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Thursday, May 30, 2013

Bloglovin’ and Other Alternatives to Following Me

So you’ve probably all seen the rumors running rampant about Google Friends Connect, that lovely little thing that allows us to easily follow each other’s blogs, being taken away July 1st (I think that’s the right date). Originally they were saying they were only taking it away from non-blogger blogs, those of us using Blogspot would still have it, but now I’ve seen multiple things claiming it’s being taken away from blogger as well in order to promote Google+ instead.

Now I’m one of those people when I hear these rumors go, “Psh, whatever, it’s probably all nonsense,” and go on with my life. But I do enjoy blogging and all my blogger buddies and just in case there is that teeny chance the rumors are true, I decided there really would be no harm in taking some precautions. Couldn’t hurt anyway. I personally have no desire to get a G+ account, just personal preference, so…

Follow on Bloglovin

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

For some reason it forced me to put that link on my post. *shrugs*

Anyways, you can follow me through there. It actually seems to be a pretty sleek site and a nice alternative if GFC really does decide to disappear (which I’m still very suspicious about). Also, if you’re a Linky Follower user I have one of those on my sidebar as well. I’m not too crazy about that site myself though. And of course you can simply subscribe here through email. It’s all there on my sidebar.

Again, I’m not really worried bout GFC disappearing. But, in case I’m wrong (because I do tend to be wrong quite often in life ;P), I thought I’d take some precautions.

Blessings to every single one of you!

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Beautiful People - Arodathan

Lately I’ve been working a great deal on a story entitled The Avriot which is the first book in a steampunk, time travel trilogy called The Traveling Library. It’s farrrr different from anything I’ve ever written (high fantasy is my usual genre), but I’m having an absolute blast with it!

I’ve kind of fallen in love with all my characters, but the problem is there are literally 8 main characters plus Moseley. The problem here is the fact that with so many people all together, it’s hard to focus on just a single one, so I’m sometimes having a difficult time discovering each of these characters personally. I think I’ve got most of them down pretty well, but there’s one I’m having a bit of a time with.

Arodathan Clickton, more commonly referred to as Arrow.

Before I even started the story. I thought I knew Arrow pretty well, but while writing I’m learning there’s far more to him than I ever knew. I’m loving discovering his personality, he’s quickly worming his way into my heart, but, again, with so many other characters it’s making it hard. Thus I thought: Why not do a Beautiful People for him? It’s been so long since I’ve done one and it really is a brilliant way to discover one’s characters. So I dug through the archive and found one that I thought would help me the best to delve into his characters.

So without further ado…

Arodathan
Arodathan “Arrow” Clickton

What kind of music does he like?
Arrow lives in an 18th century-ish setting, so the music there would be similar to what we had during that time period. I suspect he likes lighthearted, peppy-type music. Something fun with a good beat.

Does he like to go outside?
Most definitely! Arrow is far from one to sit around the house all day. He likes to explore and find excitement. Happy Arodathan

Is he naturally curious?
YES. He is probably the most curious one of the entire group. Everything fascinates him and he has this deep enthusiasm for learning. He wants to know everything.

Right, or left handed?
Well, I was first going to say right handed since that’s the norm, but, you know what? I could totally see Arrow being left handed. It almost makes sense. So I think I’m officially declaring him left handed. Thank you, Beautiful People! I knew this would help.

Favorite color?
Green I would think. And probably bright colors, like red, orange, and yellow. 
                                                                     
Where is he from?

Ahahahaha. Now that is a question. Ahem. Technically he lives in his and his sister’s clockwork shop in a little town known as Kervais but…well, let’s just say this story is very wibbly wobbly timey wimey.

Any enemies?
Perky, fun, enthusiastic Arodathan? He’s quick to make friends, not enemies. Unless someone messes with his sister, or really any of his friends (he’s very protective). And then of course there’s the antagonist of the story, but that’s also rather complicated.

