GUEST POST FROM KARA SWANSON, AND GIVEAWAY FOR "THE GIRL WHO COULD SEE"

(phew, that's a long blog title. :P)

Happy Saturday, everyone! We're sixteen days away from Christmas (um, what). To tide you over until the twenty-fifth, my lovely friend and author, Kara Swanson, is graciously taking over the blog today. (and I've added in a giveaway of her book at the end -- The Girl Who Could See -- so keep reading for that. :)

I'll keep my babbling to a minimum and let Kara take over from here. :D

(Yes, that is a giant picture of her book's cover. You're welcome.)

Hi Katie!

Thank you so much for having me on your blog. So appreciate you reaching out. And I can't wait to hopefully get to see her in person at Realm Makers this year! (Which, if any of you aren't familiar with it, Realm Makers is a Christian writers conference for speculative fiction authors!)

I met Katie through Go Teen Writers, and have always been so inspired by her tenacity and writing skill! She and I both started writing at a young age, and tend to weave our own stories into our fictional ones. My latest release, The Girl Who Could See, came out in June of this year and is about another young woman who is carried along on an adventure.

Fern Johnson can see the impossible. Since she was a child, she has had an imaginary friend named Tristan--but Tristan has never left. This blonde, weapon-wielding warrior has never been far from her footsteps, but while he claims he is here to help, Tristan's very existence is shattering Fern's life. Because she is the only one who can see this invisible hero, and the decaying city around him, while the rest of the world believes that he is only a figment of her imagination. That Fern is going insane. 

But Fern Johnson is not crazy. She can see into a parallel world--and if she's not careful, the monster that desolated Tristan's planet is going to destroy hers.

The Girl Who Could See started off with two short lines in my head, a prompt that I had to follow:

They say every child had an imaginary friend.

Mine never left.

So I continued to tug on that string, and a story about a young woman who stands in the hallway between two worlds is what unraveled. Beyond that, another large aspect that impacted the creation of this story was a real-life battle I was fighting--and am still battling. Lyme Disease. I've had Lyme for six years, and only this past year did I finally find a treatment that is actually curing the disease. I'm so grateful to be almost 100% Lyme-free, but when I wrote The Girl Who Could See, I was thick in the middle of my fight against the sickness. I was in constant pain, and could hardly trust my own mind as I was so tired my thoughts weren't my own.

The emotions and struggles that followed this were soon woven into my novella. Fern is unable to drive, and constantly feels like she doesn't fit in, like she's being pulled between two worlds. With my Lyme symptoms, driving was too dangerous for me to get my license, and I felt like I could see the world passing around me--but I was stuck on the outside, peering in. Unable to tangibly touch life.

Just watch it pass by.

But like Fern, I kept fighting, and eventually was able to survive--thrive, even--despite having a disease that to most would have seemed like a curse. Lyme allowed me to appreciate every moment of my day, it gave me a new gentleness toward the broken and hurting. I have been able to encourage so many with chronic pain, because I've experienced the hopelessness and agony.

I soon came to realize, just like Fern does in The Girl Who Could See, that what may seem like my greatest weakness can actually be my greatest strength. That it's the broken things that can shine the most light.

Thanks so much for that, Kara. <3 If you can't tell from her guest post, she's one of those people with a giant heart that overflows with enthusiasm. Before I skip right to the giveaway... can I flail? Like, how is that for a concept?? Cue the suspenseful music beginning to play because that sounds like pure epicness. *unfortunately doesn't own this book but needs to change that IMMEDIATELY*

Well, if you haven't already bounced to the giveaway with excitement, now's the time to enter for a paperback copy of this awesome novella.

(If the giveaway decides to be stubborn and won't load, follow this link.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The giveaway will be open up to the 25th! And on Christmas I'll contact the random winner. But until then there's no stopping you from snagging the book over on Amazon -- after all, it's a short novella that would be perfect to help you catch up on that Goodreads challenge. ;)

Thanks for reading! I hope the rest of your day manages to be both relaxing and productive. (is that possible? maybe. probably. good luck. xD)

(and if you're discovering my blog through this giveaway, hi! Eat some virtual pizza and introduce yourself -- you're more than welcome to stick around.)

<3,

katie grace

don't be afraid to leave a comment below for Kara!

WHEN THE WORDS DON'T WORD

Hey everyone! This is Katie stepping in quickly just to say hi. The amazing Aimee is taking over my blog for today! *insert applause and confetti* Her post is relatable and important and I just love her words so much. Don't forget to visit her blog afterwards to show some major encouragement, flailing, and love.

