TOTAL RANDOMNESS

I couldn’t think of anything witty and smart to say so I decided to talk about what’s been going on in my life. I’m not a superstar so my life isn’t glammed out but it is mine. I’m not the most interesting person in the world but who is…

 

1. My daughter is going to Prom tonight. Kids grow up so fast. It seems like just yesterday I was sending her off to high school. I remember her saying not too long ago, "I'm not worried about guys, Mom. I'm concentrating on my grades so I can get into a good college." Where'd that girl go! She’s been dating a senior on the football team all year. They went to Homecoming and I thought, yeah, this won’t last long. I was wrong. I guess now I’m trying to see what will happen for her senior year next year.

2. I’m babysitting a toddler. My brother-in-law and his wife are going out for the weekend and asked if I could watch my adorable nephew. I fawn over him every time he comes to the house. He is the cutest little man I’ve seen in a long time. But he also cries a lot – mainly for his Daddy. And the biggest concern I have….he’s not potty trained. Guh! All the adorableness in the world can’t make up for a full diaper.

3. I’ve recently finished editing one of my WIPs and instead of sending it out to the slouch pile, I’ve been thinking about self-publishing. This is an older manuscript I took a break from to write another manuscript and now I’ve reworked it. I sent it to agents but got a lot of “this just isn’t for me” and “I like what you are trying to do here but I don’t think this is for me”…Grrr I haven’t sent it out to publishers yet though and I’m wondering if I should do this before I try to self-pub it.

What’s been going on in your world? Anything interesting you want to share.

 

 

Have a great day! Read a book and smile.

MY ADVICE...TO ME

What would I have told my newbie writer self four years ago…

About four years ago I thought, what the hey, I’ll write that book I’ve been dreaming about. And I did. Yeah me!

But it wasn’t that simple.

I toiled with the idea of writing a book for years. I put it off. Got married. Had kids. Dropped out of college - three times. Then one day I decided I was going to take a break from cooking, my day job, school, housework….and sit and read. I had always loved to read but I barely had time to shower let alone sit and enjoy a book. But I decided I had to make time. I needed the comfort books had always brought me. I started reading what was being called Young Adult – because that was what my daughter was reading. I wanted to be a responsible parent and monitor what she read. But I ended up liking it myself. I was hooked and couldn’t stop reading these books about these kids doing all this interesting things.

Then one day, I sat down and wrote out a recurring scene from a story that had been in my head for years. I let my oldest daughter read it. I didn’t tell her I had written the piece – I wanted her honest opinion. She loved it and wanted to read the entire story. But that was it I told her. “And I wrote it,” I triumphantly announced.

This was my first realization that I could actually write a novel. A whole, real, full length, novel. I was thrilled. And revving to go. I wrote that first story so fast I barely had time to breath. I was so proud of myself. I was so going to be famous for the wonderful story I had written. I quickly let my daughter, then in the 7^th grade, read what I had written. She loved the entire story. I was on my way – I even had a fan.

Let’s stop the story here…I think everyone can kinda see where this is going. It’s almost comical now. Almost. I also think it’s a bit sad. I had so much to learn. So what would I have said to myself four years ago had I the knowledge:

Have patience.

And

Read and Write. Then write more.

That’s it. That is what I would have said to myself or any other newbie writer. Without patience, perfecting your work is impossible. Without patience, the revision process becomes a joke. Without patience, you don’t make your manuscript shine, you bring yourself to shame.

Why read? Reading what you write and what you don’t write offers many opportunities to learn from those published authors. Just like a student needs to study for a test, a writer must study also. A writer studies the craft of writing. Not simply getting the story down but arranging the words and actions of the characters so that the audience will not want to put the book down.

Why write and write more. With anything, and everything in life ‘practice makes perfect.’ I can’t say how true this statement is. I have seen a drastic change in the manner in which I write. I was so serious about my craft that I decided to finish school this time *insert huge grin here* and I majored in English. Oh, the many papers I wrote that had nothing to do with kids with supernatural ability, or teenage angst over their first loves. But the lessons I learned were invaluable. I wrote short stories, poems, anything – not to have them published but to practice. To get better. And I did. And this time, it wasn’t my daughter who told me she loved my story…but that’s another post entirely.

