NaNoWriMo

     You may be asking what NaNoWriMo is and I will tell you. NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month! NaNoWriMo takes place from November 1st to November 30th. During the month of November, if you choose to partake in NaNoWriMo, you are setting yourself up to write a 50 thousand word novel in one month. Now, this may sound like a lot, and I've got to say it kind of sounds like it, but thousands to hundreds of thousands of people do this every year. 

     I have never participated in NaNoWriMo, however, some year I plan on doing it. I think it is a great thing. To get to your 50k word count, you would have to write at least 1667 words a day. This is quite doable. 1667 words really isn't that many. If you break it up like that, it doesn't seem so bad. But when you say 50k words in one month, yeah that sounds like a lot. 

     Now, yes I think NaNoWriMo is a great way to practice your writing, and to practice writing quickly. However, I think that one should not just put lyrics in your novel, or your character endlessly babbling. Yes, you will reach the word count, but it doesn't seem like a legit way to do it to me. 

     But yes, as daunting as NaNoWriMo seems, when I find the time, I plan to stretch my writing ability and participate in said month. What do you think of NaNoWriMo? Is any one going participating this year or planning to participate next year or in the following years?

Book Hauls/In My Mailbox

     Okay, so I am an avid reader and I get books in the mail all the time, however, I don't post on here or on youtube about the books I got or anything like that. Help me out, do people actually enjoy seeing what books other people got? I've watched some of these book haul videos and they don't excite me all that much. I just got Finale by Becca Fitzpatrick, Hidden by PC and Kristen Cast, and The Evolution of Mara Dyer, but do any of you really care? I mean, some of these videos are near and over 10 minutes long. I'm glad people are reading, I love that people, especially teens love to read, but really, does the world need to know every time you get books in the mail. Sure, if you are a book reviewer, then by all means, that is your job. Whatever, I'm rambling. I'm sorry if this offends anyone, this is just my opinion. I don't hate these videos, I just don't see the point.

Planning and Research

     It is amazing to me how much and/or how little planning you have to do as a writer. I have now written two books. The first book, I did little to no planning or research. I also didn't do any outlining. I just wrote by the seat of my pants. This first book is about 20,000 words longer than my second book.
     The second book I wrote didn't take all that much planning, however it did take a bit of research. I also, didn't do much outlining, but I had to do a little to get the timeline correct. But, because I had done research and planning for the book, the writing went a little more smoothly and quickly.
    The book I am currently working on requires more planning, outlining, and research than I would have thought. I have had to google how to drive a motorcycle, ways in which one can acquire a detention or expulsion, and many other things. I want to make this book into a trilogy, so that requires even more planning. The stories arc must consist in three books instead of one. This book, like the first, is a paranormal romance. I thought since I am creating the world, I didn't need to do research, and could just write. How wrong was I. The things I create have to logistically work together or the book makes absolutely no sense. I can safely say I have never had to do so much research for any project I have ever worked on. I've worked for months just in the planning in research stage. I have to say, though, that I really enjoy the research and the planning.
     So, my point in all of this, planning and research, you don't always need it, when you do, it helps, and when you have to do it, it can be enjoyable.

