Christine Allen-Riley - author of YA fiction: July 2013

The absolutely wonderful Shanah Wooldrage awarded me the Summer Sun Award. If you don't know Shanah, you should - she's a delightful blogger, animal lover, writer, mom and she absolutely brightens my day. I love getting emails from her - they always make me smile. In addition to calling out people who brighten our days, there's also a summer fun aspect to it.

Favorite song with summer in the title or the lyrics (give the line): Summer Vibe by Walk Off the Earth. It just makes me want to kick back by the lake. Here's the video if you haven't heard it.

Favorite book about summer: Drac and the Gremlin by Alan Baille and illustrated by Jane Tanner. It's one of my favorite children's books and it tells the story of a girl pretending to be a warrior queen (Drac) and her little brother (Gremlin) who are battling together to save the planet of the White Wizard. It reminds me of the pretend games my bother and I used to play.

Favorite hot summer film: It'll probably always be Star Wars. I remember it came out the summer that I was 11 (yeah...I'm old) and I remember standing in line that went twice around the building in the hot July sun. We got sunburned, but it was totally worth it. However, if we're talking this year's movies, my favorite is definitely the new Star Trek film.

Favorite summer memory: Hmmmm...going on our yearly writing retreat is definitely up there and so is, believe it or not, learning to drive a tractor and hauling hay.

Favorite summer holiday destination: Lake Superior - one of the most gorgeous, magical, dangerous places I know.

What books will be in your suitcase this summer? Let's see...I just read The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken while on our family vacation. It was fantastic. I highly recommend it! And I'm currently reading The Lost Sun by Tessa Gratton and enjoying that as well.

What’s your likely destination this summer? I've already returned from my destination - Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It's the land of wilderness, lakes and very little internet.

What hottie would you most like to be sharing the hot days and long nights with this summer? Hmmm...aside from the hubby, I'm gonna have to go with Benedict Cumberbatch and David Tennant.

What? I'm greedy. And I like Brits.

Here are the rules:

1.     Display the Summer Sun Award logo and link back to the blog of the person who nominated you.
2.     Answer the questions listed above.
3.     Nominate further lucky recipients.

I nominate the following people for brightening various areas of my internet and life:

Leigh Jones
Tess Grant
Lynn Dozema

It seems like forever since I've blogged, but I guess it's only been a couple weeks. Two weeks ago today, I was exploring Copper Harbor, Michigan, eating muffins as big as my head made by a sect of Orthodox monks who live on the shore of Lake Superior, hanging with some of my best friends and writing my fingers off on a couple new stories.

There is something amazing about hanging for a whole week with other writers. We have the best conversations, we spur each other on with word count, we help each other through plotting problems and we laugh so hard our faces and stomachs hurt. It's pretty much heaven.

Getting back to reality is tough, but I know exactly where I'll be next year and it's going to be equally amazing. These are some shots of some of the personalities of Lake Superior and the Lake Superior shoreline - my constant writing companions that week and a huge source of my inspiration.