Kadie Scott's Blog, page 7

I loved doing the blog challenge last year with Marke...

I loved doing the blog challenge last year with Marketing for Romance Writers. This year, I’ve decided to make my own personal challenge to follow. Here are the topics for 2019:

Week 1: Favorite Thing I’ve Written (& Why)Week 2: Writing Great BeginningsWeek 3: My Earliest MemoryWeek 4: Worst Writing Advice I’ve gottenWeek 5: Groundhog’s Day (2nd) – Unusual Holidays in the U.S.Week 6:  What Would I Do If I Couldn’t Be a WriterWeek 7: Valentine’s Day (14th) – Why Romance Novels?Week 8: My Contest ExperiencesWeek 9: A Book That Has Influenced My LifeWeek 10: Mardi Gras (5th) – Feast Before FamineWeek 11: What I Learned from My Worst ReviewWeek 12: Skunks & Purses (Taming the Troublemaker)Week 13: Top 5 Things on My Bucket ListWeek 14: April Fool’s (1st) – What Is Funny?Week 15: Creative Outlets I EnjoyWeek 16: Easter (21st) – Faith in Romance NovelsWeek 17: Dreams vs. Reality (The Rookie)Week 18: What is the Top Comment/Question People Ask?Week 19: Mother’s Day (12th) – Mothers in Romance NovelsWeek 20: Book Lover’s ConWeek 21: When Did I Know I Could Be a Writer?Week 22: Memorial Day (27th) – Great SacrificeWeek 23: The American President: A Lesson for WritersWeek 24: Father’s Day (16th) – Great Dads are SexyWeek 25: Who Do I Look Up To or Aspire to Be?Week 26: What Does Success Look Like for a Writer?Week 27: July 4th – A Rogue NationWeek 28: New Methods That Have Worked for Me This YearWeek 29: Confidence: Fake It and Fake It Some MoreWeek 30: RWA NationalsWeek 31: Our NYC VacationWeek 32: How Much of Myself is in My WritingWeek 33: Dealing with the “Middle” of Your BookWeek 34: 20 Rookie Writer MistakesWeek 35: Mass Market Paperback vs. eBook (The Rogue King)Week 36: Labor Day (2nd) – Hard Work & a Little Bit of LuckWeek 37: My Biggest Frustrations as a WriterWeek 38: What I Learned from RejectionWeek 39: Native American Day (27th) – We Should Do MoreWeek 40: Writing: Myth vs. FactWeek 41: Friends or Enemies to Lovers Trope (Claiming the Cowboy)Week 42: Boss’s Day (16th) – Agents & EditorsWeek 43: Me Too & Paranormal RomanceWeek 44: Halloween (31st) – Why is this My Favorite Holiday?Week 45: Where Do All the Ideas Come From?Week 46: Veteran’s Day (11th) – Modern Day WarriorsWeek 47: What Would I Say to Younger Me?Week 48: Thanksgiving (28th) – What Are Characters Thankful For?Week 49: My Favorite Blog Posts This YearWeek 50: What I Learned from My ParentsWeek 51: Greatest Successes & Epic FailuresWeek 52: Christmas (25th) – Writing Fantastic EndingsWeek 01: 2019 Accomplishments & 2020 Goals

2018 Accomplishments & 2019 Goals

It’s coming up on the end of the old year and beginning of the new, and you know what that means… Goals. 

Look at how you did on the old ones and set some new ones. I do this every year for personal and professional goals. Let’s take a look at those author ones.

2018 ACCOMPLISHMENTS

I had a wonderful 2018 with new releases, time with wonderful friends, fun at conferences, and growing my skill set. Here are some of the highlights:

PUBLICATION – 6 books released!Saving the Sheriff, Hills of Texas #1 (contemporary)White Knight, Camelot Rising #1 (paranormal)Resisting the Rancher, Hills of Texas #2 (contemporary)The Mate, Fire’s Edge Prequel (paranormal)The Boss, Fire’s Edge #1 (paranormal)The Boss Coloring Book



