Is All I Learned in History Class A Lie?

I love watching the TV Shows, Mystery at the Museum, Mystery at the Castle, and Mystery at the Monument. After watching those shows I am convinced half of the History books are chock full of lies and misapplied information.

Alexander Graham Bell did not create the telephone, what? He was a thief. A man named Antonio Meucci created it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Meucci

Jackie Robinson was not the first African American pro-baseball player. A man named Moses Fleetwood Walker was. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moses_Fleetwood_Walker

Christopher Columbus may have been about 100 years behind a Scottish clan in reaching America.

There are so many more I have seen on there that have made me do research and I am appalled that these inaccuracies aren’t told to the public or History books aren’t updated. I mean I feel like I’ve been duped by History books and History teachers.

So from now on no matter how crazy people think I am, I am going to say Antonio Muicci created the telephone and Moses Fleetwood Walker was the first African American pro-baseball player and that the Clan Gunn found America 100 years before Christopher Columbus.

So inaccuracies in History beware for I intend to find the truth and use the accurate information, lol!

End of 2015 NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month)

http://nanowrimo.org/

When I first wrote about this I was a day late in adding info about this challenge for the month and now I am putting it a day before the end as I wanted to make sure I put this on before I forget.

I hope that everyone had a wonderfully great 2015 NaNoWriMo and that you all reached your 50,000 Word count by the months end, tomorrow! If you didn’t reach the goal don’t just stop, keep writing even if the months over, finish the novel. I do hope that your novel became everything you hoped it would become and that you enjoyed this challenge.

Though I didn’t do it this year I am happy to say that I did finish in November three Poems, “Beautiful Nightmare”, “Dream Lovers”, and “Violet Fields” and two Short Stories, “The Girl with the Red War Paint” and “Everly After”.  I am at present about to start two new Short Stories, “Launch: 24 Hours” and “Scarlet Archer”. I also edited and wrote on another novel as well during November.

So though I didn’t do a 50,000 Word Novel I did have a very good writing month in general!

 

So I hope that all that did NaNoWriMo will continue to write come December and that everything you write turns out as good as or better than you expected. If you care to you can share moments, thoughts, experiences from this 2015 NaNoWriMo challenge in the comment section of this post!    

Happy Writing!                                                                                                                        

2015 NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month)

http://nanowrimo.org/

So November 1^st - 30^th it is NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). This is day 2 of the month and I had hoped to put this up on the first but yesterday was hectic for me. I have heard of this writing challenge in the past years but have never participated in it myself. Basically you write a 50,000 Word Novel in One Month. A fun challenge indeed!

I will not be participating this year but just thought to bring some attention to this writing challenge. Although I won’t be doing NaNoWriMo I have been editing and adding on at least 25,000 words to one of my novels and will be writing a short story and some poems and writing a bit on another one of my novels. So though I won’t be writing a 50,000 word novel all my writing for November probably will amount to 50,000 words, lol.

So if anyone is participating this year then I wish you well and hope you are able to finish your novel in one month. Have fun writing!

If you care to I always love to hear about characters names chosen for novels so if you are writing a novel for NaNoWriMo or just a novel for another reason leave me a comment and tell me your characters names and if I don’t already have them on my Character Names Galore blog I might add them to my list to be added in the future.

Also if you want to share minor details about your novel, writing style, or any past experiences with NaNoWriMo or writing in general then leave a comment as well as I would love to hear from you guys. I do understand though not sharing too much about your novels online, so I understand not giving too much away should you comment.  

Happy Writing!

Novel Upload Update!

I know I haven’t updated you guys in a while as to how it’s going with my novels and getting them uploaded to be bought in e-book format on Amazon. Well my laptop computer has been broken since June 2014, I think I told you guys that, and has been with my Brother in Law Karl since April 2015. They just came for a visit and he told me he has tried everything but it is cheaper to just buy a new one. So I will not be able to do an upload or copyright my novels right now.

I was and am really upset but what can I do, you know. I fortunately have my parent’s desktop computer I go to borrow for a few hours when ever I need for writing, editing and blog stuff but they have dial up internet and an outdated browser so I can’t do uploads and copyright from their computer. Also I can’t buy a new laptop right now because I don’t have a job right now and am saving my savings money.

So instead of staying down and sad about it I am going to keep writing and am going to start entering Short Story and Poem Contests in hopes of expanding my writing resume achievements (if I win) and maybe win some prizes or cash too! I have been researching Nationwide and International Writing Contests but if anyone knows of any coming in the end of 2015 or early 2016 and that are FREE to ENTER (No Entry Fee) then please feel free to leave me a comment and tell me about it.

Also I may start sending out Query Letters to Literary Agents again, which I am not thrilled about but I have no other choice. I will not go into it but I have not had the greatest relationship with Literary Agents in the past. The so called “Traditional Route” bums me out more than you’ll ever know. I really hoped to try Self-Publishing first and then perhaps try the traditional route again. But Oh Well!

I know this may sound like I am whining but I didn’t come into this to sound that way or try to be harsh on traditional publishing. I just wanted to update ya’ll on how it’s going. I am looking forward to where my writing will lead and I can’t wait to explore new avenues of writing.

Everything worth pursuing should be a bit hard because it makes reaching it all the more thrilling and a major accomplishment! So I hope everyone out there in everything you do that you never give up, and that you stay strong. Of course that doesn’t mean you can’t Cry, Scream, Yell, throw a Tantrum if need be at first but then pick yourselves up and keep marching toward your goal. A goal that I hope when you reach you can do your funny field goal dance for, lol!

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“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” - Confucious

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My Characters Oh My!

I was in Wal Mart a few days ago and while looking around the craft area I saw the book that shows pictures of the sewing patterns and it was set on the costume section. I flipped through as I love to look at the costumes even though I don’t celebrate Halloween or go anywhere that requires a costume.

 I love to look though as I wish I could sew elaborate dresses and such but my skills were learned in school many, many years ago and the most elaborate thing I can make is a pillow, lol.

Anyway I saw two costumes I will put a picture of below that I thought those are cool and look like something my characters would wear. So I took a quick picture on my phone and sent it to my mom. The picture was a bit blurry so later that night I went online and found the image.

As I looked further at the models in the image I said wow they look like two of my characters. I thought that more as I am currently editing one of the novels in the series that they are in so they were fresh in my mind.

The blonde looks like a slightly older version of my character Princess Shika, a human princess, and the dark haired one looks like her friend Princess Shamar, an elf princess. Make them a bit younger and they will look like them as teenagers and the actual picture is them as adults, pretty cool! The dresses even look like something they would wear but switched, the long dress on the blonde (Shika) and the dark blue dress on the dark haired one (Shamar).

I love finding images of actual people that look like my characters and love adding them here as I find it so cool and want to share.  

The Pictures are a bit rough, as in a bit unclear, but they were the best I could find on the web.

 

Musings of a Lonely Writer! ----- Beginning, Middle, or End of a Characters Journey

On this Musings of a Lonely Writer segment I may morph a bit into a Musings of a Lonely Reader so bear with me!

In books or even movies I always tend to love the beginning of a journey so much better than the middle and end. I think the beginning is much more exciting and fun. The end is sad and final. I don’t know if it is the sadness of the ending of a journey I hate or that it isn’t as good at the end as the beginning.

 

The weird part is that in the Series and Trilogies that I write I always love the later novels way better than the first, not always but sometimes. I think that is so weird. However, I find other authors first books to be better than later novels but like I said in mine I almost always feel I like later novels better.

I think there is such unknown and beauty in the beginning but by the end nothing will ever be the same again for the character and that is often times sad. I think that is why I prefer the beginning of most novels or movies. I have however not determined why I prefer my later novels in a series or trilogy to the first book.

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The beginning book is like the moments leading up to a first kiss, the anticipation kills you leading up to the kiss. The middle book is the kiss itself, sweet but often intense and worth the wait. The end book is the end of a kiss, breathless and leaving you wanting more. But that end makes you feel that it will never be like that first anticipation, that first rush and the intenseness that follows.

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So maybe in a way I appreciate all parts of the books/movies but I tend to still prefer the beginning journey of a character as I still want to feel that excitement building for the character but don’t want it to end as I want to stay in the world the author or movie maker has built.

Whether you prefer the beginning, middle or end I think if the author can make you want to stay forever in someway I think that has the makings of a classic or at least a favorite on many people’s lists. I have yet to truly find a series or trilogy that really makes me want to stay in it and so as a lonely reader and lonely writer I continue to look to find a book that fills that need for me or else I try and write one!

“Journey’s end

In western lands beneath the Sun
The flowers may rise in Spring,
The trees may bud, the waters run,
The merry finches sing.
Or there maybe 'tis cloudless night,
And swaying branches bear
The Elven-stars as jewels white
Amid their branching hair.

Though here at journey's end I lie
In darkness buried deep,
Beyond all towers strong and high,
Beyond all mountains steep,
Above all shadows rides the Sun
And Stars for ever dwell:
I will not say the Day is done,
Nor bid the Stars farewell.”

― J.R.R. Tolkien

So this has been Musings of a Lonely Writer and if you would like to share what part of a characters journey you tend to like and why then leave me a comment as I would love to get others points of views about this topic. Until next time, Keep Reading! Keep Writing! And Keep Inspiring!

And build me a literary world I want to get lost in and want to explore and never want to leave. Make me love the end just as I love the beginning. Well at least try as I am hard to please as you can see, lol!

DIY Cell Phone Holder

My old Cell Phone Holder is in the shape of a dolphin and I got it 15 or 16 years ago. It is filled with a blue liquid and has two small dolphins floating inside it. I have used that cell phone holder for every cell phone I have ever had. Well it’s old and the plug at the bottom deteriorated over time and sprung a leak. Fortunately tape sealed the hole but I had to keep it on a piece of tissue to make sure it wouldn’t leak on my furniture. So I decided to leave it in my bathroom on the counter as that is where I charge my phone as my outlets elsewhere are being used.

So I decided to try and make a new holder for when my phone is in my bedroom at night. So I looked on the internet and I found one using blocks and I thought that is pretty and cool. When I found the blocks at the store were two expensive I creatively changed the design.

Wood Bottom- At Michaels $0.49

Set of 6 Flower Sides/ Simply Surfaces Laser cut Design- $3.99 but were 40% off

Tacky Glue- $1.19

Tiny Terra Cotta Pot- $0.49 but I used 40% off coupon

Large Pack of 3D Lady Bug Stickers- $0.99

Pack of 8 Pencil Grips- $1.00

I arranged three flower sides to fit my phone. I measured using my phone and marking with pencil where it sits comfortably. I did my design looking like a H but any arranging would do to fit different phones. I used tacky glue to put it in place and took Q-Tips with water and wiped away the excess glue that squeezed out.

I then took a blue pencil grip and cut it in two after I realized it wouldn’t glue while round so I cut it in two. The smooth flat side or inside of pencil grip I glued down a comfortable distance from the back of the one flower design. Once the glue dried it was ready to be used.

However I decided to add 3D Lady Bug stickers to the sides of my flower design sides. Then I bought a tiny terra-cotta pot and glued it to the back of the holder where there was a avoid. I took fake flowers I had and put them in a bit of foam and then placed that in the pot. I added a 3D lady bug to the outside of the pot and one to the inside of the Daisy flower in the pot. I later added a tiny dragonfly hairclip to the pink flowers in the picture below. I don’t have the dragonfly in the pics below as I added it after I took the pictures but I clipped it to the pink flowers.

I am going to change the foliage with the seasons. I already bought a teeny little scare crow for fall and I have fake fall leaves I will decorate with as well. I absolutely love it but will probably need to change it a bit if and when I get a new cell phone as my phone sits snug and another larger phone might not fit as well.

 

I hope you enjoy this and perhaps try something similar! I have so many other designs I would love to make, if I can find someone who needs a cell phone holder.