RTW- Best book of February

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question that begs to be answered.


What was the best book you read in February?


This is a tough one to answer because I read so many amazing books this month.
My reading list for this month includes The Fault in Our Stars, The Mostly True Story of Jack, The Scorpio Races and Divergent. So yeah, how do I pick from those.




I loved The Scorpio Races.  The writing and the story was beautiful.  I loved the characters and I seriously wanted to move to the island of Thisby when I was finished with this book. 







I won Divergent from Colin D. Smith. This was another one of those books that totally sucked me in.  Maybe it is because I went to Chicago last summer to watch the Minnesota Twins play. Of course I did all the touristy things like Navy Pier (my friend works at a theater there) and the John Hancock building. (The lounge offers amazing views for the price of a $15 cocktail) Reading a story set in a future Chicago was really fun.
The story was exciting and compelling and I couldn't put this book down.  Can't wait until May when Insurgent comes out.

































What were your favorite reads of February?

RTW- Black History Month

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question and answer it on our own blogs. 

February is Black History Month and it's also the month of Valentine's Day. So let's show some writerly love by answering the following question: Who is your favorite African American author or fictional character?

One of my favorite African American authors is Toni Morrison.  I read The Bluest Eye in college and this book is one that stuck with me.  The story is about Pecola Breedlove, a seven year old who wishes to look like the blond haired, blue eyed images she sees everywhere.  

Even though this book was set in 1940 and I feel like we've made some progress I feel like it rings true today.  The blonde ringlet haired image on the tea cup in this book has been replaced by a blonde princesses and fairies. I often see kids in my neighborhood waiting for the bus with images of Tinkerbell and Cinderella on their backpacks and lunch boxes and I think of The Bluest Eye.

DIY stand up desk

I've wanted to make my desk into a standing desk for a while.  I read an article last year in the SCBWI Bulletin about treadmill desks.  I've read lots of articles about how sitting for long periods of time is bad for health.  Last year I swapped my chair for a stability ball but kept dreaming of a standing desk. 

A treadmill desk isn't realistic for me since I live in a condo and have neighbors.  

I thought about doing something like this but the wind trainer on my bike too loud.

photo from Obesity Panacea

My job is actually a lot of standing since I stand while I iron and while waiting for quick changes but I sit a lot while writing.

I have this desk that I got from IKEA a few years ago. The thing took me three days to build when I bought it.  

I'd been thinking if I move my printer to the bottom part and put my laptop on the top part I could stand while working.

The shelf ended up being a little high for me but I added a ministepper which give me a little height and makes this like my own little version of a treadmill desk.

One thing I noticed is that while standing at the computer I'm more focused.  I feel like I haven't spent as much on sites like Facebook because it is easy to limit time on these sites when I'm standing rather than sitting.

Does anyone else have a standing or treadmill desk?  

Books make the best gifts

Two years ago my dad got remarried to a woman he met in Mexico.  His wife has a daughter which means that I have a 10 year old stepsister.

Me and Hannia with a dolphin

I love giving books to kids I know plus the fact that I read MG and YA means that I usually give a book that the reader likes.

My dad expressed an interest in books for he and Hannia to read together so I stocked up on my some of my favorite books. Since Hannia speaks Spanish as her first language I also tried to find books in Spanish. I ended up with a stack of classics like Charlotte's Web, The BFG, the first two Harry Potter books and as well as Esperanza Renace and El Bosque de los Pigmeos both in Spanish.

Yesterday I got a thank you email from my dad saying they are currently reading Charlotte's Web and Esperanza Renace (Esperanza Rising in Spanish) together.  They are very thankful for the Spanish books as he says they are harder for him to find.

My dad isn't a big reader unless the book is about computer-y things.  He is also a dad and not a mom, meaning he doesn't think about things like thank you cards and stuff so to get a thank you email from him is a pretty big deal.  

I am now off to my local Savers in hopes of finding more books in Spanish.

What books have you given that have been a big hit with the recipient?

