Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

After reading through a series of facebook posts incessantly complaining about a series of trivial things, I realized something really important. By worrying about every little small thing that goes wrong in our lives, we are stressing ourselves out. BIG TIME!

Believe me, I get it. I'm just as guilty as the rest when it comes to complaining about things. But you know what? While venting makes us feel better, odds are if we have time to complain about stupid stuff, we are really lucky in life. And should stop and remember that.

I came across an interesting study over the weekend about happiness. Know what the number one thing is that makes people happy? Well, it's sure not whining about dumb things.

It's showing gratitude.

Just think about that for a minute. (I'll wait)

By showing others how much they mean to us, we make ourselves happier.

So stop for just a few seconds and appreciate all the people and things in your life that are special to you. Forget the little things, that traffic jam, the barista that got your coffee order wrong, the fact that it's Monday morning, and remember all the good and wonderful in your life. You'll be much happier for it. And who knows, if you share it with someone else, you just might make them smile too!

Happy Monday all! I love you guys!

A Review of Ultraviolet Catastrophe by Jamie Grey

Quantum Electrodynamics. String Theory. Schrödinger's cat. For sixteen-year-old Lexie Kepler, they’re just confusing terms in her science textbooks, until she finds out that her parents have been drugging her to suppress her outrageous IQ. Now Branston Academy, a school run by the world’s most powerful scientists, has tracked her down and is dying for her to attend - as a research subject.

She takes refuge at Quantum Technologies, a secret scientific community where her father works as a top-notch scientist, and begins her new life as girl genius at Quantum High. But the assignments at her new school make the Manhattan Project look like preschool - and Lexie barely survived freshman algebra.

Her first big assignment – creating an Einstein-Rosen bridge – is also her first chance to prove she can hold her own with the rest of QT's prodigies. But while working with the infuriatingly hot Asher Rosen, QT’s teen wonder, Lexie uncovers a mistake in their master equation. Instead of a wormhole, the machine they’re building would produce deadly ultraviolet rays that could destroy the world. Now Lexie and Asher have to use their combined brainpower to uncover the truth behind the device. Before everyone at Quantum Technologies is caught in the ultraviolet catastrophe.
*Summary from Goodreads

My Review
Sixteen-year-old Lexie Kepler has strange flashes of brilliance that she can't explain. Turns out she is one of the smartest teens in the country, but her parents hid it from her. Under the rouse of needing ADHD medication, her parents suppressed her extreme intelligence. But when some of the world's smartest scientists from Branston Academy come looking for her, her mom sends her away from the life she's always know to live with her dad who she barely talks to. Her dad lives in a town run by Quantum Technologies, a secret scientific research facility where the best and the brightest scientists and students research and learn.

On her first day at Quantum High, Lexie feels less than average compared to her super smart classmates, including the handsome Asher Rosen. Asher is the resident class hottie who dates all the girls in their small class. And as if feeling stupid in a class full of geniuses wasn't hard enough, Lexie finds herself inexplicably drawn to Asher and jealous of her classmates that seem to fawn all over him.

During their first big assignment on wormholes, Lexie is picked by Asher to work on the student team. When she discovers a mistake in the primary equation, it looks like someone may be trying to sabotage the project. Lexie must work closely with Asher and her classmates to figure out who is behind the plot, all the while wondering who she can trust and if Asher's flirtations are genuine or not. 

Lexie is a great lead in the story. She's a strong character. While she frequently doubts her intelligence and self, it's based primarily on her past and the fact that her whole life has been hidden from her to keep her safe. As she learns the truth about her life, she continues to grow confidence and learns to trust her instincts even when it comes to Asher. 

With girls dying to date Asher and his incredible skills in computers, one would think he'd be extremely arrogant. But Asher is the furthest thing from it. He knows he's smart but he doesn't flaunt it obnoxious way. He's charming, caring, and aside from his high level of intelligence, pretty down to Earth. I found his character refreshing and a fun addition to the story.

