So...

It's almost March. That would probably be a good time to officially declare my intention to participate in the story siren's Debut Author Challenge for 2011.

I'll be reading at least twelve debut books during this year, and I'll review them here.

So consider this my notice of intent to review. I'll update this post with names and titles and dates when I have a brain left.

Edit:

So here's the list of titles I pulled off to look for.

1. XVI, by Julia Karr
2. Across The Universe, by Beth Revis.
3. Girl Saves Boy, by Steph Bowe
4. The Liar Society, by Lisa Roeker and Laura Roeker
5. Kat, Incorrigible, by Stephanie Burgis
6. Possession, by Elana Johnson
7. Memento Nora, by Angie Smibert
8. Divergent, by Veronica Roth
9. Wither, by Lauren DeStephano
10. Entangled, by Cat Clarke
11. Anna Dressed In Blood, by Kendare Blake
12. The Near Witch, by Victoria Schwab
13. Blood Magic, by Tessa Gratton
14. Wildfire, by Karsten Knight
15. The Iron Thorn, by Caitlin Kittredge
16. Possess, by Gretchen McNeil
17. The Girl of Fire and Thorns, by Rae Carson
18. Vanished, by Sheela Chari
19. Enclave, by Ann Aguirre
20. Future Imperfect, by K Ryer Breese
21. Deathless, by Catherynne M Valente
22. Hourglass, by Myra McEntire
23. Don't Expect Magic, by Kathy McCullough
24. Forgotten, by Cat Patrick
25. The Faerie Ring, by Kiki Hamilton
26. Dark Mirror, by M. J. Putney

But realistically, I probably won't get to all of those. Let's just say those are the titles I'll be looking out for as the year progresses. :D

Moments that are awkward in writing #57

When your beta readers inform you that those characters whose interaction you based on your platonic relationship with your guy friends is full of sexual tension.

Well that's just lovely.

Today was my day off, and as is becoming tradition, I went up to MUN to see if they would let me study there. Last time I went to bother people it was very successful, as I was admitted to first year. ^_^ This time I went to see if I could get my first year of Augustine transferred in, so I could start into second year. And let's just say the results this time were not so phenomenal...

*sigh*

Basically to go to appeal I have to present EVERYTHING I did in that year, as well as letters from every university that has a transfer credit agreement with Augustine, saying that they accept credits from Augustine. (I wonder if I should just photocopy my acceptance letter from St. FX, no I think I already pitched it, darn it.) And the prospect of all that paperwork is just TIRING, especially because the person I talked to today was NOT friendly or at all customer-service-oriented, and she started off everything, (after making me wait for 15 or so minutes,) with telling me that MUN doesn't accept transfer credit from  private colleges.

I'd like to take a moment to point out that this was one of the first questions I asked back in the day, in October, when I wanted to know if it was worth the agony of applying and wrestling with the necessary paperwork. The person I talked to said "sure, we just start looking at the transfer after the acceptance is in."

And then today, (Five minutes ago through my MUNmail), I get THIS lovely email.

Good morning, Jasmine:

Congratulations on your admission to Memorial University for the 2011
Fall Semester.

This is to inform you that Augustine College is not an accredited
Institution by Memorial's standards and we are therefore unable to offer
you transfer credit at this time.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Best Regards,

Rhonda Nash
Office of the Registrar
Memorial University of Newfoundland
St. John's, NL
A1C 5S7

P. 709-864-4424 * F. 709-864-4893

AUGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH. DARN YOUR INTERNAL STRUCTURE AND MARKETING DEPARTMENT AND LYING TO ME AND DARN YOU.

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I was going to talk about the rest of my day but that letter just soured me. So instead have a picture of Fort Amherst, which I went out to;

And a sign.

---

So now we're at this. 

P.S. Comments are REALLY, REALLY welcome. I feel like I need commentary on this.

A week ago I was less than 40 feet away from a Stradivarius.

Intermission Double Basses!

I went to the NSO's Masterworks show, where as a James Ehnes was guesting, playing a 3 hundred year old violin.

Suffice it to say that I now understand the fuss about virtuoso violinists. And violins. At the end of Meditation From The Opera Thais, (Jules Massenet), everyone was silent. I could actually hear people inhale together before they applauded.

And speaking of applause, it went on so long and enthusiastically that we got two encores. Both just amazing. Now I remember why I wanted to play violin in the first place. :P

There was so MUCH applause, in fact, that my hands were numb. And I didn't notice that I'd banged my hand against the seat until I looked down and saw this.