12 x 12 update

Earlier this year I signed up for the 12 x 12 in 12 challenge on Julie Hedlund's blog .

The challenge is to write 1 picture book draft a month for the year.  So far this challenge is going well for me.  It has also been a lot of fun.

The other day a friend of mine from work dropped the most PB idea in my lap so I have been working on that and I'm excited to see where it will end up.

I don't want to give away too much but the story happens to be about a dog. Even tough I'm a cat owner I like writing about dogs.  One of my cats also acts more like a dog than a cat most days.

I love how a conversation can spark an idea.  I love how listening to friends can make me say "That would make a good picture book."

Where do you get your ideas?

RTW-Jinx

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question and answer it on our own blogs.


This week's question

What SNI were you psyched to work on, but discovered it was too close to something already done?

I was totally psyched to work on my 2010 NaNoWriMo novel.  It was going to be set at a drama camp. Musical numbers, jazz hands.  The campers were going to perform my favorite musical, Guys and Dolls. I was even going to try to have a little mystery as part of the plot. It was going to combine my life in theater with my love of writing.  It was going to be like Glee for books. I worked on it and it turned out how most of my NaNo projects turn out which is to say it was a 50,000 word mess.  

Watching the 2011 Tony's and keeping my fingers crossed for the cast of a show I worked on and seeing what Twitter had to say about it I discovered that someone else had already written a book that takes place at theater camp where there is a production of Guys and Dolls.  Dramarama by E. Lockhart. 

I haven't worked on my summer theater camp story since I crossed the 50,000 mark in November of 2010.  I still hope to someday write a story that involves theater but I'm not sure my summer theater camp story is the right one.

RTW- Best book of January

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question that begs to be answered.




This week's question
What was the best book you read in January?


For me the best book was Linger by Maggie Stiefvater


 

I have to confess this book and series kind of surprised me.  I didn't think I was going to be interested in a book about wolves but this book sucked me.  Actually it wasn't the wolves that got me into this book, it was Mercy Falls being in Minnesota that sucked me in.  This series surprised me because I liked the second book even better than the first.  I like that Grace and Sam's story gets more complex in this book as Sam finds himself human but Grace finds herself feeling more like a wolf.  The addition of Cole and Isabelle's povs also sucked me in.


Other January books
My goal in January was to read some of the books I had on my Kindle.  I'm not sure if other people who own readers find themselves buying ebooks when they are at a lower price.  I do.  I decided I needed to read some of these books before I could buy some of the regularly priced ebooks on my list ($9.99)

A Scary Good Book by Anita Laydon Miller- Loved this great mystery.  Fans of Nancy Drew and other mystery books will love Hannah Stone and how her love of reading lands her in the middle of solving a mystery.

The Absolute Value of -1 by Steve Brezenoff- I really like Brooklyn Burning so when I saw this book on sale on amazon I bought it.  I liked the povs of the three characters and how they see this one event.  Even though the characters appear to be best friends they actually know very little about each others lives.

Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski- I snagged this book for 99 cents from the Epic Reads, Epic Deals sale.  This book was fun and reminded me of when I had my first apartment with my best friend after college.

What was your favorite book of January?

Friday Fives- Contemporary YA faves

Paper Hangover asks the question What are your five favorite contemporary novels?

I love contemporary YA. I read plenty of fantasy and paranormal romance but when I pick up a contemporary YA it is like getting together with an old friend.

1. Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen- I always feel like I have so much in common with characters in a Sarah Dessen novel.  This one reminded me of summers working at an ice cream store on the boardwalk.


2. The Earth, My Butt and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler


3. The Duff


4. Gingerbread by Rachel Cohn- I realize these books have been out for a while now but I still love them and pretty much anything by Rachel Cohn.


5. Looking for Alaska by John Green

Getting caught up

The last week of my life has been taken over by bronchitis.

I didn't know I could be so tired.  Or sick. I spent two days sleeping on the couch and watching netflix.  I finally tried to leave my house to go to work for a few hours on Thursday but ended up coughing so much and feeling so awful that I went to Urgent Care.

