Optimistic Update

Hello everyone, long time no speak!

Well it hasn’t been super long, but still. I haven’t been as active with this blog as I had wanted to be when I first started it, but I’m going to try to change that this year. So more book reviews, and hopefully other posts, should be coming your way soon. I’ve had trouble in the past of coming up with posts to write, but I have a few ideas right now and I’m going to see if I can make them work.

By the way this blog is going to be one-year-old on Sunday, which is pretty cool.

In other news, I have finally finished the first draft of Iridescent! Which means I’m one step closer to being able to publish it! It’s taken me a lot longer to get this draft done than I had wanted. I’m hoping though, that now that I have it written down and I know how I want the story to go, it should be a lot easier to write from here on out. _{I’ve probably jinxed myself by saying that.} So within the next few days, I’ll start reading my first draft and jotting down some notes, and then it’ll be off to draft number two. I’m both looking forward and dreading this, mainly because I know there are going to be some issues in it that need to be worked out. But maybe it won’t be as bad as I’m thinking.

I have also made the decision that I will self-publish Iridescent once I get it to the point where it’s ready to be shared with the world. Before I was considering on going the traditional route, but there are really no guarantees that I would be able to get published that way. Plus, I want to be able to have complete creative control over what happens in this story and the others that follow it.

Well I think that about wraps up everything that’s been going on lately.

5 Things I Learned from NanoWriMo

50,000 words. That’s how much I’ve written this month. Okay, actually it’s a little over 50,000, but still. As you’ve probably guessed, I’ve been participating in NanoWriMo and it’s been an enjoyable ride. It’s also been a headache, frustrating, and a tad bit stressful trying to keep up with the word count goal. But hey, that’s writing for you. Actually, NanoWriMo has been pretty enlightening for me. I’ve realized some things about myself as a writer and about writing in general, and I thought I’d share it with all of you. So here are five things that I’ve learned from NanoWriMo:

1.) I Can Write More Than I Think I Can

This was probably my biggest takeaway from this month. In order to get 50,000 words written in a month, you have to strive to get at least 2,000 words a day. Which doesn’t seem like a lot, but some days 2,000 words can feel like 20,000. When it comes to writing, there are days when it feels like there are no limits, while others feel like you’re walking through quicksand. Writing 50,00 words in one month seemed like a reach to me, because it’s taken me longer to write that before. But this month I got in a rhythm that helped me keep up with the goal, and I could reach the point where I could write 10,000 words in a week. There were still days where I wasn’t very productive, but I used my writing pattern to force myself to catch back up. I’ve realized from this if I can keep up with this schedule I’ve created, I’ll be able to finish my first drafts a whole lot faster than I would if I was writing at my previous pace.

2.) I Am Terrible at Following an Outline

I’m honestly not much of a planner, even though I try to be. For my Nano novel, I Choose You, I wrote out a general outline of what I wanted to happen in each part of the book. I figured that it would help me keep on track with everything and help me know what I should do in the story. And it worked. For the first little bit. As soon as I hit what I wanted to be Act 2 of my story, the outline pretty much disappeared. New events popped up, events that originally were going to be there never showed up. Oh and a character that was supposed to be a bad guy, pretty much just turned into a jerk who really isn’t so bad. Yeah, me and outlines aren’t the best of friends. That being said…

3.) Having a General Idea of Where a Story is Going is Extremely Helpful

This might seem like a bit of a contradiction from my last point, but it’s actually not. Part of the problem I had with I Choose You was that I really didn’t have a good vision of where I wanted the story to go. I knew how I wanted it to start, and I somewhat had an idea of how I wanted it to end. The middle was pretty vague. I had an idea or two of things that could happen in it, but nothing that really connected point A to point B. This kind of made it hard to write. Without having a general idea of how I wanted to connect my beginning and ending, this story was more difficult to tell than it needed to be.

4.) Taking a Step Back from a Story Can Be Good

While I was writing I Choose You, I took a break from writing Iridescent. Which was honestly a really good thing, because while I was working on something else, I got new ideas for it and realized some of my current ideas just weren’t going to work. I was getting into a little bit of a rut with Iridescent and now I can see what the problem was and how I can fix it going forward. And hopefully these new ideas will help me make it an even better story than it would have been before.

5.) It’s Not About the Results, It’s About the Journey

Okay, I’m going to be honest and admit that this sounds like a cliché, but honestly it’s the truth. For a first draft at least. This month, I didn’t focus on what the end result for I Choose You would be. I knew that the story probably wasn’t the best and that a lot of it would need to be changed if I ever wanted to do something with it. But I didn’t go back and try to tweak stuff – something I’ve been known to do in the past. Instead I just wrote whatever came to mind. I played around with my characters and wrote a story. When I go back and reread it, I’ll probably cringe at parts and wonder what I was thinking when I was writing that. But it doesn’t matter. I can spend time editing and rewriting it later on. Right now, the important part is that I finished it. That’s what counts.

So how about all of you? Did you participate in NanoWriMo? If you did, did you learn anything new while you were writing your story? 

Book Review: Home

You know that book where you’re so excited to read it, but once you start you don’t want it to be over? That pretty much sums up my feelings when it comes to Harlan Coben’s newest novel, Home. This is a continuation of his Myron Bolitar series, which hasn’t had a new installment in years. Harlan Coben is one of my absolute favorite writers, and the Myron Bolitar series is one of my absolute favorite book series. Needless to say, I’ve been dying for a new Myron book and Home did not disappoint.

Here’s the synopsis:

“A decade ago, kidnappers grabbed two boys from wealthy families and demanded ransom, then went silent. No trace of the boys ever surfaced. For ten years their families have been left with nothing but painful memories and a quiet desperation for the day that has finally, miraculously arrived: Myron Bolitar and his friend Win believe they have located one of the boys, now a teenager. Where has he been for ten years, and what does he know about the day, more than half a life ago, when he was taken? And most critically: What can he tell Myron and Win about the fate of his missing friend?”

My rating: *****

I loved this book. Absolutely loved it. It was amazing, spectacular, spellbinding, pretty much any word that describes an incredibly terrific book! _{Okay, I’ll admit that I might be overselling it a little.}

First things first, this book is told in 3^rd person POV focusing on Myron and occasionally 1^st person POV focusing on Win. We read Win’s thoughts and it is amazing. If you’ve never read any of the Myron Bolitar books before there are a lot of important characters, but the main four are: Myron, Windsor “Win” Horne Lockwood III, Esperanza Diaz, and Big Cyndi. The four of them are a very eclectic group and are very entertaining. I’m making a point to mention that we’re reading chapters told through Win’s perspective, because he’s a psychopathic anti-hero. He’s pretty much the type of character I normally wouldn’t be a fan of, and yet for some reason I love this character. Win. An enigma of a character, and it is wonderful to get to read through his perspective.

Oh and Myron’s nephew Mickey Bolitar, and his friends Ema and Spoon from the YA books staring Mickey, also make appearances in Home.

The story itself was one full of twists and turns, because just when you think they’ve figured it out, it turns into something else instead. Which is great, because it kept me at the edge of my seat, trying to figure out exactly what went down with this kidnapping. The answer and ending to this mystery was a bittersweet one though. But I really didn’t dwell on the bittersweetness, because the ending to the novel, the very last page, dropped a bombshell.

To avoid spoilers, I will sum up my thoughts on said bombshell: “WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? AHHH! NO WAY!”

I’m really, really hoping that there’s going to be either another Myron book or another Mickey book, because I really, really, really want to learn more about this.

And I say hoping, because there were moments in Home where I was wondering if this is going to be the last Myron Bolitar novel. I haven’t seen anything that states that it is, so I’m going to remain optimistic that Harlan Coben has more stories for these characters in the future.

Just hopefully it won’t take five more years. 

Book Review: Curious Minds: A Knight and Moon Novel

Author collaborations are always interesting. Each writer has their own unique style, so when you combine two of them you can wind up with two results: a disaster or an enjoyable story. Fortunately, all the ones I’ve read so far, have been very enjoyable. That’s why today, I’ll be reviewing Janet Evanovich’s recent collaboration with Phoef Sutton: Curious Minds: A Knight and Moon Novel.

Here’s the synopsis:

“Emerson Knight is introverted, eccentric, and has little to no sense of social etiquette. Good thing he’s also brilliant, rich, and (some people might say) handsome, or he’d probably be homeless. Riley Moon has just graduated from Harvard Business and Harvard Law. Her aggressive Texas spitfire attitude has helped her land her dream job as a junior analyst with mega-bank Blane-Grunwald. At least Riley Moon thought it was her dream job, until she is given her first assignment: babysitting Emerson Knight.

What starts off as an inquiry about missing bank funds in the Knight account leads to inquiries about a missing man, missing gold, and a life-and-death race across the country. Through the streets of Washington, D.C., and down into the underground vault of the Federal Reserve in New York City, an evil plan is exposed. A plan so sinister that only a megalomaniac could think it up, and only the unlikely duo of the irrepressibly charming Emerson Knight and the tenacious Riley Moon can stop it.”

My rating: *****

I really enjoyed this story. Riley and Emerson are both enjoyable characters, Emerson especially so. He’s a pretty big departure from Janet Evanovich’s usual male leads. Oh, he’s still attractive, just like Ranger, Joe, and Nick are, but his personality is pretty different. Emerson is pretty much a mash up between Sheldon Cooper and Sherlock Holmes. And that makes for a very entertaining character.

The story itself is a pretty average one, nothing spectacular, but it wasn’t bad either. The mystery was interesting, and I was curious to see where the story was going to go. Much like most of Janet Evanovich’s books, it’s the characters that leave a lasting impact, not the story itself. But I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. I do have to say, that I love the various pop culture references that this book makes. If you manage to make superhero references in a story, I’m pretty much guaranteed to increase my liking of it.

All in all, this is a series I would like to see continued. 

Book Review: Ella: An Everland Ever After Tale

I love fairy tales. Growing up, my favorite movies were Disney’s animated reimaginings of these stories. So it’s only natural that I would enjoy checking out novels that do the same thing. One of the more recent ones that I’ve read has been Ella: An Everland Ever After Tale. This book is the second in the Everland Ever After Tales, and it is a reimagining of Cinderella.

Here’s the synopsis:

"Forget glass slippers... this time she's wearing cowboy boots!

Ella has grown used to the casual cruelty of her stepsisters, the complete control her wicked stepfather exerts, and the exasperating way the birds and the mice keep bothering her while she's trying to do her (extensive) daily chores. But with the big July Fourth celebration coming up in Everland, she's determined to make her sisters the prettiest dresses possible so that they'll finally get married and move out of her life. But she doesn't count on a chance meeting with a handsome shopkeeper...

Having lost a leg at Gettysburg, Ian Crowne knows that he's no princely catch. He's got his store and his dogs, so he's satisfied...until the day when an enigmatic stranger captures his imagination and his heart. Now they're both dreaming of each other and wishing on stars, and the celebration is only days away...”

My rating: ***** (Probably closer to a 3 ½) 

I’m sort of torn on my thoughts when it comes to this story. I enjoyed it, but it’s not a story that I’d necessarily want to read again. This is a really creative story. I’ve never read a western version of a fairy tale before, so that was pretty neat. I liked the small twist of Ella having a wicked stepfather instead of the usual stepmother. Ella and Ian were both nice characters and they seem like a good pair, also props to the author for having them meet a few times before the Fourth of July celebration. And on a more minor note, I did like that Ella didn't have blonde hair for a change.

My main problem with the novel is that it feels like things move very fast as soon as the celebration happens.  It just seems like there was so much building up to it, that as soon as things were getting good the story was over. I’m of the mindset that the story would have been better with a few more chapters about Ella and Ian after the celebration was over. I think that would have kept the ending from feeling rushed.

That being said, the story was still an interesting one. I have two of the other novels in this series on my Kindle, and I’m curious to see how this universe will be expanded.

