Book Review: SWEET NOTHINGS

Sweet Nothings by Janis Thomas

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


If you like chick-lit, then this book is for you! My friends tell me all the time that they love to read light, fun, happy books, because life has enough troubling things in it and they don't want to read unhappy things. So ... I thought I'd step out of my preferred horror genre and try a chick-lit book. Well ... I think I should stick with horror ... and YA (I do love most YA books!).

Why? Because while my friends might like to read about happy topics for an escape, I actually like to read things that are worse than my own life to make me appreciate how good I have it. (TMI?)

The worse thing that happens in SWEET NOTHINGS is a cake gets ruined. ;)

It is a cute book, and the beginning is wonderful. I'm trying to award stars based on an objective point-of-view instead of my "Give me a break, it's only a cake!" attitude.

Here are the reasons I gave it less than five stars:
1. The writing is great, but the author overuses italics (personal pet peeve).
2. The word VAGINA is used a lot. I'm not opposed to the word. I just got tired of reading about the main character's vagina.
3. The kids were dumbed-down. Since I read a lot of YA, I expect teenage characters to be pretty sharp. And the fact that they didn't see their dad's post on Facebook in the beginning before their mom told them about it surprised me. On the flip side of that, however, I was surprised that the teenage daughter knew how to not only cut her mother's hair on the spur of the moment, but also she layered it. Hmm. What teenage girl knows how to layer someone's hair? Basically, I had trouble believing the teenagers motivations, actions, and dialogue. I know they were only supporting characters, but these details distanced me from the story.

With that said, I still think if you're a chick-lit fan, you'll love this book.


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The State of Idaho

Yup. That's where I live. Wanna know more? Check out this totally awesome posting on BuzzFeed (it will make you smile):

http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/reasons-why-idaho-is-the-most-underrated-state-in-the-countr

Happy Veterans' Day, Dad

I don't have many pictures of my dad in uniform, but he did serve in the Navy. Back in the day, he even lied about his age to enlist sooner. I don't know how he accomplished that, but he did. There were even arguments amongst family members when my dad died, because no one could agree on how old he actually was or what year he was actually born. I think my mother finally produced a birth certificate with the information, but my aunt argued that my dad had falsified that somehow. Hmm. All speculation.

He spent a lot of time in Japan and gave lots of gifts to his family from there. He gave his mother a set of china that she used as everyday dishes for decades. He gave a beautiful lacquered jewelry/music box to his sister. He gave another family member a lacquered photo album ... which the recipient never put a single picture into ... these items all ended up in my possession. I gave the china to my brother to remember his dad. I sold the jewelry box on eBay. I still have the empty photo album.

What does all this even mean?

Simply, that I miss my dad. I appreciate the service he gave to his country. He was the most patriotic man I knew. If he had a grave, I would plant a flag next to it today. But his ashes were spread out along the Puget Sound ... after years of sitting in a box in the top of my brother's closet. My brother used to hold the box over the toilet and threaten to flush him. My brother really struggled with the death of my father. He's better now. My dad has been gone for 17 1/2 years. I miss his bushy mustache and his genuine smile and the smell of his cigars.

Here's his favorite song, which was played at his funeral:

Happy Veterans' Day, Dad.

Book Review: ODD APOCALYPSE

Odd Apocalypse by Dean Koontz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Odd Thomas is funny, clever, and psychic. He's one of my favorite Dean Koontz characters. And this was one of the better Odd Thomas novels. I found myself laughing several times and reading faster at other times to find out what was going to happen. There were a few gory scenes - so beware if you don't like that kind of stuff, but there was practically no cussing and there was no sex. So - just your basic horror. ;)

Here's an example of why I like Dean Koontz:

On page 74 he writes: "Without faith to act as a governor, the human mind is a runaway worry generator, a dynamo of negative expectations. And because your life is yours to shape as you wish with free will, if you entertain too much anxiety about too many things, if you place no trust in providence, what you fear will more often come to pass. We make so many of our own troubles, from mere mishaps to disasters, by dwelling on the possibility of them until the possible becomes inevitable."

And on page 77 when Odd Thomas is hiding inside of a bin trying to be silent so that he won't be discovered, Koontz writes: "Bleachy ozone tingled in my sinuses, but I trusted providence to prevent a sneeze, refused to worry, declined to dwell on negative possibilities, and I did not sneeze, did not sneeze, still did not sneeze, but then I farted."

The reasons I did not give the book five stars include: 1) The "freaks" (monsters, pigs, whatever) were not very scary, and they reminded me too much of zombies. I don't like zombies. 2) I wanted more development and resolution with Annamaria. That character is becoming frustrating. I hope more happens with her in the next book.

I love Odd Thomas, and I cannot wait to read the next book.



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IWSG: Resources

Guess what? The Insecure Writer's Support Group has a shiny new website. It is awesome and fantastic and wonderful. :)

Check it out: http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com/

I highly encourage you to follow their blog (hey, and mine while you're at it!) and when you visit their new site, go ahead and sign up to be a part of IWSG. It's a great network of writers.

So what do I have to share with you today? Well ... I've been thinking a lot lately about the beginning writer (maybe because I have just started writing a new story, and I feel like I'm learning to write all over again). And ... more specifically I've been thinking about the resources available to newbie writers. There are a ton, especially when you consider the wealth of information on the internet. Where do you possibly start?

My recommended resources:
1. THE FIRE IN FICTION by Donald Maass
2. WRITING YA FICTION FOR DUMMIES by Deborah Halverson
3. SAVE THE CAT by Blake Snyder
4. SELF-EDITING FOR FICTION WRITERS by Browne & King
5. THE STORY BOOK by David Baboulene
6. THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE by Strunk & White
7. ON WRITING by Stephen King
8. WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL by Donald Maass

On one hand, I wish I'd read these books before I'd ever written the first draft of my first manuscript, but then on the other hand, I may have never written a single word if I'd realized the amount of work that really goes into writing a great novel. ;) Maybe.

These books have really inspired me to move forward and dig deeper with my writing. I refer back to them often, and I've read some of them multiple times.

Have you read any of these books? Which one is your favorite?

NaNoWriMo: Who is Chris Baty?

According to his website:

Chris Baty accidentally founded National Novel Writing Month in 1999, and oversaw the event's growth from 21 friends to more than 300,000 writers in 90 countries. Chris now serves as a Board Member Emeritus for NaNoWriMo, teaches classes on writing and creativity through Stanford University's Writer's Studio, makes posters, and endlessly revises his own novels and screenplays. He's the author of No Plot? No Problem! and the co-author of Ready, Set, Novel. His quest for the perfect cup of coffee is ongoing, and will likely kill him someday.

 

Have you ever "accidentally founded" (or created or devised) anything?

Uh. Not me.

:)

 

NaNoWriMo: Are You In?

Well ... today is November 1st. Are you participating in NaNoWriMo?

Click here for the official website for NaNoWriMo.
Across the internet, there are lots of great tips and tools to utilize during the month (like this one over at Writer's Digest), but will you be surfing the net looking for writing aides, or will you be nose-to-the-keyboard writing your next masterpiece?