Blog
Written blogs, which include vlogs, podcast posts, anything.
-
Best Anniversary Gift Ever
My husband got me the most wonderful anniversary present a writer could ever dream of! Oh, and vote 🙂
-
Writer’s Conference Starts Tomorrow! {Thoughts}
Hey guys! I know you just heard from me yesterday, (Happy November, by the way) but this weekend is the big writing conference I told you about a few months ago, and it starts tomorrow! Not gonna lie, I’m nervous but excited! I have never been to a straight up writer’s conference, not to mention that I might not even see anyone I know there (except possibly Josh Roseman, who I haven’t seen since MomoCon ^_^) I need to keep the worried thoughts out of my head; that people won’t appreciate my writing, that I’ll come off as a newb…in a bad way, that I’ll ruin my pitch or that…
-
“Paper of Pins” Folk Song
HAPPY HALLOWEEEEEN! BWAAHAAHAHAHAAA! Betcha thought I was done blogging this week, huh? Well, not on your life! Because I’ve enjoyed writing and researching this Freaky Fairy Tales series SO MUCH, I’ve decided to do another folk ballad dissection, like I did for The Twa Sisters in honor of creepy Samhain. “You listen to Grampa’s story or no candy!” As I mentioned before in the Twa Sisters post, “If you know your folk songs, it’s very rare to find a story song that is sung exactly the same if you compare different versions.” Naturally, “Paper of Pins” is no exception, but it gets interesting to compare the songs depending on the area…
-
The Death of the Little Hen – Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Well, friends, Halloween is almost upon us! And that means this is the last Freaky Fairy Tale of October 🙁 But I saved you a good one for last. It’s one of the wackiest and most morbid-for-no-reason fairy tales I’ve probably ever heard. Are you ready? BEHOLD! Day 1 + Day 2 + Day 3 + Day 4 + Day 5 Sweet and silly piece by Ross Sullivan-Wiley THE DEATH OF THE LITTLE HEN [Original source] – I’ve added punctuation and fixed formatting here. You don’t expect it. It builds with the sunny, round-faced optimism and sweetness you’d expect in a 1940s Disney short. And for the record, an old-fashioned term for a rooster…
-
The Iron Stove – Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Good day, fair readership. Is that a mug of hot cider I see next to your mouse? Enjoying the season, I see, as you should be! Thoughts of colored leaves and warm pumpkin pie will make the Mondays go away. Come on over and cuddle up next to the hearth, kids, it’s time for another Freaky Fairy Tale! Today’s tale….rambles. It sounds like it’s about to end, and then it goes on to a whole other story arc, and then it looks like it’s going to end, but goes on to another one! It’s more bizarre and amusing than it is Halloweenish, but I give you an iron stove, err, ironclad…
-
The Three Snake-Leaves – Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Hello, darlings! It’s time for another Freaky Fairy Tale! BETRAYAL! Betrayal most cruel! Frailty, thy name is woman! And as a woman myself, this story makes us look crazy, and I resent that! WE AREN’T CRAZY, YOU GUYS ARE THE CRAZY ONES!!! *coughs* Sorry about that. Let’s just start, shall we? BEHOLD! Day 1 + Day 2 + Day 3 + Day 4 + Day 5 THE THREE SNAKE-LEAVES [Original source] – I’ve added punctuation and fixed formatting here. So, a father can’t take care of his only son anymore because he’s so poor, and the son decides to go seek his fortune. He’s sad to leave, but he knows that…
-
Youtube Survey 2012
Answering the 2012 Youtube Survey! Why are you called that? Tell us about your favourite school teacher? What’s the strangest food you’ve ever eaten? Tell us about your first gig? What is your favourite place in the world? Who do you want to answer the survey next? Swot Sisters: www.youtube.com Official Wench: www.youtube.com The Mean Kitty: www.youtube.com
-
