Blog

Blogging, Writing

Once More Unto The (Writing) Breach- June 2016

Emily

I got so much done and my heart is so full of love and appreciation, let’s get started before I burst 🙂

What I’ve Accomplished This Month

This went really well this month! I’ve had several really excellent reviews, very detailed (even if a few of them made me feel a bit defensive) and overall quite positive 🙂 I’m really excited to finish up the first draft of this story this month for Camp and finally have it behind me. Not that I don’t love these characters, but… well, this could get lengthy and will probably merit it’s own blog post when the time comes 🙂 Suffice it to say, I’m very pleased with how things are going in Middle Earth and I’ll be even more excited to jump back in after Camp in August!

I cannot tell you how thrilled I am with the reception of Clarity! All of the reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. And by overwhelming, I mean I’ve seriously been brought close to tears a few times by the kind words and love that has been poured out for this fic that has been so close to my heart. It means so much to me that the messages I was hoping to convey have been so completely understood and embraced with such enthusiasm. If any of you out there are readers of this fic and are reading this, words cannot express my gratitude for your words and your encouragement. I read every review (sometimes over and over) and I appreciate every kindness. We’re on the downhill slide now, and things are heating up, thank you for taking this journey with me 🙂

  • In extra writing related news, I’ve discovered a new site. It’s called WordKeeperAlpha and it is a stats site made by a writer, for writers. I’m not gonna lie, the most motivating part of NaNo for me is the bar graph. Watching that graph move up little by little every day and striving to reach and surpass that dotted goal line is what keeps me going on the days when I would really rather do anything but write. This site has a similar draw for me. It’s a work in progress (I’m still waiting for the Goals bar graph and the NaNo-like bar graph features), but I’ve found it extremely motivating even just as it is and the creator assures me that in between his own writings he is working on getting more features implemented. In the meantime I think it’ll be a great way to keep up with my progress throughout the year, rather than relying on NaNo’s bar graph only three times a year 🙂

With that said…

What’s Coming Up in July

CNW_Participant

That’s right, it’s that time of year again! I finally decided on a Finishing WriMo, with three stories on the agenda and a goal of 50k words:

  1. Changing History: Calenhiril’s Search– This should honestly be a surprise to no one ;P I’ve set aside 20k words for this, but I’m working on it until it is DONE, damn it! Finished, finito (Italian), fini (French), fertig (German), terminat (Romanian)(Are you there, Sebastian Stan? This one’s for you)(As a matter of fact, yes, I did go a little nuts with Google Translate. Why do you ask? ;P). I will be finished with the first draft by the end of this month, hell or high water. I should only have about four chapters left to write, but we’ll see how that goes.
  2. Paradise Found: A Worth Living For short story– Those of you reading this that know me are probably reading the words “short story” and laughing your asses off. I know, the self-proclaimed Queen of the Sprawling Epic, writing a short story? What wacked out AU have we been tossed into? But stay with me, it’s actually just a small part of a much larger story that will be written later. But I’ve been promising this short since Worth Living For (my Bruce Banner fic) was published, almost three years ago. It’s going to get done this month, at least the first draft will. And hopefully it will segue nicely into the Age of Ultron fic I have planned after that 😉
  3. Wonderland Reclaimed: Down the Rabbit Hole– Once those two fics are taken care of, I’m going to buckle down and spend the rest of my remaining 50k rewriting the Lost Words from The Great Disaster of 2015. It’s time. I really would like to be published before I’m forty. I’m really feeling the pressure now. I’m thirty years old and I have done nothing of note with my life. It would be nice to be published before I’m thirty-one, but I’m realistic, that won’t happen. Thirty-five would be nice. Forty is an absolute maximum. But I have to start working on things and stop putting them off because it’s painful. This is the first step toward making that happen.

There it is, The Master Plan for July! I’m well on my way (6,000 words as of this writing), stay tuned to see how I fare!

Also, I’ve become aware that I owe you guys a Quarterly Update on my New Year’s goals. That will happen later this week, so keep an eye out. I know, two blog posts in one week? What madness is this??? Just you wait! Until next time!

JimCarreyTyping

 

 

 

Blogging, life

A Hobbit’s Walking Tale- June 2016

Emily

A Hobbit’s Walking Tale (Twitter tags: #AHobbitsWalkingTale #byfogisbeautiful)

  • Miles Walked This Month (June 1st-June 29th):  54.6 miles
  • Total Miles Walked:  334.6 miles
  • Milestones Reached:  The Last Bridge

“I don’t know what river it was, a rushing red one, swollen with the rains of the last few days, that came down from the hills and mountains in front of them.”

