This past week was incredible! I wanted to blog, but I was so busy rewriting and editing that I had to wait. I went to WIFYR! I told myself that I would regret leaving Utah and not going to WIFYR this summer. Turns out that I was right.
I was a little nervous as the conference approached. Writers can be an insecure bunch, or maybe that's just me. I always do this to myself, though. I start thinking that my writing's not very good or that I shouldn't have signed up. But I went, and I am so glad that I did! I was in Ann Cannon's class--basically the best class ever! Anyone who was in there will agree with me. The feedback that I received on my writing was great, I got to read through the other students' writing and give my own critiques, and I got to meet a lot of new, fun people. Unless something big comes up next summer, I'm totally hopping on a plane and heading back to WIFYR.
Some of the prominent people who were there (aside from the faculty, which was composed of published authors) were Kristin Ostby (editor for Simon & Schuster), Michelle Witte (agent for Mansion Street Literary MGMT), John Cusick (agent for Greenhouse Literary), Amy Jameson (agent for (A+B Works), and James Dashner as the keynote speaker. And of course, Carol Lynch Williams is the main start-up-gal behind the scenes of WIFYR, though a lot of people make it happen. In short, WIFYR was amazing, so why weren't you there?
After WIFYR, I went to Lagoon with my parents, sister-in-law, and niece and nephews. I can't think of a better week right before I move to NYC. Books and family, that's where it's at. By the way, my niece has this weird thing about feeding me. Yesterday, she kept abandoning her food to sit by me, and then she kept picking up my fork and shoveling corn into my mouth. It takes a lot longer to eat when a three-year-old is feeding you, but it was more entertaining for sure!
Today will be full of doing all the necessary preparatory things that one does before moving to NYC. I think I'll start a new blog too, about all my NYC happenings. I'll still write on this one too though. I really just love the word hugger-mugger, though I'm admittedly more of a people-watcher than a hugger-mugger.
Monday, June 23, 2014
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Curious Encounters of the Literary Kind
Here's an interesting phenomenon.
I studied English, which means, among other things, that I read (and sometimes half-read) a lot of books. I remember thinking, during all of that schooling, that sometimes I just wanted to read another book--not as in, I just couldn't wait to read another book, but more like, I wanted something different. I thought of the entire library (which is rather massive, by the way) filled with all kinds of books, many of which would have been more interesting, I thought, than what I was reading at that time. This wasn't always the case, and I enjoyed reading many of my required books.
But classics--we all can name at least one because we had to read at least one in high school--were never my area of interest, especially in high school. I remember reading The Red Pony, by Steinbeck in 7th grade and being so disappointed that the pony died (spolier alert!). Yeah, the pony dies. And that sums up just about everything that I remember about that book. The English major in me wants to reread it and see what it's really about, see what I missed.
In 7th grade, I was much more interested in reading Terry Brooks, Tamora Pierce, and Brian Jacques--each of whom write excellent books, mostly fantasy. I was crazy for all fantasy books that fit into the YA genre, but my favorites were the ones with strong heroines. I still like a good YA novel, I mean, The Hunger Games! How could you not love it!
I don't think I found an appreciation for classics until I read The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood--though you could say it's more contemporary than classic, especially since she's still alive! I remember before that, being rather disgusted at Lord of the Flies and how it made me feel kind of sick when I read it. I did not enjoy literature that made me feel sick. And I suppose, the next year, I did kind of like reading Invisible Man (and we're not talking about H.G. Wells here). But from where I stood, if anyone wanted to write a classic, all they had to do was make the characters miserable and the plot depressing, add in some death and viola! You have a classic.
