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Olivia Twisted Book Review

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Olivia Twisted by Vivi Barnes

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This review is based on an advanced reader’s e-copy, ask acquired through Entangled Teen. This in no way, shape or form had any effect on my honest review. Thank you Heather Riccio, at Entangled, for granting me access to this novel. 


You Can Find the Book At:

GoodReads

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Author Website

 

GoodReads Summary:

Olivia

He tilts my chin up so my eyes meet his, his thumb brushing lightly across my lips. I close my eyes. I know Z is trouble. I know that being with him is going to get me into trouble. I don’t care. 

At least at this moment, I don’t care.

Tossed from foster home to foster home, Olivia’s seen a lot in her sixteen years. She’s hardened, sure, though mostly just wants to fly under the radar until graduation. But her natural ability with computers catches the eye of Z, a mysterious guy at her new school. Soon, Z has brought Liv into his team of hacker elite—break into a few bank accounts, and voila, he drives a motorcycle. Follow his lead, and Olivia might even be able to escape from her oppressive foster parents. As Olivia and Z grow closer, though, so does the watchful eye of Bill Sykes, Z’s boss. And he’s got bigger plans for Liv…

Z

I can picture Liv’s face: wide-eyed, trusting. Her smooth lips that taste like strawberry Fanta. 

It was just a kiss. That’s all. She’s just like any other girl. 

Except that she’s not.

Thanks to Z, Olivia’s about to get twisted

My Review:

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I was sent an ARC by Entangled, that I trust because they are in charge of Jennifer L. Armentrout’s books and goodness, those books are AMAZING. So I was definitely intrigued on reading Vivi Barnes novel. Because I received an advanced e-copy of it, I definitely knew this was a book that I had to read.

There’s also been this urge to read some good contemporary novels. Sure, there’s the whole hacking angle of this novel but there’s no fantasy or dystopian or science fiction in it. Those are all my favorite things to read but I’ve really needed a break, and I was so glad to be able to dive into this book.

I think that Vivi is able to write an incredibly compelling and real story, wrapped around this sexy nature of computer hacking. She makes the idea of getting on a computer and hacking into someone’s profile or bank account seem like an extremely fun and sexy thing to do. And this is coming from someone’s identity has been hacked several times. Its a way of making a talent out of something that may not seem like it. To be able to do this requires strategy, intelligence, forward thinking and thinking outside of the box and I think she shows that. I think, with the ending she provides, it also encourages using those kind of skills for good though haha.

The love story is very sweet too. Olivia and Z have a sort of rocky romance, due to both of them having their own problems, especially when it comes to issue of trust. Both have lived in foster homes, have been left to their own devices, and its hard to trust anyone, no matter WHO they are. But the gradual build up was enough to leave any reader panting for more. When their relationship does develop, and they begin to trust and care for each other, its just super sweet and beautiful. Plus, Z just fits my typical fictional crush. I love the distant, aloof, hilarious, sarcastic bad boys and he fits that profile so beautifully that the minute he showed up on page, I knew I was going to be in love with by the end of the book.

I also want to commend Vivi for really addressing this sort of orphan/foster kid story. The idea of an orphan in a YA novel is nothing new. Most of the time, in these kind of novels, they are orphans. But she really addresses it, the effect that it can have on these children, how they can feel abandoned and mistreated and abused. I know that the story was a sort of re-telling of Oliver Twist (which, admittedly, I’ve never read) so there was a parallel there but I appreciated it nonetheless. It really calls your attention to this problem. Sure, Harry Potter is an orphan but there aren’t kids out there being killed by evil dark wizards, and that sort of thing. Parents with drug addictions, kids forced into foster homes, and shuttled from one home to another, this is so real, and its such a problem that I think people don’t think of. If there was one thing that someone got from that story, it would be that this is problem that we need to continually tackle.

This book is fun, a super fast read, and full of romance, action, humor and drama, and is a commendable debut for Vivi Barnes. I eagerly await future stories from her and I wish her a TON of luck in the future!

Rating:

4 out of 5 stars

NaNoWriMo-Intro to My Novel and My Main Characters!

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Hey guys! Its the 4th day of NaNoWriMo. How is everyone doing so far?

I’m actually doing really great! My goal was to be at 20K words by the end of the month on my novel. I’ve already been writing for about a month, more about and realized that I was at about 15K words, already. So that was exciting. I wrote day one and day two, and none yesterday, and I’m at just past 18K words. That’s fantastic. So I upped my goal to 35K by the end of the month, so I still have that 20K goal.