~The Hobbit, Chapter 2: Roast Mutton

Well, it was a slog this month, but I finally made it out of the Lone Lands and across the Last Bridge!

l1080554

I walked the least amount in a month that I have since I started this journey and next month isn’t promising to be a big walking month either, what with Camp NaNo and all. But my goal is to at least walk more than I did this month, because this is pathetic! With that in mind, I should see you all at the Ford of Bruinen! 🙂

Blogging, Crafting, life, Random, Reading, Writing

#Hashtags And Other Minutiae- June 2016

Emily

I don’t even know that I’ve done anything cool on the internet this month. Let’s find out together! 🙂

Tumblr

  • Favorite Posts:

I just really love animals, okay? Bonus: Tom Hiddleston with a leopard cub.

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/146210737025/via-httpswwwyoutubecomwatchv-e4muxs4ihty

I just posted this today, actually, and I regret nothing 🙂

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/146260288277/hufflepuff-why-cant-we-all-just-get

  • Favorite Reblogs:

I’m not crying, you’re crying…

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/144519373200/elentori-art-no-one-can-help-me-said

Faramir in text posts:

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/144655825477/theturtleismoving-as-requested

Played this last night for my writing group, we literally watched it three times in a row and could not stop laughing 🙂

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/146084761132/stellagibsonisalifeforce-anonstarbuck

This was like a punch in the gut 😦

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/146229791987/captbexx-rip-anton-yelchin-hugs-and-kisses

Twitter

  • Favorite Tweets

Nothing original this month, sorry 😦

  • Favorite Retweets:

Me, basically.

You can ask, but I can’t guarantee I can explain ;P

https://twitter.com/AdanRamie/status/737471130852696064

The original Science Bros 🙂

Instagram

  • I spun up some yarn…

  • And made a cowl!

Pinterest

  • Featured Board: Avengers Assemble! And, you know, other Marvel-ous shenanigans 😉

 

  • Favorite Pins:

I guess that’s it! See you guys around the internet! 🙂

Reading

Have You Hugged A Book Today?- May 2016

Emily

ReadingChallengeMay16

I actually caught up on my reading goal! Hooray! \o/ I blame both a comic book binge and Audible for this. It took me forever to convince my brain that signing up for an audiobook once a month was a good idea, but right now I REGRET NOTHING! 😀

Here’s the link to my star rating breakdown if anyone needs a refresher. It’s also up in the header 🙂

  • What I’m currently reading (in order of Date Started)
    1. Miles Errant by Lois McMaster Bujold– This has been my weekend read for the past couple of weekends 🙂 I love Miles Vorkosigan to death and reading his antics never fails to make me laugh out loud. He’s a delight in every way and I’m glad I’ve been able to get back into his world.
    2. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon– This is a book club read and I’m enjoying it immensely! So far, it’s very much not the over-the-top romance I was expecting and much more a historical fiction with some fantasy realism thrown in. I’m liking it a lot (though I am spending a lot of time waiting for the other shoe to drop right now ;P).
  • Books I’ve Finished 
    1. The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King- Four Stars
    2. Marvel’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron Prelude by Will Pilgrim – Three Stars
    3. Avengers: Road to Marvel’s The Avengers- Four Stars
    4. The Martian by Andy Weir- Five Stars
    5. Ms. Marvel Vol 4: Last Days by Willow G. Wilson- Five Stars
    6. Thor Vol 2: Who Holds The Hammer? by Jason Aaron- Four Stars
    7. Doctor Strange: The Oath by Brian K. Vaughan- Five Stars
    8. Chew Vol 2: International Flavor by John Layman- Four Stars
    9. The Wastelands by Stephen King- Four Stars

Fog’s Book Of The Month
Maladaptation (Deviant Behaviors #1)Maladaptation by Adan Ramie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Alright, I finished this book a while ago and I was trying to come up with the perfect words to write in my review, but at this point I think I should just wing it, so here we go! ;P

I loved this book. It’s not in my normal genre wheelhouse, but I’m always trying to expand my experience and, let me tell you, my experience is expanded! It was gritty and dark and very real. I found characters on both sides that I could root for (and in at least one case, scream at in a very WHAT ARE YOU DOING, DON’T DO THAT, I WANT TO KEEP LIKING YOU! kind of way ;P) and I felt sympathy for them in all sorts of different ways. The plot was grim, but engaging and kept me asking questions (which is something I always like) and the end, while not tied up in a perfect bow, was exactly what I didn’t know I needed.

I look forward to digging into more stories with these characters!

(View all my reviews)

 

 

 

Blogging, Writing

Once More Unto The (Writing) Breach- May 2016

Emily

I actually did more this month than I thought (which should really not be surprising to me any more, but it is :P). Let’s get started!

