Last year at this time I said I was further behind than I ever had been before. This year beats that record, because last year I was only 7k behind. This time I'm 10k behind and counting.
I'm having kind of a rough go of things right now, with emotional stress getting in the way of my everyday thinking and motivation. Also I decided to be a NaNo Rebel this year - the year I'm going for my fifth consecutive win. But none of these things are going to stop me! I'm still going to hit that glorious 50k, even if I have to spend my entire Thanksgiving break catching up like I did three years ago (when I was 25k behind!), although I really hope it doesn't come to that.
I am currently at 5,741 words.
Saturday, November 10, 2018
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
Summer Is Finally Over! (August-September Book Wrap-Up)
READING
Finished August-September
Currently Reading
WRITING
Wattpad Update
August End Stats:
325 reads
25 votes
25 comments
September End Stats:
396 reads
29 votes
33 comments
For Real Writing Update
NaNoWriMo is just around the corner now! During the month of September I made a list of stories I was perhaps interested in writing this year, and as of October 1st I had made my decision. The story will be called "Every Part of You." It's a new adult romance about a girl with haphephobia and a boy who is nothing but loving, and how they form a unique bond that allows them each to truly get to know every part of the other person over the course of their first two years as college students. I'm very excited to get started on this novel and make this my fifth consecutive NaNoWriMo win! 50k here I come - again! :D
As per usual I'll post a couple of writing updates throughout the month of November so you have an idea of how well (or how poorly) I'm doing as the month progresses. I'll see you then!
Finished August-September
- A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
- A REALLY tough read. Took me forever to get through. I want to read more from this author, but only when I feel I'm mentally and emotionally stable enough to handle it. Thus When the Mountains Echoed will have to wait a while... XD
- Making Faces by Amy Harmon
- Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt
- Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
- This novel was so raw and real and emotional and so beautifully done. It perfectly encapsulates what it is to have anxiety/depression after a traumatic event. It's the first book I've read this entire year to get 5/5 stars from me.
- Jazz Owls by Margarita Engle
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- It's about TIME I read this! 5/5 stars, no hesitation. Absolutely and positively relevant to our society today. EVERYONE should read this novel. (And I'm hoping to see the movie later this month, too.)
- We Now Return to Regular Life by Martin Wilson
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
- The one and only book my dad talks about all the time, so earlier this year I decided I should read it for myself as well. It was hilarious, and a great springboard for my dad and I to bond over a story we're both familiar with.
- Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
- A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray
- I actually enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. I'm dying to get my hands on book two as soon as I can.
- The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams
- Even more hilarious than the first book, I thought. Can't wait to get to book three soon!
Currently Reading
- Exquisite Captive by Heather Demetrios (considering DNF-ing)
- The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows
- The Most Beautiful Woman in Florence by Alyssa Palombo
- The Daughter of Sherlock Holmes by Leonard Goldberg (finished; surprisingly not impressed)
- Dracula by Bram Stoker (FINALLY I am reading this classic novel!)
WRITING
Wattpad Update
August End Stats:
325 reads
25 votes
25 comments
September End Stats:
396 reads
29 votes
33 comments
For Real Writing Update
NaNoWriMo is just around the corner now! During the month of September I made a list of stories I was perhaps interested in writing this year, and as of October 1st I had made my decision. The story will be called "Every Part of You." It's a new adult romance about a girl with haphephobia and a boy who is nothing but loving, and how they form a unique bond that allows them each to truly get to know every part of the other person over the course of their first two years as college students. I'm very excited to get started on this novel and make this my fifth consecutive NaNoWriMo win! 50k here I come - again! :D
As per usual I'll post a couple of writing updates throughout the month of November so you have an idea of how well (or how poorly) I'm doing as the month progresses. I'll see you then!
Tuesday, August 7, 2018
Life Is Crazy; This Is All I Got (June-July Book Wrap-Up)
READING
Finished June-July
Currently Reading
WRITING
Wattpad Updates
June End Stats (starting June 16):
105 reads
14 votes
12 comments
July End Stats:
210 reads
15 votes
21 comments
For Real Writing Update
I was feeling really burnt-out in my actual writing for a while before going on vacation to the Black Hills, but as per usual after a trip to that area of the country, I've sprung back with renewed energy and vigor and have already written quite a bit in the past couple of weeks. I've started writing some snippets of an entirely new story as well! Am I returning to the realm of sci-fi officially, or is this just a phase? We shall have to wait and see...
