The Three 'R's of Summer

Funny How Things Change Review

2009-07-29T15:46:00.002-04:00

Hey!

I've really fallen off the wagon here. Ouch. Well, I'm back now and I certainly missed my blog! I have about four books in the queue with my TBR pile still mounting and that silly novel... oh my. Luckily, this book is easy to gush about.

Funny How Things Change

by Melissa Wyatt

I saw Melissa Wyatt making the blog rounds doing many interviews about her new book and I knew I had to check it out. When I finally saw it at my local library I was so excited.

Remy isn't a dumb guy nor is he unambitious. He just knows that college is not the right path for him and mostly everyone in his life understands that. However, his girlfriend Lisa is right for him and she's moving away from the small town of Dwyer, West Virginia to attend college in Pennsylvania. Dwyer has always been Remy's home but when Lisa asks him to move with her one more time he finds himself saying yes. Now Remy has to figure out how to tell his dad and his old life goodbye while he and Lisa face the realities of living on their own in another state. Along the way he meets Dana, a college student who is doing a summer project in Dwyer and as they help each other navigate new territory Remy realizes that he might have to make some very difficult decisions.

Funny How Things Change is a slim book compared to most YA novels nowadays, just under 200 pages, but it is a rich, deep, concentrated read. The story lingered in my mind long after I closed the book for the final time. The prose throughout the novel is simple but rich with imagery and feeling. The reader really gets a complete view of Dwyer. Not only do we see the mountains and the dirt roads that exist there but we also get to know the history of the town and the people and most important we get to discover Dwyer's place in the world. I was impressed by how this town became a character just like Remy, Lisa and Dana.

Remy's personal emotional journal was well-crafted. I liked how the outside events and people in his life served as the catalyst for his self-growth but he did not come to any conclusions or decisions solely because of other people. Remy is a character that you can instantly love. He is not perfect but his self-awareness and his struggle make him someone you can really root for. Remy, as a character, is richly layered and completes a series of changes throughout the novel that make his final decision something personal that the reader can really accept from him. Third-person is not a common narrative in YA novels but this POV really complements the novel and there is no unnecessary distance between Remy and the reader. One of the problems with third person is that sometimes the reader comes to conclusions about the character before the character gets there. With this novel I felt connected with Remy the whole time. The reader will definitely take his journey right along with him, every step of the way. The secondary characters were also enjoyable, interesting and carefully nuanced. I loved the dialogue, a source of much of the humor in the novel as well as many important explanations.

The setting is portrayed masterfully throughout the novel. The mountains, the roads, the buildings and the people that comprise Dwyer as always present but not in an overshadowing way. Wyatt has a gift for description that is simple yet hearty enough for the reader to imagine everything that is happening in the scene. From the auto shop to Remy's trailer to Lisa's house to the creek running on Walker Mountain and the water tower that Dana paints so carefully I felt completely at ease with the setting even though Dwyer is unlike any place I've ever lived before. The setting breathes life into the story and is very important to Remy's life. I was very impressed by how everything was written.

Even though the book is relatively short it is a novel you read slowly so you can linger with the language and really see and hear everything in your head. There is a lot to digest but I enjoyed every moment of it. This is a sophisticated novel, one that might create a love story in your own life starring you and this book. Highly recommended. Go ahead and pick this one up today.

Dirty Liar Review

2009-06-29T21:27:00.005-04:00

I saw this book in someone's Hardcover vs. Paperback post and somehow I knew I was meant to read it.

When I see Push books I know that they will be an edgy and raw read. I also think about how I lost some Push contest I entered when I was a senior in high school. Haha. Still bitter.

Dirty Liar by Brian James

Dirty Liar is the story of Benji, better known as Dogboy, and he prefers that name. Benji is a guy he doesn't really want to know. Dogboy is a cloak he can hide behind, just like his nondescript jeans and long hair. He leads a fairly normal life with a couple of buds he gets high with after school, a long-distance girlfriend and a new step-family to get used to. Nobody knows why Benji chose to leave his mother and his former life. If Benji has anything to do it nobody is ever going to know all of the dark secrets he keeps hidden inside of him.

The first thing you'll notice about this book is the unusual structure. Instead of quotation marks for dialogue James uses dashes and italics. He also has a tendency to connect sentences through ellipses. I'm not sure what the point of this is. In fact, it's probably one of the reason that I haven't really read one of his books before even though I've probably picked up all of them to look at while I was the library. But don't let that turn you off. It's a simple thing to get used to. Everything reads just like the usual structure for a novel. The only large drawback to this style is that it makes reading the narrative very slow. When you see a lot of sentences..connected like this..it slows down the words in your head..it can be slightly frustrating..but at the same time it really gives you a sense of Benji's state of mind.

The actual writing is poetic, raw and riveting. I felt so connected to Benji, so much so that I had to look away sometimes. Benji is a smart guy and I really enjoyed reading about his theories about people and behavior and why things are the way they are in his life. To me, his pain and bad feelings never felt forced or melodramatic or contrived. You get glimpses into Benji's life with his mother, a life of neglect from his mother and abuse from his mother's boyfriend Roy. These glimpses don't tell the full story but they allow you to fully understand the dept of Benji's suffering.

Benji's depression isn't easy to read. The novel doesn't have a lot of action so you spend a lot of time in Benji's head as he writes in his journal, lays in his bed, gets high or just fights against all the demons pushing in on him. However, the writing is so vibrant that it makes up for the lack of physicality on the page. What really brings this novel together is the undercurrent of hope that runs throughout and then comes rushing at you in the end. Benji has a girlfriend back where his mom lives who loves him and then there's a new girl in his life at his new school. The moments where Benji is fresh and flush from all these new feelings are times when I wanted to stand up and cheer for him. The ending brings this all together and I didn't find it rushed. The climax was well-plotted. Benji faces a lot of fear and confusion as does the rest of his family. They don't handle this perfectly but in the end it is clear that everything is coming together so that everyone can move forward. I really enjoyed reading that.

This is a dark, gritty but beautifully controlled and written book. I recommend it if you're looking for a different kind of book about an outcast who thinks he's given everyone permission to write him off but he actually hasn't. This is one book that takes a teenager's depression as seriously as they do. A very inspiring read for me, personally. I'm glad that I chose this one. Check it out!

I'm not quite sure why they chose Dirty Liar for the title though. I mean, I can see it but to me, it's a stretch.

Also, Dirty Liar is a companion novel to Perfect World. It's probably better to read Perfect World first, actually. I'll have to check that book out of the library soon.

Okay, now I have to write 1500 words in an hour. I joined the DFTBAuthors Writing Challenge and committed to 1500 words a day for a week. D'oh!

Sunday Weekly Word Count [10]

2009-06-28T15:44:00.002-04:00

Ten weeks of this. Oh boy.

This week has been a total fail. Last week, I was riding high off my word count. I was like, yeah, I can ALWAYS do this? I love writing. I'm writing all the time. Blah blah blah. I just put my fingers to the keys every day and it's so great and fun and awesome. I'm gonna finish my draft. I love my WIP. It gives me so much excitement! Is there anything better than being a pretend writer!?

Then life stepped in. These personal things that happened to me. And Michael Jackson's dead. What the EFF?

I didn't write for two days straight!

And after that I was just muddling along, every word a struggle.

And I was like, this whole thing is stupid. It's going nowhere. I'll never finish and I don't want to. I hate every single word that's in the word document that takes 13342345 hours to load and I don't even have a printer so I can't print it out and WHAT WAS I THINKING all these days and weeks and months working on it, just a waste of time, really. A big waste of time. A terrible DELUSION.

I spent a few days feeling sorry for myself for a variety of reasons.

But then I told myself that I needed to get over it and move on with my life. Plus, I really do believe in my story and one day, it might actually be good. You never know. And it certainly will never turn into the shiny manuscript I want it to be if I don't FINISH it.

So I got back to writing and reading and following my Google Reader, all these things that make me happy. I watched Michael Jackson videos on VH1 Classic. I had the background of Friday Night Lights to guide me through. And a couple of times I muted the TV, I turned off the music and I was wholly in the moment of my story because I really had to feel it there.

I managed to salvage the week somewhat. And I really pushed the story through the hump it has stalled on and I might actually be sliding toward the finish now. Yaaaaay!

6/21-
Words: 2163
Pages: ~6

6/22- Nothing

6/23- Nothing

6/24-
Words: 535
Pages: 1.5

6/25-
Words: 783
Pages: 1.8

6/26-
Words: 2776
Pages: ~6

6/27-
Words: 5419
Pages: 11.5

Which brings my weekly total to 11676 words and 26.8 pages. Not too bad.

Wow I really need to do my laundry. And I've finished a couple of books so reviews on the way!

Sunday Weekly Word Count [9]

2009-06-21T19:19:00.003-04:00

What a week! I need to post more reviews. I never thought I was a slow reader before. Now I do. It's just because I get easily distracted. It takes concentration to finish a book. I have to read outside. When I'm home and there's the TV and the computer... it's over. Sad but true. I love to read though. Outside.

Speaking of TV, I got my Netflix Roku this week. It is sweet. I definitely love it. There's so choices on instant view and I want to watch them all but my computer sucks at steaming videos (I think it's the memory) and plus I want to be on the computer while I'm watching TV. You can't do that if you're watching TV on the computer. So the Roku was a good investment for me. Now I need to scale down my cable (even though it'll be hard). I don't need all those channels I really don't. What's cool about Netflix Instant View is that it has all the showtime shows and HBO shows and something called Starz Play. It's like you have Starz! See, you don't have to pay for it anymore (not that I ever did). So, I mean, I recommend the Roku if you think you're gonna use it a lot like me. Watching TV is not lame!

So through my wonderful Roku I rediscovered the show Friday Night Lights. I am now addicted! I don't know why I didn't catch on the first time around. I remember watching the pilot and I was kind of bored so I never returned. I love it now. FNL is my constant companion. I'm on episode 18 of 22 in Season 1 and then Season 2 is on instant view. I'll have the Season 3 DVDs waiting in the wings. I cannot WAIT to see what happens. DON'T TELL ME! I love Coach Taylor and Matt Saracen and Smash. Those are my favorite characters. Matt and Julie are so cute. I looked Matt up on IMDB. I can't believe the actor that plays Matt was born in 82. It makes him kissing on Julie kinda creepy (she was born in like 89) but I guess that's showbiz! On the show they are the same age, at least.

FNL assisted me this week as I wrote and wrote. I don't think I'm gonna get my draft done by the end of the month, heh. You're probably like, what's taking you so long?! I don't know! I've been at this for almost three months now, pretty much daily, working on the saaaaaaaaaaaaaaame draft. It's just got a life of it's own. A long life. I look forward to cutting it down to size but I have to finish! I feel like I made some real headway this week though. The most exciting part is that I only have one more basketball game to write. I don't even wanna know how many I've written. Talk about duplicate scenes... this draft is full of them. With the basketball games I could never quite figure out when I wanted my MC to have his breakout game so he kept having one and then having a bad game and then a good game and then a bad game. There's only so many ways you can write about basketball!

Another thing I've found. I'm very fond of paragraphs.

I think they make everything

look

so

DRAMATIC!

You know who I think is a dramatic writer? Caroline B. Cooney. I just love her style. That's kind of random.

Let's see how I did.

6/14:
Words - 3145
Pages - 7.6

6/15:
Words - 3069
Pages - 7.4

6/16:
Words - 920
Pages - 2.4

6/17:
Words - 3311
Pages - 7.7

6/18:
Words - 2112
Pages - 5

6/19: (I would like to say that I wrote this after 38 ounces of margaritas consumed during Happy Hour. Hey, Hemingway did it! Everything makes sense. Well, for the most part. Then I passed out at midnight.)
Words - 1246
Pages - 3

6/20: (Epic writing session that lasted from 11pm to 5:50am. I took a break at around 2am and danced around to the same two songs over and over again for like 45 minutes. I'm weird.)
Words - 7225
Pages - 16.3

That brings my weekly total to 21028 words and 49.4 pages. Well then.

I've noticed I'm most productive after 11pm and maybe even more so after 2am. I've always been a night owl. But that doesn't really work when you have to go to work at 9am. Sad!

Time for dinner. I also managed to clean up my apartment some this weekend too and finish a book. I feel very productive!

Artichoke's Heart Review

2009-06-16T22:55:00.005-04:00

It's so strange and exciting when I see books that I've only seen on blogs in person at the bookstore. It's kind of like seeing a celebrity up close and personal! Anyone else feel that way? I'm strange. But today at B&N I was like, there's Along For the Ride! Wait, there's How to Buy a Love for Reading! Oh hey, LA Candy.

It was like we were long lost friends.

Artichoke's Heart by Suzanne Supplee

Rosemary Goode knows she's overweight but everyone else insists on telling her. Her mom buys a treadmill for Christmas. Her aunt always has a disparaging remark. The popular girls at school tease her and that's been going on since middle school when she wore a green puffy jacket to school and they dubbed her "Artichoke." Rosemary finds comfort in the junk food she has stashed in her room. The new year brings new challenges for Rosemary and as she commits herself to losing the weight Rosemary finds her life changing in more ways than one.

Rosemary was a character that I could really root for. She was obviously smart and talented, yet insecure. Even through her insecurity she had some fresh and funny moments when she would use her wit to fight back at those who were trying to bring her down. I appreciated this. Rosemary wasn't simply an apologetic fat girl. She had a spark and ultimately, that's what helps her begin her journey to lose weight.

What really worked for this book was the southern setting and the realization of all the people and places that made up Rosie's world. I could really feel Tennessee shining through the pages. I loved how I got to read about the change in seasons. The weather provided a backdrop that helped illustrate Rosie's emotions. The dialect in the dialogue was never fake or forced. Everyone sounded different yet still retained that southern accent. I really admired that. Personalities were highlighted by the dialogue. It helped keep the novel moving and also provided a lot of humor.

What didn't work so well for this book was that there was a lot happening at once. That is true in life but I wasn't sure I liked how it all came together. The one plot element I could have done without is the fact that Rosie enters a research study to see how short-term counseling affects weight-loss. I just wasn't impressed by that arc, especially since it seemed to get lost in the middle of the book. Other more significant things happens which are very intriguing and could have made a book in themselves. The most important part is that the characters stayed consistent, there weren't a lot of them and they were engaging. The characters will keep you reading even if the plot seems to be a bit busy.

Also, the tense in this story was weird. About halfway through I had to go back and see if it switched from present to past tense. Actually, there's both, making the book read like it's told from some very recent future. To me it was written as if the current chapter happened to the narrator last week or two hours ago. I found it jarring in some places and some places everything matched up and read smoothly so I could let that go.

This is a quiet, unassuming book with a bright brown and pink candy cover that attracted me to it immediately. I believe Rosemary is a character you should read about. She can really speak to you about growing up, body images, mother-daughter relationships and first love. There are a lot of good elements to this book and most of all I did enjoy reading it and it's a quick read that's not entirely fluffy but it's also never becomes totally depressing. It was a wonderful in-between book for me to enjoy when I needed a break from the really dark stuff. So add it to your To-Be-Read pile and give it a try. Save it for a cozy rainy day when you want to curl up with a good book you can lose yourself in for a couple of hours with no worries.

Spoiler Alert! rant

2009-06-15T23:38:00.006-04:00

I wish I had finished The Hunger Games when I checked it out of the library way back when. That was before I was involved with the book blogging community and I knew how popular it was. I just picked it up randomly and I was like, hmmm, this is good. But then life got in the way and I couldn't renew it cause someone else requested it so I just let it go and I haven't gone back since. Now the book has been spoiled for me several times. Ah, well, I guess anything out for over a year is fair game, right?

It's not as bad as when Harry Potter 7 came out. I spent all day dutifully reading it, away from the Internet, outside in the fresh summer air and then inside a coffee shop. But it was all day without email, without my message boards, without AIM, without facebook... and it was getting to be too much. I started having withdrawals. I couldn't concentrate on Harry Potter, my eyes were twitching and my fingers were itching to scroll and type. I just wanted a taste of the online world. So I went into some random chatroom on Meebo.com, it was like for the Jonas Brothers, and I just wanted to be in there for a moment and then, before I could click out, a message flashed before my eyes.

SNAPE DIES!

Dammit.

Seriously? The Jonas Brothers chatroom?

You really can't trust the Internet.

I hate spoilers. I can't read book reviews like Kirkus or School Library Journal before I read the book because those reviews tell the whole plot. I skim blogger reviews of books I already know I want to read to avoid spoilers. I even hate looking at the Library of Congress one sentence summary on the inside of the book because I swear that sentence starts in the middle of the plot!

Nowadays, with information on hyper-drive, you just have to stay far FAR away from the Internet if you want to stay spoiler-free. I feel sorry for people who live on the West Coast. They have to live in a cave for hours if they don't want to be spoiled when something important happens on live TV, like the American Idol finale. West Coasters, how do you deal?

Spoilers are everywhere. Sure, people are excited about the end of a book or movie or TV show but there's also something special about being FIRST and telling everyone about it, like you were the first one there. You know, like people who just comment "first!" on popular gossip blogs and you're like, you idiot, why don't you pretend to acknowledge that Jon and Kate are falling apart right before our very eyes. You have wasted my eye energy with your nonsense. Nowadays, being the first person with a hot piece of information on the Internet is like running the 100 meters in the Olympics. You have to be Usain Bolt or pretty much everyone is going to arrive at around the same time.

It's tricky navigating around spoilers in book reviews. See, the plot is important part of enjoying or not enjoying a book. Of course, it's not the only thing, but for me it's a big thing. So how much do you put in and what do you leave out? I don't like to read a plot-heavy review but then again, when I have read those reviews it has helped me to discover books that I would have dismissed based on covers or awkward blurbs. My favorite part of blogging is discovering these books from other readers. So yeah, sometimes you need to be spoiled.

In the end, I guess it boils down to the fact that most of the time it's the journey, not the destination that is the most interesting and poignant. Yeah, okay, Katniss and Peeta win but you know what? I don't know how that happens. I don't know the kind of struggles they face and the emotions they feel. Snape does die but at that point I didn't know the circumstances and when I finally did get to that part, it was still really really good.

Spoilers don't have to ruin a book. In fact, sometimes they can help. They can spur you on, reading faster. Where is that part? Is it here or is it there? They can get you more excited. They can keep you turning the page with anticipation or even with twinges of regret.

So I'll try not to be so upset when I do encounter them.

But I'm still going to try to avoid them. And if I do get spoiled, I'll still be a little annoyed.

I could never live on the West Coast.

PS- Sorry if you just got SPOILED!

PPS- Borders, are YA books considered kids' books? Cause you sent me a coupon and I wanna use it on Along for the Ride. haha

Sunday Weekly Word Count [8] plus my own rambling

2009-06-14T20:20:00.004-04:00

Today it was a gorgeous day and I spent it outside. I went to Pride Fest and then the Arts Festival. Sometimes I get jealous of those drag queens. Why do they look so much better than me?! The Arts Festival was fun too. I'm always jealous of artists. I just love the fact that they can create such beautiful and striking things. I wish I could draw or paint or sculpt or take great photos or create videos or make music. I think fashion designers are incredible, especially on shows like Project Runway where they just take an idea from their head and make it from scratch in like, a day. How is that possible? I can't imagine it!

Writing is my only creative outlet. It's not as glamorous as seeing an artist standing in front of an easel and watching them make the world come alive right in front of you. It's not as cool as jamming out to a song on steel drums that sounds like every instrument ever created. In fact, too much time spent in front of the computer and people start to think you're a friendless loser. Oh well, such is life.

I've been watching the Every Degrassi Episode EVER marathon on and off all weekend. I just adore that show, especially the older episodes. Now this is a real teen show. I love how all the actors are the same age as their characters and it took a long time for the show to start glamming them up. It's refreshing, this almost real kids and their totally over-the-top problems. I love how episodes just end and the issue is never brought up again. Come to your own conclusions. Canada knows how to do kids shows. Canadian kids shows are the best. Remember Ready or Not? Remember Flash Forward? Yeah, then you know what I'm talking about.

This week I joined a new challenge called The 1st Annual Complete Your First Draft contest. The challenge is to write 25,000 new words this month to complete your first draft! This is perfect for me because I plan to complete my draft by the end of the month. I really, really wanna be done with it. It is out of control. The amount of words... just crazy. But I still have quite a few things that need to happen. Yeah, I've got it mapped out, I'm just plodding along. It's how I live my life. When it comes to me, these things take time.

Check out the prizes for that contest. They are pretty cool. You should join! I know we've only got 15 days left but that's plenty of time. Right?!

This week wasn't as good as last week. I was a little more unfocused and I'm sort of dragging my feet through the plot trying to get where I want to go. What's that you say, word file? No, you don't control me, I control you!

Heh.

6/7:
Words - 3795
Pages - 9.5

6/8:
Words - 579
Pages - 2

6/9:
Words - 1946
Pages - 4.4

6/10:
Words - 2020
Pages - 4.8

6/11:
Words - 1349
Pages- 3.3

6/12:
Words - 2238
Pages- 6.4

6/13:
Words - 3128
Pages - 7.5

That brings my weekly total to 15055 words and 37.9 pages. Good times.

Time for dinner. Time for writing. Time for reading. I really need to post a new review and I'm planning on doing that tonight!

My thoughts about Dark YA

2009-06-10T20:39:00.007-04:00

Everyone's been talking about that random Wall Street Journal article that asks why these "dark" YA books are on the New York Times Bestseller list? People are asking, is it okay for teens to read about these heavy, serious topics?

Of course, avid YA readers know that YA books have been "dark" for as long as they can remember. That is the beauty of YA. Basically, YA can be anything you want it to yet the book still fits inside the small, vibrant Young Adult community. I think that's really cool and one of the things that attracts me to YA. I can find so much variety on one shelf. I'm lazy.

Meg Cabot wrote an excellent blog about what it was like for her growing up and why she chose to read and write the books that she does. It was very interesting to read about her life and also because she introduced me to the phrase "Trauma Porn." I googled it and the first hit that came up was Meg's blog! This was like an hour after she posted it. So pretty much Google is useless when it comes to that. But Meg told us all we need to know about what Trauma Porn is when she said that Lurlene McDainel is the queen of it.

I remember reading Lurlene McDaniel's book when I was in high school. The One Last Wish novels, one after another, thinking about all of these kids with terminal diseases. How did they ever live their lives? How did they cope? But somehow, they always did, book after book, I saw strength and resilience there that I had never experienced before. The books never got old for me. When there was a new McDaniel book in the library I checked it out immediately.

