Journaling and “The Candlestone”

Not a very exciting title but it pretty much sums this post up.  I have SO MUCH I want to talk about and there’s no way I’ll fit it all in this one post.  Actually, I should have tried to post this at least a week ago, but I’ve been having some troubles with my internet connection.  And as all of you know, if you can’t get on the internet, there’s no way you can blog. ;’(

To start out, many good things have been happening recently, first and foremost that I finally beat that dratted slum in SOTD.  The opening for Chapter 3 has been driving me insane for near on 2 months (way too long) and I finally figured out what was going wrong last Thursday.  Since then, the slum has cleared up for the most part, which opens a world of possibilities that I can’t wait to explore.  It’s about time too; this rewrite has been giving me headaches.  I’m not sure why it’s being so difficult, but I know that all the trouble will be so worth it when I’m through.  Not to sound too bold or anything, but believe me when I say that this is going to be EPIC! :D

I’m also designing and sewing a new medieval dress.  I can’t wait to see it finished!  I’m using a pattern for the most basic structure of the over-gown, but I’m also completely re-designing the dress so that at least half of the pattern won’t even be relevant by the time I’m through with it.  My hope is to have the finished dress made (at least somewhat) “Period” with a slightly new design.  I’m researching the details for the piece.  There are many things to ask myself: like, would it be alright to use a long, decorative chemise as an under-gown, or should I make a supportive kirtle?  (The downside of the kirtle being that I will also need a chemise for the sleeves, and the overlapping layers will make the dress uncomfortably hot by the end of July…)  I also have to wonder how one constructs an over-gown with a supportive bodice and how one might alter a pattern in order to gain such a bodice.  And should I have the back of the over-gown lace up instead of installing the much more efficient zipper?  Then if I do decide to lace up the back, should I make the eyelets myself or use metal rivets?  You know… petty things like that.  To make the dress as close to period as possible, the answers are actually staring me right in the face, but some of you know how it can be – should one choose convenience for speed, or time over contemporary?

One thing is certain, though: I will not be sewing the dress by hand.  There’s no time for that.  I would love to, but when it comes down to it, I want to have this piece finished in 3 to four weeks and a machine is much faster and (in my opinion) sturdier than what I could do by hand.  Someday though… someday I vow to complete a medieval gown with only the stitches pushed through by my own fingers, but until then… *sigh*  Oh well.  I’ll just have to make up for it by adding the decorative embroidery and beading by hand. ^_^  In the end, the dress promises to be beautiful.  If I had a sketch here with me I would post it, but I guess you’re just going to have to wait to see the finished piece too. Too bad.  Mwahahaha! ;)

And now to the moment you’ve all been waiting for… the actual book review.  Be warned: there are definite spoilers ahead.

The book I’m reviewing is “The Candlestone” by Bryan Davis.

In the book, Billy and Bonnie, two half-dragon children bestowed with dragon gifts (Billy has fire breath and Bonny has wings) are once again faced with the threat of an evil pursuing their kind since the time of King Arthur.  What had seemed to be the happy ending of their last, life threatening adventure is suddenly shattered when Bonnie’s father returns and says that her mother, whom she thought was dead, is calling for Bonnie to come and save her.  Fearing for her mother’s life, Bonnie goes with her father back to Montana where her mother is said to be, but the knowledge of her father’s past deeds against her and her mother have Bonnie continually waiting on the edge of her seat for something to go wrong.

Meanwhile, Billy, his professor, and his best friend think there’s something shady about Bonnie’s father.  Bonnie already told them some of what went on while she and her mother were still with her father, so having Bonnie’s dad show up right before Bonnie is about to be adopted seems a little fishy.  However, the law says that Bonnie’s dad has the right to claim her since there’s no real proof that he did what Bonnie says he did and since she’s underage.  Unable to prevent Bonnie from going, Billy and his friends seek the help of Billy’s father and start researching the secrets of a mysterious book believed to be Merlin’s journal.  Along the way, they discover something about Bonnie’s father and the strange Candlestone that seems to draw the strength away from anyone of dragon descent.  In their first adventure, Devin the Dragon Slayer and self-proclaimed knight had used the Candlestone to weaken the children in order to overpower them, but then Devin disappeared.  Now Billy discovers that the Candlestone does more than just draw light to it… it also captures souls.  With no way to escape, some of the souls have been trapped there for centuries with no way to get out, and now Devin has joined them… and he wants OUT.  Billy is afraid that Bonnie might be in much more trouble than she ever could have guessed, and so he sets out to save her.

Pros:

Well, as you might be able to tell by my summary, this book’s plot is rather complicated.  Which is a good thing.  I love complicated plots; they allow me to keep guessing throughout the entire story, and then they surprise me.  However, I tend to be a somewhat impatient reader.  When I get interested in one person’s story and then the POV changes, I can get frustrated.  Since there are two sides of the story that need to be told in this book, and since they need to be told in two different places at the same time, the POV changes frequently.  And so, me being the impatient person that I am, I kept skipping ahead; I read through Bonnie’s side of the story clear to the end, then I went back and read through Billy’s side.  This is not the ideal way to read a book, it’s true – I don’t actually recommend doing it – but I just couldn’t help myself!  I became so enthralled with Bonnie’s story right off the bat that I just had to know what was going to happen to her next and I couldn’t wait to find out.  I certainly commend Mr. Davis for his ability to captivate a reader.  If his books tend to be a little over-complicated, they make up for it by being mesmerizing.