Thanks for bearing with my lack of updates recently. As the title says, life is crazy right now, and I'm really trying to focus on my mental health before forcing myself to put out more content like this. I hope you're all right with the more simplistic wrap-up style I've had for the past few months, because I actually like that I don't have to tell an entire story about each story I read and can instead give you some quick, simple thoughts on each book. Maybe knowing I don't have to write down all of the things will help me be more motivated about getting wrap-ups out for you monthly again, instead of bi-monthly.
Anyway, that's all I have for now! See you next time!
Finished June-July
- For Love and Honor by Jody Hedlund
- Different from the first two books in a good way. I'm excited to get to book four in the near future.
- The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan
- I loved listening to Robbie Daymond narrate this book for ten and a half hours. But beyond that, I really enjoyed the story. I'm hoping to read the next book and find out what happens as soon as possible.
- Lost in a Book by Jennifer Donnelly
- The actual plot of this book was kind of meh, but I LOVED that this entire novel showed us a closer look at the growing friendship between Belle and the Beast during the song "Something There" from the movie. And the ending was so amazing and swoon-worthy!
Currently Reading
- A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
- I am SO CLOSE to finally finishing this book; I have about 40 pages left right now. I'm telling you, though, much like The Kite Runner, this has not been an easy novel to get through.
- Making Faces by Amy Harmon
- Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt
- Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
- This novel was so raw and real and emotional and so beautifully done. It perfectly encapsulates what it is to have anxiety/depression after a traumatic event. It's the first book I've read this entire year to get 5/5 stars from me.
- Exquisite Captive by Heather Demetrios
WRITING
Wattpad Updates
June End Stats (starting June 16):
105 reads
14 votes
12 comments
July End Stats:
210 reads
15 votes
21 comments
For Real Writing Update
I was feeling really burnt-out in my actual writing for a while before going on vacation to the Black Hills, but as per usual after a trip to that area of the country, I've sprung back with renewed energy and vigor and have already written quite a bit in the past couple of weeks. I've started writing some snippets of an entirely new story as well! Am I returning to the realm of sci-fi officially, or is this just a phase? We shall have to wait and see...
Thanks for bearing with my lack of updates recently. As the title says, life is crazy right now, and I'm really trying to focus on my mental health before forcing myself to put out more content like this. I hope you're all right with the more simplistic wrap-up style I've had for the past few months, because I actually like that I don't have to tell an entire story about each story I read and can instead give you some quick, simple thoughts on each book. Maybe knowing I don't have to write down all of the things will help me be more motivated about getting wrap-ups out for you monthly again, instead of bi-monthly.
Anyway, that's all I have for now! See you next time!
Thursday, June 28, 2018
Extremely Informal Reading Update (April-May Book Wrap-Up)
READING
Finished April-May
Unable to Finish
Currently Reading
Finished April-May
- Crimson Ash by Haley Sulich (pretty good for a self-published author)
- The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery (super profound)
- The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson (liked for the most part, but had one major issue)
- Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House by Michael Wolff (very informative and insightful)
- The Sign of Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (it's Sherlock; of course I loved it haha)
Unable to Finish
- The Comic Book Story of Baseball by Alex Irvine
I really wanted to continue reading this book (an ARC from NetGalley) but the first issue I ran into was that it wouldn't format correctly on my Kindle, which meant I had to read it on the computer. Not a huge deal, I guess - just a little inconvenient. But then one day a few weeks ago I opened it up to continue reading and it was like, "Sorry, I don't exist anymore." Even though the file wasn't scheduled to expire for another nine days at that point. I tried to get in contact with NetGalley Tech Support, but I received no response from them whatsoever. In light of the fact that I was receiving no help - and with other books I needed to get to - I regrettably had to put The Comic Book Story of Baseball aside. I really WANTED to keep reading...I just couldn't because of technical difficulties. Maybe I can pick up a physical copy of it once it's been published.