Ow?

So we went to Tim Hortons and I ordered a double double and a band aid. Really. :D

See? Double Double. :D

Then my computer broke, which is why this post is so late, but that's a story for another post.

BE EXCELLENT.

"Oh you don't want to hurt their feelings. When their feelings are hurt, they hurt the ones they love. And they love you, Ted."

So, my life continues apace! I got called into work today, which I had planned for as my day off. At first I was all despondent at the loss of my freedom, and it took some serious pep talking to get me to stop grumbling at the tea pot. But it turned out really well, overall.

Apparently in planning for my day I'd given myself 2 hours of work crammed into 10 hours, because when I knew someone was coming to pick me up I managed to complete everything I'd lined out to do. GO ME? :P And then after work, (which was good,) I walked home.

There were good things and bad things in this plan. The good thing was that I had lots of time to think in the hour it took me to walk it, and I figured out I'd been short-changing myself on my grocery budget. TIME TO GO WILD IN THE SPICE AISLE!

The bad thing was that it was raining, so that when I got home I looked like this.

Oh, the beauties of being mostly blind without my glasses being useable. I think it was primarily by the grace of God that I didn't die in any of the cross walks I hazarded, because I honestly couldn't make out the blinky flashy red hands any more. There was one time when I was barging across the street, and I noticed this car stop for me. So I waved and walked on, and then realized several steps later that I'd been walking while he had the right of way... Also, at one point a cyclist ran into my shoulder. ^_^ (Only briefly, and we were both only scared about the situation, not injured or dampened any more than we had been before. Which was SOAKED, given that the rain was coming from EVERYWHERE.

Oh it was an adventure, I tell you. Just like every day. :P

I was trying to take some pictures along the way. Most of them were hopelssly blurry with water and my shaky hands, but I did end up with these two

This is a cathedral. No, I don't know which one.

And this is a- something. No, not sure what it is either. But isn't it pretty? :D

I will blog about what I'm reading at some point in the future. Have a good day, all! And night!

P.S. My title is from Better Off Ted, which is a show I've recently been introduced to. It's very dry, cynical humour about an evil corporation. So obviously I love it. :D (I may be planning a marathon? In the future? Maybe?)

New Decade, New Ideas!

So originally I started one blog, to keep my family to date on what was going on with my life.
Then I started writing, and I wanted to post about that, so I started another blog.
And then for a while I stopped writing, and the second blog became more of a reading blog.
And then I looked at my blogs and realized that my second blog had become almost entirely a review blog, which was never my intention. (Meanwhile, my first blog was languishing in the desert of absolutely no attention...)

So, I'm going to be changing what I'm blogging about, and where. First of all, I will not longer be reviewing everything I read. This is for two reasons.

1. Reviewing takes a lot of time, and so I have a mental block on reading, because there's this massive chore at the end of something I normally find fun and amazing.
2. When I don't like something, I get sarcastic and bitter about it. If I thought I was an infallible critical reader, I wouldn't mind that so much, but I am keenly aware that I am NOT a reliable source. I get insanely emotional about things for reasons ranging from a flashback an odd sentence started, to the fact that I had a bad day at work. And I know I'm hurtful when I'm sarcastic, which I don't want to be. Heaven knows, maybe the author will read this review some day, and I don't want to be the one going I HATE THIS BOOK IT"S ALL AGAINST PARENTAL AUTHORITY BURN THE WRITER because someone at work got mad at me for making stupid mistakes. And it's much easier to just not write the review than to rein in the anger and bitterness. ^_^

So, this is how it's going to work. I will review things I read for reading challenges, such as the 2011 YA Debut Challenge. That is going to be about 12 books a year. If you want to see me review more books that that, here is my goodreads page, with the books I've read. Go to the little "view" link to the side of any book, and leave a comment demanding that I review it. I'll try my best. :D

And I'll try to post about writing more, and my life. Which is to say, I'm retiring my first blog. All my blogging will be on this page, and I'll try to get something up once a week.

I hope you like it!

Have a random picture of a tree house because I love it.

Top Ten books that devoured my life in the Year Two Thousand and Ten.

These are in no particular order, because getting them all picked and pictured was HARD, and I don't want to try messing with the HTML again. *Tired Medusa is Tired*

I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You

Ally Carter

So I have a history of liking school stories. I may have read all the school stories in all the local libraries moved past that stage, but I still have a certain fondness for the genre. So I thought I'd enjoy this book. And I did, right up until the point where the characters started talking about fathers who go away to be in danger of death and/or torture, for work. 