 Also, as much as I enjoyed the first book, I felt like the characters were much more developed in this book.  In the first book, the characters felt realistic and developed, but somehow Mr. Davis was able to delve deeper into their personalities and pull out the best of them in the Candlestone.  Secrets are revealed, fears realized, revelations understood… the characters are so colorful you almost wouldn’t need the vivid scenery that accompanies them, but Mr. Davis goes ahead and gives it to us anyway.  His prose are spectacular.  I definitely walked away from this book with a few new ideas in my head.  I can’t wait to put them to use.

Cons:

There weren’t many problems that stood out to me, but I still wanted to give a well-rounded review, so I started to nit-pick.  As much as I love complicated plots, perhaps Mr. Davis is TOO good at what he does.  I did find myself having some trouble keeping track of certain elements that were important later in the story.  For someone who struggles with following some storylines (like my sister) this could end up being a serious problem.

Also, as much as I loved the character development, I felt like Bonnie’s character seemed too naive in places.  Something that Bonnie didn’t understand in the development of the story would seem obvious to me, so I became slightly annoyed at her ignorance.  And to defer claims that I understood things better because I was reading both Billy and Bonnie’s side of the story at once, I must remind people that I read Bonnie’s story first, all the way through to the end, and that it was only after I finished reading Bonnie’s story did I go back to read Billy’s story.

My Overall thoughts:

I think it’s pretty clear.  I liked the book.  A lot.  And I can’t wait to get my hands on the third one.  Any peevish thorns that nibbled at my enjoyment were easily overlooked in light of the book's thrilling content.  Nit-picking doesn't hold a candle to all this book has going for it.

I think I’ll give this book a 5 out of 5.  So worth the read.

(I received this book on the 13^th of June from AMG publishers.  I was not required to give a positive review.  The thoughts and views of this book review are completely my own.)

IT'S DONE!

IT'S DONE! Oh my word, it's DONE!!!

I finished my last final today at 3:00pm. Don't know what my grade is yet, but all I can think about is this wondrous weight that has been lifted off my shoulders. Seriously, I feel light headed.  *swoons*

What does this mean?  It means that the anxiety of having giant school projects that I am really not interested in looming over my head is now gone.  All of that has been replaced with some very interesting endeavors I plan to pursue in the summer, including (but most certainly not limited to) finishing the new and improved re-write of SOTD.  Not to mention the blog posts I have been promising everyone. :)

Tonight I go home to a few other writing related projects, and now that I don't have to worry about classes, I think I will enjoy them.  Tomorrow morning I get to sleep in for the first time in a very, very long time.  And I just found out that the Pen and Parchment now has 60 followers.  Sounds like a good beginning to what promises to be a very good summer. ^_^

Nichole

Welcome Back, Dear Muse. I Have Missed Thee. :D

If you’ve been following the Pen and Parchment for awhile, it’s probable you know about my crazy hectic schedule. School’s coming to an end for the Spring Semester, Finals are almost over (if I can survive them) and I’ve been planning some big things for this summer. First up on my plate is to finish the new and much improved rewrite of “Song of the Daystar”. I want to have it completed by August, if at all possible (which it may not be… maybe by the end of August). This means that aside from my training sessions at the school for my position as a writing tutor which begins next fall, and the fact that I need a summer job – preferably something along the lines of my career choice (I’m thinking about starting a business in my area as a creative writing teacher for homeschoolers over the summer, inspired by my wonderful mother’s faith in my abilities. :D), my summer days will be filled with hectic and (hopefully) inspired writing moments.

However, there has been just one little problem with my plans; my muse decided to take a long and quite unexpected vacation several months ago. You’ve heard me complain of this before, I’m sure. I’ve been just plain stuck, and for a long time it seemed that nothing I did would coax my muse to come back before she decided to. How on earth am I supposed to plan a summer filled with writing endeavors when my muse refuses to stick around long enough for me to include her in my plans?

But last night (that would be the night of Thursday the 12th), I was rewarded with a very pleasant surprise. I had just put down my German homework for a much needed break and was flipping lazily through my video files when I came across a file that I had completely forgotten about. It was a writer’s prompt issued by Arwen9 (also known as Liz) over at the Sci-fi/fantasy thread on the Writers’ Digest forum. The reason for the prompt was to inspire a short story no longer than 5k to enter into the summer short story competition. (They have regular short story competitions over on that forum. Depending on the amount of entrants, the top three stories voted on receive a sparkly cyber trophy that the author can post in their sig-line. :D) This particular prompt was different from the previous prompts I’d seen, as it was both a visual and audio prompt, which is why I had decided to download the file in the first place.

The visual prompt is just a single picture of what looks to be a regular girl standing out in the rain in a yellow raincoat with sniper lasers trained on her as she holds out a grenade in one hand for all to see and dangles the pin from the first finger of her other hand. The music is a slightly repetitive score, but very thrilling at the same time. Changing mostly in volume as it adds more instruments and voices with each repetition, it dips and raises – crescendos and decrescendos – with every replay until the song is absolutely thrumming with tension. It sounds like it would easily fit in some sort of psychological thriller movie, such as Eagle Eye or perhaps Transformers. The idea behind the contest is to write a short story no longer than 5k that is based on the music and the photo, and tells the story of how the girl got to that point in her life.

