Life

Sometimes you just have to accept the fact that certain things are not going to happen.

Sometimes that is when you realize you will never be a Professional Basketball player or never be as good as Michael Phelps. Maybe it's when you realize you will never be quite as skinny (or buff, for my male readers) or pretty (or studdly(SC?)) as your friend. But once you do accept it as a fact of life, I think you will find that you can be so much happier with yourself.

When you realize that you are not perfect, it seems as if the world is a much better and peaceful place.

For about three months, I had a schedule down for when I would write. I got up at 4:00 A.M. every morning, got ready for school for a half hour, then wrote for an hour and a half (Usually finishing a chapter) before I went to a youth group morning bible study. After I got back from school, I sat at my computer and proceeded to type out another chapter. I wrote at least 5,000 words a day, no questions asked. I wrote a new YA book every 3 weeks. Not years or months, but weeks.

It was an amazing feeling. My first book had taken 9 months to complete. My second (a short story) took a month and the third took 7 months.

Books 4-7 took three weeks each.

But then, while I was still on a schedule to write book six, I got the inspiration to write what became book seven. The only problem was that I pushed out two books in three weeks. Big mistake.

I felt exhausted for writing two books in the time I normally did one. I stopped writing altogether. I told myself that i would start again the next week and then the next. Weeks turned into months and I still didn't write (at least not more than a few paragraphs). My Muse had disapeared. It was early this morning that I realized exaclty why.

(Taken from here)

My schedule had pulled so much writing out of me that I forgot that sometimes, it isn't the right time. For whatever reason, I also forgot that as a writer, I am not a machine. As Neil Gaiman said,

"And life is a good thing for a writer. It's where we get our raw material, for a start. We quite like to stop and watch it." (This quote is hanging over my laptop.)

I knew that life happens, but I forgot that sometimes, when something upsets you it's easy to get discouraged in all areas of your life. The art of being a writer is to continue writing no matter what, even if you have a few months where you just can't write what you want to.

(Taken from here)

I'm not saying you have to fart out half of your novel a week (First: That's disgusting, Second: If you do manage to fart it out, I have a few people I would like you to see. . .), but you should write everyday if you want to be a writer. It doesn't even have to be a part of your book. It could be in a journal or a blog. Just something to keep your brain active, moving, and working.

Do I think my schedule worked for me? Oh Yeah! It was great, and had me thinking and writing more than I ever had. Will it work for everyone? No. Should you try it? Maybe.

I just happened to have found the system that seems to work for me. However, I need to also remember and understand that I can't work myself too hard. I need to find more of a balance.

If I have an idea strike me, I will need to decide if I want to put it on the back burner for later or move my current project to the back of my mind.

And, I have to always remember that no matter what I decide, it will be OK. yeah, I might have to reschedule something, change things up a bit, but that's OK. Change is a part of life, and I have to go with it.

And so do you. . . no matter is it's for writing or school, or any other aspect of your life. It's OK. Even if you can't seem to get any words out, just let your imagination flow. It will come back because you are a writer and . . . well, writers write.

(Taken from here)

Excited. . . all for nothing!!

Twitter? Yeah, I like it. It's fun to see people squeeze their lives into 140 characters. It allows us to come up with acronyms like ISADMTAHTBANO (I Sneezed And Dropped My Taco, And Had To Buy A New One). I kid you not.

Anyway, it is fun because I get to follow some of my favorite authors and see what is going on in their life. For instance, Ally Carter is currently weighing the pros and cons of building a pool. Will she build one? Most likely.

Then, there is of course the matter of followers. It's strange to say the least. It's not quite like having friends on Facebook. These people on Twitter follow you because they want to see what you have to say about your dog eating rat poison, or your book case suddenly dying and you have to find a safe refuge for your books.

It goes to show that while we may think our lives are boring, people enjoy hearing the small things. When I read about a published author having problems that seem similar to me it makes me realize that they are indeed human just like myself.

In the spirit of Twitter, I looked today to see that I had a following request from what I believed was Laini Taylor. I was rather excited. To think that Laini Taylor wanted to follow me!!! Then I realized it was the twitter for the official release of her book. Not quite as cool as Ms. Taylor herself, but hey, still pretty cool.

Onto other news, I discovered this morning that I enjoy walking on my treadmill as long as I have a book in my hands! That book happens to be my NOOK! And boy am I happy! All for now!

Bex

Yes, I am alive!

Good Morning World!!

The blog has been quiet for several reasons.

1. I was in Yellowstone (read majorly long road trip) and had no internet service. As much as I love the internet, it was great to have a week long trip where I didn't have to answer emails. I do have a few pictures which should totally be featured in National Geographic (not that I'm biased or anything) but in order for me to post them, I would have to save them to my laptop, and that would take effort. . . .

2. My dog had a stroke. Or at least, we were pretty sure she had. She was upstairs when she collapsed. It was very scary. We got her downstairs and outside where she proceeded to throw up. When she was done, she began to walk around like a drunk sailor, except for the fact that she is a dog. Anyway, when we got her to calm down, I noticed that her eyes were moving back and forth rapidly. I looked up her symptoms and decided that she has a disease that basically screws up an animal's inner ear. This leads to a motion sickness feeling which would explain the throwing up. Luckily, she went to sleep and when she woke up, she was completely normal. Her eyes were able to focus and she was jumping around like a puppy despite being an old lady!

3. I have been trying to write again. It is always hard to go on a vacation without any schedule to follow and suddenly come back home and try to do your normal things. Yeah, so my whole getting up early in the morning is not working out so well lately. But, it will get better! I promise.

4. I love reading, this is no secret! I bought something that will allow me to carry thousands of books at a time. No, it's not a Kindle, it's something much better! The All New NOOK!! I love it with a passion I didn't believe was possible. The reason I love it better than the Kindle (my friend has a Kindle, so I feel I am justified in making this argument!) is that it has a touch screen rather than a button. There are four buttons on either side that allow your to 'turn' the page and that is enough for me. I have read quite a few books already. It is just so much easier to carry this NOOK around than a book.

So that is why there haven't been any real blog posts. So instead of trying to make those up, I will give you something better. If you would like a new fantasy book to read, please pick up the Heir Series by Cinda Williams Chima. The series is amazing and kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. Talk about the magical guilds! There are great characters as well as a plot that just won't stop!

I do believe that is it for now. I hope you have a great weekend, I know I will. Writing, here I come!!

Bexie

I'm Back World!

OK, so I haven't posted for a while because I haven't been anywhere a computer with internet source. Yeah, that's right, I was on a road trip. I will post pictures, if I think about it, soon. I don't have much to write about, hopefully sooner than later.

I am very far behind with my work in progress, but hopefully it will work itself out sooner than later.

All for now, have a great day while I spend it working.

Bex