Top 5 Weird Things That Shouldn't Be On My Desk (But Are Anyway)

I have three novels to revise and edit in 2013. But how am I supposed to do that when my desk is in disarray? Seriously, how did my workspace end up like this?

Not to mention this mess lurking around the corner...

Yes, my desk is in a closet. That's not what bothers me. It's the way I let the clutter take over. You don't even want to see my desk at work. It's ten times worse than this. Either way, I'm realizing that most of this stuff should not even be here.

Top 5 Weird Things That Shouldn't Be On My Desk (But Are Anyway):

1. A sealed package of striped pillow cases

2. A socket puppet in need of repairs

3. An obituary newspaper clipping

4. Water balloons

5. A sticky note that says "Josh 9:00 Friday" No clue who Josh is.

Not to mention these little weirdos:

How did this chaos happen? Do you have anything weird on your desk? Are your weird things weirder than mine? Am I the weirdest of the weird?

Best Reads of 2012

When I read a great book, I can't help but spread the word. Sometimes a good book can be hard to find! That was certainly true for me in 2012. It was like every novel I picked up was ho hum. But I did find a few diamonds in the rough and here they are:




The Scorpio Races by Maggie Steifvater

First of all, from the time I first read Maggie's Shiver series, I was in love with her prose. Her sentences are like poetry, deliberate and full of beauty. Still, the Shiver series wasn't my favorite, mostly because of the werewolf elements and general teenage drama. So I couldn't help noticing the The Scorpio Races was written just for me (wasn't it?) The prose was gorgeous and the storyline was perfect too! This book is so cinematic. It reads like a movie and if they don't make one, I might have a fit.

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis
The only thing that bugs me about this book is that I didn't read it sooner. It's science fiction that reads like a witty 1940s film. Does it get better than that? It also has that P.G. Wodehouse flavor, which I adore. The only thing I can say is, "I should have known!" When I was a work study in the English Department at the University of Northern Colorado, the author used to come in now and again. Then she spoke at my husband's graduation and she was hilarious! I even burned CDs of the audio book for my parents for Christmas. So good.






Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols

Ok, this is a last minute addition because I finished this book less than 24 hours ago. But it was great and it had been so long since I read great! Such bad luck with books this year, I swear. Anyway, this novel captures the trailer park lifestyle. I know you may not think you want to go there, but you do! It follows Leah Jones as she becomes a pilot behind her mother's back and falls in love. I'm not into planes either, but it didn't matter. I loved this book and would totally read it again. Plus, if you aren't above judging a book by its cover (which I'm totally not), well...just look at the cover! See also: the 5-star review that almost made me avoid this book. And: the video review that changed my mind.




So there you have it, my top three reads of 2012. Why three? Because that's all there was of the great. Now taking recommendations in 2013. I'm determined to at least have a top five next year!

Find of the week: ReciteThis.com

I discovered a new site for non-design types who want to make their quotes seem profound. It's called ReciteThis.com. Look what I made:

This is pulled from the actual fortune I had sitting on my desk, but you can input anything you want and choose from a bunch of different templates.

Here's another one...

I haven't really figured out a practical application for this besides maybe getting your 15 minutes of fame on Pinterest. Let me know if you have any other ideas of what to use this for!

The Lizzie Bennet Diaries: The Obsession

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife." ~ Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen

Anyone who knows me knows I can't handle cliffhangers. No, I shouldn't have read Clockwork Prince before Clockwork Princess came out. That was just asking for it.

But what about my latest obsession...The Lizzie Bennet Diaries? I didn't see that one coming! Maybe I'm the last one to catch on to this crazy thing, but I am OBSESSED. Meaning, I don't want to wait until Mondays and Thursdays. (Even though I kind of know how it's going to end up since I spent that year reading nothing but Austen.)

If you are anything like me, you may be prejudiced against YouTube. Isn't that the tacky site where you go to watch cat videos and bad homemade book trailers? Yes. But I bit back my pride and now I love it. I understand the possibilities now. Fake vlogs! Real vlogs. Mini serialized stories sans the network television laugh reel. Characters with live Twitter accounts.

Did I say OBSESSED?

If you haven't got on the wagon, but are curious, you can watch the first episode here:

 

 Or all of them here!

Now on Bloglovin'

Now you can follow me on Bloglovin':

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Blog beginnings

Yay, my blog is done and ready! What kind of posts can you expect here? It will very much like the title of my blog suggests. In other words, there will be three general categories.

Writer
I'm a writer by profession, plus an aspiring novelist, so look for interesting writerly finds. Like what? Like...aqua notes! Or book reviews. Or links to awesome online seminars. Or user tested tips.

Wanderer
This is less simple to define, but it has to do with a general lack of attention span when pursuing the first category. My mind tends to wander. Yes, I should be trying to map my novel's subplot or some such thing, but LOOK, SQUIRREL! ALSO, PET ROCKS! You get the idea.

Wonderer
What if I bought this book, sold my house and built a mega tiny house from the profits and could live without a mortgage? It makes you wonder, doesn't it?

Anyway, if any of this dribble sounds interesting to you or if you can tell you are a kindred spirit. Or if you know the origin of the term kindred spirit, follow me!

Brand new blog coming soon!

Testing, testing... 1, 2, 3! My blog is under construction, but real content is coming soon. Isn't it pretty? Be the first to follow. I dare you!