So back to last night.

I had just pushed play on the video file and had almost finished listening through the first 8 bars, when I felt a gentle tap on my shoulder. I turned around and there she was with suitcases still in hand, a straw hat flopping over her eyes, and a glorious tan that could never have been coaxed from the Illinois sun at this time of year.

“WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!” I scolded her. “I’ve been driven almost crazy with lack of imaginative ideas, and you’ve been off getting a tan… A TAN!”

My muse did not say a word but gently set down her suitcases, flashed a smile of pearl white, and leaned over to press my fingers to my keyboard.

My nose crinkled at her. “Oh, so NOW you want to work, do you?”

But instead of answering me, she taped my fingers on the keys a few times, then sat down on my bed and started giving me a back massage.

Now, I knew what she was up to; this was just a ploy – her way of saying she was sorry for deserting me in my time of mental crisis. And perhaps I wasn’t quite ready to forgive her yet – perhaps I should have played the victim a bit longer and really made her feel bad for leaving me all alone and stranded in crazy-weathered Illinois for so many, many months while she went off on vacation and partied it up on some beautiful Caribbean Island meant only for the ethereal threads of the inspirations of the world. However, I have never been able to resist a good back massage, especially when it is administered by my own muse. I’m telling you, people – she is an amazing masseuse!

So I’m lying there on my bed with this tension-building music playing in the background while receiving an extremely relaxing massage from the Embodiment of my Imagination, and right at that moment, I start typing. Typing furiously. In fact, I’m almost sure I saw smoke start to rise from my keyboard as I pounded out the skeletal outline of a story.

Now this story has absolutely nothing to do with SOTD or Eldrei. In fact, I’ve never written a story like this before in my life! And I can’t decide on which genre it is either… Sci-fi? Dystopian? Urban fantasy? Maybe a mix of all of them… Well, whatever it is, this story is going to be great! I can already feel it in my fingers, and my muse is purring right now and kneading my back with her paws (in her cat form, yes… she gets like that sometimes), urging me to continue writing. I’ll have to be careful around her for a few days now… if she decides that I’m not writing enough while she’s in that form, she tends to bring out The Claws of Doom, and believe me… you do NOT want to be wacked with The Claws of Doom. She aims to draw imagination-stirring blood, and that can definitely get in the way of other plans. ;D

Right now I only have the basic outline of the story written. It’s about a page long, not overly detailed, and reads slightly like a book blurb. Later I plan to do some world and character building and see how far I can take this. It should definitely be an interesting journey. This book feels more like a psychological thriller to me than anything else I’ve written… perhaps that is the genre it is? Who really knows?

I do know this though: there is no way this story is going to end at 5k. I don’t think I can even manage a scene without taking it way out of proportion. No… this is a going to be a novel length venture for sure.

It’s a bit of a daunting thought. I mean, I have several other WIP’s all waiting patiently for me to finish them. Eldrei was supposed to be next… Its rewrite has been shelved on and off for a little over 2 years now, much as I still like to work on it when I need a break from SOTD. Eldrei is just too big of a story to rush into… that world has been growing for almost 8 years now, and there’s no way I’m going to do the story any less than the justice it deserves. When I finish writing that book (for real, I mean) and finally start reworking what I have of the second book that will be a good day indeed! But in the meantime, what on earth am I supposed to do with this new story? I don’t want to just put it in a drawer until the idea becomes old and dusty; it deserves better than that.

Ah well. I guess I’ll have to let my wonderings sit and age for awhile. You know what they say: Ideas are like good wine… they get better as they age. :D So I’ll just let my thoughts simmer and continue writing SOTD. At least my muse is back, which means I shouldn’t have as much trouble writing the rest of chapter 3 as I’ve had for the last two months. And I just can’t stay mad at her either. I’m so happy that she’s back, that all I can say to her is, “Welcome Home, Dear Muse. I have missed thee!”

*Reaches out to pet cat-muse and nearly get’s her hands sliced off*

*sighs*

Ah well. At least she chose her cat form this time. Her Dragonian form is MUCH WORSE. :D

My Day Feels Untitled...

Hello peoples! *waves happily as proof that she's not actually dead in the blogging world*


As most of you have probably noticed, I haven't been posting anything for a good long time.  In fact, the last time I wrote anything for my blog was... let's see... *flips through blog date ledger*... March 25th.  So ten days ago. I think that's definitely long enough.  O_o  Oh, and I haven't commented on anyone else's blog in such a long time that I can't even remember exactly how long it has been.  But please don't feel like I don't love you because of it... believe me, I still read other blogs... I just never get around to posting comments anymore.  Must try to remedy this; perhaps it will get better after school gets out in a another month. :)


I wish I could say, "Don't blame me for my lack of time.  It's the nasty school's fault!  It wasn't my idea for all of my teachers to insist that homework is more important than blogging!"  But the fact is that homework is, indeed, much more important than blogging.  As is writing, which still hasn't been coming very easy for me lately... (I'm trying hard not to feel discouraged).


So Homework.  And I've just been negligent.


