Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Now That November Has Come To A Close...

NOVEMBER WRAP UP 2011


Hahahaha! That picture just cracks me up. I love how you can find such random things online like that... Anyways! November was a crazy busy month with NaNoWriMo going on. I didn't get a ton accomplished reading-wise, but I got a lot accomplished in my writing. That was a first. And it was GREAT!


Total # of books read:   5
List of books read...

List of articles/events posted...

Total # of book reviews: 2
List of book reviews...


List of Sign-Ups For 2012 Challenges...

WHAT TO EXPECT IN DECEMBER


Much more reading and hopefully a bunch of book reviews for catch up. I wrote out a few in between NaNo to break up the daze. I have a feeling that I won't have too much going on in December. A few fun things--articles, sign-ups for my Classics Challenge, possibly a guest post from an author... we'll see what else is up... I'm mostly planning on plotting out January next month.

~Jessica

NaNoWriMo Journal (for archiving)

I'm moving this tab to a blog post for the sake of reworking my tabs and archiving the information within so I don't lose it. ;) ~Jessica


NANOWRIMO JOURNAL NOVEMBER 2011

DAY ONE: November 1
Goal: 1667
Achieved: 1826
Comments: I got started on it at midnight, spent 1 1/2 hours writing--almost half done. I ended up dreaming about updating my NaNo writing count several times and tossing and turning over it. I think I'll be better tonight, lol. So happy to have gotten that much accomplished in one day!

DAY TWO: November 2
Goal: 3334
Achieved: 3438
Comments: I was up until 2 AM last night, which made me tired today for work. I can't keep doing that. So, I'll be cutting myself off at midnight every night no matter what.

DAY THREE: November 3
Goal: 5001
Achieved: 6072
Comments: Phew! I can't believe I got so much done considering how tired I feel. Hopefully I can get another 2,000 in tomorrow so that I won't have to be under too much pressure for my busy weekend.

DAY FOUR: November 4
Goal: 6668
Achieved: 8193
Comments: I am SOOO tired right now. I'm actually going to go to bed early. I am so stoked that I got that many words out! My brain is really fried today... I need a break. But I don't want to get too far behind either.

DAY FIVE: November 5
Goal: 8335
Achieved: 9180
Comments: Only gained a little less than 1,000, but that's because I spent the day with a friend. Plus I slept in. And it felt GOOD.

DAY SIX: November 6
Goal: 10,002
Achieved: 10,278
Comments: Phew! Barely made this one!

DAY SEVEN: November 7
Goal: 11,669
Achieved: 11,619
Comments: A little bit behind, but I got distracted earlier today. I'll catch up in the next couple days!

DAY EIGHT: November 8
Goal: 13,336
Achieved: 13,407
Comments: I can barely focus tonight. I think most of the words I added in were the most pathetic words I've written. Almost hit a road block but I pulled through.

DAY NINE: November 9
Goal: 15,003
Achieved: 15,514
Comments: UGH. It's painful to write... somewhat in general trying to figure out the words I want to use, and my fingers hurt too. Lol.

DAY TEN: November 10
Goal: 16,670
Achieved: 16,753
Comments: Trying to rework some things and skip scenes so I can get better words out instead of sputtering nonsense. It's getting better.

DAY ELEVEN: November 11
Goal: 18,337
Achieved: 18,590
Comments: I was able to toss out some good scenes late last night/this morning and right after work. I was hoping to do more but got interrupted.

DAY TWELVE: November 12
Goal: 20,004
Achieved: 20,062
Comments: Got most of it done late last night/early morning. Was hoping to get ahead but got distracted, which is my own fault. I did get some good parts in and that made me happy.

DAY THIRTEEN: November 13
Goal: 21,671
Achieved: 22,231
Comments: Ka-ching! I feel good about this one.

DAY FOURTEEN: November 14
Goal: 23,338
Achieved: 23,627
Comments: I was hoping to get further ahead tonight, but since I don't have much internet time, I'm posting the work for today early. So I'll probably be more ahead tomorrow.

DAY FIFTEEN: November 15
Goal: 25,005
Achieved: 25,632
Comments: Woohoo! Got ahead today! Very happy to be on track.

DAY SIXTEEN: November 16
Goal: 26,672
Achieved: 27,680
Comments: Super ahead! Whoa! Insane crazy!

DAY SEVENTEEN: November 17
Goal: 28,339
Achieved: 29,221
Comments: Still ahead. I'm actually kind of on a roll with a few additional dialogues and scenes.

DAY EIGHTEEN: November 18
Goal: 30,006
Achieved: 31,021
Comments: Good gravy.

DAY NINETEEN: November 19
Goal: 31,673
Achieved: 32,358
Comments: I've got a day of shopping with some friends tomorrow, so I'm glad to be ahead today.

DAY TWENTY: November 20
Goal: 33,340
Achieved: 33,770
Comments: Didn't get as much accomplished, but still ahead!

DAY TWENTY-ONE: November 21
Goal: 35,007
Achieved: 35,513
Comments: Staying on task. Can't wait for the month to be over so I can edit the crap out of this first draft.

DAY TWENTY-TWO: November 22
Goal: 36,674
Achieved: 36,854
Comments: I totally came up with the best scene ever today. THE BEST. It was roughly sketched out, but it was perfect.

DAY TWENTY-THREE: November 23
Goal: 38,341
Achieved: 38,574
Comments: On track, good stuff!

DAY TWENTY-FOUR: November 24
Goal: 40,008
Achieved: 40,868
Comments: Wow... 40,000... That's literally a novel right there. But, still plugging away to the 50,000. Almost there!

DAY TWENTY-FIVE: November 25
Goal: 41,675
Achieved: 42,266
Comments: Trying to get ahead enough that I can finish a day early.