The Singing Bone – Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Happy Monday again, readerlings! Well, we’ve been enjoying autumn, getting pumpkins for carving and going costume shopping. Hope your first week of October was as fun as ours! So! Are you ready for another *thunderclap* FREAKY FAIRY TALE? I hope you are! (If you’re confused about what the heck I’m talking about, visit the first entry for some background.) Cuz I’ve got a tale so weird, so morbid, it’ll make your bones sing with fear! BEHOLD! Day 1 + Day 2 + Day 3 + Day 4 + Day 5 THE SINGING BONE [Original source] – I’ve added punctuation and fixed formatting here. OooooooohoooooOooooOooooohhh…..it’s, it’s the sound of a singing bone…it’s….it’s…
-
Writing Throwbacks | “Just Dracula and Me”
Cleaning through the old family books and files at my parent’s house a few years ago, my mom came across a bunch of my old stories I wrote in the early to mid 90s. I plan to present these stories in their original glory, with no added punctuation or corrected spelling or grammar. This is the first in what I hope to be a fun tradition, and serve to remind that all authors have to start somewhere 🙂 I figured this one would be perfect for Halloween! This is supposed to be a conversation between me and Dracula, and I definitely had the writing bug, but I hadn’t mastered the…
-
The Hare’s Bride – Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Ahh, October is upon us again, and you know what that means! That’s right, Halloween! As I’ve said before, Halloween is basically a holiday revolving around stories, particularly creepy ones. For good or for ill, I’m a sucker for a good scary story, but invariably I’ll be up late thinking I see shadows or hearing ghosts making weird noises…which just end up being an overactive imagination and an old apartment building. But you know where some of the weirdest, goriest stories come from? Fairy tales. Seriously! If you read the original versions of some of your favorite tales you’d be surprised what has been conveniently removed over the years to be more…
-
Procrastination
I avoid writing, but decide to keep going. And I do realize that filming, editing and posting this video also counts as procrastination 😛 Don’t worry, I’m writing as soon as I’m done uploading this!
-
Margaret Mitchell House
Since I’ve moved to the delightful city of Atlanta, I’ve discovered many fun places. The city’s made of them. But the most relevant to my writing interests HAS to be the Margaret Mitchell House, which I visited in July 2011 shortly after moving in. My fiancé (now husband) had work, and I was still getting used to living in a new city, so I decided to do some sightseeing. Of course, people told me that as an author I MUST see The Margaret Mitchell House, so I punched it in my GPS. When I got there, a tour had already started, but it had only just begun so I didn’t miss much,…
-
Lord of the Rings Feast!
My in-laws throw the most amazing Lord of the Rings Extended Edition Marathon party ever! Complete with a 7 course meal as we watch!
-
VEDA 2012 – Day 18: Mistborn 3 Reaction *SPOILERS*
Haha I am super late haha! My immediate reaction to the ending of Brandon Sanderson’s third book in the Mistborn trilogy, “Hero of Ages.” We also discuss his “Alloy of Law” book.
-
WRITER’S CONFERENCE!
Hi friends! I know I’ve fallen off the face of the earth in all places but Twitter and sometimes Tumblr (I DO have a nerdy vlog coming up), but things haven’t been terribly interesting on the writing front. Until now. First…I have finished editing most of Draft 5 and now I am just doing a few rewrites here and there. And why is Draft 5 so important? Because it is the last draft before I start sending the manuscript out to publishers! And this is about to get tons more exciting because… Second…I recently signed up to attend the Atlanta Writer’s Conference this upcoming November! (Also just joined the Atlanta…
-
THE PANGERVLOG! I have a new writing buddy!
