Blog for a book I hope gets published someday!

Queries Galore!

2011-12-10T11:44:00.002-07:00

I sent out a batch of queries today! Hopefully I get some positive replies.

:)

NaNoWriMo!

2011-12-10T02:02:00.000-07:00

So, in case you didn't hear, I finished my NaNoWriMo novel this year! It's about 56,000 words long, and I love it! It's about a 1920's girl whose family went broke, and now she's stuck in her country home with nothing to do, so she goes crazy and runs away to Chicago to have some gambling fun!

This story came from a dream I had a year and a half ago, specifically one part of one of the last chapters, which of course I can't tell you about! I woke up thinking, dang, I want to write that. My boyfriend had woken me up right before the scene finished though, so I didn't get to find out what happened! ARG! But I knew anyway, I just wanted to 'see'/dream it :)

So hopefully after edits and multiple drafts, I will be able to send out queries for it. Wahoo!

New query

2011-08-25T01:07:00.000-06:00

I always get so excited when I send out another query letter. I think, "Yes! This agent if perfect! I hope she gets back to me!!"

That's how I feel today. :) I found an agent who represents urban fantasy and likes characters who are the anti-heroes, the ones on the fringe, as she puts it. And I definitely have a character like that!!! I hope she gives my query letter and partial a chance, and asks for the full manuscript. All I'm asking for is a chance.

That, and I don't want to work at GAP forever!! hah :b

Queries

2011-08-07T10:51:00.001-06:00

I sent out 4 query letters yesterday!!

one already came back negative, but ...oh well.

:)

Book 2

2011-07-28T03:38:00.000-06:00

I've had a little time lately, and so I'm going through Book 2 again. So far (52 pages into it), I haven't had to make too many changes, so that's good. I really like it.

I saw the new Alice in Wonderland movie on TV the other day, and loved just listening to the music for the credits. Alice's Theme by Danny Elfman. He rocks! Sometimes I think certain songs would work for my book, and although this is "Alice's" Theme, I love the feel of it, the urgency of it. :)

REQUEST FOR MORE!

2011-07-21T20:27:00.000-06:00

I got a request for a partial and a synopsis!!! Here is the email:

Dear Julie,
Thank you for querying BookEnds and giving me the opportunity to review your work. I would be very happy to take a look at your proposal. Please reply to this email with an attached proposal package, including the first three chapters and a detailed synopsis. For more information on proposals, please refer to our website or review our blog.

I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

This is a recent post from agent's blog about her stats:
http://slushpiletales.wordpress.com/2011/07/18/state-of-the-inbox-address/

I am one of the 5%!!!!!!!!!! :D

Wish me luck~

New Query

2011-07-02T02:47:00.000-06:00

I have just revamped my query letter!! Thank you Lauren! I was inspired by reading her book (which is fantastic), and the fact that she's now putting out query letters too.

I also spent some time reading my NaNoWriMo story from last year. I didn't get far, but it's quite good, I think, and I want to finish!

Being in China will definitely give me more time to work on my writing. And who wouldn't be inspired by looking out their hotel window every morning to the buildings of Beijing? :D So excited!

Publisher's Weekly

2011-05-11T02:06:00.004-06:00

Remember that time that I entered into the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest?

Well, I just checked back on my page there, because I had forgotten that Publisher's Weekly reviewed every book that made it to the top 250.

Wow. This is what they had to say:

ABNA Publisher Weekly Reviewer

In this unexceptional novel, readers are introduced to Jenny Reilly, a young witch who spends most of her time keeping the people around her in the dark about her true powers. Jenny’s life becomes even more complicated when she suddenly is pulled back in time at what seems like the most inopportune moments. As this begins to happen more and more frequently, she finds it increasingly difficult to maintain her cover as a “normal” teenager and begins to suspect that these visits are not random, and that she may play an important role in another reality. Unlike the characters and dialogue, which are painfully clichéd and unoriginal, the plot is not as easily predictable, though it’s hard to tell how sustainable it is, since it's not fully developed -- the book ends with a cliffhanger and is apparently the first in a series. There’s nothing exceptional about this bland yarn.

Boy, does that make me feel GOOD. I mean really? "Bland yarn", "painfully cliche and unoriginal," and "unexceptional"? Is it really that bad..? :(

I may just have to jump off a cliff now.

Goodbye, world. :b

Just keep swimming

2011-04-28T12:29:00.000-06:00

As many of you know, I was in a contest for my book to be published. I did not make it to the next round, but I did make it to the top 250. That, in itself, is amazing since it started with 5000 contestants.

But now I need to stop eating Reese's peanut butter eggs and get back to writing query letters.

What??

2011-01-12T11:46:00.000-07:00

So I put off writing this one part because I thought it would take FOREVER to connect the two halves I have written. Turns out, it took like a page. A PAGE. HOW long have I put it off? GUH. I might end up expanding it later, but dang. I've learned my lesson.

But now Book 3--eh-hrm, 2.5! is 56,086 words long!!! :D

This photo looks like a part in the third book. It's also me, running away from hard work... :b blaahh!!! haha :)

No Excuse!

2011-01-10T13:45:00.001-07:00

Haven't posted for awhile! Why? Oh, you know, the usual: work, work, friends, work, game nights, hair playing nights. :) Yeah.

But that's no excuse! I need to step up my game here. I need to post more often. I need to stop saying 'need to' and change it to 'WILL!' I WILL post more often! I WILL finish Book 2.5/3! I WILL query more agents!

Yours truly,

J.D. Seibel

~~Jenna waking up in the field~~

Dream-->Book

2010-08-15T01:33:00.000-06:00

I had this CRAZY weird, but very intriguing dream last night. When I woke up, I tried to hold on to as much of it as I could. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it all day. And I want to try to write it. Like as in write a book. I know I won't get it all exactly right. But parts of it are very clear in my mind. I hope I can do my dream justice. Cuz it was freakin AWESOME.

Here's the intro/chapter one:

I escaped when I was twelve.
And they brought me back.
They took away my memories of that one year I was free. Put me back in the community.
And for a while, they thought they had gotten away with it.
But now, I can see.
I see. Bits and pieces of the world as it really is. Flashes. Memories. Of the world they don't want me, or anyone else living here, to know. They thought they could keep it from me.
They were wrong.

Good news and Writers Group!

2010-07-19T00:25:00.001-06:00

Wow, where to start??

Okay, first of all--Friday. Here's how my day basically went:
-woke up
-checked email
-checked "junk" mail and OMGah there's an email regarding my query?!?
-It's from an agent's assistant at Writers House!!!!!?!
-And she's requesting the first 50 pages of my manuscript!!!!?????!

Yes, and from then on, I spent the rest of the day freaking out. Like literally. I've had such a crappy four months that I *literally* did not know what to do with good news.

I had sent in a query on the 9th with my first five pages. And exactly a week later she gets back to me. *is in shock* And so of course (after much freaking outage) I sent in those 50 pages she requested! (Before that though, I read over them yet AGAIN and changed stuff yet AGAIN and THEN sent it.) She also wanted a synopsis, and I had a 3-page and a 2-page written beforehand, but I chose to send the 2-page. I hope that's okay!

Bah!!! I am SO nervous about those 50 pages though. Are they okay? I'm sure they need a lot of work still... Even though I've been working on it since 2006... I hope she still gives me a chance after reading them. I hope I get a request for a full manuscript! :D

And so on Saturday I went to my Writers Group meeting. Again, I was nervous. I'd never had actual writers read/critique my work before. And believe me they had PLENTY to say about my first chapter... HEH... But I appreciated all of their feedback and I know this will help me TONS.

