Review: A Year in High Heels: The Girl's Guide to the Seasons

A Year in High Heels: The Girl's Guide to the Seasons by Camilla Morton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



I love this book! It's part history, part how-to, part glamour. This is the perfect browsing book for someone obsessed with themes and trivia and who likes to know a little bit about a lot of things. It has a slight English slant because that is where the author is from. For me that is a plus as well because I love getting tidbits of other cultures along with my glamour. This is great for fashionistas, jet-setters, citizens of the world, and those who wish they were. This book will up your game or at least inspire you to do, try, or check out new things.



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Review: Food Rules: An Eater's Manual

Food Rules: An Eater's Manual by Michael Pollan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This book is a nicely illustrated quick read about using (not so?) common sense when choosing how, when, and what to eat. It takes an "Everything in moderation" approach urging readers to eat "real food" that is unprocessed food as much as possible. This is not groundbreaking stuff, much of it I have read many times in women's health magazines (granted with a heavy helping of hype on the side) so it's not like author Michael Pollan is educating us with new discoveries, more like a reminder to care how we eat and not to fall prey to all of the diet hypes and food trends. It was nice to have the refresher in such a lovely little book.



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An Awesome Blog Article from Omnivoracious (Amazon Blog)

NaNoWriMo Special: The Shotgun Approach to Writing

by Susan J. Morris on October 31, 2011

By which I don’t mean take a shotgun to your computer or anything so dire. I’m talking about doing some rapid-fire brainstorming to quickly move through a lot of different ideas--from a variety of different approaches--until you find one that suits your fancy. Because you need a good idea if you’re going to participate in National Novel Writing Month, and NaNoWriMo is not about taking it slow.

NaNoWriMo is about getting hooked on writing. You kind of have to be if you’re going to hit 50k in just one month! Of course, to get to even 1k, you first need to do one very important thing: start. Starting is for many the hardest part. And the hardest part of starting is coming up with an idea you're crazy enough about to spend all your Friday nights cuddling up to your computer.

So, listed below are five of my favorite ways to get an idea. Try all of them! Who knows? You might just hit on something good. After all, legend has it Erin Morgenstern’s acclaimedThe Night Circus started in a story she wrote for NaNoWriMo . . .

1. Picture Yourself Legend Tripping

There's a reason legends stick around for so long: something about them grips the human imagination. Which means they make damn good stories. You can tackle the big ones--like the fall of the mythical city of Atlantis, or the smaller ones, like the lost colony or Roanoke, in which 128 people disappeared, leaving only the word "Croatoan" carved on a solitary post of the fort. Either way, trying to explain the unexplainable is always a fun way to spend some words. Here are some of my favorites (inspired by Jeff Belanger's excellent Picture Yourself Legend Tripping):

•  The origins of the Pied Piper myth is Hamelin’s town records. In an entry from 1384, it states: "It is 100 years since our children left." No other details. How’s that for a historical mystery worth talking about?
• The Starchild skull, found in 1930, was shown in 2000 to have belonged to a creature with a human mother (based on mitochondrial DNA)--and in 2009 to have a nonhuman father (based on nuclear DNA). Now, what could have caused that?
• Robert Leroy Johnson had such phenomenal talent that many said it could have only come from a deal with the devil. He makes an appearance in O Brother Where Art Thou? and Reservation Blues. But he’s hardly the only famously skilled musician who was said to have made a deal with the devil and died at age 27. What others can you find?

2. Stranger Than Fiction

History is sometimes so strange as to be unbelievable, so poignant as to be heartbreaking, and so inspiring as to be worth a thousand tales. From the dramatic and epic lives of gangsters and cowboys like Bonnie and Clydeand Doc Holliday, to the oddest of mysteries. Like, did you know "dancing mania" was a thing? Tens of thousands would appear and dance for up to months in an unconscious, uncontrollable state. Why did they dance, and what happened to those who were left behind?

And then there are war stories. Scott Westerfeld, in his talk at Central Library, said that part of the inspiration for the Leviathan trilogy came from World War I--thinking about the tragic deaths of two Austrian nobles that caused the whole world to fall apart, and how much worse that must be for you if you were the child of that couple. What if your personal tragedy, which makes it feel as though the world is breaking, was echoed on the world stage like that? What if the world actually did fall apart?

3. Found Objects

One of my favorite methods of brainstorming is seeing what random associations your brain makes for you--what stories your brain will tell, if given an object, a detail, and a location. You’d be surprised what an effective story-starter this can be.

