Monday Reads

You know how I made that promise to myself to quit a book if I'm just not loving it?

Yeah, I didn't do that this week. Twice.

First, I read DANCING WITH BLACK by Laura Bingham. I picked up this book at my church bookstore (no, it's not a religious book) because the premise sounded somewhat similar to my latest WIP. If it hadn't been for the fact that I BOUGHT it, I probably would have quit it. The book wasn't terrible. It was just one of those books where the concept is great but the delivery not so much. ( NOTHING like my current WIP though, thank goodness.)

Then I read THE STRANGE AND BEAUTIFUL SORROWS OF AVA LAVENDER by Leslye Walton. Every time I picked up the book and started reading I was like, I don't really want to read this I should just quit. And then I would find myself chapters later still reading and wondering what's hooking me. So there's definitely something there, which is why I didn't give it up. It's a very dialogue-light book, which is NOT one of my favorite things. And it took more than 100 pages to actually get to the character of Ava Lavender. (*frowny-face*). And yet, I finished. Not sure exactly how I feel about it though...

What did you read this week?

Friday Loves

We pretty much got back to normal over here at the Stanford house. Had our follow-up lice appointment at the lice clinic yesterday and we're LICE FREE! YAY! Now if we can just keep it that way... I know I'm going to suffer from lice paranoia for the next little while.

So love #1: THE LICE CLINIC!!! (I know I used that one last week, but hey, the place is great.)

LICE FREE!!!

 

Love #2: VERONICA MARS. I'm almost done season one, and yes, I'm getting it- the hype and all. I'm hooked.

Girl crush!

 

Love #3: Chocolate covered strawberries! Me and the hubs celebrated 14 years of marriage this week (whaaat?) and that's what he got me. We're also trying out a fancy Italian restaurant on the weekend because we're fancy kinda people. (Or so we like to pretend...)

Yummmm...

What are you loving this week?

Wednesday Writes: Avengers Edition

I completely blew my Wednesday Writes post last week. Truth is, I've barely done anything for the month of April. I've restarted my revisions three times now.

 

This week has been better. Life has gotten mostly back to normal and I'm back to my regular schedule. This means I've made some good progress of my on-paper revisions. Hallelujah. As of yesterday, I was on Chapter 17. I'd like to do another five or so chapters today.

Thank goodness for progress! And thank goodness for the YA Buccaneers Spring Writing Bootcamp, and my team the Re-vengers! (We're all revising like superheroes.) They're keeping me on track.

 

How is your writing going this week?

One more GIF, just because...

Monday Reads

The past week was crap for revising and exercising, but I did read a lot, so there's that.
Here's what I read:

 

 

All three books were 3 stars for me. I liked them all for different reasons and also had different issues with each. OF SCARS AND STARDUST had me intrigued through the whole book, not knowing what was happening and what was real/not real. The ending though, while it was realistic, was dissatisfying. I left the book feeling disappointed that I'd read it in the first place. :( 

 

FAIREST, I read just because I love Marissa Meyer. I wasn't sure how much I would like this book, since it's based on Levana, but I was into it, and it was interesting learning Levana's backstory although it was hard to ever really like her. It made me excited for WINTER though!

 

Lastly, EMMALEE is by an author who is modernizing all of Jane Austen's books. I've read her PRIDE & POPULARITY, PERSUADED, and NORTHANGER ALIBI. I remember liking those books a lot more than I liked this one. The story was cute and it was an easy/fast read, but I noticed things in the writing that could've been tighter, and the dialogue felt completely unrealistic at times, like the author was trying to use the original Jane Austen too much.

 

So I guess I was in a bit of a nitpicky reading mood this past week- blame the lice.

 

Friday Loves... Maybe

This week... UGH. It's going to be really hard to find something I've loved this week because it has been a major TRIAL.

Monday, I'm at ballet with my two youngest daughters when I spot a bug in one of my girls' hair.

LICE.

Happy birthday to me (Monday was my birthday).

After staying up until after 2 a.m. on Monday trying to pick nits out of three girls hair and freaking out and everything, I decided on Tuesday to let a professional handle it.

