The Mortal Instruments

First off: I got City of Fallen Angels for Easter, and I about screamed. I love how my parents tell me, "You're not getting anything for *insert holiday here*" and they'll get me: a movie, a book, and candy. No wonder I'm so fat. [Kidding!]

Anyway, within the past week I've reread City of Bones, City of Ashes, and right now I'm rereading City of Glass. (Three hundred pages in one day - that's a new record!) But I just thought that I'd kind of go through the fact you notice so much more when you reread a book. You notice little gestures the characters make, or something different about their physical appearance you might have skipped over before (guilty as charged).

For one, I don't think I really tacked on Jace's personality in the first book as well as I did the first time. I knew he was sarcastic, dangerous, tortured; but I never really caught that it was his way of showing all the love he could muster. That he's the kind of person who finds it as embarrassing to show out of the blue, and chooses to do it through humor instead. I didn't see that Isabelle liked Clary as much as she did, even if she didn't want to. I didn't catch that Alec was scared of Clary, either. Simon was one of the easier ones, but that's because Clary's known him all her life, and Cassandra Clare shows that with perfect accuracy.

Valentine's personality is one of the hardest ones to catch, and that's the idea. He's persuasive through being quiet and observant. Oddly, that resembles one of the characters from my book (although he's only fourteen, and not ready to try and revolt against all that he ever knew). Something else I noticed is that he has a very good mask he uses to mask his emotions and what he's really thinking, and that is one of the HARDEST things to try and write! I know! It shows he's a natural leader.

I've also noticed that I get more ANGRY (emotional) about things when I reread them. For example, in the second book when Valentine has two of the characters trapped on his ship and (insert spoiler here), I got a lot angrier about it this time. Teehee. And tonight when I was rereading City of Glass when one of the characters dies (in the first raid in Alicante), I had to put the book down because I was so mad.

Maybe it's because I understand it more now; I'm not learning as I go. Maybe it's just the effect of the event, or Cassandra Clare's gratifying writing skills. But I've never wanted to reach into a book before (that wasn't my own) and wring a character's neck before until tonight.

I also really looked over the character's descriptions this time, and it taught me a lot with how I looked it over today. City of Glass shows the perfect way to describe old characters and new characters, and that's something I've always struggled with.

Anyway, I'm just having a Mortal Instruments high, so I thought I might ramble about it since I haven't made a new post in a while. I've always enjoyed this series, and the second time through, it's even better!

Ciao! Hope everyone had a great Easter!

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Listening to: Daybreak - Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete
Watching: Up
Reading: City of Glass - Cassandra Clare
Quote: "Nice, bah. He's gorgeous. You should leave him here. I could hang hats on him and things." "No. You can't have him." "Why not? Do you like him? He seems to like you. I saw him going for your hand out there like a squirrel diving for a peanut." - Magnus Bane & Clary Fray | City of Glass | Cassandra Clare

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly | Review

Title: Revolution

Author: Jennifer Donnelly

Published: October 12, 2010

Number of Pages: 472

SYNOPSIS

BROOKLYN: Andi Alpers is on the edge. She’s angry at her father for leaving, angry at her mother for not being able to cope, and heartbroken by the loss of her younger brother, Truman. Rage and grief are destroying her. And she’s about to be expelled from Brooklyn Heights’ most prestigious private school when her father intervenes. Now Andi must accompany him to Paris for winter break.

PARIS: Alexandrine Paradis lived over two centuries ago. She dreamed of making her mark on the Paris stage, but a fateful encounter with a doomed prince of France cast her in a tragic role she didn’t want—and couldn’t escape.

Two girls, two centuries apart. One never knowing the other. But when Andi finds Alexandrine’s diary, she recognizes something in her words and is moved to the point of obsession. There’s comfort and distraction for Andi in the journal’s antique pages—until, on a midnight journey through the catacombs of Paris, Alexandrine’s words transcend paper and time, and the past becomes suddenly, terrifyingly present.

