30 Days of Vlogging

To kick myself in the pants to start vlogging more like a promised I started a 30 Days of Vlogging. I'm excited to see what kind of topics I'll talk about this month. I know I'll be packing and getting ready for school during that last week so that will be interesting. To start things off I declared Mondays as Morphinominal Mondays where I talk about Power Rangers. It's the one thing I know a lot about. I'm a dork. Anyway here is my first vlog, I hope you enjoy!

YA Highway Anniversary Giveaway

The ladies over at YA Highway are having a massive giveaway to celebrate their 3rd year anniversary. They are giving away a ton of stuff including books, ARCs and query critiques. Also a grand prize so big you have to click here to see for yourself.
YA Highway is an amazing blog written by some amazing people. I personally have been following this blog for years and I love it. They have great features like Road Trip Wednesday, Field Trip Friday, lots of book reviews and author and agent interviews. So hurry up and check it out.


Happy Reading!

Relaxation

Lately I've been stressed. I have a million things on my mind and it's been affecting my writing. Sometimes the stress is good. Like when I have a bunch of ideas that I just have to it write down and crack out 2000 words in a night. However, other times on top of the ideas I start thinking about life in general and as a college student, life is pretty complicated. On those days I can't even get out 200 words.
It kind of sucks, but I found that relaxation helps me with clearing my head. I'm not really stating anything new, but this is what was on my mind.
So what did I do to help with my stress? I learned ho to knit a hat. Actually two hats I'm working on my third one right now.

School Colors

While knitting I'm not really thinking about my WIP or school or my life struggles. I'm just trying to make sure I don't mess up the hat. I'll hopefully learn how to knit something other than a hat. Since my head it is clear sitting down to write has been much easier.

Reading Update: I started chapter two in Catch-22. I'm trying. My dad assures me it gets better. Currently on my list of summer reads I am a third of the way through The Liar Society.

Writing Update: So as you can see from my word count meter I have reached over14,000 words in my WIP. This is the farthest I've gotten since I finished my first novel junior year in high school. 

Chocolate Update: Skinny Cow White Mint Truffle bars. Best ice cream bar EVER. I'm addicted. It's minty with a little chocolate drizzle to satisfy my chocolate cravings. I'm going to try other ice cream bars in that brand. I'll keep you updated.

What do you do to relax when stressed? How does it work for you? What chocolaty treat should I try?

Made this one for mom

Happy Reading!

PS: Someone left an anonymous comment on the Just For Fins swag giveaway post. Who ever left can you please DM on twitter @laboyden so we could sort out the details. Also if anyone wants a bookmark I have a few left. Just leave a comment or Tweet me and I'll send you one. Thanks

Summer Goals

I know I have a problem with regular posting. Now that I'm practicing taking time out of my day to write I decided to use some it to make a post. So, what has being going on in the world of Leslie?

This week in reading: I recently started reading again. For some reason, when I am at school I can't find time to read, but I keep buying new books. Now I have a pile of books I purchased in the last year that I haven't read. I started most of them but life happened and I got super busy and forgot to finish them. Now those books have second and third books that are coming out this summer/already released.

Bossypants by Tina Fey: I love Tina Fey. I bought this last summer.

Matched by Ally Condie:  Crossed is already out and Reached will be out in November.

Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer: Bloodrose is already out.

Wing of the Wicked by Courtney Allison Moulton: Bought that during the school year.

Supernaturally by Kiersten White: Endlessly is coming out this month!

Trial By Fire by Jennifer Lynn Barns: I didn't even know Taken by Storm was out until I saw it at the bookstore last week.

Shut Out by Kody Keplinger: I was in an adaption of Lysistrata last year and thought it would be fun to read.

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray: I got fifty pages in before school started last fall.

Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood by Eileen Cook: I got half way through during winter break then school happened.

The Liar Society by Lisa and Laura Roecoker: Lies that Bind will be out in November.

XVI and Truth by Julia Karr: I bought those at Julia's release party during the school year. I met her she was really nice and signed my copies.