At the same time, the Assistant from Writers House thought my first pages were "intriguing." But almost everyone in the group strongly disliked my opening. Hmmm... I'm not really sure what to do with such differing opinions. I know that not everyone will like everything. People have different preferences. If this agent decides to give me a chance and tells me to change it, I will. If she doesn't mention it, then I'll mention it, and I'll ask if could be stronger. For now, I feel a little torn and it's like I can't move either way. I want to change it, but I also don't. What if the original way is actually better? Guh.... I'll wait and see what the agent/assistant says.

:)

It's Emma!

2010-06-16T21:01:00.000-06:00

So remember when I posted this: click here for post And I didn't know who that actress was that could portray Katniss from the Hunger Games?
(Pic I found for Katniss):

WELL! Remember when I said that Emma Roberts has that Jenna look sometimes?

They're the same actress!!!!! Whoa. I didn't even realize. She looks so different! And then I saw her in an interview on Jay Leno and liked her even more for Jenna. :D I hope my book turns into a movie... ^_^

Then I was looking around on a HungerGames site, and they had this guy for Gale:

Adam Gregory

And I thought: 'hmmm, he could almost be Michael!' But then I thought, "ha, the actors for my book will be the exact same as in the Hunger Games..! That won't do! haha :)

ReJECTion

2010-06-14T20:15:00.003-06:00

Oh, the feeling I get when I see an email come in that has Re: QUERY in the subject line. One part hope, six parts dread. Or I guess I should say 'realistic thinking.' Because I only want at least one person to ask for a full manuscript, but I know that that doesn't happen often.

Here's what the latest agent had to say. It sounds kind of weird, not like the typical rejection form letter, which is why I'm posting it. It kind of threw me off.

Dear Ms. Seibel:

Thanks for your query.

As to your material I'm afraid I must pass -- I'm just not enthusiastic enough about the premise of your story to feel that I'd be the right agent for the project. Our agency represents a very fulllist of fiction writers and we must be highly selective in adding to it. I realize it is difficult to judge your potential from a query; nevertheless please know that I give serious attention to everyletter, outline, and writing sample I receive.

Sorry I couldn't give you a more positive reply. Thanks for thinking of me, though, and best of luck in your search for representation.

Sincerely,
Jennifer Jackson
Donald Maass Literary Agency

Query Shark

2010-06-09T12:19:00.003-06:00

I just discovered this blog yesterday, called The Query Shark. It's this agent, I guess, that has people send in query letters to her for honest, brutal critique. :D She is brilliant, and TEARS these authors' letters apart, and gives awesome advice. After reading many posts, I sent in a revised version of my query. Maybe it'll get posted on her blog, and maybe I'll learn something new. I already changed it SO much after reading what she had to say about some stuff--sentences should be SHORT, watch out for -ing Verbs (I didn't have hardly any of those, but still), don't tell the whole story (although on some query blogs I've seen agents who say they want this), and keep it to about 250 words. Well! I had my work cut out for me, and I hacked my letter apart. Let's hope I get chosen to be the next author who is torn down on a public blog. :)

Gasp!!!

2010-05-30T01:43:00.002-06:00

I did it!!! It's done!! I merged the two halves!! And, in my opinion, I did a pretty seamless job of it! ^__^ *heeeee~~~

I feel SO GOOD RIGHT NOW!! :D

Exciting stuff, lemme tell ya~

But here's the thing--I think I might have finished off Book 2 with just the first four pages of the infamous and legendary "second half"..! WHAT?? I mean, it's a pretty good place to stop, and it might work. Although Book 2 is only 61,000 words long, and Book 1 is 77,000, I could definitely make what I have for Book 2 longer. And then that would make Book 3 already half written! whoa. Looks like this might be a FIVE book project. who knew??

HA!!

Filler

2010-05-23T23:21:00.003-06:00

I keep saying this, but I am SO close to putting the two halves together! Lol, it's like, I think I'm almost there, and then 10 pages later I'm still writing and not there yet..! Book 2 is going to be looooonnng... heh :) It's a little frustrating, but then again, I'm having a good time writing. I hadn't been looking forward to it because I was intimidated by having to write and prepare for a big war/battle, but recently I've been getting help with that from a friend. :) He's so into it, it's awesome! I really appreciate his enthusiasm for my books~ He's definitely going to get credit for all his input :D

Welp, gotta get back to it! Everyone is on the brink of warfare! bah! Let's hope I don't annihilate both sides by accident heh heh ^^

And they shall meet in the middle

2010-05-18T18:19:00.003-06:00

So I have been writing more for Book 2, and suddenly I realized that I can probably put the halves together really soon! like really really soon! Sooner than I thought, which rocks! It'll be happy to finally have one file for Book 2. :)

Got another letter. A rejection letter. Oh well.

Anyone want a book to read this summer? If so, my first book is available if you ask me for it. I can send it via email. :)

yayyy

A Letter?!?!

2010-05-13T17:49:00.004-06:00

I came home today and lo and behold there was a letter waiting for me. From an agent! I had never gotten an ACTUAL LETTER before, so I sort of had hope, but at the same time not.

It was from Writers House, and I had sent a query to Jodi Reamer only one month ago. Usually she takes 3-6 months to get back to someone. And the first time I sent one a year ago, I waited about 5 months. Also, last time I only got a response via email. This time I did not even send a SASE (self addressed stamped envelope), and they sent a letter that they paid for and addressed by hand. Hmm. (They usually do NOT do that.)

But..

Alas, "she is unable to offer me representation at this time." :( Sadness.

Here's the letter, all typed on nice paper.

It's signed by Alec Shane, her Assistant.

And here's a close-up of what it says:

So, sad day, but ..oh well.

Clothes

2010-04-07T22:19:00.010-06:00

So, for most of you who've read my books, if you can't tell, fashion and clothes play a big part in it. Well, maybe not 'big', but, fairly big. :)

And so most of you may be wondering what Jenna's dresses look like. Or, maybe you just don't give a *shirt*, but, whatever. I care. : ) (pardon the wheezywaiter reference, I couldn't help myself!!! click on the link there to watch his latest video, and you might be confused if you're not an avid watcher like I am, but he's pretty funny most days, and the editing on his videos rocks! At the end of each video he puts a 'wink' from a viewer that sends one in.)

Anyways!! I describe a few dresses, and people seem to have a lot of different ideas about the style I try to convey. BUT! Never fear! When I was in Japan (where a lot of my writing was done) in 2008, I drew pictures!!! :D

K, so this one is the dress that Jenna wears to go salsa dancing with Spencer NoLastName. :) It's red, and the sash is black.

And this one is the one that she gets when she goes shopping with Ruth in Paris. oooo~ It's supposed to be a deep royal blue.

This is the dress that Ruth buys for that same occasion. It's a lovely light lavender. (sorry this pic isn't very clear.. My camera was freaking out.)

And this one--wait, what? how'd this get in here..? :) This is Ben and Jenna in class. hehe ~

This last dress is the one that she wears for the Charity Gala Event thinger. The collar is very similar to this photo.

And her dress is something like this. But prettier. And longer. And ...more awesomer? :)

So! Yay for clothes!!

Lately..

2010-04-07T13:32:00.009-06:00

Alright, so in terms of progress on Book 1, I've finished the 4th/5th draft, and I think the few words, sentences, paragraphs, and in one instance, pages, add a lot to the story. My physical copy of the book is SO marked up with notes and changes!

I sent another query letter a couple of days ago. I'm not really that hopeful about it. But, it's out there.

I haven't gotten around to writing more of Book 2... Just, I dunno, gotta be in the right mood. Can't force it. But maybe I should force it. At least get *something* down. Who knows, what if I DIE tomorrow?!?!? Then no one will know what happens!!!! That would be so tragedies. (um, if you don't get that joke, then you're obviously not a nerdfighter. heh!)