Finally, here's the phenomenon. I suddenly find myself, not unable, but not wanting to pick up a fantasy novel. Gasp! Perhaps it has to do with my graduation, and now I can read all of those literary classics by choice! Or maybe it has to do with my sudden interest in all of John Green's books. I read Looking for Alaska last week, and I liked it! Tonight, in a hungry moment, I just decided to buy the rest of John Green's books (very contemporary, and very YA), as well as two by Kurt Vonnegut (Cat's Cradle and The Breakfast of Champions), and Catcher in the Rye. Although, if we're fair, Kurt Vonnegut sometimes falls under speculative fiction. I think it's fair to ask--what is happening to me? All I want to do is read contemporary, thought-provoking fiction and classics. I daydreamed earlier about reading Moby Dick. Did you hear that? Moby Dick! Since when is that something to daydream about? And on top of that, I've started writing something new, and it's completely modern--no fantasy, sci fi, or speculative anything.
Maybe it has to do with my Netflix binge, which is officially over now. You know it's bad when you start watching like five different movies and then stop them all after about 30 seconds.
I don't want anyone to take this the wrong way--fantasy and sci fi are very thought provoking. One of my favorite writers is Brandon Sanderson. He knows how to put the epic in fantasy! I think I just need a little break from it, just a little breathing room.
Who knows why I have this sudden book craving, but I'm going along with it. I've already started on my next John Green novel and have recently found some little intellectual nuggets (in the guise of YA) for my brain to chew on. It's quite nice, really.
I studied English, which means, among other things, that I read (and sometimes half-read) a lot of books. I remember thinking, during all of that schooling, that sometimes I just wanted to read another book--not as in, I just couldn't wait to read another book, but more like, I wanted something different. I thought of the entire library (which is rather massive, by the way) filled with all kinds of books, many of which would have been more interesting, I thought, than what I was reading at that time. This wasn't always the case, and I enjoyed reading many of my required books.
But classics--we all can name at least one because we had to read at least one in high school--were never my area of interest, especially in high school. I remember reading The Red Pony, by Steinbeck in 7th grade and being so disappointed that the pony died (spolier alert!). Yeah, the pony dies. And that sums up just about everything that I remember about that book. The English major in me wants to reread it and see what it's really about, see what I missed.
In 7th grade, I was much more interested in reading Terry Brooks, Tamora Pierce, and Brian Jacques--each of whom write excellent books, mostly fantasy. I was crazy for all fantasy books that fit into the YA genre, but my favorites were the ones with strong heroines. I still like a good YA novel, I mean, The Hunger Games! How could you not love it!
I don't think I found an appreciation for classics until I read The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood--though you could say it's more contemporary than classic, especially since she's still alive! I remember before that, being rather disgusted at Lord of the Flies and how it made me feel kind of sick when I read it. I did not enjoy literature that made me feel sick. And I suppose, the next year, I did kind of like reading Invisible Man (and we're not talking about H.G. Wells here). But from where I stood, if anyone wanted to write a classic, all they had to do was make the characters miserable and the plot depressing, add in some death and viola! You have a classic.
Finally, here's the phenomenon. I suddenly find myself, not unable, but not wanting to pick up a fantasy novel. Gasp! Perhaps it has to do with my graduation, and now I can read all of those literary classics by choice! Or maybe it has to do with my sudden interest in all of John Green's books. I read Looking for Alaska last week, and I liked it! Tonight, in a hungry moment, I just decided to buy the rest of John Green's books (very contemporary, and very YA), as well as two by Kurt Vonnegut (Cat's Cradle and The Breakfast of Champions), and Catcher in the Rye. Although, if we're fair, Kurt Vonnegut sometimes falls under speculative fiction. I think it's fair to ask--what is happening to me? All I want to do is read contemporary, thought-provoking fiction and classics. I daydreamed earlier about reading Moby Dick. Did you hear that? Moby Dick! Since when is that something to daydream about? And on top of that, I've started writing something new, and it's completely modern--no fantasy, sci fi, or speculative anything.
Maybe it has to do with my Netflix binge, which is officially over now. You know it's bad when you start watching like five different movies and then stop them all after about 30 seconds.
I don't want anyone to take this the wrong way--fantasy and sci fi are very thought provoking. One of my favorite writers is Brandon Sanderson. He knows how to put the epic in fantasy! I think I just need a little break from it, just a little breathing room.