What advice would you give your newbie writer self?

Have a great day. Read a gook and laugh!

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A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS

What do you do when you’re not writing? I sleep – because usually I don’t get much of that. I also love to watch movies. Recently my daughter and I sat down and discussed our favorite horror movies. We both crave the adrenaline rush, sweaty palms, and racing heart that scary movies induce. I decided I’d share our top three with everyone. It’s amazing but we have similar taste in movies. Why is that amazing? Um, I did say she was a teenager – 17 to be exact. She never agrees with me on anything.  

We both agree that little kids are creepy and that a lot of blood does not equal scary. Case in point, no Saw movies are on the list. Neither of us have even seen all the movies. We love psychological thrillers, something to make us think. Our lists are below:

MY FAVORITE HORROR

John Carpenter's Halloween

  The Strangers

   Rosemary’s Baby

Honorable Mention:

The Little Girl that Lives Down the Lane – This movie stars a young Jodie Foster. She lives alone in a big house in what seems to be nowhere. She is creepy and mature for her years. I watched this as a child and for some reason I always remembered being terrified of this movie. But I watched it about 4 years ago and while it was creepy it wasn’t really that scary.

 

                                         AZIA’S FAVORITE HORROR FILMS

John Carpenter's Halloween (the original)

                                                       The Ring

                                             The Omen (the new version)

Honorable Mention:

The Amityville Horror (new version) - this movie starred Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George as the Lutz. This version closely resembles the original but with some extra scenes of Reynolds with no shirt on to make me audiences swoon as his chest ripples from the vibration...Um, okay...this was a great remake. I don't normally like remakes but this one was solid. And not only because we got serious body action from Reynolds - the acting was stellar.

What have you watched lately? Anything good? Share it in the comments.

Have a great day. Read a book and laugh!

I'm Done

I'm officially done, complete, finished...happy, thrilled, excited. I took my final the other day and let's just say I could've done better - much better. No crying about it now. It's over. I passed with a "C" and I must admit it was the happiest "C" I've ever received. Well, its the only "C" I've gotten. I'm a bit of a perfectionist/nerd but I had no problem accepting this grade. I earned it.
 
Now that school's finished...for now, (I'm a perpetual learner, need-to-knower, noisy) I'll focus on my writing more. One thing that work, family, and school could not distract steal from me was my love for reading. Here are a few of my recommendations:

Shatter Me - Tahereh Mafi

 
This book was different with its strike throughs and poignant use of imagery. I loved it. As soon as I've finished my current read, I'll start on the sequel - Unravel Me. One thing I wasn't certain about with respect to the book was the "dystopian" reference. I didn't think it was a dystopian. The author did attempt to introduce the readers to a new world but it was mainly about the main character's reaction to her less-than-favorable "gift." This will be a great read for anyone who dares to be different with their work. This author was and I think it worked well for her. Read it and let us know what you think.

Hopeless - Colleen Hoover

 
This book was different from what I normally read. I like action, paranormal, suspense but this book was full of romance. I loved it, though. The author's voice is GREAT. She is my new YA hero. Her characters are flawed, beautiful, and you love and hate them. I 've been told there's a sequel and I can't wait to read it. Oh and this author is from Texas and she's self-published! Kudos to her. She totally rocks!!!! If you write YA, I recommend you reading this for the voice alone - but there are other bits of awesomeness going on here, too.

What the Dead Know - Laura Lippman

 
This is not YA! But this book hooks you from the beginning and doesn't let go until the very end. This book, with my mommy pants on, makes me cringe. Like the plot of the story, I have two girls and couldn't imagine the story that unfolds in this book happening to me. Horrible, shattering. This book was spellbinding but I wouldn't read it again just because it makes me think too much. But if you haven't read it, you should.
 
 
What have you read? Share it with us.

 

Have a great day. Read a book and laugh!