You want the cute? Well, YOU CAN’T HANDLE THE CUTE! Seriously, she meows like a squeaky toy, gets high on catnip and rolls off her scratcher, fights furiously with one of her toys and then falls asleep. She is a non-stop photo opportunity, and she isn’t camera-shy! And in case you were curious, her name is Pangerbon, and I just got her last week. Her name is Irish, roughly meaning “white cat.” It’s originally from a really old Irish poem called “Pangur Bán” about a monk and his cat (more here: www.ceantar.org This poem was a source of inspiration for one of my favorite movies of all time, “The Secret…
-
VEDA 2012 – Day 9: Mistborn 2 Reaction *SPOILERS*
My immediate reaction to the ending of Brandon Sanderson’s second book in the Mistborn trilogy: “The Well of Ascension.” And yes, I’ve noticed this is way out of order but I’m catching up!
-
VEDA 2012 – Day 5: Hunger Games
A review of the Hunger Games from the perspective of a new fan who just saw the movies (me) and a fan of the books who discusses its adaptation from page to screen (Wervyn). Watch the Hunger Games trailer! SO EPIC! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgssLmsOa2s
-
V.E.D.A. 2012 Playlist
Like last year, here’s the growing playlist for Vlog Every Day in April, this time for 2012. I’ll be posting all the videos, but this will give you all of them in one place and will play through all of them automatically (as many as I’ve updated). Hope you enjoy!
-
Reminiscing on MomoCon 2012
MOMOCON! Ohmigosh Momocon! I’ve worked it for two years now (my husband tons more), and it’s just getting better. I even got to join the media group, and entered some artwork that they used around the con! Shameless plug for my portfolio, but seriously, they were super fun to do. Other than working, it’s always fun to see everyone dressed up in costumes, play games, go to interesting panels, browse the artist’s alley and support the talent, and of course hit up the dealers room with your spare cash (or maybe not so spare). This year I also learned how to play Settlers of Catan, and even tried it out in…
-
Editing & Weather
Making up for a lack of one the week before. Sorry it’s a little bit of a hot mess…
-
Editing! See? I’m productive!
Hubs and I sitting down to do some intensive editing. Continuity is still a problem 😛
-
Writer Dreams Writing Dreams
BOOK Y U NO EDIT URSELF?! I HAS JOBS TO DO!No wait come back I miss you 🙁
-
The Book Editing Blues
*bluesy strum* Did my novel wrong before, but now it’s done me wrong too *harmonica* And I’m tryin’ hard to figure out just what I gotta do. I got the book editing blues, oh yeah…
-
I’m Back!!! Happy New Year!
I take you for a tour through my new house and show you my favorite writing spots and new creative toys I got for Christmas!
-
Seek me? Find me here! (also, BAAACK!)
HI GUYS!!! Happy New Year!!! Whew, that was a WONderful break! I still feel like I’m playing catch-up in many areas of life, now that I’m officially married to my wonderful Wervyn and the holidays are over, but I am planning to get back into the swing of blogging and vlogging and officially writing, as well as hopefully work on some other fun projects! It’s a lot, really. In fact, listening to myself, I’m hoping I’m not gonna tap out, as I’m also looking for some freelance web design work hopefully in the new year, so wish me luck, and if any of you are praying folks, please pray for…
-
Autumn Morning {a short poem}
Shining sun, chilly morning Autumn came without a warning. Sweater matched with summer shoes Milk the last of summertime, who’s Steamy grip has finally slipped And let in autumn’s tingly nip. Walk to farmer’s market square The squash and herbs and seeds are there, And with a parcel for my pay, I head back home, to tuck away Again to blankets soft and worn, To block against the chilly morn. Happy October, guys! Autumn is prolly my most favoritest season, so after taking a walk to the farmer’s market this morning, I felt inspired to write about it 😀
-
Book Cop & Independence Day
Happy Independence Day, American readers! In honor of this day, may I present Book Cop, from a hysterical webcomic Axe Cop.
