I'm a slave to the world of the internet!
I'm just kidding. What I mean is that I finally gave in and decided to believe in myself and consider myself a published author (even if my novel has not seen the light of day yet). Therefore, starting a couple of days ago, I've launched the official fan page on Facebook. It's pretty barren for now, but I plan to fill it with many writing-related thoughts.
Yes, this is my official launch of the page. So virtual champagne and scones for everyone!
So, if you're interested in how the publishing process will work for me from this point on, don't be afraid to wonder over and give me a shout. You can find it here.
In other news, I've just edited chapter 5 of Hunters (first go - using the crits). I'll have to go through it again soon and see what I want to say in it that I haven't already.
Also, coming soon, news about Saving Grace and where it will be going.
Just wanted to take the time and thank everyone for their support and virtual love. It's given me confidence and kept me going all this time. The 4000 hits my blog has received makes me long to give away free stuff. Hopefully, by the time I get to 5000 hits, I'll actually have what to give away ;)
So, until then, virtual hugs for everyone!
Showing posts with label updates. Show all posts
Showing posts with label updates. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Some news
So, I went and saw The Hunger Games last night. I'm sort of on the fence about it. Knowing the books and the film industry, I know it could have been much worse. On the other hand, I found myself getting bored during. And the action shots were just terrible. The camera moved around so much, I couldn't tell who was fighting whom and who was doing what.
The screenplay felt pretty solid to me. I had trouble with the directing and the soundtrack. The lack of background sounds made me... well, notice that there aren't any. They could have played out the suspense a lot better with some sound.
I did like the scenes from behind the cameras. Those were really interesting and nice. :) Overall, I think the movie worked and could have been worse.
On to other news. I'm excited that in April, the page for the Fire&Ice devision of Melange Publishing will be out -- cuz that's where Hunters is coming out. It was apparently deemed YA (not exactly sure why, but I guess it's pretty clean), so... I can't wait :D. I still haven't gotten news about the cover, and I'm still very excited to see it (the official one).
Mysti Parker (yeah, you know her), had me do a guest post on her blog. I managed to put that in at work (oopsy, almost forgot), but in the flurry of it, I discovered something about myself. If you're curious, you can read the guest post here.
I've been wondering if to make an author Facebook page for myself. I've been toying with the idea for a while and decided to have one once I am a published author. Now that I'm contracted, I'm a bit scared to call myself that. Like if I exaggerate and get over excited, the good thing will go away. And I'm pretty nervous about that. Though I've seen unpublished authors with Facebook pages. Hmmm... not sure what to do about that. I'm just sure I won't be giving out news of my books on my personal page (since most of the stuff going on there is in Romanian and for Romanians) Most of the people there don't even know I write (yup, let alone that I'm contracted - ha! I can't get enough of saying that).
So, this is me for now. I'll be giving you more news soon. Right now, I'm getting excited with wedding planning and such. Already gave the order for my invitations. :D Hope to get back here with some good news and/or a potential cover/Facebook page.
Over and out!
The screenplay felt pretty solid to me. I had trouble with the directing and the soundtrack. The lack of background sounds made me... well, notice that there aren't any. They could have played out the suspense a lot better with some sound.
I did like the scenes from behind the cameras. Those were really interesting and nice. :) Overall, I think the movie worked and could have been worse.
On to other news. I'm excited that in April, the page for the Fire&Ice devision of Melange Publishing will be out -- cuz that's where Hunters is coming out. It was apparently deemed YA (not exactly sure why, but I guess it's pretty clean), so... I can't wait :D. I still haven't gotten news about the cover, and I'm still very excited to see it (the official one).
Mysti Parker (yeah, you know her), had me do a guest post on her blog. I managed to put that in at work (oopsy, almost forgot), but in the flurry of it, I discovered something about myself. If you're curious, you can read the guest post here.
I've been wondering if to make an author Facebook page for myself. I've been toying with the idea for a while and decided to have one once I am a published author. Now that I'm contracted, I'm a bit scared to call myself that. Like if I exaggerate and get over excited, the good thing will go away. And I'm pretty nervous about that. Though I've seen unpublished authors with Facebook pages. Hmmm... not sure what to do about that. I'm just sure I won't be giving out news of my books on my personal page (since most of the stuff going on there is in Romanian and for Romanians) Most of the people there don't even know I write (yup, let alone that I'm contracted - ha! I can't get enough of saying that).
So, this is me for now. I'll be giving you more news soon. Right now, I'm getting excited with wedding planning and such. Already gave the order for my invitations. :D Hope to get back here with some good news and/or a potential cover/Facebook page.
Over and out!
Friday, March 9, 2012
Move it, pal!
Hi everyone.
I know I've been MIA for a long, long time, but things have been hectic lately. With everything. I think my life will slow down a bit only in November this year, because until then, I have many things to do. You already know that, so I won't be getting into it again. All you need to know is, I'm blogging today because I have a day off ;)
You're probably confused about the title. Don't worry, I'm not addressing you directly. I'll take the long winded way to explain what's going on.
Recently (if you can call Christmas recent), I've acquired a kindle, which means I've automatically tripled the number of books I read a year. I've read over 14 books in 3 months, and I usually read that many per year. I also love that I got to read books by many of my friends. Which was awesome.
Now, while reading my way through many books (including something by the now infamous Amanda Hocking), I came to the following conclusion: action has taken the place of good old fashioned character development in many books.
What's character development?
What, you call yourself a writer and dare to ask that? No, I'm just kidding here - character development is the change that goes on in your character after he/she goes through all the mayhem you put him/her through in your book. So character goes from point A to point B and is better for the experience. (as in grows by the end of this stuff).
After reading some YA lately (including more of the Fallen series and the first 2 Hush Hush books - I know, my choice in literature isn't exactly the best), I've realized that characters DON'T GROW anymore. And I finally realized why The Hunger Games left me with a bitter taste in my mouth - because Katniss didn't grow - she started out as a paranoiac loner and ended just the same. Yes, she has other, redeeming traits, but she starts with them and ends with them. No growth what-so-ever. The same with most YA heroes and heroines these days.
And that's just wrong! I mean YA should be the genre that should preach evolution and development the most - teach the kids that they have to fight for what's right and grow with the experience. Even if there's nothing else to learn from that book.
I'm not saying I'm doing it, but at least I'm trying.
In my YA series, Sam's a rich, pretty clumsy city kid who has to learn to trek through a jungle and shoot and fight because he'll be dead by the end of the book if he doesn't. He also has to fight his insecurities and believe in the decisions he makes because they could get everyone he cares about killed. At some point, he has to even overcome his fear of heights. He struggles and almost fails, but he grows with it.
In Hunters, Rachel actually has to tone down her badd-ass-ness and learn that positive feelings are just as driving as anger. She also evolves and learns how to use what she has without doubting herself. I admit she doesn't grow much - maybe just softens and finds her inner balance - but something about her does change.
Grace, my newest character to torture, grows A LOT. People reading the book know how annoying she was at the beginning and how she started growing a spine and building confidence.
I want to see that in books. People overcoming their condition - struggling to succeed. And here's where the title gets explained (told you it would be a lng and winding road). Move it and evolve, you damn character!
Plot is important, I couldn't agree more. But if you send a cardboard piece (or a stone block in case the character is 3D) down an interesting road, its not going to make me love the book. Enjoy it, sure. Find the plot amazing - maybe. Be happy with the experience - nope, not me. The proof is that I've spent months since I've read The Hunger Games with a bitter feeling that something was wrong with that series. And when I found the flaw, I was very relieved and ready to put it behind me. And, no, I won't be reading those books again.
Honestly, it's going to take a very long time for something as good as Harry Potter to come out for the YA audience. My thoughts.
So yes, three dimensional characters can still be bad. That is my conclusion for the day.
In other news, I've started editing Hunters again - one chapter at a time. I'm gonna need to work on the last chapters because I've changed them pretty much and I need to see if the idea works or not.
Hope to get back here some time this month.
I know I've been MIA for a long, long time, but things have been hectic lately. With everything. I think my life will slow down a bit only in November this year, because until then, I have many things to do. You already know that, so I won't be getting into it again. All you need to know is, I'm blogging today because I have a day off ;)
You're probably confused about the title. Don't worry, I'm not addressing you directly. I'll take the long winded way to explain what's going on.
Recently (if you can call Christmas recent), I've acquired a kindle, which means I've automatically tripled the number of books I read a year. I've read over 14 books in 3 months, and I usually read that many per year. I also love that I got to read books by many of my friends. Which was awesome.
Now, while reading my way through many books (including something by the now infamous Amanda Hocking), I came to the following conclusion: action has taken the place of good old fashioned character development in many books.
What's character development?
