I Should Be Doing Precal

Violent Fangirl Cries: TCWT April Blog Chain

4/12/2015

Hey, guys! I've been very AWOL lately, and I apologize. Lately, I've been trying to improve my grades, and every time I try to blog, homework happens. I'm going to try to post more often, but I'm going to warn you now: Don't expect much from me (other than these blog chains, which I can't resist despite my jam packed schedule) until June 7. That's when school has completely ended and I've done the June 6th SAT. When that happens, my schedule should automatically be so, so much clearer, and I'll try to get back to a regular posting schedule.

Here's this month's prompt.

“Write a letter to a fictional couple.”

I was so, so tempted to write to Hazel and Augustus, but I decided to write to another one of my favorite literary couples, Millie and Chase from Buzz Kill. I love them for the same reasons that I love Hazel and Augustus, but they're less recognized, so I decided that I'd feature them instead. So, without further ado, here's my letter.

Dear Millie Ostermeyer and Chase Albright,

I first read about y’all in July of 2014. I picked you up from the new book collection to read about the mystery of Coach Killdare, and how he was murdered. But when I finished this book (in one sitting, I might add) it wasn’t the murderer who stayed in my mind for months on end-it was you guys.

Millie, in a world of characters whose main goals are to get into a college far, far away from home or star in movies, you stood out. You were clearly more intelligent than most of the characters (your biggest turn-on with Chase was his high-level vocabulary, for pete’s sake!), but you had no interest in college, claiming that everyone else was just “peaking too soon.” You wanted to backpack across the world and eat a sixty-ounce steak while everyone else was planning their way to Ivy-league schools and football scholarships. As someone who secretly wishes they were bold enough to skip out on college, I respect that. Plus, even though you had the classic rivalry with the popular girl, it wasn’t because you secretly wanted to be popular (you hate cheerleaders) or you used to be besties with her and now you’re not (because you guys were NEVER friends), but because you were more creative than her and people noticed. She wanted to choke the creativity out of you, and you wouldn’t let her. That’s what I loved about you.

(Also, as much as Chase made fun of you for your...lack of French speaking abilities-when you said “gracias” to Mademoiselle Beamish, I couldn’t breathe, I was laughing so hard-I totally can relate flailing in an upper level language class, even though a lot of other reviewers couldn’t.)

And Chase? I fell in love with you (sorry, Millie) and I hated myself for it. Why? Because I usually hate bad boys. They’re so cliche, and as a Wattpadian who sees hundreds of horribly cliched “bad boy” books every day, I’ve sworn to myself that I’d never fall for a bad boy. Yet I fell hopelessly hard for you-harder than I have for any book character (though Augustus Waters is a close second). Over the months, I’ve considered why. Was it because you were described as being hot? (It wasn’t; I usually find the “hot” description bland and overused.) Was it because you vaguely reminded me of the real-life guy I liked at the time, who had a similar mysterious air to him? (It wasn’t; after I found out The Boy IRL was actually kind of an ass, I still found you attractive.) Was it because of your vocabulary? (Partially, but that wasn’t the only reason.) Or was it the fact that you

I don’t think I’ll even know why I’m so attracted to you, Chase, but the truth is, even with your horrible decisions in the past, I think you’re not only a fantastically developed character but also a really attractive one too. Maybe I’ll meet someone like you in real life, but in the meantime, I’ll continue rereading BuzzKill, secretly hoping for a sequel and wishing you and Millie the best.

Love,

T

Have you read this book too? Are you a fan, or are there other couples that you prefer? Comment below!

T

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March 17th, 2015

3/18/2015

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Hi. Remember me? I used to blog on this website. Unfortunately, I've vanished for almost a month with no new content. I'm planning to post an explanation later this week, but for now, I'm going to share my thoughts on this month's blog

This month's topic is:

“What are your thoughts on reading or writing books in non-novel formats? Are there any you’ve particularly enjoyed?”