I'm behind on my goals and challenges but I will get caught up.

I'm continuing to rest a little today since I go back to work tomorrow and there is no resting at work.

Eavesdropping

My writing group meets once a week at a space downtown.

Since the nature of the location where we meet is all about writing there are other writing groups who meet there including a group of NaNoWirMo-ers who meet year round and another group of kid lit writers.  

It usually works out that the other group of kid lit writers sits next to us.  I have to admit that when this happens my writing slows down.  They talk about books I've read.  

Sometimes I want to jump in on their conversations.

For example a couple weeks ago they were talking about The Wolves of Mercy Falls books by Maggie Stievater and I almost had to jump in and say that I was reading those and really enjoying Linger and thought it was better than Shiver.  

I think what makes it hard not to eavesdrop on the other writing group is that they are sort of the "cool table" of kid lit writers at the coffee shop.  From the names and activities that these people talk about I think they are probably in the nearby MFA program.  The fact that they talk about books we've read and writers we've heard of means we always have one ear on their table. 

I have to say that while I enjoy the discussions my word count takes a nose dive when they show up so this week I'm going to change where we sit and hopefully stay more focused on my own writing time.  

Do you write in coffee shops?  What interesting conversations do you eavesdrop on?

Book Recommendation- Little Blog on the Prairie

I just finished reading Little Blog on the Prairie by Cathleen Davitt Bell.

In this book the main character, Gen, finds herself at Frontier Camp with her family for the summer instead of spending the summer at soccer camp and the pool with her friends.

The camp puts families into an 1890's frontier life where they must learn how to farm, cook, do laundry, milk cows and raise chickens.

Gen leaves her iPod with the camp director but manages to sneak a cell phone which she uses to secretly text her friends back home.  

All these texts about life on the prairie are being turned into a blog by her friends called "Little Hell on the Prairie"

Fans of Little House on the Prairie books will enjoy this modern day take on prairie life.

A few years ago I got to work on the musical version of Little House on the Prairie.  There was an event in this book that totally reminded me of an event in that play (also in the books).

At the theater I often see people in costumes from a specific time period using cell phones and other modern day technology.  It is always pretty cool to see.  There was a scene in this book that totally reminded me of seeing actors using technology while in costume.

There are other kids at the camp including a goth girl in a blended family of blonde sporty types, the cute boy, and the camp directors' daughter, Nora.

Fans of Little House books and the show Frontier Life will love this book.  It is also the perfect book for the middle grade readers that can be hard to shop for.

More Challenges for 2012

Last week I posted about Comment Challenge 2012, a challenge to comment of five blogs a day.  Through that challenge I've discovered another challenge.

The 12 x 12 in 12 Challenge

Hosted by Julie Hedlund at Write Up My Life

The challenge is to write one picture book manuscript a month for the year.

Since I'm looking for ways to write more and to keep me on track with my writing I am totally doing this.

In the past I've taken classes which have kept me on track writing wise but this last year the place where I take classes has offered fewer classes because they aren't filling up.  They are also shifting to more online classes which is great because it means more people can take classes but it also means that classes are a little out of my price range now.  This challenge will help me stay on track.

I've recommitted to my daily writing practice so I've been feeling less stuck in some of my projects.

Want to be a better writer? Listen to an audiobook.

One of my best discoveries of the last year was audiobooks.  I never really listened to audiobooks before. I've tried in the past but when I'd listen in the car I'd always end up turning the volume down and missing part of the book.

I recently rediscovered audiobooks during a week working in the costume shop and I totally love them.

I'll let you in on a secret.  I think that listening to audiobooks is making me a better writer.

I was an independent reader growing up.  I grew up with a single parent.  My mom read to us but since I was an independent reader I probably gravitated to reading on my own pretty early.
Other than going to author readings and events it has been forever since I listened to a story being read to me.

Listening to audiobooks has helped me pay more attention to pacing in my own writing.  As I'm writing I begin to wonder how this would sound being read aloud.  Is the pacing right?  Is the language fresh?  Is the writing concise?  Is there a good mix between dialog and description?