Oh, so I FINALLY got to read The Hunger Games, and WHOA, it's so good! And then I was looking for pictures of who people think look like the main character Katniss, and I found this:

So, I have NO idea who this actress is...! But I think that yes, she could definitely be Katniss, but she could ALSO almost, almost, sort of sort of be Jenna. :) Course, she needs to be a little older and have black hair, not brown, but YEAH! I still haven't found just the right person to be her yet. guh... I look at pictures on Flickr and find things that look like my book, but...oh well. One step at a time. Let's get published!

I made a slideshow!

2010-02-21T21:54:00.003-07:00

So I made my very first slideshow! Pardon it if it's not that great, but I was listening to music and had my folder of pics relating to my book open and going on a slideshow and was like, "people need to see this!" So I made it! It doesn't have the particular song I wanted, because iTunes is dumb, but it's got my second choices there. :)

So if you've got a minute or two, or ..six.. then have a sit, listen to some cool music, and look at some awesome pictures!

Last night was one of those nights where the creative inspiration gates were wide open! I was listening to some music, thinking about my book (Book 2 in particular) and where I was with it, and then just started to pick up where I had left off. It started out slow, and then it was like BAM! I *knew* what I needed to write, and knew where it was going and was so excited about it! So excited, in fact, that I stayed up until 1 am.... oops! I only went to bed then because my head was heavy and I was super tired. But I could've written so much more if I'd been awake.

I love those moments! :)

Character Lookalikes (to some extent)

2010-02-13T01:21:00.004-07:00

Who is Jenna?

I had a very good friend just recently read Book 1, and as she loves to draw, asked me who Jenna looks like, since I have pictures of people I think look like some of my other characters. Well, honestly, I haven't found a perfect match. Sometimes I see people randomly, at the grocery store, or when I was in college, that I was like, "Oh WOW, that is Jenna!!!" But unfortunately I never got pictures of any of them because 1. that would be creepy and 2. They were long gone by the time I thought about it.

So! I've built up my collection of "Book Pictures", and there are a few who have some of Jenna's traits, but no one person adds up to who she really is yet. Here are the candidates thus far though:

Emma Roberts:

I saw this picture of her and was like, 'whoa! that might be Jenna!' But then I realized that Emma played Nancy Drew in the new Nancy Drew movie, and that kinda turned me off to her. But she's kinda got the look, although I'm not sure she's tall enough, or has a hard enough look to her. Maybe when she's older?

Next: Kara Housten
I don't know how I found her, but I saw this picture of her and liked it for Jenna. Other pictures I didn't like so much, but this one sort of works. But Kara has perhaps *too* hard of facial features...

Next: I don't remember who this is, but she was on Gossip Girl for a few episodes and I thought she might be able to pull Jenna off. But no, she looks too soft. Jenna does not have little girl dimples! :)

Last: my favorite picture to date! And it's one of the first I found. :)
Natalie Portman:
Now, Natalie looks very much like the softer, feminine side of Jenna in this photo. I love it! But in other pictures and watching her in movies, I don't think she would really fit. Natalie's smile is too big, haha :)

Alright, now for the good stuff!!!!

Who is Ben?

At first I thought it was this guy:
Zac Efron!!!

But then I discovered THIS guy!!!!
Chase Crawford!

HOLy Hotttness!!!! He's got such a stronger film persona, and just WHOA. He could play Ben NO problem. well, perhaps with a few more acting lessons. But I must say, that in the beginning, when I was first writing, Ben was fashioned after Zac Efron. hehe ^_^ They've both DEFINITEly got the look though!!

There you have it!

I have yet to find a Michael. Really, no one is him. Maybe when what'shisface who plays Percy Jackson in that movie grows up, maybe he could handle the role of Michael, but I don't know. He's still young so I can't really tell. Actually, it was funny, I just saw that movie tonight and thought, at the very end, "Those two would make a cool Jenna and Michael!" haha, but then I thought, "nawww, the girl is too...tooo..." , well now I don't remember, but she wasn't exactly right, although she did have REALLY blue eyes! :)

The Book Thief

2010-02-11T21:25:00.004-07:00

If you have not read this book, I HIGHLY recommend it.

It's about a young girl in nazi Germany, written from Death's point of view. I absolutely LOVE the language the author, Marcus Zusak, has created! When he writes about words, it's like the words are alive and have shape and mass and energy. For example, he would say something like, "her words fell to the table and lay there, everyone staring at them," and "his words flew across the room." He also talks about color differently than I've ever heard. Like, "the day was red." and, "the man was a suit, an old hat, and brown shoes." I wish I could write more like him, where there's a nugget of awesome writing on every single page. Amazing! Such great imagery!

Maureen Johnson on How to Get An Agent

2010-02-10T18:05:00.003-07:00

Maureen Johnson, author of manymany YA novels, posted a video through vlogbrothers today on how to get an agent. :) And although I think I knew this already, it's always good to hear it again.

She also posted a blog about "how to get an agent", and it's sarcastic in that everything she tells you do, actually you are NOT supposed to do! (she says this at the end, so while you read the post you're like, "huh? i AM supposed to that?" and then you find out, "NO! DON"T DO ANY OF THIS!!!") haha

http://maureenjohnson.blogspot.com/2009/04/how-to-write-query-letter.htm

Just some stuff

2010-02-01T11:11:00.005-07:00

So in the last little while I started to fill in the middle of Book 2. It's a lot harder than I thought it would be! Now I have to be an expert on fencing, horses, horseback riding, warfare and all types of crazy crap! (not really crap, but i just had to throw in that Strong Bad reference. ^^)

I'm always on the lookout for pictures that remind me of my book, and lately I've found some good ones! Some of them were like BAM, that is IT!
Like this one. I really like it, although I probably couldn't tell you exactly why.

I also found this pic online that I thought was cool for an animated pic. :)

I did a search for castle ruins and found this one. So cool!

All of Jenna's traipses through the woods make this picture just about perfect for the book!

Yes, the girl here has red hair, but I LOVE the tone and feel of it!

A beautiful vista in Scotland~

Just a girl, in a forest, wearing clothes that don't fit with the forest. :) Love it!

I really like this road! I can just see Jenna and Michael and co. walking down it!

So that's all for now. I'll try to start writing more. Because as you write, then you have more inspiration for MORE and then even MORE! :D

:(

2010-01-09T00:52:00.003-07:00

So since I last posted, I've sent in two more query letters, one just today I think. And both came back with negative responses. I know I'm not supposed to take it personally, but I seriously feel like SCREAMIng right now, but I can't cuz it's 12:53 and mom and dad are asleep.

So.

GRARRAH:RHA:LKH;sdlkjg ;aklerj as;odijf :SKLDJF :OIEJ: SLDKFJ :SLDFKj

:[

Hearing Back...

2009-08-13T14:54:00.002-06:00

Yup, I finally got an email back from Jodi Reamer....'s assistant. heh. And, well, Jodi is not interested in my manuscript at this time.

:(

I haven't really worked on writing at all for...a couple months. :/ But a couple days ago I went over what I have for book 3, and forgot how much I loved it!

So, to celebrate the first blog in like two months, here's a quote!!! From Book 3!

"I know this is a risky move. But I had to know where you were, and I couldn’t resist. I wanted to know your future, and how I could be sure to ruin it. This, right here, if I do things right, will not happen."

2009-06-11T18:32:00.000-06:00

Melissa sent this to me today, and I love it just as much as she does~

Reading

2009-05-19T22:07:00.003-06:00

Another thing contributing to my need/want to write, is that I've been reading 'Hood' by Stephen Lawhead. It's a retelling of Robin Hood, and I'm only on the third chapter, but I really like it! And it's good to use for 'research.' :D

And to celebrate, here's a Book 2 (second half) quote!!

