A story is defined as, "a narrative, either true or fictitious, in prose or verse, designed tointerest, amuse, or instruct the hearer or reader." But a story can take many different forms.
With today's technology, we are overwhelmed with stories in the media. New movies comes out every week, new television episodes air every day, and even beyond that, we had an overwhelming amount of video games, board games, RPGs, etc. which all tell their own unique story.
All stories have five elements- characters, setting, conflict, plot, and theme. They take those five elements and incorporate them in different ways to make different stories. What I'm going to do is take different stories from pop culture and analyze them to figure out why some stories are so successful. Today we're going to start with the tv show, Phineas and Ferb.
I am not a romantic. Romance typically makes me want to rip my hair out and scream, because usually it is so unbelievable. For example, I have a sister who loves watching cheesy Hallmark movies because of the feel-good story lines. I end up questioning everything and tearing the storyline to shreds because I don't understand it.
I really don't understand the whole, "true love at first sight" thing. And especially in today's world with so many stories and movies out there, it's become such a horrid cliché, it makes me shudder just thinking about it.
Part of the reason I don't understand it is because of my personal romantic history. My husband and I have been friends since we were 14. It took us three years to have feelings for each other and begin dating. I don't understand the concept of falling in love with someone you don't know because I've never experienced it. I am attracted to people's personalities. It wasn't until recently that I realized it's a common enough thing that there's a specific term for it- demisexual. Which explains why I don't relate to all things romantic.
It's a new month, which means it's time for another Blog World Tour guest! This month, meet Eleanor Konik!
Eleanor Konik was born and raised in a close-knit neighborhood just outside of Baltimore, where she is putting the final touches on her teaching certification. She spends her free time gardening and playing cards with coworkers. She also enjoys fishing, hiking, and visiting attractions around the city. Her blog showcases insights she's gleaned while researching THE LAST COLLARED MAGE, a fantasy mashup of Rome's greatest defeats.
So after a few days with little to no internet, I'm back! Sorry for the inconvenient and sudden disappearance. But fear not, readers! I have returned once more! And I'm back with that promised surprise!
That's right! I'm pregnant! And that's why I'm so behind on everything writing related. Now that it's out in the open, I can finally share some fun stories from the past three months.
Things have been crazy for me over the past week. We relocated back to our own place after the new year, and we're still moving back in. My cousin is in town and I'm trying to spend time with her. Astrid has been especially needy since my sisters left to go back to school. Oh, and since we're back in our own place, we have exceptionally slow internet which makes it hard to do most of my work since all my notes for edits are online.
And now I'm making excuses because unfortunately, I'm behind on my edits.
I'm supposed to be on chapter 18 today, but instead I'm on chapter 15. I haven't been editing everyday like I planned to. Instead, I've been doing a few chapters a day every few days. Which is fine, because I wasn't planning on actually editing every single day. It was just a schedule so I'd have an end date for my goal.
It's another new month, which means another fun guest! Today we get to meet A.J. Flowers!
A.J. Flowers is a fantasy author, book blogger, and automotive engineer in Detroit. She loves her writing, her work, and above all, her faith and family. When not writing or designing, you can find her saving the world from annihilation on her favorite video games side-by-side with her Dutch husband and princess Blue Russian kitty named Mina. You can follow her writing advice, published work, and fun personal stories on her blog.
Normally I laugh at people who make New Years Resolutions because I'm the kind of person who makes changes whenever I realize I need to make a change, not just once a year. Plus, resolutions without dates are just dreams, not actual goals. And because these are things I really want to accomplish, I'm planning on giving myself an end date for each one.
- Finish draft 3 of Powerful. I'm currently doing another pass through where I'm implementing feedback chapter by chapter and making notes. I'm on chapter 9 out of 36. That's 1/4th of the way through! I plan on reviewing one chapter a day, which means this pass through will be done on January 27th. After that, I plan on actually implementing the edits (which are mostly minor, mainly description because that is my nemesis), which I'll do one chapter a day again. That means I'll finish the third draft by March 4th. I'll regularly update my progress here, and once I start actually writing the third draft, I'll update the word count on the sidebar!
