Category Archives: Blogging

Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2013




Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. For more information about Top Ten Tuesday and a list of upcoming Top Ten Tuesday topics, click here.
Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2013

My goals are a mix of “personal bookish accomplishments” as well as how many books I want to read and where I want to purchase my books.

1. Finish novel and begin querying in Fall 2013.
I’m writing a steampunk novel for my Masters thesis.  It’s a retelling of a classic piece of literature, and I’m having a total blast writing it.  I’m setting aside the entire months of June and July for revisions (summer vacation from teaching), and August is my deadline for completion!  Wish me luck!

2. Graduate with my Masters in Children’s Literature.
Once I have my Masters in hand, my goal is to find a job in Children’s Publishing.  I would love to work with middle grade or YA in an editorial or marketing role.  I’m currently exploring different avenues and entry level positions.

3. Post at least one book review a week.
My schedule for January has me posting two to three book reviews a week because I’m trying to catch up from my hiatus.  Reviews are slated in my posting schedule for Mondays, occasional Wednesdays, and Saturdays.  I’d love to keep up a two a week schedule, but as it’s tough for me to READ two books a week (with teaching middle school and writing my thesis), I didn’t think that was a realistic goal for me to maintain.

4. Read 12 debut novels.
Last year was my first year attempting the Debut Author Challenge.  I purchased 12 debut novels… but didn’t get around to reading 12 debut novels.  This year I’m setting a goal to post a “Debut Review” on the last day of every month.  This is a way of setting a deadline for myself, and I work well with deadlines (even the self-imposed kind).

5. Read 3 Newbery books and 3 Printz books.
I took a graduate course in Newbery books as well as heard a guest speaker who served on the Newbery committee.  It gave me a real understanding and sense of honor for these awards.  I’m always excited to hear what books are awarded medals each year, and I want to continue reading Newbery and Printz award winners each year (not just when I’m taking a class!)  I also enjoy trying to figure out why this book was chosen/selected versus other books, and identifying the winner’s merits.  I’m a total nerd!

6. Read 7 steampunk novels.
I am likely going to be doing an independent study in the Spring on steampunk, and therefore know I will be reading a bunch of it.  I also want to read what is out there in terms of YA steampunk so as to place my own novel in context.  Is it similar to what’s already been published?  What does it have to offer that’s new?  I have some theories, but I really need to read more in order to prove my assumptions correct.  Some books on my list: The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron, The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress, Fever Crumb by Philip Reeve, and The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann.

7. Read 3-5 contemporary novels.
This is a genre that I’m slowly growing to enjoy.  This year I read Anna and the French Kiss, Lola and the Boy Next Door, The Fault in Our Stars, and The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight (review forthcoming).  All of which I enjoyed, despite not being an avid contemporary reader.  This year I will undoubtedly be reading Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins, The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen, and Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry.  I’ll be watching for a few more contemporary reads to add as well.

8. Read 3-5 historical fiction novels.
This is a genre that I used to love.  I totally grew up on the American Girl series. (Felicity was my favorite.) I’d love to renew my love of historical fiction because lately I’ve been reading a lot of fantasy and science fiction.  I’ve heard great things about Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly and Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson.  But I’ll gladly take recommendations of great historical fiction.

9. Do majority of eBook purchasing from indie booksellers through Kobo.
I’m a little upset by what I’ve read about Amazon’s business practices and their interactions with publishers, authors, and booksellers.  Despite loving my Kindle Touch, I want to shift my book purchasing to support independent booksellers.  I got an iPad for Christmas and downloaded the Kobo app.  Through Kobo, I can purchase eBooks from my favorite indie stores, like Browseabout Books in Rehoboth, Delaware or Politics and Prose in Washington D.C.  I want to purchase eBooks from the stores that offer me great book events, opportunities to meet my favorite authors, and a great shopping experience.

10. Start novel #2.
I’m not even done with book one, and I’m already thinking ahead to book two!  That’s partially because book two was started before I even began book one.  But then there was the “Dystopian Boom” and I realized I had to figure out a way to make my dystopian trilogy different from all the others being offered.  I had a unique premise, but I needed a different ending.  Most dystopians end with either the protagonist running away from the dystopian society or rebelling against the dystopian society.  I wanted an ending that would be neither of those.  And I found one!  A fantastic twist!  I can’t wait to return to this project when I finish my steampunk novel.

