7.28.2015

Currently...(9)


"Currently..." updates will be every other Tuesday, concurrent with Katy Upperman.

I found the Currently post at Kate Hart's blog, who got the idea from Amy Lukavics, who found it here. Please join in and link me in the comments if you do!

I have A LOT of updating to do since I missed the regular update last week thanks to Comic Con exhaustion and the next one after thanks to some technical difficulties. So onwards!


Loving
  • Spending time with friends, and making new friends - a lot of this thanks to Comic Con. This year, a group of us stayed at a hotel together, and in getting the group together, I met some cool new geeks.
My ConSquad - old friends + new friends.
Line friends! Including the handsome @mylifewithchrisevans! (Photo: mylifewithchrisevans)

  • Obviously, Comic Con itself was a blast as well.
Squad goals achieved!


  • Seeing Tom Hiddleston again this year. Eee! I've basically seen him live at least once for the past 3 years. It's kind of surreal and weird - but I'm not complaining! ;)

A video posted by Jennifer L. (@jennxlai) on


  • The summer heat - I complain a lot about it being hot out, but it doesn't feel like summer to me unless it's somewhere near scorching. That's sunglasses, shorts, and sandals weather; tank tops and bright dresses, flip-flops and ice cream, swimming and BBQ time. And yes, the heat makes me lazy too, but it can also inspire the more nostalgic, romantic side of my brain - as evidenced in my newest little poem, Summer, salt-sweet.


Watching

ANT-MAN - Not gonna lie, my interest in this movie went from almost zero to 80 when Edgar Wright was attached to almost 0 again when he left. So I went into this with no real expectations and came out rather pleased with it! It's a very fun movie, lots of laughs.

At the same time, it really emphasized (for me, at least) how much women get sidelined or are otherwise used as mostly plot devices for other people in pop media at large. So, I liked the cast and enjoyed the movie a lot, and I liked Hope van Dyne, but in no other Marvel movie have I felt so strongly that a main female character was solely there to forward the story for other people while she herself was sidelined.
You can hear more of my thoughts on the movie in this podcast I did with Crazy4ComicCon and TOTL podcast!

HANNIBAL - Season 3 has been very different from the past 2 seasons, and as much as I adore the show's heightened reality and artsiness, it definitely got a little weird. Still, I love the show and its team, and I loved seeing them at Comic Con for perhaps the last time! Ballroom 20 was filled with flower crowns and Wendigos. Fannibals forever! ;_;


Also, this last episode on Saturday (the new time for the show, wtf NBC) introduced the Red Dragon story, and the show was back to its startling, arresting form.

TUT - Entertaining mini-series event on Spike about the brief rule of King Tut. This is sad, but I kept being impressed by the number of POC actors I saw on screen as main characters because sadly, most ancient Egyptian epics are egregiously white-washed. *cough*EXODUS, I'm looking at you.*cough*

THE SPECIAL OLYMPICS OPENING CEREMONY - This was extra special because my friend's company + the Sister worked on the social media and documentation of the Italian delegation for their first few days in Los Angeles. Check out this sweet video of Team Italy in their host town of West LA that they put together!


Reading

UNGODLY by Kendare Blake - So, thanks to my book fairy @Celeste_pewter of The Reading Nook Reviews, I have an ARC of the final book in Kendare Blake's Goddess Wars trilogy. I have been slowly dying from the cliffhanger she ended the last book on, so you can imagine my delight and terror when Celeste told me she snagged me a copy. (Terror because Kendare is hurts my favorites so much in these books...)

Beta Read - reading for a friend, and I am loving it so far. It's unlike what she usually writes but is still so good. Also, this friend is in fact Alz.


Listening to

YEARS AND YEARS - I'm obsessed with this album.


Thinking about

  • How fun it was to meet a bunch of my favorite tweeps, writer-people, and geek girl bloggers at Comic Con. Basically, SDCC = magic.


Writer besties Sarah Maas & Susan Dennard a.k.a SARUSAN.
And their badass, cover-winning books.

Elizabeth Briggs, who has a book set at Comic Con because she is that cool, and I apparently remind her of 1 of her characters! Eep!
Natasha Heck, writer-tweep and Jedi, who I missed last SDCC, but we met this time! Next time, I'll see her when she's in costume.
Megan Gotch a.k.a. the Nerdy Girlie - one of the nicest geek girl bloggers around!

