2013: Make it Awesome!

It's 2013 and I am not writing on Tuesday! Oh my! I totally forgot to post yesterday, so I'm just gonna steal Wednesday (since it's been alone recently) and use it.

I've been thinking about this new year and how it can be awesome and I'll most enjoy it. In 2012, I had been planning an awesome trip to Comic-Con and trying to figure out the dreadful business of wedding planning. The Comic-Con trip has been tossed aside due to financial issues, and the wedding planning hasn't really gone anywhere besides the murmuring comment of, "Hopefully it will take place in October 2013...?"

I know. This is sad.

So I've been trying to come up with things that will make 2013 worthwhile. A few things (resolutions, if you will) I have come up with are...

1. Reading as many books as I can in 2013.
2. Officially starting my novel (I failed at NaNoWriMo)
3. Getting serious about school.
4. Wedding.

Of course I hope there are other amazing things mixed in there... Maybe a trip to an awesome concert, Disneyland...etc. I hope that 2013 will be much more interesting than 2012. In the end, a year is what you choose to make it. I want it to be awesome... so it will be. I've already begun on number one. I'm currently reading Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion. It's awesome. ;)

Sorry for this silly post. I had so many better things to say... Oh well.

I hope 2013 is everything you want it to be and more! Reach for the stars and DFTBA!
Shelby W.

College Student with an Empty Semester

Hey guys! I almost forgot to post today! 

Really, there's not much to report on. As a college student with an empty semester, my days are horribly boring. I plan on brushing up on some math during this free semester, as well as transferring to another school (yay!). So far, the only things that have filled my days have been drawing, reading and playing video games. Oh, and my fiance and I began watching Breaking Bad. And I am now totally obsessed with the show. *sigh*

With all this free time, my drawing has become a sort of obsession. I'm currently working on a Doctor Who fan art in honor of this week's season seven premiere (I AM SO EXCITED!). It looks pretty awesome so far! 

I hope all of your semesters are great. Don't stress too much! Enjoy learning more! And for those of you not in school, I hope the rest of your year is just as great and stress-free! And to all of you: Don't forget to have fun no matter what you're doing!

See y'all next Tuesday! 

DFTBA

Shelby W.

Family Dinner, Birthday Cake, Gotye and Answers

Hey everyone!

So, Monday was my 21st Birthday. I didn't spend it partying or bar-hopping. I began my birthday at midnight reading A Storm of Swords and almost fell asleep in the bathtub. I went to Olive Garden with my mom and my fiance (my dad is working out-of-state and won't be back until Saturday) for dinner Monday night. Nothing really exciting there, apart from their amazing bread sticks and my fiance surprising me by ordering an awesome chocolate cake. (Oh, and that Strawberry Pomegranate Mojito...yum.)

The night before, my fiance and I went to his parents' house for the usual Sunday family dinner. He has four siblings (two sisters and two brothers), and it's always an interesting, often scary time over at the house. His older sister as a baby boy that just fell in love with the birthday hat they made me wear. His youngest brother is a fan of Sci Show (he obviously never forgets to be awesome!). His youngest sister is my age... and then there's his brother who is in high school. That boy repeatedly shout-sang these two lines from Gotye's "Somebody That I Used To Know": 

1. "But you didn't have to cut me off!"
2. "Now you're just somebody that I used to know..."

He didn't know any of the chorus lyrics in between those lines, which are the first and last. It made for some interesting moments, and he often parodied those lines as well. So, I naturally mentioned Hank Green's brilliant Subway parody.

I wasn't expecting much of a birthday celebration from his family. Over the years, there had been so much drama between all of them and us. But, as I am helping his younger sister light all the candles on the ice cream cake, I see two gigantic gift bags out of the corner of my eye. Attached to my chair were a whole bunch of balloons and then the ice cream cake. I mean, I expected a cake, but all those gifts? It really made me feel welcome; it's the most comfortable I've felt around his family in the three years we've been together. When I opened the gifts, one of the cards hadn't been signed. They snatched it away and quickly passed it around to be signed by the whole family. When I got it back, I found money in the card! Gifts and money!? I think they may have gone overboard, a bit. Also in the card was the line, "Now you're just somebody that I used to know..." We all know where that came from. =P His oldest sister (whom I've had a hard time getting along with for many reasons) even gave me a card. I feel even more part of their family now, and I'm happy that I can finally say that.

Now on to Craig's question:  "What movies were your favorites as a kid that you probably shouldn't have been watching?"

This is a good question... When I was 8-9, I was obsessed with Titanic... So much so that I watched it multiple times a week (for the record, I was homeschooled, so I had all the time in the world to do that). But, I suppose that's not all that bad unless you bring up the nude scene... Other than that, the only movies I can think of are some random horror films (I went to see Saw with my mom when it first came out... I was 13), and then Grease and Grease II. It might seem weird to list those two films, but if you watch the videos below, you'll understand why I shouldn't have been singing along with these songs, let alone watching the films.

• Greased Lightning - from Grease
• Reproduction - from Grease II

I think those are the only films I shouldn't have been watching when I was younger... not all that bad, really...  Or maybe I'm just trying to make myself feel better. haha. Well, I can't wait to see what films all of you mention... Hopefully they won't be as awkward as mine. 

See you next Tuesday,

DFTBA 

~ Shelby

What makes a true fan?

First off, I need to answer some previously posed questions...

 I'd like to mention to the bloggers I'm writing with here that I enjoy critiquing stories, so if any of you would like me to critique or give feedback for a story/chapter you've written, I'd be happy to! So, that basically answers Linnea's question about sending one another our chapters or stories for editing/critique.

To answer the "what are you reading" question, I have to say that it's now quite difficult to answer. I am technically reading the 1,000 page World Without End by Ken Follett. I read his novel Pillars of the Earth a few years ago and loved it. This is Pillars' companion, set in the same priory town but two centuries later. I'm really enjoying, apart from the plot mimicking Pillars in almost every way. Which leads to the part that makes the question difficult to answer. After the epic finale of Game of Thrones (Yes, I mentioned GoT again), I realized that I really need to finish the third book in the series. I started it, but got terribly frustrated with one character's chapters, so I stopped. But with the hints dropped in the finale, I need to read it. So, my dilemma is: Finish World Without End, or start reading A Storm of Swords again...? *sigh*

Now on to the point of this post...

After seeing many fans posting rants about the differences in Game of Thrones and The Hunger Games television and film adaptations, it got me thinking: what makes a true fan? Obsessive fans spew their purist opinions about the screen adaptations and claim fans who liked them aren't true fans. They begin melodramatic rants about how fans shouldn't support the directors, screenwriters or showrunners because they are ruining the source material. Should these people be called true fans? Many GoT fans understand that George R. R. Martin trusts the showrunners of the HBO series with his baby, the novels. He knows they'll change things, but trusts that they'll make it work. Most Hunger Games fans understood why things were taken out or changed in the film to make everything work on screen, and even accepted strange casting decisions because of Suzanne Collins' support of those decisions. 

As fans, shouldn't we trust the author of the books if they have faith in those working on the screen adaptations? Are these so-called "true fans" really true fans if they can't even trust the authors? I don't like being told that I'm less of a fan because I enjoyed a film/TV adaptation of a beloved book. I like them because I can view the two formats differently and understand that the written source is only limited by the imagination of the author, while the film or show is limited by budgets, special effects and time. If all fans can see the two formats in this way, fan communities would be a lot better to be a part of.

Well, that was the post for Tuesday! See y'all next week...

DFTBA

Hey y'all, it's the Tuesday Writer!

I'm that girl who'll be writing on Tuesdays, otherwise known as Shelby W. 

I'm not one of those girls who likes to talk about herself, and I often feel weird when I have to describe/introduce myself to other people or on a profile. So, since this is that sort of situation, I feel kinda weird...  Oh well!

To start....

I'm an aspiring author (seems to be a trend on this blog!). While I've written lots of things, I've yet to finish a novel. It's no lie when authors say writing novels is hard work. It definitely is. All of my manuscripts have been left untouched for many reasons: plots didn't work, got stuck (that dreadful writer's block!), the idea needed to be expanded...etc. I think I need to work on this... just a tad. 

My life is nothing out of the ordinary. I'm engaged to an awesome guy. I'm a college student majoring in English. I like to read. I'm a Doctor Who and Game of Thrones (among other shows)  junkie. The only interesting thing about me is that I'm a trap shooter (shotguns and flying clay targets). Really though, I'm quite a boring person. But I guess that's not exactly a bad thing. Sometimes, the most satisfying thing is living a normal life and being happy it's normal...

From me, I suppose you can expect a whole bunch of random rants about my inability to write, posts about TV shows and other entertainment (reviews galore!), and posts about everyday life. I can't wait to see what the other writers bring to this blog, and I hope that it can be enjoyable for us to write and for you to read, whoever you might be.

I think that's all that needs to be said. I don't wanna seem self-absorbed or anything (not that I am... I'm totally not!).  

DFTBA

(Don't Forget To Be Awesome)

-Shelby W.