If there is one thing I'm most certainly good at, it's procrastinating.  It seems like my favorite pass-time.  Thus, when I sat down to do homework last night, I ended up in my word program trying to work on the rewrite of my novel... and when I found I was stuck, I ended up pulling out one of the books from my "not read yet" pile and reading the whole thing in one sitting.


Which leads me to the real reason for this post.  I've decided to review the book I read last night. :D  I actually have a list of other books that should be reviewed first, but I figured they could wait.  (just like my homework... for now. *wince*)

So the book I read last night was called The Shifter and it is the first book in the Healing Wars series by Janice Hardy.


15-year-old Nya and her younger sister, Tali, who were orphaned during the recent war that nearly destroyed their city, both have the gift of healing. Unlike Tali, though, Nya can't harmlessly shift the pain she takes from the sick and wounded into enchanted pynvium metal. Instead, she must shift it from person to person, a dangerous talent that she keeps hidden from the ruling Baseeri and from the Healer's League where Tali is an apprentice. Scrounging to make ends meet, Nya resorts to odd jobs and the occasional theft to stay alive. When a young soldier discovers her secret and implores her to save his dying father, Nya is forced to choose between protecting herself and acknowledging her ability to save others and perhaps her entire city.


My thoughts: I really enjoyed reading this book.  Really, I did.  I picked it up and simply could not put it down... which is why I stayed up until I finished reading the very last page at 4:30 in the morning.  


The action of this book was fast paced and it felt real.  I thought the character of Nya was well written (even though it seemed like her inner conflicting thoughts were always rather similar... family, or friends, or self; however, this was relevant to the story, so I really don't have anything else to pick at.)


I absolutely love the thought put behind the magical abilities and qualities of Nya's world.  It's almost familiar... but so different that it's exotic.  Much like the rest of the book: the whole thing was exotic.  Some of the scenes where Nya was running from one building to the next - one part of the city to the next - reminded me vaguely of Tamora Pierce's books set in the land of Tortall... and I absolutely ADORE Tamora Pierce's books (though, as a warning to some of the younger Christian readers on this site, Mrs. Pierce's books usually do have some slightly  more mature content in them... she never goes "all the way", but there are some slightly edgy moments that I've skipped over in the past.)


What threw me for a loop at first while reading The Shifter is the fact that the setting is more exotic than I'm used to reading about in fantasy books.  When I hear the word "Forest", I think of soft green light and trees I'm familiar with... like Oak, Ash, Maple, Dogwood and so on... It took me a few chapters to get used to the fact that the forests in this book were more muggy and marshy rain forests with monkey's flying through the branches and colorful birds flitting here and there, than they were the forests of Illinois or Michigan.  I guess one might say it was a fresh setting... one reminiscent of the setting in Arabian Nights (which I think could be used more often). 


I give this book a 4 1/2 stars out of 5.  All together, it really was an amazing read, and I can't wait to get my hands on the second book in the series, Blue Fire, now in bookstores.  Right now the third book in the series, Darkfall, is being prepared for publication.  


To learn more about Mrs. Hardy and her books, you can visit her blog at http://blog.janicehardy.com

Update on my Craziness...

Well, it's Friday.  And I now have my Lappy back with at least most of the data in tact!  Thank you Mark!  I have to pay you, it's true... but it is indeed very worth it: your really saved my hide... really, really.  :D

But there is one small problem... that being that I have to reinstall Microsoft Word and a hand-full of other programs, and because of that I must postpone my "Voyage of the Dawntreader" movie review until at least tomorrow.  Without "Word", I'm still wondering if all my documents came back entirely, and I'll never be able to sit down, rest, and write a review until I know for sure.  And I won't be able to know for sure until tonight when I get home and have time to install the program.

So...

This has been a very crazy week and I thank you all for being so patient with me!  And thank you so much for all your prayers!!!  I didn't get around to turning this week into "Narnia Week", like I thought I was going to do.  And so I've decided to make next week "Narnia Week" instead, now that I have my computer back and can really get moving on the articles I have in mind.  And instead of closing out the week with the movie review, how's about we open it with the review?  Yeah... yeah, that sounds good.

So if the review isn't up yet tomorrow, plan on it being there on Monday.

In the mean time, please vote for your favorite third place winner in "The Amazing First Chapter Contest".  Looks like one of the stories is pulling ahead... but the other isn't too far behind.  :D  We wouldn't want another tie, so vote, vote, vote!!!

Mwahahahahahahah!!!! *cough, cough... straightens*  Yeah.

Thanks again for all the prayers.  I should be back in full throttle on Monday!  *waves*

Nichole

More Updates and Random Randomness!!! :D

Ok, so I've received another entry for the "first chapter" contest!  It will be up on the contest page within the next few days.  That makes 3.  That's not very many and the submission deadline is coming up fast, so don't wait any longer.  Send me those chapters before it's too late!

On another note, I have some unfortunate news concerning the third prize, "Watership Down": my younger sister decided it was a coloring book.  I couldn't believe it!  It's one of my favorite stories ever and she decides to use a pen on it!

Fortunately for me I have another, not-drawn in copy.  Unfortunately it's in very bad repair and, though still very readable, it is quite literally falling apart.  I don't want to give away a scribbled up copy of anything as a prize, nor do I want to give away something that's falling apart, so until I can find another copy in decent shape that is not scribbled in, I'm going to have to pull that prize from the contest.  I will say, though, that I'm searching frantically for another copy.  And if another copy can't be found, I will find another interesting book to replace the third prize with... hopefully something everybody thinks is cool and exciting.