DAY TWENTY-SIX: November 26
Goal: 43,342
Achieved: 44,173
Comments: AH! I want to get ahead! So close...

DAY TWENTY SEVEN: November 27
Goal: 45,009
Achieved: 46,030
Comments: Aw, getting close... so close...

DAY TWENTY-EIGHT: November 28
Goal: 46,676
Achieved: 48,139
Comments: I might be able to finish tomorrow at the rate I'm going. Woot times infinity!

DAY TWENTY-NINE: November 29
Goal: 48,343
Achieved: 50,163
Comments: WOW!!! I FINISHED A DAY EARLY!!!

DAY THIRTY: November 30
Goal: 50,010
Achieved: 50,163
Comments: I'm not doing anything except relax and read today!

~*~

NaNoWriMo ends today...

...and I have to say, it's been a wild ride.

I made it to the 50,000 words (and early too!). I can't believe I made it! It is just... WOW. I wrote out enough words for a novel. A whole novel. It's such a great feeling!

Now I feel like discussing everything that I've learned from this experience...

The Good & The Not So Good

The good things I discovered about NaNoWriMo:  It helps you focus and get out whole scenes without stopping to fix that pesky grammatical error you made in paragraph one. I was able to get stuff written out completely, no stopping, no questioning where I was going. I didn't waste time redoing everything like I usually do. It made me feel accomplished.

The not so good things I discovered about NaNoWriMo:  Writing so much hurts your wrists and hands and makes your brain feel like mush because you're thinking about it all the time and cannot focus on anything else or fix a scene that you realize later on that you don't even want because the story has different meaning now...

That was a run on sentence... which leads me to one of the biggest trials I faced during NaNo...

Grammar

Oh, how I missed fixing my grammar. Not that my grammar is always proper. At one point early on I ran the spelling/grammar check when I was trying to figure out what to write next to pass the time. Holy errors Batman! It actually helped trigger a few scenes better going through what I'd already written. Kept me on task. But seriously, not being able to correct myself just about drove me nuts. I think that's why my brain felt like mush because I couldn't correct problems or use a thesaurus. I kept using the same words over and over again to convey the emotion or feeling a person was having.

Character Development

One thing I wish I had more time to do beforehand was character development. I didn't really know much about my characters before I dove into the story. I had a rough idea of how I wanted my main character to be, but not really any idea of how she truly WAS. Once I started writing further on in the story, personality quips would pop up out of nowhere that weren't implemented in the beginning. So, some of the beginning is a very very very very rough draft. Not really in depth to evoke emotions they should be feeling and portraying in their reactions.

I do have to say though, that I probably wouldn't have been able to develop Adrienne's personality properly without the blitz writing. The more I wrote, the more I learned about my characters. I was able to map out better why they were doing what I wanted them to do. Think more on their background and the stories that led up to where they were in a scene.

Which leads me to something that made this very hard...

Not Enough Scenes

I did not outline enough scenes. My outline was a very sketchy plan. Once I reached a certain point, I had this realization that I did not plan out enough scenes to make it last to the 50,000. I knew if I kept going I was only going to be at 25,000 measly words. And they weren't enough, they barely scratched the surface of what was really happening. So I had to mull over what other little details my story was missing. Some backstory ideas, some new characters that needed to be there, a better side conflict.

I went back to the beginning and added in several scenes in between sections [in brackets like this]. This way when I could finally edit I knew where the story took different turns and needed some work to make smoother transitions. As time went on, I came up with better scene ideas that made the story much richer. Instead of not getting it out there, I went ahead and added it in before the original scene [in brackets of course]. This was a good thing for me to do, since it helped the story along more when I finally got to the final scenes.

The Verdict?

NaNoWriMo is a great way of jump starting your writing when you're in a rut. It helped me learn how to schedule my writing time in between other important things in life. I was able to get out a whole story, albeit in a very messy fashion.

Here's the thing though, as good as it was for me, I don't want to do it again. It really did a number on me. Writing so much just drove me up the wall, made sleep impossible, and frustrated me beyond belief. I didn't get to read hardly at all. I have to admit, my obsession with reading really helped my writing a lot. When I wasn't reading as much, my writing wasn't the same. Spending so much time on just writing one thing can feel like a rut in itself. I had several good epiphanies come to me for other story ideas I've put on the back-burner. Of course, writing them out would have taken me away from my NaNo story. All I could do is make note of the idea and keep going on the current project. That was frustrating. I also needed to do some research on a few things so I could come up with situations that were realistic. But I didn't get to figure that out because it would have taken too much time.

Do I regret participating in NaNoWriMo then? Heck no! It was a blast! I was able to figure out the perfect balance that is needed for my writing from it. I can't spend every day writing 1667 words, but realistically I could do 300-600. And since I dedicated certain time slots to writing, I could see where an adjustment  needed to be made during normal months. Some of the time can be dedicated for just writing, the rest for reading and other activities.

I also found that I missed my blog too. A lot. I missed planning for it and I missed reading and I missed writing reviews. December will be chock full of getting back to it. Anything I come up with will probably be scheduled for January though. I have too many books to finish by the end of the year now.

How About You?

Remember when I said I wanted to hear your thoughts? Comment below and tell me what you got from your experience during National Novel Writing Month. I'll take those comments and compile them into a post (including your blog link). If you don't want me to include your comment, you can just state that in your comment. If you do, please state that you want yours to be included in the post. Thanks!

TO ALL MY FELLOW NANOWRIMO FRIENDS:

If you have finished, CONGRATULATIONS !!! If you are still plugging away, I believe in you--YOU CAN DO IT !!!


~Jessica

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Young Adult Giveaway Hop (Coming soon in January!)

Coming soon to Thoughts At One In The Morning:


 
Brought to you by the awesome I Am A Reader, Not A Writer & co-hosted by Down the Rabbit Hole

It starts January 27th and goes to January 31st 2012.

