My Madly Marvelous Misadventure. . . in other words, the reason I haven't blogged in a while

Okay, I am very sorry that I have not posted in a couple of weeks now. . so I present the reason why!

Well you see, I was walking through a forest looking for a place to sit and blog when I was interrupted by a beautiful dragon.  Now this dragon was so beautiful and I could not look away from him. He convinced me to set aside blogging and come with him.  So- being the dragon lover I am- I followed the dragon into a beautiful land where a castle rose above the small kingdom. The oldest Prince was so amazed that with how I got to this land that he married me and I became a Queen. And with being a queen I was free to do whatever I wanted so I walked into the castle gardens and sat down to blog when all of the sudden a unicorn nudged me and told me that she would love to give me a ride through a beautiful forest.

I sat upon the unicorn and like lightning we were in a beautiful forest filled with mushrooms. The mushrooms were so beautiful and smelled so delicious that I just had to try one. . .and then two . . . and then three. . . I closed my eyes to savor the flavor but when I opened them I was no longer in a mushroom filled forest. . I was in the underworld, where the evil king brought people who ate his mushrooms. He made me a servant until he realized that I was a queen. He then married me so that he could take naps as much as he liked and not have to worry about his dorky sidekick screwing things up. Once the king was asleep a beautiful fairy came to my rescue and showed me a way out of the underworld. I followed her through a tiny hole in the side of  the wall AND ALL OF A SUDDEN. . . .

okay really I got nothing and I am sorry. I will be posting actual writerly things later on this week and I will be announcing this months giveaway! So come back. . .and don't worry, I won't be eating any more mushrooms or following any dragons. . . okay I can't make any promises about the dragons. . .but still more posts to come this week!

100 favorite Writerly Quotes

100 Favorite Writerly Quotes:

1. "Don't tell me the moon is shining. Show me the glint of moonlight on broken glass." ~Anton Chekhov

2. "The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say".  ~Anaïs Nin

3. "Fill your paper with the breathings of you heart." William Wordsworth

4. "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."  ~Mark Twain

5. "Storytelling reveals meaning without committing the error of defining it."  ~Hannah Arendt

6."When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing."  ~Enrique Jardiel Poncela

7."When you are describing, A shape, or sound, or tint; Don't state the matter plainly,

 But put it in a hint; And learn to look at all things, With a sort of mental squint." ~Charles Lutwidge Dodgson


8. "A page a day is a book a year." ~ Richard Rhodes


9. "The pages are still blank, but there is a miraculous feeling of the words being there, written in invisible ink and clamoring to become visible."  ~Vladimir Nabakov


10. "Proofread carefully to see if you any words out."  ~Author Unknown


11. "A writer is someone who can make a riddle out of an answer."  ~Karl Kraus


12. "To me, the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it's about, but the inner music the words make."  ~Truman Capote


13. "Do not put statements in the negative form.
And don't start sentences with a conjunction.
If you reread your work, you will find on rereading that a
great deal of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing.
Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.
Unqualified superlatives are the worst of all.
De-accession euphemisms.
If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is.
Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.
Last, but not least, avoid cliches like the plague."
~William Safire, "Great Rules of Writing

Updates!

I have updated my list of 100 ways to get rid of Writers block and 100 things that are over used in books!! Come check them out! And comment more idea's on there and I will put them on the list!

Plus, I am working on putting together some more lists of 100 writerly things!
Starting with:
100 Fairy Tales Re-told, a list of 100 of my favorite re-tellings of the most popular fairy tales!
100 Favorite Writing Quotes. And

100 Over Done Descriptions!
These will be released one at a time, once a month and will be updated as much as possible!

Also if you have any idea's let me know and I will get that started!

Upcoming posts

I haven't blogged in a bit. What would you like to hear about?

Plus, all this month comment on my posts, participate in the story writing and get entered for a chance to win!

And, next month there is going to be a huge party of giveaways!!!! And my goal is to blog everyday next month! It's going to be a blast!!!

Jewelry for Sale!!!!!

Check out the Jewelry page! I have put up a couple of pieces of jewelry that I make for sale and lot's more to come!!!

I do custom work as well! So if you have anything you would like made, perhaps a birthday gift (I can do necklaces by birthstones) or maybe you just  created a piece of jewelry in your book and would love to see it come alive!!!