This post has been brought to you by that awkward moment when you're swapping guest posts with your amazing Katie Fren and suddenly realize that your inspiration is a big pit of nothingness lately and she's ever so helpful in letting you decide the post topic. (I love you, Katie dear, but thanks for nothing.)

Hi, I'm Aimee. You're probably noticing that I don't have any coherent words to say so far. That's okay.

Sometimes there aren't coherent words to say. And you feel kinda a bit like this.

If you're anything like me, the words don't... well, they don't really words 90% of the time. You sit down with a glorious mess in your head, an explosion of colors and story and awesomeness, but the moment you put your fingers n the keyboard your thoughts have deflated into a puddle of aw-heck-no and there is no coming back from that, especially not when Pinterest is calling. #thestruggleisreal

So what do you do when you want to art and the art says no?

This is an excellent question and I have no answers. Or very few answers. Who knows.

The problem here, at least in my case, is perfectionism. It's no "I want to write the thing", it's "I want to write the thing exactly the way it is in my head, with all its amazing character development and heartstopping scenes and plot complexities." And unless you're flawless, that's not going to happen. Your words on a page are going to be so much flatter than the vivid movie in your head. They're just going to be. Every time I go into writing a thing with the expectation that it has to come out right the first or second or third or even the seventeenth time, I'm going to fail automatically. I'm finished before I started. Our lovely little plot bunnies get too big for us, and then they refuse to come out right on paper, because writing is stupid and a long long process that never turns out the way we wish it would.

Just getting real and personal over here, folks. Sometimes the words don't word.

At all.

They're awkward.

They stumble all over the page or worse, they don't come out, and you get hit with "writer's block" that makes you want to slam your forehead against that block for a couple of hours.

If you can get words out, they suck. They're beyond awkward now. They're flat parodies of what you want.

Your commas are weird and there are too many of them.

You can't think of that one word you want.

Your dialogue is cheesy at best.

You throw the laptop across the room and drown your sorrows in chocolate peanut butter ice cream for about five thousand years because you're a failure of a writer and you'll never be good and maybe you shouldn't be doing this at all, ever again, and you've been lied to your whole life, and *insert random author here* is so much better than you, goodbye and goodnight.

Or maybe that's just me. Oops.

"What do you do, Aimee?" you ask. "What wisdom have you come onto Katie's blog to give to us today that will fix our writing and make the words flow with all the ease of our favorite poet?"

*insert that crying and ice cream gif again*

The best I can offer -- for me, personally, the awkward person whose words are never going to be very pretty and poetic in the first place -- is that we keep wordsing even when the words don't happen.

I know, I know, I'm wailing internally just typing it.

But. You. Keep. Doing. The. Words. Anyway.

Your words will continue to be awkward.

They will continue to be wrong.

They will be choppy, and cheesy, and your characters will be robots. It will be the equivalent of the earliest Doctor Who seasons ever, only without the humor. You will be #suffering the whole time. You won't enjoy it.

You won't feel like a writer at all, much less a good or decent one.

But you'll keep putting down the words. Over and over and over again.

I never just cure myself that way. Sometimes I can only force myself to put down a few sentences before it's overwhelming. But the more I put one word in front of the other, and then one sentence in front of the other, for as long as I can stand, I think I'm building myself up a little; I'm stretching those weird creative muscles with all the pain of a real live workout with no nice body to show for it right now.

One.
Word.
In.
Front.
Of.

The.
Other.

And now you have a sentence, and a page, and oh, look, you have a whole sucky awkward story in a few months. It's the furthest thing from perfect, but it's there.

And really all I can say about that is that it's a heck of a lot easier to fix horrible words on a Word doc than to fix and empty word doc. Even if it's ten times more depressing.

Keep writing the words. Even if the words don't happen in order.

(Aimee out.)

Aimee is a writer, creative person, sci-fi enthusiast, and maker of shenanigans who spends most of her time on Twitter and loves blue hair. Do not ask Aimee to do things. Do not mess with Aimee. Do not approach Aimee while she has headphones in.
Aimee was never here.

- - -

Katie again! I can't help but stare in awe every time Aimee writes something, because the words have worded well with everything I've read from her. xD Don't forget to go visit her blog and see all the awesome stuff she has over there. (you know, including my guest post. :P)

Why You Should Write A Book Blurb (and some tips on how to do that)

Since I am on a youth retreat this weekend, the lovely Hannah agreed to guest post for me! After you read her awesome post below, don't forget to enter the giveaway of GO TEEN WRITERS I have going on. :D

Hi everybody! I am so excited and honored to get to talk to you all today. Katie is an amazing and wonderful author/human (but I'm sure you are already aware of this) and I am so happy she gave me this opportunity to stretch out in the blogging community and give you some (hopefully) beneficial advice. Because, like, me posting on her blog? WOW. I'm a newbie and she's a blogger QUEEN so. 