But anyway, now that I’ve introduced you all to my plan for NaNoWriMo post here, and you saw where I write and what I need to write in Friday’s post.

So today, you’ll learn what my novel is actually about and you’ll meet my main characters, and my important secondary characters.

My Novel Synopsis: 

Katy Valentine has a normal life in Brooklyn, NY, going to baseball games with her dad, spending nights dancing at clubs with her best friend, Madison, and trying as best as she can to avoid her next door neighbor and bane of her existence, Ash Matthews. Things are predictable, but normal and Katy is happy. That’s when the Z virus hits. Within a month, a huge chunk of the population has fallen ill, and died due to this mysterious virus. Before anyone can figure out what it is, or where it came from, the bodies of the victims disappear, all over the country. Katy ends up locked inside her own house, scared to go outside, scared to let anyone in, until suddenly the bodies reappear, and its like every zombie movie come to life. Except this time, they’re faster, they’re smarter, and they work together to get the one thing they want.  And the only thing they crave, the only thing they fight for, is human flesh.

Meeting My Main Characters

Katherine “Katy” Valentine

The 411: Katherine, also known as Katy, is the main character of my novel, the protagonist. She’s eighteen years, and a senior in high school at St. Joseph’s Prep, which is a Catholic private school. She is a non-practicing Catholic though, mostly because she and her dad would rather watch sports on Sunday mornings. She is living in Brooklyn, NY, with her father, and her dog, Bandit. Most of her time is spend hanging out with her best friend, Madison, reading as many fantasy and science fiction novels as possible and going to listen to live bands and dancing. She has a fun personality around the people knows but can sometimes be judgmental and sarcastic around those she doesn’t know, or like. She has a sort of dry sense of humor, and when she’s feeling particularly scared or nervous, she tends to have more sarcastic comments. She tackles a lot of things with sarcasm.

The Physical: Katy is five foot four, with long brown hair, and really large brown eyes, with an olive skin tone that she gets from her dad’s Italian side of the family. She is Irish on her mom’s side. She’s strongly built, and has legs that are her major strength, and she’s very swift. She’s taking gun lessons, and she has the arm strength but has terrible aim, and has to continually work on it.

Conflict: Katy is going to spend a lot of the novel, figuring out how to open herself to trust other people, especially people who have earned her distrust, especially when it comes to Ash and her mother.

Name: I picked the name Katy because its a name that I really enjoy, and its a name that I’m always sticking in my stories. I think its fun when its Katy, but classy and traditional as Katherine. It means “pure”, which is completely unintentional. I am playing with that though, and you’ll have to read the novel to find out!

Ash Matthews

The 411: Ash Matthews is the second main character of the novel. He has lived next door to Katy and her father since they were nine years old. He is very important to the story, but since we are in third person, everything that we get of him is through Katy’s perspective. He’s a jock, as quarterback on the football team and a pitcher for the baseball team at St. Joseph’s Prep. He is full of humor and pranks, and spends most of his team teasing Katy and calling her “Kates”, and playing pranks on her at school. He tends to be the life of the party, and he has a hard time taking anything seriously. He’s dating Heather Carr, who is equal to him in popularity. While Katy tends to meet things with sarcasm, he tends to meet it with humor, and its hard sometimes for him to take things seriously.

The Physical: Ash is very well built, and athletic, due to his sports experience. He is 6’4, and has strong arms, and legs, wide shoulders and a narrow waist. He has messy brown hair, and impossibly pale blue eyes, and freckles all across the front of his face. He’s built very athletically, and is great health. He always has a smile on his face, and has many different ones. He has  genuine smile, a teasing smile, a smirk, a flirtatious smile.

Conflict: Ash is going to struggle with his own emotions in the novel, being able to accept them, and being able to take things seriously and not always meet it with humor.

Name: Ash has gone through a ton of names before I finally settled on Ash. First he was Nate. Then I realized it basically Nate and Kate, and that’s just kind of weird, so I ditched it. Then it was Lucas, and I realized that every boy character in YA is named Lucas so then I ditched that too. His name is Ash, which literally means “from the ash tree”. I liked the name, is the story there. Maybe. Read the novel :)

Meeting My Main Secondary Characters 

Madison Wu

Madison is Katy’s best friend. She is Asian American and lives with her parents and her three younger sisters. She’s incredibly ambitious, as a member of the Honors Society, the student class president and the dance committee chair. She’s dating Ash’s best friend, Brody, and is constantly trying to hook Katy up with Ash, despite his constant teasing. She’s a bundle of energy, and is always convincing Katy to get out of the house and go and have a great time.

