I missed my own blogiversary *dabs*

Welp my blogiversary was three days ago

And I missed it


Well

Happy blogiversary to me lol

Keep an eye out for the post coming out Wednesday

The Shared WIP Tag {Week Four: Ultimate Goals}


And we're back in the final installment of the Shared WIP Tag! It's been a lot of fun participating in this round and reading everybody else's posts (sorry I haven't been commenting, time is something that is a rarity in my life lol). Enjoy this final post!


What is one of the BIGGEST dreams or goals you have for your life?

Wow, um, I guess it's being able to get to heaven but I'll say something else.

I suppose at this moment some of my biggest goals (besides the aforementioned one) is graduating high school and college without losing my sanity.

Which may or may not be already lost

:)

Name the wildest goal you’ve got! (Don’t worry: we won’t judge.)

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

I

Um

I think it would be either publishing a book or becoming a successful music therapist

What goal scares you the most? Why?

One of the goals that scares me the most is going to college. Why? Well, my mom likes to tell me that I like to suffer in advance, so I guess I'm a bit scared of how I'm gonna pay for college, where I'm going to college, if I'm going to do well in college, etc.

What steps do you need to do to reach some of your goals?

Lots of studying and hard work.

*cracks knuckles*

Have your ultimate goals changed?  Have you decided not to do something, or to do things differently?

To be honest, I think my ultimate goals have remained the same ever since I knew what I wanted to do.

Do you plan to finish your current story ideas and then do other things in the future, or do you see yourself always having some story in the works?

Honestly, I can always see myself working on something. Mainly because it takes forever for me to finish a story and also because I'm always getting run over by the story idea monster truck.

If you could get only one book/trilogy/series published, what would it be?

Wow, it's like you're asking me to pick a favorite child. But if it could only be one, I would choose the Kingdoms of Ilia to be published.

Realistically, where do you see yourself in the future?

I see myself in college working my behind off.

Reality aside, where would you like to be in the future?

I would like myself to be a college student who is doing well in college.

Wow.

Boringgggggggg.

*fp*

Jk.

I need help lol

Do you see yourself as a Writer, or just someone who writes?

I see myself as someone who writes. I don't know if I've said this here, but I'm going to study music therapy in college, so that is what I see as my future profession.


I hope you enjoyed this round of the Shared WIP Tag! Make sure to check out the other posts!




How did your Camp Nano go? What are some of your ultimate goals? I have a very important post coming Wednesday, so make sure to keep your eyes peeled!

The Shared WIP Tag {Week Three: Yearly Goals}


Hello everyone! I guess I owe you all an explanation why this is coming on a Tuesday night instead of Friday like it was supposed to. Well, Friday was Good Friday and my family and I give up electronics entirely on that day in order to do something extra. I meant to post this Saturday, but that day was hectic since we were getting ready to play at Easter Vigil. And then Sunday was Easter. And then Monday I had to post that book review because (of course) I didn't write the deadline. 

Anyways.

Yeah.

Enjoy!

Name your yearly (writing) goals!

I only set two goals this year: To complete a novella and a novel. Nice and general, and very completable.

Which goal are you most looking forward to starting/completing? Why?

I'm most looking forward to completing my "Complete a novel" goal. Mostly since I already completed a novella :P

Is there any goal that you aren’t that enthusiastic about completing? Why?

Not really. I only have two (rather reasonable) goals and both are pretty exciting.

Did you maybe set too many goals for this year? ;)

Lololol, you're asking the person who only set two goals this year xD

So no

How do you keep on track/accountable with your goals?

*coughs*

*chokes*

*dies*

Yeahhhhhhh

That would be niceeeeee

Accountabilityyyyy

What is thatttttttt

Have you told your family about any of your goals? What do they think about your goals?

I think I've told my mom and maybe one of my sisters? And I think they think that I think that they think that I think that they think that I think that they think that I think that they think that I think

Lol

I think that they think that it's reasonable :P

Are you planning to do NaNoWriMo in November?  If so, do you know what you will be writing?

I am planning on doing NaNo! And nope (seem to be using that for waaaaaay too many of these questions.....), I have absolutely no idea what Imma be writing.

Are you nervous about any of your goals?  Are some out of your comfort zone?

Em

No

How are you doing on your goals so far?