These were me at two a.m., making no headway at all on getting rid of nits

 

Lice clinic, people. Pricey, but worth it. Especially when she discovered lice in MY hair (ew ew ew) which I never would have found on my own (the hubs couldn't spot them either). As it is, I've spent the week doing laundry and vacuuming and more laundry and more vacuuming and more laundry. My days are completely messed up, the kids have been missing school, and I've gotten absolutely NO revising done. (Total bad timing for the Spring Writing Bootcamp.) On the other hand, I've learned a lot about lice. I always thought they were like, a "dirty" thing, but no, anyone can get them. In fact, they like clean hair, go figure.

So what do I love this week? . . . Erm . . . Definitely lice clinics. The four of us girls go back for a follow-up next week to make sure every last nit is gone, but it's been a huge stress off me not having to worry about finding every single nit and if I miss one and then it'll hatch and then all this will start all over again. (I'm still a little stressed about it, not gonna lie, but it's way less than if I was getting rid of them myself.) I CAN'T HANDLE IT.

So... how was your week?

Monday Reads: TWO AMAZING BOOKS

First off, it's my birthday (I'm totally rapping that in my head right now), which is always a bummer cuz OLDER. Ugh.

Nothing like the Doctors to put me in a better mood.

 

In better news, I read TWO AMAZING books this week.

Missouri, 1849: Samantha dreams of moving back to New York to be a professional musician—not an easy thing if you’re a girl, and harder still if you’re Chinese. But a tragic accident dashes any hopes of fulfilling her dream, and instead, leaves her fearing for her life. With the help of a runaway slave named Annamae, Samantha flees town for the unknown frontier. But life on the Oregon Trail is unsafe for two girls, so they disguise themselves as Sammy and Andy, two boys headed for the California gold rush. Sammy and Andy forge a powerful bond as they each search for a link to their past, and struggle to avoid any unwanted attention. But when they cross paths with a band of cowboys, the light-hearted troupe turn out to be unexpected allies. With the law closing in on them and new setbacks coming each day, the girls quickly learn that there are not many places to hide on the open trail.

 AND...

Book two of the dazzling Winner's Trilogy is a fight to the death as Kestrel risks betrayal of country for love.

The engagement of Lady Kestrel to Valoria’s crown prince means one celebration after another. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the truth about her engagement... if she could only trust him. Yet can she even trust herself? For—unknown to Arin—Kestrel is becoming a skilled practitioner of deceit: an anonymous spy passing information to Herran, and close to uncovering a shocking secret.

As Arin enlists dangerous allies in the struggle to keep his country’s freedom, he can’t fight the suspicion that Kestrel knows more than she shows. In the end, it might not be a dagger in the dark that cuts him open, but the truth. And when that happens, Kestrel and Arin learn just how much their crimes will cost them.

 

Both of these books... soooo good. I devoured them. I ate them up. I want to read them again. 5 out of 5 stars for both. If you haven't, you must read them. Must read them right now.

 

Friday Loves

This past week, me and the kids went to Cardston to spend Easter with my parents. It's always nice to go because the kids love to be with their grandparents. While we were there, I did this (although it was super frustrating. This puzzle was HARD):

I know my nerd is showing, but I love puzzles.

 

Another love this week, the movie Belle. Wow, this movie was so good. I got it from the library but I will buy it ASAP.

 

Last Friday, I saw the latest Fast and Furious movie. It was predictably cheesy and over-the-top (like every line the Rock said and the thing with the cast, not to mention all the stunts *scoffs*), but the tribute they did to Paul Walker in the end was really sweet and made me all teary, so it definitely deserves a mention.

 

What are you loving this week?

Wednesday Writes

This year I decided to join up the YA Buccaneers SPRING WRITING BOOTCAMP. I'm hoping this will keep me motivated and on-schedule to finish my JAR OF HEARTS revisions in a timely fashion.

So my goal for Bootcamp: Simple. Finish JAR OF HEARTS revisions by the end of bootcamp, aka, the end of MAY (if not sooner).

I finished up my notecards of each chapter. Since I'm now at my parents house with my kids for the Easter break, I decided to print off the entire manuscript and work on it on paper.

What are you working on this week?

Monday Reads

HAPPY EASTER everyone!

This past week I read an AMAZING book and I DNF'd a book.

The amazing book was OUT OF THE EASY by Ruta Sepetys.

It’s 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel prostitute, Josie wants more out of life than the Big Easy has to offer.

