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Why can’t someone write a YA pirate novel? My life would be complete.

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Check out my author website/blog, The Writing Chair for tips and tricks on how to make your writing process easier and stress free!

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BOOK ALERT: We Were Liars

by: E. Lockhart

{this is the story of the Sinclair family. More specifically, Cadence and her cousins: Johnny and Mirren. The story also focuses around Johnny’s cousin, Gat. the Liars, as they’re called, join they’re family on a private island every summer.}

that’s all you need to know.

seriously, just go into this book knowing absolutely nothing. it’s makes the reading experience so much better.

i loved the voice in this novel. it was captivating and kept me coming back for more. cadence was an excellent narrator and her story was so original and unique. i’ve never read anything like this book and i loved every minute of it.

i will warn you, when you get to the part be prepared for major tear shed and a hurting heart.

sorry for the short review but seriously go read this book. it’s amazing.

4.75 / 5

(only because it narrowly missed my favorite books ever list)

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revising vs. editing

so you’ve finished your first draft...now what?

well my friends, now it’s time to tackle the grueling phase of the writing process i like to call Pit of Satan’s Humor. you might know it as the Editing Phase.

i plan on going more in depth on each part of this phase, but that’s for several more blog posts. right now let’s focus on the difference between revising your manuscript and editing it.

revising: okay, this is the part where you’re gonna target all the major issues.

- plot holes

-character arch undevelopement

-adding

-cutting

make sure the story works. this is where you get to read back through the awesome book you just wrote and realize it’s not as awesome as you thought. but it’s okay cause every first draft is trash. that’s why we revise. {oml it makes sense now} this part should take the longest out of the two were focusing on.

editing: alright, now we get into the nit and gritty. you’ve already got the big problems out of they way, now it’s time to fix the small issues.

-awkward wording

-sentence structure

-grammar grammar grammer

here’s where you get to let the little grammar police inside you free. now that the big stuff is out of the way, you can focus on the flow of your story and the mechanical element of it. this part probably won’t take as long as revisions but it is still just as important.

*in my opinion you should start with revisions and work your way to editing. in other words, start broad and get more specific as you go.

there will be further posts discussing each phase of editing more in depth as well as my personal way of editing.

hopefully this helps my fellow writers!

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Book Review: The Darkest Part of the Forest

by: Holly Black

{this story takes place in Fairfold where humans love among the Folk or Fae. the main characters are brother and sister, Hazel and Ben. together, the siblings battled the fae when they were kids but in the present day they don’t. there’s also a mystery in Fairfold concerning a horned boy in a glass coffin. he’s been in that coffin for centuries. when the boy breaks out, it’s up to Hazel and Ben to help him defeat the Fae that are reeling havoc on their human city.}

all in all, this book was okay. it wasn’t the best fantasy i ever read, but it was pretty close to one of the worst.

most of the time i couldn’t keep my eyes open while reading it. i found myself skimming pages and barely comprehending what was happening because i really didn’t care. the only reason i finished this book was because i wanted to see how the romances ended up.

i will have to say, the romances were pretty good. they kept me interested and i wanted to see how they ended. i was pretty satisfied with how hey did turn out by the way.

overall, if you’re planning to read this book, i’d be mindful that it’s slow paced and the author drags out unimportant scenarios and breezes through more important ones.

rating: 2.5 / 5

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10 Questions Tag

i was tagged by @vjhanson (thank you so much!) to answer her ten questions and then create ten of my own.

1.) what is your favorite part of the writing process?

- my favorite part is outlining. i love quickly writing the whole story and seeing it all unfold in my head while i outline it. gosh that’s the best!

2.) similarly, what is your least favorite part of the writing process?

- query trenches. they are the most depressing and discouraging stages of writing. you literally sit there and wait for weeks. 9/10 times to get a rejection response. which really gets you down. but it’s fine, i’m fine.

3.) if you could create a spin-off story for one of your side characters, who would you choose and why?

- definitely Garrett and Rainey. their story line after RTR would be so fun to write and explore!

4.) Of all the characters you’ve written, past and present, who would you change?

- Ayla. i’d make her a bitch witch instead of a nice witch.

5.) do you ever write when people could be looking over your shoulder, or are you too shy to continue?

- oh yeah. i write at school all the time. i don’t mind people looking over my shoulder in theory. HOWEVER, if they comment on it or ask a question about what im writing, i get so anxious and nervous. like i feel so self conscious ab my work. but as long as no one says anything i’m fine with “over-the-shoulder-readers”.

6.) what is the thing you’re most confident about your writing?

