Katherine Cobb
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We All Have Our Struggles

7/10/2024

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You know what yours are, hopefully. I sure know mine. One of them is my health, and consistent weight management. The real issue is my relationship with certain foods, and all the physical and mental gymnastics that go with it. Knowledge isn’t always power, but awareness is way better than ignorance. Despite all I know, it remains an unresolved issue.
 
I do not beat myself up over this. That is a pointless exercise that yields no change.
 
If you could berate/guilt/admonish/willpower yourself into change or behavior modification, we’d all have exactly zero problems. 
 
So, what I do is…keep trying. Keep learning. Keep encouraging myself.
 
I’ve been working to get back to consistent exercise after being forced into a physical hiatus. I’m thrilled to be back doing my favorite thing, which is cross-training and most especially weightlifting. Today, I had to do that by myself, with my own programming, in 90-degree heat and 65% humidity. 
 
My mantra, which I garnered last October when traveling with my youngest son, is JUST DO THE THING. 
 
This is a great message, like Nike’s iconic “Just do it.” Because sometimes, it really is as simple as show up and just do the thing. Don’t talk yourself out of it, don’t list the reasons you can’t, don’t make excuses, don’t consider throwing in the towel because you failed 100 times already. 
 
I have failed and succeeded over and over, more times than I can count in my 60 years. But I will never give up. I will never stop trying. 
 
My innate willingness is one of the coolest, most self-inspiring traits I embody. I’ll bet there are cool things about you that are inspiring, too. 
 
If you’re on the fence about your struggles—whether they’re new or old—just be clear, we all have them. And maybe you’ll find motivation, incentive, or inspiration from JUST DO THE THING too.
 
Thanks for coming to my TED-ish Talk.

#justdothething #keeptrying #dontgiveup #believeinyourself #weallstruggle
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Sweet 60

4/4/2024

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Hitting the Sweet 60 feels a bit surreal, maybe because it seems like yesterday that I celebrated my Sweet 16. The time in my life when boys and friends ruled. School was tolerated, although I wasn’t one of those kids that hated it. Home life was fine—my parents supported me in activities, and gave me a long leash, California style. I no longer looked awkward. I stood poised on the cusp of greatness, with a good head on my shoulders, despite a touch of recklessness. A pretty great time in my life from many respects.
 
I couldn’t wait to be older, out on my own, ruler of my own roost. I remember being antsy for it, in that way the young don’t value their youth, always wanting something more, bigger, adult.
 
Some of the years between then and now are a blur, especially during the throes of motherhood, working full time, and trying to remember I had a dream in there to become an author and figuring out how to get there.
 
I’m on the flipside of the formative parenting years. My oldest is 40 and my youngest 27. My husband of over 30 years and I are happily living in the woods with a sweet, sensitive dog and a whole lotta love (yep, that’s a Led Zeppelin reference). 

And if you had asked me at 16 what 60 would be like, I would have said, OLD, so freaking old. And it is so not that. (Take heart, young folks.)
 
Taking stock of what matters, here are 16 things I’ve learned from my hindsight-so-far view.
 
  1. No matter how bone-tired, downtrodden, and overwhelmed you are, make time for your significant other. They should not be last on your list. They should be helping fill your tank, and you theirs. I regret not doing better at this during my most stressful years.
  2. The good news is nothing is personal. We just think it is, constantly, without any proof. This is because we’re a little broken and brainwashed and jump to conclusions.
  3. The bad news is nothing is personal. We’ve allowed ourselves to become socially distanced while being under the impression we’re being social. Get personal with people…true human connection is the antidote for a lot of ails (including depression, isolation, and loneliness).
  4. You are your best health advocate. Don’t rely only on doctors to help you solve your physical and mental health riddles. Drugs as therapy should be highly questioned. We have a lot of medicated people walking around…and that is not necessarily solving the root problem (guess what doctors prescribe). 
  5. Use it before you lose it is a very real thing—and I’m talking mostly physically. No one tells you all the things you can, may, or will lose. But one by one, you’re going to experience it. 
  6. Your dreams are worth fighting for. They’re easy to shelve dealing with life’s responsibilities and storms. But your dreams won’t happen without you 1) dreaming them and 2) fighting for them. They’re Stephen-King easy to bury before the miracle happens. 
  7. Gratitude fixes a lot of perceived problems. And actual problems. 
  8. Introspection is crucial. It allows you to take stock, refocus, and acknowledge areas you can improve. When you’re aware, you can take action and evolve, one of the most satisfying parts of living.
  9. Just do the thing. Especially the hard things. Stop making excuses. We all have our own hurdles. Get to hurdling!
  10. Our gut instincts are often spot on. Really listen to them.
  11. Don’t wait. If you want to travel, plan the trip, and save. If you want to write a book, just start. If you want to play pickle ball, try it. Tomorrow is promised to no one, so get while the getting is good.
  12. It’s not easy being a good parent. You won’t get it all right, but for the love of Pete, think it through, talk to your co-parent ahead of time about what you both want and agree on, understand the true value of discipline and what it means, and then really slay. You are creating the foundation for a human being that will be contributing (or not) to society for hopefully several years. This is a very big job with massive responsibility. Don’t wing all of it. 
  13. The foundation for self-esteem is love and safety. If you can do only two things in a relationship with another, focus on these. Especially the relationship you have with yourself. I had a friend tell me recently, “I got you,” and the tears flowed. Because it’s rare for people to say this or mean it. It’s game changing.
  14. Our frequency is the groove on which our life flows. You’re in charge of your frequency. If it’s jammed up with negative emotions or conclusions or skewed reality, right your ship. No one can make you feel anything; we respond as we do and can change it at any time. One of the fastest ways to change your frequency: listen to music.
  15. Some of us will make our best friends in our younger years. It’s often hard to make those same kinds of deep friendships later, especially in today’s social climate. Nurture your friendships. They’re one of the best things on earth.
  16. No one knows our reality and we don’t know theirs. Since perspective is what fuels a person’s reality (rather than, you know, actual reality), it’s a super muddled place where you live with your perceptions, narratives, traumas, and experiences. There is so much to be garnered from this understanding.
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First Place Winnah!

