The Now What Months...

It is almost 6 weeks since I finished my very first novel ever! NaNoWriMo gave me just the right amount of inspiration and motivation I needed to do what I never thought possible. I wrote over 50,000 words and after taking a 5 week break of not even daring to look at one single page of my manuscript, it's time to dust it off, grab my red pen, and start revising my rough draft.

Now that I've written over 50k words I feel like this moment is what I've been dreading even more than the process of writing it. Revision takes more than just fixing grammar, it's also looking at dialog and descriptions, two things I feel I have not mastered in the 30 days I was writing. But the time for excuses have come and gone. I wrote it and it's my job to complete the task. I know there are some who competed who would leave it as is, walk away, and never change one word or comma. Nothing wrong with that. But I do dream of having my book on a shelf in Barnes & Noble one day. Or perhaps finding my book on it's 4th week of being in the top 10 New York Times Bestsellers list.

Not till I got as far as I did, did I ever think it would ever be possible to be on a mission to have a completed book that I would show to publishers and agents and the like.

But before I can even get to that point I am on a mission to revise 20 pages every other day. This will be a daunting task that I will probably procrastinate on for many of the days to come, but my goal is to have a working 1st revision by March 1st.

I'll have further updates and developments then.

Wish me luck!

The Writer....er....Reader in Me?? *NaNoWriMo Again*

I have a confession to make: I've been writing!

And not poetry writing or grocery list writing or whatever people write when they put pen to paper, but serious outline driven, dialogue moving, character building type writing. Why? Well why on Earth not?! In the last 2 years I've already read over 80 books. Now I know for you hardcore book bloggers you can read that many books in 6 months or less without breaking a sweat but for me that is a pretty big feat. I am proud of that accomplishment and I'm already on track for having read over 100 books in just 2 years. Excuse me while I give myself a few pats on the back. *brief pause*

I hope you gave yourself a pat on the back as well for suffering through this blog post AND for reading even more books than I could ever imagine. Now that I've got my reading accomplishments out of the way and under control I thought it was high time I did the one thing I've always been so afraid to do: write a novel. And I will say I'm writing it more for myself than for the purposes of publishing it and seeing it on a shelf in a book store...NOT! I mean duh, who wouldn't want to know their book is on a shelf somewhere collecting dust?

For several decades (I find it sad that I'm old enough to use the word "decade" now) I have had dozens of truly wonderful ideas for a novel but never enough patience, courage, or belief in myself that I could follow through and finish. But something happens to you when you hit that "age" and you look back and wonder what have you done with your life. I read all these books by authors younger than myself and I can't help but think, "that could be me." And FINALLY the light bulb went off! I realized, YES that could and should be me! So here I am, days away from participating in an event that will very well be the start of something great.

That event is NaNoWriMo. I've written about it already, where I give a brief synopsis on what I plan on writing. I encourage you to check it out. This post is just a primer of my life up to this point. A life where I honestly felt I was only as good as the books I read not the words I write. So to everyone who knows how good a writer I am (even though I am VERY secretive with my writing outside of my blog) and have been waiting almost as long as I have for that moment when I can say, "it's finished," the time has come!

I have a determination like never before to write 50,000 words and to see my book on a shelf, even if that shelf is just my own here in my bedroom. The fun will not be found in how I got started or how it ends but in the journey I took along the way.

Welcome to the creation of Sterling Addams... Welcome to my journey...

NaNoWriMo is Almost Here!

NaNoWriMo for those of you book bloggers who might not know stands for National Novel Writing Month (as it so cleverly says in the graphic above, duh!). I heard about this organization last year and I "attempted" to participate, but I'm sad to say not one word was written. My writers block got the better of me and I retreated with my tail between my legs back to my comfortable world of reading books and reviewing them. This IS a book reviewing kind of blog where occasionally I might review a movie or television program. Anywho, so here we are again, less than 2 weeks away from the start and THIS TIME I'm ready!

The very simple and easy premise is to simply write, however you prefer to do so, and write some more, throughout the entire month of November. The site offers a great tool that helps you keep track of your word count for you. If you write more than 50,000 words in the month then they'll give you a prize and you'll have met the goal/challenge that they set for everyone. Of course you don't have to meet that goal, but it is a good one at that.

