What's Up Wednesday (44)

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, so we can check in with each other. To join, just check out Jaime Morrow or Erin Funk's blogs for the link widget and sign up!

WHAT I'M READING
Still reading Heir of Fire and A Time to Dance. Enjoying both immensely.

I also finally read WHERE SHE WENT, Gayle Forman's follow-up to IF I STAY. I really liked IF I STAY back when I first read it and thought it ended right where it should. Though most people I knew told me WHERE SHE WENT was great and that they even liked it more than IF I STAY, I was skeptical. But I finally read it and it was such a worthy sequel! And yes, I liked it more than the first!


WHAT I'M WRITING
The verse novel. Check out my last Ready.Set.Write! update. Sadly, it is the end of the RSW summer writing intensive. But the cool thing is the RSW ladies are hosting a CP/beta match-up for RSW participants on Thursday. Check out any of the host blogs (linked at the top of all the RSW posts) for more info!


WHAT INSPIRES ME RIGHT NOW
Kind words from friends.


WHAT ELSE I'VE BEEN UP TO
The sis and I saw the If I Stay movie a few days before it released, and we liked it a lot. It was very faithful to the book and gave us the feels. The sister finished the book the day before we were set to see the movie, and then she read Where She Went the day after we saw the movie. The movie was what prompted me to finally read the sequel too!

I'm enjoying the waning days of summer. Luckily for me, California seems to have a store of it left.

We're going to see Jason Mraz tomorrow night, and I am so excited! The Sis and I were lucky enough to see him for a special Artist's Den filming earlier this summer, and it got us so pumped for his new album with Raining Jane. Love him, and love him more when he does these acoustic shows.

Other thing of note is that my 10 year high school reunion is at the end of this week! I can't believe I've been out of high school for a decade now. I'm going because our HS senior year class president is putting it together, and she was my college roommate for all 4 years. I'm obligated, and I have full confidence she'll put something amazing together.

It was also National Dog Day yesterday, so here's a baby Loki + a happy/sleepy Loki!


What's up with you?

Ready. Set. Write! (Week 12)

RSW is a summer writing intensive hosted by Jaime Morrow, Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, and Erin Funk. You can sign up on the linky at any of the host blogs every Monday. Remember to encourage other participants too! For more info on RSW and a link to the lovely buttons, go here.


1. How I did on last week’s goals

Good1 Like if I gave myself a grade, probably A- good! I did everything except the sleeping one! I wrote 5 stanzas, finished a regular book, started a verse novel, and went swimming 4 times this week!

2. My goal(s) for this week

• Continue writing stanzas!
• Finish reading the verse novel.
• Get some more sleep.
• Go swimming.

3. A favorite line from my story OR one word/phrase that sums up what I wrote/revised.

...when she heard the muffled thunder of
their passing, hundreds of leathery wings beating the air.
She watched with wonder as they speckled the
orange dusk like tiny splatters of ink.

4. The biggest challenge I faced this week.
Just starting. I had some time open up this week, and instead of indulging my lazy, I actually opened up the doc and forced myself to just write.

5. Something I love about my WiP.
Every time I work on it, it is completely intimidating but also spurs me to keep trying.

So, is it seriously THE LAST WEEK of Ready. Set. Write! already? How did the summer go by so fast? In any case, this was a blast, and I'd like to thank the ladies listed above again for putting this fun intensive together! It has been seriously motivating and helpful to have these check-ins every week.

I suppose I might write one more RSW post after this to wrap things up since I didn't really do it with this one?

How did you do this week?

What's Up Wednesday (43)

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, so we can check in with each other. To join, just check out Jaime Morrow or Erin Funk's blogs for the link widget and sign up!


WHAT I'M READING

Lots of things at the moment. Mostly, I'm reading HEIR OF FIRE, but some nights, I'll read a little of MORTAL GODS.

For reading more pertaining to what I'm writing, I've started the verse novel, A TIME TO DANCE. It has a beautiful cover, and I've only been hearing good things about it. Read the prologue, and it is sumptuous.

WHAT I'M WRITING

A little bit of the verse novel. You can see my RSW Week 11 update for more details. I also wrote a poem.

