Never Land

Novel Update: 5/29/2012

The goal today is finish writing part 6/9! It should be relatively short… I can do it.

I need to get this part written before my class begins, because part 7 will be the longest section of the novel, and I need to take a couple weeks writing it.

Currently at 38,409 words.

1 day ago

3 days ago

› Reflections of Self: 40 tips for a better year...

omphaloskeptical:

1. Take a ten to thirty minute walk every day. While you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.

2. Sit in silence for at least ten minutes each day.

3. Buy a DVR to tape your late night shows. Get more sleep as a result.

4. When you wake in the morning, complete the following…

5 days ago

I don’t know if this is strange, maybe it’s because I’m not satisfied with my writing skills, but I would never want people from my high school to read my novel if it’s ever published.

There are specific people who I can picture reading it and laughing, saying, “what, she thinks she can write? This is garbage! I can do this.”

I realize criticism comes with everything in life, and I am prepared for criticism, but I am not prepared for ridicule.

5 days ago

sillyunicorntime:

this post drives me crazy because you ACTUALLY COULD WRITE A WHOLE ESSAY ABOUT THE DESCRIPTION “THE APPLE WAS AS RED AS AN APPLE”
I MEAN HOLY FUCK THAT IS SOME DEEP SHIT RIGHT THERE EVEN OUT OF CONTEXT
i feel genuinely sorry for people who aren’t english majors

My immediate thought about the Lit test was “For starters…”

5 days ago

amandaonwriting:

Hilary Mantel - On Writing
Are you serious about this? Then get an accountant.
Read Becoming a Writer, by Dorothea Brande. Then do what it says, including the tasks you think are impossible. You will particularly hate the advice to write first thing in the morning, but if you can manage it, it might well be the best thing you ever do for yourself. This book is about becoming a writer from the inside out. Many later advice manuals derive from it. You don’t really need any others, though if you want to boost your confidence, “how to” books seldom do any harm. You can kick-start a whole book with some little writing exercise.
Write a book you’d like to read. If you wouldn’t read it, why would anybody else? Don’t write for a perceived audience or market. It may well have vanished by the time your book’s ready.
If you have a good story idea, don’t assume it must form a prose narrative. It may work better as a play, a screenplay or a poem. Be flexible.
Be aware that anything that appears before “Chapter One” may be skipped. Don’t put your vital clue there.
First paragraphs can often be struck out. Are you performing a haka, or just shuffling your feet?
Concentrate your narrative energy on the point of change. This is especially important for historical fiction. When your character is new to a place, or things alter around them, that’s the point to step back and fill in the details of their world. People don’t notice their everyday surroundings and daily routine, so when writers describe them it can sound as if they’re trying too hard to instruct the reader.
Description must work for its place. It can’t be simply ornamental. It usually works best if it has a human element; it is more effective if it comes from an implied viewpoint, rather than from the eye of God. If description is coloured by the viewpoint of the character who is doing the noticing, it becomes, in effect, part of character definition and part of the action.
If you get stuck, get away from your desk. Take a walk, take a bath, go to sleep, make a pie, draw, listen to music, meditate, exercise; whatever you do, don’t just stick there scowling at the problem. But don’t make telephone calls or go to a party; if you do, other people’s words will pour in where your lost words should be. Open a gap for them, create a space. Be patient.
Be ready for anything. Each new story has different demands and may throw up reasons to break these and all other rules. Except number one: you can’t give your soul to literature if you’re thinking about income tax.
This advice first appeared in The Guardian
Hilary Mantel is an English novelist, short story writer and critic. In 2009, she won the Man Booker Prize for her novel Wolf Hall.

5 days ago

6 days ago

Summer Trip

This summer a goal was to take the Amtrak somewhere I’ve never been, and I think I might want to go to Washington D.C. I’ve never been there, it’s a solid train trip, and it’s relatively cheap.

It’s about $140 for roundtrip. And I’m sure I can find a pretty cheap hotel for $80/night. Stay for 3 nights.

That way I can see the White House, go to the Jewish museum, and visit art museums. I also just want to be somewhere unfamiliar to me. It would be nice to hangout with Zac while he’s interning.

This wasn’t related to writing, but I didn’t want to post it on my personal blog.

1 week ago

amandaonwriting:

Uncovering YA Covers: 2011

1 week ago

Trying to come up with an idea for a series is much more difficult when all the cool series ideas are taken. All I have is the scene.

I don’t even need to think about this now, I just wish I had a cool idea.