What, you call yourself a writer and dare to ask that? No, I'm just kidding here - character development is the change that goes on in your character after he/she goes through all the mayhem you put him/her through in your book. So character goes from point A to point B and is better for the experience. (as in grows by the end of this stuff).
After reading some YA lately (including more of the Fallen series and the first 2 Hush Hush books - I know, my choice in literature isn't exactly the best), I've realized that characters DON'T GROW anymore. And I finally realized why The Hunger Games left me with a bitter taste in my mouth - because Katniss didn't grow - she started out as a paranoiac loner and ended just the same. Yes, she has other, redeeming traits, but she starts with them and ends with them. No growth what-so-ever. The same with most YA heroes and heroines these days.
And that's just wrong! I mean YA should be the genre that should preach evolution and development the most - teach the kids that they have to fight for what's right and grow with the experience. Even if there's nothing else to learn from that book.
I'm not saying I'm doing it, but at least I'm trying.
In my YA series, Sam's a rich, pretty clumsy city kid who has to learn to trek through a jungle and shoot and fight because he'll be dead by the end of the book if he doesn't. He also has to fight his insecurities and believe in the decisions he makes because they could get everyone he cares about killed. At some point, he has to even overcome his fear of heights. He struggles and almost fails, but he grows with it.
In Hunters, Rachel actually has to tone down her badd-ass-ness and learn that positive feelings are just as driving as anger. She also evolves and learns how to use what she has without doubting herself. I admit she doesn't grow much - maybe just softens and finds her inner balance - but something about her does change.
Grace, my newest character to torture, grows A LOT. People reading the book know how annoying she was at the beginning and how she started growing a spine and building confidence.
I want to see that in books. People overcoming their condition - struggling to succeed. And here's where the title gets explained (told you it would be a lng and winding road). Move it and evolve, you damn character!
Plot is important, I couldn't agree more. But if you send a cardboard piece (or a stone block in case the character is 3D) down an interesting road, its not going to make me love the book. Enjoy it, sure. Find the plot amazing - maybe. Be happy with the experience - nope, not me. The proof is that I've spent months since I've read The Hunger Games with a bitter feeling that something was wrong with that series. And when I found the flaw, I was very relieved and ready to put it behind me. And, no, I won't be reading those books again.
Honestly, it's going to take a very long time for something as good as Harry Potter to come out for the YA audience. My thoughts.
So yes, three dimensional characters can still be bad. That is my conclusion for the day.
In other news, I've started editing Hunters again - one chapter at a time. I'm gonna need to work on the last chapters because I've changed them pretty much and I need to see if the idea works or not.
Hope to get back here some time this month.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Contests, reviews and updates
Hello peeps!
I'm back before the end of the month, which in itself is a miracle. :)
So let me hit you with some news. First, I've qualified for the top five in the Unwritten 'Love at first sight contest'. Which means I have the chance to win some yummy amazon gift certificate to buy books. So, why not hop on over and vote (for me or for whomever you like). Here's the link: contest.
In other news, I've received another contract offering for Hunters. As flattering as that is, I'll have to tell them it's taken already. And speaking of which... I can't wait to see what cover they'll be cooking up for me :D
Now let's get to the point. I've been owing people some reviews of books. So, today, I'm going to give you my short thoughts on Rae of Hope by Wanita May.
Standard disclaimer: The opinions to follow are my own and you should keep in mind that different people have different tastes.
I read this book maybe a month ago.
The basic story is that Rae Kerrigan (loved the name) is enlisted in an exclusive boarding school for people with special talents. She doesn't know she has a special talent, but discovers it when she gets there. At the age of 16, she would sprout a tattoo(tatu) which gives her super powers. Also, she finds out that her father was kinda evil and her mother set fire to their house to kill her father (I guess that's a bit of a spoiler).
Rae tries to get used to this world and adapt, and also prove that she's not like her father. Some events take place and Rae learns to use her powers and trust herself.
As a whole, I liked this story. The concept was interesting and the writing flowed well. It was easy to get yourself lost in Rae's world. Also, the whole tatu thing was an awesome idea. The school was well thought out and easy to imagine.
There were some things in there that sort of bugged me as well. For instance, there is very little detail on what happened at their training courses. Also, there was a jumble of characters I found hard to keep track of, especially because most of them seemed to be acting the same.
Also, at some times I couldn't connect with Rae. Though she was mostly a nice girl and good character, the thing with Devon sort of bugged me - especially since she hated his girlfriend without any objective reason.
I found that bit a little unbelievable as well. Devon and his girlfriend had been together for a long time - couples like that don't just break up without a real reason.
As a conclusion to this rant, Rae of Hope is an enjoyable read. It makes me want to read the next book in the series and see where the author will take the story.
My rating for it: 3.5 stars
Well, this is it for now. I have more reviews to do, but I'll have to find more time. Meanwhile, check out Mysti's contest ;)
See ya!
I'm back before the end of the month, which in itself is a miracle. :)
So let me hit you with some news. First, I've qualified for the top five in the Unwritten 'Love at first sight contest'. Which means I have the chance to win some yummy amazon gift certificate to buy books. So, why not hop on over and vote (for me or for whomever you like). Here's the link: contest.
In other news, I've received another contract offering for Hunters. As flattering as that is, I'll have to tell them it's taken already. And speaking of which... I can't wait to see what cover they'll be cooking up for me :D
Now let's get to the point. I've been owing people some reviews of books. So, today, I'm going to give you my short thoughts on Rae of Hope by Wanita May.
Standard disclaimer: The opinions to follow are my own and you should keep in mind that different people have different tastes.
I read this book maybe a month ago.
The basic story is that Rae Kerrigan (loved the name) is enlisted in an exclusive boarding school for people with special talents. She doesn't know she has a special talent, but discovers it when she gets there. At the age of 16, she would sprout a tattoo(tatu) which gives her super powers. Also, she finds out that her father was kinda evil and her mother set fire to their house to kill her father (I guess that's a bit of a spoiler).
Rae tries to get used to this world and adapt, and also prove that she's not like her father. Some events take place and Rae learns to use her powers and trust herself.
As a whole, I liked this story. The concept was interesting and the writing flowed well. It was easy to get yourself lost in Rae's world. Also, the whole tatu thing was an awesome idea. The school was well thought out and easy to imagine.
There were some things in there that sort of bugged me as well. For instance, there is very little detail on what happened at their training courses. Also, there was a jumble of characters I found hard to keep track of, especially because most of them seemed to be acting the same.
Also, at some times I couldn't connect with Rae. Though she was mostly a nice girl and good character, the thing with Devon sort of bugged me - especially since she hated his girlfriend without any objective reason.
I found that bit a little unbelievable as well. Devon and his girlfriend had been together for a long time - couples like that don't just break up without a real reason.
As a conclusion to this rant, Rae of Hope is an enjoyable read. It makes me want to read the next book in the series and see where the author will take the story.
My rating for it: 3.5 stars
Well, this is it for now. I have more reviews to do, but I'll have to find more time. Meanwhile, check out Mysti's contest ;)
See ya!
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
February
I kinda miss you guys :) Just wanted you to know that.
I'm nearing the end of exam session on my Master's course, and only have one project to go. Work is going just a tiny bit better, but eats up even more of my time - hence, I get less critting done. And I'm sorry, since I really enjoy the novels I'm reading.
I'm still editing Grace bit by bit. Also, I have some book reviews to do and I'll try to get them done soon. The two books I have in mind are Rae of Hope by Wanita May and The Calling by Ashely Lynn Willis. - They're both worth it, so if you haven't read them yet, you should if you get a chance.
In other news... hmmm, I don't really have much other news. Except that my country is going to blow up. :D It's actually pretty fun. It's hella cold here - like -25 degrees Celsius and getting to work is a bit of a bitch. Roads are snowed, people snowed in and cars stuck in parking lots. Also, the prime minister just quit and it's like mega-political crisis down here. Also, people have been protesting in the streets to bring down the president in... I think over 3 weeks. Almost a month. I lose track of things sometimes. I do watch the news, but you can't actually believe half the stuff those guys say :p
Other than that... I guess I'm okay. I've bought my wedding dress, veil and shoes and I'm pretty excited about that. Can't wait to have a party.
I also can't wait to see the cover my publisher cooked up for my book. I don't know when that will happen, but I'll let you all know as soon as possible. You can bet! :D
These are my updates for now. I really wish I had more time to visit all the blogs I usually read and leave some comments. Jay, just so you know, I read all of yours ;) Ditto Mysti.
Signing off for now - hope to get back here soon enough.
I'm nearing the end of exam session on my Master's course, and only have one project to go. Work is going just a tiny bit better, but eats up even more of my time - hence, I get less critting done. And I'm sorry, since I really enjoy the novels I'm reading.
