Uta Hagen--

"We must overcome the notion that we must be regular...it robs you of the chance to be extraordinary and leads you to the mediocre."

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!


So as many of you know, for the winter edition of my school newspaper I interviewed author Leanna Renee Hieber, which inspired my paper to do an Author's Corner. (But entertainment got that :( ) Anyway, for the summer edition, I'm interviewing someone else. Last night I recieved a call from my grandparent's neighbor and good friend, Harry, and he said that his grandson would be "Tickled to death to do the interview". His grandson is none other than Mike Pelfrey, a pitcher for the New York Mets! I'm definitely looking forward to his answers to the questions! Harry said he told Mike about me writing a novel and he said that Mike replied with "Really?!? She's a smart kid." Ha-ha. Not that Harry introduced me to him a few years back as "the annoying little girl down the street--she's a dumby." Ha ha.

Anyway, so you can go here: http://www.wfan.com/pages/2336853.php to watch an interview with Mike. WARNING: Mike Sings! And it's 22 minutes long! But it's worth it.




In other news, Leanna Renee Hieber has new contests up on her blog! They're pretty awesome!
Also, I finished chapter 12 Monday and it was pretty epic. I'm working on chapter 13 and I can't wait to write it!



Have a wonderful and blessed day!

With eternal love and blessings,
Officially Inspired

Monday, January 18, 2010

The Words I Could Say...


So, Saturday night I had a very awesome idea for a book, which, obviously, I can't post here, but the title is the title of this blog post. I'm very excited about it, but I'm still focusing on my actual novel. When I write The Words I Could Say I'm going to take a different approach than I did with No Title. Well, duh. I actually want to know everything about the story--which I already have a lot maped out in just the few paragraph outline. I still don't know the character's name or who she's going to end up talking to--but I do have a pretty good idea. And I think a lot of the characters I originally wanted in NT that I had to take out because of character-overload, will end up in Words. Just because they were based off of actual people, and well...I can't say that--it might give something away.
There were two(kinda three) things that really inspired this story. I will say that here.
  1. Saturday's Demons on BBC-America
  2. Rascal Flatt's 'Words I Couldn't Say'
  3. My cousin Jimmy

So, I really need to work on NT today. I know what I need to write, but it's hard to actually write it. I need to work on balancing text and dialogue. And my bro needs to stop telling me michigan jokes.

Have a wonderful and blessed day!

With eternal love and blessings,

Officially Inspired

Thursday, January 14, 2010

2 years...




Two years ago today I sat down at my computer and began writing my novel. I had absolutely no idea what I was going to write about. I didn't even know what my character's name was going to be, or how old she was, or anything. I had absolutely nothing.

But I wanted to write.

So I wrote what, through draft one, I called an 'interjection'. You see when I read a book I often think what the author was thinking when s/he wrote...this part. So my plan was to interject during the story and write a little bit about what I had written. Well, until my friends convinced me that it was kind of stupid--no body would really want to read why I had written what I had written. My last interjection in draft one was something about how Mr. Brunk thought we were all going to die when Swine Flu was first reported. That was like in May? I stopped after that.

On January 16th, 2008 I finished reading Twilight which was the reason I started writing. Here are the reasons I continue to write.

  • I feel I owe everything that may become of my writing to Stephenie Meyer and I feel I must repay her.
  • My Uncle had faith in me--and from Heaven, I want him to see me published.
  • Leanna Renee Hieber inspires me constantly on such a personal level that she's made me feel like my dream is getting closer every day.
  • My family supports me and wants nothing but the best for me.
  • My friends encourage me to know the limit is the sky, so shoot for the moon, and be a star.
  • My writing mentor may just kill me if I give up. ;) Just kidding--she has so much faith in me, sometimes it makes me feel like it's her story.
  • Some people don't think I can do it--I like to prove people wrong.
So there you have it. Above is a picture I thought I had posted on my blog before. It's draft one printed out.

Have a wonderful and blessed day!

With eternal love and blessings,

Officially Inspired






Wednesday, January 13, 2010

I'm a Vampire?!?







