1. A copy of Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor {you KNOW you want it.}
2. A $10 grab bag of wonderment from The Book Gallery in Chattanooga. This place is AMAZING. I spent 90 minutes there a week or so ago, and would not have left if my phone hadn't beeped to remind me of the time. They don't have everything, but what they do have is super cheap, especially this month {crazy, 30-day book sale, what?} The winner of this prize will have to email me ASAP with some info on his or her favorite types of books, so I'll know what to look for as I fill up that bag. It is going to be nuts.
3. A first chapter critique. By me! Because I'm interested to see what you guys are writing, and I want to give back! {and I need the practice.}
Alrighty. How about another clarification? The random drawing, and how the first-second-third placings will go:
First place! Will go to my favorite entry. This winner will have first pick of the three prizes.
Second and third place! Will go to the first two names I draw from the hat, so to speak. Second place gets second pick, and third place, well, third place gets whatever awesome prize the other two crazy winners didn't choose, for whatever reason.
The entries!
Post about your early work = one entry.
Spread the news on Twitter = one entry.
Spread the news on Facebook = one entry {make sure you tell me if you're spreading the news!} Include a picture of a dinosaur or wolf = one entry.
So that's four entries possible. What's not to love? {Oh, and uh, I'm keeping it fair. No one gets to win all the prizes. Haha.}
And there you have it, friends! PLEASE do that whole "spreading the news" thing, especially since I forgot to submit this to the Campaigner Notice Board for this week. Oops.
Hop on over to Christine Tyler's The Writer Coaster if you want to join in the Sparkfest fun. It's not over yet, my friends!
I have a confession to make: I was never a very strong student. Even with reading. I could devour books at home, but what about school? What about being "forced" to read? I had a hard time getting things done, but I did find myself... kind of not hating everything we read as much as my classmates. Like how I inexplicably loved Moby Dick at age 10.
Of all the books I read in school, though, there are three that really stick out as sparks of the writer I would eventually become.
The first was Shiloh, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. I read it in fifth grade (same year as Moby Dick... weird). I loved that dog (we had a beagle, too).
Reading Shiloh truly spurned me to add "author" to the List of Things I Wanted to be When I Grew Up. Other notable contenders: veterinarian (short lived once I realized what it would involve), actor (still working on that one), doctor or nurse (see vet, above), and, "anything but a teacher" (but perhaps I was just being rebellious).
The summer between my eighth and ninth grade years, I read To Kill a Mockingbird. It changed my life. What fascinated me even more than the voice and the story and the world and Boo Radley, though, was learning about Harper Lee. The fact that she published only one book, that it was the only story she felt she had to tell, exhilarated me.* I knew then that I, too, had at least one story inside me I would have to tell, even if I didn't know what it was yet (I do now, though--and I just got cold chills). And if it was only one story, just one book? All the more beautiful, in my fourteen-year-old eyes.
*(Of course, that's the romanticized version.)
The best English class I ever had was my junior year in high school. I could devote an entire post to this one class. The teacher, Mrs. S, was one of the best of my entire education. She was devoted to making us passionate about literature, and it worked. Because of her, I did not hate The Scarlet Letter as much as I would have, otherwise. Ha. But Mrs. S didn't just teach us the state curriculum. She had a way of sneaking in her personal favorites, and books she deemed important. One of these was The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. Oh my gosh, talk about changing my life. This was the first book I ever thought of as "grabbing me and not letting me go." (It also kick-started a fascination/slight obsession with the Vietnam War that lasted well into college.) And, in the vein of Harper Lee, Tim O'Brien fascinated me. Hearing his story made me think of writing in a whole new way--again. I saw the healing it could bring, the connections it could make. And I wanted to be able to do that, too.
Tune in next time for the sparks that finally--and officially--got me to write my first novel.
