Monday, March 7, 2011
The Knight Agency Speed Date 2
Well, I didn't make the top 125 (chosen randomly from over 400 entrants!) to move on to the first round in The Knight Agency's Speed Date 2 contest (http://knightagency.blogspot.com/) but it was a fun experience! And I'm definitely sending The Knight Agency a query for my second MS soon. Congratulations to those moving on to the second round and good luck!!!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Amazing Opportunity For Writers!
Hey everyone,
Just wanted to pass on this amazing opportunity through The Knight Agency! Check it out!
http://knightagency.blogspot.com/2011/03/speed-date-2-deidre-knight-pamela-harty.html
Just wanted to pass on this amazing opportunity through The Knight Agency! Check it out!
http://knightagency.blogspot.com/2011/03/speed-date-2-deidre-knight-pamela-harty.html
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Second Draft Done!
Well, I finished my second draft yesterday and sent it out to a couple people to read and critique. I'm on pins and needles waiting to hear what they have to say! In the meantime, I'm working on the query and synopsis to keep busy (and queries are so hard to write that I figure its better to start early).
And I just finished City of Glass, the third book in The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, and I have to give it 5 out of 5 stars! Great pacing, great voice, and I was hooked from page one. And the battle at the end was the perfect length--much shorter than the battle at the end of the second book, but not so short it left you feeling cheated. Absolutely perfect! Can't wait for the fourth book to come out.
As a sidenote, I'm going bowling tonight with the husband and his coworkers. Hopefully I wont make a complete fool out of myself, though I usually end up getting somewhere between 30 and 60--pitiful, I know. Wish me luck!
And I just finished City of Glass, the third book in The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, and I have to give it 5 out of 5 stars! Great pacing, great voice, and I was hooked from page one. And the battle at the end was the perfect length--much shorter than the battle at the end of the second book, but not so short it left you feeling cheated. Absolutely perfect! Can't wait for the fourth book to come out.
As a sidenote, I'm going bowling tonight with the husband and his coworkers. Hopefully I wont make a complete fool out of myself, though I usually end up getting somewhere between 30 and 60--pitiful, I know. Wish me luck!
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Exciting Things!
I finished the first draft of my second book this morning!!! YAY! It felt so good to write "The End." I actually started writing several books in between the first and second completed manuscripts, but none of them felt quite right, like they weren't what I was supposed to be working on at the time. Then, inspiration struck in early January and I wrote this book like a mad woman. It is a YA paranormal romance and is currently at 78,000 words (though that may change during revisions), and it is told from both the male and female perspective. I actually wrote 45,000 words of a YA dystopian before starting the paranormal romance, and that one was really hard to put aside, but I just felt so much better about the paranormal romance. Who knows? Maybe while I'm taking that much needed distance from my MS before starting revisions, I'll look over the dystopian and see if it feels better now.
In other news, I just read an AMAZING book! It's called Anna and the French Kiss. It's by Stephanie Perkins and it is absolutely fabulous! You have to read it!!! I have not enjoyed a book this much since The Hunger Games. I cannot recommend it highly enough. In the very beginning, I wondered if Perkins' writing was too simplistic (especially since I've recently been reading Cassandra Clare's works and she uses soooo much beautiful imagery) but as the story progressed, I realized that it wasn't simplistic. She was just choosing her words carefully so that, instead of taking an entire page to describe the scenery, she could do it in one paragraph or even one sentence! This kept the pace moving beautifully (and you know how I love a fast read). I am definitely adding Perkins to my list of favorite authors. I wish the companion novel, Lola and the Boy Next Door, was out already, but I have to wait until September. Sigh. I guess that just means I'll have to read Anna again.
Official Review: Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins = 5 stars!
In other news, I just read an AMAZING book! It's called Anna and the French Kiss. It's by Stephanie Perkins and it is absolutely fabulous! You have to read it!!! I have not enjoyed a book this much since The Hunger Games. I cannot recommend it highly enough. In the very beginning, I wondered if Perkins' writing was too simplistic (especially since I've recently been reading Cassandra Clare's works and she uses soooo much beautiful imagery) but as the story progressed, I realized that it wasn't simplistic. She was just choosing her words carefully so that, instead of taking an entire page to describe the scenery, she could do it in one paragraph or even one sentence! This kept the pace moving beautifully (and you know how I love a fast read). I am definitely adding Perkins to my list of favorite authors. I wish the companion novel, Lola and the Boy Next Door, was out already, but I have to wait until September. Sigh. I guess that just means I'll have to read Anna again.
