Express Yourself: Scary Places (Wooooooo)

Happy Tuesday. :) The Cover Girls, aka Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and Dani @ Entertaining Interests provide these fun questions for us to get to know their readers a little better and vice versa. Feel free to join in and comment their posts with the link to yours.

This week, they ask: Where would be the scariest place to spend Halloween?

Anyone else live in a town or state that has an old, prominent family in it? Ours are the DuPonts, and my cousin got married in their Bellevue House (which was turned into a park by the DuPont children), which is a replica of James Madison's Montpelier. My sister saw a crawlspace in the women's bathroom. We saw a hidden door in the room where the ceremony was, and I was able to pull a piece of the fireplace's broken brick out to peek inside. I'm sure had I moved the rubble, there would've been a secret switch or something. We even took my mom up to the DuPont estate Wintherthur for her birthday last year (it's so big, it has its own zip code).

Old, scary houses, especially mansions, always bring old ghosts to mind (like the awesomely bad movie The Haunting). One day, I'm going to start writing a ghosts-in-the-mansion story, but it would need to be really original. lol

(Woooooooooooo)

Where do YOU think the scariest place to spend Halloween would be?

Relax, I'm On A New Book.

I'm pretty sure I bought this book a year ago now, and I'm finally about to read it. Natalie Whipple, the awesome author of the awesome Transparent books (still waiting for a third, but you know), is also the author of this one, and I can't wait to crack it open.

But first, let's see what's in store for me in this'n. There are 205 pages in the Kindle Edition, and Random.org has chosen page 167. Because, you know, it hates me. Let's see if I even remember how to get to the proper location on my Kindle.

"Do you have any tips on how to break the news to Mom?"

He laughed. My father, the ex-Akuma, laughed. Then he shook his head. "A sleeping tigress will be angry no matter how you wake her."

I sighed. Awesome advice.

Teehee.

Reading anything new? What do you think? Have you read any of Natalie's work? I love her.

Accidental Wednesday Words: Foreign

I forgot to post yesterday. At least I actually had work to do.

 Yesterday, I started reading Foreign, a self-published space opera by Alitha Martinez, who I met at our local Comic-Con this past..August? I think it was August. Time is flying. Anyway, Alitha started out as a comic illustrator, and she does BEAUTIFUL art. I bought three post-card prints of her characters, and I can't wait to have the space to stand them up. You can read a sample chapter of the above here, and enjoy the tatted man candy line-up behind it. hehe

But now, let me choose a line or two from a random page in the book. There are 133 pages with words on them, so using Random.org, we will look at page.....76.

(Pause: Page 73 has one of the prints I bought, a character I haven't met yet named Ricki. Her face is the backdrop of Alitha's homepage, Welcome to Ariotstorm. She's gorgeous! Unpause.)

Glass hulls offered a glimpse into an ideal society where there was no crime or fear; all of the citizens valued their hard-won independence too much to defile it. Every make, model, creed, code, and species lived side by side completely unconcerned with their differences.

Sounds like a utopia.

What are you currently reading? Care to share a line?

20 Things

Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone had a good Labor Day. I actually cooked. lol Nothing big, but just enough that there are leftovers. Yay.

So, this will hopefully be the last week I'm reading Cloud City, and I'm working on some #Pitmad pitches. I also joined a Facebook/Twitter group called #PitchWarriors, for those of us who didn't get picked for Pitch Wars. It's been a big mood uplifter and help.

So, to give y'all something more than an update, Heather Holden participated in "20 Things", a blog meme where you answer 20 questions about yourself. So I decided to follow suit. :)

How tall are you?

I am 5'3. Shorty!

Do you have a hidden talent? If so, what?

I like to do voice impressions. I can't do too many, but I try.

What is your biggest blog-related pet peeve?

Super long posts, especially on days like IWSG or A to Z, where they ask people to keep their posts short.

What is your biggest non-blog related pet peeve?

Ignorant people who speak before full understanding something. Or lazy dumb people. If you can help it, be smart. lol

What's your favorite song?

I have too many to name.

What is your favorite ETSY shop?

It's popular enough to have a question? lol

What's your favorite way to spend your free time when you're alone?

