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Showing posts from 2011

In Defense of Libraries

Libraries are awesome and here is why: Reason 1: Free books. Specifically, free books that don't require you to have a computer, Internet access, a Kindle, or a Nook. Libraries provide free books for the poorer or the less tech-savvy amongst us. To be frank, whenever I come across an ebook vs. book-book debate online, I have to roll my eyes. This is what well-to-do, middle-class people argue about in their free time. It's a bit elitist. My family didn't even have a computer until I was in middle school, and no Internet until high school. I still have friends without home computers or Internet connections. Where did we have to go for research or homework? You guessed it -- the library. Reason 2: Educational Child Care Whenever I visit the library, there are always families: mainly parents with toddlers. The kids read picture books or participate in a library-organized activity, while the parents read during a welcome break. There had better still be libraries aroun...

December Book Recommendation -- "The Year of Living Biblically"

'Tis the season to be jolly! Or, now that you've finished NaNoWriMo, it's the season to put down your ragged novel with a relieved sigh and pick up someone else's book. In the holiday spirit, I recommend The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs, a nonfiction romp through one man's quest to follow all the rules in the Bible, to the letter, for an entire year. As an agnostic who is, as he terms it, about as Jewish as Olive Garden is Italian, Jacobs has an interesting perspective on faith and the faithful. As a new father who wants to raise his children, he wonders if religion (and its rules) have anything to offer in the way of parenting wisdom. As a Jewish guy, he is interested in discovering his heritage -- and as such, most of the book focuses on the Hebrew Testament. As a husband, he is dismayed when the Biblical ban on lying makes his wife start asking him random questions. As a liberal, he is conflicted over different interpretations of scripture on issues...

What NOT to include in your submission/cover letter

I'm sorry I haven't posted lately, but -- so much has been happening! I joined Fencing club; I got a part in Iolanthe ; I joined Campus Comments (the school newspaper); I've been running to and fro from class... ...and I'm the poetry editor of Outrageous Fortune.  It's the first nationwide, online college literary magazine of only undergraduate work. I'm pleased to say that we've already received many submissions for our Fall/Winter edition! I encourage you to submit your poetry, photography, artwork, essays, one-act plays, short stories, novel excerpts, etc. I also encourage you to read the submission guidelines carefully. And perhaps look up "how to write a cover letter" on ehow.com. Now, I'm a nice person and I won't judge you too much if you don't follow the guidelines. I'll just send a polite note pointing out that you attached your poems in PowerPoint instead of Word or that we only accept previously unpublished poems o...

Happy Anniversary!

It's the first anniversary of this blog! Well, technically last month was the first anniversary of this blog -- but I was so caught up in vacation and the Teen Writers Summer Blogfest that I completely forgot about it. So happy late anniversary, voices! *gives flowers* Also, this happens to be the month in which I reached 1,000 twitter followers. Twitter, as I discovered last year, is AMAZING. It is like a constant IV drip of information, opinions, news, and interesting people. Don't get me wrong, I love my Facebook. Via Twitter, however, I've been able to "meet" (tweet?) authors, agents, poets, and other people -- and of course, discover their blogs. ...Which led directly to me winning a blog contest! Over at terribleminds.com , author, screenwriter, and drunken lunatic Chuck Wendig held a contest in honor of reaching 5,000 twitter followers. The terms: comment with a story in three sentences. The prizes: a free pdf or Kindle version of one of his ebooks, ...

Ambidextriosity

Inigo: "You are wonderful." Man in Black: "Thank you; I've worked hard to become so." Inigo: "I admit it, you are better than I am." Man in Black: "Then why are you smiling?" Inigo: "Because I know something you don't know." Man in Black: "And what is that?" Inigo: "I...am not left-handed." [ Moves his sword to his right hand and gains an advantage ] Man in Black: "You are amazing." Inigo: "I ought to be, after 20 years." Man in Black: "Oh, there's something I ought to tell you." Inigo: "Tell me." Man in Black: "I'm not left-handed either." As you can see, a really excellent swordsman can change from using right to left hands at will. They basically make themselves ambidextrous, which must come in handy when you're chasing down the kidnappers who stole your true love and intend to kill her to start a war between Florin and Guilder. ...

