Katz And Other Tales

COT: Boris Finds A New Home

2010-03-09T08:12:00.001+08:00

Thanks to fellow cat pal Farida, our Boris is off to a new home today. He's going to live with a retired teacher who wants a cat to sit on her lap while she watches TV, and to sleep on her bed at night.Boris is going to ADORE this woman.Since he got "the snip" ten days ago, Boris has stopped marking our gate, door etc. He's been in and out of the house (much to Target's absolute horror!) and

Monday Writers Craft Online: The Editor: For or Friend?

2010-03-08T07:23:00.003+08:00

When you write a piece, do you ask someone to edit it for you or not? For me it depends on what I'm doing. These blog posts are written in a few minutes and posted as-is. It's a blog, so I'm not very particular about grammar, style, etc. (Yes, feel free to make rude comments!)However, when I write for a publication, my work is always subbed/edited. Some writers really object to having their

Neutering older tom cats

2010-03-06T07:15:00.001+08:00

Boris is out in the print version of Weekender, the Star's Saturday supplement today. For those of you who are interested in reading up more on neutering tomcats, check out these resources.For a quick Q&A about what happens during neutering, and how if affects your kitty, check out Pawprints.For cheap neutering clinics, ask Klinik Kembiri in Selangor, or call your local SPCA for a list of place

Repost Friday: Cat Poo Coffee

2010-03-05T07:53:00.001+08:00

Katz Tales is out in The Star, Weekender, print version only tomorrow. Get your copy while it's hot!This Friday Repost is from 19th May 2007I thought this was a spoof but it isn't:The world's most expensive, and rarest, coffee is Kopi Luwak. It is made in neighboring Indonesia from coffee beans found in jungles.And guess what, the only beans used are those that have been passed through native

COT Cat Wrestling!

2010-03-02T07:55:00.000+08:00

It's boiling hot in Malaysia - some 38C and sticky to boot. Nasty. The cats spend most of their time floating upside down underneath the fans, but at night they're wrestling.Pity we missed the cat-o-lympics!For more cats, check out Gattina's Cats on Tuesday.If you want to keep in touch with updates, here are some simple ways: Subscribe to Katz Tales in a reader Follow Au on TwitterFollow Ellen

Monday Writers Craft Online: When Someone Nicks Your Stuff

2010-02-27T18:54:00.003+08:00

You write something good, and sell it to a newspaper. Next thing you know, someone has ripped off your work and posted it on their web site. What can you do?I have blogged about this before but I'd like to revisit this as a friend is having similar problems. She asked me what advice I would give, so here it is...1. Some people just don't understand it's rude to nick stuff. Plus, there are

Repost Friday: Kinky Tails

2010-02-26T08:44:00.004+08:00

Want to know why cats have kinky tails? Check out this repost from February 2007...Friends from overseas (read: non-Malaysians) are always horrified when they see Scoop's tail looks like a corkscrew, and that Au's short little stubby tail waves at a permanent 45 degree angle. Local friends don't make it any better because they delight in telling the urban legends that say these cats are victims

COT: Naughty Cat Club Kitties

2010-02-23T08:36:00.000+08:00

Au and Target have been wild all day. They're jumping up and down on the table, the sofa and the bed. They're squealing their way up and down the stairs. They are wrestling on their rug, and on the sofa. They are WILD!The laundry that was on the bed is now scattered on the floor. The papers that were on my desk are also on the floor. Oh, and the rug that was in the hall is now in my office.Au

Monday Writers Craft Online: Beat Stagefright

2010-02-22T08:34:00.000+08:00

"How do we inspire our self and look confident all the time when we are in public? I can speak english but when i face people who speaks english better,i get nervous. My tongue get twisted and my pronountiation sucks at those times!"When I speak Spanish (and it's pretty horrible Spanish) I am not embarrassed because I reckon that speaking someone else's language badly is better than not speaking

Repost Friday: The Fuzzy Terminator

2010-02-18T16:21:00.001+08:00

Dog Talk is out tomorrow in the print version of The Star, Weekender. And here is a post originally put up on 20th January 2007. Au catches maybe 1 thing every 18 months and most of the time I can rescue and release the victim, so this is unusual stuff!Here is Au, showing off a captured mouse. Our fuzzy terminator is currently lolling around on the sofa, cleaning his claws, and making plans

COT: Au's Endorsement For Water Conservation Initiative

2010-02-16T08:34:00.000+08:00

Here is Au with an important message about water conservation...OK dis is a furry important thing: too many peepul are washing their katz. Dis is a waste of watur. Washing katz must be stopt!If you want to wash stufff, be kleen and use your tongue. Soap is nasty. Watur is nasty. Don't be nasty. Be kleen!Dis endorsemunt kums from the hart. De ham i haf been promissed is just a presunt from

Monday Writers Craft Online: Get It Published

2010-02-15T10:02:00.000+08:00

Aini sent this email question last week, "I love creative writing and had sent a few short stories to the local magazines.But none got published. I'm dissapointed. Not sure whether it's because my simple english or because i don't use bombastic words. I hope you could give some useful tips."This email reminded me that I sold some short stories a few years ago and I forgot to put that on my

Why There Is No Year Of The Cat - Repost Friday

2010-02-12T08:11:00.001+08:00

Gong Xi Fa Cai! Wishing you a prosperous, healthy, happy, lucky New Year. In honour of The Year Of The Tiger that starts tomorrow, there will be an extra article in The Star Weekender. It's a crossover piece that links Katz Tales and Dog Talk. Print version only so if you want to read whether cat people are more intelligent than dog people, you've got the buy the paper.If you want to look up