Do you listen to audiobooks?  How do they help your writing?
 

My mom rocks

Yesterday was my birthday and I enjoyed a wonderful day with my mom.  

We went to see War Horse.  She confessed after seeing the movie that she'd seen it the week earlier but she still cried for the last 20 minutes of the movie and tearfully declared, "I think it was better than Secretariat."

If you are looking for inspiration on getting things done look no further than my mom.  She is committed to fitness and wanted to get her workout in. This isn't a new thing, she did a triathlon with me last year and wants to stay in shape for this year's triathlon.  I had to work in the evening so she was going to go to my gym and pay for a guest pass.  Parking is crazy at my gym at 6 p.m. so she went to my house and googled the location of the nearest YMCA (she's a member at the YMCA in Iowa so she can go to a YMCA for free).  She found her way there even though I'd gotten lost earlier that day trying to show her where it was.  I thought it was impressive that she went to a gym she'd never been to in a city that is not her own and got her work out in, no excuses. Go Mom.  What will you do to complete your goals today?    

I'm busy getting caught up and responding to birthday comments and blog comments.  I also signed up for  the Comment Challenge 2012 , a challenge to comment on 5 kid lit blogs a day for the next 21 days. 

RTW- Writer's Retreat

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question that begs to be answered. 


Describe your dream writing retreat. Where would you go? Who and what would you bring?

For a couple years I've wanted to go to Madeline Island School of the Arts.  It is located on Madeline Island, which is amazing.  They offer classes in writing, photography, quilting, and art.  I tried to go a couple years ago but they weren't quite up and running yet with their classes.  

I'm patiently waiting to find out what my schedule looks like after Aug. 20 so I can see if a fall trip to MISA would work out for me.  

I've also considered renting a writer's studio at The Loft.  So far I haven't been able to justify this expense since I already live by myself and don't have to worry about distractions that some writers worry about.  Other than the cats I really don't have a lot of other distractions.  Renting a studio at the Loft feels like it would be a way of committing to my writing and really setting aside a time and space to do it in. 

Friday Fives- Best Books of 2011

Paper Hangover asks the question What are your five favorite books in 2011?

1. Plain Kate by Erin Bow- The writing in this book was beautiful.  The story was beautiful and the main character, Plain Kate was so compelling.  Seriously if you haven't read this book you need to.  For real

2. Beauty Queens by Libba Bray- This book was hilarious.  Seriously I laughed so many times while reading this book several times.  It is also an interesting book about some of the pressure society puts on girls/women.  Check it out.  I also highly recommend listening to the audio book because it is read by Libba Bray and the voices she does for the characters are pretty awesome.

3 Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu- I just loved this new take on the Snow Queen story.  The main character, Hazel, is so brave.  Any kid would be lucky to have a friend like Hazel in their lives.

4. Matched by Ally Condie- I've heard mixed reviews on this one but I really liked this book.  I loved the use of poetry and the decisions that Cassia has to make.

5. Where She Went by Gayle Forman.  I really enjoyed this follow up to If I Stay.  I read it in an afternoon while on vacation and could not put it down.  I really loved seeing where these characters went with their lives and how they end up back in each other's lives.

What were your favorite reads of 2011?

Goals and such

With Christmas over, New Year's and my birthday are approaching.  This means I have to get my goals in order for the next year.  Since my birthday is right after the beginning of the New Year I always feel extra pressure to get my goals and resolutions right because I don't really get the luxury of a spring, summer or fall birthday to take stock of goals later in the year.

I feel like I've been stuck on my current revision so getting that finished is at the top of my goal list.

Writing more is on my list.

One thing I'd really like to do is rearrange my desk and possibly make it so I can stand while I work.

In 2011 I read 60 books.

I need to learn to say no to outside things.  Right now I'm worried I've said yes to too many outside things.  I need to remember that these things are not writing and that they take time away from my writing.  Hopefully I can figure out which little things to keep and which to let go as the year goes on.  I think I'm too good at manifesting some things that I think I need for example a wish for a "little part time job, a few hours a week, with lots of flexibility" has turned into 3 little jobs that fit that description.  I wish I could do the same with books.