Jennifer Donnelly, author of the award-winning novel A Northern Light, artfully weaves two girls’ stories into one unforgettable account of life, loss, and enduring love. Revolution spans centuries and vividly depicts the eternal struggles of the human heart. [From Goodreads]

QUOTE

"I will rain down silver and gold for you. I will shatter the black night, break it open, and pour out a million stars. Turn away from the darkness, the madness, the pain. Open your eyes and know that I am here. That I remember and hope. Open your eyes and look at the light."

Review

Oh.

My.

God.

I started this book yesterday evening, and I don't know if I'm going to have the heart to turn it back into the library. This is the best book I've read in who knows how long. The Book Thief, maybe? As anyone might guess if they have Wordbird's blog, that's where I decided to read this book. I'm so glad I did. At first I said, "I'm not going to care for this," when I began to read.

Then I was transfixed. I was turning the pages at one hundred miles an hour, and I couldn't stop. At the same time I was studying for my world history test—you know, the one over the French Revolution. Isn't it awesome?

Anyway. You start out with Andi Alpers, who's on the emotional edge and you immediately feel for her. You want to know what's happened. Maximilien? Robespierre, Peters? What's the difference—they've both resulted in the deaths of two little boys. She's on Qwellify, and it's a wonder she doesn't overdose. Her mother is over the emotional edge. Her father is isolated. It almost moved me to tears.

I don't cry easy.

Her father moves her to France for break. I couldn't move when this part started. G was an incredibly fascinating character, one who I completely relate to—dramatics in everyday speaking? Heckyeah! Then she finds the guitar, and the journal.

Liberty, equality, fraternity.

I've never been all that interested in France. I got pretty interested in my class, and now after reading this book... God, I felt for the royal family. I felt them like my own flesh and blood. I felt Alex's journey as much as I felt Andi's, and it was one of those books where I'm fighting the urge to speed through the chapters in order to get back to the other character.

Hm... Amadé. YES. That's all I have to say there.

Fireworks are the strongest source of hope I've ever thought of. That, and sunlight. Starlight. Any kind of light that takes your breath away. That's the idea, right? God, I loved this book. I can't even type because I'm so desperately trying to keep from giving too many spoilers.

I loved it, I loved it, I LOVED IT! I'm buying this book the first chance I get. The relationships are breathtaking, the landscapes are enthralling, the characters are so incredibly three-dimensional that they're five-dimensional, and the storyline is one that I'm not going to forget anytime soon. The lost prince is someone who was only vaguely mentioned in my class, and now I regret the chance that I can't spark up a debate since we're done with the French Revolution now.

I'll stop there before I get carried away. Teehee! Anyway, HIGHLY recommend this book! Please read it! Ten out of five stars, go for the gold. Rain stars from the sky. God, I loved that quote. I read it about three times before I could keep going.

A big thanks to Wordbird for posting this on her blog!

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Reading: Nothing. ):

Watching: Weather Channel. It be stormin' here.

Listening to: Nascent Requiem - Masashi Hamauzu

Quote: "I will rain down silver and gold for you. I will shatter the black night, break it open, and pour out a million stars. Turn away from the darkness, the madness, the pain. Open your eyes and know that I am here. That I remember and hope. Open your eyes and look at the light."

Worlds in Ink

I love the smell of books. I love to flip through the pages and stare at the words someone else has created. I love reading the excerpts on the front flap and back cover and thinking about how antagonizingly interesting they are. I love listening to the pages turn, and I love staring at the cover and thinking about how that cover relates to the book. I have a love affair with books, like Leisel Meminger in The Book Thief. (Sorry, just finished it a few days ago. The story's still stuck in my head.) Sometimes it's enough that I don't want to read the book—just stare at the cover, and admire the words without scanning them.

Of course, I wouldn't resort to stealing them—no matter how tempting it might be. It's so much fun to imagine the day that we'll walk into a bookstore and see our own titles sitting on the shelf, waiting for someone else with a love affair with books to pick it up and open the book just to hear the pages turn and gaze at the cover like a lost lover. There's been times I'll hold a book upside-down so I don't recognize the text and wonder if that font might be the one for my book.