So what fairy tale retellings do you all enjoy? Are there any you would recommend? 

If At First You Don't Succeed...

The other week I tried to make an iced coffee. Easy, right? Someone had told me that she had started making her own iced coffees and they sounded delicious so I had to give it a try. She said all she would do is pour some vanilla over her ice cubes, then pour her coffee on top of that, and to top it all off she would add in some chocolate syrup. Naturally, I thought with a recipe that simple there was no way I could mess it up.

Boy was I wrong.

Too much vanilla came out of the bottle, then my coffee hadn’t cooled down enough so it ended up melting my ice cubes. And no amount of chocolate syrup can rescue watered down coffee. Yuck!

It was a disaster, and if I’m being honest, I felt really bad about the fact that I couldn’t make an iced coffee. But it was something I could learn from. I know what went wrong and I know how I could improve it next time.

And really, the same thing could be said of writing. Let’s face it, we writers rarely get everything exactly right on our first try. If we did, all of our first drafts would be ready for publication the moment we finish them. Instead we find sentences, paragraphs, and even chapters that just don’t work the way we thought they would. So like many things in life, we go back and try to figure out what went wrong. And once we figure it out, we go back and tweak and rewrite until we get it the way we wanted it to be.

So if that chapter just isn’t going the way you wanted it to, don’t let it get you down. Instead, look at what’s going wrong and look at ways you can improve on it. Then give it another go!

After all, if at first you don’t succeed…

Try, try again.

Book Review: Black Widow Forever Red

I love superheroes. The Marvel Cinematic Universe contains some of my absolute favorite movies. One of my favorite superhero characters is Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow. Spies tend to be intriguing characters, and Black Widow is no exception. So when it was announced that Marvel would be releasing a Black Widow YA novel I was very excited. And one of my best friends, knowing how much I love Marvel, got me Black Widow Forever Red for my birthday.

Here’s the synopsis:

Enter the world of the Avengers' iconic master spy

Natasha Romanoff is one of the world's most lethal assassins. Trained from a young age in the arts of death and deception, Natasha was given the title of Black Widow by Ivan Somodorov, her brutal teacher at the Red Room, Moscow's infamous academy for operatives.

Ava Orlova is just trying to fit in as an average Brooklyn teenager, but her life has been anything but average.The daughter of a missing Russian quantum physicist, Ava was once subjected to a series of ruthless military experiments-until she was rescued by Black Widow and placed under S.H.I.E.L.D. protection. Ava has always longed to reconnect with her mysterious savior, but Black Widow isn't really the big sister type.

Until now.

When children all over Eastern Europe begin to go missing, and rumors of smuggled Red Room tech light up the dark net, Natasha suspects her old teacher has returned-and that Ava Orlova might be the only one who can stop him. To defeat the madman who threatens their future, Natasha and Ava must unravel their pasts. Only then will they discover the truth about the dark-eyed boy with an hourglass tattoo who haunts Ava's dreams. . . .

My rating: *****

Black Widow Forever Red is an enjoyable story. The characters are interesting, the story is intriguing, and we even get an appearance from one of Natasha’s Avengers teammates. Oh and our favorite agent of SHIELD, Phil Coulson is here too and he’s as enjoyable as always.

I do have one slight complaint though. For a book with Black Widow in the title and Black Widow herself on the cover, Black Widow isn’t really the main character. She’s important sure, and an integral part of the story. But overall the focus of this novel is on Ava, as the synopsis does indicate. Ava’s not a bad character by any means, she’s interesting and enjoyable for the most part, but I really wanted the story to be focused on Natasha.

When this book was announced, I was hoping that maybe we would get to see her life in the Red Room and her transition into SHIELD. We do get glimpses of that in this novel, but it is by no means a major part. But maybe Marvel could cover all of this if they ever get around to making a Black Widow movie. Come on Marvel, you know you want to do it.

Overall, if you enjoy all things Marvel I would recommend checking out Black Widow Forever Red. It’s a good read and I hope that Marvel will release more YA books in the future.