My goal(s) this year is to meet that 50,000 word count in 30 days but most importantly is to finish what I start. I've never really been able to finish a novel once I start with an idea. I can do poetry, I can write a screenplay, but sit me down to write a "novel" and I get nervous. But I just participated in a "twitter forum" of sorts (the first of many that they do) where I got to meet others who are working on their first novel as well so we can share tips and dispel of any fears we might have with each other. It's good to know you're not the only one attempting this for the first time.

I'm more afraid of jinxing myself than of someone "stealing" my idea but I want to share some of it nonetheless. 

My Idea:

Sterling Addams lives in New York City. A city that never sleeps and she knows this fact better than most. She learned all there is to know about the NYC train system from riding back and forth on them growing up. And because of her vast knowledge she's able to assist, in her own unique way, in certain police investigations.

Not many, in the city of over 12 million people, know of Transit District 13 (TD 13). They are a team of specially trained police officers who solve all crimes committed underground deemed too dangerous to allow the public to know about. While Sterling is not a member of this team she is helpful to them, not just because of what she knows about the train system, but because of who she knows down there as well.

Join her, and the narrator of each mystery, Sarah Jefferson, as they take you on a tour of the mean tunnels of New York City like you've never known them before. And stick with her as she solves some of the strangest & dirtiest crimes no one ever hears about.

What do you think?

Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz (Book Review)

Odd Thomas

by Dean Koontz

446 pages

Bantam Books, 2012

fiction/suspense/thriller/mystery

Read in 5 days

My Rating: ★★★★★

Amazon.com | BN.com

"My name is Odd Thomas, though in this age when fame is the altar at which most people worship, I am not sure why you should care who I am or that I exist."

Review: I don't think I've ever read a book that made me need a soundtrack playing in the background in order to feel more at ease with the story. This book definitely requires a soundtrack and with that said I should start with who that soundtrack needs to be!

That's right, none other than the King of Rock and Roll himself, Elvis Presley. When you start reading the book you will see what I mean. Anyway, I quickly found myself listening to all his music, even his moody blues and his gospel music as well. I listen to him regardless of the book because he is one of my all time favorite singers and actors (I've seen all his movies) but listening to him while reading about Odd Thomas just seemed right.

But listen to me, I haven't even said anything about the actual story yet! It was gripping and page turning and heart pounding all at once. There was a great pace too. It wasn't like Dean wanted to pack all the suspense in a few pages and that was that. No, instead he gave us about 4 or 5 different climactic points throughout the story. The gist of it all is obviously about a young man by the name of Odd Thomas. This is one instance where you should totally let the name fool you because Odd Thomas is definitely odd to say the least. What is his oddity? He can see dead people. And not in the Sixth Sense kind of Hollywood antics either. This is definitely no M. Knight kind of movie or book whatsoever. 

Odd is a normal kid with a seemingly normal life. He has an amazing girlfriend, a job he enjoys, even if it is just a fry cook, and friends who understand him as well as accept him. His gift, while not usual for most people, is one that he does not take lightly. If he is called upon to assist someone who comes to him for help then he does it, so what if that person needing help happens to be dead. Odd Thomas is a do-gooder. Possibly because he had quite a terrible childhood that no child should ever have to face. 

In this first installment of a series of Odd Thomas novel we are introduced to those who know of his gift at different levels and we are also introduced to him and how exactly it works. Along the way of solving a mystery where many could possibly die we get to peel back some layers to the mysterious life of Odd Thomas and how he got to be where he is today.

I find it interesting that he is visited by Elvis Presley (quite frequently actually) who finds joy and pain in his own music whenever he hears it. Don't believe me? Well read the book and see if I'm lying. I dare you!