A fantasy shared by all writers, right? I hope so...! Books can be so terribly distracting, so gratefully distracting. That's the magic of it. Knowledge stored within adventure of the eyes, emotion stored within ink. Love, hate, agony, curiosity, anxiety, naivety—the world is no stranger to them. But we love books for that very reason. We can experience that hate, love, and agony through pages. We get to experience it through someone else's eyes, especially if it's too much for us to handle.

Books are a godsend. For some reason this just came into my mind, something I've known all-too-well since the third grade. But it was just a chiming musical note today. I sat in my dad's chair (yes, we classify our home's chairs!) and stared at the book I was reading, and thought, "Books are great."

It just suddenly seemed like no one appreciates that gift as much as they should. I know that not everyone cares to read, but a lot of people I know don't seem to give it a chance. Let me stop before I turn this into a sob story. It was just something I wanted to get off my chest. I have a book sitting next to me right now. I like that, too. It's like having a whole cast of people sitting next to you, whispering to you and begging you to read them. Back to the terribly distracting!

It's just a sensation that I love, and I thought I would share it. Brief, but I like to jam a lot into something small. Bad habit... or good? Who knows? That's the magic of words, writing, and books in general. To be truthful, for writing, anything goes. Create a world out of words and nurture it. Nurture it until it blossoms from an infant to an adult that can hold out on their own and influence the entire world.

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Listening to: Driving All Night - X-Ray Dog
Reading: Revolution - Jennifer Donnelly
Quote: "Even a genius cannot change the world alone. It isn't for us to change the world. We can only aid that process." — L (Ryuzaki) / L: change the WorLd / "M"

Progress in a Valley of Confusion

Each day I get more and more perplexed. I'm pretty sure that creating this blog is one of the most beneficial things I've done, however. The thing that confuses me though... and I apologize for devoting an entire blog post to questions, but...

How are all the people that I see without contracts getting all over the place to book signings and such? What is this "ARC" thing I keep reading when I see reviews (prepared to feel very stupid upon a possible answer, haha!)? How does everyone keep meeting/befriending published authors? Perhaps it has something to do with my living in a very, very small town.

And for something less worldly, what do I blog abouuuut? I hardly see any posts like this, and these are the ones I like doing the most. Maybe it's a personal preference, I don't know. Pout. It seems like the majority I see are book reviews, but of course we're talking about me—lazy-as-heck central!—doesn't like looking up the book information! Maybe it's time for me to get off my bum for good.

I'm getting more friends though :D

But I'm glad to say I AM making progress somewhere amidst all this confusion! Flame Dancer is moving along nicely (and hopefully I'll get over this sudden case of laziness soon. Hopefully next week). Hate to say book 3 is on major hiatus thanks to progress on 1 and 2, but I'll get there... eventually... no matter how much it tortures me...

That's all, folks. I should have something a little more entertaining next time!

Reading: Personal Demons - Lisa Desrochers
Listening to: Fabula Nova Crystallis - Masashi Hamauzu
Watching: Toy Story
Quote: "If there's a Hell on Earth, it's high school." - Luc Cain / Personal Demons / Lisa Desrochers

Book Survey

Teehee, I'm copying Wordbird's style until my creativity comes back.

1. One book that changed your life?

A Voice in the Wind - Francine Rivers. I'm not usually a Christian fiction reader, but it's set in Rome! Come on. The author's voice took my by surprise and really carried me through the hardships the protagonist had to face and really put a new perspective on things for me. It was learning without realizing it, too.

2. One book you have read more than once?

Inkheart - Cornelia Funke. It's more of a middle grade novel, but I've never grown out of it. I love being transported between worlds, and I love the characters. Note: Movie is HORRIBLE.

3. One book you would want on a desert island?
Where the Red Fern Grows - Wilson Rawls. My favorite book to this day since the first time I read it in third grade.

4. One book that made you laugh?

Evermore - Alyson Noel for the fabulous gaydar joke.

5. One book that made you cry?

Marley & Me - John Grogan. I was sick when I finished it, and that didn't help matters.