So far so good. I've already finished a novella and just gotta finish dat novel.


This ends this installment of the Shared WIP Tag! Join me Friday for questions on ultimate goals! In the meantime, make sure to read the posts of the other wonderful people participating!




How have y'all been doing? How is your Camp Nano going? How is your April going? How was your Easter?

The Edge of Over There {Book Review}

Image result for the edge of over there book coverBefore the Tree of Life, everything in Abra Miller's life had been predictable. But after the Tree and the lightning and the angels, everything felt tenuous, like holding a soap bubble in the palm of her hand. She spent years looking for signs of that other world, waiting for it to break through. When it didn't, her friendship with Sam Chambers grew cold and distant, and they both wondered how any of it could actually have happened.

Four years later, 16-year-old Abra's long-delayed quest to find the next manifestation of the Tree of Life is renewed when she sees a woman walking up the road--a woman who looks exactly like Sam's dead mother. The woman directs her to New Orleans where she will find the grave of Marie Laveau, one of seven gateways between this world and Over There. As Abra enters The Edge of Over There and begins her pursuit of the Tree once more, she doesn't know whom to fear or whom to trust. But she's starting to think that some doorways should never be opened.




These characters were really interesting! I liked how they all had their own little nuances in their personalities. Even the characters that weren't human were really interesting. Especially Leo. I loved Leo, without a doubt, he was my favorite character. I also liked Sam and Abra. But yes, the characters were really loveable and very well written.

The whole concept of the Tree of Life and of the whole story was really interesting! It was strangely deep and gave a message without being preachy.

The setting was also really well done. The Edge of Over There was really well constructed - with all its strangeness and even the real world was described very well.

Something else I liked that isn't really pertinent is that some parts reminded me of Stiefvater's writing in The Scorpio Races. Either that or reading two books at the same time messes with your mind :P


So maybe it's because there was a book that came before this, but I was really confused for the majority of the book. I don't know if it's fair then to put this under dislikes because technically this is on me :P

I didn't really relate to the book and just wasn't that interested in it.

And the only other thing that I disliked is that nothing really stuck. Like, if you asked me to describe the plot in detail I don't think I would be able to. And maybe this is because I didn't understand a lot because of the fact that I didn't read the first book but yeah.


There was some violence but that is all the content.


It was really a good and interesting book but it just didn't grab or hold my interest. That's why I'm giving it

Image result for 3 stars

3 stars

I received a free copy of this book from Revell Reads in exchange for my honest opinion.


So how have you all been? Does this book sound interesting? Have you read it? Will you read it? I will be responding to comments soon and posting the next installment of the Shared WIP tomorrow along with an explanation. 

The Shared WIP Tag {Week Two: Current Projects}


Aaaaand we're back for week two! I wasn't sure if I was going to have this post finished in time seeing as I had the freaking flu this whole week -_-


What projects are you working on in addition to Camp NaNo during April?

I have a whole host of other projects that I'll be working on. The Moon, plotting several other stories, Your Friend, and yeah :P


Give us some more info on these other projects - maybe a synopsis or an aesthetic.

Do I have too???? Lol jk. I'll tell you guys about The Moon and Your Friend. I actually worked on The Moon for April's Camp Nano last year but here is the synopsis:

What would life be like without the Moon?

A group of world-saving teenagers. A girl with nightmares. The Moon in danger. 

should I come up with a better synopsis? Yes, yes I should but that's all you're getting.

As for your friend, it's a Regency story that is partly told in letters and then explained? Like, we'll have a letter and then kinda the stuff that was told in the letter will be written in the rest of the chapter? It makes more sense in my head.


Which project is grabbing at your attention the most? Why?

Um, out of all of them? The Moon, I forgot how much I loved these characters (coughJoannacoughcough) and the story does need some plotting and stuff but I really, really, really love it for some reason.


Do you have any plans for how you’re going to finish these projects on the side?

Wait, you plan things to finish them? Wow, I never knew that.

No, I do not have any plans on how in the world I am going to finish these projects.


If you had to set all projects aside and only work on one, which would it be?

...............Either The Moon or Your Friend

THAT'S AS CLOSE TO CHOOSING AS YOU'RE GOING TO GET ME

#rebel


What is the next step for each of these projects (drafting, editing, aesthetic creation, beta reading, etc.?)