Whew!  Does anyone else feel like they need to print out all their goals and resolutions and post them on the walls to keep them in sight?  I have a lot I want to get done this year!

What are your Bookish Goals?

I have a Button!

I have the most thoughtful, wonderful, talented brother.

He made me a blog button and it’s perfect.

There was no badgering or bugging him at all.  In fact, I hadn’t really asked him for this.  We’d talked about other images for my blog, but not my own button.  I love him soooo much.

How was I so lucky to get two totally awesome brothers?

2012 Reflection and Looking Ahead

2012 Challenges


Goodreads Challenge
Goal 75 Books
Did Not Complete



2012 Debut Author Challenge
Goal 12 Books
Did Not Complete

Instead of recapping my failures (depressing) and making excuses (lame), I’m going to reflect on the things I did accomplish this year:

1) I wrote more blog posts in 2012 than I did in 2011 (despite taking a 3 month hiatus), and made lots of new friends along the way 🙂

2) I took 12 credits in graduate courses and now have 36 out of 48 credits towards my Masters degree. I have just one class and my thesis to go!

3) I wrote tens of thousands of words for my novel as well as researching topics that were completely unfamiliar to me like the history of metalworking and properties of metal. I will undoubtedly finish my first draft this winter and that makes me happy!

Goals for 2013

Goodreads Challenge: I’m going to set my goal lower than 2012 but higher than 2011. Hopefully, that middle ground will be the right number. My goal will be 60 books.

Debut Author Challenge: I really want to do a better job on this challenge. It turns out that I purchased a bunch of debut novels, but it was the reading them that got me in trouble. I’m going to have to schedule one book per month and set deadlines for myself. I work well that way, with a little more structure. So I’m going to set a goal of one book a month or 12 books total.

Reading Goals: I want to diversify my reading selections. I tend to read more fantasy and sci-fi, but would like to also read more historical fiction (which I enjoy), mysteries (which I loved as a kid), and contemporary (which is growing on me). I also want to pay more attention to publishers and diversify my reading in that way. I also will be reading as many steampunk books as possible, so if you see a good steampunk book, send it my way!

Writing Goals: I will be finishing my first draft of my steampunk novel this winter, which will be my thesis for my Masters. I will be revising over the Spring and Summer, and be done by August 2013. Hopefully, I can start the query process Fall of 2013. My next writing project (since this novel is a steampunk standalone) will likely be the dystopian trilogy that I put on hold. I had a major revelation while studying dystopians over the summer, and figured out how to break away from the typical dystopian format. I have a major twist that I’m really excited to explore, which should distract me from the nerves of querying.

Blogging Goals: I want to maintain an every-other-day posting schedule, with two-thirds of my posts being book posts and one-third being writing posts. I’d love to look into co-hosting an event or doing some giveaways, but that really depends on big changes in my real life and how they’ll impact me (jobs, moving, money, etc.)

2013 could have a lot of changes in store for me, especially as I’m completing my Masters and pursuing job/career changes. I hope these big changes won’t get in the way of my goals, but regardless, I’m optimistic that 2013 is going to be a fun year 🙂

Returning to the Blogosphere!

Back in September, I put my blog on hiatus, saying that I would be back in January.  I can’t quite stay away that long… I’ll be returning a week early!

Reasons for Returning:

  1. My fall graduate course is completed.  It was even more work than I expected, but I have several posts scheduled where I’ll be sharing writing tips gained from this class.  (One big post on pacing and another big post on emotions as well as a few other little posts on other topics.)  
  2. One of my favorite times of year in the blogosphere is when everyone posts their favorite reads of the year.  I want to be able to participate in the discussion of the best books of 2012, as there were some GREAT ones!  And I want to make sure there weren’t any excellent books that I missed!
  3. I’ve made some outstanding progress on my novel and have established a solid writing routine.  Without the strains of a graduate class, I’m confident I’ll be able to finish a first draft before winter is over while balancing a blogging routine.
  4. Blogging helps me reflect on my reading and identify the traits I admire in other writers so that I can incorporate those traits into my own writing.  I also use my blog to reflect on my own writing process.  This thoughtful reflection is a necessary part of my writing process, and if I can’t do it for a graduate class, then my blog will be my tool.
  5. I have a fun announcement… that will be its own post… coming soon…
I can’t wait to return to the blogging!  Stay tuned for book reviews, writing posts, and maybe even a few memes… Can’t wait to reconnect with people!  Look for me in your comments!

