My Goals and Aspirations for 2012 – The Recap

I can’t believe 2012 is almost OVER.

I really can’t.

So much has happened this year, and sadly it seems that so little of it has been writing-related. My personal/family life has exploded (in the not-good way), especially the last six months, with the exception of buying a house.

And boy, at the end of 2011 was I ambitious.

I laugh at myself now.

But I have accomplished some things!

[reminder:

Voting for the first round of NaNo Virtuosos held by Curiosity Quills is still open (until Dec 28th). Go vote for my story, Catalyst (The Undoing Chronicles, Book 1) to advance to Round 2!

Also, in celebration of reaching the 300-blog-posts milestone, I've got a giveaway running! Go check it out and enter to win some awesome winter treats (or a feature on my blog)!

Both the voting for Round 1 of NaNo Virtuosos and the entering the giveaway end on Dec 28th!]

So, let’s see what I actually did this year . . .

Writing/Blogging Goals

1. Finish Weeping Willow – this is all read-throughs, re-writes, edits. - hahaha.
2. Query Weeping Willow  to at least 5 agents by the end of the year. - HAHAHAHAHAHA!
3. Enter at least one round of Writers of the Future. - I think I’ve decided to knock this one of the Bucket List permanently.
4. Complete pre-writing stuff for Father Time – outline, character charts, research. - nope.
   
5. Finish rough draft of Stars for the Dead. - still in progress, but it is being worked on.
6. Blog at least 3 times a week for the whole year. - with the exception of one hiatus, I think I actually came pretty close to this one, so we’re going to call it complete!
7. Participate in 3-5 blog tours/campaigns/etc. by the end of the year. – 2012 Debut Author Challenge, the A-Z Challenge, “And You Are . . .?” Blog Hop, several cover reveals & at least one book launch, the CSFF Blog Tour, First Loves Blogfest, HobbitFest, #WriteMotivation . . . I’m sure there’s some I’m missing. But I definitely did AT LEAST five.
8. Utilize my Facebook page, Twitter, Google+, SheWrites, and Goodreads accounts better. – hm, not really.
9. Stay caught up with the blogs I follow. - HAHAHA!
10. Finish making this blog polished! – I have made significant progress, so yes.
11. Revive my Tea & Yarn blog. – this is permanently being removed from the Bucket List as well.
12. Have several posts in queue for both blogs by the end of the year. - HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!
13. Finish my ABCs of Fiction Writing project. – HAHAHAHA!!! (In all seriousness, I think I’m going to edit and finish this for my A-Z Challenge this year.
14. Spend 10 hours a week each on: writing and editing (unless on an actual vacation, or sick), and keep caught up with critiques for others. – *snort*.
15. Be up to 300 followers on my blog by the end of the year. – I have 190 email followers, and I don’t like that WordPress now lumps in all my twitter connections with the numbers, but I have probably between 200-250 people that actually read this somewhat between email subscribers and RSS. So close, but not quite.

Lifestyle

1. Read my Bible daily.  I didn’t do well with this one in 2011. – *groan* didn’t do well with this one in 2012 either.
2. Take up running again, and stick with it this time, also core-strengthening stuff. – the LACK  of this is probably why I’m achy every day now.
3. Stretch at least twice a day, especially with as much as I sit in front of the computer. - hah.
4. Do a full-body cleanse, preferably near the beginning of the year. - hah.
5. Make more clothes than I buy this year. - well . . . I didn’t make very much (only two dresses that I haven’t even worn yet), but I didn’t buy very much either . . .
6. Begin making my own household cleaning and personal products. - this is still in progress, but it has started.
7. Play with the cat for at least an hour each day, preferably 15 minute spurts at a time. - HAHAHA!
8. Take at least one day each month where I don’t do anything at all with technology – no computer, TV, cell phone, etc.  If at all possible (weather and commitments allowing), spend it outdoors somewhere where I can’t hear traffic. - er . .  kinda forgot about this one.
9. Be in bed by 10 pm on ‘work’ nights.  This is void during NaNo. – nope.
10. Buy a house. - YES YES A HUNDRED TIMES YES!