The blogpost that wasn't (or, a review of Branaugh's Twelfth Night)

Today's post was going to be a review of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 . However, I have been sick all weekend--I think I ate some funny crab cake--and not up to the effort. I have literally been closeted in my room all of Saturday, only emerging for the evening meal. I get extremely sour when sick (in terms of temperment, not smell), and my darkened room was transformed into the Bear Cave of Bitchiness. Far more pleasant for everyone if I didn't come out... Whilst in the Bear Cave, when not curled into a ball of migraine misery, I was watching Twelfth Night and editing The Book. I made a feeble attempt at writing more of The Book, but gave up when my neurons started screaming after half a page.  Branaugh's Twelfth Night is pretty good, I guess, but it's really weirdly shot for a movie. The set is very stage-like, not really movie-like at all--it looks like a set, whereas most movies try to disguise the fact that their set is a set. If that makes sen...

Oh, the torment bred in the race...

The kids I babysit are adorable and very nice. Occasionally difficult, but aren't all kids? If kids are a little difficult sometimes, that just means they're smart. Would you really want some robot of a kid who obeys your every command? ...Well, maybe some parents would. Case in point: my dad is washing dishes while I dry them. He is dissatisfied with the speed at which I am drying the dishes (though I'm not getting in his way). He says: "You know, if you had a drill sergeant breathing down your neck, you might consider going a little faster." Me: "Well, luckily I don't have a drill sergeant breathing down my neck, then. The dishes aren't going anywhere fast." I firmly believe that you can't run a family like you run the military. Which brings me to the topic for today's post: "be yourself." Someone I follow on twitter tweeted a link to their blogpost "Be yourself? What do you think that really means?" I tweeted a ...

In Defense of Slytherin ;)

Ravenclaws are smart, love to learn, and value knowledge above all. Hufflepuffs are loyal, hardworking, honest, and accepting. Gryffindors are brave -- sometimes reckless -- and value courage. And now for the House everyone seems to hate (though admittedly, there are good reasons for its reputation): Ambitious, cunning, resourceful, with "a certain disregard for rules" -- these qualities describe members of Slytherin House. And as Hagrid (incorrectly) said in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, "there's not a witch or wizard went bad that wasn't in Slytherin." Founded by Salazar Slytherin, it has included Tom Riddle/Voldemort (Dark Lord), Bellatrix Lestrange (Death Eater), and Lucius Malfoy (rich, arrogant ass). However, it has also included Phineas Nigellus (Hogwarts Headmaster, if a rather unpleasant person), Horace Slughorn (the quintessential college professor), Draco Malfoy (sympathetic if foolish and master of the Elder Wand), Narc...

Teen Writers Summer Blogfest--Ask the Teens

I'm really sorry to have missed the first page critique. Vacation, you know. We just got back home at 11 last night, so bear with me. Today the other participants and I will be answering questions submitted by readers about YA lit, what teens prefer, how teens read, etc. I am grateful for a chance to answer these kinds of questions. Often, when I read the blogs of agents and editors, they'll make broad, assumptive, and/or high-and-mighty statements about young adults and young adult literature--to which my indignant reaction is, "That's not true!" Or at least, not as true as they seem to believe. So, we have four questions from Jess, which I will endeavor to answer. :) 1.) Middle grade novels are defined as books for the 8-12 age range. Do teens still read middle grade fiction as they get older (for example, Harry Potter is an example of middle grade that's read by teens and adults) or are they naturally attracted to books with older themes and character...