What are his quirks?
Arrow is just pretty silly in general. I’d say he’s the jester of the group. He likes to tease everyone and make light of things. He tends to be only able to focus on one thing at a time, getting so absorbed into whatever it is he’s doing he’s oblivious to everything else around him. As far as specific personality quirks…I don’t know. I’m glad I got this question though, because now it has my mind churning. I won’t be surprised if he reveals many ridiculous quirks he has to me soon.

What kinds of things get on his nerves?
In general, he’s a pretty laid back fella, it takes a lot to ruffle his feathers. He does snap pretty quickly when someone is bothering his sister though. He’s also not very fond of dull people. Being such an enthusiastic person himself, it kind of annoys him when someone doesn’t really appreciate the beautiful things of life. He cannot understand personalities like that.

Is he independent, or needs others to help out?
Arodathan is very much a people person and will not push away a helping hand, but he’s also extremely self sufficient. It’s just been him and his younger sister for a while, thus he’s had to take charge and stepped into the position well. I think he enjoys being a leader and capable of doing things himself.

So that’s Arrow. I still think there’s way more to him than what first meets the eye, but I have no doubt his personality will reveal itself fully over time. This sure helped me get a better inside look at him though! Beautiful People is marvelous.

Happy Thursday, everyone. I hope you all have a simply fantastic Memorial Day weekend!

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Beautiful

You know what?

Life is beautiful.

Summer days are beautiful.

Flower Field

Quiet moments are beautiful.

Reading

Loud moments are beautiful.

Children Playing

Are not even rainy days beautiful?

Rain

We get so caught up in life, sometimes it slips our mind how beautiful it can be. We forget that every bloom, every ray of light, every drop of rain, was created by the Ultimate Creator.

Even if the rainbows of life seem few and far between, don’t forget that there would be no rainbows without the rain.

Rainbow

Don’t forget that even the worst of storms put us in the greatest of awe.

Storm

Don’t forget that the tiniest seed can become the largest bloom.

Purple Trees

I think sometimes we all just need to stop and remember that God’s world is beautiful.

So don’t forget…

Life is beautiful.

Dancing in the Rain

All pictures via Pinterest.

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Story Snippets

Due to a cold I’ve caught this week, I’m going to cheat a little bit and post some snippets from a few choice books of mine, because I don’t think anyone wants to have to read something I write while I have a cold…it’d be very incoherent, trust me. Then again, I don’t know if anyone wants to read anything I’ve written at any time… But I try to post once a week and I just hated to miss a week, cold or not, so snippets it is.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

More Blue than Sky
(Colors of a Dragon Scale Series)

