The Two New Puppies!

Say hello to Alistaire:

And Grimm:

The two new additions to the doggy family! They are only 11 weeks old but they are nearly as tall as their mother! Grimm is supposed to be my brothers dog but I think he's mine (after all, I'm the one who usually takes care of them :P). I absolutely adore them but sometimes they get on my nerves, they're more than a handful and they are constantly trying to play fight. It doesn't sound like play fighting to me though.

The three little dogs are still getting used to them. Giggles is the one who is the most friendly with them, he loves to play with them, but even he snaps at them sometimes. Honey B is more or less indifferent and Roxi (my girl :) wants absolutely nothing to do with them. Sometimes she'll just barely tolerate them if the come and lay next to her but that is the extent of her tolerance. She doesn't try to attack them or anything, just avoid them.

Here's a pic of the three little dogs:

 

The Chihuahua on the left is Honey B, the Pomeranian in the middle is Roxi, and the Pom on the right is Mr. Giggles

And while I'm at it, I got a nice pic of Bugs:

And I couldn't help but make a couple gifs of the puppies!

Alistaire walking.

Grimm waggin his tail :)

All the puppies (except Roxi, of course :P) together.

So there's the over abundant cuteness for the day! Hope you enjoyed! Now to go and cuddle them :D

My Dream Writers Desk

Last post I mentioned that me and my dad had built a custom desk for me. Well, it's finally finished.

First let's take a look at the desk I had before:



This picture was taken before my desktop was completed so my 27'' monitor isn't up there with a keyboard and mouse. Now imagine how little space there was up there :-p

Building my new desk took a lot of hard work. It all started in August. My birthday was coming up and I decided that I wanted a desk. So I got drawing my dream desk, looked at some pics online of some desk styles that I might like and stuff. There wasn't much to see really. The only things I found were the average plain jane/john desks that can be bought from staples or ikea. But I eventually found this:

That's a picture of Charles Dickens desk. I couldn't really make my desk look just like it, what with having a computer and all and plus it's not much bigger than the desk I already had. But I really liked the way the top was done with distressed wood and framed out. And the color.this was enough to get my creativity going.

So with that to go on I began to draw. I knew I wanted a space for my desktop and tower, speakers, some books and still have plenty of room for papers and my laptop and drawing tablet and anything else I might need.

This is what I drew:

('Tay Tay' courtesy of my mom)

I know it looks nothing like the Charles Dickens desk but this is what I needed.

Anyways I didn't get my desk on my birthday, things were too busy and then next month we were preparing for vacation so early this month my dad taught me how to use cabinet vision to draw up my cabinet and then the next day we went up and started building it.

I don't know about you guys but when I see pieces of wood on the floor like that I just can't see a cabinet. But  we started to put them together and got this:

And my uber awesome counter top!

(My dad is there for size scale :p)

Anyway, that was day one. The next day we built the face frames and and drawers and long(er) story short this is what happened:

It actually took 3 days to build because even after we got it home we still had to touch up the counter top and stuff.

And then the stain took like 2 weeks to choose and then apply. It was horrid having to do all that work and more than once I wanted to rush it. There was so much sanding and staining and with the cabinet so massive on top of it all it took forever!

But we eventually finished it (yesterday) and here's what it looks like!

It's so awesome but it gets better. Here's a pic of it with all my stuff on it:

So there it is! My dream desk from fantasy to reality. I can't wait to really start using it come next month during Nano.

And speaking of Nano, I'm going to a Nano kickoff party tonight. It'll be the first write in I've ever gone to so we'll see how it goes :)

Four Days Till NaNo!

NaNoWriMo is almost here!! Four more days! I can't wait :D

Actually, I still don't have a scene by scene outline yet, I have to do that in the next few days, and some of the parts of my plot are still fuzzy but I still can't wait. And guess what? I'm going to have a new desk!

I don't think I've ever mentioned this but my Dad is a carpenter and owns a cabinet shop so me and him went and built me a HUGE desk. It's got paper trays and a book shelf and a place for my desktop and room for my laptop to sit up there and spread papers everywhere. It's so awesome. Me and my mom are staining it right now and it should be done before the first of November. I can't wait! Right now the counter top, knee space, drawers, adjustable shelves, and the inside of all the cabinets are stained so there isn't too much to do. I'll post pictures when it's done :)

And for the first time, I will have distractions during Nano. It's a scary thing I haven't really had to deal with before. I've got violin and guitar lessons and then have to keep up with practicing them every day. The video game Assassins Creed Revelations is coming out next month on the 17th and I know I'm going to loose 3-7 days until I win it. And then, of course, there's Thanksgiving. And I know there's something else I'm forgetting but I can't seem to remember. . .