Spending the 4th in Mississippi

This year, I'm spending July 4th with my grandparents in Mississippi. Here, you can get REAL (read: dangerous) fireworks, unlike the pissy little sparklers they limit you to in Maryland. The fireworks were actually an anticlimax this year, but who cares--I've been in a nearly constant state of geekout since Saturday. I WENT TO FAULKNER'S HOUSE!!! (the one in Oxford, near University of Mississippi--or as the locals call it, Ole Miss). No better way to celebrate the 4th of July than to visit the home of a legendary American novelist... unless you follow up that visit with lunch at the Ajax Diner, home of the most orgasmically tasty mac-an-cheese on the face of the planet. NO SERIOUSLY. IT IS AMAZING. I had a sausage po-boy sandwich and stole my mom's mac-an-cheese. They also had amazing salads, classics like chicken and dumplings and catfish, AND an extensive vegetarian menu. And just when you're thinking you can't POSSIBLY top that...there's Square Books...

TWSB--On Reading, Romance, and my YA pet peeves

"Re ad, read, read. Read everything." - William Faulkner What I just finished: 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King *shiver* What I'm reading now: Longitude by Dava Sobel; The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie; Across the Wall by Garth Nix; Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. On my reading list for later: The Count of Monte Cristo, Four Plays by Oscar Wilde, and Vanity Fair. What can I say, Barnes and Noble had a deal on classics--buy two get one free. Whether and when I will actually finish them is another question. Favorite genre: I like epic fantasy, but there's surprisingly little of it in YA. Perhaps the People in Charge think teens can't handle the complexity or the length, or something. Who knows. I read an interview with Tamora Pierce, author of many YA fantasy quartets--she was asked why she'd switched to writing pairs of books instead of quartets. Her dryly humorous answer was that Harry Potter had...

Writing Two Books at Once

In a previous blogpost , I said that I live to write, instead of writing to live. I suppose this is fortunate in that I don't have to churn out stories, articles, or poems on a daily basis to earn my bread. However, it's unfortunate in that writing is not a Top Priority. I don't have to do it, no matter how much I want or like to, and that means it can be shunted to the background in favor of more immediate, pressing activities. Mainly, schoolwork. I know, I know--this means I'm not really a writer, right? Just a college kid with writer pretensions (or, as I prefer to think of it, ambitions . Can I get a cheer for Slytherin?). But school's out for the summer, and The Book has been chugging along remarkably. I just passed the 200,000-word mark...and was torn between doing a victory dance and killing myself. 200K is acceptable for epic fantasy, since the genre practically demands a multitude of characters, complex plotlines, and paragraphs upon paragraphs of world...

Blog speed date

I lifted this idea for a blogpost from Jessica Faust at BookEndsLLC , which is, by the way, a fantastic blog about reading, writing, agenting, and publishing books. The concept behind speed dating is that you get a short time, say ten minutes, to sit down with someone and get to know them. While I'm nobody important, I liked the interview format on BookEnds--it's very, well, bookish--and thought you might want to know a little more about me. So... Name or internet pseudonym: Laura Wise (hence the @Laura_the_Wise of Twitter fame :P) Currently reading: Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King, Lord Sunday by Garth Nix, and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. Next on the reading list: The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman...and I'm probably overdue for a re-read of Harry Potter as well. ;) I also want to tackle a classic or two this summer, and I'm thinking about reading Vanity Fair. Three authors living or dead you'd want to have dinne...

I'M IN A RAGE

There are a few things that get me this mad. This post will discuss one: BOOK BANNING. Also, an article in the Wall Street-fucking-Journal that I can't believe was published. Read it and weep. The author states that YA (young adult) fiction is becoming far too dark for kids "12 to 18." Here are some of the other things she says: "How dark is contemporary fiction for teens? Darker than when you were a child, my dear" --> This sets up the maddenly condescending tone of the rest of the piece. "A careless young reader [...] will find himself surrounded by images not of joy or beauty but of damage, brutality, and losses of the most horrendous kinds." --> What "horrendous kinds" are we talking about here? Maybe if you want kids to find themselves surrounded by joy and beauty, you should stop trying to ban books and start trying to legalize marijuanna. "No happy ending to this one, either." --> And this is objectionab...

