Tag: fanfiction

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! 🙂

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, 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!

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

 

 

Blogging, Writing

Once More Unto The (Writing) Breach- March 2016, Plus The Quarterly Round-Up!

Emily

What I’ve Accomplished This Month

  • Changing History: Calenhiril’s Search– 7 chapters posted!
    • So, I posted WAY more chapters in March than I had planned, which is AWESOME! I’m still not finished with the first draft of this story, but I feel like it will probably come to me as I go, and I still have at least 30 chapters to post before I really need to start worrying about it too much. I’m just really excited to get this all out there and ACTUALLY be done with Mel and Boromir’s tale 🙂
  • Double The Baggins, Twice The Took– 6 chapters posted!
    • I’m gonna be honest, this came completely out of left field. I wrote the first 50,000 words of this by accident in July 2014, but I just had too many other projects going at the time to even consider posting it. I still have too many stories running at the same time (I’ll be posting THREE simultaneously, come June…), but I happened to read a really great Hobbit fanfiction (Stirring The Leaves, recommended to me by my friend, Sarah!) and it made me realize that my story deserves to be read. So here I am, with yet another story I’m posting even though the first draft isn’t quite finished. But I feel like I have enough of the framework figured out to get a start on it, at any rate. It’s just for fun right now, so we’ll see where it goes 🙂

What’s Coming Up in April

CNW_Participant

I finished all my editing prep work for Clarity, my newest Marvel fanfiction set during the year of Loki’s imprisonment preceding (and including) the events of Thor: The Dark World.

From my Camp NaNo Synopsis:

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.

Despite that terrible blurb, I’m really, really excited about this project, and so far it’s been a joy to edit! I’ve been adding and cutting and rearranging like a crazy person and it’s been a lot of fun! I’m really hoping to have everything done and ready to go by the end of the month, then it will rest for a couple of weeks before I start posting in June.

Speaking of long-term goals, it’s time to introduce our newest segment!

The Quarterly Round-Up!

So, at the beginning of the year, I set out some yearly goals and some quarterly goals, and vowed to reevaluate and re-prioritize every three months. Three months have come and gone and it’s time to keep my word! Let’s start with a reminder/recap of my goals for the year:

Overall goals for the year: Finish Changing History rewrites DONE!, Finish first draft of Changing History: Entwives, Write the Worth Living For short that I’ve been planning for ages, Edit and begin posting Clarity, Finish the first draft of all three parts of Wonderland Reclaimed.

Reward Project: If I finish Wonderland Reclaimed, I can write my Avengers: Age of Ultron fic for NaNoWriMo in November.

Now, let’s break it down by month!

  • January: First month of NaNoWriMo’s “Now What?” months, focusing on revising and editing. My goals are to finish editing and posting Changing History: Second Chances, and to finish the first draft of Entwives.
    • I didn’t finish my rewrite in January, which set everything for the year back a bit. I also didn’t finish my Entwives (now Calenhiril’s Search) first draft, but that didn’t set me back as much as I feared it might.
    • Unexpectedly, I started work on my new Star Wars collaboration, Resolving of Gray, with Sarah this month! We’re still working on it, but it’s slowed down a bit now, with both of us working on other projects at the moment.
  • February: Second month of NaNoWriMo’s “Now What?” months. I’ll be setting aside Changing History this month and shifting my focus onto my intense editing of Clarity (Loki fic). I will also add new words to the rewriting of Part One of Wonderland Reclaimed.
    • Because of the setbacks in January, February had to be completely rethought. I made the decision to move the editing of Clarity to April for my Camp NaNoWriMo project, and shifted my focus from new words to editing and finishing of Changing History. I also made the decision to add a new villain to Wonderland Reclaimed, which means that when I do finally sit down to finish it, it’s gonna be a lot more work than I had anticipated…
    • I finished the Changing History: Second Chances rewrites this month! It was glorious! There were gifs!
  • March: Prep Month for Camp NaNo #1. Prepare to edit Entwives, write out an outline of what I have so far and make note of any plot holes that need filling. I’ll also continue to add words to Wonderland Part One.
    • So, by the time March got here, everything was all outta whack. I did start posting the fourth and final part of Entwives (now Calenhiril’s Search)(see above), but I didn’t work on Wonderland at all. I did finish all my prep work to edit Clarity for April Camp NaNo, though.
    • Began posting Double The Baggins, Twice The Took on a whim (6 chapters posted)