  • Sleeeeeep. Even though it's been 2 weeks, I am still bone-tired from Comic Con.


Wishing

Much as I want the summer to linger, I also want to fast forward to October because I will be seeing HAMILTON on Broadway and I am so excited!! My love for it has not diminished since I saw it at The Public in February, and seeing the pics and continued buzz coming out of previews makes me so, so happy. Even better, I'll be seeing it with my besties!

Speaking of HAMILTON...


Making me happy
  • I wanted to custom frame my HAMILTON Public playbill since February and I finally did it! LOVE the Annie Leibovitz shoot of the cast in VOGUE too.


  • STAR WARS movie marathon - a few of our friends had not seen the Star Wars trilogies in their entirety (or at all), so we remedied this over 4th of July weekend. Actually, they watched 1 movie on July 2nd, and then we watched the other 5 on July 3rd. It was epic, and now they're ready for Episode 7 in December!
  • SDCC MEMORIES




  • Loki being Loki and the 4th of July - we ate BBQ, swam, watched fireworks and Star Wars, played with Loki and he threw his first (adorable) fit by lying down whenever I told him "bath time", and cheered the US Women's National Team to victory! Oh, and we took ridiculously patriotic photos. Because, of course.



How's life going with you?

P.P.S. Day by Day Comic Con recaps will be up at Girl On the Roam later this week!

7.27.2015

RSW 2015: Week 8


Ready.Set.Write! is a summer writing intensive hosted by Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, Erin Funk, Elodie Nowodazkij, and Jaime Morrow. Click the banner or the link previous for more information on the intensive.

We're checking in every Monday, and the link-up will be on the host blogs.


1. How I did on last week’s goals
  • Write for 15 min every day. 3 out of 7 days.
  • Start next beta read. Yes! Read a couple chapters.
  • Go to the gym/exercise at least 2 times a week. Went swimming this weekend, so yay?
  • Get more sleep. 50/50 - had a looooong work week, so even if I did sleep more, it didn't feel like it. ;_;

2. My goal(s) for this week
  • Write for at least 15 min every day.
  • Read 3 chapters of beta read.
  • Sleep more.
  • Gym/exercise at least 2 times a week.

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

"Summer, salt-sweet." This is actually not from my WIP, but I managed to squeeze out a little micro-poem last Friday just as a creative exercise. That's the title of the poem and not an actual line that appears, but I love the way it sounds. If you're curious, the whole poem is posted at Girl on the Roam - Summer, salt-sweet.


4. The biggest challenge I faced this week (ex. finding time to write)

As usual, motivation and energy were my biggest challenges. Last week at work was really rough, lots of late nights, so it was definitely hard to get anything else done after hours.


5. Something I love about my WiP

Playing with fairy tale tropes and trying to rework and remix them.


How did you do with your goals this week?


P.S. The SDCC "currently" recap was supposed to go up last week but ran into some technical issues. Hope to have it up tomorrow!

7.20.2015

RSW 2015: Week 6 & 7


Ready.Set.Write! is a summer writing intensive hosted by Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, Erin Funk, Elodie Nowodazkij, and Jaime Morrow. Click the banner or the link previous for more information on the intensive.

We're checking in every Monday, and the link-up will be on the host blogs.

Technically, I will be talking about the last update I missed (covering the week of SDCC) and this past week.

1. How I did on last week’s goals

  • Write for 15 min every day. Terrible! 1 day since SDCC happened until now.
  • Start next beta read. Not yet.
  • Finish up SDCC-related crafting. Finished!
  • Go to the gym/exercise at least 2 times a week. Nope.
  • Get more sleep. Somewhat better but SDCC has left me so exhausted.

2. My goal(s) for this week
  • Write for at least 15 min every day.
  • Start next beta read.
  • Sleep more.
  • Gym/exercise at least 2 times a week.

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

Not much. I managed to write a little bit Sunday, but ever since Comic Con, I have been struggling just to stay awake at work. Con hangover to the max. I should be able to get back into the groove this week. Fingers crossed!


4. The biggest challenge I faced this week (ex. finding time to write)

Energy. Comic Con was fun but super exhausting, and then my work week back from con was extremely busy. So it's been difficult to find the energy to do anything other than the bare minimum.