Things I Consider When Writing

     First things first. Length. Whether you want to write a poem, flash fiction, short story, novelette, novella, novel. Length is important. it is how you will determine how you will write. Flash fiction is all about one moment. Short stories are too but you can do a little more writing and planning. Novelette, novellas, and novels, you can do anything you want. I write novels so there is a lot more to it.
     The second most important thing to me while writing is genre. I write YA lit which is Young Adult Literature. This includes Twilight and the like. YA is all I read and all I write. But there are many genres. The writer just needs to find what genre they love to write. A writer can write many different genres if they like. YA, Adult, fantasy, literary fiction, historical fiction, nonfiction. The list goes on.
     Then comes research. The last book I wrote and the one I plan to write next require research. I may not use the research, but I feel that it is necessary for a good foundation. But sometimes research is vital to your piece of work.
     Then I decide if I want to outline my work of just pants it. Pantsing is just writing by the seat of your pants with no real direction or plan. Some people do one or the other. Some do both. I am one who does both. I don't ever have a formal outline, but I do use notes of things I want to have happen and quotes I want in my story and so forth. But beyond the notes I have, I just let it flow and see what happens. I always know the ending though.
     Then I focus on point of view. I don't ever write in 3rd person. Just like I tend not to read books written in 3rd person. For me, it is too hard to get into the story and really have a connection with the story and characters. i always write in 1st person. Then I decide who I want telling the story. I usually go into a book knowing who the main character is and who will be telling the story. But, I really love a book that has multiple narrators. Both of the books I have written are told by 2 people, a boy and a girl. I also love when a book or story is told in the guys point of view. So point of view is very important.
     Then its all about the characters. Writing real and believable characters. You don't want the reader not connecting with the story because the characters are not believable. Just like the characters being important, I think names are important. I like to give my characters unique names, but not so crazy that the reader can't pronounce them. Also, a name should fit the character.
     I also believe having a reliable or unreliable narrator is important. A lot of people try to have reliable narrators, but personally, I like having an unreliable narrator, it makes it more interesting. Plus, I believe that no 1st person narrator is reliable. They let their beliefs and feelings get in the way of just the facts. And like I said that is very interesting.
     Then, one very important thing about writing is reading. A good writer is a good reader. I like to read in the genre of what I write because it lets me know how other people write and helps me to know how I want to write. Also, it helps with style issues, pacing and such.
     

Why YA

     I found my love of reading when I was a freshman in high school. From then on I didn't know what I liked to read. That is, until my senior English teacher suggested Twilight to me. That is when I discovered that I love YA. YA is short for Young Adult literature. So why do I love YA and why do I write YA? I will tell you.
     First of all, I was a teen only two years ago so I can still remember everything that happened to me as a teen and how I felt about everything that happened to me. Second, it's more exciting. Teen love with all their hearts. Teens jump into things without thinking. They jump into things with their whole hearts and worry about the consequences later. They fall hard, and love hard. Everything is a first for them. When they fall in love, they don't think about marrying down the road and worrying about insurance or getting a good job or anything like that. Teen live in the moment and for the moment. Teens are resilient and courageous. Teens are witty and smart and full of life. Teens are passionate. They have fears and doubts, but they do their best to work through them. Teens are just incredible people. YA literature encapsulates all of these things and brings it to life.
     So why do I write for teens? Well, I am closer to being a teen than an adult and I feel more like a teen than an adult. But I write for teens for all of the reasons I listed above. YA lit is what I love to read and what I love to write.

Naming Characters

     How do characters in books get their names? How do authors decide what to name their characters?
     Personally, there are four things I consider when naming characters: having unique names that are not too crazy, having memorable names, having a name that fits the character, and not having sexually ambiguous names.
     First, giving a character a unique name that is not crazy. I am not a big fan of common names, not even when I'm not reading. When I have children, they will not be named Bob, or Tom, or John, or anything common like that. Not that there are anything wrong with those names, I just don't prefer them. Some one's name should be unique, as unique as that person is, and possibly their situation. Names like Waverly, Rivers, Lux, Jaden, Mercy, Sawyer, Graham, are all names that are memorable, unique, and interesting.
     A character's name has to be memorable. A reader may love the book and want to tell their friends about it, but if the characters names are not memorable then they will not remember them and telling their friends about it would be difficult. Names of book couples like Patch and Nora, Dimitri and Rose, Katsa and Po, are all memorable names and guaranteed to stick in people memories and hearts.
     A character's name has to fit them. I love unique names, but they have to fit the character. A lot of the time, in my writing, I like to give villainous characters really sweet, innocent names. I feel like giving evil characters names that are sweet only adds to their evilness; Sophie, Cassie, and so on.
     Alas, giving characters sexually ambiguous names is boring, confusing, and often, not memorable. Names like, Sam, Alex, and so on, could lead a reader to be confused and thus become disinterested in what they are reading. 
     If you are writing, anything, remember that characters names should stick with the reader. If a name is unique, memorable, and fits that character, the reader is more likely to remember and care about those characters and enjoy their reading experience more.

