I feel like I have to make an additional post regarding my YA story that I mentioned in the previous post.
Something bad happened.
Of all the worst things that could happen, this is
THE
WORST
POSSIBLE
THING.
my computer crashed and I lost my whole YA story
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Ghosts
Guess what guys! Halloween is in less than a week! Who's excited? I'm excited. Are you excited?
Halloween is the best holiday because it revolves solely on candy and dressing up, which are two of the most awesome things in the world.
So speaking of Halloween, I didn't get to finish my teenage-ghosts book because it was due back at the library, but I was sort of OK with it because I'm 83% sure it didn't have real ghosts in it. So I think I will go to the library tomorrow and check out some books because now I don't have any!
And speaking of ghosts, in class today, we talked about spooky things like vampires and ghosts because Halloween is upon us. We also worked on our young adult novels.
OK, here's the thing about YA novels. I don't really like writing them (or reading them sometimes). I always feel pressured to make it a little more "edgy" or "serious" because YA is all about internal conflict (yeah, not entirely, I know, but still. More than a middle grade novel).
And the problem with this is that is sounds so BORING to me. Some people can do it, and do it really well. I am not one of those people. So to get around this feeling of I-have-to-write-about-how-hard-high-school-is or something (because there seem to be a lot of books like that), I like to throw something a little supernatural or other-worldly into my novels aimed toward YA. Just to lighten the mood a bit.
Example: Once I wrote about a girl who found a genie in the high school bathroom. That was fun.
So this time, I'm thinking a ghost. Because I've never written about ghosts before! And ghosts are great.
And that's how the two statements I wrote five paragraphs ago relate to each other.
I'm having a lot of trouble with this story, so all I have for you today is one line I managed to squeeze out of my brain:
"I like going to the zoo when I’m upset because animals aren’t stupid like people are. So that’s where I was the day that Nick dumped me."
P.S. I don't want this to sound like I hate books that are edgy or really traumatic or something like that. I'm just saying I hate writing them. And sometimes there are books that write something edgy solely because it's "in", and that's what I'm trying to avoid. It's just not my style.
ok how many people have I offended with this post
Halloween is the best holiday because it revolves solely on candy and dressing up, which are two of the most awesome things in the world.
So speaking of Halloween, I didn't get to finish my teenage-ghosts book because it was due back at the library, but I was sort of OK with it because I'm 83% sure it didn't have real ghosts in it. So I think I will go to the library tomorrow and check out some books because now I don't have any!
And speaking of ghosts, in class today, we talked about spooky things like vampires and ghosts because Halloween is upon us. We also worked on our young adult novels.
OK, here's the thing about YA novels. I don't really like writing them (or reading them sometimes). I always feel pressured to make it a little more "edgy" or "serious" because YA is all about internal conflict (yeah, not entirely, I know, but still. More than a middle grade novel).
And the problem with this is that is sounds so BORING to me. Some people can do it, and do it really well. I am not one of those people. So to get around this feeling of I-have-to-write-about-how-hard-high-school-is or something (because there seem to be a lot of books like that), I like to throw something a little supernatural or other-worldly into my novels aimed toward YA. Just to lighten the mood a bit.
Example: Once I wrote about a girl who found a genie in the high school bathroom. That was fun.
So this time, I'm thinking a ghost. Because I've never written about ghosts before! And ghosts are great.
And that's how the two statements I wrote five paragraphs ago relate to each other.
I'm having a lot of trouble with this story, so all I have for you today is one line I managed to squeeze out of my brain:
"I like going to the zoo when I’m upset because animals aren’t stupid like people are. So that’s where I was the day that Nick dumped me."
P.S. I don't want this to sound like I hate books that are edgy or really traumatic or something like that. I'm just saying I hate writing them. And sometimes there are books that write something edgy solely because it's "in", and that's what I'm trying to avoid. It's just not my style.
ok how many people have I offended with this post
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Hyphens and Italics
Holy what-happened-to-updating-on-Tuesdays, Batman!
I really don't know what happened. I just woke up today and realized I hadn't updated my blog. D'oh!
Anyhow, on to the good stuff.
I'm about 2/3 of the way through my high-school-ghosts book. I like it it a lot better than I did before. But I'm a bit saddened by the mysterious lack of ghosts so far. I'm beginning to think that the "ghosts" might be... *gulp* metaphorical. Don't know how I feel about this yet.
Though to be fair, there have been mentions of ghosts and talk of ghosts, and part of a really good ghost story is that you don't know if there's a ghost until the end. But I just really don't want the "Ghosts of Ashbury High" to be all metaphorical.
So if this ghost book turns out to be a bust, someone had better recommend me a new ghost book because I have a hankering for some creepy-ghouly-shrieking-ghosty ghosts.
Side note: What is everybody gonna be for Halloween? I'm thinking Harry Potter because I have the perfect sweater for it. Plus the short hair, too.
