Hey, beloved followers.

I am drowning in schoolwork and trying to finish Ink Storm in time for the Rooglewood contest. I'm working really hard to do both of those, but it's taking up a lot of time and energy.

My family also just got a puppy. So...there's that.

Because of this, I'm stretched ridiculously thin. Something has to give. And I'm sorry to say that, for right now, it's going to have to be this blog.

I will not be leaving forever--promise. I will simply be taking a semi-hiatus, for at least the month of December, and perhaps into January, while I try to catch up with my life. I also will not be able to read you lovely people's blogs much. :(

You can't get rid of me, though. I'm like mold. There's no escaping me. So wile I won't be posting regularly, I will be doing one or maybe two Christmas-y posts in December, as well as a 2017 wrapup post at the end of the year. So you can look forward to two more posts from me this year <3

I love you all, and I wouldn't do this if I didn't have to. But I think it's the only thing I can do right now, so I'm going to have to.

God bless you all. And please, go buy something on the Black Friday Indie Christian books sale in my last post because that sale is a beautiful thing. (Get the Blades of Acktar! Please! They're on a crazy sale. <3)

So,




TTFN! Ta-ta for now!

Thanksgiving has passed, and now 'tis the season for going mad for shopping.



One of my friends at co'op pointed out a couple of weeks ago: "We spend Thursday talking about how thankful we are, and then the next day get up at the crack of dawn to go buy a ton of stuff that we 'need.'" This is definitely convicting to me, although I don't do my holiday shopping at the crack of dawn.

However, here I am, to promote this Black Friday Sale! (It's actually an AMAAAAAZING sale. So please, don't let my grouchy Grinch-ness on Black Friday stop you.)

And soon I will start letting the Christmas stuff take over on the Writer's Song ;)

But here you go!!!! The INDIE CHRISTIAN BOOKS SALE!!!!!



This website won't be open until Friday, but the coalition has formed a site for the sale, indiechristianbooks.com. It's gonna be pretty cool ;) I've been looking over the list of books that's going to be up for sale and I'm staggered. There's gonna be free shipping, $.99 ebooks, discounted paperbacks...I am going to have to keep myself away from this site and remind myself that I'm doing all my shopping at the mall that day. Yipes.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This sale is going to be huge, and I hope you'll take advantage of it! Have a great day, everybody!!!

And remember, my Christmas posts are going to start up next week, so stay tuned for that!!! 

THIS IS A LATE BEAUTIFUL BOOKS, K? I DON'T CARE. I DO NOT CARE FOR ONE SECOND. IT'S A QUESTIONNAIRE THAT I CAN USE TO TELL YOU ALL ABOUT MY BOOK. THANKS.

So, hello, lovely readers! I am currently drowning in schoolwork and SOOOO thankful that it's almost Thanksgiving break. The prospect of two days off is beautiful. I can't wait.

I'm also editing feverishly (or at least pretending to edit feverishly) for the Rooglewood contest! I have, like, one month to get that submitted. HOLY COW WHAT AM I DOING?????

I'll tell you what I am doing: I am writing a blog post about my brainchild. This is the one that I have had brimming in the bottom of my brain (although usually also at the top of my brain) for about eight years. It's a story about the triumph of good over evil and never underestimating the short girl who looks like she can't wield anything besides a pen.

It's a story I've been in love with since it first came into being when I was eight, when I wrote a little twenty-page story to submit to a novel writing contest. To this day I have no idea if my parents actually submitted it or not, but this is one thing it did: it forced me to finish a project. It was valuable, and important.

So without further ado, let me give you some real information about the badly named Pentegreen Series.

I am linking up with an older archive from the Beautiful Books meme by Cait and Skye. Enjoy!

LES QUESTIONNES

What inspired the idea for your novel?

But I think I wanted to write a cheap Narnia ripoff that my eight-year-old self thought was genius initially. You can read THIS POST for more information on that story (scroll down to entry #1, The Tunnel.)

Otherwise, I have no clue where the form that the story is now in came from.

But you get a little story anyway. I originally had (as the post above says) a sprawling ten-book series that I wasn't really enthusiastic about anymore. I had written a rough draft for one of them and was working on a draft for another one, but it just wasn't working.

Then my family went on vacation to Florida, and while I was lying on a noodle in the hotel pool, reflecting on my story, it hit me like a ton of pounds.

What if I condensed the story and took only the characters and plotlines I actually cared about for a four-book series? 

