I'm a freelance lifestyle magazine writer, editor and producer with a zest for new adventures, tasty food and drink, art, design, live music, kind souls and people who open my mind. I am also working on a book.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I joined in 2015 when I Couchsurfed in Milan, Florence and Paris. It opened my mind so much, brought me so many good memories and positive experiences, and introduced me to good souls who I can still call my friends.

These days, I live with my boyfriend, Daniel, in Grant Park, which is an up-and-coming historic Victorian neighborhood in Atlanta, Georgia. We love to host guests from all over the world via Airbnb. We've had visitors from Russia, England, Belgium, etc. stay in our guest bedroom, and I always relish the opportunity to offer suggestions for places to go and show our new friends around our city. For almost two years now, we have hosted a Ph.D. student from Marseille for 12-18 total weeks of the year. Over time he has become a dear friend and a near-roommate. He speaks so highly of Marseille that I want to see it with my own eyes.

Interests

Art, design, good food, site-seeing, music, culture, writing, spirituality, politics, coffee, cats. I have been a writer for my whole life and a magazine journalist for 12 years—more than seven of those spent freelance. I like to paint when I can make the time—in oils and gouache, mostly—have been learning to cook for the past year and am enjoying learning to garden and make our home beautiful. I love being a surrogate mama to my friends' cats. Summer is my favorite season of the year. If you want to learn more about me, you can visit me here:

https://www.instagram.com/kateabney/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kateabney
https://twitter.com/kateabney

• arts
• culture
• writing
• design
• concerts
• dining
• cocktails
• traveling
• music
• communications
• freelancing
• journalism

Music, Movies, and Books

Ryan Adams, Annie Hall, The Handmaid's Tale

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Sir Richard Branson once took time out of his day to respond to a fact-checking email from me. Ha! And at a party this past spring, Reese Witherspoon told me she loved my outfit. <3

Last summer in Havana, I saw first-hand how riches are not monetary, but in the heart. We encountered so many warm, educated, cultured humans who wanted to share their world with us and were grateful for everything they had, even though they had almost nothing.

For business, I've been lucky enough to travel places like Mexico City and Saint Lucia to write about them for magazines. My upcoming trip to Provence—where I'll explore the sunlit fields of lavender and sunflowers that once inspired Degas, Van Gogh and Renoir—will inform a story in another one of those magazines.

I also recently wrote a breaking news story about how H&M is changing its sizing for the U.S., Mexico, Canada and Colombia, which was a very fun accomplishment:

https://www.racked.com/2018/6/13/17453192/h-m-sizes-changing

Teach, Learn, Share

I love to learn about others; I interview and write profiles about people often and am very good at asking questions and getting to the heart of the matter. I'm also very respectful of others—whether I'm telling their stories in print or visiting their homes. It is my belief that we are all good and bad, dark and light—and it is my duty to focus on the best, to capture people at their best. As for travel, I want it to continue to expand my mind... but also my soul. I think there is so much more to this life than we see on the very surface.

What I Can Share with Hosts

My love for design, my experience with media and journalism, my enthusiasm for people and telling their stories to the world. Also, my own stories—I'm very fortunate to have had some rare and exciting experiences in my life, and I'm always happy to relive those moments through storytelling.

Countries I’ve Visited

Cuba, France, Italy, Mexico, Saint Lucia, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States