I have always loved "problem" novels. I would computer search my high school library with a keyword like "teen pregnancy" or "eating disorder" or "abuse" and then go check out all of the books that came up. I even liked non-fiction books about those topics. I think I've read so many non-fiction books about eating disorders, first person accounts and the more academic titles. I was checking out books about repressed memory when people would wake up as adults and realized they'd been sexually abused when they were two. I bet the school librarian was like, what the heck is wrong with this girl?

I don't know what's wrong with me! Nobody has asked me to my face. My parents never censored my reading or asked why I liked to read about such depressing things (However, my mom censored my writing once when she discovered my dirty rap lyrics!) I can't answer the question myself. I'm a generally happy person with a pretty good life. There's not much to complain about. Who knows why people are drawn to the books they are drawn to. And does it really matter? but that's why we read books. It's to provide an escape for whatever reason into whatever kind of world or mood that you choose. It's to put yourself inside of someone else's life for just a little while. Books are amazing, how the paper can do so many different things and mean so much.

The world is opening up more, generation to generation. YA novels are constantly growing and evolving, not only blurring the lines between reality and fiction but also the line between adult fiction and YA. That line between adulthood and childhood is something that teens deal with everyday. Can we try to give them a little more credit? I think they can handle these "dark" books. Obviously, since someone is buying them. What's wrong with that?

Meg's post helped me realize that every type to YA book is important. From all those Simon Pulse RomComs to National Book Award winners like What I Saw and How I Lied. From the darkest, literary YA drama to Twilight! All of these different books speak to a different type of reader but they are all important in someone's life. They should not be discounted and it's certainly nothing to be afraid of.

I believe YA books have a special responsibilty. I'm not sure what that is but for some reason they carry more responsibility than adult books. In some other conversations I've found about what YA lit is people say that one thing YA books share is this sense of hope somewhere in the novel. Maybe that's the responsibility I'm talking about. Maybe that's what the journalist realized at the end of his article (she also spoiled 3 YA books I haven't read yet... thanks).

So continue reading those romantic YA novels or the supernatural ones or the thrillers, the dystopian ones, the funny ones, the sad ones. There are so many to choose from you might just read them all. I'm gonna continue to read and review what feels right to me and I expect to find some surprises along the way, especially from reading the reviews of my fellow bloggers.

The darker books will probably still be my favorite though the term "trauma porn" makes me feel a little dirty about it. I like the connection I have to that type of book. My WIP is definitely dark so it helps keep me in the mood. There are so many different layers to life. No one should try to stay only in one box.

Someday, I think I'll finish a book again. Maybe. I'm currently in the middle of about 10. I really don't do that one-book-at-a-time thing well!

PS- Read the article and discussion about the WSJ article here. Much more articulate than what I can do.

Unraveling Review

2009-06-08T23:25:00.006-04:00

Before I get to the review, confession time: I am addicted to taking books out of the library.

Yes, it is bad. And no, this addiction isn't entirely free. See, the problem is that I go to the library almost every single day. And I take out a book every time I go. Usually more than one book. But see I already have all these books out. And I can't POSSIBLY read them all. And then I forget to return them. And then I get fined 25 cents a day. And then I return them and let the money owed on my account pile up to around 10 bucks before I pay it off. And the cycle continues, over and over again.

I have literally had some books for like nine weeks.

I have over 30 library books checked out right now.

I just can't stop. HELP ME!

Phew, good to get that off my chest. Feel free to start organizing the intervention because God knows I need it.

Ironically, Unraveling is a book I own. I need to read those library books!

On to the review.

Unraveling by Michelle Baldini and Lynn Biederman

Amanda Himmelfarb doesn't mean to cause trouble, it just seems to follow her around. Of course, having her overbearing mother constantly in her business doesn't help either. Amanda and her mother, nicknamed "The Captain" are constantly fighting and it's wearing Amanda down. If only Amanda could find the perfect boyfriend, the one person who would understand her and love her like she's yearning to be loved. Amanda thought she found that with last year's summer crush, Paul, but she actually might have a better chance with Rick, who is currently dating the most popular girl in school. There is only one way to be Rick's girlfriend and Amanda is willing to do whatever it takes.

That description sucks but I don't really want to spoil it. The book is so much more than a girl trying to get a guy. In fact it's not even about that at all.

This is a book I never would have chosen from the cover. I don't know why, but I really don't like the cover. To me it looks like some messed up version of Cinderella book. And completely turns me off. I can't explain why I don't like it so much. I just find it annoying! But this is a case where judging a book by its cover is BAD BAD BAD. This novel is wonderful.

I picked it up because of a review I read somewhere else but I really had no expectations going into it. Once I started reading, I was hooking. This is such an honest and painfully raw story. I felt like the book opened up the world and dumped me into Amanda's brain. At the same time, I knew I was reading the story of many girls, teenagers who actually exist today and who are doing the things that Amanda does and feeling the same way. Beyond that, I was reading the story of a mother who was just as lost as her daughter. Together, the whole family was trapped in a net of emotions and events from the past and just wouldn't let them go. Unraveling, at it's core, is a powerful family novel about learning, strength and forgiveness.

Amanda is such a vibrant, intelligent, at times pathetic, at times wonderful, all-around-not-so-bad-girl-struggling-to-be-good character that it's hard not to root for her even when she's being a complete bonehead. The novel is nicely punctuated by her poems that really get to the heart of the various episodes in Amanda's life. The rest of her family are wonderfully realized on the page-- I especially thought Amanda's relationship with her little sister Melody was well-written and reminded me of my own little sister. I should write her a poem too!

Dear Sister

A poem by Summer

I love you
And I want to talk to you
Please do not contact me only
When you want to ask for money.

There was a lot of humor in this book but also a lot of awkward moments which had me cringing and also moments full of high tension, anger and sadness. The dialogue was sparkling throughout the book. The parts that hit me hardest where the fights between Amanda's mom and dad and then Amanda's reaction afterward. I thought that was well done.

I really admired the pacing of the book. So much happens to Amanda but it is a relatively quick read and just over 220 pages. I never felt like the book was rushing and I was happy to move along at a steady clip. Time moves smoothly and then we're right back in the action. I could tell the book had been picked clean of anything unnecessary and it really showed. Every scene contributed to the story and was a joy to read.

I wondered if at times the book was being too preachy. This love-starved girl looking for love in all the wrong places-- is it too obvious? Are the literature recommendations too much? (Amanda and her BFF, Paige, love to read and some favorites are mentioned.) The reader can easily understand where Amanda's mother is coming from but Amanda cannot. I wondered if the book was trying too hard to get it's point across. My conclusion to my questions is just a simple "no." Part of the joy of reading the book was being able to be inside of Amanda's head but also outside of it and able to see what was really going on. It made her confusion even more heartbreaking and all of her revelations about herself more urgent. I feel like this book existed in so many layers that different readers will interpret it on different levels. That is definitely why they recommend it as a mother-daughter book club selection on the back. I feel like it was meant to be read that way and you can find a lot of talking points from these pages.

I always write these reviews in post-book euphoria, like yay! I actually finished something! This is a book that will stick with me even after the glossy high fades. Highly enjoyable read with a lot to say. I find it to be an important take on mother-daughter relationships, self-esteem and the cycle of physical and emotional abuse. You should check this book out. Highly recommended.

Now I need to call my mom!

Sunday Weekly Word Count [7]

2009-06-07T12:38:00.003-04:00

It's a beautiful weekend. I'm watching Jonas and I think it's kind of funny. I need to leave.

Yesterday, I devoted myself to writing. I wanted to get farther in the plot than I did because I have this problem where I write too much. It amuses me but at the same time I'm like what am I doing? The whole time I was writing I was thinking, is this really working? How am I going to change this? The timeline is all wrong. Why am I writing this scene? Nobody will ever want to read this! I'm thinking about how I would change the beginning. I'm thinking about how the story is already too long (over 110,000 words, no signs of stopping). And all these other doubts and craziness.

But then I remind myself that my only goal in life is to finish this first draft and that's it (for now). So I'm plugging away. The best part is that it's fun. I've always been able to amuse myself quite easily. It a skill that often comes in handy. And if I can't amuse myself I can always watch the Jonas... show.

5/31:
Words - 1495
Pages - 3.3

6/1:
Words - 2590
Pages - 6.4

6/2:
Words - 738
Pages - 2

6/3: (I don't remember writing all that, haha)
Words - 4166
Pages - 10.4

6/4:
Words - 2973
Pages - 6.5

6/5:
Words - 2814
Pages - 7.3

6/6:
Words - 6647
Pages - 16

That brings my weekly total to 21, 423 words and 51.9 pages. Wow, that's pretty crazy.

Well, I think I should take a break and do the dishes. I also have to get my friend a present for her bridal shower and find an outfit. Oh, and what should I see first, the Hangover? Up? Away We Go? Plus my TBR pile is insane!

I hope you're having a fun weekend!

Out of the Pocket Review

2009-06-05T21:17:00.007-04:00

June is Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. Thanks President Obama! I still have to come out to my friends about this YA book stuff. But until then, I have plenty of reading. One reason I enjoy GLBT YA fic so much is because you can find a lot of sensitive, intelligent male protagonists there and I love books about boys. This month we should all make an effort to expand our minds into GLBT fiction because, gay or straight, all the feelings are the same. Plus, why do we even need the subcategory? The hell with it, let's just read good books. We'll work on that. Onto my review.

Out of the Pocket by Bill Konigsberg

The title Out of the Pocket is perfect once you know what a pocket is. I know next to nothing about football because I only watch it when the Steelers are about to win the Superbowl. When the quarterback pocket concept was explained to me I thought, wow, that title is great.

Bobby Framingham is one of the best high school quarterbacks in California and coming into his senior year he's anxious to show those college scouts just what he's all about. But there's something else that he's not sure if he should share. Bobby knows he's gay and lately it's been eating at him more and more. When Bobby finally decides to come out to his best friend he sets off a chain of events that change his game, his future and maybe even much more than that...

The best word I can use to describe this book is surprising. I was surprised by how much I liked the main character, Bobby. He was at times confident but clueless, talented yet stifled, cool guy in school then terribly awkward. I was surprised at what happens in this book. Awful things happens and then many wonderful things as well. I was surprised at the amount of laughter in this book. It was like Robin Williams showed up and was like, laughter is the best medicine. I was laughing, the characters were laughing. I was surprised at the innocence of the story. Bobby knows he's gay yet he hasn't done anything with a guy or a girl. I really liked that. There are around three kisses described in the story and most of them are disasters. That's as far as the sex goes. Even Bobby's fantasies were PG. Hardly any swearing that I can remember. Most of all, I was surprised by all the good things that happened. In a book with a plot where things could go south for Bobby really quickly there was always a bright side, suggesting that maybe people aren't as bad as we imagine. At first I was thinking, is this too idealistic? Or am I just too critical?

Bobby is an all-around nice guy who is committed to his team, his sport and has a soft spot for the stray puppy misfits of his high school. It was great to see him on the field, struggling and triumphing. Even though Bobby is a very good quarterback he still has to work on his game, which is nice to hear. He's definitely not perfect. One of Bobby's flaws is maybe he's a little too trusting or talks too much. Still, why should he be quiet about who he is? Bobby is an honest guy and I think he just expected others to be just as honest as he is. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. Through everything Bobby stays true to himself, which is a powerful thing. He takes the good advice that others give him and really internalizes it and puts it into action. It was great, being in Bobby's head. I could really feel him on the page, all his doubts, fears, frustrations, sadness, joy, victory, powerful emotions. There are many moments in the story where I identified with Bobby's uncertainties about the future and thought, yes, that's exactly what it's like.

I said before that I only really like to read sports books about basketball but I opened my heart to football, especially since this wasn't strictly a sports book. The book has a fair amount of football action. I found most of it easy to follow although I am still unclear what a "tier" is but I think it's the equivalent a basketball play. Oh yeah, that's also why they invented Google. Well, I'm lazy so I just read on. What made the football action easy to read is that it was all connected to what Bobby was thinking and feeling so it wasn't a detached play-by-play of the game. In fact, I don't think any game was described in excruciating detail. I paid close attention to what was included and what wasn't. I was also interested in reading how Konigsberg handled writing about a football team which I imagine has a lot of players. He kept most of the focus on a few seniors, friends and not-so-friends of Bobby, along with everyone's sidekick Rocky, the sophomore kicker. Still, there was a real sense of chaos and bodies in the locker room when the whole team was around even when only a few people were actually talking.

The real focus of this novel was not only coming out but relationships. There was Bobby's relationship with his best friends, with his team, with his coach, with sports reporters, with one reporter in particular and his parents. I thought each of these relationships were skillfully portrayed and I especially enjoyed seeing how close Bobby was to his mom and dad. Bobby and his dad shared some particularly heartwarming and heartbreaking moments. The secondary characters were all well-written and distinctive. I especially enjoyed Carrie because she was totally weird and funny. I felt just as amused by her as Bobby was. Rahim and Austin were great friends in very different ways. Also, the scenes with the sports reporters felt very real to me, probably influenced by Konigsberg's background as a sports reporter. However, I was always wondering why they didn't give Bobby some kind of media training or why they let him talk to the reporters all by himself.

Like I said, I was surprised by all the laughter in the novel. Really, there is a lot of humor in the dialogue and often laughter is used in the story to break up a tense situation. The book is definitely not as dark as it could be which is refreshing because hope is a powerful thing. I enjoyed reading about it.

One of my fave parts: "I closed my eyes and let the water pour over my back, wishing I knew what to say to defuse the tension. I really wasn't interested in ogling my teammates naked, thanks very much. I'd been to a summer retreat with these guys, where everyone acted gross for a week and there were no doors on the toilets. I felt no lust for my teammates. I just wanted to win a damn football game."

No doors on the toilet? That doesn't sound like a retreat, that sounds traumatizing.

There are still many questions about Bobby's future when the book ends. Personally, I would love a sequel to see the long-term impact of Bobby's decision and also to spend some more time with Bobby! Still, I felt very satisfied, especially after Bobby takes his revenge.

As Paula Abdul would say, this book is a TOUCHDOWN! Go check it out. I think you'll be as pleased with it as I am. Highly recommended.

PS- Along with learning what a pocket is, I learned about outsports.com and there's a baseball player named Sandy Koufax and apparently he's kind of a big deal.

Are you out... about reading YA books?

2009-06-05T01:21:00.006-04:00

So they tell me I'm an adult. I graduated from college. I graduated from grad school. I go to work 9-5. I have to pay my own bills (except for my cellphone bill, which my Dad pays for 'cause I'm still on the family plan. Yeah, I got it like that!). That's all the adult activities I can think of that I do. I don't have a husband or kids or anything. I don't really like to cook. I definitely don't like to clean but I guess those things get done occasionally.

The rest of the time I'm listening to the Cheetah Girls (like right now) reading, writing, doing whatever amuses me at that moment. I tell my friends, yeah I love High School Musical 3. So what? I saw it in the theater twice, I own it. SUE ME! I watch Degrassi and I like JoBros' "Burning Up." I watch reruns of The Famous Jett Jackson on Disney XD. If you ask me what that one show is on Nickelodeon I can probably tell you.

But there's one thing I haven't come out about.

Yes, I read YA.

See my friends, for the most part, they like to read. They bring in these important looking big books into work and tell us all about them. A lot of the time it's non-fiction about important topics like feminism or the things that happen to dead bodies. Or maybe they are into the classics! Brave New World can always use another read. How about the collected works of Edgar Allen Poe? Most of the time it's just good ol' literary adult fiction, a 300 page masterpiece sitting on the library hold shelf just waiting to be devoured in full view of everyone.

Me, I check my library card in secret, only at home. My books say "teen" on the front. I keep them in my bag.

What am I so ashamed of?

I never tell anyone what I'm reading, unless it's one of the times where I am reading something "literary" and I can spout off, oh this book of short stories, it's quite wonderful, it shows the dichotomy of our natural selves in this unnatural, cold-hearted world!

Something like that.

But most of the time I just shrug mysteriously and give my standard answer. "Nothing."

I'm almost always reading something! I just don't know how to explain it to them. These aren't just books about teens. They are books about life! They speak to me! They are fun and heartbreaking and honest and sad and hilarious and freaky and imaginative and crazy and, dammit, just darn good reading. Not only that, these books are RESEARCH! Don't you want to know my secret dream?

No, I have never said that.

I don't know what it is. Maybe there are just some aspects of my immaturity that I want to keep to myself. Also, I'm scared that they just won't understand. Sure, it's cool to read Harry Potter and Twilight but that's where the buck stops. Why is that? Who made those rules? Not this adult.

I should just come clean. I tried to once, in the car, while I was reading After the Moment. My three friends and I were stuck in traffic and I had just finished the book. Everyone was bored so they humored me by listening to my rough synopsis of the book. Then--

"That sounds STUPID!"

Strike number one.

Well, I'm not out yet. Next time I'll have to plan a little better. I'll pick the perfect, deep, wonderfully written, sneaky YA book and I'll say, do I have an awesome book for you.

I'll show them.

I'm coming out about my adoration for YA books... eventually.

If you're out about your love for YA how did you do it?

The Vast Fields of Ordinary Review

2009-06-03T17:49:00.002-04:00

I saw this book in a lot of In My Mailbox posts so I thought I'd check it out.

The Vast Fields of Ordinary by Nick Burd

Dade Hamilton is just passing the time until he starts college in his boring Iowa town. Everyone is always the same and nobody knows that Dade is gay. Or at least they don't know for sure. Dade has been sleeping with his classmate Pablo for a couple of years but Pablo is too busy with his girlfriend to give Dade any extra time. While Dade copes with his loneliness he meets a small-time drug dealer named Alex and suddenly, his summer veers onto a very different course.

Quiet, lyrical, thoughtful, honest and sometimes surprising-- those are the words I'd use to describe this book. I feel like we really see the evolution of Dade over the summer and what's funny is that Dade sees it too and even he is impressed with himself. When the book starts Dade is (to steal a quote from Xander on Buffy) "a font of nothing" or rather the kind of guy who keeps to himself and blends into the background. He tries to hang around Pablo but he can't really stand Pablo's jock buddies anyway. Dade spends a lot of time hanging around the house, listening to his music, thinking.

It's the little things that make up Dade's journey. He hangs out with his parents and watches them fall apart. He goes to work and sidesteps the fury and uncertainty of twins Jessica and Fessica. He befriends a new girl on the street who is also gay and becomes ones of his biggest confidants. He travels with Alex who takes him to places he never meant to go. These moments and decisions and discoveries drive the plot so that we really get inside Dade's head and see all these outside influences and experiences that help shape him into the young man he's learning himself to be. There's no heart stopping action or anything like that but it's the words that will keep you reading.

What I loved most about this book is the world that Burd created. Yes, it's contemporary, it's the US, it's Iowa but there was also a rich setting that helped propel the story. Burd created all these nifty bands and song titles that create a silent soundtrack for the story. There was also the kidnapping case of Jenny Moore, a local girl who disappears. Her story inundated the news and by association she also flooded the lives of Dade and his friends. I really like these kind of background details in any novel, weaving in all these different elements to tell one story. I thought it made the book very sophisticated and creative.

The language in the book is very authentic, not only with the dialogue, but the narration too. I really liked how Dade could be so innocent at times and just full of feeling. Burd was able to capture the feelings that anyone has for a first love whether straight or gay. Sometimes I just had to wince while reading because Dade's feelings were so raw and real. The dialogue is also wonderful and the main source for humor in the book. I especially liked reading how Alex talked with his friends and Lucy, Dade's lesbian friend, always tossed off a hilarious sarcastic zinger. Also, those mean girls said some really mean things.

This book is more than a coming out story. In fact, that part is a small section of the story. This is more of a general coming-of-age novel, classic teen finding himself in the world. For a sophisticated, amusing and pleasant read, I would recommend this one.

In fact, I think reading this book was worth it only because it contains the phrase "douche cougar." I don't know why but after I read that I laughed and I'm still laughing. I can't wait until I have the opportunity to use it.

PS- Today, I learned that Bobby Caldwell is white. I'm so surprised! haha. "What You Won't Do For Love" is the jam! I just assumed... all these years of hearing him on my parents' old soul radio stations and now the ones I listen to on my own... he got me! Just like KC and Sunshine Band!

Intensely Alice Review

2009-06-02T22:45:00.005-04:00

I am literally in the middle of five different books. I need to calm down. I did manage to finish one though. So many books are pending.

Intensely Alice by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

It's the summer before Alice's senior year in high school and she plans on hanging out with her friends and working at the Melody Inn like she usually does. Summer starts off with an exciting trip to Chicago for her cousin's wedding and a visit with her boyfriend Patrick at the University of Chicago. The rest of the summer proves to be fun and challenging time as well as unexpectedly difficult.

Hard book to summarize in a paragraph because these Alice books are more of a portrait of things that happen to Alice instead of an over-arching plot that shoots you straight to the finish line. Usually, Naylor tackles some big issue and frames it in the context of Alice and her friends' different reactions to it. This is a series that you follow from beginning to end because you feel some connection to Alice, her introspective nature and her ordinary life.

Alice is our narrator, most likely on the periphery of all of the major things that happen and not too sure about herself or what she believes in. She's not the smartest, not the most talented, not the most athletic, not the prettiest or wittiest. She's an average, every girl kind of character. What I like most about Alice is that she's willing to listen and consider every opinion. She's pretty much nice to everyone. She's accepting but not too naive. I like that she hasn't grown up too fast and her friends are pretty stable too.

This book depicts a pretty quiet summer for the most part. The first big decision Alice faces is whether or not to have sex with her boyfriend while she's visiting him. I enjoyed the honest, carefully depicted struggle as Alice tries to decide through thought and circumstance what she wants to happen between her and Patrick. What happens between them is probably the best outcome which is usually how the Alice books operate. Naylor doesn't shy away from realistic depictions of sex, both thinking about sex and the actual physical acts. I feel that she writes about sex skillfully and appropriately for teens. In fact, sex was not as big of an issue in this book as it has been in the past, though there was one kind of graphic scene.

The big issue in this book is religion. Alice doesn't really know where she stands on the topic but she carefully listens to each side of the argument. It's a good thing Alice likes journalism so much because she's a really good observer. The book is driven by dialogue and relationships more than anything else. It was fun to see Alice getting along with her girlfriends and branching out with talking to other people, such as an intimate conversation with her stepmother.

