NaNoWriMo-My Experience

November 29, 2013November 29, 2013Leave a comment

Tomorrow is the last day of NaNoWriMo! How did you do everyone?

If there is one thing I learned from this month, cost its that, this whether you met your goal or not, you are still a winner in my book. Writing a novel is NOT an easy task, and honestly, not everyone is made for it. So merely taking on this task makes you winner.

And if you wrote! If you wrote at all, that makes you a winner. Whether you wrote a thousand words, or all fifty thousand to meet the goal of NaNoWriMo, you are a winner! Seriously! Getting the words down on paper is the hardest part. Once you have words down, you can go back and change them or make them better or any of that.

This is definitely something I’ve learned from NaNo. I started off with a goal of 20,000 words. Once I had typed up all the writing I had done in a notebook (thanks for the advice, Cornelia Funke!), I realized I was already at 14K, and I only had 6 to write for the entire month. I knew I would be busy with blogging and school work and that sort of thing, but not that busy. So I switched my goal to 35K, which would still bring me at 20 for the entire month.

As of right this moment (and I still need to write today and tomorrow), I’m at 59,515, which brings me almost 25K over my goal AND brings me nearly to the goal of NaNo in the first place. You’re supposed to write 50K in the month of November and I’ve written 45K. And again, I still have to write today and tomorrow! So I’m confident that I am going to reach it.

Its funny, when I started my journey into the world of NaNo, I thought writing an entire 50K novel in one month was a crazy endeavor. I still think it is. I don’t think writing an ENTIRE novel in one month is the best idea. But I do love the idea of pushing yourself, and getting those words down on paper. I accomplished so much writing this month, so much more than I would have if I hadn’t pushed myself.

So here are the things I learned and gained from NaNoWriMo 2013.

Setting Goals = Great Motivation

Seriously. Goals are amazing. For me, setting a goal, whether large or small, really holds you accountable. It also helps when you TELL people that you’ve set this goal because they can hold you accountable as well. But more on other people later. I hold myself accountable. I set a goal for the month and I hate not meeting my goals. I told myself that I would write at least 1K a day, and I told my writing friends and my boyfriend and they would hold me to that, definitely.

The way I see it is…my ultimate goal, and probably yours too, is to become a published author. And a published author is a JOB, its a career. You sign contracts, and produce books, and you need to treat it like a job. And its never too early to start doing that. By telling yourself that you need to write every day, no matter if you have “inspiration” or not, you’re being productive and you’re getting work done and you’re acting like a real author.

Writing Crappy Really IS Okay

No, really! Its going to be okay! I know that not all 59, 515 words that I’ve written so far are good. I know I will have to go back and fix things, move things around, and that kind of thing. I know that there are inconsistencies and there are some things that I need to more thoroughly research. There is a lot that is going to make it better. I realize that.

But by recognizing that and just writing, again, I got so much more done. You can’t fix a blank page, and I’ve written so much that a blank page is laughable. Once I really started to recognize that, yes, Sara, some of this is going to really suck, I just started writing. I have it down on paper. And I’m proud of it all, even if all of it isn’t that good. Because my novel has a skeleton now, it has a little bit of flesh and all that, but it can be better. But I have that skeleton to work on. And that’s great.

My Novel Changed Before My Eyes

It did! I was surprised at the changes I made while writing, and the surprises that met me around some of the corners. See, normally, I don’t force myself to write like this. It took me two years to write Another Chance for Summer and a year to write A Little Less than Famous. I’ve only been writing The Reawakened for about a couple months, and I’ve written SO much, and I’ve learned so much about it, while working so hard on it this month.

One, we came up with a title, The Reawakened. The title comes from one of my followers, Amber Harvey, and she won a personalized, sign copy of Legend by Marie Lu. So thank you for that, Amber! I’m right awful at coming up with titles so I’m glad I can make you guys do it!