•  Pick an object. You want it to be personal, like an antique pocket watch, a locket, a cuff link, a ring made of twisted copper wire, a ribbon, a much-folded drawing, an intricately bound journal, a torn-out page of a book in another language, or a key.
• Pick a detail to be attached to that object, like an inscribed date, a word, an address, a picture, some blood, a lock of hair, a map, a strange perfume, or a tooth.
• Pick a location to find that object, like a storm drain, the sidewalk, a hollow tree, a cereal box, an abandoned hospital, a tree house, the glove compartment of a rental car, a secret panel in your mother’s make-up kit, under the floorboards, or in a book.

Now tell a story about that object with that detail in that location. Who finds the object? How did it get there? What does the detail mean?

4. Art Books Are a Writer’s Best Friend

They say a picture is worth a thousand words . . . Books of pictures, then, must hold thousands of stories. Flip through the pages of a fantastic art book, or through galleries online, and see what inspires you. Some of my favorite art books are:

• The award-winning, annual international collection of the best fantastic art out there, every page ofSpectrum is inspiring.
• Brian Froud’s faerie and goblin art was the inspiration behind Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal.
• Award-winning H.R. Giger is probably best known for his work on Alien, but there’s a lot more disturbing, beautiful art where that came from . . .

5. What Do You Hear In These Sounds?

Songwriters have far fewer lines in which to tell their stories, which often results in lines that hold whole worlds in just a few words. Try taking a line from a song, and telling a story based around that single line. Here are some good examples:

• "I’m sorry if I left the angels crying over me"--Selena Gomez
• "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls"--Paul Simon
• "I saw my daddy cry and curse at the wind. He broke his own heart and I watched as he tried to reassemble it."--Paramore 
• "Because you're mine, I walk the line."--Johnny Cash
• " 'There must be some kind of way out of here,' Said the joker to the thief"--Bob Dylan

Another useful music technique is listening to a soundtrack, and telling the story you hear in the music. Some of my favorites for this are Pan’s Labyrinth, House of Flying Daggers, Spirited Away, and The Lord of the Rings.

Come up with any interesting ideas? Take some time, flesh it out a bit. Then, next week, come back for some tips on writing a quick and dirty outline. Happy writing!

* * *

Read more Writers Don't Cry
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Omnivoracious: NaNoWriMoSpecial

National Novel Writing Month!

"Not knowing where to begin is a common form of paralysis. Begin anywhere." ~Bruce Mau

November 1st is here, and you know what that means! The first day of NaNoWriMo and I couldn't be more excited about it. The idea is to finish writing a full length novel from start to finish in 30 days. People do it every year so it's proven possible. Just last year my sister completed her first novel ever and now she's shopping it to literary agents. This year I, too, shall join their ranks. I don't have a title or a plot for my novel yet but I have a willingness to attempt this and see it through. Wish me luck!


http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/participants/karisabee

October Push

So it's suddenly the middle of October and I have so much to get done. First, I have classes, particularly my history class to deal with. Lots of reading for that one. Right now I'm looking for online journal sources (Mainly Jstor) as well as some primary sources. Ugh! Loads of work. Second I am reading several books simultaneously as usual. I'm getting through them slower than usual due to all the research for history class as well as, let's be honest, the new TV season. Yes there are quite a few shows I can't leave alone this fall, so it does hurt the reading roll I've been on all summer. Thirdly, NaNoWriMo is almost HERE!! One November 1st. I have GOT to get organized because this year...I want to win! For real. Yes. Win. Okay wish me luck and I'll keep in touch. By the way, that book I read about the Burgermeister's Daughter? Yeah, it was pretty academic. I mean, it was fine but could have been way more entertaining.
Ciao

Review: The Burgermeister's Daughter: Scandal in a Sixteenth-Century German Town

The Burgermeister's Daughter: Scandal in a Sixteenth-Century German Town by Steven E. Ozment

My rating: 0 of 5 stars



I have to read this book in 3 days, preferably in 2 days as the I have to write a book review on it for my renaissance focused, history class. I'll update you on here as well, once I have finished it.



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Ingenue

     For those of you who pay attention, you may remember me swooning over the YA novel Vixen, by Jillian Larkin. Well I'm ready to get out my long pearls and cigarette holder once more because Ingenue, which is the follow-up to Vixen is now available everywhere books are sold as well as at your local libraries.
     I really can't wait to dive back into the 1920's again and see what trouble these little chick-a-dee's are going to find this time around. Gloria was in the hottest mess around at the end of Vixen so I'm excited. I'll let you know if Ingenue turns out as good as the first book in The Flappers series. Happy Reading!
   

Screnzy Revisited

Hello all! September has just arrived and with it lots of scholastic academia. To keep myself from becoming overwhelmed by assignments assigned, I pulled out my trusty unfinished screenplay from April's Script Frenzy and have been reviewing it. I am shocked  and delighted to report it was better than I remembered. I don't even know where all those words came from! I am furthermore encouraged to revisit the idea of this script and complete it. For my own reading pleasure if for no other reason. Sometimes you just have to get the creativity...the art...out. Stay creative!
~k

I just noticed...