So I plan on getting through all these book by the end of summer. Hopefully the sequels as well. And there are still new releases that aren't in this pile that I want to read. I'm also trying to read Catch 22 by Joesph Heller. My dad has been asking me to read it for years. I read the first couple pages in high school and didn't like it. When I came home from school last month by dad had bought a copy and it sat on top of the fridge for the longest time. I decided to start it again without telling him. (Mom if you're reading this don't tell dad!) I am only one chapter in and I find it easier to read now. Maybe it's because of all the lit classes I took freshman year. I don't know, I'll give you a progress report as I get further in the story.

This week in writing: Slow. I've barely written 2,000 words this week. I'm pushing through. I looked back at all of the WIP I had on my jump drive and saw that I stopped writing around 10,000-12,000 words. Hopefully once I get passed that 12,000 mark I'll feel confident to keep going. I love this story and the characters. I really want to see where they go from here. My goal is to get 60,000 word by the end of the summer. Cross your fingers for me.

As you can see I have a word count gadget on the upper right hand corner of the sidebar. I got it from Svenja Liv's blog. It's typically used for NaNoWriMo, but you can use it year round. If you click the image, it will lead you to the site.

This week in chocolate: I need some. The description of my blog says "Leslie's philosophy on reading, writing and how chocolate helps you through it." Since I have no chocolate maybe that's why I'm struggling. Since it's the Fourth of July I might find some chocolaty treats at my family's cook out...


What are your summer goals? Is it reading more? Trying to be healthier? Let me know in the comments.

Happy Reading!

P.S. I'm giving away Just for Fins bookmarks and Mer Mark tattoos here. All you have to do to enter is to tell me your favorite summer memory. Contest ends on Sunday.

***EDIT: Sorry about the white. I don't know why it did that.***

Just For Fins Release Day!!!

Wow time flies by so fast. Tera Lynn Childs' third book in the Forgive my Fins series Just for Fins is out today. If you haven't heard about Forgive my Fins or Tera Lynn Childs then go here. I can't believe it's been three years since Forgive my Fins was released and I've been on the Splash Team. I am so glad to be apart of such an amazing group. Tera has been so kind to take the time out of her crazy writers schedule to chat with us. She even has this awesome forum that every TLC fan should check out and post topics. Check it out now! Tera is really good about responding to posts. It's a great forum.
Here is the the synopsis of Just for Fins:

***CONTAINS FORGIVE MY FINS AND FINS ARE FOREVER SPOILERS***

"When Lily Sanderson decided to remain Crown Princess Waterlily of the mer kingdom of Thalassinia, she knew she couldn't just coast along in the current. But since she's spent the last couple of years on land, Lily's not sure she has the fins to lead a kingdom. Even her maddeningly pretentious cousin Dosinia seems to know more about ruling than she does.

But Lily has to dive in deep to keep her promise to Tellin, her mer bond in name only, who tells her his kingdom is suffering in the changing ocean climate. Lily knows this is a seven seas–sized problem. They'll need to create some serious waves to make the mer community aware and get it to join together to make things right. Lily has to lead the way, even if that means facing one of the iciest queens in the mer kingdoms.

Just when Lily thinks her double life on land and sea can't get any more complicated, an ancient mer law might separate Lily and her human boyfriend, Quince, after all. It feels as if the pair is up against a solid tsunami wave!

In this third installment in the series that began with Forgive My Fins and Fins Are Forever, Lily will have to find a way to balance safety and justice for the mer people and for the humans she loves."

***SPOILERS END HERE***

To celebrate the release, I will be giving away some Just for Fins bookmarks and mermaid tattoos. I will be giving away about five, depending on how many people enter. If there are more than ten entries then I will try add more. It's not as glamorous as giving away a book, but I wanted to do something to celebrate. To enter write in the comments your favorite summer memory. The contest will end Sunday July 8, 2012 at 11:59 pm. Winners will be announced the following Monday. This is giveaway is only open to US residents but if you're international and itching to share your memory you can, just let me know you're international.

My favorite summer memory was last summer when I went to the beach each with three of my friend. We blasted 90s music, took failed jumping pictures and stopped at this pig themed ice cream shop on our way back. It was the best beach day ever! 

 Useful links:

Tera's website: http://teralynnchilds.com/

Tera's Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/teralynnchilds

Tera's Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/authortlc

Happy Reading!

