Two Weeks and Counting

Hello Blogland!

April has been a mad dash of sleepless nights. Between the two jobs both scheduling me more, which I hate to turn down since we’re trying to buy a house soon, and all the homework, I am working a lot of late nights and early mornings.

For instance, I woke up at 8 this morning, so I could get up and get to my nearest Starbucks so I could read and critique the last two short stories for my science fiction writing class. This week in particular is interesting because it was my turn to submit my story. So far, feedback has been good. People enjoy it, and there seems to be a general consensus on what needs work. That’s always a good thing.

So, I’m keeping tabs on that discussion thread so I can keep abreast of any new critiques.

I have a six page paper due on Thursday, which I haven’t started yet. But, I have an outline, all my sources lined up and ready to research, plus all the pages notated that I need for examples. My paper is on Brandon Sanderson’s creation and use of an anti-language in his Mistborn series. So, I’m pretty excited to write it.

When I get home from work tonight, I’ll sit down and get the first two/three paragraphs down. At least rough drafts of them.

What else?

We’re still waiting to hear back from the loan officer to get our pre-approval so we can start looking at houses. Because I don’t have enough on my plate.

So basically I’m just in an exhausted holding pattern until the 29th, when I’m off for just over two weeks before summer school starts.

I’m still reading in my very limited spare time. Magician King is turning out much better than its predecessor so far, so that’s good. Book Club is a touch MIA, but I’m about to rein it back in so we can meet up and discuss both Red Rising and Coraline.

Yeah, plus I keep stacking up a bunch of different books that pique my interest from the library. Because I have time for that.

I haven’t heard any news about The Audient Void release, so that’s on my radar to check in on. UGH! SO MUCH STUFF!

But, life is good. I have so many things I want to do, and that’s so much better than drifting along without any interests or passions.

I’ll see you soon Blogland.

 

BZ

Quietly Reading My Life Away

My brain is feeling particularly gooey. Like… organic peanutbutter. Have you seen that stuff? It’s way runnier than your typical “Mom Approved” brand. That’s my grey matter right now.

School’s over, for the time being. I’m taking summer classes after all, just a lighter load. Doing half time instead, and only taking classes that actually interest me. “Major American Novels” and “Topic: Noir Fiction and Film”. The book lists are pretty exciting, at least to me. This summer I will read:

Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith
Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
Double Indemnity by James M. Cain
The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler
The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson
The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko
Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut

Now, I’ve read The Old Man and the Sea and The Great Gatsby before, but the rest are new to me. I think the Noir titles will be the most interesting, since I read Cain’s The Postman Always Rings Twice and loved it.

And somewhere in there I’ll still be reading for my own pleasure and for Book Club.

Speaking of which, I finally finished reading Red Seas Under Red Skies. I’m about 10 days behind schedule, but Stardust and The Republic of Thieves are both shorter than my usual reading. I expect them to go quickly.

I’m suffering from a book hangover. I loved the second Gentleman Bastard book, though not as much as the first installment, and I’m loathe to read something else. Even something as wonderful as Stardust. Other Book Clubbers are reading it and they love it so far.

I also have a tentative Book List written up, but I’m waiting to finalize until I get the newest member’s list. Currently I’m working on creating a Facebook group and Goodreads group, so we can chat easily and help each other out. So far, it’s looking good.

Anyway, it’s time I got ready for work. Keep an eye out for the Book Review of Red Seas Under Red Skies. It’ll probably come out on Wednesday.

BZ

Two More Weeks to Freedom!

So.

I finished The Lies of Locke Lamora last night. And though I’m dying to write the book review, I simply don’t have time today. But, it should be out tomorrow. Be prepared for a long one. I really enjoyed the book and have lots of things I want to talk about, both from a purely “reader” perspective, and from a “writer” perspective. I learned a lot from this book.

And now I’m chomping at the bit to buy the second one. That’s part of why I have no time. I have to shower, then go to the bookstore, and then sit and read at Starbucks for a solid hour.

Priorities, all right?

If you pop over to the 2015- What I’m Reading page, you’ll see it’s been updated. My next read is K.J. Parker’s Purple and Black. It’s a novella, only 113 pages long, and it’s Epistolary.

For those of us who aren’t walking, talking Literary Dictionaries, that means it’s told in a series of letters, or correspondences of some kind. I’ve read a few books like this, mostly when I was a kid. Snail Mail No More by Ann M. Martin and Paula Danziger comes to mind. And, of course, Frankenstein, since I’ve reading/discussing it for FOUR MONTHS now.

Anyway, I’ve never seen or read a Fantasy Epistolary story. I’m curious to see how the world-building works when the story is told in letters. Plus, it’s going to be a really quick read. My goal is to finish it either today or tomorrow, so I can jump right back into Red Seas Under Red Skies.

And, of course, after that I start in on Stardust by Neil Gaiman.

So, I finished all my homework today, so I could commit some serious time to blogging and writing my Caladria story. School’s hit panic mode with only two weeks left before summer. I just have to keep up the good work until May 1st, and then I can have all kinds of free time!

Plus, the Library scheduling has finally hit a nice mix with my Starbucks hours, so I feel less like a zombie, and more like the really driven woman that I am.

So, May should be a really productive start to my summer! Can’t wait to relax by reading and writing more!

Anyway, see you tomorrow blogland!

BZ

Break Time is Over!

If you haven’t noticed my week and half long silence, well, that makes me sad…

But, I’m back! School started back up today, which brings me face to face with my laptop again. A part of me felt really guilty, ignoring everything for a week and a half, but the rest of me knew I had to take the time for myself. Because the next month and a half is an uphill slog.

School full time. Working 60hr work weeks for the foreseeable future. Still writing and editing for Caladria, which if you haven’t checked out Fab Fables 2, you’re just wrong. Book club is moving ahead, and I’ve got to finish reading Sunrunner’s Fire so I can burn through Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas before the 1st.

Which has me at my busiest. And I definitely hit panic mode when I jolted awake at four this morning, for no other reason than a looming concern of scheduling issues. But, everything worked itself out, and though I’m going to be exhausted, and have absolutely ZERO social life, I know I can do this.

I should be back to posting fairly regularly, though it might take some ramp up time, since I’m still working 40hrs at Starbucks, plus the 22 at the library.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that I’m back. Wish me luck with the next 8 weeks or so, because it’s gonna be a trip.

See you soon blogland!

BZ