Official Review: Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins = 5 stars!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Book/Movie Recommendations
Here are a couple book recommendations based on some books I've read recently and books I've loved for a very long time!
(1) I Am Number Four (YA) by Pittacus Lore: A very fast read (my favorite!) with an incredibly strong voice and unique story line. My only complaint is that the fight scene at the end started to drag for me and I skimmed a good majority of it. I don't know why, I'm just not a fan of really long fight scenes. I can only read about a character "twisting, turning, kicking, punching, avoiding, stabbing, shooting, falling, seeing blood everywhere, getting hurt, getting back up again, getting hurt again, getting back up again, helping someone out, them helping him out, etc." for so long before it all starts to read the same to me. This is not a specific complaint to Pittacus Lore alone. I have read many books where, in my opinion, the fight scene could have been cut by 10, 20, 30 pages. Other than that, a great read! Can't wait to see the movie!
(2) Any Book by Karen Marie Moning (Romance), but my personal favorite is Kiss of the Highlander, probably because it was the first book of hers that I read. I really love her Fever series as well, and I bought the last book in the series, Shadowfever, for my mom for her birthday. I can't wait until she's finished reading it so I can find out how it all ends!
(3) A Knight in Shining Armor (Romance) by Jude Deveraux: This is probably my favorite romance novel. Although it was written in the 80s and has some 80s references (such as the hair, fashion, and technology) the story itself is timeless and beautifully written.
(4) The Hunger Games (YA) by Suzanne Collins: The most thrilling YA book I've read yet. I could not put it down. It does start a little slow in comparison to the pacing of the rest of the book, but it's popular for a reason. A must read!
Movie Recommendations:
Recently, my hubby and I saw Black Swan and True Grit. Both were really great movies. I have to give a warning with Black Swan though because it is very dark and gets really creepy, but it kept me entertained. It was sort of like watching a train wreck. You want to look away because it's so creepy and mentally disturbing, but you just have to see what happens, what the damage is. Natalie Portman does an amazing job! I also really enjoyed True Grit. It is one of the best Westerns I've seen since 3:10 to Yuma, and while all of the actors do a great job, I really enjoy Matt Damon as the rough and tough Texas Ranger, Labouef. If you enjoy Westerns, you'll enjoy True Grit.
Next movie up: I really want to see The Rite, but then I probably won't be able to sleep for days and I'll annoy my hubby by jumping at every sound throughout the night. Plus side: if I can't sleep, I'll write, so I'll get a lot of work done...decisions, decisions...
(1) I Am Number Four (YA) by Pittacus Lore: A very fast read (my favorite!) with an incredibly strong voice and unique story line. My only complaint is that the fight scene at the end started to drag for me and I skimmed a good majority of it. I don't know why, I'm just not a fan of really long fight scenes. I can only read about a character "twisting, turning, kicking, punching, avoiding, stabbing, shooting, falling, seeing blood everywhere, getting hurt, getting back up again, getting hurt again, getting back up again, helping someone out, them helping him out, etc." for so long before it all starts to read the same to me. This is not a specific complaint to Pittacus Lore alone. I have read many books where, in my opinion, the fight scene could have been cut by 10, 20, 30 pages. Other than that, a great read! Can't wait to see the movie!
(2) Any Book by Karen Marie Moning (Romance), but my personal favorite is Kiss of the Highlander, probably because it was the first book of hers that I read. I really love her Fever series as well, and I bought the last book in the series, Shadowfever, for my mom for her birthday. I can't wait until she's finished reading it so I can find out how it all ends!
(3) A Knight in Shining Armor (Romance) by Jude Deveraux: This is probably my favorite romance novel. Although it was written in the 80s and has some 80s references (such as the hair, fashion, and technology) the story itself is timeless and beautifully written.
(4) The Hunger Games (YA) by Suzanne Collins: The most thrilling YA book I've read yet. I could not put it down. It does start a little slow in comparison to the pacing of the rest of the book, but it's popular for a reason. A must read!
