Saturday, October 26, 2019

Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon: Opening Survey

Hello, all! As promised, I am here to participate in Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon for the first time in a year ish? Maybe even more? I'm excited to get back into it all!

Now, for the opening survey:

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

Oregon, United States! <3 

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?

The book I'm looking most forward to is continuing on with A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin. I read A Game of Thrones earlier this year and it became an instant favorite for my Fantasy-loving self!

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

I woke up somewhat late this morning (Around Hour 6 or 7 of the Readathon?) but had a big breakfast with my brother and our other roommate. I'm thinking about taking a little bus trip later to get a milkshake though :) 

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

I'm a second year University student majoring in Psychology!

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to? 

Usually I get very into it and try to read for all 24 hours and limit screen time, etc. but I'm going to take it a bit easier this time around and maybe even binge another episode of Critical Role (oops) or hang out in the library with some friends and plan for NaNoWriMo in a few days (yikes! already??) 

Friday, October 4, 2019

Friday Reads [#14] + Some Life (And Blog?) Updates

Hello, everyone! It's still technically Friday here (and will be for the next 21 minutes--lol!) so I thought I'd do something that I haven't done in literal years, which is a little bit of a Friday Reads update post :)

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CURRENT READS
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I'm currently reading 2 books at the moment-- Fool Moon (Harry Dresden Files, #2) by Jim Butcher and A Clash of Kings (A Song of Ice and Fire, #2) by George R. R. Martin. The former is a sequel in my best friend's all-time favorite series, so obviously I am obligated to read it. The latter is the sequel to one of my new favorite books of all-time!

To be honest, I've forgotten a bit of my formatting with these posts, and I'm not exactly sure how many people even read them, lol! But anyway, it's nice to have a little record of my thoughts. Currently, the Dresden Files are a bit up in the air for me. My friend did say to read at least until Book 3 until making a judgement (and she lent me Books 2-5 at the same time so... I feel like I am in for a binge-read?) but I just have some problems with the character's view on women in particular. It feels like every woman is sexualized in his eyes, except for like one woman that he deems ugly or something. Additionally, some of the writing and plot points seem a bit sporadic or erratic. But I will of course keep reading and wait until Book 3 to make my judgements, as promised, lol!

I am only on Page 98 of A Clash of Kings, so I am not too far yet, but already there are some wonderful quotes. I also bought this one (or more accurately my dad bought it for me, I guess as something of a parting gift before I began my second year of college!). I also am glad to be continuing with this series since my brother and I have almost finished binge-watching the TV show so it will be nice to see how the book differs. Also, my dad has read the first book after I did, and we had lots of great discussions about it! And contrary to the Dresden Files, it's nice to have a Fantasy author that writes women well. (In my opinion.)

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OTHER OBSESSIONS
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Or, more accurately at the moment, Obsession. I am currently listening to the Critical Role podcast, and I'm on Episode 30 of Campaign 2 and aaah! I love it so much. I've really gotten into the characters and the story, and I like how the cast all seem like such wonderful friends as well. There's a perfect balance of gravity and wit. I do feel a bit daunted by all the catching up I have to do (there are 79 ~3.5 hour episodes thus far... wish me luck lol). I don't normally listen to podcasts, because I am so easily distracted or get bored too quickly without anything else to do, but it helps that a video version is offered and overall I'm really loving it! Just thought I'd give a quick little shout-out since this has quickly consumed my life :)


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LIFE UPDATES
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I've moved back to college and into my own apartment (shared with my brother and another roommate) after spending the summer with my parents and other brothers. It's been nice to see my friends again even if I do very much miss my dog! (It was National Black Dog Day the other day and I especially missed my baby girl, a black lab, then <3) 

Also, I've been thinking more about my ultimate career plans as well. I am a Psychology Major (potentially will be majoring in Elementary Education, or at least minoring in it) and I am not sure if I want to be a therapist, or a teacher, or a school counsellor, or even a librarian. (Or someday fulfill my dream goal of owning a book cafĂ© by the sea, but I doubt that would ever happen.) I'm just feeling rather lost and guilty about being lost when I'm spending so much money and working so hard just to be here at university. But I'm going to remain hopeful that someday this will all be worth it! 

Finally, NaNoWriMo is (somewhat?) around the corner! I'm still not sure how I feel about the new site design, so I don't think I will be as active over there as I used to be, but that's okay, it will just leave even more time for writing! I'm torn between three ideas--the fourth and final book in my all-female Fantasy series, the first book in a new Fantasy series, or a standalone/potential first book in our world but with ghosts in like, just one particular town. I have the characters very fleshed out for all of them which I am excited about but I still have some plot stuff to work out, since I have found out (after about six years of serious writing and five finished novels) that I am very much not a pantser. Whoops?

I know I mentioned Blog Stuff in the title--I am thinking of rebranding and potentially taking this whole thing more seriously? Revamping my layout, coming up with a new name, taking things more seriously, and maybe even switching to a whole fresh new place. I haven't decided yet, but it's in the cards and a possibility, so I just thought I'd throw that out there as a very advance warning(?) 

Also, quick note! I will be participating in Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon this October 26th. (If all goes according to plan!) so be prepared for many blog posts throughout the day as I have in the past!!! I'm very hyped. 

