingway cats
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Hemingway cats
My favourite Goodreads Quotes about cats:

“Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea.”
― Robert A. Heinlein

“One day I was counting the cats and I absent-mindedly counted myself.”
― Bobbie Anne Mason, Shiloh and other stories

“A cat has absolute emotional honesty: human beings, for one reason or another, may hide their feelings, but a cat does not.”
― Ernest Hemingway

 

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“I love cats because I enjoy my home; and little by little, they become its visible soul.”
― Jean Cocteau

“Yearning for love made her feel like a cat that was always twining around ankles, meowing Pet me, pet me, look at me, love me.”
― Laini Taylor, Daughter of Smoke & Bone

“That’s the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.”
― Ray Bradbury, Zen in the Art of Writing    

“Holding this soft, small living creature in my lap this way, though, and seeing how it slept with complete trust in me, I felt a warm rush in my chest. I put my hand on the cat’s chest and felt his heart beating. The pulse was faint and fast, but his heart, like mine, was ticking off the time allotted to his small body with all the restless earnestness of my own.”
― Haruki Murakami, The Wind-up Bird Chronicle

On a more serious note, please remember that cats and dogs are for life, not just for Christmas:

Meet the people who give up their Christmas Day to look after cats and dogs

Article from The Mirror: “This year the RSPCA has reported an alarming increase in animals being abandoned across England and Wales – and they expect the situation to get worse over the winter months.

With nearly 2,500 cats and dogs in care this Christmas, hundreds of RSPCA volunteers spend Christmas Day with the animals, getting in extra early to make sure the cats and dogs have a special day.

And it’s lucky that they do, because the RSPCA receives 1,140 calls on Christmas Day putting immense strain on the people who choose to spend their Christmas looking after the animals.”

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/meet-people-who-give-up-4783124

Links:

http://www.catster.com/lifestyle/6-famous-authors-who-wrote-with-their-cats

http://www.buzzfeed.com/harpercollins/16-famous-writers-and-their-cats-9npd

I just love Mogget and The Despicable Dog in Garth Nix’s Old Kingdom Trilogy. So let’s end with a bit of fun trivia:

http://www.funtrivia.com/en/subtopics/The-Old-Kingdom-Trilogy-by-Garth-Nix-111096.html

Bye!

 

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What Kind of Cat Are You? Quibblo Quiz

 

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I had a go at this fun quiz from Quibblo on my new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/kyrosmagica/posts/926828083997927.

What Breed of Cat Are You? It came up with Scottish Fold, a cute breed with folded ears, silver fur and yellow eyes. The Scottish Fold’s little ears give it an owl like appearance. They are loving, good natured, and playful!  Folds are also known for sitting with their legs stretched out and their paws on their belly in the “Buddha Position.”

Wikipedia Facts about The Scottish Fold:

  • The Scottish Fold is featured in-depth in the short novel,  The Cat Who Went to Paris by Peter Gethers. The book and its two sequels, A Cat Abroad and The Cat Who’ll Live Forever: The Final Adventures of Norton, the Perfect Cat and his imperfect human document the life of Gethers and his Fold, Norton, from their first meeting to Norton’s eventual death and Gethers’ experiences after the loss.

Fiction

In the 2012 novel The Bone Bed, Kay Scarpetta rescues a Scottish Fold cat from a murder victim’s home. She brings her home to meet the greyhound rescued in an earlier novel. They apparently get along well.

In the Anime series Beyond The Boundary, the Youmu form of the Anime-exclusive character Ai Shindo is a two-tailed Scottish Fold cat.

In 2009, Maru, a Scottish Fold cat, became an Internet sensation due to his obsession with boxes. Due to his Internet popularity, several commercials have been produced featuring the cat.

 

Popular YouTube bloggers, Simon and Martina aka Eatyourkimchi acquired a Scottish Fold kitten, Dr. Meemersworth, in July 2012.

“Waffles” is the name of a Scottish Fold cat, featured on the Facebook page “Waffles The Cat”. The page has over 440,000 likes as of July 2014.

What sort of Cat best describes you? Do tell.

 

 

The Cat and His Horse~

Had to reblog from cindyknoke. Beautiful cat and horse. Great photos. Lovely.

Cindy Knoke

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Meet Domino the mountain barn cat. He has a horse named Buddy.

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Wherever Domino goes, Buddy is sure to follow. The cat wears the pants in this relationship.
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Just because someone is smaller, it doesn’t mean they can’t call the shots.
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Domino has an attitude. Must be from wrassling with the racoons and gophers and squirrels he protects his horse from up on Round House Ranch on Mt. Palomar.

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Domino likes to sleep in his saddle in his tree on the mountain. All cats like to sleep in their saddles, not just cowboys like you probably thought.
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Buddy is a working horse and loves to round up cattle on the range. He takes charge of the bulls no problem, but Domino? No way.
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Domino is more brains than brawn, and that is always more of a challenge for a working stiff like Buddy.
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Cheers to you from Domino the cat…

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Funny Cat and Dog PlayFights on YouTube

 

This morning I’ve been editing my manuscript and I came across an advice note to add more detail to a little comical fight scene between a cat and a dog in my story. I don’t own any pets so I thought I would watch a few videos on YouTube for inspiration. Glad I did, it was very cute and entertaining. Boy, those cats can stand up for themselves! Enjoy.

Either watch on the full screen icon option below or  head over to Youtube.