Me

1. Read more – aim for 30 minutes a day. - well, I hit my Goodreads goal, but I certainly didn’t read EVERY day. So nope.
2. Get a tattoo (finances allowing, of course).  - Finances did not allow. We bought a house instead.
3. Make another corset. - Nope.
4. Go on more dates with my husband, even if it’s just taking a walk somewhere. - I made more of an effort to spend time with him, but we didn’t really have money for dates.
5. Eliminate processed foods from my diet. - nope.
6. Attempt Project 365. - I think I made it through March. Might try this one again. So, I most definitely ATTEMPTED it.
7. Spend more time with my dearest friends. – YES. And made some amazing new ones this year, also.
8. Get a dog, provided we actually get a house. - um . . . we got chickens instead XD.
9. Work my way down to only 5 hours of TV per week. - Well, I’m only watching actual TV about 1-2 hours a week, if even that (only following Once Upon a Time and NCIS currently) . . . but I am probably still watching too many movies and such. Though I do occasionally go days without turning on the TV, so THAT is progress.
10. Go to the midnight premier of The Hobbit in costume.  Yes, I am a rabid fan. – YES YES YES YES YES. AND IT WAS AWESOME.

So overall, I made progress. I had no idea about the curveballs I was going to get thrown this year with life, so I don’t feel like I failed, but I did definitely NOT manage my time well in some situations.

I’ve also re-prioritized some things. Like Weeping Willow. Not sure when/if that one is going to get done.

Overall, I’m pleased. But I still want to do better.

How did your goals come in 2012?

Eternal Life explored in “Beckon” – CSFF Day 1

Welcome to another edition of the Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy blog tour!  To find out more about it, please visit here.

If you’re stopping by for #WriteMotivation, I’ll have that update posted on Thursday this week (CSFF will be from today-Wednesday).  Also, would everyone visiting do me a HUGE favor, and go look at my poll for some possible book titles?  I just want opinions .  The more, the merrier!

This month’s book is Beckon by Tom Pawlik.

The back of the book:

Some things weren’t meant to be discovered.  But once they’re unleashed, there’s no turning back.
Beneath the town of Beckon, a terror hides, lurking in the darkness.  Waiting.

Three people are drawn to the small Wyoming town for very different reasons.  Anthropologist Jack Kendrick comes looking for clues to his father’s disappearance.  Police officer Elina Gutierrez arrives in the near-deserted town on the trail of her missing cousin.  And George Wilcox is lured by the promise of a cure for his wife’s illness.

All are looking for answers.  But as they draw closer to discovering the town’s chilling secret, the real question becomes. . .

Will their quest uncover a miracle, or release an unspeakable evil?

It may just be me, but Beckon reminded me of the anime/manga Fullmetal Alchemist (I haven’t actually read the manga, just watched both anime series, and I like Brotherhood better).

There were a few parallels.

Lost fathers . . . eternal life . . . bad guys who supposedly couldn’t be killed . . .

Yeah.

What really made me think of Fullmetal Alchemist was the way eternal life is gained in Beckon.

If you’ve watched or read FMA, you’re familiar with something known as the philosopher’s stone (which is a historical term as well, back when people actually tried to turn lead into gold).  In FMA, the premise is that this stone allows an alchemist to do alchemy without having to account for equivalent exchange (what is being ‘transmuted’ must be equal to the original object).  Human transmutation is forbidden because you can’t measure the worth of a human soul.

A philosopher’s stone is only made through human transmutation, though – it is a stone that holds human souls in it, thus giving the wielder limitless power and/or “eternal” life, depending on how they utilize it.

In Beckon, eternal life is also gained through the souls of other people, but it has to be ‘taken’ daily.  People are drawn into the cult by being promised cures for incurable diseases.  In this book, Miriam and her husband are offered a cure for Alzheimer’s without being told of the other ‘side effect’.

