January Reading Wrap-Up

January 2015 has come to an end, and I am actually very proud of the amount of books I have read this month. All links lead to my review on Goodreads. Without further ado..

This month I read 7 books.

Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip (By Jordan Sonnenblick): First book of 2015! Whoot whoot! Sonnenblick is my friend's favorite author, so she allowed me to borrow her copy of the book, and since they are fast reads, I got through this one pretty quick. I rated it 4/5 stars on Goodreads.

Zen and The Art of Faking It (By Jordan Sonnenblick): I also borrowed this from a friend. My review for this one was short. I couldn't really relate to this one as much as his other one, but I still liked it enough to give it 3/5 stars on Goodreads.

Lost World, Jurassic Park #2 (By Michael Crichton): I got this from my school library. I was surprised to see how many people on Goodreads disliked this book. I certainly really enjoyed it, and Crichton's writing style is always so refreshing and makes the book hard to put down. This book easily earned a 5/5 stars on Goodreads and even a spot on my favorites shelf.

Tiger's Curse, Tiger's Curse #1 (By Colleen Houck): I got this book used but in good condition from my favorite bookstore (because, let's face it, it was really cheap). But in my defense it had been on my TBR for a long time. My review on Goodreads, linked in the title, is very long, so if you'd like to know more about my mixed feelings for this book, you can find out more there! It earned 4/5 stars on Goodreads.

Tiger's Quest, Tiger's Curse #2 (By Colleen Houck): This book I got at the same time as the first one, and I didn't regret it once I had read it. It was better than the first book, in my opinion, and the last chapter or so... the feels! 4.75/5 stars on Goodreads from me.

Tiger's Voyage, Tiger's Curse #3 (By Colleen Houck): This book was the best one of the series. I read it during Finals Week and it may have kept me from studying for some points... I literally sat down and read this book for three hours straight, and it very nearly nabbed a place on my favorites shelf on Goodreads... 5/5 stars from me, no question.

Tiger's Destiny, Tiger's Curse #4 (By Colleen Houck): Yes, I marathonned this series. I'm happy I did, because it takes a lot of energy for me to do so, for some reason? Maybe I just get drained. And with all the feels at the end of this book...the last three chapters... oh, I am surprised I didn't end up bawling! 5/5 stars, but still not as good as the third book.

Beautiful People || January 2015

Alas, I haven't been keeping up with this meme, and additionally I have not been writing much at all lately. I hope that will change soon, seeing as I have a new story brewing in my mind that I've been working on planning out.

The beautiful people meme is hosted by  Paper Fury if any of you would like to participate!

 

1. How many years have you been writing? When did you officially consider yourself a ‘writer’?
I've been writing for as long as I can remember. My Mom claims in one of her journals that I wrote my first story when I was about two years old (a bunch of scribbles that I muttered out loud in baby babble). Most details are unknown; but it had the word "dog" in it.

2. How/why did you start writing?

 

Both my mother and my grandmother (my two biggest idols as a kid) had wanted to be authors. They had books strewn everywhere, always feverishly writing in journals, and me, being a kid, wanted to be exactly like them.
 3. What’s your favorite part of writing?

 

I love the rush you feel when you're getting something right. When you lose yourself in the words of this book, and you forget reality exists and you disappear right into the story itself, beside the characters in this world you've created.

 4. What’s your biggest writing struggle?

 

Well, there's the actually writing bit. I tend to do well when I force myself onto a schedule, like NaNoWriMo, but other than that I have difficulty sticking to one story, and tend to hop to another one before I finish the one at hand. And I, of course, deal with the crippling self-doubt of all authors. (And editing. Can I just say all of it?)

 5. Do you write best at night or day?

 

Night! That's the only time I get the peace and quiet to actually focus on my writing. During the day there's always something going on or someone talking rather loudly downstairs.

 6. What does your writing space look like? (Feel free to show us pictures!)

 

Sadly, my camera isn't working currently, but my favorite writing space is my desk, on my laptop. It's a very messy desk with lots of notebooks, papers, and pencils. And because it is a white desk I doodle and jot down notes on the desk itself... I need sticky notes.

