Help me out here, I need new books to read (and review)! I have hit writer’s block and I need you guys to pull me out of it!
Please let me know your favourite book either on Twitter, Facebook or comment here in the blog and I will read and review it! If I get a lot of suggestions I will stick them all in a hat and pull one out at random.
Can’t wait to read what you guys like!
Currently I am working on a small writing project, I am trying to write a story from a theme suggested to me by my dad, including a keyword. I won’t tell you the theme or the keyword here as I want it to be a surprise ! I will posting some of the work I do here on my page, look forward to it!
I wanted to talk to you all today about the problems I have found while working on this project. One of the main problems I have while I am writing is stopping the distractions – the internet, all the books I have piled up just waiting to be read and the cat. It’s very, very hard to ignore all these things going on around me and more than once I have, much to my dismay, given in to those desires. So, my new strategy is – get a routine going, everyday spend at least an hour a day at the library writing. I would like to do more than an hour a day but think that it is important to not push it when you want to get something done, I have a lot to do at home at the moment so need to make sure I use my time wisely. I have also given myself a deadline so that I have something to aim for, I have always done better with a routine with deadlines (I loved being at school and miss it quite a lot…) so I will make myself a timetable and keep to it. What do you guys do to keep to a deadline? Leave a comment on this post!
Another problem I have while writing is going off on a tangent – not that it is a big problem really! I will just keep writing and writing until I am happy. But I find that when I come round to typing it up I will strike away a lot of it, as well as change the way it is set out and some of the words. It’s quite interesting to go back over what I have written just to discover that most of it is just rubbish, but that rubbish somehow creates a spark in my mind that helps me create something better. Something more interesting. Just having the outline written out on a page helps me get started with the detail. What do you guys think? Outlines are helpful or not?
Sitting in a not so quiet library at the moment, hoping for some inspiration to jump into my aching migraine-y head but it won’t stop me as I am determined to write something today. There is a very strange, slightly smelly, old man sitting across the table from me reading art books. Not entirely sure whose art it is but it’s very vibrant. He’s distracting me…
I am currently waiting on a Japanese culture book (non-fiction) to be delivered to my house but I might be waiting another week or so because we aren’t completely sure where the book is being shipped from. I’ve wanted to learn about Japan for a long time now, ever since I got into anime actually so I can’t wait to read it. It’s at times like these that I wish I had access to my university library. I find that I have more interest in random things nowadays and Wikipedia can only take me so far. Don’t get me wrong, my local library offers me plenty of non-fiction titles that are very useful but there will never be the same variety or amount of information you get in a university library (I think I will do some research and see if I can use the Cheltenham University Library…no reason the general public shouldn’t be able to right?)
What I wanted to talk about today is the decreasing number of people using our public libraries. Here in Gloucestershire many libraries have been forced to close due to ‘public spending cuts’ – gah I do despise that. I can see the need for cuts due to the huge debts the government keeps piling up on our country but do they really need to cut things like the emergency services, public libraries and youth clubs. It’s a real shame; this is our children’s future being torn down before they can even begin to make themselves a present. I believe that libraries are an important place. Not just for me but for all people – it’s a great place to meet new people who share the same interests as you, a magical place for children’s minds to run wild and a studious heaven. What happens when all these places disappear?
I read an article last week that said a librarian chastised a nine-year old boy for reading too much. Reading too much. This is ludicrous; I can’t even begin to comprehend how a person, much less a librarian, can honestly believe that a child is reading too much! Take a look at the article:
http://litreactor.com/news/librarian-chastises-9-year-old-kid-for-reading-too-much
In my opinion, you can never read too much and think that we should be encouraging kids to read as much as they want. Isn’t that the point of these summer competitions? According to this article the young boy ‘hogs the competition’ and ‘other kids quit because they can’t keep up’. But isn’t the point of a competition to do your best? This boy is doing his very best to read as many books as he can just like the other children. It’s not his fault that he can either read faster or just enjoys reading more. I kind of wish that there was a reading competition for adults, it would be interesting to see what kind of books people from the same town as me are reading and to get recommendations based on what they thought. Maybe I’ll start my own…
Since it’s so sunny and I am in a good mood I decided that I will share some of my writing with you. I ask you to kindly bear in mind that this is a completely raw piece of writing (no editing) just my imagination written down on the page. Enjoy!
One dark cold night, thunder rumbling in the distance, a young shaggy boy ran through the wet grass breathing heavier with each footstep, the cold air numbing his fingertips. He knew he couldn’t stop. They were catching up; he could feel their horrid presence pressing against his back. Their freezing breath turning the air above him to ice.
