Lérowen's Challenge - Days 13, 14, and 15

Well, everyone, it's the last installment of the writer's challenge! I hope you had fun reading my answers, because I certainly had fun writing and posting them.

Day 13: Your favorite book about writing.

I have two.

via

I've only read the last four chapters of this book, but they were very straightforward and inspiring, and they helped me get out of writer's block, so... :)

Even though the title has "short story" in large letters, most of the stuff Bickham covers can apply to novels as well.  He talks about characters, putting in themes and symbols, editing, marketing, and much more.

via

If you're a young writer who is not in the mood for reading a thick, dry book about how to write a story, pick up this one.  Writing Magic is extremely fun to read, and after each chapter, there are writing exercises to help get that pen flowing.

Day 14: One of your favorite quotes about writing or books.

One? Are you kidding?

"Reading without reflecting is like eating without digesting." - Edmund Burke
This reminds me that there is more to reading than just enjoyment.

"The story is always better than your ability to write it." - Robin Mckinley
So true.

"Anyone who says they have only one life to live must not know how to read a book." - Anon.
:)


Day 15: Your favorite song to write to.


I enjoy "Unwritten", lots of country, the Pirates of the Carribean soundtrack, and Enya.  It depends on what mood I'm in, really.  A serious "I'm-going-to-sit-down-and-write-and-not-stop" mood, or a lethargic "I'm going to write and play on the computer at the same time"mood.



And that's the writer's challenge, folks! Thank you so much for hosting, Lérowen. <3

Lérowen's Challenge - Days Eleventy-Twelve

Day 11: Your favorite female author.


I think picking the male was easier than this, and when does that happen? I have to hold to my "rule" for picking favorite authors in that I have to have read more than one of their single books or series'.

But right now, I'm obsessed with Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games.  (Though I've only read the first installment.)  The first person / present tense style works perfectly, and...and...this book is just amazingly written.  :D  Read it now.

To go back to my rule, though, Shannon Hale is very good.

Her Books of Bayern series are all right, but Princess Academy and her new graphic novel are what I love the best.

Click on the link above to read my review of this book! It's fabulous.

The drawings are beautiful in this graphic novel, and I love the Wild West spin on Rapunzel's story.  I can't wait to read its sequel, Calamity Jack.

Shannon Hale has a rich writing style, and weaves deep themes into her stories.


Day 12: A song about writing or books.


This song isn't about writing directly, but I find it very inspiring.



Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Lérowen's Challenge - Day 10 (Importantest Thing)

Day 10: What is the most important thing I should know about writing?

I only had to think for a few minutes this time, and then I remembered what happened a week or so ago.  That was the terrible day I forced myself to open my "seaspear2.5" document for the first time in a while and sat staring blankly at it for a few moments.  Tears came to my eyes as all plot structure and character plans flew my mind.  I felt like everything was gone, and everything was terrible.

I minimized my document and fled upstairs, breathing hard (a little melodramatically), fearing I would lose all writing skill and knowing that I had to write something.  I remembered some advice from a few favorite authors - when you don't know what to write, say so.  I grabbed my notebook and a pen, and started scribbling.  When I was finished, I felt a little better, having gotten almost a whole page of ranting out of my system.

Here's a small summary of that rant that I put as my Facebook status.


Ellyn Gibbs 
is so mad at her book that she can hardly even manage to spit out its name. Why, why, why can't I WRITE? Why can't I love my characters like other authors do, much less feel somewhat attached to them? Why do I feel incompetent every single time I try to describe something on paper? I am in the DEPTHS OF DESPAIR.




I'm very thankful to my writing friend Sarah, who, after seeing this pitiful status, called me right up and gave me loads of encouragement to write.  I promised her I'd work on "seaspear2.5" that night, and I did, even though it was late when after watching Tangled with the family.  (Grailyn came out suspiciously like one Flynn Rider).  After that, I kept steadily plugging on, day by day, and I think my writer's block is gone.


My point with this - and I'm sorry if you thought it was a pity party - is to tell you that if you want to be a writer, don't expect a walk in the park.


You ain't gonna get one.

During another instance, some old friends we hadn't seen in a while asked me a question about my writing process.  I said, "Um....", thought for a moment, and then said, with a passion that I think they found amusing, "Don't ever become a writer.  Just don't."

Being a writer is not an easy thing - think of the mood swings a hormonal teenager has and make them five times worse.  (Okay, maybe only three times worse.)