She devises a plan to get out, but a mysterious death in the Quarter leaves Josie tangled in an investigation that will challenge her allegiance to her mother, her conscience, and Willie Woodley, the brusque madam on Conti Street. Josie is caught between the dream of an elite college and a clandestine underworld. New Orleans lures her in her quest for truth, dangling temptation at every turn, and escalating to the ultimate test.

This book pulled me in right from the beginning. The characters were interesting and well-rounded and the plot had me through the entire thing. What I loved best though was how well the author did atmosphere without having paragraphs and paragraphs of description. Definitely a must-read, especially if you like historical.

The other book I DNF'd... I won't say what it was. It's a book people love, but I just wasn't feeling it. The voice was super strong and the prose beautiful- both very different, which kept me reading at first, otherwise I would've quit in the first chapter. But by about page 80, I was starting to get sick of it all. I also knew pretty much how it would end, so after flipping through and reading different passages, I decided to quit. I hate quitting books. I worry that I'm missing out on something. Or that I'm just going through a book slump and maybe I should give the book a chance. But there are so many books I want to read, I need to start toughening up and putting books aside that I'm just not loving.

What did you read this week? Do you DNF books?

Friday Loves

So I'm writing this on Thursday night and currently I have a headache, I'm tired, and plain ol' ready for bed. It's hard to find loves right now.

*massages head*

*tries to think*

Oh yeah, some are coming to me know.

First on this week's LOVE LIST, is the movie HOME. I took my kids to see it for my son's birthday and it was super cute. Plus, it's impossible not to love Sheldon's voice.

My hands are in the air like I just do not care!

 

Second on my LOVE LIST, the season finale of SLEEPY HOLLOW, which me and the hubs finally got around to watching. The second season was just okay, but I loved the finale. SPOILERS AHEAD: I'm happy that Henry is gone (because man I was getting sick of him), I always knew Katrina would bite the dust one day (poor, poor Ichabod), and the last episode in the past was awesome. My favorite so far. Of course, I have a thing for the past, so... Hopefully next season will knock it out like the last episode did.

I'm trying Ichabod, I'm trying.

What are you loving this week?

Wednesday Writes

First off, let me say, HAPPY APRIL FOOL'S DAY!!!

 

So, moving on... (I swear, none of this post is an April Fool.)

 



I'm plugging away on revisions for JAR OF HEARTS, my YA mystery with a hint of fantasy. (I want to call this magical realism, but it's not literary, so I'm not sure what to call it.) I'm still jotting down notes on notecards for each chapter, and I'm about done that. After, I need to go back to the beginning and add some more atmosphere, and work on a few other details. Also, I really hope that I've helped and not hurt the pacing by moving scenes around so much.

I started out these revisions not knowing what to do or where to even begin.

But now, I'm feeling pretty good about this manuscript.

So what are you working on this week?

Monday Reads

I used to post every Wednesday for What's Up Wednesday- talking about what I'd read for the week, what I was writing, and what else was going on in my life. But since that has gone the way of the dodo bird, I had to decide, what next? I do best when I have structure and direction, so after thinking about it, I decided to take the idea of What's Up Wednesday, but spread it out over three days.
Monday will be MONDAY READS: all about what I've read the past week. Wednesday is WEDNESDAY WRITES: all about what I'm writing, revising, beta-ing, or whatever. And I'm going to stick with my Love List on Friday, but changing the name to FRIDAY LOVES. I'm going to try this out for a bit and see if it works. Hopefully, too, this will keep posts short, because I'm all about brevity.

So on to today, my first MONDAY READS post.

Kendra has always felt overshadowed by her older brother, Grayson, whose OCD forces him to live a life of carefully coordinated routines. The only way Kendra can stand out next to Grayson is to be perfect, and she has perfection down to an art -- until a cheating scandal threatens her flawless reputation.

 

Behind the wheel of her car, with Grayson asleep beside her, Kendra decides to drive away from it all -- with enough distance, maybe she'll be able to figure everything out. But eventually, Kendra must stop running and come to terms with herself, her brother, and her past.