When Lexie and Asher pair up, things to do with the project seem to go well while their romantic interests are a constant struggle. Asher wants to know more about Lexie but she just sees the other girls and how smart Asher is in comparison to how far behind she is. There are many tense romantic moments between these two that I really enjoyed.

Overall Ultraviolet Catastrophe is a fun read filled with really smart kids, cool technology, a bit of romance, and a hint of mystery. I really enjoyed uncovering the truth and following along as Lexie's story unfolded. I'd recommended this book to anyone who enjoys light sci fi with some romantic elements. It's a solid 4 stars.

MG / YA Blog hop

I’ve been tagged in a MG/YA blog hop and was asked to answer the following questions by the amazing Thomas Torre. 

1.      What are you working on right now?

I have a few projects going on right now. 

• I’m querying a MG science fiction about 13y/o Gary Jones that gets abducted by aliens and gets telekinesis. He has to complete missions for the aliens in return for his ability, while trying to figure out what they are really up to. It’s Sky High meets Ender’s Game with young alien trainers reminiscent of Jedi masters.
• I’m furiously editing a YA science fiction called Tracker 220. It’s a futuristic science fiction thriller that blends technology similar to Google Glass and a fast paced thriller world like Minority Report.
• I also have a very baby WIP that’s also a YA science fiction. I can't say too much about it yet but it’s set in space.

2. How does it differ from other works in its genre? 
For the MG, there’s not tons of MG science fiction but there is a lot out there that has kids with superpowers. So I tried to set my story apart by making the origin of the powers from aliens and I made them come with a cost. I mixed in some cool advanced alien technology while putting a unique spin on how superpowers are used.

For the YA science fiction thriller, I combined advanced technology, with a fast paced thriller world. I threw in strong female characters including the protagonist and a cute nerdy boy.

For the baby WIP, well I can’t say much but I’m basically trying to take a popular space scifi tv show and spin it for YA while throwing in some other interesting and tricky elements. Do with that what you will.

3. Why do you write what you do? 
Why do I write science fiction? Two reasons. One, I’m a rocket scientist. I was brought up with scifi and I want to share it with the world. Two, I love the question what if. I love looking at things that could be even, if they are sort of out there. What if can take you anywhere.

Why do I write YA? Because it’s basically all I read. Despite never wanting to write, once I started reading a lot, I started having all these ideas of my own. One day they wouldn’t shut up so I started writing them down.

Why do I write MG? More details on that, on the fantastic MG Minded blog! Check it out.

4. How does your writing process work?

Oh there’s a loaded question. I would say several times a week I hear something or see something that makes me go what if… and I write it down. Usually that doesn’t go anywhere, but every once in a while, from that idea and plot, characters start to emerge. The more the ideas stew the more of the world and characters develop. So then I start an outline. Chapter by Chapter I usually write a handful of sentences about what should happen in that section. Every once in a while I’ll get a few paragraphs of prose and/or dialogue that I’ll include with that chapter.

When I have about a quarter to a third of an outline I usually start writing. I don’t typically know how things will end other than a general idea when I start. As I write, the back of the outline starts filling in. And I write in order until I finish. If a scene snippet comes to me, I fill it into the outline where it belongs.

Every time I sit down to write, I spend the first 10 minutes or so reading the prior section. If I find typos I fix them but mostly I just read to put me in the mindset of the story. Typically that’s enough to launch me into writing the next section. It also helps me maintain flow and pacing.

So that’s my writing process. We won’t talk about how brutal I get with my editing ;)

And that’s a little bit more about my writing. I’m going to tag a few MG/YA writers, Mandy P., Christina, and Michelle, so they can give your their answers to the questions above. :)

The Harsh Reality of Querying

I've been kind of quiet lately on Twitter about my writing and things going on. And it's because I've been pretty down lately. Okay not just down, I've been a miserable wreck. Honestly I hesitated to write this post because as writers we are often told it's best to keep quiet. We shouldn't talk about requests, rejections, or being out on submission. If we are feeling down we shouldn't blab on twitter, because that is something we should keep behind closed doors. So that's primarily what I've been doing because we aren't supposed to look crazy in public; even though everyone knows writers are crazy. But I've come across some hard truths that I thought I should share with everyone.

Querying is hard. No not just hard, it's soul sucking torture at times. I honestly never anticipated how gut wrenching it would be. I did my research before I even sent out my first query. I didn't make any of the standard rookie mistakes, I got critique partners, I workshopped my query, and I followed all the major do's and don'ts of querying. I figured because of this I'd have a little easier time in the querying trenches.

Boy, was I wrong.

Just because you studied what makes a good query letter, does not mean you will instantly get requests. And even though you may know what makes up a good query letter, it doesn't mean you wrote one. In fact you may get form rejections just like everyone else who does make those rookie mistakes. And that could be for a variety of reasons.

You aren't standing out in a crowd

So you had an awesome idea, you wrote a book, and you edited and polished it until it was ready. Now you're querying. So what makes your book different from every other book out there with a protagonist that has superpowers or is a ghost, or just discovered there's a secret world within their own? You may think you're idea is great and so different than anything out there, but if you aren't conveying that clearly in your query, an agent is most likely going to pass and may not even read your pages. Harsh? Yes, but it's the truth of matter.

Subjectivity

Again you may have an awesome idea, and the agent may even look at the query and agree. But then they get to your pages and they don't connect with the voice, or the character or think you started in the wrong spot. There's any number of reasons an agent may pass and it may be because they personally just don't get along with your work. They don't love it enough to want to read your book a million times and that's what it takes.

Your query is too long

A lot of agents skim queries. It's seems unfair that you put countless hours into perfecting your query and an agent just spends half a minute on it. But the reality of the situation is, agents get anywhere from fifty to several hundred queries a week. And queries, are unfortunately at the bottom of their list of priorities. They read them in between working with their clients, trying to sell books, negotiating contracts, and numerous other things.

While agents love new clients, they have to take care of their current ones first. So when they open a query that looks long, they are probably just going to start skimming. Think about it, when you open a webpage or blog that has a lot of words, you skim too. So why would an agent who has a million other things to do take the time to read your six paragraph query? They aren't, unless they find something that piques their interest.

In fact, even if your query is short, they may have only a few minutes so they may start skimming. So do yourself a favor. Make your queries short, and to the point. Make your sentences snappy and pack a punch. Do everything in your power to make your book stand out in as few sentences as possible while highlighting the voice of your story.

Honestly that right there is where I'm getting hung up. It's not easy to paint a clear unique picture about your book in a few short voicey paragraphs that grab someone's attention. So even if you are doing everything they say in the do's and don'ts you still have a lot of work ahead of you. The harsh reality is just cause you're ahead of the pack and not making "rookie" mistakes doesn't mean you're where you need to be in the querying trenches to catch an agent's eye.

But I didn't write this post to scare anyone. I wrote it to put the truth out there and to talk about my experiences and lessons learned. I wanted to let other writers know they aren't alone in the querying trenches and it's okay to feel down. I'm right there with you! If you are getting requests pat yourself on the back. It's quite an accomplishment. And if you aren't, maybe it's time to take a step back, look at your query, and re-evaluate. I know it's been eye opening for me.

Finding the Strength

We all feel it-that nagging voice that tells us we aren’t good enough, that we have no idea what we’re doing, and that we’re wasting our time. That little voice, or even person, that says you can’t do this no matter what you do.

It sucks; especially when you want something more than breathing air.

So how do you pick yourself up and keep moving forward when you feel like you’re at the bottom of a million foot cliff with no way out?

Well, you have two options. You give up or you pick yourself up and find a way.

But how do you do that when your head keeps telling you how much you suck?