Writing this week has been interesting! I woke up early Tuesday morning to put the finishing touches on my short story and got so into it that I completely missed my first class (oops) and almost forgot to go to my writing class (double oops). It was fun though! I'm thinking that maybe I should do that more often (wake up early and write, not skip one and a half classes).
Yeah. It's fun. Might expand this from a short story into a small novel. Who knows!
I really don't know what happened. I just woke up today and realized I hadn't updated my blog. D'oh!
Anyhow, on to the good stuff.
I'm about 2/3 of the way through my high-school-ghosts book. I like it it a lot better than I did before. But I'm a bit saddened by the mysterious lack of ghosts so far. I'm beginning to think that the "ghosts" might be... *gulp* metaphorical. Don't know how I feel about this yet.
Though to be fair, there have been mentions of ghosts and talk of ghosts, and part of a really good ghost story is that you don't know if there's a ghost until the end. But I just really don't want the "Ghosts of Ashbury High" to be all metaphorical.
So if this ghost book turns out to be a bust, someone had better recommend me a new ghost book because I have a hankering for some creepy-ghouly-shrieking-ghosty ghosts.
Side note: What is everybody gonna be for Halloween? I'm thinking Harry Potter because I have the perfect sweater for it. Plus the short hair, too.
Writing this week has been interesting! I woke up early Tuesday morning to put the finishing touches on my short story and got so into it that I completely missed my first class (oops) and almost forgot to go to my writing class (double oops). It was fun though! I'm thinking that maybe I should do that more often (wake up early and write, not skip one and a half classes).
And so, this week, I'm going to post a bit of that short story (a character description, to be precise) because I got so excited about the story and the characters and it was so awesome that I almost didn't go to school. So here, meet Anthony:
"I practically dragged Anthony to my house so he could help me get my presidential act in order. I decided that if I wanted to be president, I’d better get serious about it. And if anyone could help me, it was Anthony.
See, Anthony is this guy who wears about a million hats, which is something my mom says about my dad because he’s really good at a lot of things. I’m not sure what hats has to do with it, but I guess it’s just an expression.
Anyway, Anthony knows about a lot of things. He knows about video games, and math, and how to make a perfect s’more, and how to talk to someone you have a crush on.
He also knew about people and how to make them like you. I knew that because everyone at school liked him."
See, Anthony is this guy who wears about a million hats, which is something my mom says about my dad because he’s really good at a lot of things. I’m not sure what hats has to do with it, but I guess it’s just an expression.
Anyway, Anthony knows about a lot of things. He knows about video games, and math, and how to make a perfect s’more, and how to talk to someone you have a crush on.
He also knew about people and how to make them like you. I knew that because everyone at school liked him."
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Take Two
Well, as promised, here I am making a post when I am a bit more lucid. Who's excited? Come on, raise your hands.
Anyway. I realized that I made a few mistakes in the last post, the first one being that apparently my roommate got Forest Born, the second book of the Books of Bayern series. Everything about this is a lie. Firstly, Forest Born is the third book in the series and secondly, she got River Secrets.
Way to go, Self.
Anyway. Another mistake I made: I neglected to say that I picked up The Ghosts of Ashbury High, by Jaclyn Moriarty (which I think is a brilliant last name, by the way). In class on Tuesday, we started talking about ghosts and Halloween, and I remembered how much I love ghost stories. And then I remembered that we got this ghost book from the library a while ago. So I started to read it.
It's all right so far. The characters are a little too quirky for me, but I'm still interested in where this plot is going. So I'll press on.
In my writing this week, I have learned that no matter how many times I try to write this story, something always happens to make me forget to save and then I lose my writing.
...
I'm not going to say much more about that. Because we don't want cuss words to slip out.
But I will say that in a weird, cruel way, it's kind of nice to have your writing deleted for you. I get way too attached to my writing, even if it's not very good and I know it. And cutting things out sometimes feels like throwing out a beloved stuffed animal or something of the sort. But when it just gets deleted, it helps me remember that these are just words. It's OK to delete, scrap, cross out as many words as I want to. Because they're just words!
Well, right now, at least. Maybe one day they'll grow up to be something more.
Dang, did I just ruin my metaphor there? (the answer is yes)
And on that note, I hope this post was a little more palatable than the previous one.
Goodnight, internet.
Anyway. I realized that I made a few mistakes in the last post, the first one being that apparently my roommate got Forest Born, the second book of the Books of Bayern series. Everything about this is a lie. Firstly, Forest Born is the third book in the series and secondly, she got River Secrets.
Way to go, Self.
Anyway. Another mistake I made: I neglected to say that I picked up The Ghosts of Ashbury High, by Jaclyn Moriarty (which I think is a brilliant last name, by the way). In class on Tuesday, we started talking about ghosts and Halloween, and I remembered how much I love ghost stories. And then I remembered that we got this ghost book from the library a while ago. So I started to read it.
It's all right so far. The characters are a little too quirky for me, but I'm still interested in where this plot is going. So I'll press on.