Blogging Slump

This blog is in a bit of a slump right now...I haven't posted regularly. Sometimes I don't post for almost the whole month. Sometimes I write a burst of posts, then get depressed when no one comments. Then I don't post for a while. And the cycle continues... I suppose it's to be expected. I mean, it is summer. And unlike other kids/people, I spend summers outside getting into shenanigans instead of inside playing video games or noodling around on the Internet. Or if it's hideously hot and humid like today, I at least spend summers getting into shenanigans inside. Or I'm in California with one of my best friends, eating durians and driving on the freeway (shudder). Or with the same friend, camping in the woods...naked. (KIDDING.) But I did learn to embroider while in California. It's a time-consuming but rewarding hobby--especially now that that boring white jacket I never wear now has a flower design on the front in a lovely shade of purple. In addition ...

The Unfortunate Importance of Money

Money is important. Well, duh. But it's not until you get to be eighteen and your parents threaten to kick you out/disown you/stop paying for college that you realize how EXTREMELY important money is. The parental threat(s) came with the stipulation that said threats would not become a reality if I got a job. And believe me, Mom and Dad, there is nothing I'd like more to do. Because then I could rent a cheap apartment for $250-400 a month, survive on ramen noodles and cereal, not pay campus housing fees, AND stay there for the summer (to avoid being a burden on my poor unfortunate white middle-class parents). The main problem with me getting a job right now is that EVERY college student home for the summer is trying to get a job. And with me only being available for about 4 weeks out of the entire summer--a spread-out 4 weeks at that--my chances of being hired over kids stuck at home for the whole 2 to 2 1/2 months are slim. Still, I have options. The site I write for has...

Science Writing

This May Term, I had the experience of taking a course called Writing Creatively About Science, taught by author Dava Sobel ( Longitude , The Planets , Galileo's Daughter ). We read and analyzed pieces ranging from New Yorker articles, nonfiction science books--like The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (which I recommend to everyone who likes science, human stories, social and legal issues, or a good read), self-selected science writing and science fiction, and science-themed poetry. We looked at content, writing style, grammar, craft, and ways different authors treated their topics. I think everyone came away with a clearer understanding of what "science writing" means. My conclusion: if artists are so stereotypically fluid and flexible, like water, they should logically possess some of water's fascinating properties. For example, being able to fit to the shape of their container as well as being able to sprawl across the floor in an abstract blob. They should als...

Reflections on a year of college

It's been a year--and what have I done? "That's what my daddy always used to ask me on my birthday. 'What have you done for yourself this year, honey?' And if I didn't have a good enough answer, he'd eat the whole cake himself. He made smashing cakes...It is my personal opinion, Abby, that a person should have an interesting accomplishment added to their existence at the end of each year. I, for one, have had a different job every year since I was twenty-six. Aside from this one, of course." - from the one-act play Abby's Birthday, by Matt Minachino Abby's Birthday is about an assassin who kidnaps Abby--a typical, Paris-Hilton-type spoiled rich kid and aspiring actress--on her 20th birthday. The above is a line from the assassin, Diane. In answer to that, I can say that I played Abby in Abby's Birthday for the one-act festival this May Term. :) I also played Katherine Howard (wife #5 of Henry VIII) in another one-act, The Rose Club. In ...

Badass Movie One-Liners (inspired by Molly Weasley)

The new Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows trailer, which includes a clip of Molly Weasley vs. Bellatrix Lestrange, had me all but jumping up and down in nerdy enthusiasm last night. So without further ado, I give you a list of badass movie one-liners, inspired by J.K. Rowling's awesomest mom ever. Anyway... "NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU BITCH!" -Molly Weasley, future Deathly Hallows movie "I don't believe in no-win scenarios" -Kirk from Star Trek  "The name's Bond...James Bond" -James Bond, from James Bond (duh) "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die" -The Princess Bride "I'll make you an offer you can't refuse" -The Godfather Often, badass lines are accompanied by equally badass actions. For example, the "Luke I am your father" card would not be nearly as effective if Darth Vader hadn't just cut off his son's hand. So the whole line is more like *hand chop* *scream* ...

I've been a bad blogger...

