To Everything There is a Season
Well, the season hasn't changed yet, unfortunately. The weather forecast says winter storm for the rest of the night. However, today the season did change for my website. I've been agonizing over the new layout (the old one was just awful) for the past three weeks, and I think I've come up with one that is both functional and visually appealing. I've never used brown and pink together in a layout before.
Let me know what you think! You can view the site here: http://www.worderella.com
The plan is, eventually, to convert the blog over to a similar layout. I also plan to put the random writing quote functionality back into the website because I love quotes and I love writing, and quotes about writing just make my day. And I want to replace the old research/writing tips files with an updated and more organized structure that will also point to similar blog posts that I have made.
So there are a couple of things left on my list to do to make this layout complete, but overall, I'm pretty pleased.
2007 Reading Stats
Admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery, right? Well, I think it's time I admit that I have a problem: I don't have enough time to read everything I want to read. I admitted this to myself two years ago in June, and I'm happy to say I have made progress. I think keeping a list of books I want to read and checking off the ones I have read really helps. It's like a multi-step program toward recovery, only... the list never ends. Hey, I'm improving my literacy rate! But in doing so, I've created a new problem by re-awakening the avid reader of my childhood and forgetting that sleep is just as important as getting to the next chapter in my new favorite book. Don't believe me? Take a look at my reading statistics from 2007...
Number of books: 41. I'm pleased with this number, considering I'm a full-time computer science engineering student, I work part-time, I'm very active with my family, and I'm the editor-in-chief/cartoonist for my college's magazine. I think the trick is reading before I go to bed. It's amazing how reading an hour every couple of days cleanses my mind like a gentle sponge bath.
Number of Pages: 14,039. Some books were surprisingly short, others, almost too long. The average length was around 350-400 pages.
Genres: Historical fiction, romance, science-fiction, fantasy, non-fiction, women's fiction, classics, and young adult. Sometimes I think I should branch out and read something new, but it seems to me the only thing I don't really read is anything erotic, if I can help it. Any suggestions?
Best loved book: North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell, by far (review coming later). Why my favorite? This book was like learning to love reading all over again for me. It felt like I was reading Pride and Prejudice for the first time, and I fell irretrievably in love with the characters and the author's style. I was left with that satisfied calm one gets after reading a classic that is touching, well-written, and still applicable to the modern world. If you have any sentimental or positive feeling for Pride and Prejudice, you will like Gaskell's North and South, set in England's 19th Century industrial revolution.
Runners-up were The Thirteenth Tale, Wildford's Daughter (review coming later), Hurricane Moon, The Extra Large Medium, The Time-Traveler's Wife, and Stardust.
Least loved book: I rarely dislike books that I read, but I have to admit I sincerely disliked How to Read a Novel. The linked review gives some of my reasons; I felt like the author was complaining a little too much and complaining is a pet-peeve of mine.
Book list in reading order: here.
So as you can see, when reading a good book, I have absolutely no self-control. I'm an addict of the worst kind, lost to the world. So I have to admit, when I think I've gotten control over my reading habits and then look at my To Be Read journal, I have to sigh. My list for 2008 already has 48 books... some leftovers from last year that I never got around to reading, and others that I want to read after seeing it in my library's most recent issue of BookPage.
What's a girl to do? For shame, it seems I'm sentenced to read until I die. :) How many of you use a book list? If you don't use a list, how do you decide what to read next? Amazon.com reader reviews and suggested books? Reader blogs? Newsletters like BookPage? This is something I've always been really curious about.
The new year cometh
Happy new year, everyone! Here's hoping your muse is kind. Mine favored me at the end of my break from school, the procrastinating little wretch that she is, and I'm now 76% complete with the WIP manuscript! I've done a lot of work-shopping on the tagline and the hook. Here's what I came up with for my WIP, Trentwood's Orphan...
A grieving daughter encounters love and ghosts in Victorian England.
A proposal on the anniversary of her father’s death is not Mary Winslow’s idea of romance, but as a 26-year-old maid in Victorian England, Mr Spencer is her last chance. When Mary catches Mr Spencer seducing her scullery maid, her regimented world falls apart, and her secret deathbed promise to her father comes back to haunt her…literally.
What do you think? Something worth reading, or do I need more edits?
From an administrative standpoint, there are new fun things here at the blog, mainly that I have a new plug-in that highlights posts related to the topic of the post you're currently reading. I added blurbs about the books I've written, and I updated the About and Reading List pages. Fellow authors, if your website needs a new look, or if you haven't looked into web marketing, check out the Siriomi Web Designs tab as an affordable solution to your problems.
My next post will be listing my most and least favorite books of 2007, how many pages I read, etc. What would you like to see in 2008? More information on publishing? Let me know.
Happy Holidays, Haitus
I realize I'm sort of copping out for this entry, but I'm taking some much-needed down time until after the new year. I recently converted the blog to WordPress (finally, I know), so let me know if things still aren't working correctly.
Happy holidays, everyone.
Announcement: Feed Update
This is just to let everyone know that later today (4pm Eastern American time) the feed URL will switch* to http://blog.worderella.com/feed/. Please update your readers accordingly. An actual post will follow the feed transition. Thanks for your patience!
LiveJournal users, I've already notified the system that the URL is changing, so you have nothing to worry about.
*This is because I finally caved in and installed WordPress as my blog CMS. This does mean I have to learn the new system in order to implement my own layout design (seen here), but since so many clients these days use WordPress, it certainly won't hurt to know how to do it.
Quote: Failure to Please
- Bill Cosby
Publishers fail to spot plagiarized Jane Austen
LONDON (Reuters) - Even Jane Austen would have trouble finding a publisher today, a struggling author revealed Thursday.David Lassman sent off to 18 publishers assorted chapters from Austen novels in which he changed just the titles and the names of the characters.He called himself Alison Laydee after Austen's early pseudonym "A Lady."
Seventeen publishers rejected or ignored his bid for literary glory. Only one spotted the ruse and told him not to mimic "Pride and Prejudice" so closely.
Lassman, who decided on the experiment when struggling to get his own novel published, told British media: "Getting a novel accepted is very difficult today unless you have an agent first. But I had no idea of the scale of rejection poor old Jane suffered."
Thanks to Redshoeson for the heads-up! Article from Reuters on Thu Jul 19, 2007 9:45AM http://www.reuters.com/article/email/idUSL1941223720070719
Writer’s Digest Website Contest
I was just notified that I am a finalist for the Writer's Digest Best Writer's Website Contest! I'll be in the October issue, so look for me, Belinda Kroll at www.worderella.com! This is very exciting, as I was certain I wouldn't even place.
In other news, I'm a little over 40% complete with First Draft B. It's pretty amazing how these characters are taking over.
I have a couple more book reviews to post, as I'm inhaling my summer reading almost as quickly as I inhale food...and I'm planning on posting more notes from my notebooks. I just got my Dickens's Dictionary of London 1888 in the mail today, so I might post a few of my notes from that as well.
Things are looking up! I hope your works-in-progress are coming along as you want them to!
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