My Journey As A Reader

     I am an avid reader. I don't go a day without reading something. I can usually finish a book in about two to four days. And then I start a new one. I always take a book with me, no matter where I go. Now, I wasn't always like this.
     When I started school as a five year old, I was not a very good reader. I struggled with it and therefore did not like it. This lasted till I was a freshman in high school. The summer before my freshman year, my sister had me read the first two Harry Potter books and I fell in love. I fell in love with the Harry Potter books, and all books alike. I needed to read. I picked anything that looks interesting. I just had to read. Unfortunately, I did not always like what I read. I often got bored, disinterested, or did not want to finish what I read. But I loved reading so much that I put up with it. I read the classics because that is what I thought I should be doing, but I did not enjoy them. I read books from about every genre I knew of and was just not finding what I needed to.
     My senior year of high school, I had a new English teacher. She and I had a lot of the same taste in movies, music, and books. This teacher, J-Rad, as we called her, told me I might like the Twilight books. I had never heard of the Twilight books (mind you, this was six years ago so about no one had heard of them) and I didn't think I would like books about vampires. But, I decided to give them a try, what did I have to lose. So I read Twilight and fell in love. I just had to read New Moon and Eclipse (Breaking Dawn was not yet out). And that is when I found my genre. Young Adult Fiction.
     In my opinion, Young Adult Fiction (or YA) is the best genre there is. YA is always exciting, relateable, passionate, and so many more things. After twilight I soon discovered the Hush, Hush series, the Vampire Academy Series, the Wolves of Mercy Falls series, and so many other fantastic books. My reading fervor only increased after that. I bought new YA books with any money I could spare. I begged my parents to buy me new books. I just had to read YA books. Jackson Pearce, Maggie Stiefvater, Becca Fitzpatrick, John Green, are some of my favorite YA authors and they are amazing. I only hope, someday, I can join their ranks and people like me will be adding me to their list of favorite YA authors.
     But just because you are not the best reader or you don't like reading, doesn't mean there isn't a reader inside of you. For me, it was finding my genre to make me into a reader. I believe a person needs to find the right book for them. 

Knowing What You Want To Do For The Rest Of Your Life

     I am now twenty one years old and I have wanted to be more things than my age. It was not until about two years ago that I discovered that what I really want to be is an author. For the longest time after watching The Lord of the Rings I thought I wanted to be a director. My first two years of college I thought I wanted to be an editor or a reader for publishing companies. I have wanted to be so many things I don't know that I can remember or count them all.
     Two years ago I was taking an advanced fiction class and discovered that I wanted, desperately, to be an author. Now, I have been writing since I was very young. I have been cleaning out my old bedroom at my parents house and have discovered so many stories and poems and little things that I had written over the years.
     When I was in junior high, I was bullied and didn't know how to relieve my pain I was feeling. I am also a very private person and I didn't want to have to share the things I felt with any one. I then started writing poetry. This provided me with an emotional outlet and I didn't have to share it with anyone. By writing poetry, I discovered that I loved writing and I was good at it. The more I wrote, the more confident I became in my writing and I started sharing it with people, who, in turn, told me to send it out. I won four poetry contests and was published.
     But eventually poetry just wasn't enough for me anymore. I needed more. In my English classes I was assigned stories to retell or stories to write. I loved it. So I began writing my own stories. Then I wanted more than short stories, I wanted to write longer stories.
     This whole time, though, I never thought that I wanted to be an author or even that I could.
     My freshmen year of high school, I discovered that I loved to read. I had never been a good reader or even liked reading until my sister had me read the Harry Potter books. After that, I couldn't read enough. And the more I read the more I wrote. My junior year of high school, I thought that I could write a book. I knew the story I wanted to write, I knew the characters and what I wanted to have happen to them, I knew I wanted it to be a four book series. I had everything planned out. Then I started writing it and only got about twenty pages in and quit. I didn't quit because I no longer cared, but I didn't really know how to continue. I didn't know how to write a book.
     Then, my junior year of college, a few friends of mine and I took a novel writing class with a favorite professor of ours. Going into it, our professor told us it was going to be hard, really hard. But we didn't really listen to him. Needless to say, it was hard, really hard, but we got threw it. I learned how to write and finish a novel and that I most certainly wanted to be an author, no matter what it takes.
     It is not only that I want to be an author, but I want to tell stories and have people read them and get invested in the characters, because that is what I love to do, I love to get invested in other people's characters and I love to fall in love with them, even though they are fiction. And I want to share that with the world. My best friend read my book and told me she cried when she finished it and I felt so happy that I made her cry because I knew then that I could create real characters that people get invested in and care about.
     Even though that I went through wanting to be many different things and it took a while to find out what I want to do, I know that  I want to be an author and that there is nothing else I would rather do.
     So how many careers do we want to have before we find out what we really want to do. And how do we know that what we want is really what we want and not just what we want to do until what we really want to do comes along?

Writer-For-Hire and Ghost Writers

     I don't know about any one else, but as an aspiring author and an avid reader, I don't know how I feel about writers-for-hire and ghost writers.
     Writers-for-hire. Okay, if you are not aware of what a writer-for-hire is, it is when a publishing company wants a certain kind of book or series to come out but no one is submitting that kind of work. Then, the publishing company talks to agents to see if they have authors who would like to take on this project. The author does not come up with the idea of the books or characters. They write the books but they usually have to follow a pretty strict outline given to them by the publishing company. Some examples of this are the Fallen series by Lauren Kate, the Vampire Diaries series by LJ Smith, and the Kissed By An Angel series, by Elizabeth Chandler. These authors do not come up with the ideas for these books, they are given the ideas and then must write the books. These authors promote these books and go on book tours and talk about how they came up with the story for these books and what inspired them, when actually they did not come up with the ideas. It makes me feel like Lisa Simpson when she found out a beloved author of hers did not in fact write the books she is given credit for. Lauren Kate talks about how a passage from the bible about angels falling for humans and then falling form grace inspired her to write the series, but that is just an elaborate hoax to tell the adoring fans. In some cases, like the Vampire Diaries, LJ Smith did not like the direction in which the publishing company wanted the Vampire Diaries series to go, so she no longer writes those books. However, someone else writes the books, but LJ Smith gets paid a lot of money to keep her name on the series. This is a form of ghost writing.
     Ghost writing. Ghost writing is when someone other than the author on the cover, writes the books. The author on the cover gets all the money and the credit, without actually writing the book. I'm certain the ghost writers get compensated, but still if they are the ones writing the books, they should get their names on the books.
     There is technically nothing wrong with these things, but as I said, I am an aspiring author and an avid reader, and writers-for-hire and ghost writers leave me feeling cheated. I fall in love with these characters and the authors who created them, the stories in which they tell about creating them, and then learn that they in fact did not create them and it feels as if a rug is being pulled out from underneath my feet. Writers-for-hire don't bother me so much as ghost writers. A writer-for-hire didn't come up with the ideas, but they still write the books, whereas a ghost writer writes the book but gets no credit for it.
     What do any of you think about writers-for-hire and ghost writers?

To Pants or Not To Pants, That is the Question.