So, despite a slow start to the year, I did actually manage to accomplish quite a bit in this first quarter, even if not all of it was in the original plan (the best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men, amirite? ;P). I’ve decided to put less emphasis on new words this next quarter, and more emphasis on getting these projects finished, be that writing, editing, or posting. On the flip side of that, I just found out that Alice Through The Looking Glass is being released on May 27th, and since my original novel is an Alice In Wonderland retelling, I would like to get that finished sooner rather than later, in order to capitalize on any resurgence in that genre that might result from the movie (which looks AMAZING, by the way, check out the trailer!).

As much as I’m enjoying editing my Loki fanfiction, in light of this news, I kind of wish I had set it aside and worked on Wonderland this month. Since that’s no longer an option (I’ve COMMITTED, dang it! ;P), I’m going to try (try!) to work on finishing the first draft in May, instead. With that in mind, here’s a break down of my goals for the second quarter!

  • April: Camp NaNoWriMo #1! Edit Clarity (A Loki Fanfiction).
  • May: Continue to post at least one chapter of Calenhiril’s Search and DBTT a week. Finish the first draft of Wonderland Reclaimed, or add 50,000 new words (whichever comes first).
  • June: Prep month for Camp NaNoWriMo #2! Depending on how May goes, either prep for editing Wonderland Reclaimed, or prep for a finishing WriMo (50K words on Wonderland/Calenhiril’s Search/DBTT). Begin posting schedule for Clarity (M/W/F).

I’m going to be honest, this next quarter looks super intimidating. It’s a lot of work. And I’m going to make a side-goal this quarter of making time for my original fiction, even if that means setting aside a fanfiction project I’m enjoying. I can always come back to it once I’m done 🙂

And that’s it! We’ll see what happens! If you’re doing Camp NaNoWriMo this month, break a leg, and I’ll see you all on the other side!

 

 

 

Blogging, Random, Reading, Writing

Wrappin’ Up The Month With Fog: February Edition

Emily

 

Once More Unto the (Writing) Breach

  • Changing History: I DID IT! I ACTUALLY FINISHED THE EPIC REWRITE!!!

tumblr_mdtxe4jxan1qh0vhjo1_500

Part Four (Calenhiril’s Search) will start posting on March 3rd and I’m SO EXCITED!!!

tumblr_lrx5jpomhz1qhlc2x

I’m not… technically… finished with the entire first draft of Part Four yet, but I’m far enough along (and I’ve edited the first half enough times in the past year) that I feel pretty confident in my ability to begin posting in March. Of course, I’ll probably only get three or four chapters posted before Camp NaNoWriMo in April, but that will be FOUR CHAPTERS CLOSER TO THE END, OH MY GOD, I CAN’T EVEN!

tumblr_n22z3c1vfa1tq4of6o1_400

  • Writing Excuses: “15 minutes long, because you’re in a hurry and we’re not that smart.” If you haven’t listened to this podcast (starring Brandon Sanderson, Mary Robinette Kowal, Howard Tayler, and Dan Wells), then you are missing out! My friend, Elissa (who I’ve mentioned on this blog more times than I can count. If you aren’t reading her blog, WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU???) mentioned this podcast in a recent post and (surprise, surprise) I had never heard of it. But I had heard of Brandon Sanderson, so I decided to give it a shot. From that very first line, I was sold. I downloaded several episodes through Podcast Republic on my phone, and have been listening to the playlist for days. They make being an author feel like something attainable, something that real, actual people do, and do well. It’s both encouraging, entertaining, and informative, I highly recommend it!

Have You Hugged a Book Today?

ReadingChallengeFeb16

I’m still behind, but I’m working on it. No, really! Stop laughing!

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

  • Books I’ve finished:
    1. Star Wars: The Force Awakens by Alan Dean Foster- Three Stars (though, to be fair, I really only skimmed it. I’ll be reading it again in more depth at a later time)
    2. Ms. Marvel Vol. 3: Crushed by Willow G. Wilson- Five Stars
    3. The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss- Five Stars (Patrick Rothfuss is a god amongst men…)
  • What I’m currently reading (In order of Date Started):
    1. The Gunslinger by Stephen King– I finally started this series! I’m hoping to read the whole series this year, but I’m definitely behind, so we’ll have to see.
    2. As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes– This is the book that my book club has decided to read for March, but I started it early 😉 I came to the Princess Bride later in life, but the story is so timeless and lovely that I fell in love instantly. Cary Elwes tells the tale of his experience making the movie with such wide-eyed wonder and humility, it is a joy to listen to. And the guest appearances from the other members of the cast and crew add delightful flavor to the book.
  • Book to Screen (Twitter live!tag-#fogwatches):
    • Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix- I’m gonna be honest here. This was not as jarringly awful as I thought it was going to be. It was horrendously painful (and god, I hate Umbridge SO MUCH!), but it wasn’t “awful”. There were several wonderful moments, mostly containing Sirius and Remus, and I think I felt more sympathy for Harry in the movie than I did in the book. I mean, he’s still an annoying emo-teen, but I felt a little more sympathetic toward his emo-ness. If you really want all of my feelings, you should check out the live!tag on Twitter (listed above), I’ve been told it was entertaining ;P

#Hashtags and other minutia

Do I Actually Have a Life?

“At first they had passed through hobbit-lands, a wild respectable country inhabited by decent folk, with good roads, an inn or two, and now and then a dwarf or a farmer ambling by on business.”

~The Hobbit, Chapter 2: Roast Mutton

As I suspected, I nearly made it to Bree! I am roughly 11 miles away, as of this writing! I probably could have made it to Bree in fact, if I hadn’t taken a week off from doing nearly anything this month, and then gotten sick in the last week. Oh well, next month! 🙂

DuolingoFeb16

I was doing really well, but then I lost my 20 day streak and I sort of… gave in. I’ve done really well though! I got through my review of the first set of lessons and nearly finished the second set, which was exactly what I expected to accomplish 🙂

I also wanted to share some highlights from my lessons with you guys because, quite frankly, this program has been so entertaining, and deserves to be shared with the world ;P

2016-02-05 13.50.50
Why yes. Yes, I am.
2016-02-05 13.51.58
This is unnecessarily frightening. Mostly because it’s true…
2016-02-08 18.34.57
Even my Spanish lesson thinks I should be writing!
2016-02-17 18.40.12
It’s occasionally uncanny how well this program knows me…

“And In Conclusion…”

  • Writing- Begin posting Calenhiril’s Search and start doing the preliminary work for Clarity (my Loki fanfiction, which I will be editing for Camp NaNoWriMo in April!)
  • Reading- I still haven’t managed to fix my audiobook files that I messed up, I’m going to try to do that this month, and then catch up on my reading!
  • Social Media- Don’t forget about Instagram! ;P
  • My Personal Life- Walk to the Midgewater Marshes. Complete 5 more lesson bubbles on Duolingo and reach level 7 (nearly level 8).

And… that’s it! This has been an exciting month, hopefully the momentum will continue!

 

 

Blogging, Random, Reading, Writing

Wrappin’ Up The Month With Fog: January Edition

Emily

First Wrap Up of the New Year! Let’s get to it! 🙂

Once More Unto the (Writing) Breach

  • Changing History: I managed to post three chapters last month, which is not as much as I wanted to get done. I also did not get any work done on Entwives at all.  I feel a little bit stuck to be honest, I’m going to try to push through that this month, even if it means skipping ahead.
  • Surprise!: I started a new, exciting project this month, completely unexpectedly! Not only is it in a fandom that has been currently ruining my life (Star Wars: The Force Awakens), but it is also my very first collaboration! The story is a High School Alternate Universe fanfiction, based on this tumblr post:
http://mamalaz.tumblr.com/post/137822574112/the-force-awakens-high-school-au-finn-plays-for

I am really excited about this project and my collaborator is a complete delight! I’ll be sure to keep you guys updated as progress is made.

Have You Hugged a Book Today?