If you're a follower of the Alice series, this will be the same Alice that you've always known. Each book she grows a little older and matures a little further but inside she's still the same all-around good girl that we look forward to. The writing, as usual, is heartfelt and realistic. If you haven't tried the Alice series yet I suggest you start from the beginning. Middle school Alice is good at any age and it goes from there.

I even own the Alice movie. I also recommend that. It's pretty funny. I love Lucas Grabeel and Alyson Stoner and Luke Perry so that helped!

Sunday Weekly Word Count [6] and In My Mailbox [1]

2009-05-31T20:42:00.004-04:00

I don't usually do In My Mailbox because I don't really get anything in my mailbox but I bought some things this week and I thought I'd share.

In My Mailbox is sponsored by The Story Siren and inspired by Alea @ Pop Culture Junkie.

This week I bought:

Shortie Like Mine by Ni-Ni Simone: I bought this for the Summer Book Drive at Color Online. You should check it out and consider making a donation. They have a lot of good books on that list. I feel very fortunate to have a great library collection at my disposal so I'm happy to help somebody else out.

Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler: Seems like it's out early! When I saw it, I was like I'm going to get this. I've heard so many good things about it and Sarah Ockler seems really cool. I subscribe to her blog and I enjoy it. I sat out in the park and read the first two chapters very slowly. The writing is so wonderful. I just felt like savoring it. I feel like I already love it!

Intensely Alice by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor: I don't hear too much about this one on the blogs but I'm a fan of the Alice books. I've read them all and I look forward to the newest one every year. Some are better than others but I bet that this latest book is going to be most intense one yet.

Now for my word count. This week was a really good week even though I missed a day. I passed 200 pages, the most I've ever written of one single thing. Also I finally feel like I'm doing the things I want to do, if that makes any sense. I'm on the right track and I had a lot of fun writing this week.

5/24:
Words- 1625
Page-: 4

5/25: missed it! I was at an amusement park.

5/26:
Words- 1176
Pages- 3

5/27:
Words-1219
Pages- 3

5/28:
Words- 4034
Pages- 9.5

5/29:
Words- 690
Pages- 2

5/30:
Words- 5087
Pages- 11.3

That brings my weekly total to 13831 words and 32.8 pages! That's a lot. That is the reason my apartment is a mess.

If you're a (wannabe) writer you should join me! Just drop me a line and we can bother each other about our writing. Also, Karen is sponsoring a Summer Writing Challenge at her blog. Come and join her there and committ to writing 500 words a day for the summer. That's about a page.

Well, the MTV Movies Awards are on and I find them fairly amusing. I need to do some writing, do some reading and twist my hair so I'd better get started!

Excerpt from this week:

I couldn’t speak. His hand on top of my hand. The ref blew the whistle for the jump. Marshall tipped the ball in my direction but it rolled off the top of the top of my fingers and some Seahaven player snatched it up. We were behind them by half-a-step so they got the two-points.

Coach Ashton yelled at us to get back on defense. I couldn’t make my hands stop shaking. I wiped them on my shorts and clapped them together. Nothing was working. Seahaven was strong coming out of the halftime, working hard. They had a burst of energy and I was feeling tired. Number 13 pushed me away long enough to get a pass and then he made a far shot from the outside.

“Loren!” Coach Ashton barked. “Stay on your man!”

Back on offense, I missed my pick and Randall didn’t have anywhere to pass the ball so he put up an impossible shot that rebounded right into Seahaven’s hands.

“Come on, Michaels!” Randall said as we ran back to play D. The mistakes kept mounting. I slapped number 13’s wrist during his three point shot, a stupid shooting foul that resulted in a free throw on top of the three pointer he made. I tripped over my own feet and left number 13 open for another three. At our basket, I lost the ball on a dribble and dropped a couple of passes. My turnovers were mounting up as inside I was slowly dying and the only thing I wanted was to be far away from here.

When I saw Silvers jogging over to me I knew it was over.

“You’re out,” he said. I pointed at number 13 and ran over to the farthest chair on our bench. I sat down and pulled a towel over my head so that no one would talk to me. I didn’t want anyone to talk to me ever again.

Box Out by John Coy

2009-05-29T22:33:00.000-04:00

I decided it's Boy Week on my blog! All my reviews this week have been about boys. I really like reading YA books with male protagonists because I find them really interesting and my WIP has a male protag. So I need some perspective. Especially from male authors because they are closer to the source than I am. I like boys!

Box Out by John Coy

Liam Bergstorm knows he hit the big time when he gets moved up to the varsity basketball team. As a sophomore he is awed by this opportunity and willing to work hard in order to increase his playing time. He quickly finds that there is more to being on the team than playing ball well. Coach Kloss expects the team to pray in the locker room and go to fellowship meetings before school. At first, Liam tries to shrug it off but the more he learns about what's going on the more he questions whether or not Coach Kloss is right.

This book didn't immediately grab me. After the first couple of chapters I considered putting it down but something made me keep going and I'm glad I did. The story is important. I did enjoy seeing Liam evolve from Bergie on varsity into his own version of Liam Bergstrom. John Coy tackles a variety of important issues. There's the separation of church and state, teen challenging adult authority, racial issues, what it means to be a real team, small town politics, change vs. the way it's always been and basically the challenge of finding out who you really are. I appreciated all of that. I definitely liked the book more when I started getting into these issues. The plot pulled me forward, especially the second half of the book which was a lot more fun and engaging than the second half.

I didn't connect with Liam as a main character. For the whole novel I felt fairly disconnected from him. Maybe it had to do with the third-person narrative but I've read plenty of books written in the third-person that kept me intimately connected with the narrator. It was hard to get into Liam's head especially in the beginning. I felt like I was looking down on his life instead of being caught up and intimately involved in everything.

This is a book about a basketball team and while it may be classified as something other than a sports novel it does revolve around sports. I didn't think the basketball action scenes were the best I've read, but I do like how the atmosphere of the basketball game was always aptly described. The team dynamics were well portrayed in game and practice scenes and that's very important to the story.

I did like the other characters in the novel, especially the girls on the girls' basketball team. They had a lot of spunk and their vibrancy for life really brought some energy to the novel and the narration. That's one reason why the book picks up in the second half when Liam is working with the girls. Liam deals with a realistic situation concerning his long-distance girlfriend which I really enjoyed. Liam's parents were realistic and distinctive. I liked how they simultaneously confused him and encouraged him.

The emotional intensity in this book could have been higher. That is my main reservation. But overall, it's a finely crafted novel with a lot to say and it's a quick read. Out of all the boy books I've read this book I feel like this one will appeal to boys the most. If you're in the mood for a book like this definitely give it a try.

David Inside Out review

2009-05-27T20:20:00.003-04:00

Check out my new layout! Isn't it pretty? Kelsey at Just Blinded Book Reviews made it. I am so happy. Thanks Kelsey!

David Inside Out by Lee Bantle

David Dahlgreen leads a pretty good life. He runs on the cross-country team, he does okay in school and there's even a girl in his life who likes him a lot. The only problem is that he has a crush on one of his cross country teammates, Sean. And the crazy thing is that Sean might like him back.

I absolutely adored this book. Once I started reading it, there was no stopping me. I squirmed all through my eight hours on the job waiting for the chance to pick it up again. From the first chapter I was hooked. The thing that kept me reading was David's voice in the book. He just sounded like this genuine, nice, confused, horny, sweet guy. It was very real. There was David jumping off the page and I just wanted to know more and more about him.

The book is fairly short so the plot moves along at a fast pace that I enjoyed. Sometimes I felt like the story was a series of vignettes of David's life because these cute, quirky things would happen to him that seemed like an aside to the main plot. I enjoyed that because David's story could get pretty dark. I was happy that Bantle was able to inject some happiness and fun into David's life despite all of the hurtful things that happened to him.

At the heart of this coming out story is a love story and it really rings true. What really drew me to David is how passionate he is about everything. His feelings were so familiar and it would be familiar to anyone who's ever had a first big crush whether they are straight or gay. I felt really connected to David as he struggled his way through everything and really began to accept the person he really wanted to be.

All of the characters featured in the story were distinctive and they all served a purpose. It was interesting that David's sort-of best friend Eddie is also gay. That really tied the book up in the end and makes the last page especially poignant. I really liked David's sort-of girlfriend Kick because she was cute and sassy but she definitely wasn't perfect and I liked how she handled David's situation. Sean, the perfect crush, is not the perfect boyfriend and I really identified with how his struggle was different from David's. The dialogue is really funny, one of my favorite parts of the novel. There is a lot of it so it really helps to move the story along.

The best part of the book is that David is such a boy. One of the aspects of being a boy is that he thinks about sex a lot. I think all of the sex in the book is tastefully done and it's sort of exciting because David is so excited about it. It's not graphic but it does gear this book towards older teens. It's an essential part of the story but it doesn't overtake the story at all.

This is a well-written, honest, funny, touching novel that's more than a coming-out story. It's a great book for anyone who has ever felt unsure about who they were and had the courage to really take a good look in the mirror and try to figure it out. There's a lot of emotion packed into this book and I dare you to read it and not feel something good. Check this book out today! Highly recommended.

After the Moment review

2009-05-26T20:58:00.003-04:00

After the Moment by Garret Freymann-Weyr

Leigh Hunter leads a quietly charmed life. He's smart, athletic and popular almost without trying. His girlfriend is one of the hottest girls in school. His mother pretty much stays out of his way but they still have a good relationship. His father is a complicated man that helps Leigh examine the type of man he wants to be. The major challenge in Leigh's life is figuring out what colleges he will be applying to next year. Then Leigh has a tough decision to make and the direction of his life is forever changed when he falls in love with Maia Moreland.

This is a rather lovely book about a smart, sensitive guy who is growing up right on the page. It took me a couple of chapters to get used to the book. The writing is very layered and sophisticated. I felt like the tone of the novel is more geared toward an "adult" book rather than YA just because the strong third person narrative is slightly removed from Leigh's 17-year-old life. However, the writing really carries the book. I was impressed with how self-aware Leigh was, how we were able to get into his head and see the kind of guy he was. Yes, he is a very good guy and he knows that but he's not perfect and he also knows that. He's sometimes selfish or brash or moody. The whole time Leigh recognizes these different aspects of his personality and he asks himself why is he this way, why can't he say what he's truly thinking, why do words fail him, how is he going to control his own destiny? The struggles of growing up, both mentally and physically, are right there on the pages and we as the reader are so connected to him that I felt myself struggling right along beside him and asking myself the same questions. It's truly a compelling read.

I was reading something today where an author said he would like to see more YA books written at a high-school level. I wasn't quite sure what he meant but thinking about After the Moment, I think that he may be talking writing level. I have to say I agree with him because I enjoy the challenge I get from the writing while still being able to enjoy a novel in my favorite genre of books. I read this book slowly but at the same time it was so satisfying that I could not put it down. I think it's important for readers to be introduced to this type of writing in YA literature.

Leigh's story begins in the months after 9/11 and he's lives in New York. It's interesting to have this kind of backdrop for the story and I really enjoyed the subplot of how the war impacts (and doesn't impact) Leigh's life. Although the time period is pretty well established there isn't any pop culture references to 2002 really, unless they are fairly vague. I enjoyed how firmly entrenched I was in Leigh's world. It really helped me understood how everything unfolded for him.

The adults in the story were referenced by name just as the teenagers were but it was still easy to tell all of the characters apart. I enjoyed the dialogue that was realistic, almost contrary to the narrative with how simple and young it was for Leigh and all of his friends. The plot unfurled in an unhurried way but it wasn't slow because there was always so much going on in Leigh's head, even if there wasn't much going on in terms of action. The story is told mostly through flashback as Leigh sees his former girlfriend Maia again at a party. The events that do happen are shocking and heartbreaking and everything in the book builds to this so you really care about everyone involved. Even though it was easy to care about these characters, it was not always easy to understand them because Leigh didn't understand them and all we had was his perspective. Still, that made the book more interesting.

If you pick up this book and you find yourself turned off in the beginning or you're not immediately grabbed I advise you to stick with it. This book is definitely worth the read just to get inside the man of one young man who might represent the challenges that other guys like him and it's important to see this kind of perspective. You might be surprised.

My main gripe with the book is that Leigh's name was spelled Leigh instead of Lee. Leigh is more girly than Lee but at the same time I can see why she chose that spelling.

Check this book out!

Sunday Weekly Word Count [5]

2009-05-24T10:11:00.003-04:00

I'm on vacation! But I still managed to keep up with my writing and I'm so happy. I wish my friends would hurry up and get ready. In fact, they are sitting around me doing nothing. It's so hard to motivate them. At least it gives me a chance to write this post.

5/17:
Words - 1742
Pages - 5

5/18:
Words - 1737
Pages - 4.3

5/19
Words - 748
Pages - 2.1

5/20
Words - 707
Pages - 1.6

5/21
Words - 551
Pages - 2.1

5/22
Words - 560
Pages - 2.3

5/23
Words - 1155
Pages - 3

That brings my total word count to 7200 words and 15.4 pages. I was feeling really frustrated this week like, can I really go through with this? Is this worth doing and finishing? It's so long! I need to move the plot along faster. But then I decided to stick through it. I'm gonna finish this first draft, even if it kills me. And then I will start something else.

Such a Pretty Girl Review

2009-05-22T14:23:00.003-04:00

Such a Pretty Girl by Laura Weiss

Meredith's father is a equal opportunity molester. He'll sexually abuse little boys, girls and even his own daughter. Three years ago, Meredith sat up in court and told her story in order to put her father away in prison. Now, her father is being released and despite all of the court restrictions and legal documents, Meredith's father is coming home.

This was a surprisingly fast read although it is a dark and scary book. The book only covers a few days but you get the full sense of the terrifying things that happened to Meredith before and after her father's arrest. Meredith sees her father as a monster and there is no evidence to the contrary. There is no telling how many kids he has harmed. The community shuns him and Meredith by association, even though she is just as much of a victim. Perhaps the scariest character in this novel is Meredith's mother. She's obsessed with keeping her husband, Meredith's father, happy and willing to turn a blind eye to whatever he is doing to Meredith. Even after the trial, she refuses to believe the truth that her husband is a sex offender and leaves Meredith alone with him just so the abuse can start all over again.

It certainly seems like there is no hope, no help for Meredith, trapped in this life with her father, only 15, there's no real for her to get out. Also trapped is Meredith's boyfriend, Andy, who is paralyzed from the waist down and also an alcoholic. He lives in a dark condo near Meredith where his mother prays for his recovery night and day. Meredith has Andy as a source of support but it is not a permanent solution.

The thing that will keep you reading this story where everything that happens to Meredith is so frustrating and wrong and unthinkable is Meredith's strength. She is fully aware during the story and you get a real sense of all of her conflicting thoughts and feelings. Somehow she is able to navigate through all the horrors in her life and then pushes the story along.

The flashbacks are scattered throughout the story and very useful to seeing how this all started for Meredith and to help explain how her past has shaped her state of mind in the present. One unusual aspect about the flashbacks was that they were written in present tense, just like the rest of the story, but set off in italics it really works and adds to the sense of urgency of the whole novel.

The characters and unflinchingly real. There are no heroes on white horses coming to share Meredith. The adults surrounding her have their own flaws, including inaction. Meredith keeps her own with all of them. Some of the banter is quite sophisticated. Then again, Meredith is a girl who is much older than her years.

This is an important book because it does not sugarcoat or gloss over anything that happens to Meredith. Her situation may seem extreme or unrealistic but it's something that happens way more often than it should. Such a Pretty Girl highlights these horrible circumstances but also gives us hope. If you want to experience a deeply felt novel, I suggest you read this one.

Sunday Weekly Word Count [4]

2009-05-17T23:18:00.007-04:00

Wow, my fourth Weekly Word Count post. That means I've been up to this page-a-day thing for a while. I've never been such a disciplined writer before when there wasn't a grade attached. And even then I just wrote my stories a couple of days before they were due. I'm such a procrastinator.

What is it about weekends? What do I do? I'm always so unproductive. Ugh. I can't even tell you how long I've been meaning to clean my apartment. It's still not done! I need to find somewhere to keep all my new books.

I'm going away for Memorial Day weekend and it will be a true test to my writing commitment. I'm going to bring my computer so we'll see.

Anyway this week:

5/10-
Word: 2269
Pages: 5

5/11-
Words: 1985
Pages: 5.2

5/12-
Words: 1145
Pages: 4

5/13-
Words: 540
Pages: 2

5/14-
Words: 415
Pages: 1.5

5/15-
Words: 853
Pages: 2.5

5/16-
Words: 3155
Pages: 8

That brings this weeks total to 10362 words and 28.2 pages.

The 8 pages I wrote on Saturday? That was me siting in a chair for hours writing one scene. And that, my friends, is the reason this novel will never be finished. lol

Still reading. Reviews up soon!

Flashback Friday [3]

2009-05-15T23:41:00.004-04:00

It's time for Flashback Friday! On Fridays, I feature YA books published before 2002 (I think... I haven't checked). You should try it!

This week I'm featuring When Jeff Comes Home by Catherine Atkins.

Summary:

Two years ago, Jeff Hart was kidnapped at knifepoint. Now his kidnapper is releasing him to return home. But when Jeff finds his family, he feels shell-shocked and unable to tell anyone what happened. He can't believe that anyone-not even his family or friends-will understand what he went through. Jeff isn't the same person he was before, and he never will be again.

Why You Should Read It:

Honestly, this is one of my fave YA books of all time! It's a book I go back to over and over again and I should probably just buy it already. I've read it at least four times, maybe more and it never gets old. It just impresses me how writers can dig down and write so authoritatively and honestly about such dark topics. I think that's a much scarier book than one about a vampire or a werewolf.

I adore Jeff and his voice in the book. His pain, his confusion, his loneliness, it's all very real. When he acts creepy with his little brother and then hates himself afterward is just an example of the inner struggle that Jeff is going through. Everything is different now that he's back home and everyone has so many expectations. On one hand you want to throttle Jeff for not giving up his kidnapper right away, just like everyone else but at the same time, as the reader, you're right there in his head and this messed up logic that he has going on is the only thing that rings true to him.

I love the relationships in this book. The central relationship is between Jeff and his father. During the two years Jeff has been gone his father has done everything in his power to find him-- including looking through kiddie porno mags for Jeff's picture. Just thinking about that makes me sick. Jeff's dad wants to help Jeff so badly but he also doesn't know what to do and Jeff is not in a position to tell him. The struggle and the love between them is so real. That's one of the best parts of the book. Also, Jeff had a best friend when he was taken, Vin, who tries to reenter his life once he comes back. Vin is very patient and caring towards Jeff, which I loved reading about. But Vin is not perfect and there comes a breaking point. I thought the friendship was very well portrayed and made the story feel more rounded and not so closed in with just Jeff and his family.

All of the uncomfortable moments, the sadness, the horrors of what happened to Jeff and the anger are all building up to the emotional payoff that happens during the last two/three pages of the book. I read the book just for the ending. It always makes me cry. Books don't make me cry that often. For me, it's quite cathartic. I recommend the book based on the ending alone.

It's not a perfect book. Reading it again as I've matured I would change a few things about the writing but not much. No matter what it's always a very emotional, very carefully crafted book with a strong voice and so much passion.

So you should definitely check it out!

Sampler:

I don't have the book on me right now! So... just read it.

Other Works By This Author:

Catherine Atkins also wrote Alt Ed which I read and I enjoyed but not as much as this book. Other than that, I don't know. So if you know Catherine kindly tell her to publish another book and get back on her blog! I'll be waiting.

C.O.R.A Diversity Roll Call #6: YA You Don't Know

2009-05-14T22:32:00.007-04:00

It's time for this week's C.O.R.A Diversity Roll Call question! I encourage you to join in, I look forward to doing them every week! I'll address these questions.

Your assignment this week is to inform readers what they are missing. With your help, maybe we can begin dismantling misconceptions and introduce readers to a more diverse pool of writers. Please address one or a few of the following:

1) Provide a list of YA writers of color that you think deserve more exposure.

2) Showcase cover art that does not reveal the race/ethnicity of the characters. Do you think these covers accurately represent the storyline?

It's hard to just find authors of color on the Internet through Google especially if they're not well known for whatever reason. I thought I'd go on a treasure hunt. My library is awesome and it has a pretty big YA section. I spent some time looking through all the YA books in the library for books by and about people of color.

How did I look for the books? I just stared at all the titles. I judged a book by it's cover. I looked at last names. I randomly pulled books off the shelves and checked. I remembered a lot of books just from years of looking at the YA section in the library even if I had never read them before. Sometimes it was blind luck, like just a feeling I had.

This is not a good way to look for a specific kind of book! But it's interesting because there are more books out there than I thought. And these were mostly books that I could judge from their cover, inside blurb or author photo in the back. I imagine there were more in the stacks and also out in the world, in people's homes and other libraries and even more that I didn't know about because there was no hint of ethnicity in the outer characteristics of the book.

So I made a list of books I thought people might not know about. I focused mostly on African American authors with a few others. And I'll talk about some covers as well.

Maid Machinegun by Aaliyah.

Song for Night by Chris Abani (I think this is more adult than YA though)

Sofi Mendoza's Guide to Getting Lost in Mexico by Malin Alegria. The cover definitely shows a teen girl looking lost, like the title suggests. I think she could be a variety of ethnicities but the title gives away that she is supposed to be Hispanic. I think the cover goes well with the title, I can't comment on the book.

Maya Running by Anjali Banerjee.

Dominion by Calvin Baker.

The Black Canary by Jane Louise Curry.

Afrika by Colleen Craig. The cover deliberately puts the girl in a dark shadow which I think is interesting. At first you might think this girl is black but you can't assume that. The book is called "Afrika" so it leads you in that direction, but reading the product description and the reviews on Amazon, I think the main character is white. I think the cover is ambiguous on purpose so people will pick up the book for a variety of reasons. I wouldn't call it misleading.

Bucking the Sarge by Christopher Paul Curtis. No mention or hint about race with this cover. It's all about the most important color-- that mighty mighty green. The only reason I knew this was about a black teen was from browsing the stacks before. I like this cover because it's very appealing and fun and more people will feel invited to pick up the book. I haven't read the book so I don't know how much race plays a role but it sounds like a good read. Also, Christopher Paul Curtis won a Newberry so that says something really good about his writing!

Indie Girl by Kavita Daswani. I think this cover is sort of glamorous. I just picked it because it prominently displays the race of the main character on the cover but on the other hand she looks so cool, that's what made me look at this book in the first place. It looks like chick-lit and if readers like that type of story and book and cover and all that goes with it I think this cover will make them pick up the book irregardless of their race or the race of the girl on the cover.

Fresh Off the Boat by Melissa de la Cruz.

X-Indian Chronicles: the Book of Mausape by Thomas Yeahpau. Not sure how I feel about this cover. I'm not really a fan of drawings but is it an image that will turn people away just because they don't feel the book is for them or will speak to them? I think it might. But is the cover true to the story? I don't know because I haven't read the book. Just things to think about.

Acting by Sherri Winston.

Hang On in There, Shelley by Kate Saskena.

How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild and Got a Life by Kaavya Viswanathan. Oh, is this the Harvard girl that got busted for plagiarism? Haha. Well, I'll still talk about the cover. Seems like when they don't want to make race prominent on the cover the person is in shadow or colored weirdly, like this one. I prefer the "Bucking the Sarge" approach of picking a symbol or something else other than a person to put on the cover. Anyway, this cover seems cheesy enough and the thick hair may be a giveaway.

Chandra's Secrets by Allan Statton.

Imani All Mine by Connie Porter.

The Professor's Daughter by Emily Raboteau. I highly recommend this one if you're into literary short stories. I wouldn't say it's YA but that's where I found it. The stories are about a young lady who is half-white, half-black and they are superbly written.

He Forgot to Say Goodbye by Benjamin Alire Saenz. Discovered this book in the library and added it to my mental TBR pile. The last name made me take a look. It's about a Mexican teen and a white teen who become friends through the shared experience of not having a father in their lives. The cover doesn't hint at race in any way but instead suggests a journey and loneliness. I think it's a lovely cover.

Joseph by Sheila P. Moses.

Skunk Girl by Sheba Karim.

Hot Girl by Dream Jordan.

Spellbound by Janet McDonald.

M+O 4Ever by Tonya Hegamin. Funny, I chose this cover because the kids on the front were dark but vague, that whole shadow thing. One of the reviews on Amazon said this, "It’s too bad the cover art doesn’t more clearly show the girls’ ethnicity; more books with girls of color prominently displayed are needed." I found this in the library and leafed through it because I'm clued into the shadow technique on covers. I think we definitely need more books with girls of color as the main character that are also widely read for everyone. How do we make this happen? We can change our culture or tweak the cover. One is easier than the other, unfortunately.

Response by Paul Volponi. Another shadowed covered. This is also in my mental TBR pile. The story is about a black teen who gets beat up in a white neighborhood. Funny, those shadowed figures on the cover may be the teens who beat him up! There is a real ominous feeling from the cover. In fact, the figures on the cover are more like symbols than people so I like that.

So I hope I gave you some ideas for books to read. I think this exercise has further confirmed that I much prefer stuff on covers to people, personally. But I also don't think authors and publishers should have to omit faces of color from book covers just so more people will give it a try. So it's a Catch 22 of sorts. I think we just have to encourage kids and teens to just have a love for reading because when you really love reading then you'll be looking for anything. When you love reading the most important thing is that it's a really good story.

Writing Tip Wednesday #4

2009-05-13T23:41:00.003-04:00

What can we learn this week from Elizabeth Lyon's book Manuscript Makeover?

Without reservation, I recommend that you begin your novel with a scene. One reason why is because of the problems inherent with sequel and summary. Sequel means that readers have been deprived of the suspense of the off-stage scene that occurred before the opening of the novel. Now they are held hostage to "listen" to the reaction of the character or characters. It also means that the author will be tempted to narrate too much, to retell the scene that triggered the emotions and quandary, and tell, tell, tell-- everything. More than not, sequel beginnings feature one character alone with his or her thoughts and feelings. I don't recommend that any unpublished novelist begin with one character alone, because the character will inevitably turn inward, which means lots of telling versus action. [...]

Scenes are based on forward-moving action. They operate to get the story launched, to put the characters into situations where they must overcome obstacles and move toward commitment to a life-changing quest. Scenes also contain sounds, smells, temperatures, touch-sensations, and visuals. They create the verisimilitude, the sense of reality that is missing in narrated summaries or thought-based sequels. Scenes are more dynamic than sequels or summaries.

I am always amazed with how good novels begin so close to the action. I think it's pretty bold but it's also the thing to do. The advice not to start with one character alone is interesting but it makes sense. What else can the character do but think? Unless she starts talking to the wall. Although, I think it can work sometimes, depending on the structure of the book. I think the trick is to keep these tips and "rules" in mind but play around with the narrative until you find the most interesting way to really tell the story.

I really need to read that book front to back. I'm working on it!

Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott

2009-05-13T22:25:00.005-04:00

This has nothing to do with the review but I won an ARC of Love You Hate You Miss You from Elizabeth Scott on her blog. I am so excited. I'm gonna read it as soon as I get it! Thank you Elizabeth!

Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott

I'm not sure what I was expecting but as soon as I read the first page of Living Dead Girl I knew that I wasn't going to get anything I could imagine. I started reading the book and after the first few chapters I wasn't sure if I'd be able to go on while I was still compulsively turning pages and devouring every word.

Living Dead Girl is Alice's story, but that's not her name. She was kidnapped when she was 10 years old and another girl was born in her place, the Alice that fulfills her kidnapper's every need. When she was 10 her biggest concern was whether or not to share her new lip gloss. Now Alice steals to eat and waits for the moment that Ray will murder her.

The prose is stark, sparse, told from Alice's point-of-view, a dead, hollow narrative that I have never experienced in a novel. I could hear her voice in my head and feel her pain and desperation. The violence in this novel is not graphically described but the imagery is strong enough to make you flinch and squirm anyway.

Most disturbing is the way Alice has evolved during her captivity with Ray. This is no longer a regular girl and how could she be? She is intricately connected to Ray and you see just how well he has molded her in his image and for his pleasure. The real beauty of this story is how self-aware Alice is about how she is yet powerless to stop it and something beyond resigned to her situation-- really the only way to describe it is in Alice's words: "Living dead girl."

The reason this book is so hard to read is because there's no humor, there's no lightness and even as I kept reading and searching I couldn't find anything resembling hope. Yet I recommend this book because the voice is unlike anything I've experienced before and I was utterly captivated by it. I can't imagine writing a book like this. You will definitely be haunted by Alice's story.

Give it a try but be prepared to have a very emotional reaction to what you're reading.

TBR Tuesday (3)

2009-05-12T23:58:00.003-04:00

I have this book in my apartment, ready to go.

Jumped by Rita Williams-Garcia

The wrong angle

Trina: "Hey," I say, though I don't really know them. The boyed-up basketball girl barely moves. The others, her girls, step aside. It's okay if they don't speak. I know how it is. They can't all be Trina.

Dominique: Some stupid little flit cuts right in between us and is like, "Hey." Like she don't see I'm here and all the space around me is mines. I slam my fist into my other hand because she's good as jumped.

Leticia: Why would I get involved in Trina's life when I don't know for sure if I saw what I thought I saw? Who is to say I wasn't seeing it from the wrong angle?

Acclaimed author Rita Williams-Garcia intertwines the lives of three very different teens in this fast-paced, gritty narrative about choices and the impact that even the most seemingly insignificant ones can have. Weaving in and out of the girls' perspectives, readers will find themselves not with one intimate portrayal but three.

I first learned about this book from Paula's Diversity Roll Call post and I knew I wanted to read it. Rita Williams-Garcia is an author I admire for her gritty stories yet tender writing. School violence is an important topic that should be explored in YA literature. I like that she's taken us away from the guns and more sensational manifestations of violence and brought it back to more of an everyday level, something that is a reality for many students.

I read an interview with Rita and she said it took about 4 years from start to finish for this book. I'm looking forward to enjoying her hard work. I'm sure the words will seem effortless.

I've been reading a lot of heavy books later. I think next week I'll go for something lighter!

Upcoming reviews:

Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
Jumped by Rita Williams-Garcia
Undone by Brooke Taylor
Ten Things I Hate About Me by Randa Abdel-Fattah

Boy Toy by Barry Lyga

2009-05-12T01:20:00.005-04:00

I never would have picked up this book if it wasn't for the review on MssJos's blog. So I have to thank her because this novel is awesome.

It's the kind of book I wouldn't pick just by appearance in the library. I think the cover makes the book a little sexier than it is but at the same time I'm like, what's that about? Even the inside blurb is weird and strangely vague. Makes it sound almost like a sports novel and baseball is not my thing. I only like to read sports novels about basketball (How closed minded of me!).

Yes, I've definitely passed on this book for a couple of years and I'm sorry that I did.

In some ways Boy Toy is what you'd expect but mostly it's completely different from what you can imagine. Talk about bringing characters to the brink. Author Barry Lyga is fearless.

I think to give a proper sort of summary you have to get a bit spoilery. Five years ago, Josh Medel's life changed when he was molested by his 7th grade history teacher when he was 12. Now, age 18, a senior in high school, he's been trying to keep it together by maintaining a low profile in his small town, focusing on his sport baseball and on his grades so that he can get into his dream Ivy League school. There are only a few weeks of school left so it seems like everything should be ending but Josh's recovery is just beginning. Rachel, his former best friend, is ready to learn the truth, whether Josh likes it or not and in learning how to trust Rachel and others around him, Josh discovers a truth about himself.

And there's baseball. And best friends. And parents. And secrets.

The book is long. It's 416 pages but it is utterly captivating. Josh's voice just leaps off the page. You are instantly in his head from page one. The book occurs in the present and also in Josh's 12-year-old past. It's amazing how Lyga writes from the point of view of Josh describing himself at 12-years-old with this dual consciousness yet you know both versions of Josh are wrong about many things. The immediacy of Josh on the page was what drew me further into the story. It commanded me to keep turning the page. Sometimes I had to stop and catch my breath, think about what was happening, go over in my mind. I could feel every word in my brain.

I love books like that.

Josh isn't the only excellent character in this novel. Every character is carefully crafted and completely real and complex. For such a long novel there aren't many characters and it really shows with the time devoted to each one so that the reader is really able to get to know them. Even the predator, Josh's teacher Eve, is given time to become real and in the end, well, there's something else there. You could almost feel a little sorry for her.

The best part about this book is that it takes it's time, drawing you in, explaining things, getting to know the characters. Every section is carefully written. The pacing is excellent. The build up is breath-taking. The ending is just what you always feared but at the end it's what you needed. I felt a sense of satisfaction once I finished the book, sadness too, and lots of pride for Josh and everything he was able to achieve.

The sex in this book is never gratuitous or overly graphic. It's disturbing but for other reasons than how it is described. I wouldn't let that deter you from the novel. You'll be so caught up in Josh's story that quickly you'll be moving on to the next thing. The sex is nothing if not-- using that strange literary term-- earned.

Above all, Boy Toy has excellent writing. His dialogue is particularly strong. There's humor wrapped up in all of this, lines that made me laugh out loud. It was a delicate mix that I really appreciated.

Here's a tip! For more than half the book I was reading Josh's best friend Zik's name as Zeke... but it's actually short for Isaac! Get it? The end of Isaac? Haha, I'm dumb.

I could tell you more about this book and what goes on there. I feel like I've barely begun to scratch the surface. But you need to try this out for yourself. It's a challenging read but in an important way. So I hope you give Boy Toy a chance.

My favorite part (page 228-229):

"See, forgiveness doesn't happen all at once. It's not an event-- it's a process. Forgiveness happens while you're asleep, while you're dreaming, while you're in line at the coffee shop, while you're showering, eating, farting, jerking off. It happens in the back of your mind, and then one day you realize that you don't hate the person anymore, that your anger has gone away somewhere. And you understand. You've forgiven them. You don't know how or why. It sneaked up on you. It happened in the small spaces between thoughts and in the seconds between ideas and blinks. That's where forgiveness happens. Because anger and hatred, when left unfed, bleed away like air from a punctured tire, over time and days and years.

Forgiveness is stealth.

At least, that's what I hope."

Highly recommended! Now in paperback!

Sunday Weekly Word Count [3]

2009-05-10T19:37:00.003-04:00

This weekend I tried to clean up my apartment but I'm so good at distracting myself it's no good. Oh well! Only I live here. Well me and some spiders and other bugs I kill occasionally. Ew.

So I'm in the middle of reading two books. I really need to read faster so I can post more reviews! I read a couple graphic novels I want to comment on, I just haven't done it yet.

This week I surpassed 60,00o words in my first draft. So yay but also, when is it gonna end? Can I get to the fame and fortune part yet? haha.

It was a good reading day and writing day. I also twisted my hair for a long time in a while. I really don't like my hair lately. Ever since I used some Miss Jessie's shampoo and conditioner (once!) it's been going downhill. I used some locking gel with the twisting and that seemed to work well.

Now it's almost another work day. But hey, I can't hate on work too much. At least I have a job. For now...

5/3 and 5/4- FAILURE. I was out of town and didn't write. I suck. Where is my discipline!

5/5- Words: 2178
Pages: 6

5/6- Words: 842
Pages: 2

5/7- Words: 480
Pages: 1

5/8- Words: 526
Pages: 1.2

5/9- Words: 2141
Pages: ~ 6

That brings my weekly word total to 6167 words and 16.2 pages. Not bad for missing two days.

Excerpt:

It was Saturday so Somerset was crowded with middle schoolers carrying designer bags and soccer moms wearing sweatshirts that said Hottie across the bottom. It took two seconds for me to remember the exact reasons I never went to the mall.

“I just need some shirts,” I said, heading toward Macy’s with Caitlin on my heels. “We don’t have to be here forever.”

“But Loren, you said I could get something too!” Caitlin said. “I have to look.”

I couldn’t get to the men’s section fast enough. They had some shirts and ties boxed up together so you didn’t have to match anything. I grabbed a couple of those, one with a blue shirt and another with a plain white shirt. Red didn’t look that good on me but it was one of the school colors so I got a red shirt, a red tie and a black and red checkered tie along with a couple of black shirts That had to be enough. I couldn’t wear something different for every away game. Principal Johnson liked to say it often on morning announcements—“School is not a fashion show.” He probably hoped that each time he said it somehow it would come true. But school remained a fashion show.

I want to go to the mall. It's been so long!

Flashback Friday! [2]

2009-05-08T19:20:00.002-04:00

TGIF. It hasn't been a long week but it was long enough. Let's kick the weekend off with a blast from the past.

Flashback Friday featuring Both Sides Now by Ruth Pennebaker

Summary:

Witnessing her mother's battle with breast cancer, a teenage daughter finds her own strength.

Liza's mother has just completed an exhausting, but promising, treatment for breast cancer and her future looks bright. Liza takes the same approach to her junior year of high school--work hard, think positively, and keep everything under control. When tests reveal that a riskier, more painful treatment is needed, it seems Liza's mother has given up. But she hasn't. Her mother's courage shows Liza that life isn't about control, it's about living.

Drawing on the author's own experiences with breast cancer, this unforgettable novel reveals that positive thinking is not always the answer to tragedy, but that facing pain can bring great strength.

Why You Should Read It:

This book has always stuck in my mind. I've read it at least twice. I love Liza's voice. Everything is just leaping from the page. The characters are real and compelling. Family is very important in this novel and I think Liza's family is crafted well. The mother-daughter relationship is strong and it's unusual, beautifully punctuated by the inner-thoughts of Liza's mother which are scattered through out the novel.

Although the plot builds around the heavy topic of breast cancer the book is a solid, enjoyable experience. Liza has her own steady build of experiences as her family life is changing all around her. It's crazy how much life moves forward even though terrible things are happening all around you. That's one aspect of the book I like the most. I still think about this book because the experiences and situations and people in are so real. The writing is excellent. The details are delicate and well-crafted.

For a rich, poignant read you should check out this book.

Sampler:

(I just took this from Amazon)

It's foggy and misty this morning, but I can see the finish line the minute I turn the last corner. It's about a block away. Lots of people are standing around it, clapping and yelling. There are pink balloons everywhere, and they bob up and down in the wind.

When I cross the line, a woman in a white sweatshirt and aviator glasses gives me a big pink button that says I Raced for the Cure! I pin it on my T-shirt while I'm still jogging up and down. I look around, but I don't see Mom anywhere.

So I turn back and jog along the sidewalk, watching all the people who are still finishing the race. At first, they're all runners like me--young kids, college students, middle-aged guys with babies on their backs. But the farther back I go, the slower people are moving. After I've gone four or five blocks, you couldn't even call it a race. It's like a party that's walking very slowly. There are mostly women in long, wavy lines with their friends. They're talking and laughing and pushing strollers.

Mom and her friends are almost at the end of the crowd. She's with three women from her support group. They're all wearing pink T-shirts and visors that say I'm a breast cancer survivor!

"Liza!" Mom's waving at me. I jog over next to her and slow down to walk with her and her friends.

"You remember my older daughter, Liza?" Mom asks the other women. She pushes her hair back when she talks, the way she always has. Mom has a very pretty face, with deep blue eyes and soft skin and short, dark brown hair. Even though she doesn't like to exercise that much, she looks happy today. "Liza's a runner--when she's not doing lots of other things. She's the real achiever in the family."

The other women and I smile at one another and nod. I've met all of them before. There's Barbara, who's short and peppy and probably the most cheerful-looking person I've ever met in my life. She almost always has lipstick on her teeth from smiling so much. Then there's Jeannette, who's taller and more serious, and Libby, who has pale skin and big brown eyes.

The three of them have very short hair, like Mom's. That's because they all had breast cancer and went through chemotherapy a few months ago.

When Mom and the other women talk about chemotherapy, they call it "chemo," for short. I think it helps to give something a nickname like that, so it doesn't sound as scary. Besides, chemo isn't as bad as most people think. It kills the cancer cells in your body and saves your life. That's what you have to keep telling yourself.

"You think we'll win the race, Liza?" Barbara asks. She winks at me, and Mom and all her friends start laughing. Right now, the five of us are walking so slowly that it's going to take a year to finish. They might have taken the finish line down and gone home by the time we get there.

About ten minutes later, we turn the final corner. The finish line is still there, with all the pink balloons flapping around. By now, it's gotten hotter, and the fog and mist have disappeared. The sun is shining, bright and golden and beautiful, and you can see the soft green hills in the distance. That's a good sign. I always look for good signs, and I almost always find them, too. It's amazing.

People are yelling when we cross the line. I think it's because we're practically the last people to finish the race. Mom and her friends hug each other, and they all hug me.

Around us, all I can see is a small crowd of women wearing pink. They move together and apart and together again, and their faces look hot and red from the sun. They're laughing and crying at the same time, in a way that's hard for me to explain. I don't think I've ever seen anything like that before.

I hug Mom again. She's laughing and crying, like the rest of the women. For a few seconds, I don't know what to say.

What should I say? The day's beautiful and we've finished the race and I feel so happy to be alive--like something wonderful's going to happen any minute now. Something wonderful's going to happen, bursting out of nowhere, the way the sun just came out. Everything is going to be all right. It's such a strong feeling, like a surge of something very powerful, that I know it must be true. I wish I could explain it better. I wish I could make Mom and her friends understand. I wish I could make everybody in the world understand.

"Let's go, babe," Mom says. She stretches her arms up, over her head, and grins at me. "I need to get to the closest shower. It's an emergency."

I drive us home. I got my learner's permit last summer, and I'm starting driver's ed classes this week, so I need to practice driving as much as I can. The trouble is, I don't have very good depth perception. That's why I have this bad habit of running over curbs. Dad says I shouldn't worry about it, though. It's a bad habit to focus on mistakes, because that's negative. As long as I act like I have confidence in my driving, I'll start to feel it, he says.

Other Books By This Author:

Ruth Pennebaker also wrote Don't Think Twice and Conditions of Love. Both of these novels are excellent. I love her entire body of work. For years I would pray to see something new every time I went to the library. I'm still waiting for her next book! So, Ruth, if you see this, please publish another YA book!

Diversity Roll Call #5 and other thoughts

2009-05-07T23:50:00.001-04:00

It's time to answer this week's Diversity Roll Call question! Head over to Worducopia to participate. This time we're going to look at the book Gone by Kathleen Jeffrie Johnson. I'll use that book to answer these questions.

1. Are the nonwhite characters too good to be true? (or do they have depth that goes beyond their race, faults and all?)

The non-white characters in Gone are Mil, Risa and Darnell. Mil is an older black gentleman who makes ice cream and Risa and Darnell are his grandkids. I'll focus on them. Perhaps Risa and Mil are a little too good to be true. Mil is a strong paternal figure in the story and even though he has sort of a dark past he has pulled himself together and he's sort of the center of the neighborhood. It seems like people are drawn to him. I don't know if that's too good to be true but it's definitely good.

Risa is also very good. She very understanding and kind to her brother. She's the first girl to give Zach, the main character Connor's awkward best friend, a chance. She's pretty, nice, smart and even willing to share someone else's earwax. Now, Risa is a secondary character so the reader doesn't get to know too much about her but from what I can glean she's close to perfect as presented.

Darnell was an annoying little boy. There's nothing perfect about that.

2. How and why does the author define race? (Does it need to be defined? Is their race crucial to the plot?)

I don't think race is crucial to the plot. It presents itself as a small conflict when Zach worries about being with Risa because she's black and he's white but that quickly passes when it comes up. One of the reasons I picked this book is because I think the author is fond of black secondary characters. I don't think it necessarily needs to be defined. I also don't feel like Risa and Mil and Darnell were black just for arbitrary "diversity" reasons. Like I said, I think she just likes that kind of dynamic between her characters, the black and white interactions that can occur. It could have also been a way to illustrate the kind of neighborhood that Connor lives in.

The author doesn't use any food analogies to describe any of the black characters just describes Risa's skin as brown and also the narrator states the fact that they're black.

3. Is the cover art true to the story? (Perkins cites as an example the cover of Cynthia Kadohata’s novel Weedflower, in which the Japanese American main character is wearing a kimono, even though she's never described as wearing one in the text).

In this case the cover art is about the main character Connor who is white so it's true to the story. He's got a good tan though.

4. Who solves the problems in the story? (Would "Dances With Wolves" have been as popular with theater-goers without the white hero?)

The problem is solved through a group effort but Mil definitely helps. He challenges Connor to take a good look at himself and cites his past problems which are similar to Connor's. He offers his tough love and wisdom which may or may not be seen as stereotypical.