This past week, I read PERFECT ESCAPE by Jennifer Brown. I had a hard time with this book and really wanted to DNF it a few times. I ended up finishing to the end, but I think I could have given it up and wouldn't have missed out. Not that this wasn't a good book in its way. I really liked reading about a character with extreme OCD, and the relationship between the two siblings. That being said, I felt like the MCs inner monologue was the same throughout. She would go back and forth between, I hate my brother he's ruined my life I can't take it anymore, to, I love my brother and maybe I can fix him. This went on through the entire book and I got a little sick of it. I wasn't satisfied by the end either, although it was realistic, it just didn't feel like a strong enough character arc (like, she just swapped back to, I love my brother). People will disagree, because I know lots love this book, but I just wasn't feeling it. :(

Now I'm reading OUT OF THE EASY by Ruta Sepetys and I'm LOVING this book so far.

What are you reading?

LOVE LIST #9

First on my LOVE LIST this week, a video made by Dove, not sure if it's a commercial or not, but it has such a powerful message and it totally made me cry. I found it on Facebook via HuffingtonPost. Check it out:

Another thing I found on Facebook was a funny Buzzfeed article: 23 Signs Your Jane Austen Addiction Is Getting Out Of Hand. Ah, Buzzfeed, what would I do without you?

And what would I do without gifs?

 

One thing I'm NOT loving this week: Zayn Malik has left One Direction. My inner thirteen-year-old is like, totally bummed out. 

Bye Zayn. 1D fans will miss you.

What are you loving this week?

What's Up Wednesday: Insurgent

WHAT I'M READING
I finished SHOPAHOLIC TO THE STARS by Sophie Kinsella. I got more into it by the middle, but it was a bit long and then it ended abruptly. I liked it better when the books were more standalone. I do still get a kick out of Becky's hijinks though. Then I read WHEN JOSS MET MATT which I liked, although their relationship was this one endless cycle and that's exactly how it started to feel- endless. I pretty much knew what would happen in the end and I just wanted to get to it. Now I'm reading PERFECT ESCAPE by Jennifer Brown.

WHAT I'M WRITING REVISING
Still working on JAR OF HEARTS. I've found my groove and I think things are going good. I'm still jotting down each chapter on notecards, but I've already started moving things around. I really hope I'm not messing it all up! Goal: keep at it!

WHAT WORKS FOR ME
I haven't really set goals during WUW posts. I usually forget. But I find having a daily goal, even if it's just, do a little bit, helps a lot. I don't have a set day or time I want to be done these revisions, I just want to keep up the momentum.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW
Tried out a new restaurant on the weekend- The Canadian Brewhouse. Food was good, I had a super yummy donair, but it was really loud in there (I sound like my mom). Also saw INSURGENT. I liked it, although I wasn't blown away. It's been forever since I read the book so I don't know what they changed/cut, but a lot of it felt familiar to me. Everything except that box. What was that??? ( I remember the message, and Tris giving herself up to go there, but nothing else to do with that box.)

LOVE LIST #8

Whoops, it's now 1:08 pm on Friday and I've just realized I totally forgot about my Love List for this week.

So, without futher ado...

I finished all three seasons of Sherlock. And while the plots didn't blow me away, the relationship between Holmes and Watson (Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman) totally made the show. I'll definitely watch next season.

Found this new song called House of Cards by Tyler Shaw which is excellent.

And a shout out to the FB group I'm part of called Querying Authors. They're awesome!!!

What are you loving this week?

What's Up Wednesday: Cinderella

WHAT I'M READING
I read I WAS HERE by Gayle Forman. I liked it, like I like all her books, but it was my least favorite. I had a hard time connecting to the MC. And while I liked the romantic subplot, I didn't gel with the end. I can't say more without giving spoilers. Now I'm reading SHOPAHOLIC TO THE STARS by Sophie Kinsella and it's of course very funny, if a bit long.

WHAT I'M WRITING REVISING
I finished one CPs notes on JAR OF HEARTS and I'm working another's notes.

WHAT WORKS FOR ME
Note cards. I don't always use them but they come in handy when you have to move scenes around. My CP has moved a lot of my chapters around in her edits, and it's hard for me to see if those changes make sense or not. So I'm going through her other notes while jotting each chapter scene onto notecards. When I'm done I'll lay them all out and hopefully see what works.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW
I saw CINDERELLA on the weekend. I thought it was lovely, although it was hard to really get into it with my six-year-old being so fidgety, the mom and kids in our row who kept getting up and going to the bathroom, and the row of kids behind me that kept kicking my chair. It was a beautiful movie though, colorful and magical. I wanted Cinderella to get a little backbone earlier on, but then again, I thought the movie did a good job of showing how a woman can be both strong and kind at the same time. (Instead of the usual strong/snarky heroines.)

 

Cate Blanchett's costumes were DIVINE.

LOVE LIST #7

This week has been a bit tough. I've had some personal issues going on and there have been some tears. Top of my LOVE LIST for the week has to be my husband, who should win an award for how supportive and understanding he is.

Our wedding day, almost fourteen years ago

 

One morning this week, when I was feeling particularly miserable, I decided to play Just Dance 2015 for exercise. A couple of songs in, I realized that I felt a lot better. So second on my LOVE LIST is the magic and fun of Just Dance.

What are you loving this week?



What's Up Wednesday: Reading, Revisions, and TV

WHAT I'M READING
This week I read PUSHING THE LIMITS by Katie McGarry which was a great book- totally sucked me in. Then I read LOOP by Karen Akins. I love time travel and thought this was a great concept. I also loved the voice of the MC. I felt like the love story could have been a bit swoonier though. Now I'm reading I WAS HERE by Gayle Forman.

WHAT I'M WRITING REVISING
I finished my WIP last week and went right into revisions on my old NaNo (from 2013) MS JAR OF HEARTS. Right now I'm going through in-manuscript notes from two of my CPs and then I'll get to the bigger issue stuff. You know when you get back revision notes and you think, HOW CAN I EVER DO THIS? And then you get to work and it all clicks into place and everything works out? Well, I'm still in that first part.

WHAT WORKS FOR ME
I bought myself some notebooks because I have random notes spread out here and there and everywhere. So far I've compiled the notes from my most recent WIP and from JAR OF HEARTS. Doing this helped me to get back into the MS, and this way, I'll have everything I've ever thought/written/conceived of in one spot.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW
Not much. Family dinner at The Olive Garden. Catching up on Agent Carter and The Bachelor. Watched Million Dollar Arm. Bought tickets for Cinderella this coming weekend. PitMad today.

I want this outfit for Halloween. Or maybe everyday.

 

I also made this yummy banana bread thanks to a recipe from Jaime and I've been eating it for lunch like a super healthy adult.

What have you been up to?

Love List #6

The thing I LOVE THE MOST this week is FINISHING MY WIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Of course, this is how I felt writing the thing:

And then how I felt when I finally finished:

The thing needs a lot of work, including an added POV, but I'm taking a needed break to do edits on a past MS.

 

Another thing I love this week? Well, I ALWAYS love Taylor Swift, but I'm psyched that Style is on the radio now, since it was one of my faves off her album from the start.

What are you loving this week?

 





What's Up Wednesday: Relief and The DUFF

WHAT I'M READING
I finished HEIR OF FIRE by Sarah J. Maas, and while the book did grab me a bit more by the end, I was kinda disappointed. Even more so when someone told me it's going to be a SEVEN book series. I thought it was ending at four, so powering through number three was worth it. Now... I'm not so sure I'll continue. :(
After that, I read NORTHANGER ABBEY by Val McDermid- a modern day retelling. It was okay. I have so  many thoughts on this Jane Austen project happening that they might need their very own post.
Now I'm reading PUSHING THE LIMITS by Katie McGarry.

WHAT I'M WRITING
Yesterday, I finished my WIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The funny thing is, despite all those exclamation points, I'm not even excited. Just relieved. This thing has plagued me from start to finish and I'm just glad to be done the first draft. It needs SO MUCH revision, it's too short, and I think it needs another POV, but for now, I want to set it aside and STOP THINKING ABOUT IT. Just for a little while.

WHAT WORKS FOR ME
Having a daily goal. My WIP gave me such h-e-double-hockey-sticks that I haven't wanted to sit down and write, but I've been forcing myself to anyway. Just a bit each day. One thousand words. I manage it every time I get my butt in the darn chair. And obviously it worked since I'm done.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW
I mentioned on my Friday's Love List that I saw THE DUFF a couple of weekends ago. The movie was lots of fun, although there were a few things that bugged me (mean girl was one-dimensional, the mannequin scene was over-the-top and long, and Mae Whitman is NOT fat). I laughed a lot though and it made me want to reread the book since it's been so long.