Falls City, Virginia is a town I made up in my book, The Travelers. Well, sort of. It's based on a real place called Falls Church, Virginia. And it's a town I returned to yesterday, seeking inspiration again, this time for The Travelers part 2.
I've lived in 4 places in my life - Northern Virginia, central Virginia, NYC and NJ suburbs. So, essentially, I'm a North East kind of girl. That said, I've seen a lot of places in and outside the US. I've visited Australia, Spain, France, Ireland, Australia, Canada and Mexico. I also get to travel extensively in the US for work. In the last year, for some reason, Dallas is a hot spot for travel. I've gone there 5+ times in the last 12-ish months...
Fall is one of my favorite times of the year. Since I live in Northern Virginia, I get to experience fall in it's full glory. Even if fall doesn't officially end until December, unofficially it's nearly time to say goodbye. I'm sad it is coming to a close, but I look forward to it returning again. And, in a way that feels like a larger metaphor at the moment. Therefore, as an ode to fall, I wrote a little poem to say good bye. Oh and there are pictures too.
I went to a pre-election day "end of the world party" (Northern Virginia mama-style) last night with many of my friends from my amazing book club (The Nightlighers). The point was to have a little fun before the dreaded vote the next day. Then the dreaded vote came and went. But, you know what? It wasn't as awful as I thought. It actually made me smile. Then, I wondered. Why is that? I had to find out, of course.
I’m headed to a local high school football game tonight, the second one I will attend in a two week period. I went to my high school reunion in mid-October and channeled some Friday Night Lights action during the event. Although, for me, the highlight was the tour of the school, especially the library. You can tell because I took more pictures of it than anything else. Yes, my love of books manifests itself in strange ways. Today, I’m going to embrace football and “tackle” creating a list of top YA books featuring, you guessed it, football and things associated with it.
It’s the weekend and only 8 days left until Halloween. Can’t think of anything to do this weekend? Why not go to a haunted house? Sure, it’s strange to go somewhere with the goal of intentionally being scared out of your mind. And, yet, we do it and we love it. In fact, our cultural obsession goes well beyond the ghostly and ghoulish temporary creations erected for Halloween.
While touring Northern Virginia and taking pictures of places that inspired The Travelers, I thought it might be fun to check out the cemetery adjacent to my mother’s childhood farmhouse in Manassas, right near the battlefield. (Yes, I realize my idea of fun might not be the same as everyone else.)
So, what is The Travelers about, you might ask. Is it a book about people who travel through a forest? (Uh, no.) Is it a book about people who travel around the world observing nature? (Nope, sorry.) Does it have anything to do with traveling anywhere? (Well….) Actually, the title is a little misleading. Most of the book takes place in one location, which is based on my hometown of Northern Virginia. (OK, yes, that’s not really a town. It’s more like a collection of small towns, suburbs and counties just outside Washington, DC. Just go with it people.)
K.L. Kranes 