OME! OMR! Rob, Kristen, and Taylor have all signed on for Breaking Dawn (whether it will be one movies or two has not yet been decided.)!! Just thought I'd let everyone (two great people who actually read my ramblings) know. :D



(The pictures are just random pictures I took.)

Yes, I know this is short--but I need to study for my history and health exam.

Have a wonderful and blessed day!

With eternal love and blessings,
Officially Inspired
Align Center

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Videos...

(It's Dark--by me)
So there's a video I've been meaning to share with you all for quite some time. It's a really great video, so here's the link to a video for "Pray For You" by Jaron and the Long Road to Love. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rn041uWncU

Also, this video I've been meaning to promote because is so touching. Here's a link to Remember Me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ervaMPt4Ha0

Lastly, this is a video I made for Leanna Renee Hieber as a thank you video--and she has approved it--but I'm not sure if I'm going to post it on YouTube or not yet. So I'll just upload it here and you can watch it right here from my blog! I do not own any of the pictures (save for the very last one) in this video nor do I own the music. The song is 'the love theme from Romeo and Juliet'--which I blended to use twice. The quote near the end is directly from 'The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker'.



So, I hope you like these videos as much as I do! Oh, and by the way you should all go to www.youtube.com/ImprovEverywhere and watch their videos. "Where's Rob?", "Can I Get A Napkin Please", and "Supermarket Musical" are wonderful! (At least I think those are the names).

Have a wonderful and blessed day! I must go study for exams!

With eternal love and blessings,
Officially Inspired


EDIT:  This video is now avaliable on my  youtube page: www.youtube.com/ILuvRobPattinson

Friday, January 8, 2010

Best Snow Day Ever! (Thanks to a certain Ohioian author)


(Here's what the snow looks like today)
School was cancelled again today--which also meant no meet--so I was kind of upset and I have a cold, so I haven't been to active today.  Until LUNCH TIME.  My mom had to go to therapy for her foot, and she brought home lunch, which is beside the point, but she also got the mail--which we had not gotten yesterday due to weather.  And I got a big white envelope from New York!  Immediately I said "AH!  It's from LEANNA RENEE HIEBER!!!" and I was right.  :D 

So here's some pictures to illustrate my day. 

Snowday=COLD(duh)
(bro w/ snowball--that he didn't throw at me)

(and a horrid picture of me w/ my chin pressed back to illustrate the cold)



And then...

(addresses hidden by purple penguin post-its)


(it's got stuff inside!)


(book marks w/ both covers on one side and reviews on the other!--signed)


(A 'Strangely Beautiful button--witch the one I had fell off of my bag, but now I have a new one!)


(A cover flat for the second book!--signed!)


(And on the back there's a note to me!)


(Another envelope w/ my name on it)

(inside is a polar bear card)

(with another note to me and another signed book mark!)


(here's another horrid picture of me trying to hold these things with my chin and hands w/o falling.)


(My copy of 'Strangely Beautiful' signed. Just thought I'd throw that in there ;)  )

Thank you so much Leanna Renee Hieber!  You've made my day once again!  Oh, by the way readers, go to her blog, http://leannareneebooks.blogspot.com/ ,  to read excerpts and to watch the book trailer for The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker!  I cannot wait until April 27th, 2010 when this book is released and when Leanna Renee Hieber is going to be doing a signing here!  (Leanna, I'll be there!)

Have a wonderful and blessed day!

With eternal love and blessings,
Officially Inspired

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Snow

(if you live in Ohio you know why this is funny)
As anyone that has read my blog may know, usually I find snow quite beautiful and would welcome it--on any other day/week I would.  Today I was supposed to have a district Power of the Pen meet (I made the traveling team), but since school closed today, the meet is tomorrow.  Let's back up a bit.  I was kind of upset about the meet being this week because it's prep week for exams.  Math was only going to be reviewing on Thursday and Friday.  So I was going to miss one of my two review days.  Oh well, at least I'd have Friday.  But now I won't.  But school for tomorrow isn't looking to good, because it's snowed quite a lot, and I somehow doubt they'll be able to get the roads in workable conditions by tomorrow.  So no meet tomorrow (possibly) and no math review at all (for sure).  *I do have my math review packet.*  But exams are still going to be on next week, which means they can't reschedule the meet for next week. 