 7. How long does it typically take you to write a complete draft?

 

A long time. I've only finished one draft (one real draft, I should say) before, and I have one that's a bit over 100k words right now. About a month seems to be my general time frame (interesting that both of these were written during NaNoWriMo, isn't it?)
 8. How many projects do you work on at once?

 

Only one at a time, since I find it hard to concentrate on different characters and worlds and sometimes mix them up. However, I do quite easily, which is a habit I really need to get out of. (*glares at unfinished ~30k drafts*)
 9. Do you prefer writing happy endings, sad ones, or somewhere in between?

 

I like both of them, but bittersweet is my favorite. Something really tragic happens, but someone gets a happy ending.
 10. List a few authors who’ve influenced your writing journey.

 

J.R.R. Tolkien: I remember reading The Hobbit so voraciously as a child, and even now it is one of my favorite books. It made me realize that the best heroes choose their own journey, and I try to apply that to my writing even today.

 

Erin Hunter; I'm not such a fan of the Warriors Series anymore, but it will always have a special place in my heart due to all the fanfictions I wrote of it in Elementary school.

 

Sarah J. Maas; Made me realize that what I write as a teen can be important.

 11. Do you let people read your writing? Why or why not?

 

I let my Dad and brother read my last year NaNoWriMo novel, but generally? No, I don't. Otherwise I find myself writing for other people instead of me.

 12. What’s your ultimate writing goal or dream?

To get published, and maybe even be a successful author. I know this seems lame and it's definitely impossible, but I'd really like to get on the New York Times Bestseller list one day. (I've never told anyone that before; it's been my secret dream.)

 13. If you didn’t write, what would you want to do?

 

...Uh, I'm not sure. I was going to say Script Write for TV Shows, but then I realized that would be writing too.

 14. Do you have a book you’d like to write one day but don’t feel you’re ready to attempt it yet?

 

Well, the idea currently in my head needs a lot of work, but I really want to write it. One day. Hopefully soon!

 15. Which story has your heart and won’t let go?

 

It's actually a novel I wrote in fifth grade. It was really bad, obviously, but we would have about an hour or half an hour a day in class to free write, and I wrote a really long story. A full-fledged novel that took up more than one composition notebook, and the other kids in class were fascinated. They started writing their own "books" and that original book of mine will hold a special place in my heart forever, because it inspired so many other kids and made me feel so important and special. It's when I discovered that I truly wanted to write for the rest of my life and maybe even inspire more people to write themselves.

OUAT Review || 1x11 -- "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree"

This review contains MAJOR spoilers for Once Upon A Time episode 1x11! Pretty much the entire plotline.

Hello! This is my first blog post of 2015, and I thought I would try something new. Not a book review, but instead, a TV show review! I've only watched 13.5 episodes of "Once Upon A Time" but it is quickly becoming one of my favorite shows of all time. The characters are so strong, and the way that the writers twist all these fairytales together is just... magical!


_____________________
Show: Once Upon A Time
Season: One
Episode: Eleven, "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree"
Watched On: January 10th, 2015

**SPOILER ALERT**
So I first watched this episode during a binge watch of Once Upon A Time, and can I just say, wow.

Wow, wow wow!

That episode was quite the ride, and took so many different twists and turns, far from what I was expecting!

It followed Emma Swan, the protagonist, as she tried to prove that Regina was plotting against the town of Storybrooke. She teamed up with Sidney Glass, who used to work for Regina, and well... I'll get to that part later.

In the Enchanted Forest, we had the Genie who was trying to woo the Evil Queen, who, at this point in the storyline, isn't evil. At least, she pretends not to be.

The way that the authors of this episode wove everything together was truly amazing. My favorite storyline was definitely the one that took place in the Enchanted Forest this time.

We learned that Sidney Glass is the genie in the Enchanted Forest, and offers the King three wishes, seeing as he was the one to free the genie. The king is so merciful that he allows the genie to make his wish himself, much like in the Disney movie of Aladdin where (spoilers) Aladdin wishes for the genie to be free with his last wish.