Well, I've been a bad blogger (say that one five times fast). At least this month. I've only had five posts for the month of April, nothing particularly interesting to say, and have barely tweeted or shared posts to Facebook where people might actually be directed to read them. On the plus side, you all have been patient and nice enough to comment on my posts this month, so thanks. :) Most of that is due to Hell Week and finals week; some of it is due to me writing reviews instead; and some of it is just me being lazy. Sorry about the lazy part. Hopefully, my life will get itself back on a normal schedule for the rest of this last term and May will see a more prolific blog! But first I have two questions for you: The first is easy. What would you like to read about? I generally just ramble about my interests, but if there's something particular you'd like to read, go ahead and leave suggestions. I do have all those now-deleted movie reviews, the rights to which shou...

A Very Hyperactive Easter To You All!

What are you doing this Easter? Besides gorging yourself on candy? ;) Or bouncing off the walls? Or drinking wine or whatever you gave up for Lent? (I am watching YouTube!!!) A side note (ooh! A shiny distraction!!): Maybe it was watching the Dr. Who Christmas Carol last night, but I'm getting this urge to watch The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It's the two biggest Christian holidays and World War Two all in one movie. :P Actually, though, the reason I'm thinking about Dr. Who and A Christmas Carol is because it related uncannily well to the Easter sermon today, "Thieves in Paradise," with the reading from Luke about the thieves on the crosses next to Jesus. One had a deathbed conversion and Jesus told him he would go to Paradise/Heaven. Which reminded me of A Christmas Carol, of course--though there's not actually anything overtly Christian in the story; and in the time period, Christmas wasn't officially celebrated--but you can probably see where...

Outrageous Fortune

"To be or not to be; that is the question-- Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing, end them." Et cetera. It's from Hamlet (in case you didn't know/in case that play has not quite penetrated every part of popular Western culture), and it inspired the name of my college's online literary magazine. Outrageous Fortune. Coincidentally, it's the only online college literary magazine made up of undergraduate work only, and it's run professionally--like literary magazines in the "real world," the editors may not publish their own work. The only graduates allowed to submit to the magazine are MBC alumnae, and I their work is published on a separate page. So if you're an undergrad or know any artistically inclined undergrads, tell them to submit--poetry, prose, and art! :) Anyway, I'm blogging about this because Outrageous Fortune has ...

Reflections on Lent, Kittens, Libraries, etc.

So I gave up Youtube for Lent, but I'll get to that in a second. First of all, Shiloh Rules is over and the performances went wonderfully. Secondly, I am in denial of finals week (finals week? What finals week? What on earth are you talking about, voices?) And thirdly, this is National Library Week. I am celebrating this week dedicated to America's libraries by tweeting twaiku -- twitter haiku in 17 syllables and 140 characters. For example: "The boy is embarrassed / to be at the library-- / and then he sees her." The twaiku contest is hashtagged #nlwtwaiku and the prizewinner gets a $50 Amazon gift card (which the winner will, of course, use to buy books). But back to Lent. In the past, I've given up chocolate, soda, fast food, and makeup. One year I decided to write a poem for every day of Lent -- I produced a few haiku and a weird poem about roadkill, but I soon discovered that Lent vows kinda go the same way as New Year's resolutions. You tend to forge...

Shiloh Rules

My posts this month have been very spotty (nonexistent really), for which I apologize. Recently I've been working on a play that is consuming the greater part of my life and health. As assistant stage manager, I'm basically the Cinderella of the theater: I get there half an hour early to sweep the floor, organize everyone's stuff, call out lines when the actors forget them, make sure people have their props, do odd jobs, put everything away at the end of the night, and finally, stay late to wash all the dishes. What did I say? Cinderella. It's very time-consuming but worth it--there's a lot of fun that goes along with it and the play, Shiloh Rules, is awesome. It's a comedy-drama (I would call it a "dramedy,"  but I hate that word) about Civil War reenactors. Specifically, the 144th Battle of Shiloh--and the women in competition for the title of Best Female Reenactor of the Year. The North is represented by Miss Clara May Abbott, Union field nurse an...