So the good news is that, even though I don't exactly have a third prize right now, there WILL BE a third prize... the third place winner may just have to wait a little while for it.  Sorry!

On another note entirely, I have just received some good news!  That good news is that I just found out I won a copy of Wayne Thomas Batson and Christopher Hopper's new book "Venom and Song".  And to make things even more amazing, the authors will be in Champaign Illinois this Saturday: I live only 1 and 1/2 hours away from Champaign, so I will definitely be there!  *so excited.  does happy dance*

Currently I'm reading through WTB's first pirate adventure book "Isle of Swords".  Let me just say now, I literally cannot put it down.  It's wonderful!  Now I read  "The Door Within" trilogy and found it encouraging... if a little young.  I thought the story lines of those books were good, and the ideas behind the plot, while done many times before, shown in a new light.  However, my own opinion was that the writing in itself needed a little work, and I HATE... absolutely LOATH... thinking that sort of thing about other authors; especially authors who are already published while I only have my rejection letters to keep me company.  (and no, I haven't received an answer yet from the publisher who's looking at my book... I'll be sure to keep you posted, so keep your fingers crossed and pray! :D )

However, "Isle of Swords" is nothing like "The Door Within" trilogy.  It's WAY better!  It's amazing!  The writing's refreshing and its kept me on the edge of my seat with every page.  I just sit for hours (usually hours when I'm supposed to be doing something else... *sheepish grin*) reading it, and I can't stop!  I think about it as I drive to school, and when I do my chores, and (what really gets me in trouble) when I'm supposed to be doing homework.  I HAVE TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!  Now, I haven't finished reading it yet, but when I do you can bet I'll have a good review of it to post here.  So keep an eye out for that as well.

Now I'd better get going.  I'm in the Christmas Musical our church is putting on (for some reason we've always done big musical numbers... it's just so much fun!).  Practice starts soon so I have to get.

C y'all around.

With pen in hand,

Nichole

My Guest Post -- Paper VS. Digital

Eldrei Word Count: same as last time.  :D

This is just a quick post to let my readers know that I wrote an article on Paper VS. Digital that is now posted on Squeaks' blog, Hidden Doorways.  You can find my article here.  I hope you enjoy it!  :)

Nichole White

Tagged! A day in the life of my room and Other Ramblings

Well, I had meant for this post to be a good one so I will try to be as posotive as I can be.  That said, today has turned out to be a real let down... and it's only 12:00 pm!

Why, do you ask, am I feeling so down in the dumps?  The answer is quite simple: I was fired this morning.

Yep, the ever dreaded "F" word of the Work Force woke me up this morning with a phone call, dragged me into work, and dropped that horrible, awful, hateful bomb.

FIRED.

But this was not supposed to be a post filled with melancholy and woe, and I can only hope that loosing this job means that God is opening another door for me... preferably one in a business that deals with publishing, books, and the wonderful world of the written word.

So, to comfort myself (and for your visual amusement) I have decided to post pictures of my bedroom.  Thankfully my room was clean (for once) when Jake tagged his followers to post candid pictures of their rooms.  I guess I was one of the lucky ones. :D

This first one is my bed, and the entrance to my bedroom.  Yes, that is a curtain over the door: my room is actually a converted attic and though the pictures make it look bigger, it is really, very small because the ceiling slants all the way down to the floor.  You might also be interested to know that I seem to have a love for Lions and Dragons.  The big stuffed lion was a gift for my birthday several years back: he was deemed "Aslan" soon after.  The little lion sitting next to him is "Little Aslan".  :)    The pillow on the floor is for my cat: he likes to come up and sleep on it.  I usually put the book I just finished reading on that pillow: this time it was "Auralia's Colors".  Oh, and that paper bag by the head of the bed in the first picture?  Books. :D

There's "Little Aslan" again.  And a Picture.  I have three pictures like this placed randomly throughout my bedroom.  This one says "Love" and the other two say "Peace" and "Faith".  My mom says she has another one that says "Hope" somewhere, but she would have to find it before I could use it in my decor.  And yes, those things around the pictures are just pillows.  I had no where else to put them because my bed is rather small.

This is my doll corner.  My mom collects China Dolls and my love of them stems from hers.  Some of the dolls were hers at one time, but she knew that I loved them so she gave them to me.  Others are dolls I fell in love with but didn't have money to buy and that people later bequeathed me as gifts.  I'm too old to play with them, but I love to display them.

There you are, the first real look at my room as a whole.  Now you can see what I mean when I say it is small.  As you can see, I love books.  Those too random wall piles are actually two book shelves filled to bursting.  There are also three more piles of books under my bed hidden under the comforter.  The big black thing in the front of the picture is my guitar case: my guitar isn't in it at the moment.  The other stringed instrument is an alpine dulcimer.  I can play it a little, but I prefer my guitar.  My desk was a Goodwill Find.  We call it my "Waltons' Desk" because in the old TV series, John boy had a desk like that.  (John boy was an aspiring author looking for publication too! :) ) 

Here's another look at it, only this time from the floor.  You can see yet another random pile of books in the lower right had corner.  You probably can't tell by now, but I LOVE to read!

