Over at On The Nightstand I am taking part in several challenges, one of which is “read 100 books in a year”. I did the same last year, reading (IIRC) 117 books, with the bulk of my reading happening between March and November. I did read a lot, but once I started up my book blog the amount of reading I did increased exponentially.
Anyway, it’s the 17th of January, and today I have reached the 10% mark of that goal – I finished East by Edith Pattou.
The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire – Suzanne Collins
Hidden Voices: The Orphan Musicians of Venice – Pat Lowery Collins (Review)
Now that I have reached that marker already, I’m going to slow down the reading a little bit for the rest of the month (I do have a few more books to read for review, with the one I am going to crack open tonight before bed being The Magician Of Hoad by Margaret Mahy) and focus much more on my writing for at least the next week – do a couple of word wars and things like that. I’m a little bit behind already on my Lionheart writing, but not too far that I cannot catch up on. Two days of writing and I’ll be right as rain.
Anyway, I’ll share with you the snippet of Lionheart that I posted over on Open Mic over at the blog of Michelle Zink, author of the wonderful Prophecy of the Sisters.
The lights flashed more and more frequently with each passing second, dancing about the blackness like countless stars moving rapidly across an otherwise empty night sky. There were no recognisable constellations, but as the shining particles moved about a shape began to form: small, delicate.
Human.
It was not until the glowing apparition spoke that Leander was able to recognise it.
“Help me, Leander,” begged the Eithne made of stars. “I don’t know where I am.” Her voice sounded tinny and from far away. “Please. I need your help.”
Voices of shadow strangers could not compel him to speak, nor being torn to shreds by some semi-invisible monster. But the mere sight of his little sister, especially when she was lost and in obvious distress, easily drew a single word from his mouth.
“Eithne?”
“Leander.”
She looked so utterly lost, forlorn and young that Leander instinctively reached out. He wanted to enfold her in his arms and comfort and protect her like he felt a big brother should, but each time he tried to touch her his hands passed straight through. Each time he tried the motion disturbed the shimmering dust particles, forcing them apart. It took a few seconds for them to reorganise themselves, taking longer each time.
Apart from her being a shimmery, off-white colour, and made of an infinite number of visibly separate particles, it was a very good likeness. It was unnerving, really.
“What are you doing here?”
The Eithne made of stars fluttered her eyelids frantically and chewed on her lips; the real Eithne did the same thing whenever she was anxious and scared.
“I don’t know,” she whispered. “Something’s happened. Something terrible.”
Anyone else excited? I loved Pokémon Silver, so the chance to go back to Johto (and Kanto!) is so awesome. Plus I’m loving the idea of the Pokéwalker – anything that provides some sort of exercise motivation = all right by me.
While cleaning out my room, I found my year 12 (sixth form – I was 16) reading log. To earn some extra credits for NCEA, students at our school had to read nine full-length adult books which I had not read before. At least five books had to be chosen from list A, and all nine books had to be from list A and list B. There had to be a gender balance of sorts – five of one, four of the other.
So here is what I read that year:
Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte (Required Category: Pre-20th Century Writer)
Long Walk To Freedom – Nelson Mandela (Required Category: Auto/Biography)
The House Of The Spirits – Isabel Allende (Required Category: Contemporary Author)
Once Were Warriors – Alan Duff (Required Category: New Zealand Author)
Falling Leaves – Adeline Yen Mah (Required Category: Book Dealing With Another Culture)
I, Claudius – Robert Graves
The Shelters of Stone – Jean M. Auel
The Origins of Humankind -Richard Leakey
Voyage To Atlantis – James W. Mavor
Some notes I have gathered from re-reading the reviews:
My review of Jane Eyre was a very polite “WTF?!” That book put me off classics for a good while.
I read Long Walk To Freedom in about five hours, using a technique that would later be used on the days of Harry Potter releases – I locked myself in my room and didn’t come out until I was done.
I read House of the Spirits during mock exam week. I made notes on language and the use of third vs first perspective, and the evolution of the narrator’s voice.
I didn’t like Once Were Warriors‘ use of coarse language – “maybe I am overly sensitive to the language” I see there.
I may have been sensitive to coarse language, but from my memories of Shelters of Stone I didn’t seem bothered by all the sex scenes. I remember sitting and giggling over the naughty bits with friends.
I was very clearly in a major archaeology/history mode that year.
I don’t read as much adult fiction as I used to, partially because I am no longer required to and partially because since that time there has been major booms in YA and I have discovered the YA book blogging community (and so I am introduced to YA books that I otherwise wouldn’t have been).
I’ve been listening to Chameleon Circuit for the past few days and I thought I’d share. In the tradition of Wizard Rock (Harry Potter), they do Trock (Time Lord Rock), which is Doctor Who. And they’re good! Very catchy.
Everyone else is making their resolutions, so I’ll introduce you to some of mine. Other than the old standards of “lose weight” and “stop biting fingernails” and the new addition of “get a job”, the rest of writing-related.
Finish Lionheart draft by end of March.
Finish The Circled Green draft by end of September.
Write 20 000 more words for the Bones draft
(In order to complete the previous goals) write a minimum of 10 000 words a month.
So yeah, those are the goals. The first 50 000 words of Lionheart are already with the beta, so she can get a good going on it while I write the last 20 to 30 000 words. The big elusive goal is “get Lionheart into shape so I can query it”, and given the encouragement I have received, I hope that will a) happen and b) lead to something more.
Very catchy.