In other news, I decided on reading Pride and Prejudice and so far I love it!  Mr. Darcy is just as seculded and brooding as he was in the movie and Jane Austen writes in a way that is so hypnotizing and beautiful that I'm mesmerized.  But I have to be completely undistracted to read because of the old language.  But it's beautiful and book club may just have to read it. (The snow is just lovely in London-->)

Book club was supposed to be tomorrow, but I don't know if it'll work out that way.  If I do have the meet tomorrow, I won't be getting home until about 4-4:30ish.  Book club starts at 6, so I'm not sure how well that'd work out considering Power of the Pen usually runs behind schedule, especially if we have a delay.  And if we don't have school/meet tomorrow, then I don't want to have my friends get out on the roads when the schools wouldn't dare run the buses.  Perhaps I could just ask my friend to send me the title of the book and I could send it to everyone and plan to meet the first Friday in February. 

Well, I must go.  Have a wonderful and blessed (and safe, snowy) day!

With eternal love and blessings,

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

First Book Of 2010!


So I finally finished The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan!  I absolutely loved it!  Although I basically knew nothing about Greek mythology, Percy gives you the backstories and everything that's totally natural.  It was a wonderful mixture of action, suspence, humor, reality, relationships, and friendship that kept me turning pages and almost wishing I was a demigod.  Reading this book, I almost believed that I was a demigod!  Percy Jackson is 12 and he's a hero already--although this book is fiction, I found this book giving me the hope that, with the right people, I can do anything that I want to do if I'm determined to do it.  Percy has his friends, Annabeth and Grover, behind him every step of the way, no matter how huge of a mess Percy ends up in.  He makes it to every place that everyone says he won't live through, and finally ends his quest (I won't tell you if he succeeded or not).  It makes me feel like I can do that.  You know?  Do what no one thinks I can do, become something that no body thinks I can be.  In an odd, unexpected, way this novel was inspiring.  I would recomend this book to people of all ages!  (Probably 11+ or so...)

Although I loved this book, I am taking a break from Percy Jackson.  No doubt that I WILL come back to the series, but I still have so many books to read!  Next up either Emma or Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.  Can't decide yet.

But don't forget--The Lightning Thief movie is out February 12th!!

Have a wonderful and blessed day!

With eternal love and blessings,
Officially Inspired.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Inspiring Video at the Perfect Time...

You all pretty much know that I'm on YouTube, and you all pretty much know how excited I was for As You Wish by Jackson Pearce to come out.  Well, I'm subscribed to Jackson Pearce on YouTube and she recently posted this video:


And it couldn't have came at a better time!  The advice given and the just over all inspiration in the video was truly something I needed.  The advice is from 28 published authors, Jackson Pearce being in the video also.  Please watch it--I think it's really great.  And like Jackson Pearce, I'm also going to try to follow all of this advice as part of my New Year's Resolution!

Sorry this is short!  Gotta go work on my math exam review packet thingy.

Have a wonderful and blessed day!

With eternal love and blessings,
Officially Inspired

Friday, January 1, 2010

New Year's Resolutions...


Every year I set a list of New Year's Resolutions which I almost never complete.  But this year, that's changing.  So, I thought I'd post my 2010 Resolutions here so you can  keep me on top of them.  Deal?

1- Complete draft two/start new draft/begin queries if at all possible. (probably won't be.
2- Read--A LOT.  Keep track of said books/reconize the ones I really enjoy.
3- Be a better Christian, friend, daughter, etc.
4- Keep room clean (how many years in a row has this been on here?)
5- Be more selfless and think of others more.
6- Be open to critism and opinions (whether they be agreeing or contridicting).
7- Clean out my YouTube archives and delete the videos that I don't like.
8- Express myself more openly and speak what's on my mind and what I feel is right.
9- Focus more on school and keep my grades up.
10- Make book club more of an actual book club and not friends sitting around talking about stuff.  (Pick books on our level with good messages/good stories)

So there you have it.  As for number 2, my first task is to finish The Lightning Theif.  And the other five books.  Might have to come back to the series after I read some others.

Have a wonderful and blessed New Year's Day!

Go Buckeyes!
Officially Inspired