Wednesday, July 31, 2013

What's Up Wednesday!


What's Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, allowing us to touch base with blog friends and let them know what's up, put on by Jamie Morrow and Erin Funk. If you'd like to join click on the links above!

What I'm Reading:
I only brought one book on our camping trip because The Husband would not allow reading time or any sort of technology on our trip. In all honesty there was no way he could have stopped me from piling on five or more books, but I knew it meant a lot to him that I focus on just being with the family. The book I chose was Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo. I have to say, and I know this does NOT happen often, but I preferred the sequel to Shadow and Bone. Though I enjoyed the first book in the Grisha series, it didn't completely win me over. So I went in with low expectations with S&S and was blown away. My main issues with both books was Alina, she was a bit too passive for me. There were times I wanted to shake her, that didn't change from the first book to the second. One of my reader pet peeves is when the MC can't stop whining over how unattractive he/she is and Alina is guilty of doing just that, often. What I did appreciate was Bardugo creating a more villainess Darkling. I didn't buy him as evil in the first. Shady, sure, but downright bad, black to the core no conscience evil? Not so much. With the sequel I got a better glimpse at his darkness and manipulation tactics. And for those girls falling all over themselves because of the Darkling. Really? The guy killed thousands of innocent lives in his hunt for power. Yeah, not so attractive. He is not misunderstood, someone who kills without a care for others has no soul. And you know how they say you can tell a lot about a guy by the way he treats his mother? Yup, very true in this instance. I also felt more of a connection in the love department between Mal and Alina. Again, in the first there was no real development, but it was more fleshed out in book two and I look forward to reading the last in the series. Also, I totally fell for Sturmhond, by far my favorite character. 

What I'm Writing:
Man, writing did not get done as much as I wanted it to this week. With the whole camping thing, it was near impossible. But I did get my five pages. I was hoping to get in more, but alas, I guess I'll settle. One of the main things that was holding me back was the beginning. After getting several critiques I knew I had to up the ante and take out all the info dumping I was doing. Thankfully I got it figured out and feel really good about the edits. My goal is to get another 5-10 pages done by next week. It's going to be slow goings because I have A LOT of revisions to make to the first quarter or so of my manuscript. 

What Inspires Me Right Now:
Too many things. Sitting around a campfire while roasting marshmallows and laughing with family, reading a book that keeps you turning the pages in anticipation, writing a scene that takes your breath away. There's a lot of inspiration out there and I'm taking it all in. 

What Else I've Been Up To:

We found these baby pheasants stuck in our window well upon our return from the camping trip. I was getting all the kids cleaned up in the bathroom downstairs when I heard a sound that resembled that of a squeaking wheel. My first thought was "great, now our air conditioning is breaking down on us". Then my oldest said, "That sounds like birds chirping." I thought 'yeah right' but the sound kept bothering me, so I did some investigating and found that it got louder the closer I got to the window. The same window which is painted over so you can't see the outside. Imagine my surprise when I slid it open and came face to face with all these little chicks chirping for help. They were so freaking cute and my kids were super excited. The mom and dad were nearby and weren't going anywhere. I got my husband who got a box and we took all the kids outside and one-by-one got them out. Which was tricky given their ninja escaping skills. Every time my husband got close enough to catch one it would shoot away, they were adorably fast. Eventually we set them free, while their parents waited patiently for them, and they waddled-ran in the cutest way after them. So that myth about adult birds abandoning their young after they come in contact with humans is absolutely false. In fact, we've seen the same family running in our yard a few times since then. 

So, What's Up With You?


30 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness - those pheasants are SO CUTE. I love that picture. Also, so glad you were able to focus on family and find so much inspiration in your week. I really need to read Shadow and Bone. Everyone raves about it!

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  2. Oh my gosh! How did they get in there? Glad you were able to reunite them! :)

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    1. I've seen them walk around the very edge of our window well before so I think one of them fell in and the others just decided to follow their brother or sister. It's the only thing I can figure.

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  3. Those pheasants are adorable! So glad you saved them and got them back to their parents.

    Good job on getting those 5 pages done. That's amazing considering you were camping too.

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    1. I was pretty happy they made t hope. Thanks, I really had to push myself to get them done.