2/8/2024

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So, this happened 🎉 First place chapter winner in The Virginia Writers Club for my short story, DOWNRIVER. I love this story and am very appreciative to my son, who helped with the veracity of some details. I don’t write many shorts but this was a rewarding outcome. 

#virginiawritersclub #shortstory #shortstorycontest
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Big Sale on My Books!

11/27/2023

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Be sure to order by December 11 if you want it by Christmas. All books are shipped media mail. Thank you for supporting artists, small businesses and dreamers. : )
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October Reads

11/1/2023

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Have you read any of these? Or want to share a recent good book you have read?
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Booktok books worth the hype according to a Reader’s Digest article

10/18/2023

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About books, we will always agree to disagree, but I do love lists, and this one is diverse and cross genre, so I’ll be investigating some I have not read yet. What about you? Agree? Notsomuch? How many have you read and enjoyed?

1. Verity by Colleen Hoover
Genre: Psychological thriller

2. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
Genre: YA contemporary fantasy

3. Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert
Genre: Rom-com

4. The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
Genre: Dark fantasy

5. People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
Genre: Rom-com
*My fav of her
 books

6. Babel by R.F. Kuang
Genre: Historical fantasy

7. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Genre: Historical fiction

8. Delilah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake
Genre: LGBTQ+ romance

9. I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
Genre: Memoir

10. My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
Genre: Literary fiction

11. Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
Genre: Contemporary fiction

12. Every Summer After by Carley Fortune
Genre: Contemporary romance
*This was my favorite book of 2022

13. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Genre: Gothic

14. It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey
Genre: Contemporary romance
*My favorite Tessa book

15. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Romantic fantasy
*Totally worth the hype for me...loved, loved, loved this series!

16. Time Is a Mother by Ocean Vuong
Genre: Poetry

17. Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan
Genre: Romantic fantasy

18. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
Genre: YA dystopian

19. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Genre: Literary fiction

20. Red White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
Genre: LGBTQ+ romance
*Loved this one

21. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
Genre: Contemporary fiction

22. She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan
Genre: Historical fantasy

23. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Genre: LGBTQ+ YA contemporary fiction

24. Bunny by Mona Awad
Genre: Literary/satirical horror

25. Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
Genre: LGBTQ+ YA historical

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Get ready to buckle up and go for a ride!

5/11/2023

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Cover Reveal!

3/27/2023

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He’s a Texan with a temper. She’s as sweet as sin. When sparks start to fly, have they lit a deadly fuse?
 
Washington DC. Hank McCallister’s slow drawl hides fast fists. Staying busy in his spare time by breaking up bar fights in the nation’s capital, the happy-go-lucky twenty-four-year-old delights in rescuing damsels in distress. And when the charming hothead lays eyes on a petite sex bomb in trouble, he’s thrilled to lay out her boyfriend…and sign on as her latest squeeze.
 
Caught off-guard when his gorgeous new girlfriend announces she’s pregnant, Hank loyally steps up and proposes marriage. But as their volatile personalities clash, the big-hearted brawler fears he’s in over his head.
 
When secrets and lies turn tragic, will their steamy passion race to an explosive end?

More coming soon! Sign up for emails if you want to be the first in the loop!
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Books Teacup and Reviews gives WGE Five Stars

3/24/2023

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Reviewer Yesha Soni did a lovely job of reviewing Weeza's Great Escape on her lovely blog, Books Teacup and Reviews. Also on her Instagram and Twitter pages. Thank you, Yesha! 

​Check it out here: ​https://booksteacupreviews.com/2023/03/19/weezas-great-escape-by-katherine-cobb-nadia-ilchuck-illustrator-dog-memoir-for-kids-of-age-7-or-more/
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Weeza's Great Escape now available everywhere

11/22/2022

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  • Home
  • Fiction
    • Break Out the Dawn
    • Falling
    • Fifty, Four Ways
    • Little Wife Lies
  • Nonfiction & Children's
    • Maybe That's All There Is
    • Panhandle Portraits
    • The Marriage Project
    • The Self-Loathing Project
    • Weeza's Great Escape >
      • FREE coloring pages
  • Bonus
  • Blog+
    • Articles & Features >
      • Addiction series
      • World Champions of the Panhandle >
        • Travis Bagent
        • Vicky Bullett
        • James Jett
        • Randy Robinson
        • Fulton Walker
      • Rowzie Runs the Cannonball
      • Blaise Grove
      • Buzz Jackson
    • Press
    • Social
  • Contact
  • Store
    • Visit my Amazon storefront
  • Writer Resources