Pressure Points

Anyone remember Blurred Lines? The first book I completed a first draft of? And remember when I said it was going to be a trilogy?

Book Two, Pressure Points, is officially in the works!

I figured to celebrate I would release a working cover and blurb. Keep in mind that the synopsis may morph as writing continues.

Gwen Scott, Sam Richardson, and Chris Quinn brought down the government. They were trying to take over the world, so they deserved it.

Now, an EMP has wiped out all electronics, Gwen has been missing for two months, and there's talk of a group trying to take back control of the country.

Sam, Chris, and the crew must make unpredictable alliances to find Gwen.

Gwen must face the biggest betrayal she's ever experienced, all the while trying to protect everything she cares about most.

Thoughts? I'm terrible at blurbs. The cover photo is actually one my mom took when we visited Galveston beach this summer. I used a couple of apps on my phone to over-lay a sniper sights picture and words. Jo Ellen is my working pen name. It's subject to change if I think of something I like better.

Pressure Points will feature almost every character from Blurred Lines in some way, shape, or form. Even if it's just a mention. I tend to write books with large casts, but there will only be 3-4 main characters and only three main POVs.

Two and a half chapters and 3,000 words in, I think it's going well so far. 

Let me know what you think of the cover and the story in the comments! Also, what do you think of the pen name? Any other suggestions? I would like "Jo" to be in it somewhere because it's my online nickname.

I'm Back!

Hey guys, it's been a while! Life's been...well, it's been life. A little crazy, a little stressful, a little great. For months now I've been saying, "I need to blog!" and something else always demand my attention before I can post something. Today I said, "I am going to blog today." I'm finding that it works much better than saying I "need" to.

So, I got accepted to Colorado Christian University. People keep saying, "That's really far! It's in Colorado right?" To which I reply, "Yes, it's far, Duh, It's in Colorado. It is called Colorado Christian University. And I'm attending their online program. I never even have to set foot in Colorado." Isn't that amazing? I love online college. I'll be majoring in Criminal Justice with a focus on Criminology.

I also graduated in May! A whole year early. It was exciting. And terrifying. I attended a home school graduation in Searcy, AR. I was a certified paralegal before I even received my diploma. I'd been taking online paralegal classes since January. Last week I finished my last Advanced Paralegal final. I'll be getting the certificate soon.

I also got three new puppies. Ruby Jade was my graduation present. Sammy Dean was my mom's Mother's day present. River Rose is my "hey you've got a job and can pay for your own stuff now" present. I'm still paying for her. They're all little sweeties! Yorkies all under five pounds (River's actually not even three pounds).

I also got a job. I'm a paralegal's assistant at a local law firm. The extra money is nice!

I turn 18 in October. I am holding on to my childhood for dear life. I'm still stuck between wanting to be an adult and have an apartment and a career and all that and wanting to be a "kid" and watch Disney movies while curled up in my floral bedspread and never get up. And chocolate milk. And mac & cheese. I'm not giving those up either!

We went on a youth group trip to Eureka Springs to see the Passion Play and go to the Holy Land tour. It was so amazing!!

 Pictures and Selfies with Jesus!:D 

A Word From The Bus

I'm coming to you live from the church bus on the interstate on the way to WINTERJAM!!!!!!!!!!!! As my youth group is make sure everyone gets a selfie with everyone (some of them are seriously hilarious), I once again come to the realization that I have the best youth group in the universe!:D We all piled in the bus, took our selfies, and are jamming to kLove radio ready for a night full of fun and worship. We made a silent vow not to complain about how loud the bus is and trust our youth pastor not to drive too crazy;P Pictures will come soon! The bumps are making it hard to type on my phone. Excuse any typosXD If any of you have been to Winterjam or are possibly there tonight, let me know!!:D

Beautiful People #6: Love Is In The Air

February's Beautiful People linkup is about love and shipping!:D It's hosted by Cait and Sky.