5. How is beauty defined?

The story is told from Connor's point-of-view and he's really into his teacher so he appreciates her blue eyes and long hair and snug fitting jeans and things like that. Zach's hair is really curly and people make fun of him and at one point Zach is wondering if it is like an afro. Zach's hair is not very beautiful. However, near the end of the book Risa gets him hooked up with a good haircut. Risa is described a few times and while Zach thinks she's fine Connor doesn't seem to have any opinion. But his mind is occupied. Beauty is also defined by the way you feel on the inside. Connor is jealous that Zach and Risa seem so happy. So it's a variety of things.

So this challenge got me thinking.

I'm always interested in authors who write main characters outside of their own race. I came across this article on Google. Here's an excerpt:

Brockmann, who gained a following for her series based on a team of Navy SEALS, made her hardcover debut with Gone Too Far (Ballantine Books, July 2003), a romantic thriller featuring Alyssa Locke, a biracial female FBI agent as the heroine, and Sam, a white SEAL team member, as the hero. Any tension between these two is purely sexual.

For Brockmann, Alyssa's biracial background was part of an attempt to bring more diversity to the lives of romance readers, who are typically middle aged, white females living in the Midwest. Alyssa, according to Brockmann's description, is a done of the light-skinned actress Vanessa Williams. "Traditionally, the romance industry is filled with stories about really, really, really white people," Brockmann says. "I get charged up by differences, and I try to bring that to my books." Brockmann tries to give her characters substance by reading African American writers.

It is all about sales not idealism, says Diggs [a literary agent]. "These writers see that African American characters are very popular right now, so they say 'Let me get my share of the market.' As a business decision, it makes perfect sense. There's nothing altruistic about it."

I don't know how popular African American characters are really but I do agree that when someone just makes a character biracial or black in order to "color up" the novel it seems disingenuous to me even if they have the best of intentions. I think that's what Mitali is asking us to think about when we read or do our own writing. Maybe in this case it would be good for Brockmann to leave the character's race up in the air and let the reader fill in the blanks with his or her own mind.

I feel torn because I do like physical description, I like knowing the race of characters in books and it's not something I would want to leave out of my own writing. I don't mind reading books with only white characters or black characters or Asians or whatever. The type of person in a book doesn't make me pick up a book. Now it might make me take a second look, it might make me weigh my options and say you know, I want to read more novels about minorities so I'm gonna pick this one over this one but it's not the only deciding factor. But it is annoying when people think diversity comes only with skin color and that's what they want to create.

My friend and I were talking about how we chose our colleges and she told me about visiting John Hopkins, her dream school. She went down there and while it was rich with racial diversity and all of that she said that she was turned off because even though everyone looked different on the inside they seemed all the same. They were all uber-competitive and conservative, blah blah blah, at least that was her impression. So she decided to go somewhere else because she was looking for more a diversity in experience and attitudes and backgrounds. I think that's what's missing when token characters are just thrown into a text in order to be politically correct or all inclusive. In a way, anything you write should be all-inclusive because you don't know where it's going to end up. All writing can and should speak to anyone who gives it a try if it's good enough, even if you write it geared more towards a specific audience.

What about black authors writing white main characters? Is that still considered African American fiction? Does it have the same kind of "crossover" success that a white author can have for writing about a black character? I came across this blog post and I thought the discussion was very interesting. I have not heard of Millenia Black or her book but that doesn't mean anything because I probably hear about very little if it's not advertised in the middle of American Idol (by the way I can't wait for Glee! Hee! Two more weeks!). Well the Amazon page doesn't tell me much about the controversy or the race of the characters inside except that all the books recommended with her book are from African American writers. Positive reviews... I'm glad the book finally got into the world despite the trouble.

I'm not sure the answers to these questions because I don't have much experience with it all. And then we have to expand this conversation beyond black and white to all of our other wonderful neighbors like Anoop who is of Indian descent, grew up in a white neighborhood (I imagine this) and wants to sing black music! Oh things like that make me smile. I was looking at author Jenny Han's website and her books APPEAR to have white main characters although she looks not to be white. Of course, you can't judge someone on looks and I haven't read her books but I'm just saying, it's definitely out there.

It always annoys me in TV shows where they only have two black characters in the main cast and they date each other. This happens all the time! Why do they have to date each other? Why can't they date other people and sort of expand the whole circle of friends and characters. It's just so closed in, makes me claustrophobic. An exception to this is the new 90210. Dixon is dating Silver and for a couple of episodes they made it seem like he was going to jump ship to date the black girl they had on there to facilitate his blackness identity crisis but it turned out the black girl is gay. And then she disappeared. I wanted Dixon to be with her. Silver is annoying.

I think this post deserves some TRUE COLORS!

Writing Tip Wednesday #3

2009-05-06T19:11:00.002-04:00

Looking over all my WIPs I know I have a problem. I love writing dialogue but I have to work on making everyone sound different! Most of my characters (so far) are similar in age and background but it's still important. I love to start a sentence with "well" for some reason. Do I do say that? Well, I don't think so!

Another problem I have is I walk around with my headphones on too much. But people talking on the bus annoy me! And listening to Cross My Heart by LFO is so much better. Okay, I'll try to be a better student of the world.

As for the writing tip, let's look at what Manuscript Makeover by Elizabeth Lyon has to say about improving dialogue.

Because dialogue is action, it also fulfills the maxim, "Show, don't tell." It is a showcase for characterization and captures personality and character voice like nothing else. Sharpen your dialogue, taking extra pains to delete unnecessary and extra verbiage. Make it lean and expressive at the same time.

I guess I have to really think about my characterization and what I want to bring out in the dialogue because that's just another way of getting to know the characters. I also think what I can work on is vary the sentence variety of different characters, like length and the way they put words together and the words they choose to use. I need to read the dialogue out loud to make sure that it doesn't sound awkward or stilted or just blaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

Funny dialogue is the best!

Things to think about. Slow ride! Take it easy!

TBR Tuesday (2)

2009-05-05T19:08:00.005-04:00

Have you had a Coldstone Cupcake? Well you should have one, it's good.

This week on To Be Read Tuesday I'm featuring...

Sag Harbor by Colson Whitehead

The year is 1985. Benji Cooper is one of the only black students at an elite prep school in Manhattan. He spends his falls and winters going to roller-disco bar mitzvahs, playing too much Dungeons and Dragons, and trying to catch glimpses of nudity on late-night cable TV. After a tragic mishap on his first day of high school—when Benji reveals his deep enthusiasm for the horror movie magazine Fangoria—his social doom is sealed for the next four years.

But every summer, Benji escapes to the Hamptons, to Sag Harbor, where a small community of African American professionals have built a world of their own. Because their parents come out only on weekends, he and his friends are left to their own devices for three glorious months. And although he’s just as confused about this all-black refuge as he is about the white world he negotiates the rest of the year, he thinks that maybe this summer things will be different. If all goes according to plan, that is.

There will be trials and tribulations, of course. There will be complicated new handshakes to fumble through, and state-of-the-art profanity to master. He will be tested by contests big and small, by his misshapen haircut (which seems to have a will of its own), by the New Coke Tragedy of ’85, and by his secret Lite FM addiction. But maybe, with a little luck, things will turn out differently this summer.

In this deeply affectionate and fiercely funny coming-of-age novel, Whitehead—using the perpetual mortification of teenage existence and the desperate quest for reinvention—lithely probes the elusive nature of identity, both personal and communal.

This seems like one of those novels where there isn't a ton of plot jumping off. It's a book to enjoy, really relish the language and the normalcy of things while realizing some truths that you know from your own life. I like a good book like that. I also like that it's about "black boys in beach houses." Hey, black people can swim! And they tan, just so you know.

I just found out about this book today from the blog White Readers Meet Black Authors and I went to check it out from the library and I'm hold #14 of 14. So it's a popular read.

Apparently the author is a big deal. He has a bunch of awesome awards. I should probably check out his other books too. I'll just throw them on the pile. I've got so much on the back burner!

In 1985 I was one year old. But I can appreciate the 80s. So much good music came out of that especially towards the end, like New Jack Swing. Why do you think I listen to Throwback Jamz on Music Choice all the time and watch VH1 Soul? I love that type of music maybe most of all. So I'm looking forward to this book.

Well, I've got to get back on track with writing, watch American Idol and get a book read so I can post a review on here!

Sunday Weekly Word Count [2]

2009-05-04T23:50:00.005-04:00

Of course, it's Monday now, practically Tuesday so this is coming to you late, not that anyone cares.

I hit a major test with my page-a-day commitment because I took a mini-vacation. I had my computer. Did I write a page? No! Bet you didn't see that coming. Now I'm two days out of the habit and it had been going so well. I'll have to get back on track tomorrow.

4/26: Words: 785
Pages: 2

4/27- Words: 671
Pages: 1.5

4/28- Words: 593
Pages: 1.5

4/29- Words: 1285
Pages: 3.5

4/30- Words: 1321
Pages: 3

5/1- Words: 1427
Pages: 4

So the total words for this week are 6082 and total pages are 15.5. Not as good as last week! It's coming along, I guess. I actually listened to Change is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke but covered by Seal for an hour, like literally, today at the airport and listening to it gave me like images in my mind about my story and helped me decide what I'm going to do in the future. It was great. I love that song, I love Seal's version.

Excerpt:

“Yeah, it’s more than bending your legs. It’s your self-confidence. But you also have to work on your technique.” Sasha took the ball back from me. She held it in front of her in a shooting position. “Keep your elbows in,” she said. “And flatten your hand more. You want to make it a platform so it spins off your fingertips.”

She was so pretty, holding the ball like that. We were both breathing in white bursts but I really wasn’t thinking about the cold.

“You try.” Sasha tossed the ball back to me. “Spread your legs out shoulder width.”

I slid my feet out a little bit. “Like this?”

Sasha nodded. She came up behind me when I lifted the ball into shooting position. She pressed my elbows closer to my body. I couldn’t really feel her hands through my varsity jacket but I imagined I could.

“That’s a better shooting position,” Sasha said. “And flip your wrist. All of you boys suck at follow through. Keep your wrist flipped after the shot.” Sasha demonstrated for me a few times. I watched her squat and spring up like she was actually shooting. Her wrist hung in the air. It was all imaginary but I saw the ball falling through the net over and over again.

“Follow through. And then follow your shot of course. But you know what works for me?” Sasha widened her knowing brown eyes. “You have to visualize it. You have to see your ball going through the net. It’s part of believing it, Loren. You have to believe it.”

Welcome to Flashback Friday! (1)

2009-05-01T20:59:00.005-04:00

I'm new to this blogging world and the things that has struck me most about everyone is how kind and articulate everyone seems to be. Especially since some of these bloggers are so young! Yet they are so committed and their blogs are pretty and full of features and excellent reviews. I'm very jealous.

But it also got me thinking. Most of the time we YA bloggers focus on new releases or books that have been out in the past two years or so. What about back in the day YA books? I've been reading YA since I was supposed to. I can't remember when I started. I've read a lot of great books and I thought it would be cool to recommend these older ones.

So on Fridays I will feature an older YA book I think you should check out of the library or get a used book store or something. I'll make the cut off date for publication the year I graduated from high school-- 2002.

Flashback Friday featuring A Door Near Here by Heather Quarles.

Summary:

Without even noticing, 15-year-old Katherine has become the head of her household. She hasn't had time to notice. Her single mother, an out-of-work alcoholic, has been in bed for weeks, leaving Katherine and her three younger siblings to band together and fend for themselves. But it has gotten harder and harder to maintain any sort of stability. There's no time for housework, food and money are running out, and the kids' teachers are starting to get suspicious. Worst of all, Katherine's youngest sister, Alisa, seems to be losing her grip on reality; she is obsessed with finding a door to the imaginary land of Narnia. And the longer they all struggle to maintain their pretense of normality, the more they have to fear--and to lose.

Why You Should Read It:

This is a gorgeous, compelling read that sucks you in from the first chapter. Katherine is a fierce main character with a conversational yet commanding voice that keeps you turning the pages. Not only is she smart and strong-willed but she can be sullen and full of anxiety but most of all she really loves her siblings. You really get into her head.

The writing gives me such visceral reactions. I gasp, I laugh, I want to cry. That's a sign of really good writing. As Katherine's life slips further and further out of control I find myself compulsively reading just to see what happens next. It's a really quick read but it's very satisfying. It's rich with plot and feelings.

While Katherine is the main character it's Alisa who really steals the show. She's an adorable little girl and you can feel her longing and belief in Narnia just leap off of the page. She's so smart yet such a little kid. When you read about her you know why Katherine would go through such lengths just to keep her safe.

Check it out!

Sampler:

(from pg. 65 hardcover edition)

But Mr. Dodgson wasn't moving. He wasn't packing up his things or anything. He was just looking at me.

I took a step sideways toward the door, checking my watch again as a hint, in case he'd forgotten about the school bus. Okay, come on, let me out. I took another step sideways as sort of a question mark.

"It must have been an awfully traumatic day for you," said Mr. Dodgson.

I stepped back, confused. "A... well, sort of, but..."

"Your sister told me you'd also badly cut your thumb. She mentioned stitches."

Oh. Shit. I'd forgotten Tracy had Mr. Dodgson for New Testament. That blabbermouth idiot. She must have told him something different on Monday.

"It must have been a terrible time in the emergency room, with potential laryngitis and a severed thumb as well. Was your mother with you, too?"

Shit shit shit shit...

"Or was she in another part of the hospital, having her tonsils operated on?" he concluded dryly.

I felt my mouth open slightly as I fumbled for an answer, but I couldn't think of anything to say. My mind felt like a stalled car. Finally I just shut my mouth and let my backpack slide down my arm to the ground. It hit the floor with a defeated clunk.

Other Books By This Author:

As far as I can tell Heather Quarles hasn't written anything else. Which I think is a HUGE tragedy! She should definitely publish something else. And if there is something out there I want my hands on it! Heather, if you're reading this, let's have another book!

Color Online Diversity Roll Call Asian Heritage Month

2009-04-30T23:30:00.000-04:00

I'm participating in the Color Online Diversity Roll Call. May is Asian Heritage Month! Check it out here and write a blog of your own!

I visited a few Asian countries, Hong Kong, China, Vietnam and India and I enjoyed them all. I only stayed there for a few days in each country so I need to go back.

This is my favorite pic from India. We visited an elementary school there and the teacher told this little girl to show me her English cursive writing and I was very impressed. They didn't have desks.

My favorite country was Vietnam. We had such a good time there. The people were so nice. We went to an amusement park and everything. It was weird that they had KFC. Vietnamese food is so much better. We ate like kings! It was amazing learning about the Vietnamese War from their perspective. They called it the American War. It's a sobering experience in some ways. But everyone was so eager to help us it's hard to imagine that our countries were at such odds not that long ago.

Here's a list of five books I like that are written by Asian authors.

1. Waiting by Ha Jin
2. Gifted by Nikita Lalwani
3. Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
4. Waiting For You by An Na
5. A Good Indian Wife by Anne Cherian

I have read other books but I was just coming up with this off the top of my head. I must admit I like to read fiction about Indian culture the most. I just find it really fascinating, especially the whole arranged marriage thing. Lots of books have a good perspective on that. Also, I like the focus on education, that's a strong theme in these books. The pursuit of education or the lack of it.

Let's look at my favorite Asian music artists.

First of all I have to tell you about Jay Chou. I discovered him while I was in Hong Kong. It was meant to be. His concert DVD was playing in a department store and I loved it. He's practically the Justin Timberlake of Taiwan. I asked the saleslady who he was and they didn't speak English! But there was a big cardboard cutout of him so I figured it out. While I was in Hong Kong I bought all his albums and his concert CD. He has a music video for every song! Of course, I don't understand his songs because they are in Madarin but I've listened to some of them so much I can practically sing along!

I love Jay. This is my favorite music video of his.

Take a listen!

Finally, the Asian singer I'm really REALLY into...

... drum roll please...

ANOOP DESAI!

hahahahahahaha. Didn't see that one coming did you? Man I can't WAIT until his CD. He's so cute with his southern accent and Indian roots. It's AWESOME! He is just so many things. He's a singer, he's a scholar, he's Indian, he's a typical North Carolina guy, he's got the voice of a pure R&B singer but he doesn't look like you would expect from just hearing him (which I love the most) plus he's talented and hot! This is a winning combination (even though he lost-- don't go there!).

He looks good in pink!

He's reading my blog. Oh Anoop. I know. It's so amusing.

He is full of soul!

Disco night dance was the best!

The perfect ending to this special month is his smile.

Writing Tip Wednesday #2

2009-04-29T20:20:00.000-04:00

It's time for Writing Tip Wednesday!

I'm kind of sick of my novel. It's so long and it doesn't go anywhere. Haha, I'm having a grumpy writing day. So I thought I'd focus on revising one of my short stories. They don't go anywhere either but at least it's short! So with that in mind I went to the library to check out some books that could help me with my revision.

I think revision is very tough and I'm not very good at it. I always feel frustrated during the revision process. I feel frustrated during the writing process more than I feel like, heck yeah, I rock at this. Still, I want to do it all the time. It's so confusing.

So I picked up this book called Manuscript Makeover: Revision Techniques No Fiction Writer Can Afford to Ignore by Elizabeth Lyon. Let's look at what she had to say about the inner critique that I hear all the time.

(From pg. 9)

In the writer's internal universe, inner censors are parallel bad guys to inner critics. They are more insidious because they often live in the subconscious, although their development is a necessary stage of the socializing process of children through adulthood. Nobody brings his imaginary friend to the first day of college, for instance. [...]

Inner censors interfere with effective revision in a number of ways. For instance, most fiction writers act like protective parents toward their characters, especially the hero and his or her friends. Writers are too nice. You not only don't have to treat your characters nicely, but in revision you should look for ways to make the obstacles bigger, the complications seemingly endless, and their suffering worse. Avoid the temptation to rescue your characters. Instead of showing your hero running out of the rain into the shelter of a nearby building, make it a downpour with wind and hail and no way to quickly escape. Instead of another character being miffed at your hero, let him yell and cry and threaten-- or shove, push, beat or wound. A canon of good writing is never write away from a good fight. The inner censor would send you to reform school. But as a creative writer, you need full literary license to create suspense, which sprigns from conflict. Your one obligation is to be authentic to your characters and story.

Another manisfestation of the inner censor is drawing a blank.Perhaps you've been told that your story needs more development of setting, description, emotions, or characterization in general. Yet, when you reread your writing with the intent to revise, you can't get past the big stifling nada-- nothing comes to mind. Your tabula rasa blank screen stares back. For whatever reasons, you imagination is restricted, you must kick the inner censors where it hurts, and liberate your creativity. You have to figure out how to not draw a blank when you do indeed draw one.

I don't know if this is all advice, per se, but these are real feelings that I have experienced. Especially the one where you go to revise and you just stare at it like what the hell am I supposed to do? I think that's why I don't do it. Those inner censors, they can really wreak havoc on your writing life, can't they? I like how Elizabeth Lyon describes all of this, like she's reaching into my mind. Are these feelings really that common? So how does anyone ever overcome them and create a masterpeice that wins a Michael Printz award?

I guess you just have to let go, let go of yourself and your inner critic like Matt Giraud always did on stage and the thing that Anoop Desai never quite acheived after Beat It. (I think I'm gonna make American Idol comparisons all the time now.) But it seems like the inner censor is so ingrained inside of you, following you with every letter that you type. Even now I hear it in my head, "aren't you being a bit melodramtic right now in your blog?" Well, it's my blog and I'll write what I want to!

Maybe that's the first step to silencing it. I must confront it.

But how do you know when it's really good? Does your inner censor stand up and give you a simple standing O like Simon did after Adam Lambert sang Mad World? I don't know what that feels like because it's never happened for me. I haven't felt completely finished with anything.

What I can definitely take away from that passage is that you have to be daring and push yourself and push your characters too. Oh yes, you want to be easy on them. But the best books are never easy.

Reading that and typing that gave me a lot to think about. The good thing is that I did manage to get something going with the novel tonight so I don't hate it anymore. I like it again. We're good.

Do you have any revision thoughts? Post them below!

TBR Tuesday: Summer Edition

2009-04-28T15:21:00.000-04:00

So I was like, I want to post today but I don't really know what to say. I started reading Korianne's blog because of Maureen Johnson's wonderful idea of Blog Every Day April. I really like her colorful blog and her feature To Be Read Tuesday. So I'm copying it. Credit goes to her. (Remember Korianne, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!)

TBR

No Such Thing as the Real World
by M. T. Anderson, K. L. Going, Beth Kephart, Chris Lynch, An Na and Jacqueline Woodson

Graduation from high school?

A senior thesis?

A betrayal by someone you love?

A loss of innocence?

The death of a parent?

Losing the family you always wished you had?

Facing a harsh reality?

What's the line that separates childhood from the "real world"? And what happens when it's nothing you imagined it would be?

Do you want to be a published author?

The editors at HarperCollins invite you to submit a short story about a character who has to face the "real world" for the first time. The story must involve a single, life-changing event. First prize is the opportunity to be published alongside your favorite authors in the paperback edition of the No Such Thing as the Real World collection. All stories must be between 5,000 and 10,000 words long, and all contributing authors must be between fourteen and nineteen years old.

That's like the only description I could find. I guess it's the inside of the book. It's sort of strange but that contest sounds really good.

Basically, it's a book of short stories. I'm a big fan of short stories, especially literary ones because I try to write them (and fail). YA short stories are always fun and this collection sounds like it can be really entertaining. I'm a big fan of the big life issues in YA fiction so this is right up my alley. Plus, look at those authors. I mean, come on. You'd have to be crazy not to want to check this out!

Well, a copy has been ordered for the library. I'm going to put that on hold immediately and then come back here and tell you all about it!

One of my fave YA short fiction collections is Mixed: An Anthology of Short Fiction on the Multiracial Experience. Actually I've seen it in both adult and YA so I'm not sure what it is but it doesn't matter because it's excellent. It's a bunch of short stories featured main characters of mixed race and not just black/white but all different kinds of combinations (haha, that sounds funny). The best part is that the writing is excellent. I've read it at least twice. It's a book you can pick up again and again and you'll just find something new to appreciate in all of the short stories. In fact, I want to read it again right now! So definitely give it a try, even if you're like, I don't know... short stories. Short stories are good! They give you a lot to think about.

Wow, it looks like it's gonna rain outside. So much for walking home today. In honor of my chosen TBR book I'm going to leave you with the possible song that brought inspiration for the title, No Such Thing by John Mayer.