I honestly picked Madison because its pretty, and because her parents are society people, and named their kids “Madison, Lexington, Victory and Brooklyn” because they love New York so much. It was kind of fun to do that.

Frank Valentine

Frank is Katy’s father. He is full Italian and has lived in their brownstone in Brooklyn since he was a kid, and inherited it from his dad when he passed away. He and Katy’s mom married young, when they got pregnant, and lived with his parents, until they divorced and Jennifer moved back to Nebraska, where she grew up. He is a cop for the Brooklyn PD and is very dedicated to his job, and works long hours, leaving Katy to kind of fend for herself. They are really close though, and spend a lot of their days at Mets games. He is also VERY protective of Katy, requiring her to take gun lessons, and constantly sliding pamphlets about self-defense and rape awareness under her bedroom door. He’s average height, black hair, brown eyes, and has the olive tone of his Italian family. He’s built healthy, and his hands are calloused and covered in scars.

Frank means “free” or “truthful”, which plays a lot into the character that Frank will become.

Jennifer Flynn

Jennifer is Katy’s mother. She lived with Katy and her father in the brownstone in Brooklyn until she and Frank divorced when Katy was 10 years and she returned back to Nebraska, where she grew up. She remarried a man by the name of Caspar Flemming but kept her maiden name Flynn. Her and Katy have a very rocky relationship, ever since Katy made the decision to live full time in Brooklyn with her dad. She’s mostly Irish, with a hint of Scottish background, and has dark blonde hair and blue eyes and works as a second grade teacher. I can’t say much more than that because you learn more of her character as the book go along.

Jennifer means “Fair Phantom”, and yes, that was done on purpose. ;)

Razi Cylon

I can’t say anything about her except that she’s the antagonist of the novel and that her name was chosen very carefully. I wanted a name that was fairly unique and a name that you could remember. I wanted something that worked well for an older woman, and this name really stood out to me. I looked up the meaning, and it meant “my secret”, and that is going to play out very well.

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I hope you all enjoyed learning a little bit about my novel, and about the main characters that you’ll meet in the novel!

I’m working on a title, and I’m going to be having a contest/giveaway for my novel. It will be posted tomorrow or Wednesday at the latest and I hope you all can participate!

Now, I gotta get to writing, since it’s day four and I haven’t written anything!

Happy Writing Everyone!

Sentinel by Jennifer L. Armentrout Review

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Sentinel by Jennifer L. Armentrout

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You Can Find the Book At:

GoodReads

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Author Website

 

GoodReads Summary:

As the mortal world slowly slips into chaos of the godly kind, treatment Alexandria Andros must overcome a stunning defeat that has left her shaken and in doubt of their ability to end this war once and for all.

And with all the obstacles between Alex and her happily-ever-after with the swoon worthy Aiden St. Delphi, information pills they must now trust a deadly foe as they travel deep into the Underworld to release one of the most dangerous gods of all time.

In the stunning, thumb action-packed climax to the bestselling Covenant series, Alex must face a terrible choice: the destruction of everything and everyone she holds dear… or the end of herself.

My Review:

Please be aware while this review will NOT have spoilers for Sentinel, I cannot in any way guarantee there will not be spoilers for Half-Blood, Pure, Deity, Elixir or Apollyon. Please visit my book reviews page to read those! 

I’m not sure what I expected when I was reading this book but every single thing that happened was completely not in my line of expectations. I could call Sentinel the book of plot twists. There were so many surprises at every turn that there is no way on earth I could have ever predicted how this story would go. But that was a good thing! This novel was an emotional roller coaster taking us from hot and steamy scenes between Alex and Aidan into epic battles and fight scenes to completely emotional moments that made you want to cry. Every page was a surprise, taking us further into the unexpected, and you keep reading, because you just HAVE to know what happens next.

Jennifer creates a beautiful story, to wrap up a five book series. Do you know how hard it is to write a five book series and keep an audience captivated until the very last page? Its incredibly hard, and I think there’s a lot of authors that struggle with this. This is why, sometimes, when I read series, I find myself feeling less interested and less captivated as I get further in the series. This is so opposite for the Covenant series and especially of Sentinel. I am addicted until the very last page, where tears were running down my face, in sadness, in happiness, in completely satisfaction.