WRITE BOOKS – Contracts to fulfill means a ton of words written and books edited… 300k words written4 novels written, 2 novels edited, 1 novella edited3 proposals written and submitted (pending)Finished edits on and released:Resisting the Rancher, Hills of Texas #2 (contemporary)The Mate, Fire’s Edge Prequel (paranormal)The Boss, Fire’s Edge #1 (paranormal)Finalized edits, release pending:The Rogue King, Inferno Rising #3 (paranormal)Wrote, submitted, and edited:Partnering the Playboy, Hills of Texas #3 (contemporary)Claiming the Cowboy for Christmas, Hills of Texas #4 (contemporary)Wrote and submitted (in editing process):The Rookie, Fire’s Edge #2 (paranormal)The Blood King, Inferno Rising #3 (paranormal)CONTRACTS – 3 books contractedThe Hills of Texas Series with Tule – final 3 books (contemporary)MY PEOPLEA huge thank you to everyone who helped make this a great year. Especially those who really believe in my books and AOAD! In particular:My awesome readers. Your words of enjoyment and encouragement mean more than I can express. xoxoMy husband & kidsMy familyEvan Marshall, my agentHeather Howland, my Entangled editorSinclair Sawhney, my Tule editorNicole Flockton, my bestieAlyssa DayAnna StewartTracy GoodwinErin BevanDawn DowdleThe awesome teams of folks who make me a better author in so many ways @ Entangled Publishing, Tule Publishing, Crimson Romance, and Wild Rose Press.Every author I get the opportunity to share my love of writing with throughout the year, because y’all are my people, my tribe, my friends.The fantastic bloggers/reviewers who took the time to read my books an post reviews. You rock!FUN & FRIENDS – Great times with fellow authorsLoved every second at RWA Nationals in Denver and Shameless in Orlando, as well as on writing retreats, at my ARWA chapter meetings, and online with friends.ACCOMPLISHMENTSFresh Fiction Fresh Pick – Resisting the Rancher (contemporary)Beat my own ranking record twiceThe Wrong Kind of Compatible – BookBub sale#105 Amazon, #1 B&N, #10 Apple, #30 KoboThe Attraction Equation – BookBub sale#45 Amazon, #3 B&N, #4 Apple, #2 KoboGrow revenueWhile writing is my passion, reality means I also have to grow it as a business. I had a goal to double my gross revenue. I beat that goal and tripled it. AOAD – Authors On A DimeContinued to grow the business.I had a goal to double my gross revenue. And I multiplied it by 5X!!!!! (Wow!)Took on new clients and more contractors.Loved every second of working as Alyssa Day’s VPA.Took a position as a cover artist for The Wild Rose Press.EDUCATION – Get BetterMy goal every year: Improve as an author by attending workshops. Between 2 conferences, my awesome local RWA chapter, and online chapters, I took a ton this year. Feel like I learned a lot!



2019 GOALS

Like last year, my goals this year surround completing contracts already signed and releasing several books that have been ready for a while. Also on the list is setting up contracts that would continue my trajectory through 2020/2021.

PUBLICATION – Look for the following releases…Taming the Troublemaker, The Hills of Texas #3 (contemporary) – Mar 21The Rookie, Fire’s Edge #2 (paranormal) – April 22The Rogue King, Inferno Rising #1 (paranormal) – August 27 (MASS MARKET PAPERBACK!!!)Claiming the Cowboy for Christmas, The Hills of Texas #4 (contemporary) – Oct 15WRITE BOOKS – Contracts to fulfill means a ton of words to write… (between 300k-400k words total)Finish editing process and/or rewrites…The Rookie, Fire’s Edge #2 (paranormal)The Blood King, Inferno Rising #2 (paranormal)Claiming the Cowboy for Christmas, The Hills of Texas #4 (contemporary)Write and submitThe Faller, Fire’s Edge #3 (paranormal)Loving the Lawman, Hills of Texas #5 (contemporary)The Warrior King, Inferno Rising #3 (paranormal)The Enforcer, Fire’s Edge #4 (paranormal) – won’t finish this one in 2019, but not long into 2020)Possible novellas in between. Hoping to finish the last novella in the Legendary Consultants series. AOAD – Authors On A DimeContinue to grow the business thru cold calling.Since we grew revenue so much last year, my goal is to double revenue YoYContinue as a Virtual Personal Assistant for author Alyssa Day.Continue to design covers for The Wild Rose PressFUN & FRIENDS – Great times with fellow authorsSecretary on Board of Directors for Austin RWA (local chapter)Attending a local Romance Readers Social, Book Lovers Con in New Orleans, and RWA Nationals in NYC this year. Check out events!A writing retreat with bestie Nicole.Spending time with my tribe of awesome readers/authors/editors/agent/and friends. One of the best parts of what I do!CONTRACTSI’m fairly busy with the contracts signed in 2017/2018. I have 5 more contracted books to complete thru 2020.Evan and I are in process on 3 or 4 different proposal projects, so we’ll see where those lead.

