Prepping for NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo begins tomorrow, and I couldn't be happier. Although I'm still prepping, I couldn't feel more prepared than I already am. I always find it interesting to see how participating in NaNo will coincide with my everyday life. For example, last year was kind of hectic because I was in two writing classes, and it was my first time participating so I had no clue what to expect.

Now that I know what to expect, I was able to prepare a lot better, which brings me to the point of this post. This year I had a few apps to help me along the way.

Evernote

Pinterest

Polyvore

WordTracker (Which I'll start using on tomorrow to track my word count)

Spotify

I only have one more day to finish my chapter outline. I will try my hardest to blog at least once a week to update you on my NaNo status, but if I don't it's because NaNoWriMo has taken over. Wish me luck!!

Announcements!!

For the past couple of weeks I've been trying to come up with blog posts to write, but they were either too short or too dumb to post. Then a sudden spark of inspiration hit me, which led to this post. As my title promised, I have a couple of announcements to make.

The first announcement is that I will be participating in NaNoWriMo again. This will be my second year participating, and I cannot wait to start writing. This week I've been doing some major plotting for my novel, Beyond Their Beliefs, and I've been getting even more excited by the second! I've already interviewed both of my main characters, created my pinterest board of my dream cast, and came up with a playlist of the songs I'll be listening to as I work my way towards the 50,000 word finish line. I guess there's no question as to whether I'm a plotter or a pantser.

My next announcement is that I'll be hanging up my book reviewer title beginning January 1, 2014. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love reviewing novels, and I'll continue to do them for each and every novel and novella that I read, because I believe in helping authors out. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I won't be accepting as many reviews as I used to. Of course the authors I've gotten to know will always have a place on my blog with reviews and interviews, but in order to focus on my writing I have to learn how to cut back. Also, 2014 will be my senior year in college, and I already know that's going to take up majority of my time. So in 2014, I'll be focusing on my writing and my last year of college. 

I want to give special thanks to my family for supporting me (and not thinking I'm crazy when I live vicariously through my main characters)! I also want to thank a few authors who have inspired and encouraged me along the way, especially my Facebook family of Goddesses and the women at Marching Ink. Samantha March is the author who encouraged me to pursue my dream of being an author, unbeknownst to her. I also would like to thank Lacey Camy and Samantha Stroh Bailey. All of you ladies are so incredible, and I wish nothing but the best for y'all in the future!

The Meaning of True Love

As an Author, you often wonder what the meaning of true love is, or at least I do. Well, I used to, but not anymore. Today we celebrated my parents' 36th wedding anniversary. I've only been present for 22 years out of the 36 years they've been married, and I've learned so much from both of them. I wouldn't say that my parents have a fairy tale relationship. What they have is a forever kind of thing. 

One thing I admired, and still admire, about my parents' marriage is their unity. In our home, there was no such thing as getting one parent to go against the other one to get what we wanted. Somehow they were so in sync to the point where they could tell what the other one said.

A major life lesson I've learned about love, from my parents, is if you're going to be married, you must take your vows seriously. My parents vowed to love each other through sickness and in health.

Two years ago God put my parents to the ultimate test. My father was diagnosed with renal failure. He was hospitalized for what seemed like months, and my mom never left his side. A lot of people were shocked by this, but not me. Like I said, what they have is forever, and they did promise to love each other even through sickness.

The one thing I'm thankful for is that I didn't have to turn to fairy tales or movies to witness such a great love because I was raised in a home where my parents never stop showing or giving love. From sending anonymous cards to each other in the mail to saying, "I love you" every time they get off the phone with each other, what my parents have is special. I pray that I'll have as much success with my husband as my parents have with each other. 

Here are the top 10 things I've learned from my parents' marriage, that I'll eventually expect from my better half:

1. The true meaning of loving someone through sickness and his health.
2. Always share your coffee with whomever finishes their's first.
3. Always say "I love you" before getting off the phone with each other, even if you're in the same house, but different rooms.
4. It's okay to wake your spouse up if the weather is scary.
5. Always give your spouse a kiss before leaving the house.
6. Like all of the same movies and shows they like, if you don't, pretend that you do.
7. There is no such thing as mine and yours. . .it's ours. Unless it's coffee.
8. Sending an anonymous card in the mail for no reason (it'll definitely make your brothers-in-law want to step their game up).
9. You know you've found your better half when you've been married for 36 years and have NEVER had an argument.
10. There's no need to renew your vows if you got it right the first time.

So Happy 36th Anniversary to my wonderful parents. I know you'll have a lot more wonderful years to come! 

Back to School

As Module One of the Fall semester comes to a close, I feel surprisingly content. This semester I'm taking a Story Development class and a Writing for Film Genre class. Both classes consist of watching movies that are completely out of my zone. As I read over the expectations of the classes, I thought to myself, "this is really going to take me out of my normal element." Honestly, I'm not too worried about the Story Development class because by the end of the semester, we'll all have come up with an outline for a movie. I'm a planner, not a panster, so I'd have fun with an assignment like that.

Now, my Writing for Film Genre class is going to be a bit more challenging, which I'm open to. We have to study four genres in this class: romantic comedy, horror, thriller, and science fiction. Out of all of these genres, I only watch romantic comedies. Not only do we have to watch three or four movies per genre, but we also have to come up with a detailed movie proposal for each genre. Just because I like watching romantic comedies, doesn't mean I know how to WRITE them. I don't know the first thing about being funny (without trying too hard). I'm more of a drama girl. I'm about that dramatic life. Hopefully, by watching all of these films I'll be able to whip up four A plus worthy movie proposals. I'll leave you with the movie posters for this week's movies.

It's That Time Again!

As September gracefully makes its way in, the time has come for many things that come along with it. For example, Fall and its cool weather, hoodies, bonfires, and cuddling under the stars with your main squeeze. Honestly, that's what September may mean for most people, but for me it means school, school, and more school!

That's right, the time has come for my lovely Fall semester to begin. I have so much to be thankful for that made it possible for this semester to happen, so you won't hear any complaints from me! God has blessed me with so much in the last few days, and I know it doesn't end here. My semester begins next Thursday; hopefully, by Sunday I'll be able to tell you about my classes and what the semester holds for me!

Although I'll be starting classes again, there are a few things I intend to keep up. For instance, I still have a ton of books for authors that I promised I'd review, and I intend on getting to all 11 of them before the year ends! Also, my writing is something I REFUSE to put on the back burner! I'm making a vow to myself, and a promise to you, that my writing will be one of my top priorities. Then again, with editing my first novel, the need to finish writing my second novel, and the urgency to outline my third one, I'd say slacking off isn't even an option. If it's anything I've learned about this business, it's to always make time for my writing; even if it's just a page.

Last, but certainly not least, the month of September also means celebrating my beloved (twin) sissy's 21st birthday. Okay, so we're not actually twins, but we're extremely close and so much alike, and yet so different, that we might as well have been twins. She just happened to be a little late, or maybe I was a little early? Either way, September is bound to be a month filled with joy, writing, studying, and the celebration of my twin.

I hope you enjoy your September as well, and if you will, please enjoy a few bonfires and snuggling under the stars with your main squeeze for me!