I'm still editing Grace bit by bit. Also, I have some book reviews to do and I'll try to get them done soon. The two books I have in mind are Rae of Hope by Wanita May and The Calling by Ashely Lynn Willis. - They're both worth it, so if you haven't read them yet, you should if you get a chance.
In other news... hmmm, I don't really have much other news. Except that my country is going to blow up. :D It's actually pretty fun. It's hella cold here - like -25 degrees Celsius and getting to work is a bit of a bitch. Roads are snowed, people snowed in and cars stuck in parking lots. Also, the prime minister just quit and it's like mega-political crisis down here. Also, people have been protesting in the streets to bring down the president in... I think over 3 weeks. Almost a month. I lose track of things sometimes. I do watch the news, but you can't actually believe half the stuff those guys say :p
Other than that... I guess I'm okay. I've bought my wedding dress, veil and shoes and I'm pretty excited about that. Can't wait to have a party.
I also can't wait to see the cover my publisher cooked up for my book. I don't know when that will happen, but I'll let you all know as soon as possible. You can bet! :D
These are my updates for now. I really wish I had more time to visit all the blogs I usually read and leave some comments. Jay, just so you know, I read all of yours ;) Ditto Mysti.
Signing off for now - hope to get back here soon enough.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Just...Wow
Well, working kinda sucks. I mean, I barely have time to crit people back for all the help they're giving me. And I hate it, but there's nothing I can do about it. And I feel like moaning about work... but I won't.
It's been so long since I last did a blog post. No, I'm not dead - just in a huge lack of time. I'm in exam session as well and often get home waay too tired to think. I hope I'll get more used to this lifestyle in a while and be able to balance it better.
Now, here's some news. I've signed my contract for Hunters and it might be coming out at the end of July. In the meantime, I've received another request for a full from entangled publishing. Even if I'm already signed on with that book, it's still flattering :)
In other news, I've purchase my wedding dress and shoes :) I think that worked pretty well. There's still a lot more planning to do, but at least we're getting somewhere fast.
I love my kindle - and just because of that, I need to do some book reviews pretty soon - I owe it to some really awesome people ;)
As far as editing goes - there's not much of that going on. I don't have the time to do it, and it's annoying the life out of me - again, hoping to get to that sometime soon.
I do hope to get to more focused blogging soon - maybe regarding some actual writing problems. And I can't wait to present you all with the potential cover for Hunters, I actually can't wait to see that one for myself.
Signing off now.
It's been so long since I last did a blog post. No, I'm not dead - just in a huge lack of time. I'm in exam session as well and often get home waay too tired to think. I hope I'll get more used to this lifestyle in a while and be able to balance it better.
Now, here's some news. I've signed my contract for Hunters and it might be coming out at the end of July. In the meantime, I've received another request for a full from entangled publishing. Even if I'm already signed on with that book, it's still flattering :)
In other news, I've purchase my wedding dress and shoes :) I think that worked pretty well. There's still a lot more planning to do, but at least we're getting somewhere fast.
I love my kindle - and just because of that, I need to do some book reviews pretty soon - I owe it to some really awesome people ;)
As far as editing goes - there's not much of that going on. I don't have the time to do it, and it's annoying the life out of me - again, hoping to get to that sometime soon.
I do hope to get to more focused blogging soon - maybe regarding some actual writing problems. And I can't wait to present you all with the potential cover for Hunters, I actually can't wait to see that one for myself.
Signing off now.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Back to the beginning
I'm home. Finally. And will continue being home for the next couple of weeks. For those who don't know what that means, let me give you folks some history (I'm not sure I've ever done that before). Anyway, just so you know, this is going to be a history post.
As most of you know or don't, I'm currently 23. I'm just getting used to this ripe old age, but it's started to grow on me. I'm from a small mountain town called Campulung (some of the people who read Hunters might recall it as the place where the Banshee dwelt and where the Mausoleum was - the place of the epic showdown between vampires and Hunters). But this small town has no colleges in it, so off went the young student to Bucharest, to the best Law School in the country. In the meantime, said youngster finished said college. But I still live in Bucharest where I've recently managed to scrape a job (barely) and where I still study my master's course.
But Campulung is still home sweet home - the place where I eat and sleep and where my parents are. And, of course, where my cats are.
So, I'm glad to be home. As usual, I dwell in my teddy bear wallpapered room (I'm serious about that) where all my childhood memories are. And there's a lot of old stuff just lying around.
Like this. In a previous post, I mentioned writing my hands off in grade school during my classes and mentioned notebooks. Well, these are five of them. About three, if not more, are missing, but I'm too lazy to search for them - probably because the writing is atrocious. Notice that two of them have no covers - that's because I carried these things in my backpack each and every day. And they wore out and fell off. the second one, I actually stapled back, but then it fell again together with the first page.
Notice the title page in full color and filled with drawings of a deluded 12-year-old (though I think I might have been 13 when I started that volume - as I see it, it's the second volume of the second book, so I think I might have spent a couple of years on the first one).
Anyway, the thing is - writing was a lot less complicate then. POV rules? Speech tags? Punctuation? Ha! Those were the last of my worries seeing as I couldn't spell. But I got the story out, built an entire background for my characters, didn't have to worry about description or anything actually making sense... I had fun.
At this point in my life, I don't think I ever imagine I could be published. Not that I am, or anything (well, not yet at least), but I've started taking my writing really seriously when I started college - actually, late after that - in 2009, when I was already in my third year of college. That's when I became active on CC and actually learned how to write (I'd learned how to spell in the meantime)
And now, here I am, with queries under way, with another novel in the editing process, with knowledge (though little) of the industry and how everything works. What can I do? Plow on, I say :) Maybe next year will be better. Maybe I'll get a break and have my novel published. Maybe I'll write something else. Life goes on and I'm not going to give up on writing, ever. That's the one thing I know for sure.
And, just for fun, here's a little excerpt out of one of those notebooks (with proper spelling). Just remember I was young and rather stupid. :p
All of a sudden, the door opened and Ryan stepped out, looking a bit wired. I looked at him without saying a word, waiting for him to speak.
"Listen, I've been really stupid," he finally said after a few seconds of silence. "I mean, we were never together or anything, so why should I be upset?" He was talking faster and faster. "So, I'm sorry. Can we be friends?"
I looked at him dumbstruck, not understanding what he kept blabbing about. But one thing I did understand - the fact that he was sorry.
"Okay, sure. I wanted to come and talk to you anyway," I said cautiously.
"You did?" Ryan asked in his normal voice.
"Yes, I just didn't have the guts to do it."
"It doesn't matter. I'm glad we're friends again."
"Yeah, me too..."
An awkward silence fell between us. It didn't feel as if we were friends. Ryan, however, dropped on the couch and pulled me next to him, after which he started talking again.
"I've been pretty lonely this last week. Honestly, I've missed you around. And I've been dying to tell you the news."
"Fire away," I said, feeling that he really meant it. It felt like everything was going to go back to the way we were before the fight.
"I'm so happy! I'm in love! For the first time in my life, I'm truly in love," he said, getting off the couch and waltzing around.
"With who?" I asked, feeling as if he'd dropped a rather large amount of dictionaries on my defenseless head.
"You don't know her, but I'll introduce you to her if you want," Ryan answered with his back to me.
"Sure, anytime..." I said weakly, this time feeling as if he had thrown a hatchet through my chest and sliced me open.
I have to admit that even if I knew that I was in love with someone else (namely Chris), I felt very offended and hurt because I really liked Ryan, and not just as a friend, but as Chris' only possible substitute. I decided that it was better to play supportive friend for him.
So I did. I met Ryan's love who was a beautiful blond girl who was everything I wasn't: calm, neat, attentive and talked very little. And she seemed to adore Ryan.
I gave up on him, listening to him every time he wanted to talk, but not telling him anything about myself in return. What hurt most was that he didn't seem to notice.
So, basically, next day, I was once again knocking on Sam's door to mourn on his shoulder.
Oh, noes! All the teenage drama (and the adverbs piling up, ready to smother every bit of available text). You know what's fun? I didn't have a real boyfriend when I wrote all this - so I made one up :) The story continued with much drama regarding many characters and, somehow, the narrator (as in me) was always in the middle, or around to spy on people.
I had scenes that placed the first person narrator nowhere near. Like 'Meanwhile, at the Legion of Doom' kind of stuff.
But it was fun. This is where I actually learned to spell in the end. And how I began my journey to where I am now. I hope I'll get much further. I need it.
I hope you guys had fun with this.
As most of you know or don't, I'm currently 23. I'm just getting used to this ripe old age, but it's started to grow on me. I'm from a small mountain town called Campulung (some of the people who read Hunters might recall it as the place where the Banshee dwelt and where the Mausoleum was - the place of the epic showdown between vampires and Hunters). But this small town has no colleges in it, so off went the young student to Bucharest, to the best Law School in the country. In the meantime, said youngster finished said college. But I still live in Bucharest where I've recently managed to scrape a job (barely) and where I still study my master's course.