"Spiteful wretch!"

Who says it? Can't tell ya!! :D

Alright, I'm gonna post chapters, people! (sorry about the spacing... Blogger..)

2009-05-06T22:43:00.003-06:00

Chapter One

“If the Maiden of Cadron were here…”
“Enough about that—she’s not coming.”
“Perhaps not, but the Kiiprs surely will.”
A silent observer of this exchange from her perch in the tall oak, Jenna Reilly peered through the broad leaves and saw dark ovals of the tops of men’s heads moving beneath her. She shimmied further out on her branch to get a better view when one of the ovals stopped and said, “Should be any moment now.”
A lighter colored oval turned to face the sun. “Heaven help us.”
Jenna wished she could get closer to hear the murmured conversation between the two men, so she crouched down—a big mistake. The branch cracked under her weight, and she had just enough time to wrap her fingers around the branch above her. Jenna dangled as the broken tree limb crashed down and landed next to the men. They were about to look up at her, but that’s when her alarm pulled her from sleep.
The beeping of the pitiless alarm sounded a deeply sleeping Jenna from her dreams. She cringed and let the ear-splitting beep go on uninterrupted for a few more seconds before slapping her hand down on the snooze button—or at least what she thought was the snooze button.
She snuggled deeper into her sheets and squeezed her eyes shut, wishing to return to her dream, wanting to know what happened next.
Jenna did not like being told what to do, especially by an alarm clock. Even at the age of four, Jenna would firmly tell her parents not to help her tie her shoes, insisting that tying the laces in knots until there wasn’t anymore lace to tie with was the best way to go about the task.
At around that same time, Jenna demanded that no one should ever call her by her full name, Genevieve. Old fashioned and, to her ears, excruciatingly ugly, it made her shudder to hear it, and from that point on she would not answer to anything other than Jenna or any variation thereof. It was surprising how a young girl like Jenna could get her way so easily.
Of course, Jenna knew her way was usually the best, even if she ended up on the receiving end of an odd stare. For example, you would think that people would understand that if she wanted a soda, the optimal way to go about getting one would be to conjure one up with a little limerick or simple gesture.
Well, Jenna thought this was all very normal considering she’d been able to do this for as long as she could remember, but others just didn’t take very kindly to anything that seemed out of the ordinary. Like a cola bottle appearing out of nowhere onto a desk, an incident which occurred in Jenna’s third year of elementary school. And magic was most definitely a thing of fantasy in most people’s lives. Some might be amazed by it, but a witch would never be able to distinguish between who would be frightened or threatened by it, and who would welcome it. Jenna could never take a chance like that.
She only knew of three other people in possession of magical abilities: her parents and her maternal grandmother. But Jenna had been orphaned at seven. Her parents had died when she was in the second grade. She distinctly remembered the secretary rushing into her small classroom of fifteen students, anxious and blubbering quickly to the teacher, Mrs. Dewey, about the situation.
Mrs. Dewey, a plump, short old woman that everyone thought could very well resemble, or even actually be, Mrs. Claus, looked deploringly over at Jenna, who knew immediately that something was wrong. The teacher called for an early recess, much to the delight of the other students, but asked for Jenna to stay.
Jenna sat still in her desk, staring at the blackboard, her dark eyes wide. She hardly noticed when Mrs. Dooley came and knelt next to her, an arm around the back of the chair.
“Jenna,” Mrs. Dewey had said, putting a soft hand on her arm. She blinked her eyes—the only indication Jenna gave her teacher that she was listening. Jenna knew very well the dangers her parents had faced before, what kind of trouble could arise, what with them being a witch and wizard. But her parents were on holiday right now in Greece. What could possibly thwart them there?
Mrs. Dewey’s voice sounded again. “Jenna. It’s your parents. They…” Her voice broke, but slowly, she continued on and gave Jenna the devastating news. Her mother and father had been sailing in the Mediterranean and had gotten caught in rough winds while on the sea. Rescuers had searched for days for any sign of Jenna’s parents, but only the small sailboat they were on was found, deserted, half-sunken.
Jenna finally turned her head toward her teacher, brow furrowed with confusion. How could it be, that her parents, powerful as she knew they were, be taken by a simple storm? She could scarce believe it and refused to accept this feeble story.
Grandma Ruth took her home from school, and the next morning Jenna received a shock when glancing over her grandmother’s shoulder at the newspaper. It was opened to the second page. Her grandmother tried to hide the page, but Jenna snatched the newspaper away. A small black and white photo of a sailboat, wind torn and decrepit, was shown. Jenna didn’t even have to ask if this photograph had any connection with her parents. She threw the paper down and ran up to her room, tripping on the stairs as she went.
Jenna, young, scared and alone, was taken in and cared for by her kind grandmother until she left for higher education in the neighboring state. Considering these living arrangements, she didn’t get to visit very often, although if the need called for it, one snap of Jenna’s fingers could transport her in half a second. But she had taken an oath, if you could call it that—it was more like a New Year’s resolution—to use her magic in only true and substantial circumstances.
Jenna rolled over in her bed, not wanting to admit that it was time to wake up. Her covers were amazingly cozy today.
Jenna currently took up residence in a small, but tolerable house just south of her college institution. She guessed she could have lived wherever she liked, but Jenna decided to work for what she had, or at least, that was her attitude most of the time. The old red brick house was shabby and a bit run down, like most things college students have, but the rent was reasonable (except for those pesky utilities bills), and her roommates were politely disinterested, minding their own business—most of the time. It wasn’t that Jenna didn’t want to make friends with them. She only thought it safer to keep a healthy distance away so that they wouldn’t discover her secret; a secret that would jeopardize her and most everyone around her if uncovered.
Jenna peeped one eye open at a sparrow perched on her windowsill. It chirped a happy song of early spring in the crisp morning air. Jenna slowly turned her eye over to the red numbers of the alarm clock sitting on a cardboard box that for the time being played the part of nightstand.
8:23 a.m.
That’s fine, thought Jenna. Today’s the first day of spring break. She closed her eyes once again hoping to return quickly to her dreams.
Wait. Jenna sat up quickly on her elbow and reached for her cell phone, checking for the date.
Friday, 24 Mar.
“Crap, it’s Friday!” Not spring break yet!
Today was the one day she could not afford to sleep in. A major research paper was due at the beginning of her eight o’clock history class, and her teacher was not one to make exceptions for due dates. If homework was late, that was just too bad.
She swung her feet over the edge of her bed, stood up and fell to the floor for being entangled in the layers of her bedding.
“Oww…” Jenna groaned. Panicking slightly, she stood up again, this time a little more carefully, and looked frantically around her tiny, cluttered room for any sign of the paper she had finished writing only a few short hours ago. She spotted it carefully tucked under the pile of yesterday’s laundry. Hastily grabbing it and stuffing it into her school bag, she braved a look in the mirror.
Oh, I look like death! she thought. Glancing around out of habit for any sign of human life, Jenna lifted her right hand above her head and made a sweeping gesture down her torso. As her hand passed, Jenna’s matted black hair formed into a perky up-do. Her clothes changed from tank-top and flannel pajama bottoms to a flirty pink blouse and skirt complete with two-inch heeled sandals.
No, she thought, shaking her head, it looks like I tried too hard. I’m supposed to look like I’m running late. Once more, Jenna made a sweeping movement with her hand and this time her springy outfit turned into holey jeans, an old t-shirt and a light, wrinkled jacket. And to seal the deal she restyled her usually sleek hair put into a messy ponytail.
Jenna looked over at her clock, 8:25, and then looked back into the mirror. The sight of her reflection made her grimace. She sighed and then, pointing at herself, Jenna disappeared from the room.

