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Monday, July 13, 2015

Themes That Rocked the Challenge - Disasters with Author Chrys Frey

Today I welcome author Chrys Fey! Her theme came from her Disaster Crimes series, and she explored disasters that occur from natural disasters to manmade disasters.

Find Chrys - Blog, Facebook, Website, and Goodreads.

What made you choose the theme of disasters?

I borrowed the disaster theme from my Disaster Crimes series. The first book in that series is Hurricane Crimes (a short story) and the upcoming sequel is Seismic Crimes (a novel). I am currently working on book three with an all new disaster, so as you can see disasters are on my mind all the time. I was learning a lot and having fun with my research, so I wanted to share that with the AZers.


Which disaster happens most often?

I could be wrong, but I think that would be lightning storms. Places all over the world experience lightning storms and they can happen just about any time of the year. I know some people don’t consider lightning storms as disasters, but consider hundreds of strikes in one region during one storm, getting stuck by lightning, fires caused by lightning, power outages...I can go on.

Which one is the most deadly?

This is a tricky question because all of them could be deadly. And a few could be considered the most deadly. For example: eXtinction (my X disaster) and Judgement Day (based after the Terminator movies) would be the end of the world as we know it. And a Zombie Apocalypse would be the end of humanity. Funny thing is two of those are fictional disasters. So I suppose eXtinction would be the most deadly followed by war, which I discussed in my Y post, because the deadliest war (World War II) resulted in over 70 million deaths.

I’d never heard of limnic eruptions. Can you tell us more about them?

Sure. Limnic eruptions are rare natural disasters that occur when dissolved carbon dioxide erupts from deep lakes, similar to volcanic eruptions. The carbon dioxide suffocates nearby wildlife, livestock, and humans. Good thing it’s rare, huh?

What are the chances of a quasar explosion affecting Earth?

For anyone not familiar with this term, a quasar is a compact region of electromagnetic energy in the center of distant, young galaxies surrounding a supermassive black hole. Now I’m not a scientist, but galaxies are said to act as quasars only during the early stages of their lives. Although there is a supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way, it is considered a middle-aged galaxy and the time for a quasar to occur is probably long gone.

Which disaster surprised you the most?

Oil spills surprised me the most because it’s not a disaster I think of a lot, but the impact is huge. Specifically, the Deepwater Horizon oilrig explosion in 2010 that dumped 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf, how long it took them to cap the leak (87 days), and the fact that the Gulf still isn’t oil-free today.

How many of those disasters have you experienced? (And obviously lived to tell the tale!)

Well, let’s see...I’ve been through quite a few hurricanes and wildfires here in Florida. Those are probably the biggest disasters I’ve experienced. Hurricanes Charley, Francis, and Ivan from 2004 inspired my story Hurricane Crimes. For my Wildfire post, I share a personal story about a fire that almost took my home when I was a kid. Some disasters I’ve experienced on a smaller scale are hailstorms, floods, and lightning storms (of course).

What theme are you considering for next year’s Challenge?

I know some people will be sad and disappointed that I am saying this, but I might not participate in 2016. This past Challenge was a doozy and I still feel like I’m recovering from it. However, because I love A to Z so much, I will be doing an A-Z feature on my blog next year with 2 posts a month. As for 2017, you might see me then and I have a theme in mind, but you’ll have to wait to find out what that is. ;)

Thank you, Alex, for featuring me on the great Blogging from A to Z Challenge blog! I am truly honored that you thought my theme rocked. :D

Thanks for joining us today, Chrys!


Co-host Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh is the author of Amazon Best-Sellers CassaStar, CassaFire, CassaStorm, and Dragon of the Stars, and his blog can be found HERE

40 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Thanks again, Chrys!

Barbara In Caneyhead said...

I enjoyed getting a peak behind the disaster series. Great job!

nashvillecats2 said...

Great interview Alex, Chrys post were certainly an unusual but most interesting theme.
Enjoyed learning all about the different diasters.
Yvonne.

Jeremy [Retro] said...

Was an awesome theme of disasters.

Chrys Fey said...

You're welcome, Alex! And thank you so much for interviewing me about my theme! :)

Chrys Fey said...

I'm glad you enjoyed it, Barbara!

Chrys Fey said...

Unusual but interesting...I like that. Thanks, Yvonne! :)

Chrys Fey said...

Thanks, Jeremy!

Mina Burrows said...

Very cool theme! Hurricanes are big for Floridians for sure. Oil spills seemed to be out of control and I still don't think there's a good solution to the overall problem.