When you don't have ideas, you may be frustrated to the point of tears, and when you do have ideas, they'll wake you up in the middle of the night.  Your characters will refuse to change, refuse to say what you want them to say, refuse to fall in love with the right people, maybe even refuse to use the name you've chosen for them.

If all you want to do is write, you'll get nothing else done, resulting in bad grades, a messy house, unfinished jobs, et cetera.  If all you want to do is avoid writing, your manuscript will suffer and you'll feel guilty all the time because you're ignoring your "baby."

One of my friends hit her computer during Nanowrimo, showing you how exasperating deadlines can be.

And, sometimes even when you have writer friends, you have to bear all these burdens alone.

Here's the bottom line: the most important thing you can know about writing is that writing is extremely hard.  


My advice for storms in the writing process? Go do something like this.

Are you sitting there shellshocked? Or can you completely relate? Tell me your experiences with writing.


- Ellyn

Lérowen's Challenge - Day 9 (Current Project)

Yes, sorry, I skipped Day 8 because it was "a video about writing" and I knew of absolutely none.  (And since I didn't feel like searching for any, I guess I kind of failed the challenge... :))

Still fun.  Okay, ready for Day 9?

Day 9: What is your current writing project?

Good question.  With the help of some encouraging friends, I just finished fighting back a bout of writer's block.  This was full-blown writer's block, too, friends.

But now, I'm back to working on Seaspear.  I finished the first draft late May, but that is only the beginning.  I had to rewrite and condense most of the beginning, and now I'm working on the middle. Here's the elevator pitch (a description of my story in 30 words or less.)



When a sailor girl meets a nobleman masquerading as a pirate, she is forced into a search for a legendary magic spear that will determine the future of her country.

Hearts Unbroken, the team story Whisper and I are writing, is kind of at a standstill.  She just got a horse, and I'm too lazy to bug her to writer her chapter, so, um...so much for finishing that up this summer.  I don't have a pitch for that right now, but I'll tell you that it involves three boys, three girls, and one quest.

You can check the current status of all my writing projects on my sidebar.  I do update it.

  

- Ellyn

Lérowen's Challenge - Days 4, 5, 6, and 7

Sorry, Lérowen, that I'm getting so ahead of the game! I won't be home tomorrow, and I don't blog on Sundays.


Day 4: A novel or author that has inspired something in your writing style.

My weakness as a writer is setting and description.  Some writers glory in taking a page or two to describe a sunset, but me? It would be easier for me to stare at a blank page for an hour.  I've grown to appreciate description more, and I'm trying to use it more in my writing, but the book that jumpstarted that was:

Just from the beautiful cover, you can tell that this is one flowery book.  But the description was actually interesting to read, which was a first for me.  I was won over, and after I finished reading the book, I spent some time working on description in my notebook, vowing to become more like Patricia McKillip.    

You can read the first line of the book, along with my review, here.

Day 5: The least favorite character you have written.

I've thought about this question for a day or so already, and I have still not come up with the decided answer.  

It might be Queen Livia from Torn Heart, because she seems like a cliche antagonist.

But I did have trouble with Perrus from Hearts Unbroken.  For those who don't know, Hearts Unbroken is a story (temporary title) I am co-writing with my friend Whisper.  Co-writing is fun, but also difficult at times.  At first, neither of us really knew what Perrus's personality was.  And then, we both started writing him different ways, which is bad.  I was writing him as a flirting, rather foolish young ladies' man, because has lots of younger sisters. But Whisper made him much more responsible (seeing as he has all those younger sisters), a family man.  While still having a touch of a flirt to his personality, he is much more serious and admirable than he was before.  I love you very much now, Perrus.

Day 6: One thing on your bucket list that has to do with writing.

Get traditionally published and go on a book tour.  I have a feeling this won't happen until I'm older and can travel around by myself... my whole family is made up of homebodies.  Besides, I wouldn't want to be separated from them for that long, and it would be too expensive to take everybody.  

Day 7: Your favorite genre to write.

Fantasy without a lot of confusing magic.  But....lately, I've found myself wanting to experiment with steampunk / alternate history.  And I've been reading a lot of realistic fiction.  Could I be...heaven forbid...changing?

'Til Monday, friends!

Ellyn

Lérowen's Challenge - Day 3 (My First Story)

Day 3: Your first attempt at writing.

Most writers start young.  I'm no exception.  I wrote before I could read, and I learned to read pretty fast.  Later, when I did know how to read, I wrote in a "mirror" style, meaning - all backwards.  My dad says that when he wanted to read something I'd written at age four / five, he'd just hold it up to the mirror.