There's my desk top.  The book in the lower right corner is "No Plot, No Problem".  I found it to be a major help.  Can you see my two daggers?  Maybe not.  They're kind of hard to pick out.  One is laying in front of the picture, the other is just above the leaf mat.  The picture has a saying on it that says "She watched a leaf fall from the sky and slowly felt her life falling into place... at last."  It touched me so I put it above my desk to continue inspiring me.  I think my aunt gave it to me.  She gave me the mug in the corner too: it was a souvenir from a renessance faire.

These two pictures are the tops of my bookshelf.  As you have probably noticed, I like the colors Red and Gold, and I also like leaves.  The picture behind the giant leaf bowl on my Bookshelf says "Reach for the Stars" and it has that saying also written in Chinese.  Leaning up against one of my lamps is a book that shows how to write Chinese words, and a bamboo paintbrush.  I made the runner.  You might not be able to tell, but it is Crazy Patch and it was made out of purple, crimson, black, and gold velvet.  It was no easy task to piece it together straight, let me tell you!

My smaller bookshelf.  As you can see, it's so full that the shelves are starting to bend.  I really need to fix that, but I'm not sure how. 

Another picture of my big bookshelf and my desk.

My bed buddies: a red bear that my mom found at a second hand shop, and my stuffed dragon named Torch.  As you can see, I'm reading Cynder's Midnight by Jeffery Overstreet.  I've read Auralia's colors too and will be posting a review on it soon.  The pillow is a Crazy Patch piece I was working on for my mom.  It's not quite done as I hadn't finished the beaded fringe around the edges, which explains the white string draping across the pillow.  lol*  I didn't see the string when I was taking the picture.  The folded blanket has more leaves on it.  :)

That's the wall hanging that hangs above my bed, yet another Crazy Patch piece that I worked on.  The "N's" stand for Nichole.  My Grandma taught me and my siblings how to make them.  Her own Crazy Patch works are just absolutely amazing!  And, of course, her stitching is much neater than mine.  I love my Grandma so much!!!

Another Lion.  When I saw this plaque, I was reminded of the scene in  "The Voyage on the Dawn Treader" where Caspian is telling Lucy and Edmund how the Lion Plaque above his door came to life and spoke with him.  That's why I hung it above my bed.

 My night stand, with my alarm clock, my reading lamp, and my three guardian angels standing in the background. 

Yet another pile of random books.

There's my Guitar.  I had it out of its case and on my bed because I was working on a song when I decided to drop everything and take these pictures.  :D

And last but not least, a final look at my room.  It's small, but I do love it.

And now I'm glad I decided to post these pictures.  It has made me feel much better about the nasty morning I had.  I hope the rest of the day goes well. 

I'll be posting a review on "Auralia's Colors" soon, so keep checking in.  In the meantime, I'm going to follow Jake's example and Tag all of my followers!  This should be interesting... very interesting indeed!

When Inspiration Comes A-Knocking, the Best Thing to do is Open the Door

Last night was just an ordinary night when I sat down at my keyboard. The hard copy of “Song of the Daystar” sat beside me on the desk in its neat red folder, my purple editing pen and idea-ballpoint lying on top. I glanced at it, turned back to my blank screen, opened my documents and scrolled through my options. Did I want to start something new, or work on something old? I was growing tired of editing, re-editing, questioning myself, going back and editing yet again. I wanted to write. Several documents flickered up in front of my face, each with potential but each one denied. I wanted to work on something I’d started before, something that I could get excited about… but I just couldn’t decide what.


Then it happened.

The folder was several years old, covered with several layers of digital dust from not being opened in so long. The labeled documents inside promised glimpses at old ideas, excerpts that were cut, snatches of song lyrics and poetry for the book, a half-composed attempt at a language, and other such creations expelled from a young writer’s mind.

But halfway down the folder, it was there, staring me in the face, beckoning me with the promise of adventure. I hadn’t opened it in so long, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect; four years ago I’d only managed a few chapters worth of revision before I stopped to pour all my writing efforts into “Song of the Daystar”.

I clicked the document open, scrolled down to the last scene I’d revised and…

Started to type!

I couldn’t believe it; four years on the shelf, and then quite suddenly and unexpectedly the story that had begun my love of writing had drawn me back in again. I swear my keyboard smoked as my fingers flew over its keys. It was all coming back to me: the characters’ personalities, their problems, their world. I could see the map in my mind's eye, could hear the trees whispering to the shadows that haunted their woods, the mountains’ rumbling song, the vast ocean’s quiet lullaby as the rivers rolled down to meet it on the shore.

I was back.

I never imagined it to happen that way. After I finished the revision of “Song of the Daystar” I’d thought I might go back and give one or two of my stories a once-over, see if any of them were calling my name. None of them seemed to be. I thought about this project – the one I’d titled “Eldrie” so long ago – but at the time the long and tedious hours of revising held no appeal; Eldrie’s rough draft was long and complicated, and, true to a first draft’s nature, very, very rough.

But now…

I can’t help but get excited over it. It’s like I’m stepping back into myself all over again (not that SOTD wasn’t a part of me too.) And its good to have something I can get excited over while I try to pen-in my frustrations with the cruel publishing world. When I told my mother of my unexpected joy, she just smiled and said, “Then you must know it’s time to start working on it again.” She’s been telling me to finish the revision for years.