JanReadChal16

I’m sort of failboating here. Not good. Part of the reason is because I haven’t been listening to my audiobooks, like I did last year. And I am out of time when it comes to actual paper, apparently. I’ll see what I can do to fix that, but for now let’s take a look at what I did finish this month!

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

  • Books I’ve finished:
    1. Mirror, Mirror by Gregory Maguire- Four Stars
    2. Wolverine and Jubilee: Curse of the Mutants by Kathryn Immonen- Three Stars
    3. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Vol 1 by Ryan North- Three Stars
  • Book to Screen:
    1. The Help– I put this off for a long, long time. And even though I tried to wait until the book’s effect had worn off, it wasn’t long enough. The movie just can’t compare. It was good, don’t get me wrong (I mean, it did make me cry… twice), but the book was so much more. I actually don’t think it would be possible for anyone to make a movie that could compare to the book for me. I enjoyed it, but only in that it made me want to read the book again 🙂
    2. I feel I should mention, I’m trying to live tweet whenever I watch one of these movies. If you’d like to follow along, or just go back and read my reactions to some of the movies I watch, the hashtag I use is #fogwatches

#Hashtags and other minutia

I did pretty well on the social media front this month! Yay me! Let’s play those highlights!

  • My Favorite Tumblr Reblog: Truth talk.
http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/138109185959/reasons-i-am-like-bb-8

  • My Favorite Tumblr Post: Poe Dameron is ruining my life, someone help…
http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/137699426079/i-wrote-the-beginning-of-this-thing-and-it-made-me

  • Twitter Retweet: Look me in the eye and tell me this was necessary.

  • Twitter Post: In honor of Alan Rickman’s passing I watched Sense and Sensibility. I expected it to make me sad, but instead it just made me angry.

  • Instagram: I’m constantly in awe of how much my friends just FLIPPING GET ME! ;P

View this post on Instagram

MY FRIENDS FLIPPING GET ME!!! MY VERY OWN BUCKY!!!

A post shared by Emily (@fogisbeautiful) on

  • Instagram: My crafting accomplishment of the month- Supported Spinning!

  • Just For Fun: I CAN’T UNSEE THIS, OH LORD…
http://fogisbeautiful.tumblr.com/post/138246776541/millenniumfucko-im-gonna-tear-up-the-fucking

Do I Actually Have a Life?

For the first time in several months, I actually have something to report in this area! Two things actually! Let’s get started! 🙂

  • My good friend, Elissa is my Gandalf.

You see, not long ago she sent me a link to this post, by a blog called Nerd Fitness. It was all about walking to Mordor. Now, I know what you’re probably thinking:

And I concur. Wholeheartedly. In fact, after checking out the original website that contains the details of that particular walk, I felt a little bit overwhelmed by the enormity of the task. I mean 1779 miles? ONE WAY??? Eep.

But if you’ll look closely (and scroll down a little farther) there is another path that we might take. The path of that great (albeit reluctant) adventurer…

The path of Bilbo Baggins to the Lonely Mountain.

So, as a fan this really appeals to me, I get to start my adventure with the adventure that started it all! As a couch potato that is easily discouraged this also appeals to me, because (according to my calculations) the journey is only going to be 1755 miles, round trip! That’s still a lot, but because I am a complete nerd, I modified Nerd Fitness’s Google spreadsheet and broke the journey down into (mostly) manageable chunks. So, I went out and bought a Fitbit Flex and I have started my journey!

giphy

You are welcome to follow my progress on my modified spreadsheet, or even save your own copy of the spreadsheet and walk with me! After all, Bilbo didn’t go it alone:

Either way, I’ll be sure to keep everyone apprised of my progress, both here on the blog and probably on Twitter and/or Tumblr. Because nerd things deserve to be shared! 😛

  • Anybody use Duolingo? It’s a free online program and app to learn a language. I discovered it before, but never really committed. Now I think I want to try again, starting with Spanish. It’s a fun app that feels a lot like a game and I’m really enjoying it 🙂 If anyone is using it, or feels like signing up, feel free to find me and make me a friend, I can always use the competition! 😉 As always, I’m fogisbeautiful.