For all the unnamed projects, it's plotting. SO MUCH FREAKING PLOTTING. For Your Friend (title still in progress btw) and The Moon, I'm still working on the first draft.


Share a snippet from these projects.

I'll just share a snippet from The Moon because it's the only one that I can actually share snippets of xD

In biology, Emilie felt someone poke her in the shoulder, startling her again, but not as bad as when Christopher scared her. She took a few steadying breaths before turning around. Jack looked at her with a sheepish grin on his face. Emilie smiled back.
“Hey, you,” she said playfully.
“Hey,” he replied, “Liking Championsville High so far?”
“Yeah. What’s the mascot again?”
“The Championsville Mockingbirds,” Jack imitated a movie announcer's voice, which made Emilie laugh.
“The mockingbird is the state bird of Mississippi, right?”
“Correct. Very creative.”
“Ha. You should hear my cousins’ name. My aunt has zero imagination.”
Jack laughed. “What do you mean?”
“Their names are,” Emilie tilted her head to the side as she recited the names, “Linny, Minny, Jimmy, and Kimmy.”
Jack gaped, which made Emilie laugh again. Then the teacher came in and Emilie whipped back around, still shaking a little from her laughter.


What’s your favorite thing about each of these other projects?

About The Moon, I like working with the large cast of characters. There are some that I know better than others but I like getting to know each character better.

For Your Friend, I'm only working on the letters for now, and it's fun getting to see the story through the two MC's perspectives before writing it from a general perspective.


Do you have any non-writing goals to try to meet while doing Camo NaNo?

Mainly school, music, and college research stuff. Lot's of very, very, very fun things happening


Do these non-writing goals come before or after Camp according to importance?

They definitely come before. As much as I love writing and stuff, school, music, and college come before.


And that's the end of this week's questions! Be sure to join me next week on questions about yearly goals! In the meantime, check out some of the other posts of the other people doing this tag!




How is your Camp going? What are your current projects? How is your April going in general? 

The Shared WIP Tag {Week One: Camp Goals}


So excited to be doing this tag again! Enjoy the first week of the Shared WIP Tag!!!

What WIP(s) are you working on this Camp NaNo?

I'm actually working on whole lot of things, but mainly I'm focusing on two WIPS: Colm and The Scroll of Wisdom.


What goal did you set for it, and why did you choose that goal?

I set the goal of writing 30 hours (obviously not consecutive). And I set it because it gives me the liberty of working on whatever needs working on. So it could be The Scroll of Wisdom or Colm, or it could be plotting or even writing a little of some of my minor projects.


Can you give us a short synopsis of the WIP?

The Scroll of Wisdom:

Prince Kile of Ilia Scriptura knows that he will never be king, that boring job is left to his brother. But when a strange turn of events happens and Kile is made the Crown Prince, how will the prince who has lived in frivolity all his life govern the wisest kingdom in Ilia?

Colm:

Colm McNulty is fine with the life he has, roaming the land, playing the fiddle, and looking into Rose Kelly's eyes. But his abusive father doesn't feel that way. He forces Colm to America, making him leave everything dear to him behind.


How long have you been working on this WIP?

I've been working on The Scroll of Wisdom for about 5 months. It was my Nano project and I only got about 1/4 of the way through it. I call it (lovingly) my monster novel not because it's exceptionally long (100k words....the standard novel length) but because it is so much more complex than I thought. The characters are deeper and the history is wow and yeah. I surprise myself.

And I've been working on Colm for about a year. It was my July Camp Nano project but it hasn't gotten much work done on it for a long while (much to the chagrin of my beta, who I left on a cliffhanger :P)


Where did the idea come from?

The idea from The Scroll of Wisdom came actually when I was working on The Crown of Light and wanted to get more backstory the developed in a series of books. I accidentally started writing them out of order :P If you want to know more about the backstory of The Scroll of Wisdom I did the Shared WIP Tag on that novel in November, but check out this post and this post for more info.

For Colm, you know, I can't exactly remember where the idea came from. I've always been fascinated by Ireland and its history, and this idea just came to life as a little, cute plot bunny and then grew into this incredible book bunny.


Do you think you’ll be able to meet your goal? Why or why not?