Movie Recommendations:
Recently, my hubby and I saw Black Swan and True Grit. Both were really great movies. I have to give a warning with Black Swan though because it is very dark and gets really creepy, but it kept me entertained. It was sort of like watching a train wreck. You want to look away because it's so creepy and mentally disturbing, but you just have to see what happens, what the damage is. Natalie Portman does an amazing job! I also really enjoyed True Grit. It is one of the best Westerns I've seen since 3:10 to Yuma, and while all of the actors do a great job, I really enjoy Matt Damon as the rough and tough Texas Ranger, Labouef. If you enjoy Westerns, you'll enjoy True Grit.
Next movie up: I really want to see The Rite, but then I probably won't be able to sleep for days and I'll annoy my hubby by jumping at every sound throughout the night. Plus side: if I can't sleep, I'll write, so I'll get a lot of work done...decisions, decisions...
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Review: The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare
Hey everyone, coming out of lurkdom here to review the first two books in The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare: City of Bones and City of Ashes.
City of Bones (3 1/2 out of 5 stars):
So, I started City of Bones last fall, got about halfway through it, and stopped reading. Now, I have to say, it is very odd for me to stop reading a book completely like that, and there isn't anything in particular that I can pinpoint to say why I stopped reading. I was extremely impressed with the beginning and Clare's amazing use of imagery and it hooked me so much that I was reading the first chapter while cooking. My husband looked at me like I was crazy. I couldn't put it down that night. But at some point the pace began to slow, which is reasonable, especially since she started with such a high note. You can't sustain a high note throughout a book like that because you need to give backstory, and I completely get that. But then it just kept getting slower for me, which was really hard. I loved the characters, loved Clare's ingenious use of language, but it just didn't hold my attention long enough to keep me reading.
I put the book down and didn't pick it up again for almost two months. Actually, the reason I picked it up again was because I was out of books and couldn't make it to the bookstore that day. As soon as I picked it back up and got through about another twenty pages of slower-than-I-like pacing, the book picked right back up again. I finished it several days later and went right out to buy City of Ashes because I just had to know what happened! I was hooked. I honestly can't say that Clare did anything really wrong to make me put the book down like I did. I guess I was just in the mood for a really fast read at the time.
My recommendation: Buy it. Read it. See what all the buzz is about. It's worth it, and if you get stuck with pacing issues like I did, just trust me that it picks right back up again. Plus, there's a really great M. Night Shyamalan type of twist at the end.
City of Ashes (4 out of 5 stars):
The second book in the series did not have any pacing issues in my opinion, although the beginning did start slightly slower than the beginning of the first book. I devoured this book in a week (which is pretty good considering I spend the vast majority of my time writing, taking Dee out, cleaning, cooking, doing laundry, and, lately, watching The Office--more on that later). I only have two complaints, which dropped this book in my opinion from 5 to 4 stars. The first complaint is that the fight scene at the end was kind of long for me. I started skimming a little bit just to get to the action. I started thinking to myself, I get it, they're fighting the demons, the demons are winning, let's keep it moving. The second complaint is that, while I do LOVE Clare's imagery, there was one word she used over and over again throughout the book to describe a multitude of things. I won't tell you what the word is because I don't want to spoil it for you in case you don't notice it, but by the middle of the book I kept thinking, there's that word again, and by the end of the book I wished I had actually kept tally of the amount of times she used this word. I'm pretty sure it would be in the hundreds. No, this is not an exaggeration.
Recommendation: Read the first book first (duh). If you love it, you're probably going to run to the bookstore asap to get the second book, and you should. Clare doesn't disappoint, and she leaves the reader on a cliffhanger plus a lot of foreshadowing. I have two more books in my queue that I want to read next, but right after those I'm going to run out and get the third book. At least by waiting to read the third I won't have to wait as long to read the fourth. Jury's still out on whether or not I'll read Clare's other series, The Infernal Devices, right away or hold off for a bit.
Side Note pertaining to The Office: My hubby and I just started watching the TV show "The Office" on Netflix (I know, right? Have we been hiding under a rock?). We're hooked. One lazy, snowy Saturday we actually watched if for about six hours straight. It's hilarious. And, thanks to Michael Scott, we have gotten into the habit of saying, "That's what she said," more often than we should. It can be really embarrassing in public places, actually.