There’s been a lot of talk on the #keepgoing hashtag which is motivating writers to not give up. To do exactly that, KEEP GOING! It’s inspiring to see writers making it and achieving their goals. Even to see the difference one year makes.

Most of the time.

But sometimes those gremlins get in your brain and make you feel like you’re a slacker compared to the rest of the community, that you aren’t working as hard as the rest, and that you just can’t live up to everyone else.

You tell yourself you’re too fast, or too slow, or aren’t on the right path or any other host of things that eat at you from the inside out. You tell yourself you aren’t where you’re supposed to be.

I’ve got news for you…

THERE IS NO RIGHT PATH

YOU ARE EXACTLY WHERE YOU SHOULD BE

There’s only the path you are on and what works for you. Do what helps you learn and grow in the way that you need to in order to accomplish your goals.

Do what you have to do!

Plain and simple.

Find a support system, hone your craft, work at your own pace, and don’t give up. Only you know what’s right for you, so don’t let anyone else tell you otherwise. Have faith in yourself, and stick with it!

Inner Peace

Today Michelle Mason tagged me with the Inner Peace Award. The rules are to share seven things my blog readers don’t know about me.

1.) I’ve been to seven countries outside the US. And I’ll list my favorite part of each trip

• Israel – Floating in the dead sea and taking a jeep ride through the Golan Heights

  

  Me in the Golan Heights

• France – Cannes (side note: least favorite part, getting the worst sunburn of my life on a nude beach, no I wasn’t nude!)
• Spain – Swimming in the Olympic pool in Barcelona
• Italy – Seeing the leaning tower of Pisa, and pretty much everything in Rome.
• Monaco – Everything about it. This country is seriously gorgeous. So many awesome views. Not to mention some seriously cool expensive cars.
• Andorra – The Mountains
• England – Platform 9 ¾’s, the Tower of London, double decker buses, the Millenium bridge, Blackfriars Bridge, Tower Bridge, and just London in general.

  

  Tower Bridge

2.) I didn’t always want to be an engineer. When I was little I wanted to be an astronaut, then for a very long time I wanted to be a Veterinarian. I changed my mind junior year of high school. When I went to a weeklong intro to engineering program, I saw them break a two inch diameter steel rod. I thought it was the coolest thing in the world. Right then and there I decided I wanted to break stuff for a living. I combined my love of space with my love of math and science and am now a Rocket Scientist.

3.) I started swimming when I was three and learned to do three strokes at that age, backstroke, breast stroke and freestyle. I swam on team for years, and was a butterflier for a while, one of the few who could do the stroke properly without getting DQ’d. When I got into high school I was on the swim team and was a breaststroker. I got a varsity letter on the swim team.

4.) In high school I considered changing my mailing address to the school's theater. I loved being a backstager. I staged managed a number of productions including Once Upon a Mattress. I climbed ladders, hung and focused lights, and programmed light boards. I was the only girl in backstage theater who didn’t paint. I couldn’t paint to save my life unless someone said go paint that wall black. I did construct sets, and I was the only girl who could pick up a screw gun and not have it taken away from her.

5.) I’m a dancer. They put ballet and tap shoes on me at age three. I danced tap, jazz, and ballet from aged three to eighteen. I started pointe at age fifteen. I quit when I went to college but picked it back up in grad school and beyond. I also love watching so you think you can dance. It reminds me of my dance days.

6.) I went to space camp. It was awesome. I got to see the shuttle roll out to the pad but sadly never saw a launch. I only wish I could have done some zero g training. I always wanted to ride in the vomit comet but never did.

7.) I loved sleep away camp. I spent eight summers at camp: five as a camper, two as a junior counselor, and one as a counselor. I even spent an entire eight week summer there as a camper one year. I met some of my best friends at camp at age twelve and we are still friends today nearly twenty years later. Most days I wish I could back to camp and do it all over again. Best time of my life!

