Katherine Chloé Cahoon

Elisa Benson, of Cosmopolitan magazine, and I teamed up with body language expert Janine Driver to reveal sneaky signs that tell you whether your guy is looking for a summer fling or something more. A tipoff that you have a fling-man on your hands is what I call the Law of Hot Tubs. If a guy asks you to go hot tubbing at his apartment right after meeting you, it’s generally a code for a hookup session. Basically, he figures your bikini is just an accessory—a very optional one! A man interested in a relationship often goes slower and focuses on getting to know you…all of you, not just your body.

For more insights, see the article at Cosmo.

It was so much fun reuniting with Elisa again after working together on summer romance and superflirt articles for Seventeen magazine.    

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This is the title of the following Amazon customer review of my book, The Single Girl’s Guide to Meeting European Men: “After reading this book, all I have to say is THANK YOU MS. CAHOON! This book was a fast and easy read, but mostly it was insightful and I CANNOT wait to study abroad next semester! I am at the University of Kentucky and one of my sorority sisters recommended it to me after she studied abroad. She said this book changed her experience in Europe. There is a character for everyone in this book! Best of luck, and to any curious mothers, sisters, aunts, etc. out there, this was the BEST gift I have received in a long time!”

Thanks Chelsea! Feedback from college students always means a lot to me. I love it that many of my readers take my book when they study abroad. I want all of them to return with fabulous experiences! 

I’ve been inundated with music video mania! The project officially got rolling when I paired up with the fabulous composer, Todd Schwartzman, who opens for the likes of Brad Paisley and David Archuleta. We instantly clicked. I remember my first conversation with him. It went something like this, “I’m Katherine. I’ve heard such wonderful comments about your work and would love you to compose a song for my music video. The only problem is this isn’t even a low budget project…it’s a no budget.” When he asked who was storyboarding, directing, and editing the video, the answer was always, “Me.” When he asked why, I explained that I was free and you couldn’t get a better price than that:) I was pretty nervous because I thought he would turn me down, but he said, “Let’s do it!”

From the moment Todd said “yes,” he has been one of the best people I’ve ever worked with. I sent him a storyboard outline of my video, a copy of my book, The Single Girl’s Guide to Meeting European Men, and the style of music I wanted to have. He read my book and instantly grasped the theme. He composed the song following that and my outline. We went back and forth doing about twenty rewrites. I called us the “Vampire Buddies” because we always collaborated at night after our other work was done. One-to-two AM was our typical time to go over the music.

Todd persuaded Amy Whitcomb, the popular lead soloist on NBC’s 2011 The Sing-Off, to be our vocalist. With her kickass acoustics, we knew we couldn’t go wrong! The song is called But I Do. What exactly is it that I do in the music video? You’ll see!

When people see me hobbling about lately and ask what happened, I explain that dance practice for my upcoming music video has been kicking my butt. Then the stream of questions begins: Are you a professional dancer? No. A singer? No. An actor? Well, I was a fish in my elementary school’s version of The Little Mermaid, if that counts:) When I explain that I’m a writer, they ask the logical question: Then why are you making a music video?

After my travel book came out, articles were written about me that included personal details like that I grew up training at Pacific Northwest Ballet School and was on the dance/cheer team at Vanderbilt University. Then I received fan requests to make a dance video. I pretended they didn’t exist. I hadn’t danced since college. Actually, I had hardly even worked out since then because I was so busy writing with three producers on different scripts and on my book. I survived the numerous all-nighters on the “Ben & Jerry’s Diet”—a minimum of three pints a week. But the dance video requests kept rolling in so I finally caved. Here’s a picture of me post-practice soaking my feet in ice water and having a meeting with my two close friends, Ben and Jerry. This shows how much I love you all! My publisher was bewildered by the project and asked how it tied into my book. I found a way. I’ll keep you posted.

Here Duncan Smith, a professional makeup artist, and I show how to look great anywhere on a trip with only eight small products. Duncan gave me a natural look, but you can go more dramatic just by using a deeper-colored travel palette.

To film this video, my friend Brett brought in his Canon 5D and 7D so you can clearly see Duncan apply the makeup. I was quite excited about this upgrade from my tiny camera. Thanks to my mom for spontaneously stepping in as the second camera operator. You can catch a glimpse of her in the mirror at times:)

When I was partway through editing this video, my computer started to crash and couldn’t keep up with the footage, so I had to edit most of it in slow motion. Fingers crossed…let’s see how it turns out!! Can’t wait to edit my next video on my new Mac.

I just learned that my feet are featured on wikiFeet, the collaborative celebrity-feet website, and people have been rating them. I realized when I became an author that people would critique my writing, but I never imaged they’d critique my feet!

For years, I danced ballet in pointe shoes, so my feet got more than their fair share of thrashing:) What’s funny is that before I went on Tosh.0, I accidentally skinned the top of one of them. My mom said, “Don’t worry about it. No one’s going to notice all the way down there.” Well, a comment on the site is about seeing my feet on Tosh.0. I guess nothing goes unnoticed on Comedy Central!

Spring break should be one of the high points of your year. With this ritual upon us, I want all of you who are still in school to have a fabulous time. In my college days, I noticed that friends either came back from spring break thrilled or thrashed. To avoid the latter, sidestep these three break botchers. 

Just Chatting on the Airplane: If you are flying to your destination and have homework due when you return or a big test bearing down on you, I’d suggest doing your work en route. A lot of my friends just chatted on the plane, but then they had to use some of their beach and pub crawl time holed-up in the hotel room completing assignments. Others pretended they didn’t have work on break and had to pull all-nighters when they returned. Instead of being energized after the break, they were exhausted.