I try to do whatever I can because that's literally only one day in my week. But mainly, either play video games or watch movies.

What's your favorite junk food?

Chocolate! Or Pringles. I love Pringles.

Do you have pets?

Not at the moment. I'd love to get another cat or a puppy.

What are your favorite fiction and non-fiction books?

Does a medical dictionary count for non-fiction? I don't read any enough to have a favorite. Fiction, at the moment, N.K. Jemisin's The Broken Kingdoms and Kristin Cashore's Fire.

What is your favorite beauty product?

I don't have one.

When were you last embarrassed?

Oh my God, sit down for this one. So I'm in the Praise & Worship team at my church. We have a group on GroupMe to keep connected throughout the week. One day, I went to Miley Cyrus's Instagram page for some reason, and I saw this hilarious meme with Spongebob's face and a popular Big Sean song. It said UNCENSORED, "Roses are Red, Violets are Blue, You little stupid a** b****, I don't f*** with you." I copied the link to show my friends on another Groupme account. Later in the day, while on both my phone and laptop, I copied a Google Drive link on my laptop to paste for my cousin in the Praise & Worship GroupMe (I should stop here and say my mom and aunt are also on this team). Forgetting that I had copied the link on my laptop, I hit paste and send on my PHONE, which had the Spongebob Big Sean meme on the clipboard. I. Was. Mortified.

If you could drink one beverage for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Either Yoohoo or Dr. Pepper. I love those drinks.

What's your favorite movie?

Forrest Gump, The Matrix, Amelie, Serenity, The Color Purple, the list goes on.

What were you in high school? Prom queen, nerd, cheerleader, jock, valedictorian, band geek, loner, artist, etc?

I was the quiet writing chorus geek.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

Definitely the Grand Cayman Islands. Turtle farms!

PC or Mac?

PC. Mac's okay, but eh.

Last romantic gesture from a crush, date, boyfriend/girlfriend?

An ex-boyfriend recorded a Backstreet Boys performance that happened during a football game for me.

Favorite celeb?

I don't know if I have one, really.

Which blogger do you secretly want to be best friends with?

Heather seems an interesting person, lol. And definitely Mark the Koop man.

We're apparently supposed to tag people, but I'm a rebel, so if you want to answer the questions, you may do so, and let me know that you did, so I can read your answers! =D

Creating a Dynamic by Accident

(No Random Reading today. I'm still reading Cloud City. I blame Pitch Wars. Stalking is busy work.)

This is Cyan and Ghuli, my MC and her 1st Lt. Watchman from my current query and Pitch Wars entry The Crystal Bearer. When I started writing this story 12 years ago (sheesh), as a lover of Final Fantasy games, one dynamic I purposely wanted to maintain was that the action took precedent over whatever romance I had in mind (I had been writing fan fiction romance and YA romance in high school, so that was easier said than done). I stayed very true to that and made sure as my writing sharpened up, I made it make more sense.

No, these two aren't romantically linked, by the way. They're actually adopted brother and sister. Their dynamic was something totally out of left field for me. Draft after draft, their relationship grew into something plausible, something I feel people will actually be able to relate to. Especially adding my "bookends" to the story; it almost created a new story within the story, about how no matter what is going on, and how much fighting they actually do among themselves, their love for each other is so evident.

I wish I had a brother. lol

Pitch Wars and Random Words from the Jack Taylor Cases

There I was, giving up on watching the one Pitch Wars interview I finally got to watch because my cousin was over, and I happened to be in my email inbox when a Brenda Drake e-mail came through basically saying, "SURPRISE! THE PITCH WARS WINDOW IS OPEN NOW! GO GO GO!"

So, I submitted, and now I wait and stalk and wonder if the mentors I picked were talking about me at any point over the weekend. So nervous! I---ack! Can't talk about it anymore.

Years ago, I read my best friend from high school's debut novel Holiday Hotel (Jack Taylor Cases #1), and after not paying attention to the sequel's release, I saw on Facebook he was coming back to town for a book signing, so I finally bought the second book, Cloud City. I'm 2 years behind; the third book comes out this year, but anyway, if you like MG/YA Mystery and holiday spirits brought to life, you'll love these books.