Last year, when April Tucholke's BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA was released, I wrote a Twitter poem inspired by the prompt "devil," which I then expanded into a longer poem.

This year, when April's sequel BETWEEN THE SPARK AND THE BURN released, I wrote a long poem based on the title which I then shortened into a Twitter poem. Here's the Twitter poem (but there's an excerpt from the longer version in my RSW Week 11 post).

There is a void,
an unknowable space,
between
the spark & the burn.
& there in the
between
is where you’ll find
me.

WHAT INSPIRES ME RIGHT NOW

This also fits under the "reading" category, but I'm also flipping through Sylvia Plath's book of poems, ARIEL. Her metaphors, her way with words is so evocative and compelling. Definitely inspiring.


WHAT ELSE I'VE BEEN UP TO

Well, my birthday was this past weekend! So I did some fun things (hence why I didn't manage to post the Comic Con recap post on Friday).

1) The birthday gift I bought myself arrived just in time for me to wear for my birthday weekend! It's the Blackmilk dress I have long coveted: the Marauder's Map Reversible Skater Dress 2.0! (The Marauder's Map I got in the UK in February at the WB Harry Potter Studio Tour.)

Azkaban is my favorite book and best book! And I adore the Marauders and their map!

This side of the dress says "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry."

2) I also hung out with minions and loitered in fake!London with the Sister. (I wore the dress the other way - the side that says "The Marauder's Map.")



3) Saw Guardians of the Galaxy again with friends, but this time in IMAX 3D!

4) Met the smart, funny, amazing Sarah Enni - the lady behind the First Draft podcast. We've been Twitter friends for a while, and she went to a Pac-10 school! So, it was so fun finally meeting her. We ate delicious dumplings, chatted about books and writing, and of course, pop culture geekery... like our love for Lee Pace. There was even a thrilling interlude involving a spider interrupting our lunch.

A pic from Sarah's epic road trip. From her instagram: @sarahenni

In all the excitement, we forgot to take a picture (boo!), but it's okay because I'm sure we will meet again!

5) The Sis got me a ridiculously adorable purse and a perfect ice cream cake. It was blue with swirlies, and I love both of those things.

6) For my birthday dinner, my besties, the Sister, and I went out for the most delicious lobster ever. It's this local Chinese seafood place that is always packed, but the lobster is so, so worth it. Om nom nom.

7) To end my birthday weekend, I received two glorious things on Monday. First, Tom Hiddleston did the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and posted the video in the morning - so THANK YOU, UNIVERSE. Second, when I got home, I found I'd received a birthday card in the mail. It was posted from Canada, which could really only mean that my dear Twitter friend Yahong had sent it to me. And not only was it super sweet, it included amazing bookmarks! LOL.

So yeah, good birthday weekend! :D

What's up with you?

Ready. Set. Write! (Week 11)

RSW is a summer writing intensive hosted by Jaime Morrow, Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, and Erin Funk. You can sign up on the linky at any of the host blogs every Monday. Remember to encourage other participants too! For more info on RSW and a link to the lovely buttons, go here.

1. How I did on last week’s goals
I managed to write 1 stanza, get a little more sleep, and celebrate my birthday! But there wasn't any swimming and I still didn't start reading a new verse novel. However, I did write a new poem!

2. My goal(s) for this week
Same as last week's!

• Write 2 more stanzas
• Start reading a verse novel.
• Get some more sleep.
• Go swimming.

3. A favorite line from my story OR one word/phrase that sums up what I wrote/revised.
From the new poem...

It is the liminal moment,
the razor’s edge,
the tip toe waltz.
Where the sky meets the sea
meets a line in the sand.

4. The biggest challenge I faced this week.
Finding time to write. It was my birthday week, so things were a little busier because of that and work is still kind of overwhelming. Hoping things chill out some more. I need the pressure to lift a bit.

5. Something I love about my WiP.
Same things I've said before - playing with voice and mood and poetry. Reading in a new genre/form, etc.


How did you do this week?

What's Up Wednesday (42)

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, so we can check in with each other. To join, just check out Jaime Morrow or Erin Funk's blogs for the link widget and sign up!