More Blue than Sky Book Cover    Bryth stood up and made her way down the cave to the entrance. There she stopped and looked out at the rainy world. It was foggy out but clearly late morning. The sprinkles dripped merrily from the sky and atop the leaves, tapping down onto the ground as if in a dance with the woods.
    Bryth had never liked rain. She felt like it was pouring on her out of malice. She had always thought everything bad that happened to her was from spite, that everyone and everything in the world had a great distaste for her and tried to make life as miserable for her as it could. Living out in the woods and streets made rain even more dreadful. Yet hearing it now and its constant patters actually made her feel good. The cave was cozy and the morning felt pleasant somehow. The rain was helpful and cleansing, instead of cruel and spiteful like she had always seen it.
    Bryth felt Reshin's presence and soon the dragon was standing at the entrance next to her. "It is rather nice out there, isn't it?" she asked the dragon.
    She could feel Reshin's smile.
    "I never really take the time to enjoy simple things," Bryth sighed. "I am always so caught up in what my next meal will be, making sure I am not rusty on my fighting skills, trying to survive; it just never occurred to me that the world is actually sometimes a very lovely place."
    Reshin set her head against her rider's shoulder and hummed lightly.
    "I wish it could always be this way," Bryth went on. "Just quiet and peaceful; no one around to bother us, no one to take away our joy. Just this." She looked out for a moment more before turning back around, not wanting to look at the rain anymore. "But the world is nothing like this," she murmured. "Beyond this quiet spot, children are starving on the streets like I once was, evil men are running around doing harm, people are dying and being tortured, and war is spreading. No matter how it seems, nothing is really peaceful."
    Reshin brought up her head and studied her rider for a long while. Finally, she shook her head at what Bryth said. Bryth sensed what she was trying to tell her, though it puzzled the elf. You can always have peace if you just look in the right direction.

~~~

    "Perhaps we should have waited until morning," Eryth said as they drew closer, now feeling uneasy. "From our time here, I have noticed that even at night the region is still quite alive. I am not sure anyone ever sleeps."
   
"They like the darkness," Bryth said, as if it was a common knowledge.
   
"Like the darkness? Who?" Eryth found this most unnerving.
   
"The thieves, rogues, bandits, all of them. Darkness covers them with protection from their wrong doings. The sun just beams down as if to expose them."
   
Eryth did not like Bryth's tone; she spoke as if she knew this from personal experience. She wrapped her cloak around her even though the air was warm. "Do you like the darkness, Bryth?" she then questioned quietly.
   
Bryth just walked through the flat fields, staring straight ahead. Eryth was wondering if she was ever going to answer. But finally she did. "I think I am trapped into liking it," she sighed, still looking forward. "It's somewhat..." she hesitated for a moment, "consuming."
   
Eryth just looked at the white-haired elf with no words to say. She was unsure if they were still talking of night and day, or something else. Eventually, she looked on silently as well, unable to respond.

~~~

More Pink than Sunsets
(Colors of a Dragon Scale Series)

More Pink than Sunsets Book Cover    "So that is how it is, then. First you suggest dressing like beggars than you blame me for everything. You're as foolish as a goblin, Nyria."
   
"At least goblins have much more sense than you!"
   
"Maybe the brain capacity of a boulder is more what you possess."
   
"Boulders do not even have brains."
   
"Exactly."

~~~

    "And look at the bright side," Naidren said, "we do have two beds."
   
"That is a relief, I don't want you snoring in my ear while I'm trying to sleep."
   
"Me? Snore? I should say not."
   
"And I would say yes. It has been hard enough sleeping on the ground, but next to you...well...it is like trying to fall asleep next to a hog."
   
Naidren darted for the nearest bed, whipped up the pillow, and hurled it at Nyria. "I am not a hog."
   
"You're right," Nyria said, a mischievous twinkle gleaming in her eye. She reached down and picked up the pillow. "You sound much more like a toad," she teased, rushing up to her brother and pounding the pillow into him.
   
Naidren snatched it from her and whacked her on the head. "I've never been much for hopping," he said, keeping his face perfectly serious.
   
"No, but sometimes your cheeks puff out like theirs when you're angry."
   
This got Nyria another blow from the pillow right in the face, muffling her giggles.

~~~

    "You do not have these long curls brushing against your shoulders all the time." This time more feeling showed up in her voice. "Sometimes they do tickle."
   
"That's just because you're the most ticklish person in all of Aerigethel," Naidren spoke up, trying to keep to his teasing tone he was so accustomed to using on her, despite how hard it was to make light of things. "I think you are the only person who has trouble with their hair tickling them."
   
Nyria turned to him. He had never been more happy to see her scowl in all his life. "You try having long curls and then tell me what you think about it."
   
Naidren chuckled with a shake of his head. "I'd rather not, thank you."
   
"I don't know, Naidren, long curls might suit you." Airen leaned back, giving Naidren a smirk.
   
"A black eye might suit you but that does not mean I'm going to give you one."
   
That did the trick. A small giggle slipped from Nyria's lips.
   
Naidren and Airen shared quick, knowing nods.
   
"A black eye, eh?" Airen continued. "That's going to be hard being as how I'm taller than you."
   
