Anomaly Two

Anomaly Two

Scarlett Lott is positive she didn't kill her corporate magnate uncle. The authorities, however, have irrefutable video evidence that she did. Unable to extract a confession and unimpressed with her denials, they ship her off to the Omniservatory, an asylum - sorry, rehabilitation facility - where "guests" are placed under constant surveillance and deviant behavior is corrected.

Locked up and off the grid, she has no way to verify if her uncle's even dead (he has faked his own death before), let alone try to clear her name. Luckily, Scarlett manages to snag a meeting with her best friend Rachel to enlist her help. Unfortunately, Rachel teams up with the guy who played a role in Scarlett's arrest. When the person she trusts most and the person she trusts least break her out of the Omniservatory, accidentally shooting a guard in the process, they all become fugitives.

Despite the temptation to just make a run for it, Scarlett feels obligated to stay for the people who are now part of her mess. Going through some of her uncle's hidden files, Scarlett discovers a birth certificate indicating that she isn't who she thinks she is. The only way to figure out her real identity is to break into his corporation's maximum security biotech lab. Scarlett has less than twenty-four hours to find out who wanted her uncle dead, why they would frame her for it, and who she really is, before the authorities catch her and erase any trace of her existence permanently.

Read it by clicking here.

Teaser Tuesday {6}

__________

She nods at me, still looking down. Her eyes flicker up to my face, and then return to their previous position, a small frown etched around her lips. “Are you newly Independent, Dom?”

“Yeah, I –”

“You better hurry,” she says, cutting me off. “You don’t want to be late.”

“Late?” I ask, not recalling anything instructions about activities tonight.

“For reporting to work,” she clarifies. She nods at my bag. “You should probably get that dropped off and get to it.”

“Um...” I’m honestly not sure what to say. This is my first real interaction in which our designation system has really come into play. I’m a little embarrassed that she thinks I’m lower tier, but I’m also a little ashamed for thinking that way. I play with the SmrtPad in my pocket a little, debating how to respond.

Lane’s eyes dart side to side, gauging whether there are any other people in our vicinity. Satisfied that the coast is clear, she leans in closer. The top of her head barely reaches my neck. Her breath is warm against the base of my throat. “You’ll want to make a good first impression,” she says nervously, like she’s telling me something she shouldn’t be. “It’ll matter.” Done with her good deed for the day, she leans back and shrugs. “Congratulations,” she adds, and then shuffles away.

Teaser Tuesday {5}

__________

She’s a dreamer, a dancer, absolutely divine. She sits at her vanity, back ramrod straight and eyes staring at the reflection in the mirror. Her head turns to the side and thin, tapered fingers reach up drape her head with pearls; a perfectly rounded stud in each ear, a chain around her neck.

She’s a rebel, a reveller, absolutely ravishing. She runs a brush through her pink hair, the fluffy comfort of bubblegum and cotton candy. Her luscious lips blow out a lazy plume of smoke, arching through the air; they twist and flex like biceps and triceps, muscles corded with strength.

She’s a social butterfly, a fragile beauty. She picks up her Blackberry and taps out an e-mail, fingers flying quickly, mind on autopilot. I love you.

She’s a liar.

Teaser Tuesday {4}

So I realized that it's basically been ages since I've done one of these. The other day, I was randomly browsing my [failed] attempt at Project 365 this year, going through some of the posts from back in January on my other blog.

And then I found something that I'd completely forgotten writing about. It was a contest entry for a teen diary entry/letter over at agent extraordinaire Nathan Bransford's blog. So I guess I'll share it here:

__________

Henry –

Some days I wish you were a dragonfly. I wish you were a dragonfly because I want to hurt you, I want to make you feel pain, I want to utterly decimate you. I would grow my fingernails long and clutch your wings between them, digging the edges of the nails into the thin, gossamer material. Fragile. I would then slowly – slowly, to savour the satisfaction – slowly pull my hands apart like they were same poled magnets repelling each other. I would tear you from limb to limb, and prolong the excruciating agony for as long as I can. Then I would crunch your tail between my thumb and middle finger – you know why the middle finger – so that you can’t escape, and then – bam! Squish you flat with my other palm.

You don’t deserve to be called my “father” anymore – you’ve never been him, and iPhones will fall from the sky for free before you ever are him. But you know what’s the most pathetic part of all this? I wish you were him. I wish you could be him, even more than I wish for a free iPhone to just fall into my lap. And then disgust and abhorrence fills me to think that I’d even contemplated letting you back into my life.