Summary: "The dead don't talk. I don't know why." But they do try to communicate, with a short order cook in a small desert town serving as their reluctant confidant. Odd Thomas thinks of himself as an ordinary guy, if possessed of a certain measure of talent at the Pico Mundo Grill and rapturously in love with the most beautiful girl in the world, Stormy Llewellyn." "Maybe he has a gift, maybe it's a curse, Odd has never been sure, but he tries to do his best by the silent souls who seek him out. Sometimes they want justice, and Odd's otherworldly tips to Pico Mundo's sympathetic police chief, Wyatt Porter, can solve a crime. Occasionally they can prevent one. But this time it's different." "A mysterious man comes to town with a voracious appetite, a filing cabinet stuffed with information on the world's worst killers, and a pack of hyena-like shades following him wherever he goes. Who the man is and what he wants, not even Odd's deceased informants can tell him. His most ominous clue is a page ripped from a day-by-day calendar for August 15." "Today is August 15." In less than twenty-four hours, Pico Mundo will awaken to a day of catastrophe. As evil coils under the searing desert sun, Odd travels through the shifting prisms of his world, struggling to avert a looming cataclysm with the aid of his soul mate and an unlikely community of allies that includes the King of Rock 'n' Roll. His account of two shattering days when past and present, fate and destiny converge is the stuff of our worst nightmares - and a testament by which to live sanely if not safely, with courage, humor, and a full heart that even in the darkness must persevere.

To learn more about Dean Koontz visit his site here.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (Book Review)

To Kill a Mockingbird
by Harper Lee

299 pages
J. B. Lippincott & Co. / July 1960

fiction

Read in 7 days

Another Review...

My Rating: ★★★★

Amazon.com | BN.com 

"When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow."

Review: Let me start by saying I've never read this book. I was never assigned it in school and it just never struck me as a book I wanted to read. After having absorbed it so thoroughly now, I can't imagine why. I saw the movie almost two decades ago so the actors were not in my mind as I read this book. I can tell you I will make it a point to see the movie now.

Starting this book I went into it wanting to know the reason for the title. Why the title over so many others? It's so obvious yet so complex in so many levels I can easily see why this book can be discussed from an elementary school level up and through college. I guess that's what makes a classic a classic? When a novel can stand the test of time and still be relevant material today. While our court system has much improved since the time of this book, it still serves as a stark reminder of where we were as a society and how far we've come. I'm sure many would use this book to argue we have not come as far as we'd like to think.

In short, this book starts and ends in the same place, being narrated by Scout, remembering a moment in her family's life that would forever change all parties involved. It was the 1930's and her father, Atticus Finch, a lawyer, was put on a case to defend a Negro accused of raping a young woman whose family, although white, happen to be one of the lower classes. The Ewell's are, for lack of better words, uneducated white trash. But that doesn't stop the town from believing her story, no matter how hard Atticus tries and succeeds in proving his case that the Negro, Tom Robinson, is innocent. It makes no difference to the minds of those white men in the jury box (women were not permitted to serve as jurors back then). There was no way they would side with a Negro over a white man or woman. Even if the evidence showed that girls father, a known drunk to the entire town, was the one who beat her to near death. But I'm telling too much of the story. The trial doesn't even really make an appearance until the last third of the book because it leads to what causes Jem to suffer a broken elbow. 

The book starts with Scout telling the story of how Jem, her older brother, got his injury. But it also includes the story of a man whom she & her brother have never seen but have heard stories about. That man is Boo Radley. Arthur if we're to be formal about it. 

There are many heroes in this book that I can count on multiple hands. But in order for them to be considered heroes there must be an almost equal amount of evil they fend off as well. I suppose many would say there was only one real evil in this book, old man Ewell. But look closer, if you've read it or plan to someday, and you'll find more. There are different degrees of doing good and doing bad. Atticus is a single parent trying to teach his children best he can, just how to see those differences in everyone.

Great book. I'd read it again. I'd recommend it as well.

Summary: Lawyer Atticus Finch defends the real mockingbird of Harper Lee's classic, Puliter Prize-winning novel—a black man charged with the rape of a white woman. Through the eyes of Atticus's children, Scout and Jem Finch, Harper Lee explores with rich humor and unanswering honesty the irrationality of adult attitudes toward race and class in the Deep South of the 1930's.

Winner of the 1961 Pulitzer Prize for Literature, Fiction.

If you want to learn more about Harper Lee please visit this site.