Going on a Hiatus

This is something that I really did not want to have to do, but I have come to the realization that it is something I need to do.  I’m putting my blog on hiatus.

I sincerely love blogging.  I love sharing what I thought of books.  I love the blogging community.  I love discussing books with other bloggers.  I love hearing about new books coming out.

But there is one thing that’s more important to me right now, and that is writing my novel.  And because I love blogging so much, it is too easy for me to get caught up in writing blog posts and posting comments instead of the other kind of writing I should be doing.

Besides being a full time teacher, I’m taking a writing course this fall that is going to involve presentations, critiques, writing exercises, and regular submissions.  Just looking at the syllabus made me question whether I’d have much free time this fall.

And then I sat down and did some goal setting.  I have set a goal for myself to have a revised and finished novel ready to query by this time next year.  In order to do that, I need to have a finished first draft by January 1st.  Which is entirely doable if I stick to a writing goal of 3,000 words a week.  I’ve consistently met this goal in the past, and know that it is something I can accomplish.  But not if I have distractions.

And because I love blogging so much, it is a distraction.

I want to maintain the friendships I’ve started with fellow bloggers, so I’m going to set aside two hours a week to comment on my favorite blogs.  (I’m so dreadfully behind right now, but thanks to Labor Day, you may hear from me tomorrow morning.)  Know that I’m still reading your blogs, often from my iPhone as I sit in a dreadfully boring school meeting, and you’re making me smile.  But I may be a more silent, mysterious follower.

Much love, and hopefully you’ll hear from a very happy me on January 1st who is holding a complete 1st draft of a novel in her hands.

(I’ll still be on goodreads because I HAVE TO keep track of what I’m reading.  I won’t be posting extensive reviews, but if you want to see what I think of books I’m reading, here’s my goodreads profile.)

App I Love: Newsify

If you have an iPhone and you want a way to keep up with your Google Reader on the go, you should check out the Newsify app.  (It’s free!)

I downloaded it over the weekend, and I’m in love.  The app syncs with your Google Reader, and you can easily browse through all your subscriptions.  The layout is especially pleasing to the eye; blog posts are set up in squares with their titles, an image, and date posted.  See my screenshot below for a sample view:

I’ve been searching for a great app to read all my favorite blogs on the go, and this app has definitely done it for me.  The mobile version of Google Reader was not very friendly to the eye, and more challenging to navigate.  Newsify is pretty and easy-to-use.  Commenting on posts is still difficult, but for now I’ll read on the go, and comment at my leisure when I get home.

Anyone else use Newsify?  Or another app for reading blogs?

Start of Summer 2012

Blogging Update:

I’m a teacher (I don’t talk about it much on my blog because I do this for fun and try to keep it separate from work), and today marked the last day of school, which means a bunch of wonderful things!

  • I’ll have more time to read.
  • I’ll have more time to write reviews.
  • I’ll have more time for my own writing.
  • And I begin graduate classes (a class in YA Dystopian and a Writing Tutorial)
You’ll see me posting with much more frequency, about 5 times a week instead of the pathetic once a week I’ve been doing lately.  I’m hoping to be a more regular commenter on other blogs as well.
I revamped my blog in January as both a book blog and writing blog, and it’s been so fun to see my blog grow and to meet new people.  I still don’t have a huge readership, but I contribute it to the fact that I don’t post as regularly and do giveaways and memes.

You’ll definitely see me posting more regularly over the next few months.  

I won’t be promising any giveaways.  I give most of my spare books away to students and already spend a ton of money on my students at school.  So I really have a hard time justifying spending any of my meager teacher’s salary on blog giveaways.  And I don’t really enter giveaways myself because I’m not blogging to win free stuff.
And we’ll see on the memes.  It has to be something that I still think is meaningful and interesting, not just I’m doing this meme so I have something I can post every Tuesday or whatever.  If you have any suggestions of memes that you think are interesting/quirky/cool that I might like, feel free to recommend.

So in summary, you’ll be seeing much more of me!  And hopefully I’ll see much more of your blogs!  And maybe I’ll gain a few more friends and readers in Summer 2012 as I devote more time to blogging, reading, and writing  ^_^


Busting the Newbie Blues 2012

I’m participating in a blogger event called “Busting the Newbie Blues.”  If you would like to participate too, check out Small Review’s site.
This event is designed to:
• Put new YA book bloggers on the map
• Increase blogger interaction
• Start a discussion blogging experiences
• Learn from established bloggers
Below is a questionnaire about my blogging experiences as a new blogger:
When did you start your blog?
I began my blog in June of 2010 as a way to share with family and friends what I was doing in my graduate program.  I am getting my Masters in Children’s Literature and the program encompasses picture books all the way up to YA.  I’ve expanded my blog beyond just my graduate studies to also encompass book reviews and writing.