Incidentally, Leonardo di Vinci wrote the same way.  Just sayin'.

Anyway, today I'm going to share with you my very first story.  I believe I wrote it in Kindergarten or 1st grade.  Sorry the last page is sideways! Computer got cranky... And you can read it in plain print under each page.

Characters: Maxgold (a worm king), and Underbeaty (his wife).

I have no idea how I came up with the name Underbeaty.

 Once there was a little worm.  And he was king of all the.  Land oh boy how his crown Shimmered in the sun

his wife underbeaty got mad and said, oh. maxgold don't you know that your crown is mixing me to a very mad mood.  your...

...crown shines more than mine she said throu the window.  underbeaty began to cry then she sigde (sighed) and said I suppose all the...

...qeens (queens) are like that she Looked for her husband but he was gone
the ligts (lights) were out and it was nigttime.  Everywone was gone

While she slept maxgold slipped to the store he bouht (bought) a new shiny crown WOW it was cristmas EVe and surprised when.

the Qeen. woke! By her Bed was a Shiny new crown. she loved it. and there was a baby the qeen had a baby

- THE END -

Lérowen's Challenge - Day 2

Day 2: Your favorite male author.

When I choose a "favorite author", I kind of make it an unspoken rule that I have to have read more than one of their series or books.  Even if one series is my favorite series, I try not to say the author is my favorite unless I've read about more than one of his created worlds.

So, Scott Westerfeld is out.  So is Kenneth Oppel.

I guess that leaves Charles Dickens.

The best compliment I ever got was when my dad told me that Charles Dickens and I would be great friends...or worst enemies.  It's because we both write character-based stuff.  Except he's a few trillion times better.

Here's what I've read of his:

• Great Expectations
• A Christmas Carol
• Oliver Twist
• Little Dorrit

Granted, his books can get kind of dull, over descriptive, tiresome.  But the way he ties all the characters together is amazing.  His characters are great - some funny, some downright creepy, some not what they seem, and all intermingle at the end.  

If you want to read something by him, I suggest watching a movie or TV series about it first, to increase suspense.  Two I can recommend whole heartedly are Little Dorrit and Bleak House, both by BBC.  I haven't finished Bleak House yet, but Little Dorrit is amazing.

And if you read the book afterwards, you'll be amazed at how much the same the characters are.

l-r: frederick, fanny, amy "little dorrit", william, tip

Tomorrow, the challenge is to post "your first attempt at writing", and I know exactly what I'm going to do for that! Stay tuned.

- Ellyn

Lérowen's Challenge - Day 1 (And Pinterest)

Lérowen from Eat...Sleep...Write is hosting a fifteen day writer's challenge, and I've decided to join in for hopefully most of it!

Day 1: Who is your favorite character you've written?

Hmm...
I've written many characters and I think I will have to give you two - a boy and a girl.

The favorite boy is definitely Grailyn.  He's so analytical and exacting, and in the new rewrite of Seaspear, he's going to be so much more mysterious.  You met him here, as well as the other Seaspear characters.

The favorite girl is a little harder to choose, but after some dithering, I choose Haiven from Hearts Unbroken.  I've been told I write her really well, and I find her fun because she's just so sweet.  Sweet, naive, and organized, yet smarter than what everyone takes her for.  Haiven is sixteen years old, and small for her age, which results in everyone treating her like a kid.

via - no, her hair is not this red.

Any strange questions about my characters? Ask away, please!

P.S.  This is random, but does anyone else have a Pinterest account? It was raining today and I spent oodles of time on my new account.  Let me know so I can follow!


 - Ellyn

Life. Is. Sweet!

Over at Shilah, Ara's doing a deal where every week, you list ten things that make life sweet for you.  :) And there's an added bonus - if you enter four times, you can get four extra entries to the last blog makeover that My Designer Girl will be doing! Permanently! 

-

10 things that make my life sweet

: Cats - period.  Especially their silky ears and Mitzy's round yellow eyes :

: Sunsets where the sky is a deep blue and all the trees on the horizon a bright, bright, gold :

: A rainy Saturday - full of possibilites :

: Riding bareback in the snow :

: Writing a lot and knowing that what you wrote is good :

: The annual Threshing Show we go to every summer :

: Getting a letter from your friend in the mail - just because :

: Discovering a new song or book series that you absolutely love :

: Shockers, sweetarts, sour patch, and other such delicious candy you find on the posters at the dentist's office :

: The fact that we have hope in Jesus for the future (and therefore don't have to worry about the sad state of the government) :

What makes your life sweet?