-
{ VACATION }
Well guys, I’m taking a vacation from this blog, my vlogs and all other updateables. That’s right! I’ve taken hiatuses before, but this is a vacation. I have way too much going on in my life to focus on, and just thinking about what to vlog or post next is something I don’t need looming over me, even though I do enjoy it. I’m even having a hard time getting my writing to talk to me, so I feel that I should give the muse a break as well. I think it will be healthy! If something happens with the book, though, I’ll definitely keep you updated, but updated for…
-
Time for Tea: New Tea Brewer
Showing off my new tea brewer…and my math skills XD
-
Infusing my Writing Process with More Technology
I’m super pleased with a new plot/story organizing software I found called SuperNotecard. It’s pretty much amazing and it’s helping me organize Book 2! Also, for some reason WordPress ate my awesome entry on “The Butterfly Circus.” Will remedy when I recover from the shock ;P
-
Garrison Keillor
It’s about time I started expanding my Book Byte entries to talking about writers and storytellers who spin tales in mediums other than just the printed word. Garrison Keillor Although Mr. Keillor has written some printed books, I think he’s best known for his radio show “A Prairie Home Companion” on PBS Radio. His tales of awkward, dysfunctional, humorous, and down-to-earth life in the made-up Midwestern town of Lake Wobegon have captured the hearts of anyone who has heard his show. The movie “A Prairie Home Companion” (the last movie in the illustrious career of Robert Altman, one of my favorite directors) really captures the feel of Keillor’s stories, his…
-
VEDA – Day 24: Recommendations
Werv gives some sci-fi authors and series recommendations. Lois McMaster Bujold’s site : www.dendarii.com —- download the entire Vorkosigan (Miles) saga for FREE! Really, it’s totally legal and Bujold-endorsed! baencd.thefifthimperium.com Orson Scott Card’s site : www.hatrack.com Neal Stephenson’s site : www.nealstephenson.com
-
VEDA – Day 19: Tea 3
Teas, teas, TEAS! I take you all on a walk through my collection of teas!
-
VEDA – Day 18: Radio
World Amateur Radio Day!!!! I talk about being a DJ for a semester in college on JMU’s indie radio station.
-
VEDA – Day 17: Carmen
I saw the opera Carmen yesterday evening, and I give a Christina cliff notes version of the story, and comment on how dysfunctional the characters are. ^_^
-
Things I Learned From British Folk Ballads
As a folk song nerd, you notice certain patterns you find throughout British Isles folksongs and folk tales. Mainly, there’s a lot of death, which isn’t so great, but you’ll notice similar death tropes, or if nothing else, character tropes. I’ve known about the list, “Things I Learned from British Folk Balads” for a nice long while, as its been bopping around the internet for a good many years, and I’m sure a lot of you have heard of it, but I wanted to share some of my favorites! (My comments in bold.) ———————————— Don’t ignore warnings. If someone tells you to beware of Long Lankin, friggin’ beware of him.…
-
VEDA – Day 12: Fionnulah
I’m too busy writing to vlog, so I send Finny in as a replacement. Finny realized she may have come off kind of snippy. She apologizes! I yanked her away from her DD game so she was kind of annoyed with me 😛
-
VEDA – Day 11: Inspired
I remind myself that even if people don’t like my book, it’s okay. And okay is wonderful.
-
VEDA – Day 7: Ennui
Muse just went out for croissants. She’s back now. Turn off the annotations to see the real translations.
-
VICTORY!!!!!!!!!! (and Sweet Readin’ Cakes)
Angry zombie mongooses and I FINISH DRAFT 4 OF MY NOVEL!!!! YAAAAAAY!!!!!! Hoooraaaaaaaay!!!!!! Draft 4 is done and sent out to the first batch of reviewers! Once I get it back from them, it’s hopefully just moderate editing, and then off to a publisher! Man, this calls for a celebration! How ’bout some bookish cake, huh? All these (and more) from CakeWrecks.
-
VEDA – Day 2: Toys
Authors need toys to mess with to help them write. Here are a few of mine.