Do you even realize how messed up my life is because of you? Sometimes I want to pretend that you don’t know, and that somewhere in that bleak, bleak heart of yours, you have a soft spot for me. The rational part of my mind knows that’s nothing but a lie though. Clearly, you don’t give a shit.

Otherwise, you wouldn’t have called Mom and me last night. The first time we’ve heard form you in about half a year now. And what was your not-so-surprising reason for calling? You got in a bar fight, you’re on the run, and you needed cash. And even though neither of us said it out loud, both Mom and I knew that you were drunk or high, or maybe even both. But by now, you probably don’t even remember doing that. And you’ll never read this letter, because you don’t deserve to know the full impact of your life on mine.

Last weekend, Mom took me to the mall and I saw some hot guys from school. And you know what I immediately did, almost subconsciously? I ran and tried to hide inconspicuously in the closest spot possible. Which happened to be a rack of old granny cardigans and gingham dresses on clearance. You know what else? I’m seventeen years old, about to graduate high school, and I’ve still never been kissed. You know why I’m such a late bloomer? Because I grew up without gender balance. Basically, I don’t know how to talk to guys. Every time I try, all I can do is gurgle incoherently.

You don’t deserve to have me care anymore.

Screw you, Henry.

Screw you, stranger.

Definitely not my father.

Work of Fiction.

Behemoth Books

So I've been noticing what seems to be turning into a trend in YA lit these days: long books.

Is it just me, or does it feel like there are more and more 400-page-plus books coming out recently? Some examples that come to mind off the top of my head would be Beautiful Creatures, Before I Fall, The Eternal Ones, Nightshade, etc. There are also a few in the 350-400 page range that are also rather hefty, such as The Dark Divine, Brightly Woven, etc.

Now, one of the general unspoken tidbits about writing is that there's no set word count - write it in as many or as few words as it takes to tell the story.

There are books that do this brilliantly. For example, The Hunger Games and Catching Fire (hehe, had to bring it up -Mockingjay tomorrow!) are decently sized books - but every page, every word feels necessary. The plot, the language, the characters - everything keeps the reader completely entranced. The Harry Potter books got pretty hefty by the end, but they're still amazing reads and hugely popular.

Unfortunately this doesn't always seem to be the case. Honestly, it feels like a recurring observation in many of my reviews now, the fact that some books are simply unncessarily long. I'm not going to into naming specific examples and calling anybody out here, but some scenes just feel like the book could've done without. Others, backstory and setting up the scene takes the first hundred pages or so. Seriously? Just get to the story already.

Has anyone else been finding this recently, books being longer than they need to be?

Teaser Tuesday {3}

It's that time of week again :) Yeah, a little less preamble this time, let's get right to it. This is also from Red Herring. Feedback appreciated very muchly! Thanks in advance :)

__________

Thursday 12:04 p.m.

Outside on the street, the cars whizz by us, fast, fast, fast. Outside on the sidewalk, people stride by us purposefully, hurrying, rushing, speeding. Outside the world whirrs on.

Inside the car though, we have a temporary safe haven.

It is quiet, with Cherry sitting in the driver’s seat and me on passenger side, neither one of us talking or daring to break the silence.

Through Cherry’s window, I can see the police station across the street. Uniformed officers stride handsomely in and out of the building. I can’t look any more, and opt to stare blankly out my window instead. My breath leaves fuzzy little blobs of fog on the window. I lift a finger and draw lines through it.

“So...” Cherry begins.

“So...” I echo. I seem to be doing a lot of that these days, dumbly repeating the words of others.

*While you're here, don't forget to enter to win a $60 giftcard to CSN Stores! Contest ends today (June 29th).

In My Mailbox [38] & An Update

So to start off with, an explanation for my recent absence around the blogosphere. Basically, it's been pretty hectic around here with it being the last month/week of school. A lot of details to take care of. A lot of last times. Graduation/convocation. Formal/prom. Some personal stuff to deal with. But now it's Summer, so whoopie! Hopefully over the next couple of days I'll be able to get all caught up.

Anyway, since the last IMM post, I have received the items pictured above.

The DUFF by Kody Keplinger arrived the day after prom, which I discovered happily when I finally trudged home after spending the previous night and most of the day crashing at a friend's place. I won this from April over at Good Books & Good Wine, and it actually arrived a lot faster than I'd expected! It was also sweet that she'd popped in two bookmarks and a business card. Thanks, April!