*is very excited and humbled and flattered*

On with the post!

We all know that dreaded question. The moment one of our friends figures out we are a writer, it never lingers too far behind in the suddenly terrifying conversation.

"So, what's your book about?"

Uh-oh. 

If you're anything like me, you'll have that moment of crisis. What is my book about anyway? Drat -- what's my MC's name again? I only spent three hundred and seventy-two pages with him. How could I forget this? Oh no. They're staring at me. They're waiting for me to say something, aren't they? But how on God's sweet earth am I supposed to explain to this mortal the extent of my pure geniusness?

As writers, I'm sure you can all sympathize with this scenario. We want to tell our friends what we're writing, but when the chance comes, the word get all mixed up. We want to tell them what our book is about ... without making it sound like a lame Lord of the Rings wannabe or some cliche paperback you found in the free bin outside a thrift store.

But, you see, it doesn't have to be a 'dreaded question.' In fact, it can become something you actually look forward to.

How is this possible? 

I'm glad you asked. 

You only have to do one little thing. (Granted, it's a hard thing. But it's still just one Thing and that's not as scary as a bunch of Things.)

You must write a book blurb.



When you pick up a novel and flip it over -- that's the book blurb. (unless you have a hard back. Then the book blurb is on the jacket's front flap once you open the book) The summary of your novel that is (usually) two to three paragraphs long. It can also be called a back cover copy of a write-up. But. They're all the same thing.

NOTE: A book blurb is not a synopsis. A synopsis is a whole different ball game(writer game? paper game? eh. you get the point).



In case you're still having doubts about why you should write on of these (they're hard to write, after all) here are a few reasons to convince you of how amazing they are. (if you're already convinced, feel free to skip them)

It's a super easy way to tell someone what your book is about.

I love it when someone asks and I can just say, "Oh here, I have a blurb on my phone. Let me just ..." and then I pull up my notes app and they can just read it and I don't even have to say a word. The blurb speaks for itself. And, nine times out of ten, (whether they're sincere or not) they'll look up at me when they're done and say, "that sounds really cool!" And I can just let out a long breath and relax. There's no stuttering through a brief and terrible summary where I say "um" and "like" a gazillion times and manage to make my fantasy sound like a cheesy cliche mess.

If you're dealing with an online friend, then it's also such a relief. You can just copy it from the notes app into your message and they can read it like *snap*

-

It earns you some respect, especially with writers.

You ask, "What's your book about?" and then wait. And then -- whoa. you mean you actually have a blurb? And it reads well? WOW.

Writing a blurb -- and writing a good one -- is so critical not only because it sums up your book in a quick and easy way, but because it shows them you have a good idea and you can write well. if you stumble through an explanation of what your novel is about, there's a good chance you'll give them the wrong idea about your story and they'll think you can't write. But a well-polished blurb tells them, yes you do write well and yes, this idea is a good one.

-

It's a really good way to get beta readers.

I am only on the second draft of my WIP, and already I've gotten several people that I don't even know ask if they can beta for me. Why? Because, after seeing a collage or snippet from my story, they asked what it was about and I gave them my blurb. And what's more, they liked it. And they wanted to read the book that it belonged to. I'm not sure when I'll formally ask for betas, but when I do, I know for sure I'll need a blurb. 

And there will probably come a time for all of you when you will need betas. And what will you need to give them?

A blurb.

I encourage you to write a blurb sooner rather than later. You'll have to do it eventually, whether you get beta readers or not (and, um, you really should get them). So why not get it over with and just write it now?

"But it's hard," you might whine. "How am I supposed to write a good one?" 

Well. I am by no means an expert on this subject, but I'd like to think that I can offer some sound, logical advice.

Tip 1: WRITE IT NOW.

Yeah. Now. Like, right now. Tear yourself away from my captivating words (ha) and go write a blurb (I dare you). Go make a word document or pull out your journal or whatever, and write. a. blurb. Don't tell me you don't know how. You've read them before. Just write it how you've read them. If you do it wrong, who cares? You can just edit it or rewrite it entirely if necessary.

NOTE: You can write a blurb at any point in the story making process. You can write it when you get the idea. You can write it before you get the idea. (Although that would be rather difficult...) You can write it after the first draft, or during it. Just write it. Wherever you are, even if you think you don't know enough about your story to write one yet, try. Besides, if you have an idea for your book, you should be able to do it. After all, the blurb is supposed to be what the book is about. If you have the idea, you can write at least a rough paragraph to start yourself off.