She takes the story that we’ve come so familiar with in the past four novels and two novellas, and creates an ending that is both very believable and very realistic but that would make any reader of the series feel like she did right by her story and her characters. The journey that the characters take is a rough one. They must face down Ares, a vindictive, determined, extremely powerful god, and his legion of half bloods and pures and compelled mortals, as well as Alex’s Apollyon counterpart, Seth. And the direction the story takes them, all of them, is a surprise to me. I can’t say too much without ruining any of the story but the outcomes of certain characters were definitely unexpected but seemed to fit perfectly with the story, and the events that take place in this finale.

Plus, Jennifer just tells great stories. She writes an action scene, and you’re clutching the pages in excitement while simultaneously Googling how to learn hand to hand combat. She weaves humor into almost every moment in her novel, keeping us still breathing, even when our hearts are breaking. She understands friendships and family, sacrifice, and battle and war, she understands romance and she understands fear and love and bravery and selfishness and so many other emotions and she can put so many of those into the stories, and it all feels so real.

And she can write a steamy scene like no body else. She is able to write a beautiful, romantic, hot and heavy scene that leaves you blushing and wishing very much for a cold shower, but she keeps it tasteful and classy, and in a way that fits so perfectly in her young adult novels. She addresses it responsibly, of course, but she knows that two people in love, whether they’re teenagers or adults, are going to experience that sort of intimacy and she does it so beautifully. Any time that Alex and Aidan share a steamy scene, I felt myself getting more comfortable and diving in, because she is SO good at romance, and because I love Aidan and Alex, and I LOVE them as a couple.

Simply put, any fan of this series is going to be so satisfied by the end of this novel. I thought it was an incredibly fitting ending, for all of the characters, and I felt like, while there was a heartbreak, there was also hope and happiness as well. I think it wraps up the story very well, but also shows that the story can continue as well, in our own minds and hearts and I think that’s beautiful. Definitely a must read for fans, you will most definitely enjoy it!

Rating:

5 out of 5 stars

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Fictional Crush of the Week-Jared Lyburn from The Lyburn Legacy

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Happy Saturday everyone! Enjoy this week’s Fictional Crush of the Week!

Character Name:

Jared Lynburn

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Book or Series They Appear In:

The Lynburn Legacy

Unspoken, search Untold, cheapest the yet to be released Unmade

Author:

Sarah Rees Brennan

Played By: 

No One…Yet. (Hey, nurse a girl can hope)

Who They Are:

Jared Lynburn is the main male character in the Lynburn Legacy. When we first meet Jared, he is a voice inside of Kami’s head, her best friend in the entire world, though she’s never met him and she doesn’t even know if he’s real. He is kind, caring, fun, and he’s there for Kami at every moment of the day, and as a voice, you’re already in love with him. Then you meet Jared in real life, and he’s isn’t quite the same as he was in Kami’s head. He’s gorgeous, in a harsher way in comparison to his cousin, Ash. He is sarcastic, and biting, and has a hard time showing his emotions.

Why I Am Crushing On Them: 

One, he kind of reminded me of Jace Wayland when I started reading the books. Then I learned there was Jace and Jared slash fic, and well, I haven’t gone there yet, but I am very interested in it.

But back to Jared. Jared is super handsome, even though he’s not immediately supposed to be. He has that bad boy thing going for him, with the leather jacket (though its brown) and his permanent scowl. But he has that sense of humor, with the sarcasm and the one-liners. It won me over, right away, even though there are parts in the novel where you want to punch him in the face.

I also think he’s incredibly brave. He sometimes plays things off, like he doesn’t care about anyone or even himself, but he proves himself over and over again. He has a hard past, being raised by a horrible dad and a fairly absent mother, and then he finds out who his real dad is, and he has a lot of burden on his shoulders for someone who is so young. He tries not to care, or play it off like he doesn’t care, but he does. He’s protective of what little family he has left, and he’s protective of Kami, and he wants to make her happy, even when he’s making her mad.

The thing about Jared is that he is shy and lonely. He’s been treated terribly his whole life, especially with this “voice” inside of his head, and his fears and uncertainties comes out in his demeanor in public. Its heartbreaking and it makes you want to wrap him up in your arms and shield him from the world and be his best friend, and probably more.

Plus, he’s just a badass. He gets his powers, and he has to learn them, but his quick temper and and attitude problems make him volatile, brave and impulsive. Which makes for a seriously exciting story.