In my writing this week, I have learned that no matter how many times I try to write this story, something always happens to make me forget to save and then I lose my writing.
...
I'm not going to say much more about that. Because we don't want cuss words to slip out.
But I will say that in a weird, cruel way, it's kind of nice to have your writing deleted for you. I get way too attached to my writing, even if it's not very good and I know it. And cutting things out sometimes feels like throwing out a beloved stuffed animal or something of the sort. But when it just gets deleted, it helps me remember that these are just words. It's OK to delete, scrap, cross out as many words as I want to. Because they're just words!
Well, right now, at least. Maybe one day they'll grow up to be something more.
Dang, did I just ruin my metaphor there? (the answer is yes)
And on that note, I hope this post was a little more palatable than the previous one.
Goodnight, internet.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
The Most Boring Post Ever
I hate to be that kind of person on the internet who always says things like "I'm so tired".
So I'm not gonna say that.
I am going to say that I started reading a book called Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi. I'm not exactly sure what it's about yet, because I only just started reading it, but it seems pretty interesting.
Also, my roommate got Forest Born by Shannon Hale, which is the sequel to Goose Girl, and so I am very excited to read that in the upcoming week or so. Because I happen to love Shannon Hale.
And, as I am now running out of steam as far as this blog post goes, I'm just going to sign off and hopefully write something a little more coherent tomorrow. Because I am realizing that this is the most boring post on the internet.
See you in the morning.
So I'm not gonna say that.
I am going to say that I started reading a book called Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi. I'm not exactly sure what it's about yet, because I only just started reading it, but it seems pretty interesting.
Also, my roommate got Forest Born by Shannon Hale, which is the sequel to Goose Girl, and so I am very excited to read that in the upcoming week or so. Because I happen to love Shannon Hale.
And, as I am now running out of steam as far as this blog post goes, I'm just going to sign off and hopefully write something a little more coherent tomorrow. Because I am realizing that this is the most boring post on the internet.
See you in the morning.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Pinky Promise
Before I get to the meat of this post, let me say this one thing:
I
am
so
tired.
A few days ago I told myself that I was going to get up at 6 am so I would be awake and ready for class on time. Plus it gives me some time before school to finish any homework I may have put off.
However.
The moment I set my alarm for 6 am was the same moment my body decided "You know what? I don't think I'll go to sleep until 4 am. Is that all right with you?"
No, it's not all right.
But I digress. I merely state this in case this post comes across as uncharacteristically grumpy (and by this I mean "more grumpy than usual"). Plus it's a good excuse for the fact that...
I haven't read many books this week. Or written all that much.
*shame*
That is your one job in this class. Your one job.
(thought maybe that's two jobs)
Chastisement aside, I did manage to write the bones of a short story, of which I am proud. The last time I had to write a short story was for my creative writing class in my senior year of high school, and I actually didn't even finish that one. I realized it was becoming too long, so I cut it off at a "good" place and turned it in like that. Because my teacher was not a harsh grader at all. ("Not harsh" as in "I got 100% on it". Yep.)
But this time I actually finished something! Which is a thing that I struggle with. I can't tell you how many beginnings to stories I have saved on my computer. So go me!
On that note, I remember that I have not yet finished studying for a chemistry test that I have to take tomorrow, so I must leave this post at that.
And I'll read/write more next week so I have more to share with the world. Pinky promise.
P.S. If anyone has extra Oreos laying around, please send them my way at once, as they are my favorite study-food and I am currently Oreo-less. Plus I'm pretty sure they make me do better on tests.
I
am
so
tired.
A few days ago I told myself that I was going to get up at 6 am so I would be awake and ready for class on time. Plus it gives me some time before school to finish any homework I may have put off.
However.
The moment I set my alarm for 6 am was the same moment my body decided "You know what? I don't think I'll go to sleep until 4 am. Is that all right with you?"
No, it's not all right.
But I digress. I merely state this in case this post comes across as uncharacteristically grumpy (and by this I mean "more grumpy than usual"). Plus it's a good excuse for the fact that...
I haven't read many books this week. Or written all that much.
*shame*
That is your one job in this class. Your one job.
(thought maybe that's two jobs)
Chastisement aside, I did manage to write the bones of a short story, of which I am proud. The last time I had to write a short story was for my creative writing class in my senior year of high school, and I actually didn't even finish that one. I realized it was becoming too long, so I cut it off at a "good" place and turned it in like that. Because my teacher was not a harsh grader at all. ("Not harsh" as in "I got 100% on it". Yep.)
But this time I actually finished something! Which is a thing that I struggle with. I can't tell you how many beginnings to stories I have saved on my computer. So go me!
On that note, I remember that I have not yet finished studying for a chemistry test that I have to take tomorrow, so I must leave this post at that.
And I'll read/write more next week so I have more to share with the world. Pinky promise.
P.S. If anyone has extra Oreos laying around, please send them my way at once, as they are my favorite study-food and I am currently Oreo-less. Plus I'm pretty sure they make me do better on tests.
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