The Random Writer's Tag

The last day of camp is tomorrow - my how time has flown! So many great memories have been made, this year has been awesome! It's been busy and fun and everything in between :) I'll try to write up a post on it soon, although I'll admit, I've been falling behind on posts lately. I haven't even finished the Landry camp posts -_- I WILL GET TO THEM!! xD

But for now, it's time for. . .



I was tagged by Livi Jane from Living For the Other Side for The Random Writer's Tag. Thank you so much, Livi!

1. If you could pick one (yes, only one) of your characters to meet in real life, who would it be and why?
Oh, goodness, let me think. There are so many characters! Ummm..... I think Aileen Forrest from my short story I Did It For You. She'd be a very enjoyable person to be around, and we'd be good friends ;) 

2. What kind of relationship do you enjoy writing about most? (Brother-brother, friend-friend, romance, etc.)
Probably brother-sister, friend-friend, and (slight) romance. I say slight, because if the romance is too much, then Tiger Lily, when editing, goes so very elegantly: "My brain just vomited" (reference from Studio C :P) 

3. Describe your favorite setting in which to write.
Flopped down on my stomach in either my bed or the couch, surrounded by notebooks, pens, computer, and earphones. My absolute favourite place is my bed, but unfortunately, I'm not allowed to bring my computer up there. So it's usually on the couch.

4. When/where do you usually get inspiration for your stories when you're stuck?
Huh. Good question. My ideas for new stories come from random people/things/events at extremely random times. But if it's inspiration for a story that I'm already writing, it usually comes while I'm going to sleep/sleeping. A relaxed brain helps a lot :) 

5. How important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning?
Well, it does take a while for me to name my characters. I try to choose names that fit the character's personality. But I prefer choosing by the way it sounds, instead of the meaning.

6. What are some of your favorite character names?
Amy Ryder, Margaret (Meg) Lincoln, Aileen Forrest, Tessa Brown. Oh, and Marcus. But he's in my Pompeii story and I haven't quite figured out a last name for him yet ;) 

7. What/Who inspired you to start writing?
I think my love for words and creating stories was what inspired my writing. There was a time when Tiger Lily and I played dolls and we needed books. 'Cause we knew that you can't live without books. So I cut some paper, stapled them together, and wrote stories in them. I think those were the first stories I ever wrote. After that, my love for writing stories just grew :)

8. And finally, would you rather never read another book or never write another story?
Never write another story. It would be VERY sad to never be able to write another story, but I think my love for reading surpasses my love for writing :D

And that's it! Those were super fun to answer; just saying ;) Thanks again, Livi!

If any of you want to do this tag, PLEASE do so! And if you do, let me know in the comments below so that I can go check it out! :D

Hope you all have a great week! :)

The Wisteria Writer Tag

You all ready for another tag? Emily F. from A Purpose and a Promise tagged me for The Wisteria Writer Tag. Thank you so very much, Emily! :) 

Alrighty, onto the tag! :)

The Rules

1. thank the blogger who nominated you

2. answer the ten questions

3. add ten (writing or book) questions of your own

4. nominate ten people

The Questions!!

Are you writing anything at the moment? If so, what? 

Right now, I'm trying to get myself back into writing. I've had a super long break and now I'm having trouble getting myself to sit down and write. We're getting there....slowly ;) A project that I've been working on for awhile now is set in Pompeii. If you don't know about Pompeii, go read your Roman history ;)  

Who inspires you to write?

People. Nature. And definitely God. 

What resources do you typically use when writing?

Well, it usually depends on what I'm writing. For example, with the Pompeii one, I'm using all the Roman history books that we have. Any information that I can't get from there then comes from the Internet. My Latin course from last year also came in handy, especially the history parts of it! :D 

Writing pet peeve?

Having a great idea for your story but somehow not being able to write it down. You have this awesome idea, but all you're doing is just sitting in front of the computer/holding a pen to paper and the words just. won't. come. 

Reading pet peeve?

When my favourite main character(s) die. It just doesn't seem right! 

Have you ever designed a book cover? If so, can we see a picture?

I made this last year for my GIMP class, but at the moment, the story was still fairly new (in my head anyway :P) so I had to come up with a title on the spot. However, I doubt this will be the actual title in the end ;)

What's your favorite thing about writing? 

Being able to use your imagination! Creating scenes, developing characters, it's all so much fun! :) 

Have you ever taken writing classes?

No, I haven't. I might be either this school year or next, but we're not sure yet ;) 

 Favorite place to write?

Bedroom or the living room. Anywhere where it's comfy and (slightly) quiet ('cause completely quiet is very - rare around here) 

Are you a planner or a pantser, when it comes to writing?