Who knows why I have this sudden book craving, but I'm going along with it. I've already started on my next John Green novel and have recently found some little intellectual nuggets (in the guise of YA) for my brain to chew on. It's quite nice, really.
Friday, June 6, 2014
Yearly Bucket List
I had the coolest idea the other night. You know how people have bucket lists or just cool things that they want to do? I was wondering, how many people actually make those things happen?
I lived in Italy for 18 months as an LDS missionary (which was awesome!) and I've been back to visit once. Oh, and I speak Italian. When I tell people that I've lived in Italy and that I speak Italian, most of them tell me that they've always wanted to go there. Just today, I probably heard it from four different people. (Just FYI, I don't normally walk around telling people about Italy. I met a bunch of new people, and it just kind of came up).
I know that a lot of the people I encounter are young 20-something college students who have no money, but sometimes they're older. I was thinking last night, why don't more people just do it? If you want to do something, why not just go for it? This may be a side-effect of my moving to NYC. Sometimes it's a terrifying thought, but mostly I just get excited.
Last night, I thought to myself, what if I made a goal to do something epic/awesome every year of my life? It's fun to think about living in Italy and all of the cool experiences I had. Then I think about moving to NYC, and I wonder about everything that I'll experience. It's bound to be epic and difficult, yet likely rewarding.
It doesn't have to be expensive, like traveling to Italy. It could be something that's mostly incredible to you. But I thought, what if I could do something like that every year? I could do more than one! I guess it's just the idea of living your bucket list while you've still got the strength in your legs to do it--make it exciting to live your own life.
And I also remembered that I still have not been to Harry Potter World. It's going on the list!
I lived in Italy for 18 months as an LDS missionary (which was awesome!) and I've been back to visit once. Oh, and I speak Italian. When I tell people that I've lived in Italy and that I speak Italian, most of them tell me that they've always wanted to go there. Just today, I probably heard it from four different people. (Just FYI, I don't normally walk around telling people about Italy. I met a bunch of new people, and it just kind of came up).
I know that a lot of the people I encounter are young 20-something college students who have no money, but sometimes they're older. I was thinking last night, why don't more people just do it? If you want to do something, why not just go for it? This may be a side-effect of my moving to NYC. Sometimes it's a terrifying thought, but mostly I just get excited.
Last night, I thought to myself, what if I made a goal to do something epic/awesome every year of my life? It's fun to think about living in Italy and all of the cool experiences I had. Then I think about moving to NYC, and I wonder about everything that I'll experience. It's bound to be epic and difficult, yet likely rewarding.
It doesn't have to be expensive, like traveling to Italy. It could be something that's mostly incredible to you. But I thought, what if I could do something like that every year? I could do more than one! I guess it's just the idea of living your bucket list while you've still got the strength in your legs to do it--make it exciting to live your own life.
And I also remembered that I still have not been to Harry Potter World. It's going on the list!
Facts and Confessions
Fact: When I wear my sunglasses, I feel like ten times cooler. The only problem is that I have to take them off when I go inside.
Confession: I couldn't help myself--I had to watch The Fault In Our Stars today! It was pretty good, though almost out of principle I have to say that the book is my favorite. I'm glad I went.
Fact: I realized tonight that, while I won't miss having a car too much, I will miss that feeling of having all the windows rolled down, the wind everywhere, the music too loud, and singing along.
Confession: (deep breath) I'm a feminist! Phew, I said it! Here is the definition of feminism: the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. I mean, how can I not be a feminist after studying literature, where female writers don't even really appear until the Romantic/Victorian period. And even then, how many of them kept the fact that they were female a secret? And how many of them even got to go to a University? And how many of them were taken seriously? But I'm not an extremist--I still shave my legs and stuff. I just like that I can be independent and think and act for myself unlike so many women of the past.
It's all kind of random, I know, but I was feeling kind of random tonight. There you have it!
