The Start of Something Good

A big reason I haven't been blogging as much is because since December, I've been consumed by a project. It's the book that I wrote in two weeks (at 75k then, almost 90k now), and I LOVE IT. When the idea came to me, I let it percolate for two days before deciding to give into it. When I did, I didn't look back until it was finished.

I spent about two months editing and making this book better. I've loved every single book I've written (and for the record, that's seven) even the bad ones, but this one felt different. I was consumed with it when I was writing it, and I hoped that my first readers would feel the same.

My  husband is my first reader, so when I printed out the book and gave it to him to read, I was nervous. What if this good feeling was for naught? What if he hated it or thought it was my worst book ever? I needed him to think this book was good.

And you know what? He did. He told me he thought stylistically it was my best yet, but then as he started getting to the bones of the story, he found ways to help me make things better, and he even called me one day and told me he'd been thinking about my novel all day and how to fix an issue I was working on.

This is all great, and I'm glad I'm not married to someone, who lack for a better term, won't blow smoke up my ass.  So, I fixed the things my husband found, and sent the first chapters to my critique partner, Kelly, who had been excited to read this book ever since I told her about it. I sent her my first three chapters and tried not to think much about it.

When she sent me her notes back, they were similar to my husband's. She loved it! Of course, like my husband, she found issues, but she told me it was my best book yet, and couldn't wait to read more. During our weekly gchat session, she tried to get me to tell her bits and bobs of the storyline, and I couldn't help but smile to myself.

Did Kelly and my husband love my previous book, a quiet, issue based contemporary YA? Yep. But this book, they both think, has something. The kind of quality that pulls you in and won't let you go. I knew this book had it while I was writing it, but hearing your first readers say the same thing is such a great first step.

I was going to query my contemporary YA, but I've decided to hold off until this book is finished. If only convincing potential agents and editors would be so easy! ;)

Have you had one idea that stood apart from others? Is it the book you're querying, or queried?

Favorite Things: March

It's hard to believe another month has gone by! Here were my favorite things this month.


Books:

Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

I'd heard good things about this book through the blogosphere, so when I found it at the library, I didn't hesitate to pick it up. I love a good road trip story, and I think this was one of my favorites. I loved the added extras, such as Roger's playlists (he has awesome taste in music) and Amy's notes and photos. This is a definite must-read if you haven't already!

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crawley

When I saw this book in the new release section at the library, I snatched it up right away. I knew I was going to love Lucy, a girl who is convinced she loves Shadow, a Banksy-esque graffiti artist who's painted beautiful scenes all over the city.

The story is fast paced, and the the characters believable. This is one of the best novels I've read in awhile!

Stuart: A Life Backwards by Alexander Masters

I first came upon Stuart because of the television movie based on the book, staring my two favorite actors, Tom Hardy & Benedict Cumberbatch. Since I loved the film so much, I got the book out of the library.

It's not always an easy book to read, as Stuart's life was full of pain, abuse and mental illness, but it was also quite funny. I really enjoyed it.

The Fault In Our Stars-John Green

I am generally wary of over-hyped books, just because I've been burned so many times. TFIOS was on my radar, but it was a book I told myself I'd get to at some point.  I talked to my mom a couple months ago and she told me that I needed to read this ASAP, I jumped behind thirty people at the library and got on the waiting list.

I'm happy to say that this is one over-hyped book that lives up to the hype. If you haven't already read it, grab it right now. It's funny, heart-felt and will make even the hardest heart sob by the end.

Cinder-Marissa Meyer

This was another book that had umpteen people on the list at the library before I could read it, but again, it lived up to the hype. I loved the world Ms. Meyer created, and I adored Cinder. I can't wait to read the next book in this quartet.








Non-bookish things

If you follow me on Twitter (if you don't, please do! I try to follow back most writers) you already know that I'm a nail polish nut. I've always been, but I fell out of the habit for a few years. Thanks to Pinterest, I'm back into it again. When I'm not writing or reading, I'm messing about with nail art.  I made my first foray into scotch tape nail art (go here if you want to know more) and I've moved on to more complex designs. 

And of course:

The Hunger Games movie lived up to my expectations. There were only a couple changes that I wasn't crazy about, but other than that, I loved it and want to see it again!