What if you were promised a cure for an incurable disease, but not told that it would also increase your lifespan as long as you took it, and reverse the aging process?

I think that I would be horrified.  To find out suddenly that I may be completely healthy, but I’m going to not age anymore (and potentially look younger – this would be a big problem for me.  I turn 27 next week, and last summer someone asked me what grade I was in *headdesk*), and I’m going to watch everyone I love die? What a mind trip.

But that also begs the question – what would make eternal life worth it? I know what my answer is, but I want to hear yours!

To buy the book on Amazon, just click on the picture of the book above.
To find out more about Tom Pawlik, please visit his: Website   Blog   Facebook page   Twitter

And, since CSFF is a blog tour, please visit the other participants!

Noah Arsenault
Julie Bihn
Thomas Clayton Booher
Thomas Fletcher Booher
Beckie Burnham
Brenda Castro
Theresa Dunlap
Nikole Hahn
Ryan Heart
Bruce Hennigan
Janeen Ippolito
Becky Jesse
Jason Joyner
Carol Keen
Leighton
Rebekah Loper
Katie McCurdy
Shannon McDermott
Karen McSpadden
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Nissa
Joan Nienhuis
Faye Oygard
Crista Richey
Kathleen Smith
Jessica Thomas
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Shane Werlinger

Related articles

• Y for Youth, the Fountain Of (blackanddarknight.wordpress.com)

 

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in cooperation with the CSFF Blog Tour.

The Last Keeper Blog Tour – Author Interview with Michelle Birbeck

Hi everyone, welcome back for one of the last stops on Michelle Birbeck’s blog tour for her new release, The Last Keeper!  Today, we have Michelle herself here for an interview, so pull up a chair and grab a cup of tea!

RL: Hi Michelle, thank you for being here today!  Congratulations on your first book – I’m sure this a thrill you’ve been anticipating for a while.  Will you tell us a little about your inspiration for this story?

I suppose it started when I was still in school and read my first supernatural books, the Nightworld Series by LJ Smith. Since then I’ve read everything I’ve come across and been fascinated by supernatural creatures. But then I got to thinking about why they’re all so strong and fast and yet hiding in the shadows. It got me thinking what if there was a reason they stayed there? What if they didn’t want to be there but there was something stopping them from simply taking over the rest of the world. And if there was something like that, how would they do it? What sort of being would they be and what sort of abilities would they have to do such a thing? Then as the story progressed in my mind and I started putting the pieces of it together, I wondered what lengths the vampires and other supernatural creatures would go to in order to break that hold someone else had on them.

RL: Vampires are obviously the ‘it’ of fiction right now, though much of the time they’re being portrayed as the good guys.  In The Last Keeper, they play the role of the bad guy.  What factors played into your decision to have the vampires and the Keepers in conflict with each other?

My vampires are generally psychopaths. Some of them deal with it a lot better than others, and a couple of them are exceptions, but in general, they’re all a bit crazy. Kind of like the axe murderer next door who everyone said was such a sweet guy. They can be sweet and seem like the nice guys on occasion, but really they’re almost always plotting how to kill everyone. And that sort of mindset doesn’t like being repressed, by anyone. So it seemed only natural to me to have them fight with everything they have against what the Keepers are trying to do. Of course, for the most part the vampires don’t see why it’s right for them to stay in the shadows.

RL: How did you develop the race of the Keepers? Which came first for you, the Keepers or the vampires?

The Keepers came first. After I decided what they could do, I went to work on the mythologies behind the vampires, witches, and Weres. I didn’t want to do something that had already been done, but at the same time I wanted to incorporate some of the common aspects that everyone would recognise about the races. So I took what I knew, l looked at the world the Keepers had created, and then altered the races so that everything fit and was a combination of traditional and my own.