- i really hate bragging so i’ll keep this short. i’m pretty good at dialogue. like capturing different gender and ethicity’s voice. there done.

7.) what are you most confident about yourself?

- ummmm i’m smart. i guess. yeah.

8.) what is your favorite story you’ve ever written?

- i’ve haven’t finished writing it but it’s outlined... anyway it’s about this girl who had a crush on one of her senior teachers. years later when she’s out of college, she meets up with him and they end up dating, falling in love, etc. at the end he dies. maybe. i haven’t figured out the whole ending yet.

9.) what is your favorite genre to write/read, and why is it your favorite?

- contemporary. hands down. i love realistic, relatable stories. and fluffy romances are nice too. however, i find i like stories with not so much romance are great.

10.) what is your least favorite genre to write/read, and what makes it your least favorite?

- mystery. idk why but i hate trying to put things together and figure what the ending is before the beginning. yep.

My Ten Questions

1.) if you could trade places with one character (yours or someone else’s) who would it be?

2.) who’s your author role model?

3.) where’s your favorite place to write?

4.) if you could rewrite a famous novel what would it be and how would you change it?

5.) what book made you want to write?

6.) where do you see yourself as a writer in 5 years?

7.) what’s your wip ab?

8.) favorite book store?

9.) what color do you want your first book jacket to be?

10.) how many words do you plan on your wip being?

i tag @fdicenzo @cofffeeshopp @writingalyse @thoughtvomitwriter feel free to do this tag if you want! even if you���re not tagged officially!!

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dealing with agent rejections

so lately i’ve been in the query trenches.(this is not a fun step of the writing/ publishing process as one might imagine) it sucks even more when you receive rejection after rejection. but i’m here to tell you it’s not the end of the world. here’s some tips to keep your spirits up when agents just aren’t grabbing your manuscript.

1.) not every agent is right for your book baby

- every agent is different. they have reading preferences too. so just because they reject your book doesn’t mean it’s trash. they just know they aren’t the eighth fit for you. which is why it’s so important to do your research and find agents that match your genre or themes.

2.) rejections don’t = trash

- don’t get me wrong, there are definitely some manuscripts out there that need some work. but if you’ve been to the editor and you know that baby is as perfect as you can get it then DO NOT BEAT YOURSELF UP over rejections. like in the previous point ^ every agent doesn’t fit. or they might not see the potential in your book. but someone will. J.K. Rowling went through countless rejections but she never gave up. so you shouldn’t either.

3.) touch up that query letter

-if all else fails, revise that query. if you didn’t feel 100% confident in it the first few rome’s you sent it out, take a break from the trenches and sit back down at that computer. edit the sit out of your query and try again.

don’t give up my writers!

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Book Review: The Inexplicable Logic of My Life By Benjamin Alire Sáenz this is probably my favorite book i’ve read so far this year. it was amazing! the writing style was gorgeous and the characters were beautiful. this was a story of love, loss, and friendship. i think it’s an important story for anyone dealing with loss or feeling alone. though there was no love interest, this book had a lot of love in it. i highly encourage this book or any Benjamin Alire Sáenz book for that matter. 5/5 stars

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pirates and novels

wouldn’t it be amazing if someone wrote a YA fantasy series that centered around pirates?

it would be something epic and exciting like the potc franchise. adventure, scandal, and mystery on every page...

no one writes about pirates these days and it makes me sad. just a thought

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When you see it, REBLOG IT.

Depression Hotline: 1-630-482-9696

Suicide Hotline: 1-800-784-8433

LifeLine: 1-800-273-8255

Trevor Project: 1-866-488-7386

Sexuality Support: 1-800-246-7743

Eating Disorders Hotline: 1-847-831-3438

Rape and Sexual Assault: 1-800-656-4673

Grief Support: 1-650-321-5272

Runaway: 1-800-843-5200, 1-800-843-5678, 1-800-621-4000

Exhale: After Abortion Hotline/Pro-Voice: 1-866-4394253

If you ever want to talk: My Tumblr ask is always open.

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And darling,

just because

someone doesn’t

love you back,

that doesn’t mean,

you’ll forever

carry hate

in your heart.

Almost Gone // ma.c.a

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Life advice: If a librarian recommends a book to you, read it. Three different librarians gave me three of my all time favorite books. 

Trust your librarians. 

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Characters Who Fall Out of Love

Hey friends, Abby here! Today we’re talking about a bit of a new topic, though I’ve talked about writing love before. However much I’ve talked about characters falling in love before, I haven’t covered them falling out of it in the past. So, that’s what we’re going to do today.