Did Not Finish
Did Not Finish
- To the Castle by Dorothea Malm (not in the mood for the writing style at present)
- Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire (1/3 of the way in and still no plot; no thanks)
- Sweet Black Waves by Kristina Pérez (ARC) (just not feeling it right now; maybe later)
- A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (very hard to read; getting through it slowly)
- For Love and Honor by Jody Hedlund (literally only 18 pages from finishing as I write this)
- The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan (finished already; loved it so much)
- Lost In a Book by Jennifer Donnelly (just started; pretty interesting so far)
WRITING
Wattpad Updates
April End Stats:
1,036 reads
101 votes
38 comments
Final End Stats (story finished on June 14):
1,740 reads
175 votes
61 comments
My next Wattpad story (and Kay's final book) began on June 16 - exactly six years from the publication of her very first story, "Everything." Her final story is called "Mobius Destiny," and as I write this the prologue and first chapter have been posted and extremely well received. Super excited to see what my readers think of upcoming events!
See you with a proper book wrap-up in July. Life got nuts so I didn't have time to do anything super in-depth for the last couple of months. Sorry. Until next time!
Final End Stats (story finished on June 14):
1,740 reads
175 votes
61 comments
My next Wattpad story (and Kay's final book) began on June 16 - exactly six years from the publication of her very first story, "Everything." Her final story is called "Mobius Destiny," and as I write this the prologue and first chapter have been posted and extremely well received. Super excited to see what my readers think of upcoming events!
See you with a proper book wrap-up in July. Life got nuts so I didn't have time to do anything super in-depth for the last couple of months. Sorry. Until next time!
Saturday, April 7, 2018
Spring Fever (March Book Wrap-Up)
READING
Finished This Month
What Happened to Goodbye is a book that I first saw several years ago when I was in early high school. The premise intrigued me, mostly because there aren't many YA novels about kids who move a lot, and having grown up as a military brat I thought maybe it could be something I'd relate to. I didn't read it that first time, though, and years passed before I even saw it again. The copy I now own was found at a Salvation Army for a dollar or two, and it sat on my TBR from January 2015 to January 2018, when I finally picked it up to read. The story was good, if a bit cliche. I learned a lot about both basketball and restaurants. I could relate to the main character in some ways. There were a couple of characters I didn't care for. But the most fascinating thing about reading this was that it was both a trip down memory lane and relevant to my life today in a different way than it would have been back then. If I'd read it both the first time I saw it and again now, the experience would have been entirely different each time. It's really cool when a book can do that.
Just as a reminder: I will do a full review of the Jackaby saga when I've finished the fourth/last book (which I'm planning to read in April).
Currently Reading
WRITING
My Pitchaplooza entry did not make it into the final 20, but that's okay. It was fun to try. The books that won the Book Doctors' Choice and the Fans Choice are both really interesting, and I wish both authors all the best!
April 1 marked not only Easter and April Fool's Day this year, but the beginning of the first session of Camp NaNoWriMo, which I am once again participating in. My goal - as usual - is 10,000 words, this time toward finishing "The Dimension Keepers" over on Wattpad. The story is progressing kind of slowly right now; I only got a couple of chapters out in March, as in February. That's one reason I want to power-write the rest of it, because I'm extremely hopeful I'll be able to release the next book in June (for reasons I'll explain when I get there). The couple of chapters I wrote this month were received well, as there was a huge character introduction that everyone seemed really excited about. Next month at this time I hope to report that I've released most of the rest of the story, if not the entire rest of it. Fingers crossed!
March End Stats:
857 reads
87 votes
32 comments
See you guys next time! :D
Finished This Month
- What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen
- Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter
What Happened to Goodbye is a book that I first saw several years ago when I was in early high school. The premise intrigued me, mostly because there aren't many YA novels about kids who move a lot, and having grown up as a military brat I thought maybe it could be something I'd relate to. I didn't read it that first time, though, and years passed before I even saw it again. The copy I now own was found at a Salvation Army for a dollar or two, and it sat on my TBR from January 2015 to January 2018, when I finally picked it up to read. The story was good, if a bit cliche. I learned a lot about both basketball and restaurants. I could relate to the main character in some ways. There were a couple of characters I didn't care for. But the most fascinating thing about reading this was that it was both a trip down memory lane and relevant to my life today in a different way than it would have been back then. If I'd read it both the first time I saw it and again now, the experience would have been entirely different each time. It's really cool when a book can do that.
Just as a reminder: I will do a full review of the Jackaby saga when I've finished the fourth/last book (which I'm planning to read in April).
Currently Reading
- To the Castle by Dorothea Malm
- The Comic Book Story of Baseball by Alex Irvine (ARC) (I'm having some download difficulties with this one; there may or may not be a review for it in the future, depending on if I can finish it.)