What I’ve Accomplished This Month

I had every intention of getting right back into the swing of this story after Camp NaNoWriMo in April. It didn’t happen as well as I had wanted. I got bogged down in edits. These later chapters are in far more need of editing than the nine or so chapters previously and it’s making it difficult to get through. But I am persevering, as much as I am able! The time of plot twists is nigh and I’m super excited about it! 🙂

This story was started on a whim. Unfortunately, that means it’s the most likely to get dropped, which is exactly what I’ve decided to do. Not forever (I have way too many plans for this story to possibly consider dropping it forever :P), but at least until I feel like I’m in a good place with “Calenhiril’s Search”, which will probably be when I have the first draft completely finished, possibly not until the whole thing is posted. I just really want to focus on “Calenhiril’s Search” right now and get that off my conscience before I stress myself out with too many other things. And posting two stories at the same time (“Calenhiril’s Search”, and now “Clarity“) is more than enough for my plate right now.

What’s Coming Up in June

ClarityFinishedCoverTall

As of  Wednesday, June 1st, “Clarity” is officially live!

pja3bag

Link to Fanfiction.Net

Link to AO3

There are two chapters currently posted, with an expected chapter count of twenty, plus an epilogue. I will be updating every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, as time allows, so keep an eye out! I’ve already had some really favorable reviews and I’m very pleased about it. I use those reviews to motivate me as I go through the proofreading process for each chapter and my perfectionist brain keeps trying to tell me that it’s all crap 😛

CNW_Participant

That’s right, folks, July’s Camp NaNoWriMo is nearly upon us! I know, I can hardly believe it myself. But June is the time to prep, waffle, and generally stress about the relative sanity of trying to dedicate my life to this thing three months out of the year. And I’m doing a bang up job so far ;P

I’ve got myself almost completely sold on the idea of a Finishing WriMo in July, starting with finishing the first draft of Calenhiril’s Search, followed by a quick foray into “Paradise Found” (the “Worth Living For” short sequel that I’ve been promising for nearly three years now), and finishing up with “Wonderland Reclaimed: Down The Rabbit Hole” (the first part of my Wonderland retelling that I lost in The Great Disaster of 2015).

Which is a great plan. Solid. I’m excited to be a part of it.

(…)

Except that I also started writing out the summary for my Age of Ultron fanfic and I’m really getting excited about it. It even has a title now: “Good Intentions”.

luciatag-smarta

So, yeah, who knows what’s going to happen in July. I’m still about 90% sold on the idea of a Finishing WriMo, and I would get to do at least one Marvel related fic if I did that, so… yeah. Stay tuned next month for my decision! 😛

 

 

Blogging, life

A Hobbit’s Walking Tale- May 2016

Emily

A Hobbit’s Walking Tale (Twitter tags: #AHobbitsWalkingTale #byfogisbeautiful)

  • Miles Walked This Month (Apr 26th-May 31st):  80.8 miles
  • Total Miles Walked:  280 miles
  • Milestones Reached:  Traveling the Lone Lands to the Last Bridge

“Everything seemed gloomy, for the weather that day had taken a nasty turn. Mostly it had been as good as May can be, even in merry tales, but now it was cold and wet.”

~The Hobbit, Chapter 2: Roast Mutton

Ugh, that’s a nasty description isn’t it? Kind of like the weather today, actually. But I walked the farthest in one month that I have yet, so I just can’t quite feel as gloomy as Bilbo and the dwarves right now 🙂 I only have 45 miles to the Last Bridge and then things will start to get exciting!

But for now, here we are…

thelonelandsbannergleams

 Better just keep trekking 😉

Blogging, Crafting, life, Random, Reading, Writing

#Hashtags And Other Minutiae- May 2016

Emily

No cool intros, no witty quips. I’m letting the work speak for itself today 🙂

Tumblr

  • Favorite Posts:

I didn’t do many original posts this past month, mostly I just answered asks ;P

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/143168203162/did-you-ever-have-that-problem-where-youre

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/143393964211/that-star-wars-meme-thing-you-just-didwe-have

  • Favorite Reblogs:

RIP Agent Carter…

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/144307654603/marvelousdorito-the-world-has-changed-and

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/144314799279/imaginessforall-requested-sagittarius

Clint Barton is my fave.

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/144486004266

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/143354420929/remusjohnslupin-au-femfellowship-of-the-ring

Breaking News: Poe Dameron continues to be an A+ life ruiner.

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/143598132905/reb-chan-all-i-do-now-is-draw-poe-dayumeron

Actual Retail Life

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/144209346145/skellydun-why-is-it-always-ice

http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/144361243428/lazy-afternooner-a-new-hope

Twitter

  • Favorite Tweets

I literally had two tweets this month, sorry Twitter :/

  • Favorite Retweets:

Instagram

  • I finished spinning my milk fiber!