I'm also thinking of attending write-ins for the first time. I'm thinking of going to the midnight kick off party to start with but I'm not sure. . .

Well, can't wait! I hope this year will be just as fun as the last two! :D

Something Wicked blogfest: My Favoite Spec-fic!

Go here to join in the blogfest and enter a contest to win a secret box of mystery. Their totally awesome. Seriously.


1. Harry Potter

Need I say more? I know that this may be on a LOT of other people's lists but I can't not list it. It's my favorite series, so inspiring and I love it to death!






2. The Kingkiller Chronicle

Consisting of The Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss. Waiting for the third book. Well, the Kingkiller Chronicle is so awesome and real. Real as in the people, the characters, the world, it's all so real that it could exist. I mean, yeah there's 'magic' and a couple of creatures that don't really exist (the draccus, for example) but, it's just so realistic. These books are wonderfully awesome and inspiring. The level of realness these books have achieved is what I strive for in my writing and world building.

My third favorite is hard to choose. I can't think of any other books that I love as much as Harry Potter and Kingkiller, and I don't watch many TV shows but. . . There is this movie. . .


3. Pan's Labyrinth

A few months ago I saw some people talking about how awesome this movies was so I rented it and it is so awesome! It's like, a fairytale but dark and gritty and creepy and a little bit scary and so very dark and I loved it so much! It's a very inspiring movie especially if that's the sort of thing you like to write (which, I do)!




Why do I like spec-fic?

Well, I like spec-fic because of all the different worlds and ideas that can be created there that can't be in the 'real world'. And besides, I don't want to read about things that happen in the real world when I already live here. Much better to read about magic and strange lands and creatures (dragons) and magic.


Where do I see spec-fic going in the next few years?

Honestly I don't have a clue. The only thing is that perhaps spec-fic, namely sci-fi and fantasy may get a lot more popular than it is now. To me it seems like it's already getting noticed more so perhaps that notice will only grow, I don't know. *shrugs* 

Review: Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children

 Goodreads summary:

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. And a strange collection of very curious photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here—one of whom was his own grandfather—were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

•  

First off, I love the title of the book. I mean just look at it: Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children. It's just delicious! And second, the cover is absolutely amazing.

Now, from the look of it, I assumed that the book would be very creepy and haunted, or eery somehow, but it wasn't. Not to say it wasn't good, it's just not what I expected.

I thought the story was really cool. I was able to pick up on many of the clues, though I don't know if that means I've become more perceptive or if they just weren't so well hidden. The photographs in the book give the story a nice touch, it makes everything come to life in a way that couldn't happen without them. Not to mention giving the book a slightly creepy feel that the story itself doesn't possess. Altogether unforgettable.

I'm also pretty sure that this will end up being a series given how the story ended and honestly I can't wait for the next book to see what happens left. Unfortunately the ending didn't feel as satisfying cause the ending wasn't. . . closed? The ending didn't resolve everything I suppose. I felt like it left too much hanging, but that's just me.

There's also a small touch of romance, but it's very small. And sometimes a little disconcerting every time you realize who it was the girl liked before. Plus I kept thinking part of the plot would be what is part of the plot in my book. But that hasn't happened. Yet anyway. I suppose it's still possible to happen in later books.

I would totally recommend this book to anyone who likes books with fantastical elements, cause it's awesome. And everyone please remember that this is only my opinion. Just because I wasn't completely satisfied with the ending doesn't mean you won't be :)

And this is pretty much my first time reviewing something. I usually avoid it at all costs unless it's to say "It's awesome, you should read it." I'm sure my reviews will get better the more I do them :)

Also, does anyone else think it looks like there's something peculiar in the background of the cover photo?

Do you see the creepy thing?

Meeting Patrick Rothfuss

When Patrick Rothfuss (author of The Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear) had his book tour last month, I didn't go to his signing because, well, the drive was way too far. I kicked myself when I woke the day of his signing, already too late in the day.

But then, a miracle.

A couple unexpected signings. In April.

And one would be near where I live. Again.

And this time I went.

It was awesome!

First though, me and my mom had to drive four hours to get there when the book store opened at 9:00 am. Which meant we woke at 3am and left home at 4. And I didn't get a wink of sleep that night. And then, when we got there at 8 we were lucky that one of the workers were handing out the tickets for those who came early, lucky for us so we didn't have to wait an hour in the parking lot.

And then we had to wait.

You see, the signing wasn't to be until 7 pm. That means we were in an unfamiliar city with. . .11 hours before the signing.

The bookstore was near a bunch of other stores, so after eating me and my mom walked around to pass the time but we had already walked all the stores by about 12 and then there wasn't anything to do so we got back in the car and I started reading my book (I wasn't quite finished with his second book yet) and after an hour I could hardly keep my eyes open cause I was so sleep deprived so I took turns napping and reading until 3:30 at which time we moved into the book store to wait.

Thankfully we did because Patrick arrived early at five.

Patrick Rothfuss is a very inspiring person. He is so passionate about the world he has created and his story, he's also very careful not to spoil anything for those who haven't read his books yet. And he's downright funny. He read a humor column that he did for a newspaper back when he was in college and someone got him to sing. He sang You are my Sunshine. (I don't know why that's not on youtube yet since he let everyone record that). And it was just generally awesome and fun.

I ended up buying his series again since we had to buy something from the bookstore and I didn't have the US version of the books yet, and baught his Not For Kids fairytale book (The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Wiffle) Which is pretty funny once you get to the end and then reread it and see all the signs. . .

I got two pictures with him and a hug.

Over all, totally awesome and giving me a huge inspiration boost!

Oh, and I met some guy there that had some really interesting theories about what might happen in the last book and now I want to reread his series, this time with my eyes peeled.

Happy reading and writing everyone!!

My Map!

The last two days have been fun! I'm almost done with my ginormous map and when I say 'ginormous' I mean ginormous. Take a look:

Click on  it to get the full effect. The cellphone is just to give you an idea of how big it is. I had to move my couch out of the way cause there wasn't enough floor space after awhile. I probably went overboard regarding how big this thing is, but there is no way I would've been able to draw it on a small piece of paper, I just wouldn't be able to wrap my mind around drawing a whole world with continents and stuff on a little piece of printer paper.

Although, I did have a much smaller map that I was using before I drew this big one:

That's all I had before but then I traced it onto the bigger paper and added on and on and. . . Well, you get it.

I actually have to add one or two more continents before I'm done with it but I got too excited and took pictures of it, traced it into the computer using GIMP and made it look like an awesome map! Something I've never gotten to do before because I never had a desktop before with an actual MOUSE! All I had before was a 13'' laptop. But, anyway, here is the awesomeness of my map as it is so far:

Click on iiit!

I've still gotta add mountains and stuff like that and make it look more. . . map-ish and stuff but I'll do that after I figure everything out :D

Haha, okay. This is the first time I've drawn a map of this magnitude and actually got to put it in the computer to do stuff like this to it so I'm a bit excited right now. Drawing this map had been an awesome inspiration and brainstorm too! I've got ideas for different countries and conflicts and ways of transportation AND I think my story may take place somewhere else than I had it set all this time, but we'll see :D

My New Story Is Working! (Day 29)

Well, I'm already behind by at least 5k but I think that'll be okay. I've wrote about 4 1/2 thousand today and plan to write about 3k more tonight so I can get up on that 5k I'm behind on, so according to this plan, I should reach 100k tomorrow!

You see, I got behind because I was thinking yesterday was the 27th instead of the 28th, that threw me for a loop when I woke up today and was 5k behind, but it's all good :)

I've started on that story I said I would with the villain and stuff, it's good so far, a lot better than I thought of course, and I've got 3k on it already, I'm really excited about it because I haven't ever written anything quite like it and the story starts out with this tension. I mean, my stories usually start out with tension or action but it's sort of a prologue style thing and then after that little snippet we start the real story that usually starts out calm-ish. But this one start out with tension, it's not a prologue, and my mc is fixing to get the life scared out of him, or shocked, or, well, he might just have a heart attack so everything is going really good :D

And it's refreshing, to write about something else. You see, yesterday I nearly wrote 1k about this brand new idea that came up yesterday, code named 'Fork' (don't ask) but I just wasn't feeling it, it wasn't keeping my interest so I stopped, went back to the Chonicles and wrote on. But today, after working on the Chronicles some I decided it was time to crack open that new story and get started, and I am so glad I did!

I hope everyone is on the road to winning and is enjoying their stories! Let's do this thing >:D

The Dark Night Parody Video (Day 17)

Well, things have been slow going with my novel so far. Not because it isn't good, I'm actually getting to some good bits, it's just that there's that other idea. I've got three quarters of my brain concentrated on the Chronicles and the last quarter, you know the important one, is all over the new idea. And slowly it is taking over the rest of my mind. I am very very tempted to put the Chronicles on hold so I can write about this new idea but I can't do that. I'm afraid I won't finish the Chronicles if I go on to write this new idea. So. . . I guess I'll have to wait.

If I have the self discipline, that is.

But I have something awesome to show you this post! The Dark Night parody/music video that is so expertly done it's hard to believe it wasn't done by a movie director, you have to watch it!



I have no words for how awesome that was! I just found it last night and was in complete awe! They have done a couple other parodies and some other videos, they have a website here, so go check it out!

Hope you enjoyed that video :D