I got the Complete Fairy Tales of Oscar Wilde as a birthday gift. Started reading it on my vacation. A lot of nice short stories in here. My favorite so far is the Nightingale and the Rose. Wanted to share a line from it that was very true to me.
"What a silly thing Love is. It is not half as useful as Logic, for it does not prove anything, and it is always telling one of things that are not going to happen, and making one believe things that are not true."
Sunday, June 7, 2015
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
The Wig in the Window by Kristen Kittscher
I first learned about this book from my coworker. His cousin wrote this book, the Wig in the Window, by Kristen Kittscher. It's a Middle Grade (8-12 year old), 368 page novel.
I loved the concept of two girls playing detective. Immediately I was drawn into this book, the characters are very much their age, middle schoolers, and their interactions and conversations are exactly what someone their age would think and say. The first chapter really hooks you in as they spy a teacher at her home whacking something and spraying what looks like blood all over herself.
My favorite scene is when she describes the S.M.I.L.E group for the first time. It was hilarious and I had to read it over a few times because it's a perfect example of show, don't tell. I could picture this group of girls in how annoyingly happy they are.
Little details like what the cafeteria is serving and references to Chinese tai chi moves add some humor to the story.
This book had a lot of twists and it's not obvious how it will end. Clues along the way help the reader draw their own conclusions. It had my interest until the very end. It's a good length for a child looking for a longer read. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone, even adults!
I loved the concept of two girls playing detective. Immediately I was drawn into this book, the characters are very much their age, middle schoolers, and their interactions and conversations are exactly what someone their age would think and say. The first chapter really hooks you in as they spy a teacher at her home whacking something and spraying what looks like blood all over herself.
My favorite scene is when she describes the S.M.I.L.E group for the first time. It was hilarious and I had to read it over a few times because it's a perfect example of show, don't tell. I could picture this group of girls in how annoyingly happy they are.
Little details like what the cafeteria is serving and references to Chinese tai chi moves add some humor to the story.
This book had a lot of twists and it's not obvious how it will end. Clues along the way help the reader draw their own conclusions. It had my interest until the very end. It's a good length for a child looking for a longer read. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone, even adults!
Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Winter Goal Update
Here's an update to my winter break goal: I finished Save the Cat and figured out the muddy middle to my plot! At least for now it works, I'm sure I'll have to go back and change some details but at least I have an outline. Writing out the beats was really helpful for this. I found a website with a beat sheet spreadsheet where you input your word count and it tells you where your beats should go:
http://lizwritesbooks.com/for-writers/savethecat/
My next writing goal is to get my second draft completed before the April SCBWI conference. It's sporty, especially since I'll be out of the country for half of March, so I've got my work cut out for me. Though my writing group has expressed interest in going to the LA conference in August. I can't afford both, but I'll consider LA, depending on cost.
And I am almost done with my oil painting. Already got ideas for my next one, so I'm looking forward to putting this one on the wall and starting my next one.
Here's to 2015!
http://lizwritesbooks.com/for-writers/savethecat/
My next writing goal is to get my second draft completed before the April SCBWI conference. It's sporty, especially since I'll be out of the country for half of March, so I've got my work cut out for me. Though my writing group has expressed interest in going to the LA conference in August. I can't afford both, but I'll consider LA, depending on cost.
And I am almost done with my oil painting. Already got ideas for my next one, so I'm looking forward to putting this one on the wall and starting my next one.
Here's to 2015!
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