-

Tip 2: USE THE INCITING INCIDENT.

The inciting incident is your key to hooking readers: that Something that happens in the first couple of chapters that starts the story off, that sends your character on a journey. The big Thing that the book is all about.

Use it. It's sort of a spoiler (only sort of), but that's how you're going to hook your readers. They'll find out about it soon enough in the book anyway. Give a little backstory (just enough for the readers to know what kind of character they're going to be dealing with and the other absolute essentials.) and then hurl that big Thing to pique their interest.

ANOTHER NOTE: the inciting incident, let me clarify, is the event that changes your character's normal world. It's the event that kicks the story into action and it usually happens by the end of the second or third chapter.

-

Tip 3: HINT AT LATER ACTION.

So. We already know the Big Thing that happens. That's the prompt. Our character has to make a decision: to go or to stay? To flee or to face? To submit to the rules ... or to fight?

Stuff happens after the inciting incident, and you want to hint at that in as vague and non-spoilery a way as possible. 

A REALLY IMPORTANT NOTE: DO NOT, I repeat, DO. NOT. SPOIL THINGS THAT DON'T HAPPEN TILL THE END OF THE BOOK.

LIKE.

PLEASE.

JUST. DON'T. DON'T DO IT.

If you don't have an interesting enough inciting incident to hook your readers with, you need to rethink your story and its structure. If your character gets diagnosed with cancer in the middle of the book, do not tell the readers this in an attempt to hook them. I read a book once whose blurb spoiled the Climax of Act Three, and for the whole book I was just waiting for the Thing it said would happen to happen. But ... it didn't. Until the. very. end. (Well, not the VERY end, but basically.)

The blurb is supposed to kick off with the inciting incident, and give a brief description/teaser of how the character is going to handle this and what they're going to do about it. If your character gets sick in the middle of the book, you can hint at that in the blurb. But don't tell them outright. 

PLEASE. I BEG YOU.

EHHHEM. Enough of that. #rantover

-

Tip 4: DON'T MAKE IT HARDER (or longer) THAN IT NEEDS TO BE.

Seriously. Writing a book is hard, but so is writing a book. If you can write a book, I think you can handle a blurb. ;) Don't psyche yourself up about it. Just do the Thing, and be your amazing, awesome self. After you write it, send it off to your writer pall(s) for opinions and (if needed) a critique.

Katie popping in. I recieved Hannah's permission to insert her awesome blurb. You can all "oooooh" and "ahhh" over it and see how she worked her tips in. She wants to note that this is before editing the second draft so plot things can change, but IT'S A VERY AMAZING BLURB THAT MAKES YOU WANT TO READ HER NOVEL. Which is good. ;)

THE THIEF'S CONSPIRACY BLURB:

Born and raised in captivity, slavery is all Rissa has ever known. Obeying her Owner, for fear of her brother and sister's lives, she's never dared to attempt escape. But when her deaf little sister, more a daughter to Rissa than their own treacherous mother, is sold, everything changes. Rissa has only a week to find a way to free her, before it is too late.

Aster is soon to be King, but he is less free than anyone. Trapped in a dirty game of tricks and lies in a castle where no one will leave him be, he has no idea who he can trust. He's become responsible for a land full of problems, but all he truly cares about is finding the people behind the assassination of his family.

Two worlds collide, and the two form an unexpected team. Can a slave and a prince solve the mystery of the assassinations? Together, they must combine their knowledge and skills and put everything to the test as they attempt to thwart the thief's conspiracy.

- - -

And that's it for today! Congrats if you read through this to the end. Have some coffee. *hands out big bags of coffee beans and mugs of fresh coffee*

Thanks again, Katie, for letting me blab on your lovely blog. Toodles! *waves fingers and skips away*

// hannah 

Thank you so much, Hannah! <3 I love this post -- you shared some super amazing tips and reasons! Make sure to go visit and follow Hannah's amazing blog: Ink Blots and Coffee Stains. She posts every Saturday (like meee!), and they're all worth reading.

(psst, one more reminder to go enter the giveaway for the Go Teen Writers book!)

Also, Hannah will be answering comments today, so make sure to leave her some comment love. ;)

Have you written a blurb for your novel? Is it easy for you (haaaa) or hard?

// follow hannah's blog!

A Look Inside My Novel // Song of the Desert

Last month my novel (he calls himself Tan) guest posted on the blog. Tan's very different from me. Blunt. Sassy. I-do-what-I-want-attitude. He and I do not get along well.

But (unfortunately for me. heh.), you all enjoyed his guest post. So when word got along that I was going to write up a post about my novel, Tan demanded that he himself do it. Which makes sense, him being... the novel... and all. Let's just hope that it goes better than last time.