(In this blog post, “non-novel” and “non-conventional” will be used interchangeably, and will refer to books written in a form other than first or third person-recordings, diaries, second-person, scripts, police interviews, etc.)

I’ve always enjoyed reading books in non-conventional formats, but since I’ve recently attempted to write a book in a non-conventional format, I’m going to focus on the writing part of the prompt.

From a series of trial and many, many errors, I believe that writing in unconventional formats can end in one of two ways: brilliantly, or on its face. The novelty of such formats can be refreshing and really add to a story if it’s done right. But there are a lot of humps you have to get past. First, you have to make sure the format fits with the story. If your story is about being lost in the woods, there’s no point in writing it in IM’s, and so on. And then you have to make sure that you have the patience for trying something new. I often don’t.

I once tried to write a story about a teenage girl named Saoirse entirely through her tape recorder. She used the tape recorder because her joints were so damaged from arthritis that she had a hard time doing the required journal entries for English, so instead she used the tape recorder to complete the assignments. But as I wrote on, I realized that the story had many flaws, one of which was the poorly planned out idea of the tape recorder narration. It’s hard to catch certain visual details with this form of narration, for one, especially facial expressions, which I use in abundance in most of my writing. So whenever Saoirse was rolling her eyes or scrunching her nose or whatever, I found myself using clunky dialogue to fill in the gaps (“Stop rolling your eyes at me, Saoirse!”) or skipping it, which drove me insane.

Also, there was the problem of the type and style of discussions permitted. The recorder was for a school assignment, after all, and though it was a very informal one, I didn’t think that she completely be herself while recording her entries. Saoirse’s very brash, for one, and isn’t afraid to use a few four-letter words to make her point, but bold as she is, she wouldn’t turn in something littered with swear words. Plus, she couldn’t talk as honestly as she felt about certain matters, like how she felt her principal behaved around her, without sounding impudent and insolent. Maybe some people would do speak harshly and disrespectfully in an assignment, but as a good student in real life, I couldn’t get past that hurdle. And I don’t think Saoirse would do that, either-as loud as she is, she doesn’t mess around with her schoolwork. So I made the tape recorder a diary that she started for fun, but then some of the entries seemed random, whereas if they were part of a school journal prompt, they made sense. These issues, mixed with a few other problems like under-research and some bizarre characterization in some side characters, led me to lose patience and decide to shelve the project.

I think most of problems in writing the book in this format came from under-planning, which brings me to my next point: If you’re going to tell a story in a movie script or IM’s or anything, I strongly advise that you do some advance planning, especially if it’s your first time out in that format. If you’re creating the story at the same as you’re trying to figure out exactly how you’re going to tell the story, you may end up lost in the shuffle like I was. It’s a balancing act, and you don’t want one thing to outweigh the other.

But just because I had one negative experience doesn’t mean that you will. If you’re thinking about it, go for it! :) I think that with the way young adult is evolving, these new formats are important and needed in the genre, and I think that they’ll inspire us all to be better, more original writers. :)
What do you think? Comment below!

T

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Song of the Week: Week 8

2/22/2015

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Hello, procrastinators! I'm back with this week's song of the week. Of course, it's a lot different than the songs I've picked in the past. Instead of it being performed by a singer or a band, it's actually a flute solo. My flute solo.

I was supposed to go to Solo and Ensemble yesterday. Or, at least, that was the plan I made with my private lesson teacher last May. I picked out a solo and everything, and I just loved the way it sounded (in the recording, anyway).

But then my parents told me that they were cutting off my lessons. I wasn't practicing much anyway, they reasoned, so they didn't want to spend money for me to go into my lesson every week without practicing. They had a valid point, but I was still upset. One of the few things that motivated me to practice was gone, and soon I was practicing less than ever-after about June, I stopped practicing completely unless I had a chair test.