-
V.E.D.A. Project 2011 – Playlist
I’ve decided to take on the challenge of Vlog Every Day in April! Here’s the playlist where I’m uploading all the VEDA vlogs on my YouTube Channel. A vlog every day for the next 31 days. Hooooo…… Hope you guys enjoy! The playlist will be updated every time there’s a new one loaded!
-
Software of the Trade
Well, Mr. P. Phil, it’s flippin’ cold outside. I hope the weather starts acting its season, or no amount of April Showers will bring May Flowers. Cold weather just makes me want to go out LESS than I do anyway, but at least it’s sunny right now. Makes staying inside and writing more enticing, and since I finally had a breakthrough with my editor’s block, I no longer feel like my head will explode if I try to roll the plot around. This is a good thing ^_^ Well, I’ve been getting the emails again! It must be almost Screnzy season! Also, who is their designer? They rock! I won’t…
-
The Twa Sisters Folk Song
(11/2/2021 – Wow, it’s been over 10 years since I wrote this! As I was reading through again, I’ve included more hyperlinks for reference, updated the link list notes at the bottom, fixed typos I found and added a parenthetical comment that is marked, but otherwise I’ve left it unchanged!) In Story Nerd entries, I’ll be discussing classic mythologies and folktales, themes, yarns, characters and tropes and follow their histories–and alterations through history–sociological impact, and the general weirdness of storytelling. Basically, the oft-sprawling Science of Story. This can get very broad and very nerdy, so please bear with me 🙂 I’ve been looking for an excuse to get started with…
-
Etsy.com
Old Stories Written – Typewriter Fine Art Photography (8″ x 8″) Oh, crafts and handmade and vintage things, you make me so happy. And what better place to find some of the most unusual/original art on the internet than to jaunt over to the indie sensation Etsy.com. Since I’m in a bit of a writing slump and feeling burned out (I blame all the editing frustration, the usual grind of life and the frenzied social life of being engaged), looking at other people’s creative stuff is a great way to replenish and my stores of ideas and feel chill. In a bout of craft nerdity, I made a list of…
-
Huck Finn Controversy
Hi, everyone! I realize this topic is a little old, and that last month (February is Black History Month) would have probably been a more fitting time to post this, but seeing as I’ve been insanely busy with barely enough time to WANT to write an entry of this kind, now that I’m feeling it, I’m gonna write it 🙂 Months ago, the writing world was up in arms about a publishing company that decided to put out a censored version of Mark Twain’s famous Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, where all the “n” words were to be replaced with “slave” and other non-P.C. words replaced likewise. Without much stretch of…
-
Author Unplugged: The December Discussion
Two podcast updates at once! Mercy me! They’re actually whittled down halves of one long conversation I had with Wervyn about writing, recorded Dec. 2010. It was tough deciding to split the whole thing up, and it was hard cutting the halves down to a crisp 5 minutes or less (audioboo specifications), but I did it! I even created an intro and an outro! *is pleased*
-
Exciting Updates!!!
I know I try to post only writing related news on here, but this is kind of a big deal! It’s a huge life changer! Gentle audience, I had no idea that a few hours after my last blog entry, I would be getting engaged!!! And to think, last year I was writing haikus about my only date for Valentine’s Day being a box of chocolate! You never know what a year can bring! The lad in question is Wervyn, who is the coding man for this site! He’s a wonderful, brilliant man and a fantastic writer, and he’s been helping me a lot with the final draft of my…
-
The Real Deal
There are so many stories of dysfunction in the world, and we see it everywhere. Not only is it in real life, it’s in the stories we see told on TV or movies, read in books, it’s all over. I never realize I get as worn out watching stuff like that, until I see videos like this: That’s what it’s all about, guys. That is true love. I’ve been saving this video for Valentine’s Day because it’s so perfect! It’s a beautiful story, and it’s all true! The people who made this video, Story Corps, specialize in collecting and relating real stories from real people. They’re like a mass electronic…
