Currently Reading

Hi all. I haven’t had much time to think about writing (or actually write, boo!). So I’m doing a brief post about the books I’ve been reading! This summer is my last chance to read whatever I want (which means digging into my huge YA pile) before I move for school. Anyway, I promise that the next one or two posts from me will be more writing-oriented.  =)

1) Skylark by Meaghan Spooner

 Summary: “For fifteen years, Lark Ainsley waited for the day when her Resource would be harvested and she would finally be an adult. After the harvest she expected a small role in the regular, orderly operation of the City within the Wall. She expected to do her part to maintain the refuge for the last survivors of the Wars. She expected to be a tiny cog in the larger clockwork of the city. Lark did not expect to become the City’s power supply. For fifteen years, Lark Ainsley believed in a lie. Now she must escape the only world she’s ever known…or face a fate more unimaginable than death.”  **

This was one of the two titles I actually bought ALA. It is a finished hardcover. The book jacket is gorgeous and shiny! I totally love it. I’m just past part I and am liking it so far. It’s got a futuristic Alice in Wonderland sort of feel (to me anyway): the main character is alone and disoriented, and there are some odd and fantastical elements that she faces. Not really sure where it’s going plot-wise, but I’m curious to see. I believe the official release date is August 1, 2012 and will be available through various online retailers.

Also, the author is hosting a giveaway right now. You can check it out on her website: http://www.meaganspooner.com/the-skys-the-limit-contest-for-skylark/

** [photo & text credit to author and publisher Carolrhoda Lab]

2) Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Summary: “Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair… .Fifteen-year-old Tiger Lily doesn’t believe in love stories or happy endings. Then she meets the alluring teenage Peter Pan in the forbidden woods of Neverland and immediately falls under his spell. Peter is unlike anyone she’s ever known. Impetuous and brave, he both scares and enthralls her. As the leader of the Lost Boys, the most fearsome of Neverland’s inhabitants, Peter is an unthinkable match for Tiger Lily. Soon, she is risking everything—her family, her future—to be with him. When she is faced with marriage to a terrible man in her own tribe, she must choose between the life she’s always known and running away to an uncertain future with Peter.

With enemies threatening to tear them apart, the lovers seem doomed. But it’s the arrival of Wendy Darling, an English girl who’s everything Tiger Lily is not, that leads Tiger Lily to discover that the most dangerous enemies can live inside even the most loyal and loving heart.”  **

Well, I received a surprise ARC of this in the mail from HarperTeen. It was nice of them to send it without me requesting it! I’m not very far into it, but it sounds good. Although, I’ve never read her previous work, so the writing style and narration are a bit difficult for me to adjust to.

You can visit her on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/jodilynnandersonbooks) or Twitter (https://twitter.com/jodilynna).

** [photo & text credit to author and publisher HarperTeen. Taken from Goodreads]

What are you reading this week? <3

Oh goodness, It's Wednesday again!

I completely forgot I had a post today. I would say sorry, but this happens often (my posts are generally written between the hours of 9:00 and 11:00 pm). But today, I have nothing planned. So I will give you a few quotes and a picture, and try to post something special next week.

"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing."
~Benjamin Franklin

"Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored."
~Aldous Huxley

"Rewards and punishments are the lowest form of education."
~Chuang-Tzu

"We despise all reverences and objects of reverence which are outside the pale of our list of sacred things. And yet, with strange inconsistency, we are shocked when other people despise and defile the things which are holy to us."
~Mark Twain



I love these quotes, but now I feel bad that I've neglected to think of my blogging duties. In fairness, though, I was reading The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien - you know, the prequel to the Lord of the Rings? Can you blame me for forgetting to blog?

Anyways, here is your picture, courtesy of Tumblr. Have a blessed week and keep writing!

Yesterday's Endings

(This is a very short post - it was meant for Tuesday, only no one did it. I apologize!)

Endings. That which brings the entire story to a close, or perhaps only this adventure. But the main point is that they END.

Here are some types of endings:
1. Normal Novel - I don't know what else to call it. That typical, sums-it-all-up kind of ending. The kind where all the details are figured out, all the problems are ironed out. Ex: Heir Apparent by Vivian Vande Velde, or The Tension of Opposites by Kristina Mcbride, or fairytales (Gail Carson Levine's, if you'd prefer hers).