The plan was to have the solo mostly learned by January, but when January-and registration time for Solo and Ensemble-rolled around, I hadn't even looked at it. Since I'm not one of those people who can perform with little or no preparation, I knew I couldn't do my solo. And I didn't see the point of pulling together a short, easy, boring solo just for the sake of going to Solo and Ensemble, so I just decided to skip it.

There's another solo competition my band is hosting in April, and I'm preparing to perform this one at that competition. If If I have a decent performance, I'll post the recording on the blog. But for now, listen to the portion I found on YouTube. I'm not sure who played this, but they did it beautifully, and anyone-flute player or non-musician-could benefit from a listen.

What do you think of this piece? Comment below!

Off to do homework-oh, wait, I did it all while everyone else was at Solo and Ensemble. I guess there is an upside to not going after all.

T

The prelude is my favorite portion-it's just so...pretty. And I love the key.

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Music is Love, Music is Life. (TCWT February Blog Chain)

2/14/2015

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Hi, guys! For my blog chain friends, welcome back. For my procrastinators, I owe you a sincere apology for not posting since January. I've gotten swept up in a mountain of homework, but since I've got a three day weekend coming up, I'll have some time to catch up on posting and commenting and emailing and such. (Hopefully.) So I'm very, very sorry, and hope to make it up to you in the not-so-distant future.

This post is obviously a blog chain, and I really love this month's prompt:

“How does music relate to your writing?”

Readers of this blog know that I love music. I'm in my school's band program (I play flute-"play" being the operative word here, I'm not very good), and I'm constantly listening to music. Followers of this blog know that I'm maintaining a Song of the Week challenge where I try to discover a new song once a week and share it. (I'm planning to get back on track with it this week, and readers of this blog are welcome to join me.) If there was no music, my life would be much, much different today.

Music and writing intertwine in my life in several way, but the main ways are easily divided into categories-"influence playlists," "listening playlists," and "book playlists."

Inspiration Playlists: Often times, the content of a song itself will influence me to create a story about the character in the song. For example, I once was writing a short-lived story about the protagonist of "Dark Horse" by Katy Perry, a mysterious witch wielding her spell on a mortal boy. This was unusual for me-I don't really feel comfortable writing fantasy because I don't read much of it-but it's not the only song that's inspired me. I've been inspired to create characters based off of song lyrics-or, once, even classical music. More often, though, songs I hear will be weaved into the first draft of my works as something my characters listen to or inspired by or, often , dance to. I realize that I'll have to remove most of these songs later on due to copyright issues, but I like to put them there, because they're integral parts of the story-even after I remove it, "the song" will never just be a random song to me.

Listening Playlists: I don't always like listening to music while I write. It can be distracting to listen to lyrics and think of words to say, especially when I'm stuck. (I often end up writing the lyrics of the song into the story and don't realize it until later.) But when I'm in my flow, I can do both, and when I can, I like listening to some music from artists I've only started listening to in the past few months or so-Lana Del Rey and Fall Out Boy.

I like listening to Lana Del Rey's music because it's usually fairly dark, kind of like my works (which are, if not dark, then not all that light either), and I think her lyrics are gorgeous. Right now, my favorite song of hers is "Shades of Cool." Two weeks ago, it was "Carmen," and before that, it was "Pretty When You Cry." It changes as I poke through more and more of her albums and find

I like listening to Fall Out Boy because I love their often sarcastic song topics and their witty lyrics. For example, one of my favorite lines of theirs right now is a part of the bridge from their song "Novocaine"-

If you knew, knew
what the bluebirds sang
at you, you
would never sing along

My hands-down favorite song of theirs is "Thnks fr the Mmrs," but I love a lot of their other songs too. "This Ain't a Scene, it's an Arms Race," "The Phoenix," "immortals," "I Don't Care," and "Just Dance" are some of my other favorites. I'm not a fully initiated fangirl yet, but I am trying to get through all of their albums.

Of course, this changes a lot of the times. Back in December, I was all over Michael Buble's Christmas album; a year ago, I was crazy about Rihanna. I'm sure that by next year I'll be into something else. It all depends on the mood.