Confession: I couldn't help myself--I had to watch The Fault In Our Stars today! It was pretty good, though almost out of principle I have to say that the book is my favorite. I'm glad I went.
Fact: I realized tonight that, while I won't miss having a car too much, I will miss that feeling of having all the windows rolled down, the wind everywhere, the music too loud, and singing along.
Confession: (deep breath) I'm a feminist! Phew, I said it! Here is the definition of feminism: the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. I mean, how can I not be a feminist after studying literature, where female writers don't even really appear until the Romantic/Victorian period. And even then, how many of them kept the fact that they were female a secret? And how many of them even got to go to a University? And how many of them were taken seriously? But I'm not an extremist--I still shave my legs and stuff. I just like that I can be independent and think and act for myself unlike so many women of the past.
It's all kind of random, I know, but I was feeling kind of random tonight. There you have it!
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
Zut alors! She has emerged!
Yes, I'm back! It's been quite a while. How long has it been since I last posted on here? Sheesh, it's kind of weird that I can feel guilty about not posting, but it's kind of true.
What have I got to say for myself? I graduated! And I worked! And I did a lot of sleeping/resting. I caught up on some tv shows too. It maybe wasn't the best use of my time, but it felt sooo good to relax!
I think I came out of my tv show binge faze yesterday when I needed to have 5,000 words ready for my WIFYR group. The conference is coming up! Two weeks! I had more than that written, but I think I'm kind of an eternal rewriter, which perhaps comes from me being a sort of "by the seat of your pants" kind of writer. Essentially, I hadn't worked much more on my story, and I wasn't too satisfied with the pages that I had--at least not enough to send them in to get critiqued by my group. So, yesterday, starting at about 4pm, I wrote. By 11:30pm, I had just under 5,000 words. Even though it's still kind of iffy, it's much better than what I had before. The submissions needed to be in by the end of yesterday. I don't think I realized just how inspiring deadlines can be.
Mostly, I can't stop thinking about my move to NYC! I may start a new blog that is all about the things I discover or don't discover. Or perhaps I'll just keep it all on here. I have a ticket though, did I mention that before? I did indeed buy a plane ticket. I'll be out of here on June 24th, so just a few weeks away. I have a place for a couple of months at least (on Manhattan!). Now I'm just waiting. Good thing I have a brother's wedding and WIFYR to keep me semi-busy until I leave.
I'll probably be more regular about posts now--no more two-month gaps.
By the way, did anyone pick up on the Beauty and the Beast quote??? Extra points if you did!
What have I got to say for myself? I graduated! And I worked! And I did a lot of sleeping/resting. I caught up on some tv shows too. It maybe wasn't the best use of my time, but it felt sooo good to relax!
I think I came out of my tv show binge faze yesterday when I needed to have 5,000 words ready for my WIFYR group. The conference is coming up! Two weeks! I had more than that written, but I think I'm kind of an eternal rewriter, which perhaps comes from me being a sort of "by the seat of your pants" kind of writer. Essentially, I hadn't worked much more on my story, and I wasn't too satisfied with the pages that I had--at least not enough to send them in to get critiqued by my group. So, yesterday, starting at about 4pm, I wrote. By 11:30pm, I had just under 5,000 words. Even though it's still kind of iffy, it's much better than what I had before. The submissions needed to be in by the end of yesterday. I don't think I realized just how inspiring deadlines can be.
Mostly, I can't stop thinking about my move to NYC! I may start a new blog that is all about the things I discover or don't discover. Or perhaps I'll just keep it all on here. I have a ticket though, did I mention that before? I did indeed buy a plane ticket. I'll be out of here on June 24th, so just a few weeks away. I have a place for a couple of months at least (on Manhattan!). Now I'm just waiting. Good thing I have a brother's wedding and WIFYR to keep me semi-busy until I leave.
I'll probably be more regular about posts now--no more two-month gaps.
By the way, did anyone pick up on the Beauty and the Beast quote??? Extra points if you did!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)