-
Book Review: A Time to Die
by Nadine Brandes publisher’s synopsis How would you live if you knew the day you’d die? Three hundred sixty-four days, seven hours, and sixteen—no, fifteen—seconds left to live. Like everyone else on the east side of the Wall, Parvin Blackwater has a clock counting down the days until her death. At only seventeen, she has only…
-
Your Old Writing
It’s okay to like your old writing. It’s okay to not like your old writing. Sometimes I read my old writing, and it’s pure cringe. For instance, I once had a character talk aloud to themself so I could explain the worldbuiling. However, that was by my twelve-year-old self, who hadn’t studied anything about the…
-
Book Review: A Lady’s Guide to Marvels and Misadventure
by Angela Bell publisher’s synopsis London, England, 1860When Clara’s ex-fiancé begins to spread rumors that her family suffers from hereditary insanity, it’s all she can do to protect them from his desperate schemes, society’s prejudice, and a lifetime in an asylum. Then Clara’s Grandfather Drosselmeyer brings on an apprentice with a mechanical leg, and all…
-
Writing Is like A Puzzle
Writing is a lot like putting together a puzzle. In the beginning, you typically start by putting together the border frame, an outline. Then, if you’re like me, you work on the more straightforward sections, where it’s easy to tell what pieces go together. Things start to connect together, and you can get a glimpse…
-
Book Review: Sister of the Bollywood Bride
by Nandini Bajpai publisher’s synopsis: Mini’s big sister, Vinnie, is getting married. Their mom passed away seven years ago and between Dad’s new start-up and Vinnie’s medical residency, there’s no one but Mini to plan the wedding. Dad raised her to know more about computers, calculus, and cars than desi weddings but from the moment…
-
Surrender Your Dreams
It’s hard to watch someone else live your dream. Maybe it’s a book contract, an agent, an opportunity, a job. It can be so hard to watch someone else get what you’ve longed and strived for. I know—I’ve wrestled with those flashes of envy and the accompanying discouragement. But you are exactly where you are…
-
Book Review: Chromatic
by Ashley Bustamante publisher’s synopsis Light is Found in Every Hue Magus is dying from the inside out, and only the destruction of the barrier can save it. Even color magic can’t defend against earthquakes, strange weather patterns, and erratic wildlife behavior. After discovering hundreds of captive Yellow magic-users, Ava and Elm fight to set…
-
Fight for Your Story
Sometimes the person you have to fight with hardest for your writing is yourself. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from my current WIP, it’s how to fight for my writing with myself. A year ago, I was literally *this* close to shelving this project and possibly giving up on writing altogether. I was burned…
-
Book Review: Everything Sad Is Untrue
by Daniel Nayeri publisher’s synopsis At the front of a middle school classroom in Oklahoma, a boy named Khosrou (whom everyone calls “Daniel”) stands, trying to tell a story. His story. But no one believes a word he says. To them he is a dark-skinned, hairy-armed boy with a big butt whose lunch smells funny;…
-
Book Review: Gretchen and the Bear
by Carrie Anne Noble publisher’s synopsis Sixteen-year-old Gretchen has been waiting forever to trade life on a dreary orbiting station for life on gloriously regenerated Earth. Still, visiting faerie-infested Britannia is not on her agenda—especially since no human who’s ventured there has ever returned. But when her stepsister sneaks off to the island to meet…
Hailey Huntington 