***Once upon a time*** Comment and win a handmade necklace!!!

Comment on the post 'Once upon a time' and help me write a story! Most helpful writer will win a 'fairy tale' Necklace! (made by me, pictures will come later!)

http://nothoughts2small.blogspot.com/2011/04/once-upon-time.html

Also this week come back and check out my jewelry that will be posted as well as notebooks for sell!!!

Once upon a time. . .

Her tears poured like rain. Her heart pounding like thunder. All she could do was run, her feet numb from the cold wet ground. She didn't stop to pick up the roses that fell from her weak nimble fingers, she couldn't even stop to pick up her cloak which had slipped from her shoulder's

A story will unfold

At 8pm tonight I am going to post one pharagraph. It's going to be the start of a story. And for the entire month of April I want the story to go on and on and on.  So comment and put the next line of the story up. Keep commenting and keep the story going. On the last day of April, the person who has commented the most will win a prize!



But. . . there's more. . .  Share my blog, and get as many people to participate as possible. At the end of the month, there will be another post where you can comment and tell me how many people you referred to my blog who participated, where you shared my blog and how many times. for each one of those, you will get your name put in a drawing for an amazing prize!

AND. . .. THE WINNER IS. . . .

Elizabeth Mueller! Please e-mail me, comment below or contact me via Facebook to claim your prize! (Please specify which book you would like) And congratulations!

http://elizabethmueller.blogspot.com/

And thank you to all of those who participated! Tomorrow I will let everyone know what's coming up for April!

Fairy Tale book reviews

Because I am doing a review for four books in one post, the reviews will be more like a description of the book with a rating and good age group.

favorite Beauty and the Beast re-tell:

     ~Beastly by Alex Flinn

A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright—a creature with fangs and claws and hair springing from every pore. I am a monster.

You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll stay this way forever—ruined—unless I can break the spell.

Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly . . . beastly.

Okay, this is one of my favorite version of Beauty and the beast. I would rate it PG-13 though as of there are a couple of questionable scenes for younger readers.  And that puts the age group at 13-23(ish).

Favorite Sleeping Beauty re-tell:

    A kiss in time by Alex Flinn

Talia fell under a spell. . . . 
Jack broke the curse.

I was told to beware the accursed spindle, but it was so enchanting, so hypnotic. . . .

I was looking for a little adventure the day I ditched my tour group. But finding a comatose town, with a hot-looking chick asleep in it, was so not what I had in mind.

I awakened in the same place but in another time—to a stranger's soft kiss.

I couldn't help kissing her. Sometimes you just have to kiss someone. I didn't know this would happen.

Now I am in dire trouble because my father, the king, says I have brought ruin upon our country. I have no choice but to run away with this commoner!

Now I'm stuck with a bratty princess and a trunk full of her jewels. . . . The good news: My parents will freak!

Think you have dating issues? Try locking lips with a snoozing stunner who turns out to be 316 years old. Can a kiss transcend all—even time?

Again, a great read but also PG-13. Age group the same as well, 13-23(ish). Which isn't all that surprising as of it's written by the same author. . . (is it obvious I like Alex Flinn's work?) 

Favorite Cinderella re-tell

   Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George

Hoping to escape the troubles in her kingdom, Princess Poppy reluctantly agrees to take part in a royal exchange program, whereby young princes and princesses travel to each other's countries in the name of better political alliances—and potential marriages. It's got the makings of a fairy tale—until a hapless servant named Ellen is tricked by a vengeful fairy godmother into competing with Poppy for the eligible prince. Ballgowns, cinders, and enchanted glass slippers fly in this romantic and action-packed happily-ever-after quest from an author with a flair for embroidering tales in her own delightful way.

This book is rated G. It's a great read and girls from all ages will love it! Jessica is an amazing author with wonderful talent! All of her books are enjoyable for all ages!

and last but never least

Favorite mix of Snow White & Cinderella (and possibly some others thrown in there)

  My Fairy  Fair Godmother

After her boyfriend dumps her for her older sister, sophomore Savannah Delano wishes she could find a true prince to take her to the prom. Enter Chrissy (Chrysanthemum) Everstar: Savannah’s gum-chewing, cell phone–carrying, high heel-wearing Fair Godmother. Showing why she’s only Fair—because she’s not a very good fairy student—Chrissy mistakenly sends Savannah back in time to the Middle Ages, first as Cinderella, then as Snow White. Finally she sends Tristan, a boy in Savannah’s class, back instead to turn him into her prom-worthy prince. When Savannah returns to the Middle Ages to save Tristan, they must team up to defeat a troll, a dragon, and the mysterious and undeniably sexy Black Knight. Laughs abound in this clever fairy tale twist from a master of romantic comedy.