Two, I introduced a character that is going to be incredibly important later on. I would have never expected that, at all, but I introduced them, in a small scene and realized…oh they are important. They are incredibly important and I know just to do with them…

Which leads to me to three…The Reawakened is NOT a standalone novel like I had intended. It is definitely a two part. I’ve already started thinking and outlining the second novel, since it helps with the first, AND I have a title for it as well. I’m very proud of that. I’ve decided to end The Reawakened so that it is either an ambiguous ending or a nasty cliffhanger, so that no matter what happens in its publishing future, it’ll be okay. But I was very surprised when I figured out that…yeah, I’m not done.

And that’s where four comes in…I’m at nearly 60K. I was aiming for a 75-80K novel, which leaves me only 15 to 20 K left to write. But I have SO much more that needs to happen in the story so I’m not sure how that’s going to work. I found that this is going to be a much larger novel than I had originally intended but I’m okay with that. Maybe it’ll end up right where its supposed to be once I’ve done edits and such but for now, its probably going to be closer to 90-100K.

The 15 Beat System is Gold

I have to give some major props and thanks to Jessica Brody, who introduced me to the 15 Beat system. The 15 beat comes from the book, Save the Cat, which is a book on screen writing. However, you can adapt it to a novel as well. Its less specific than an actual plot outline, and for that, I love it.

I find that when I write an entire plot outline, I end up being so bored with my novel because I KNOW what’s going to happen each and every second of the way and its just boring. I’m just not a fan of it. I ditched my new adult/baseball/romance novel because I completely outlined it and I was SO bored. I may go back to it, because I really want to, but for now, just ugh.

With the 15 beat system, there are 15 beats, or plot points, you must hit to create a successful episode. Like I said, it works wonderfully with a novel. Instead of a fully specific plot outline, you have these 15 beats you have to hit throughout the story and it helps you as you write. I don’t know what will happen between each one, and its fun trying to get to each one. It really is. Its the most beautiful way to outline your story ever. Really it is.

Ditto the Book Bible

Make one. Seriously. It helps SO much, especially those of you who may be like me and are really bad with consistencies.

Check out my post on it here.

Have a Group of Supporters

For so long, I kept myself distanced from other writers because of so many reasons. There were two main reasons though: I am a competitive person and I didn’t want to have to compete face to face with someone. And I also didn’t want to constantly have to measure myself up to people. I was SO lacking of confidence in my own writing that anyone else’s writing was always infinitely better than mine.

But I have learned that this is SO wrong. I’ve surrounded myself with fellow writers and we’ve supported each other so much this month, and we’re going to continue to support each other as we continue past NaNoWriMo. I created a Nano Support Group on FB and now converted the group to an Aspiring Authors Support Group. If you’re interested, you should definitely join.

Its also incredibly helpful to have people in your life who believe in you and support you. I really realized (again) how lucky I am to have such a creative and passionate boyfriend. We spend so much time together, not even talking, but its okay. Jon will be working on his music, and I’ll be on my computer, typing away. Its wonderful! We really support each other. I don’t know how many boyfriends would understand my desire to be on the computer for hours on end, but he does, and it helps me in my journey to finish my novel.

* * * * * *

NaNoWriMo has been an exciting and productive journey for me, one where I learned a lot about myself as a writer, writing in general and a lot about my novel as well. I’m very proud of what I’ve accomplished this month and what I hope to accomplish in the future.

For now, I have to do some last minute writing for today and tomorrow so I’m going to get to that!

Also, come back tomorrow for an exclusive excerpt from The Reawakened!

You don’t want to miss out on that!

Happy Writing!

Book of the Week-Scarlet

November 29, 2013March 26, 20192 Comments

Hello, all my friends! How are you on this glorious Friday? I’m doing well! I had a GREAT Thanksgiving.

My boyfriend and I decided this year that we would do our own Thanksgiving, forgoing the stress of trying to attend all four possible Thanksgivings with our various family members. I’m house sitting right now, so I even have a house available to do so. Jon’s brother, Chris, decided he was into the idea as well, and so the three of us planned it all out. Chris is a full vegan, I’m a pescatarian and Jon eats anything and everything so we were able to get specialized too! I made my very first tofurkey ever and it was SO good. I rocked it. We had a ton of food, and I’m stuffed and happy.