6. One book you wish had been written?
The Iron King - Julie Kagawa. Just because it would be such an awesome thing to say: "I created Ash! :D"

7. One book you wish had never been written?Animal Farm - George Orwell. Sorry, the book did not appeal to me when I read it. At all. I thought it was ridiculous. And my teacher knew it when she saw the answers to my questions. I wasn't very sympathetic. How ironic: the magic-myth-animal-loving writer hates a book about an animal dictatorship.

8. One book you are currently reading?

The Book Thief - Markus Zusak. This is a reread. :D

9. One book you have been meaning to read?
Revolution - Jennifer Donnelly.

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Well, that was reminiscent and brief. (: I should probably put links to all these books but I don't know where to link them to... baaaah humbug.

I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore | Review



Title: I Am Number Four

Author: Pittacus Lore [Pseudonym]

Published: August 3, 2010

Number of Pages: 440

SYNOPSIS

In the beginning they were a group of nine. Nine aliens who left their home planet of Lorien when it fell under attack by the evil Mogadorian. Nine aliens who scattered on Earth. Nine aliens who look like ordinary teenagers living ordinary lives, but who have extraordinary, paranormal skills. Nine aliens who might be sitting next to you now.

The Nine had to separate and go into hiding. The Mogadorian caught Number One in Malaysia, Number Two in England, and Number Three in Kenya. All of them were killed. John Smith, of Paradise, Ohio, is Number Four. He knows that he is next.

I AM NUMBER FOUR is the thrilling launch of a series about an exceptional group of teens as they struggle to outrun their past, discover their future—and live a normal life on Earth. [from Goodreads]

I AM NUMBER FOUR.
I AM NEXT.

Quote

"Hope?” [Henri] says. “There is always hope, John. New developments have yet to present themselves. Not all the information is in. No. Don’t give up hope just yet. It’s the last thing to go. When you have lost hope, you have lost everything. And when you think all is lost, when all is dire and bleak, there is always hope.”

Review [My first ever... bear with me!]

When I started seeing the trailers for I Am Number Four, I was instantly interested. I didn't really plan on getting the book until my mom got it for me, though. Then it kind of lounged around on my bookshelf until I finished The Iron Fey by Julie Kagawa, and then I got around to this. I'm not usually fan of present tense books, but I don't mind them. After all, I read The Immortals... (okay, so I read the first four. The fourth one killed it for me, though.) The book gets a 4/5.

It begins with Number Three's untimely death.

The beginning kept my interest. John, Daniel at the time, is immediately put on the run for what seems like the hundredth time in his ten years on Earth while his third scar sears into his ankle. He is next in line to die. Already you're on the edge of your seat, wondering how long it's going to take for the Mogadorians to find him.

Unfortunately, you don't get much action in the beginning. At all. That was really the only downer for me in the book. It goes into a brief slump for the first two chapters or so, but there's enough mystery that forces you to keep moving along. John goes to school and immediately obtains a crush, an enemy, and a friend. A nerdy one who loves aliens, at that—ah, irony. Once Halloween arrives, that was when the book was unputdownable.

Sarah, Sam, and John are tricked onto the Halloween ride and ambushed by Mark and his friends. This is when John uses his power to its fullest in order to get revenge on the jock who thinks he can take on an alien. At school reading this, it was half tempting to start shouting out loud, "Throw him halfway across the US! Not into the water!" At his victory it makes you so excited to find out what happens next—what's Sam thinking? The alien-lover—has he figured it out?

From there on the book moves at a comfortable pace that lets you relax for a few seconds, and then jerks you onto the edge of your seat—trying to hold on when you're on the wing of an airplane. Whether it's just a small surprise or something phenomenal, you're gripped. At Henri's disappearance in Athens, I was jerking around the entire time I was reading the book. I missed an entire two hours of history and English just to figure out what John would do. His Legacies kick in, and I'm hopping up and down in my seat.