2. Normal Series - That heartbreaking, lovable ending when you have to say goodbye to the world you spent 6 books reading about. Every single problem is generally worked out. Ex: well, any last book of a series. Oh, you wanted me to list specific series? Okay. The Leviathan series by Scott Westerfeld, The Eragon: Inheritance series by Christopher Paolini, or the Warriors series by Erin Hunter.

3. Cliffhangars - Those books where you want to scream "what happens next?!" These could be the first book of a series, or simply where the author decided to taunt you by never solving the problem. Usually left off on a tense moment, or something pretty big still needs to be solved. Ex: Discordia: the Eleventh Dimension by Dena K. Salmon, or Maze Runner by James Dashner, or... I don't know. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordin? That left off around Luke's betrayal, right?

There're probably more, but they slip my mind at the moment. So, on to writing one.

The first step, obviously, is writing the rest of the story (unless you're one of those people who start writing in a random place and expand from there). Depending on the ending, you can choose to start drawing to a gradual close, up to a couple chapters before the actual last page, or you can choose to leave off drawing to a close until a couple pages before the actual last page. Example (shortened somewhat, obviously):

(gradual)
"Suzy grimly battled with King Evil, trying not to let her weariness show. Around her, the screams of dying men echoed through the vast plain, The smell of death heavy in the air... Finally, King Evil gave one mighty heave and flung Suzy backward into the back of one of his vicious giant warriors. With the wind knocked out her, she helplessly watched him advance... With a final, desperate surge of energy she stood up and rammed her sword into the king's chest... After the quick retreat of King Evil's forces, her own men bustled around the plain, checking for survivors and treating the wounded... After listening to her friends, she realized the perfect solution to [insert smaller, less- important-to-the-story problem here] and quickly told them... Her father reported that King Evil's erratic, violent nature wasn't due solely because he was evil. He had simply been mad at the world because of a curse laid upon him as a child... As her right hand man asked about what do with the King's body, she told him to burn it, but with a proper funeral and let his wife be present... Eventually, when everything settled down, she smiled sadly to herself. What a crazy, confusing, sad world, she thought. As they placed the fallen King Evil's crown upon her head, she vowed to be just and wise in all of her decisions as queen, the opposite of what her opponent had been."

(quick)
"I race along the path, my breaths loud and heartbeats louder. Don't let him get there first, I pray silently. The rows of cotton and wheat on either side of me never seem to end; I wonder for a split second whether I am even moving. But the burn in my legs says otherwise, and I continue to push myself. Eventually, the fields blend into hills, and I can see the mighty temple in the distance. Involuntarily I slow down, every part of me screaming in outrage at the 5 mile run. I put my hands on my knees, panting, and with horror and helplessness, I watch Paul sprint up the steps to the marble columns and then to the entrance. I am so close, the temple of Gregory is less than half a mile away, but I cannot make my muscles move. When he walks out of the entrance ten minutes later, he is smugly carrying the sacred pitcher filled with the ashes of a white lion. He comes my way, and sees me curled on the ground.
"It pays to have a house closer to the temple," he chuckles, and leaves me. I know then that no matter how good of a ruler he pretends to become, I will take the crown from him, or I will die trying. [End of Book 1]"

Perhaps not the best of my writing, but not the point. You notice the difference? Not only are there elipses to show that there is more writing that would this post far too long, but the first one solves smaller problems. The second is a bit more vague, but you understand that it's not over. The narrator will stop at nothing to get that crown and dispose of her cheating rival (that's what I meant when he walks by and implies that he didn't have as far to run).

Hope this has helped to some degree. Have a blessed day and keep writing!

~Midnight <3

Adding Holidays

Holidays. They don't seem too important. From Christmas to Hanukkah to Earth Day to President's Day to Halloween, most people celebrate holidays more than once a year. So why should your characters be any different?

There are three main points I'm gonna discuss. They barely scratch the surface, but I can't think of any more right this second.

First of all, holidays add to WORLD-BUILDING. It adds details to your story. Is this holiday celebrating a state/popular religion, such as Christmas? (I think plenty of atheists celebrate Christmas as well though, so be careful with that one and be specific- if your people are Christian, it'd be wise to mention it.) Perhaps it is celebrating important dead people, like President's Day? Is it celebrating nature, like Earth Day? You don't have to stick to these holidays; make one up if you want to. For example... the Gregorian Moon festival held in December celebrates the four elements in the world of Noria. Something like that. But now, Noria isn't some world you don't know or care about: you know they celebrate the 4 elements and they have a festival in December dedicated to them.

