It’s Summertime!

Summer is officially here and I’ve been thinking this week of all the things I associate with summer.

Before I go any further, let me clue you into something: summer is my fourth favorite season, so the things I associate with summer aren’t always happy. Like mosquitoes and gnats and sunburn and lethargy.

But summer has its good points, too, so not everything about it is unpleasant. For example, the best fruit of the whole year is ripe and local in summer. And I like to walk barefoot in the grass. And speaking of grass, is there any better smell than fresh-cut grass? And don’t forget the fireworks on the Fourth of July.

Interestingly, I went to a workshop at my local library a few years ago and the first writing prompt the instructor gave the class was to write down all the words we could think of that reminded us of summer. What came out of that class was actually the beginning of my novel Secrets of Hallstead House. It started out as a story that took place in the summertime, but as it began to take shape I felt it worked better if it took place during the fall.

I still have that list of all my summer words, though. Here are some of the happy things I wrote: going to the beach, hanging laundry outside, summer rains, nesting turtles, sangria, fresh tomatoes, watermelon, sprinklers, and fireflies.

But here are some other not-so-great things about summer, not all of which made it onto my list: that bitter smell of hot asphalt, bugs, humidity, bugs, sweat that drips in my eyes, ice cream that melts too fast, and bugs.

My post this week is short so you can get out there and enjoy your summer. But if you’re interested, here’s a writing prompt for you:

What is your favorite summer memory? I’d love to hear about it!

Until next week,

Amy