And I'm seriously beginning to think there's something wrong with my blog because the button never works. Anywho! I'm going to do this for two different stories: My NaNo novel, Blurred Lines, and for a short story I'm writing. The Blurred Lines characters are Gwen and Sammy. The short story characters are Nate and Ruby. A little background on the stories: Blurred Lines: Gwen is a private investigator. Sammy is an ex-FBI agent trying his hand at private investigating. They both decide to pursue a case and meet at one of the houses of a victim's family. Short story (I need a name for itXD): I used a writing prompt for this. The writing is that every person is born with a countdown on their wrist counting down to when they meet their soulmate. 1. How long have they been a couple? Gwen and Sammy: At the end of BL, they've been together or literally only a few days. At the end of the second book, Pressure Points, it's been either a year, or a year and a half. not sure yet. Nate and Ruby: Technically, they're not an official couple yet. But they're soulmates, so they will be and it totally countsXD 2. How did they first meet? Gwen and Sammy: Gwen showed up at the house of a possible murder victim's family. She was impersonating a Federal agent. She shows up at the house and the woman tells her that the "other agent" was already there. It turns out to be private investigator Sammy, who is also impersonating a Fed. Sammy gets extremely nervous because he thinks he's busted. When they leave the house Gwen tells him she knows he's not a Fed and he figures out that she's not either. He suggests they investigate together and Gwen shoots him downXD Nate and Ruby: Well, Nate is a detective with the London PD and was working a case with his supervisor, Remy. They go to a possible hideout and find Ruby who had been kidnapped. Let me rephrase that: Nate finds Ruby while Rem is chasing he bad guy. Nate and Ruby both realize that their countdowns stopped. 3. What were their first thoughts of each other? (Love at first sight or "you're freakishly annoying"?) Gwen and Sammy: Sammy thought she was cute and wanted to get to know her better. Gwen thought he was annoying and didn't want anything to do with him. Nate and Ruby: Ruby thought it was too good to be true. Nate thought she was adorable because she kept blushing and getting a little embarrassed. He also thought she was gorgeous. 4. What do they do that most annoys each other? Gwen and Sammy: I'm not sure Gwen does anything that really annoys Sammy. I mean, he gets upset when she's being hard on herself, but I don't know that that really annoys him. Sammy likes to tease and cut up and that sometimes annoys Gwen, depending on her mood that day. Nate and Ruby: I haven't decided this yet. 5. Are their personalities opposite or similar? Gwen and Sammy: They're not total opposites, but they're pretty different. Gwen blames herself for every bad thing that happens to herself and the people around her where Sammy is more like, "If there wasn't anything I/you could do then there was nothing I/you could do." Sammy's is also really outgoing and likes to joke around and everything. Gwen likes to joke, but only with people she knows. She's a bit more reserved. Nate and Ruby: Nate and Ruby are considerably more different (starting out) than Gwen and Sammy. Nate is more of a confident (dare I say, borderline arrogant) guy who wouldn't have any problems with the ladies if it wasn't for the whole soulmate countdown thing. Ruby is a blusher who is really shy until she gets to know you. Unless you're, you know, her soulmate. Then she'll do that a little, but not over every little thing. She's not as shy with Nate as she is with most people, but she still is a little. 6. How would their lives be different without each other? Gwen and Sammy: As sad as it is, Gwen would probably be dead without Sammy. She'll never admit it, but if he wasn't around to save her life, she would be dead. Sammy would probably be fine if he never met Gwen because he's not the type that needs somebody. Gwen likes to think she's not either, but if she were to go through all the events of BL without Sammy, she would have died during one of the small climaxes. Nate and Ruby: This is a hard one to answer with the whole soulmate thing. So, I'm going to answer ti as if the questions is talking about if one of them died before they met. So, say Ruby died before Nate met her: his countdown would have stopped on a number instead of zero. he would have asked Rem about it and he would haven told him that that means his soulmate has died and he would be forced to live out the rest of his life without ever getting married or falling in love or anything. A few days later Ruby's body would have turned up. They would have found out that her and Nate's countdowns ended on the same number and Rem would have let Nate go see her. *insert sad scene here*. If Nat had died before they met: her countdown would have stopped, she would have found out why. When she got kidnapped, Rem would have found her. Maybe she would have asked Rem if a man had died at that exact moment. He would have looked into it and realized that was when Nate died. He would have told her and told her all about him. Maybe they would have remained friends or something after that. She would never fall in love or anything. 7. Are they embarrassed of each other? Gwen and Sammy: Definitely not. Sammy loves letting everybody know who his girl is and Gwen feels the same. Nate and Ruby: Not in the slightest. They were matched perfectlyXD 8. Does anyone disapprove of their relationship? Gwen and Sammy: Not a first, but after a certain part in the sequel to BL, a ton of people hate Sammy. She and Sammy split up, but after everything is cleared up they get back together. Several of Gwen's friends disapprove of this. They keep it quiet around Gwen, but one of them confronts Sammy and tells him that if he ever hurts Gwen like that again he'll regret ever meeting her to begin with. Nate and Ruby: Not a single person. But, with the whole soulmate hing, who could? I mean, it's kind of set in stone that those two are going to be together. 9. Do they see their relationship as long-term/leading to marriage? Gwen and Sammy: Definitely. They may have had the extremely rough patch, but, in the end, they love each other and they know they want to get married one day. Nate and Ruby: Do I even need to answer this question? 10. If they could plan the "perfect outing" together, where would they go? Gwen and Sammy: Um..Gwen really likes to travel, so they'd probably go out of the country. Not really an "outing", but Gwen's hard to pleaseXD She'd be happy with a trip to the beach. She's never been to the beach before. She also really loves hiking. Sammy is basically happy as long as he's with Gwen. Gwen and Sammy would probably agree on either a trip to the beach or a hiking trip. Nate and Ruby: Well, for one, Ruby would just be happy if they could get through one date without Nate having to run out and go to work for something. The perfect outing for them would probably be walking along the beach by the Thames in London barefoot and having a picnic. Then riding the Eye of London. Then they'd go back to Ruby's flat and she would coerce Nate into watching a Disney movie with her and singing all the songs with her. Nate would never admit it, but the movies were always his favorite part. Mainly because he loved watching her get all excited and he loved how every time she watched the movie it was like she'd never see it before. That was fun!:D Well, except for the question about what they'd do without each other.   So, who likes writing relationships? What kinds of relationships do you like writing?

January Closure

Exciting things happened in my life last month. January is usually the month known for "new beginnings." This year January was the month of new stuff in general for me.

I started my first session of online college classes this month! I'm almost done with week two. They're paralegal classes and I'm actually enjoying myself quite a bit! Funny story, though: At the beginning of week one I made my reading schedule for that week. I divided all the reading up evenly between Monday-Friday and planned to take my test and do the other couple of assignments on Saturday. I told my mom about my plan and she helpfully reminded me that we were going to laser tag with our youth group that Saturday. Each week starts on Monday and that weeks assignments are due on the following Sunday by midnight. We didn't have church Sunday night, so I decided to do it then in between Sunday morning service and praise team practice. I worked from 2:00-3:50 pm and then from 6:00-11:00 pm. I barely got it sent in on time. Mom said if I could do that much that fast I could do anything this course threw at meXD

I STARTED POSTING ON WATTPAD! You can find me by searching my username, AWriterWrites or by searching my first story, Emphasize on Real! I'll be posting, at the very least, monthly, but I'm trying to post weekly with a week off every now and then.

Mom and I redecorated my room!! We've still got the finishing touches to add, so no pictures yet, but they're coming soon!

Mom and I are starting a business! We're going to be representatives for Premiere Jewelry. We signed up and ordered all of our stuff! We had our training show and did pretty good! We already have a couple show booked for this month. Exciting stuff here, people!

We got me signed up for the homeschool graduation that I want to participate in and ordered all my invitations, cap and gown, and a few other things:) I designed my cap and just have to get the stuff to decorate it!:D It's finally setting in that I'm graduating in 5 months!

I don't think I forgot anything. January was one exciting month for me! I can't wait to see what the rest of the year will bring!

17 Things I Don't Think You Know About Me

Let me start by saying Cait over at Paper Fury gets full credit for the idea for this post. She posted a 21 things you probably don't know about me post and asked for her readers to share things. I figured it would be easier to make a blog post than to post 17 things in the commentsXD

I chose 17 because I'm 17. If you know these things about me it's probably because you're either a creepy stalker or you know me (whether in real life or we're online friends);P

So, without further ado:

17 Things I Don't Think You Know About Me

1. I like hats. I own 3 fedoras, like 10 beanies, 5 saggy beanies, 2 baseball cap style hats, and four nicer hats with bills like a baseball cap. Fedoras are my favorite. 

2. I sing. And play piano. And guitar. I'm basically just a musical person. I play piano and sing (occasionally) in our church praise team and I sing in the church choir. I dabble in guitar. I know like 10 chords, 3 strumming patterns, and 1 picking patternXD 

3. I've owned a lot of animals in my life time. At least 5 fish, 10 different dogs, and at one point I had 6 hamsters. I have to tell that storyXD Me and my brother did a very amazing job at convincing my parents to let us each get a hamster. Seriously, we had it worked out where they only had to pay for the hamster itself, not the food or wood chips or toys or treats or environment or anything! We had graphs and I even made it a school project with charts and research and I was rather proud of myself.So we convinced them. My brother and I bought all the stuff and then we went to the local pet store to get our hamsters. Just a little background, this isn't a nice store. It looks like  dump from the outside and stinks horribly on the inside and it's all disorganized and everything, but the people are really nice and helpful so we like giving them our business. I told the lady I wanted a female, but made sure to stress that I DID NOT want a pregnant one. What happens? A couple weeks after we get it we figure out that it's pregnant. It had 5 babies. We sold 4 babies and the mother and I kept a baby. I also (right after the hamster died) got a pink beta fish and named it Calypso after the girl in Pirates of the Caribbean. We currently own a female mini poodle named Mitzie and a male Yorkie named Chesterfield, but we call him Chester. We love them:) Mitzie get her name because her she's got black fur, but her paws are white. My brother suggested Mittens, but I refused because Mittens sounded too much like a cats name to 3rd grader meXD So, dad came up with a name that was a compromise: Mitzie. I wanted to name Chester Jesse insteadXD We were deliberating on names the night before we went to get him and I suggested Jesse, but everyone else didn't like it. Dad came up with Chesterfield. I guess he's the dog namer of the familyXD I still say Chester looks like a Jesse.

4. I'm a bit of a fashionista. Now, don't take that as I like to keep up with the latest trends. Some trends I like, but some I hate. I'm big into leather and canvas jackets and combat boots. And plaid button downs. I basically dress like I'm gonna see someone important even if we're just running to walmartXD

5. I love thrift store shopping/antique store shopping/yard saleing. There's a town about an hour away with a ton of antique/thrift stores and we go there all the time! Even if I don't get anything it's fun to just go and look.

6. One of my ultimate (realistic) career goals is to work for the FBI in the White Collar division. Seriously, my dream is the chase some big name conman or heister or something and finally put them behind bars!

7. One of my ultimate (unrealistic) career goals is to be an actress. I know, I know, every girl dream of being an actress. I've held on to that dream for like 10 yearsXD

8. I don't want to go off to college. Call me crazy, but the idea doesn't really appeal to me.

9. I want to learn how to play the cello. I LOVE the cello and want to learn so bad! But I have no one to teach me.

10. I wrote a small book (like 7 pages) before I even knew how to write. I dictated it to my mom and she type it up. I even drew my own illustrationsXD I think I was in preschool or something. So I barely knew how to read.

11. I think I was born in the wrong decade. I should have been born in the 50s. That or medieval times. But only if I lived in the castle (whether as a cook, maid, or princessXD).

12. I have this weird fascination with England. Seriously, I've been obsessed since I was like in 2nd grade. I think it started after I watched Harry Potter for the first time when I heard them talk. I didn't do what most little kids would do and said they talked funny. Instead I tried mimicking it because I though it was cool and over the years I've perfected it.

13. I've never been to the beach. And I have no problems with that. Honestly, I don't think I would even get in the water. I don't get in the lake when we go, so I doubt I would get in the ocean.

14. I am not a sporty person. At all. I can't even hardly throw a freaking ball! Seriously! Definitely not a football. And when I try running I usually always hurt my ankle unless I
m wearing a certain type of shoes. I avoid sports at all costs.

15. When I was little (like around 7 all the way up to now) I was more interested in doing well in school and going to an ivy league college than being rich and famous. Yes, I did say I've wanted to be an actress for a long time, but I always said that if I seriously wanted to do that I would go to college first and get a degree to fall back on in case acting didn't work out. I still think that way.