* * *

The hall outside Jenna’s classroom door was free of onlookers, bare and drab except for a few bright, outdated announcement flyers posted to the wall: “International Theatre- Tonight, January 27th @ 7:30 p.m.- Shall We Dance?” (Two months old) And, “Hungry? Come to the Single Student Social! This Wednesday, February 14th at 6 p.m. in the Main Ballroom!” (Another severely outdated flyer.)
If someone had been standing in that hallway and had observed what happened in the next few seconds, it would have sent them into shock. For a young woman, around twenty-two years of age and slightly disheveled, materialized in a flurry of shimmering gold sparkles right there in plain sight. She seemed to be only slightly concerned about unwanted attention and, after a few seconds used to collect herself, took a determined look at the classroom door, walked deliberately toward it, took the handle and proceeded into her classroom as if nothing abnormal had just taken place.
Professor Clarke ran his classroom in a strict and orderly fashion, or at least he pretended to, and when Jenna walked gracefully, albeit a little rushed, into the room, he gave her only the briefest glare, not wanting to pause his lecturing. Jenna glanced around the stadium-seated classroom to spot her favorite seat, three tiers up and two chairs in from the left: unoccupied. She scarcely noticed the stares aimed in her direction—the boys all looking at her in awe, the girls either looking in admiration or jealousy. Even when Jenna had a late day she drew the eyes of those around her, though she hardly realized it. It wasn’t like she didn’t care, or didn’t notice. It was more like she was indifferent to it. She rushed to her seat without delay and took a quick look around to see if anyone had handed in their papers yet.
“He hasn’t collected them yet,” whispered a smooth voice to her right. “You’re safe.” Jenna lifted her dark eyes to the boy sitting next to her. He had darker dirty blond hair that fell in a way that gave him a cool and wind swept look. Jenna gave him a smile that made his heart skip a beat, and then she looked up to the ceiling and mouthed, “Thank you.”
The boy stared at her for a couple more seconds, then, realizing what he was doing, turned quickly back toward the front of the room where Professor Clarke stood lecturing on the whatever wars of ancient whenever, his subtle Scottish accent lulling most of the class into a passive state.
Jenna actually found history very interesting (a good thing too—it was her major), but today she had her thoughts on other things. Like what she would be doing for spring break. She was thinking about taking a trip down to the lake with a bunch of friends, her boyfriend Spencer included; having a bonfire, roasting marshmallows, telling scary stories, taking walks on the shore. But then again, maybe she would put all of that aside and magic herself to Paris or Tokyo and spend the week there. She didn’t do that very often, decide to travel by magic. She only did that when she needed an extra big pick-me-up, something that chocolate and a girls’ night in couldn’t fix—a “true and substantial circumstance.” (If chocolate couldn’t solve her problem, nothing but magic could.)
Jenna felt herself starting to drift off, her eyelids getting heavy. She stared off into space, day-dreaming about the French countryside.
No, you have to stay awake, she told herself, shaking her head a bit. You are awake. Energized! Three hours of sleep was plenty of rest! History class is the best!
But these thoughts did nothing to hide the fact that three hours of sleep were not enough to function on in an eight o’clock history class. She was fading, and fading fast. She put her arms down on the cold table in front of her and rested her chin on her hands. The classroom became a blur, the teacher’s voice a fluctuating hum, and then Jenna was completely and comfortably fast asleep in her very own imagined French countryside.

Jenna opened her eyes to find herself lying in a grassy field, with small rolling hills rising on her right. The early dawn made the long meadow grass look gray, almost blue, and wafts of fresh air fluttered her eyelashes. She took a deep breath, enjoying the peacefulness of it all. The birds chirping in the early morning, the sun making its way to the horizon. Sitting up on one elbow, Jenna looked around and noticed a coppice beyond the hills. The treetops sheltered thick undergrowth that seemed impenetrable except for a thin footpath that was barely noticeable. She stood slowly and took a few steps forward, the grass crunching beneath her feet. Jenna had hardly made the decision to go to the path leading into the woods when she found herself already in front of it.
The abandoned trail was dark in front of her for the morning still hadn’t fully come, low lying mist just barely covering the beaten dirt pathway. Not ominous, but mysteriously inviting. She didn’t know how long she traveled upon that footpath. The thumping rhythm of her steps was hypnotic. But before long Jenna heard low, murmuring voices. Not wanting to be seen, she took to the forest, which proved to be not a simple task. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea, but she wasn’t sure who these people were and staying out of sight seemed like the best option at the time. The bushes and shrubs blocked her way, and she had to move carefully to avoid making too much noise. Pushing through some particularly tough branches, Jenna found that the forest ground thinned out. The voices were louder here, and she could distinguish three or four of them. The trees still provided good cover and she hid behind one that was notably larger than its neighbors—a good three feet wide and abundant with overhanging branches.
Jenna peeked cautiously from behind her hiding spot and saw four men in medieval clothing sitting in a circle, one positioned on a rock and the others crouching on the soft ground. They seemed to be planning something. All four of the men wore looks of worry. They were huddled down, scratching pictures into the dirt with their fingers. She couldn’t catch much of the conversation they were having in hushed undertones, but she did catch one phrase: “They are coming. We must take action.” But it sounded strange; the vowels were different from anything she had heard before. They sounded older, like those of English from years before. And wasn’t this supposed to be in France? This was her dream after all, and these oddly accented Englishmen were sitting there like they owned the place.
To her right she heard the quiet snap of a dry fallen branch. She turned her head quickly, eyes wide, and saw a lone man crouching much like she was, shielded by the dense trees several yards away. But he was neither like her, a curious onlooker, nor like these other men. He had an odd look about him and his face was dark and contorted. Jenna looked closer and realized part of the reason for his contorted expression was because of anger, rage even. He held a bow; arrow ready in his hand. This was definitely not a casual act of passive spying. The man lifted his weapon slowly, furrowed his brow and took careful aim, the direction of which Jenna snapped her head quickly to look. She couldn’t be positive, but it seemed as if it was pointed directly at the third man to the right; the man on the rock, and from the looks of it, their leader. He was not the biggest or eldest of the men, who looked to be soldiers, but he appeared to be the most experienced. Even from Jenna’s distance, she could tell that this man, also being the cleanest cut, donned the largest and most ornate sword out of the four.
He also had a stately air, not one of arrogance, but one of wisdom and confidence. But his higher status was made even more obvious by that fact that his clothing was a bit nicer than his comrades’. His actions were animated as he strained to explain the importance of their situation to his men.
But these four men were oblivious to the fact that there was a sniper waiting—poised in silence just a few yards away! Jenna looked back to the man hiding in the forest and saw that the arrow, the nock of which just inches from his eye, was pointed straight toward its target. She looked back to the men, then back to the archer, and once again back to the men. Her heart raced. Breathing became rushed. A murder was about to take place before her eyes.

Thank you Erica!

2009-05-05T23:56:00.002-06:00

Erica and I just finished reading Book 1 together. By the way, Book One is entitled, "Blue" and it has a subtitle of "Secrets." SO! It was great to read out loud again, and fix tiny things I STILL hadn't noticed (after HOW many times reading??GOSH!), and after it was finished, I just could not. stop. smiling!! I LOVE IT!

And lol, Erica was totally into it, and at the end scene, she goes, "JENNA IS AN IDIOT." HAHAhhaa, and I totally agree, but at the same time, Erica does not know what I know, mwahahahahhaa!

YAAAYYY! I love writing!!