“And In Conclusion…”

  • Writing- I’m already having to modify my goals for the year. But that’s just life I suppose 🙂 In February, I plan to finish posting my edited chapters of Changing History: Second Chances, finish the first draft of Entwives, and finalize an outline for my Force Awakens collaboration. This is going to be a lot of work, but I’m going to do my best.
  • Reading- Get my audiobook files fixed, so I can start listening again. Finish The Wise Man’s Fear. Start The Gunslinger.
  • Social Media- Keep up the good work, yo! 😉
  • My Personal Life- According to early calculations, I expect I can almost make it to Bree by the end of the month, if I’m persistent. I think I can make it through my review of the first section of my Duolingo lessons and also finish up the second section as well.

And that’s it! The first Wrap Up of 2016! Not a complete fail, not a complete win, but I’m working steadily and that’s what counts 🙂 See you all in February!

Blogging, Random, Reading, Writing

Wrappin’ Up The Month With Fog: December Edition

Emily

This is probably going to be a short one today (yeah, yeah, go ahead and laugh!), because most of my words are going to be spent on my New Year’s Goals post, coming up shortly! But I thought you guys should at least get a quick overview of what I’ve been up to this past month. So here we go!

Once More Unto the (Writing) Breach

I did a whole lot of nothing this month. And I am okay with that. I needed the time to recharge my batteries, and now I feel much more able to tackle my goals for the new year. I’ve finished outlining my plan for the year, I posted one chapter of Changing History (which to be honest, is one more chapter than I had thought I would post), and now I’m ready to jump back in with both feet!

Have You Hugged a Book Today?

ReadingChallengeDecember

I made my goal for the year! Easily! With room to spare! Yay me, let’s get into the books I read this month 🙂

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

  • Books I’ve finished:
    1. Jessica Jones: Alias Vol. 1 by Brian Michael Bendis- Five Stars
    2. Jessica Jones: Alias Vol. 2 by Brian Michael Bendis- Five Stars
    3. Odd Hours by Dean Koontz- Four Stars
    4. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling- Five Stars
    5. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld- Three Stars
  • What I’m currently reading (In order of Date Started):
    1. The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss– I got this for Christmas from my boyfriend. BEST CHRISTMAS EVER! Seriously, the way Patrick Rothfuss writes is beautiful, but not in a boring, flowery way, it’s beautiful that really works to enhance the plot, rather than detract from it. I’m on the edge of my seat! On the one hand, I can’t wait to find out what happens. On the other hand, Pat doesn’t seem anywhere close to publishing book three and with only a short(ish) book left between them… The Great Torturous Wait is a looming inevitability.
    2. Mirror, Mirror by Gregory Maguire– I got this on sale once upon a time, long, long ago, and I’m just now getting around to listening to it. It’s… okay. I like the characters, it’s made me laugh out loud a few times, but I’m a third of the way through and we still haven’t gotten to what I would consider “the good parts” yet. I remember this from reading Wicked a few years back, but I guess I had forgotten what it was like. We’ll see if my mood improves as the book goes on.
  • Book to Screen:
    1. Marvel’s Jessica Jones– I technically finished watching this in January, but I really want to talk about it. Because OH EM GEE, you guys, I can’t even! I don’t even know if I have words. This was so good. It was gritty, but in a totally different way than Daredevil. While Daredevil used mostly physical violence to invoke horror, Jessica Jones relied on the psychological aspect, something that I appreciate far more as a viewer. I can’t handle blood for blood’s sake, and I honestly find the powerlessness that comes from brainwashing and hostage-type situations much more frightening, rather than just disgusting. Not to say there wasn’t a fair amount of blood, but it all felt much more necessary, instead of added for shock value. The cast was superb (David Tennant as the villain was probably the best thing I have ever seen) and the plot twisted and turned in so many surprising ways. There are several characters that I hope might make appearances in the next Marvel shows from Netflix (Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Defenders), but I have to say, watching Trish Walker kick a$$ and take names was probably the most satisfying part of the whole show and I look forward to a return of her character almost as much as Jessica herself.

#Hashtags and other minutia

I don’t even know if I did anything on social media this month. Let’s find out!

Do I Actually Have a Life?

