Goodbye September

Well September didn't take it any slower...October, here's your shot.

Here I am again checking in with my 2019 resolutions:

(1) Keep learning

(2) Write [almost] every day

(3) Don't stop reading

(4) Complete something (e.g. a manuscript)

(5) Get [a little] professional 

This month went...not better. I kinda sucked again. But I got sick, twice, and my sister was in town. So all in all, I had about 1 week of feeling good and not being too busy. Yes, they're excuses, but I'm sticking to them.

(1) Again, no real "evidence" of this to share. 

(2) I did not do better. I sucked. 0 pages. 

(3) I read 1-2 books in September, started and abandoned a few more.

(4)  0 pages. On...nothing. I sucked. People at work have been asking how my writings going, in addition to my mom nagging me, and well, it hasn't been going well. Thank you.

(5) Posts in September: 8 (that includes this one).

I'm going to (try) to do this at the end of every month, or close to it (that is, if I remember, and my life isn't too too crazy at that time).

What are your big October reads?

Anything I should check out?

As we say at the daycare I work at during circle time:

"Goodbye, September!"

"Hello, October!"

It sounds silly, but just imagine 6-10 two year olds repeating that after you. It could make almost anyone smile.

#newyearsresolutions #keeplearning #writeeveryday #dontstopreading #completesomething #getprofessional #goodbyeseptember #hellooctober #bookstagram #books #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Wayward Sons 3/?

REDEMPTION POST....spoilers ahead...

I'm still in the middle of my first re-reading of Wayward Son. But I wanted to officially let y'all know that I'm feeling much, much, much better about this book.

My negatives/positives list is a little...okay, a lot long. So stay with me:

WHY I HATED IT BEFORE:

• Before, when I angrily posted how I was uber disappointed with the book, crying while typing, I had not given myself proper time to process the book, its events, its highs/lows. I have now.
• I had held Carry On in such high esteem, on such a lofty pedestal, so naturally, I gave Wayward Son very, very high expectations. Carry On just changed my entire view on what there is to read (and to write) out there; after reading this book, my entire writing style/themes/tone/passion changed. CO changed everything for me, so when WS fell a little short during my first reading, I was understandably very disappointed.
• The use of the classic Disney parent scapegoat method
• The money issue...then again, she had prefaced it several times, making it a little better, having the characters know they were wrong/will get in trouble.
• America having such a loose magic system/rulings. I was disappointed with that, still am to be honest.
• The romance, or lack there of (will get to the positive/reasons soon)
• The cliffhanger ending...with Penny's sub-romance-plot, with Snowbaz, with Watford
• Agatha deserved so much more, a bigger redemption plot, after almost everyone, myself included, hated in in CO

WHY I DON'T NOW:

• I had read WS as a reader, with so much emotion, and not as a writer, looking at craft. I went and read a lot of other opinions (on IG and reddit) and given this novel major, major thought. I get it now.
• As always, Rainbow Rowel delivered a masterpiece. The plot, conflict (internal and external), characters, dialogue, world building, etc was phenomenal.
• Romance:
• Lack of communication: they always had trouble here, not going to magically get better, especially with Simon dealing with depression and Baz still struggling with self-esteem issues. 
• Lack there of: they were high school sweethearts and have been thrown out into the real world, naturally they were going to have problems
• Room for improvement in the book 3
•  I hadn't realized that Rainbow had hinted at already planning/writing a third Snowbaz book, so imagine my glee and lowered anxiety when I saw those rumors re-going around.
• It had felt unfinished, because it was.
• One of the reddit posts I read said that this equation (1st book=stand-alone, 2nd and 3rd book act more as duloagy) was very popular with YA fantasy novels (which I don't read often enough) and we'll all freaking out for nothing.
• The tonal shift from book 1 to book 2 had given me severe whip-lash
• 1: light, fluffy, fun --> 2: bittersweet "kick in the throat" (not my words but soooo accurate)
• CO's epilogue seemed all happy, but there will still small issues there. Rainbow took those small issues and made them explode, becoming major issues in WS. Besides that point, her epilogues are always bittersweet, and ending in with cliffhangers gave her plot to explore in book 3
• Speaking of epilogues...I had not noticed (until seeing Rainbows slightly confusing tweet the other day) that the book started with an epilogue and ended with a prologue. It was not a manufacturing error. It's supposed to be like that. Someone said that maybe, the epilogue is the epilogue to book 1 (I thought maybe book 3, too), and the prologue is the prologue to book 3. Very creative craft choice from Rainbow; once again breaking all kinds of craft rules.
• The character development wasn't minor. Granted, they still have a crap ton of issues, but they've grown more into themselves
• Simon = more comfortable in his body and his wings
• Baz = more knowledge about himself/vampires that he lacked before
• Penny = realized her fatal flaw
• Agatha = majority matured, realized she can't out-run magic

Again, I feel sooooo much better about Wayward Son, but that doesn't mean the posts will slow down. ;)

But for those of you still in the dark about what Wayward Son is about, let me back up a little. Wayward Son is the sequel to Rainbow Rowell's Carry On. Wayward Son is the story of what happens when the Chosen One did what he was supposed to do, he defeated the big bad evil, he saved the world, he came home. This novel is about everything else....hopefully the first of two installments. 