RL: True love and soul mates play a major part into the plot – when a Keeper finds their mate, they call them a weakness.  Would you tell us some about that idea and how you came up with it?  What will it mean for Serenity?

Every race and character has to have a weakness. None of them can be perfect. And what more profound weakness can you get than the one person you fall in love with? Love makes everyone do stupid things. We kill for it, fight for it, protect it. It makes us jealous and angry, sad and scared. Having their partners as their weakness takes everything that love is/does and wraps it up into one ticking time bomb. It gives the Keepers everything they’ve ever wanted, and can take it away just as easily. For me, it embodied some of my greatest fears, and I think some of everyone’s fears when they’ve been in love. But at the same time, it is, I think, everyone’s greatest desire to not know a day without the person they love.

What it used to mean for the Keepers was that although their time was limited, they found happiness. And knowing that they’d never have to live a day without their partners held some measure of comfort.

For Serenity, she gets her happiness, but none of the comfort. Because as the last Keeper, she knows that once Ray loses his life, the world loses theirs, too.

RL: I have living relatives who remember and fought in World War II, so the time period has always fascinated me.  Why did you choose the World War II setting for the story?

The settings were actually picked around the timeline of events in the book. I knew what I wanted to happen, and when I wanted it to happen in terms of the book, so when it came to looking at settings, I had a good idea of where to start. Also, being from the UK, I wanted it to be set here but at the same time be set in a time that was universally recognised. And when I started looking into various options, World War II was the one option that stood out the most for me. There was such a wealth of culture and events that happened during that time, which fit brilliantly into the book and the storyline.

RL: Thank you so much for stopping by, Michelle, and good luck! I enjoyed reading The Last Keeper, and I hope many others will as well!

Related articles

• The Last Keeper by Michelle Birbeck – Book Review & Blog Tour (blackanddarknight.wordpress.com)
• Guest Post: Michelle Birbeck (bookishtemptations.com)
• Review: The Last Keeper by Michelle Birbeck (bookishtemptations.com)

First Loves (A Blogfest)

Hi everyone! If you’re part of my regular #writemotivation crew, I’ll have that post up tomorrow, because today is the First Loves blogfest, instigated by Alex J. Cavanaugh.  If you click the link attached to his name there, you’ll be able to find the other participants in the blogfest.

There are four of our “first loves” we’re supposed to tell you about – first movie, first song/band, first book, and first person.

So, come along for a little history story on my life!

“First Love” Movie

Come on . . . I’m a Beauty and the Beast fan.  I remember when it came out in theaters, but it was probably another five years before I actually got to see it.

Seriously, any girl who loved to read as much as I do . . . just watch this clip.  You’ll see why it was the first movie I fell in love with.

“First Love” Song

Once upon a time, the only music I listened to was contemporary Christian.  I still listen to it, but when I first started listening was when it was coming to the end of the 90s trends.  For some reason, my best friend and I fixated on “Testify to Love” by Avalon.

There *cough* may or may not be a very terrible homemade music video of this song hidden deeply away on a VHS somewhere.  Featuring yours truly, my best friend, and a flashlight with a glitterball.

This video is NOT that video.

“First Love” Book

Asking a reader to pick a favorite book is like asking a writer to pick a favorite word – it’s impossible!

So, we’ll just have to do with one of the first books I remember reading and being fascinated with.

That was “The Castle in the Attic” by Elizabeth Winthrop.

I’m not sure what it was about this book that fascinated me so much, but to this day I can’t put it down after reading the first page.

I think it had something to do with the fact that William actually made some really bad choices, though – choices that affected other’s lives, not just whether he got a cookie or something. As far back as I can remember, I’ve always been drawn toward the darker consequences of decisions – not because I want the bad things, but because it better reflects what has happened in my life.  Even since I was young.

“First Love” Person

I was very blessed.  The first and only man I ever dated, ever kissed, is the love of my life.  We met when we both worked at Hobby Lobby, and I knew from the start that there was something very special about him.  He was dating someone at the time, though, so we became friends first.