Like before, my words will be in bold, and Tan's will be in normal font starting now. Good luck. 

So I'm Tan. (Totally Awesome Novel. You get the acronym? It describes me perfectly.) 

... it describes YOUR opinion of yourself, Tan. Not others.

The difference?

Ugh. 

Katie "wanted" me to talk about my insides. (ew, right? Like, she never talks about HER insides.) I will reluctantly comply, but only because I rebelled last time I guest posted. Let's get started, I guess? All about my insides cause you people are nosy like that.

So despite the fact that I call myself Tan, Katie calls me by a different name. Several different ones, in fact, ranging from "stupid," to "annoying," to "stubborn" to ---

Tan, stop. I only call you that sometimes because you are like that most of the time. Please give the readers the name I usually call you.

*huffs* Fine. OCCASIONALLY she calls me Song of the Desert. 

Katie intervening once more to give you the "official" (quotes around official because I fail at writing blurbs. Ack.) blurb of Song of the Desert before Tan rants about it more. 

///

Gita has always lived in a land of blurry surroundings and nonexistent melodies. 

Until she gets trapped in a sandstorm. The first doesn’t change—her eyesight is just as bad as it used to be. But while she fumbled in the swirling sand and the suffocating darkness, she heard a mysterious song string its way through the air and to her ears.

Immediately Gita knows that something is up with the singing amidst the silence. She begins to explore the curious noise—asking questions and doing research. But views on this song are varied. The Mistress she serves bans it. The messenger boy she meets follows it.

Bound by her loyalty to her Mistress and curiosity fueling the relationship with the messenger boy, Gita is forced to make a decision: whether to suffer the Mistress’s wrath and become an outcast to the Land, or to betray a new friend.

really cool collage graphic thing

You really do fail at writing blurbs.

Just finish writing the blog post.

Whatever you say.

So let's talk about characters. Katie made this little graphic for the main character:

That's Gita, an ISTP. Sometimes she's like me. Most of the time she's nicer(occasionally) and shyer. She's not always the typical strong heroine you see in YA novels, I guess. I suppose that makes room for character development. 

Oh, right. And she's also practically blind. Not really -- but she would need glasses if she lived in the modern world. But since she lives in medieval times and there aren't any glasses in the fantasy world, she's forced to live with blurriness everywhere.

Mwaha. I'm so cruel.

Sigh.

The whole novel basically revolves around a stupid mistake she makes. Or is forced to make. You'll understand if you ever get to read this novel.

They will. 

Not at the pace you're going at, slowpoke editor.

*glares* 

Then there's the other main character, Xander. Apparently there weren't any Pinterest dudes who fit his description, so, yeah. He has long(ish for a guy), shaggy, blond hair, average height, and smiles a lot compared to Gita.

Katie popping in. It's absolutely ridiculous how hard it is to find characters of guys who are smiling. I searched "smiling young men for stories" and this came up:

UM, NOPE. DEFINITELY NOT XANDER. Anyways, continue, Tan. I had to share it since it made me laugh. :P

Stop interrupting me, Katie. It's rude. But if you people have any pictures that would even remotely fit Xander with a dude who's smiling, send 'em on over.

So Xander's basically the opposite of Gita. He's an ESFP. He's optimistic, friendly, confident, easy-going, and just generally fun. He's too good for all the pain Katie gives him in the novel. (Like I care, though. Call me heartless if you want.)

Basically there's just lots of pain in general in the novel. Oops. But there's hope. That's the underlying thing that Katie makes sure of even when I just want to break everyone's hearts.

There are other characters.

      The Mistress(villain)       Woodwind                  Edhan                     Naya                    Gita again

Moving forward from the characters, there's also the matter of "that song." I mean, it's called Song of the Desert. Something's up with this special music thing.

It came into existence when Katie listened to this song by Switchfoot.

And supposedly Katie got the idea for a song/music being an allegory to God's love. And God is who they call "The Music Master." (The book was originally gonna be called The Music Master. But again, I can't follow rules so I named myself Song of the Desert. Ha.)

So the novel is also about Gita figuring out this mysterious song. Figuring out the conflicting views. Figuring out life and such. It's an allegory, but a subtle one, and I make sure it doesn't get preachy or anything. ...

Ah....

KATIE I'VE GONE LIKE FOUR WHOLE PARAGRAPHS WITHOUT BEING DISRUPTIVE I CAN'T DO THIS ANY LONGER.

No. Please. Just keep this up, Tan. 

I'm going to talk about broccoli.

...why. 

Cause I can.