"Maybe two. So they'll match. I think you'll look quite lovely that way, Airen." Naidren took a side-eyed glance at Nyria to make sure she was still smiling. She was.
   
"Are you going to stand on a crate to reach?"
   
"You would look even better with a crooked nose. It certainly needs improving anyway. My fist does wonders."
   
Airen let out a dramatic mock gasp. "My nose is the epitome of perfection."
   
"Then perfection could use some work."

~~~

More Purple than Amethysts
(Colors of a Dragon Scale Series)

    "I don't understand."More Purple than Amethysts Book Cover
   
Riana's voice pulled Eldoren out of his thoughts and he just now realized they had stopped. Riana was surveying the area in a bit of a frantic.
   
He sighed and propped an arm against a tree. "What's the problem now?" he groaned impatiently.
   
Riana crouched down and rubbed a hand through the dirt, her brow furrowed in confusion. "There's no trail. I can't find their trail anywhere!"
   
Eldoren's eyes went up to the sky as he shook his head. "For goodness' sake, Riana, they're dark elves. Their greatest ability is stealth. They know how to cover their tracks. Barely anyone can trace down a dark elf."
   
"I can," Riana murmured, still studying the ground.
   
Eldoren rubbed a hand across his eyes, taking a deep breath before speaking again. Was there no end to this girl's arrogance? "What do you know about tracking?"
   
Standing up, Riana brushed her hands clean and gave him a pointed glare. "More than you, obviously." She then pivoted around and marched on.
   
Eldoren had to hold back his scream of rage and instead slammed his fist against the tree before continuing on.

~~~

    "I wonder what started the fire," he mused out loud to his dragon as they trekked across the green countryside. He suddenly grinned mischievously. "Were you snoring out flames in your sleep, ol' boy?" he teased.
   
Irevik held up his head and snorted haughtily. He would never do such a thing.
   
"Oh, I beg to differ. I've heard your snoring. It's pretty powerful."

~~~

Secrets of Camelot
(Legends, Thieves, & Dragons Series)

    “I usually can hit my target, though you probably do not believe that." Lisseria blushed and gestured to the hole in the tree trunk where her arrow formerly protruded. "Of course I didn't mean to almost hit you. Though I did...just when I thought you were a deer. Of course I did not mean to when I realized you were a human. But don't get me wrong, you do not look like a deer, it is just..."
   
Lucan laughed, halting her agitated ramblings. "It is all right. You need not fret. I know you did not mean to kill me."
   
She calmed and looked amused. "No, of course not. Then we would be out a second messenger," she teased.
   
Her quick change in moods was humorous to Lucan.Robin Hood

~~~

    Not far away from where they had stood, sat the thieves' camp in the forest clearing. Lanterns sitting here in there and a roaring fire in the middle penetrated the darkness, giving a cozy setting to the camp. But what Lisseria saw was not what she was accustomed to. The normal homey setting had been torn apart, leaving a disarray of odds and ends. A few tents still stood, but tears cut into their surface. Things were scattered about in odd places, and everything was in an absolute mess.
    Lisseria just stood there wide-eyed for a moment. "I knew you need straightening out, but I did not know this much," she finally said. "What on earth happened here?"
   
Donovan shuffled in front of her and picked up a long stick, giving it a few swings before pointing it at Will. "Well, you know. Will and I were having a bit of a fall out, then Percival had to jump in. Little John tried to stop us but Tuck starting throwing things angrily everywhere, you know how he gets. Of course, Allin was just sitting on his rock playing a melody while it all went on. I am not sure he knew what was happening. I did catch him throwing a pebble in Will's direction at one point though."
   
Lisseria could see the sheer mischievous sparkle gleaming in her brother's eyes even in the dim lighting.
   