Notable Quotes: 

“The Lynburns built this town on their blood and bones.”
“That was their first mistake,” Jared said. “They should’ve built a city on rock and roll.”

Jared flicked her an incredulous glance. “Yes,” he said slowly. “Zen jogging. I wasn’t wearing that many clothes because—that’s part of the process. You’re meant to commune with the elements. Normally, I wouldn’t have worn my jeans, but I put them on because I know the English are a modest people.”

‘My body is a gift from God,’ Jared said gravely. ‘Except for my hips, which are clearly a gift from the devil.”

“I don’t think you’re weak,” Jared said. “I want to guard you because you are important to me. Because you are – God, this is going to sound so stupid, I can never think of a way to say it – you are precious. I can never think of how to describe the value you have to me, because all the words for value suggest that you belong to me, and you don’t.”

 “Nothing matters in comparison. Nobody is real but her. So it feels sometimes as if nothing else matters at all, including other people. She wouldn’t like that. Other people SHOULD matter.”

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All Artwork Credited to Cassandra Jean!

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I hope you enjoyed this first edition of my Fictional Crush of the Week! Come back next weekend for more!

Exclusive Interview with Jennifer L. Armentrout!

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Happy Release Day for Jennifer L. Armentrout. Today the final book in her epic Covenant series releases, order Sentinel.

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The series follows a teen by the name of Alex. Alex is a half-blood demigod, viagra buy living in a world where the halfs are worth much less than the pures. She must prove herself as a fighter, to be part of the Sentinels, or she will be forced into inescapable servitude. She soon finds out that she has more powers than she would have previously ever known and that she could have the power to change the world she lives in, if others don’t destroy it first.

Jennifer is also the author of MANY MANY other novels too, such as her sci-fi romance series, the Lux series, The Dark Elements series, and also writes romance novels and other fantasy novels under the pseudonym of J. Lynn.

She’s an absolutely amazing author, and I really enjoy reading her novels. I first discovered her when I read the Lux series back in May. I blew threw the first three books and eagerly awaited the fourth novel, which was released back in August. I am very excited to read the 5th book, Opposition, when that hits stands. It took me awhile to get into her Covenant series but I am SO glad I did. I am so ready for the release of Sentinel today, and to find out how this epic series ends.

There’s even MORE exciting things happening as well! Obsidian, the first novel of the Lux series, has been optioned to become a feature film, while the Covenant series has been optioned to be a TV show! Can’t wait to see how both of these unfold!

For now, let’s enjoy this short, but fun interview with Jennifer, herself.

Sara: Where did you get the idea or inspiration for the Covenant series? 

Jennifer: I have always been interested in mythology, and I just really wanted to write a book that incorporated some aspects of mythology into the story.

Sara: How excited are you for the Covenant TV series and what are your hopes and expectations for it?

Jennifer: I am so excited about seeing Alex, Aiden and Seth on a TV series. I know that Herrick Entertainment is going to do a great job bringing the world of the Covenant series to TV.

Sara: What is your writing process like: do you treat it like an 8-5 job or do you write when you feel inspired? 

Jennifer: I write every day for 8-10 hours, even on holidays. But I don’t necessarily write from 8-5. I usually write a different times throughout the day.

Sara: What is the hardest part of writing a novel: the outline, the beginning, the middle, the end, the characters, etc? 

Jennifer: After I get started on a new book, the hardest part is usually the middle for me. I will skip around if I get stuck, and then go back after I’ve written some other scenes.

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Sara: What are you working on right now, and what can we expect in the near future?

Jennifer: I’m currently working on a new YA contemporary, The Problem with Forever, for Disney/Hyperion. Then, I’ll be writing the fifth book in the Lux series, Opposition.

Sara: Bonus question that I ask everyone I interview, who is your fictional crush? 

Jennifer: Tod from Rachel Vincent’s Soul Screamer series

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I hope you enjoyed this short, but awesome interview! I can’t wait to dive into Sentinel today, and I’m eagerly awaiting Opposition and this new book, The Problem with Forever!

Happy Reading Everyone!

 

NaNoWriMo: Where I Write

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Today is the first day of NaNoWriMo!

As you guys may know, try I’m taking a slightly different approach to the official month. Instead of writing a full 50K novel, hospital I’ll be working to reach 20K words on my 80K novel. Throughout the month, page I’ll be focusing on reaching my personal goal, and focusing on making the best novel that I can make. I’ll be talking about writing advice, and you’ll get to know my characters and my story over the course of the month.