The Easiest Holiday Meal Ever

I have a confession to make… While I LOVE great food, and I can cook or bake just fine if I have to, I actually don’t like to cook or bake. I don’t enjoy being tied to the kitchen, probably because cooking is often one of those activities that I can’t multi-task. Just not my favorite.

That being said, when I have folks over, especially for a holiday meal, I still want to feed them fantastic food. Which is why, over the years, I have garnered a list of the easiest–yet still mighty tasty–holiday meal dishes. (For you food snobs out there…don’t knock these until you try them.) I can cook Christmas dinner with little to no time, stress, or dishes to wash afterward. And yet, I still get asked for my recipes.

Are you ready for my super secret holiday meal list? You can pick and choose from the following:

Appetizers

Raspberry Chipotle Cream Cheese Dip

Sounds so complicated. But what you do is buy a block of cream cheese, a box of Tricuits (or other crackers), and a bottle of raspberry chipotle marindae from the aisle with all the marinades and sauces.

On a tray, put the cream cheese block in the center. Smother with the sauce. Place the crackers around it or nearby. Done. 

Pre-cut Cubes of Cheese

All grocery stores have these in the  deli area. I’m a fan of smoked gouda, cobly jack, or sharp cheddar. The trick with these is to also get a selection of crackers, some plain and some fancier.

Jason’s Deli Fruit Tray

Or, if you buy a fruit tray from a grocery store (or, gasp, take the time to make your own, which defeats the purpose of this list), make sure to make the sauce.

Mix brown sugar into sour cream until it is the desired sweetness. Thank me later!

Grocery Store Veggie Tray

I would say “enough said”, but honestly, I can’t stand the ranch dressing that comes with the store bought trays. Plus there’s never enough. So make sure to buy a bottle of your favorite ranch dressing with this.

Lil’ Smokies in BBQ Sauce

In a small crock pot, mix the Lil’ Smokies with a bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce. It seams hokey, but people eat these up.

Queso (Spicyish Cheese Dip for you northerners)

This is so much easier than anyone not from a state with lots of Mexican or TexMex foods makes it. 

In a crockpot, mix a block of velveeta cheese (sometimes more than a block) and a can of Rotel (I prefer mild so it works for everyone). 

Serve with tortilla chips. I like the scoops. 

Main Course

I’ll admit, I don’t have a ton of main courses for you.  Lol. 

Honey Baked Ham

As easy as reading the directions to pop it in the oven. OR you can serve it cold as well. I like it both ways. Also makes for fantastic leftovers, or chop up the left overs and add them to the cheesy hashbrown dish listed below for a whole new meal days later.

Side Dishes

Country Crock Mashed Potatoes

Buy in the deli part of the grocery store usually. I prefer the homestyle. Heats in 5-10 minutes. One thing feeds 5-7 people. I serve in a nice dish and get asked for my mashed potato recipe all the time.

Cheesy Hashbrown Potato Bake

Mix 1 back of hashbrown style potatoes (from the frozen section) with 8oz sour cream, a can of cream of chicken soup, and a bag of shredded mild cheddar cheese. Stir in a full stick of chopped up butter. Put it in a baking dish (9×13) and bake at 350 degrees until it’s bubbling and a little brown on top (usually about an hour). BTW…you can cook these hotter and faster if you need to. It’s hard to mess them up.

Green Bean Casserole (with a trick)

Get the French’s Crispy Fried Onions and follow the recipe on the back. To make it go faster, buy a few bags (2 usually does it) of the “steamers” green beans that you just steam in the microwave. Also cuts down on baking time because they’re already hot. 

Cranberry Sauce

I love the canned stuff. And nothing is easier. Open can, plop on tray, cut into slices. Voilà.

Honey Baked Ham Sweet Potatoes

One of the best sweet potato recipes out there. Buy the dish, bake per instructions (it does take a while, so time it well). Done. 

King’s Hawaiian Rolls

I love them for every dinner. Lol. And don’t bother toasting them in the oven. They’re great served as is.