Anyway, that's all that's been happening with me! I guess it's been somewhat exciting by my standards, and I am very very happy that it's Autumn--my favorite season! I am more than ready for the rain and fog, the beautifully colored leaves falling from the many trees around campus, wearing boots and sweaters and jeans, drinking my Pumpkin Spice Chai or my mint tea, and of course months of reading and writing. 

Until next time, happy reading!


Friday, July 12, 2019

Bibliothon TBR + Reading Updates

Hello! It's been quite awhile, hasn't it? That doesn't mean I've stopped reading though, of course! I noticed on Twitter that the final Biannual Bibliothon is being hosted over the course of nine days (July 11th-18th, I believe) and I really wanted to hop in and join the fun!

Very quickly, my TBR for this Readathon is as follows:
  • Renegades by Marissa Meyer (started on Page 189)
    • I began reading this one back in May but I ended up putting it down for some reason. I loved the Lunar Chronicles by this same author, so I really want to give this superhero-themed story another chance!
  • Warriors: Fire & Ice by Erin Hunter (started on Page 100)
    • So, Warriors was like... my life back in late Elementary school and early Middle school. It was what really sparked my love for reading and writing. Recently, I saw the first book on my shelf (Into the Wild) and reread it, and let me tell you--it still held up! So, naturally, I am continuing my reread.
  • Storm Front by Jim Butcher (haven't started reading yet)
    • This is the first book in the Dredsen Files, which is my best friend's favorite book series. She's been asking me to read this series for probably five years now, and she recently let me borrow this book in an attempt to finally motivate me into reading it. So read it I shall!
I might end up picking up other books as well, so we will just have to see how much I actually get done and where this Readathon ends up taking me! I haven't participated in one of these for a long while, so I am excited to get back in the swing of things.

MY READING PROGRESS

  • DAY ONE (Thursday, July 11th)
    • Renegades - 37 pages (189-226)
    • Pages Read Today: 37 pages
    • Total Pages Read: 37 pages
      • Commentary: So... I got a bit distracted by watching an episode of Sherlock, and then an episode of Once Upon a Time. Also, I played a few games of Yahtzee with my brother and did a lot of reading that was online/without page numbers/not really a book, so I couldn't really count it in my total. But I did make iced peppermint tea, eat lots of ice cream, and continue reading Renegades, so overall it was a productive and relaxing day!
  • DAY TWO (Friday, July 12th)
    • Renegades - 82 pages (226-308)
    • Fire & Ice- 21 pages (100-121)
    • Pages Read Today: 103
    • Total Pages Read: 140
      • Commentary: My goal for today was to break 100 pages overall--and I actually went beyond that, reading 100 pages in one day! It didn't even feel like it, since things had definitely begun to pick up in both of these novels. I was also productive on a couple of other fronts as well, which was nice, and me and my dog went for a little walk by the gardens. My brother and I still had a pizza-icecream-soda party at about 11pm, and (re)watched some Parks and Rec, which was fun!
  • DAY THREE (Saturday, July 13th)
    • Fire & Ice - 47 pages (121-168)
    • Pages Read Today: 47 
    • Total Pages Read: 187
      • Commentary: Sooo… I actually didn't even start reading until after 11pm, when I realized I'd had nothing to show reading-wise for today. Luckily, Fire & Ice is a middle grade, and a quickly-paced one, so I did actually get a fair amount of reading in for today after all!
  • DAY FOUR (Sunday, July 14th)
    • Renegades - 100 pages (308-408)
    • Pages Read Today: 100
    • Total Pages Read: 287
      • Commentary: No real commentary for today. It was a productive reading day, though! I did do a reading sprint on Twitter and read 72 pages in 45 minutes!
  • DAY FIVE (Monday, July 15th)
    • Renegades - 144 (408-552)
    • Pages Read Today: 144
    • Total Pages Read: 431
      • Commentary: I did a couple more reading sprints this afternoon. (70 pages in 45 minutes, and 50 pages in 30 minutes. My pages per minute count actually remained fairly consistent!) Also... I finished my first book of the Readathon, Renegades! I liked the ending and it very much read like a television show or a movie. I also have some theories about how things connect, and I'm interested in reading the rest of the series to see if these theories actually pan out! Also, I spent some time in the evening with my Grandma eating ice cream, watching Jeopardy, and playing Uno, which was fun!
  • DAY SIX (Tuesday, July 16th) 
    • Fire & Ice - 27 pages (168-195)
    • Pages Read Today: 27
    • Total Pages Read: 458
        • Commentary: I played D&D with my friends during the evening (which was really fun), but I did not actually read that much today... I am that much closer to finishing another book though! I'm hoping to finish it before the Readathon ends!
  • DAY SEVEN (Wednesday, July 17th)
    • Fire & Ice - 35 pages (195-230)
    • Pages Read Today: 35
    • Total Pages Read: 493
      • Commentary: Today I spent most of the day cleaning and painting the trim in a rental house... it was more difficult than it sounds! It was an unexpectedly busy day, but I did squeeze in a few chapters of Fire & Ice (as well as a couple episodes of Parks and Rec with my brother!) Tomorrow looks busy too but hopefully I make some solid progress :)