Still no. I am planning to have MORE of a life, now that the new year has started! 🙂

“And In Conclusion…”

  • Writing- January is the month of focusing on Changing History. I am back to full writing strength, and I will be posting chapters regularly (at least once a week) and working on finishing the first draft of Entwives. I will be making a blog post detailing my plans for the year later this week.
  • Reading- This will also be in my goals post, but I’m planning to read 50 books this year! I plan to start this month, by finishing 4-5 books, which includes at least starting The Gunslinger by Stephen King and rereading Alice in Wonderland to prepare for my continuing work on my original novel.
  • Social Media- Make more of an effort in all areas. That’s the goal.
  • My Personal Life- Get back to the gym and cook more, eat out less!

That’s all for now, folks! I’ll be back later in the week, with a full breakdown of what my goals are for the new year. Have a good month, everyone! 🙂

Blogging, Crafting, Random, Reading, Writing

Wrappin’ Up The Month With Fog: November Edition

Emily

Oh my gosh, I feel like this past month kicked my ever-loving… You know what? Let’s just… let’s just move on, what do we have to report?

Once More Unto the (Writing) Breach

NaNo-2015-Winner-Banner

  • I WON!!! Barely… by like, the skin of my teeth, seriously. The first day was awesome! I wrote 5,000 words in 24 hours! I was the bomb! And then… yeah… life. It sucked out my soul. By the last week, I was pretty much resigned to the fact that I probably wasn’t going to make it this year. My story was going nowhere. My characters were all lost causes. I had burned myself out too early in the year and I had nothing left. But then, through perseverance and a weekend full of coffee, I pushed through and made it to the end! If you want to see my progress this month in bar graph form go here: Wonderland Reclaimed: Into The Tulgey.   I met my goal of finishing Part Two of this novel as well, and even wrote a chapter and a half of Part Three just to make the word count 🙂 Overall, I’m fairly pleased with myself, but to be honest, I’m glad I’ve decided to take it easy in December. I have given so much of myself this year, I feel like I have nothing left in me. I need this break. But of course, I can’t really leave well enough alone, so…
  • Changing History: I’m back, baby! 😀 I thought I would be able to post chapters while doing NaNo pretty easily…

Funny-laugh-laughing-no-no-way-Not-ok-GIF

That was just me talking crazy talk. Remind me never to do that again, okay? So, now that NaNo is over, I really am going to try to post a couple of chapters this month. No, really. Nothing crazy, because I do still have Christmas and my vacation mid-December, and this will be the only writing project I will be working on in the month of December, but this is the only way I will stay sane going into 2016. I need this month, you guys. I really need it.

Have You Hugged a Book Today?

ReadingChallengeNovember15

Look at that, still ahead! I don’t anticipate having any problems meeting my book goal this year, even taking it easy in December. Let’s see what I’ve done this month!

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

  • Books I’ve finished:
    1. You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day- Five Stars
    2. Amazing, Fantastic, Incredible: A Marvelous Memoir by Stan Lee- Five Stars
    3. Lady Mechanika #0- Four Stars
    4. Hawkeye Vol. 5: All-New Hawkeye- Five Stars
  • What I’m currently reading (In order of Date Started):
    1. Leviathan by Scott Westerfield– I actually did read some of this this month. It’s not bad… It’s just not holding my attention the way I thought it would. I’m not sure if I’ll continue the series after this. Life being too short and all. It’s definitely gonna depend on the ending (if I ever get to it!).
    2. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling– I am not even prepared, you guys. NOT. EVEN. PREPARED.
  • Book to Screen: I’ve… got nothing. Nothing yet anyway. There will be a lot in the next blog post, life willing 🙂

#Hashtags and other minutia

I did surprisingly well on the social media front this month! Seriously, it’s kind of hard to pick favorites, way to go me! 🙂

  • Just For Fun: Have to share the trailer for Civil War. Because this is freaking important to my life, you guys don’t even understand, I have watched this trailer like ten times. I’m not gonna survive May…

Do I Actually Have a Life?

Nope. Not even a little bit. No gym, still taking the dog to the vet, other than that I have done nothing of note (that I can think of right now). Next year is a new year, we’ll try again!