And all of this just goes to show that when inspiration comes knocking, you’d better not let it stand out in the cold; hurry up and open that door!

Happiness 101

A couple weeks back “The Pen and Parchment” was awarded the “Happiness 101” award by Brad. Thank you Brad! I’m so glad you like it! Anyway, with this award I’m supposed to list ten things that make me happy and then pass the award along. So here we go.


1) Writing. Yep, you guessed it. After all, why would I name my blog “The Pen and Parchment” if I didn’t enjoy writing? Writing has always been a way for me to express myself, whether it’s in poetry, song lyrics, short stories, or novels. I’ve found both escape and comfort in the words that drift through my head and down to my fingers, and from there onto the page. Writing will always be one of the most significant things in my life that makes me happy.



2) Reading. Well, it makes sense doesn’t it? Reading and writing just sort of walk hand in hand. You almost can’t have one without the other… almost. I’ve always enjoyed reading since I was a little girl. Books have provided a way for me to see into some amazing worlds that have always been there, but that others just don’t want to see (if that makes sense). They have provided me with escapes, with adventure, with mystery, and even with love. I will enjoy reading a good book until the day I die… and maybe after. (you never know! Maybe God has books in heaven too! :D)



3) Drawing. Yes, I am an artist. I love to sketch out pictures of what my characters look like as I see them in my head. The problem is, I have to be inspired to draw something well; if I’m not… well, let’s just say it’s not that pretty. But, when I am inspired, I feel like I can draw anything! Art is a way to make the fantasy I read and write about become visual for others to enjoy as well. And sometimes the picture doesn’t always turn out the way I thought it would in my head (just like when I’m writing a story) so it’s always an interesting process.



4) Music. Kinda makes sense, though, doesn’t it? I mean, writing, reading, music, and art all walk hand in hand after all. But honestly, who doesn’t enjoy listening to music? I find my inspiration is best stirred when I listen to Celtic or Folk music, although I enjoy Country every now and again, and I also like Contemporary Christian. Recently I was introduced to the Filk genre; now that is an interesting genre, let me tell you! It’s a type of music based off of books or movies that inspired the artist. I guess that means you could call “May it Be” written by Enya for LOTR Filk. Who’da’thunk! But I also enjoy playing guitar and writing the lyrics to my own songs.



5) Jesus. I guess He should have been at the very top of my list huh? But I’m just writing these things down as they come to my head, so just know what He’s my #1. Without him I couldn’t do any of the things I do today, be any of the things I am, or become any of the things I will be. He is my #1 inspiration, my #1 joy, and my #1 love. Shoot! He’s my #1 period! In Him do I find solace when the world seems in turmoil. I know that He will never forsake me… never.



6) My family. I love them all so much! However, when you’re the oldest of six children, you’ve got to expect a bit of a love-hate relationship with some of your brothers and sisters. *roguish grin* But even with all the trouble they’ve caused me, and all the times I’ve wished I was an only child, and all the times that I’ve… *clears throat* well, yeah… you get the picture. Even with all that, I still love them so much!



7) Ok, now it’s getting tougher. For the 7th thing that makes me happy, I’ll have to choose… my friends. I have some really amazing ones. I don’t always let them know that I appreciate them as much as I do, but I hope that they know it anyway. Thanks guys!



8) Blogging. I know, this one probably should be under “writing”, but I think I’ll just keep it the way it is. I have discovered since starting “The Pen and Parchment” in April that I really enjoy blogging! Like, seriously! In fact, some people might call me addicted. I’m not sure if I really am, but I do enjoy it a lot.



9) Bookstores. Bookstores make me very happy! Of course, this might fit under “Reading” just as well as blogging fit under “Writing” but I’m just gonna keep them separate. I tell you, I just LOVE stepping into a B&B or a Border’s store. There’s something about a bookstore that just gets me so excited. (It’s probably all those amazing books on the shelves… go figure!)



10) My room. I love it. I really do. You see, I only just got it remodeled before last semester started. It was the first time I’d ever seen my room decorated just the way I wanted it. Granted, it’s a mess again, but still. “Messy” is the constant state of my room but “disorganized”? Never. I still know just where everything is… oh wait. Where did that pencil disappear to? *grin*



So, there they are: the ten things that make me happy. I know there are more, and maybe some of these seem trivial, but they’re not to me.

Here are the people I’m going to give the “Happiness 101” award to.

Nathan Bradsford: For all the amazing advice he gives out about writing and the publishing world. I have found so many helpful tips on his blog, it’s not even funny! Since I started following him, I’ve seen my writing take a turn for the better. (And he’s a literary Agent open for queries! How cool is that, right?)

Dancing-with-dragons-is-hard-on-your-shoes: I just recently started following this blog, but I was caught immediately by the author’s funny yet sincere voice. And she has a book supposed to be published soon. I’ll be sure to check it out.

Lydia Sharp: Some of the best advice I’ve ever gotten (writing wise) was handed out by her on the WD forum. She’s also an amazing writer and her blog is very insightful. Check it out here(link) if you haven’t already. :)

BrandiG: Another amazing writer with an amazing blog! Once again, I met her on the forums at WD. She’s got a very colorful way with words and the pictures she creates with them are just phenomenal!