Current mood: ^____^

Progress

2009-04-22T23:59:00.002-06:00

No word back from Jodi Reamer. I'm not sure there will be. Time to search for some other options... :p Problem is, I don't want anyone else!!! BAH!

I've been writing--well, more like filling in--parts in Book 2. Oh man, it's fun! :D Basically, it's two..certain people...fighting the entire time. heh heh, and it's fun to see their nerves get tested. It goes on for probably half of the book. And it's very revealing to these characters'...character.. lol.

I really wish I could post it, but it would TOTALLY give EVERYTHING away! Not okay! But um, here's a quote from the second book:

Jenna: “All I’m saying is that it doesn’t seem right to love your enemy, and hate the ones you work so hard for.”

My Query Letter

2009-04-17T01:40:00.004-06:00

So the main part of a query is to tell the agent what your book is about. And let me tell ya, whittling 73,000 words down to 3 paragraphs is HARD WORK! I'm not sure I did a good job, and I'll probably re-read this and think, "I sent this out to Jodi Reamer???? I am so STUPID!"

ANYwho, here's the plot portion of the letter I sent:

Spells toss about the young heroine, a college-aged witch, and she finds herself torn between a world of the past and the present.

Jenna Reilly, our heroine, starts out as just a witch. But she grows into someone who has real problems as well as fantastical. She deals with homework, break-ups, dating, trust issues and death, in addition to time-jumping spells, sword fighting, kings and traitors. She must constantly be on alert for anyone who might discover her—roommates, classmates, teachers, boyfriends. She thought her life in hiding would be just that, but that idea all falls apart when a spell cast by her well-meaning parents (who have long since passed on) throws her in the middle of a war.

The first couple of times she is sucked into the past, she thinks they are only dreams. But when Jenna discovers that this ancient past is actually her own, she eventually learns that she is to protect a prince-on-the-run named Michael. He and his three comrades are in constant danger, and it is up to Jenna to make sure Michael, the future king, stays alive. She is summoned to Michael whenever (and wherever) he is in a situation he can’t help himself out of alone. The peace of Michael’s kingdom is being threatened by Cristofer of Geates, who has meddled with creation to turn out an army of a different breed of men who are referred to as Kiiprs (Keepers).
Jenna learns to trust Michael, and he her, as he eventually realizes that she always appears and saves him when he is in trouble (be it directly or indirectly). For Jenna, from the first time she sees Michael, to the end of Book 1, only a month passes. But for Michael, nearly a year goes by. As he pines for her during this time, she is only beginning to know him. But that won’t stop her from doing everything in her power to save his life. Jenna’s parents knew what she would be up against, and each time she goes back to the past, the spell gives her a knowledge of something new: fencing, archery, hand-to-hand combat, even the language.

At the same time (in the present), an elusive character named Benjamin Gates is there for her after a nasty break-up with a boyfriend (Spencer). Jenna struggles over whether or not to keep hiding her secret, or tell him all. But her relationships between Ben and Michael start at the same time, and she begins to wonder who is best for her: the man in the present, or the prince in the past. [blablabla i had to delete this because of spoilers]

Interesting

2009-04-07T22:38:00.002-06:00

I don't believe in horoscopes, but I do think they have good advice for anyone that happens to read them. Today's was, in my opinion, very insightful.

"It's no secret that you have talent, and yet you're still trying to move under the radar. Keep homing in on your work. Your time is coming."

Hmmm~ :)

Freaking out

2009-03-16T17:48:00.002-06:00

I just sent out my very very first ever query letter!!!!!! And the first ten pages!!! GAH!!! I sent them to Jodi Reamer, who is with Writers House. And if I thought I was scared before, it's nothing compared to what I'm feeling now. I keep thinking about how I could've made my letter better, or my first ten pages more awesome. And all this thinking is going to drive me insane. I need some way to release all of this energy, and some way to make me stop thinking so much about this!!! Ideas, anyone??

But good thing is, I found this blog:

http://apparentlyaprilynne.blogspot.com/2007/01/okay-now-its-officially-officially.html

and her agent is Jodi Reamer, and she gives some really good advice on what to do. I'm so glad I found it!!!

BAH! I'm going insane. Help!

I forgot!

2009-03-12T20:05:00.001-06:00

Whoa, I just barely just now remembered a song that is for Blue!

It goes just before the Kerli song. It's "So in Love with Two," and it's when Jenna doesn't know if she should give Ben or Michael her affections. Aww~ heh heh

Playlist Reader's Guide

2009-03-04T19:33:00.003-07:00

For those of you who have finished reading Book 1, or for those who are in the process of reading it now, I am making a guide as to when/where/how/why songs in the playlist fit in. YAY!

You can refer to this blog entry while you read, won't that be FUN!? I KNOW. :D

**SPOILER ALERT** If you haven't read the book, and don't want the plot to be spoiled, DO NOT read the Playlist Reader's Guide!!!!!

Here goes: (the page numbers refer to Blue_book 1_Master3) <--the third draft

1. The Great Escape: this song is for the Spencer Era, when she thinks everything is going spectacularly. ... heh...

2. Show Me Tha Money: pg 33-34, getting ready for a date~

3. Who Knew?: 69-71ish, the break-up

4. Stranger: referring to Spencer. (what a jerk!)

5. Gone: again, referring to Spencer. Jenna is GONE. out of there! HA!

6. Since U Been Gone: can you guess that these are all break-up songs?

7. Fighter: finally, Jenna realizes that the experience made her stronger. SHe's now a fighter~! (pg 103-104)

8. Crawling: she still needs the rage music sometimes...

9. Happy Ending: yup, Spencer is a carcass fit for hounds.

10. The Garden: just a good song. She was broken up about it, but now...

11. Way Back Into Love: Ben helps her along. awwww~

12. Move Along: another one referring to Ben.

13. Pop Princess: how Ben feels about Jenna sometimes (although it's not from his point of view, this gives a little insight.)

14. Bubbly: Jenna feels so happy with him!

15. Blackbird: pg 139ish. Technically this is in Book 2, but I really like this song, and I listened to it a lot while writing.

16. Cristofori's Dream: another one I listened to a lot to get me in the mood. This goes at the very first time Jenna sees Michael, and probably any other time.

17. January Rain: soothing, eh?

18. (Pride and Prejudice) Credits: I guess this should go at the beginning of the playlist, but... meh. Anything from Pride and Prejudice helped me write that first encounter she had, waking up in the field.

19. Spell: Jenna seems to put spells on anyone she comes across (figuratively, that is). Michael and Ben are both spellbound by her.

20. Somewhere Only We Know: Um, oops, this is probably supposed to be in Book 2.

21. Stand My Ground: When Jenna makes up her mind to tell Ben her secret. (pg 181-182)

22. X&Y: This is from Ben's point of view. Basically the whole time he's with her. And maybe moreso especially at the end: pg 222 and that area, also just in general.

23. Love Is Dead: heh heh heh, this goes at the make-out scene at the charity dinner. Why? Because its drive is PERFECT, and it also foreshadows what both Jenna and Ben are feeling. :D HEH!

24. It Ends Tonight: when Jenna decides Ben is not for her. oh how sad!!

25. **secret song** : I can't tell you what the song is, cuz it will give things away, but it goes at page 247. :D (evil grin!)

26. Roadside: pg 249-251. The break-up. Both still definitely feel things for each other. Hmmm~

Well, that's it! I flippin' love having a soundtrack to the book!

DONE!