That's what I did. And obviously, new characters sprang up all over the place unintentionally, and the story keeps blooming out of control all over the place. Several of the characters begged for their own story when I realized that my protagonist didn't need them and so I took them out and dropped them in Washington, D.C., in the year 2032. The result was Watched. 

Good gravy, I'm proud of this series.

And this was probably a much longer answer to this question than you wanted to read, so let's move on to the next question!

Describe what your [series] is about!

There's a princess in the city of the Pentegreens. A princess who longs for peace, who only wants to live her life surrounded by her beloved parents, her dear friends, and her people. The last thing she wants is war with an unknown enemy in the North. But that's just what she's going to get. 

The army besieging Princess Esma's city has leaders--leaders who know her parents and will use her against them. But the general of the enemy army has a son...a son who could be the wild card who decides the whole war. His loyalties are shifting, tearing him between what he knows is right and the one person he loves. Can he possibly leave her behind?

The princess and the general's son never thought they'd meet. But it turns out they may need each other more than they could have imagined. There's an enemy in the city of Misue--an enemy who wants them all dead.

 And the king's daughter is going to have to fight back. 

 What do you think? This is such a bad synopsis, but I can't come up with anything else that might work for the current form the story is in. So. This is what you get, dear reader.

What is your book's aesthetic?

Introduce us to each of your characters!

She entered the dining hall in the pair of high heels she’d dug from the closet and a dress that, most unfortunately, was pink.

Derek Ternarnthien and Kariana Winslet--the rising commander and the talented spy

“I need some tea.” Kariana clutched at Derek’s shiny and metallic armored arm. “Derek, make me some tea.”

Derek grew up a humble farmer's son until he decided he wanted to make a name for himself and moved to Misue to attend military Training School. Maybe at one time his brothers could laugh at the stupid things he did to get attention, but not anymore. He's confident and brash, but gets himself into huge trouble with his issue of speaking first and thinking much later, if ever. 

Kariana is one of the toughest girls you'll ever meet--but that solid exterior is hiding her secret insecurities and trauma from childhood abuse. She's incredibly talented and a brilliant spy, but her struggles with forming relationships may just be the key to her undoing.




Bernathel Pentegreen--the queen of Misue and Esma's mother (not pictured: Martin Pentegreen, her husband and the king)

List three things about your novel's setting.

Well, I worked very hard to set my storyworld up so that all the parts of Esma's kingdom have real functions and both imports AND exports. Even the capital city. It's a wonderful, wonderful thing. ^_^

Then the world is also sprawling and takes up a whole continent. Which is awesome and fun. Except when I have to actually draw a map, at which point everything decides to conveniently shift around. Super annoying and not at all pleasant.

Basically, there are three countries in the continent of Sildalone: Venaria, which has been conquered by the evil dictator in the North and tends towards cold and extreme weather; Lascogine, which is held by the Pentegreens, who reign justly and fairly; and Brue, which is basically fantasy-world version of a completely closed country where the few powerful people abuse the rest without end. That country doesn't figure in much, although in the prequel that will most likely not be written unless people beg, it's where a lot of the action takes place.

There's also lots of racial diversity, because I approve of that. Although none of the races are quite comparable to the races we have here on Earth. Believe me, I've tried to come up with photos of models. It's a lot harder than you might imagine. :P

What's your character's goal and who stands in the way?

Well, basically Esma's goal is to win the war that came out of nowhere to take over her kingdom, and also to find happiness in her personal life.

What stands in the way is this evil army led by a mysterious dictator who won't rest until he's kidnapped Esma, for some reason that still isn't clear to her. (Although I, the evil authoress, have it figured out in its entirety...mwah ha ha.)

There's also a lot of subplots. Which will not be expounded upon now because #Spoilers. Mwah ha hah.

How does your protagonist change by the end of the novel?

What are your story's themes? How do you want your readers to feel at the end of the story?

I haven't answered all the questions from the Beautiful Books prompt, but not all of them are relevant. So...I'm not going to. But I hope you enjoyed this little peek at my beloved precious little baby. And when I talk about the Pentegreens, well, now you'll have an idea of what I'm talking about. <3

What do you think? Chat with me, lovelies! 

I was tagged for this wonderful, autumny tag (it's basically winter here now, but whatever) by Mary (the tag's creator) and Ivie. I feel popular now. Cookies for both of you!!!!!!
RULES:
- Give the person who tagged you a never-ending supply of cookies (or just thank them - either works)- Answer all the questions and use the blog graphic for this tag somewhere in your post
- Pass along the tag to at least five other people
- Wear a sweater (okay, this is optional...but why wouldn't you want to??)
And look at that! I AM wearing a sweater!