Uhhh.....I'm both. Plantser. Some of the times I'm very organized. Other times (and this is usually the majority) I'm . . . not :P 

Okay, ze end! =) Thanks for tagging me, Emily! Loved your questions :)

I'm not going to tag anyone specifically this time 'round, but if you are a writer - I tag you ;)

Here are Emily's questions again for copying ease:

Are you writing anything at the moment? If so, what?

Who inspires you to write?

What resources do you typically use when writing?

Writing pet peeve?

Reading pet peeve?

Have you ever designed a book cover? If so, can we see a picture?

What's your favorite thing about writing? 

Have you ever taken writing classes?

 Favorite place to write?

Are you a planner or a pantser, when it comes to writing?

The Three Day Quote Tag ~ Day 3

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"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are"

- Theodore Roosevelt

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream"

- C.S. Lewis

"A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky

nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you

have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams

and you will always look lovely." 

- Roald Dahl

And just a little something that Snow White, my 8 year old sister said one Sunday:

"A church isn't where the building is;

It's where the people are."

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Have you heard any of these quotes before? 

The Three Day Quote Tag ~ Day 2

Okie dokie, so as you might be able to tell from the picture below, this is going to be a rather silly quote. I've been reading through A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket and came across this rather interesting take on optimists. It reminded me of a friend of mine and I decided it ought to be shared with you all ;) 

"Optimist" is a word which here refers to a person, such as Phil, who thinks hopeful and pleasant thoughts about nearly everything. For instance, if an optimist had his left arm chewed off by an alligator, he might say, in a pleasant and hopeful voice, "Well, this isn't too bad. I don't have my left arm anymore, but at least nobody will ever ask me whether I am right-handed or left-handed," but most of us would say something more along the lines of "Aaaaah! My arm! My arm!" 

~ A Series of Unfortunate Events - The Miserable Mill

What do you think? Do you know a person who is like that? ;)

The Three Day Quote Tag ~ Day 1

Good morning all! When you read this, I will most likely be at ADVENTURE CAMP with a whole bunch of great peoples :D I'm going to warn you now, this week will be full of tags. One tag a day, hopefully ;) 

Anyway, Kaitlyn from Twin Thoughts tagged me for The Three Day Quote Tag. So let's get started! 

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Good Coffee 

is a pleasure

Good Friends

are a treasure

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

I'm not going to tag anyone this time round. But if you'd like to share some quotes, please feel free and consider yourself tagged! :)

Counting Our Blessings // Tiffany

Good morning everyone! This post is going to be a little bit more different. Partly because it's a guest post (love those! :D) and partly because our special guest is going to be doing a quick flower post at the beginning as well! For all you botanical lovers, you're going to especially enjoy this ;) Allow me to introduce to you a good friend of mine and pen-pal for more than 8 years. . . Tiffany!

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Hi everyone, my name is Tiffany and thank you very much Blessing Counter for inviting me to do a guest post on your blog! I am 15 and I have been saved by the blood of the Lamb. I love classical music and I play the piano and the violin.  I also live in the country, and I have 5 sisters and 2 brothers!  This year I’ve planted some flowers in my flower garden, and I am going to tell you a bit about them. Last year I was more successful with the flowers as you can see here at my family’s blog:www.littleapplesofgold.com/garden-chickens/tiffanys-flower-garden/

Okay, so here we go.

I started the seeds in February.  These pictures here are from the 7^th of February:

 Geraniums

This from the 10th:

 And these two from the 29th: 

The following pictures are from June and July:

Dianthus

Geranium

 Petunia

 Geraniums and Petunias

Sweet Pea

 Morning Glory

 Dahlia

 Marigold

I probably didn’t start the seeds early enough.  Sorry for not being able to show the flowers for all of the plants.

Our blessing number one, would be….. FLOWERS!!!!!

Flowers are a beautiful part of God’s Creations.

Number 2 would be: MUSIC

Classical music is like a special language.

And I can’t leave number 3 out, because it would be…….  BOOKS.

Here is my book shelf.  Not all of the books are mine, and not all of my books are there.(is that confusing?:))

Okay, so that was quite a long guest post. Thank you all for reading and thanks again Blessing for letting me do this post!

By the Book Tag

Hello everyone! How has your weekend been so far?

I was tagged by RebekahAshleigh for the By the Book Tag. Thank you so much, Rebekah! Just going to tell you now, I've been dying to do this tag and was SO excited when you tagged me for it :D

So, here we go!

What book is on your nightstand now? 
Well, I don't actually have a nightstand...but I do have a desk I use for school and a shelf on my loft bed. And I also keep books on my bed ;) Right now, I have my Bible, Code Red at the SuperMall, and The Beloved Land. In my bed, I have The Bad Beginning (The Series of Unfortunate Events), Through the Tunnel, and Gift from the Storm. 