2009-02-25T00:29:00.002-07:00

Mom and I just finished editing Book 1!! YAYY! It was really fun reading it out loud to her, because I think a lot more can be gotten from it by the way I intend to have things said. For example, "what?" can be read quite a number of different ways, and mom got to hear firsthand what specific way that was! Isn't that COOL? I KNOW. :D

So next up for reading the now scribbled on and edited firstish draft is Erica, who was halfway done. Then dad, if he's up for it. Then when I go visit Emily, she can read it! And Nathan too, if he wants. (He read the first chapter at Christmastime and that really meant a lot to me.) :)

What's next? Query letters. *shudder* scary!!!!!! ack!

I work on Book 2 almost every day, and think about it CONSTANTLy. It's getting more complicated, and I'm getting frustrated and excited all at the same time. Sometimes I have no idea how I'm going to make something work and tie in and make sense. Then an answer reveals itself. But I hope other people don't find it too predictable. Whatever! I'm not even done yet! bah!

Ben's Car!!

2009-02-23T14:39:00.001-07:00

So I am watching 24 right now, and GUESS WHAT! Jack Bauer just hijacked someone that was driving Ben's Cadillac CTS! WOO! That was exciting~

haha, i am a dork!

Never again!

2009-02-20T19:25:00.003-07:00

Last night I *accidentally* stayed up until 3. I was just writing and filling in more in older stuff, and then...yeah. 3 am said 'hello' and then I said, 'good night!' But apparently my brain wasn't ready to shut down, and I kept going on with the story in my head. It was pretty good, and I thought, "oh man, i do NOT want to start up my laptop AGAIN and write this all down!" I thought, "I'll remember this. I won't forget."

HA. I woke up and had completely forgotten that I had promised myself to not forget. I had no clue! But then, when mom and I did some editing, the thought came to me: "you never wrote down that stuff from last night." And when I tried to remember what it was even about, what it even related to, I couldn't remember a thing!!!!

So later I just sat there, looking at my computer, not knowing when this "brilliant" part was even supposed to happen, and I drew a complete blank. Not until dad was recording downstairs and I was drowning him out with music for Book 2, did it finally come back to me. It was like a shock. Like, "OH."

Never again will I take an idea for granted!!!! From now on, no matter what ungodly hour it is, I will make myself write down anything that comes to me. I have a feeling whenever I've stumbled upon something worth writing down, and last night was one of those, and I did NOTHing! I feel so ungrateful! I've spent the last hour and a half (maybe more) writing. I don't want to forget it again! And even though it wasn't a very happy thing to write, I think I wrote it well and am pleased with it.

Phew! I was so scared that I had lost that part of the book! I'm so glad it came back to me. :)

Edits,edits,edits

2009-02-14T01:30:00.001-07:00

Mom and I finished editing another chapter today. I really like doing that with her, and I'm glad she wants to help! It's exhausting work really.

Baahh!!!

2009-02-04T21:34:00.003-07:00

I just wrote the beginning of the BEST. BETRAYAL/TWIST. EVER.

:D

YEAH! I've written middle bits and end bits, but I finally have the start of it down!!! I'm really proud of myself. ^^ heeee~~!

And more quotes! (Still from Book 1, y'all)

#13

Jenna: "I should've known she'd only try to parade me around."

Oh, so I'm fighting with myself over whether or not a certain character should die or not. It would break my heart if he did, but it would be a very realistic thing to happen. GAH! :(

Return of the Quotes!

2009-02-02T12:09:00.002-07:00

Alright, it's been awhile! Let's see if I can find a good quote for y'all....

#11

Michael: "It is only my life they desire."

Aaaand, because I feel like giving anyone who reads this an extra treat, another quote!

#12

Ben: "How well do you think you could know a person after a mere couple of weeks?"

So Mom and I are working on editing right now. It's fun, but kind of exhausting! And I re-read all of what I have for Book 2. I couldn't help saying, "Did I actually write that? I don't remember..." So I'm glad that I made myself turn on the light, get up out of bed, and write what I had on my mind so many times during the night. If I hadn't, I'd not have very much book written! Oh man, Book 2 ROCKS! I couldn't stop reading it and the last bit took me like 2.5 hours! Geez!

Um! Not good!!

2009-01-25T21:15:00.001-07:00

Finding An Agent

2009-01-24T23:44:00.003-07:00

So guess what--I don't feel like going for anything right now but getting my book published. I feel that is what I'm supposed to do. Just get it out there! So I've been looking online at how to get an agent, how to submit queries and stuff. I went on Stephenie Meyer's Twilight site and was scared/inspired. Read how she did it here:

http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/twilight.html

I suppose the next step is to get in some editing, get to work on writing a mean query that will sell my book and myself to an agent, and have some confidence! Phew~!

Quote

2009-01-22T21:25:00.002-07:00

#10

Ruth: "Believe me, I've been planning what I've wanted to say for twenty two years, and I never thought it would be this hard."

This is supposed to be the last quote, but not everyone has read it! Should I do more? :D

Quote

2009-01-19T15:48:00.000-07:00

#9

Jenna: “I do what I can to keep your male ego down.”

teh heh! oh and I was thinking about posting chapters online. Does anyone know if I can do that through blogger? thanks!

A New Beginning

2009-01-18T01:57:00.001-07:00

Lately I've been not liking my intro. It's not a very good hook, I don't think. So for the past few days I've been wondering how to start it, and this is what I came up with:

Looking down from her perch in the tall oak, Jenna Reilly peered through the leaves and saw the dark ovals of the tops of people’s heads moving beneath her. She shimmied further out on her branch to get a better view when one of the ovals stopped and said, “Should be any time now.”

A lighter colored oval looked to the sun. “Heaven help us.”

Jenna wished she could get closer, so crouched down—a big mistake. She heard the crack of the branch and reached for the one above her just in time. Jenna dangled as the broken tree limb crashed down and landed next to the talking men. They were about to look up at her, but that’s when her alarm pulled her from sleep.

Quote

2009-01-17T14:44:00.000-07:00

#8

Ms. Harper: "I think it would be good to try and cultivate that lioness that seems to have been born inside you."

___

Quote of the Every Two Days!

2009-01-15T00:28:00.002-07:00

#7

Spencer: "There you were, a dazzling sight to behold."

Oh, just so I can get an idea of who reads this, can people to do visit the site put a comment here? Just saying something like 'hi' or whatever. I'd like to know who my audience is besides the couple of family members who check this. :) THanks!

Quote

2009-01-13T00:24:00.000-07:00

#6

Professor Clarke: "Jenna, I couldn’t help noticing that today during class you took it upon yourself to leave our presence for a short time. Mentally speaking that is."

Writing

2009-01-10T11:58:00.002-07:00

Last night I only wrote because I couldn't get my mind off of other things, and ended up staying awake until 3:30... Heh. But I got about 3 pages written, I think! YAY! And they're quite good, if I do say so myself. :D

BUT! All night I kept having dreams about the part that I had just written. And I kept waking up right after it ended. Weird. I never have dreams about my stuff. Heh heh, not that I'm saying it was a bad thing, aheh heh heh. : j

Quote

2009-01-10T11:56:00.002-07:00

#5

Jenna: "I must be really screwed up. Irreversibly and totally screwed up."

GOT HIM!

2009-01-09T15:40:00.005-07:00

HaHA! I just saw a part of an interview on the Bonnie Hunt show, and after a few seconds of watching I was like, "THAT'S HIM!!!!"

Yes, that's right, I have found someone who could do a good job of portraying Spencer No-last-name! (It struck me as very strange, just now as I was typing I tried to think of the last name I had come up with for him and couldn't remember it. So I looked at my character list and realized: he doesn't have one!!! Weird, cuz everyone else has one... How come I didn't ever get around to giving him one...? hmmmm)

Anyways, yup! His hair needs to be a little darker, but yeah! heehee Here's Jensen Ackles!