It’s a strange feeling to fall out of love, and it can happen in a lot of different ways. Sometimes the person you’re in love with changes so they’re not who you loved in the first place, or sometimes the spark between two people fades or disappears completely.

Choosing how your character fall out of love comes with a lot of analyzation of their relationship. What would make this happen to the two of them? Try to brainstorm a handful of ideas, and remember things like this often don’t happen for one reason alone. This is often treated as a drastic change (and has a right to be), so it’s not something to be taken lightly; unless the relationship was unstable in the first place, this sort of thing shouldn’t be happening because they like different dressings on their salad.

The Realization & First Reaction

How do your characters figure out they’re falling out of love? Is it something that happens all at once, like someone snapping their fingers, or are they looking at pictures from years passed and wondering how that feeling slowly disappeared? When a character realizes they’re falling out of love, there are two basic options for them to choose between: they can accept it and move on, or they can fight to get that feeling back. I’m sure you could guess which would be harder for you, but depending on the character it’s a bit of a toss-up.

The very first decision is quick and pretty easy, if the character is in a stable relationship. They’ll usually want to stay, if nothing else for fear of hurting their partner(s). This decision is often followed by a quick brainstorming session by that character, figuring out what’s worked in the past and devoting themselves to trying all that again. The amount of effort they put into getting the feeling back is directly affected by how badly they truly want this feeling back.

How Does This Affect the Character?

Your character is going to be going through a lot of emotional tumult during this time. You could probably imagine them feeling all sorts of things: guilt, sadness, anger, frustration, just to name a few. The strength of these feelings usually depends on how close they were to their partner(s) in the first place. If this feeling has been happening for a while and they just noticed it, they’ll probably be more at peace with themselves. This answer would give them more clarity and probably put them more at ease.

However, if a character is realizing it when their relationship is at its peak, their reaction will likely be very different. They probably believe they’d just gotten to a good place with their partner(s), so this whole issue would throw a wrench in everything. No matter what, this feeling and the realization will likely take a huge toll on your character; you just have to figure out how.

Acting on the Feeling

How does your character react, once that initial devotion to getting the feeling back fades? Does it fade at all? Depending on how your character faces the situation, this might be the time for a heart-to-heart scene about everything that’s been happening. These talks often involve tears and a lot of emotion.

Maybe the character will just leave without giving a reason, or maybe they’ll force themselves to talk about it, or maybe they’ll stay in the relationship despite their lack of romantic feelings. Your character has some point has to do something; even choosing inaction here is an action for them.

Everything that follows is a Toss-Up Extreme™ depending on your group’s dynamic, so everything afterwards is completely up to you as a writer to decide. Falling out of love is usually a tough subject to write, because we’re so used to the concept of breaking up because of other circumstances. Don’t forget: if your character has a dynamic personality, then their emotions should carry that same quality.

So, that’s all I’ve got for you today! If there’s anything you’d like to see in my next post, my ask is always open; until next time, stay lovely! <333

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last line tag

i was tagged by @pheita . Tysm!

i’m not really sure the rules for this tag. but i think it’s the last line you’ve written or something like that <don’t kill me>

“ Her mahogany hair shines where the poorly lit lights above hit it. She fixes her navy eyes on the plates in front of her. Underneath the multitude of freckles sprinkled across her face, lightly tanned skin peaks through. The more I stare the more I see Katherine Dates as a work of art.”

- from a short story i’m working on

i tag @firewritten @splendorinthetrash @gloriawriting @boothewriter

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newbie writers: got everything planned out, studied the art of plot, characters fully fleshed out, scenes planned out from start to finish

me: there's this guy, idk what he's supposed to do, or what he looks like, but he's gonna do something, and it'll be great. i am not crying.

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DATING A WRITER IS BEWILDERING

Writers are forgetful,

but at the same time they remember everything.

They forget appointments and anniversaries,

but remember what you wore and how you smelled on your first date.

They remember every story you’ve ever told them - like ever,

but forget what you’ve just said.

They don’t remember to water the plants or take out the trash,

but they don’t forget how to make you laugh.

Writers are forgetful because they’re busy remembering the important things.

@dailyinspirationquotes @poems-and-word @maybe-you-need-this @waakeme-up @writerscreed @writersontumbl-r @benevolentybeautiful @thegoodvybe @writingprompts @abstractcommunity @shareaquote @poetryportal @poetry-for-sleepless-nights @poetic @blotched-poems @ssweet-dispositionn @somewhatsomelikepoetry @savage-words

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