"Donovan Hoodereth," Tuck scolded, shaking his finger again, "you better throw out that ridiculous story of yours and tell the truth or I will start throwing things angrily."

~~~

The Avriot
(The Traveling Library Trilogy)

The Avriot Book Cover    Old though Mortimer may be, he did not have too many wrinkles, save for across his forehead from all that frowning. Ethryl many a time told him he should try smiling more often. His response was always that one cannot smile and think at the same time, and it was his job to think.
   
He was frowning even now as Ethryl barged into the room and took in the scene. "You're late for tea, Ethryl," he scolded. "You're always late for tea. One should never be late for tea, you know. How many times have I tried to pound this into that thick skull of yours?"
   
Ethryl just smiled at him. "Sorry, Timer. I was a bit delayed."
   
He just took another sip and nodded. "The fault of these discourteous pirates no doubt. Do you know what time it is? Twenty-three minutes past tea time!" he exclaimed, as if it was the greatest of tragedies. "And I've only now gotten my cuppa. One should not have to plead for their tea." His bushy eyebrows lowered further as he glared over in front of him at a specific pirate standing just in front of the desk.

~~~

    Lae-Marie could not understand why she was the only one alarmed by the fact that there was an enormous library in a place it shouldn't be. "But I looked out the window, I know this street," she blurted out. "It doesn't make any sense."
   
"Life never does," said the elderly man with a wag of his head. "Life does not take common sense into account."
   
