Friday 30 August 2013

Sail!


I've been hard at work editing my novel...and going nuts with it. I wrestle with editing as a process--for me, it's so much harder than writing a draft. I'll write a longer post on my editing struggles and what I've found works for me and what doesn't next week. 

This week, though, I'm up in Vermont visiting family (including my brand-new nephew!). And all this baby stuff has made me think about how much I want a kitty. (Because, y'know, my biological clock runs on cats). Also, I took a three-day sailing trip with my dad on Lake Champlain earlier this week. All this is to tell you why the following video is absolutely perfect for my frame of mind right now:


Wednesday 28 August 2013

Brave

My friend Sara Cook-Raymond runs a fantastic 'Swagger Song' series over on her blog The Long Ride Home. I can't tell you the amount of fabulous song recommendations I've gotten from her blog. Quick, go have a look, we'll be waiting!

Regardless of how you feel about the Katy Perry 'Roar'  vs 'Brave' controversy I defy you not to love Sara Bareilles' 'Brave'. If there ever was a 'swagger song' it's 'Brave'. I'm a big fan of Sara Bareilles and 'Brave' is no exception.

I love the idea of being 'brave'. I love just how fiesty this song is. It's currently on repeat for my new WIP. I have a character who is reluctantly falling into the role of being 'brave' of taking on a fight for someone else. She's about to show 'just how big her brave is' in the next section I'm working on when she tries to plot how to save both her brother and a boy she hardly knows who, much like her brother, is bound by a very rash promise to a fate he can't escape.

 So, I'm going to go write in the corner and try not to tap my feet too loud.

Happy Wednesday! I hope this song brings a smile to your faces.


Friday 16 August 2013

Book BINGE

Oh my word,  it's been a while. I can feel how long with every fiber of my being. I haven't had a book binge like this in YEARS. And, while I intend to go into it in greater detail (or rather, the books in greater detail), I am still reveling in the feel of FINALLY having gone through some books in the way that I was MEANT to. In the way some people reserve for punishment, chocolate, and bad TV, I am a glutton when it comes to books.

See, I've always been a voracious reader. Once upon a time, I would go to the library and take out as many books as they'd let me (anywhere between three and ten) and have them back in the next day or so. Limits to the books to bring home were especially cruel when I was visiting my dad because library visits were few and far between, sometimes once a summer. So, I'd read the whole stack several times before it got returned. And pretty much anything else I could find -- newspapers, medical journals, textbooks from my dad's premed years (mmm... nothing says "breakfast" like looking at abnormal spleens).

But, I haven't visited the library -- or my dad's house -- in years.

Time gets in the way for everyone, and for me, something else slipped in there. A lethargic sort of apathy, which was not helped, I'm afraid by my choice of reading. See, sometime recently, I got it into my head that I would go back and read a pile of books I didn't remember having read and couldn't remember what I wanted to do with them. Because, that's the thing. Generally, if I read a book, I remember what it was about, even vaguely. There will be a plot point or a character or a situation that stood out, even in those books I was "meh" about. If I really liked it or really hated it, I'll have even more vivid recall.

But this pile, I couldn't remember zilch. So, I've been trying to bang through them. I keep them in the bathroom, by the bed just so I have them there to work through. And for the most part, they're all pretty boring romances that are taking me FOREVER to get through. And perhaps that's part of why I don't remember. They didn't have enough connection for me between the characters, or they pushed a connection that didn't feel like it should be there (and repeated for good measure that it existed). Some have been about inappropriate relationships. But, none of this I could remember... except in a few. One of the last ones before the book binge, I'd gotten three pages in and remembered "oh yeah, the mother did it. I don't remember how the rest of it goes, but the mother was the murderer" (I generally like cross genre stuff, especially if I'm reading a romance. If you can't keep a plotline going... you lose my attention, regardless of how hot or frequent sex scenes might be. I want a story, People.). Got to the end and sure enough, Mom was the murder. Still going in the bye-bye-box, though. I just don't have enough love or enough space for it.

On the other hand, though, once through, I decided to switch gears and go with a series Genn has been trying to get me on for YEARS. Holy Moses. I have been through five books (sort of the first books) in less than five days. The series is huge. And while I haven't bought the rest of them yet, I've let the momentum carry me and I'm now half way through another book (as of last night). Completely different genre, completely different author, but I am FLYING through. And trust me, I'll write something up about these books soon. For now, I'm just reveling in it.

It feels like coming home to myself for the first time in a long time.

Hopefully, I can keep this going. And I think I'll be able to if I don't dip back in to the "should I keep these" pile....

Hopefully.

What's kicked you out of a slump?

Wednesday 7 August 2013

Cupcake of the Week: BAMF GIRLS ARE BACK!

Your Wednesday just became BAMF awesome!

I forgot just how much I missed the BAMF Girls Club! I am so happy they are back for another series. For those of you that aren't familair with the BAMF Girls Club you are in for a treat. The BAMF Girls Club asks the question what would happen if you put Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hermione Granger, Katniss Everdeen, Lisbeth Salander, Michonne and Bella Swann all together in one house as roomates? It's the real world meets literary, pop culture, geeky awesome! The series is hilarious, super nerdy and good fun. I've loved the previous two series.

The first in this series (run by Comediva) features special guest star Veronica Mars. After Hermione's magical purse goes missing she turns to Lisbeth Salander for help tracking down the culprit. Lisbeth is a little indisposed with her brand new baking business (click here for that episode) so she hires the second best detective, Veronica Mars. Enjoy!

Saturday 3 August 2013

Happy Esther Day!

I don't think its too much of a stretch to say we are big fans of the Vlog Brothers here at Cupcakes and Karma. So, when this video popped up in my email this morning (what? If you subscribe you get emailed when they have a new video! It's totally not stalking!) I felt like we had to share it here on the blog. Happy Esther Day!

Esther Day (August 3rd) is a day the Vlog Brothers set up to honour the memory of Nerdfighter Esther Earl who passed away of cancer in 2010. This is a day to tell your family and friends just how much you love them. I honestly can't think of a better day or a better way to honour the memory of such a courageous girl.

You can find out more about Esther Earl here.