John Mayer - No Such Thing
Uploaded by Cehcw

Dopesick Review

2009-04-27T23:35:00.000-04:00

Dopesick by Walter Dean Myers

Lil J is in more trouble than he can handle when a drug deal with his associate Rico goes wrong and before he knows it, he's running for his life after Rico shoots the cop. Shot in the arm, tired and scared, Lil J ducks into an abandoned crackhouse looking for sanctuary. What he finds is a young man named Kelly with a TV and a remote that can show Lil J his past, present and future. Lil J begins to tell Kelly his story as they wait for night to pass and Kelly keeps pushing Lil J asking, why why why?

The novel is a conversation, it's a moment, it's a time machine, it's a lot of different things happening all at once connected by sparse prose, true-to-life speech that becomes it's own kind of poetry.

Dopesick basically occurs over one night but it is not about one night, it's about a lifetime, many lifetimes and the choices we make based on our situation, our beliefs and the reality of the community around us and how it shapes our lives. There is also an underlying theme of personal responsibility and how Lil J ended up in this place is a result of his own actions and choices.

Lil J is 17 and his life has been hard. He's poor, his mom is always drunk and sick, his dad is gone, his baby mama's mother won't let him see his own son, the schools gave up on him and along with being dopesick he is broke-sick. Lil J knows that more money can break this cycle so he's always hustling, looking for a job, or trying to look except when the drugs get in the way and other distractions take him down. The problem is Lil J may be more of a user than he's willing to admit.

This is a gritty look at the life of some teenagers and it could be anywhere, not just Harlem. What I liked about this book was that it focused on Lil J but it was also a meta-view about how beliefs just ingrained inside of you can lead you to make the decisions you make. The belief that you were born to be a certain way or maybe a self-fulfilling prophecy, how this can lead to a slippery slope into a life you never meant to have. That was the universal message for me, that could apply to anyone's situation.

Kelly is the secondary character in this story, someone we never really get to know. I had my theories about him but they never quite panned out and the ending just left me more intrigued about what was really going on. Kelly pushes Lil J to answer the real questions, to look deep inside of himself and just talk to find the right solution. Unfortunately in this book there are no easy answers and I found myself asking questions right until the end. Everything that happens is open to interpretation. I have my own thoughts but I don't want to spoil you more than I already have.

For all of the drug use, the violence and the other adult aspects of Lil J's life the book is surprisingly clean. I don't remember any really bad words and nothing is described in a graphic way (which is why I'm still trying to imagine what "skin-popping" is like).

I looked at the book jacket cover about halfway through the book (because when it's Walter Dean Myers you don't really have to know what it's about before you pick it up!) and it says, "Walter Dean Myers weaves elements of magical realism into a harrowing story about drug use, violence, alternate perceptions of reality, and second chances."

What struck me about that sentence was magical realism, which is an element of literature that's very interesting to me. Wikipedia says, "Magic realism, or magical realism, is an artistic genre in which magical elements or illogical scenarios appear in an otherwise realistic or even "normal" setting."

The magical realism in this book is very subtle but the great thing about magical realism is that you don't think twice about whatever that "magical" component may be because the world of the story just accepts it so you do too. I think this was achieved in Dopesick.

Now this book may not be everyone's cup of tea. It's not full of action or plot or descriptions or things like that but it's a reflection of Lil J's life, of your life, of the life of people you may never know or someone who lives right down the block. It's a quick read but it will stay with you and keep you thinking about Lil J's life and your own life and the choices you make.

Highly recommended. For something different you need to give this a try.

Sunday Weekly Word Count [1]

2009-04-26T20:55:00.001-04:00

I decided that instead of posting my word count daily, I'm just going to do it weekly. And hopefully, someone will join me. Eventually.

4/19
Words: ~ 3129
Pages: ~ 7

4/20
Words: 769
Pages: 2

4/21
Words: 548
Pages: 1.5

4/22 (a sad day in history... Anoop was voted off Idol)
Words: 614
Pages: 2

4/23
Words: 2282
Pages: 5.7

4/24
Words: 2135
Pages: ~ 5

4/25 (tried to write after coming home from the club but the vodka tonics won)
Words: 331
Pages: ~ 1

So that brings my grand weekly total to 9808 words/24.2 pages.

I've reached the 100 page point on my first draft. That makes me feel good. It also makes me feel nervous because I have a lot of things that have yet to happen and they need to happen. Seems like this thing is turning into the Odyssey or something... it's never gonna stop! I think that's why some writers have outlines so they don't get on a tangent. But it's just a first draft so you can go all topsy turvy and reel it in on the second draft. At least that's what they tell me. I don't know. Maybe nobody has ever said that to me.

I usually write sitting cross legged on my couch on this laptop. Sometimes I watch TV but all this weekend I have been enjoying the musical styling of Anoop Desai, Matt Giraud, Adam Lambert, Alexis Grace and Danny Gokey (those are all the American Idol Studio Recordings I have) along with other random artists on my iPod. I have 80 gigs on the iPod but I've only used like 5. I don't know what to do with all that space. When I finally bought an iPod I got a little greedy.

It was such a gorgeous day this weekend I got the opportunity to write outside. I wrote the "My Life as a Rhombus" review outside and some of my story. It was kind of hard only because of the glare. Oh when the sun is shining brightly I hardly know what to do!

My first drafty excerpt from this week:

The city was about 45 minutes away. The bus made its way down Roanoke Drive past all of the subdivisions, through downtown, out to the highway that would take us directly to Detroit. When we first moved to Meadowbrook I thought it was a pretty town, if not boring. There were a lot of brick buildings and flowers everywhere. The sidewalks were smooth and lawns perfectly manicured. Everyone’s house had a second bathroom, if not three. There was a golf course in the middle, nothing world-class, but for the state it was top notch and people traveled a long way just to play on it.

As the bus drove closer to Detroit, the landscape changed. Fences were often broken, the houses were smaller. Inside the city there were empty lots, overgrown with grass and strange weeds, stray dogs wandering the sidewalk a couple of streets away. Former mansions were now crumbling covered in gang sign graffiti, windows broken and stairs fallen in. The bus bumped over some very large potholes that made everything bounce in their seat. I clung onto the edge of my seat and spilled some of my Gatorade on my pants. Kids our age just stood around, on street corners and sometimes in the middle of the street or on the stoop just standing and talking or drinking or staring hard at the big fancy bus rolling though, staring through it as if they could see us but we knew the windows were tinted because the sun shone in our direction like it was trapped under an unspecified haze. Still, I knew they could tell where we came from and that it was nothing like this place.

Look for my review of Dopesick by Walter Dean Myers tomorrow!

My Life as a Rhombus Review

2009-04-25T15:58:00.000-04:00

Note to Self: Do not return the book to the library until you've written the review. LOL

My Life as a Rhombus by Varian Johnson

Rhonda Lee has one more year in high school and she has her head on straight. There is no room for distraction as she works her way towards a full scholarship at her dream school Georgia Tech. Rhonda is a smart girl with an affinity for math and she uses her talents to tutor kids after school. Despite her strict "no high schoolers" rule Rhonda is forced to tutor Sarah Gamble, a pretty, popular girl at her prep school whom Rhonda's despises. As Rhonda spends more time with Sarah she soon realizes that they share the same secret. Sarah's pregnant just like Rhonda was three years ago.

This book is exactly the type of book I love to read. First of all I'm a big fan of "problem" novels and teenage pregnancy is a huge issue. But this novel is about much more than a couple of teenage pregnancies. It's about friendship, love, honesty, forgiveness, father-daughter relationships and there's a few other themes you could glean from the pages. The writing is crisp abd inviting. The characters and dialogue are vibrant and believable. The geometry framing of the novel just blew my mind. Trigonometry started to come back to me! Congruent angles and all of that.

Most of all, the book is about suburban black teenagers which I really enjoy, coming from that type of background. But this is a book anyone can relate to, no matter where you come from. This is evidenced by the fact the book is written by a man who has never been pregnant or a teenage girl. Rhonda's voice is so strong through out the novel, so authentic, and that's what really drew me in. You can see all the sides of Rhonda, the cracks her facade before she even realizes it. The multilayeredness of the narrative is impressive and enriching.

Rhonda's various relationships were the heart and soul of the story. It was heartbreaking to learn how Rhonda's relationship with her dad changed after her pregnancy and you could tell there was a lot of love between them even though her dad was lacking with the physical affection. The way this changed throughout the book was one plot point that kept me turning the pages. Rhonda and Sarah become fast friends, bonded by circumstance, but Sarah's brother David really steals the show as Rhonda develops some serious feelings for him and finds that they are reciprocated. The romance between Rhonda and David and tender but most importantly, honest. Rhonda experiences a lot of temptation when she falls for David and this is a main component of her inner struggles.

Teenage pregnancy is no stranger to YA literature and it's always interesting to see how it plays out. This novel provides an compelling view of abortion and how it could affect someones view of the future. There is no preaching in this book and personal opinions about abortion are expressed only though the characters. I thought the book did a great job as coming off a neutral but at the same time it didn't shy away from the thoughts and feelings that could occur for a young woman in this situation. I really appreciated this sensitive portrayal.

Not only was the book sad and heartfelt and touching but it was also funny and I found myself rooting for quite a few people except for Sarah Gamble's mother. I really recommend this book to anyone who's looking for a fine example of YA lit across all cultures and topics. I'm really happy I got a chance to read it.

The paperback version I read has a great discussion section in the back so make sure to check that out. I wanted to quote something but I returned the book! So you'll just have to go read it.

Purge by Sarah Daer Littman

2009-04-24T09:45:00.000-04:00

Here's another book review:

Purge by Sarah Daer Littman

Janie Ryman can hardly believe her life when she ends up a Golden Slopes, a psychiatric in-patient treatment facility. For two years, Janie has been bulimic and it finally catches up with her one night at her sister's wedding. Inside Golden Slopes Janie describes the conflict between the Barfers (bulimics) and the Starvers (anorexics) and how they all co-exist among the Generally Psycho (others). Janie has a lot to learn about her eating disorder and herself but at Golden Slopes she finds her way to the path of recovery.

This was a surprisingly funny book. It had a lot of laughs and energy, especially at the beginning.
Towards the end, the book loses some momentum but at the same time you have to keep going because you really want to know what happened. It's told in the first person from Janie's point of view, punctuated by her journal entries which are used to further illustrate her emotion and what happened in her past to land her at Golden Slopes. Writing about recovering from an eating disorder is always a tricky thing and I felt like it was handled well in the book. Janie's obsession with purging as a substitute for dealing with emotions and other things is very believable. There is not much stilted preaching about what an eating disorder can do to your body, though there is some. I think the book does a good job of dealing with the warped thinking that a person with an eating disorder might have.

It's an honest book. However, it did not keep my full attention the whole time like I wanted it to. The ending was sort of anticlimactic and rushed which made it unsatisfying. I was glad when I finally got to learn what happened at the wedding but I did not like the way that information was delivered. It was kind of hard to keep track of all the characters.

Overall, the writing was nice and the characters were all very witty. Recommended if you like books about eating disorders. I would also recommend Perfect by Natasha Friend for another good book about someone suffering from bulimia.

Writing Tip Wednesday #1

2009-04-23T01:00:00.000-04:00

This is a new weekly feature on my blog. Every Wednesday I will feature a writing tip I get out of a book or from an interview or something. Now I never said it was the most amazing writing tip in the world but it will give us something to talk about.

These writing tips will never come from me! What do I know? But I will make my own comments.

Writing Tip Wednesday Tip #1

From Writing for Young Adults by Sherry Garland

A title should reflect the plot, a character or some aspect of the story, yet it should be unique in itself. It should evoke feelings, stir curiosity and give a hint of the story. If a story is humorous, the title should bring a smile to the lips. If it is a murder mystery, the title should make the reader think of dark and deadly things. Certain words connote female or male readership. For example, girls tend to buy novels with words such as dream and love in the title; boys like words such as weird, freak, horror, and dragon. Books written to appeal to both sexes often have more neutral titles, perhaps based on the name of a character or a famous quote. [...]

If you are having difficulty with your title, try the word association (or branching) technique. In the middle of a sheet of paper write down a key word about the book-- a location, occupation or event. Then draw lines from the central topic and write subcategories. Under each subcategory write every word that comes to mind and then branch off and create further subcategories. Write fast and furiously, listing everything, no matter how silly it may sound. Finally, begin to combine words from the different categories and subcategories. Make a sheet for each main topic that occurs in your story.

I think it's kind of sexist to assume that girls like 'love' in the title and boys like 'dragon'. Haha, dragon. But I'm thinking about older YA readers. Maybe this is more true for middle school readers. I remember when I was in middle school I really liked this book called Falling in Like. So maybe she is right about that!

Titles are one of the best part of reading and writing to me. Most of the time a title comes organically for me, it actually comes first. And then I want to write something just to fit that title. But when I don't get a title right away, oh boy, that's a pain. I actually have a short story I'm working on now that I just cannot title. So maybe I will try that branching technique. I certainly can't hurt.

I definitely judge a book by it's title (and cover). A good title to me is simple but interesting. Like Paper Towns by John Green. Two words, no large syllables but you're like, what's a paper town? And so you're looking at the book jacket with the angry girl or the happy girl. Titles and covers, they go hand in hand don't they? I'm not a big fan of names in the title or a character name as a title. However, sometimes it really works like Lolita. I can't deny that one.

It really sucks when you have to hunt for a title. That makes me nervous.

The book I want to read based just on the title? Five Minutes More by Darlene Ryan.

Bottom line: Titles have to make readers want to read the book.

What are your favorite titles? Post them below.

4/21/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-22T00:56:00.000-04:00

word: 548
Pages: 1.5

As we know... it was an Idol night. So not much writing was done. But what occurred, I enjoyed it. See, getting this story on paper... it's surprising me what's going on. First of all, I'm about 100 pages into draft one and the true conflict of the novel hasn't happened yet. The main character's best friend, he's barely in it! And I'm like, how can they be BFFs if they never talk? And I start writing scenes and I'm like where did that come from? John Green wrote that he's not surprised by what his characters do but when I write, I feel like I am. Or maybe I just don't really know where my brain wants to go. I don't know.

So I got my ice cream. I had a tried and true fave, the vanilla/orange sherbet combo. I sat outside and ate it even though it was cold. I really enjoyed it. Oh Ben & Jerry's free cone day, why can't you always be present?

This is turning out weird. Truth is I'm tired and I don't want to go to work tomorrow. I'd better quit while I'm ahead.

4/20/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-21T01:24:00.000-04:00

Words: 769
Pages: 2

Wow, this day was pretty much a fail on the writing front. I don't know what happened I just lost all focus. I got too excited about American Idol and Twitter and watching Role Models and there was rain and I ate a lot of junk so... I just wrote my page right now and I'm so sleepy I have a headache and I still have to twist my hair so I can rock the 'fro tomorrow even though the rain will just shrink it anyway so why bother but I can't wear a hat because it's against the rules.

That was a run-on sentence.

Don't forget. Vote for Anoop tomorrow. Also, free Ben-n-Jerry's at participating stores. 50 cent Iced Coffees at Dunkin' Donuts. I want you to get the best deal out of life, even if it means pleasure now, heart attack later.

GOODNIGHT!

Night Hoops Review

2009-04-20T02:19:00.000-04:00

Night Hoops by Carl Deuker

Nick Abbott is a player and he knows it. He bleeds basketball and he's ready for the chance to prove it on the court as part of the Bothell High varsity basketball team. Once the basketball court is laid down in his back year Nick is out there every day, practicing and focusing on his game. It's a necessary distraction from all the fighting in his house and the commotion with the new neighbors across the street. The family has a boy Nick's age, Trent Dawson, who is not the type of person his parents want him associating with. However, Nick learns that Trent is also a player and in order to keep his basketball team together he has to help Trent try to help himself.

I really adored this book from start to finish. Nick Abbott is an instantly likable character who leaps off the page. After the first page I knew I was reading an authentic, well-written novel. I was so inside Nick's head that I cringed and covered my eyes whenever he made his stupid mistakes in basketball practice. I really felt his confusion, loneliness, doubt and triumph.

The book had a cheerful cast of characters including Trent, Nick's family, and some of his teammates. The author does an excellent job portraying the basketball team without overwhelming the reader with too many names and little things to remember about everyone. He uses the varsity team coach to pull everything together and the atmosphere of the locker room tells the reader everything they need to know about how the team is feeling and functioning.

The plot is jam-packed with basketball, family troubles, mystery, embarrassment and bad behavior but it is all weaved together artfully and keeps the story moving. There is a real sense of growth with Nick, Trent and the entire basketball team. The end will have you cheering like you were actually there. All of the scenes on the court are full of heart-stopping excitement, masterfully described so that a layperson with no background in basketball can enjoy it as well as those who are more familiar with the sport. It's a difficult task to vary sentences and describe shots so that it all sounds different each time but Deuker rises to the occasion through many basketball games and scores a slam dunk.

All in all, I'd highly recommend this book if you're looking for a strong YA novel from an authentic male point of view, especially if you want to read a sports novel. It's not scandalous, but it is very solid. The basketball scenes might bore people who aren't into basketball though but I still think you should give it a try.

4/19/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-20T01:02:00.000-04:00

Words: ~ 3129
Pages: ~ 7 (I skipped around too much to really count)

I watched the Natalee Holloway story today on Lifetime Movie Network and it was pretty sad. It just reminded me that something bad can happen to you at anytime and you shouldn't take your life for granted. Also you should always be vigilant. I was thinking about my semester abroad and how I put myself in bad situations for no reason. Luckily nothing happened to me. In fact, the only person who stole from me was a classmate and it sucked. But I should have listened more. I mean, I walked around Vietnam alone at night not really sure where I was going. Not once but about three times. And you know, for the most part it was safe, but you still shouldn't DO things like that. And there's other things that I did that I shouldn't have, in the states and overseas.

So why am I here and Natalee is not? I do not know.

My study abroad class had about 700 people in it and out of those only 18 were black (only one was a guy) with one black staff member. Most of us hung out together and we would joke that we didn't have to worry about terrorist or kidnappers because they would want all of our white counterparts before having anything to do with us. I don't know if that joking mindset contributed to my inflated sense of safety but looking back it's kind of silly. Everyone has to be careful, no matter what your race is, no matter where you are.

What did writers do before spellcheck? I swear, I'm the worst speller in the word. So many words get me. If they are more than four letter long I don't know how to spell it. I remember in 2nd grade I used to do so well on spelling tests that I was part of the group that got to play Oregon Trail in the back while the other kids had to take the spelling test over again. Well I peaked in second grade and that's sad.

I wrote a letter in longhand the other day and it was the most painful experience. My handwriting is awful and I have that spelling problem. Luckily, I didn't have to be very multisyllabic so I made it through. I was totally going to transition into a different topic here, but I forgot so I guess it wasn't that important.

There's a new channel on Music Choice called Throwback Jamz and I love it. I can't do anything in silence. I must have noise around me at all times. Whether it's TV, music or human chatter, I wanna hear it. Maybe it's my generation, we're used to constant stimulation. That's why we can write a paper, chat on IM and Facebook and watch TV and listen to music all at the same time. It's essential! Well for some people. Not all. But I can't imagine ever being in a silent room trying to do serious work. Oh no, that would never work for me. I would go crazy. I might have to jump out a window.

This weekend I spent a long time walking. It's great for thinking. I like to constantly be in motion, along with music or whatever the auditory stimulation of the moment is. Sometimes I know I should take the headphones out of my ears and really listen to the world but the music is so good. I don't know, I'm not cool.

Well, one more day until American Idol. There's not much to do but wait. We Anoop fans are gearing up for a real FIGHT come Tuesday night. There's one girl who says she's going to be voting with three phones. I don't know how that works since you only have two hands. Me, I'm stuck with only one phone so that's frustrating. We're all a little frustrated because we've been doing the best we can voting every week and our poor guy is still in the Bottom Three despite STELLAR performances that the judges always try to paint as less than they really are. Still, we're die-hard fans, we muddle through, ready to vote again. The double elimination is going to be really tough but I can really see Anoop making it through the storm. I just want him to make this one more week so we can stuff it in the face of all the haters who think he's a goner for sure. So vote for Anoop! Yeah.

The Perfect Shot by Elaine Marie Alphin

2009-04-19T18:52:00.001-04:00

It took me a while to get through this book, not because it wasn't good but because it was LONG. But I finished it today so here's my review.

The Perfect Shot by Elaine Marie Alphin

Brian Hammett's life hasn't been the same since his girlfriend Amanda Daine was gunned down last summer along with her mother and little brother. Now Amanda's dad is on trial and Brian tries to put the whole thing out of his mind by focusing on his basketball game and leading his team, the Warriors, to a championship victory. However, Brian can't shake the nagging feeling he's had ever since he noticed a jogger in his cul-de-sac on the day of the morning. An intense school project and the unlawful arrest of his best friend keep Brian thinking about justice and what he can do personally to make sure that Amanda's murderer is caught.

This book is jam-packed with plot so it's hard to summarize it in one neat little paragraph. This is a suspense novel but it is so much more. It's also a sports novel, a psychological novel, sort of a romance novel, an adventure novel, a murder mystery, a law novel, a history novel... there are so many aspects to the story that it's no wonder the book spans over 300 pages.

The main character Brian is complex, instantly likeable, a real leader through and through, someone you can root for. His journey is wrapped up in the personal well-being of his teammates and even the entire town. He has a lot of responsibility and seeing him struggle with all that is demanded of him is the heart of the story.

Brian has to work on a history project with outsider Todd about Leo Frank, a man who was accused of murdering a 13 year old girl and charged guilty when he was actually innocent. It's a witchhunt of sorts that occurs in Atlanta, Georgia in 1913. This historical mystery runs in parallel to the Daine murder trial that is happening in the present. Alphin devotes a lot of time to explaining this case through the eyes of Brian and Todd, who have to tell the class what lessons we can learn from this moment in time. The Leo Frank case is the catalyst for Brian to re-examine his own role in finding Amanda's killer.

The characterization, the dialogue, the action is very realistic and enjoyable. The teammates, the school, parents and other authority figures are different, well-rounded and familiar in all the best ways. The basketball scenes are a highlight of this book, very cinematic and easy to understand for the sports-challenged but also vivid for those who are familiar with basketball. I just adored them, especially since the games matched the mental anguish that Brian is experiencing at the time.

There is a compelling sub-plot with Julius, Brian's best friend who is growing up a black man in a predominantly white neighborhood. He's arrested for no reason in some other white neighborhood and it really shakes him up. I think the author does a fine job exploring Julius' realization of the role race has in this world and also how his white classmates have trouble understanding his new attitude. It's very interesting to watch it play out.