So that’s seven things you may not have known about me. I’m tagging

Tom Torre

Mandy Pietruszewski

Stacey Trombley

Amira Makansi

You Can’t Please Everyone… So Stop Trying!

Ever feel like you are being torn in two trying to please everyone? Yeah that’s me pretty much every day. And it seems to be happening more and more lately. Someone has hold of each of my arms and legs and they are just pulling until I’m busted at the seams.

Okay, well that’s really just a metaphorical me, but it seems like it’s happening with increasing frequency when it comes to my manuscript. One person says one thing, someone else says something completely contradictory, and my head is spinning so fast I look like I need an exorcism. But that’s the thing, just because someone gives you advice, doesn’t mean you are obligated to take it. It is merely that, advice, someone’s opinion.

Writing is so subjective. It’s often difficult to know what feedback to listen to and what to ignore. So how do you know if you are making the right decision? Because you can’t possibly please everyone.

But that’s just it. There is no right decision, at least not in the general sense of the phrase. There is only what is right for you and your story, and what your gut tells you. It’s so hard to follow your gut. But you and only you know your story best, so you have to be true to that. By all means take what resonates with you and let your story evolve. But at the end of the day, you have to be happy with your story first or no one else will. Everyone else will either choose to stand behind you or not. Revel in those that support your vision and don’t sweat the others. Because unfortunately you can’t please everyone, so stop trying!

Give yourself a break. You’ll be better off for it.

A Review of The Apollo Academy by Kimberly P. Chase

As the heiress to Titon Technologies, eighteen-year-old Aurora Titon can have whatever she wants—clothes, expensive gadgets, anything money can buy. All she really wants is to escape her pampered, paparazzi-prone life for the stars. Becoming the first female pilot to train as an astronaut for the Apollo Academy is exactly the chance for which she has been waiting. Everything would be perfect if it weren't for her unreciprocated crush on a fellow student, the sexy astronaut bent on making her life hell, and the fact that someone keeps trying to kill her.

The first in a four book new adult science fiction series, The Apollo Academy, is an action packed story of love, discovery, and survival.
 *summary from Goodreads





 My Review**
The Apollo Academy is the first New Adult book I've read. I wasn't sure what to expect from a book in a genre that is still at its heart finding its place in the market. But when I read the summary referencing, astronaut training, female pilots, and hot boys, I instantly knew I needed to get my hands on this book. And I was not disappointed, in fact I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Zane and Aurora are multidimensional characters from two different ends of the spectrum. But at their cores, they both want the same thing--to blend in. As heiress to the Titon Technologies, Aurora is always in the spotlight, the last place she wants to be. Aurora dreams of being a pilot at The Apollo Academy. However, her goal takes her out of one spotlight and thrust her into another, as the first and only female pilot to enter the program. Despite all the claims that Aurora's father bought her a spot in the program, she is determined to prove she gained entry on her own merits and surpass every challenge laid out for her. Her sheer determination while proving herself time and time again was not only a quality that I loved but also something I identified with as a female engineer.

As an unknown Zane is constantly scraping to get by. He wants nothing more than his status as an unknown to be erased and join society as a normal citizen. Entry into The Apollo Academy is his only chance to make something of himself and elevate his unknown status. Although his strong aptitude for tech might be his ticket into the academy, he faces a different set of challenges. Unknowns usually aren't permitted in the academy and if anyone finds out his real status, it could mean hell for Zane. Not to mention hiding a genetic anomaly that could get him kicked out of training and ruin his chances at a normal life. Despite all his struggles early on, Zane seems to adapt well to his surroundings and is extremely likeable from the moment he steps onto the page. He's a fighter in a much different way than Aurora, and he isn't afraid to get his hands dirty in the process.

Despite their vastly different backgrounds Zane and Aurora seem inexplicably drawn to each other. Even with their secrets, each sees the other for who they truly are rather than what the rest of the world does. But each stands to lose a lot by getting involved with the other. Aurora doesn't need any additional distractions in her training. It's bad enough that her attractive flight instructor, Sky is always on her case. And Zane has his secrets to maintain too. Not to mention a girl like Aurora would never date a guy like Zane or would she?