Another thing about holidays is that they can mark IMPORTANT EVENTS. An example of this is in The Scarlet Letter (by Nathaniel Hawthorne). At the end of the book, on Election Day (politics is mighty important to a town that's just starting out) Dimmesdale makes a huge, important speech, finally (sort of) confesses to his adultery with Hester, and he dies. Holidays can highlight the fact that something important is about to happen. You can start on one as well, part of that let's-drop-the-reader-into-the-middle-of-some-action kind of beginning. Or it can be somewhere in the middle, like your villain is about to set off some Independence Day fireworks as a distraction so he can slip away from you unnoticed. Or, like The Scarlet Letter, it can happen at the end, finishing your story with a grand finale.

The last thing: CHARACTER-BUILDING. Holidays can introduce facts about your character without having to come right out and saying it. For example, if your character is Muslim and you start your book during Ramadan, you don't have to outright say "Christina is Muslim." Or Hanukkah: you don't have to say "Bobby Joe is Jewish." If your character isn't religious at all, then maybe they are celebrating some holiday that they care about, like if they're an environmentalist and celebrating Earth Day. Character building is vital to a story, and adding holidays is one way of building up who they are as a person.

Holidays are an important factor to consider in your story, just as important as language or culture or history. In many ways, it actually adds to those three. Readers love a world that could they can almost reach out and touch, and knowing that Noria celebrates the Gregorian Moon festival, or that this tiny Muslim village in the Middle East during the 800s AD is celebrating Ramadan (Did they have Ramadan in that time period?) makes your story realistic and imaginable.

While this post doesn't cover everything, and I would like to elaborate more, I have to get off now (too much homework, not enough hours in a day). So, good luck with your writing, remember the points I have made, and have a blessed day. :D  

P/C of P/D

The Pros and Cons of Prophecies and Destiny in Your Story (The title of this post reminds me of fractions. >.< ... What did it remind YOU of?)

PRO: These two can add an overview of your plot. You know what to expect, because it's right there, expressed in writing from some wise old nun or something. Almost like a brief, overall summary. Example: the Gregor the Overlander series by Suzanne Collins (same author who wrote the Hunger Games).  But it can also be stretched to your entire series- such as the Warriors saga by Erin Hunter. "Fire alone can save our clan" and all that.

CON: It is very, very overdone. Sometimes it seems like any fantasy novel you stumble across has a prophecy in it, or the characters believe they're doing it because it's their destiny. Like the Leviathan series by Scott Westerfeld. I love, love, love that series, don't get me wrong, but Aleksander is convinced that all of what happens to him is destiny. Or the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordin- Percy is a pawn of some sort of prophecy or other.

PRO: It does add depth to the story, if you do it right. Again, I bring up Leviathan or the Warriors saga. Your characters are focused on something, and their reaction to this destiny/prophecy (do they fight it? Do they even believe it will come to pass?) provide detail to "flesh out" your characters, as other bloggers on here would say. :D

CON: It can make your story seem gaudy and overdone. It kind of ties in with the other con; it's kind of like vampire romances, you want it to seem original and realistic. If your character is convinced it is his destiny to fling himself off a cliff and he does so, your story ends pretty quickly. If your character scoffs at the idea of jumping off a cliff being his destiny and is desperately struggling against it, and he eventually jumps off anyways, two things are gonna happen: 1. your character will seem a little stupid. Or weak. and 2. You just wrote a completely pointless story. I usually find it's easier to stomach a book where the characters are fighting destiny, which is just my opinion. This way, if your character's destiny can at least prolong your story for more than two sentences. But back to my main point: you know your destiny/prophecy is overdone or gaudy when it is dramatic, pointless, and/or all the character thinks about.

Prophecy and Destiny are good in moderation; I've come across plenty of books with these in them and they're among my favorite reading material. But if you overdo it, you might as well bang your reader's head into the desk for them.

P.S. - if you dare write a vampire romance about a prophecy where your human and vampire are destined to fall in love, I will not be picking it up at my local bookstore. No offense.

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