Pet Wish List

Last weekend I watched Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy again. I giggled. I laughed. I chuckled. And I fell in love with Marvin again. I fall in love with him every time I watch the random, quirky movie. I don't know if it's because of his ridiculously adorable looks, or if it is the unforgettable, dynamic voice of Alan Rickman, but I love the melancholy robot. It got me thinking, which TV or movie characters would I like to have as a pet?  Here are my picks:

Marvin the incredibly depressed robot.

Wishbone, our book loving, furry friend.

Thor, the alien life-form who saves the universe many times in Stargate SG-1.

A minion from Despicable Me--I love this movie a little bit too much. 

Don't remember what this one's name is, maybe Dave or Steve.

And of course, I really want a miniature beagle.

I know, I know it's not a TV or movie character, just have to throw it in here!

Which TV, movie, or fictional character(s) would you like to have as a pet? 

The Haps

What have I been up to lately?

• On Tuesday night, I did my first EVER book reading. I read the first chapter of my manuscript. I was so nervous, but it was well received. For some reason all the pics I put on here look crappy. I deal with the agonizing pain of grainy photos by going to the therapist once a week. :)
• I must get over my double spacing habit. I heard single spaced is standard, so I must stop my thumb from doing the habitual double tap. When I was in elementary school they told us to do double. They have ruined my life FOREVER. Darn the double. It’s gonna be tough. Wish me luck.
• Slowly I’m making a small dent in the Off the Shelf Reading Challenge. Almost finished with the second book on my list. I will write a review on my blog coming soon. For more information check out BA Reading Challenges: Off The Shelf Challenge
• With all my heart, I want to start writing my next book. It’s a YA Urban Fantasy. I desperately want to get to know my characters better by writing them into reality. I will wait though because I don’t think I can handle working on two projects at once.
• While my editors are working on my manuscript, I’m taking a sabbatical from writing. I need a break before I start another all-I-can-think-about-is-the-revision-of-my-manuscript-zippy-craziness. One of my editors, Robin, had this to say about my manuscript, “Finished your book. Very impressed! You are a great writer. My initial reactions are: inventive, unique, clever, interesting. I felt like I wanted to keep reading to find out more. Way to go girl! You make me proud. I think you could be successful with this.”
• Funny story: On Monday, my work did a model search for marketing materials. I joined in on the recruiting efforts. After a while, I saw this tall, desperately handsome guy with a baseball cap on. I nonchalantly stepped to his side and said, “You want to be a model, don’t you?”
He responded, “You think I’m cute, don’t you?”
Inching closer to his side, I admitted flirtatiously, “Yes, I do.”
“It won’t be the first time I’ve heard that,” he said, chuckling.
“I’m sure about that.” I was pretty much smitten by now. I figured out his name—a pretty boy, yet, still manly one syllable name. “You want to be a model though, right?” I proceeded to explain what he would be modeling for, and we would need to take a face shot of him too.
“But I didn’t do my hair today,” he dodged.
“You look just fine to me,” I said, wondering where this insane flirting was coming from.
“Alright, I’ll do it.” He shrugged. I walked him to the sign-in desk and I took his baseball cap off. His hair didn’t look that bad.
He had his pic taken and walked in my direction. Something inside me spewed these words out of my mouth before I could think about what I was saying. “I forgot to tell you there’s a pre-requisite for being a model for us.”
Somehow, I was standing within inches of him. He stared into my eyes and responded, “Really, what?” With a dazzling smile, he waited for my response.
“You have to go on a date with me.” I think I flushed because my heart was racing so fast. Was I sweating? Luckily, I put on perfume that morning. I thought I might die any minute for having been so blunt, but I was proud of myself.
“Sure,” he said. Really? He just said sure to me. My heart was about to force itself out of my chest and slither away from me like a snake.
I got his digits and he walked away. Wow, I did it. And I called him on Wednesday to ask him out. We will be doing something next week. Sometimes a little boldness goes a long way. Now everyone please applaud my brilliant methodical way of getting a date!
*Clap Clap Clap*
• Last night I played Pop Culture Trivia at one of my friend's pizza places. We ate pizza while the MC asked the trivia questions. My team won by a close . . . last. Yep, we lost. It was fun though.

Anyway, what has been filling your time lately? Have you read any good books? Any fun trips planned?

What I've Learned Wednesday Begins!

Over the past year, I’ve learned loads about writing and the publishing industry. I would like to hand off a bit of my “tip of the iceberg” knowledge to you. Plus, writing and the publishing industry are fascinating to me, so why not blab on about something I love, right?

Today, for the first “What I’ve Learned Wednesday”, I want to share about the infamous phenomena called “Social Networking.” I started writing my novel in December 2009. It wasn’t until the summer of 2010 that I became obsessed with getting it published. With talking to a few people, they told me a piece of WAY important advice. Social Network. Social NETWORK. SOCIAL NETWORK. Being an aspiring author, no one knows you at all—at least in the publishing industry. Even though I don't have a finished manuscript yet, I can be doing something incredibly important to get my name out there, right now and not later. Therefore when I have a finished manuscript, more people will know who I am than would have otherwise.

