Quote of the Week

"I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book! -- When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library."
Jane Austen (Pride and Prejudice)

Friday, August 19, 2011

So Excited!

This has been the most exciting week!  I hope I don't jinx myself by saying this, but I've had the most successful writing week of my life!  This whole week my manager has been out of town and therefore I haven't had much to work on at work and ta da!  lots of time to write.

Okay, I know I've had oodles of time to write before and nothing comes to mind...ever!  Somehow this week is not that way!  Today, I was actually able to outline to the end of my book.  (don't quite have the end figured out yet, but close.)  Why is this so exciting you ask?  This is the book I put aside for months because nothing, absolutely nothing was happening with it.  The plot wasn't coming together, I've rewritten several times, put the original beginning towards the end, switched from 3rd person to 1st, and even toyed around with splitting the narrative.  Needless to say it's been a process.

After finally figuring out how this story is finally going to work I haven't been able to stop.  I feel like I'm finally getting to know my main character.  She's so complex, she didn't even want to let me, as the author into her head.  (I know, that's sounds really weird, but it's the truth.)  I just hopes she comes across as real, because she's finally starting to feel real to me.

I'm still squeezing in a chapter or two of reading in here and there too.  I hope you all have a fantastic day!

Saturday, August 13, 2011

After all...

After all, writing is rewriting.  I'm sure everyone has heard this phrase before.  Writing is in fact, jotting down, stewing, clipping, trimming, deleting, cutting, pasting, rearranging, crying, yelling, forgetting, letting go, and breathing.  Sounds like a lot of work, right?  Yeah, it is, but there is a joy almost inexpressible when it comes together.  I'm not going to say much about it, but I have a story that has been sitting in the wrinkles of my brain waiting to connect with a traveling synaptic current.  It's still slow and there's a lot of work I need to do, but I'm excited for what's coming!

Hope you're all reading something wonderful!

Monday, August 1, 2011

Forever

Ah, I have finished yet another series and I loved it!  You've heard me talk about the Wolves of Mercy Falls series, I'm sure.  This conclusion did not disappoint.  It was so enjoyable that I actually forgot that it had to end at some point and I grew very sad.  I sat at work thoroughly enjoying my reading for the day when I remembered this was the last book.  No more werewolf love story.


Hold on!  Did she just say werewolf?  Yes, I did just say werewolf love story.  Now before that turns you off to the story I have to say this is not your average werewolf story.  Wait!  Did she just say it's another new spin on werewolves?  Ugh, another one?  Yes, I did just say it's another new twist on the mythical creatures we affectionately call werewolves, creatures of the moon.  This one is actually very good.  Maggie Steifvater is a very mature writer in young adult fiction.  The love feels real and the connection between the characters is so human.  The narrative switches between characters an in those switches somehow how grow to know more about these characters through the eyes of those around them.  She writes in a rather poetic way, thus, the imagery is lovely.

I don't want to give too much of the plot on this book because it would give away bits of the first two.  Because I like to explore new books along with the characters, I want you to do the same.  There is a time and a place for spoilers.  There are plenty of spoilers out there for any book you read, but I don't feel so inclined to give away the book and take that from all of you.  So, I will say a couple of things about it and encourage you to check it out!

When Grace was a little girl she wandered out into the woods behind her house and was attacked by wolves.  Ever since that day one wolf comes back every winter and watches her with his yellow eyes.  This wolf is different, it's the one that saved her after the attack.  One day a boy shows up on her back porch badly wounded.  She helps him inside and does what she can to take care of him when she realized he has the same yellow eyes as her wolf.  That is only the beginning.

I know, that's a ridiculously brief synopsis and it only mentions what happens in the very beginning.  In the first book Shiver.  Hope you enjoy it!  Happy reading!