Now its time for a nice relaxing weekend! I hope all of you are safe and all that this weekend. Its a crazy shopping weekend and I’m not going anywhere near it haha. I stay in bed, in my nice cozy house, with my trusty laptop during this weekend. I’m a fan of Amazon Black Friday sales and Cyber Monday deals across the board. They’re awesome, and you don’t even have to leave your house! Brilliant!

Speaking of Amazon Black Friday deals, there are a TON of them in movies! I saw movies like Harry Potter and The Hunger Games, Twilight and X-Men First Class, and all kinds of nerd movies for really cheap! And Blu-Ray too! Definitely go check it out :)

Now, moving on! It’s a day late, but here it is: this week’s Book of the Week review. If you haven’t had a chance to read my review of Marissa Meyer’s first book, Cinder, you can read it here!

Now for Scarlet!

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

GoodReads / Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Book Depository

Genre:

Young Adult, Science Fiction, Fairy Tale Re-telling

Part of a Series?:

The second novel of The Lunar Chronicles

Please note, while there will be NO spoilers for Scarlet in this review, there will be spoilers for the first novel, Cinder. You may read the review for that book here.

Age Recommendation:

12+

Plot Summary:

From Good Reads:

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison–even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

The Review:

I am blown away by the amazingness that is this book. I was recommended Cinder by my friend Erin, who runs That One Geek Girl, and it took me a long time to read it. Not because it was awful or hard to get into BUT because I was busy with school and the upcoming holiday and finding a new job and all that fun stuff. But I did finish it, eventually, and I absolutely loved it. I got my hands on Scarlet ASAP and I just finished it on Thanksgiving, while making my delicious tofurkey.

Marissa Meyer takes the story that she has created in Cinder and just multiples it, makes it broader, and takes her world and makes it more widespread, and its incredible. She introduces two very important new characters in Scarlet and Wolf (and also Captain Thorne), but instead of detracting from the story, it just adds to it, builds it, and makes it more intricate and more complex and even more exciting than it already was. Seriously. She takes the story that she’s created and doubles it. Just when you kind of think you know what direction things are going in, she steps in, shakes her head (and probably laughs at your crestfallen face) and switches courses so fast that its a wonder that you don’t have whiplash.

I absolutely love that she continued with the fairy tale angle. I’ve always known these fairy tales, because, well, I’m a girl and I grew up with Disney movies like most kids do. But I also just recently took a Children’s Lit class in school, and we did a TON of work on the old school fairy tales. When reading Cinder, I loved the comparisons between the familiar Charles Perrault tale and the novel. I loved that she took the basics of the story, and built them into her own, and twisted them. It was done beautifully.

Then she introduced Scarlet, the wolf, and Scarlet’s grandmother, Michelle. The tale of Red Riding Hood is SO apparent int his book, which I absolutely, totally love but its done so flawlessly. Its weaved in so naturally that it doesn’t feel like its forced. The transition between Cinder’s Cinderella story and Scarlet’s Red Riding Hood story and the combination of the two just fits so well. You hardly notice that they’re colliding until the impact and its amazing. It really is. I love seeing the themes of the old story, like the sexual themes and the innocence and all of that, but translated into a much stronger character like Scarlet. Because let’s face it, women were always weak and needed to be saved by a big strong man in these old folk tales.

Plus, I think Marissa really knows her story. She really takes this story and builds it from page one of the very first book. Sometimes I feel like people write their series as it goes, without really thinking of the past, present and future. You have to be aware of the entire scope of the series in order to write it. She definitely does that. The interweaving of the first two books, and presumably the third, is just beautiful. Things that didn’t seem important or felt unanswered came up in the second book, perfectly, and often times, through Scarlet’s point of view. She connects these two girls and their stories as if this is just the way it is, its always been like this. I love that they are brought together, two very different girls, but both strong and determined, both fighters. Its awesome. She creates great characters. She takes Cinderella and Red and makes them SO much better, and stronger and smarter. Its fantastic.