Desserts

Restaurants Are Your Friends

I actually have a TON of dessert recipes that I love, but this list is about ease. So when I want dessert done easy, I turn to restaurants. Not just any. I scout and scour and sample the desserts at all local restaurants, ask about if I can order my favorite ones for parties, until I cultivate a list of go to desserts guaranteed to please. 

Here in Austin, it’s Dahlia’s pies–especially their buttermilk pie and chocolate chess pie. OMG. So tasty.

So Are Your Family & Friends

You know how for holiday meals, the people you are feeding usually ask how they can help? Well…have them bring the desserts. Doesn’t get easier than that.

Winter Wonderland | $0.99 Holiday Romance Steals!

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(Click any cover image to go to Amazon.)

      

      

      

$0.99 Sale | The Attraction Equation

Want a fun holiday romance for a steal?

Available at all major ebook retailers.

FBI agent Max Carter lives his life by a strict set of rules—rules that don’t allow for distraction, deviation…or a relationship. But tell that to his matchmaking mama. To avoid yet another set-up, he announces he has a girlfriend. And now has to produce said girlfriend at Christmas dinner. Maybe Santa has a suitable actress in that red bag of his…

Gina Castillo is about to break her building’s iron-clad “no pets” policy to give her little brother the perfect Christmas gift—a dog. Too bad Max, the most inconveniently sexy tenant in the building, catches her red handed. Gina expects to be evicted, but instead finds herself blackmailed into playing the role of his girlfriend.

Two lies plus one dog should equal a hot mess of a holiday, but attraction and Christmas magic might just defy the rules…

    

Do or Do Not | #MFRWAuthor Blog Challenge

Thanks to Yoda I have my marching orders. Do, or do not. There is no try.

This week in the #MFRWAuthor Blog Challenge, we’ve been prompted to write about our biggest fears. I could certainly go on and on about the usual ones many of us share–heights (Yes, I was a skydiver. I’m kookey that way.), spiders, elevators don’t thrill me. You get the point. But, if I’m being honest, there is one fear that rules them all.

Failure.

Queue Pyscho music.

Failure can sink its icy claws into every facet of my life. Small things, like not wanting to speak up in a meeting. I mean…what if I say something stupid? To not wanting to try out for sports? Don’t pass that ball to me, what if I drop it? All the way to the biggest things. What if I suck at being a mom and mess up my kids?

You can be damn sure a fear of failure permeates every corner of my author life. Every day, I have to consider and either address or discard a litany of questions and commentary I mentally aim at myself, most of which are driven by this fear.

Does this idea suck?
I can’t live up to this idea. How am I going to do this?
Does my writing suck?
What did I forget or mess up?
So-and-so does it so much better. How does she do that? How do I do that?
Oh my God. I just went to a workshop and I’ve been doing this all wrong. How do I do this right?
When will they figure out that I’m a total hack?
Will my editor like it? Or will she start regretting signing me to a contract?
Shouldn’t somebody better at marketing figure out this blurb? No one is going to want to read this book?
Will the reviews be positive?
How much should I spend on ads?
Should I try a Facebook party? No one every shows up any more. Not for me at least.
Am I doing enough to connect with my readers?
Most promotions don’t work anyway. Why am I bothering? It’s costing more than it makes me in sales?
No one is preordering anything. Why not?
How the hell do I get any visibility without paying a freaking mint (that I don’t have) for it?
A great start, but how am I going to keep the momentum?
Why aren’t more people reading the next books if they liked the first one so much?
How many Kindles is this thing sitting on unread?
They liked it? Holy crap. How did I fool them?
This person hated it. Okay, try not to cry. Can’t please everyone. Take any constructive feedback as given and try to incorporate into the next book.
If they loved the first book, they’re going to hate the second one. It’ll never live up to expectations.
My publisher is never going to sign another contract with me.
This WIP sucks. How did I ever write a book that anyone likes?

And on, and on, and on it goes. Ad nauseum. Ad infinitum.

The problem with fear of failure is it can turn paralyzing. I’ve known so many authors who’ve written book after book never to publish or even query because of this fear. I’ve seen writers who love what they do, are publishes, are great writers and quit because of this fear.

How do I deal with this fear?

I’m stubborn. Damned if fear of failure–and even actual failure–is going to keep me from doing what I love.