“And In Conclusion…”

  • Writing- I’m really trying to take the month of December off for planning and recharging. I have most of 2016 planned out already, but I think I’ll share that in a separate blog post. I really want to try to utilize this blog a bit more, so that will be part of my goals for 2016 as well. For now, I’m just going to focus on Changing History and trying to get my bearings and balance again. I gave a lot this year, I feel like it’s time for some R&R.
  • Reading- I would like to have finished the Harry Potter series by the end of the year, but I’m not sure I’ll make it. I have a few comic books to read and another audiobook that will get finished this month. I’ve been organizing my list of books to read so hopefully I will have a bit of a plan for my reading in 2016.
  • Social Media- I’m just trying to keep up. That’s it. Let’s see how it goes 🙂
  • My Personal Life- Still trying to hold off anxiety until January. I think I’ll be okay, once I get Christmas out of the way (which is always the most stressful time of the year for me). I do want to try to get back to the gym in January though, and start eating better again, but those are goals for another post 🙂

That’s all, folks! If I don’t talk to you again before, I hope everyone has pleasant, stress-free holidays with friends and family! I’ll just… be over here like…

jim-carrey-the-grinch-santa-claus

Blogging, Crafting, Random, Reading, Writing

Wrappin’ Up The Month With Fog: October Edition

Emily

Hey, I’m early! 😀 You guys can thank NaNoWriMo for that. Onward, to glory!

Once More Unto the (Writing) BreachNaNo-2015-Participant-Banner

  • That’s right, folks, it’s that time again! National Novel Writing Month! The month when writers around the world lose their frikkin’ minds and try to write 50,000 words in a mere thirty days! AKA- my favorite time of year 🙂 I finally decided to work on Part Two of an original work of fiction this year, Wonderland Reborn (or Reclaimed. I haven’t quite decided on the title yet :P)- Into The Tulgey Wood. I think I have successfully navigated the Five Stages of Grief regarding this work (see references to The Great Disaster of 2015 here) and am ready to move on to new words, with the understand that next year I will have to buckle down and rewrite the parts of the work that were lost. But for now, all new, all the time! Unfortunately, due to writing conflicts (and the fact that I sort of lost my mind this month), I am going to be running with only half an outline and a vague idea of the characters in this part which, if previous NaNo’s are any indication, is usually a bad thing. But I’m going to write as much as I can with what I have and hope for the best!
  • In other writing news, I FINISHED THE FIRST DRAFT OF MY LOKI FANFICTION!!!

It happened early in the month, and I am so very excited about it! Unfortunately because of NaNoWriMo, and upcoming holidays, and my mad dash to finish Changing History, I won’t be able to work on edits until sometime next year, but IT’S HAPPENING! IT’S ACTUALLY HAPPENING!!! CLARITY IS COMING TO A FANFIC SITE NEAR YOU, 2016! 😀

  • Okay, now that’s out of the way, my new writing goals have really been working out pretty well for me. I had set myself the goal this month of posting at least one chapter a week on Changing History: Second Chances, and writing 2000 new words of whatever project was next on my list every week. After I finished the first draft of Clarity (YAY!!!), I started work on the fourth and final part of Changing History. It hasn’t been going as well as I would have hoped, but at least I’m making progress. I anticipate being finished with the first draft some time in January 2016, and posting new chapters in February or March.

Have You Hugged a Book Today?

ReadingChallengeOctober15

I’m still a few books ahead of my reading schedule! I’m not failing at something, hooray! 😀

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

  • Books I finished this month:
    1. Saga: Volume 2 by Brian K. Vaughan- Five Stars
    2. A Walk In The Woods: Rediscovering America On The Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson- Three Stars
    3. The Cogsmith’s Daughter by Kate M. Colby- Four Stars
      • Fun fact about this book: Kate is an independent author who writes an amazing blog about her experiences in self-publishing. She’s witty, informative, and just an all around nice person, and her book is stunning! You should support her, or at least check out her blog 🙂
    4. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling- Five Stars
    5. Marvel Zombies by Robert Kirkman- Four Stars
  • What I’m currently reading (In order of Date Started):
    1. Leviathan by Scott Westerfield– I’m not even really reading this anymore. I’m going to get back to it, but I’m just too deep into this other book that I’m reading right now. Sorry 😛
    2. You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day– Felicia herself narrates the audio version of her book, and I swear to god, it is literally like she is sitting across from you at a coffee shop, sipping a mocha and telling you her life story. It’s possibly the best thing I’ve ever read. She’s so geeky and fun, and I relate to her far more than I would have ever thought possible. Felicia Day gives me hope that someday I might actually be able to make something of myself. Because if she can, then why can’t I???
  • Book to Screen: I’m gonna be honest, The Help has been sitting on top of my TV for over a month and I haven’t watched it yet. I have no excuse (unless you count catching up on Season 3 of the Arrow. In which case, I have an excellent excuse ;P). I also have not yet been able to work up to putting myself through watching Order of the Phoenix. Mostly because Umbridge. Ugh… Umbridge… I know I have to get through it to get the Half-Blood Prince, but… ugh… I’ll try to do better next month, but don’t hold your breath. NaNoWriMo, remember? 😉