Bernie Kosar... I think he's one of my favorite characters! You immediately know there's something different about him, but it wasn't until John started his jogging sessions with Bernie Kosar that I started to suspect his true identity. I'm a sucker for any kind of animal bonding in books, and I loved Bernie Kosar. John's relationship with animals never really struck me until the end when you... well, nevermind. Read.

Anyway, two paragraphs back is when the true conflict gets going. John's relationship with Sarah and Sam intensifies, even his relationship with Henri deepens even though they've lived together for a decade. John's Legacies intensify, and the raw detail that Pittacus Lore (I love that pseudonym. I did a double take when I read it in the book) uses to describe John's progression makes you feel as if you're the one training with Henri. Learning to fight, immersed in fire. It was a very refreshing first-person view book for me.

The final conflict and the arrival of the final main character blew my socks off! The climax being staged at the school? Classic! Makes me want to go to school and see if anything epic happens to me there. Everyone comes for the final showdown—Henri, Mark, Bernie Kosar, Sarah... yes! Yes, yes! It was another one of those days where I missed two hours of class time, and then got in trouble for it. Then the finale came close to making me tear up, but I held out. I refuse to do that in school.

Seeing that this is probably long enough, I'll stop there. A bit wordy, [excuse] but it's my first review... [/excuse] It shall come with time and practice! I Am Number Four is recommended for anyone who wants a mix of high school romance, science fiction, action, and self-development.

Wait, one last thing! I Am Number Four definitely revolutionizes character development in YA unlike it's been seen for a long, long time. The Iron Fey goes through this, too—maybe that's why I loved these book so much. The last book I read that went through character development was The Book Thief. <3

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Reading: Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling

Listening to: Ragnarok - Masashi Hamauzu

Quote: "You know, your mood swings are kind of giving me a whiplash." - Bella Swan / Twilight / Stephenie Meyer

OMG I MADE TWO NEW FRIENDS. :DDDDD

Finishing A Book

After the final conflict is over, it's time for the closure. But where do you start? You're about to finish something you've spent months, maybe a year or maybe even years groveling over and pouring your heart and soul into. Do you really want to end it? If you're like me, you want it to be over and successful—but at the same time you're just about in tears.

With my first book, I stayed up two hours past by bedtime because I was on the final chapter. When I finished I was proud. I was about one hundred feet tall until morning. I got my parents up at one in the morning to tell them, "My book is done! Now to send to the publishers!" See last post. xD

Not quite that easy. I'm on my fifth rewrite of Flame Dancer. The fifth! And I love it each and every time I rewrite it. I've learned to look forward to rewriting it, because I get to relive the adventure with them.

But now I'm almost done with Flame Dancer: Final Mix (the offical version), the one that I won't edit until someone advises me to afterward (like a writer-friend, or an agent him/herself)... it's almost like a sense of losing a best friend. Part of me wants to forget some corrections in order to go back and fix them later, just to keep living the adventure with my characters. Maybe it's just me, but it's a very sad and happy experience for me to end a book.

I guess I could compare it to an athlete playing... football or something, and they run the ball the whole hundred yards. Your heart's pounding, your blood's pumping, and you're about to do the tap-dance you see football players do all the time on TV whenever they get a touchdown. You're on the verge of screaming to the world, "I am the king!!"

That's how it is for me. But at the same time my heart aches at the thought of ending it. Just thinking about the Flame Cycle makes me feel like I've been shot down. But I have a while yet—a long while, and I'm holding onto that thought.

Just another thing I thought I might get off my chest before I go to bed! [And figure out when I'm going to do my geometry homework tomorrow, since I spent the time to finish it writing this... (; ]

Listening to: Take Me Away - Taking Dawn
Reading: I Am Number Four - Pittacus Lore
Quote: "And so the hound weaves the final chapter in this tale of life..." - Dirge of Cerberus:Final Fantasy VII

NOTE: I don't proofread these before I post them. Sorry if any errors glare out at you like they do me—I don't know how to edit this thing yet. :P

A Perception of Agents and Experience

When it first came to my attention that in order to publish a book, I would need to get a literary agent first, I had one image in my mind: Imagine those "old" cartoons like Pokemon or Yu-Gi-Oh. How the bad guys are always in the shadows, a silhouette? That was my beginning idea of a literary agent. The more research I did, however, they started coming into the light.