I already had a blog that I randomly posted on about my book, but was not consistent with posting. I decided then and there that my book is important enough to take on social networking. I WANT people to read my story, and NEED it to be published, therefore I had to place myself into the industry. I started blogging on a consistent basis, loving every minute of it. I found myself thinking of new things I could post—funny stuff, writing related stuff, etc. Be prepared because you’ll become obsessed with it.

In the process of social networking, you’ll eventually fall into a routine and be thinking of new ways to attract people to your blog. I share my posts on Facebook, Twitter, Google Buzz, and via email. You’ll find yourself revamping your blog to make it attractive and user-friendly. Make sure it screams YOU! You are selling yourself, so be yourself.

But. The key to my social networking absolutely was joining Twitter (emphasis added to express major I-can’t-control-myself enthusiasm). Twitter developed into a writing forum for me. Within a short period of time, I was chatting with people I didn’t even know. We discussed our love of writing and reading, even stuff not related to writing. At the beginning, I was given some valuable advice from one of my “Tweeps.” She said, “Don’t just talk to people, talk with people.” I have tried to implement that advice into my networking, especially on Twitter. Start a conversation, open up dialogue, and be yourself in the process.

If there is one piece of advice I can offer any aspiring author, it is to social network. NOW! Don’t wait. It takes some time to get into the swing of things. You may not have many people follow your blog at first. I am still working on a consistent following. You may not have people commenting on your posts, but keep going! Be persistent. Have patience. And be consistent. If you are consistent, people will wonder what you are going to post next on your blog, or say on Twitter. They’ll be expecting it. Once you have a following, you owe it to them to post, to tweet, and—in the end, have a book people want to read. Social networking has pushed me to get to the point that I’m at now—almost having a finished manuscript in hand.

Last tid-bit of advice from me to you is: Follow. Other. People’s. Blogs. You will learn an amazing amount of knowledge from them about writing and how to present your blog. Make sure that you comment on their posts. This will get your name out to people who follow the blogs you comment on. Comment on other people’s tweets as well.

Social Networking is the way I hope to get my baby—my novel—published, and it’s way fun too!

PS: This can be useful for other things you are trying to promote. It’s not just for writers.

I Made it to 1000

I thought it would be cool to document--with a really crappy picture--that I've had 1000 people view my blog. It was a happy moment for me.  I can't believe I have made it to 1000. I feel like there should be confetti thrown and a band marching down the street in my honor! 

Or better yet, in Taiwan, when there are festivals or the such, they drive down the small roads lighting off fireworks from the back of a truck and play strange clanking music.  I love the music. Bring on the Taiwanese fireworks baby.  Note: I lived in Taiwan for 13 months and loved it. I appreciate your following so much. Happy blogging from me to you!


FYI: I will be started something called "What I've Learned Wednesday." Obviously, this will be a weekly event taking place on Wednesday.  Yep, I'm always the one to state the obvious. I will be blogging about what I've learned thus far in my adventure in writing. I hope to share any bits of wisdom that I wish I would have known before I started writing.  

Writer's Solitude

I was thinking about the last three weeks of my life. And. The last year of my life since I’ve started writing my novel. Alright, I'll admit, I'm a homebody. Since, I have started writing, it seems like solitude has become a feature of my life. I escape down to my "office"—the basement couch, and there I spend countless hours typing, typing more, and typing A LOT more. During which time, the cell phone sits by my side (yep, it's my extra appendage). Will I answer it while writing/revising/editing? ABSOLUTELY NO! I will answer texts because at least that doesn’t require a full conversation commitment. Mean, I know! When I am in my writing zone, I am in my zone. And. Nothing should tear me away from the glorified zone.

The cartoon "Emperor’s New Groove" expresses  well how I feel when I'm in my zone:

Pacha: What happened?

Old Man: Well, I threw off the Emperor's groove.

Pacha: What?

Old Man: His groove! The rhythm in which he lives his life. His pattern of behavior. I threw it off. And the Emperor had me thrown out the window.

Pacha: Oh, really? I'm supposed to see him today.

Old Man: Don't throw off his groove!

Pacha: Oh, okay.

Old Man: Bewaaare, the grooove.

Pacha: Hey, are you gonna be all right?

Old Man: Grooove...

My groove can’t be thrown off during this time. My poor parents have been placed on the back-burner. A lot. They come down to talk to me, and I half listen/half type.

I read a post by Kiersten White today discussing the craziness that happens in a writer's life. http://kierstenwrites.blogspot.com/2011/01/writers-love-their-crazy.html  IE: How many days has it been since we've showered? Personally, I have a hard time not showering every day—perhaps I'll miss one day, but for the most part I am a daily showered writer. Maybe the writer’s solitude is not a good thing, but we get the happy job of writing done. Seriously, over the last three weeks, I haven’t socialized very much outside of work. This weekend I am determined to hang out with friends—my treat for a long three weeks of getting another edit/revision done. I must apologize for the solitude that tends to infiltrate my life, but it is a consequence of being a writer. We have this intense desire to write our story, so we often sacrifice other important things.

Writers, how do you cope with the solitude? Do you skip showering? Do you force yourself to get out in the social scene? Do you lock yourself in your "office" for days or weeks at a time? Non-writers, what do you think about this post? Would you be able sacrifice so much to write?

Poor Little Bunny

"The Man Cold"
I thought this poor little bunny was funny enough to make it on my blog. I hope you enjoy it! Let me know what you think of it, or send me links to other funny videos.