Getting this made me really excited for a number of reasons. First off, Kody is only 18! The DUFF has been generating tons of great buzz recently. And you know, lurking around the Absolute Write forums and all ;) She also blogs & tweets, if anyone wanted to pop by for a visit.

The Thin Executioner by Darren Shan was a complete surprise. There hasn't been a ton of great YA horror on the market lately, and with a tagline like "number one master of horror"... ;)

So what was in your mailbox this week? Also - while you're here, don't forget to enter to win a $60 CSN Giftcard!

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren

Teaser Tuesday {2}

It's that time of week again, Teaser Tuesday time! This snippet is once again from Red Herring, a YA contemporary mystery.

I'm kind of excited because I'm in the process of conceptualizing and fleshing out an SNI at the moment, Here Be Humans. It'll be at least a few weeks yet before there's any teasers from that though. But at the moment, it is on deck as the next project.

But anyway, back to this week. Feedback is muchly appreciated! And without further ado:

__________

2:01 a.m.

The liquid is the gilded ochre of donkey piss.

Doesn’t taste much better either.

I vibrate the red plastic cup between my thumb and middle finger, watching the foul substance swirl in conflicting little waves.

Cherry bounces up and down on the bumper of her decade-old red Honda, shaking the car. She lifts her cup at me. “To the last day of freedom.”

I bump mine against hers overdramatically, arm looping in a wide arc. A little bit of the beverage sloshes over the lip of the cup and cascades to the pavement with a splat. “Cheers,” I mock-seriously respond fervently.

In unison we tip our cups back. The foul drink carries the heavy stench of alcohol, sliding abrasively down my throat. The aftertaste will be worse, so I force myself to keep gulping it down as if it were simply grape soda. I finish first and crumple the frail plastic between my fingers.

Cherry’s throat gleams unnaturally pale in the harsh yellow glow of the streetlamp we’re parked under. The smooth column of her jugular undulates as her subtle Adam’s apple bobs with each swallow.

Teaser Tuesday {1}

So there's been this weekly meme floating around the AW forums & the blogosphere, Teaser Tuesday, where one shares snippets of a WIP or a SNI for feedback.

I've been meaning to hop aboard this bandwagon for awhile now, but what school and night class and other activities, hadn't gotten around to it. But today -that changes!

This is from Red Herring, a YA contemporary mystery. Feedback is appreciated very muchly ;)

_________

Cherry settles into the driver’s seat and pops the key in the ignition. The ancient engine roars to life, crackling the previously quiet night like a whip. She turns to me, her eyes dancing with life. “Let’s have a little fun.”

I reach over and fumble around in the dark for the radio knob, cranking up the volume. I can feel the vibrations of the music’s bass line thrashing through me. Beauty. “Aw, yeah!” I holler.

She guns the accelerator and we shoot forward down the street. I lose all sensation of time and place as we zoom forward, fast. Cherry’s hand is groping the air beside me, and then she clutches the neck of the bottle, taking it from me. She tries to bring it up to her lips, misses, and then finally tips it back, sloshing some down her shirt front.

Suddenly I notice the temperature. It’s stifling in the car. I roll down my window.

Cherry laughs, then lobs the bottle out my window, nearly catching my face with it in the process. I mumble out a muffled exclamation of indignation. She simply lets out a whoop of exhilaration in response.

Because that’s exactly how this feels: exhilarating.

On Turning 18

Today's the day, the big one-eight.

Sounds like a big deal, right? Yet somehow, feels oh-so-anti-climatic. Just another day. Wake up, feel the same. Look in the mirror, look the same. Just one day older, just like any other day.

I feel kind of insignificant about these eighteen years. Just another one of Plato's caves, right? Perception - perspective - it's all very wonky stuff. Eighteen doesn't sound very old, but in the grand scheme of things, eighteen years - that's a fair amount of time.

Did I really accomplish anything significant during this time? Did I waste away my childhood? I don't know. I hope not. There's so much that I've thought about doing, that I've wanted to do - and ultimately didn't do - before this drastic, life-altering milestone marker.

At the same time - there's a lot of stuff that I did do. Stuff that I might not have originally conceived of doing, of being capable of doing - and found myself able. That's kind of empowering.

But again - what is age? What are numbers? Mere fabrications of the human mind, delineations and limitations created by society to exert a sort of control? Does it define a person?