And a link for another good picture: http://www.teenidols4you.com/blink/Actors/jensen_ackles/jensen_ackles_1185288225.jpg

Quote

2009-01-08T12:02:00.003-07:00

#4

Ben: "And the worst you ever called him was a jerk?? I should've used harsher insults..."

:D

Ben's Car

2009-01-07T00:52:00.003-07:00

So I'd been contemplating what my superfly character should drive, and a little while ago I finally decided! I'd been asking my dad what every single car was that I thought would work as we drove past them, but then one day on my way home from a temp job, I sidled up next to one of these babies. Awwwyyyyyyeah. Yup, I am pretty sure this is what I want Ben's car to be:

It's a Cadillac CTS 2007. That year because the book takes place in 2006, but Ben has the means to get cars before they actually come out. heh heh heh. Oh yes, and the color of his car is dark blue.

Quote

2009-01-06T14:27:00.001-07:00

#3

"You're going to wish you didn't do that."

Last night I wrote a couple pages in Book 2. Quite the accomplishment, I'd say~!

A Face

2009-01-06T01:27:00.006-07:00

So I think I've found a possible face, I guess, for, well, someone. heh.. He's got qualities of two of my characters: Ryon and Michael, but I don't think his face is quite strong enough to be Michael, so he could do Ryon. (In case you're wondering what the heck I'm talking about, I just like to find people/actors who would be good in the roles I have created. I'm not counting on anything being made a movie, I only have ideas on what people would be PERFECT for it. ^^)

Well, here he is: Hugh Dancy. And something else about him--he's from England, so that's a plus. (I watched this movie with him in it, but he played an American, but the whole time I was like, he's GOTTA be from England cuz I can hear an accent sometimes..!! Hehheh, turns out I was SO RIGHT.) I can't have an American play the role of Michael or Ryon! (Or any of the others for that matter, except Jenna and Ben and basically everyone that is 'present day.') Oh, and his hair isn't as red/copper as it's supposed to be, but that can be fixed. ^^

So you all might think he's stupid, but to me he *looks* good for the part, and could act the part well I think. Yeah, this is why I'm afraid to come out with everything. I don't want people to be like, 'oh, man, she thought THAT guy would be good?' or 'is THAT what she's imagining when she writes this stuff?' ...... yeah...... whatever. I hate defending myself like that. I know not everyone will like what I write. like I know that people got mad about who was playing Edward Cullen for Twilight. "Ewww, HIM??? Are they CRAZY?" But hey, this is me, saying, "you wanna know what's in my head? here's a taste." No one will ever be able to recreate what I've imagined, but I hope people get close. I'm just trying to help it be as real for the readers as it is for me. And by real I mean made of awesome.

yup

: j

Quote of the Every-Two-Days-or-so

2009-01-04T12:28:00.002-07:00

#2:

"Their faces...have the darkness."

haha, where I got this line is a funny story, but I can save it for later.

Quote of the Every-Two-Days?

2009-01-02T20:38:00.003-07:00

So I was thinking that I would post lines from my first book here to get people more interested in reading, or something. (Stephenie Meyer has done with this with the Twilight series.) When I have at least 10 lines/quotes from Book 1, or when everyone is finished with Book 1, I will post lines/quotes from Book 2. Yyyaaaay.

One thing I can say for Book 2 though.. I've never been able to get to sleep quickly, and so I always think about something beforehand and for the past two-three years my before-sleep thoughts have been about my characters. And recently, let me tell ya, my characters will NOT. SHUT. UP. Especially two of them in particalar, jeez. I only hope that that will make the final product that much better. I usually let the characters babble/fight/talk for awhile before I finally get up (surrender really) and write down what they've done or said. :) Aaaaand that's why my schedule is so terrible. I start trying to sleep at maybe 1 am, but by the time I finish writing what I want to, sometimes it's like... 5 am. And when that happens, I look at the clock and say, "oh... oops."

Okay! So let me search for a nice good quote of the every two days or so.............................

"She keeps the bait dangling, always high or low enough to keep you interested."

--should I tell you who says it? hmmmm, maybe sometimes yes, sometimes no. This time...no. ^^

Book 2?

2008-12-26T10:22:00.003-07:00

As some of you know, this is a series. Like four books in the series kind of series. WHOA. And as some of you know, to end Book 1, I had to stop and cut it off in a certain place because that was the best place to end Book 1. SO! After I cut off and ended Book 1, I automatically had like 70 pages written for Book 2! Cool huh? But now the thing is, I have finally written a beginning to Book 2 and melded that to the already written pages and I've got 76ish pages for it! I've been reading my progress to Mel (cuz she's the only one who's finished the official hard copy of Book 1) and shes's liking it. YAY!

But ANOTHER thing is, there aren't just 76 pages for Book 2!! I've written bits of the ending out because I couldn't hold it in any longer and there is more like 105 pages written! WOO! Let me tell ya, Book 2 is gonna be AWESOME. I know most of you haven't read the first book yet, but yeah! In my opinion, comparatively, the second book is SO MUCH BETTER than the first. And I haven't even finished writing it yet!!! :D

You've probably guessed by now, and if you haven't...um, wow.

2008-12-25T00:40:00.001-07:00

Look behind Humphrey's First Christmas!!!

Merry Christmas!

Love,

Julie

About the playlist

2008-12-13T03:26:00.005-07:00

I hope you listen to this playlist and enjoy it. Some songs I wish I could put IN my book at certain parts where it actually mentions that song, and like, you could push a button on the page of the book and it would play that song and you could listen to it and read what's happening at the same time. A lot of the songs are meant to go along with the book like that. Like "Love Is Dead" is to be listened to and played at the charity dinner part. (The words and the driving feeling of that song tie in perfectly!)

You'll notice that some music from Pride and Prejudice is on the playlist (actually, it's just listed under "credits"). I listened to that a lot while writing, and also Cristofori's Dream and other songs like it--ya know, the Jim Brickman, David Lanz type stuff.

There's one song that I can't put on the playlist yet, and that's because it gives away too much of the very secret plot! But don't worry, by the endish of the second book, I'll let you know what that song is. It's SO GOOD. LOVE IT.

One song that I can't find is Griet's Theme, by Alexandre Desplat. It's from the movie "Girl With A Pearl Earring" and I love how mysterious it sounds. If I could choose a song that is great for the beginning parts of this book where she's figuring everything out, that would be it.

Blog for a book I hope gets published someday!

Queries Galore!

NaNoWriMo!

New query

Queries

Book 2

REQUEST FOR MORE!

New Query

Publisher's Weekly

Just keep swimming

What??

No Excuse!

Dream-->Book

Good news and Writers Group!

It's Emma!

ReJECTion

Query Shark

*Gasp!!!*

Filler

And they shall meet in the middle

A Letter?!?!

Clothes

Lately..

I made a slideshow!

Character Lookalikes (to some extent)

The Book Thief

Maureen Johnson on How to Get An Agent

Just some stuff

:(

Hearing Back...

Reading

Alright, I'm gonna post chapters, people! (sorry about the spacing... Blogger..)

Thank you Erica!

Progress

My Query Letter

Interesting

Freaking out

I forgot!

Playlist Reader's Guide

DONE!

Ben's Car!!

Never again!

Edits,edits,edits

Baahh!!!

Return of the Quotes!

Um! Not good!!

Finding An Agent

Quote

Quote

A New Beginning

Quote

Quote of the Every Two Days!

Quote

Writing

Quote

GOT HIM!

Quote

Ben's Car

Quote

A Face

Quote of the Every-Two-Days-or-so

Quote of the Every-Two-Days?

Book 2?

You've probably guessed by now, and if you haven't...um, wow.

About the playlist

Gasp!!!