Ok, this is one of my all time favorite books! It is hilarious! And I cannot wait for the sequel! This book is rated G. Age group: 12-20. If you have not read this book, you should! And if you have any girls in your life between those ages that love reading and their birthdays are coming up, this is a great present idea!!!

All right, those are all the fairy tales I have for tonight but now. . . .it's time to announce the prize  that I am giving away tonight at midnight.. . . .*insert drum roll*  and the prize is. . . . . 

One of the four books above! Once the winner is announced they will have the option of picking any of the four books mentioned in this post.  

*Should the winner not be interested in any of the above books, do not fear! We will work something out!!* 

A fairy tale untold

As earlier requested, here is some of the things I am currently working on. Starting with the most current one.

"True Love Sleeps' (a re-tell of 'Sleeping Beauty')
The King and Queen prayed they would be able to have children. . . the prayer was answered. . . with twins.
Darya, previously fairy godmother to the queen, now fairy godmother over the first born Princess, see's her future. . . but can tell no one. Can she do what it takes to save the Kingdom from tragedy if it means hurting the princess? And will the Princesses sister help? or will she fall for the same thing that her sister had?

I do sincerely hope that this sounds interesting. As the story develops perhaps I will post a better, more intriguing and more well written heading for the book. As well as some inserts perhaps just for the fun of it!



Beauty's Thief (a re-tell of 'Beauty and the Beast')
She gave her life to a witch to save a strangers.  The witch had only one servant. a boy, a thief.
The girl knew not why the witch was mean. Or why she insisted on forcing her to work with the boy, a mere pain in her side. But she knew that she had to make the witch see good. She never knew that the witch only did what she had for love. . . .

Again, does this interest anyone? I have lot's planned for this book but very little is worked out. And again later on I will post more on it. But for now I wanted to give you something to look forward as I write and develop better skills. Hopefully this will look like a silly scribble compared to the finished (and hopefully, eventually published) work.


Well that is all I have so far. I am hoping to make a collection of re-tell's of all the classic fairy tales.
I have another one but I am not sure if it is really going to be a re-tell or just it's own story!

Apologies

I am soo so so very sorry that I did not get my post in. This does not mean that the surprise post is not coming! It simply means that I am posting it tomorrow morning and tomorrow evening I will post the reviews! Again I am sincerely sorry. I feel terrible!

I'M BACK!!!!!

Alright everybody! I am back! And I'm about to blog an awesome blog including lot's of fairytale stories, a prize and some good news!!!! Stay tuned and remember there are still a couple days left to comment on my blogs to win a prize at the end of the month!!!

Coming up in just a couple hours:
A fairytale party!
Today is a total surprise.


Tomorrow:
I'm going to do reviews for some of my all time favorite retell's of fairytales. In that same post I will be announcing the surprise prize that will be given away at the end of the month to a random winner selected from people who've commented on my blog during the month of March!

Going Offline for a while!

I am going offline for the next couple of weeks so there will be no new blogs for a little while. But you can still comment on all my blogs that are already posted and be entered for the giveaway I am doing at the end of the month!

Hopefully at the end of the month I will have a lot more of my book written!! Cya at the end of the month!

Talk about getting known!

On Tuesday Evening Brandon Mull (author of the Fablehaven series as well as Pingo,  and the candy shop wars) had another one of his HUGE launch parties for his new book called The Beyonders- a World without Heroes.


These launch parties are amazing! He has a group called DC comedy come and do some performances and they are absolutely hilarious! Brandon used to be a part of the DC comedy group while going to BYU along with his brother.  (and if you are looking for the biggest laughs of your life watch the following videos where Brandon is preforming in the group at BYU years before he was a published author!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiAcVoc9rXg&playnext=1&list=PLA8755ADAE068C7F6
(You must watch all six videos. . . trust me it's worth the time!)

Anyways, after the party Brandon had a huge signing and while he was signing my and my brothers books, this photographer was talking to my dad. Once my books were signed I hurried over to find out what was going on. . . as it turns out She had the boys and I model with some of Brandon's books because we're gonna be in a feature article about Brandon in an e-magazine called Millennium Magazine!!!
http://www.newmillenniumnewsmag.com/

So when authors tell you to get out there and get known if you want to be a writer. . what better way to do it than be put in a magazine article with Brandon Mull???!?!?!?!!