WHAT I'M READING

Lucky me, I'm currently reading 2 ARCS: Sarah Maas' HEIR OF FIRE and Kendare Blake's MORTAL GODS (Goddess Wars #2). Back in March, we were part of Kendare's Mortal Gods Cover Reveal blog tour for this book. Both of these books will be out in September in US.

I also finally finished LONG LANKIN. It was sometimes terrifying and all around creepy. Apparently, there's a sequel on the way!


WHAT I'M WRITING

The verse story and dabbling with an old WIP. Check my RSW update for my progress + small excerpt.


WHAT INSPIRES ME RIGHT NOW

It's been a tough few days in the world, and that makes looking on the bright side hard. But I've been inspired by the outpouring of support, grief, and love that recent events have garnered.

On a happier, I'm also inspired by the amazing and incredible things friends are doing. For example, one is working on a project for NPR!

Similarly, Twitter friend Sarah Enni has road-tripped across the country to do a podcast series with YA authors about writing, books, creativity, and life. (If you're interested in checking that out, go here: First Draft with Sarah Enni.

In book news, Twitter/blog friend Lori M. Lee had her debut GATES OF THREAD AND STONE release last week. Congrats! Also released last week was another Twitter/blog friend's book, Sarah Fine's OF METAL AND WISHES. This week, I have April Tucholke's BETWEEN THE SPARK & THE BURN (sequel to Between the Devil & the Deep Blue Sea) to look forward to!



WHAT ELSE I'VE BEEN UP TO

Since the last time I updated, not too much besides trying to catch up on sleep and whatever TV I missed while Comic Con-ing. Speaking of SDCC, I have uploaded all of my pictures, so there will be recaps beginning this Friday soon! (I've also finally started uploading all of my London/Paris pics from February this year...)

Other things I've done:

1. Mini Liam Neeson movie-fest. We watched Non-Stop, which was kind of disappointing. So we watched Taken and then Taken 2. All in an evening.
2. Upon hearing that The Mighty Ducks movies were up on Netflix, I marathoned those this past Saturday. They actually didn't have D3, but whatever, the 1st 2 were better anyway. The Sis realized that she hates Coach Bombay; I mean, get it together! Little!Pacey is so over your BS.
3. I saw Guardians of the Galaxy when it came out and loved it! Such a fun and funny adventure with great music, and certain pop culture references had the Sister in tears. We're going to see it again with friends this Friday!
4. Speaking of Guardians, though he is covered in blue and black make-up and barely recognizable, I needed more Lee Pace after seeing GotG. So I finally watched Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day on Netflix - in which LP is utterly charming. I also introduced the Sister's friend to Pushing Daisies and am fairly certain I've made a new Lee Pace convert.
5. I watched Spice World this weekend (it's been on the DVR). Girl power will always be cool.
6. Loki (as in our puppy) killed another mouse. He's a mighty hunter.
7. It's going to be my birthday this week. Ahhhhh!
8. Outlander - so far, we like it! We also have some amusing stories regarding the Outlander promo-guys-in-kilts and castle booth at SDCC. Will be sharing those in the recaps!

And on that note, separate from the actual SDCC recaps. Here's a look at our geek fashion this year at Comic Con!

Pre-Comic Con Day outfit: galaxy skirt + THOR muscle tank

Day 1 Outfit: Catwoman-themed (the Sister) and Hannibal fannibal-themed (me).

Catwoman shirt, cat ears headband, cat-eye sunglasses, Slytherin TOMs.

DIY flower crown, plaid shirt, (nightmare) stag & dining set necklaces.
Plus, an owl ring and Blackmilk Hamlet leggings to round things off.

Day 1 Night for the Nerd HQ party: Star Wars themed

Blackmilk Death Star dress, cosmic necklace, starburst & druzy rings, silver cuff. Hard to see,
but Sis is wearing her Blackmilk AT-AT dress & AT-AT necklace made by Alz.

(The AT-AT dress and necklace look like this...

The Sis on May 4th aka Star Wars Day this year.