(That's right, I'm already planning for next year now that I'm done with NaNoWriMo! Lol.)

Here's the rules for the hop in case you're interested in participating yourself...

  • Each participating blog will host a giveaway on their site.
  • The giveaway must be for a young adult book.
  • No more than 4 possible entries per person.
  • Offering a Gift Card or a young adult book of choice is ok.
  • You do not have to be a young adult review blog to participate. Any family friendly blog or site is welcome to join.

I'm unsure of what to giveaway for this one yet. Totally open for suggestions here. I've got my Dreaming Of Books Giveaway Hop books chosen and they are awesome!

~Jessica

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Update Thursday #34

Update Thursday #34

Welcome to Update Thursday, my own personal meme of sorts where I post an update of the goings on at my blog, with reading, with writing, and beyond. Feel free to borrow the idea from me for your own bookish musings.

~*~

Reminders...

NaNoWriMo starts on November 1st! All of November has been scheduled. The rest of my obligations for the year have been postponed until December, unless I find myself able to squeeze it in between NaNo writing. I am working out one last obligation for the month. If you need me, I will still be here, just in tiny increments. ^_^

Reading, Writing...

Books I finished this week:
~Inspiration & Motivation (Writer's Little Instruction Book) by Paul Raymond Martin

Books I'm reading now (and some still):
~Portal by Imogen Rose
~Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson (Off The Shelf challenge)
~Deaf Child Crossing by Marlee Matlin
~Getting Published: Writer's Little Instruction Book by Paul Raymond Martin

Off The Shelf Reading Challenge Progress Link (3 of 5 finished) ~ends 12/31/11

Reading: I wish I had more free time because Wintergirls is sucking me in and I keep having to put it down to write. November's almost over!

NaNoWriMo: Still staying on schedule! I'll be so glad when this month is over, I need a mind break. And I want to read. So many books to read...


And Otherwise...

I can't really think of anything. Just staying busy. Trying to focus on the important things. Hoping this coming winter isn't awful like last winter was. Can't wait until December to catch up on everything left behind!


Until next time...

~Jessica

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Review: Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin

Title: Elsewhere
Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Source: Purchased paperback
Buy: Amazon ~*~ Barnes & Noble
Caution: May contain spoilers

Welcome to Elsewhere. It is warm, with a breeze, and the beaches are marvelous. It’s quiet and peaceful. You can’t get sick or any older. Curious to see new paintings by Picasso? Swing by one of Elsewhere’s museums. Need to talk to someone about your problems? Stop by Marilyn Monroe’s psychiatric practice. Elsewhere is where fifteen-year-old Liz Hall ends up, after she has died. It is a place so like Earth, yet completely different. Here Liz will age backward from the day of her death until she becomes a baby again and returns to Earth. But Liz wants to turn sixteen, not fourteen again. She wants to get her driver’s license. She wants to graduate from high school and go to college. And now that she’s dead, Liz is being forced to live a life she doesn’t want with a grandmother she has only just met. And it is not going well. How can Liz let go of the only life she has ever known and embrace a new one? Is it possible that a life lived in reverse is no different from a life lived forward? This moving, often funny book about grief, death, and loss will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned.

~synopsis from Goodreads

My Thoughts:

I have to admit, I was irritated at first. It’s a strange concept, but still interesting at the very least. I think it was mostly the writing--flow of the story and the odd way things would happen that made it irritating. That seems ambiguous, I know. An easier way to explain it would be that it felt like more of a middle grade novel than a young adult novel. It had simpler explanations and sentences seemed constructed with a younger reader in mind. Which by it’s own right isn’t that bad, just unexpected and a bit different.

Liz dies at 15 and is not allowed to go back to her former life. Instead of getting older, she gets younger. Imagine all that’s missed out on--I’m 26 and so much has happened in 11 years. She finds it hard to adjust to being dead (and reverse aging). She gets to be around her grandma, Betty, whom she never met on account that she died while her mom was pregnant with her. Betty tries to reason with her to get her to accept what has happened to her.

Liz is reluctant to move on, so she spends a lot of time watching people in her life back on earth. She finally reaches the point where she realizes she needs to choose to live (or whatever it should be called in Elsewhere) this new “life”. She picks an avocation (yep, you get a job) where she speaks to dogs (literally, she speaks Canine, which is very interesting) and earns Eternims (what they call money in Elsewhere). There is a romantic element involved as well, but I won’t go into it here as it’s not really the focal point of the story.

All in all, it was a decent story. The part that turned it around for me was a scene that described what Elsewhere was like. Someone described it like a tree: the Earth being the branches and Elsewhere being the roots. It was quite poetic. As I was nearing the end, I didn’t think I’d consider it a great book. But then the last bit actually made me tear up. Would a not so good book make me connect with the characters enough to nearly cry? I don’t think so.

Yes, this backwards growing thing was odd. The way it was written was odd. The things you can do in Elsewhere are odd. But it was still a very fascinating idea. And the way Liz lives her life (and her friends and family live theirs) in reverse gets increasingly engaging as it plays out in ways you may or may not anticipate. It does have the same feel as Memoirs Of A Teenage Amnesiac (also by Gabrielle Zevin). I’d recommend it for people who like dystopian societies (that sometimes slack on rules).


My Rating:

Pretty Good: Stay up until your bedtime


~Jessica

Monday, November 21, 2011

Do You Work In A Bookstore? I Need Your Opinions!

I don't think it comes as a shock, considering what this blog is and all, that I have this dream of working in a bookstore. I am not looking through rose colored glasses though. I am aware that there's still customer service, and let's face it, there are times when customers just suck. I've worked retail for 7 years, I am well educated in the stupidity and meanness of people.