I think I will be able to make my goal. Why? Because I really just need to write an hour a day, and it doesn't even have to be writing exactly! It could be plotting, or editing, and not just on my two main projects.


Did you make any goals for March (Camp Prep)? Were you able to fulfill those?

My goal for March was to finish my novella, What Time We Have Left. I was not able to finish it in March, but I did finish it on the first day of Camp.


Are there any aesthetics/music you’d like to share? Any goals regarded to these artistic endeavors?

I did a whole post for The Scroll of Wisdom on aesthetics and stuff at the end of the last round of The Shared WIP Tag, and you can find it here. I made all the character aesthetics so no goals for that here.

For Colm, I actually haven't made any aesthetics, but I do have a playlist that is ever growing (albeit very slowly) that has every song that is sung in the book.  And yes, I would like to make the character aesthetics.




Share a snippet from your WIP.

You can find snippets from The Scroll of Wisdom in this post and this post.

And here is a snippet from Colm:

“Oi, Colm!” Shane plopped down in front of him. “We’re going to a dance, do ya want to come?”
“Um,” Colm began.
“No!” Mrs. Russo barged out of the door, hands on her hips giving Shane the death look.
“Surely that’s Colm’s decision,” Shane glared right back. Colm had discovered that Mrs. Russo and Shane appeared to hate each other on the surface, but that they really loved each.
“But he’s only sixteen, and I’m-”
“-His fill-in mother, you’ve told us a million times.”
“Yes, I am his fill-in mother. He’s told me that his mother and I would be the best of friends if we knew each other, and I’m sure she would agree with me that it wouldn’t be appropriate for a sixteen-year-old boy to go the type of dances you young men frequent.”
“It’s still Colm’s decision,” Shane grumbled. 
“I think I’ll stay with Mrs. Russo,” Colm said, shrinking back into his seat.
Mrs. Russo gave him an approving glance as the rest of the Rover Boys left the building.
Colm also got up but sat down when Mrs. Russo called out to him.
“Yes, Mrs. Russo?” he asked.
“I just wanted to give you a word of motherly advice,” she smiled at him kindly, “Be careful when it comes to money and other worldly things. I’m sure your mother would thank me for that.”
“She would,” Colm kissed her cheek gratefully.”
“Mamma mia,” she blushed, “You could make my grandmother blush.”


What's a Bible verse that sums up the theme in your WIP? or else helps you focus as you tackle what projects you've made for your goal?

The Scroll of Wisdom:


Colm:



And that's the end of this week's questions! Be sure to come back next week for questions on current projects! In the meantime, check on the posts of the other people doing this tag!




Are you doing Camp Nano? What is your goal for this camp? What are your main projects? Who is your biggest inspiration as a writer? 


Fairy Tale Central {Blog Tour}

Once Upon a Time two girls had a dream. A dream of a fairy tale site, an internet library, if you will, for all the fairy tale lovers of the land to gather and converse. To learn, to read, to fangirl/boy, to bask in the goodness that is fairy tales. As this dream blossomed, the two girls recruited a third. Because, after all, all good fairy tales come in themes of three. With the third member in place, the girls got to work. The dream began to take shape, until it was no longer just a dream. But something real. Introducing…



This newly launched site run by Arielle Bailey, Faith White, and Christine Smith, is your source for all things fairy tales.
Every month a single fairy tale will be featured, and posts will include:
  • Reviews for retellings/shows/movies/etc.
  • Essay, origin, and discussion posts on the featured fairy tale
  • Interviews with fairy tale retelling authors
  • Galleries featuring fairy tale artists and artisans
  • And a whole lot more!

The FTC’s goal is to unlock the magic that is fairy tales and build a community of fellow fairy tale enthusiasts. Arielle, Faith, and Christine are thrilled to share this new fairy tale centric space and connect with all you epic fairy tale fans!

You can CLICK HERE to find the site and join the Fairy Ring! (Don’t worry, you won’t be enchanted or cursed.) And, if you want to connect even more, you can find the FTC on:
(If you’re inclined to share about the FTC in those places too, you may or may not be blessed by a fairy godmother. *smile, smile*) Do tell a friend, or a dragon, or the fairy living in the hollow tree behind your house. All humans and mythological creatures alike are welcome!