I keep writing and I do my best on each and every WIP on my computer. Everything else will fall as it may. Yes, I have tons of decisions to make every day that have some effect on my success–writing choices, publisher and editor choices, publishing choices, editing choices, marketing choices.

Being an author isn’t just about the writing. It’s a business. But this business goes no where without my writing the books. So, in the end, I’ll do what I can on everything else, but the writing is what gets my full focus. I attend workshops to get better. I try different techniques and have a goal to improve with every book. To give my readers MY very best.

The rest is up to luck, the readers, and God. And I’m fine with putting it in his hands.

My ever-supportive, wonderful husband, however, would probably not mind seeing a small profit at some point. Given that the odds of becoming a consistently successful (and I’m talking regular success, not astronomical) author are about the same as becoming a famous actor, I guess I’ll just add that to my list of fears and keep running Authors On A Dime to bring in the side money.

To all the other authors who struggle with this too (and I know there are a lot of you out there)…

Know you aren’t alone.

Keep going.

Keep writing, because you are awesome.

And have faith in the gift that makes you happy!

I am participating in MFRW’s 52-week blog challenge, and it’s a blog hop! If you want to see how other authors approach this topic, stroll on over to the other authors participating and find out how they deal with character profiles. Each author does it differently.

Writing Rituals

This week we’re talking about writing rituals in the blog challenge. The thing is… I don’t think I have one I use consistently. I don’t rub a statue or blow kisses to the writing gods or open things in a certain order. I don’t have lucky socks or have to talk to my mom before I start or anything like that.

What I do have are tricks and habits. I have tons that I call on in different phases of the process, and not always the same way, or the same time in the process. Most frequently used are:

Nicole–Sprinting

Especially during the first draft process, getting an hour a day to sprint with my BFF guarantees I get words on paper regularly.

The Treadmill Desk

Best invention ever for someone with ADD because I can multitask in a way that doesn’t detract from either activity. I walk and write at the same time. I do this for at least 1 hour (often when sprinting with Nic). It helps me stay on target.

The Reference & Prompts Books

Sometimes these come out before I start, sometimes while writing the first draft, and sometimes on the second draft. THese are my brain teasers and reminders and “did you think to add this” prompters. The ones I use most are:

Verbalize by Damon Suede
Various Writing Thesauruses by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi
Sixteen Master Archetypes by Cowden, LaFever, & Viders

The 2nd Draft

I live for the second draft when I get to make the story good. My first draft is simply to get the bare bones of the story on paper. Typically, I don’t go back and second draft it–fix and fluff–until first draft is completely done. Lately, though I’ve been second drafting a scene at a time, which is giving me a more complete book when I’m done. We’ll see if I stick to that. Lol.

The Moment

There is at least one (usually several) guaranteed moments where I decide that what I’m writing is pure drivel, all my readers will definitely figure out that I am NOT a writer, and this it it. The end. Usually this comes mid-way through 1st draft.

Beyond that, ever book is different. I will be really curious to see what writing rituals my fellow authors in the blog challenge share. Other authors, do you have any?

 

I am participating in MFRW’s 52-week blog challenge, and it’s a blog hop! If you want to see how other authors approach this topic, stroll on over to the other authors participating and find out how they deal with character profiles. Each author does it differently.

Trivia Queen–#MFRWAuthor Blog Challenge

This week in the MFRW blog challenge we are talking about useless talents. It probably doesn’t get much more useless than trivia (which happens to be my superpower).

That’s right. I am a trivia junkie. I am a multi-time champion of various trivia related events–think Geeks Who Drink and cruise trivia (I owned our Disney cruise this summer).

I’m not saying I know everything–that’s for dang sure. I’m weak on sports trivia and most political trivia (unless it’s the chronological order of presidents or British monarchy). I’m almost unbeatable at movies (especially classics) and music (all eras/genres except disco which just sounds the same to me). I’m pretty dang good at geography, the Bible, literature, pop culture, TV, science, and western history (need to get better at most Asian history).

The good new is, my husband fills in those gaps on sports, politics, and math. Hubbie and I are training so that if they ever decide to do couples Jeopardy, we’re so going to win. And if you add my family members–we come from a long line of trivia geeks–we would dominate family Jeopardy. We’re just waiting for the announcement.