...are you serious.

I love talking about things that you hate. Burnt pizza, editing, me...

... I will ban you from my blog. 

I have your readers on my side. Ha.

Moving on... Here's a random mock cover from Hannah since when better to place it in the post? 

that gorgeous font, though.

There is a sequel to come, The Sand Dragon's Song. Katie has written it, but right now it's horrible. The sequel's my younger brother, actually. I'm jealous because he has more death and I barely have any. *sulks* 

You have your own sort of emotional and physical pain, Tan. Don't complain. 

Whatever. 

Katie will be looking for beta readers at the end of March. Yay. I get to be torn apart by other people, then.

This is just a duology. Song of the Desert is currently 85,000 words, and the unedited sequel is 105,000. (But there will be NaNo gibberish cut off from it, so it's probably going to turn out to be 90-95k or so.) 

It doesn't end on a terrible cliffhanger(well, kinda. Sorta. Not really?), but it's obvious that the story isn't finished yet. 

Tell them about the surprise, Tan!

Oh. Right.

So I was forced to share a bit of myself with you (my right pinkie to be exact). It's the beginning 800 words in which Gita, the main character, is trapped in a sandstorm. Wow, much action. Much excitement.

Stop sounding sarcastic. THIS IS REALLY EXCITING You can click here to read the first scene. *squeal* You can let me know by commenting in the Google Doc on the divider line, or below. Or keep your thoughts to yourself. ;)

READ THE FIRST SCENE OF SONG OF THE DESERT HERE!

- Katie Grace

Did Tan miss anything you'd like to know about? How'd you like the beginning?
Since I'm curious... how long is your novel?

- - -

                                                            CONNECT WITH ME!

     

Introducing: The Left-Handed Typist // Abi Ellison

What's this? A post? On a Wednesday?! 

Um... SURPRISE! xD

In my last post I briefly mentioned that my amazing critique partner, Abi, started a blog. How Abi and I met is completely one of those God things. Here's how it all happened last September:

Me: *is halfway through draft three edits* *thinking about beta readers* *wishing for a critique partner so I don't have to send this book to betas without another set of eyes*
.
Abi: *randomly finds my blog* (More on that below.) *randomly emails me* *mentions she likes editing*
.
Me: *hates editing own work, but loves editing other people's works* *suggests... becoming... critique partners*
.
Abi: *says yes!* (YAY!)

Boom. We're critique partners, and within a week she's editing my chapters and I'm editing hers. It's crazy how that worked out so perfectly. How she emailed me when I needed a critique partner. I'm so blessed. <3

Enough of me babbling. Here's my critique partner, Abi, writing about important blogging thoughts. (She has wonderful insights on why you should join her and really anyone in the blogging community.)

-

Hey everyone! I warn you I have never done this blog thing before that has taken over the world. To be completely honest, I have never thought of myself as the blogging personality. I would have laughed if you had told me last year that I would be starting a blog. And I have absolutely no idea how to write a post. Especially a guest post. So cross your fingers and we'll see what happens!

Katie is the person who made me want a blog. I found her through a friend's Pinterest when I wanted something to read one day and her blog (and crazy sense of humor) totally captivated me. I'm not exactly sure why, but it's never happened again with any other blogs I follow. We have become good friends and critique partners since then and I owe her tons!

So. That brings me to what I just decided will be the main point of my post. Why am I here? And why should you join me?

I am mainly here because I love to write. And even more than that, I love to edit. When I have a huge pile of responsibilities and schoolwork, this is how I get away. Now most people will find that crazy. My sister, for example, thinks reading and writing are the worst possible cures for a headache. I disagree. And you all know Katie hates to edit. (Katie here. Absolutely accurate.) That's why I am her friend :) (Okay, so that's not the only reason, but that's how it started.)

-

After lots of prayer, I made the decision that I will not be going on to college this summer. Instead, I will be working through the paths of experience and self-education to become better at what I do. Because no amount of classes for four years (no matter how much I may love them) will teach me what experience can. You're probably thinking "so what?" But what no college means for me is I will have to branch out . . . through blogging and connecting with other people.

 -

What boosted me from being a scribbling recluse in my bedroom to an actual budding author just this fall was people. I connected with some friends and (*gasp*) sent them my work. It was scary, let me tell you. Having their support, confidence, and interest is what motivates me to keep going. I realized that was completely invaluable. So here I am, trying my best to reach out to more people.