Underneath him the ground started to angle down, he was running full pelt now, slipping and sliding on the slick grass until finally he found himself on his back toppling faster and faster down the hill. He never saw the boulder in the pitch dark night. The next thing he knew it was morning, a sharp throbbing brought his hand to his head where a bump had started to form, he didn’t care – he was safe.
“Where is the boy?” hissed a blackened creature sitting in a huge chair carved into the back of an immense cave.
“We lost him in the dark my lord,” stuttered another voice. A great rumbling started in the heart of the cave.
“That’s not good enough,” the first voice growled, the rumbling continued to grow louder “be calm my beast, we will get the boy for you.”
And there you have it! A little taster of the things that haunt my dreams so I write them down on paper. Let me know what you thought! Also, sorry about the spacing, had a little problem sorting it out and gave up in the end !
Since it’s Crufts this weekend I thought that I would talk a little about one of my hobbies – Dog Agility.
About 10 years ago I discovered the fun that is Agility! My gran has always had dogs as long as I can remember and she started taking part in Obedience with both of her collies, however only one of them really took to the sport and the other, the eldest Daz, decided that it was too boring for him. One day I was at the riding school where my gran was training Sox (the other collie that liked obedience) and noticed that there were other dogs jumping over obstacles. I asked her trainer, Steve, about it and he informed me that it was called Dog Agility. He introduced me to the people running it and the next week I was back with Daz attempting to learn this new interesting sport. That was 10 years ago…and I am still taking part in it today!
I am part of a club called ‘Colliewobbles’, a rather large club now with people aged 8 and up. It’s nice to see so many children taking part with their dogs, makes me really happy. In fact, Colliewobbles has done so well with its younger members they have had many of them go to Crufts! I was part of the first team Colliewobbles got to Crufts in 2006 (I think …) and since then there has been a team go every year. They are even there this year – 12:45 on Saturday 9th! If you are visiting go check out the YKC ring!
I have always loved dogs but my love for them has grown ever since I started taking part in Agility. My goal in life is to have my own dog one day and that I will compete at Crufts in the big arena! I am determined to do this so watch this space because one day there is going to be a big time agility trainer writing these posts!
So, the sun is starting to show itself and I thought I would write a little piece on holidays and the perfect reading material for the beach!
In 5 weeks time I will be in sunny sunny Jamaica, I am starting to get rather excited about it actually as I have never been. I have been to a few nice places before; Egypt, Malta, Greece, Paris, Spain and every time I have to decide what books to take with me. This is possibly the hardest part of packing for me…at least it used to be. Now I have got a Kindle and all my troubles are eased! No extra weight in my suitcases and I can have as many books on it as I like!
What I read on my last holiday:
The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan
– Not your typical easy holiday read but if you like a bit of fantasy then this is the book for you. As the title suggests it is about the last werewolf on earth fighting a battle to live as well as with his repulsive, violent, wolf self.
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
– A riveting read following the life of Chiyo as she goes from lowly farm daughter to slave to Geisha, this is a beautiful read that stirs emotions and keeps you interested throughout.
The Executioner by Chris Carter
– A hard-hitting crime novel that describes in horrific detail the sick murders of people by a man nicknamed the ‘Executioner’. I don’t really know why I read this on holiday but once I started reading I couldn’t stop. It was bone chilling!
As you can see I read some very different books whilst on holiday, this is because I think it is important to keep reading different genres no matter where you are – do new things on holiday, read new things on holiday!
What I would like to read on my next holiday:
Zom-B City by Darren Shan (out in March), The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky and World War Z by Max Brooks. Don’t worry, I will keep you updated about whether I actually read these specific books or not as well as what I thought of them.
What are your holiday reads? I would love to know, leave a comment!
It appears that I have been slacking, not only in posting to my blog but the flat is a mess…I am a mess.
I have recently read a lot written by other bloggers and authors that complain about not being able to write. It seems that I have fallen into that trap. Or writers block? In any case it is a trap that springs on you at the most inconvenient of times, mostly when I feel like I have being doing rather well and then suddenly…not so well!
Another thing I have found in my month of writing reviews and just in general is that it is unproductive to write whilst bored, at least for me anyway. I have found that writing while I’m bored is just asking for a disaster. Nothing good comes from me writing while bored. I just writing boring things, and that includes my reviews. I have written several drafts of a Life of Pi review and each one I have deleted because it’s just not good enough…I wonder how long it will take for me to feel that I have done it good enough?