Speaking of which, in addition to winning trivia the world over, my husband and I are Jeopardy junkies. We watch at dinner every night. Yes, even when they play the re-runs we’ve already seen.  Geek enough for you yet? Oh, it gets better. My family take long car trips. My parents did it with me and my brother. We now do it with our kids. And what’s one of our favorite things to do in the car? Bring Trivial Pursuit cards and/or play Trivia Crack.

Now that you are sufficiently impressed, let’s get real. All this trivia is only impressive on trivia nights. It does NOT help me remember the name of the person I just met (I literally can’t). It does NOT help clean my house, write the next book, sustain a solid marriage, act with any kind of empathy, or look really cool (especially not that). And it definitely does NOT help me know what the heck to do to ensure my children are always safe/happy/healthy/grow into decent human beings. At the most, I can make sure they sound as smart. Note the difference. Not actually make them smart, just make them sound it.

Hold up. There’s the upside! Trivia is good for fooling people that you are smarter than you actually are. (On a daily basis, I’m waiting for someone to point a finger and shout, “Imposter!“) It also makes you good at making up total crap and passing it off as facts because you have a store of real facts that you can bolster it with. The thing is, I’m usually right–trivia does help with logical deductions, a la Sherlock Holmes. (Wait. Maybe I should go into politics, lol.)

Okay, I’ve shared my useless super power. Don’t hold out. What’s yours?

 

I am participating in MFRW’s 52-week blog challenge, and it’s a blog hop! If you want to see how other authors approach this topic, stroll on over to the other authors participating and find out how they deal with character profiles. Each author does it differently.

Collections of Collections | #MFRWAuthor Blog Challenge

Everyone should have at least one collection. There is nothing like that moment when you find a precious new piece to add to it. It also gives friends and family something–not only as a good gift, but as a reminder.

Every time I see Americana anything, I think of my mother, who taught American literature for most of her career and hosts a big 4th of July party every year. I think of Judy, my college boyfriend’s mom, every year I get out my “Santa’s Village” Christmas town (miniatures), because she gave me the first piece. My editor comes to mind when I see silly socks. I picture my dad when I see patches for various hikes in the Rocky Mountains (I got him started on those). I always loved the demitasse china cups my grandmother had. When she passed away, I received 4 and think of her every time I see them.

See what I mean? Memories.

Personally, I love collections. I’ve had several over the years–all of them more about the sentiment then the value. You could say I’m a collector of collections when you see the list…

Madame Alexander Dolls (as a child my mom got me started)
Christmas Decorations / Santa Clauses
Christmas Village (started by Judy)
Christmas Ornaments (started by my grandmother when I was a kid – 1 a year)
Halloween Decorations (because Halloween rocks)
My China Pattern (yeah, yeah, china is outdated. whatever. I love it.)
Elephant Figurines (trunks up of course)
Disney Movies (digital has made this so much easier)
Disney Kinkaide Paintings (I want all 15 of the small versions!)

I’m thinking of adding dragons to the list. What do you think?

Make Me Shudder #MFRWAuthor Blog Challenge

Irrational Fears… This topic feels timely because I just gave one of my heroes one of my irrational fears.

Honestly, I have several. I think most people do. The Indiana Jones movies tap into several. So do the Hobbit and LOTR movies. I bet you’re wondering what they are now.

Well, I’ll tell you…

Spiders
I can’t stand them. It’s something to do with a creature that tiny being able to kill a human. That and the pincers. *shudder* I can’t watch the Aragog scene in Harry Potter  or the Shelob scene in LOTR.



Heights
“But Abbie, weren’t you a skydiver?” you ask.
Yup. But please remember these are irrational fears. Planes don’t bother me. Edges of mountains, tall buildings, and the thought of plummeting to a gruesome death bothers me. A lot. And, yes, my favorite place is the Rocky Mountains.  What can I say. I’m an enigma.

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Crowds
This is not so much a fear as an intense dislike. I am a natural introvert. Crowds of people stress me out. Interaction with groups of strangers is a struggle. I do much better in smaller group settings. I can do large groups and survive- even enjoy myself.  I just find it exhausting.



That’s about it. I don’t have issues with other things like the dark, flying, blood, snakes, rats, small spaces (okay elevators, but that’s more about dangling over a drop), germs, water, death, or other common fears.

How about you? What triggers your gut check reflex?

P.S. That hero is not a fan of snakes a la Indiana Jones.