This scene was so heart-warming because of how grateful the genie was to the King. This really was the first time anyone had ever shown him real sympathy, and it came as such a pleasant surprise that (if I am remembering right) he was brought to the King's castle.

That's where he met Regina, the evil queen. (And may I just add-- Lana Parilla looked absolutely radiant in this episode. I love seeing the queen so kind and in  way "innocent".) The two of them fall in love, and then the King finds out that his wife is in love with someone else, and sends the genie to look for this man.

Thing is, that man is the genie.

And other thing is, they weren't in love. That's what was so shocking to me about this episode the first time. After the genie releases the mysterious two-headed snake, killing the King (and the awesome part is that the snake was native to the genie's country... leading the murder right back to the Genie. I love the Evil Queen, because she really does think of every detail. That part made me gasp in horror because the genie was killing this man he loved so much, the man who showed him mercy, all for Regina.) he meets back with the evil queen.

That is when she shows she is truly evil. Basically, she pulls a Hans from Disney's "Frozen", and reveals that she was only pretending to be in love with him so that he would kill the king and she could become queen of the land. Maybe it was because the acting was spot-on in this episode, but I had fallen for it. I had thought that Regina was truly in love with the genie.

And then, at the end of the episode, in Storybrooke we find out that Sidney Glass was working against Emma the entire time. I did not see that one coming.

Like I said before, this episode blew me away and was one of my favorite episodes to date. (Sorry this was so long and rambly... it's late)

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Read in 2014

As always, Top Ten Tuesday is brought to you by Broke and Bookish. Today's topic is top ten books you read in 2014, and with the year coming to an end it's so very hard to choose just ten. However I did manage to whittle it down! The links lead to the Goodreads summary!

1. The first, and by far my favorite, book of this year was The Crimson Crown by Cinda Williams Chima. Chima was a new author to me, and when I picked up the first book in this series (The Demon King) for five dollars, I have to admit I wasn't expecting anything special. But boy, was I wrong. Romance, action, and intrigue, the Seven Realms series hooked me and my love for reading was re-lit. All four books were amazing, but my favorite was the final book, The Crimson Crown
2. Next up is a book that I read based upon the hype surrounding it, which was Cinder by Marissa Meyer. I love fantasy, but science fiction is not really my thing. So when I read this book (and the other two in the series) I was greatly surprised! I loved it!
3. The Selection by Kiera Cass is next on my list, and again, is a book that surprised me. I had heard nothing but awful things about these books, but I quite enjoyed them. I read the first book in only two days, and the second one in less than one day. Both were fun, light reads.
4. Although I don't read much Middle Grade, The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani definitely stood out to me this year. I had been excited to read it, and it lived up to my every expectation. It was a fun but intense book, and I am so excited to read the second and third books in the trilogy.
5. Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson came as a shock to me when I read it. I read it as an assignment for school, and nothing more, but then, I became hooked. The characters are so strong, and the ending came as a real shocker for me. This was a historical fiction book, so not something I normally would read, but it deserves a place in the top ten without a doubt.
6. I'm not sure if it's a favorite, but Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta stood out to me from this year. The writing was so, so, beautiful and I felt as though this novel, seemingly light from the cover, was so much darker and more intense than I expected.
7. I know, I know, another Cinda Williams Chima book, but to me, The Enchanter Heir was a great read. I didn't love it as much as The Seven Realms series, or some of the others on this list, but it was fun to read either way.
8.  The 100 by Kass Morgan was a book I had been looking forward to reading, because of the hype around the TV show. It was a good book, and a fast read, and while I had a few problems with it (my book review is here if you'd like my more in-depth thoughts), I had no trouble balancing the four POV's and it ended in such a cliffhanger!
9. Another science fiction book I enjoyed this year was Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I loved this book, and it definitely deserves a spot on my top ten list. What a fast-paced, action-packed plot! I loved the idea and how it was carried out, and this was another super fast read for me.
10. Last but certainly not least, is Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I know I'm not the only one who could really relate to Cath, as a socially anxious author who has a thing for peanut butter... it was such a great and relatable read, and Rowell's writing is great. I hope to read more books by her in the future.

November Wrap-Up

Sorry for not keeping up to date on my Wrap ups these past few months!! Here's my wrap up for November...

This month I read 3 books.

The Dragon Heir by Cinda Williams Chima

The third in the "Heir Chronicles" series, Chima's book, The Dragon Heir was probably my favorite of the first three. I loved the surprises and action that took place in the book, and near the end I was almost in denial of a few events taking place to a certain few characters... if you've read the Warrior Heir and The Wizard Heir, and were iffy about continuing, I'd like to say it was well worth it.

4/5 stars on Goodreads

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

I hadn't ever been planning on reading this book, because of reasons. But it was for a school assignment, so obviously I had to, haha. (Got 100% on the assignment by the way... *yes*). It was okay, and I liked the characters in the book. I thought the prospect of having a child as the main character was a very smart move. Overall, I can see the appeal with this book. It would be fun to discuss with someone, I think, since most people in my class loved it.

3.5/5 stars on Goodreads

Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld

I had been really looking forward to reading this! Two books in one, a look at the publishing world, and paranormal reads? Sounded fun. I loved the representation in this book, and it was a fun read. I liked the fact that we got to read Darcy's book, as well. Zipped right through this one!

4/5 stars on Goodreads

NaNoWriMo 2014 Wrap Up

Hello, friends! I know my posts have been dwindling as of late, but for those of you who still keep up with my blog and everything, I want you all to know how grateful I am.

So, as you all know, last month I participated in NaNoWriMo-- or National Novel Writing Month. I am pretty sure everyone knows what this is, but the goal is to write 50k words in the month of November. My goal was to double that and write 100k.

And guess what?

I did! I wrote 100k exactly, on a fairytale retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses called Of Roses and Royalty. The book went a direction I didn't think it was going to (and I haven't quite finished it yet... oops?) but I'm glad I got the quantity of words I was aiming for, even if I did not get the quality of the words.

Now for a few quick stats.

Total Word Count: 100,000
Day Reached Goal: The 30th
Day Reached 50k: The 11th... my fastest ever!
Highest Words Per Day: I got 15.3k words for my first day word count... beating my previous highest (11k) by more than 4,000 words!!

Did you participate in NaNoWriMo? If so, how'd you fare?

Rainy Reading

There are many things I love about Autumn and Winter... NaNoWriMo, Thanksgiving, Family, delicious food... but one of those things is also rain. Rain is just so comforting to hear against the windowpanes and I love the smell of rain.

And, because the sound of rain is so comforting, it's the perfect time to read a book. Fantasy seems to work especially well for reading in the rainy weather. (Not in the rainy weather exactly... I really prefer to stay inside when it's raining. But to each their own.)

Currently, I am reading The Enchanter Heir by Cinda Williams Chima, the fourth book in a series about magic guilds. The fifth and final book in the Heir Chronicles (this is the name of the series) came out last month, and I'm in luck-- the library has it. So it is lucky for me that over the Thanksgiving Break I get to binge read both of these thick fantasy books.

In NaNoWriMo news-- I'm at 74k words right now, which means I'm behind my goal by ~3k words, but I'm hoping I can catch up (despite the masses of homework I have been assigned. Woe is me.) Additionally, I'm beginning to lose faith in this book. The inciting incident has not even happened yet, and the entire novel is just really lousily written, and really rambly. I'm trying to decide if I should rewrite it. I don't want the 100k words I'm planning on writing to go to waste, but, I really feel like being sick every time I think of my book.

That's a bad sign, isn't it?

I could really go for a bit of cheering up right now. Is anyone else writing for NaNoWriMo? Perhaps you are doing the Blog Ahead challenge I've been hearing about? If so, how is that going for you? Hope to hear from you all!

30 Day Novel Meme... in One Post!

I "borrowed" this meme from this link right here. It looked like a good way to flesh out my novel, and after all, I did warn you about that ramblings thing. My blog might be mostly writing stuff until November is over, in which it will return to its bookish madness.

Speaking of writing ramblings, I was wondering something: what do you think about me starting a whole separate blog about writing? It would be about my journey in my novels, useful tips, and general rambling, as well as editing, prepping, etc. a novel. I'm conflicted at the moment as this would mean running 3 blogs (one a November-only blog, one bookish blog [that would be this one!] and a writing blog [the new one.]) I would like some opinions! :D

Anyway, today I'm going to be answering the questions best I can for you. Here goes nothing.

1- Name of current Project and back story of the name.
The title is Of Roses and Royalty. Since all the sisters are named after flowers, I knew I was going to include some sort of flower in the title. After talking to my writing buddy, she helped me come up with the current title.
2- Genre of the story explained in detail
High Fantasy for sure. It features two royal kingdoms with princesses and curses, but alas, no magic users. I'd say it also has a bit of questing in it, but not much. More just royal conflict, as well as Fairytale retelling.
3- Explain your PoV and Style of writing usedAh, well see here. This is my November project and POV hasn't exactly been settled yet. I'm thinking 3rd person as always, but 1st person might work too.
4- Describe your inspiration and what message you wish to bring acrossI want to portray the message of peacefulness and unity, since it's an important message to me. My inspiration for this came from out of the blue really. I don't remember.
5- Main Character Bio
6- Main Villain Bio
7- A third important characters Bio
8- Descriptions of all other important charactersAll these are in my prep notebook.
9- Explain the main basis of the plot A retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses. No dancing involved in this version though. And no king trying to get people to search for the princesses. Pretty much the only things it keeps from the actual tale are the second kingdom and the twelve princesses.
10- Describe the world that the story happens in (use photos or graphics if you want)Hmm, there was a really cool castle I found earlier that would be perfect. Pretty much it takes place in a Fantasy world, but with no magic save for the curses, which can be explained by the twisted science of my novel, and no magical creatures. The first kingdom is very poor, in poverty, with threats from all kingdoms attacking Daesi (the kingdom MC's live in.) Lore, the kingdom they sneak off to at night, still needs developing.
11- All the Ships in your novel/ Story
-Theodore/Caspia (Thaspia? Caspidore?)
-Bella/Hugo (Uh... uh oh... oh no...how about Bugo, aye?)
Not much romance in this book.
12- Your favourite character to write about and why
CASPIA because I love her character so much. She's so noble, and just wants the best for everyone, but often doesn't get the best for herself. She's the eldest.
13- Your least favourite character to write about and why
Probably Bella, because I feel like I'm really forcing her character more than I ought to.
14- Which character you are most like
Hm, Dahlia probably. We are both very timid and quiet. She likes to garden more than I do, though. And she isn't fond of books.
15- Your favourite part of the story
I can't wait to see what it will be.
16- Describe any other books related to this one (eg. Prequel, sequel, follow up) or If it’s a stand alone, a sequel or prequel that you could writeI'm not sure if it will be a series or not. It depends how many more ideas pop into my head. A possible sequel could be called Of Lupines and Loyalty or Of Lilies and Loyalty. It rhymes! Get it?
17- Which published book it is most likeIt depends if the Twelve Dancing Princesses itself counts. If so, that one.
18- What stage of editing/ writing are you at?Still in prep mode!
19- Writing Playlist
The Medallion Calls (Pirates of the Caribbean)
Anything Two Steps From Hell
20- If it were made into a movie, which Director would direct it and which band would make the soundtrackI don't know.
21- Dream Cast (with pictures)
Emilie de Ravin as Caspia
Anna Popplewell as Freesia (second eldest sister, and villainess)
Anna Saffer as Belladonna "Bella"
Jessica Sula as the twins: Heather and Hydrangea "Heidi"
Jessica Brown Findlay as Dahlia
And I don't know about the other sisters
22- The Ten best things about your story
23- The ten things you could improve
None yet for either.
24- Why are you going to do with it when it’s done?Edit it! And then keep it for myself to look back on and laugh at in 10 years.
25- What is the main twist/ plot point?When they find the door to Lore is the inciting action.
26- What is the most exciting scene/ chapter/ partTheodore entering Lore, because that's what set off the curse.
27- How often do you write it and in what environment?Hopefully all November and December will be writing the novel, and I tend to write at the Write Ins in my region, and my school, and then in my room at 2 in the morning.
28- Who else has read it? Or heard about it? Does anyone know you’re writing?My writing buddies have heard about, as has my brother, and my dad knows I'll be writing it, but I've been very vague with him. (Him: "Have you been doing NaNoWriMo stuff?" Me: "Mm hmm" Him: "What are you writing" Me: "Uhhh a book, probably" that's about as far as it has gotten.)
29- Pretend you’re a critic and give a fair but concise criticism of your project so farWhen it is in the makings, the critics would probably kill it with fire. I'm a terrible writer, which is why I hope I'm never, ever published. haha.
30- Post a chapter or so for everyone to read and review
You know the drill.