Like I said before, the book is long. I feel like the beginning drags because it's basically a day by day look at Brian's life over several days and the reader is sort of beat over the head by the "perfect shot" theme of the book. Also, some of the discussions about Leo Frank get a little lengthy. It feels like scenes that the author wrote that are really great to read but in the end should have been left on the cutting room floor. However, by the middle of the book things are moving nicely and the end is just a speeding train. I think the book could have been paced more evenly but the extra stuff is not bad.

There's so much to talk about in this book I can barely put it all into words. What I can suggest is that you this book a try. I promise that most likely you'll be pleasantly surprised.

4/18/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-18T22:37:00.000-04:00

Words: 828
Pages: 2.1

One of those writing days where I'm like, yay I have this scene in my head that's really fun I'm gonna write it and then it doesn't end up that way at all and you're like, hmmm that sucks I'm gonna quit now. Yeah.

I am not a fan of italics in books and stories. To me they just look really annoying. And for the most part, I find them unnecessary. If you want something to be emphasized it should be apparent in the context of the sentence or whatever. Usually, this comes within dialogue. I just feel like the author is forcing something on me when they use italics. It's an intrusion that reminds me yes, I'm reading a book right now, it's not real. I don't appreciate that!

I read this book called Self-Editing for Fiction Writers which I thought was really fun and it had some good tips. One of the tips was try not to us -ly words after your dialogue tags. Basically the book said that if a character is saying something "nastily" or "hesitantly" it should come off in the actual sentence or words or description and if it doesn't then you should go back and try again. I decided to try this but it's really hard! Because I like writing "This isn't the best idea," Sarah said morosely. I think you can do that for the first draft but you should probably try to improve that kind of stuff on the revision. That's why it's called self-editing.

People also say not to use any other dialogue tags but "said" because that's like background noise and something else such as "yelled" is the author inserting themself into the story. I pretty much agree with that. I especially don't like reading "Oh well," Adam shrugged. You can't shrug words, put a period there! haha.

Dialogue is my favorite part of writing a story. I love the interaction and back and forth between characters. One of the challenges I need to focus on with my writing is how do I make characters who are similar ages and have similar backgronds speak differently? I don't want everyone sounding exactly the way. I think the difference comes from what's important to them and how they see the world. I'm still struggling with this dilemma. I guess I need to read more!

4/17/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-18T02:49:00.000-04:00

Words: 1332
Pages: 3.3

I'm quite sleepy right now. I need to get up.

I live in a basement apartment so you have critters sometimes. I made a deal with a spider that if he stayed in his corner and out of the way where he could not be seen I would let him live. And it worked out for a couple of weeks. But then yesterday I came back from the bathroom and what do I see? A spider on my ceiling. That was it. The agreement was broken. I stepped on the back of my couch and killed it.

So the universe decides to karmically punish me tonight by having one of those million-legged centipedes run across my floor. They are HUGE. It's not a regular centipede. It's too late to properly describe it. But the first one I saw one I was on the phone with my dad screaming for my life. He had to coach me through killing it. Let me tell you, they are scary.

I really need to clean this place up.

I saw 17 Again tonight and really enjoyed it. I recommend it. It's so funny to see Zac Efron acting like a dad. He does a great job. And let me tell you he is EASY on the eyes. Yum yum yum yum yum yum. How did he grow up so great? In Summerland he was such a dork.

Goodnight!

Question about using the N-word (contains the actual word)

2009-04-17T15:12:00.000-04:00

So I started reading this book called Hoops of Steel by John Foley. I'm into basketball books right now. I still have to finish the Perfect Shot but I wanted a light book to carry around today because I'm going to be walking around.

I got through a few pages on the bus and then I had to stop because I was kind of offended. Let me share the passage:

"Dad," Danny said. "this is Jackson O'Connell from Highland."
"What, you bring the enemy into my place of work?" his father asked with a wink at me. Then he came over and shook hands. "Sure, I remember you, lefty with the quick step. Was wondering what happened to you last year."
"Broken hand," I said. "Had to sit out."
"How're you guys looking next year?"
"Not as good as Shoreview."
"That's because you don't have any niggers up there in Highland," he said. "You need some niggers to compete nowadays."
"Dad," Danny complained, noticing my discomfort. "Remember, you promised Mom to stop using the N-word?"
"Okay, blacks, coons, whatever, you know what I mean."
Danny rolled his eyes and smiled at me. "African-American is the preferred reference," he said.
"You're sounding more like a lawyer every day," Mr. Larson said. "And it's not preferred by me. What a stupid name. Too long, and it gives the idea they're some special kind of Americans. You hear me calling myself an Anglo-American, for crissake?"
"We're gonna go shoot some hoops before you really get rolling, Dad."
Mr. Larson put his hand around Danny' shoulder. "Yeah, go have some fun," he said. They were close, talking to each other like friends, and it made me a little jealous.

I'm not offended because of the use of the N-word or anything. I mean, people talk like that, I get it. And people don't say anything, and it's all laughed off and continued. I can't change it. But the part that offends me is the narrator really doesn't have any reaction at all to the language, except for his friend Danny noticing some discomfort. But after that what he takes away from the conversation is that Danny and his dad are close, which is all well and good, but what about what Danny's dad was saying?

I'm not saying his reaction should be, oh my God, I can't believe Danny's dad said that, it's so RACIST!

Maybe he's like, I admired that Danny tried to correct his dad but that's how all the guys talked in Shoreview, so it wasn't a big deal.

Or maybe, Danny's dad seemed so different from Danny, even though they acted like friends. I wondered how Danny's dad acted around the black members of Danny's team, if he watched his language around them.

Or maybe, I walked out of the store with Danny, feeling uncomfortable. It didn't feel right to listen to someone using derogatory slurs but it wasn't my place to say anything. Besides, they don't even apply to me.

Point is, I'm not saying there should be some big moral lesson in this but I feel like... well there should be some payoff, otherwise using the N-word is just gratuitous. What was the point? If it's to show that Danny's dad is an asshole, well the narrator (his name is Jackson) didn't even think that or hint at that or say that. If it's to say that Shoreview is a tough town then... I'm still waiting for that too. I'm just waiting for more. I know we're supposed to show not tell when we write but when you show it should be sort of obvious what you're telling, if you know what I mean.

Maybe I'm thinking too much about this. I just think it's really weird and I didn't enjoy it because it just seemed to be there to be there. If you wanna show Danny and his dad are close do they really have to bond over Danny telling him not to use the N-word?

Anyway, I may just be getting ahead of myself or ranting for no reason. I flipped through a few pages after that and didn't see any further discussion but I'm only 15 pages into the book so maybe it's too early for judgement.

What do you think? Am I looking too deeply into this?

I'll keep you updated.

4/16/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-16T22:56:00.000-04:00

words: 1,204
pages: 2.5

So I went to see Libba Bray speak today and it was great. I must admit, I haven't read any of her books. I'm not really into historical fiction or like vampires or fantasy books... I am so narrow-minded. I need to push myself. So hey I have a signed free copy of the book. Okay, I'm going to read it. She said it was like Buffy in the Victorian Era.

She's such a creative person. Who can think of that? She was really funny. She opened with a Teenage Humiliation Story where she asked a guy out and he basically turned her down. Funny, the same thing happened to me! I was in ninth grade and I ask this guy and I will always remember his name but I won't post it and he turned me down. I looked up his address on mapquest and rode my bike there. It was like 4 miles away and across a highway-- literally. Why was I such a crazy kid? Nobody will ever, ever know.

Anyway, after that she started talking about writing the Gemma triology. It was fascinating. She used to be a ghostwriter for the Sweet 16 series. I don't know what it is really. I found something cryptic on Google but then I got sick of looking. But before that she was a playwright and I was like, wow! She's been doing this her whole life. That's crazy! She's very brave to always live the writing life.

So after ghostwriting she got the chance to do her own thing and the idea came to her because she's "creepy" as she said. And she did all this research. She was used to outlining from ghostwriting but for this book she just wrote and let it come organically, which is like what I'm doing. Screw outlines! And then she got to go to England to research and she had a lot of fun. The second book she really enjoyed writing. But the third book was the killer. She told us how she didn't know what to do and threw away her entire 540 page rough draft!

Her talk made me really dread revision process. Just throwing it all away. How do you do it? I still don't understand how you do it! So she started over. And it still wasn't right. And there was a deadline. How do they come up with these deadlines? Can't they just wait until the book is done. I don't understand.

So she wrote day and night and day and night and wrote and wrote. And she was describing writing 10-14 hours a day and writing all through the night and just the agony of it all and while she was saying that I was like GREAT. I thought it sounded fabulous. I was like, that's the life I want. I was all excited. You have to hear her tell the story. Is crazy. Basically, she pounded the book out and she finally figured it out and it's all good.

She also wrote another book that's coming out called Going Bovine. It's about Mad Cow Disease. It's really really really really really really really outrageous. She read like ten pages and I was like WHOA. Where did that come from. I wasn't sure what to think. At all. It's a bold move, very bold.

It was so funny to be around all those teen fangirls of the Gemma Doyle series! It was dorky. there's no better word. But it was fun, dorky fun and cool! I had Libba sign my book and we talked about Twitter cause she wrote about it in her blog recently. She complimented me on my handshake. I said my dad taught me. You have to have a good handshake. And now I have a bright shiny new signed book!

So you think after all this excitement and inspiration, I'd be pumped to write, right?

Wrong. I spent too much time writing this blog and chatting that I don't feel like writing at all. Boo. I busted some stuff out though.

Still working on The Perfect Shot. It's a long book. I have a lot to say about it I think. I'll finish by the weekend.

4/15/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-16T01:21:00.000-04:00

words: 681
Pages: 1.3

Tonight was a true test of my commitment of writing a page a day. It was the first time I didn't pound a page out before midnight. So I decided that the day ends when you go to bed. Hey, I'm the creator, I can bend the rules!

I was so distracted by Idol and my taxes. I couldn't concentrate. And I didn't want to write. But you know what? I sucked it up and I put my fingers to the test. I wrote some fluffy stuff I had in my mind and now I'm done. See I'm building up my discipline and that's great. It's just the reason I started doing this.

Now I'm wiped and I still have to do my hair. So hopefully there will be a better post tomorrow.

4/14/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-14T23:59:00.000-04:00

Words: 1370
Pages: 3

Around 7, I was done with the whole writing thing. I waited 45 minutes for someone at TurboTax to pick up the damn phone and then I hung up because it was American Idol time and that's way more important than my taxes. I mean... come on! Then I spent a lot of time voting. Anoop rocked it tonight! He was so beautiful. I think he was singing to me. Heeeeeeeeeee! Fangirl moment. Sorry!

Really, I don't have anything of substance to say.

It's so cool! If you search novel-page-a-day or novel-one-page-a-day on Google, this blog is the first hit. So if you happen to stumble here on accident and find that I've basically been useless to you, I'm sorry! The only thing I can really offer you is support. If you want to commit to the page-a-day novel writing idea, you should let me know. We'll keep each other on the right track. I don't care what you're writing. All that matters is that you WRITE! So please, leave a comment or something. We'll see what we can work out here. I'll try to post some writing tips but not tonight.

Tonight, I need to go to bed!

4/13/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-13T23:48:00.000-04:00

Words: 1798
Pages: 4

Just a quick note tonight. I'm tired and I don't have anything to say. I wrote and I'm doing my taxes. I am very frustrated because I owe money. I hate the government. Just kidding. Love ya Mr. President, even though I thought I was getting a tax cut. haha, I'm bitter. I have to change my federal withholding, that's all. Tell them to take it out of my paycheck so it doesn't shock me like this. This is the first time I'm not getting money back. I hate being a grown-up.

Tomorrow is Idol night, very exciting. Please vote for Anoop, he needs all the help he can get but he deserves to stay just one more week. I can already tell without hearing his performance.

4/12/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-12T21:41:00.000-04:00

Words: 628
Pages: ~1

Another day where I didn't have too much time to write, plus I'm tired. So I skipped again to the first big game of the season in order to toss off a quick page and it worked out well. I'm going to have to fill in all the gaps later. But I'm plugging away at this page-a-day thing. I haven't failed in my club yet.

I sort of knew Jordan's BEDA challenge was gonna be a fail. I mean, I try to comment on the blogs of the 24 friends I have (which I haven't done this weekend) and that takes me approximately two hours at work (though some of that time I am working... very very little). So extrapolate that to 400... you see the problem there. Oh well, it was a valid effort.

Easter was very fun. I went to church with my cousin. Everyone loves me there. I am not a very church-y person, but I do enjoy it occasionally. I like everyone singing and being happy. I like all the attention I get. Everyone asks me how school is going. Sometimes I tell them I graduated, sometimes I don't. To them I'm gonna be in school forever so it doesn't matter what I say.

Then I had Easter dinner and I am still stuffed. We played bingo for a little while and that was fun. I finished Night Hoops which I loved and I reviewed below. I watched some TV shows I never watch like Candy Girls and Making the Band. It was just one of those fun days where you are surrounded by people. I made a run to Walmart to see if they had any Easter candy which of course, all the good stuff was gone. But I did find some Cadbury Creme Eggs. I'm gonna go to CVS tomorrow, near work, for one final try for those Hershey Candy Coated chocolate eggs!

Sigh. Another work week. But the good thing about Mondays is that it is one day closer to Tuesday and that's American Idol. So yay! Go Anoop.

4/11/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-12T01:14:00.000-04:00

Wow, I wonder how long I'm gonna keep this up. Not so good with the commitments!

Words: 549
Pages: 1.5

So today wasn't a stellar day on the writing front. I don't know why, I was just distracted all day. I went shopping and then I came home and for some reason I spent a half hour on Omegle trying to find someone who was doing BEDA. So that really killed my time to write. In the end I had about a half hour to do my page. (I also needed to do my hair. Excuses, excuses.)

So I was in the middle of writing this scene about basketball practice that was never ending and I didn't know where it was going except that it would never end and I couldn't write a page of that in a half hour. So I skipped forward which I don't usually do. But you know, it's freeing writing things out of order. You should try it. Basically, that's what happened.

I have to be ready for church at seven and it's already one in the morning. But I don't need a lot of sleep. Lent is over, yeah! I've been eating candy since midnight. So much for learned behavior in 30 days!

The world is devoid of Easter candy

2009-04-11T19:17:00.000-04:00

Why is that? Why is all the good Easter candy gone? I went to Target, Giant Eagle, CVS and Rite Aid and there was nothing around at all. All I got was some Reese's Pastel Eggs and Easter M&Ms along with one pathetic pack of Cadbury Creme Eggs. This is disheartening because it ain't gonna get better. I'll just have to take my chances on Monday. I'm gonna go to a different CVS before work and pray. All I want are some Hershey's candy coated eggs and more Cadbury Creme Eggs. I gave up candy for Lent so I didn't buy any Easter candy but I should have, I know I should have!

So now I'm watching Flowers in the Attic the movie. I tried reading that book once. Didn't made it through. Oh, Kristy Swanson is in it! That's cool. Creepy book so I bet the movie is creepy too. I only know the book is creepy through hearsay so it may or may not be actually creepy.

Maureen Johnson had a great blog about writing tips today. Basically she said what I'm trying to do. She said you have to write every day and the first draft is gonna be crap or you're doing something wrong. But then she mentions that she not only kills and guts scenes and plot lines but she gets rid of characters. Characters?! I never considered that. I love all of my characters. How could let them go? Oh my. Scary thoughts. Let's just get through the first draft... before we start panicking here.

So the next book I'm reading is called Night Hoops and I enjoy it so far.

4/10/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-10T23:25:00.000-04:00

Words: 1077
Pages: 3

One day I'm gonna look back and all this information will be important to me.

So last night, I couldn't sleep. I got up because I had a scene in my head and I wanted to write it down. Well, actually, I wasn't asleep or trying to go to sleep or was feeling any type of insomnia. I was just in bed reading Basketball (or Something Like it) and I should have been asleep. I stayed up an extra half hour. It doesn't really affect my day much. Work was light but it was fun and seemed to go fast. We almost left early but my co-worker always takes forever getting out the door so we ended up leaving at the same time we always do.

Today I didn't have much dinner. I don't know why, I just sit on the couch and I can sit here for hours and not move. It's pretty scary. I'm typing, I'm writing, I'm chatting, watching TV, listening to music, reading, all in this same spot. Sometimes it gets really hard to get up again. I don't like that.

I'm trying to decide whether to see Observe and Report tomorrow or Hannah Montana. I'll see both eventually.

I am so totally obsessed with Anoop's studio version of True Colors. It's so beautiful. I can't believe I am such a fangirl for Anoop Desai. It scares even me, really. I think it's a distraction for me because I have a lot of worries in my life at this time. Thinking about Anoop takes my mind off of that and I'd sure like to see things go well for him.

I tend to have an obsessive personality, I think, that's why I can't do drugs or start drinking alone cause I'd probably go downhill. But innocent things like American Idol contestants, that always passes. I'm the type of person that will listen to one song on repeat for hours. Like True Colors!

That's why I can never have roommates again. Until I'm married!

Basketball (or Something Like it) by Nora Baskin

2009-04-10T19:29:00.001-04:00

Basketball (or Something Like it) by Nora Baskin

I don't feel like trying to write a formal review. This was a cute story about four sixth graders named Hank, Jeremy, Nathan and Annabel who are all involved with the crazy, "competitive" sixth grade travel team. The parents are obsessed with having their own kid as a starter and all the kids learn about team work is wearing matching basketball shoes somehow makes you a team.

It's a very funny story. I think parents should read it to see how ridiculous they can look. The POV is really weird but whatever, you can overlook that for the humor and the good feeling behind the story. The way the four main characters come together is kind of contrived but they make a good team. It's a shame that we didn't get to experience their foursome for longer in the book. But hey, it's a short book. Give it to your middle school aged siblings if they are into sports. There are a few swear words but nothing worse than damn and ass.

Okay, on to the next book!

4/9/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-10T00:35:00.000-04:00

Words: 531
Pages: 1.1

Not a very productive day. I'm tired. I watched too much TV. I have a lot of books to read. I need to find a new job by June and nobody wants me. A lot of things on my mind. The writing would have been better if I was focused. Oh well.

TGIF! At least it's the weekend, right? EASTER WEEKEND. This means on Sunday Lent is over and I can add junk food back to my diet. I was bad with Lent this year. I cheated. Oh well.

I can't get True Colors out of my head since Anoop sang it. Beautiful song. Makes me feel good. I think I'll play it again to get in a better state of mind. It's a song about hope and love.

4/8/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-09T00:58:00.000-04:00

Words: 712
Pages: ~ 2

Tonight was the first real test of my page-a-day-novel commitment. See, after the excitement of Idol I just couldn't calm down. I couldn't focus at all. I was going around to message boards and chat rooms and texting like yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay! I mean, you must understand, I am SO HAPPY.

So around 11, I finally settled down some and I was like, I must write. But then Make Me a Supermodel was on and I love the pretty that is Colin. Ugh, so perfect. So that distracted me. But finally I put my fingers to the keys and started click-clacking. And I got my page in and it turned out okay. Helped that I knew what I was trying to write.

I'm pretty bushed right now or I would write more. But I have to do my hair and I want to read some before bed. Tomorrow morning I will do my favorite work activity and read through a bunch of blogs. Goodnight!

4/7/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-07T19:55:00.001-04:00

Words: 862
Pages: 2

Told you this would be early. It's American Idol night! I've read the spoilers and this is going to be an interesting show. So watch out kiddies.

I got my next book to review, Purge, from the library today. So I'll be working on reading that tonight. Hopefully, I'll have a lot of nice things to say about it.

So I came home after work and I was really hungry! So I made dinner early. Usually I like to eat during American Idol but I couldn't wait. As I was making dinner (just heating stuff up) I suddenly wasn't that hungry anymore. And just before that I was starving! I can't explain it. Seems like I'm ravenous until it's actually time to eat. That annoys me. I don't know why.

Wow, fascinating stuff! you're saying. Sorry! It was a pretty uneventful day.

I wrote for about a half hour today. I have outlined what I want to get through the next few days... well however long it takes for me to write all I've planned. I don't know how long that will take. I was reading an interview with Monica Roe and she said that she spent like three months outlining Thaw. Wow! I could never do that. I'm more of a write my way through it kind of person. And then you can discard anything you don't actually need.

Isn't it so hard to cut things sometimes? Don't fall in love with your own writing! Isn't that rule number one? Because it can be snip-snipped at any time.

But in order to be a writer you have to be a little bit narcissistic, don't you think? Just so you start writing. You have to think that something you say might be a little bit interesting or important. Or why would you ever even do it?

What do you think?

Okay, see you after Idol and voting!

4/6/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-07T00:15:00.001-04:00

Words: 916
Pages: 3

On the writing front, it was a pretty good day. First of all, I wrote my book review. It's been a long time since I've written a review. I used to write reviews for the school newspaper and they were so lame. What book should I review next? Any requests? I'll do them as long as they are in the library. (Do them! Ooo, that sounds dirty.) But I think the next review will be Purge by Sarah Daer Littman. I must admit that I like the YA problem novel. You know, BIG! ISSUES! I'm a sucker for them. I can't help it.

Then I did the page for my novel. I was like, what should I write today? La dee da. I decided to with Tense Family Dinner Scene. Because that's always a winner. And then it ended and I was done.

So I'm watching a special on Autism on Discovery Health. This one family has 7 autistic kids. That's got to be crazy. Autism is so fascinating to me. I kind of want to study this disorder because it is really intriguing and it's really important. So many children are affected and it can be just devastating to their lives. We need to find a cure quick.

Tomorrow is a very important day to me because it is time for AMERICAN IDOL. You would think I was on the show. Seriously, I need help. Oh well. I'm going to be voting so hardcore for Anoop tomorrow. I'll have to jump on the page and the blogging first thing after work because after 8 I'm just going to be done.

Sigh. Work. Tell me again why it needs to be 5 days a week? I need to go to work for myself quick! So I can sleep in until ten. Or 11. Okay, 12.

haha. Sorry this was BOR-RING!

Thaw by Monica Roe

2009-04-06T16:06:00.000-04:00

Well not like... ever in my life. But ever on this blog. So yaaaaaaaaaaay!