I could go on and on and on about this book but then I’d be wasting your time. If you haven’t gotten involved in this series yet, definitely do it. If you’ve read Cinder and haven’t read Scarlet, what on earth are you waiting for? You’re going to SPEED through this book and then lament that Cress is still 66 days away. Sigh. But we’re a patient bunch, aren’t we? So get out there and read! The links to buy it are above, and you know you want to! Its a beautiful science fiction novel with mystery and action and romance and twists and turns, moments that make you laugh and cry, and they are stories that remind you of the classic stories you loved as a kid, with a little bit of a kickass twist.

Rating:

5 out of 5 Stars

Recommended or Not?:

Definitely! This book blew me away. If you thought the first book was good, you’re going to think this one is even better. I guarantee it. I canNOT wait until Cress comes out, and to find out what happens next!

* * * * *

I hope you enjoyed this week’s Book of the Week! Don’t forget that you can check out old posts here!

Happy Reading!

WWW Wednesday

November 27, 2013November 26, 20132 Comments

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme, pilule hosted by Should Be Reading.

The three W’s are:

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading? (Click on the book covers for reviews!)

What do you think you’ll be reading next?

What are you currently reading?

The first one was brilliant. I’ve heard this one is even better. About half way through and am loving it. I kind of have a crush on Wolf…

What did you recently just finish reading?

It took awhile for me to get through this because of Catching Fire Fan Camp and NaNoWriMo but I did it. And I’m so glad I did!

I needed a good love story and this was awesome. Definitely recommend.

What do you think you’ll be reading next?

Heard many good things. Finally purchased the first book and I’ll be diving in soon!

I’m trying to read more contemporary YA since I”m writing a sci-fi book, and I don’t want to read anything that’ll bleed into my novel. This was recommended to me by Sarah Ockler so I’m excited to read it!

* * * * *

Share YOUR WWW Wednesday in the comments!

Tuesday Top Ten-Thanksgiving Edition!

November 26, 2013November 26, 2013Leave a comment

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Well…Happy Thanksgiving to everyone here in the United States…in about two days.

Okay, drug so I’m a little ahead. But I AM getting very excited for it. Its a day where we can show thanks (though, really, we should do this every day), and its a day where we can eat as much food as we like, without anyone calling us fat.

And okay, that doesn’t always happen either. But this year, I’ve decided to distance myself away from the people who judge me on my looks, and not the awesome, hardworking, creative person that I am.

Moving on though!

This Tuesday Top Ten isn’t nerdy at all, but instead, I’m giving thanks to the top ten things in my life that I am thankful for.

There is so much more in my life to be thankful for. But definitely these Top Ten.

I swear, next week I’ll be back to nerdy Top Tens. I know I’ve been super lax on them, and I know I gotta get back to it. I promise I will! If you have any ideas, I’d love to hear them too! My ideas are running out, admittedly.

But for now…Ten things to be thankful for!

10. School

I am so lucky to be able to go to school, and to have access to an education. Sure, its a very expensive education but an education nonetheless. There are plenty of people, especially women, who are unable to get a good education, in this world, and so I am grateful for the fact that I can. I am also thankful for the school that I go to. It took me years to get into it but its a great school. If you had to choose a school in Southern California, Cal State Fullerton is definitely a good one to choose. Go Titans!

9. My New Job

Yay! I am so happy to announce TODAY that I have found a new job. I start today (orientation and paperwork, hurrah!) and admittedly, it is only seasonal work, but I am so excited to start and I want to work as hard as I can to make it a permanent job. Because, wait for it, I got a job at Barnes and Noble. I know, I know. Can you honestly think of a better job for ME? I can’t. Besides an author, but I’m working on that! So I’m grateful that I am going into the holiday season with a job and with a job that I think that I am honestly going to enjoy. I’ll let you guys know how it goes!