When we finally did start dating – a year and a half later – it was only four months until we were engaged!

Now, we’ve been married just over four years.  I can’t believe it’s been that long.

 

Thank you for dropping by for “First Loves”! I’ll be around soon if you’re another blogfest participant, but if you’re not, will you share some of your first loves in the comments?

Saturday Sundries – Shadow of the Witte Wieven (Book Review)

I’ll be honest, I was looking forward to reading Shadow of the Witte Wieven.  It had an interesting blurb, and I was curious to see how the author would pull it off.

I was also a little leery, though, because Inkspell Publishing is a fairly new small press.  There is no reputation – good or bad – for the type of stories (or the quality) that they put out.

Even with my realistic hope for this story, I have to admit that I came away from the book disappointed.

The characters didn’t draw me in.  The plot had the potential to, but the plot was so buried beneath pages and pages of details that I was easily bored.  Supposedly, there was a romance happening between the main character, Aliyana, and “Wolf”, Captain of the Witte Wieven (it’s a ship), but there was no chemistry between them.

I was, honestly, shocked at the way the romance between the two was resolved at the end of the book.  They didn’t seem to have enough of anything between them for what happens.

I wish the story had been more about Aliyana’s mission to bring down the man responsible for her brother’s murder, but even that she was dispassionate about.

Writing-wise, there were so many details that it slowed down the pace of the story.  Nothing could just happen, everything had to be explained – down to the intricate, minute details.

Every time I picked up the book, I was also finding grammar and punctuation errors. It was only one or two each time, but the fact that I found blatant errors every time I picked up the book? Come on.

I did like the plot, as poorly executed as it was.  I was fascinated with the paranormal abilities of the Captain and crew of the Witte Wieven.  I just wish we had seen chemistry between Aliyana and the Captain.

So overall, the book wasn’t a terrible read, but it wasn’t a great one, either.

 

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

X for ‘X’ Marks the Spot – #atozchallenge

Okay, yes, this really was the only thing I could think of for X!

There’s lots of scientific things for X . . . fantasy, not so much.

X marks the spot makes me think of treasure, though.  It better make you think of treasure, too.  That’s mandatory .

While a book may have an actual treasure hunt in it, to me, books ARE the treasure.  Especially those few that I will re-read again and again, even when I could be reading something completely new.

So what’s in my treasure chest?

What’s in your treasure chest?

Tuesday Tantalizer – Shades of the Orient by Stephanie Guerrero (Book Review)

Hi everyone! Welcome to another installment of Tuesday Tantalizers!  It’s been a little while since I’ve done one, but it’s not because I’ve forgotten.  I just haven’t had time.

A while back, I interviewed author Stephanie Guerrero and did a giveaway of her book, Shades of the Orient.

I’ve finally finished reading it.

It usually doesn’t take me this long to finish a book.  Part of it was because of life situations that were going on, part of it was the book itself.  So, let’s get on to the review part, and then I can start going into that!

DAC 2012 – Review of Halflings by Heather Burch

Hey everyone!  I am so pleased to bring you my first review in participation with the 2012 Debut Author Challenge!  If you haven’t heard of this or signed up for yet, just click that link to learn more.  The challenge is open for sign-ups until May 31, 2012.

My next review in conjunction with this will be my friend Jessica Therrien’s book Oppression.  I’m so excited for that one, and I’ll also be interviewing her here on Tuesday, March 6th, so keep an eye out for that!  It’s going to be good .

Disclaimer: I received this book free from the publisher to review as a part of the DAC ARC Tours.

Running . . . the fence . . . the wolves.  Voices.

Saturday Sundries – Interview with Dana Sitar

Hi everyone, happy Saturday!

Today, we have Dana Sitar with us.  I met her through the WordPress.com forums probably about a year ago.  Her first book came out a short while back, and the second one will be coming out soon.  This post is going along with her blog tour.

So, let’s get on with this interview!