The further into training Zane and Aurora go, the more challenges they are faced with. In addition to hiding secrets, Aurora finds her life in danger when several training missions go wrong. It looks like Terra United, an extremist group bent on stopping the moon mining missions, could be behind the attacks but there are others who just think the incidents were simple accidents. Zane's inexplicable need to protect Aurora draws him into the mysterious mishaps, and they both need Sky's help to get a closer look at the situation. But Sky has secrets of his own and no one is sure who they can trust.

As The Apollo Academy unfolds, the reader is faced with secrets, steamy, tension-filled romance, and the excitement of astronaut training. The book is well paced and told in three POV's. Although I'm not sure Sky's POV was needed throughout the story, I still found his voice unique and interesting. That said, I was immediately drawn to Aurora and Zane's stories and the two of them really kept me flipping the pages. Aurora and Zane left me constantly guessing who they could trust, including each other. As an engineer I enjoyed the aerospace and pilot elements tied into the book. I contemplated the science surrounding mining the moon and the potential risks it could have for Earth, but not so much so that it detracted from the story. I found myself wanting to know more about Terra United's side of the story and am hoping it is touched on in future books. All in all, The Apollo Academy is a great book, with a unique setting and premise, characters you can latch on to, and a story that reels you in and doesn't let go. I give it 4 stars.

Why Each New Book Seems Harder to Write

I never thought the second book I would finish would be harder to write than my first. But now that I've started another draft and it's even more difficult than anything I’ve done before, I often wonder why writing more and more books seems to get harder rather than easier. Of course certain aspects are easier, I know what cliches to avoid, what words to stay away from, how to show not tell and basically how to avoid the "rookie" writing mistakes. But the actual writing of the book, the completion of the draft seems to get increasingly difficult. So I started to think about why that is and came up with the following reasons:

Constantly stretching oneself.

As writers we strive to do better. Our goals get bigger, which means we tend to take on harder more complex concepts as we go. And with those bigger goals the mind often struggles to keep up. We start to wonder if we are reaching too high, if we’ve gone outside the realm of our capabilities. If we are in over our heads. All these questions can cripple the writing process, which leads directly into the next issue…

Self-doubt.

The more we write, the more the brain starts to catch up. The worry increases. We wonder can I really do this again? What kind of mess have I gotten myself into this time? Even worse, we think the rest of the world will discover the truth about us—that we have no freaking idea what we are doing. How long can we really fake it, and when will someone stand there with their finger pointed at us saying haha I caught you? The whole idea is completely daunting. All the self-doubt then leads to undue…

Pressure.

Naturally the more we write the more we expect ourselves to improve. In fact, so do our critique partners and our readers. Constantly getting better is important but it's also exhausting. And the thoughts that we constantly have to be better creep into the mind when writing that first draft. Which makes it ever so difficult to write and even harder to finish. We as writers have to step back and re-allow ourselves to have shitty first drafts. We are allowed to suck, and once we remember that it relieves some of the pressure. But with that pressure also comes the drive to…

Strive for uniqueness.

They say every person has a book in them. And in many ways that first book is easy because the ideas just flow. Not that finishing is easy, in fact finishing my first book was the most difficult thing I’d ever done. But the more books we write, the more we have to pay attention to what we've done in the past, and continue to strive for something new and different. We don’t want to keep writing the same characters in new settings or new characters in the same situations that we've written about before. We want to write new characters with new stories and our readers want the same. We need to continue to push ourselves, but again it’s exhausting.

The good news is, we as writers aren’t alone. We all go through this. And once we diagnose the issues we are having, we can usually get right back into a draft. We can continue to better ourselves as writers and stretch our limits beyond what we thought possible.

So what are some of the things that make your writing more difficult and what do you do to carry on?