I'm running a contest on my book blog. It's for a $60 CSN gift certificate and a mystery book. You don't have to be a follower of the blog...so share the fun and enter!
Link to the giveaway!
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
July 16, 2010
July 16, 2009
New Blog
So, after the last post and several more days of discontent, I decided to do something about the situation. I was not going to sit around mopping for the last couple weeks of vacation. No! I took stock and realized that other than a strange compulsion to categorize/organize things that cropped up this summer, I was actively participating in two things. One is the computer game FreeRealms, which while fun, not something for me to obsess over. The other is my love of books. I read all the time. Not a surprise from the English teacher really, I know......but actually, from the way people talk and/or comment when they see my book shelves and reading lists, I must read more (like metric butt tons more) than most. Teel refers to me as "a reader" said with the inflection one would use when calling someone a breeder, a gay, a werewolf, a biker...whatever.
Example: " You're such a....reader."
It's hard to express the sentiment in words, but it's true (and in fun). I am a reader. So I started a book blog. I was listing and giving short reviews (for some books) on goodreads. I'm going to continue that, but some books just deserve more attention (good or bad), and let's face it...it's easier to snark when I have more than 140 characters. ;)
Please, check the blog out. Follow if you want to. Comment as you will. She Reads
Example: " You're such a....reader."
It's hard to express the sentiment in words, but it's true (and in fun). I am a reader. So I started a book blog. I was listing and giving short reviews (for some books) on goodreads. I'm going to continue that, but some books just deserve more attention (good or bad), and let's face it...it's easier to snark when I have more than 140 characters. ;)
Please, check the blog out. Follow if you want to. Comment as you will. She Reads
January 25, 2009
Gettin' mah geek on
For my birthday, Teel bought me tickets to the Phoenix ComiCon. This was the first ever "con" I've been to, excluding academic things. It was exciting...a chance to let my inner fan-girl out without worry. While much of the con was focused on geekery not of my flavor (i.e. comics, graphic novels, anime, etc.) there was still plenty to keep me entertained. I met Frank Beddor (author of Looking Glass Wars) and talked meshing established stories with reinvisionings. I got a great vampire t-shirt from Little Vampires! And had a fun conversation with Wil Wheaton about following him on Twitter. I think the weekend was well spent indulging in geekiness that took me too long to accept in myself
Yes, that's me and Wil Wheaton. And yes, we are wearing our cool t-shirts.
Yes, that's me and Wil Wheaton. And yes, we are wearing our cool t-shirts.
November 29, 2008
Winner!
I'm blowing my own horn here, just a bit, but I am incredibly proud of myself. I took part in the NaNoWriMo challenge and succeeded where I hadn't thought I'd ever be able to. 52,037 words.
November is National Novel Writing Month and aspiring writers are challenged by the non-profit organization to write a complete 50,000 word novel in exactly a month. The idea is to turn off the inner critic and just write. The emphasis isn't even on story. Plot is something that can be tweaked or even added later. The challenge is just to get yourself writing, to be one of those that can cross "Write a novel" off their life-long to-do list.
When Teel invited me to join him in early October, I thought he was crazy. I have had a few short research type essays published, but the idea of writing a book didn't really ever cross my mind. Actually, most creative writing just isn't my style. The few times I had to write fiction were some of the most painful I've encountred. By Halloween I had decided that I would go to the midnight kickoff and if I came away with anything resembling the beginning of a story I would stick with it and try to write something worth reading.
I've been writing all month, luckily there were a couple long weekends off in the school calendar so I could get some dedicated writing time, and I'm still not sure if the draft I have finished is anything at all like a readable story, but I finished. For not knowing what I was writing about the first night I sat down to write, this is a major accomplishment.
The challenge is terrifying. Will I be able to write anything? If I can't or if I fail does that mean I'm just not a creative person? If I'm not a creative person why am I even trying this? The process is grueling. I really don't feel like writing tonight, but if I don't that puts me about 16,000 words behind and I've already taken three days off. But the ending is a perfect, glowing, warm fuzzy.
For now, I think I am just going to bask in the glow of winning and not think about my novel for a while. Perhaps in a few months I'll want to go back into it and do some editing, major amounts of editing are needed to make it readable. After that who knows. But, at the very least, I believe I will be taking up the challenge again next year.
November is National Novel Writing Month and aspiring writers are challenged by the non-profit organization to write a complete 50,000 word novel in exactly a month. The idea is to turn off the inner critic and just write. The emphasis isn't even on story. Plot is something that can be tweaked or even added later. The challenge is just to get yourself writing, to be one of those that can cross "Write a novel" off their life-long to-do list.
When Teel invited me to join him in early October, I thought he was crazy. I have had a few short research type essays published, but the idea of writing a book didn't really ever cross my mind. Actually, most creative writing just isn't my style. The few times I had to write fiction were some of the most painful I've encountred. By Halloween I had decided that I would go to the midnight kickoff and if I came away with anything resembling the beginning of a story I would stick with it and try to write something worth reading.
I've been writing all month, luckily there were a couple long weekends off in the school calendar so I could get some dedicated writing time, and I'm still not sure if the draft I have finished is anything at all like a readable story, but I finished. For not knowing what I was writing about the first night I sat down to write, this is a major accomplishment.
The challenge is terrifying. Will I be able to write anything? If I can't or if I fail does that mean I'm just not a creative person? If I'm not a creative person why am I even trying this? The process is grueling. I really don't feel like writing tonight, but if I don't that puts me about 16,000 words behind and I've already taken three days off. But the ending is a perfect, glowing, warm fuzzy.
For now, I think I am just going to bask in the glow of winning and not think about my novel for a while. Perhaps in a few months I'll want to go back into it and do some editing, major amounts of editing are needed to make it readable. After that who knows. But, at the very least, I believe I will be taking up the challenge again next year.
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