Why did you start your blog?
Being that I would be a five hour drive from everyone who loved me while away at graduate school, a blog seemed like an easier way to share what I was doing than lots of hours of phone time.  I grew to enjoy posting, and am now striving to maintain the blog year round.

What has been the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
I’m also a middle school teacher, so balancing hobbies (reading, writing, blogging) with my work (planning, grading, etc.) has always been a difficult for me.  It is challenging to post regularly and also post comments on fellow blogs, but I’d really like to become a more solid part of the blogging community.

What do you find most discouraging about being a new blogger?
Breaking into the network of established bloggers and learning the lingo was intimidating at first.  But I’ve never been shy of learning something new!

What do you find most encouraging?
Established bloggers are welcoming and encouraging to newbies.  Writers make themselves accessible through blogs.  And I love the support that bloggers give to debut authors.

What do you like best about the blogs you read? Have you tried to replicate this in your blog?
I tend to like blogs that offer a mix of book reviews and writing advice.  As I mentioned earlier, that is what my blog has become: book reviews and writing pursuits.  Author Maggie Stiefvater’s blog is one of my favorites that I follow.  I like my book reviews honest.  If you gush about every single book you read… then I’m going to doubt your sincerity.  

What do you dislike about blogs you’ve read? Do you try to avoid this?
My biggest turn-off is blogs that are too flashy or cluttered.  I prefer a streamlined look, no white text on a dark background, no moving/flashing graphics, no ads all over the place.  I’m always careful to pick a background that is somewhat cute but neutral.  But most importantly–the text is clear and easy to read.  If you can’t read my text, then what’s the point in posting?

Any advice for other new bloggers?
Read other established blogs!  Best way to learn!

Any questions you’d like to ask newbie or established bloggers?
Are there any blogs that you recommend as essential reading?

Here’s a few of my favorite posts:

Life Gets in the Way

Life has been getting in the way of the more important things in life.  My more important things are reading and writing.

Life includes:

  • Returning to my home that was abandoned for 8 weeks
  • An earthquake
  • Hurricane Irene
  • Two power outages
  • The beginning of a school year that included more meetings and technology issues than any other start of year EVER
Between the largest earthquake the East Coast has seen in 100 years and a hurricane that did billions of dollars in damage and closed schools throughout Maryland.  Between replacing the entire contents of my refrigerator… TWICE.  And negotiating new traffic patterns around downed wires and trees.  And then getting organized for a new school year with a record breaking number of students… (We don’t have enough lockers for our current enrollment.)
I’ve been BUSY.
So on this Labor Day weekend, I’m going to make some time to do the labor I love.  My main goals:
  1. Finish the last book in Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies series.
  2. Do some writing exercises from LeGuin’s Steering the Craft
  3. Make a 3000 word dent in one of my manuscripts
Other things that may interfere with my main goals:
  1. Online class coursework
  2. Lesson Planning
  3. Recycling
  4. Laundry
  5. Grocery shopping
We’ll see how this weekend goes.  Here’s to hoping it’s a CALM one.

Establishing Routine

This is my final week before school starts back up.  And I’m using this week for three things all of which fall under one larger category: establishing routine.

My goals for this week are:

1. Get my place clean and organized.
2. Spend 1-3 hours writing every day.
3. Get up early and begin the day with exercise.

The cleaning is necessary for me to be sane.  This is the first time since June 18 that I’ve been at my place for more than 2 consecutive days.  I need to pitch, donate, and recycle.  I need to vacuum and dust.  And I want to reorganize things so that my environment is more writing focused instead of teaching focused.  I’m going to try to keep teaching at school this year.  We shall see if I accomplish that or not…

I think it’s crucial that I get into the habit of writing every day now that I’m settled back at home.  Whether it’s writing exercises from Le Guin’s Steering the Craft or working on a WIP, I need to make time to write.  By establishing that routine now, I’m hoping it will stick once school rolls around.

And exercise.  I have this plan to read on the stationary bike.  So it will serve the dual purpose of exercise and reading time.  But I’ve never been an early morning exerciser… so we’ll see how this goes…