Squeaks: I follow this blog regularly. The posts are usually thought provoking at the least… out right inspiring at best. Check it out! :)

Brad: Thank you! I’m glad you enjoy my blog and I hope it’s as fun to read as I find yours to be!

I have a whole bunch more, but I think I’m just going to pause for awhile. If you would like this award, just go ahead and take it. I hope it makes you smile like it did for me as I wrote this! :)  I will be posting links to the names I have awarded this to in the near future!  :D

First Rejection

Hello again.

I've told people I would keep my blog updated with news about Song of the Daystar.  As some of you know, I started the Querying stage of the publishing process at the beginning of the week, and now I can say I received my first ever rejection notice.

The notice was very polite but not overly so.  It was actually pleasant (and this coming from the rejected author!).  To be honest, I didn't really expect this agent to represent my work, but I was curious to see if he was even a tad bit interested.  Apparently he wasn't.  But I'm ok with that.

Some of you may be wondering who exactly I'm talking about.  Well, it's no secret: his name is Nathan Bradsford and he's one of the top agents at Curtis Brown, LTD... a very highly recommended literary agency.  I follow his blog consistently: it's completely filled with helpful and useful tips for writers.  I suggest that other writers look into it.

One of the things that Nathan says on his blog is, "If in doubt, query me."  Which is exactly what I did.  I have to say that I think the reason I wasn't hurt by the rejection in any way, shape, or form is because I've been steeling myself for my first rejection letter (and probably the many others that follow the first), for several years now.  I've know it was bound to happen, so when I read the letter, all that came to mind was, "Alright then.  He must not be the right agent, but that just means that the right agent is still out there and God will help me find him."

Below, I've posted the rejection so that you can see for yourself how polite he was about it: 

Dear Nichole,


Thank you for your recent e-mail and for reading my blog, I appreciate it. I regret to say that I don't feel that I'm the most appropriate agent for your work.


However, opinions vary considerably in this business, and I wish you the best of luck in your search for representation.


Best wishes,

Nathan



So, I guess that means I just wait for the next response...  *taps fingers impatiently on the computer desk.*  Waiting can be so hard!!!

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

Uh!  It's raining again.  You know, everyone says that April Showers bring May Flowers; I guess that means we're supposed to look on the good side of things.  But when you forgot your umbrella at home and you have half a mile to walk to get to the school building from your car, I've found it hard to feel kindly towards rain.

In the mean time, rain makes me feel sleepy and unfortunately "sleepy" and "school work" just don't like to mix.  If this were my day off, I'd probably just hang out in my room and work on Song of the Daystar all day.  But it's not.  *sigh*  Which means I have to go to work after school.  Fun right?

Anyway, enough of my complaining.  At least it's warm out and the trees are starting to bloom.  That's good.

What do you do on an ucky, rainy day?

A New Book on the Market... (no, it's not mine... yet.)

So the first topic this week: Book reviews. (dun, dun, duh!)

The other day, while at K-mart, I found myself in my usual spot scanning the shelves of the book section. Nothing seemed that interesting...

Me: "erotica, erotica, vampires, erotica, vampire erotica... I'm just not that type of girl. Oh! Artemis Fowl! Shoot, I have all of those..."

That's when my eye fell on a new cover on the shelf: "Bran Hambric and the Farfield Curse." Intrigued, I picked it up and read the jacket...

Me: "Hmm... a fresh fantasy set in an 'almost modern type' setting. Ok, a boy who doesn't know he can use magic... yeah, yeah... The city doesn't allow magic; ok, so he's different. Wait a minute... his mother was a magical Criminal?! *flips the book open*

And, yeah, that's pretty much the way it happened. A few pages in I decided I liked it. It seemed to be a good, solid story. I was certainly intrigued. Finally finished reading small bits, I flipped to the back to read the author bio.

Me: "Kaleb Nation... uh-huh, uh-huh... ok, so he's young and he writes. Wait! He turned 20 in 2008? *mental check of age* OMG! He's my age! And... and he's published!!!" *swoons*

And the book was mine. I had to have it and about five minutes later I did. So far I'm into the second part (not second chapter) and I am absolutely hooked. It's pretty solid writing, and it's a fairly decent plot. Yes, the whole "boy can do magic and never knew it before" theme has been done before... a lot. But we read it anyway, don't we?

For pros on the book, I would have to say that Kaleb has good writing and certainly seems to know where he's going with the plot. His characters are interesting and sometimes eccentric, and his humor is witty, fast paced, and genuine. For this, I am definitely going to look into the second book when it finally comes out: Bran Hambric and the Specter Key. Kaleb also has a pretty spiffy website that is easily accessible and has good and accurate info.

For Cons, however, I would have to say that Bran's character has a lot of internal speculation (not that I wouldn't if I were him, and not that I and my characters don't struggle through internal speculation in my writings). The point is, there is almost too much of it, and I found myself skipping parts to get to the action.

That said, here's one more for pros... I didn't have to go far to find the action; the book is quite literally brimming with it!

So there you go. That's another $15.00 out of my pocket, and a new book on my book shelf that I probably don't need but went ahead and got anyway.

Has anyone else read a new book lately?