Fuzzy sweater (a book that is the epitome of comfort)

I've read this story like twenty times. I love it so much. <3 Of all the Wingfeather Saga books, this one is my favorite. It's dark, emotional, and brutal, but it's still so incredibly comforting to read. If you have not read this series, see THIS POST. I could rave about Wingfeather Saga all day, but I won't. XD

Striped sweater (book which you devoured every line of)

Welp...I think most of Goldstone Wood could go under this category...but I have to say Dragonwitch is probably the one that I just absolutely devoured. I set aside a whole day to binge read it (which was MARVELOUS) and it was amazing.

Ugly Christmas sweater (book with a weird cover)

I won this book from Deborah's giveaway for her blogoversary. I still haven't gotten around to reading it, but it looks so cool. Can't wait to read it.

That cover, though. I'm not...crazy about it.

(And yes, I'm aware that that's an audiobook. It's the proper cover, so that's why I chose that image.)

I don't own these two, but aren't the covers weird? The Dark is Rising is one of my absolute favorite books, but the cover of the version at my library is hideous. Fortunately, there are several different versions, so if I were to buy a copy, I'd be able to get a cover that looked nice on my shelf XD

Cashmere sweater (most expensive book you've bought)

My box set had fallen apart from being read and re-read over and over and over, so I bought a one-volume set to appease my dad (and because The Two Towers had fallen into so many pieces it was practically illegible.) It's huge and beautiful and cost $20. Yikes.

But as far as books I own that I didn't buy, Winter, which cost a whopping $23, is the most expensive one on my shelf. My wonderful grandfather bought it for me. <3

Hoodie (favorite classic book)

I had to read this one for school, and it was the most magical classic I've discovered in a very long time. I had just finished slogging through Les Miserables, which, while wonderful, is very long and frequently boring. Pimpernel is so much better. (Note: I still adore Les Mis, I just think that if I were ever to do a re-read I'd have to get an abridged version. Ours is just too long.)

Cardigan (book that you bought on impulse)

I saw that this book was only $3 on Kindle and bought it in preparation for the road trip our family went on in August. No thought went into that decision. But it was SOOOOOOOOO worth it. (Note: You need to buy this one.)

Turtleneck sweater (book from your childhood)

I read so many books when I was little. I still own most of them. I am not ashamed of having a slew of Middle Grade books on my shelf. But this little series is one of my absolute favorites of all time. I re-read it a month ago or so, and it was still stellar. Even now, in high school.

Homemade knitted sweater (book that is Indie-published)

I actually read a ton of indie-published books. I have found them (generally) to be more to my taste than what my library has to offer. But The Girl Who Could See is one of the best of the best, IMO.

V-neck sweater (book that did not meet your expectations)

I don't tend to read or finish books if I think I'm going to dislike it or be disappointed by it. But these three stand out as some of my lowest ratings of this year. And all of them are so sadly disappointing!

I was really excited to read Ahsoka, but then it turned out to have a bunch of undertones that really bothered me. As well as a really annoying writing style. So...just no thanks. I did finish it, but it wasn't terrific.

Then Alex and Eliza. I'm a major Hamilton fangirl. But I felt like this book messed up all the personalities of the major characters beyond recognition, which made me sad.

And Michael Vey? Well, it was the last book in a 7-book series. My ratings have ranged all over that series: Looking at my Goodreads shelf, I have two 2-star books, one 3-star, three 4-stars, and one 5-star. It's definitely not my favorite series, but the sixth book blew me out of the water, and I loved it SO MUCH. The seventh one, sadly, did not live up to that expectation. I...kind of hated it. XD But I finished it, so it gets 2-stars.

Argyle sweater (book with a unique format)

I did not finish this one. Too much language and innuendo for this conservative reader. But the formatting was actually really cool, and had there not been so much content, I would have pushed through to the end.

Polka dot sweater (a book with well-rounded characters)

There are so many I could name for this category! But I'm going to have to go with Allison Tebo's The Reluctant Godfather. I love this story. (And I have a paperback of it, which makes me so happy :))

Let's see, tagging.

If you've already been tagged by somebody, feel free to disregard this! No pressure!
Julian
Evangeline Yackel
Evangeline Diasimah
Liv
and
Lilly


I hope you enjoyed reading this, and I look forward to seeing the rest of these tags!

Have you read any of these books? What was the last book you DNF'd? Talk to me in the comments!