I always imagine my agent as a woman. Maybe he or she won't be, but that's how I've always imagined it. Which is why my vision turned into a woman with stern eyes a set jaw, tight lips, and her hair up in a bun while dressed like a lawyer. In short, agents were extremely intimidating. When I started sending queries [that old, dusty, disaster of a query] and got my first rejection they slipped into the shadows again.

Upon more research, I decided to finally look through each and every agent with every query I sent. From then they started to look like their own person—it was a relief. I didn't feel quite as nervewracked each time I sent the letter because I knew a little of what I could expect if they were interested.

Then I found Kelly Mortimer, and her website put the proper perspective of agents into my mind: the one thing that I always thought agents would never have was a sense of humor. I reread her website just for the laughs, not the info. I was disappointed to see that she wasn't taking urban fantasy at the moment—but I couldn't resist! See, I had found my first agent-I-would-pick-if-I-had-an-option. So I sent, told her how surprised I was at the humor in her website, and got a reply.

At this point I was still imagining the woman in the lawyer suit, but they were smiling instead of the grim expression I always pictured. I got rejected by Kelly in the end, but not after getting an entire bucket of information that made [is making] all the difference. After the last few messages I sent Kelly, I finally got to the point that I imagine each agent as someone like me, actually. Professional whenever they should be, but laid back otherwise. Upfront about issues, ready to improve.

The other topic.

Recently I found the blog of another teen author, same age as I am and as far as I know also unpublished. I had a good idea of how close we were, in the writing stage that is. Then I actually looked through some of her works and got a bit of a shock: she's ten times better than I am. I dunno how she's not already published.

Big self-esteem hit, but hey. Maybe she's been writing for longer than I have, or maybe she's been writing for professional purposes for longer. I've only been trying to write professionally for the past three years. Maybe she had access to a better language arts program than me (I wouldn't be surprsied). Whatever the reason—and maybe there's no reason at all—it just gives me a reminder I always have more to learn. If anything, when she replies to a message I sent her (if she does), I can learn from her.

Anyway, I just wanted to get that off my chest. If any of you are curious to go to her blog (I recommend it! She has a lot of cool stuff on there!) here's the webpage: madeleinerex.com

Oh, and for once, I don't feel like writing. This is... momentous. And strange. :/

Listening to: Beginning of the End (Birth of a God) - Final Fantasy VII: Voices of the Lifestream
Reading: I Am Number Four - Pittacus Lore
(Was) Watching: Ghost Whisperer
Quote: "Her desires are mine. Her wishes are mine. Should even the world stand against her, my blade will be at her side. And should it fail to protect her, let my own existence be forfeit. This I swear, on my honor, on my True Name, and my life." - Ash / The Iron Queen / Julie Kagawaa

To Motivate, or Not to Motivate

I've been sitting in front of my computer screen for the last hour trying to get my lazy self to type something. Or edit something. Or revise something. Nada, zip, zilch. Maybe this'll get things pumping?

My Methods of Motivation and Idea-Making

1. Walk! iPod or no iPod, still great. Just pick that one topic you want ideas for, and think. At least you're getting exercise, haha.
2. Take a walk... with a friend! I just recently took a walk with my friend Darcy, and we talked about a few of my books and by the time I went home I was running for my notebook to write down the bucketload of ideas.
3. This one's funny, but bear with me — some random weeked, pretend you're in a movie! Make everything you do seem somehow movie-like. I went uptown last weekend and got a hot chocolate, pretended it was coffee (I don't like coffee, that's why I didn't get it in the first place), sat outside, and chilled out. Pretending I was a movie character that was in a deep, brooding mood. Doing little things like that can give you the foundation for scenes.
4. Take ideas from your dreams! I had a dream a few weeks ago about my teachers trying to kill me — mind you, they were part cannon — and within hours after waking up I had a new book idea on my hands.
5. Freewrite. Open a Word document, close your eyes, and write whatever comes into your head. I'm not the best at this, but it works now and then. But usually for me it ends up being like:

"I'm freewriting... what should I freewrite about... oh, this song is good. So hyper! But it's ten minutes long... hahaha. Um... my books. Flame Cycle. Book three is going to be awesome. Ashley slowly trudged forth through the piles of rocks that surrounded her..."

