Well, It's been Forever.

It's been a long, long time since anyone posted, so I've taken it upon myself. And since I haven't planned anything, I'll give you a few resources for when you're stuck.

http://www.seventhsanctum.com/

A bunch of random generators, for naming, setting, magical needs. :D

http://dictionary.reference.com/

Because dictionaries are useful. I'm pretty sure you don't need this one, though.

http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/

This person has an entire collection of entries on emotions, settings, weather, color, etc. Very useful.

http://thestairwaytojannah.blogspot.com/

Almost Out of Ink - an awesome artist. You can get inspiration for your writing from sharpie drawings.

I used to this other, awesome website (I think it was on blogspot, but I really don't know) on burns and other injuries. Another place you can try is

http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/forums/reference-desk/threads/214

but I can't tell you which of those links are helpful, because I haven't checked some of them out yet. The obvious ones (i.e. google, wikipedia) are good, of course, but a few I've never heard of.

So, I hope you find this useful. I don't really have anything else to say, so I'll just leave you with a random quote:
"It is hard enough to remember my opinions, without also remembering my reasons for them!"
-Friedrich Nietzsche

Writer's Block

So. Writer's block. Do I need to define it? It's that intense hopelessness as you stare at the page and cannot think of a single word to write. It's wracking your brains for a good idea and coming up empty-handed. It's... writer's block.

What causes this horrifying disease? Either a.) You've been writing too much, or b.) You haven't thought enough about what you're writing. The second one's easy enough to deal with; stop and think. Daydream in class, bounce ideas off your best friend, look to the internet. The first one also requires taking time off.

Some generic ways to get over writer's block:
The best thing to do, normally, is to get away from writing for a short time. Not forever; never give up on your writing simply because you can't think of something. But just take a walk or something. Listen to music. Spend time with your family and friends. Get outside; enjoy the fresh air, the sunshine, the spiders...
"Follow the spiders... why can't it be follow the butterflies?" (I'm paraphrasing from a HP book. 10 points to Ravenclaw if you can guess which one, and by who!)

Some more drastic ways when those above don't work:
Let's face it. There's only so much inspiration you can find in staggering about blindly, wondering when the sun got so bright. Sometimes, randomly typing words into google or photobucket can magically plant a seed of literary perfection into your mind (or so it seems). Also, making exaggerated faces to yourself, in front of a mirror or otherwise. You know, when no one's watching. That can spark dialogue (even if it's some famous quote by Captain Jack Sparrow, you'll at least have the sudden urge to write about pirates...). Hide in a really good hiding spot and watch/eavesdrop on anyone who's passing by. That helps your ninja skills too!

Anyways, to sum it all up: when your ideas begin to falter, take some time off. Do something creative or fun. And as Benjamin franklin says, "The doors of wisdom are never shut." (What that has to do with I'm talking about is up to you to decide.) Have a blessed day! Er, week. Till the next time I write. You know what I mean. <3

Random Facts

So, it's Saturday- I ALMOST forgot I was supposed to post today...
Anyways, I'm just going to share random facts with you, since I don't feel like doing a book review or something of that sort. I unearthed them while researching for my book, or I learned of them sometime during the school day.

1. A female tiger is actually called a tigress. I have always thought it was just tiger...

2. Magenta, from Blues Clues, is a guy and Blue is a girl. I got that backwards for most of my childhood. Well, until about a month ago.

3. The Egyptian god of chaos was called Apophis.

4. During a time in ancient China, sometime before 1450 AD, women were forced to bind their feet, from the age of six up. Their foot bones would grow deformed, into this claw-like shape. It was considered attractive by men, and marriage was vital back then. The fact that their feet grew deformed meant that it was painful to move about, and restricted women to the home, thus reinforcing that stupid "men are superior" idea that people had in their heads back then.

5. Narcissus was a young man in Greek mythology who refused love, including that of someone named Echo, who made him fall in love with his own reflection. Since his reflection obviously couldn't love him back, Narcissus wasted away into a flower.

Do you have any trivial information to share? Because I love trivial info; I eat it up like chocolate. Well, not literally, but still. So, to end with a completely irrelevant quote:
"The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid." -Jane Austen

Tentative suggestions

So, inspiration. If you're like me, inspiration can come from anything, whether it's the numbers on your digital clock or some crazy stunt your family/friends pulled.
But if you're not, here's some common ways to find inspiration:
MUSIC. The mood of a song can determine the mood of your scene. Like, there's a vast difference between Owl City and Black Veil Brides. Although I don't keep track of music genres (rock, heavy metal, country, etc.), I do keep track of the melodies/lyrics. For a happy scene, I'd recommend:
1. Britt Nicole (Headphones, How We Roll)
2. Owl City (Galaxies, Designer Skyline, To The Sky)
3. Carrie Underwood (Crazy Dreams, The More Boys I Meet)

For a love scene:
1. Owl City (Honey and the Bee, Deer in the Headlights)
2. Allison Krauss (When You Say Nothing At All)
3. Diamond Rio (Beautiful Mess)

Inspirational:

1. Superchick (Hero, We Live, Get Up)
2. Aly & AJ (Rush, No One)
3. The Afters (Beautiful Words)

Heavy, like rock music (you know what I mean):
1. Skillet (The Last Night, Monster, Falling Inside the Black)
2. Black Veil Brides (Fallen Angels, Perfect Weapon)
3. Sanctus Real (I'm Not Alright)

You can probably tell I love music, by now. And like I said, I don't keep track of just one genre, more just the feel of the music.

Another source of inspiration is REAL LIFE. I get quite a few ideas looking at my family or friends, or even random strangers. Like, I based my MC's sister of of my real sister. My MC has a love of art, just like my mom. Lines of dialogue, plot ideas, personality quirks, all can come from around you. What I do is, whenever my brain sparks off an idea because of my surroundings, I write it on my arm in pen. I don't go anywhere without a pen. This way, I don't forget my idea before a more convenient time comes around. I can write it on my arm during a test at school or doing my chores.

Third- READING/TV. It feels unfair to group something as mundane as TV with glorious reading, but I must, to keep this post shorter than a mile long. You can get a general stereotype, like the nagging wife, the grumpy old man, the wise, blind person. Or you could come across something unique and refreshing, and want to try and do that. For example, you think of all mice as rodents/pests. Then I read The Tale of Despereaux, and it's really sweet towards mice. Or, you think of imaginary friends for little kids, until you read The BFG or maybe Bridge to Terabithia. Or that biology is boring, until you read Leviathan. The possibilities are endless. For TV, Warehouse 13 or Eureka on SyFy are awesome. Mythbusters is good, too.

To recap, music + real life + books/TV = common inspiration. I just gave you a ton of ideas, now pick up your pen, or sit down at your computer, and WRITE.
And a semi-relevant quote for you to think over~
"I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living." -Dr. Seuss