What was the last truly great book you read? 
The last book that affected me the most (aka made me cry ;)) would have to be Stephen.

If you could meet any writer - dead or alive - who would it be? And what would you want to know? 
Goodness, how do I choose one? There are a lot of authors I'd like to meet. Excluding authors from the Bible, I would love to meet Louisa May Alcott, Rebekah Morris, Enid Blyton, and a few more that I can't remember now, but will probably come to mind later :P 
What would I want to know? Umm... what is their favourite book they've ever written; what was the inspiration for their books; when and why did they start writing; did the people around them influence their career of writing positively or negatively; what was the hope for their books and the people who read them; and a ton more. Keep in mind though, that if I were ever able to meet these authors, I'd be so excited, nervous, and shy that I'd probably forgot all my questions anyway xD 

What books might we be surprised to find on your shelves? 
Huh. I have no idea. I don't think I have extremely weird books on me at the moment :P I have Young Pioneers by Rose Wilder Lane. (It's one of the oldest books on my shelf; it was published in 1976 so it's . . . 40 years old! The cover and pages are yellowed and it's got a wonderful old-bookish smell and I found it at a book sale for 25 cents!!) But I don't think that would shock you and make you go "YOU HAVE THAT BOOK?! I DON'T KNOW THIS PERSON!!" xD Or maybe it would. You tell me ;) 

Oh, oh, oh, oh I think I know what would surprise you. I have If you Give a Pig a Pancake on my desk right now. It doesn't exactly count because it's not my book, it will be Toblerone's in a few days. Birthday present! But did that surprise you? Just a teensy weensy little bit? ;)

How do you organize your personal library? 
Well, to be honest, I don't have a specific way I organize my shelves. I WOULD do it by colour or alphabetical order, but at the moment, I have limited shelf space, so organization does not quite help in this case. It's basically the favourites from the books Tiger Lily and I have collected and fit in anyway possible into my shelves. I distribute small and large books throughout the shelf to cram as many books as possible inside ;)

What book have you always meant to read and haven’t gotten around yet? 
The Upstairs Room. I bought it awhile ago at a book sale, but haven't had the FEELING that it was quite time to read it yet.

Anything you feel embarrassed never to have read? 
Ummm...no, not really. And now I'll probably find a book that fits in this category :P Tell me a bunch of books that you think I should have read and I'll tell you if I've read 'em before! 

Disappointing, overrated, just not good: what book did you feel you are supposed to like but didn’t? 
Lord of the Rings. (Please don't hurt me, LOTR fans) I read through the trilogy once years ago, but wasn't able to enjoy it. Sorry.

Do you remember the last book you put down without finishing? 
The Princess Diaries. It was SO awful!

What kind of stories are you drawn to? Any you stay clear of? 
I'm drawn to a lot of different kinds of stories, to tell the truth. Biographies, fantasy, Christian romance, historical fiction, (some) mystery, whatever Anne of Green Gables is, and more books that I have no idea what genre they'd be put in exactly. It's probably easier to just state what I don't like :P 
The library shelves lined with night-black and dark red covers I steer clear of. Yes, I'm judging a book by its cover. But I think it's safe to do so this time. Horror, (most) sci-fi, comics, and anything else inappropriate for a Christian girl to be reading, I keep away from.  

If you could require the president (I'm gonna change it to Prime Minister ;)) to read one book, what would it be? 
The Bible! 

What do you plan to read next? 
Through the Tunnel! I picked it up a few days ago when I had a free minute to start reading it... but I got distracted by the cover and just looked at it. And then Tiger Lily came along and we started talking about it.

Me: Do you think this is a real person or a drawing?
Tiger Lily (who really only focuses on hair): She has a braid that's been bubbled. (you have to ask her what a bubble is if you don't know)
Me: Huh?
Tiger Lily: Oh look, I see the pin that's holding her hair together
Me: . . . .

But I would like to know, this IS an actual picture of a real person, right? 

I tag:

Olivia

Victoria

Lea

Hosanna

And here are the questions again to make it easier for copying =) 

What book is on your nightstand now? 
What was the last truly great book you read? 
If you could meet any writer - dead or alive - who would it be? And what would you want to know? 
What books might we be surprised to find on your shelves? 
How do you organize your personal library? 
What book have you always meant to read and haven’t gotten around yet? 
Anything you feel embarrassed never to have read? 
Disappointing, overrated, just not good: what book did you feel you are supposed to like but didn’t? 
Do you remember the last book you put down without finishing? 
What kind of stories are you drawn to? Any you stay clear of? 
If you could require the president to read one book, what would it be? 

What do you plan to read next? 

And that about wraps up this post! Hope you enjoyed it! Have you read any of the books before?