     What am I talking about? I will tell you. I am talking about whether outlining or writing by the seat of your pants is best.
     I have written one book and am currently working on my second, but I also have plans for at least five others. Now, I always thought that I was a pantser, but then I realized that in a way, I do outline. I have never written an actual outline, but I do write notes of things I want to happen in my books and thing I want certain characters to say or do. So, in a way, that is outlining, just not in it's purest form. But, for the most part, I believe that I pants. I write as it comes to me, then add the things I have in my notes as I wish them to be. I usually have a vague idea of what I want to have happen, but then some scenes go a different direction.
     So, which is better? Pantsing or outlining? I have no idea. I guess it is up to the writer and how they want their story or book to pan out. If you know everything you want to have happen then make an outline. Just because you have an outline doesn't mean you have to stick to it to the letter. You are the writer for goodness sake.
     I do believe that one book I want to write will have to have an outline. I think it depends on what you are writing and how complicated it is. How many characters you have, plot lines, different worlds, creatures, and so on. I also believe that it depends on how organized you and your mind are. If you have a fantastic memory then maybe you don't need an outline or notes at all, maybe you can just pants it from the get go.
     There are pros and cons to outlining and pantsing. A pro to outlining is that you have everything planned out and you don't have to feel like you ever get stuck somewhere along the line. A con to outlining is that you may feel like you can't go beyond your outline, which is not true. A pro to pantsing is the feel of freedom in your writing. A con is that you may find that you don't know where you want your story to go and you get stuck. Writer's block is no one's friend. 
     I am a pantser and an outliner, well sort of an outliner. Like I said before, it is entirely to your preference. So, good luck.

Being A Reader

Hello all,

I have recently started rereading the Hush, Hush series and even though I have read the books multiple times, I find that I am overwhelmingly and desperately in love with Patch Cipriano. This makes me wonder why, we as readers, get so attached to the characters we read about. I mean, goodness, Edward and Bella made millions of people fall in love with them, Harry Potter, Eragon, Katnis and Peeta. What is it about these characters that makes us readers fall so in love, so quickly, that we would rather dream about being with them then live our real lives. I have a great boyfriend, but given the chance to be with Patch, I would take it, no questions asked.

So why do we readers get so attached? Is it because it is the people we are? I know that I am an emotional person and that I get attached to real people too easily, so is that why I get so attached to the characters I read? Is it the way the author writes the characters or the events the characters are put in? I wrote a book and let my friend read it and she said she cried at the end. I was so happy that I could write characters that my friends could connect with and care deeply enough about that they would cry at the end. I felt that I did my job as a writer.

I can tell, usually, in the first five pages whether or not I will like a book. I instantly fall in love with the male characters of the books I read. Is it because I am trying to escape inside these books? Is it because we are looking for something that we don't have? Why is it that we as readers fall so in love with the characters we read?

Books slash Questions slash Anything Else

Books
     Okay, so last weekend, I was in a Sam's Club and looking at their book selection and came across the book The Fault In Our Stars by John Green. My friend Alexie told me about it so I decided to purchase it. My decision was partly swayed by the fact that it was a signed copy. So I got the book and started reading it on the way home. And even though I had a supper with my family and a birthday party to attend the next day, I ended up reading the book in less than a day, hours wise. The Fault In Our Stars was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!! I mean, there are 313 pages in this book and from page 220 to the end there were tears leaking from my eyes. But I could not put it down. I loved it so much. And now that I have finished it, I tell everyone I know about it and that they should read it because it is just that amazing.
     So I told my friend Alexie that I loved the book and that she should read it and then she told me that she loved the author. I had previously read his novel Looking For Alaska and thought it was good but not as good as I was hoping. I decided, like I decide about any author, was to youtube him. I found that he and his brother Hank have this youtube show where they vlog (video blog) back and forth with each other. At first I thought this guy was kind of interesting, but the more I watched the more I knew that this guy and his brother are awesome. And their like slogan or mantra or whatever you want to call it is "Keep calm and DFTBA" with means Don't Forget To Be Awesome. And they that this project to "end world suck" and they do all these amazing things. Anyway, enough with my rant, but seriously John Green can really write a novel and do really good things, everyone should check him out.

Books 2
     So recently, in the mail, I got the books The Savage Grace by Bree Despain and Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver. I am currently reading The Savage Grace which is the final book in the Dark Divine series. It is pretty awesome too. Pandemonium is a sequel to Delirium by Lauren Oliver. Delirium was amazing so I cannot wait to read Pandemonium.