COT Au Is Comfy

2010-02-09T08:22:00.000+08:00

It's hot. In fact, it's darn hot. It's too hot for cats to walk about on the pavement without burning their toes. It's too hot for cats to go walkabout on the roof. It's too hot for cats even to lie in bed!So Au has taken over the dining room table. He's dragged the fruit bowl out of the way, kicked a box of chocolates to the side, piled the newspaper clippings into a comfy stack, and is now

Monday Writers Craft Online: 3 Publicity Do's And Don'ts

2010-02-08T08:09:00.001+08:00

Are you running a blog and looking for some publicity? In this 6 week series I'll be talking about common issues that are worth thinking about. For basic interview tips, checking legitimacy, whether you can approve pre-publication copy, and the pros and cons of email interviews, check the weeks past...3 Publicity Do's And Don'tsDo's1. Organise way in advance. If you tell a journo you need them

Katz Tales Competition Winners

2010-02-06T09:58:00.004+08:00

Congratulations to the winners of the Katz Tales Competition!It was tough to make a choice but we managed. Here are the winners.The 3 First Prizes go to:I like Katz Tales because..it gets me feline the warm fuzzies;it provides purr-fect reading bliss;KatzTales is paw-some! -- write a sequel, please?Wong Ee Lynn, Rawang, Selangor.Scoop, Au, Target, Whyte -Mystic felines - no? You don't like?

Repost Friday: Bad, Bad, Person

2010-02-05T07:52:00.002+08:00

When Au asked for biscuits on Sunday evening, I discovered we had none in the house. It was an awful moment. There was Au, sitting on the stairs, saying meow? in a friendly voice. I confessed and apologised. Au smiled, thinking it a good joke. Then, when he realised I really meant it, he drooped.Au lay on the staircase, looking at me pathetically. How, his eyes said to me, could I have

COT Bed Pig

2010-02-02T08:26:00.000+08:00

This picture was taken yesterday at 11AM.Target got up at 6 for breakfast, was back in bed by 620 and then rolled about in luxurious comfort until 1115 - at which point he got up, stretched and demanded lunch!I was forced to get up at 745 and work but Target took the Kuala Lumpur Thaipusam holiday. I want to be a cat! They get to take all the holidays...Also wishing all Hindus a blessed

Monday Writers Craft Online: Email Interviews Pros And Cons

2010-02-01T08:07:00.000+08:00

Are you running a blog and looking for some publicity? Over the next 3 weeks I'll be talking about common issues that are worth thinking about. For basic interview tips, checking legitimacy, and whether you can approve pre-publication copy, check the weeks past...This week I'd like to talk about pros and cons of email interviews.First the pros...#1 An email interview gives you more control over

Repost Friday: Nicknames

2010-01-29T08:55:00.000+08:00

This repost is from Tuesday, September 16, 2008...Dragonheart and Merlin posted a list of their nicknames last Thursday and it got me thinking about the other names we call Au and Target. It reveals a bit of character - theirs and mine - and our relationship too.See what I mean by looking at their "other" names. Au's nicknames are followed by an A, Target's by a T, and ones that apply to both

COT Snizzling All Sunday

2010-01-26T08:06:00.001+08:00

I hung out with Target all day Sunday. We slept in till 9AM, cuddled for half an hour (spreading fur ALL over the bed in the process), had breakfast together, and then fuzzed about on the sofa watching episodes of Buffy. It was sybaritic. It was lovely.Target purred so much he sounded rusty. He shed so much fur over me during our snizzle sessions that I looked furry. Au was disgusted by all

Monday Writers Craft Online: Asking To Preview A Piece

2010-01-25T08:02:00.000+08:00

Are you running a blog and looking for some publicity? Over the next 4 weeks I'll be talking about common issues that are worth thinking about. We've talked about basic interview tips, and legitimacy, now we move on to the next topic...Today I'd like to write about a really common misunderstanding between writers and interview subjects. This is: when you are interviewed for a newspaper or

Au Speaks Out: Me An De Fur Brain

2010-01-22T08:30:00.000+08:00

Wot did i say back in nohvembur? i sed i will blog wunse for sharon becos she is always very respektful. Wunse, i sed. an here we are, wif me blogging again!de feemale survunt begged an begged an begged an i sed NO but then she sed dat if i doo, she will make me somefin special. i am thinking ros chikkun or maybee ros beef.my subjekt today is targut, my fur friend house mate.targut kame to

COT Purrrrrrr

2010-01-19T12:49:00.003+08:00

This is Target, pulling funny faces as he gets his ears rubbed. Happiness is being squizzled!For more cats, check out Gattina who hosts Cats on Tuesday.Don't forget to enter the Katz Tales competition if you live in Malaysia.All you have to do is answer these questions:1. Who is older: Target or Au?2. Who was called Mr Snizzles as a kitten: Target or Au?3.

Monday Writers Craft Online: How To Tell A Writer Is "Legit"

2010-01-18T08:06:00.000+08:00

Are you running a blog and looking for some publicity? Over the next 5 weeks I'll be talking about common issues that are worth thinking about. Last week we talked about basic interview tips, this week we move on to the subject of legitimacy.....As I said last week, about half of the people I interview for magazines and newspaper are bloggers and web site owners whose writing interests me.