Brandon's site!
http://brandonmull.com/site/

So if you haven't read any of Brandon Mull's books do! They are amazing!!

p.s Don't forget that if you comment on any of my blogs during the month of march you are automatically entered for a giveaway at the end of the month! So please share my blog and comment lots! Also I will post the article when it is published. The lady at the party/signing said that it will be next week some time!

What do you want to hear about?

What sort of things interest you? Whats your favorite post that I've ever done?  What would you like to see more of? 

Go share my blog! Then comment on here (One comment for each answer and where you shared my blog. The more you comment the more chances you have of winning a prize) 

Every time you comment on one of my posts for the entire month of March that is one more entry in a drawing I am having for a surprise Prize at the end of the month! So comment lots and share my blog! And comment on where you shared my blog! :D

Pen Names

Why? What is your reason for wanting or not wanting one?What do you think of pen names? Will/would/ do you want to use one when you get published?

Comment and tell me why.

Then share my blog and get entered to win a surprise Prize!

(comment on where you shared my blog)

With each comment you will have a better chance of winning!

It took a life of work to know. . . .

When I first started writing, one of the first things I was taught was to write with someone in mind. (as in the audience)  Though at the time I thought that was quite obvious and easy, I learned quickly that it is not.  But over Christmas I learned a valuable lesson.

A friend of mine and I were chatting online just weeks before Christmas.  I asked her what she wanted for Christmas but she insisted that I didn't need to get her anything. I laughed and told her that I wasn't planning on 'Getting' her anything, but I was going to make it. She laughed understandingly because she knew I was talking about Jewelry.  She said thank you and told me that if I was going to make her a necklace that she would like a Black and White one. Because I do Beading and have access to unlimited beads I thought 'No problem!' So I come into work the next day and I start looking for a great combo of black and white beads. I found the perfect beads that totally screamed her name! While making her necklace I thought 'Why is it that I just made this beautiful piece of jewelry that I could sale for $75 and I know she's going to love it, yet when I make jewelry to sale it never does?". . .it then hit me! I had made the necklace with someone in mind rather than designing a necklace for fun and making it to sale.

That night I went to bed with a whole new realization. . . Writing with someone in mind is writing a story that people read the same sort of thing I do , people that have similar qualities and so forth are going to like! It was an amazing epiphany! But not only that. . .I realized another great lesson.

The 'why me?'. . .

Everyone's said it at least once! And everyone's heard the phrase 'Everything happens for a reason.' But that night I learned just why me! Since I was 14 (maybe even younger)  I wondered, 'Why me? why do I have to work at a rock shop and be home schooled instead of growing up like a regular kid? Why me? why couldn't I got to school and mess around like other kids? And I found my answer.

I got to work at a rock shop because it was the only way for me to become who I am today. If I had gone to public school and messed around like other kids than I wouldn't be nearly as mature as I am now. I wouldn't be a writer, I wouldn't be as smart, I wouldn't be going to writers conferences rather than football games and pool parties and such. So now I don't ask 'Why me?" I say 'Thanks for choosing me! Thanks to my Heavenly Father for preparing me for my future! Thank you for making me realize just why it was me.'!

AND THE WINNER IS. . . .*insert drum roll here*

McElwain Pirates!!!  With a total of 40 points! Come check out her blog's!!!

http://piratezeta-lifeofapirate.blogspot.com/

http://apirateschool.blogspot.com/

http://piratehearted.blogspot.com/

http://photographybypz.blogspot.com/

And don't forget to come check my blog every now and then because I'm doing a giveaway a month!

*****GIVEAWAY*****

I have decided that I would like to help with paying it forward. a program in which writers help writers write! And so I have decided that once a month I am going to do a giveaway! Starting this month with giving away a copy of 'The Write Planner.' A planner for helping authors make and keep goals in writing their books, created by Kim Coates (www.writerremedies.com)

So how do you enter for this giveaway you may ask. . .well here is how. . . 

Tell me:

1. your #1 way of getting rid of writers block. (10 points per idea. nothing can be copied from what I have already posted )

2. something that you think is over used in books.(10 points per idea. Nothing can be copied from what I have already posted)

And:

Share my blog with all your friends. (20 points per share. so if you share on each of the places everyday you will get 20 points each time)

Comment below your answers and where you shared my blog (Facebook, twitter, blogger, e-mail. . .etc)

Have your comments in by 2-28-11 at midnight. 

The winner will be chosen by most/best idea's and most points for sharing my blog. 

And let the sharing begin!