I Heart Barnes & Noble

Let's face it...who doesn't?

Tessa Emily Hall from Christ is Write is hosting a GIVEAWAY of a $25 Barnes & Noble gift card! That's right, folks, twenty-five big ones that can go toward books, books, and more books.

Scuttle on over to this link so you can enter.

By the way, Happy Thanksgiving! Our guests are arriving late tonight and I'll do a post on my holiday week after its over.  But I can't think about that now; it's just beginning.

Love,

Ellyn

If I were...

If I were a gemstone, I’d be a peridot.


If I were a scent, I’d be sugarplum!


If I were a pair of shoes, I'd be suede boots with fringe or ruffles.


If I were the weather, I would be the day of the first snow and around 30 degrees.


If I were a facial expression, I'd be serious.  (Even when I'm happy I tend to look sort of mad...)


If I were a car, I'd be a pink Hummer or a girly pick-up truck.


If I were a time of day, I’d be sunrise.


If were a month, I’d be May and November.


If I were a place, I'd be a brook flowing over polished stones.


If I were a liquid, I'd be grapefruit juice.


If I were a taste, I’d be tart apple pie.


If I were a sea animal, I’d be a dolphin.


If I were a food, I’d be a thick slice of french bread slathered with butter .


If I were a color, I'd be turquoise blue.


If I were a musical instrument, I would be the banjo or guitar :)


If I were a flower, I’d be a small violet.


If I were a song, I’d be a soft country song...or a bluegrass tune!


If I were a planet, I’d be Neptune.


If I were an object, I'd be an umbrella stand.  (Caught you off guard, didn't it?)


If I were a fruit, I'd be a wild raspberry.

If I were a day of the week, I’d be Tuesday.  (*shrugs*)

If I were a sound, I’d be the rhythmic beating of horse hooves against earth, or the quiet sound of wind on water.

This tag is for everyone! Thanks, Nela and Olive Tree.

Tagged Once More

Thanks Lily Litten! :)

How this works:

You share 7 likes, 8 hates, and 1 love. I seriously don't understand the random numbers.  

I like pirates

I like apple orchards

I like Crooked Still

I like awesome dreams

I like sledding

I like waking up early

I like Jawbreakers and Shockers! (candy)

I hate sweating

I hate human trafficking

I hate anorexia

I hate Satan

I hate being stressed!

I hate filth and clutter

I hate blobby pens

I hate bananas :)

I love.......

Jesus!

( I know it said only one, but I'll go on to say - 

Special people!

Laughing!

Horses! 

And I tag...

Margaret Rowena

Nela

Gwyn

And anyone else who really wants to do it :)

Love, 

Ellyn

Tag Part 2

Nela's questions...


1. If your writing a book what would be the title, plot, and characters? 


Oh goodness.  I'll just pick one and try to keep this short.  
Title: Seaspear
Characters: Ren (pro.), Grailyn, Merriam, Cyrus are just a few
Plot: Two words: Magic.  Spear.  
Ha ha ha....


2. What animal would you prefer to be for a day?


Horse - I'd love to gallop and buck and rear! :) Yeah, I guess you wouldn't want to ride me :)

3. Did you ever have a baking disaster? (like the cake didn't turn out right, or the cookies were too thin, etc) If you did, what happened? 


You know what, I don't think I have! Except once I cracked a bad egg (a fertilized one) and I couldn't look at eggs for a week.  :(


Oh, and also, I just remembered when my friend and I were about 12 or so, we were going to make oatmeal chocolate chip cookies but we decided we didn't want the oatmeal, so we left it out.  :P 'Nuff said.  

4. Whose you favorite Christian singer?


Britt Nicole!!

5. Tell about your favorite birthday celebration that you've personally experienced.


On my 13th b-day, I had my one and only friend party! It was great and loud and noisy.  :) My favorite celebration of someone else's would probably be those of my friend Whisper, Pheona, and Alex.  (fake names)



6. What is something you've done that you never thought you'd do?


Become loud and crazy! I used to be deathly shy....but when we switched homeschool co-ops when I was 11, I was determined to make a new impression.  Now I can walk into a room of people I don't know at all and have a fabulous time instead of hiding in the corner ^_^



7. If you could add any person to Mount Rushmore, who would you add and why?


Robert E. Lee.  I did a report on him a few years ago and he is now one of my heroes! Even though he fought for the South, that's really only a first impression.  People in the North often treated slaves worse than those in the South.  Lee's men adored him and he treated them like a father.  Besides, he had an awesome gray horse named Traveller ;)



8. If money were no obstacle, what would be the perfect birthday gift to receive?


A horse trailer or a barn.  But a laptop would work too.  :)






Lily Litten's Q's.....

