Class of 2014: YA Superlatives Blogfest HEAD OF THE CLASS

I saw this blogfest last year but didn't join. This year I'm jumping in. It looks so fun!
Here is way Katy Upperman has to say about it:

The Class of 2014: YA Superlative Blogfest (hosted by Jessica Love, Tracey Neithercott, Alison Miller, and me) runs Monday, December 15th through Thursday, December 18th and will highlight favorite books published in 2014 using a variety of fun superlative categories. The Class of 2014: YA Superlative Blogfest is all about promoting the extraordinary young adult books published this year, so if you haven’t already, draft a post and sign up to participate at the end of this post. We can’t wait to see your favorite reads of 2014!


Head of Class

                                                

Favorite Dystopian
I read seven dystopian novels this year but some how not a single one was written in 2014. Out of the ones I read The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken was my favorite (at least a book in the series was published this year).

Favorite Science Fiction

This is more on the NA end of things but I loved it so much I figured it deserved a mention. It's a novella and I'm reading it's sequel right now. 

Favorite Fantasy
Oh no. This says favorite fantasy, as in one. What if I had three favorite fantasy novels this year? I guess I'm  going to go with Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson. I loved the way the story unfolded, the varied view points, the whispers of magic that wove through the story without over taking it. 

But for the record it's a three way tie.

Favorite Contemporary 

Light and sweet. The perfect summer read. 

Favorite Action Adventure
Second Daughter by Susan Kaye Quinn. Steampunk! Swashbuckling! I loved this Bollywood meets Steampunk book. 

Favorite Historical Fiction

      I apparently didn't read any Historical YA from 2014 either... 

Favorite Comedy
Nope. No comedy. I should remedy that. 

                                                                         

Favorite Mystery
Twists and turns, ocean and turbulent relationships and an ending I never saw coming. I'm going to have to go with We Were Liars by E. Lockhart.

Favorite Romance

See my favorite fantasy and contemporary picks. Oh, and my genre bender pick too..

                                                                  
                                                                      

Favorite Paranormal

Confession.... I am still reading this one but I already know it's my favorite. 

Favorite Genre Bender

One of the things I love about this series is that it incorporates my favorite elements of fairytale retellings and science fiction. 

Join in the fun!

• Tracey Neithercott
• Katy Upperman
• Alison Miller
• Jessica Love

Word Wars Sign Up

Back in June I co-hosted a Word War with  Katie Doyle at Writing, Reading and Life and it was so much fun that we to do it again. It should be the perfect way to get 2015 going on the "write" track! 

How it works

A word war is when two or more writers set a goal of a certain number of words that has to be written. The first writer to reach the goal is the winner.

Live-blogging is when someone updates a particular blog post throughout some event, whatever the event.

For the Word Wars Blogfest, we aren't going to limit ourselves to a particular number. The goal is to write as many words as you can throughout the three-day event. Every once in a while, get on your blog and update your status. Kind of like this:

June 11, 8:05 AM - Just got up and ate breakfast. Let's get this party started!!

9:34 AM - Spilled my coffee all over my lap. Time to get dressed, or just change into different pajama pants? 1372 words.

11:56 AM - Mom called and had an emergency that wasn't an emergency. Spent the last two hours calming her down. Word count the same.

Update as much or as little as you like throughout the three days. It's totally up to you.

When it happens

The linky list will be up starting today (DATE) until December 30th at 11:55 PM EST (US). The actual Word War will take place from January 1st through 3rd. This gives you plenty of time to sign up and a day to get everything you might need ready before the live-blogging begins.

What you need

Most of this is completely up to you, but a blog would most certainly help. Even if you don't have a blog, you can use Facebook Notes and just link to that. Don't have either? See if a blogger friend will let you take over for a couple of days.

As for anything else: your favorite writing snack, some good music, a sign for your door so your family or friends know not to bother you, etc. Basically, whatever will make this fun for you!

Why you should sign up

The writing community is one of the best parts of being a writer. Even with a name like Word War, this is a great way to go out and support your fellow writers and allow your fellow writers to support you. You win by writing. You win by making new friends. You win by taking part in something fun and productive.

You might also come up with some great insights into your own writing schedule (when you're most productive, when you're least productive, and when you are more often distracted).

Okay, I've signed up. What now?

There are a few things you could do:

1. Grab the badge at the top of this post. You'll want to display it somewhere prominent during the blogfest.
2. Let others know you're taking part. A signal boost on Facebook, Twitter, or a blog post will get more people involved and create better opportunity to meet even more writers.
3. Get rid of CAPTCHA. Because it's really annoying to anyone who wants to comment on your progress. Most blog platforms are really good at filtering spam or you could turn on comment moderation.
4. Join in the Twitter Chat on December 31st. We'll be talking writing, reading, and everything in between using #writestart. (What better way is there to end one year and start another?)

Even if you can't participate all three days, that's okay. This isn't about who writes the most words, it's about sitting down with a group of like-minded people to get some words on paper (or screen) in a fun and supportive way.

Hope to see you there=)

PS - A special thanks to Carrie Butler for creating the amazing badge for the Word Wars Blogfest!

An InLinkz Link-up

What's Up Wednesday

It's time for What's Up Wednesday!

WHAT I'M READING

  I'm still working my way through Great Expectations. It's an enjoyable read but I'm glad I'm taking it a chapter at a time.  Heir of Fire finally came in to my local library so I'm devouring it. I love it just like I knew I would and I'm finding that I like Dorian much more than I did in the previous books. Until recently I have always preferred Chaol. 

  The children and I are reading The Princess and the Goblin. They like it but its easy to loose them in-between action scenes so I find myself adding as much drama to my voice as I can so they stay focused. I have never read it before and I am surprised at how much I am loving it. 

 Two weeks full of Christmas cards to write, presents to wrap and all the usual household chores sent me on an audio book binge. I listened to both The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson and The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski. Why aren't either of the sequels out yet?!? 

  The Kiss of Deception was my favorite. I loved the way it utilized multiple points of view and the depth and drama that technique added to the story. I also love pretty much anything with a princess in hiding and an assassin... so I was a goner from the start.  The Winner's Curse was excellent too but I wasn't "quite" as lost in it as I was the other one. 

WHAT I'M WRITING (+ ONE WRITING GOAL)*

  Addresses on Christmas cards? Yeah, that really doesn't count. My goal this week is to actually work on my WIP every day for at least 15 minutes. That seems to be the best sort of goal for me during this busy season. 

WHAT WORKS FOR ME**

Sigh. It's hard to fill this section in when I didn't get anything written this week. 

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

  My oldest son and I both had birthdays this  week so that made for the best sort of craziness.

We also attended a  musical production of The Shoemaker and the Elves at our library which was very fun and seemed to inspire my already theatrical and musical children.  Oh and I won signed copies of Counting to D and The Evolution of Emily by Kate Scott!!! They arrived yesterday. I may have skipped home form the mail box. Thank you Kate Scott :)

What's Up Wednesday

It's time for What's Up Wednesday!

WHAT I'M READING

  I almost feel like I should replace this title with "What I'm Cooking" as I am cooking Thanksgiving foods for the foreseeable future. I did manage to do some reading that wasn't cookbooks though! 

  I read a NA contemporary romance and it really wasn't my sort of book. It wasn't as original as I was hoping it would be. I finished reading the Creepy Hollow trilogy by Rachel Morgan. The first two books were so much fun but the third, while still good, felt rushed to me. I loved the series and did not want to be rushed along. My chapter a day classic is Great Expectations, which I am loving, and my kids and I are reading The Princess and the Goblin. This week I hope to read Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch. 

WHAT I'M WRITING (+ ONE WRITING GOAL) 

 The only writing I did this week was on my son's homeschool portfolio.  It is thick enough to be a novel but not nearly as fun to work on. Now that it is done I can get back to something more creative, like my fairytale novel :)

  My goal this week is to work on my revisions/rewrites for Mirrors and Ice every day for fifteen minutes. 

WHAT WORKS FOR ME

Coffee with cream and a tad of maple syrup with a dash of cinnamon on top. It is the perfect writer's brew. 

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

  I am attempting to make a pie out of this massive fairytale pumpkin that the lady at the fruit stand told me was the best pie pumpkin ever. I hope she's right... I have canned pumpkin on the pantry for back up, just in case I explode the pumpkin or something. 

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

What's Up Wednesday

Can you believe that it's time for What's Up Wednesday already?

WHAT I'M READING

    I feel that I have been reading more children's books than anything else this past week. My children and I finished reading Little House In The Big Woods and we are almost done with Paddington Abroad. During lunch we are reading Stories of the Pilgrim's by Margaret B Pumhpery and my youngest is still asking for The Gingerbread Man on a daily basis.

   As for myself, I have finished The Faerie Prince by Rachel Morgan and am trying, trying, trying to make myself wait until I've read some other books I've been putting off before I purchase the sequel. My chapter a day classic is Great Expectations and I've also taken to having a poetry book going at all times. This weeks choice is Hugs and Kisses by Fida Islaih. 

WHAT I'M WRITING

  I'm still trying to regain momentum on revising Mirrors and Ice. I have a friend expecting the first chapters next month so I best get to work!

WHAT WORKS FOR ME

  What seems to be working for me is for me to just sit down and work on my revisions without thinking about them, or my future as a writer, or the dishes or anything else that will stunt my progress. Once I start thinking about anything besides what is in front of me, I'm sunk. Any hints on not thinking??? It seems to be both my inspiration and my downfall.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

 It's cold enough to wear my favorite hat!!! At least it is if I go out early enough in the day. I love the cooler weather. I was hoping that it would be cold enough for the snakes to hide away for the winter but no, they are out sunning. The librarian told me that they had one trying to get into peoples warm cars. Silly reptiles. My daughter jumped over one that was as thick as my forearm and over three feet long (insert spine tingles here). 

Celebrate the Small Things

It's time for Viclit's Celebrate the Small Things blog hop!

I used to participate in this hop every Friday and I miss it so I'm going to start back up again. It's such a great way to focus on what is good in life. 

This weeks celebrations:

• Staying home! The past few weeks have been so busy and today has nothing in it but my normal homeschool routine. Yay!!!
• Cool weather. The south is beautiful and has a lot of great things going for it but I am so grateful that it has finally cooled off. I actually wore closed toe shoes yesterday!
• Getting my writing focus back.  I've missed blogging and even my writing went into a bit of a slump. This week I squished it in even though it didn't look like there was any room and I'm so glad I did. I'm a much happier and more peaceful person when I make time for what I love to do. 

What are you celebrating this week?

What's Up Wednesday

I've been away for awhile but it's time for What's Up Wednesday!

What I'm Reading

    Since August I have been focusing on piecing together my own homeschool curriculum and it has taken me this long to get back to my normal multiple book at a time reading habit.  I'm happy to report that I am reading Bird By Bird byAnne Lamott, Great Expectations by Charles Dickens and I'm previewing The Ninja Librarians by Jen Swann Downey to see if it's something my seven year old bookworm would like. 

  None of those books were what I was in the mood for at 3 a.m. when my toddler woke me up and I couldn't go back to sleep, so I did the logical thing and added another book to the pile. I'm now reading The Faerie Prince (Creepy Hollow #2) by Rachel Morgan. I have a feeling that it might be the first of all of these titles to be finished... 

   Oh and this section wouldn't be complete without adding that I have been reading The Gingerbread Man on a constant loop to my youngest son. He doesn't usually sit still for a book so I can't resist him when he plops in my lap and begs me to read. Even if it's the same story. Again. I'm getting very good at giving the Gingerbread boy a hearty southern drawl.

What I'm Writing

Um... I sorta froze. I'm suppose to be revising/rewriting Mirrors and Ice but I sunk into a mire and spent some time feeling like a fraud, poser, fake, anything but a writer. I started back at it yesterday so hopefully I can stay on track.

What Inspires Me Right Now

  I'm very inspired that my youngest is finally letting me read to him!!! I've been trying for three years!

What Else I've Been Up To

I don't know. Folding socks? I sure that I do something because I seem to keep busy but somehow none of it feels worthy of writing about. Oh, I've been avoiding bears. Does that count? I had to slow down for one the other day while he lumbered across the road and I chased a baby one out of my garbage can. I'm convinced that one was watching from a tree the other night when I was out for a walk. I can't imagine a raccoon being heavy enough to make a branch creak like that.