Book Playlists: I've always been intrigued by this idea. I mean, tying my writing together with my favorite music? It's like trying to pick one flavor of ice cream when your mom tells you you can order a double scoop. Unfortunately, I don't have an encyclopedic knowledge of songs, and until recently, most of the songs that I listened to in my free time where Top 40, which don't really have a range of topics (usually it's just partying and drinking and love and sex). Even Lana Del Rey tends to sing about the same topics (even though she does it beautifully). So creating interactive playlists on Spotify and YouTube will have to wait. ;( (If anyone wants to recommend some artists for me to try, comment below!)

Those are the three main ways music relates my writing. Does music relate to your writing in similar ways? Comment below!

Happy Friday the Thirteenth!

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Happy Valentine's Day-Ophelia Version

2/13/2015

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Hi, procrastinators!

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. As someone who loves chocolate but has never had a boyfriend to exchange it with, I have mixed feelings about the holiday. In some years, I've got bags of candy that I'm eagerly passing out at school; in others, it's all I can do to show up at school, knowing that I'll be greeted by teddy bears and kissing couples and those stupid Mylar balloons. Last year, Eliza (from Odd Tidbits From Eliza McFarlish-check her out) and I wore black to school to celebrate our single-mess. "Singles Awareness Day," she called it. Though I'm feeling less cruddy about it this year (I'm not hopelessly swept up with the guy I liked around this time last year), I'm still not feeling all warm and fuzzy about it.

I say "happy Valentine's Day from Ophelia" because, if you haven't read Hamlet, she basically had one of the worst breakups in literature (that I've read, of course). After her father tries to manipulate the relationship, Hamlet, who's ostensibly crazy, calls her a liar and a slut within a handful of lines. Has anyone heard of the phrase "get thee to a nunnery"? It's from Hamlet, when Hamlet's insisting that Ophelia shouldn't get married so she couldn't bring more liars into the world. Harsh, huh?

Below I've put one of her songs:

Tomorrow is Saint Valentine’s day,
All in the morning betime,
And I a maid at your window,
To be your Valentine.
Then up he rose, and donned his clothes,
And dupped the chamber door.
Let in the maid that out a maid
Never departed more.

By Gis and by Saint Charity,
Alack, and fie, for shame!
Young men will do ’t, if they come to ’t.
By Cock, they are to blame.
Quoth she, “Before you tumbled me,
You promised me to wed.”
He answers,
“So would I ha' done, by yonder sun,
An thou hadst not come to my bed.”

Without going into the smutty details, the song is basically about a guy who used her before abandoning her-mostly likely a thinly veiled reference to Hamlet, who's supposed to be away at England. I didn't get it when I first read it, but after rereading it with No Fear Shakespeare in my left hand and the original play in my right, it made a lot more sense. And though I haven't had the experience she's describing, I do know how it feels to be chewed up and spit out by someone I really liked. In fact, I think everyone does. And that line does a better job of describing Valentine's Day than most of the pink and red cards I've seen in the store.

Optimistically yours,
T

This is the mad scene from Hamlet 2009, the version that I watched and loved. You may not appreciate this as much if you haven't seen or read Hamlet (or if you have), but I think it's awesome, so I've included it anyway.

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Invictus and Pastiches

1/30/2015

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Word of the Day: pastiche-an artistic work in a style that imitates that of another work, artist, or period.

Hi, procrastinators!

So today it occurred to me that I keep talking about writing like I'm an all-knowing expert, yet haven't actually posted any of my writing yet. I'm not quite ready to share my major works yet, but I did write a poem that I didn't think was too bad, if I do say so myself.

Before I share, let me elaborate about my inspiration for this work. This poem was an English assignment, in which we had to create a pastiche of "Invictus," which I've pasted below.

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.

I had no idea what to write about, so I resorted to scrolling through my old photos for help. I've got some pretty weird stuff hidden in my "iPhone Photos" folder, and was hoping I could find something entertaining in the process.