There are two quotes that one of my best buddies and I have been really hanging onto lately. Nullum desiderium, and carpe diem. Both Latin, the former meaning "no regrets" and the latter "seize the day."

And every day is a new day. An open canvas, free to limitless possibilities. Bursting at the seams with potential, waiting for the magic to be drawn out. This year - I'll make it my year. Better and better, every day, day by day.

This year - I'll try harder, I'll work harder, I'll play harder. I'll find that motivation that I've lost, I'll rediscover myself who wandered astray, I'll get up off my ass and make things happen instead of lazing around in bouts of wishful thinking. This year - I will be.

And know what? I'm inviting you to join me in making this year a brilliant year. No day like today to start. So, who's going to take up the challenge? Who's with me?

Carpe diem - and nullum desiderium.

*And back we go to the abyss of IB exams.

Names: One & the Same

"What's in a name? that which we call a rose | by any other name would smell as sweet." - William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

Character names. Undoubtedly integral aspects of stories, no? Coming up with names can be a pesky business. Sometimes it feels like there are no suitable options; other times like there's an endless sea of possibilities and it's impossible to decide.

But there a few names that I've always sort of connotatively thought of as vetoed - forbidden. The first one, of course, being the [writer]'s own name. From the writing perspective, I've never really been able to bring myself to use my own name for any of my characters. On some level, it just feels a little strange to me, because I think I would find that uncomfortable. And I've always marveled at novels with characters which take the names of their creators.

Recently, I noticed that there's a Lauren in Before I Fall, by Lauren Oliver. Another classic example would be Jane Bennet from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Now, I found this one to be particularly striking. Jane Bennet is characterized as the most beautiful, the kindest, etc. Jane and Jane - is that representative on some level?

When it comes to reading, how does it feel to encounter a character with the same name as you? (I happen to have a fairly uncommon name, so it doesn't really happen to me.) What about people you know, is it strange reading about characters with the same name as them? Recently read Kristin Walker's A Match Made in High School, and one of the characters not only had the same name, but a few similar character traits, and a similar hobby as someone I happen to know. It was definitely interesting, and a little hard to distinctly differentiate the two.

I've also been hearing from some people about how they feel uncomfortable naming characters with the same name as people they know (provided that the two aren't meant to be linked/named after). I'm personally like that too. How about you?

I guess now I'll open the topic up to discussion. So, some leading questions to get it started:

How do you feel (from a reader's or writer's perspective) about characters with the same name as the author? With your name? With the names of people you know?

Interview: Caragh O'Brien

It's no secret that I've recently been doing a fair amount of gushing about YA dystopian novel Birthmarked (March 30th, 2010 Roaring Brook Press). Well, it looks like we've all lucked out, because today we have the brilliant mastermind behind this masterpiece here to discuss a plethora of stuff. And without further ado, presenting: the brilliant Caragh O'Brien!

This has become a bit of a Lucid Conspiracy interview opening question tradition - summarize BIRTHMARKED in twenty words while tossing in as many alliterations as you can.

First, let me say thanks, Deltay, for inviting me by to talk a bit about BIRTHMARKED. That’s a real doozy of a question to start with, but here goes:

Catching her quota of kiddos, Gaia gains a ghastly glimpse of a survivalist society. Cells, cyphers and science ensnare her.

Thanks for coming by :) Great summary. Let's get the ball rolling with some general questions first. Words of wisdom - what do you do when the muse has gone on vacation?

I tell my muse to get its sweet little posterior back on the couch and keep working.

Haha, that's the way! Do you have a specific writing ritual or any unique quirks you subscribe to?

I don’t suppose the toy monkey on my head counts as quirky. Actually, there’s no monkey. Now that I’m on leave from teaching, I just sit on the couch with my laptop and write all day. When my fingers get cold, I hug a bottle full of hot water. That’s a little weird, I guess. I forget to eat. Is that weird, too?

Nope, I suppose we'll have to proclaim you relatively normal! If the apocalypse were to come tomorrow and you could only choose three books to keep safe and bring into the "New World," which ones would they be?

I really don’t know. I’m distracted by the specter of the apocalypse and wondering what would be left in the new world. I’m not sure we could read any more with our eyes blasted out. As you might imagine, I had a little trouble with this sort of question when I was a schoolgirl. Still do, I’m afraid.

Ah well, it is a bit of a tough question. Leon's quite a dishy YA guy. ;) Do you have any literary crushes, fictional or author-wise?