Go read it, cry it out, and read it again. It'll be worth it.

#waywardson #carryon #rainbowrowell #books #LGBTbooks #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Wayward Son 2/?

SPOILER ALERT

This is my immediate reaction to reading Wayward Son. Hopefully after some sleep and rereading and thinking things over and seeing fan reactions/posts/pictures/etc I’ll feel better/different about...everything. At that point, hopefully tomorrow, I’ll share a longer, fuller, brighter post about the glories of Wayward Son. 

Know that the following is mostly driven from doing not much more than reading for the past half dozen hours.

I cried during prologue. And the first chapter. And the second. 
I don’t know if it was my excitement for rainbow finally brining me back into this world or having my babies back or my babies not communicating or how I knew I hated that elitist club thing from the beginning or the overall ominous tone of sheer dread and defeat and heartbreak. 

Hated it after I finished. Hated how they never said they loved each other. Hated how they only have a few soft bf moments. Hated how they hated each other so often. Hated how everyone seemed to be backstabbers. How so much seemed unsolved. How Simon didn’t get his magic back, I really held out hope that he would. How Agatha’s redemption hard wasn’t quite big enough. How the secondary romance plot wasn’t more hinted at. How their parents never found out. How they got away with so much illegal magic usage. How it ended in a fucking cliff hanger. How my boys didn’t resolve their issues. How the entire book pointed out albeit with so much poetic beauty and skilled writing that they were still so different. How I had no doubt the book would end well for them because how much rainbow is dedicated to them. 

I just...feel so much disappointment and I hate myself for feeling this way. I want to cry (we’ll have been for a while now) and throw things. I want to be able to go back and unread this. I want a third book now. Yesterday. 

I want everything to be better. 

#waywardson #carryon #rainbowrowell #books #lgbtbooks #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Wayward Son 1/?

PREFACE: be sooo prepared for a major influx of Wayward Son posts in the next couple of days, weeks, etc. Because I'm so fucking obsessed with Carry On, and I just...no words for how excited I am to finally, FINALLY crack open this bad boy here. Stay tuned, folks.

ALSO, ALSO, ALSO: Look at these BEAUTIFUL signed copies I got!! So amazing. So speechless. So blessed.

Yeah, my order got all mixed up and confused, so I somehow ended up with TWO signed copies of Wayward Son and TWO signed copies of Carry On. Not AT ALL disappointed, thank you very much.

#waywardson #carryon #rainbowrowell #books #yabooks #LGBTbooks #drarrybutcanon #worstchosenonetoeverbechosen #thefrontseatisforpeoplewhoveneverbeenkidnappedbybloodynumptiesjesuschristbaz #sogettingthattattooedonmybody #ilovebooks

Pumpkinheads, revisted

Do you see this cute little Pumpkinheads signed poster?! God, I can't stop looking at it. Its too much! I love it!!! Thank you, Rainbow and and Faith!

#pumpkinheads #rainbowrowell #faitherinhicks #graphicnovel #signedposters #books #bookstagram #bookphotograph #ilovebooks

Writing Help

I also haven't had a consistent writing schedule/habit in what feels like sooo soo so long.

Please help me here, too. Well, more here than reading. I just...I get in the habit of things, and then, I fall out of it.
And I've been doing a whole lot of falling lately.

I want to write, I feel it so strongly sometimes, but I just...can't seem to find the time.

I need tips!
I need them now!!

#books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Reading Help

Do you see this TBR pile? I need help.

Tell me where to start. Tell me where to skip around. Tell me what to do.

I haven't have a consistent reading schedule/habit in what feels like sooo soo so long.

I need tips.
I need them now.

Note that this TBR pile is missing AT LEAST ehhhh 6-10 books...yeah.

#books #bookstagram #bookphotography #tobereadpile #ilovebooks

New Book Tuesday

Ever notice how books always seem to be released on a Tuesday? Ever wonder why?

Apparently, its a industry standard, and not just for books. CDs and DVDs are also released on Tuesdays. It's a few things combined, actually:
(1) Bestseller lists calculate sales from Saturday to Saturday, giving each new product ample time to rack up sales before the weekend.
(2) Tuesdays are traditionally the lowest sale days of the week, and having new products debut on Tuesdays gives consumers incentive to buy.
(3) If books do well on Tuesdays, bookstores have plenty of time to buy more for the weekend rush.

Any other reasons that you've seen for such an influx of book release dates being held on Tuesdays?

Take a look at my September 24 New Book Tuesday book-haul.

After I read each book, hopefully soon, I'll have a personalized post for each book. :) Wish me luck!

#waywardson #rainbowrowell #tyrantsromb #rickriordan #theinfinitenoise #laurenshippen #newbooktuesday #bookhaul #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks