Well my lovely blog friends, I’m in need of a little break. Nothing too crazy, just a week or two at the longest. Recharge the batteries sort of thing.
I will be back. Promise.
May 2nd, 2012
Head in the Clouds
Mine, that is. I’ve been sort of doing nothing but planning a fantastic annual vacation for me and Super Spawn this week. So…I’ve got nothing to say really.
Other than I can’t wait until our vacay. Because GUYS. We’re flying up to Washington DC for four days! And we get to spend time with one of my BFFs, Erinn!!
I am BEYOND excited!! I’ve never been to DC, and so obviously neither has Super Spawn. And he has never flown. And AND he will have just started Kindergarten and what an awesome story to have to tell all of his new friends.
GUYS I CAN’T WAIT!!! This is going to be the BEST summer ever!! Weekend of Awesome AND an awesome vacation!! WHEE!
What about you all, any fun plans coming up? I’ve got a summer full of adventure ahead of me!
April 30th, 2012
The Towering TBR
I don’t know about you guys, but my to-be-read (TBR) pile is about to topple over if I don’t pay it some serious attention soon. So I thought it’d be fun to compare what we’ll be reading as we step into May. (I cannot believe April is over! Where the heck did it go?!)
On my Nook I’ve got three books waiting for me (the covers link to their Goodreads pages):
One that I’ve preordered and will appear magically tomorrow:
And I’ve got two hard-copy books on my nightstand:
I think I’m in for a pretty great month of reading!
What have you guys got on your TBR? Have you read any of mine yet?
April 27th, 2012
Book of the Week: Cracked
Cracked
by K.M. WaltonSometimes there’s no easy way out.
Victor hates his life. He has no friends, gets beaten up at school, and his parents are always criticizing him. Tired of feeling miserable, Victor takes a bottle of his mother’s sleeping pills—only to wake up in the hospital.Bull is angry, and takes all of his rage out on Victor. That makes him feel better, at least a little. But it doesn’t stop Bull’s grandfather from getting drunk and hitting him. So Bull tries to defend himself with a loaded gun.
When Victor and Bull end up as roommates in the same psych ward, there’s no way to escape each other or their problems. Which means things are going to get worse—much worse—before they get better….
I had my eye on this book for a while before I got my hands on a copy. Honestly it was like fate brought us together — I won it in a contest. 
One thing I absolutely love about this book is that you feel completely connected to both characters. Both Victor and Bull have things about them that are bad, and both have things about them that are heartbreaking. Seriously, I must have spent more time near tears while reading this book than not.
Walton’s writing is so full of voice, and so true to these characters, it’s easy to forget that they are just characters in a book.
The whole time I was reading I couldn’t decide how this could possibly end well. There is so much bad in these boy’s lives that sometimes I had to shut it and sit it down because I would be so very angry. Not at the book, but at people in general — at life. At the realization that things like this happen every single day around us and we never pay attention.
This is a moving story that is guaranteed to stick with you long after you’ve set it aside. I highly recommend picking up a copy.
April 25th, 2012
The Writer’s Challenge
I know I keep talking lately about how hard writing a novel is, and maybe that’s because I’m back in the trenches of creating a first draft. (Which is the absolute hardest part of the process to me.) But there’s one more point I want to make about this whole idea of being a writer, and why we do it despite the difficulty.
So, I’m drafting. I’m building a world — a huge world. Something bigger and more expansive than I’ve ever attempted before. And oh my goodness is it hard. Flat out, plain old hard. Yesterday I caught myself thinking that what I need is a bigger head. There needs to be more room in there to hold all of these bits and pieces of this story together because it’s so MUCH.
The thing with this story is the challenge is what makes it so incredibly enticing. As I mentioned before, I actually have another story I could be writing — one with a complete synopsis and outline. A story that I know would be good and fun and all of that…but then I’m faced with this massively shiny, challenging world that is so full of potential and the promise of adventure and fun and HOW in the world could I ever not go after it?
Sometimes the fact that writing is hard is what makes it so very desirable. I think, as writers, we are problem solvers. More than that, after solving the problem, we then want to go back and find out WHY it happened in the first place. Am I right? Isn’t that the basis for any story?
My point here is that just because something is hard, just because it’s a challenge and makes you want to tear your hair out in frustration, doesn’t mean it’s a misery. Because once you master that seemingly impossible task — and you will if you put your mind to it — you’ll realize just how rewarding all of that frustration is.
I enjoy a challenge. At the end of the day, when this story is complete, there is no doubt in my mind that I will be more proud of it than any story that came before because it was so hard to pull off.
Never back down, and never surrender, that’s what I say.
What do you guys think? Do you enjoy writing things that challenge you or do you stick to what you’re comfortable with?
April 23rd, 2012
Things Writers Say…
- Today I thought I’d share some quotes I’ve collected over time related to writing that I enjoy. At the very least, they make me smile, so I hope they will for you as well…
Have something to say, and say it as clearly as you can. That is the only secret.
- Matthew Arnold
It is the writer who might catch the imagination of young people, and plant a seed that will flower and come to fruition.
- Isaac Asimov
I believe more in the scissors than I do in the pencil.
- Truman Capote
Books aren’t written, they’re rewritten. Including your own. It is one of the hardest things to accept, especially after the seventh rewrite hasn’t quite done it…
- Michael Crichton
What we call fiction is the ancient way of knowing, the total discourse that antedates all the special vocabularies….Fiction is democratic, it reasserts the authority of the single mind to make and remake the world.
- E. L. Doctorow
Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it’s the only way you can do anything really good.
- William Faulkner
When writing a novel, that’s pretty much entirely what life turns into: ‘House burned down. Car stolen. Cat exploded. Did 1500 easy words, so all in all it was a pretty good day.’
- Neil Gaiman
A great deal of talent is lost to the world for want of a little courage.
- Sidney Smith
April 20th, 2012
Book of the Week: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight
The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight
Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?
Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan’s life. She’s stuck at JFK, late to her father’s second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon to be step-mother that Hadley’s never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport’s cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he’s British, and he’s in seat 18C. Hadley’s in 18A.Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver’s story will make you believe that true love finds you when you’re least expecting it.
What drew me to this book was the cover in all honesty. It’s very attention grabbing with the black and white and red, and of course the still couple in a heart amidst a hustling crowd sets it apart too.
I have to say, the cover and title of this book really do sum it up quite nicely.
This is written in third-person, present-tense and that threw me for a loop to start with, but it really allows the story to develop in a cool way. The characters are adorable (and Oliver is 100% swoon-worthy). Reading this I found myself grinning from ear to ear during some of their conversations. They are just so sweet and so realistic it’s…fantastic.
Jennifer Smith has a real knack for dialogue. Never once did it feel stilted or forced.
One thing I loved about this book was how quick and easy of a read it was. The language is smooth and elegant, and the story just zooms right past without you even realizing it.
If you’re a fan of contemporary YA or romances in general, I feel sure you’ll fall in love with this one.
Have you read it? What did you think?
April 18th, 2012
What Being a Writer Really Means
Something I’ve realized over the last…how long have I been writing novels? Three years? Whatever. I realized that the whole “being a writer” thing isn’t what most people think it is.
Saying that to you guys is probably a DUH moment. If anyone gets it, it’s you. Still… I read some pretty awful stuff on the whole “being a writer” thing when I first started, and I’d like to have my voice out there on the subject. Think of this as my response to those shouting for new writers to just give up…
When I first started writing that very first novel (we’re only counting my adult years here, not the atrociousness I wrote as a child), I had this glamorous idea of what becoming a writer meant. There was this image in my head of how the system worked. You get a brilliant idea, you write it all down, make your own little sketches of your world and characters, and the brilliance of it all never fades.
Ha. I was delusional. Or mislead…or both.
So, for any writers out there just stepping into the arena, I’m here to tell you: Writing is hard. It takes more hours than I care to count to just write a novel, not to mention revise it, edit it, polish it, forming critique groups, etc. Writing well is even harder. And, well, the gigantic hurdle we call publishing…that one is the hardest.
Sometimes I look around and wonder what the hell I’m doing. I mean, I spend so very much time pursuing this dream, this goal, that I fear I’m letting it overtake where it shouldn’t. I’ve talked about that before — the fear of wasting my time. I don’t believe I am, I’m just saying the fear is there. It doesn’t go away. If anything the fear grows the longer I’m at this — the more time I spend away from Super Spawn buried in a manuscript.
Being a writer isn’t glamorous. It’s a lot of very hard work that will sometimes make you want to pull your hair out and scream. There are all sorts of fears that come with the territory, and they don’t go poof with publication either. But if this is something you love, if this is something that makes you happy, then don’t let anything hold you back.
All it means to be a writer is that you love to sit down and pen stories to the page. It’s not a guarantee that it will be easy, and it’s not a guarantee that you’ll love every moment of it. One thing you can be sure of as a writer though is that there is the most wonderful sense of community out there. So very many people feel the same way, go through the same emotions.
It has been said that being a writer is the loneliest work, but I beg to disagree. I have made some of my very, very best friends through my writing. I wouldn’t trade a moment of my journey for anything. Every step, every hurdle, every fall helps you grow.
As long as you love it, keep writing.
Speaking of friends…I also have a new review for you from the SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY ARC Tour!!
From Alicia at Slice of the Blog Pie: “There are a lot of things I like about this book: the amazing detail from the Victorian era Philly to the tightness of the prose. “ (Click through to read more.)
April 13th, 2012
Book of the Week: Goddess Interrupted
Goddess Interrupted
by Aimee CarterKate Winters has won immortality.
But if she wants a life in the Underworld with Henry, she’ll have to fight for it.
Becoming immortal wasn’t supposed to be the easy part. Though Kate is about to be crowned Queen of the Underworld, she’s as isolated as ever. And despite her growing love for Henry, ruler of the Underworld, he’s becoming ever more distant and secretive. Then, in the midst of Kate’s coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans.
As the other gods prepare for a war that could end them all, it is up to Kate to save Henry from the depths of Tartarus. But in order to navigate the endless caverns of the Underworld, Kate must enlist the help of the one person who is the greatest threat to her future.
Henry’s first wife, Persephone.
This is the second book in THE GODDESS TEST trilogy. I very much enjoyed THE GODDESS TEST. So the second installment was something I had been looking forward to ever since finishing. Lucky me even wound up with an ARC thanks to NetGalley!
Now, first of all, this was a crazy intense ride through the underworld this time. There’s heaps more romantic tension, loads of action and fighting, and then there’s Persephone.
Ah, Persephone adds a whole new layer of tension to the Henry/Kate story.
What I enjoyed most about this installment wasn’t necessarily the romance this time though, it was the action. You’re never quite sure who could possibly get out of this alive or who was about to be lost forever.
It’s good, people.
Fair warning though, the ending is a cliffhanger that will make you want to scream. 
I think Carter has been taking notes from Rachel Hawkins on endings.
Have you read GODDESS INTERRUPTED? What did you think?
April 11th, 2012
The Shiny Stuff
Well would you look at that. It’s Wednesday. Where did that come from?
Anyway, I’ve just been thinking. (Ha, nothing new there.) Why does it always seem like all the shiny ideas come at once? Hmm?
I’ve got a story, a synopsis, the basics of an outline, AND a first chapter. Then this other idea slips in through the cracks and glistens with its shiny awesomeness, and I’m tempted. Oh so tempted to chase it down immediately.
Sometimes I wish these ideas would just line themselves up and only present the next in line once the first is finished. Goodness wouldn’t that make things easier? Ha! Although I do suppose that would take some of the excitement out of it too.
Also, I don’t think I really have a point. Wait! Yes I do!
Normally when a distractive shiny idea hits (just go with it, even if distractive isn’t a word), it’s not one of those Flash of Brilliance moments I’ve been waiting for. Normally it’s just another new idea that isn’t fully formed, and is easily brushed to the side.
Not this time though. It’s a FoB, dangit! I mean, YAY, but *grumble*.
I think I’ll go ahead and outline both of them and see where that leads me. But tell me, what do you do in these situations? How do you handle warring ideas that you’re equally excited about?