Finally, I found a picture to write about. I'm not really big on posting pictures of myself on this blog (ironically, since I'm a big fan of the selfie), so I'll just share what was in it.

It was from sophomore year, and it was of me and three other girls under a blossoming tree that, if memory serves me correctly, failed to give me allergies. We're holding hands, and we're all hunched over, as if we're getting ready to jump, or just landing from a jump. We're all giving giant, Crest commercial smiles, and we look really happy.

That day, we were working one of the seven or eight projects we had done together. It was pretty late in the school year at that point, so we'd gotten to know each other really well. I considered them close friends, but when the last days of school dwindled down, I realized that we were all going into different programs and courses, and that we would get split up for good, and that even if we did see each other, it wouldn't be the same. :( The feelings I had that May were what inspired this poem. I hope you like it.

The videos and PowerPoints
Were worth finding three new allies.
We knew we’d be split at one point
But May snuck in, to our surprise.

We admired the beautiful tree,
With light blossoms that fell below.
As we stood, she said to us three,
“Let’s take a picture before y’all go.”

Sentimentality took root
In the place where stress mixed with bliss.
We grew sad, thinking of the dispute,
The hard work, and laughs we would miss.

Her mom, hands steady, watched us squat,
Join our hands, and leap up, away.
As we fell down, she got the shot-
Us, midair, and happy that day.

What did you guys think? Should I share more of my writing? Should I share more poetry? Poetry isn't my forte, but if you liked it, I've got some more (school mandated) poetry saved in my Drive, waiting to be shared. Comment your thoughts below!

I don't have any more homework, so I'm going to bed. Good night, procrastinators, and good luck with your homework.

T

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The DUFF: The Movie vs. The Book

1/29/2015

1 Comment

Bad news: I haven't had time to write you guys a Tip Tuesday this week :( But while taking a "brief" study break earlier this week, I discovered a trailer for a movie I forgot they were making: The DUFF, inspired by Kody Keplinger's novel of the same name. I've included it below.

I had read the book a long time ago, and though it wasn't my favorite book ever (I prefer Keplinger's later works, like A Midsummer's Nightmare and The Swift Boys and Me), I still enjoyed it, and I was super excited when I heard that a movie was coming out a while ago (back in 2014-oh, so long ago).
To get an idea of what the book is about, I've included the synopsis below.

Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn't think she's the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She's also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her "Duffy," she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren't so great at home right now. Desperate for a distraction, Bianca ends up kissing Wesley. And likes it. Eager for escape, she throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with Wesley.

Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out that Wesley isn't such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she's falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.

But after watching the trailer, it was clear that they were going a completely different direction-from a story about the love-hate relationship between Bianca and Wesley to Mean Girls 3. I mean, just read the movie's synopsis.

A high-school senior (Mae Whitman) sets out to reinvent herself and revolutionize the student body's social order after learning that a judgmental classmate has given her an embarrassing nickname.

I have to say, I was more than a little upset to find out that they were completely transforming the movie. I mean. I even posted an angry picture on my Snapchat. If that's not fury, then nothing is.

To be fair, they couldn't haven't kept the movie EXACTLY the same as the book. After all, there are enough swear words and sexual references in the first chapter to send the movie soaring into R-rated territory (including several f-bombs, far beyond the one f-bomb limit for PG-13 movies). And her relationship with Wesley isn't exactly PG-13 material, either. But I don't see the need for changing everything about the book except the first scene, the main character's name, and the title of the movie. The story is compelling enough without any high school cliches or Bella Thorne, so what gives?

I'm not a movie expert-I've always preferred a good book to a movie. But that's because I have more faith in the young adult genre than the teen movie genre. The few teen movies I have seen are really vacuous and stupid, catering to the whole idea of the "popular clique" and "being true to yourself (but only after selling your soul to the devil first)," and I haven't been impressed. Maybe I should give movies another chance, but after spending almost entire years without renting or buying a movie on my own volition, I'm kind of behind the curve, and I don't know where to start. (Does anyone want to recommend me some movies? Comment below!) But for now, I'll stick to reading, including re-reading "The DUFF" instead of going to see the movie in theaters. Maybe I'll watch it on Netflix, but right now, I don't think it's worth my money.