Using Random.org, I will share with you a line from the book. Not sure if this is a good idea when it comes to a mystery; the chances are I'll give something away for myself, but hey, that's what I do.

There are 317 pages with words on them, and Random has chosen page 188, so let me look through...Yep, giving something away possibly. Sigh.

     A little over a minute later he heard another whisper in his right ear wave in and out as if breaking through barriers to get to him.
     ...Toymaker said they were unrecognizable, behind masks...

Creepy!

Express Yourself, Pitch Wars, and a New Ending

Happy Tuesday!

I'm still reading Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere, so pray for me. I've less than 100 pages left, and I might not pick up another Gaiman for a while. Anansi Boys was the best for me so far. I could've dealt without the rest. To supplement my Random-reading share, I'm bring you all last week's Express Yourself question!

This bloghop was created by the Cover Girls, Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie at Bouquet of Books. Not unlike Fast Five but more in depth, the ladies ask us a question each week so we can all get to know each other better. And speaking of mentors, last week, the ladies asked us to:

Name 3 people you want to learn something from.

Stevie Wonder - a musical prodigy! I would love to be able to play more instruments.

Stephen King - I need to know why so dark? lol

Joss Whedon - Because Browncoat.

Pitch Wars is now less than a week away, and I culled the mentor list last week, whittled my list down to those who wanted YA-Fantasy, then those who I felt gelled well, and then basically nit-picked until I had 5 mentors I'm ready to introduce to my baby.

Speaking of Writing, an amazing thing happened after I added this new scene that became a whole new chapter for my manuscript...A new ending! I'll admit, I had a lackluster "And they all lived happily ever after" going and didn't like it but wasn't sure what to do with it. But when I added the new opener, it was like a chain reaction happened, and I knew exactly how to end my story! Totally crazy thing to do when I'm talking about submitting to a contest in a week, but the beginning and the end tie in and compliment each other perfectly. They're like bookends in their parallelism, and I'm more than glad they're there now.

What 3 people would you like to learn something from? Are you entering Pitch Wars? Let me know!

Pitch Wars and Random Words from Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere

(Futurama - Bender "I'm Back, Baby.")

(Smooth McGroove: Final Fantasy VII Victory Fanfare A Capella)

I hope everyone is having a good summer and had a great June and July. I enjoyed my break, but I was itching to get back to blogging (hence my random blog in the middle of my break). And [in my Bill Nighy Viktor voice:] we have much to discuss...Selene and I.

Pitch Wars is around the corner! I believe I participated last year, because it was a label in my list of labels. The blog-hop of all of the participating mentors went up yesterday over at Brenda Drake's blog. You can research all of them and ask questions on Twitter via the hashtag #askmentor (I just learned you can link Twitter searches). I hope to get picked so I can see if a mentor is thinking what I'm thinking about changing my opening. I'm almost sure I need to, but I want to make sure.

On that note, I think I do because the agents I've queried aren't wowed by my opening. In my first drafts, I began in the thick of the action and received critiques asking, "But who are these people?" So, I added an opening scene showing who the people were, but I guess the calm before the storm is failing at the moment. If I make it, I definitely know what scene will be the new opening.

So that's what I'm doing with my writing. Now...

What am I reading? First off, I reached my goal of 20 books read this year! Many of them were graphic novels, but if I keep going, I might reach 30!

That being said, I'm trudging my way through Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere. I don't know why. It might not just interest me the way I thought it would, and it was a spur of the moment pick-up in the library. All of the books I bought at random waiting on my Kindle have a right to be mad.

Anyway, I'll still be using Random.org to show you all a line of my current read. There are 337 pages in Neverwhere, and Random has chosen page 126. I won't be randomly picking the line anymore. I'm returning myself the freedom to pick that myself. So here's a little bit from page 126.

There was a faraway screaming noise, thin and mindless, like an idiot child deprived of its toy. The smoke-tentacle let go of Richard's ankle and slid back over the edge of the platform, and it was gone.

Reading anything good right now? Are you thinking of entering Pitch Wars? Let us know if you're a mentor! See you tomorrow for IWSG!