Running Barefoot on the Beach: If you are going to a beach for spring break, be careful of glass camouflaged by sand. I saw a girl go running barefoot on the beach as soon as she arrived and badly slice her foot on a piece of glass. This put a damper on the rest of the trip for her and everyone in her group. Unless you know that your beach is combed daily, consider wearing sandals.

Don’t Drink Yourself Over a Barbwire Fence: I have done several university book events, so I realize that some students don’t like to hear how unsafe it is to get drunk. I don’t want to sound like your mom, but it’s important to be in control of yourself. I’m not saying that you can’t drink at all—just watch your alcohol intake. One spring break, I met a guy who got so drunk the night before that he lost his group. As he wandered about aimlessly trying to find his hotel, he hopped a fence. In his inebriated state, he didn’t realize that it was edged in barbwire and wound up on the ground bleeding profusely. Fortunately, some people found him and took him to the hospital…but the ending could have been much worse. You can still be the life of the party without winning a drinking contest.

I hope this year is your best spring break ever!

Order The Single Girl’s Guide to Meeting European Men

Brian Feinblum, creator of BookMarketingBuzzBlog, wrote the article entitled, “Interview with Viral Video Queen & Amazon Best-Selling Author.” He asked me about my advice for women, if I’m planning another book, and more! You can read the interview here. It’s the third article.

I love Valentine’s Day:) You probably wouldn’t have guessed that though…I mean it’s not like I wrote an entire book about romance or anything (wink wink)! Since VDay falls on a workday, I’ve heard several people say that they’re having smaller celebrations then and planning future romantic getaways. Here are three destinations that skyrocket in the romantic ratings. 

Rome’s Donna Camilla Savelli Hotel (www.HotelDonnaCamillaSavelli.com) is the epitome of a sexy stay with velvet-wrapped headboards and marble bathtubs. You could never even leave your room and still have a lust-worthy trip. But the rooftop is way too alluring with its view of the city, and Rome has so many hot destinations that not fully doing in the town is out of the question. In The Single Girl’s Guide to Meeting European Men, I give details on some of the most fun Rome landmarks that tourists often overlook whether you already have a man by your side or not!

Portugal’s L’And Vineyards (www.L-And.com) are stunning and sure to ignite a romantic spark. Through March 31st, you can get a deal on a four-night stay in a stone and slate Sky-view (and vineyard view) suite at the Alentejo complete with a retractable ceiling for star-gazing. You’ll even have an outdoor patio with a fireplace and heated plunge pool! This incredible offer includes a tour of the vineyards and winery, wine sampling, and a three-course dinner for two. In my book, I reveal a neighborhood and a historic hillside restaurant in Lisbon, each of which would make a trip to remember.

Cabo San Lucas’ Love Beach is a no-miss. The name says it all! This city is known for its lively nights, but during the day, you and your honey can take a boat to Love Beach for romantic relaxation. If it’s low tide, you can simply walk on. This is the perfect prelude to hitting the town. Get those dancing shoes on, because in Cabo people dance EVERYWHERE…and since this is one of the world’s foremost vacation destinations lodging deals abound. 

For descriptions of proven romantic places in eighteen other European countries―complete with true stories in a chick lit feel and lots of relationship tips from a variety of women―read The Single Girl’s Guide to Meeting European Men. (Order Now)

Happy Valentine’s Day to you all! Even if you don’t have a sweetheart right now, there’s no need to deprive yourself of this holiday. I know a lady who recently went through a tough divorce. She and her single eighteen-old-daughter are having their own celebration, complete with roses and chocolates, in honor of the love the two of them share.

And remember, you only have one day left to enter my Valentine’s Day giveaway. Tomorrow, I will be drawing two people at random to win signed copies of my book. To enter, Email Me With Subject: VDay. If you would like me to write a special dedication, please let me know. I have been receiving quite the fun, creative ones! 

Valentine Giveaway: To enter the drawing for a signed copy of my book, email me at Katherine@MeetingEuropeanMen.com Subject: VDay. Tell me if there’s a special message you would like me to include. On Valentine’s Day, two people will be chosen at random to receive signed books!

I’ve been filming my video about how to meet men in cold weather…and as you can see, it’s definitely COLD here!!! This is Casey, my cute co-correspondent. You’ll be seeing a lot of him in the video:)

Tomorrow is my last day here in sunny LA. Then I return to Seattle where it’s snowing! Rachna, Chris, and Sarah from London asked me to make a video about how to meet men in cold weather…and I can’t think of a better time to film this than in the snow:) I’d love to hear any cold weather man-meeting tips you all have for the video!

I’m in LA filming a dating skit for Comedy Central. As you can see from this picture, I’ve got some skin in the game…literally…and I took a hit for the team! Minus that, it’s been a lot of fun. If you’re wondering why I got a rug burn on my stomach, you’ll just have to wait and watch the skit to find out:)

I hope you all had a bang-up beginning to 2012! The New Year has barely begun, and I have already seen so many ads with statements like, “Look as good as a model in less than a month.” This started me thinking about New Year’s resolutions. I don’t believe they should involve being “as good as” or “better than” anyone else. I’ve decided that the ideal New Year’s resolution is for each of us to be our best…without comparing ourselves to others. As I wrote in The Single Girl’s Guide to Meeting European Men, “Every female has something spectacular to offer.” That goes for guys too. So here’s to your best year yet and the best you:)