5. Something I love about my WiP

The concept still intrigues me, which is why I can't let it go!


How did you do with your goals this week?


P.S. A currently update will be up soon with a brief SDCC recap! Hope you'll join the fun!

7.17.2015

5 Fandom Friday (21)

(New Graphic by Darling Stewie)

5 Fandom Friday is a geek-blogger community building project started and hosted by The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick. Every Friday, post a top 5 list based on a predetermined topic that can be found on this master post - you can also find more info on the project there. Participate as frequently or infrequently as you like, and if a topic doesn't especially appeal to you, feel free to put your own twist on it.

Also, tweet at @superspacechick or @thenerdygirlie on Friday with your post (and they'll RT) and use the #Fandom5 hashtag so we can all connect!


This week's theme: Five Things You Own That You Got At Cons

I changed this week's theme a tiny bit to include anything I've gotten at a con - even if it was free. I won't be including *memories* though because obviously, that's the best thing you take away from a convention. ;) Perfect timing for this topic because Comic Con was just last week!

1) Signed Hannibal DVD sleeve

This was my first signing, and how wonderful it was with the cast of a show I absolutely love. Bryan Fuller is such an inspiration and delight!


2) Tiny Ant-Man / The Force Awakens Stormtrooper

This is kind of a 2-fer, but I had to suffer through the same crazy HASBRO line for this, and I love them both. These are pretty sweet buys from SDCC this year, and I treasure them.


3) Wattpad Cards against Fanfiction

There's a lot of cool, free stuff you can get at Comic Con, but I think this fandom-themed set of Cards Against Humanity from Wattpad that I got at Geeks Go Glam might take the cake. These are so unique and hilarious.


4) Books signed by Peter S. Beagle

Last year, one of the highlights of my SDCC was finding Peter S. Beagle's booth in the Artists' Alley. The Last Unicorn is one of my forever favorite books, and being able to talk with him and get signed books was such an incredible experience for me.


5) Lightsaber + Star Wars guest lanyard

I was lucky enough to get into Hall H this year for the Star Wars panel, and so I was also able to go to the Star Wars fan concert. The lanyard they gave us plus the lightsabers will forever remind me of this magical time. :)

Of course, I also really love the free photo booths at cons and all the memories I make with my new and old friends.

What are you favorite things you've gotten from conventions?


P.S. ANT-MAN is out today, and Tony (aka Crazy4ComicCon) was kind enough to invite me to podcast review the movie last night with the boys of TOTL podcast. Would love if you checked it out! ANT-MAN REVIEW.

P.P.S. I need to post this to the Female Geek Bloggers group still, but I have a new blog: GIRL ON THE ROAM! This one will still be active, but the other one will be more geek and travel focused (e.g. longer SDCC recaps will be over there). Hope you'll take a look!

7.06.2015

RSW 2015: Week 5


Ready.Set.Write! is a summer writing intensive hosted by Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, Erin Funk, Elodie Nowodazkij, and Jaime Morrow. Click the banner or the link previous for more information on the intensive.

We're checking in every Monday, and the link-up will be on the host blogs. This is the first week of updates!

1. How I did on last week’s goals

  • Write for 15 min every day. Worst week yet. I think I did maybe 2 out of 7.
  • Start next beta read. Not yet.
  • Finish up SDCC-related crafting. Did not finish but did work on it. Must finish by Wednesday.
  • Go to the gym/exercise at least 2 times a week. Yes!
  • Get more sleep. Somewhat better. Have managed to get to bed earlier 3x this week.

2. My goal(s) for this week
  • Write for at least 15 min every day before heading out to SDCC.
  • Start next beta read (probably while waiting in line).
  • Get enough sleep to function for Comic Con!!

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

Squeezed in - my focus was missing most of last week because of upcoming SDCC preparation and this past long weekend festivities. The writing I managed was squeezed into the spare moments I had and whenever inspiration struck.


4. The biggest challenge I faced this week (ex. finding time to write)

Time! So much going on that I've been pressed to find time to just relax.


5. Something I love about my WiP

The characters are still surprising me, which is great because I always get more motivated when I learn something new about them.


How did you do with your goals this week?