Following My Heroes

The problem with running off following adventure is that finding time to write about the adventure is practically impossible. But seeing as for the moment I don't need to Skype anyone and I kind of partly have the next stretch of travel from Oxford to Sweden planned out, it seems a good time for a blog post.

First of all, can I just point out that I'm in Oxford? Yeah, yeah, like the University, but mostly like the place where Lewis and Tolkien lived and taught and walked... Amazing. 

So many little carvings all over the walls and ceilings of all the buildings!

This city is incredible, with architecture that takes my breath away and so many complex and intricate buildings. Me and my traveling companion have kind of accidentally run into several places used in the filming of Harry Potter, which is definitely exciting. I cannot wait to get back and watch all the movies again, just so I can point and say: "I've been there!" Nacho Libre's not the only movie set I can say I've been to anymore.
Anyway, back to the point: this city is so beautiful! There is so much history carved into the buildings and I can just feel all of it in the air as I walk through the streets. Plus, it's time for examinations, so the Oxford students from several colleges are walking or riding their bicycles through the city wearing black gowns with carnations in their pockets and their sharp, erudite black and white uniforms. I can only imagine what it would be like to actually study in a place like this.

Christ Church. No wonder movies are filmed here.

So far I've been to Keble College, Christ Church, and a bit of the New College, and each college is breath-taking. I'm hoping to get in a few more colleges before we leave on Friday. We even attended the Sung Evensong at Christ Church Cathedral on Tuesday, which wasn't quite as impressive as the service at Westminster Abbey, but still pretty cool. Plus, we've done a lot of walking around, taking photos, shopping, trying to find the cheapest ways to eat, sliding through museums, and a little bit of getting purposely lost in order to see more. It's wonderful.

Radcliffe Camera, apparently one of the most photographed buildings in Oxford. I can understand why, plus the fact that it sneaks into the backgrounds of pictures of other buildings nearby...

And, did I mention? This is where Lewis and Tolkien formed the Inklings and met in pubs to discuss their writing. I dropped into the Eagle and Child pub and took pictures and stood and marveled, but the food was too expensive for me to justify eating there. However, across the street the Lamb and the Flag was also used by the Inklings, and I managed to afford a nice ham sandwich. Then I just sat in the pub and wrote out four pages of my thoughts as my mind wrapped around the fact that I was sitting in the very place that Lewis and Tolkien read their stories. So incredibly unbelievable. I just cannot hold in how excited I am to be in the place where my heroes actually lived.

Eagle and Child. I am still amazed.

Tomorrow I'm planning on finding the Kilns, where Lewis lived, and then Holy Trinity Church to see his grave. I'm so excited to follow him even more and see how many of his words will drip down and influence my own writing and my own stories. I can just feel the creativity in this place (did I mention Lewis Carrol was also an Oxford don? Lots of Alice in Wonderland exhibits in all the museums) and I am quite sure my writing can only improve as I result of being here.

This was inside the Eagle and Child, so of course when we got back at night we watched the first half of the Lord of the Rings and went crazy when this part actually came up.

Bonus: today I had the most interesting conversations back at the house where we're staying. It began as a sort of conversation against the Bible, though without any time for me to answer the questions being asked, or at least not enough time to answer them well. Then it became a conversation about my family, and about camps, and then the ice cream truck drove by and I smiled at the music and was treated to an amazing Cadbury ice cream cone.
Later in the day a French man living in Germany arrived to stay in another room here, and we all talked for hours about language and education and politics and immigration and travel and culture and even culture shock. Such a great conversation and it kind of made me realize that I am in fact an adult now and can not only listen in on but be a major part of a conversation like that. I mean, usually as soon as it's a serious conversation all I can do is listen, but this time I actually had just as much to add to the conversation as anyone else. More memories and information to store in my "future novels" room in my Mind Palace.

And to end, a lovely picture of me and Smaug.

Writing Extravaganza

I am currently sitting at a hotel for the San Miguel Writer's Conference, and I feel so accomplished to be here. There's just something about being in a place with hundreds of people who all have one thing in common: writing.

Somehow that just makes it seem more real to me, like, "hey, I'm a writer too. I have a manuscript and several drafts. I belong here."

Of course I also don't belong here at all, because the vast majority of people here are much much older than me, and I am pretty sure that most of them do not write young adult fantasy. Then again, this people never cease to surprise me. I mean, today there was that guy who writes satirical vampire novels told from the point of view of a cat. Hm.

And then that guy who exposes art or something and told me to self publish, and the old people who try to make every story sexual, and the crazy old ladies with weird eyes that make me want to jump in a hole. And there is no shortage of strange outfits, from fur vests to leggings to ridiculous stripes, I can look around in any direction and be surprised.

My mom and I got here last night and today was our first full day. We had two workshops and I already have a list of changes that I need to go back and work on for Shadow Whispers. I hope it's okay that I was daydreaming about my novel instead of paying attention...

Speaking of novels, book two now has 130 pages. Wow. Honestly I'm a little bit amazed at myself for all of this progress. I just have to say that I'm really excited to get this written. I don't entirely know what it is, but there's just something about words that makes me fall in love with writing a little bit more everyday.

Speaking of falling in love, happy valentine's day tomorrow! I celebrated early, on the 11th to be exact, because, well, I'm here and the guy I like is not. So we went out for coffee on the eleventh and he bought me a bouquet of colorful roses and came over to my house for dinner. It was marvelous, and those are the most beautiful roses I've ever gotten, and from the most amazing guy.

Okay, okay, done with the cheesiness. Sorry! Anyway, hopefully before too long I can pass on some tips from this conference. I'm sure I'll learn something new from all of these workshops, something blog worthy. Until then, happy writing!

Advice To Those Who Write

Honestly, I am going to be a little bit hypocritical here. I love to go and look up quotes about writing and read all of those lists of "how to write better". But I usually disagree with them.

See? I disagree again. :)

In fact, the other day I wrote about 500 words about why I disagreed with three of the things that show up on most lists. I won't post it here though, I think I was just in a bad mood, really, and I may have exaggerated quite a bit.

But anyway-- one thing that kept showing up was the "read more" idea that I have heard so many times that I'm sick of it. My first reaction is always: "when I'm working on a novel I do not want to read. Reading becomes a distraction; it keeps me from writing, and if I do write while reading a good book my writing style will inevitably begin to sound a little bit more like the book I'm reading and less like the one I'm writing."

Random website to get a picture of books from, but it's pretty cool.

But... at the moment I am not writing. I should be. I have Book One of a trilogy out and being read, and I know that pretty soon some of my readers will be demanding a sequel, and I'm going to need to give it to them. I should be starting on Book Two.

However, I am not. And therefore, I decided that this is a good time to read as much as I can. Get all the reading out of my system so that once I do start writing I can focus entirely on writing instead of being distracted by a ton of outside books.

So, in honor of that decision, I decided to compile a list of fifteen books that I want to read. Now-- maybe this is a dumb choice-- I'm not giving myself any kind of deadline. I don't want this to be a fifteen books I'll read in a week. That would be impossible. But these are books that I want to read eventually. The list will probably grow. I've already thought of some more I want to add.


So anyway, the list, in no particular order:

Books I want to Read:

1.       Game of Thrones (This one I've just heard popping up a lot, and people seem to like it. So I figured it would be smart of me to check it out, since I tend to like a lot of the popular trends, and I want to know what the fuss is about. Besides, I bet it will be made into a movie before too long.)

2.       100 Años de Soledad (I definitely want to read this one, in Spanish, because I love all the short stories I've read by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and I really need to read more books in Spanish. I've been slacking.)

3.       Ender’s Game (You have no idea how many people have told me to read this. I really need to read it. Oh, and the movie's coming out, and I obviously need to read the book before watching the movie. Or maybe soon after...)

4.       Brave New World (I don't really want to read this, but I do. I feel like it's one of those classics that I need to read sometime. I feel like I can't avoid it, so I may as well not even try. Maybe I'll end up loving it.)

5.       Wuthering Heights (I don't know why I want to read this one so badly, but I was really disappointed when I found out my English class will read it next semester, after I graduate. Gah. So I guess I just need to read it on my own.)

6.       The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (I don't know why I haven't read this yet. I'm ashamed of myself for not reading it.)

7.      

The Princess Bride (This two. This movie is my favorite movie in the world, so why  have I not read it? Sometimes I shock myself. I really don't have any excuse. I'm ashamed and embarrassed, but it will be read soon, I promise.)

8.       The Wind in the Willows (Another one of those titles I've heard a bunch, and I think it's one I should read. Isn't it also the favorite book of some character in some other book? I think so, or maybe I just made that up.)

9. The Two Towers (I read the Hobbit and barely scratched through the Fellowship, but I promise myself that someday I will read this and love it.)

10.   The Return of the King (Same reason as I said for the Two Towers.)

11.   Don Quixote (Again, a classic that I feel I must read. And when I do read it, I'm going to read it in Spanish. And it will probably take me ages to finish, but eventually I will. I hope. It's my plan, anyway. And I liked the excerpt I read for AP Spanish Lit. last year.)

12.   Any Isaac Asimov book (I have his quote on my dresser: "I write for the same reason I breathe, because if I don't, I die." It's so beautiful. This guy is my soul mate. Unless I hate his book or something, but I doubt it.)

13.   Any Isabel Allende book in Spanish (I read Paula by Isabel Allende in English and loved it, and then read La Casa De Los Espiritus in Spanish and liked it. So now I want to read another one in Spanish and hopefully love it.)

14.   The House on Mango Street (I've heard this title a lot. This is one I want to read less in comparison to some of the others, but it's still on the list. I think I read a chapter in some English class in middle school and really liked it, and I've been haunted by mango houses ever since.)

15.   The Screw Tape Letters (C. S. Lewis is my hero. I love all of his writings so much, and I am always itching to read more of his work. I've read three of his books so far, and I want this one to be my fourth.)

The Struggles of a Writer

And the struggle continues.

I still want more than anything to just go sit down and finish these last thirty-some pages of Shadow Whispers, just be done with it, you know? So that I can move on to the next stage and not be so consumed by this novel.

Yet I cannot just "go write."

Okay- distractions are certainly a part of my lack of words, but I promise that isn't all of the problem. See, for this stage of editing I need to read out loud. And maybe I'm just carping, but I can't stand the idea of reading my story out loud to myself while my parents are in the kitchen making dinner.

Link

I just. I don't like the idea of other people hearing me while I read.

Not yet. Eventually I'll be at that point where I will want to read it out loud to people, but not yet. Not yet.

Soon, maybe, if I can make myself find time to edit. I keep staying up past 11:00 (my preferred bedtime is about 9:00, to put it into perspective.) And wondering why I am so tired at school the next day. And then, of course, my family has to listen to my Piano Guys music that drowns out my voice while I read.

Let's just say that someday I will have a separate room or cabin or something where only I am allowed to go, and where all I do is write, write, write. Or read, or edit.

Writing Cabin? I guess I'm not the only one with this idea.

You get the point, though. I need a space of my own, a space set apart entire for words.

Maybe I am just rambling. I probably am.
I just... I'm consumed. I'm infatuated. I'm obsessed.

The Whisperers are taking over my life, or at least trying to- every part of myself that isn't already overruled by school and friends and movies and books and foods and internet and whatever other distractions always lurk nearby threatening to take away my writing.

Now I definitely am just rambling. I apologize. I am a writer, though, after all.

Shadow Sleep

I am exhausted. A part of my mind is telling me the logical answer. "Go finish your homework and then do your devotions, and then go to sleep."

But then there's that part of me- that Writer part.

The part that says- "You can't decide whether to do your homework or edit your novel. Here's a great idea; do neither. Write a blog that probably no one will ever read."

Yeah. Obviously that part won out.

And yet- I'm still trying to convince myself that I do not need to edit my novel. That my goal to finish in October was an unrealistic and unnecessary one. That there is no law telling me that I must write a novel in a year. And yet.

I can feel the Whisperers pulling me, and the notebook on my lap with the vocabulary words I am supposed to be looking up- yeah, that's doing nothing.

I need to write.

The feeling is consuming me at the moment, and even the flashing lights that look just as tired as I feel can't stop the obsession that's practically tearing me apart. I have to give in. I don't have any choice, not anymore.

Homework will have to wait- because the Shadow will give me no rest.

I will have my voice heard.

Perhaps my greatest motivation right now is the thought that the sooner I finish Shadow Whispers, the sooner I get to start on Shadow Remnants, and then on to the next book and then the next book and the next and the next, and on and on for who knows how many more nights that I should be sleeping and am not because the Shadow is calling to me again and my fingers are tapping like wild animals and I cannot sleep and I cannot rest

and
I
will
write.