CSFF Day 3 – The Realms Thereunder Review

Hi again everyone!  Today is the final day for this month’s CSFF blog tour, and I’m relieved because the rest of the week won’t be quite as hectic, but also sad because it’s been fun so far!  Though this afternoon/evening, I’ll hopefully have time to go around and visit all my fellow tour participants!

So today, I’m going to actually review The Realms Thereunder.

I’m going to give you a warning – I don’t enjoy reviewing books.  I’m definitely a read-it and keep-it-to-myself kind of girl.  Part of this is because I don’t always know how to get my analytic thoughts out on paper (it’s been a few years since Freshman Comp in college ).  The other part is since I write so much, and I have 4 critique partners that I work/swap stuff with, I can’t seem to get out of critique mode.  So, my review may be a bit more technical from the story-writing point of view.

Overall, I very much enjoyed reading The Realms Thereunder.

CSFF Day 2 – A Peek in The Realms Thereunder

People, let me tell you it has been a crazy hectic week!  And it’s not even half over yet >_<.

First things first, though, we have a winner for the Restless Spirits giveaway from last week!

The Winner is . . .

Shannon McKeever!

Shannon, you’ll be getting an email from Amazon shortly with your Kindle copy of Restless Spirits.  If you don’t own a Kindle, you can download the app for PC or another device .

And, on to the CSFF part of this blog . . .

I sat down today and cleared my schedule, because I had reading to do – namely, finish The Realms Thereunder and read Halflings for the DAC so that I can send it on to the next person.  I did get them both done, in between caring for an under-the-weather husband and having a chiropractor appointment.

Reading The Realms Thereunder was fun.  It was definitely not the most intense story I’ve ever read, but it was an enjoyable read.  I’m not going to do an in-depth review right now, but I’m going to give a few impressions.

I’m going to reveal a little bit of my utter nerdness here – I used to do Lord of the Rings forum-based role-playing.  I role-played as a Rohirrim, and so familiarized myself with smattering of Old English.  I even served a stint as the Third Marshal of the Riddermark .

I bet I was one of the few of you that didn’t have to look up how to pronounce some names, or what certain letters were .  I’m pretty proud of that fact!

I kept having flashbacks to those role-playing days.  I also kept having flashbacks to The Hobbit every time someone broke into song . . .

That said, I found the story an enjoyable read, but it was still too easy to put it down.  I like books that keep me reading as quick as I can, and this one had the potential for it, but just didn’t quite draw me in.  We’ll touch on that a bit more tomorrow .

 

Disclaimer: Through participation in the CSFF Blog Tour, I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

Lonely Words: Unread Books on My Shelf

Unread Books, My Lonely Words

I have an addiction.

I am addicted to the written word; so much so, that even when I have a stack of books 5 or 6 high next to my bed to read, I still buy new ones when I find a good deal.  Good deals like 50 cents per book at garage sales . . .

God help me.  One of our largest, locally owned used bookstores is having a tent sale soon.  Mrs. C has already informed me that I’m going with her.

The point of this is, I own a lot of books, and I’m ashamed to say that I haven’t read several of them.  Especially the ones that are craft-related – the craft of writing, specifically.

I have four craft books that I really should read.  They are:

The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers by John Gardner

If you have read any writing craft books, I bet there was at least one quote from this book in there.  I am very ashamed to say that this book has been sitting on my shelf for a few years now, and I have yet to read it.

Becoming a Writer by Dorothea Brande (with a forward by John Gardner)

I have no idea who this person is.  I do know that this book was published when my grandmother was two years old.  The fact that it’s still in print speaks a lot.  There’s a quote by Brande on the back cover that makes me want to read it, though.

“This book, I believe, will be unique . . . I think there is such magic and that it is teachable.  This book is all about the writer’s magic.”

Enthralling, no?

Immediate Fiction: A Complete Writing Course by Jerry Cleaver

I started reading this book once.  I don’t know why I didn’t finish it, but looking at now, I think it’s a very good idea that I do read it.

Supposedly, this is a writing course.  Kind of one that you do at your own pace, it looks like.  There are chapters of information, and most of them have exercises to go along with it.

I’m thinking I should start with the part on time management.

And maybe find a buddy to do it with.  I work better with a partner when it comes to things like this.

Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript by Chuck Sambuchino

I haven’t really had a need for this book yet, but I picked it up when our last Border’s closed.  Just glancing through it, I can tell it’s going to be very helpful to me as I begin to finish manuscripts and actually think about submitting to agents and publishers.  I think this book is going to become invaluable to me.
I have at least twice as many fiction books that I haven’t read . . .

Les Misérables by Victor Hugo – started, but still unfinished.

The Priest’s Graveyard by Ted Dekker – also started, but much more recently than Les Mis.  This one will actually be finished this year.

Jerusalem’s Undead Trilogy by Eric Wilson – the three books are Field of Blood, Haunt of Jackals, and Valley of Bones.  I’ve read most of the first book so far.   I picked up this series at Border’s also, and it was an interesting find.  Serious, vampires in the Holy Land?  It’s just such an awesome idea!

Marvel’s graphic novel adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula.  I don’t know if I’ll ever finish this one.  I didn’t buy it, I won it as a door prize.  That fact in and of itself is pretty cool, because I hardly ever win door prizes.  That being said, I’m not really a graphic novel kind of person.  I prefer text to pictures.  Yes, I know I’m weird.  I’m also a writer for a reason.  This book may end up as a giveaway on here sometime . . . we’ll see.

Recently, at a garage sale, I picked up Nights in Rodanthe and The Rescue, both by Nicholas Sparks.  I’ve never read anything by Nicholas Sparks – not even The Notebook.  To be honest, I’ve never seen the movie of The Notebook, either.  Please don’t die of shock – I’d rather read or write than watch a movie (something my husband still doesn’t understand), and The Notebook was never that high on my priority list just because it . . . wasn’t.

At this same garage sale, I also picked up Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak and The Bride of Lammermoor by Sir Walter Scott.  Not really sure what they’re about, so these are the books I’ll probably grab when I literally have nothing else to do.

I just felt like grabbing a bunch of books I had never read before.  I have read Ivanhoe (also by Sir Walter Scott) several years ago, and it takes me a while to get through some of the older classics because I have to completely change my mindset and my expectations for a book.

However, I do expect to thoroughly enjoy each one of these.

What lonely books do you have hiding on your shelf?  Are they being saved for a rainy day, like many of mine, or are they books you should have read long before now because they would benefit you?

Imploding Brains

As I *cough* may have mentioned in another post, Mrs. C and I talk a lot.  I am posting this today because it made us laugh, and because writing and reading are very, well, related.  If there were no readers, there would be no need for writers, right?

Mrs. C

Somehow, even though my sister got read to too….she’s the only one in the family who grew up hating to read.

And now she only touches non-fiction except on rare occasions.

Rebekah

how does one not like reading?

Mrs. C
I agree

Rebekah
and how do you ONLY read non-fiction?

it makes my brain hurt . . .

Mrs. C

Financial non-fiction too

Not even like history or something cool

Rebekah
O.O

brain will implode in 3 . . .

2 . . .

un-imploded brain

1 . . .

Mrs. C
NOOOOO

Rebekah
smush

Mrs. C
hahahahaha

Rebekah
g

Mrs. C
Somehow I never imagined imploding brains making a “smush” noise

Rebekah

well, I almost typed ‘boom’

but that didn’t make sense at all

Mrs. C

hehe

“smush”

Rebekah

I have a feeling this is going to live for a while XD

Mrs. C

It actually just got recorded in my mini-notebook for future usage.

Rebekah

oh boy XD

Mrs. C

What’s even better, is I may be able to use it in my current short story

You have made me immensely happy.

Rebekah

LOL