1. If you could marry any male book character, who would it be?

Mr. Darcy, hands down! (from the Keira version :D)

2.  What book character is the closest to your personality?

Oh...*fidgets* Ahh...*bites nails*...

I'm thinking....

Harry from The Blue Sword.  She's really tall, reads too many fantasy books, and...there's  a few more similarities, but you'd have to read the book.

Also (I know everyone says this) but Elizabeth Bennet.  I'm always laughing but I make judgments way too fast.

3. What is your favorite Disney movie?

If it's an OLD disney movie, then Beauty and the Beast.  If it's a new one, I love the Narnias.

4. Are you a spender or a saver?

xP Lately, I've been a spender....

5. If you had a $10,000 shopping spree to any store, which would you choose?

A horse store! Woot!

6. Who is your favorite Disney princess?

Belle!!! She's so spunky and brave and I wish I were more like her... I took a quiz once and I got Snow White :)

7. Describe your favorite piece of jewelry (or show a picture!)

It's a square piece of picture jasper on a plain black cord....it's shiny, smooth, and looks like a desert scene with a slate blue sky and sagebrush.  I LOVE it.  

8. If you were a color, which would you be?

Blue.  I took a quiz on that too.  :) 

Sometimes calm and cool, other times rip-roarin'!

Thanks for the tagging fun!

Tagged!

I've been tagged by Marie! I have to answer these eight questions she came up with and then come up with eight of my own for whoever I tag to answer.  

1. What is your favorite Winter accessory?

I used to wonder what all the bother was about scarves, but now I really like them.  And I absolutely love boots! Winter boots or fancy boots, any kind of boots...especially pairs without heels.

2. How do you like to spend your Winter weekends?

Writing! Or going out to work hard shoveling snow and freezing my face off and then coming in for a mug of hot cocoa.  :) So cozy.  :) Overall, I just like being holed up with my family.

3. List your top 3 favorite things about the Winter season.

1.  Christmas!

2.  Cuddly sweatshirts

3.  Sledding

4. What is something new you'd like to try this year?

My friend Angela wants me to try downhill skiing - I don't.  :) I would like to learn how to make a fire.  I'm sure that would be useful.   

5. If you could spend your Christmas abroad, where would you go?

Personally, I would NOT want to spend my Christmas abroad, away from my family and the lovely ice and snow of the North.  But if I did have to pick somewhere, I'd go to Ireland.  Ah, yes.  An Irish Christmas!

6. Your favorite historic monument and why?

Ugh, I DID have a favorite! I know I did...but what was it??

I think it was the Liberty Bell...lol

Anyway, when I got to see the Liberty Bell this year, it was way cooler than anything I could have imagined! If I closed my eyes I could picture it clanging up in Independence Hall...

It was Independence Hall, right?  ;)

7. What museum would you most love to visit?

Probably some sort of Revolutionary War museum! :)

8. If you won a shopping spree tomorrow, which store would you want to spend it at?

Ooh! Wow....does the Mall of America count? ;)

Well, I'd probably use it at a big tack store.  *eyes light up*

Ok, here are the questions for YOU to answer.

1.  What's your favorite article of clothing you own and why?

2.  Have you ever ridden a horse and what was your reaction?

3.  Do you ever imagine what kind of people animals would be? If so, what kind of person would your favorite pet be? :D (I love doing this, it's so much fun)

4.  What's something that would win me your heart? (Mine is sour candy :))

5.  If you could have any celebrity live next door to you, who would it be?

6.  What are five must-haves in your dream house?

7.  What's your favorite part of your room?

8.  If you got lost at night, would you rather be in a huge, loud, riff-raff city, or on a lonely country road in the middle of bear country?

Odd questions, no?

I tag:

1.  Nela from Beloved Star

2.  Manda from Manda's Messages

3.  Elránia from Elven Elránia and Her Horse

4.  Sarah from Cowgirl for Christ

5.  Tessa Emily Hall from Christ is Write

6.  Emily Ann from :) My World :)

7.  Kiki from Letters of my Life

8.  And....Lily Litten from Snatched from the Wind!

Happy answering! ;)

Love, Ellyn