Boy howdy. If I wasn't averse to cleaning before, I most certainly am now. On the upside, there's this neat little city in southeast Tennessee, practically (in fact, partly) in Georgia, and I live there now. It's called Chattanooga. Maybe you've heard of it.
There's this thing called the Choo Choo, and it sure was the swizz in 1941.
Dang. (This was also my only association with Chattanooga as a little kid. LITTLE DID I KNOW, HUH?)
Anyway, I hope you all are excited, because it's Sparkfest week! Meaning, pretty much, that a bunch of cool folks are going to spend a lot of time in the next several days telling other cool folks about the books that got them hooked on the notion of... all this. Stay tuned!
Here are some other important things:
1. The Chattanooga Library is HUGE. It's not quite as quaint/bright/user-friendly as my beloved Blount County, but it takes a close second. Definitely better than downtown Knoxville. Anyway, the point in all this: it's only about a block from where my husband works, as well as within a few blocks of both a local coffee joint and a Starbucks, and a park with free wifi (where I am right now). So, pretty much, I'm set.
2. This city is so... spacious. It's really not any smaller or bigger than Knoxville (not including their respective universities), but it's so much nicer. I could really get used to these wide, wide streets (you can always see the sky! Even in the middle of downtown!), this plaza, that place over there with really good coffee and super-nice baristas, not to mention the gorgeous library (complete with book sculpture/fountain*), and all the awesome things that aren't even in this little chunk of the city.
*a fountain that is a huge, metal sculpture of a pile of books-- but could also be read as books flowing out onto more books, which is a less organized version of what's going on inside, anyway.
3. I am going to gush about Chattanooga for a long, long time, so buckle up. You will want to visit, I am determined.
4. I did the two CRAZIEST things just now:
4a. I signed up for Rachel Harrie's Third Writers' Platform-Building Campaign. It's like I suddenly grew a spine or something. I'm excited to meet other bloggers, for sure. I'm not as excited about/actually terrified of participating in the challenges, because, in case you haven't noticed, I don't really share what I write online. Too many eyes! Not enough clever! Oh the well. Can't hurt to stretch (my camp counselor is showing, isn't it?)!
4b. I signed up (I think?) for NaNoWriMo. We shall see where this leads. It kind of doesn't make any sense, being as in-the-middle of a WIP (oh yeah, I started New Draft, finally) as I am, but I figured, What the hey? I need to write something other than this one story, over and over again, anyway. I'm thinking female MC. First person*. You know, something normal.
Ha.
*I actually did just throw down a bit of New Draft in first person, just for fun, just to see what it was like, and, uh, yeah. So much better. Surprise!
5. Because of all this, I've found myself staring down some new goals.
A of all: diligent, daily work on--and hopefully the completion of--New Draft, from now until October 31.
B: I'm shrinking my Booksplurge 2011 goal to 50, instead of 60. Bummer, I know, but I think it just has to be this way. And it will still be the most books I've read in one calendar year, if I get there (pretty shallow claim, since I've never kept track before. OH WELL).
And C: Um, the Campaign and NaNo.
So... wwwwwish me luck.
Okay!
(Edited to add: this isn't in English, is it? Ha!
Well, that's trying to watch youtube outside in the city without headphones, for ya.)
See you next time! We'll talk about my favorite book in 5th grade! And then my favorite book in high school! And then, you know, college, and why I started writing, for reals. And then maybe we can eat pizza, because Chattanooga has really great pizza (it matches all the other really great stuff). Ooh! And we can go to the Tennessee Aquarium, because it's awesome and I could walk there right now. (!)
Oh, wait, I did what? Set a ton of unreasonable, unattainable goals for myself that will pretty much take up the rest of the year?
Really?
Okay. We can go to the Aquarium in January, then. HAAAAAAA. (oh boy.)
First of all, if you haven't taken a gander at the Harry Potter Zipline photos, please do. It really happened. You won't regret it.
Second-- and most important-- ly, here are some things that are going on:
1. We have moved our bed into the den. Pretty much everything from the bedroom, actually, has been moved. Some call this "packing," I call it "in-house camping." It's a mess, but it's also pretty fun to have a double bed, two couches, a coffee table, two bookshelves, a TV, and a small dining table with two chairs and a bench in one room (don't worry, it's an unusually large room).
1a. We're buying a new mattress and bed frame when we move. I can't wait to show you guys this bed. It's so odd. It has WHEELS. We're looking at a huge bookshelf with wheels, too. Good thing our new bedroom is tiled. Oh yes, tiled.
2. With the end of camp, I've been looking at my summer goals, again. The only ones that probably just aren't going to happen are to watch less TV and exercise daily. I know, I was doing so well. But!
2a. Even though I haven't gotten as much done as quickly as I would have liked this summer, I'm feeling pretty good about my writing. Have I gone through my entire rough draft yet? Well, no. But I have been doing a fair amount of planning and aligning events in my head and my notebook, which will hopefully help me figure out the direction of everything once I really get into revisions.
3. The lovely Deirdra at A Storybook World has given me an award! Just because! I am so thrilled. Seriously, you blog folks are awesome. I know I should say this more often, so I'll try to make up for it now:
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
When I started blogging, I had no idea what I was getting into. All I knew was that I wanted to write, and I wanted others to read. I've noticed how some bloggers can cultivate huge followings in the span of months, and while that is awesome, I do not possess such skills. I am a networking sloth. I struggle with putting myself out there, I really do. So, again,THANK YOU. I am so encouraged.
So fun and pretty!
(Also, I'm relieved to know I'm not the only one being entertained, over here.)
4. Speaking of putting myself out there, I'm going to be participating in Christine Tyler's Sparkfest in a few weeks. Hooray! I hope you'll join me; blogfests are so much fun. And so is Christine's blog, The Writer Coaster. Let's show some love.
5. Have you guys heard about From Ash To Nash? (look there it is! -->)
Anyone outside of this area probably doesn't care, but as a resident of the East Tennessee/Western North Carolina region, this is thrilling. A book signing in Knoxville! Who'd'a thunk? And so, I will be there, at Union Ave. Books, next Sunday afternoon. If you are going to be there, too, please tell me! Especially if that means you also live in this area. Friends we shall be, I say.
6. Speaking of the East Tennessee/Western North Carolina region, an amazing thing happened at camp a few weeks ago: I stopped caring about being cast as an extra in The Hunger Games. A good move, on my part, because they never called me. :) Look at that, a smiley face. And you know why?
6a. There are so many wonderful things going on in my life, these days. Really. I have a wonderful husband, fantastic friends, two highly entertaining cats, and a whole world that exists solely in my imagination. I don't NEED to be in The Hunger Games to feel good about myself. That's what it was, for a while. I wanted to be a part of something that made me feel significant. I also wanted a chance to see Jennifer Lawrence again, I won't lie (that's not just a pipe dream-- I knew her {i.e. her brother} back in Louisville... for those of you who hadn't heard that a thousand times over, already). Also, since I'm being brutally honest about myself, I felt a bit... possessive of the story. As if The Hunger Games existed solely for me, and so OF COURSE they would let me be a part of it. I thought that if no one called me, it meant that I was not good enough for the story I loved, had no presence, was doomed to never act again. But the truth (or at least part of the truth)?
I don't live in the right state.
A crap-ton of people went to those casting calls, and most of them lived in the immediate area. I like to think that I'm not half-bad at the things I do, but I also knew I wasn't going make such an impression that the distance wouldn't matter. And that's okay. I don't regret going out for it. Now that I can look back without the butterflies or the gut-pounding high hopes, I see the day for what it was: a fun morning with friends and coffee and good conversation, a profound learning experience, and something I will always be able to say I did. What's not to love about that?
So, how's the beginning of August faring for you, my friends?
1. Sign up(did it!) 2. Follow my blog (one of my favorites) 3. On June 6, 2011, post two things:
a) What your current WIP looks like
b) What your writing goals are for the summer
4. Go around to the other blogs to encourage -- together we can make it through the lazy months!"
So, here we go.
What my WIP looks like right now, quite literally:
Thrilling!
And now you know the ENTIRE PLOT of my draft. (No, seriously, did I make it too obvious?) Don't you just love visual aids? As you can read in green on the left side of the image, "told you it was a mess."
You see that tiny box just under and to the right of the word "rawr?" That is where I thought all the action of the story would be. Imagine my surprise! You can barely see it!
So, here comes part two. My goals for the summer.
1. Summer has a built-in priority for me, and it's called Camp Loucon. I'll be spending at least three weeks there before the end of July, and one of my goals, truly, is to enjoy camp and let myself be there fully. Working there is HARD, and it takes a lot of patience and energy and boldness and sunscreen. I don't want to miss out because my mind is elsewhere. I do, however, plan to bring my notebook, just in case I find some time to write.
2. When not at camp, my main goal will be to... pretty much tear up the draft I just finished, rework it, outline a new draft, and start writing that. *Start* being the operative word. I don't expect myself to finish it until the fall or winter. I'm going to try to move a little faster on this one, say, five months instead of eight. But, yeah. Definitely not two.
3. To be more specific, I do need to start playing around with opening scenes. In my rough draft, they sort of just pick up and go, because I knew they had to get there, but the motivations of the characters didn't come clear to me until I was halfway through the story. Oh, believe. I was so tempted to scrap what I had and start over right then, but I didn't (my husband wouldn't let me, the genius). I don't regret that at all (shoo, I wouldn't have finished for another year, probably, if I'd kept doing stuff like that), but now, I feel like I need to explore those motivations that I discovered for a little while. Otherwise, I don't think I'll be able to really make an outline that I'll be able to use.
4. Really enjoy my writing buddies. Think long and hard about joining SCBWI. Possibly, do that.
5. Exercise regularly. It's been a part of my routine for about a week now, and I'm really hoping to keep it up.
6. Also keep up with my reading goals. Way back at the beginning of the year, I decided that I would try to read 60 books in 2011. I'm getting there, slowly, but I'm also glad I decided to go for 60, and not the original 100. I know how I get. Readreadreadreadreadreadread... wait, shouldn't I be writing or blogging or something? Blogblogblogblogblog... Or, worse, TVTVTVTVTVTVTVTVTVTVTVTV. Netflix will be be the death of me.
6a. Watch less TV.
7. Just get my elbows into it and clean out this house until it shines. THIS will be the most difficult one for me.
So... I sort of strayed from the writing part of my summer goals, but they're all important. To my life, health, marriage, beliefs and mental well-being.
I hope everyone will stay tuned! Tomorrow, I have another blog award to share!
Whatever you do, friends, when you're this close to finishing a project you've been working on for nearly a year, don't start playing Plants vs. Zombies. Just don't. You'll thank me later.
My Zombatar. Ain't he handsome?
However, if you're NOT this close to finishing a project you've been working on for nearly a year, by all means. Have some fun! Who doesn't love obliterating undead keister? Especially with cartoon vegetation.
[Who thinks of this stuff?]
Anyway, since I'm this close to finishing a project I've been working on for nearly a year, I might do a little vanishing act. Things you can expect, though, are as follows:
A special post on May 28 (featuring classic cartoons), and Bess Weatherby's Second Summer in the City Blogfest on June 6. Other than that, it's up in the air, but I'm hoping beyond hope that I'll have something to celebrate with y'all* very, very soon.
*I may not be Southern enough to drink sweet tea, but I sure am Southern enough to say "y'all."
It's a right of passage for any (somewhat) new blogger, I suppose.
Bess's blog is one of my favorites. Go check her out! And sign up for the blogfest! And stop me before I exhaust my personal daily allowance of exclamation points!