8. My Car Elphie

I’ve had my little green Honda that I named Elphie after the main character of the musical Wicked for six years now, and she has been such a great and reliable car to me. She gets me where I need to go, and I go lots of places, like book signings and premieres and such. She’s handled it all. Plus I just like my car! She’s green, and small, and I’ve got her covered in stickers. I have Harry Potter stickers, and a Mockingjay sticker, and a fearless rune sticker, and all sorts of nerd stuff. Plus my license plate is personalized to say “HP NERD”. Its my vehicle to all things nerd. Its my own Firebolt, my own Tardis.

7. My Dogs

I have two of the best dogs in the world. They are silly, kind of dumb at times, and one of them is super fat. But I love them both. Scout is my half husky chubby pups that I bought for my brothers and sisters as a Christmas gift seven years ago. She’s a loyal dog, and such a well behaved dog. You know, until you put food in front of her face and she gets a little nuts. Sabet is my dog that I bought Jon for his birthday four and a half years ago. He’s half German Shepherd and half Boxer, and he’s so adorable. He’s not as well behaved as Scout but he also doesn’t eat everything that comes his way so there is that. But I’m thankful to both of them because they make me laugh and smile, and they make me happy.

6. My Friends

I’ve had bad luck with friends for a good chunk of my life. I let people step all over me, and I was content on being a complete doormat. In the past few years, I’ve been lucky enough to meet some amazing friends. My relationship with my boyfriend has brought me to amazing people. Joining the Los Angeles Dumbledore’s Army (the 21 and over Harry Potter fan group), two years ago has introduced me to a plethora of fantastic people that I am SO proud to call my friends. And this blog has brought me a ton of friends too, that make me laugh and share my love of books.

5. Food

Yes, I am thankful for food. And not just that I have the access to food when so many don’t. I am definitely grateful for that. But I am also thankful for the many different choices I have. I am thankful that I can enjoy such great food. I love food, and sometimes I’m given a hard time for it, because, let’s face it, I’m not a size 2 but I’d rather enjoy so many good foods and be a little bit on the curvier side, than to starve myself just to be skinny. I love that I can tacos one day and then eat delicious pasta. I love that I can eat pleasure inducing pizza and cupcakes. I love food. I’m hungry right now so all I can think about is food. Its quite distracting.

4. Books and this Blog

What would I do without either of these? I can honestly say that I would be infinitely less happier without the both of them. Books make me incredibly happy. They give me a place to go, a place to escape. They make me laugh, and feel happy, and break my heart, and make me fall in love. They are the beginning and end to each day. I seriously have no idea what I would do without books. And without books, I wouldn’t have this blog and that would be such sadness. This blog…has given me so much. Its a place that I enjoy to come to. It makes me happy, and I honestly love working as hard as I do on it. Its given me the chance and the opportunities and the bravery, I suppose, to experience all the amazing things I’ve experienced this year. I’ve met so many amazing people through it, authors and actors, and such, but also all the amazing friends and followers that I’ve met through it as well.

3. My Family

I have an amazing family. I’m one of six kids, and they are the coolest and craziest and the most annoying but the most awesome siblings that I could honestly have. I am lucky enough to have five siblings. FIVE. Sometimes that drives me insane. I mean, do you know how hard it is to go to the bathroom or take a shower in my house? Seriously. Its ridiculous. BUT they’re all so unique, in such a wonderful way. They’re funny, and we’ve been through so much together, the six of us. Life is taking us into a million different directions. We’re 25 (me), 23, 22, 20, 19 and 16. We’re growing up, which is incredibly scary but I never really feel like I need to worry about us. We’ll always find our way back to each other because we have so many times before. Which is SO cheesy, I recognize. But I adore the family that I was born into and even on the craziest, hardest, most irritating days, I still love them and am glad I have them.

2. My Boyfriend

Time to get cheesy, everyone. Jon and I have been dating for nearly six years now. It will be six years in February. Six years! That’s insanity. And he’s not perfect. I tell people all the time, my boyfriend is not perfect. There are days where I want to punch him in the face, or just spray whipped cream all over his head, or I don’t know, weird stuff. But I make a point of telling people that because his imperfections are what make him so perfect to me. He’s an incredibly smart person who makes me laugh and who is incredibly passionate about so many things. He makes me happy and he supports me 100%, every day, even when others don’t. He’s the only person who would understand if I dropped everything in my life, and focused on my novel. He’s the person who believes in me every single day. And he loves me. What more could I honestly want?