Right now I'm working as a pharmacy technician. When I first started out, I enjoyed my job to some degree. As time has gone on, I began to dread going into work. Since last year, I was required by state law to become certified by taking a test about pharmacy. I took the test in 2010 and passed. Unfortunately, you have to re-certify every 2 years. This means I have to do 20 credit hours of pharmacy tech reading/quizzes before my certification expires (late 2012) to stay working as a pharmacy tech. If it expires before I get the credit hours in, I can still get the rest of the credit hours in within one year after expiration, BUT I wouldn't be able to work in a pharmacy until I re-certify.

Now that I've completely confused you...

Here's my problem... I don't want to work in pharmacy anymore. I've reached the point where the thought of doing this job for the rest of my life gives me nightmares. One of the reasons why I'm still there is because I'm not sure where else I can go. My only marketable skill is that I can run a register. And stock shelves. And answer phones. The only job that sounds relatively good to me right now is a bookstore. The only one closest to me is a Barnes & Noble.

So! Here's where you come in. If you have ever worked in a bookstore or are currently working in a bookstore, I want you to tell me about it. Tell me the pros and cons. Tell me the good parts and the bad parts. If you work for Barnes & Noble, tell me about the place and how it runs. I just want to have an idea of how it is to work somewhere other than a pharmacy, because I honestly don't know. I'm sure all retail has the same feel, but part of me wants to believe that a bookstore would be less stress. And let me tell ya, I need me some less stress!

This whole possibility of working in a bookstore is up in the air though. I plan on staying in pharmacy as long as I have to, which will most likely be next fall (since that's when my certification expires). I just need to start weighing out options now.

Thanks in advance for any and all the advice and information! <3

~Jessica

Saturday, November 19, 2011

I'm joining the 2012 TBR PILE Reading Challenge!




Hosted by Evie Bookish.

Here are all the details taken from the original post:

 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


We all have those books. We buy them, win them, they're gifted to us.. Then we put them up on a bookshelf and there they stay, collecting dust, waiting for the time when we'll finally decide to pick them up..

Join us on a quest to dust off your TBR Pile and read all the books you've been telling yourself you'll read next time you'll get a chance.. This is your chance! And we've got PRIZES!!! :D

Challenge guidelines: 

  1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2012 - Dec 31, 2012.
  2. As we would like to see quality reviews linked up to our monthly wrap-ups, only bloggers can enter. Sorry about that!
  3. Any genre, length or format of book counts, as long as it is a book that's been sitting on your shelf for some time now. Only books released in 2011 and earlier! NO ARCs and 2012 fresh-off-the-press releases allowed!
  4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.
  5. When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the 2012 TBR PILE Reading Challenge (You need to include the info + host list + challenge button. You can also grab the button code and add it to your sidebar!)
  6. You can move up levels, but no moving down.
  7. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2012, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.
  8. At the end of each month one of the hosts will post a wrap-up. Every wrap-up will have it's unique theme, a mini-challenge, a giveaway and place for you to link up your reviews from this month. For each review you link up, you will get one entry in a drawing of one book of choice from Book Depository. It's open to INTERNATIONALS. For participating in the mini-challenge you will get +1 entry.
  9. If you miss a wrap-up post + giveaway, you can link up your reviews next month. Do not, however, try to link up one review twice - we will be checking ;)
  10. December is a wrap-up for the whole year. All the book reviews you linked up January-November + the ones you'll link up in December will be entered into a HUGE giveaway - 12 books, 12 winners, INTERNATIONAL. 
  11. You don't have to follow all the hosts to join the challenge, but you do have to follow all of us to be entered in giveaways!
Levels:

1-10 - A Firm Handshake
11-20 - A Friendly Hug
21-30 - A Sweet Kiss
31-40 - Love At First Sight
41-50 - Married With Children

Hosts:
Evie from Bookish - http://www.evie-bookish.blogspot.com @SeoEvie
Nicole from All I Ever Read - http://www.nicoleabouttown.com/ @Nicoleabouttown
Bonnie from Hands and Home - http://www.handsandhome.ca/ @HandsHomeBlog
Donna from Book Passion For Life - http://bookpassionforlife.blogspot.com/ @BookPforLife
Caitlin from WatchYA Reading - http://whatchyareading.net @caitlingss
Rie from Mission To Read - http://missiontoread.com/ @missiontoread
Vicky from Books, Biscuits & Tea -http://booksbiscuitsandtea.blogspot.com/ @alouetteuette
Christa from Hooked On Books - http://christashookedonbooks.blogspot.com @ChristasBooks
Jenna from Fans Of Fiction - http://fansoffiction.blogspot.com/ @fansoffiction
Angel from Mermaids Vision - http://mermaidvision.wordpress.com @mermaidvisions

Wrap-up POST Schedule:

January - Donna (Theme: Let It Snow + Book Cover Challenge)
February - Nicole (Theme: Un-requited Love/Love Gone Wrong + Advice Column Challenge)
March - Rie (Theme: Green or Pinched + Green Cover Challenge)
April Bonnie (Theme: Easter + Mini Challenge)
May - Christa (Theme: MayDay - Disaster Books! + Cover Disaster Challenge)
June - Jenna ( Theme: Camping + Sentence Challenge)
July - Rie (Theme: International Day + Cover Comparison Challenge)
August - Angel (Theme: Summer Memories + Send Your Fav Character On Vacation Challenge)
September - Nicole (Theme: Life Changing Books + Mini Challenge)
October - Caitlin (Theme: Thanksgiving Theme + Share-A-Book Challenge)
November - Vicky (Theme: Spooky Halloween + Book Puzzle Challenge)
December - Evie (Theme: Xmas Bliss + Book Bachelor Challenge)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ah! Challenge accepted! Here's the details of what I'm going to do...

Level: 21-30 - A Sweet Kiss ~ I'll read 21 books (that's what I've come up with so far...)

