Picture Book Month

Picture Book Month starts in about two hours! Follow my other blog to watch me struggle through a month of writing and illustrating picture books. It is going to be fun.

~Jane~

Just a quick post

Saturday is the beginning of Picture Book Month and also Fashion Week for Dolls at Iradessa, which is a lovely blog, you should all go visit it.
Fashion week should be a lot of fun, I hope I have time to participate as much as I am hoping to. I love making doll clothes, and I have probably gotten a lot better at sewing since the last time I tried. I'll post that attempt too as a what-not-to-do example.

Please consider doing Picture Book Month! It will be fun, I promise. I will post every day, whether that day's attempts at writing are successful or not. I am predicting that around the middle of the month I will feel like giving up, but the more people that are following the blog, the more likely I am to keep going. Even when the picture books are horrible it will be fun because I will post all about it and you can laugh at me. : )
And if I do succeed, don't you want to be there to see it? It will be so much more fun if we're all doing it together.

Only one more day left to vote on what blog event I will be doing this summer!

~Jane~

Pure in heart award

Hannah, from Hannah's Corner, just tagged me with this beautiful award! Thanks Hannah!

The Rules:

A) Post about your tag!

B) Pick some other bloggers who deserve the PURE IN HEART award

C) Leave a comment on the people's blogs letting them know you tagged them! ( you may tag whoever you want, even the person who tagged you, if you like)

D) Answer these questions and put them up in a blog post:

1: Apples, Oranges or Bananas?

Probably apples... but I'm picky. It has to be crisp but not hard, tart but not sour, and I think the pretty pink ones taste better. : )

2: How many siblings do you have?

Three sisters, ages 23, 12 and 10, and two brothers ages 16 and 8.

3: How old are you?

19

4: Do you live on a prairie, woodland, swamp, city or other?

I would describe it as a rural neighborhood. We do have a field full of cows next door, and we live on two acres, but we still have fairly close neighbors. 

5: Scissors or glue?

Scissors! I use them all the time.

6: Describe your dream house.

My house will be old fashioned with modern touches of cuteness, with bookshelves covering the walls and my own library where I can write and the perfect chair for reading with the perfect reading light next to it, and at least one window seat and bay windows and a tower, and the kitchen will be light and airy and the floors will be hardwood with charming colorful rugs scattered around. And none of the dishes will match and there will always be flowers on the big wooden table and also on the small one with a white tablecloth that will be in the big picture window off the kitchen. I will have my own tiny sewing room and in the living room there will be french doors going out into the garden, where I will have roses and lavender and peonies and hyacinths and lilacs and a japanese maple tree and a white picket fence with climbing roses growing all over it.

7: Is your room clean?

Not at the moment, but I wish it was. I love my room when it's clean.

8: If you could be a movie character for a day, who would you be?

Emma Woodhouse. Not because I particularly want to be like her, but because I would get to dance with Mr. Knightly!

9: Italy, Greece, France, Spain or England?

England!

10: What denomination are you?

I go to a non-denominational Bible church.

11: Do you sleep with a stuffed toy (BE HONEST!!!!)

I hardly ever cuddle him anymore, but I still have my Sealie. He is a little white seal someone gave me for my first birthday. He has a place of honor sitting on my writing desk. I love him. : )

12: Gum, chocolate, or jelly beans?

It depends on my mood, and on the variety of chocolate or jellybeans being offered.

If it is Dove chocolate, or if it happens to be pretzels, peanut butter, caramel, and peanuts covered in chocolate, (Take Five is my favorite candy bar ever), and the jelly beans are the boring cheap kind, then definitely chocolate.

If, however, the chocolate is that cheap kind you buy in bulk at Easter to put in the eggs and it tastes like chocolate flavored butter, and the jelly beans are Starburst jelly beans, then I think you can guess what my choice would be.

13: What is your favorite book?

Oh boy. I really hate it when people ask me this question. It's too hard to choose! Sigh. I am going to change this question to:

13-- again: What is the best book you have read recently?

The Westing Game. Really a great book!

14: Favorite ice cream flavor?

I'm not a big fan of ice cream, but probably cookie dough.

15: If you had to eat one type of food for two weeks, what would that food be?

Salad. Not boring salad, salad with green leaf lettuce and tomatoes and cucumbers and black olives and green olives and red peppers and onions and garlic and sunflower seeds. Top it off with olive oil, lemon juice and garlic salt and it's perfect.

16: What is your favorite Olympic sport?

Ice dancing!

17: Describe yourself in three words:

Fun, creative, procrastinator. The last one most of all. : )

18: What chore do you positively hate?

Vacuuming!

Vacuum cleaners are out to get me, and every time I try to vacuum, I end up tangled in the cord, or it gets caught on something, or keeps coming unplugged. Then I stand the vacuum up to go plug it back in but instead of clicking into place and waiting for me to come back, it falls on my foot. Sometimes even when I'm not vacuuming I trip over the vacuum or it randomly falls down as I walk past and gets my foot again. Argh, I do not like vacuum cleaners, and they hate me.

I tag...

Everyone who is currently my follower! I love you guys, I couldn't pick just a few to award. If you follow me, consider yourself tagged.

~Jane~

Busy week

This is a warning in advance that I may not find time to be on here much over the next week or two.

This is a picture of my planner for this week. Crazy, huh? I write all of my homework down so I can plan when to do it. It doesn't always work because I don't always do what I have scheduled to do so I fall behind.

I have a math test tomorrow! I haven't studied for it very much so I hope I do well. I understand the concepts, I just haven't gotten enough practice with them.

And, yes, those are motivational notes to myself written in the top margin. It actually helps. : )

Ah, I'm ready for summer! I'm excited about Make Believe, the Peter Pan inspired blog event at Wickfield, which will be going on in June. I just figured out this morning that I will actually be at Worldview Academy leadership camp that very week that the event is going on, but I am going to try to put together my posts beforehand and maybe my sister will put them up for me during the week.

Next week is Picture Book Month! If you haven't checked out my other blog about it, you should do that now, because it's going to be an insane amount of fun.

~Jane~

P.S. Just a few days left to vote on the blog event! "Accessories" was winning for awhile, but it looks like "hairstyles" is pulling ahead now.

Picklehoppers

My sister Darby over at Picklehopper Centre is having a giveaway. The challenge you have to do to be entered in the contest is... unique. I'm still laughing just thinking about it. Seriously. Let's just say you have to be creative and willing to laugh at yourself.
Still, it's fun, and the prize is so worth it! She is giving away three original paintings on canvas. She has such a unique style to her art, it's beautiful. She does pictures of people, usually in historical dress. I want them for my room! They would be nice in anyone's room.

~Jane~

P.S. I still can't stop giggling. Go read what the challenge is!

Sisters!

My sister Faith is having a giveaway over at her blog, Something Fun. She would love to have more followers, and I can recommend her blog as being excellent reading. I would follow her even if she wasn't my sister! : )

Here is an interview she did with me for her Newsletter blog. It had some great questions. I talk a little bit about Picture Book Month, and she asked me to describe the stories I've written, so if you're curious, go take a look.

While we're at it, go check out my other sisters' blogs too!
Darby from Picklehopper Centre has an amazing talent for being awesome. No no, really. She is the Queen of Random, and will make you smile a lot.
Sarah at Stardust Caught is new to blogging but already has some great ideas posted, one of them being a cake that looks like a sunflower thanks to some Peeps left over from Easter. It's an amazing idea. It was really yummy too. : )

You've got to love this song!


~Jane~

T-shirt shrug

I made this last night using this tutorial. It took me less than an hour, and would probably be quicker for someone else. I am slow at sewing anyway and I was tired. Sorry about the poor quality picture, I used my webcam.

This is my new favorite tutorial! This t-shirt is one I've had for years, and it had a big stain on the front, right in the middle, which is now turned under for the casing. I really should have gotten rid of it years ago, but I hold onto random things, and now I'm glad that I did. Next time I would take the time to pin the casing down before I try to sew it, because it got a little bunched up going around the curve of the neckline. The nice thing is that you can't tell because it's all gathered up anyway.

I like this because it's cute and super feminine, but also very practical. It's made out of an old t-shirt so I can feel comfortable wearing it. This first one is a little rough, but I will be making more in different colors.

Seriously try this out! It will not take you very long, and it's super easy.

~Jane~

Giveaway

Atlanta at The Story of a Seamstress is having an awesome giveaway! Go take a look!

~Jane~

Something new!

Shaynie from The Book Blog gave me an award! Thanks Shaynie!

I would like to award these beautiful bloggers;

Bess from Bess' bag

Faith from Something Fun

Celine from Iradessa

I wish I could award all of my followers, you are all beautiful in every way!

1 Peter 3:3-4

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight.

~Jane~

Nothing new

I realized when I got on today that I haven't posted since Sunday. It's been a tough week for me. I have a lot of homework now that we're getting into the final weeks of school. The main thing I'm stressed about is a debate on Monday. My speech topic is- "Resolved: The government should not have the right to require citizens to purchase health insurance." I don't know much about this subject, so that's a lot of research to do in a small amount of time.

I haven't gotten any further on my Anthropologie inspired skirt. What I did get done looks really good, I just need to finish it so I can wear it this summer! The only thing I'm not sure about besides the elastic waistband is whether or not I like the colors. I made it with a yellow underskirt and a blue floral overskirt that has tiny yellow flowers in it to tie it together. It's pretty, I just don't usually wear bright colors. I will post a picture soon so you can see it for yourselves.

Getting excited (and nervous) about Picture Book Month! How many of you are going to attempt the impossible with me? It's going to be fun.

~Jane~

P.S. Only 9 days left to vote on what the blog event should be! There's a poll on the sidebar, please go take a look. : )

Sweet dreams

Psalm 4:8 
I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O LORD,
make me dwell in safety.

This used to be my favorite verse when I was afraid of the dark. It's still so comforting. Instead of worrying at night when you can't sleep, just try saying this verse to yourself. : )

~Jane~

Poll

I have added a poll on my sidebar asking for your opinions on the blog event this summer. Please vote! I have never done an event before, and your opinion can really help me out. : )

~Jane~

Want a Starbucks gift card?

Check out this giveaway on The Book Blog! Looks like fun!

~Jane~

Tag!

Hannah Grace tagged me with these questions! She has a great blog, you should check it out.

First, the rules are: Please tag five people and do not tag the one who tagged you. And if you would not like to answer a certain question, simply change it to one you like and answer that.

#1-What song are you currently listening to a lot?

Vanilla Twilight by Owl City
Owl City is one of my favorite artists. The lyrics of his songs are so poetic.
"If my voice could reach back through the past, I'd whisper in your ear... darling, I wish you were here."

#2- What is the best book you have read recently?

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
This is a great book for people who like mysteries, or for anyone who can read. : )

#3-Do you sing a lot?

Yes, mostly in the car by myself.

#4-Sweet or salty?

Salty, if I have to choose. I like salty mixed with sweet, like a bowl of hot popcorn with m&ms thrown in, or a Take Five bar, which has peanut butter and caramel and pretzels in it. Mmmm.

#5-What is your favorite hobby?

Reading is my favorite. Then writing, blogging, watching movies, and sewing.
I know watching movies doesn't seem like a hobby, but I like to be critical and analyze them as I watch, which drives my family crazy but is really fun.

#6-What books have you read at least 3 times?

An Old Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott,
Mara; Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis Mcgraw,
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare,
Carry On Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham,
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes,
Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery...

And so many more. I should start compiling a list of my favorite books (which would be lengthy), so that I can share it with you, my blogging friends. I will start making a list and make a page for it on here somewhere.

#7-What sites do you always visit when you get on the Internet?

Facebook, Twitter, Blogger.
In that order, not because I like Facebook best, but because I am saving my favorite for last. : )

#8-What were the last things you bought?

Cough medicine, fruit-flavored cough drops, green tea, chicken soup, vegtable soup and cookies. I have a cold today and I was stocking up on all the things you need when you're sick.

#9-Which fictional character do you think you are most like?

I think am most like Elinor Dashwood from Sense and Sensibility.

#10-Favorite earliest memory?

Hmm... hiding under the weeping willow tree at our old house when I was really little.

#11-What do you do to change your mood?

Reading usually works. It takes me out of my problems for a few minutes, so when I come back, I have a better perspective of how important they are and I figure out that I was grumpy over nothing.

#12-What was the last meal you ate?

Lunch; we had BLTs with turkey bacon and guacomole. It was yummy.

#13-Do you want to learn another language?

I would like to learn French, because it's just such a beautiful language. I would also like to learn Spanish.

#14-Five things you can’t live without?

1. Lots of books

2. Coffee

3. My family

4. Friends

5. Chocolate

#15- Find the closest book to you, and flip to page 54. What is the first sentence in the 2nd paragraph?

Emily Cilmbs by Lucy Maud Montgomery

"As for Teddy, he was thinking that Emily looked very sweet in the pale moonshine, with her fringed, mysterious eyes and the little dark love-curls clinging to her ivory neck."

Please note that the Emily series (Emily of New Moon, Emily Climbs, Emily's Quest) is excellent. I like it even better than Anne of Green Gables because Emily is a writer and she thinks like a writer.

#16-What is something you would like to say right now?

I don't like being sick.

#17-What are you looking forward to?

Hanging out with friends on Sunday afternoon.

Now, tag five people.
Take some time and visit these blogs, they're all wonderful.

1. Sarah, from Stardust Caught.

2. Hannah, from Hannah's Corner.

3. Darby, from Picklehopper Centre.

4. Allison Elizabeth, from Girl of the Prairie.

5. Grace, from Grace's Garden Walk.

Thanks again for tagging me, Hannah Grace, this was really fun!

~Jane~

Sewing trouble

I started on the skirt yesterday, and got the basics done, but I ran into a little trouble when it came to using elastic. You see, I have never used elastic before. I am just not sure how it's done. I don't really want to make an elastic casing, I was just going to sew the elastic onto the skirt, but I'm not sure about the technique of how to do that. Plus my sewing machine doesn't seem to want to handle it. It just stops. Does anyone know of any good tutorials on how to sew with elastic?

~Jane~

Anthropologie skirt

This week I will be making a skirt like this one from Anthropologie:

Mine will be a different color and will have an elastic waistband instead of a zipper. We'll see how it turns out. Wait until you see what I make it from! (I love refashions!)

Any thoughts on the upcoming blog event? I wanted to do decorating because you are all so creative with your clothing, I'm sure you have a great decorating style as well. I think it would be fun to exchange ideas. Let me know what you think.

~Jane~

Writing groups and a possible event idea

Tonight I went to a meeting of the fiction writers support group at my library. It was my first time, and unfortunately they aren't doing it anymore after the next meeting, but I kind of accidently volunteered to start a community writing group for the summer. That should be fun.
One really great idea that stood out to me from this meeting was to keep a tape recorder with you and dictate stories into it when you're driving. You can type it up later. This is perfect for me, because I do this anyway without recording it. I am constantly writing snippets of scenes in my head but never writing them down later. And I talk to myself all the time, so it would be easy to get used to. : )
It's amazing how one meeting with other writers can really help motivate you to write. I call myself a writer, and I'm full of good ideas, but I hardly ever actually write any stories. The idea of meeting with other people makes me want to write so I won't have to tell people I haven't been writing. It's a guilt thing I guess.
Maybe another challenge to myself this summer should be to write something every day. I can blog about whether or not I've written for the day, and if I don't, you guys have the right to scold me soundly in the comments box. I will start May 1, because writing picture books every day will count.

By the way, I haven't forgotten about my promised blog event. I want to do something with room decoration, but I'm not sure about the logistics of it. Maybe a weeklong series about creative decorating (including storage solutions), and we can all post pictures of our decorating style? Please, please let me know what you think. If you have a similar or better idea please let me know, I'm wide open to suggestions.

~Jane~

Notebooks are time machines

Notebooks. I can't live without them. I have a huge drawer in my room that has only one purpose, to hold all of the many notebooks I've filled. I always keep my current notebook in my purse so that I have somewhere to write down my best thoughts.
Why? Because I've learned that when you have a brilliant idea and you think you don't need to write it down because it's so great you will remember it... you always forget. And then it drives you crazy trying to remember what it was. Keeping a notebook is like keeping notes to yourself in the future. It's a record of your ideas so that they won't be lost. My notebook drawer is the first place I go when I need inspiration.
Writing notes to yourself is a genuine form of time travel. Your thoughts are transmitted to your future self, and you usually forget that you wrote them down in the meantime, so it always comes as a pleasant surprise out of the past.
And what kinds of things do I write in my notebooks? I was just looking through some of my old notebooks, and besides notes from church and random lists, here are some fun things I found:

Literature is like a window into another person's life, and all the God created truths it contains within the circumstances, feelings and soul of the person. Good literature mirrors life, in that even when the situation is nothing you have ever or ever will experience, you can recognize a bit of yourself in the thoughts and motivations of the characters...

[Hmm, sounds very much like what I wrote in this post. I guess I think the same way now as I did two years ago when this notebook was filled.]

4 days until doom hits the world in the shape of frenzied novelists!

[Written four days before Nanowrimo, obviously.]

Haiku
Calm still pool reflects
Twisted, ancient, beautiful
A tree in moonlight

Also in my notebooks are many "Plot Thoughts" as I call them. Ususally in the form of several rambling pages of notes about a new story idea I have, which is why I didn't type any here. : )

~Jane~

P.S. This is my 50th post!

The Gospel in 60 Seconds

This could be the most important blog post you ever read.
All the bold parts are direct quotes from scripture.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and None is righteous… (Romans 3:10). We have all broken God’s law and deserve destruction for the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). But, …God so loved the world that he gave his only Son… (John 3:16). God the Father’s Son, Jesus Christ, who was God in the flesh-- "I and the Father are one" (Jesus, John 10:30), lived a perfect life that was …holy, innocent, unstained… (Hebrews 7:26)—he never sinned.

Then, …according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God (Acts 2:23) Jesus Christ was hung on a cross …and died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures…he was buried…he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures. (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). On the cross Jesus bore the sin of many… (Isaiah 53:12) paying the penalty for the sins of the world. Anyone who is willing to repent [turn to God away from your sin] and believe in the gospel (Mark 1:15) will be saved from everlasting torment in …the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15).

By trusting in Jesus as your Savior and submitting to him as the Lord of your life you will receive everlasting life, because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9). Saved not by your works, but by Gods mercy and grace, you will be made anew, for if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

~Jane~

Contest

Check out this blog contest on Grace's Garden Walk! The prize is just wonderful!

Big news!

My second blog is up! It is a fun project called Picture Book Month. Please check it out, and spread the word to all of your writer and illustator friends!

~Jane~

An interview and big plans

I have an interview up on Bess' Bag! Thank you so much Bess, it means a lot.
I have 20 followers now! Thanks everyone! This means I need to get a blog event going, like I promised. I'm working on that, I will have the plan posted really soon. : )
I have another plan in mind as well, something big and writerly. In fact, this one is going to be so big I'm starting a separate blog for it. I thought of it this morning at work, and was planning it in my head while shelving books. As soon as I got a break I started writing it down. Can you tell this is one I'm excited about? You will see soon enough... I will probably post the link to the other blog sometime tonight or tomorrow.

~Jane~

The Story of Nanowrimo

I wrote this as an autobiographical essay in English class. It was the first paper I had to write for the class, and it's about the first year I did Nanowrimo. Sorry it's so long. : )
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I woke up that day depressed, my defeat already haunting me. All November I had been participating in National Novel Writing Month, challenging myself to complete the first draft of a 50,000 word novel within the confines of one short month. Three weeks into the challenge I had gotten stuck. In my head I called it writer’s block so that it would sound professional, but I knew I was just bored of my story. I didn’t have the guts to finish it, knowing it was not very well written or well thought out. I had given up.

Today was the last day of the month. I had promised myself that I could do this, and now that I had as good as failed, I felt guilty for breaking that promise. I now had a decision to make; I could give up, and decide I wasn’t cut out to be a writer, or I could write furiously all day, be a writer and actually finish what I had started. Thinking back to other times I had promised myself I could win, I realized I never had kept that promise. I was a quitter. Volleyball, basketball, ballet, martial arts; every time it had gotten hard, I had dropped out. Writing was something I wanted to do, so I knew what decision I had to make.

Nine o’clock am, November 30, I sat down in my maroon, beat up office chair and opened up the computer file. I hadn’t looked at it in a few days, and so I skimmed over the pages, remembering what had happened so far. When I got to the last page where the plot had slowly fizzled out and then stopped altogether, my fingers found their familiar positions on the keyboard and I stared at the blank screen. Being away from the story for a few days had given me a little space from it. Thinking of other things had helped me to stop obsessing about the story, and now that I was back, an idea came to me about where the story could go after this. I settled in my chair and took a deep breath.

Plunging into the plot headfirst, my fingers flew across the keyboard, writing fast. If I didn’t slow down to think, I wouldn’t have time to overanalyze what I was writing. I wrote as fast as I possibly could, just going with the next logical action and trying to feel like I was there.

Every hour or so I paused to make sure I was writing fast enough. At the beginning of the day I had about 34,000 words, which meant that if I wanted to win, I had to write 16,000 words in this one day. Like Cinderella’s pumpkin coach, I only had until midnight, but it was a Saturday and I didn’t have anywhere else to go. If I could write a little over a thousand words per hour, I knew I should be able to make it.

The morning passed quickly. I took a few breaks, ate lunch, considered giving up a few times but always decided to keep going. By mid afternoon my neck was stiff, my eyes were aching and my fingers were starting to go numb. It had been five hours and I was starting to wonder if I was being too stubborn about this challenge. Was finishing really worth this?

As I wondered what kind of fool I was, the sounds of bustle and laughter drifted in from the kitchen. I wearily stood up from my place at the computer and drifted in there like a ghost to see what was going on. It was the whole family, happy and excited, getting ready to make paper Mache Christmas tree ornaments. They had little blown up water balloons to put the paper over, and big bowls of watery glue to dip the newspaper in. Mom was tearing the newspaper into little strips and Dad was stringing up a long piece of kite string across the room from corner to corner to hang the ornaments on while they worked. The two younger kids were dipping their hands into the glue mixture, seemingly determined to get as messy as possible before the process even started. It looked like fun.

Mom saw me hovering jealously in the doorway and invited me to join them. I wanted to, but there was so much more to write. I had gotten a little ahead of my prescribed hourly word count, but I had been planning on staying a little ahead just in case, so I could maybe finish a little earlier. “Oh… no thanks…” I muttered regretfully. Mom urged me to help them for just a little while, I needed a break anyway, she said, and they all really wanted me to be there. Now my little brother and sister began to beg me to stay, too. Internal conflict: I want to join them, external conflict: my family wants me to join them, I thought to myself. How could I write this scene into my novel? And then I knew I needed a break.

I made one paper Mache ornament, but while I was physically there having a good time, my thoughts were on a country highway in Illinois with my main character. As soon as I was done I dashed back into the office and shut the door behind me, filled with new ideas about the ending. I had gotten a little behind on the word count, so I typed furiously, inventing scenes and some great internal dialogue for my main character, faster than ever. I knew that the words I was writing were not that great, would never be published or win any awards, but it didn’t matter anymore. I was no longer doing this to have something worth publication; I was doing it for myself, so that I could reach this goal. It was the most amazing feeling when my thoughts finally clicked into place and the words flowed from my fingertips, seemingly out of nowhere. The last few thousand words were like magic.

If I could win this challenge, it would be the first time I had set myself a goal and completed it without relying on help from someone else. I wanted that so badly that I kept typing with cramped fingers and a headache behind my eyes. I knew that if I gave up now after getting so close, I would regret it for the rest of my life.

At about eleven thirty that night, I typed the two words I had been waiting to type, “The End,” and joyfully and with weary fingers submitted my document to the word count verifying feature on the National Novel Writing Month website. Unfortunately it came up with a slightly different word count than my document had, and I was left about five hundred words short of my goal. I had about thirty minutes, my story was over and I didn’t really want to add a prologue. Then I had an idea. I scrolled back through the pages to find the perfect place to add in a scene. I found it, tweaked the scenes around it to allow me to add this in and began typing the final words of my book. My main character had been staying with her aunt, who was an artist and a crafter, and in the scene I added, she had a craft to do with the children. They tied a kite string across the kitchen, from corner to corner, and made paper Mache Christmas tree ornaments. Just as I hadn’t been able to keep my mind off my writing while being with my family, I guess I couldn’t keep my mind off my family while writing. I finished the scene, checked my word count, added a few words here and there and resubmitted it on the website.

I held my breath as the counter worked. My brother and Mom had come into the room and they held their breaths too. Then up on the screen popped a message in big colorful letters, sending butterflies to my stomach and a smile to my face. It said, “You Won!”

5 plans for summer

1. Edit my book. I keep forgetting that I can get a free paperback proof copy of my latest Nanowrimo book if I submit it by July 1st. I just need to find time before then to edit it a little. I was reading over it again the other day and it really is pretty awful. I only had a month to write it in so I let myself get away with just plain bad writing that normally would drive me crazy. But writing a book in a month is the experience of a lifetime and all the struggles are worth it. I love it.

2. Write another book.
I am thinking about doing a book in a month on my own this summer. I still want to do Nanowrimo, but this is the first year I will have school to worry about at the same time. So, just in case I don't get to do it in November like normal, I was thinking about writing something in July.

3. Sew.
I just found a piece of thick elastic in my sewing box, and I am going to make a skirt with an elastic waistband for my little sister. (I wanted it for myself, but it is just barely too small.)
The other day I bought a yellow quilted placemat at Walmart for $2. I can't decide if I want to use it in my room as some kind of decoration, or make it into a purse for the summer. So I may be doing something with that as soon as I get the time.
Another thing I need to sew is a better selection of skirts. I have a lot of skirts, but most of them are too nice for everyday, or they don't go with any shirt I own, or they are a tiny bit too short and have to be worn with leggings underneath. I need some light, casual, summer skirts that go to just below the knee.

4. Have a blog event.
I promised that when I got twenty followers I would do a blog event or contest. Well, I'm almost there! I have been thinking about what I want to do, and I think I have a good idea. As soon as I get twenty followers I will perfect a plan and set a summer date for it to happen.

5. Start a business.
This is something that I would like to do (See previous post), but I'm not sure if I will attempt it this year. I can't decide. It does sound like a fun challenge, but I'm scared to commit to it because it will take time away from the other things I want to do. On the other hand, I usually get more done when I'm pressed for time. So maybe it would be good for me. : )

~Jane~

Hmmm...

I am trying to decide whether or not I should start a business this summer. In February, we put on a party for my little brother's eighth birthday. I always love planning parties, and I've been successful at the ones I have done, about three or four of them. After that party, Mom said she thought I would be good at planning children's parties as a business. I loved the idea. I can't believe I didn't think of it before then, because it sounds amazingly fun to me. When we went home later that day, I sat down in my room with Maude (my laptop) and typed up an extensive list of different themed parties and what I would plan for them.
For example:

Theatre Party
Available as a sleep-over (Friday nights only)
For children ages 8-12

Premise: We will be playing acting games and doing makeup and wardrobe, as well as putting on a real play as the finale of the party. The birthday boy/girl will be given the starring role.
Decorations and props: Costume accessories, scripts, props for play
Games: Improvisational acting games, actor’s warm-ups, charades, play to perform
Party favors: A copy of the script, signed by the entire cast, Bowtie or Feather boa, Pictures of themselves in costume (will be sent to them after the party)

I still have the list, and summer is just around the corner. I don't have any money, but fortunately this business wouldn't require much capital. What do you think? Should I go for it?

Spring fever

I have been feeling really creative and restless lately because the weather has been so lovely. Sometimes I feel like the creative side of my brain goes dormant for the winter like a plant and then comes to life once the spring rains come and the sun starts shining.
Actually, I don't think I can blame the sun at all. It's the rain that does it. It's been raining and storming off and on for a few days now and we're supposed to get a big thunderstorm tonight. I love thunderstorms. Thunderstorms are right up there on my list of favorite things with coffee and flowers and fashion and color and writing. So the anticipation of waiting for a storm to hit and watching as the grey clouds roll in and the sky gets dimmer and the wind starts to blow always makes me feel poetic and literary and mysterious.
I've been wanting to write a really good mystery story for the last couple of days. One that's maybe not a typical catch-the-badguy type, but something intriguing, where it's suspenseful, but the reader really has to piece together the clues to keep up with what's really going on under the surface.
When I get like this I tend to write down a lot of random notes for stories to write. The things I jot down hardly ever make sense, but they do help inspire me later when I'm in a more practical frame of mind.
Here are some notes I jotted down during History class the other day when I was in this same restless rainy day mood. (At least the first one is somewhat related to history.)

What if we had stayed at war with the British for decades? The resistance movement would have always been there, even if Britain "won". It would have turned into an occupied country.

A bright blue bouncy ball just rolled past the car, unaccompanied. Where did it come from? What does it want?

Write a book called Blue, a book where you will only understand what is going on if you know that everything that is blue in the book is significant.

What if you were re-reading your favorite book and you discovered a code in it? Maybe reading every 10th word reveals a message, information about an unknown, unpublished work of the author and where it is hidden. Who would you show? What would you do? Would you try to find it?

~Jane~

Almost there

I am so looking forward to being done with school for the summer in about a month. I have had an overload of homework lately and it will only get worse as we head into the final weeks.
I'm just warning everyone that I may not have many prepared posts for the next month. That means probably no tutorials, fashion days or book reviews. I will still try to get on and post what I'm thinking about, fun lists, devotions and that type of thing.
This is a temporary change! I will be back full time in early May, I promise.

~Jane~

Love

LOVE CRUCIFIED AROSE

Long ago He blessed the earth,
Born older than the years.
And in the stall a cross He saw
Thru the first of many tears.
A life of homeless wandering,
Cast out in sorrows way,
The Shepherd seeking for the lost,
His life the price He'd pay.

Love crucified arose.
The risen One in splendor,
Jehovah's soul defender,
Has won the victory.
Love crucified arose.
And the grave became a place of hope,
For the heart that sin and sorrow broke
Is beating once again.

Throughout your life you felt the weight
Of what you'd come to give.
To drink for us that crimson cup,
So we might really live.
At last the time to love and die,
The dark appointed day,
That one forsaken moment when
Your Father turned His face away.

Love crucified arose.
The One who lived and died for me
Was Satan's nail-pierced casualty,
Now He's breathing once again.
Love crucified arose.
And the grave became a place of hope,
For the heart that sin and sorrow broke
Is beating once again.

Love crucified arose.
The risen One in splendor,
Jehovah's soul defender,
Has won the victory.
Love crucified arose.
And the grave became a place of hope,
For the heart that sin and sorrow broke
Is beating once again.

Quick post

This week has been ridiculously busy, and I apologize for the lack of posts. I can promise you a post tomorrow and one on Sunday, and possibly one tonight. I don't have time for a real post at the moment (I have to get to work), but I just wanted you to know that I'm still alive and I haven't abandoned the blog. : )

~Jane~