- Crimson Ash by Haley Sulich (ARC)
- The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
- The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson
WRITING
My Pitchaplooza entry did not make it into the final 20, but that's okay. It was fun to try. The books that won the Book Doctors' Choice and the Fans Choice are both really interesting, and I wish both authors all the best!
April 1 marked not only Easter and April Fool's Day this year, but the beginning of the first session of Camp NaNoWriMo, which I am once again participating in. My goal - as usual - is 10,000 words, this time toward finishing "The Dimension Keepers" over on Wattpad. The story is progressing kind of slowly right now; I only got a couple of chapters out in March, as in February. That's one reason I want to power-write the rest of it, because I'm extremely hopeful I'll be able to release the next book in June (for reasons I'll explain when I get there). The couple of chapters I wrote this month were received well, as there was a huge character introduction that everyone seemed really excited about. Next month at this time I hope to report that I've released most of the rest of the story, if not the entire rest of it. Fingers crossed!
March End Stats:
857 reads
87 votes
32 comments
See you guys next time! :D
Wednesday, March 7, 2018
So Overwhelmed (February Book Wrap-Up)
READING
Finished This Month
This was the first ARC I began reading from NetGalley (more info on that and how I got involved in it soon), and the reason I requested the book was because it seemed like a cute romance I could power through during the month of February. (Gotta be thematic, you know.) However "cute" quickly became cliché and uncomfortable as I began to realize that the main guy in the book had only one thing in mind when he began pursuing the main girl in the book - and she just LET him do it, even though she knew better. (We all know what that "one thing" was.) I won't post my full thoughts on it here; if you're interested you can read my review of it on Goodreads. Suffice it to say this left a really bad taste in my mouth and I am disappointed that it is being published at all.
Currently Reading
WRITING
Last month I submitted a pitch for my work-in-progress/NaNoWriMo 2017 novel Follow the Raven to the annual Pitchaplooza event hosted by NaNoWriMo and the Book Doctors. I won't hear anything until March 15 at the soonest, and only at that point will I provide more info about what it is and how it works. I just felt strongly that I should participate in the "Now What" months this year if I really wanted to get the ball rolling on a publishing contract, and this is one of the things that could potentially help with that. If nothing else I'll have taken a bold step forward, and I'll be working on this novel more as the year progresses.
Over on Wattpad I really slowed down in February; I only posted one new chapter in the entire month. That's mostly due to the fact that I hit the halfway point in the story and writer's block at the same time, so I needed to work that out before I could continue onward. I think I've mostly gotten around the detour at this point; there should be more chapters coming out in the next few weeks.
February End Stats:
652 reads
66 votes
23 comments
I'm reading so many books at once right now (and have so many more on the horizon), I'm feeling kind of overwhelmed by the numbers. But as long as I keep my eye on the prize and formulate some sort of reading plan to get me through April at the very least, I think I'll emerge victorious and mostly unscathed. I know the year has started out slow in terms of blog posts, but there are more fun things coming your way soon! Keep an eye out, and I'll see you next time!
Finished This Month
- The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo
This was a book I won in a giveaway back in September/October, and it arrived around my birthday. Earlier this year I was in the mood for some fairy tale-like stories, so I went ahead and started reading this. The book contains six short stories of varying lengths and topics. Of the six, I only predicted the ending of one. The rest were at once familiar and totally unique. I think the thing I loved most about this book was the beauty of the simple language within. It's written for a low reading level despite the subjects within being for older readers, but because of the WAY it's written it just flows so smoothly and the message comes across so beautifully. This is the first Leigh Bardugo book I've ever read, but it won't be the last, for sure. If this is any indication I can see why the rest of her works are so popular.
Did Not Finish
- Cold Hard Truth by Anne Greenwood Brown
Currently Reading
- To the Castle by Dorothea Malm
- What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen
- Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter
- The Comic Book Story of Baseball by Alex Irvine (ARC)
- Crimson Ash by Haley Sulich (ARC)
WRITING
Last month I submitted a pitch for my work-in-progress/NaNoWriMo 2017 novel Follow the Raven to the annual Pitchaplooza event hosted by NaNoWriMo and the Book Doctors. I won't hear anything until March 15 at the soonest, and only at that point will I provide more info about what it is and how it works. I just felt strongly that I should participate in the "Now What" months this year if I really wanted to get the ball rolling on a publishing contract, and this is one of the things that could potentially help with that. If nothing else I'll have taken a bold step forward, and I'll be working on this novel more as the year progresses.