1. Stolen by Lucy Christopher
2. City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare
3. Perfect by Ellen Hopkins
4. Bumped by Megan McCafferty
5. Spells by Aprilynne Pike
6. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
7. Beautiful by Amy Reed
8. Death du Jour by Kathy Reichs
9. Divergent by Veronica Roth
10. A Blue So Dark by Holly Schindler
11. The Coffin Club (VK #5) by Ellen Schreiber
12. Passing For Normal by Amy S. Wielinsky
13. I Never Promised You A Rose Garden by Joanne Greenberg
14. Deenie by Judy Blume
15. Carlotta's Kittens by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
16. The Secret Year by Jennifer R. Hubbard
17. Falling In Love With English Boys by Melissa Jensen
18. Still Missing by Chevy Stevens
19. Forgotten by Cat Patrick
20. The Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
21. Desire by Kailin Gow

I may read more than that, but this is a start at least. <3 Happy Reading!

~Jessica

I'm joining the 2012 EBook Challenge!



Hosted by Sarah at Workaday Reads

Here are all the details taken from the original post...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Challenge Guidelines:

  1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2012 - Dec 31, 2012.
  2. Anyone can join, you don't need to be a blogger. If you don't have a blog, feel free to sign-up in the comments. You can post reviews to any book site (i.e. Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Goodreads, etc).
  3. Any genre or length of book counts, as long as it is in ebook format.
  4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.
  5. When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the E-Book Reading Challenge.
  6. You can move up levels, but no moving down.
  7. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2012, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.

Levels:
  1. Floppy disk - 5 ebooks
  2. CD - 10 ebooks
  3. DVD - 25 ebooks
  4. Memory stick - 50 ebooks
  5. Hard drive - 75 ebooks
  6. Server - 100 ebooks
  7. Human brain - 150 ebooks

At the beginning of each month there will be a roundup post for you to add your reviews for that month. If you forget, feel free to add your reviews in the following month. Any reviews submitted will be entered into the draw for that month.

Yes, there will be draws every month for participants. As long as you are signed up below, every review you add to the monthly roundups will get one entry into the giveaway for that month.

There will also be a grand giveaway at the end of the year for eveyone who achieves their goal level (or  higher). There may be different prizes for different levels, but that is not decided yet. If you are an author and want to contribute to the monthly or grand prizes, please contact me.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


Yes! Challenge accepted! Here's the details of what I am going to do...

Level: CD - 10 ebooks ~ I will read at least 10 ebooks in 2012, but possibly a few more than that.

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
2. Switched by Amanda Hocking
3. Sophie And Carter by Chelsea Fine
4. Between The Lines by Tammara Webber
5. Cross My Heart by Katie Klein
6. Confessions Of A Call Center Gal by Lisa Lim
7. Pinelight by Jillian Peery
8. Butterfly by Jodi Bullock
9. Brightest Kind Of Darkness by P.T. Michelle
10. CYA: Covert Youth Agency, The Case Of Tangled Love by Jason Ancona

Go Indie books! This should be fun. <3 Happy Reading!

~Jessica

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Update Thursday #33

Update Thursday #33

Welcome to Update Thursday, my own personal meme of sorts where I post an update of the goings on at my blog, with reading, with writing, and beyond. Feel free to borrow the idea from me for your own bookish musings.

~*~

Reminders...

NaNoWriMo starts on November 1st! All of November has been scheduled. The rest of my obligations for the year have been postponed until December, unless I find myself able to squeeze it in between NaNo writing. I am working out one last obligation for the month. If you need me, I will still be here, just in tiny increments. ^_^

Reading, Writing...

Books I finished this week:
~Craft & Technique (Writer's Little Instruction Book) by Paul Raymond Martin
~Double Clutch by Liz Reinhardt

Books I'm reading now (and some still):

~Portal by Imogen Rose
~Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson (Off The Shelf challenge)
~Inspiration & Motivation (Writer's Little Instruction Book) by Paul Raymond Martin

Off The Shelf Reading Challenge Progress Link (3 of 5 finished) ~ends 12/31/11

Reading: I decided to read through this set of 3 Writer's Little Instruction Books that I got awhile back. I read through them a little bit before, but it's so much better for me to read them now. They're full of advice and quotes on writing. I got out some of those little post it bookmark type things and started marking pages for specific quotes to help me out of my weaknesses on writing.

NaNoWriMo: I can't believe how ahead I am. I feel really good about this, although my brain feels almost like mush half the time. I've been reading about writing out of order a lot on several blogs and articles. I saw this one the other day and made sure to add the link here to share with others. It definitely helps to come back to some scenes later. I've done that a few times already and have been able to churn out something much better upon returning.

And Otherwise...

For those of us who are considering e-publishing the novels we're in the process of writing, I feel it fair to warn you of something that could bamboozle you. I was reading on J.A. Konrath's site a post about Book Country. Read it and stay informed so that you don't lose money. E-publishing may seem like a huge task, but it's really easy when you have a guide. There's plenty of information available. His site is actually very good for that. Browse through his posts.

I'm already planning for 2012! I've got a couple of reading challenges (aside from Goodreads) that I'm planning on participating in. I'll post my starter post on them pretty soon (still going through books on my shelf to see which ones I must read for them). This week is full enough already with random posts! I'll also be posting a "Plans For 2012" type post come December after NaNo is over. I'm brainstorming on things for this blog and beyond. How about you? Are you thinking ahead for 2012 yet?


Until next time...

~Jessica

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Dreaming Of Books Giveaway Hop (Coming soon in January!)

Coming soon to Thoughts At One In The Morning:



Brought to you by the wonderful I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and also hosted by Martha's Bookshelf.