Lae-Marie did not think any of these people took common sense into account.

~~~

    All eyes were very quickly turned to Lae-Marie who still lay on the floor, but now something green and small sat atop her chest, looking most vibrant against the white of her dress. The girl let out another horrified screech as she held up her head and stared face to face at the thing, its long snout only inches away from her nose.
   
"Moseley!" Faerwen screamed in delight.
   
"Help!" Lae-Marie also screamed, but definitely not in delight. "Get it off me! Help!"
   
Smiling, Ethryl reached down and picked the mischievous creature up, holding him firmly in her arms. In his place, right under Lae-Marie's neck, was what appeared to be a pastry of some kind—small, round, and sugary.
   
"Hey! Those are mine!" Nhimvaria scolded. "That atrocious beast has been raiding the food storage in my ship!"
   
Arrow burst into laughter. "If only we had known you had food with you. The only thing Moseley likes better than exploring is eating. There was no need to worry about him running off with food around."
   
Nhimi did not seem very amused in the least.
   
"He was being generous though," Faerwen said, an amused twinkle in her own eyes. "He brought Lamie some food. He must have been worried about her when she fainted and thought something to eat would help."
   
"Just like Mo, thinking food fixes everything," Arodathan snorted.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

All right, the torture is over, I promise. If you read all that then…goodness! go read some real literature to make up for it, you poor soul! But really thank you so much for reading!!

Happy almost the weekend, everyone! May it be an adventurous one! (In a good way.)

Thursday, May 2, 2013

This Post Involves Lots of Books

You know what makes me happy?

BOOOOKS!!!

Just a couple of days ago I finished reading By Darkness Hid, by Jill Williamson.

Me holding By Darkness Hid through the mirror

Can I just say: Loooooove! I’ve been wanting to read this one for a good while now. It was so GOOD! I had already ordered the next one, To Darkness Fled, before I had even finished the first one, and now I greatly anticipate it arriving.

To Darkness Fled Cover

But, fortunately, while I wait I have some other reads to pass the time.

Books

In addition to acquiring By Darkness Hid and ordering To Darkness Fled, I also recently visited a local secondhand bookstore and…well…I don’t really have any self control when I can get a book for just a dollar or two. I probably would have gotten more, too, if I had more time there, but, alas, I was not able to stay too long. But I’m sure I’ll go there plenty times more! Entering a store with rows upon rows of books all for dirt cheap is like entering Heaven for me. Except in Heaven they’d all be free. *winks*

More Books

I honestly don’t even know what half of the books I bought are, but when they’re so cheap, who cares?! It’s no great loss if they’re not good. Some, though, I was quite happy to obtain.

The Enchanted Forest Chonicles

Dealing With Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede is something I’ve very much been wanting to read, completely oblivious that it’s the first of an entire series. Me being the fairytale/fantasy lover I am, I saw this nice hardback book and instantly ripped it off the shelf to see what it held inside. It was a very nice surprise.

Dealing With Dragons

Oh. A book with Dealing With Dragons plus all the rest of the series that I didn’t know was a series? Yes please!

I also found another treasure.

The Silmarillion

I am so very ashamed to admit that I have not actually ever read The Silmarillion. Yes…I know…it’s horrible. *hangs head in utter shame* As you probably all know, Tolkien is my hero and The Silmarillion is a must read for all Tolkien fanatics. I have been meaning to read it for years upon years, but I just never had a copy to actually read. So upon finding it for just $1 or something like that there was no possible way I was going to leave that store without it. I’m so happy to actually own a copy of it! Now, I would like to someday get a really nice copy of it. This is a secondhand bookstore after all, so most of the books are very much used. I like my books in mint condition; but, hey, when you’re getting them for dirt cheap, how can you complain about the condition?

The Lays of Beleriand and The Silmarillion

Couldn’t pass up on Tolkien goodness!

Merlin and Taliesin

You should probably know that I am a total Arthurian Legend nut. I get completely nerdy when it comes to King Arthur and Merlin and the Knights of the Round Table and Excalibur and Lancelot and Guinevere and all that wonderfulness!

I have not read much of Stephen R. Lawhead’s works, but what I have I’ve thoroughly enjoyed. It was a good while back that I was in a bookstore and saw a book entitled Taliesin by said author that was apparently the first book of a series called The Pendragon Cycle. Upon realizing Stephen R. Lawhead had an Arthurian Legend series, I was very quick to buy Taliesin. I found it a fascinating read and hoped to someday continue the series, but…I never did. Mainly due to me being broke. Heh. And also I always had other books I wanted to get more. The Pendragon Cycle just kept getting pushed back. But then, there on the bookshelf in the secondhand bookstore, was Merlin, the second book of the series. Yay! My only hesitation in buying it was that I really hate having a series when the books don’t match. And these two books don’t even look like they’re from the same series! But I knew I’d probably never get around to actually buying the right edition for who-knows how much. This copy was cheap. So bought it I did. (Maybe someday I’ll get it all in a matching set…)

Various Arthurian Legend Fiction

I couldn’t help but snag up some more Arthurian Legend fiction while I was there as well. I don’t really know anything about these other titles, so we’ll see.

Just a few weeks ago I finished reading This Present Darkness by Frank E. Peretti, something I probably should have read a long time ago… It really was such a powerful story! I had no idea it had a sequel until after I had finished it. I was very excited to find said sequel on one of the bookshelves just waiting for me to purchase it.

Piercing the Darkness

You’ve probably already guessed I’m really a kid at heart. Being such, I still enjoy books for those dear younger people.

The Moffats

I feel as though this book, The Moffats by Eleanor Estes, has been following me around. It seems like every time I go into a bookstore it catches my eye for some reason. One time I really even almost just bought it because of that. I have no idea what it even is, but it looked like such a fun story. I’m pretty sure it is for young readers, but from what I can see it has a humorous, nonsensical storyline which is my absolute favorite thing! I love ridiculous stories! That probably says something about me… Ahem. Anyways, I was just about to leave the bookstore when I saw this on a bottom shelf. I was delighted, because I declare this curious little book has been haunting me. I did not question taking it home. Even if I don’t like it, it has an adorable cover. A nice addition to my bookshelf.

I have many things to add to my bookshelf, whether I like them or not. I’m as much a book collector as I am a book reader. …Okay, I might be way more of a reader, but I sure enjoy collecting them, too! It’s a shame I don’t actually have anymore room on my bookshelf for these new additions…

Even More Books

Ah well, room for them or not, I’m a very happy elf!

Happy Lauri Reading