  • And I started a new  spin!

  • I also used up the last of my funky, chunky handspun singles with mitts!

 

Pinterest

  • Featured Board: This month, Changing History!

  • Favorite Pins:

 

That’s all I have for you guys today 🙂 See you around the interwebs!

Reading

Have You Hugged A Book Today?- April 2016

Emily

ReadingChallengeApril16

And I fall farther and farther behind on my reading… I really need to take a day off 😉

Here’s the link to my star rating breakdown if anyone needs a refresher. It’s also up in the header 🙂

  • What I’m currently reading (in order of Date Started)
    1. The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King– I’m much closer to being done with this book than I was! For some reason it’s dragging for me, I don’t remember this happening last time I read it…
  • Books I’ve Finished (I did say comics to the rescue ;P)
    1. Jessica Jones: Alias Vol 3 by Brian Michael Bendis- Four Stars

Fog’s Book Of The Month

This month’s selection:

Jessica Jones: Alias, Vol. 4 (Alias, #4)Jessica Jones: Alias, Vol. 4 by Brian Michael Bendis

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have to say, the end of this comic run was not nearly as powerful for me as the Netflix series was. That’s not to say it’s bad (see the five star review), it was just different. I’m mainly keeping the five stars for the references to things that were not in the show, not for the Purple Man story line (hello epic 4th wall break! ;P). Like Jessica’s relationships with the people in her life: Carol, Scott, Quartermain, and Luke. If there is any way for us to see Quartermain in the next season, I would be 900% okay with this. I would also be 900% okay with a guest appearance by Scott Lang, but I’m gonna throw out a guess and say that’s a lot less likely to happen ;P Seeing Jessica’s different reactions to the different people in her life really made her experiences feel real and painful. Also, the wonderful extra reveal at the end of the book was very well done (even though I knew it was coming ;P).

I definitely don’t want to leave the world of Jessica Jones behind and I will definitely be picking up The Pulse next!

(View all my reviews)

  • Book to Screen (Twitter live!tag-#fogwatches)
    • Still nothing. There will be something next time, I swear, I really AM gonna finish the Harry Potter movies…

I’m going to try to read more now that Camp NaNo is over, but that requires taking time off and I just don’t know when that’s going to happen, quite frankly. I’ll leave you with this hilarious comic that I found on the internet, because… um… yeah… ;P

comics-shoeboxblog-books-internet-565116

 

Blogging, Writing

Once More Unto The (Writing) Breach- April 2016

Emily

What I’ve Accomplished This Month

CNW_Winner_1500-1

That’s it. Literally, that was all I did this month. I edited over 80,000 words in 30 days, and let me tell you, there were days I didn’t think I was gonna make it. I started out very confident, completely certain that I was going to get everything done, maybe even get done early! And then I realized I was ripping this story apart and now I had to put it all back together, not once… not twice… THREE TIMES this happened to me, in the second half of the month! It was heart-stoppingly stressful some days, but I think I’ve done the story a lot of good.

For those of you who might not remember what the heck I was even working on, here’s a reprint of the horrible summary for Clarity that is getting a well-deserved rewrite sooner rather than later:

Clarity (A Loki Fanfiction)

Loki (the traitor, the usurper, former prince of Asgard) is imprisoned below the palace that was once his home, cut off from even his mother, possibly the only person in the whole of the Nine Realms who still cares for him. But Lady Frigga has always been a clever woman. And there is a girl in her service, a girl with no past and an unusual quality that makes her uniquely suited to the task the Queen has in mind. Klara might not know who she is, but in the dungeons of Asgard, she might learn who she wants to be.

I’m letting the story rest and I’m going to allow a few trusted readers to read the final product before posting begins in June. The tentative date for the first chapter to post is Wednesday, June 1st, with a posting schedule of Monday, Wednesday, Friday, if anyone wants to mark their calendars!

Also, I have this playlist on Spotify I’ve been listening to while I work on writing/editing Clarity. Feel free to give it a listen if you want a teaser for the fic!

What’s Coming Up in May

My intention is to get back into the swing of regular posting, starting with one chapter per week for both Changing History: Calenhiril’s Search and Double The Baggins, Twice The Took. I might post more as time allows, but mostly I’m taking this month to rest and try to recuperate my energy from my work intensive Camp session. And also prepare for the next Camp NaNoWriMo in July! A writer’s work is never done, it seems! Currently, my heart is set on trying to finish Wonderland Reclaimed, but that could change depending on how I feel about Calenhiril’s Search and DBTT by then. I could be doing a finishing WriMo instead! We’ll see what the future brings!

Until next time…

14654138
If you thought I forgot it was May The Fourth, you clearly don’t understand the level of extreme nerdery I operate at… ;P