Just a simple giveaway to happen starting on January 13th and running through the 18th. Participating blogs can give away anything they want that a reader, author, or blogger would enjoy. I'm not sure what I would like to offer here yet. Once December hits, I'm sure I'll get some inspiration. Perhaps something related to dreams or dreaming... or just awesome books. We'll see, but it will be awesome! If you have any suggestions for bookish type things I could give away, please suggest away! I'm always open to ideas, especially ones you'd be most interested in!

Until then...

~Jessica

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Halfway Through NaNoWriMo--What are your thoughts?

I think this picture sums it up.

But seriously folks.

Oh man. I can't believe how insane this is! It's so awesome to be getting all these words out, but it is so exhausting! Sleep has eluded me numerous times.

Once I got to a certain point, I felt like my story needed to be changed. It became painful to keep writing when I wanted to go back and fix the problem. It just didn't feel right, you know? But I can't go back and restart, or delete and rewrite. I'll get behind! So frustrating.

But that's what next month is for!

I keep having to tell myself this. My neck hurts, my brain hurts, my body keeps telling me it wants to sleep... But I still feel accomplished. It's the most words I've ever written. And that feels great. Even though this draft is utter crap. LOL. I can go back through a whole first draft and fix all the broken and dissonant parts later...

A WHOLE FIRST DRAFT.

That sounds awesome.

What do you think so far? Have you hit any slumps or high points? I want to hear about it!


~Jessica

PS:  My count is just above 25,000 as of 12:30 last night, so I'm ahead of myself today. I still have time tonight after work to tack on more. :)

Monday, November 14, 2011

The Balancing Act Of The Aspiring Writer

Just some thoughts I had one day about my journey (so far)...

* You can’t quit your day job (yet) so you have to find free time to write.
* Sometimes free time is not possible so you make do with those few minutes you do get to jot down a scene idea, dialogue line, or plot twist.
* You hit a roadblock since you have no free time to write that you go online reading other blogs about becoming a writer (when logically you could be WRITING instead).
* You discover a new TV series while filling up your cart on Amazon with bargain books one day, and in turn, you become obsessed with said TV series and watch it religiously in marathon style in between the times you work and sleep.
* You signed up for the 2011 Goodreads Reading Challenge and after you sense you will bypass your initial goal, you raise it from 50 to 75, and then you find yourself in the middle of September with 100 days left to finish 25 books.
* After having your work schedule changed to meet the needs of people with less seniority than yourself, your sleep pattern gets thrown off so that you can’t get a good nights rest, and you find yourself up too late on nights you need to get up early, or you’re still up at 1:16 AM writing this article out when you CAN sleep in, only to sleep in until 11:30 the next day and throw off your schedule more.
* Due to your horrible sleep patterns and work schedule, you eat late or too early every day, which messes up your daily routine even more.
* You buy boatloads of writing books, dictionaries, and thesauruses, only to find you have no time to read or use them. Then you find your writing keeps lacking that spark with your inability to get that word off the tip of your tongue and into your story.
* You really need to gather up all the items unsold at your garage sale and put them up for sale online, but you decided to do NaNoWriMo this year, and then the new girl at work quits and you find yourself having to work alternating 4 and 5 day work weeks all of November, which leaves you no time to set up items for sale or even go to the post office to ship.
* You appear unsociable to your friends and family when you spend most of your free time writing, blogging, or online in general, and so you spend time with them instead of writing and you’re still stuck on the first 10,000 words of your novel since you can’t stop editing and changing things.
* You spend more than half an hour of your time typing out this article on your laptop while listening to the Twilight Soundtrack since you haven’t listened to it in awhile and find yourself getting distracted hearing those songs you almost forgot about since you haven’t even watched the movie in months.


~Jessica

Saturday, November 12, 2011

November Giveaway Hop WINNER!

 .....(drumroll please).....

CONGRATULATIONS
Penny Kathleen!





I'll be sending you an email to confirm which book you would like.

Thank you to everyone who participated in my giveaway! You guys are spectacular. I don't know what I would do without you wonderful and lovely people. *many hugs*

~Jessica 

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Check out my Guest Post over at Alison Can Read

Alison Can ReadAlison Can Read

Woot! This is so exciting. My first guest post! You can find it on the absolutely lovely and wonderful Alison's blog Alison Can Read.

My guest post was on Twilight inspired jewelry in honor of her Totally Twilight Month. She has a lot of guest posts and reviews all month long to get us psyched up for the Breaking Dawn premiere.

You can check out my guest post in this link here!

It was a lot of fun putting together. I mean, who doesn't love browsing through jewelry, especially Twilight Inspired jewelry? There's some really cute pieces that I found, so even if you're not a Twilight fan, you may still like them. ;)

~Jessica

Update Thursday #32

Update Thursday #32

Welcome to Update Thursday, my own personal meme of sorts where I post an update of the goings on at my blog, with reading, with writing, and beyond. Feel free to borrow the idea from me for your own bookish musings.

~*~

Reminders...

NaNoWriMo starts on November 1st! All of November has been scheduled. The rest of my obligations for the year have been postponed until December, unless I find myself able to squeeze it in between NaNo writing. I am working out one last obligation for the month. If you need me, I will still be here, just in tiny increments. ^_^

Reading, Writing...

Books I finished this week:
*nothing*

Books I'm reading now (and some still):
~Portal by Imogen Rose
~Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson (Off The Shelf challenge)
~Double Clutch by Liz Reinhardt

Off The Shelf Reading Challenge Progress Link (3 of 5 finished) ~ends 12/31/11

Reading: I CAN'T BELIEVE I GOT NOTHING FINISHED THIS WEEK. That's okay. I have an excuse. But it is still frustrating. My NetGalley book expired, so can't finish that one. I kinda wish I hadn't been trying to read it now that I won't be able to read it until it's published. I could've finished something else instead. Oh well...