Off to work on my Photoshop project.

T

P.S. May I add that I think that Mae is not ugly or fat at all? In fact, I think she's gorgeous, even with minimal makeup. :)

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Song of the Week: Week 4

1/25/2015

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Hi, procrastinators! Today I'm back with another song of the week.

I actually found this song a while ago (I think in 2013, when Michelle Chamuel was a contestant on The Voice), but was thinking about it recently when I followed her on Twitter. I searched for it, and sure enough, it was still there. I also found an electronic version on iTunes, but after listening to the sample, I actually preferred the version I found of YouTube, with only a piano and her voice. (Which do you prefer? Comment below!)

I couldn't find a site with lyrics, but here's the YouTube video below. Enjoy!

As a bonus, here's the song my Spanish teacher has asked me to learn for extra credit. Those of you who study Spanish will recognize the "U WEIRDO" acronym often used for remembering the uses of the subjective tense. For those who don't...well, just enjoy the awkward video. :)

Away to study.

T

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Update: ask.fm

1/22/2015

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Hey, procrastinators!

So in case I wasn't distracted enough, I made an ask.fm account for ISBDP.

For those who didn't know, ask.fm is a social media site where you can anonymously ask questions (or publicly, if you have an account and wish to make yourself public). I had a personal one, but I stopped checking it because it got boring (none of my friends used it, and no one asked me questions). So I decided to start anew for this blog.

To the side is an ask.fm widget. To use it, just type in your question and hit submit. It's that simple-you don't even need an account. Once you ask your question, be sure to stop by within the next few days to see my answer. I try to be timely with all my answers. If you have an account, be sure to follow me so you can see my answers in your feed!

*Please note that rude, vulgar, or spammy questions will not be answered, so if you just want to troll somebody, don't waste your time.

That's all I had to say. Now, back to homework.

T

P.S. Also, if you've been enjoying my posts, please subscribe to me on Feedburner. The button is the one that has the hear and the fire above it, and if you click on it, you can have an email sent to your preferred inbox every time I post. If you have an account on Bloglovin', be sure to subscribe to me on there, too! That button is in between the Feedburner button and the ask.fm widget.

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Wattpad Wednesday: In That Moment

1/21/2015

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Hi, procrastinators! Today I'm introducing a new segment that I've been hoping to start for months: Wattpad Wednesday.

I love Wattpad, but one of its biggest faults is that it's loaded with unoriginal works. A lot of people are so concerned with popularity that they sell out, and it's sad. And though these people may hit their read goals, it leads to a lot of the same sappy story over and over again, and it's getting old.

So on this blog, I'm going to start a somewhat-biweekly segment called Wattpad Wednesday, where I feature the best, most original works I've found on Wattpad. They may have anywhere from 20 to 20,000 reads, and they could be about anything. But they will all have one thing in common-these books will be what I consider the diamonds among the rough.

To begin, I'll start with a book that I recently uncovered-or, rather, had sent to me. My old friend sent this to me one day when we were discussing writing, and call me biased, but she's talented. Her sole Wattpad work, "In That Moment," has the feel of "The Perks of Being A Wallflower," and I was sorely disappointed when I finished the last update (a feeling only Wattpad users will fully understand). She's just started posting it, but I'm already excited next update. Keep writing, Morgan!

I've been trying to figure out how to use the embed code Wattpad has. When I do, I'll use it, but for now, follow the giant button below to start reading her work. Enjoy!

Do you want me to read your book in consideration for this feature? What did you think of Morgan's work? Comment below!

Until later, I've got a giant Spanish project coming up. *cringes*

T

In That Moment

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