Questions
     Today I watched an interview of these different authors and the interviewers asked all kinds of different questions and one that stuck out to me, probably because I haven't heard it asked before was "What three fictional characters would you chose to live with?" I loved this question. I immediately thought of two of them, both being YA male characters. How would any of you answer this question? Or are their any other questions you would ask authors or would like authors to be asked?

Anything Else
     Well, I seem to have run out of things to say, or perhaps I forgot what my anything else was but this post is long enough, so I am going to say fair-the-well.

Hi, my name is Laci Maskell and I am an addict

     Hello blog world. Yes I am an addict. That being said, I'm not sure that my addiction is all that bad. I am addicted to pens. I love pens. Really cool pens, unique pens, ordinary pens. You name it, if it's a pen, I will more than likely love it. A little while ago I told one of my friends that I love pens and he said that I'm probably one of those people who uses a pen until it dies. Now, up until about 2 days ago, I would have said no. But then I used all the ink in one of my pens. I was so sad. Luckily this pen came in a set of two. So now, I can just use the other pen until I can go get more of that pen. But other than that, almost every time I go to a store, I buy a new pen or two, and I every time I buy new pens they are better and more my favorite then the last. I use about 3 different pens for every different note book I have, I use different notebooks for different stories and books.
     As with a lot of writers, I am also addicted to other office supplies. I have a list of office supplies I want to get. Now, do I need these office supplies, not really. Some of them yes, but most of them no. I love post its, notebooks, folders, binders, all kinds of different office supplies. But mostly, I love pens the most. I hate it when I lose a pen. I hate it when a pen runs out of ink. I especially hate it when I go to the store and they no longer carry my favorite pens. Who does this?  Why would you no longer stock a pen? What happens when my favorite pen runs out of ink and I can no longer buy that new pen? That means sad day in Laci Land.
     So what addictions do you have, weird or otherwise? What things can you not live without?

I can't believe the number of times I've used the phrase I can't believe

We all do it in our writing, we use the same words or phrases about a thousand times. In my first book I used the word seem and its variations about a thousand times or more I didn't count. In the writing of my current book, I find that I have been using the phrase 'I can't believe' about a zillion times. I keep catching myself writing it and then want to slap my hand. I think we as writers, though we have extensive vocabularies, get stuck in a rut or comfortable with certain things and want to use that certain thing zillions of times. But I am here to tell you, STOP IT! Something I have to remind myself every day. Every time I catch myself using the phrase 'I can't believe' I make myself think of a different phrase. This betters the writing and exercises your mind. So get out of your comfort zone and exercise your mind! Good luck and good writing!

Superstitions

A few months ago I was hanging out with friends, all writer/English major friends and my friend David wanted to tell us about a book he wants to write. Before he could get a word out, Kelly told us all that there is a superstition in writing that if you tell someone about something you want to write before you write it you won't be able to write it, that you will lose interest in it. At the time I didn't think twice about this superstition, I even went as far as thwarting it, telling them that David already told me about the project and that if he still wanted to write it the superstition must be false. Well, then I started to write my next book, a book that I had told about half a dozen people the plot and where the book was going. I got about twenty pages into writing it and then got stuck. I tried going at it from different angles, taking a break, but I still found myself stuck. So for now I put that book away and started on a new book. Now, this is a book I never thought I could write. I didn't think I knew enough about the subject matter, or that I could get it right. Then, I heard this line, just one line, on a TV show, and everything just clicked. I knew then that I had to write this book. I wrote down the idea for the book my idea notebook. Then, I started thinking more about this book, the characters, the plot, what was going to happen, everything and I just couldn't stop. Finally I started writing the book actually free handing it, then typing every chapter or so. It is going so well, I haven't been stuck once, I keep adding twists and turns in I didn't think I would, and such. I can't believe how well it is going. But back to the superstition, I haven't told a soul about the plot of this book or really talked about it to anyone. Now I don't know if it is all in my head and that I just really got stuck on the previous book or if the superstition is actually real. Tell me what you think.