Good Writing Habits

Since I started college almost two years ago my blogs became less frequent. My personal writing had also suffered greatly. Between classes, rehearsals, student groups and events, spare time was very limited. I would use that time to catch up on my shows online, hang out with friends or just sleep. I wasn’t lazy, I just didn’t use that time wisely. I began doubting if I had the passion to write anymore. It was a very stressful time.

            When summer hit, I vegged out for the first week. I had absolutely nothing to do. It was the first time in five summers I wasn’t performing in a show. All I had was free time and the concept was alien to me. My mother suggested that I start writing and bloging again. What she didn’t know was that I was too afraid to write again. It had been so long since I sat down and wrote for myself. I had danced around with a few ideas, but I just couldn’t transfer them to the page. I was two years blocked.

            My mom was right though, it was time to get over myself and start writing again. I needed to take baby steps if I wanted to get back into the flow. I set aside two hours every day for writing time. I decided to continue writing a story I started working on before I went back to school. Lucky for me the story never left my head and I had plot points and character development written in various notebooks and scraps of paper. When I got to the computer, I was stomped for the first twenty minutes. My inner editor was nagging at me. Finally I had to shut her off and just wrote nonstop. I realized a lot of what I wrote didn’t fit in with what I had written previously. But I didn’t care. I was writing again.

            I tried to write for the same two hours every day, but since I was living back home with my family, it was difficult. I had no control over when dinner was or if my parents wanted to do something with the family. There were some days where I would only write for a short time or after my two hour block. One day I was out with my family and I took a notebook to write free hand. No matter what I made it an effort to write every day. It’s a struggle. Sometimes I want to punch my inner editor in the face. But it’s worth it in the long run.

            Hopefully when I return to school I will retain these good writing habits. Even if I can’t write for two hours every day it would be an accomplishment to just find time throughout the day to write a little at a time.  

Good Writing Habits tips

#1: Always find a quite distraction free space. I realized I can’t write in my bedroom. Aside from the fact that it looks like a tornado ran through it, there are just too many distractions there. Mainly my bed. It’s too comfy and I always want to sleep. Sometimes at night I can focus for a few minutes and write a paragraph or two, but it’s just not a good place for me to write. I find it that if I sit in an upright position I won’t get sleepy. I find my dining room table to be my perfect writing space.

#2 Take brakes often. I never just write for two hours straight. Sometimes I get up and stretch, especially if I can’t think of how to progress the scene. I also like to talk to my mom or grab a glass of water. Once I’m refreshed I go back to my laptop and keep the story moving, often with new ideas.

#3 Write free hand. Like I said earlier when I’m out and about I like to bring a small notebook with me. Sometimes I continue where I left off or I start a new scene for later. When I get back to my laptop it is so much easier to get back in to the flow of the story. The last time I wrote free hand I ended up writing 1000+ words. After I finished typing what I wrote I wanted to keep the story going. By the end of the day I wrote over 1700 words.

What are some good writing habits you started? Is it easy to keep up with them? Let me know.

Happy reading!

As 2011 ends...

Looking back on my year I kinda epically failed on the blogging part of my resolution as well as my reading and writing goals. Also my vlogging failed in the most epic way possible. That didn’t last long. I actually tired to make a vlog several times and I was going to post all of the bloopers up on YouTube this break, but my laptop crashed and I lost almost all of my files. However this year wasn’t entirely an epic fail on my part. I READ THE HUNGERS GAMES.


I READ THE HUNGER GAMES.

It was peer pressure mostly. I was working on a show and the dressing room chatter was all about the Hungers Games. I hate spoilers so started again and finished within days. I’m still on Catching Fire so no spoilers. It took me a long time to get into it. But after I got through with part one I could not stop reading. (This was a problem because it was midnight and I had class at nine the next morning.) All I could say now is I’m hooked. Peer pressure is bad.

In writing I have epically failed upon epic failure. I’ve dabbled with a few story ideas but they never fell through. Since my laptop crashed I’ve had more time to sit down at my desk at home and write. And the creative juice kept flowing. Maybe the main problem was that I could not just sit on my bed and try to write with my laptop because it’s too distracting. I’ve written more this past week without my laptop than I written this year. I defiantly have to take this into consideration when I go back to school.

This year had its ups and downs, but I think through all of this chaos I’ve found clarity. I learned from my mistakes and when next year rolls along I could better myself as a reader, writer, and person.

Happy Reading!