To read about the NaNoWriMo: What A Nerd Girl Says Version, click this link.

My dear contributor, Christina Marie, is also participating but in the full challenge. She’ll be a little absent this month, but you can check her out on her own blog, where she’ll be writing as often as she can, and will probably be posting updates of her own journey during this month.

Now today’s post, as I embark on this journey, I will be doing various posts through out the month. Today is day one. Which means its time to jump in. No wading in, I gotta jump in.

I’ve already written some, which I *will* be counting towards my goal of 20K, and now I’m ready to dive in. I have all that I need!

So today I’m talking about where I write, and what I need to write.

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This is where I write: on my Macbook, on my TV tray in my room. I wish I had a desk but the living situation I’m in doesn’t provide for that. I write in Microsoft Office, though I HAVE been contemplating using Scrivener. For now though, this is where I write! My goal is to have a desk one day, where I can stare at a blank wall OR stare at my writing advice poster.

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These are my notebooks. The brown and teal one is what I write in when I need to take a break from the computer. Sometimes I get on the computer and I get distracted by Facebook or Tumblr or writing for the blog, or just talking to all of you guys! I love doing all of that BUT sometimes I need to just and write and not focus on anything else, so that’s when the notebook comes in.

Its also a good place for me to take down notes, to remind myself later of an idea that has suddenly come to me. I also write snippets there too, like if the scene I’m working on isn’t going well, I’ll work on another scene. It usually helps me a lot and maybe answers questions about what is going on in previous scenes. So that’s what the scene is for.

The blue notebook is my Book Bible, which incidentally, is absolutely empty right now. The novel that I’m working on right now is a sort of urban sci-fi (or as Jessica Brody calls it “sci-fi lite” or “softcore sci-fi”-both of which cracked me up). I’ve only ever done contemporary because its so much easier to keep track of, while writing. With a sci-fi, things start to get confusing! Jessica Brody talked about creating a Story Bible, which is something they use in TV shows, to sort of keep track of characters and plot, the world, etc. I’ll have more on this when I do a post on Story Bibles on the 8th. Hopefully I will have more of it done by the end, and I can share more!

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I can’t STAND to have quiet when I’m writing. Most writers, it seems, need quiet when they are writing, probably in order to concentrate on what they are doing. I swear, I can’t do that. I can’t do quiet. If you’ve ever read Sarah Dessen’s Just Listen, one of the main characters, Owen says “Silence is so loud.” For me, that’s true. Silence is distracting to me, and I don’t like it. So I always either have music playing, or a TV show/movie in the background.

When I listen to music, I tend to things that sort of put me in the mood for that scene. I’ve just really started doing the whole “novel playlists” or “character playlists” but I’m liking it. By distinguishing different songs for characters, I feel more in connect with them. The song above is for Katy, my main character. She has more emo, thrashing, hardcore, type of music and when you meet her, you’ll know why. Other characters will have different music, but I will be sharing that on the 20th, so stay tuned to that.

I also like watching TV shows or movies. I never watch anything new while I’m doing it, because that is incredibly distracting. I like to watch something I’m already familiar with. I don’t necessary have to pay attention and its a nice background noise. I need me some background noise.

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I NEED water when I write. Most people are all “coffee, coffee, coffee” but not me. I kind of have a low tolerance for caffeine, especially coffee. If I have coffee, I can feel my heart speed up, and I am all shaky and I get all wired, and then I come crashing down. Maybe if I built up a tolerance/addiction to coffee, it’d be different. As it is, I need water. I always have a water bottle (or two, or three) with me while I’m writing, and often times, at least four empties too.

I also usually have a snack too. I don’t have one right now, which is probably why I’m a little cranky. I need to get a snack before I dive into actual writing. I’ve heard of some authors rewarding themselves with chocolate when they reach a certain amount of words, but I just dive in. I am like, hmm, this bag of Hershey’s kisses is a brilliant idea to get the writing juices going.

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So now that I’m all set up for writing, its time to dive in. Well, I need to track down a snack (actually, probably a full meal since I am so rumbly in my tumbly), but then I’m ready to jump in.

I wish you all luck in NaNoWriMo and with your own writing. I hope you all reach your goals. Remember, we’re all here for each other, so don’t hesitate to email me, or FB me or Tweet at me, if you’re feeling down or need some help! Its going to be a journey this month!

Where do you write? How do you write? Do you need snacks or anything like I do? Share in the comments below!