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  4. The dreaded beginning and the just as awful info-dump. I'm so guilty of that too. I struggle and struggle with beginnings, so you're not alone. Good for you for meeting your goals this week. Any progress is great, so you should be proud of yourself. Especially writing while camping!

    I have to agree with you on the whole Darkling thing. I was enamoured of the guy in the first book, but in Book 2 it was SO much clearer just what an awful person he is. Especially with what he did to his mother. I'm all about Sturmhond now, and I have to say he's my favourite character now too. Can't wait for Book 3.

    Those pheasants are adorable! It's a good thing you found them and were able to help them out. And it's great that their parents were waiting for them. How cute!

    Have a wonderful week, Prerna! :-)

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    1. yup, beginnings are so hard. Glad to know you feel the same about the Darkling. He really lost all his appeal after this one.

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  5. THOSE CHICKS ARE SO CUTE!!!!! Aaaaaaaw!

    Glad to hear you got your five pages in. And the camping trip sounds lovely.

    Have a wonderful week!

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  6. Congrats on your writing goals and good luck with future writing. The chicks look adorable :) Have a great week!

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    1. Thanks, I hope I can keep it up. We might have guests here next week so who knows what I'll get done.

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  7. Those baby birds are too cute. I bet your kids had a blast watching the rescue mission.

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    1. They are! i was tempted to keep them, but it would have been way too sad to separate them from their parents. Now if they were alone..well I might have 11 new pheasants in my yard.

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  8. Those pheasants are seriously adorable! Glad they were reunited!

    Your camping trip sounds amazing. What a great break.

    Have a good writing week!

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  9. BABY PHEASANTS OMG SO CUTE. Good luck with your writing goal. Thanks for sharing.

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  10. I LOVE your account of the baby pheasants!!

    And your camping trip sounds like a blast. I haven't gone camping in months and I'm kind of going through withdrawals. :)

    Good luck with your writing this week!

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  11. Glad you had a good trip with lots of down-time :)

    reading: (well, RE-reading) 'Tiger Moon', by Antonia Michaelis

    writing: not a whole heck of a lot...

    inspiration: walking, walking, and more walking.

    what else I'm up to: in addition to hashing out the separation agreement, I'm starting to look online for new apartments to rent as my lease it up in October. Very hard to find one that's near a park (for the dog) and allows pets.

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  12. Oh my goodness, those baby pheasants are so cute! I can't believe you found them in your window well! That must have been a great feeling to reunite them with their parents.

    I loved your comments about the Darkling. Sure, I found him to be an attractive character at first, but whoa! Not so much after a point. This popular attraction to him kind of reminds me of the way girls were (probably still are) in love with Draco Malfoy, although that's even worse in the case of Leigh Bardugo's books. I can never really figure out the obsession with bad boys. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed the second book more than the first. It's rare when a sequel is even better. Now I need to get around to reading it!

    Good luck with your writing goals this week!

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  13. Aww... Love the little pheasants! I am so NOT a camper, but your description does sound *sort of* appealing. Don't tell my husband I admitted that, though! Way to go meeting your goal, camping trip and all!

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  14. Baby pheasants are so cute!

    You camping trip sounds great. Being out in nature is really inspiring. Have a great rest of your week!

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  15. What cute little birdies. I awwwwed!

    Glad you're having a great summer, Prerna!

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  16. Interesting comments about SIEGE AND STORM--I didn't like SHADOW AND BONE as much as I'd hoped to, so I'm not too enthusiastic about reading the rest of the series. However, if the second is better, perhaps I should give it a try?

    That was a lovely story about the chick rescue. :)

    Have a great week! :)

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  17. So glad you were able to help the little birds! How cute! I'm amazed that you got any writing done on your camping trip. That must have been a real feat to accomplish.

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  18. Glad to hear you had a wonderful camping trip and even got a bit of writing and reading in. The baby birds are so cute! Have a great weekend. :)

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  19. What a cute story about the birds! I love it. :D

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  20. I thought I was looking at beetles or sunflower seeds, lol. Cute birds.

    That's understandable with the camping trip. I don't think I would have been able to get anything done.

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  21. I felt the same way about Shadow and Bone. Your review gives me hope and incentive to read the sequel. :)

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