Day 2 Outfit: Casual Cosplay Wonder Woman (me) and Aquaman (the Sister)

Star-spangled skirt, Blackmilk mermaid leggings, silver & gold accessories - including lucky
find WW-looking necklace,  DIY starfish headband, and very appropriate POW ring.

(More details on this casual cosplay in a later post!)

Oh, and our friend Jenn had an ADORABLE Doctor Who-themed outfit.

Her Universe TARDIS skirt, 11's red bow tie, 10's sonic
screwdriver, and Converses! [Photo courtesy of: Jenn]

Day 3 Outfit: Sherlock-themed outfit (me)
-Including sleeping-in-Hall-H-line outfit (bottom left: Bang! sweatshirt, Bored leggings, galaxy scarf)
-For day time, accessories I was supposed to use but didn't because it was too hot (top left box: deerstalker hat and Sherlock Holmes silhouette pin from the Holmes museum in London!)

Goldbubble Sherlock-inspired BORED leggings and Loki-inspired necklace. Was supposed to
have accessories: deerstalker hat, blue scarf, Holmes silhouette pin, question mark ring.

Day 4 Outfit: Loki-themed (me)
- I actually bought this dress on Day 3 at the Her Universe booth in the Exhibit Hall.

Her Universe Loki dress, silver cuff, Loki armor-inspired necklace made by Alz.

Come back Friday next week for more geeky goodness and story time! Until then, have a great week!

What's up with you?

Ready. Set. Write! (Week 10)

RSW is a summer writing intensive hosted by Jaime Morrow, Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, and Erin Funk. You can sign up on the linky at any of the host blogs every Monday. Remember to encourage other participants too! For more info on RSW and a link to the lovely buttons, go here.

1. How I did on last week’s goals
The writing goal went well. I managed my 2 stanzas and a little more, though it was definitely tough getting back into it. Didn't do so great with everything else.

I did make personal goals to watch The Mighty Ducks movies on Netflix and the delightful Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (with Lee Pace), and uh, I did all of that. Good times, and I'm on such a Lee Pace kick right now. Love him!

2. My goal(s) for this week

• Write 2 more stanzas
• Start reading a verse novel.
• Get some more sleep.
• Go swimming.

3. A favorite line from my story OR one word/phrase that sums up what I wrote/revised.

There is something luxurious and seductive about
nostalgia. That is the right word. I feel
nóstos - homecoming
álgos - pain.

4. The biggest challenge I faced this week.
Getting back into the story and the writing. It's always hard to pick up again once you've stopped for a while. I struggled with this set of stanzas.

5. Something I love about my WiP.
It's actually inspiring me to work on other WiPs when I get stuck!


How did you do this week?

Loki Wednesday

Happy Wednesday, peeps!  I was going to post about what glorious unicorn-related magnificence I made for my Well-Since-I-Didn't-Go-to-Comic-Con-I-Might-As-Well-Make-Something-Since-I-Can't-Bother-Krispy Project, but my internet is being wonky so that will have to wait for another day.  In the meantime, the most I managed was this picture of Loki:

Hi.

Krispy must upload all her pictures and then!  Then there will be a most glorious Comic Con update!  I've heard the tales but have yet to see most of the photographic evidence, so I'll be waiting in anticipation with the rest of you.  HURRY UP, KRISPY!  HURRY!

Ready. Set. Write! (Week 9)

RSW is a summer writing intensive hosted by Jaime Morrow, Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, and Erin Funk. You can sign up on the linky at any of the host blogs every Monday. Remember to encourage other participants too! For more info on RSW and a link to the lovely buttons, go here.

1. How I did on last week’s goals
Not good again. The SDCC recovery is taking a while, and work has gotten exponentially busier. Let's just say I'm wishing things would slow down!

2. My goal(s) for this week

• Write 2 stanzas
• Start reading a verse novel.
• Get some more sleep.
• Go swimming.

3. A favorite line from my story OR one word/phrase that sums up what I wrote/revised.
Phrase that sums up this week's writing attempts: blocked. :(

4. The biggest challenge I faced this week.
Being tired and overwhelmed. It's been hard finding balance with having to play catch-up at work, on top of all the new stuff.

5. Something I love about my WiP.
It's helping me realize how much I'm into gothic horror. :)

How did you do this week?