I don’t have any at the moment because all of my literary crushes have been unrequited. I try to be mature and get over them. Still, if Fitzwilliam Darcy had a sense of humor, I could be quite miserable. I’m very glad to hear that Leon, in his own twisted way, works for you.

Ooh, Mr. Darcy! Global warming, global cooling, flooding, drought... there have been countless theories about the environment's demise. What made you pick the one you did for BIRTHMARKED?

I drove through the southern states a couple years back during a drought, and it really got me thinking about what climate change would do to our country, politically and socially. A wasteland around Unlake Superior seemed very possible to me, and extreme enough to set up a powerful story of survival and hardship.

It definitely made for a great story! I noticed that throughout BIRTHMARKED, there are countless references to hats. Why hats in particular, and not, say, sunglasses? Is it a thematic element or symbolic motif?

Hats are just so fun, frankly. I love what the British royalty do with theirs. In BIRTHMARKED, the hats and hoods serve a practical purpose in saving everybody from severe sunburn, but I also love the visual effect of all the brims tipping this way and that. The hats were versatile for showing who was classy or coy, guard or prisoner, powerful or shy. How could I not put in hats?

It's one of the great key details that contributes to awesome world-building. That, and the symbolism there too. One of the distinguishing factors of a society is its language. How did terms such as "Mabrother" and "Masister" come about?

I was playing around, trying to find a term that would suggest respect, sound possible, and also work ironically. I liked how “Masister” was a bit like “my sister,” but by making it formal, I undermined what should be a term of endearment. Similarly, “Tvaltar” combines “TV” and “altar,” suggesting the worship of TV. When I hit upon “advanced” for the babies, I was beyond thrilled. It’s just what we want for our children, normally. (Evil laugh.)

I like that! Of all the potential consequences of inbreeding there were to choose from, why hemophilia?

I didn’t have to go far to find heartbreak when I did research on human inbreeding. Hemophilia and infertility were the obvious problems for the Enclave.

Let's play around with hypotheticals for a moment. If Gaia's world was real, would you be inside the wall or outside? What would your profession be?

At risk of answering a heavy question quite seriously, I must say we already inhabit Gaia’s world. I could not live in a more privileged society, with more advantages, while others just outside the wall have nothing. I’m a writer.

Put like that, we do, don't we? BIRTHMARKED is set up perfectly for a sequel(s). Will this be a series?

Yes. I am so thankful to my publisher, Roaring Brook Press, for asking me to write two more books. I’m in very good hands with my editor, Nan Mercado, who has an uncanny way of asking the right questions.

So it'll be a trilogy! I do love me some trilogies ;) That's very fortunate for us readers as well, then. Are there any juicy tidbits you're at liberty to share with us about upcoming books/WIPs, by any chance?

Funny. My mom just asked me this same question. I can tell you I was worried that Gaia had grown so much in BIRTHMARKED that there wouldn’t be anywhere more for her to go, but she’s surprised me. Book 2 involves more research about biology and infertility. That much is certain, and I’m completely obsessed with this draft.

That's great to hear! I really enjoyed the scientific aspects of Birthmarked. If there is one main message in BIRTHMARKED that you'd want to make sure every reader understood, what would it be?

Oh, dear! Not a message! Isn’t it enough just to have fun reading?

Thank you so much, Deltay, for having me by, and for these mind-boggling questions. I really appreciate your kind review of my novel and all your support. Lucid Conspiracy is great.

Thank you so much for dropping by, Caragh, and taking the time to answer my behemoth mass of questions! :)

Interview: Susan Beth Pfeffer

YA science fiction - especially speculative &/or dystopian stuff, seems to be a rising market at the moment. And today, we have an interview with a pretty cool YA author who's been writing some sci fi lately. You may have heard of her - she's the author of Life As We Knew It, The Dead and the Gone, and coming soon, This World We Live In. So without further ado, presenting: Susan Beth Pfeffer!

Let's start off with something fun. Your latest book, This World We Live In, is coming out soon. Summarize the book in twenty words - while tossing in as many alliterations as possible.
Lonely life. Laughter lingers. Longing looks. Loathing loses. Lust. Lying. Love lasts.

Very impressive - every single word! The Moon books seem to contain an element of speculative science fiction. Why this particular hypothetical future? How did these concepts come about?
I've always been intrigued by the fact that the moon controls the tides. And I wanted a worldwide disaster that wasn't the fault of human beings (as so many things are) or something humans could change (since my main character was a teenage girl, and unlikely to save humanity). I also favored what I called a rolling disaster, one bad thing leading to another and another.

So I nudged the moon a bit closer to earth and tried to figure out just how bad that could make things. I have a basic sense of gravity, and I figured the moon's gravitational pull could cause all kinds of miseries.

Which, thanks to me, it did.

Definitely original! Life as We Knew It, The Dead and the Gone, This World We Live In - all rather eloquently phrased titles. How did they come about?
My editor, or someone at the publishing house, named Life As We Knew It. My working title had been In The Sunroom.

Once I came up with the concept for The Dead and The Gone, I knew that would be its title. I zipped on over to Amazon to see if there were any other books with that title, and while there were a number of Dead And Gone(s), there weren't any The Dead And The Gone, so I figured I was safe.

When I was trying to come up with the title for the third book, someone commented on my blog that the first two were five single syllable word titles. So I played around with various combinations until I came up with This World We Live In. Amazon didn't show any serious conflicts, so that became my choice.

That's smart, checking titles on Amazon first. Now, you've accumulated quite an impressive list of publications over the years. Is there one particular book you enjoyed writing more than the others?
I had a wonderful time writing all three moon books. I love the set up and the characters. When I wrote LAWKI it didn't have chapters, and I think when I wrote d&g, I was reminded to put chapters in. Even with TW, the chapters were an organizing ex post facto addition.

I love writing books without chapters. There's something liberating about not having to deal with that structure.

I wrote a book a long time ago called Courage, Dana, for younger readers. I remember really enjoying writing it. A tiny section of it is used on standardized reading tests, so I still make a little bit of money from it.

That's really cool that it's used for testing! If you could meet any character from any of your books, who would you chill with for a day? What would you guys do?
I introduce a new character named Charlie in This World We Live In. He's your basic all purpose nice guy, and I think I'd enjoy spending time with him.

Since I mostly write for kids, I mostly write about kids. In real life, I tend to hang out with grownups. So I think Charlie would be the one I'd have the best time with.

I have no idea what we'd do though, since I only know him after the world has come to an end. That cuts down considerably on possible activities.

Haha, that probably would. If the apocalypse were coming tomorrow and you could only choose three books (in the entire world) to keep safe and bring into the "New World", which ones would you pick?
Agee On Film by James Agee.
Bartlett's Familiar Quotations
Church, State, and Freedom by Leo Pfeffer (my father)

Words of wisdom - what do you do when the muse has gone on vacation?
I go on vacation also.

I do a lot of pre-writing, so I always have some comfort level about what I'm going to be writing from one day to the next.

If I wake up in the morning with a big I Don't Wanna, I simply give myself the day off.

It doesn't happen often, but I respect it when it does.

Wise words. When writing, do you have any specific rituals?

I try to clean my home before I begin a book, have things all nice and tidy at least at the getgo.

And generally, I don't read fiction when I'm writing.

Beyond that, I pretty much keep to my regular routines.

Outline first or writing on the fly?
Outline, outline, outline.

For the most part, I don't outline on paper. But before I begin writing a book, I do an enormous amount of thinking about it. And when I'm writing, I focus on what's going to happen.

I'm a very fast worker. I always have been. But the pre-writing lets me cut down on the rewriting, since I've worked out most of the problems before I start putting words on paper (or on screen).

There's no right way or wrong way, and in the end it probably takes the same amount of time as it would if I sat down and improvised.

But my favorite part of writing is working the story out, and I always wait until I'm comfortable with the beginning, have a very strong sense of where the story is going to end, and am reasonably confident I know the middle, before beginning the actual writing.

More great advice! Really on a roll here. (And from peachiemkey of TWFT): What's one hard truth you've had to learn about writing?
That just because I think something is wonderful doesn't mean anyone else will.

I am my own biggest fan. I write the stories I would most enjoy reading. My primary goal in writing is to entertain myself.

Alas, not everyone else on earth has my exact taste.

Anything else to add?
Just that I'm very glad the world isn't anything like the one I created in my moon books and that I don't have to hang out with imaginary characters!

Thanks for joining us!

Writing Contest

Now, I know there's a large portion of you among the YA blogosphere (and elsewhere) who are either aspiring writers or write as a hobby. In any case, if you fit either one of those criteria, your interest will definitely be piqued by the awesome writing contest fabulous writing duo Daniel & Dina Nayeri (Another Faust, 2009 - review can be found here) are hosting. You can find more information on this blog entry of their's, or see below for more details.

Dina and Daniel are happy to open the doors to their very first “retelling” contest!

Okay, so here’s how this works. First of all, we want EVERYONE to enter (assuming, of course, that you’re not a professional. Unpublished writers only). You don’t have to be a longtime writer, or even an aspiring writer, or a certain age or live in any particular country (this is an international contest). You DO have to write fluently in English (sorry! Though if you write in any of the languages we are trying to learn, we will read your story just for fun and practice)…

Here are the rules:

1) Write a 3000 word (max) retelling of the Faustian Bargain (”Another Another Faust”) set in any time, place, dimension, or world. Your story can be from any viewpoint, and you can get as creative as you’d like! Don’t exceed 3000 words, but don’t give us filler either. You can certainly tell an amazing story in just a few words.

2) Paste your story in the body of an email (attachments will not be opened). There should be no greeting or any other text besides the story in the body of the email. No need to explain the story background. The writing will say it all!

3) The subject line of the email should be in all-caps “WRITING CONTEST ENTRY - JOHN SMITH.” Replace John Smith with your name.

4) Send the story to dviergutz@gmail.com by January 31, 2010. If your entry doesn’t meet any of the above rules, it will not be read!

5) Five finalists will be selected by February 28, 2010. We will post all five finalists on our website for people to admire and comment. But in the end, D&D will choose the winner. The grand-prize winner will be announced in mid-March.

Now, here’s what you’re playing for:

A signed copy of Another Faust

A handwritten deleted scene

A featured article & interview on our website

An author’s galley of the sequel Another Pan

(And hey, impress us, you never know what can happen!)

Best of luck to everyone who participates, and have fun!

Readers as Writers, & vice versa

What came first, the writer or the reader?

After conducting a couple interviews, it would appear that there is a general consensus in terms of advice for aspiring writers: read. So of course it comes as no surprise that most of us who write also love to read.

But does that also hold true inversely? Just out of curiousity, how many of you book bloggers out there also write (prose, poetry, song lyrics, journalism, diary entries, etc. anything at all)?

I've also been wondering (and the fact that I'm currently in the midst of The Chosen One, by Carol Lynch Williams, may or may not have anything to do with it) some other questions, especially since a few days ago, a spam filter question on a contest asked something along the lines of if you could only choose one, who you rather have writing or reading?

I'd originally had a couple other concepts up for discussion, but alas, SAT cramming seems to really fry the brain. ;) It would be great to see what other people think of this.

Just to sum up, for those skimming, and feel free to interpret them however you like:
~Writers, do you all read?
~Readers, do you write as well?
~If you could only have one, reading or writing, which would it be/why?
~Anything else you'd like to add ;)

Tense

Past vs. Present

When it comes to tense in YA literature, do you have a preference between past or present tense?

It seems that there is a greater range of popular books out there that are written in present tense. Recent ones that come to mind include Wake, Fade, The Hunger Games, etc. to name a few.

Now, traditionally I've been more of a reader of books written in past tense. (Heck, there was a time when I wouldn't even be able to read past the first chapter in present tense!) I think the first (most memorable) book/series I read written in present tense was Libba Bray's The Sweet Far Thing.

And now, I'm actually quite comfortable with it. In fact, I'm even considering employing the present tense for my next WIP (yes, The Kevlar Moustache has been, for all intents and purposes at the moment, completed).

Is this an actual trend towards this direction in the YA publishing industry, or just something I hadn't really picked up on before? Because it seems like these books are doing well nowadays.

So, what are your thoughts on this issue, do you have a preference for one over the other? Do you think the market is naturally transitioning in this direction? Are there specific pros and cons between the two?

Pi Day, Blog Love, and Oh Noes!

3.14, Happy Pi Day!

The super sweet Iryna over at A Garden of Books has nominated me for I [Heart] Your Blog. award, which is really exciting. Thanks muchly! So technically I'm supposed to nominate at least seven other blogs, but it seems this award has really made a round of the YA blogosphere, and I'm not really feeling up to it right now, which leads smoothly into the next point.

Alas, I seem to have come down with something. It started out with a pretty nasty cough, and then I lost my voice, and now it's just turned into a pretty icky cold. Which really sucks (hence the Oh No!) Last week was sort of a joke; Wednesday was a Snow Day, and Thursday I just stayed home sick.

But but but - now Spring Break has started! (Hopefully I'll get over this cold soon so I can actually revel in how chill this week should be.) Big plans for the week, I would really like to get some things done. For example, Kevlar Moustache. And I'll definitely have to try and schedule in some photoshoots. And of course, maybe some SAT prep and driver's test. But best of all is just the downtime to chillax. =)

Oh right! Today is also deltay's one year anniversary on deviantART (because technically I've been on dA for way longer, except under different accounts).

In other randomness, I've been looking up a lot of random videos on Youtube, and there are some really talented people on there! I seem to have rekindled my love for guitars, and now I really want to learn to play. Like, right now. But then after this week, when the horrors of IB start again... maybe I should just hang on until the summer. And my other rekindled love? Jesse McCartney's music. (No, I'm not kidding ;) He's just got such a beautiful soul.

*PS We had two Friday the 13ths in a row this year! And aww, the Zokutou wordmeter is broken. Or something.

**Kate is holding a giveaway for Violet on the Runway, Oh. My. Gods., or Spring Breakup here, so hop on over to check it out! Contest ends Sunday at midnight.

Motivate Me, Muse!

The other morning, I tried vermicelli instant noodles for the very first time. I mean, I hadn't even realized they existed. It was brunch - I was hungry - the noodles were actually quite spicy. But then again, I don't have a particularly high spicyness tolerance either. ;) So of course, it was accompanied by a nice glass of milk, which I have found works wonders against spicy attacks! Well, better than water, anyway.

After a while, my mouth was pretty much numb. But they were still quite good :D Try some sometime. That reminds me, actually - quick question: is it actually true that university students consume larger amounts of instant noodles (or ramen)?

So - NaNoWriMo '08 had been for me, to put it bluntly, a pretty epic fail. (Curse you, IB!) I only managed to write on seven nights, churning out approximately 9,600 words.

And today - although I suppose this has been stewing for a while - I got the urge to resume working on this project. Which I have given the temporary working title of The Kevlar Moustache.

No, really.

Haha, don't worry, it's not about moustaches, especially ones made out of kevlar. But in all seriousness, I really do hope that this isn't just another false alarm. I mean, how many half-written stories have I started only to abandon half way through in favour of "better" ideas?

The alternating feelings of "maybe this is actually half-decent" and "who am I kidding? This is utter crap!" are really hard to keep at bay. Especially once the initial excitement, the novelty of the idea, has worn off.

For NaNoWriMo, they recommend that participants tell as many people as possible about the fact that they're trying to write a novel, sort of to provide a self-conscious sort of motivation. Well, I guess I'm telling the World Wide Web - or at least, my little corner of it, in the form of those of you who drift by ;) (Psst, if I don't mention my progress on TKM for a while, prod me about it, 'mkay?)

I also registered Absolute Write Water Cooler (http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/) today, so hopefully that'll help too. Keep your fingers crossed guys!

Tomorrow's a new day, the start of a new month. Cheers.

Lights, Camera... Blog?

The Technological Age is advancing well upon us; pretty much consuming us, really. Today, I was re-inspired to give blogging another shot. After all, second semester of junior year is about to start, which should be a time for new beginnings. (Who am I kidding? I didn't even make any New Year's Resolutions for 2009.)

Personally, I always find the first post of starting a new blog the hardest. It feels like there's this huge expansive void, like it's tethering on the edge of a revelation, like the blog could literally go in any direction. At the same time, there's this feeling that maybe there should be an introduction of some sort, to start off with. It's okay - call me old-fashioned ;) Hopefully after I get this out of the way, it'll feel more relaxed and natural. I must warn you though - I can be exceptionally random at times, and tend to ramble and rant. About the oddest things.



But to ease my conscience, I guess I'll give a brief introduction of myself.

-Sixteen year old female from Ontario, Canada.
-Aspiring Photographer.
-Writer.
-Badminton Player.
-Victim of International Bacculaureate.
-Loves spontaneity.
-Wastes too much time online.
-Has random ephiphanies.

Well. That was some introduction, wasn't it? Oh, right. I can be kind of sarcastic at times as well. ;) But then again, in this day and age, aren't we all? Quite excited about this whole ordeal, really.

Alright, alright, so maybe this isn't my first try at blogging - but you know what they say; the nth time's the charm, right? Right?! Right. It feels like it's been a numbed haze recently, so hopefully 2009 will be the year of a Lucid Conspiracy.