Over on Wattpad I really slowed down in February; I only posted one new chapter in the entire month. That's mostly due to the fact that I hit the halfway point in the story and writer's block at the same time, so I needed to work that out before I could continue onward. I think I've mostly gotten around the detour at this point; there should be more chapters coming out in the next few weeks.
February End Stats:
652 reads
66 votes
23 comments
I'm reading so many books at once right now (and have so many more on the horizon), I'm feeling kind of overwhelmed by the numbers. But as long as I keep my eye on the prize and formulate some sort of reading plan to get me through April at the very least, I think I'll emerge victorious and mostly unscathed. I know the year has started out slow in terms of blog posts, but there are more fun things coming your way soon! Keep an eye out, and I'll see you next time!
Saturday, February 10, 2018
Chilling Out, Slowing Down (January Book Wrap-Up)
Welcome to my first book wrap-up of 2018! You'll notice some changes to the layout of these wrap-ups for the foreseeable future; I'm hopeful they will be easier to navigate and less cluttered with useless information. Let's give it a go, shall we?
READING
Finished This Month
A full review of the Jackaby saga will be posted after I've finished book four. (For now suffice it to say I have the biggest literary crush on Mr. Jackaby!)
Currently Reading
WRITING
I'm not exactly on track with my weekly Wattpad updates on Fridays anymore, but I am still on track in terms how many chapters of "The Dimension Keepers" I release per month. We're about halfway through the story at this point, which is crazy to think about. I feel like I just revealed the cover for this story! But my readers are loving it, and I'm having fun writing it, and there are plenty of surprises in store for February.
January End Stats:
479 reads
57 votes
18 comments
And that's it! What do you think of the new wrap-up format? Usually there won't be this little information; if I hadn't decided to review the Jackaby saga as a whole there would be a review or two in this post, so you can look forward to those in the future for sure. I also don't intend for future posts to be out so late; I was still working out some of the kinks with this one which is why it took so long to go live. BUT I do intend for future wrap-ups to come out within the first week of the following month. For example, February's book wrap-up will be out within the first seven days of March, March's in April, and so on. It's just easier for me to do it that way rather than stress about getting February's wrap-up posted on the last day of the month before midnight, as I've done before.
Thanks for stopping by to see what I'm reading! There will be some more bookish information coming your way very soon (including what NetGalley is and how I came to be part of it), so be on the lookout. Big, awesome things are happening in my reading world right now, and I'm excited to share it with you all. I'll see you guys next time!
READING
Finished This Month
- Jackaby by William Ritter
- Beastly Bones by William Ritter
A full review of the Jackaby saga will be posted after I've finished book four. (For now suffice it to say I have the biggest literary crush on Mr. Jackaby!)
Currently Reading
- To The Castle by Dorothea Malm
- The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo
- What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen
- Cold Hard Truth by Anne Greenwood Brown (ARC from NetGalley! :D)
- Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter
WRITING
I'm not exactly on track with my weekly Wattpad updates on Fridays anymore, but I am still on track in terms how many chapters of "The Dimension Keepers" I release per month. We're about halfway through the story at this point, which is crazy to think about. I feel like I just revealed the cover for this story! But my readers are loving it, and I'm having fun writing it, and there are plenty of surprises in store for February.
January End Stats:
479 reads
57 votes
18 comments
And that's it! What do you think of the new wrap-up format? Usually there won't be this little information; if I hadn't decided to review the Jackaby saga as a whole there would be a review or two in this post, so you can look forward to those in the future for sure. I also don't intend for future posts to be out so late; I was still working out some of the kinks with this one which is why it took so long to go live. BUT I do intend for future wrap-ups to come out within the first week of the following month. For example, February's book wrap-up will be out within the first seven days of March, March's in April, and so on. It's just easier for me to do it that way rather than stress about getting February's wrap-up posted on the last day of the month before midnight, as I've done before.
Thanks for stopping by to see what I'm reading! There will be some more bookish information coming your way very soon (including what NetGalley is and how I came to be part of it), so be on the lookout. Big, awesome things are happening in my reading world right now, and I'm excited to share it with you all. I'll see you guys next time!
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