I like the A-Z Feature idea. That sounds cool!

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

Chrys' theme was super interesting. Hurricane Ivan caused major flooding even way up north here in PA. Wildfires are scary.
Susan Says

Heather M. Gardner said...

Excellent interview!
It was a great theme!

Heather

Anonymous said...

Hi Chrys! I just went through and read all of your Disaster posts as part of my A to Z Road Trip. I enjoyed all the fascinating facts and learned quite a bit, particularly about cyclones, dust storms, quasars, and limnic eruptions. The fact about Linda Hamilton's twin sister was interesting, too. The only disasters I've experienced are thunderstorms and ice storms. The ice storms were terrible with all the power outages and dangerous driving conditions. I have a long steep driveway that looked like a waterfall of ice. The ice was so thick I literally had to use boiling water to get the ice off my steps just to get out my front door. I don't think I left my house for three days. The disaster that would scare me the most would be nuclear war. All of humanity and the earth itself could be destroyed in a matter of minutes. With the nuclear proliferation, political instability, and terrorism in the world today, it's a very real possibility.

betty said...

Great interview, Chrys! I did enjoy your A/Z disaster theme this past April. It does sadden me about the potential you might not do 2016 A/Z but I truly understand it. It can be overwhelming and a bit taxing indeed! Do look forward to continuing to read your blog with whatever you may write there.

betty

Claire Annette said...

What an interesting theme! Chrys, I'm going to go back and read your posts.

cleemckenzie said...

She had some disasters featured that made me shake in me booties! Not to be confused with the phrase, "shake my bootie."

Chrys Fey said...

They have a lot of solutions for oil spills, but you're right...there isn't one that's good enough to fix the problem.

Thanks, Mina!

Chrys Fey said...

I had a lot of fun with this theme. Ivan was a doozy of a storm.

Chrys Fey said...

Thanks, Heather!

Chrys Fey said...

Holy cow! Really? Thank you!!!

I've never experienced an ice storm and I don't think I'd want to. My body can't even handle the really cold days here in Florida. lol Your driveway looking like a waterfall of ice would've made a good picture. Did you take any?

Chrys Fey said...

I did two years in a row and I really feel like I should take a blogging break next April. And then come in swinging for A/z 2017. ;)

Chrys Fey said...

Thank you so much, Claire! I hope you enjoy them. :)

Chrys Fey said...

Haha! A few made me shake in my booties too.

Jeffrey Scott said...

Chrys,
It was interesting to read about all the disasters. I loved your A-Z theme and will be sad to see you not participate next year. Especially since you were the one that introduced me to the group.

dolorah said...

I like that you've made natural disasters "crime scenes". Fitting. Those were interesting themes.

S. L. Hennessy said...

Her blog was one of my favorites this year!

Sharon Himsl said...

I was happy to discover and read some your posts. All were well written. One of this year's best in the A-Z!

Jo said...

I really enjoyed these disaster posts Chrys. They were so accurate, interesting and scary.

Anonymous said...

I do have some photos of ice all over everything, but I don't know if I have the driveway in them or not. I'll have to go back and look.

Michelle Wallace said...

I enjoyed her theme. It was amazing and informative!
Scary too-----

Justlittlecajunme said...

Interesting interview. I'll have to check out your series! I know all about that Gulf Spill and hurricanes. Hurricane Andrew is one of the most memorable for me.

justlittlecajunme.blogspot.com

Carrie-Anne said...

I really enjoyed your theme this year. I'm sorry to hear you might not participate next year, but the abbreviated, unofficial A to Z posts will still be appreciated. One of my friends in the writing blogosphere also does something like that, doing A to Z topics over several months every year.

Chrys Fey said...

I know. I'm a bit bummed myself, but it would be a good time to take my first blogging break...ever.

Chrys Fey said...

Thank you, Dolorah! :D

Chrys Fey said...

Thank you so much for saying that S.L.! :D

Chrys Fey said...

That is a wonderful compliment. Thank you so much, Sharon!

Chrys Fey said...

Thanks, Jo! :)

Chrys Fey said...

Thanks, Michelle! :)

Chrys Fey said...

Hurricane Andrew was a beast!

Chrys Fey said...

I'm glad you like the idea of my A to Z posts through out the year. I may continue to do it other years as well...even if I do the real A to Z Challenge. :)

Chrys Fey said...

I'm glad you like the idea of my A to Z posts through out the year. I may continue to do it other years as well...even if I do the real A to Z Challenge. :)