City of Bones (3 1/2 out of 5 stars):
So, I started City of Bones last fall, got about halfway through it, and stopped reading. Now, I have to say, it is very odd for me to stop reading a book completely like that, and there isn't anything in particular that I can pinpoint to say why I stopped reading. I was extremely impressed with the beginning and Clare's amazing use of imagery and it hooked me so much that I was reading the first chapter while cooking. My husband looked at me like I was crazy. I couldn't put it down that night. But at some point the pace began to slow, which is reasonable, especially since she started with such a high note. You can't sustain a high note throughout a book like that because you need to give backstory, and I completely get that. But then it just kept getting slower for me, which was really hard. I loved the characters, loved Clare's ingenious use of language, but it just didn't hold my attention long enough to keep me reading.
I put the book down and didn't pick it up again for almost two months. Actually, the reason I picked it up again was because I was out of books and couldn't make it to the bookstore that day. As soon as I picked it back up and got through about another twenty pages of slower-than-I-like pacing, the book picked right back up again. I finished it several days later and went right out to buy City of Ashes because I just had to know what happened! I was hooked. I honestly can't say that Clare did anything really wrong to make me put the book down like I did. I guess I was just in the mood for a really fast read at the time.
My recommendation: Buy it. Read it. See what all the buzz is about. It's worth it, and if you get stuck with pacing issues like I did, just trust me that it picks right back up again. Plus, there's a really great M. Night Shyamalan type of twist at the end.
City of Ashes (4 out of 5 stars):
The second book in the series did not have any pacing issues in my opinion, although the beginning did start slightly slower than the beginning of the first book. I devoured this book in a week (which is pretty good considering I spend the vast majority of my time writing, taking Dee out, cleaning, cooking, doing laundry, and, lately, watching The Office--more on that later). I only have two complaints, which dropped this book in my opinion from 5 to 4 stars. The first complaint is that the fight scene at the end was kind of long for me. I started skimming a little bit just to get to the action. I started thinking to myself, I get it, they're fighting the demons, the demons are winning, let's keep it moving. The second complaint is that, while I do LOVE Clare's imagery, there was one word she used over and over again throughout the book to describe a multitude of things. I won't tell you what the word is because I don't want to spoil it for you in case you don't notice it, but by the middle of the book I kept thinking, there's that word again, and by the end of the book I wished I had actually kept tally of the amount of times she used this word. I'm pretty sure it would be in the hundreds. No, this is not an exaggeration.
Recommendation: Read the first book first (duh). If you love it, you're probably going to run to the bookstore asap to get the second book, and you should. Clare doesn't disappoint, and she leaves the reader on a cliffhanger plus a lot of foreshadowing. I have two more books in my queue that I want to read next, but right after those I'm going to run out and get the third book. At least by waiting to read the third I won't have to wait as long to read the fourth. Jury's still out on whether or not I'll read Clare's other series, The Infernal Devices, right away or hold off for a bit.
Side Note pertaining to The Office: My hubby and I just started watching the TV show "The Office" on Netflix (I know, right? Have we been hiding under a rock?). We're hooked. One lazy, snowy Saturday we actually watched if for about six hours straight. It's hilarious. And, thanks to Michael Scott, we have gotten into the habit of saying, "That's what she said," more often than we should. It can be really embarrassing in public places, actually.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Yay!
Two great things happened last week! Another agent asked to read my full (YAY! That's 2 with fulls now and 2 with partials) and the Buckeyes won the Sugar Bowl!!!!! I am so proud of our boys, and I am so happy our Seniors got this win. Arkansas played a great game and it was really fun (and terrifying) to watch.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Happy *belated* New Year!! I hope everyone had a fun NYE! My hubby and I spent yesterday watching bowl games and, sadly, it wasn't a great day for the Big Ten. Hopefully the Buckeyes will play hard on Tuesday, but I think it'll be tough for them to keep their heads in the game with the recent scandal. Here's hoping they do well! Go Bucks!
So, remember the issue I've been having about my current WIP having way too many words? Well, I printed out what I have so far (a little over 45,000 words) and I decided to do some editing now and re-plot because I realized that I was creating characters that weren't really supposed to be there in the first place and scenes that didn't take me to my necessary plot points (or took way too long to get me to them). I already feel like the second draft is better, so hopefully that's a good sign I'm on the right track now.
So, remember the issue I've been having about my current WIP having way too many words? Well, I printed out what I have so far (a little over 45,000 words) and I decided to do some editing now and re-plot because I realized that I was creating characters that weren't really supposed to be there in the first place and scenes that didn't take me to my necessary plot points (or took way too long to get me to them). I already feel like the second draft is better, so hopefully that's a good sign I'm on the right track now.
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