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| Puffeh Kitteh under the desk |
But Campulung is still home sweet home - the place where I eat and sleep and where my parents are. And, of course, where my cats are.
So, I'm glad to be home. As usual, I dwell in my teddy bear wallpapered room (I'm serious about that) where all my childhood memories are. And there's a lot of old stuff just lying around.
Like this. In a previous post, I mentioned writing my hands off in grade school during my classes and mentioned notebooks. Well, these are five of them. About three, if not more, are missing, but I'm too lazy to search for them - probably because the writing is atrocious. Notice that two of them have no covers - that's because I carried these things in my backpack each and every day. And they wore out and fell off. the second one, I actually stapled back, but then it fell again together with the first page.Notice the title page in full color and filled with drawings of a deluded 12-year-old (though I think I might have been 13 when I started that volume - as I see it, it's the second volume of the second book, so I think I might have spent a couple of years on the first one).
Anyway, the thing is - writing was a lot less complicate then. POV rules? Speech tags? Punctuation? Ha! Those were the last of my worries seeing as I couldn't spell. But I got the story out, built an entire background for my characters, didn't have to worry about description or anything actually making sense... I had fun.
At this point in my life, I don't think I ever imagine I could be published. Not that I am, or anything (well, not yet at least), but I've started taking my writing really seriously when I started college - actually, late after that - in 2009, when I was already in my third year of college. That's when I became active on CC and actually learned how to write (I'd learned how to spell in the meantime)
And now, here I am, with queries under way, with another novel in the editing process, with knowledge (though little) of the industry and how everything works. What can I do? Plow on, I say :) Maybe next year will be better. Maybe I'll get a break and have my novel published. Maybe I'll write something else. Life goes on and I'm not going to give up on writing, ever. That's the one thing I know for sure.
And, just for fun, here's a little excerpt out of one of those notebooks (with proper spelling). Just remember I was young and rather stupid. :p
All of a sudden, the door opened and Ryan stepped out, looking a bit wired. I looked at him without saying a word, waiting for him to speak.
"Listen, I've been really stupid," he finally said after a few seconds of silence. "I mean, we were never together or anything, so why should I be upset?" He was talking faster and faster. "So, I'm sorry. Can we be friends?"
I looked at him dumbstruck, not understanding what he kept blabbing about. But one thing I did understand - the fact that he was sorry.
"Okay, sure. I wanted to come and talk to you anyway," I said cautiously.
"You did?" Ryan asked in his normal voice.
"Yes, I just didn't have the guts to do it."
"It doesn't matter. I'm glad we're friends again."
"Yeah, me too..."
An awkward silence fell between us. It didn't feel as if we were friends. Ryan, however, dropped on the couch and pulled me next to him, after which he started talking again.
"I've been pretty lonely this last week. Honestly, I've missed you around. And I've been dying to tell you the news."
"Fire away," I said, feeling that he really meant it. It felt like everything was going to go back to the way we were before the fight.
"I'm so happy! I'm in love! For the first time in my life, I'm truly in love," he said, getting off the couch and waltzing around.
"With who?" I asked, feeling as if he'd dropped a rather large amount of dictionaries on my defenseless head.
"You don't know her, but I'll introduce you to her if you want," Ryan answered with his back to me.
"Sure, anytime..." I said weakly, this time feeling as if he had thrown a hatchet through my chest and sliced me open.
I have to admit that even if I knew that I was in love with someone else (namely Chris), I felt very offended and hurt because I really liked Ryan, and not just as a friend, but as Chris' only possible substitute. I decided that it was better to play supportive friend for him.
So I did. I met Ryan's love who was a beautiful blond girl who was everything I wasn't: calm, neat, attentive and talked very little. And she seemed to adore Ryan.
I gave up on him, listening to him every time he wanted to talk, but not telling him anything about myself in return. What hurt most was that he didn't seem to notice.
So, basically, next day, I was once again knocking on Sam's door to mourn on his shoulder.
Oh, noes! All the teenage drama (and the adverbs piling up, ready to smother every bit of available text). You know what's fun? I didn't have a real boyfriend when I wrote all this - so I made one up :) The story continued with much drama regarding many characters and, somehow, the narrator (as in me) was always in the middle, or around to spy on people.
I had scenes that placed the first person narrator nowhere near. Like 'Meanwhile, at the Legion of Doom' kind of stuff.
But it was fun. This is where I actually learned to spell in the end. And how I began my journey to where I am now. I hope I'll get much further. I need it.
I hope you guys had fun with this.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Fun Stuff
Looks like I'm prone to messing around this month. Truthfully, I'm not having exactly the hottest month. I'm in no mood for Christmas, which is blasphemy in my book - I usually start singing carols in November. Now, I haven't even taken the tree out and decorated it. I might ;)
The thing is, I'm taking advantage of my last days as a free slacker. In January, I'll be starting work. And that + school + wedding planning = big headache :)
In celebration of my freedom, I bought a 'Procrastination' t- shirt. Really. I know, I'm not right in the head.
And I took some further photos of what entertained me during the last month -> namely my plotting of Saving Grace and a drawing I made of one of the characters in said story (no, I didn't draw the MCs - I would totally suck at that).
So, here's more photos for your entertainment. You get the chance to take a look at my handwriting - obtained after writing thousands of pages of utter brilliance. (I'm talking here, of course, about my college courses.)
To be fair, I used to write by hand a lot at the beginning of my writing career. When I get home, I'll search for the said notebooks - I have a bout 12 full 100 page notebooks written with a spin-off after my Jewel series. In that story, I'm the MC, an exchange student at the High School Sam and co. go to in the original books. I happen to meet all of them, as they're my teachers and I butt into their business and have a wonderful adventure together with my BFF and some of my real grade school colleagues. - Jolly good fun. It's the only thing I've ever written in first person.
So, yes, during grade school, in the classes I didn't care for (that's why I don't know French), I wrote in my little notebook and let my friend read. Sometimes, my colleagues asked if they're in it, and if they knew they were, they asked what they were up to - it was fun :) I wonder what they'd say if they knew how serious I actually became about writing.
Wow, this is turning out to be some weird post about my beginnings as a serious writer. You should see my spelling - it was horrible. I usually spelled f instead of th :D Aren't you glad you never got to read any of that stuff? :p
I think that, the most important thing I've learned over the years is that to have your characters randomly burst into song is not exactly a good idea. Also, that I write the best parodies after my own stuff.
I feel like I'm getting a bit annoying here, so I'm going to end it on a happy tone. See you guys soon.
The thing is, I'm taking advantage of my last days as a free slacker. In January, I'll be starting work. And that + school + wedding planning = big headache :)
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| Notice: dangling pony earrings |
And I took some further photos of what entertained me during the last month -> namely my plotting of Saving Grace and a drawing I made of one of the characters in said story (no, I didn't draw the MCs - I would totally suck at that).
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| Questionable talent |
To be fair, I used to write by hand a lot at the beginning of my writing career. When I get home, I'll search for the said notebooks - I have a bout 12 full 100 page notebooks written with a spin-off after my Jewel series. In that story, I'm the MC, an exchange student at the High School Sam and co. go to in the original books. I happen to meet all of them, as they're my teachers and I butt into their business and have a wonderful adventure together with my BFF and some of my real grade school colleagues. - Jolly good fun. It's the only thing I've ever written in first person.
So, yes, during grade school, in the classes I didn't care for (that's why I don't know French), I wrote in my little notebook and let my friend read. Sometimes, my colleagues asked if they're in it, and if they knew they were, they asked what they were up to - it was fun :) I wonder what they'd say if they knew how serious I actually became about writing.
Wow, this is turning out to be some weird post about my beginnings as a serious writer. You should see my spelling - it was horrible. I usually spelled f instead of th :D Aren't you glad you never got to read any of that stuff? :p
I think that, the most important thing I've learned over the years is that to have your characters randomly burst into song is not exactly a good idea. Also, that I write the best parodies after my own stuff.
I feel like I'm getting a bit annoying here, so I'm going to end it on a happy tone. See you guys soon.
Friday, December 2, 2011
The end and the beginning
Well, that's it. NaNo is over. I've managed to finish my novel at 96 000 words. Of course, you should cut back about 1000 words since I actually wrote two endings for it.
As I expected, NaNo was fun. This year, I wrote over 30 000 words more than last year. Hunters ended at 62 000 words in December, and added up to 73 000 after the edits.