16. I don't like surprises. At all. Like, not even surprise parties or when dad goes to the store and come back and surprises us with candy or something. I just don't like it.

17. I'm actually a pretty shy person. I don't really start conversations unless I have a question to ask or I know the person really well. That's only in person, though. Online I'm not really shy at all. And when I'm with my mom I'm not really that shy, When I'm with my mom we're kind of the life of the partyXD

Well, hopefully that was at least a little interestingXD If not, oh wellXD It was hard coming up with 17 facts about me, though. I always feel like I'm boring when I talk about myself.

I'd love to hear somethings about you guys!

Things To Come In 2015

I put up six posts in December. SIX POSTS!!!!! For most of 2014 I did good to blog once every month. True, two of the posts were agonizingly short with my burst of excitement at finishing my book, then my Christmas post was maybe 20 words and several pictures, but still. SIX TIMES!!!! I know I have a problem blogging regularly. But, the first step to solving a problem is admitting you have one. So, again,

I try to make excuses and tell myself (and other people) that I'm too busy and don't have time to put a post up every week. 

I published 33 posts last year. That averages to roughly 2 posts a month. It actually comes out to 2.75, so I guess it would be properly rounded to 3 posts a month. but they were extremely sporadic. Here's my 2014 monthly post count:

January: 4 posts

February: 2 posts

March: 1 posts

April: 2 posts

May: 2 posts

June: 1 posts

July: 1 post

August: 3 posts

September: 4 posts

October: 5 posts

November: 2 posts

December: 6 posts

In the Summer, when I have the most time to blog, I blogged the least. The two months before and after NaNoWriMo I blogged the most, but I hardly blogged during NaNo (because I'm busy trying to write 50,000 words in a monthXD). I was actually surprised to find I blogged at least once a month. This year I want to vow to post at least twice a month! But I need your help!

I have a couple things you can do me for:D Because I know you guys love me and want to help any way you can;P

1. Comment. This is a given. Every Blogger feeds off their comments. Even if it's a simple, "Loved the post, Jordan!" (is it just me or it is weird to type your own name?XD)

2. If it's getting towards the end of the month and I haven't gotten two posts up, say something! Kick me into gear (virtually;P)! 

3.  Umm...yeah, I have nothing to put here.

I will do this! Two posts a month! That's not too hard! I can do that! And I am appalled at the lack of Supernatural pics I can find for various parts of this post. Am I doing something wrong, seasoned Bloggers?

My question for you: What do you want to see more of on the blog? What kind of posts do you like seeing? What posts do you want me to try out for the first time? Anything you think I need to cut from the blog (post subject-wise)?

Recap for 2014 and Goals for 2015

Happy New Year's Eve!!

I did a New Year's resolutions post here last year and let me just say, it didn't go wellXD I completed a grand total or zero of my writing goals! I completed six out of eight of my personal goals and two out of two musical goals. That's eight out of eighteen goals. I'd say I failed miserablyXD Some of the goals I'm most proud of myself for completing are:

- Making a new friend (that I talk to outside of church). I completed this. I talk to my youth group on out group text all the timeXD and I text this other girl from youth group on a pretty much daily basis. I also have an online friend that I e-mail daily. I think I did pretty good:)

- Try to get over some of the introverted-ness. Done. I am now almost completely ok with meeting new people, which is huge. I still don't talk a ton if I don't know someone, but I'm better than I was last year!

- I GOT MY DRIVER'S LICENSE!  AND A CAR!!

- I went to at least one new city/town/state. Gatlinburgh! So much fun!

Some of exciting things I've done this year:

- I turned 17! 

- I got a car and my license (yes, I know that's listed above. It's worth mentioning twiceXD).

- I FINISHED A NOVEL FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!!!!!!!!

- I WON NANOWRIMO FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!!!!!

- I figured out what I want to do with my life.

- I started shadowing a paralegal at a law office and went to court with them a couple of time.

- I decided to be an overachiever and graduate a year early. I'll be graduating in May:D

- I took the ACTs for the first time AND MADE 26 (for those who don't know, a 26 is amazing for a first time! The average score for first-timers is a 18-22).

Now for my goals for 2015!

Writing Goals

1. Do some edits to my first completed novel, Blurred Lines.

2. Outline and write book 2, Pressure Points.

3. Finish plotting my trilogy, The Trying Times Trilogy (Blurred Lines and Pressure Points are the first 2 books).

Personal Goals

1. Graduate.

2. Get my paralegal license and my Investigations license.

3. Start college majoring in Criminology.

4. Possibly get a job as a paralegal or something like that.

5. Visit one new city, town, or state (yes, this makes the list again this year! We're considering going to New Orleans!:D)

Musical Goals

1. Perform at church more.

2. Learn a few new songs.

3. Compose my own piece.

And there you it! I went a little less ambitious this yearXD But that's still eleven new goals! Wish me luck, blogosphere!

Tell me: what goals do you have for 2015? What exciting things happened in 2014?

Christmas Haul 2014

It's that time of year! Tis' the season of Christmas haul posts from tons of blogger.

Here's most of the new crew all together. It's not all of it, Just the favorite (minus the gifts I get from my best friend's whom I haven't been able to get together with).

Pictured to the right is the Maze Runner DVD from my parents which I 200% loved! It was way better than I expected! To the left is a Frozen necklace and two bracelets from a friend and a pink cross necklace from my grandma.

<--That's what I like to call my "Cass Keychain" from my grandma and grandpa. When I opened it I looked at mom (who is also a Supernatural fan) and said, "A Cass keychain!!" And nail polish from my mom because I've been eyeballing the Sally Hansen fuzzy coat for a while and I love glitter polishXD

Ok, so, anyone who knows me knows Disney is the best thin ever in my eyesXD All the Disney stuff came form the same friend that bought me the Frozen necklace. I love it all!! Disney and snow globes are 2 of my favorite things and those two things combined are the best everXD

LOOK AT THE PRETTY VANS!!!!!!!! I am officially part of the Vans club in my youth groupXD There are three of usXD These are my first pair and I've already bought a second pairXD Those, the comforter, and the 28" Vizio Smart TV are from my parents. Would it been immature to put "#Love"?XD

This is something my grandpa picked out for me. It's made of paper beads! So cool!

Not pictured: 

-$40 worth of sonic cards (I love you Mom and DadXD But it'd swear you're trying to make me fatXD)

- Candy (like I said, my parents are trying to make me fatXD)

- $100 from my Aunt and Uncle (Ya'll are the best!) (even though you'll never see thisXD)

- $50 from my grandparents (same set that bought me all that stuff up thereXD)

I used some of the money for the nice, pretty boxed set of The Maze Runner series. The rest is going towards a completely redecorated room for myselfXD Mom and Dad bought the comforter, they're getting the paint, and dad's building me hanging box shelves. I just have to buy wall decor!!:D Pictures will be posted! I might even vlog;P Maybe. 

So, I know you guys are dying to spill it: What did you get for Christmas? DO you like my things (because I love it when people faun over my stuffXD)? And now, the burning question: should I vlog?

Have Yourself a Nerdy Little Christmas!

Ok, instead of a big, drawn out thing I'm just going to say Merry Christmas and leave you with these cute little things!:)

That one's my favorite;P

Merry Christmas!

Beautiful Books Linkup #3: Let's Talk Editing

The Beautiful Book linkup is hosted by Cait and Sky on their blogs. It's a linkup they created for writer bloggers to talk about their books. Part one was in October for planning and plotting. Part two took place in November, the month of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and was on writing that first draft. This is part 3 and it's on editing.



Let's get started, shall we?:)

1. On a scale of 1 (worst) to 10 (best) how well do you think this book turned out?
Maybe this is a little unrealistic, but I'm going to say a 6 or 7!

2. Have you ever rewritten or edited one of your books before? If so, what do you do to prepare yourself? If not, what's your plan?
I'm definitely not rewriting! My first draft doesn't need that much major work. Just mainly little corrections.

3. What's your final wordcount? Do you plan to lengthen of trim your book?
51,173 words. Lengthen. Definitely lengthen. I need more description and internal talking to balance out the mountain of dialogueXD

4. What are you most proud of? Plot, characters, or pacing?
Umm...I'm pretty proud of the plot, but I'm probably most proud of the characters. Even the side characters that only get to be in like 1 chapter.

5. What's your favorite bit of prose or line from this from this novel?
Let's see, I really like my last line. It's a recording being aired to the whole world. Maybe it won't give away the whole plotXD

“Essentially it’s a plan for world domination one continent at a time. The end game is to rule the world.”

And this little speech from Gwen to the villain:

“I’m here to burn your kingdom down.” I lifted my eyes from the card house I was building to peer at Silverton.

"Do you honestly think three misfits stand a chance up against the government?"

"Not as a whole, no, but the government is like a house of cards. All it takes is one. Little. Blow." With that I blew on the house of cards I was building and the whole thing tumbled.

“You don’t scare me.”

“Good. That means you’ll underestimate us. Which is good for me because I’m not afraid of you.”

“How do you know you won’t underestimate me?”

“Because I know exactly how far you’re willing to go to stop us.”

“And how far is that?”

“I think you’d go tell some government person that’s not in your little scheme everything in exchange for immunity. Or you’d just omit the little part about how you manipulated, threatened, and murder people.”

“See, that’s where you have underestimated me. I didn’t just murder, threatened, and manipulate people. I was the brains of the whole operation. I orchestrated every detail. And I got every government official, including FBI, CIA, DOD, and all the other annoying initials, in the East in on it.”

“I know. I just needed you to admit it.”

I have a ton more, but I'll stop thereXD

6. What aspect of your book needs the most work?
Probably the description.

7. What aspect of your book is your favorite?
Character, hands down!!!:D

8. How are your characters? Well-rounded, or do they still need to be fleshed out?
I think they're pretty well-rounded, but they still need a little bit of work. Not much, but some.

9. If you had to do it over again, what would you change about the whole process?
I'm really not sure. I'm pretty happy with how it went.

10. Did anything happen in your book that completely surprised you? Have any scenes or characters turned out differently to what you planned? Good or bad?
Yes! my characters dyed their hair halfway through (all 3 of the main ones!). It totally messed me up when I forgot to writing it into my character profiles. And I almost forgot to add one major plot twistsXD And Walter (my characters' hack and tech guy) decided he didn't know how to do this one thing, which delayed the ending. And Sammy turned out a bit different than I planned. And so did Gwen. And Chris. And I added this one character spur of the moment and fell in love with him, but he only got to be featured one chapter. So he shall return in book 2!

11. What was the theme and message? D you think it came across? If not, is there anything you could do to bring it out more?
No matter how bad of a person you think you are, you can change.
And
Sometimes you might have to "break the rules" to get the right thing done.
And
Don't trust the government.
And
Never investigate a series of deaths within the government. Bad things will happen.
I think all of those came across pretty wellXD

12. Do you like writing with a deadline (like NaNoWriMo) or do you prefer to write-as-it-comes?
I prefer a deadline. If I don't have a deadline I might not write for a whole week!

13. Comparative title time! What published books, movies, or TV shows are like your book? (Ex: Inkheart meets X-Men, etc.)
If you take the secret society (Hydra) and Bucky from Captain America 2 you have a bit of the future of the story. But I can't for the life of me think of anything right now! Oh! My MC's "team" later on reminds me of the Leverage team a bit!

14. How do you celebrate a finished novel?!
I text/e-mail all of the friends who knew I was working on the story and get all smile-y and happy and type in all caps and seriously overuse exclamation marks and smiley facesXD

15. When people are done reading your book, what feeling do you want them to come away with?
Desperation for book 2!XD Haha I really don't know. I know I want them to remember all the things Sammy tells Gwen when she's being down on herself. All the encouragement he gives her.

And there you have it!!:D I'm pretty much in love with this book!

ATTENTION!!! ATTENTION! IMPORTANT NOVEL ANNOUNCEMENT!

I JUST FINISHED A NOVEL FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!!!!!

I'm still in shock, I think.
I never did a "NaNo wrap up" post on it because I was so close to finishing it that I wanted to wait. I can do it now!:D Maybe this coming weekXD I'm too busy celebrating right nowXD

Best Blogging Buddies Award

I was tagged for this award by two different people, so I'm going to answer all thirty questions in one post. I was tagged by Ginny @ Spirit Working In Me and Rachel @ Secret Scribblings.

Rules:
1). You must make a post to show your award on your main blog.
2). You must tag the person who nominated you in your post.
3). You must nominate all of your best buddies, and those whom you want to become best buddies with, who, to your knowledge, have not been nominated, for this award.
4). You must ask your buddies at least 15 questions on your post.
5). You must answer all of the questions your buddies ask you. On your post.

Now, question set #1 is from Ginny!
1). Sweet tea or Lemonade? 
Umm...Can I say both? Because I love both. But, I drink more water than anything.

2). What's your favorite era? 
The 50s, hands down!!! 

3). French Fries or Onion Rings? 
French Fries! No doubt about it! I'm addicted to french fries!

4). What's your favorite band?
Right now it's Imagine Dragons or For King and Country. As for individual artist: Lauren Daigle or Plumb.

5).Which is worse? Having a sore throat or stuffy nose?
Stuffy nose! Ugh!
 
6). What's your favorite NFL team? 
Umm......I don't watch football. But, my youth pastor loves the Steelers and my pastor loves the Cowboys. 

7). Cream cheese or cottage cheese? 
Cottage cheese is one of the grossest things ever! Does that answer your question?

8). Crab or Shrimp? 
Neither. I hate any and all seafood. 

9). History or Science? 
History. But even though I like it more than science, I still don't like it unless I have a teacher who makes it interestingXD

10). Leading or Following? 
I'm a little of both. It depends on my mood and who I'm around.

11). Beef or Pork? 
That is a really hard one. I eat mainly chicken and turkey meat because it's healthier, but I do love steak and BBQ. Hmm...I'm not even going to try to pick oneXD

12). Pencil or Pen? 
It depends on what I'm going to be doing. If I'm writing very much at one time, a pencil. If I'm working out a problem: pencil. If I'm planning a novel or editing, I want a pen.

13). Pizza or Fried Chicken? 
Another really hard one!!!!!!! Umm.....Don't make me choose!!

14). Divergent or The Fault In Our Stars? 
I haven't read either, soooo.....

15). Flip flops or Sandals?
Flip flops! 

Now set #2 from Rachel!
1). What is your favorite book from your childhood?
Ummm...I LOVED the Magic Treehouse Books and the Junie B. Jones, First Grader books and Cam Jensen Mysteries and tons of others. OH!! A Series of Unfortunate Events! I LOVED THOSE!!!!!! I was an avid reader as a child (Spoiler Alert: I still am!)

2). What is your method for keeping track of your writing ideas? (e.g., I have mine all categorized in a three-ring binder.)
Most of the time I type the vague ideas into the notes app on my phone.

3). Have you ever participated in any writing contests (e.g. NaNoWriMo, 100/100), and how did you do?
I've done NaNo 3 times. I lost the first 2 times and won this year!!!!!:D I did 100 for 100 once and did pretty good with it.

4). Tea of coffee (or hot chocolate)?
Tea or Hot Chocolate (but only with the caramel ice cream topping in it)! I hate coffee!

5). Have you ever traveled outside your country? Where?
NoDX I really want to go to England and Australia! I have step cousins and a blogging friend in Australia, so I really want to go there! And I want to go to England so bad because I swear I should have been born BritishXD

6). How long have you been blogging? Is this your first blog?
I've been blogging for about 3 years and yes, this is my first blog.

7). Where do you usually do most of your writing?
Either in my room at my desk or in the recliner in the denXD

8). Of all the characters you've ever written, who is your favorite and why?
Hmm.....Either Midnight from Midnight Run (NaNo '13) or Sammy from Blurred Lines (NaNo '14). Midnight is a very strong individual and I admire her for that (I know I wrote her, but she sort of took on a ind of her own), but she's not afraid to break down when things get bad. She gets scared and she cries and she breaks, but it doesn't make her look weak. And she's very good under pressure.
Sammy is a very optimistic person. He jokes and teases and just basically loves life. He'll admit when things are bad, but he always says that it will be ok no matter what happens. He's very nice and easy going. But, he, too, breaks down in Blurred Lines when things get really bad. Breaks down big time. But he bounces back and then things are good again.

9). Do you have any pets? Do you want any?
I have a poodle named Mitzie and a Yorkie named Chester. I want a husky so bad! And a Border Collie!! And I would love to have a kitten!

10). What do you do when you're not writing?
Um, I make things with polymer clay, play piano, play Nancy Drew games, binge watch netflix, listen to tons of music, read, blog, tons of stuffXD

11). Do you ever get writing inspiration from tv shows/movies?
All. The. Time!!! Shows, movies, books, life, anything!!!!

12). Horror or thrillers, or neither of them, ever?
BOTH!!!!! But, if I have to pick, horror movies!

13). Was there ever a time you thought the movie was actually better than the book?
Not that I can think of. There have been movie adaptations that I thought we as good as the book! Like, I love the Hobbit movies and the Hobbit book both equally. There are aspects of the movie I like better and aspects of the book I like better. I want the same way with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

14). What is your favorite holiday/special occasion and why?
CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!! I love the meaning of Christmas! And we do a lot of helping people throughout the year, but we do a ton more around Christmas (Operation Christmas Child, things like that). Our church also supports a family in another country and we give a big church offering to them around Christmas:)

15). Would you rather BE a dragon or HAVE a dragon?
I would rather HAVE a dragon because I'm afraid of heights, so flying would be an issue if I WAS a dragonXD Yes, that is my logic behind the answerXD

BONUS ROUND:
And now these age old questions; Which is better?

1. Pirates or Ninjas?
A PIRATE'S LIFE FOR ME!!!!XD Mainly because I love ships and sword fighting and that sort of thing better than all black and martial artsXD

2. Ninjas or Jedi?
Ninjas. I don't like Star Wars. Just saying. *ducks gunshots* I've watched all 6 movies several times through and I just really can't get into it.

And why?
Um....I explained why up there^^ XD

Now my questions:
1). What's your favorite Christmas song ever?
2). Have you ever met a famous person? Who?
3). Favorite fandom?
4). Who is your all-time favorite villain and why?
5). Marvel or DC?
6). Sci-fi or fantasy?
7). Favorite actor?
8). Actress?
9). Favorite Christmas movie?
10). If you could be in any tv show, what would it be?
11). Can you keep a secret?
12). Are you sure?
13). Promise me?
14). Cross your heart?
15). Ok, here goes: Do you know the Muffin Man? XD

Those last 5 questionsXD I'm laughing at my own jokeXD

Anywho! I had fun doing this and I now tag everyone who follows me who hasn't done it yet!:D Have fun!

I JUST WON NANOWRIMO!!!

THIS JUST HAPPENED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After spending half of the month behind by almost 10K and thinking there was no way I'd win I validated and won with 30 minutes to spare! I am beyond cloud nine right now!!! This was my 3rd NaNo, but my first time winning! Now to finished the novel completely tomorrow. Then I commence planning the sequel and I'll either start writing it, edit my NaNo novel, or take a break after the new year. Sometime this week I'll do an November review and talk a little about my novel:)

Beautiful Books Linkup #2: How Is The Writing Going?

I am doing NaNoWriMo (but you already knew that). And I................am almost 5K behind. I know, I know, I should be writing. Instead I'm here. That's what I doXD Tomorrow is catch up day:) I'm doing the Beautiful Books linkup! Thanks to Cait and Sky for coming up with the questions and everything!


1. Be honest: How is your writing going? Well, it was going great until we decided to decorate for Christmas yesterday (yes, we're those people that decorate way earlyXD). Now I'm almost 5K behind! Feel free to be a cheerleader for me;P
2. What's your first sentence/paragraph?

“Breaking news. We have just received reports that yet another State representative has died. The cause of death has not yet been released, but as soon as we know, you will,” the news reporter announced, “This makes five victims in the last two months. FBI agents are on the scene, but they have yet to make a comment on whether they suspect a serial murderer. This is Harriet Cross with WMR News,” she finished. I picked up the remote and turned the tv off before anyone started talking again.

3. Do you have a book cover, and/or pictures that reflect your book?  I do have a cover!:)

4. Do you have pictures of each of your characters? If not, describe the for us! (Be as descriptive as you can.) I can do better than that! I have pics of wardrobe and actors/actresses for each character!

 One of these two as Gwen. Blue eyes, the hair below, and also the below wardrobe.

 Aiden Tyler (left) or Taylor Kitsch as Sammy with the below wardrobe.

Andrew Garfield as Chris is these clothes. 

And either Mark Sheppard (on the left. He's the one I'm leaning towards more) or Julian Richings as Agent Silverton.





5. What scene are you most excited to write? Not sure. Maybe this scene when Gwen is in the hospital where Silverton shows up and she uses a card house to threaten himXD You'll have to wait for that oneXD
6. Share a snippet or scene that you really enjoyed writing. Tons. I'll limit myself to just a fewXD

“I was so worried about you, Gwen. You really scared me. I thought I was going to lose you.”

“This is not going to turn into sappy hour. Sorry, Sammy. I won’t let it.”

You get no background on that one. Nor the next one.

"What two words start with 'S' and end in 'Y', and have a vowel and double consonants in the middle?"

"I don't know. What?" Sammy asked. 
"'Sorry and Sammy." I started giggling like a school girl when Sammy gave me his "are you serious?" look.

"Was that your idea of a joke? Because that was pretty lame," he was quick to inform me. He couldn't stand how often I said "sorry Sammy" to him.

All I say about this one is that it's Gwen's POV:

I pulled out my phone and looked at my caller ID. I, almost involuntarily, rolled my eyes and answered the phone.
“Walter, the noise you heard last night was not a ghost and I’m not a paranormal investigator, so I don’t know why you’re calling me anyway,” I said, before he could even say hello.

This is Gwen's POV. It's right after she meets Sam for the first time. He used Agent Harvelle as his alias.

“Harvelle? Really? As in the last name of Ellen and Jo on that tv show? You really need to come up with a better alias than that if you don’t want to get busted.”

“The name. That’s what gave me away? Really?”

“That and the fact that as soon as I walked in you started sweating bullets.”

“Well, and I guess it takes a fake agent to know a fake agent.”

“What gave me away? Cause I thought I did pretty good.”

“The hair. Cause, you see, unlike you, I actually used to be a real FBI agent. So, I would know that the FBI wouldn’t allow hair like that. Where, someone who was never an Agent wouldn’t know that because they only tell you that once you’re accepted.”

“That’s not a problem for me, though, because the people I interview don’t know that information, either.”

“Good point.”

“Now, I’m going to interview this Carl person and you’re going to stay out of it.”

“We could work together, you know. We would get a lot more ground covered that way.”

“Not gonna happen. I work alone. The only time I team up with anybody is when I need a hacker or it’s a multiple person job. Seeing as I can do this all by myself and I highly doubt you can hack as well as the hacker I occasionally work with can, I’ll pass.”

“Well, I’m continuing my investigation, so we’re likely to see each other again.”

“Just let me get my interview with Carl out of the way. The sooner I skip town the better.”

“WHat, are you running from something.”

“Nope. I just don’t like staying in one place for too long. I’m all about cheap motel rooms and greasy diner food. Not the type of life an ex-agent is quite cut out for. It’s in no way the life of luxury I’m sure you’re accustomed to.”

“Such hostility. Did an agent do something to you to make you hate us so?” there was a mischievous glint in his eye.

“I’m leaving,” I walked to my Jeep and opened the door, then I turned back, “Oh, and don’t follow me. That will just be awkward for everyone.”

Later:

“Following me? I should have the police called on you.”

He chuckled, but I didn’t think it was too funny.

“While you’re on the phone with them tell them that you’ve got a fake badge.”

“Just stay out of my way and leave me alone.”  I put my left hand on my hip and put my own sunglasses on with my right.

“Alright, Grumpy. Oh, I just found the best nickname for you. What do you think of Grumpy?”

“I think you better shut up now before I smack you. now, I’m leaving and if I find you tailing me, you’re going to be in for it.”

“Well, then I’ll make sure you don’t find me.” He lowered his sunglasses and winked at me. I turned and stomped away.

“My name’s Sam,  by the way,” he called after me. I ignored him and kept walking.

And later (again) also Sam's POV:

“Am I seriously going to keep seeing you?” Her voice was completely flat. If she was just pretending to not like me, then she was pretty good at it.

“Hey, I’m not complaining.” I made a “what” gesture with my arms and grinned. Then I quietly chuckled, trying to hide it from Grumpy. I really needed to get her name.

“Don’t even bother going in there. She wouldn’t even hardly talk to me.”

“She’s the daughter of vic number two, right?”

“Yeah. She’s also a big cry baby.”

“Gosh, Grumpy, you need to be more of a people person.” I teased.

“Do I look like a freakin’ people person to you?”

“Hey,” I raised my arms in defense, “all I’m saying is if you were more of a people person you might get more information out of people. Charisma is key.”

Gwen says this:

“You better shut up, Samantha. I’m liable to come over there and beat your tail.”

Ok, I said just a few, bu I really like their banterXD

7. Now that you're writing, have any of the plot details, or the process itself, turned out different from what you planned or imagined?

Lots is different. I introduced two characters and my villain way before I had planned to.
8. Is there a character or aspect of your plot that's difficult to write? Chris is hard to write. I guess it's because his parts aren't very large before he meets Gwen and Sam. But, they're essential to the plot, so i have to have them. I guess a 3 page chapter is better than no chapter, right;P
9. What's your favorite aspect of this novel so far? Favorite character? The banter between Gwen and Sam. Gwen really can't stand Sam at firstXD Favorite character would have to be Sam!:) He's awesome! Gwen is only 0.000000000000001 percent behind himXD <<I totally made that upXD
10. Have you drawn off of any life experiences or people you know to create your novel or characters? Nope. But, I have come to realize that Gwen is Dean Winchester (from Supernatural) made over. Totally no intentional. I figured out who and what type of person I wanted her to be at a time when I couldn't stand Dean.
11. Do you have a playlist or certain song for your novel and/or characters? I listen to a ton of piano instrumentals when I write! Also a ton of Imagine Dragons. Like, every ID song ever over and over againXD 10x in a row is my current recordXD That's almost 11 hours. I wasn't writing that whole timeXD Demons by ID goes really well for Gwen.
12. Let's have some fun for a moment: imagine you are somehow transported into your books world. Which character are you most likely to be found hanging out with? Hmmm......Either Gwen or Sam. But probably both since they spend 98% or the story togetherXD
13. How do you keep yourself motivated to finish your daily wordcount ? (Pinterest? Internet breaks? Chocolate?) I just make myself sit down and do it. Except when we decorate for Christmas. Then I don't write. 
14. What's your favorite writing quote or piece of writing advice?

15. How does this book make you feel so far? Are you laughing? Crying? Frustrated? Proud and insecure. I love pretty much every word I write, but I worry about almost every word I write. Weird, right?
And that's that! Hope you loved it. This was a ditch effort to encourage myself write and guess what! It didn't work. I'm going through the week 2 doldrums. I think. I'll shoo them awayXD Maybe.