Express Yourself: Eating While Writing?

Happy Tuesday!

Today is the day I answer the questions given to us by the ladies who created Express Yourself: Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and Dani @ Entertaining Interests. This week, they would like us to:

Name a few things we like to eat while writing.

Well, to be honest, I don't have any writing snacks. Is it just me? If I get hungry, I usually just eat whatever is available. I don't have a particular food I crave in my time of writing.

Well, that was anti-climactic. See you tomorrow!

Express Yourself Weekly: My Weird BFF

Throwback...on a Tuesday! lol It's time for Express Yourself, created by Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and Dani @ Entertaining Interests. These ladies bring us fun questions to answer weekly, and we're happy to oblige.

This week, they would like to know what quirks our best friends have that we adore.

Hm...trying to think if I like their quirks. lol

My best friend/cousin Candyce must know what happens at the end of books and movies. lol I'm not the kind of person who doesn't tell you if you ask, so I always answer her if we're watching a movie I've seen.

My best friend/sister Andréa likes to make random noises out of the blue. Just chilling, and then suddenly, high note for no reason.

They're both very silly.

Thursday Thoughts: Express Yourself Weekly

Hello again!

I am doing another Thursday Thoughts to catch up on the Express Yourself bloghop that is back in action! Visit the creators, Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie @ Bouquet of Books to see their answers, join the hop, and visit others who participate.

Last week, the ladies said: Tell us about something you haven't tried yet, but would like to.

I have yet to skinny dip. I'd like to. lol

This week, they said: We are 1/3 of the way through the year. Name something you have achieved thus far.

Well, I was published. So there's that. *dances* I will be mentioning that until my next publication happens. lol I also started querying again after a long bout of doubt and revisions. I can't wait to see what the rest of the year has in store for me. :)

Express Yourself Weekly: Changes

Welcome back to Express Yourself Weekly, brought to us by Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie @ Bouquet of Books to get to know us all a little better.

This week, they ask us: In the past year, what has been the biggest change for you?

Well, one year and two weeks ago, I finally escape temp work and was hired by the state for this casual/seasonal position. It was a big relief, as I was bored to death and barely making ends meet.

Unfortunately, I'm kind of in the same rut, but things are looking up. I need to be more positive and goal oriented in myself to get things going, and I think I can do it before next year hits.

Express Yourself Weekly: Life Advice

Welcome to Tuesday! Today is the day I answer the Express Yourself question given to us in the bloghop by Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie @ Bouquet of Books. You can join anytime you like from either of their pages!

This week, they ask a very good question: If someone asked your for a piece of advice about life, what would you say?

I would simply say, "Follow your instincts and go for it."

There were so many times I look back on and think, "I should've done this." Obviously, it wasn't meant to be if it didn't happen, and I am one of those "What-if" people. If you feel in your heart you're supposed to be doing something, and it eats at you each day that you don't do it, DO IT. No one knows you better than you, so make it happen.

Express Yourself Weekly: "I'm an expert!"

Happy St. Paddy's Day!

But it's also Tuesday, so it's time for...

This hop was created by Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie @ Bouquet of Books. You can join in on the weekly fun questions through their blogs.

This week they say: Everyone has at least one subject matter they are self-acclaimed experts in (Ex: pop culture, monsters, robots, etc). What is yours?

As most of you all know, I proclaim myself an expert of all things Final Fantasy! Unfortunately, I'm aware that that's not true, as I haven't been able to play all of the games yet. But I'm an expert at the ones that I say matter. lol FF6 through XIII, I am quite knowledgeable about, but I know the most about 7 through X-2.

My nephew-cousin (no hillbilly happenings; his mom is my cousin, and we are like sisters. lol) would have you believe I'm an expert in all things WWE, and I regret daily introducing him to it, because he's OBSESSED.

Express Yourself Weekly and News

Happy Tuesday! Welcome back to Express Yourself Weekly, brought to us by Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and Dani @ Entertaining Interests! Each week they have a question for us to answer, and this week's is:

If you could try out one occupation for a week, what would you choose?

I would love to be a WWE Diva for a week. It's always been a dream of mine to wrestle, but I think I'm even shorter than the average Diva and have no flexibility. I think I'd be a hard-hitter, though, and could do some good submissions.

In other news: TODAY IS THE DAY! Cactus Heart Press Issue #11, The Speculative Fiction Issue, is out today! My short story "Origin" is now a published piece of work! I'm so excited. This can only be the start of big things for me, so I can't wait to see what else happens. :-D

Express Yourself: Your Life's Narrator

Welcome back to Express Yourself! This meme was created by Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie @ Bouquet of Books to get to know us all You can join us through either of their blogs.

Last year, Dani & Jackie opened the Express Yourself question query to us members of the hop, and as I was reading the guest questions so far this year, I thought, "Man, why didn't I ask a question?"

Apparently I did. haha It's the question this week, and it is: "Who would narrate your life in a movie?"

I feel like either Aubrey Plaza, who has that lazed, Delawarean disinterested voice I think I have in my head, or one of my icons, Zoe Saldana, who has that great husky, deep voice I think I have in real life but don't would be two great choices for my biopic.

What about you?

Express Yourself Weekly: Characters who should Stand Alone

Welcome back to Express Yourself! This bloghop was created by Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and Dani @ Entertaining Interests to get to know us all a little better.

This week they would like us to name a secondary character who you think deserves their own series/stand-alone (now you see what I did up there).

Everyone loves a good trickster. Neil Gaiman gave Anansi's son(s) a stand-alone novel after American Gods, and it was quite a treat. If I remember correctly, Hermes was a bit of a trickster, stealing Apollo's sheep just after birth (edit: It was Eros. Thanks, Dolorah!).

This season I finished N.K. Jemisin's Inheritance Trilogy, which basically changed my life. She actually allowed her trickster, Sieh, to have his own book in this trilogy, rounding out the series. I won't give away the ending, but it was everything, and fairly trickster-like.

Jemisin, however, also created a novella: The Awakened Kingdom, which continues the trilogy. The main character Shill and her friend Eino. It was just a novella, but I want a series, darn it! Shill was just so cute, being the first godling born in thousands of years. The heart of a child and power of a god...Can you imagine! 

Express Yourself: Apocalypse Now?

Happy Tuesday!

Welcome back to Express Yourself, a bloghop created by Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie @ Bouquet of Books to share things about ourselves with each other. You can join the fun at either of their pages.

This week, they ask us: What is your favorite kind of apocalyptic scenario (natural disaster, zombie, alien invasion, etc.)?

This is an interesting question for me. Back before I turned 18 (had I known about the show I'm about to mention), I would have said the one where kids were left to rule the world. Being an adult now, that means I, too, would have died, soooo. The Tribe is no longer an ideal apocalyptic scenario for me.

I don't do anybody's zombie, so I suppose natural disaster would be the next best bet for me. I could survive at least a flood, I'd like to think.

Express Yourself Weekly: How to Say Thanks!

Welcome back to Express Yourself! This bloghop was created by Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and is filled with interesting questions each week that we can all answer. You can find this month's questions on Dani's page: aquí.

This week's question was submitted by J. Lenni Dorner, and she asked: What's the most creative way you can come up with to send a Thank You note?

As Dani said, it depends on the person. Most of my thank you's are done by reciprocating whatever the person did for me in some way. I think if I knew the person had a favorite radio station, I would try to send them one that way, so the world could hear their name. hehe

Express Yourself: Writerly Tips

Happy Express Yourself Day!

This meme is brought to us by Dani @ Entertaining Interests and Jackie @ Bouquet of Books.
This week they ask: What are some writerly tips you've found helpful?

The best one I've seen is to walk away from your writing when you're done, then come back some time later so you have a fresh eye.

I don't have the best luck with getting beta readers or CP's, and I have a love for editing/proofreading, so I'm often my own fresh eyes. lol I don't look at my projects for weeks (sometimes months) once I'm done, and then I see all manner of mistakes when I come back. Geez, I saw the BIGGEST continuity errors in my last revision.

On that same note, some other good advice was to find objective strangers to look at your work. Family sometimes gets tired of looking at it.