Saving Grace ended at 30 chapters + epilogue and 95 000 words. I actually hope to keep the word count this time adding another 10 000 words to it would be a little catastrophic at this point, especially since it's an Urban Fantasy and has to be easy to read.
Here are a few facts about this year's experience:
- my biggest writing streak was 7000 words in one day
- I had 4 days in which I wrote absolutely nothing
- I officially finished the novel today, Dec 2nd, when I wrote both epilogues
- Writing the ending made me cry - that doesn't happen to me. I'm hoping it's because I put a lot of feeling into it.
- I ended up liking Grace a lot. Even if she messes up a lot, she's the kind of character that learns
- I've put meaning into this one. I hope that people will learn something from the experience
- I've read almost the entire story in a day - I couldn't remember half the stuff I wrote there. It was fun - like reading it the first time. Then, I did the ending.
Right now, I'm starting the editing and revising process. The story is already in the critting cycle - and pestering people with typos and wrong words (ooopsy). I'm so nervous because I don't know if people will like it.
It feels weird, now that it's over. I guess I'll need a couple of days to get used to the idea that I don't have to write anymore :) Anyway, I throughly enjoyed the NaNo experience, and I certainly hope I will be able to do it again next year.
How was it for you?
As I expected, NaNo was fun. This year, I wrote over 30 000 words more than last year. Hunters ended at 62 000 words in December, and added up to 73 000 after the edits.
Saving Grace ended at 30 chapters + epilogue and 95 000 words. I actually hope to keep the word count this time adding another 10 000 words to it would be a little catastrophic at this point, especially since it's an Urban Fantasy and has to be easy to read.
Here are a few facts about this year's experience:
- my biggest writing streak was 7000 words in one day
- I had 4 days in which I wrote absolutely nothing
- I officially finished the novel today, Dec 2nd, when I wrote both epilogues
- Writing the ending made me cry - that doesn't happen to me. I'm hoping it's because I put a lot of feeling into it.
- I ended up liking Grace a lot. Even if she messes up a lot, she's the kind of character that learns
- I've put meaning into this one. I hope that people will learn something from the experience
- I've read almost the entire story in a day - I couldn't remember half the stuff I wrote there. It was fun - like reading it the first time. Then, I did the ending.
Right now, I'm starting the editing and revising process. The story is already in the critting cycle - and pestering people with typos and wrong words (ooopsy). I'm so nervous because I don't know if people will like it.
It feels weird, now that it's over. I guess I'll need a couple of days to get used to the idea that I don't have to write anymore :) Anyway, I throughly enjoyed the NaNo experience, and I certainly hope I will be able to do it again next year.
How was it for you?
Monday, November 28, 2011
Another day, another winner
I know I'm kinda late. I was supposed to give the winner for Wanita's book yesterday. The thing is, I've changed my laptop and it took me a while to get the system up and running (in case you're wondering, it only came with a CD entitle windows 7 and nothing installed on it).
Anywho, after three days of trying to install all the drivers, programs and copy all the stuff I might ever need, I'm finally operational (I think)
So...let's draw a winner, shall we? Going on to Random.org
Drum roll please...
And the winner is.... LINDSEY LOUCKS!! Wow, congrats Lindsey! You win Rae of Hope and also some other goodies Wanita is giving away. Contact me on CC if nothing happens, and I'll give Wanita the heads up :)
In other news, my NaNo project is going pretty crappy. I haven't written a thing in 2 days and now I don't think I'll have the time to actually finish the book. Sure, I've completed the necessary word count, but I actually wanted to exit November with a brand new Novel. I haven't even gotten to the climax. Which is just sad. I hope I'll motivate myself to finish writing it in the end. I'll do my best.
Other than that, I finally got a job. It pays crap, but at least it pays and I have the chance to learn something from it.
For those on CC, Saving Grace will be hitting the public queues this Wednesday.
See you all later
Anywho, after three days of trying to install all the drivers, programs and copy all the stuff I might ever need, I'm finally operational (I think)
So...let's draw a winner, shall we? Going on to Random.org
Drum roll please...
And the winner is.... LINDSEY LOUCKS!! Wow, congrats Lindsey! You win Rae of Hope and also some other goodies Wanita is giving away. Contact me on CC if nothing happens, and I'll give Wanita the heads up :)
In other news, my NaNo project is going pretty crappy. I haven't written a thing in 2 days and now I don't think I'll have the time to actually finish the book. Sure, I've completed the necessary word count, but I actually wanted to exit November with a brand new Novel. I haven't even gotten to the climax. Which is just sad. I hope I'll motivate myself to finish writing it in the end. I'll do my best.
Other than that, I finally got a job. It pays crap, but at least it pays and I have the chance to learn something from it.
For those on CC, Saving Grace will be hitting the public queues this Wednesday.
See you all later
Friday, November 18, 2011
NaNo - Day whatever
You can tell from my annoyed air that I've kinda hit writer's block. It was about time, too, huh? Oh, no, don't get me wrong. I've written today. Only that I have a few chapters of time just passing by. Of course, it matters for the overall story, but I hate filler chapters. I've noticed those sometimes seem to be my best chapters, whether I like it or not.
I kinda have 2/max 3 chapters left of part II, and then I'm charging on to part 3 - which will be hardest to write because I haven't really thought about it. Argh, I'm starting to get pissed for one reason or another.
Oh, yeah. The world will end soon. Why? Because I talked to my BF about what I'm writing and we actually had a conversation about it. It started with me giving him a situation and asking him how he would react to it (because I felt my character might have over-reacted). And from there, I started explaining the plot points, what happened and who's who.
He actually paid attention, told me what he liked and what he didn't... until I told him I'm not going to NOT have my characters hook up since it's a romance... for women mostly. And he went 'oh, okay. Just let me know if you want more reactions.'
Seeing as he was the kind who shook his head when he heard about my writing, this was a huge improvement. It made me feel like he actually cares. And it made me happy, and him like I value his opinion (which I do up to some point) and all involved in everything. :)
Just felt like sharing this extraordinary event.
Hope I'll get the writing juices flowing again
I kinda have 2/max 3 chapters left of part II, and then I'm charging on to part 3 - which will be hardest to write because I haven't really thought about it. Argh, I'm starting to get pissed for one reason or another.
Oh, yeah. The world will end soon. Why? Because I talked to my BF about what I'm writing and we actually had a conversation about it. It started with me giving him a situation and asking him how he would react to it (because I felt my character might have over-reacted). And from there, I started explaining the plot points, what happened and who's who.
He actually paid attention, told me what he liked and what he didn't... until I told him I'm not going to NOT have my characters hook up since it's a romance... for women mostly. And he went 'oh, okay. Just let me know if you want more reactions.'
Seeing as he was the kind who shook his head when he heard about my writing, this was a huge improvement. It made me feel like he actually cares. And it made me happy, and him like I value his opinion (which I do up to some point) and all involved in everything. :)
Just felt like sharing this extraordinary event.
Hope I'll get the writing juices flowing again
Thursday, November 17, 2011
NaNo - Day 17
Look at my pretty tabs! I still have some work to do on organizing this site, but until then, I'm proud I've moved that stuff around.
Well, it's day 17 and I'm approaching 60 k words. My MC came out of her dreary state, embraced life as a human and had one chapter of peace and tranquility with the chance to mend her broken heart. Of course, I couldn't let her bask in her new found balance - that does not for good reading make. So I sent ex-traitorous-boyfriend back into her life. She's in the middle of a full blown fight with him as we speak. Of course, he's still a supernatural, so it's pretty hard for her to escape him. He's much faster.
In other news, I think this is going to work out after all and the book won't turn out as huge as I previously predicted. Which is awesome. Better chance to find a publisher for it :) Yup, I'm already thinking about that. Though, unless I go indie with Hunters, this one might taste the Indie route.
I'm still confused as hell about what I'm writing. I've started reading back a little, and am mildly satisfied with what I found there. But I also find many typos and repeating words. I guess the first round of crits will solve all that. :)
I might have 2-4 chapters left until I finish part II of the story (told you the others are shorter). I hope I'll manage to pull this off.
In the meantime, I've replace the first chapter of Hunters with a blurb and changed the excerpts for the Jewels series if anyone is curious to take a look. Also, don't forget to check out the two interviews I did this month and leave a comment for your chance to win awesome prizes :)
On the fun side, I've been searching for actors looking like my characters. I did find some prospects and it was insanely amusing :)
And another thing - I want to thank all you wonderful people leaving comments. I mainly didn't answer now because I'm pretty busy and because I feel like I have nothing intelligent to say. I am a writing machine right now. Because the more I think, the harder it gets. So I'm doing the non-thinking thing :)
See you all later. Back to writing.