So those are the things I plan to work on in the New Year.

Do you make resolutions or goals for New Year's or your birthday?  Are your goals writing related?

RTW-Book buying

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question that begs to be answered.


Where do you buy most of your books? No one is judging.


I got a Kindle last year for Christmas so a lot of my book purchases have been amazon e-books this year.


There also happens to be a half price books on the way home from my chiropractor so I tend to stop there on the way home from my chiro appts.


I also go to the Wild Rumpus.  It is a wonderful children's bookstore in the Linden Hills neighborhood of Minneapolis. The selection for kid and teen lit is amazing.   

Harry Potter Quilt- Finished product

Some of you have been following my progress on this quilt.  I am happy to report that it is finished.  In time for Christmas.

I'm not sure if I could have finished it in time without prodding from my coworker who was helping me and encouraging me.  Later on I'll have to do a post on how quilting is like writing but for now just a done quilt. 

If you missed any squares or want to see something up close check out these posts.

Marauder's Map

Hogwarts Crest and borders

Platform 9 3/4, Fawkes and Invisibility Cloak

Sorting Hat

Monster Book of Monsters

Patronus

Golden Snitch

Firebolt

Deathly Hallows

Hedwig

Chocolate Frogs and Bertie Bott's

Whomping Willow

Deja Vu and Friday Fives

DL Hammons, Lydia Kang, Creepy Query Girl and Nicole Ducleroir are hosting the Deja Vu Blogfest today.

Basically you repost a favorite blog post.  Some of my favorite people in the world are my family members and this post about my Aunt Ursula is still one of my favorites.

I would have given anything to be like...

My Aunt Ursula. Ursula is my dad's youngest sister. Ursula is awesome. Ursula came to visit us when she was sixteen on her summer road trip. She got to travel the county by herself visiting relatives by herself. How cool is that? She had the feathered hair and blue eye shadow that all the teenagers in the movies had. Feathered hair was cool. Blue eye shadow was cool. My hair would not feather like hers with all the hairspray in the world. I'm pretty sure she was the coolest person I had ever met.

She lived in Texas. She had a cool name.

She could talk back to my dad and get away with it.

In addition to the feathered hair and eye shadow she also had her own horse.

I spent three weeks by her side. We went to the movies. We watched MTV. There were still music videos on MTV. I listened to her stories about her horse and her dogs. She came on vacation with us. She helped us build the biggest sand castle in the resort sand box. She invited all the kids who were staying at the resort that week to help with the sand castle.

Instead of swimming like my siblings and I she covered herself in tanning oil and spent her days sunning herself on a blow up air raft. I wanted to tan too but I loved swimming more.

This was the last vacation we would take as a whole family. My parents got divorced after this vacation. Being around Ursula helped me forget that my parents were fighting all the time. She was like a shield during this stressful time at the end of my parent's marriage.

Eventually my parents got divorced. A couple years later my stepsister Gail would enter my life. She was cool in my eyes for a lot of the same reasons that Urs was cool. Feathered hair, horse, awesome music, make up and cool clothes. I wanted to be like her too.

Who would you give anything to be like?

Paper Hangover asks a weekly question.  This week What are your five holiday wishes?

1. Books.  I love books.  I have a reading list that is bigger than my bank account so I love books.

2. Snow.  I live in Minnesota and right now it's pretty green/brown outside.  Last year at this time we were still digging out from an epic snow storm and while I don't wish for that I need some white stuff on the ground.

3. I'm not sure if Santa can do anything about this but I'd really like to see something I've written become a book.

4. Socks.  The fact I live in MN means I also love socks.  SmartWool socks are my favorites.  

5. I wish for an improvement to this tough economy.  This economy has created so much need.  I'm blessed at this season to have a job and a home I can afford.  I wish the same for all the people who have been effected by this economy.