Summer Days (Driftin' Away...)

Aloha, little fishies!

I finally got some book news and direction to where I'm going next in the publishing world. I've been in contact with both Leticia and Rich-the-editor, and the final conclusion is that it's going to be a little while before another manuscript starts the publishing process. On Leticia's end, the demand for YA fantasy books hasn't come completely back yet, so we have to wait before she starts pushing any manuscripts. 'But what about Spencer Hill?', you may ask. On Rich-the-editor's end, he's basically swamped (no pun intended) with other manuscripts; basically, if I do want to publish with SH again, it's not going to be until the end of summer that he can look over my next book idea. A bit of a bummer, but if anything, this gives me more time to work on writing and job searching (which is going semi-well: plenty of places to apply, but no one's calling).

Not much else has happened, so how about I tell you about the next possible book of mine? It's, of course, YA fantasy, and it's called BURN IN LIGHT. It's about Enid, a teenage exorcist whose job is taking care of the evil ghosts that go bump in Philadelphia's night life. She has help in the forms of Thad, her gothic best friend who also sees ghosts, and Al, her ghostly guardian whose been dead for more than a hundred years. There's all the good stuff a book needs, like action and romance and plot as Enid uncovers a ginormous conspiracy involving other dimensions, myths, and her own past. Would say more, but I don't want to spoil the fun. Can't say when it'll come out, but it should be before anyone joins Al in death!

Weekly (Dis)Likes:

Like 1: Little Free Libraries. For those who don't know what this is, it's basically a community library where a little shed like house is built on someone's lawn, filled with books, and neighbors are allowed to borrow (not steal) them. My grandma told me about them and showed my the Kansas City Star article talking about them, and they're so cool. 15,000 'branches' in 62 countries! Unfortunately city ordinance laws can ban them, like so in Leawood, so here's hoping an exception is made. Fight the power, man!

Like 2: National Geographic, July 2014 issue. Let me just say I LOVE this magazine for both the awesome pictures and the interesting articles. Like last year, there was this one piece that talked about how cloning has gotten so sophisticated and how it can involve to the point where we can clone extinct animals back into existence. And in the aforementioned article, they talk about aliens and how studies may prove that the ocean on one of Jupiter's moons may hold all the ingredients needed to make life. WE MIGHT MEET ALIENS IN OUR LIFETIME!!

Dislike 1: How quickly my iPhone can lose power. I've discovered a bunch of awesome game apps, and I've been having to charge my phone more often. Honestly, with how brilliant Apple is, you'd think they'd invent a longer-lasting battery for these things. -_-

And quote!

"Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive." -Elbert Hubbard

Aloha,
Colleen

The Ease of Summer

Hello, readers and magic bean buyers!

So we're back to the weekly schedule and its normal format, but there's not much to talk about. Book-wise, Rich the editor says there aren't currently any jobs at SHP I can take, and regarding books, he says to go through Leticia regarding what I should do. Last time I contacted her, she recommended waiting until the demand was back up for YA fantasy before doing anything else; I'll have to contact her again to see what she says this time.

Job-wise, still on the hunt. Dad's helping out, and I've established some accounts on some job sites. One is full of jobs in places I want to work, so it's only a matter of wading through them all and applying, which I'm doing bit by bit. If any reader have suggestions for where to apply for a publishing job, tell me in the comments please!

Nothing much else, so I guess I'll tell you about the time I got hypnotized, which I mentioned last post. Basically, during my last term at Knox, the board who organizes fun events for the students invited a professional comedian/hypnotist to campus, I went to his show, and I was chosen to be a participant. I sat on the stage with nine other people, and the last thing I remember was the guy telling us to breath deeply. After that everything's a blur: looking back, it's like I was present but also sleeping, because all the talking sounded like it was both coming from my head and from people talking. I can't remember much, but I recall something involving whales, aliens, and Japanese rapping, and somewhere during the whole escapade I lost my glasses, which had been given to an audience member for safe-keeping. The hypnotist must have said something right before he woke us up, because we were shouting his name whenever he said some sort of prompt until we left the tent. It was weird, magical, and definitely something to save for a book idea some day.

And Weekly (Dis)Likes:

Like 1: It's summer!!!!!!

Like 2: Got some new work out cloths, and got a subscription to the local gym. My health's important to me, so this is a good thing. :)

Like 3: Got to go to my first Royals' game yesterday.

Dislike 1: The Royals lost. :(

Dislike 2: The heat. I am not a heat person, especially given my skin. I do not tan; I BURN, so I'm always a little nervous going out into the sun even with sunscreen on.

And quote!

"Love and work are the cornerstones of our humanness." -Sigmund Freud

Buh-bye,

Colleen

I'm Back!

Hello he, she, and theys of the Internet!

This is Colleen, and and I'm finally back. I'll be posting my regular weekly schedule from now on, and boy do I have a lot to tell you all.

First and foremost, I'm a grad! As of a week ago, I have graduated from college cum laude. The ceremony was beautiful, and my whole family was there to celebrate. There is nothing I would change about it; the food, my graduation dress, the time with family, and other details were all wonderful (though I would change the stumble and the small blisters my shoes caused me walking around in them!).

The term leading up to graduation was good as well. It turned out that the final portfolio I was stressing about wasn't as bad as I'd thought it would be. I had my partner, and we looked over each other's works and gave constructive criticism on it. Even the essay wasn't all sorts of awful: we got weekly prompts that gave us the twenty five page minimum we needed, and after meeting with our professor we'd reevaluate them (my essay ended up being 37 pages long). All in all, it went well. And my other classes were fun too; I read a whole bunch of amazing plays in my theater class, and I can honestly say that my gender/woman's studies class was one of the best courses I've taken in college. It was just so informative and pointed a lot of equal right issues not just for women, but for everyone. I highly recommend any college student reading this to take a class. (And all my hard work paid off, because I got all A's on my final transcript. Also, I managed to get myself hypnotized this term, but that's another story). Lastly, the story written for the school newspaper that I interviewed three times for came out this term, and it was a really good article. I'm happy with it, and Lena did a good job writing it. I don't know if there's an online link, but I'll check.

As of now, I'm currently looking for a job and a place to live. I'm keeping an eye on some publishing places that I'm sending resumes to, but also trying to apply to Barnes & Noble as well. Haven't found anything yet, but still searching. As for a place to live, I'm hanging out at home right now and then moving to my grandparent's place; the latter is helping me look for townhouses. We've already found a possibility, but until we have a better idea of where I'm working (here or a different state), we'll put buying in the back seat.

Book and writing wise, I'm still getting back into the swing of things with my latest manuscript. Like with this blog, I put it on hiatus so I could focus on my last term, but with the moving and events, I haven't reestablished a normal writing schedule. But I'll get to it! No new to report from Leticia or SHP, but I'll be sending a email to Rich asking if he wants to take a look at some of my other manuscripts.

Lastly, my summer so far is going well. I went to my library's used book sale and got some wonderful books, including a copy of JRR Tolkien's THE HOBBIT (which I've been wanting for a while). I also attended my church's garage sale and found myself some excellent clothes, including a pair of white DKNY slack that fit perfectly. Once again, both events live up to expectations.

And that's really everything I have to say. Check back next week for a return of my usual blogging style, but as always I end with a quote:

"My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person; he believed in me." -Jim Valvano

Bye (and Happy Father's Day!),
Colleen