Well, it's day 17 and I'm approaching 60 k words. My MC came out of her dreary state, embraced life as a human and had one chapter of peace and tranquility with the chance to mend her broken heart. Of course, I couldn't let her bask in her new found balance - that does not for good reading make. So I sent ex-traitorous-boyfriend back into her life. She's in the middle of a full blown fight with him as we speak. Of course, he's still a supernatural, so it's pretty hard for her to escape him. He's much faster.
In other news, I think this is going to work out after all and the book won't turn out as huge as I previously predicted. Which is awesome. Better chance to find a publisher for it :) Yup, I'm already thinking about that. Though, unless I go indie with Hunters, this one might taste the Indie route.
I'm still confused as hell about what I'm writing. I've started reading back a little, and am mildly satisfied with what I found there. But I also find many typos and repeating words. I guess the first round of crits will solve all that. :)
I might have 2-4 chapters left until I finish part II of the story (told you the others are shorter). I hope I'll manage to pull this off.
In the meantime, I've replace the first chapter of Hunters with a blurb and changed the excerpts for the Jewels series if anyone is curious to take a look. Also, don't forget to check out the two interviews I did this month and leave a comment for your chance to win awesome prizes :)
On the fun side, I've been searching for actors looking like my characters. I did find some prospects and it was insanely amusing :)
And another thing - I want to thank all you wonderful people leaving comments. I mainly didn't answer now because I'm pretty busy and because I feel like I have nothing intelligent to say. I am a writing machine right now. Because the more I think, the harder it gets. So I'm doing the non-thinking thing :)
See you all later. Back to writing.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
NaNo - Day 16
What does the little bubble say? That's right, that I finished the official NaNo challenge. Yeeey for me! But the show isn't over. Not until I finish the entire novel, and I hope that the remaining days of November will be enogh for that, though, at the rate I'm going, I might actually succeed.
I'm pretty proud of what came out so far. Of course, I've forgotten half of the stuff I've written and already have a nice little plot hole, but I'll cover that later. That's the beauty of NaNo, right?
I'm happy that I've finally finished part 1 of the novel. I've reached chapter 19 and have to deal with a sulky, crying, miserable MC for an entire chapter. I don't mind. The poor thing just got thrown out of her home to live a lame boring life among humans. And the thing she lost her divinity over has been a huge mistake. The girl is crushed - no home, no friends, no love, no nothing. Who wouldn't mope?
Here's the structure of the project: Part I - Angel, Part II - Fallen, Part - III Apocalypse. This pretty much tells everyone what the steps in the creation process are. Fortunately the last two parts are shorter and the third one should be action packed.
I've also finally organized my playlist for this novel. It appears on the right side. Yeey.
And just to celebrate the surpass of 50 000 words, I will post my first excerpt of this new story.
“So… if you could take that decision back, would you?”
A strange light crept in his eyes. “I’m not sure, but I’d rather not think about it. Look at me. I said I wouldn’t talk about it, but you’ve managed to pull all this out.” He sounded amused.
His mood gave Grace heart to ask more. “Don’t feel bad. I wanted to know the reason, and you still haven’t told me that. And I’ll respect your wish.”
He smiled at her. “Thanks.”
Heat rose to her cheeks and she looked away. Her insides did a somersault. “Don’t thank me yet. I’m not done asking questions.”
Robert rolled his eyes. “Why am I not surprised?”
“But this time I want to ask something about me.” She stared at the chipped stone step, her hands shaking with nerves. She remembered what Nate told her about the issue of her death, but she wanted to know. “Do you know how I died?” The question came out as a whisper.
Robert leaned toward her, curiosity etched on his face. “Now, why would you want to know that?”
She looked at him. “Wouldn’t you?”
“True. I did insist on finding out how I died. But I’m not sure I’m the one who should tell you what happened in your case.”
She frowned. “Why not? You obviously know.”
He pursed his lips. “For the second time tonight, a huge idiot.” He took in a deep breath. “I might as well tell you. I was… I mean…” He frowned and fell silent, nibbling on his lower lip.
Grace watched him for a few moments. His lips were fuller than she’d first thought. They suited the rest of his face, which was gorgeous. Don’t think about this now! Or, better yet, don’t think about it ever. “Why are you hesitating?”
“God point, why am I?” He sat up straight. “It’s just that it was pretty horrible. You were three when you died. It was…you sort of…” He ran his hand through his jet black hair, messing it up even more. “Ah, hell. You burned alive.”
Grace gasped. No wonder she kept dreaming about giant flames swallowing her whole. It was not just a dream, but a distant memory. “I – I…” What could she say? A weird feeling took over her as distant memories and the present battled inside her. She believed it, but it didn’t feel like it had happened to her.
“It’s a horrible way to go and…” His lips trembled and he stopped talking. She stared at him. He seemed more affected by the whole thing than she was. “You were three!” He stood and walked away.
Grace got to her feet. It still hurt and she still shook slightly, but she hurried after him. She caught up and fell into step with him. It somehow made her feel better that he was so outraged by what happened. “Thanks for telling me.”
Yeah, it's first draft stuff, and maybe some of this will go, but I like this little scene. It's the start of most of her problems.
Hope everyone is doing well :)
I'm pretty proud of what came out so far. Of course, I've forgotten half of the stuff I've written and already have a nice little plot hole, but I'll cover that later. That's the beauty of NaNo, right?
I'm happy that I've finally finished part 1 of the novel. I've reached chapter 19 and have to deal with a sulky, crying, miserable MC for an entire chapter. I don't mind. The poor thing just got thrown out of her home to live a lame boring life among humans. And the thing she lost her divinity over has been a huge mistake. The girl is crushed - no home, no friends, no love, no nothing. Who wouldn't mope?
Here's the structure of the project: Part I - Angel, Part II - Fallen, Part - III Apocalypse. This pretty much tells everyone what the steps in the creation process are. Fortunately the last two parts are shorter and the third one should be action packed.
I've also finally organized my playlist for this novel. It appears on the right side. Yeey.
And just to celebrate the surpass of 50 000 words, I will post my first excerpt of this new story.
“So… if you could take that decision back, would you?”
A strange light crept in his eyes. “I’m not sure, but I’d rather not think about it. Look at me. I said I wouldn’t talk about it, but you’ve managed to pull all this out.” He sounded amused.
His mood gave Grace heart to ask more. “Don’t feel bad. I wanted to know the reason, and you still haven’t told me that. And I’ll respect your wish.”
He smiled at her. “Thanks.”
Heat rose to her cheeks and she looked away. Her insides did a somersault. “Don’t thank me yet. I’m not done asking questions.”
Robert rolled his eyes. “Why am I not surprised?”
“But this time I want to ask something about me.” She stared at the chipped stone step, her hands shaking with nerves. She remembered what Nate told her about the issue of her death, but she wanted to know. “Do you know how I died?” The question came out as a whisper.
Robert leaned toward her, curiosity etched on his face. “Now, why would you want to know that?”
She looked at him. “Wouldn’t you?”
“True. I did insist on finding out how I died. But I’m not sure I’m the one who should tell you what happened in your case.”
She frowned. “Why not? You obviously know.”
He pursed his lips. “For the second time tonight, a huge idiot.” He took in a deep breath. “I might as well tell you. I was… I mean…” He frowned and fell silent, nibbling on his lower lip.
Grace watched him for a few moments. His lips were fuller than she’d first thought. They suited the rest of his face, which was gorgeous. Don’t think about this now! Or, better yet, don’t think about it ever. “Why are you hesitating?”
“God point, why am I?” He sat up straight. “It’s just that it was pretty horrible. You were three when you died. It was…you sort of…” He ran his hand through his jet black hair, messing it up even more. “Ah, hell. You burned alive.”
Grace gasped. No wonder she kept dreaming about giant flames swallowing her whole. It was not just a dream, but a distant memory. “I – I…” What could she say? A weird feeling took over her as distant memories and the present battled inside her. She believed it, but it didn’t feel like it had happened to her.
“It’s a horrible way to go and…” His lips trembled and he stopped talking. She stared at him. He seemed more affected by the whole thing than she was. “You were three!” He stood and walked away.
Grace got to her feet. It still hurt and she still shook slightly, but she hurried after him. She caught up and fell into step with him. It somehow made her feel better that he was so outraged by what happened. “Thanks for telling me.”
Yeah, it's first draft stuff, and maybe some of this will go, but I like this little scene. It's the start of most of her problems.
Hope everyone is doing well :)
Monday, November 14, 2011
NaNo - Day 14
It's day 14, which means it's almost the middle of NaNo. For some reason, the NaNo website proudly tells me that I have 17 days left. Well... I know I went to law school and math is not my strong suit, but...heh?
Moving on. Check out the shiny bubble. What do you see there? That's right, that I'm almost finished with the official challenge. Not finished at all with the novel though. I'm starting to wonder if I'll actually finish it in November after all. I might. I'm currently at chapter 16 and I'm almost done with the first part of the novel (which is also the longest). I think I have about two or three chapters left of it.