NaNoWriMo: My count is at 15,514 which is 511 words ahead. So WOOT for staying close! Today I'm going to do all I can and get ahead so that I don't have to push hard every day that I work at my store. Those days can be harder. Especially the late shift. I don't do well writing during the day. I mean, I can do it, I just can't stay focused as much as at night. Which doesn't help my sleep pattern.

And Otherwise...

The November Giveaway Hop is making everything NUTS. I have more than 100 comments (probably will have more than 150 soon) on that post. I broke 150 likes on my Facebook page. And when I broke the 500 follower  mark, I nearly passed out. I mean DUDE TIMES INFINITY. It's so awesome. All of you guys are awesome! Thank you so much for following me. :) (I'm using the picture from when I got 500 feedback from eBay, in case you were wondering, lol)

In other news, I read on Ellen Hopkins' Facebook page that there's a huge banning issue going on. A school in the Blue Springs School District had parents come forward with their outrage over their daughter reading the book Hold Still by Nina LaCour. Read and watch a video about it in this link here. Read Nina LaCour's thoughts in this link here. After the complaints about Hold Still, they took a look at all 15 books they have on their reading list and now 9 (that's right NINE) are all being challenged.

Here are my thoughts on the matter: The way they described the content in the book was all wrong. I don't remember it being THAT inappropriate. It was intense, and probably should be read by more mature teenagers who can handle the content, but it was not at all as bad as they are portraying it. Maybe it wasn't appropriate for their 14 year old daughter; it's not up to me to decide that. What I think is pretty stupid is these parents who are "so concerned" about this book weren't AWARE in the first place that their daughter was reading it. If you don't want your children to read books that you feel aren't "appropriate", maybe you should be paying attention to what they're reading before they read it instead of jumping down everyone's throats after the fact.

*Ahem* Kinda went off there, didn't I? Book banning is a never ending battle. I have an extra copy of the book. I should donate it to my library. Make sure people can read it.


Until next time...

~Jessica

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Interview With Geek Girl Author Cindy C. Bennett!


I am pleased to welcome my guest, Cindy C. Bennett to Thoughts At One In The Morning. As part of her Geek Girl Blog Tour, I did an interview with Cindy to find out more about her new book, Geek Girl, and other things.

~.'.~*~.'.~



What inspired your book Geek Girl?

I write this story originally as a short story (1500 words) for a contest. We’ve all seen movies or read books where a popular kid decides they can turn some wallflower or nerd into a popular person. I wanted to take the same idea and turn it on its head, where someone on the fringes, someone edgy and not popular in the least, decides to turn someone their way. So I came up with Jen, an angry, bitter, bored girl who’s been dealt a bad hand in life. I wanted her to decide on someone not popular, but someone who would be considered really good who she tries to make bad. After I wrote the short story, I couldn’t get Jen & Trev out of my mind. They really wanted their whole story to be told. So I obliged.

What do you like most about Geek Girl?

I like the idea of someone who appears to be one thing, who is judged on that appearance, and show that she has layers and depth, that she has a goodness within her as I believe that everyone does. I like that she finds it for herself as she spends time with someone who doesn’t judge her on appearance only.

What music did you listen to while writing it?

Depending on the mood in the current scene I’m writing will depend on the music I listen to. If it’s a heavy, sad scene I try to find a song that reflects that. If it’s a love scene, obviously I’m listening to a love song. If it’s a scene where she’s discovering something about herself, or where Trevor is trying to point out something good about her, I listen to something uplifting. I don’t listen to music the entire time I’m writing because I don’t want it to influence what I’m writing unless I want something specific.

Are any of the characters in your books based on people you know?

Not specifically. Trevor is very loosely based on a boy who my daughter knew. He was Trevor-esque in that he was tall, good looking, but definitely a geek, who played the piano and sang beautifully. Beyond that he’s entirely my imagination. Jen isn’t based on anyone I know (other than her looks which are like my daughter—who is not Goth, by the way). Her backstory is based on the real life story of a boy I saw on TV a while back who really lived what she did as a child. The difference is that he let life get him down, and he was being interviewed from prison. My heart broke listening to his story.

The characters in your books deal with some really intense issues. What made you decide that your character will face these issues?

I’ve always respected people who have these really rough childhoods, where things that happen are beyond their control, and yet manage to rise above those circumstances. I think people choose how to deal with what life throws at you, and those who (to coin a cliché) take lemons and make lemonade are to me just so admirable. So I enjoy writing about those types of people.

Your books are so clean (compared to most YA) as far as content goes. What made you choose to write this way?

YA readers tend to be girls as young as ten and as old as . . . well, grandmas. I feel that if someone picks up a YA book, they are expecting content that is appropriate for young adults. If they wanted a book with adult content, they would pick up an adult book. I’m amazed at how many emails I get from teens to grandmas who are appreciative of the fact that my books are clean, while still dealing with some tough, real issues, and that they feel they can pass the books on to their friend/sister/daughter/grandma and not worry about them being offended by what they might read. It’s clear that there is a genuine desire out there for even more good, well-written, clean books.

What would be your dream job if you didn’t write?

That’s a tough one because truly, this is my dream job. This is the thing I’ve always wanted to do more than anything. I suppose if I had to pick a different job, I’d probably want to work as a nurse in a children’s hospital. I spent some time at one when my daughter was diagnosed with diabetes, and it’s amazing the courage that so many of those children display on a daily basis.

Do you have any hobbies outside of writing?

I like to scrapbook (digitally) and I ride my Harley quite a bit. I’d love to have more time to read as that was my favorite thing to do before I began writing in earnest. I prefer to spend time with my family more than anything, and I could probably become obsessed with computer games if I let myself.

What is your favorite book so far this year?

Another tough one. There are so many good books to choose from. I suppose of the books I’ve read this year only, one that really stands out is Sophie & Carter by Chelsea Fine. I’ve just recently finished this book, and wow, it’s a heartbreaker. I think I cried from almost the beginning. It’s one of those books you just can’t stop thinking after the last page. My only complaint is that it was short, and I definitely wanted more of both Sophie and Carter. I’ve read many good books this year, this one may stand out the most simply because it’s the last book I read, but even at that I think it would probably be in my top twenty all-time favorite books.

What writing project are you working on next?

I’m nearly finished with my next novel called Immortal Mine, which I hope is published by the time this interview is published. I had hoped to have it out before now, but life happens, and I wasn’t able to finish it when I planned to. It’s a little out of my usual writing as it has a small element of the supernatural in it, but at heart it’s about the love story of the two main characters. I’m a total sucker for romance, so I suspect my books will always be about the love story, whatever else is happening.

Where can we keep up with you online?



~.'.~*~.'.~

Thank you so much Cindy for the interview and opportunity to be a stop along the blog tour!

"Think I can turn that boy bad?" 17-year-old Jen turns her life upside down when, out of boredom, she makes a bet that she can turn school geek Trevor into someone like her. Instead, the goth girl finds herself sucked into his world of sci-fi movies, charity work, and even-ugh!-bowling. To truly belong with him-and with her new foster family-she must first come to terms with her violent past.

Be sure to get a copy of Geek Girl on December 28th 2011 (You can pre-order on Barnes & Noble and Amazon--just click the links on the site name). Add it on Goodreads. You can read my review of Geek Girl here.


Also, don't forget to check out Heart On A Chain, which is available now on Barnes & Noble and Amazon in e-book and paperback. You can read my review of Heart On A Chain here.

Check out the stops on the whole tour here.
Check out Cindy's blog here.
Check out the official Geek Girl FB page here.
Also check out Cedar Fort Books on their Website, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads pages.

~Jessica

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Review: Geek Girl by Cindy C. Bennett

Title: Geek Girl
Author: Cindy C. Bennett
Source: ARC given in exchange for an honest review
Buy (pre-order): Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble
Caution: May contain spoilers

"Think I can turn that boy bad?"

Jen's life of partying and sneaking out has grown stale. So on a whim, Jen makes a bet to turn Trevor, a goody-two-shoes geek, into a "bad boy." As she hangs out with Trevor, however, she finds it's actually kinda fun being a geek. But when Trevor finds out about the bet, Jen must fight for the things she's discovered matter most: friendship, family, and, above all, love.


~synopsis from Goodreads

My Thoughts:

It all starts with the bet. Jennifer trying to turn Trevor bad. For a piercing.

I found myself relating to Jen since she was such a rebel. The difference is that she shows her rebellion in the way she presents herself to the world--the whole goth look. The extent of her bad nature (a partying and piercing wanting side), not so much like me. But personality wise--yes. Trevor was definitely a crush-worthy guy in my opinion. I’m often attracted to geeky guys (or guys with a lot of geeky type qualities, not just guys who “like Star Wars”, because, let’s face it, 95% of guys like Star Wars). His sweetness is the cherry on the ice cream sundae of his crush-worthiness.

Even though Jen’s intentions were to turn HIM into someone more like her, he gradually causes changes in her instead. She fights it a little bit, taking him to a parties and dressing even darker, but caves in again. The gradual changes in Jen are definitely ones to root for. You struggle alongside her trying to make the decision. Wanting both worlds but knowing that sometimes you can’t have it all… sometimes you don’t want it all either.

Jen is a foster child, and she is in a constant state of uncertainty. It’s extremely common for foster children to be bounced from house to house, and unfortunately they don’t always get put in the best homes. Often they get placed in houses that are not homes, ones that only want state money to put a roof over your head. She expects every stay to end abruptly (sometimes even causes it to end herself) so she never settles in. Her past haunts her and she doesn’t open up easily, especially about her real parents. But with her Foster parents, the Clarks, and with Trevor, everything’s different.

Yet it’s hard to let go, and even harder to admit what got them where they are without worrying about hurting him. She wants to tell him about the bet, but before she can get the courage to tell him, he finds out from someone else. His reaction is exactly what she feared the most. Can she show him how she really feels? Will he let her explain herself? Can he forgive her?

Want to know the answers? Read the book and find out for yourself! I’m not telling. ;)

Cindy C. Bennett has done it again. I did love Heart On A Chain a lot, but this one I found myself connecting with Jen more than Kate (from HOAC). And geeks are hot. Not that that should play a huge factor in reading the book. It’s just worth mentioning. I loved the geek talk, the emotions, the development of Jen and Trevor’s relationship, it was all great. You must get your hands on a copy ASAP. I can’t wait to see what else is in store from Cindy.


My Rating:

Exceptional: Stay up until at least 1 AM


~Jessica

November Giveaway Hop! Enter to win bookish things!


Welcome to the November Giveaway Hop! This is being hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer & Co-hosted by Tristi Pinkston. The dates for this hop run from November 8th to 11th.

In my particular giveaway, this is what you have the opportunity to win:


 6 Magnetic Bookmarks & ONE book of choice (under $10) from The Book Depository *
--OR--
1 Vampire Kisses bookmark & ONE Vampire Kisses book **
  
*TBD must be able to ship to your country
**available on The Book Depositiory under $10
(Note: Books in first picture are just examples, not what you have to pick; books in second picture are examples of which VK books you have to choose from--you may also pick one of the Manga books)
  
Sound good? Good! Here's the official rules/guidelines for the giveaway:

1. You must be a follower.
2. You must be over 15 years old.
3. This is open to international followers. (Only if The Book Depository will ship to you; please check this link to see if you are eligible.)
4. This contest runs from November 8th to 11th.
5. You can gain extra entries by "liking" my Facebook page.
6. Winner will be selected at 12:01 on November 12th via Rafflecopter random selection.




Thanks to everyone following and entering!