I am glad that I am not the only one who gets this, even the most accomplished of authors suffer with writers block from time to time. Reading their accounts is certainly helping me to come to terms with it. But I can’t say that I know how to deal with it. Some people say that you shouldn’t force yourself to write because, like I said, it can produce some inadequate results. However, others say that maybe forcing yourself to write will get you around the block. I suppose that it works differently for everyone. What do you think?
Today is the day of love, flowers, kisses and cuddles! Today is a day where couples show their love for each other with grand gestures, whether it is with material gifts or just spending the day together. I have chosen to get wine, good food and some chocolate for me and my gorgeous boyfriend of 2 and a half years. I don’t get to spend the day with him but I do get the evening! What are you doing this evening?
Saint Valentine’s Day is so named for the saint Valentinus who was imprisoned for performing weddings for soliders who were forbidden to marry. Valentinus believed in love and so went behind the Church’s back so that these soliders could marry. He believed in true love, and didn’t want to stop people from showing their true love to each other.
I have to wonder though, is Valentines Day getting materialistic? Like Christmas, Easter, any holiday to be honest. It all seems to be about the biggest gift, the nicest card, the most expensive wine. I don’t want it to be like that, I just want to spend the day with the person I love the most. Of course, I want to be spoiled just a little bit…doesn’t everyone? But it is much more fun to just turn off the lights, snuggle up next to that special person and listen to some music or watch a film. Everyone loves getting a nice gift, but personally I would spend my time working on the perfect dinner and making the house look nice.
Every Valentine’s Day I hope that I will see the next with this person. I love my boyfriend, I hope to be with him for a long time. I hope you all feel the same and are having a great valentines day!!
Since it is still the beginning of the year everywhere you look there are recommendations from bloggers, bookstores, cinemas and more so I thought that I would do my own.
Top 5 Books to read this month:
Top 5 Films/TV series to watch:
Let me know if you have read/watched any of these, and your thoughts on them. I really enjoyed all these books and films, I hope you do!
I was asked recently if I knew what I was doing with my life…what I wanted to be when I ‘grew up’. I thought that, at twenty-one, I had already grown up! I went straight from GCSE’s to A Level’s to University where I spent three years studying English Literature, something I have a great passion for and want to share with people so I think that I have a pretty good grasp on what I want to do with my life. I want to be a librarian and a writer; however I would also be very happy to be a teacher.
I have an amazing, supportive family, fantastic boyfriend and wonderful friends but I’m still missing that all important job. That’s the biggest problem with the job-market these days, I may have a good degree and good skills elsewhere but due to my time at university I missed out on experience in the job field. It feels like I’m stuck in a circle – ‘I can’t get a job because I don’t have the experience because I can’t get a job…’ it’s an infinite irritating circle and it’s one that many of us graduates can’t get out of. I know that one day a job will eventually come along, even if it’s just a part time job to get me by. But I will always have myself screaming in the back of my head – NEVER GIVE UP!
It’s important to keep my spirits up, I know that and yet I still have those days where I just can’t do anything. Sometimes I’ll sit at home staring at the wall or the computer thinking ‘what the hell am I doing?!’ it’s when you get into an unproductive rut you just sit there and stare. Days are wasted away like this… BUT, most days are spent productively – cleaning the house, reading other peoples reviews, reading books, looking for jobs, writing, e-mailing potential clients and much more (including a good hour playing games I want to play!). Exercising is another thing I do to keep happy and fighting for what I want. I hope to be getting a wii soon so that I can start doing the wii fit and other good exercises on there. I also do dog agility every week, something I will talk about in another post because I have lots to tell you about that! How do you guys keep your spirits up?
There is something in my life at the moment which is very important to me: I am the leader of a book group at quedgeley library. It is there that I build up my confidence. I have met new people and enjoy chatting with them every month about the books we read for the group and those we read for our own leisure. It is so nice to meet with people who have the same love for books as I do, we are all willing to read new things as well as those books that others have suggested. The librarians are also very helpful and give us lots of ideas. This book group saved me from the boredom I suffer with every day. The book group gave me the means to work towards something. I always make sure that I have a bunch of questions ready to ask both from the internet and questions I came up with myself. I have gained so much confidence from organising all the meetings and getting the books ordered on time. It’s also great fun, as much as I see the book group as a place where I can hone my skills I also enjoy it greatly.
I can’t wait for the day when I am a librarian, I want to help children and adults alike love the books that I have come to call companions and helpers. Reading helps me to escape this world, when I have a bad day a book is where I will hide myself. And I know I’m not alone.
The 'Long' Way Reviewer 