In case you are concerned about my MC, Grace, she's no longer bananas. She is now bipolar, living two existences. I'm starting to remember the thrill of NaNo - it means not remembering what the hell you wrote two pages ago and being unable to realize whether anything your characters do and say makes sense.
I'm at that point in the writing process. I'm writing, and writing, and writing, but I'm not sure if it's flowing alright. Just so you know, I'm no the type to write scenes and glue them together. I just write the whole damn thing from start to finish.
A few facts about the story so far:
- it's about angels and demons (and a third force that so far confuses everyone)
- people don't know of the existence of said angels and demons, so all the fighting takes place in dark alleys or on the top of industrial buildings.
- There are swords and knives and a lot of chopping of limbs and head going on
- So far, I've killed off over 10 demons
- I've spared 2 demons so far
- I've killed an indefinite number of demonic shadows
- I've invented 2 underworld creatures called Negri and Nexi. You'll have to read the book to find out what those things are.
- Grace is very confused about her nature
- the antagonist is very confused, too, but not about his nature. He's in a pit of self-loathing right now.
- I no longer have an antagonist. (big surprise! Anyone who read any of my stuff knows I screw the antagonist over every single time)
- one of the initial protags might turn into an antagonist (I do that a lot too) - though I don't plan him to
- I have to describe a 30 days journey in a few pages - I hate doing that, but it's important to the plot that I pull it off
- I'm very confused about where this story is going - I mean, I know where it's going, but it's taking weird detours getting there.
I can't wait to get to part two of the story. It's very depressing at first (at least it should be) and then all happy and everything. I wonder if I'll manage to pull it off.
In other news... I don't have other news. I guess I could say that I've found a symbolic cover for my project and also put together a playlist. It will appear on the sidebar soon enough.
I'm getting the feeling that NaNo is driving me bonkers. In a good way, of course :)
Moving on. Check out the shiny bubble. What do you see there? That's right, that I'm almost finished with the official challenge. Not finished at all with the novel though. I'm starting to wonder if I'll actually finish it in November after all. I might. I'm currently at chapter 16 and I'm almost done with the first part of the novel (which is also the longest). I think I have about two or three chapters left of it.
In case you are concerned about my MC, Grace, she's no longer bananas. She is now bipolar, living two existences. I'm starting to remember the thrill of NaNo - it means not remembering what the hell you wrote two pages ago and being unable to realize whether anything your characters do and say makes sense.
I'm at that point in the writing process. I'm writing, and writing, and writing, but I'm not sure if it's flowing alright. Just so you know, I'm no the type to write scenes and glue them together. I just write the whole damn thing from start to finish.
A few facts about the story so far:
- it's about angels and demons (and a third force that so far confuses everyone)
- people don't know of the existence of said angels and demons, so all the fighting takes place in dark alleys or on the top of industrial buildings.
- There are swords and knives and a lot of chopping of limbs and head going on
- So far, I've killed off over 10 demons
- I've spared 2 demons so far
- I've killed an indefinite number of demonic shadows
- I've invented 2 underworld creatures called Negri and Nexi. You'll have to read the book to find out what those things are.
- Grace is very confused about her nature
- the antagonist is very confused, too, but not about his nature. He's in a pit of self-loathing right now.
- I no longer have an antagonist. (big surprise! Anyone who read any of my stuff knows I screw the antagonist over every single time)
- one of the initial protags might turn into an antagonist (I do that a lot too) - though I don't plan him to
- I have to describe a 30 days journey in a few pages - I hate doing that, but it's important to the plot that I pull it off
- I'm very confused about where this story is going - I mean, I know where it's going, but it's taking weird detours getting there.
I can't wait to get to part two of the story. It's very depressing at first (at least it should be) and then all happy and everything. I wonder if I'll manage to pull it off.
In other news... I don't have other news. I guess I could say that I've found a symbolic cover for my project and also put together a playlist. It will appear on the sidebar soon enough.
I'm getting the feeling that NaNo is driving me bonkers. In a good way, of course :)
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
NaNo - Day 9
Things are going well. I've reached chapter 12 of my novel and the plot is finally well underway. I've come across a hard section and I'll have to take great care writing it because it justifies everything that happens next. I'm actually pretty excited to get this done and through the queues to see what people think about it, if it holds interest.
Also, my MC is all over the place. As in she went bananas and refuses to have any trait except that of going ballistic. And I'm letting her. I saw what happened last year when I tried to beat Rachel into submission. I'm letting Grace roam free.
BTW, my MCs name is Grace (I know, not a name I would usually give a character). I actually had some fun this year finding "immaculate" names for my Angel characters.
Also, this is the goriest thing I've ever written. I want to improve on the gore, but I'll do that with revision number 1. Right now, I have to write the slightly beefed up skeleton of my masterpiece (insert sarcastic cough here). I can't believe how much fun I'm having. And I have over 20 chapters left to go. Weeee!
Signing off. Gotta go hit the gym (trying to get in shape for the wedding)
Also, my MC is all over the place. As in she went bananas and refuses to have any trait except that of going ballistic. And I'm letting her. I saw what happened last year when I tried to beat Rachel into submission. I'm letting Grace roam free.
BTW, my MCs name is Grace (I know, not a name I would usually give a character). I actually had some fun this year finding "immaculate" names for my Angel characters.
Also, this is the goriest thing I've ever written. I want to improve on the gore, but I'll do that with revision number 1. Right now, I have to write the slightly beefed up skeleton of my masterpiece (insert sarcastic cough here). I can't believe how much fun I'm having. And I have over 20 chapters left to go. Weeee!
Signing off. Gotta go hit the gym (trying to get in shape for the wedding)
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
NaNo - Day 8
I'm getting back on the bandwagon with the NaNo posting. Even if I haven't been updating, I have been writing.
On Saturday, I managed to do the outline of my novel, so now I know what happens from beginning to end. It's much more detailed that the one I had for Hunters (That one was 2 pages, this one somewhere at 4).
I've come to realize that there are a few things that I'm doing as a first while writing this story:
1. My novels usually stop around 20- 23 chapters. This one has over 30. So I've reached a new psychological threshold.
2. This is the first novel I've written (so far) that has parts. I've structured the whole novel in 3 parts, each culminating with a major twist of the plot (well, except the last one, which culminates with the end).
3. This is the first novel in which I have only one POV. Hunters wasn't exactly rich there either, but I had 2 chapters written in Vlad's POV. My Jewel series has an indefinite number of POV characters.
4. I already came up with a concept for the cover. It took me a whole lot to think of what I want for Hunters (and I can't do what I wanted because I'd have to draw it and I suck at drawing) And I still don't know what my Jewel covers will look like, but Saving Grace already has a temp cover to get me going and I have a couple of ideas rolling around my head for the cover.
Other than that, I've finally finished my character list, ignoring the extras. I actually inserted a new character as a punch and I'm actually enjoying playing around with it. Also, I think I've made my male MC likable enough to work. I'm actually starting to like him :D
I also solved all the motivation problems for the big ticket items in the book. And I'm proud of that.
Anyway, better get back to writing. I haven't met my quota for today. I'm writing a chapter a day, so I still have about a half of a chapter to go.
On Saturday, I managed to do the outline of my novel, so now I know what happens from beginning to end. It's much more detailed that the one I had for Hunters (That one was 2 pages, this one somewhere at 4).
I've come to realize that there are a few things that I'm doing as a first while writing this story:
1. My novels usually stop around 20- 23 chapters. This one has over 30. So I've reached a new psychological threshold.
2. This is the first novel I've written (so far) that has parts. I've structured the whole novel in 3 parts, each culminating with a major twist of the plot (well, except the last one, which culminates with the end).
3. This is the first novel in which I have only one POV. Hunters wasn't exactly rich there either, but I had 2 chapters written in Vlad's POV. My Jewel series has an indefinite number of POV characters.
4. I already came up with a concept for the cover. It took me a whole lot to think of what I want for Hunters (and I can't do what I wanted because I'd have to draw it and I suck at drawing) And I still don't know what my Jewel covers will look like, but Saving Grace already has a temp cover to get me going and I have a couple of ideas rolling around my head for the cover.
Other than that, I've finally finished my character list, ignoring the extras. I actually inserted a new character as a punch and I'm actually enjoying playing around with it. Also, I think I've made my male MC likable enough to work. I'm actually starting to like him :D
I also solved all the motivation problems for the big ticket items in the book. And I'm proud of that.
Anyway, better get back to writing. I haven't met my quota for today. I'm writing a chapter a day, so I still have about a half of a chapter to go.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
NaNo Trials
Hey peeps!