It's funny how much easier it is to write about things you don't like than it is to write about things you do like ...or LOVE even. I was just comparing my last 2 book reviews. I am stingy with the stars though. most of mine fall between 2 & 4 stars **** ha ha!

Review: Delirium

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



This book started off promising because I really enjoy the dystopia that Lauren Oliver has created, but it was only okay. The idea that love is an illness that humans have created a vaccine or cure for was pretty original and interesting. All of the chapter intros are well ingrained in the fantasy future and the Book of SHHH is a very cool idea. Oliver is also a very good writer with a gift for unexpected imagery. Some of the descriptive passages are breathtaking. Most of the story's problems lie with the book's female protagonist. Our heroine Lena Holloway is very typical and run of the mill, and boring...I understand using relatable characters, but this girl felt like a stock character of "teen girl"...a composite of all of the other dystopian teen heroines that are now crowding the YA market.

She's a good girl (of course) very obedient who follows all the rules, she doesn't think she's pretty, she has one or more missing parents, she likes a forbidden boy (in this book Alex Sheathes)who changes everything she believes about the world, she can't control her feelings, she's scared, she's clumsy, she needs to be rescued...She's one big fat huge cliche of a character. And after having her hand basically held throughout the entire story and after said boy tells her his perspective and shows her his world, after she's ready to throw away EVERYTHING she knows to adapt HIS viewpoints, wholeheartedly and unquestioningly, then SHE feels EMPOWERED and STRONG, and I have no idea why.

Essentially she trades one set of ideas for another, and never seems to come to any of them herself. I feel like this novel just underscores the idea that a normal girl is living in a fog of obedience until some hot young guy comes along and shows her a new way to think. This character had no real growth and her passions were very PG rated for a nearly 18 year old girl. Even if she was choosing to move slowly with her newfound passions, I think she would struggle with them a bit more.

All the supporting characters were there like an afterthought, except her best friend Hana Tate who I would have preferred as the main protagonist. Please write a story about the pretty confident girl who may or may not be quite as brave...or just didn't meet her eye-opening prince yet, who actively seeks to think for herself, even if she's not sure if she's ready to act on it or not. Tacking on the concept of sacrifice as the ultimate expression of love is not enough to save this. Plus there are some dangling loose ends which are not wrapped up, nor are they sufficiently enticing to warrant a sequel.

Anyway...if you love Dystopia and are interested in well-developed female protagonists, check out Divergent by Veronica Roth or Matched by Ally Condie...and of course The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins. Delirium has lots of potential but is ultimately unsatisfying.



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Review: Vixen

Vixen by Jillian Larkin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This was definitely one of my favorite YA books, from the stacks I've been reading all year. It's set in 1920s Chicago, which (with bootleggers, flappers, mobsters & jazz) is always a fascinating era, and follows the hijinks  and passionate exploits of 3 very different, yet interconnected, young women. It's full of glamour and danger and tough decisions between love and duty, and finding a way to be true to yourself and survive. I really appreciate all the attention to detail that author Jillian Larkin put into the story, from using authentic slang of the era, to the exquisite fashion descriptions and popular culture references. There must have been hours and hours of really fun research. I can hardly wait until August for the next book in the planned series.



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I wrote this while a storm was raging outside, keeping me wired at 3am...

IIt was a dark and stormy night... the rain splashed down in torrents over the girl as she struggled to make her way through the dark alley, side stepping a sleeping man obscured by the piece of cardboard he had covered himself with. She was feeling reckless, dangerous even. The kind of feeling you can only summon in the dead of night when nobody's watching. The storm was getting worse but she couldn't turn back now. No, now she was consumed by her desire to know, she had to see where he was going..


~Karisa Brocker February 24, 2011

Music Is My Home

I blink, trying to adjust my eyes to the growing dim
navigating my way through the sea of white headlights and red taillights
I'm in my cocoon
the sky is deep indigo
and the music swells, taking me with it
"the sex she slipped into my coffee/the way she felt when she first saw me/hate to love and love to hate her/ like a broken record player/back and forth and here and gone/and on and on and on and ON!"
my God, gives me chills
the sweeping emotion burns my eyes
time stops and I cease to exist
only the drums, and the bass...the raw vocals
my sanctuary
pulling in, between the white lines
my front door's in front of me
but I'm already home.

-Jan 28, 2006 KB

Summer Love

 

the brightest star is
my greatest friend
her presence lifts my
mood and spirit
driving darkness and
dreary gloom far away

the brightest star is my
favorite love
his presence dries the
rain and tears
inviting pastimes and
driving open roads

oh greatest friend, oh favorite love
why do you turn on and
burn me now?
my strength melts from my
body with sweat
and my days are
wasted.