NaNoWriMo, Writings, and Bookish Musings (Part 2)

This is Part 2 of my delayed update post! In this one, I'm going to be talking about my NaNoWriMo plans, general excitement, and so forth. Yay!
NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month, for those of you who don't know. The goal is to write 50,000 words of a novel in 30 days-- specifically, the month of November. November is only 13 days away, which means, that NaNoWriMo is looming ever closer.

Last year, I won NaNo with 92k, and for my second year, I want to beat that count and write 100k in the month of November. 3,334 words per day. Let's hope I can make that goal!

Now, the question is: What am I writing? I've actually put some planning into it. It's a retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses, but with less dancing, and more Sleeping Beauty. I've got all my character summaries in one notebook, and so far, 7 of the 12 sisters have bios done... I promised myself I would get them all done by the 20th. I better get working on that...

Also, I will probably not post on here during NaNo due to my daily updates on My NaNo Diary where I will be uploading my word count daily, along with writing out my tales of woe for all of you to read.

So yes. Hopefully you will learn more about my project soon-ish. I'm sure as November gets closer, my babble will increase.

NaNoWriMo, Writing, and Bookish Musings (Part 1)

Hey guys! I realized due to how busy October has been for me, that I hadn't actually updated this blog for awhile, and I wanted to get back in the swing of things! Today's post will come in two parts, because a lot has happened in the past  month in my little bookish bubble!

First, my Bookish updates. I finished reading The Warrior Heir by Cinda Williams Chima, and while it didn't live up to my (admittedly sky high) expectations, it was still a good book. The final book in the Heir Chronicles is coming out on the 21st, so keep your eye out for that!

Currently, I'm reading the second book in that series, The Wizard Heir. The main character in this one is Seph, who I think I like better than I liked Jack. The plot is more interesting to me personally in this book as well and there's one mystery I can't wait until it's solved!

Other books I have finished include Hattie Big Sky and Spook. Hattie Big Sky was historical fiction, so not something I would normally read, but Kirby Larson, the author, did such a wonderful job on this book. The characters were so--so-- they were so good. Not good as in, I baked a pie and it turned out scrumptious. Not good as in 'that was a good book. maybe I'll read it again sometime.' They were good as in they had such kind hearts, such reasonable intentions, such life inside of them that it felt they were real. This is the best historical fiction novel I have ever read.

Spook by Mary Roach, was about the science behind the afterlife. It was for a school project, and if I am remembering right, I posted a review on it on my Goodreads page. I'm Waffle Writer on Goodreads, and I post a lot of reviews on that site. I gave it 5 or 4.5 stars at the time I finished reading it I think. It had lots of humor and hilarity that made me keep turning the pages, but it also had research that the author put into it, and I could tell this was not an easy novel to write. I was also impressed by how unbiased her writing was. She wasn't trying to convince us, or herself really, just was curious about why or why not.

And, last but not least, the other book on my "Currently Reading" stack is Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. I've heard not-so-great things about the author, so I didn't want to read this book, but my English class requires me to, if I want to pass, so alas, I shall have to get over it.

Stay tuned for ramblings about NaNoWriMo, musings about my Novel Work in Progress, and more!