1. Myself

This sounds silly, maybe a bit conceited but that’s not what I mean. I am thankful for…my intelligence. For my creativity. For my talent. For my determination, my gumption, my ambition. I am thankful that I’ve changed from this mousy, insecure, invisible person to this person that I am today. I still have doubts and I still have insecurities but I believe in myself more and I have such confidence in myself for the first time, ever. I’m proud of myself. I’m proud of the novel that I am working on. I am proud of this blog. I am proud that I work so hard, because it shows that I believe in myself. I feel like so many of the things that I am thankful for above come from the confidence that I have in myself. I kind of rock. I’m just saying ;)

* * * * *

What are you thankful for this week? Share in the comments!

Time Between Us Book Review

November 25, 2013November 24, 20131 Comment

Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone

You Can Find the Book At:

GoodReads Summary:

Anna and Bennett were never supposed to meet: she lives in 1995 Chicago and he lives in 2012 San Francisco. But Bennett has the unique ability to travel through time and space, price which brings him into Anna’s life, case and with him a new world of adventure and possibility.
As their relationship deepens, the two face the reality that time may knock Bennett back to where he belongs, even as a devastating crisis throws everything they believe into question. Against a ticking clock, Anna and Bennett are forced to ask themselves how far they can push the bounds of fate, what consequences they can bear in order to stay together, and whether their love can stand the test of time.

Fresh, exciting, and deeply romantic, Time Between Us is a stunning, spellbinding debut from an extraordinary new voice in YA fiction.

My Review:

It didn’t take long for me to get addicted to this story. Let me put it to you this way: at the beginning of November, I was 7 books ahead in my GoodReads challenge, and yesterday, I was a book behind. I’ve fallen behind because of NaNoWriMo and the Catching Fire fan camp, and because I’m just having a terrible time finding something to read. I have SO many books, all stacked up to read, and nothing is working.

I decided to go to the bookstore, even though like I said, I already have a TON of books to read. I have heard many good things about Tamara Ireland Stone and I’ve been itching to read more YA contemporary. The more sci-fi or dystopian I read, the more I find it bleeds into my novel, and I don’t want that. While there is a sort of twist to this book, with the time travel aspect, it is very contemporary and it is exactly what I needed to get back into the reading spirit.

I loved the book. It felt like it was such an easy and effortless story to fall into. Anna and Bennett were both such real characters, and it was also fun to read the way they sort of fall into each other. They are from two completely different times. Bennett is seventeen in 2012, and Anna is sixteen in 1995. But the way they are able to connect and work together is amazing.

Plus its just so sweet. Bennett is burdened with this ‘gift’, something that everyone wants something from. His dad uses him, his mother doesn’t quite like him, but Anna thinks its beautiful, and in turn, Bennett is able to give her something that she’s always wanted to have: freedom, exploration, adventure. I love that we get a fun, love story with Anna and Bennett but with that twist that Bennett has.

I did have a slight issue with the ending, only because I know there’s a sequel but I don’t know what the ending did that made me feel a sequel was necessary. Perhaps I need to read the sequel in order to find out? But I felt like it had an ending and it wrapped up, pretty neatly too. I think I would have liked it a whole lot more than I already did if it had ended perhaps a chapter earlier. Then the last chapter could have been the first chapter of the new book. That sort of agonizing wait makes a book so much worth it.

I love the sweetest to the story, and the genuine nature of it. There’s a beauty in how flawlessly it flows and how the two characters come together, fighting it but pushing towards each other as well. Sometimes we just need a good story wrapped around two people falling for each other, and this is definitely one that I liked it. I have an easy gag reflex when it comes to romance stories, and I find myself rolling my eyes. But this one didn’t. Each character is so sweet and genuine and real and I rooted for them the entire story.

I definitely cannot wait to read the next one, to read more of Anna and Bennett and how they work together, and how their 17 year distance in time works out for them. Its should be very interesting. Onward!