 -

This is where you come in! I have learned over the last year, that I not only want the support of fellow writers and book enthusiasts, I need it! And to be joined with lots of people I have never met who have similar passions is truly amazing. (I mean, seriously, you have no idea how much I freaked out over my first comment.) So if you have any interest whatsoever, come check out my blog. But I warn you, joining my site is not for the fainthearted. I will expect you to be an active, supportive member, not just a passive onlooker who likes my sense of humor. What's in it for you? The same, of course! No relationship, even over the internet, can exist without interaction. So in exchange for your interest and time, I will pour back into you.

Hey, that wasn't too bad! Before I go, I want to say another HUGE thanks to Katie. I wouldn't be here without you!

- - -

Thank you so much for guest posting, Abi! :D I love what you said and can totally relate to it for my own blogging journey. I blog for all of the above things as well, and it's so important to have people join you in the whole experience. 

What are you all waiting for? Here's the link to Abi's blog, The Left-Handed Typist. I'm sure it'd make her ecstatic to have some of you lovely people following it. :D

Do you have a critique partner? How'd you find each other?
What do you think is important about blogging?

// The Left-Handed Typist

Being A Novel is Hard // A Guest Post By My Novel

Today my novel is taking over the blog. Originally, I told it to post on what my story is about. I told it to share about my characters and all the wonderful things that are to happen in this desert, fantasy story of mine. But, since my novel likes being difficult, it merely shrugged and said, "I do what I want." 

So now instead of talking about Song of the Desert, my novel stubbornly demanded that it talk about the agony of being a novel. Sorry, I really gotta learn how to control it. I promise the post on Song of the desert WILL come. If my novel cooperates. -.^

Most of the post is written BY my novel, but for the few instances I have to interrupt it, my writing will be in bold and italics.

Anyways, I welcome to the blog, my novel!

Well, hey-o, all.

I'm Katie's novel. You can call me TAN if you want to call me by a name. (TAN = totally. awesome. novel. Yes, I'm full of myself. Quite literally. Ha.) 

She told me not to ramble on for too long, but, I am a novel after all, and a 90,000 word one at that. So I'm not promising anything. 

Um, you promised me you wouldn't ramble.

I'm in charge. 

*backs away, grumbling*

Katie wanted me to talk about characters, plot, and all that stuff. Will I honor her wishes? Ha. No. I'm going to talk about how hard it is to be a novel. You're probably not a novel, so you don't know how hard it is to be one. Whether you want to know or not, here's why it's hard to be a novel.

-

No, but really. Katie complains way too much about editing. She thinks it's hard? HOW ABOUT GETTING YOUR INSIDES REWRITTEN AND WORKED AROUND AND CUT OUT? HUH? 

Tan, you're a novel. It's not really going to--

--Shh. Editing kills me. Now let me finish the post, okay? 

Whatever.

Writers: be gentle while editing. It hurts us. We're always there for you (whether we like it or not, grr...), so please be patient and kind to us.

-

Katie gets furious--

--er, only "kind of" furious. *ahem* 

*grumps* I repeat myself: Katie gets furious when she loses work from her novel. She'll desert me for days and glare at my words when she returns, rewriting them with endless amounts of sighing and huffing. It makes me feel sad. Novels have feelings, too. Blame yourself or whoever you want. Just not us.

-

My author won't. stop. fiddling. with. me. There's CONSTANT changes -- making the text a different color seven times in one day, changing the font again and again and again, or font size.

Since you're all mortal, lowly humans, let me give you an analogy. Imagine someone--you don't particularly like--and imagine them being around you five hours a day. Now imagine them poking you. Tickling you. Scratching you. Talking nonstop. 

Sounds like a nightmare, yeah? Well, being a novel is a nightmare.

-

Katie likes to do this. I sometimes wonder if she does it just to aggravate me.

Um, I do not. 

You lie. let me talk.

Think about it. I, Tan, am a novel. I'm made of words, sentences, scenes, and chapters. So when you cut out a chapter, it's like cutting off an arm. It's like getting rid of seven toes. IT'S NOT VERY FUN OKAY I WISH WRITERS WOULD STOP DOING THAT TO NOVELS BECAUSE IT'S REALLY REALLY UPSETTING AND--

-- hey, Tan? Calm down.

I will calm down once you stop ripping me to pieces.

-

Um, I don't know if you need to go over this point, Tan... 

You complain about me enough. I have the right to complain of you.

. . . -.-

Sometimes, Katie won't stop with the complaining. She'll groan about how awful I am. She'll mope about all the changes she needs to make to me. She talks about how I'm just not good enough and how she's scared to show her "baby" to others.

Um, excuse me? I AM WHO I AM. Not everyone's gonna like me. I'm a grumpy old novel. But she shouldn't be the one complaining about me. If anything, I should be. And I'm perfectly proud of myself. I'm filled with genius. 