And then I loved it. I may have mentioned here that my Dad was in the military (mentioned it once or twice,) and that aspect of worrying about your parents, not just because they're irresponsible, but because they're VERY responsible, is something I don't see in books very often. In this case, it was all it took to move me from "this book is fun," to "THIS BOOK IS ENGRAVED ON MY SOUL." And not cause of the romances, sorry. ^_^

Fire

Kristin Cashore

A fascinating, dangerous world, a main character I actually empathized with, and the ethics of duty. This was a beautiful book, and you should all read it. 

White Cat

Holly Black

OOOOOOOOh my gosh. Where do I even start? I'd read Holly Black before, and liked it, but didn't LOVE it. And then I met this one.

 Organized crime, and family loyalty, and TWISTING family loyalty, and unreliable memory, and totally emotionally bashing the MC- Of COURSE I loved this book! Can I have Red Glove please? Now?

Restoring Harmony

Joelle Anthony

It's a HOPEFUL Dystopian, with the mob and rescuing children and the importance of the black market, canning and music. I mean- need I say more?

Victory Of Eagles

Naomi Novik

This book made me care about the Napoleonic war. I actually started supper conversation about it and everything. And it made me think about war and what it costs, WAY more than a certain book by Suzanne Collins did. Psh.

P.S. TEAM WELLINGTON.

Going Too Far

Jennifer Echols

A romance that I believed in and could follow. I think I've mentioned how scarce those are? And at the base of it, this is about how traumatic things in your past mess you up hardcore, and how people can help you recover from that. About grief and rebellion and helping others and relationships... 

It's just really GOOD.

Rosemary and Rue (October Day #1)

A Local Habitation (October Day #2) 

An Artificial Night (October Day #3)

Seanan McGuire

I read these books um- very fast and close to each other. It may have been a matter of hours. So they're indelibly LINKED in my mind. 

But I ask you. Stories about a half-fae PI/Knight who keeps getting called in to defend her family and friends. Only she's not very powerful, and so very breakable- and so very stubborn, which is why she's still standing. 

GO TOBY.

(Also the world is lovely and deadly and menacing. *adores it*)

The Rise of Renegade X

Chelsea Campbell

This might be one of my favourite books of the year, it's VERY possible. A young villain who finds out on the eve of his acceptance to super-villain university that his father (who is never spoken of,) is actually the city's most notorious (if you're evil,) Super HERO. Now he has to go live with the hyper-moral hypocritical looser and his heroic family, and go to public school, all while figuring out how to not jeopardize his acceptance to his REAL choice school. That's all I knew about it when I bought it, and then I found, to my surprise and joy, that there's all kinds of ethics and snarky teenagers and a love triangle that I actually didn't hate, and SUCH good snark, and, and and...

You see, when I love a book this much it's really, really hard to talk about it! It's one of my favourites of all time, okay?

Moon Called (Mercy Thompson #1)

Blood Bound (Mercy Thompson #2)

Iron Kissed (Mercy Thompson #3)

Bone Crossed (Mercy Thompson #4)

Silver Borne (Mercy Thompson #5)

Patricia Briggs

I read these back to back to back, so I feel justified in naming them as one book. And if you don't agree? Get your own blog. ^_^

I loved the world that Ms. Briggs has fashioned, all the mythology working together, and how it WORKS! They don't just say "people turn into wolves," there are rules for how it works, and how they could stay hidden. I love how people have to worry about money, and how the Media and Government are something which normal people DO think about (have I mentioned this already?) It just seems like a very real world, only with more awesomeness added. And I really love how Mercy is not an aethiest, and you can fight on Vampires with faith, (oh man, the lamb? Best scene EVER!) 

And I am delighted by how the plots tend to be machiavellianly twisted, and I love all the characters, (well, almost all,) and I love the writing style. I picked up the books, and it felt like reading back when I was 14 and 15, when it was my LIFE. I just love the whole series! :D 

Leviathan, 

Scott Westerfeld

I have a soft spot for alternate histories with heroic princes and awesome tutors and snarky woman scientists and cross-dressing girls and amazing steampunk science and WONDERFUL ILLUSTRATIONS, what can I say? 

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And that's it! This took me WAY longer than I expected. *dies*