Thaw by Monica Roe

Thaw is the chilly story of Dane Rafferty, a star skier, model son, budding intellectual, laid-back boyfriend and a new victim of Guillain-Barre Syndrome. Dane thought nothing could knock him off his skis until this inexplicable disease takes him down. Now, Dane finds himself completely paralyzed. However the disease reverses itself and 75% of patients make a full recovery. Now all Dane can do is wait and work his way out of paralysis as his body repairs itself little by little.

Dane recovers at a rehabilitation center in Florida filled with crazy characters including many people who are much worse off than Dane, far away from his family and friends in upstate New York. Dane has always been strong and he figures he can power his way through this new crisis in his life but soon he realizes that his recovery will be far from easy.

This story sparkles with descriptive language, witty dialogue, cutthroat emotion and the strong physical sense of a world so different from most of our own experiences. Author Monica Roe works as a physical therapist and her first hand knowledge of the recovery process for people with neurological disorders so that the therapy session, triumphs and set-backs feel very real. There is something to appeal to every reader such as medical drama, romance, gritty sports competitions and nature discoveries.

Even with the first person point of view Dane is not an easy character to like. As soon as he can talk he is barking orders at his well-meaning nurse, Letitia and rudely refusing to listen to his tough physical therapist Anya. It isn't until occupational therapist Joel enters the scene that the reader sees Dane might have an ounce of caring in his body, though he tries hard not to show it.

As the novel evolves day by day we see Dane's struggles and also get a glimpse into Dane's life before the accident, when he was on top of the world, king of his domain. Dane is a highly talented and intelligent guy but he doesn't have much time for people and their messy emotions. As he has to rely on others to do the simplest of daily activities, Dane's tolerance level begins to change.

The book relies on it's intriguing cast of characters along with Dane's believable narration to pull the reader through this difficult journey of recovery, healing and self-discovery. The dynamic between Dane and Joel is one of the highlights of the book especially with Joel being such a fun person in the midst of all the pain and struggle around him. Sometimes the dialogue in the book doesn't ring true, although it is fun to read. Dane finds a sparring partner in 16-year-old Carrisa, the daughter of a coma patient on the floor. Right off the bat, she can match him wit-by-wit but it seems a little too convenient for Dane to find someone else his age who speaks exactly like he does.

Another highlight of the book is the nature apparent throughout the story. Dane's rehab institution is surrounded by wildlife and Dane looks fondly on the adventures he had skiing and hiking and fishing back in upstate New York. It was enjoyable to read about different species and star constellations. There was just this constant sense of place that really helped to drive the story.

Thaw is the perfect title for this novel as we see Dane's frozen existence melt and change in more ways than one. For a down-to-earth story about a jaded young man who has a long journey ahead you should check this book out.

4/5/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-05T22:20:00.000-04:00

Words: 2572
Pages: 6

I don't know what happened. Well, I wrote a good chunk last night, after midnight. And then I sat down to start up again today at around 9 and I had been thinking about the story all day. I was like, I wanna write this and that and this and that. But when I sat down to write it was just like sluggish. Nothing was coming out right. It wasn't flowing how I imagined it. I don't know what happened. I forgot everything I wanted to do, I guess. Why are my writing experiences always so varied. Oh well, I'll keep on keeping on.

Maybe I used up all my creativity on THE BEDA SONG. Still need someone to sing it. Hint, hint.

So today I took a long walk down to this shopping center. Really I meant only to get a free panty for Victoria Secret and exchange a skirt at Old Navy. But of course I ended up buying up the place. I couldn't help it, that's just what I do! I love to shop. But I'm always bargain shopping. Always on clearance. I make it look good. You should see me.

So I went to Barnes and Noble and wandered over to the YA section as I often do and perused the shelves, imagining my own novel there among all the greatness. I found this book I have to read immediately called Marcelo in the Real World. Something like that. It looked really interesting. I put it on hold at the library. Don't hate me, I am poor! I can't afford to always buy books! It's a new book. Maybe the YA reviewers have read it.

Speaking of new YA books, Sarah Dessen is coming out with a book in June called Along for the Ride. Are we Sarah Dessen fans here? She also has a Ning. I wonder if they know about BEDA. I like Sarah Dessen. Her books are classic romances. In a way they all kind of blend together as a girl-gets-saved-by-cute-boy-who-turns-her-life-around sort of way but they are all great to read, wonderful characters, excellent writing. And I think as the books go on they are going to get grittier. So I always look forward to her new release. I even bought the last one and that's a big deal for me.

Right now, I want to write some book reviews. I wanna tell you about my fave older YA books. I'll have to make a wrist. I'm also reading Thaw by Monica Roe. It's a book about this guy who gets this disease with a long name that paralyzes him but it's only temporary. So far, It's pretty interesting. It reminds me of this other book that I LOVE and would like to reccomend called Trigger by Susan Vaught. In that book, a boy tries to kill himself by shooting himself in the head but he LIVES. The book is all about his recovery. See, he doesn't remember? It's a difficult book to read but totally worth it. So read it!

Now I'm going to frost some cinnamon rolls and eat them. That's pretty much it.

4/4/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-04T23:48:00.000-04:00

Words: 719
Pages: 3

Not a very exciting day on the writing front. I started sort of late so I didn't get very far. I know what I wanna write, it's just coming along slowly. I don't know how it works for anywhere else but I write by having places I want to go in the story and then getting there. Like I can see a specific scene in my head and I'm like, okay so I'm going to go towards that scene. And then I have to write my way there. Sometimes it takes a short time, sometimes it takes a long time. My writing teacher commented on this once, though I can't remember what he said. I think he thought it was weird. I miss having writing teachers, they are the best.

I took a writing class at writingclasses.com. It was very fun and helpful. I'm best in writing classes because it forces me to write, with deadlines and grades and stuff. Although there are no grades for that class but back in the day, in college, there were grades. I would take another class but... this economy. I'm just not going to spend the money right now. There's this other place I just found called mediabistro.com that I really want to do too but it's even more money. And they even have some at Stanford that I REALLY want to do and it's EVEN MORE MONEY. Sigh. Money.

So right now I'm watching Saturday Night Live with Seth Rogen hosting. I love Seth Rogen, he's so cute.

Saturday Lazy Day

2009-04-04T13:53:00.000-04:00

I slept a little too long today. That tends to happen to me. I was just dead to the world. See, I was meant to sleep in and go to bed late. So when the world forces me to get up at 8am I have to compensate on weekends. That means I can't do any weekend activity that starts before noon unless I absolutely have to. It really annoys my dad. He's an early riser. My mom gets me though because she likes her sleep.

Typing that made me think about how I'm the only one in my office (out of five girls) who still has married parents! It's just crazy to me all the time. I feel pretty lucky but I know that having divorced or separated parents doesn't make you unlucky. I've always had a close knit family growing up. It was me, my parents and my little sister. Even though my little sister often annoyed me, I'm still glad she was around. We had a lot of fun together. She was my partner for just about everything because when it comes to Pop Culture, we like the same things. We went nuts over Nsync and went to all the concerts and screamed our heads off. We both love Degrassi. I mean, try finding a casual acquaintance who likes Degrassi!

When my sister and I were little we used to spend hours telling stories. Basically we would lie around in bed, or on a blanket outside, or in the bathtub or the bath of the car and make up a story out loud together. First we did some kind of fanfiction stuff, like telling stories based on the Babysitters Club or whatever. But then we made up our own characters and situations. Like we told this story about these three boy bestfriends who lived in North Dakota. Like, wtf, so random, so unlike our lives in anyway. I don't really remember how this worked even but it lasted for a long time. I wonder if our parents thought we were crazy. I really loved it. I hope my sister did too.

I always wrote stories when I wasn't saying them. In 4th grade I made up a mystery series called the Treehouse Club or something and my sister illustrated it. I wrote the story our on construction paper and my sister's second grade teacher bound it so it was like a real book! There were two books and the teacher switched a page between them so that was pretty funny.

Then I wrote this epic tale later... like in 6th grade. It was about a boy who goes to summer camp and he's really homesick and then he finds ways to fit in and by the time his mom comes he doesn't want to go home! So that was my first novel in a notebook, illustrated by yours truly.

After I watched Little Rascals (the remake) my sister and I went crazy for a while, writing a series of stories based on all the characters. They were little books I stapled together and they went on and on and on. I think my mom was annoyed by them.

I don't know if I still have all of these things. My mom likes to throw things away. We've moved three times since my childhood so there are so many boxes that have never been opened again... I doubt I'll ever find evidence of all this brillance.

In middle school and high school I kept a series of journals in notebooks I carried around cosntantly. But I'm a terrible journal keeper. I wrote random things in notebooks and on the computers that we had. A lot of that is lost because the computer died. I can't think of anything too specific right now. I still have a bunch of those personal journals. The one from eight grade is especially bad. I'm like why aren't I popular waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. Angsty times.

I switched high schools in 10th grade and when I went to sign up for classes my first question was, do you have a creative writing class? They didn't then but when they had one my senior year. I was so excited. I had a poem published in the school Lit Mag. I don't have that either.

However, in AP Bio, I was voted Most Likely to Become a Doctor. Oh how I've failed them.

And then in college, I was a writing major. So basically, I've been writing all my life. I don't know how I got on this topic. More later!

4/3/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-03T23:51:00.000-04:00

This is what I wrote today:

Words: 3,066
Pages: 7

A page a day. A blog a day. I like all of these things that are happening daily. I also enjoy eating. That happens daily. And I like to pee because it's important to get rid of that stuff. Also, a daily thing. Okay, I won't go any further.

Well, I'm writing this late, but I'll still make the deadline. Welcome to April 3rd. I think this month is going to go too fast on account of us all blogging our hearts out. I really enjoy reading everyone's blog. I refresh the blog page like eleventy billion times a day and there is always something new. It's like a surprise you never get sick of. Hell yeah.

This morning, it sounded like pebbles were striking my windows but it was only a really hard rain. I can't stand rain in the morning. It makes it almost physically impossible to get up. So because of the stupid rain I was still getting dressed at the time I was supposed to leave to take the bus. Oh well! My job is used to me being late.

I was annoyed with my boss today because she was going to let my coworker leave early, but not me! It really wasn't fair. But then she did let me leave early. But not as early as my co-worker. So it all worked out. Was that a pointless story or what?

An old friend called me today. Well not old, we're the same age (getting kinda old), but I haven't seen her since she moved back home in 2007. We talk every now and then. I miss her so much and it was so good hearing from her. She's coming back closer to me in the fall so we'll be able to hang out more and I'm happy about that. I need all the good friends I can get.

So I just discovered Alex Day's Vlogs. Boy is he funny. And his English accent makes him just so cute! I have to catch up. I feel like this whole BEDA/VEDA thing is really changing lives. Maureen should feel so proud of herself. A revolution. Between this and Obama... hell, we all might be living in the sky soon. Everything is getting better.

I posted a scene from The Novel I wrote today on my other blog. It's too long to post here (no cut tag or anything) but if you're interested, click here. I don't know if it's interesting or not. Remember, first drafts suck.

Peace!

4/2/09 Word/Page count

2009-04-02T23:50:00.000-04:00

Words: 954
Pages: 3

I'm kinda tired right now. It's the end of the week. I guess that's justified. You know I should have totally been watching Make Me a Supermodel. Ooops. Or Millionaire Matchmaker. I can never remember when these Bravo shows are on.

Anyway, I wrote from about 10 to 11:45 or so. I finally finished the scene I was working on so all the boys on the team have their varsity jackets. Yay. It totally sucks for the most part. Don't you hate when writing doesn't go quite how you wanted it to. On the other hand, it can go in some awesome, surprising direction and you're like really, am I doing this, really? I like that much more. Unfortunately, that hasn't happened this week. But I'll push on. Not even sure what's going to happen next.

In high school, I had a varsity jacket. My parents got it for me. I don't know why, but I was always embarrassed wearing it. Like, I didn't think I deserved it because I wasn't some cool jock and I wasn't a Bandie either. I don't know why I thought that. I was on varsity track and frankly, the fastest sprinter on my team. Not in the state or even the division, on my team, mind you. I did earn my letter (and I had an academic letter... how dorky) and I won two awards and had the 3rd fastest time for one of the sprints in our school. But no girls wore varsity jackets, only guys and I just felt kinda awkward in it because I wasn't popular or anything. I don't know! I regret not wearing that jacket more now. I'm a little too old for it, I guess.

Varsity jackets are so cool and colorful but I don't like the wool. It's scratchy.

Poor Berger, on Sex and City. He got dropped for a second book option. That's gotta suck.

I might go to bed soon.

Time to write!

2009-04-02T21:07:00.000-04:00

I've been puttering around all day, working, walking, eating, chilling. But none of that has involved writing. Unless it's a random blog for my Ning page. I can't keep blogging in two places. But I saw this chick that has her blogs linked up so I'm gonna try to do that some type of way.

Anyway, I'm sitting on my only couch. The final episode of ER is on. I'm only half paying attention. I have this painful pimple on my jaw. So many distractions. So many.

No excuses! Okay, here I go.

Or not.

I'm awake

2009-04-02T08:32:00.000-04:00

So yeah, we had an early meeting at work today so I had to be there by 8. Luckily, I don't live far away. It's a 15 minute bus ride down the street. I like riding on the bus in the morning. I have a seat, I listen to my music, I read a book or sleep or usually, I just think. Today was a thinking day but I also cracked open my book and read the first two pages and they were pretty interesting.

The book is called Hot Girl by Dream Jordan. It's like YA/Chick Lit. I'll post a review after I'm done reading it. The author looks really cool. In fact, I'll have to google her and find her website. Apparently she does inspirational speeches. I don't know if I'll ever be able to do that. I'd just be like, what's up guys. Follow your dreams. Yeah.

I don't think I have a very inspirational story... yet. So far my life has just been par for the course.

So I didn't shave my legs. I decided the pantyhose didn't show too much. I think my pantyhose is too light but it's all that I have so I'm still wearing it. I'm wearing these new heels I have so I look extra sophisticated. I usually don't wear heels because they hurt my feet. And surprise, surprise, these are no exception, although last night they seemed fine and I wore them once before and it was fine. That's unfortunate because I have to do some walking today. Oh well, I'll make it through.

So it's supposed to be gorgeous. Getting up to 70 degrees! That's really good for where I live. Spring has finally sprung, I suppose. And it's come early. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I'm not sure. Global Warming is real. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

You know, Maureen Johnson's Ning site is so fun. I'm going to read more blogs over there and comment. Everyone loves a comment on their blog!

Oh wait. I'm at work. I could... you know... work.

Nah.

4/1/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-02T00:01:00.000-04:00

Words: 730
Pages: 2

Oh man! What an emotional day. At work, I'm learning something new. Training is always nerve wracking, especially when you have to learn something in just a couple of days and then be wholly responsible for that information. But I think I'm doing well. And I'm having fun.

Then after work I spent a lot of time with my coworker and we had a really nice time. We went to her church for a talk about Lust for Lent. I'm not a really religious person, though I do believe in God and stuff. I don't mind going to church as long as I don't have to wake up early for it. I don't like to wake up before noon on the weekends. Sorry! That's just the way I am. Besides, I like to experience new things. I mean, you need experience to be a writer, right? That's how I look at things. I loved the church. It was beautiful. There was a lot of great people around. The speaker was good. Fun times.

Then. The most important part of the day. American Idol. And guess what? My boy is safe. YAHOO! I voted so hard last night. Oh Anoop, I love you. Next week, you will be amazing. I know it. I love you so much.

Anyway, I got home around 11. And then after puttering around on Idol sites it was time to get down to business. Writing started off awkward but it got better. I wrote for about 30 minutes and then I stopped because it was coming on midnight.

So I'm participating in Maureen Johnson's Blog Every Day in April thing. She has a ning page where this is happening. So I'm going to crosspost my blog on the ning page. I don't know. Is that confusing?

Here's my page in Maureen's group: http://maureenjohnson.ning.com/profile/Summer

I want to see Adventureland.

Well, off to decide whether or not to shave my legs for tomorrow. It's going to be 70 degrees! Also, I'm watching the last Real World. Good times.

3/31/09 Word/Page Count

2009-04-01T00:20:00.000-04:00

Whoo... what an emotional night! American Idol killed me. I was voting. And then I still had to write my page and I wrote it FAST-- in about 15 minutes. So it's not very good. I think I want to cut every word but... yeah.

Words: 645
Pages: 1 1/3

Good for an Idol voting night. But I had to vote HARD for Anoop because they totally threw him under the bus. And I don't know if I was in an alternate universe or what but he was good. His voice is top of the competition, no lie. Yes, he needs to work on the stage presence, but isn't that what the show is for? Ugh, those judges make me so angry. I was feeling as emotional as Anoop. Oh I wish I were close so I could give him a hug for the both of us.

I know what it's like to want your wildest dreams comes true. That's why I like American Idol so much. Because you can help someone make their dreams come true. It's so satisfying to watch.

I am done with writing for the night, I think. Gonna go to bed soon. Tommorrow I'm hanging out with a co-worker after work and then there's the Idol result show and depending on the results, I might be crying on the floor or maybe I'll be stunned with relief for a little while but after that I'll get my page done.

Dinner Time!

2009-03-31T19:31:00.000-04:00

No words written yet. It was such a beautiful day this afternoon, after work I took a long walk and I just thought dumb thoughts and listened to my music.

It was great!

Now it's time for dinner and then American Idol and then two hours of voting for Anoop but I've got to get my page in before midnight! So I might not vote... constantly. But I will vote a lot.

Alright, here we go.

Ooo ooo ooooooooooooooo baby baby

2009-03-31T12:28:00.000-04:00

I've had that song in my head since Anoop sang it last week. It is so beautiful. But I'm also grateful there will be another show tonight so Anoop can sing another song that will get in my head because I'm kind of sick of it.

Anyway, I'm at work right now. But inbetween actually working, I like to do my own thing. I'm googling YA sports novels. The novel I'm working is centered around a high school Varsity basketball team in an affulent, mostly white suburb. I love writing about basketball the most because I played it in high school but I was never on varsity, or a boy, or especially talented/driven or white... so it's different. But... I enjoy writing it.

So I need some direction, some examples. Especially with action sequences and locker talk and stuff. It's hard writing out all the noise that's happening in the locker room because everyone likes to talk a lot, althought my protag, he's kind of a quiet person. But everyone else is talking. How do I distinguish all of these voices so that everyone doesn't sound the same? These are things I think about.

But it's a first draft so you keep on writing. Sucky first drafts. Did I mention I don't like revision either? haha

So I think I'm gonna check out this book called Waiting to Score by JE MacLeod. It's by a woman! The cover is not one I like (I don't like covers with big ol' faces on them because I think it's dorky) but don't judge a book by it's cover! I think it's something I need to check out.

That means running to the library! I have to save my money. The last two books I bought were Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson (very good and sad, kinda gut-wrenching, made me feel a bit crazy at times) and Paper Towns by John Green (which I still haven't finished... for some reason. I tend to get distracted in the middle of books. I'm ADD).

Boo, it's not in the library. What kind of middling library does this town have! Well, we'll see about that.

The other book I'm working is called Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose. The last writing book I read was Self Editing for Fiction Writers, which was a good read and helpful. It gives you concrete things to think about while writing.

Well, back to the grind.

It is too easy...

2009-03-31T01:44:00.000-04:00

... to add freaking blogs to this thing. Makes you feel all accomplished. Google, copy URL, paste and click add. Wow. Why am I so smart and awesome? I mean, really.

I should be going to bed. Gotta get up at 8 (okay, 8:15) tomorrow. Another work day. blah blah blah.

But at least it's Tuesday, which means American Idol!

Yay! Bigger Than My Body by John Mayer.

Wanted to paste this http://www.ckkellymartin.com/. I wanna follow her blog, but she's got it all fancy and integrated.

Good work everyone.

3/30/09 Word/Page Count

2009-03-31T00:04:00.001-04:00

Today was a little less productive. But I made my page! And that's the goal.

Words: 1,923
Pages: 5

I'm watching Twilight the Movie. It's a little boring.

Twilight, it's not the kind of thing I'd want to write myself, but I have to admire Stephanie Meyer. To put all those ideas down on paper and follow them through and have the guts to get out there and try to show them to the world... I mean, that takes a lot. So good for her. Now she's all rich and famous. You can't help but feel a little jealous.

How do these authors pump out like two (or more) books a year? Yikes!

haha. "You better hold on tight, Spidermonkey."

"It's beautiful."
"It's the skin of a killer!"

Blog Roll

2009-03-30T22:43:00.000-04:00

I decided for inspiration, I'm going to follow all these YA author blogs. It seems like every YA author has a blog. So it's a lot to find. And I didn't get too far before I got kind of overwhelmed. I think I need to pick this up later.

Anyway, the word count for today is going well. Ugh, first drafts are so annoying. Why do they always suck? See, I think the best thing to do is just push on through the suckage. Because it's going to suck for a long time. In fact, I never know if what I'm writing is ever going to be good.

I guess that's the fun of it!

3/29/09 Word/Page Count

2009-03-29T23:13:00.000-04:00

3446 words
9 pages

This was a good night. I might write some more. Or I might read. I'm not sure yet.

Remember. A page a day!

So far... Failure

2009-03-29T18:47:00.000-04:00

Okay, I haven't written my one page yet. But that ends today. I decided when it's time to write my one page, I'm gonna sit at my table, in a real chair, instead of on the couch in front of the TV. I didn't even do this when I was writing my Master's Thesis! But you know what? If I want writing to be my job, I have to treat it as such.

So along with writing a Page-A-Day I decided that my goal is to finish a draft of a novel by September 1st. Do you think I can do it?

You betcha!

I'll keep you updated.

Back to writing.

Welcome to Summer's Page-A-Day Novel Club

2009-03-25T12:26:00.000-04:00

I've been saying for years that I want to write a novel. I'm not a bad writer (not saying that I'm amazing, or even good, just not bad) and I don't experience writer's block. My problem is that I'm a lazy writer. Very very lazy. And everyone knows that if you want to be a writer the first thing you have to do is actually write! Well that's the hardest part about the profession. So what I'm hoping to do here is to motivate myself to write a page a day of a novel. Just one page. And another page, if I feel so motivated. But at least one. So that's why I started this blog.

It motivates me to imagine that I actually have an audience so I'm going to pretend that people read this blog and I'll write daily about my progress and any other writer-ly or random thoughts I have.

So today is the first day of Page-A-Day goal of the Page-A-Day Novel Club! I am the president, CEO and only member. It'll be an interesting day to get a page in because American Idol comes on tonight and then I have to vote for a couple of hours, but I'll get it done.

Email me at Summer.Sampson@gmail.com