Authors, stop complaining. We novels are doing everything we can.

-

NOVEL RIGHTS, PEOPLE! We have to deal with everything above, and to add on to that, we can't write our story. I want to keep a chapter, and Katie goes ahead and delete the thing. I want things to stay as they are? They end up changing. It's like getting tattoos on your body without permission. Being a novel downright stinks sometimes. 

Okay, that's enough of the pessimism, Tan. How about some things you like about being a novel?

Sometimes you kill characters and in turn I get to feed on people's agony and tears. I like it.

. . . We're ending this post.

- TAN (totally. awesome. novel.)

I, Tan (Katie's novel), will be answering comments today. If you have any questions about being a novel, I'll probably answer them if Katie isn't editing me like crazy. (Or get YOUR novels to comment. I need a novel support group.)

Katie here. I will be monitoring Tan's comments, so if you happen to have any comments for me, please direct them my way. :)

Creative Faith // Guest Post By Rachel Alison

There might just be a giveaway at the end of this post so make sure to keep reading.

Hello all! I'm super excited to have Rachel on my blog today. I've been following her blog, Random Rants By Rcubed, for over a year now, and her posts are always fantastic and I usually leave them giggling. But guess what? RACHEL IS LAUNCHING A NEW BLOG! It's called Silver Mess, and you should all go follow it to get excited for her posts with me. :D Rachel is just a really awesome person. 



She's also guest posting today, and here's her post: Creative Faith.
(It's a really powerful post. I love it so much. <3)

-

Hey there! My name is Rachel Alison, and in lieu of launching my latest website, Silver Mess, Katie has graciously allowed me to guest post on her blog!

Silver Mess is all about creativity, and how it pertains to all areas of life--style, art, music, film, literature, architecture, photography, and more. Beyond even creativity, though, it's about creation. As a born-again Christian, I  believe that God created the world--this world, in which we love, breathe, eat sleep, talk, laugh, cry, run, etc., etc., etc. This Earth is our tangible home. Unless we start Mars colonization at some point in the near future (who even wants to live there? It's dusty and red), we're going to stay here. 

Oftentime, I find myself getting so caught up in the moment that I forget to step back, pause, and look at the whole beauty of this earth. Sure, humans have run it over and abused it and utterly disregarded the whole idea of "stewardship," but guess what? If you look at it from space, like astronauts do, I bet it's still beautiful.

And it is this whole concept of beauty and God that blows my mind. When humans create beautiful things--art, words, ideas--we create that which we have absorbed from other people. Every heard of the whole "there is no such thing as an original idea" pitch? Well, that's true--for humans. We don't have the capacity to create real, genuine, untainted ideas that have no been inspired by what we've already seen. We don't have the ability to create something out of nothing.

But God does.

Think about the beginning. There was only God, but there was nothing else. There was just God and His existence. And then He came up with the idea.

If you really think about it, God came up with the concept of the idea. He came up with the concept of creation. And when He spoke birds, living creatures, plants, and humans into existence, He spoke into being biology, psychology, chemistry, emotion, ability, the concept of communication, the study of Himself, life. And he came up with this no inspiration and nothing to influence Him--He's God; He created the idea of influence. He created the idea of inspiration.

He made humans with the potential to create. 

He came up with the idea of potential.

He came up with the idea of creativity itself.

And that's so hard to wrap my mind around. What is it like to simply exist? What is it like to create something out of nothing? I'll never understand it, because I'm not God, but that makes me appreciate and believe in Him all the more.

And, quite simply put, Silver Mess is about pursuing creativity, but also helping fulfill one's God-given gifts by creating that which is pure, noble, and true. True art doesn't necessarily have to flash God's name over everything in gaudy clearance Christmas lights, but it should be whatever is pure, noble, lovely. We glorify God when we create something to the best of our abilities.

And that's why I created Silver Mess--to help foster the potential that God has given humanity to create things that are worthy of praise.

Whatever you enjoy doing--whether it be writing, painting, designing, etc., etc., etc.--you do to the glory of God.

- - -

This is the last post of the Silver Mess Blog Tour-Nado! Thank you so much for those of you who stuck around for the entire length of it, and for those of you who weren't aware that this fun of a party was going on, click here to read/watch the other discussions, guest posts, and video!

Also... I'm holding a giveaway! If you love artsy craft supplies and Starbucks and live in the United States (sorry, I'm a broke high school student who's saving for college), feel free to enter it!

(Katie popping in. Rachel has a YouTube channel, and on her channel she has a video of all the goodies included in this giveaway. Katie out.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

- Rachel Alison | Silver Mess

CONNECT WITH RACHEL: