Friday, July 11, 2014

'Work on a Novel' Update


As promised, although a little late, I'm here to tell you about the first task on my 2014 To-Do List. The first task was to work on a novel, and even though it wasn't the first thing I crossed off my list, I was still able to cross it off. For some time, it looked as if I wouldn't even be able to cross it off my list. Life threw me a lot more curve balls this year than I originally expected, but I must admit I've been handling it pretty well, if I do say so myself.

Anywho, I've been working on two of my novels this year. Sliding into Love, my first baby, was completed back in November 2012, during my first year of NaNoWriMo. Although the experience was extremely stressful, it was also empowering. Ever since I was a little girl I knew writing was something I wanted to do. My first love was writing novels, but as I got older, and started consuming more television than novels, I fell in love with Screenwriting. I'm currently getting a degree in Screenwriting, and although I've learned a lot, I wasn't happy. I didn't experience true happiness until I completed this novel. This was a huge deal to me. I'd NEVER completed anything when it came to writing screenplays. I always came up with an idea, worked on it for a bit, and then came up with a new idea, started working on that one...and the cycle continued for some time. 

I haven't gotten that antsy, start working on a new idea feeling in a really long time. I think it's safe to say that I'm happy to have found my love for novel writing. I can't tell you how many wonderful people I've met during this journey. They've been so supportive and I've learned so much from them.

Last, but not least, I've also been working on my novel, Beyond Their Beliefs. I didn't officially start working on this novel until November 2013 for NaNoWriMo. When I originally came up with the idea, back in 2010, it was meant to be a screenplay, but since then things have changed immensely. This novel deals with the heavy subject of interracial dating. I didn't think this story was worth telling because nowadays a lot of people tell me that interracial dating is fine and no one has a problem with it, but this couldn't be far from the truth. Just look at the negative feedback that Cheerios received when they released the commercial featuring an interracial family. That's not even including my struggles with negativity for having a Caucasian male friend.

For the longest time I didn't think that Beyond Their Beliefs was something people would want to read, in fear of it not being realistic, but I'm not writing this story for them...I'm writing this story for me. I've let fear hold me back from a lot of things, but not this. This is a story that I'm going to tell, and I hope that people realize that negativity towards interracial relationships is STILL A BIG DEAL!


Friday, June 13, 2014

2014 To-Do List Update


I'm back! Since school is officially out for the summer, I'll have more time to focus on blogging, my writing projects, checking things off of my to-do list, and all the other things I never have time to do during the semester. I can't believe this is my first post of the year, and we're already half-way through it! Where has the time gone? Because we're halfway through 2014, I thought it'd be the perfect time to share with you some of the things I've checked off of my to-do list.

Work on a novel
Attend Maryam's wedding
Do yoga
Eat king cake
Watch more television movies
Start a Prayer Journal
Buy a book on my wishlist
Try a new snack from a store

Rather than overflowing this post with pictures and updates of each of these tasks, each Friday I will post a picture and tell you my opinion/feelings on completing these tasks. Next Friday I will be giving you the low down on ALL of my writing projects, including my current work in progress, Sliding into Love!

Monday, December 30, 2013

2014 To-Do List


I guess it's that time of year again. The time when people vow to do better than what they did the year before, or when they make resolutions they have no intentions on keeping; but not this girl!

At the end of 2012, I came up with a list of things I wanted to accomplish in 2013. I actually completed 7 out of the 12 items that were on my list, but if I hadn't put a specific number on some of the items (i.e. complete 2 scrapbooks), I would have actually completed 10 of them.

For 2014, I've decided to create another checklist, but this time I'm not limiting myself to a specific amount…life throws us curve balls every now and then and we have to be ready for them! I know how busy my life can get, which is exactly why I won't be putting specifics on myself, unless it can't be avoided.

Here's my To-Do List for 2014, in no particular order: 

Work on a novel
Publish a novel
Attend Maryam's wedding
Attend one of Scott's games
Do yoga
Successfully complete squat challenge
Eat king cake
Watch more television movies
Go to the movie theater
Go to the casino
Complete a scrapbook
Raise at least $20 for New Orleans' American Kidney Foundation through GoodSearch
Start a Prayer Journal
Create inspiration board 
Blog as much as possible
Post more photos on Instagram
Buy a book on my wishlist
Read a novel that's not from my preferred genre
Get an A in at least one class
Bake something/make candy
Cook a dish
Try a new snack from a store
Have Family Game Night
Go to the gun range
Try a new food
Review more novels on NetGalley 

  Hopefully, my to-do list will inspire you to create your own to-do list. Feel free to share your list with me in the comments. Here's to a great year! 





Monday, December 23, 2013

My Father, My Unsung Hero

Today is the day that I take this time out to celebrate my Unsung Hero, my father. My father has always been my hero, but after these last two years of witnessing my father's strength, it has made me realize that I couldn't have picked a better hero. If anyone knows me, they know that I'm the definition of a daddy's girl. I've learned so many lessons from my dad, but here are my top 22 favorite lessons that I've learned:




22. How a real man is supposed to treat a lady (he treats my mom like the Queen that she is).

21. How to deal with whatever God throws my way.

20. Burping is NOT ladylike.

19. How to shout really loud during basketball and football games.

18. How to shoot a BB gun.

17. Westerns are really fun to watch (especially Bonanza).

16. How to stew a chicken (this was my first and last cooking lesson with him).

15. Never agree to drink coffee that comes with the bribe of $1 (he still owes me $1). 

14. How to be independent.

13. To believe in myself and my talent.

12. His favorite quote:  "If you don't mind do it, and if you do mind, do it anyway."!

11. Family is all that matters.

10. Nah unh is NOT a word!

9. Charlie Wilson is one of the greatest entertainers of all time.

8. That I beg too much (but he gives in)!

7. To cherish family every day because they can be here today and gone tomorrow.

6. How to mow the lawn.

5. Health should be your number one priority.

4. Water guns are definitely allowed in the house...unless mom finds out!

3. How to play pitty pat.

2. No matter how old I get, I will ALWAYS need my dad.

1. How to be a FIGHTER!

Happy Birthday, Dad! Thank you for being an amazing hero and an inspiration to all of us!


Thursday, October 31, 2013

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!!