See?! Whoa! HAHAH! THAT JUST POPPED UP!
You just witnessed me get an idea. Now I have to figure out why she's trudging forth—is she tired, or sad? Is she hurt? Why are rocks surrounding her, and why are there piles? Did her friend (who controls the element of earth) have a power overflow, or is her arch nemesis (same) having a fit?

6. Sometimes, you have to do nothing. And just sit there. For possibly minutes, hours, or even days on end. Eventually the Word document will open itself, and words will fly over the page. Eventually. Or, you might have to open it yourself and write crap for a while.
7. Listen to new music. Pick your favorite from the list you've compiled, and create a scene to it. Usually music from video game or movie scores is ideal for this. Pick the mood of the scene, choose the characters for it, and see what happens.

8. If NOTHING is happening, you may have been writing crap. No joke. Remember reading earlier "Book 3 is going to be so awesome!" Yeah, it is... but I'm on Chapter 9 (out of forty-something) and haven't been able to get anything down. I went through the past few chapters, and... well, I think I want to rewrite them before going on. The dialogue is just words on a computer screen—you can't really feel it. 'Tis not acceptable.
9. Try what I'm doing and rant to a wall!
10. READ!

I'll leave it at that for now. (: Within the next week or two I'll try a little review for a book (I Am Number Four - Pittacus Lore) but I have to finish it first. Har har har...

GIVE ME OPINIONS! In your opinion, is this a good hook for the first sentence of a novel? Are you curious to know what's going on?
"The missing girl slipped into the alleyway almost unnoticed. Almost."

Later!

Listening to: Tumbling - Yoko Shimomura (Yep, the ten-minute one mentioned earlier x3)
Reading: I Am Number Four - Pittacus Lore
(Was) Watching: Stephen King's Tommyknockers
Quote: "If you live, it won't be the end. The Soul-Eaters will come after you. You can run or you can fight. There's always a choice." - Fin-Kedinn / Wolf Brother / Michelle Paver

New Blog, New Responsibility...

Allow me to introduce myself.

My name is Kendra. I go by many other names. Some friends know me as Kendra, some as Kenny and Kender; some who don't know me as well either call me Ryu or Sadie. All of these names are fine.

The first thing everyone should know is that I am a writer. Maybe I'm an amateur (seeing as I have been for the past five years), but with the recent help of literary agent Kelly Mortimer I'm well on my way, coming upon my evolution from a newbie to... whatever comes after. At least, I sure hope so!

I'll have to do some blog research before I put much down! For now I suppose I can put things about my book's editing process, how the agent hunt is moving along (right now... it's on hold), and my own tips on writing if I have any, book critiques? If I feel like it, I might put some stuff about my book's plot... who knows?

Life's been pretty hard on me lately... it feels like I'm carrying the world on my shoulders, and my patience wears thin. Music is a godsend, however! My friends are there, but lately I just want to be alone. Such a cliché. Enough of my melancholy!

Feel free to post suggestions for posts, questions, comments... to my currently nonexistent crowd.

The reason for my profile names
Kendra503: I like my name, and one of my favorite songs is called "503" off of the Angels and Demons soundtrack. Hans Zimmer = Amazing!
Flame Writer: Maybe it's silly to devote an entire blog to one book series, but the Flame Cycle (hence the name of the url) is my baby. I'll hold it dear forever. (:

Current
Listening to: Dust to Dust - Masashi Hamauzu
Reading: Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
Watching: NCIS
Quote: "I'll go through the whole thing, so you'll know how to answer next time. Knock, knock! Who's there? Puck! Puck who? Puck, who will turn you into a squealing pig and stuff you in the oven if you don't get out of our way!" - Puck / The Iron King / Julie Kagawa