Still jobless, still schoolless (that's not half bad, actually) and with nothing better to do than... well, I actually always find something to do, which still keeps me reasonably busy, so that's great.
Yey! We're one month away from NaNoWriMo. I like it - I finally get some writing done! I have a project in mind for this year, but I'm not sure exactly how and when I'm going to pull it off. For the curious ones, I'm going to try another paranormal romance, and no, it will not be a sequel to Hunters or include any vampires.
I won't give much about the subject away. Only that I'm going to try something a bit deeper than last time. I'm going to try to include a hidden message to stick with the reader. Mind you, I've never done this before, so it will be a first for me. I'm going to stick to a small number of characters as well, just like last time, but the plot will be a lot more complex (at least for my hurting brain.) In case you were wondering/doubting it, I still have no clue what happens in this book or how it will end. But it's going to be fun, nonetheless.
In other news, I've totally reworked the beginning of Ruby, the first in my Jewel series, but I think I'll go back to it properly after NaNo. And, of course, I'm once again planning to edit Hunters using the crits I got in my private queue. That's going a bit slow - as in I've just done chapter 1 so far, but I promise to do chapter 2 today.
So, yeey for brainless writing in November. I'll be keeping everyone in touch with how I do, so I'll probably have more blog posts in November (it was about time, too :) I've been really lazy lately).
Are you going to try NaNo? And what is your project?
Still jobless, still schoolless (that's not half bad, actually) and with nothing better to do than... well, I actually always find something to do, which still keeps me reasonably busy, so that's great.
Yey! We're one month away from NaNoWriMo. I like it - I finally get some writing done! I have a project in mind for this year, but I'm not sure exactly how and when I'm going to pull it off. For the curious ones, I'm going to try another paranormal romance, and no, it will not be a sequel to Hunters or include any vampires.
I won't give much about the subject away. Only that I'm going to try something a bit deeper than last time. I'm going to try to include a hidden message to stick with the reader. Mind you, I've never done this before, so it will be a first for me. I'm going to stick to a small number of characters as well, just like last time, but the plot will be a lot more complex (at least for my hurting brain.) In case you were wondering/doubting it, I still have no clue what happens in this book or how it will end. But it's going to be fun, nonetheless.
In other news, I've totally reworked the beginning of Ruby, the first in my Jewel series, but I think I'll go back to it properly after NaNo. And, of course, I'm once again planning to edit Hunters using the crits I got in my private queue. That's going a bit slow - as in I've just done chapter 1 so far, but I promise to do chapter 2 today.
So, yeey for brainless writing in November. I'll be keeping everyone in touch with how I do, so I'll probably have more blog posts in November (it was about time, too :) I've been really lazy lately).
Are you going to try NaNo? And what is your project?
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Nope, still not dead
This is going to be a quick one.
Here's why I'm MIA from everywhere on this planet. I'm actively searching for a job - and I kinda went to stage 3/4 for one. I'm now giddy, waiting to be called back for the final interview and then I'll be giddy to see if they hire me.
Meanwhile, I've studied and had my Master's exam, and managed to score a beautiful 96 points and get in. Don't know if I'll pursue it if I get the job, since I won't really have the time - so I'm having a bit of trouble with that, too.
Plus, I've been to my best friends wedding last weekend, which is why I critted nothing O : ) It was fun. (and I can't believe she got married, since she's younger than me : P)
Anyway. Imma try to catch up on some crits soon. I'm really behind and feel terrible toward everyone, but I still need to rest for a bit and maybe do something about actually publishing that darn book I wrote. Cover or no cover (I decided to submit it to a small press, see if they take it, and if not, I'm gonna self-publish it in December - just in time for Christmas :D)
So... yeah... I hope I'll get back to blogging soon and to saying more interesting and creative writing things :)
Here's why I'm MIA from everywhere on this planet. I'm actively searching for a job - and I kinda went to stage 3/4 for one. I'm now giddy, waiting to be called back for the final interview and then I'll be giddy to see if they hire me.
Meanwhile, I've studied and had my Master's exam, and managed to score a beautiful 96 points and get in. Don't know if I'll pursue it if I get the job, since I won't really have the time - so I'm having a bit of trouble with that, too.
Plus, I've been to my best friends wedding last weekend, which is why I critted nothing O : ) It was fun. (and I can't believe she got married, since she's younger than me : P)
Anyway. Imma try to catch up on some crits soon. I'm really behind and feel terrible toward everyone, but I still need to rest for a bit and maybe do something about actually publishing that darn book I wrote. Cover or no cover (I decided to submit it to a small press, see if they take it, and if not, I'm gonna self-publish it in December - just in time for Christmas :D)
So... yeah... I hope I'll get back to blogging soon and to saying more interesting and creative writing things :)
Friday, August 26, 2011
Epic Fail
Yup, in case you were wondering, I epically failed my exam. The good part about it is... it was darn hard. So I don't feel like an idiot for failing (especially since I was 0.3 points away from getting in).
What happened is this - the first half of the test went smoothly with minimal mistakes from my part. The third part was evil - stuff we did not do in school. The fourth part was also evil - I got most of that one right, only we had multiple choice, and I either had too many or too little choices. So... yup, I failed.
As you can see, I'm not exactly upset about it, because I realized that the people who organize this exams have other plans in mind (first session - really hard exam - the spots are not filled. Second session = spots filled + new entry fees = more cash for them). And it's just pathetic. I don't think I want to join a system like that. So, I'm concentrating on getting a job right now. Fortunately, a friend is helping out. :)
But enough about that. That's depressing. Let's concentrate on what I did with my free time. I cooked up my first acceptable cover for Hunters. I had tried to cook something like that before, but I'm a bit of an amateur and it takes a little while to get the hang of photoshop and figure out where to go for stock photos.
So... here's what I have:
I did this before I had finished with the exam madness. It took little time and the main thing I learned was how to handle text. As you may see it's too simple and too... colorful. And the text in itself kinda sucks
So I went ahead, did a little research, poked my illegal copy photoshop for about an hour and came up with this:
Now, I personally like this a lot more. I'm not sure it's the best cover to grace the Internet (okay, I know it's not), but, for one thing, it's smaller (since I made it the exact book size) and I actually put more elements except for one picture and text together (it's two pictures with some editing to both of them).
It has a good level of detail to it. For example, at the bottom of the cover, in the darkness of the chick's hair, there's a tiny village in the moonlight - which actually is part of the setting at some point.
And I made the chick's eyes green, though it's not obvious. Technically, Rachel has orange hair, but all hair looks black in the night, so I could hardly make it orange and then post it on the night background. That would've looked freaky.
So, yes, this is what I have so far. I'm practicing just in case I decide to selfpublish this. Which I'm not sure about yet. And I will attempt another 2 versions of this. I'll keep you posted.
Hope you guys are doing well :)
What happened is this - the first half of the test went smoothly with minimal mistakes from my part. The third part was evil - stuff we did not do in school. The fourth part was also evil - I got most of that one right, only we had multiple choice, and I either had too many or too little choices. So... yup, I failed.
As you can see, I'm not exactly upset about it, because I realized that the people who organize this exams have other plans in mind (first session - really hard exam - the spots are not filled. Second session = spots filled + new entry fees = more cash for them). And it's just pathetic. I don't think I want to join a system like that. So, I'm concentrating on getting a job right now. Fortunately, a friend is helping out. :)
But enough about that. That's depressing. Let's concentrate on what I did with my free time. I cooked up my first acceptable cover for Hunters. I had tried to cook something like that before, but I'm a bit of an amateur and it takes a little while to get the hang of photoshop and figure out where to go for stock photos.
So... here's what I have:
 |
| Pathetic first attempt |
I did this before I had finished with the exam madness. It took little time and the main thing I learned was how to handle text. As you may see it's too simple and too... colorful. And the text in itself kinda sucks
So I went ahead, did a little research, poked my illegal copy photoshop for about an hour and came up with this:
 |
| Second attempt. Pathetic? |
Now, I personally like this a lot more. I'm not sure it's the best cover to grace the Internet (okay, I know it's not), but, for one thing, it's smaller (since I made it the exact book size) and I actually put more elements except for one picture and text together (it's two pictures with some editing to both of them).
It has a good level of detail to it. For example, at the bottom of the cover, in the darkness of the chick's hair, there's a tiny village in the moonlight - which actually is part of the setting at some point.
And I made the chick's eyes green, though it's not obvious. Technically, Rachel has orange hair, but all hair looks black in the night, so I could hardly make it orange and then post it on the night background. That would've looked freaky.
So, yes, this is what I have so far. I'm practicing just in case I decide to selfpublish this. Which I'm not sure about yet. And I will attempt another 2 versions of this. I'll keep you posted.
Hope you guys are doing well :)
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