#Hashtags and other minutia

I feel like social media is my nemesis in my quest to be a recognizable and successful author. Seriously, sometimes social interaction is just freaking hard, yo…

  • Just For Fun: Every year, around the time NaNoWriMo rolls around, I inevitably get this song stuck in my head. I am sharing the ear worm love with all of you. You’re welcome.

Do I Actually Have a Life?

The answer to this is a resounding “No. No, I do not.” The gym has finally become what I knew it was always destined to be: a charity donation. You’re welcome, Planet Fitness. I don’t exactly hate the stationary bikes, but they are uncomfortable as all get out if I sit on one for more than twenty minutes at a stretch and my knees are still cracking and hurting like crazy. I have no idea what I’m doing in regards to buying new shoes, though I did put forth a least a little bit of effort and went to Academy, only to discover that if I found a shoe that fit my right foot perfectly, the left foot would inevitably feel weird and uncomfortable. Apparently I have odd feet. Because, of course I do.

Fortunately, I have been substituting the gym for park walks with my dog!

Look at this adorable idiot. He has no idea what's about to happen to him. Moron. :)
Look at this adorable idiot. He has no idea what’s about to happen to him. Moron. 🙂

That’s Bear. And the only reason we are spending quality time at the park lately is because I’m preparing to drop mucho dinero on his goofball face to make him healthy. Poor baby has heartworms. Everybody say Awwwwwwww… 😦 I mean, he’s a cutie pie, and totally worth it, but still.

Anyway, that’s the news on… all of that. Hopefully gym will happen, but I’m not betting on it in November. Another charity donation to the gym! I should be able to deduct this from my taxes…

“And In Conclusion…”

  • Writing- NaNoWriMo. That’s pretty much it. Also, I’ve spent the last few days looking back on what I’ve accomplished this year as a writer and… it’s not much. It’s something, and I’ve learned an awful lot this year about what it’s going to take to seriously pursue this dream and what I can reasonably accomplish without feeling like my world is falling apart and I’m failing at life. But as far as actual, quantifiable progress, I don’t have much to show: a complete rewrite of my Changing History trilogy, one new first draft and most of a first draft of Changing History Part Four, and almost no progress on anything original (not including what will be happening in November). And the truth is, I think I could have accomplished so much more if I’d had a more definite plan for the year, instead of floundering halfway through, trying to decide which project should get my attention. As a result of this introspection, I’ve started a very flexible list of goals for 2016, breaking down what I would like to accomplish by month for the next 12 months. I will be posting this list in it’s entirety sometime around the end of the year so you guys can keep me accountable. Sound good? Awesome. Let’s move on!
  • Reading- Again, keep up the good work, Me! *pat on the back* Not much reading will probably get done during NaNo, but I will be listening to audiobooks and possibly reading a few more comics just to keep up.
  • Social Media- The bane of my internet existence. Why do you hate me so? Why? At least I will probably  be doing several word sprints with the NaNoWordSprints team again this year, so look for that!
  • My Personal Life- Try not to feel like a failure at life. Write. Enjoy writing. Enjoy doing what you do and don’t send yourself on a guilt trip. Hold off until January.

And that’s pretty much it! If you guys are doing NaNo, feel free to buddy up with me on the NaNo site (fogisbeautiful, just like everywhere else ;P) and I’ll try to help you if you get stuck. Just shoot me a message! Good luck!

Also, HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!