Top 5 books I read in 2016

Hello fellow readers. I will not make my Goodreads goal this year of 75 books. And I'm considering lowering the goal for next year as there are some projects I'd like to take on instead of keeping it at the 75 book mark. But here are the top 5 books I read this year.

 5. 

The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson was a fantastic book. I loved the magic system in this book, and the idea of each metal having different properties and magical aspects. I'd have gotten to the next book already if I could catch it at my library. I've been trying to keep myself from buying more books since I have more books than I realized. 

4. 

Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull made a surprising appearance on this list. This is a non-fiction book about the start up of Pixar. Even today I'm still thinking back on the book. The most memorable part was a lesson of how Pixar took up a mentality of not going after the problem causer and just wanted to find a way to fix the problem. The example was with one of the Toy Story movies, I think it may have been the second movie. They didn't use Windows or some other operating system where they could go find the actual folder they were looking for, they had to know the path. And there was a path that would delete everything from the servers. Someone accidentally typed in this code one night while Ed was looking at something. He saw what was happening and called the guy in the server room to immediately unplug everything. Even with the fast reaction, many days...weeks even of work had been lost. Thankfully, an employee working from home had most of the files saved on her computer at home and saved the movie.

3. 

Born of Legend by Sherrilyn Kenyon...any book from this series is an automatic buy for me. This latest has to be my new favorite though. Sherrilyn took a character we had been taught to hate with all our soul, then turned him into a hero. I loved the many twists in the book and don't know that I could count them all if I tried.

2. 

A Court of Mist and Fury (ACOMAF) by Sarah J Maas...this book left me speechless. I listened to the audible audiobook and didn't want to hit pause. Working full-time made it difficult not to hit pause; but if I could help it, I didn't. Like most who picked up this book, I am over here on bated breath waiting for the third and final book of the trilogy.

Before I get into the top book, I'd like to mention a few honorable mentions. The Death Note manga series by Tsugui Oba. It took me a while to finish, but I did make it through all 6 books this year and loved all of them overall. Each book received either 4 or 5 stars. Brotherhood in Death by J D Robb was another interesting mystery our favorite tell it like it is Lt. Eve Dallas had to solve. The Shadow Throne by Jennifer A Nielson, was the final book in the Ascendance trilogy. This trilogy overall I think doesn't get enough attention, and it was close, but the other books just edged it out of the top 5.

1. 

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff I think surprised everyone. This book in hardcover not only looked intriguing, but seeing that the book was told in CIA file type format was even more so. I don't know of any other book that does that. I listened to the audiobook file, and could not concentrate even the slightest on anything else. I tried, but the book was too engrossing to do anything else. Before you realized, you'd be there with the characters fighting the ship's computer to keep everyone alive. This book by far, is my top book read in 2016. The only thing more amazing is that I haven't started listening to Gemina, the second book of the series, yet even though it is in my Audible library.

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NaNaWriMo Wrap Up

Once again, I've failed at NaNoWriMo. Not for lack of trying. I'm starting to think the word count is what is working against me. Working a full-time job and writing 50,000 words while still having time for friends, family, and the unexpected is next to impossible. This is especially true because I don't want to just write whatever on the page.

I want it to make sense, and yes I do delete. If I write a scene and then change something later which affects that scene, I'll go back and rewrite it so everything flows and makes sense. This makes hitting the 50,000 near impossible since I keep actively trying to improve the story. It just doesn't work for me to write through, and not change as I go then wait to finish and go back.

It does help to have some kind of goal though. As soon as I knew I wasn't going to come close to 50,000 words, I lost almost all motivation to write. Of course this didn't however stop my brain from playing through some of the scenes I was trying to write out.

I also had issues finding time to write each day. Sometimes work would just require too much time, and I'd come home eat, and go straight to bed because I was so exhausted. A goal for time each day would not work either; so I'm pondering time for each week. I just haven't decided on a time to give to writing each week.

2017 will definitely have some different goals, but I have become more aware these last few months of what I want. What I want to be doing. Stay tuned :-) .

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook. Or email me at sarah_telling@outlook.com.

In Loving Memory, Lucky

On Friday, October 28, 2016, we had to say good-bye to our girl Lucky. We were blessed to have been able to share almost 15 years with her.

I still remember the day my father-in-law brought her home all those years ago. Possibly even more than that, I remember her love of one of their house plants, and at least once, tipped it over. I enjoyed visiting and spending time with her; even taking her to a local ice cream shop and getting a doggy dish of ice cream.

It was because of her, and her puppies, my husband and I had started looking for a Golden Retriever to adopt. Then things happened and we happily accepted her into our home as our own. Since then she has been many things. A friend when I had a bad day. A buddy to keep me company while reading, writing, or relaxing and watching some television together. A playmate in a game of tug of war - yes even at the age of 14. She was a living example of the saying "you're only as old as you feel."

More than any of these, she was a daughter to us. I will miss our family vacations, and outings on my parents boat. I will miss her smile, and playfulness. I will miss our walks, and our talks. Most of all, I miss being able to hug and cuddle with her, and burying my face in her fur.

It is a small comfort to know she is no longer in any pain. And I am grateful for the son she left with us. He is not her though, and no one will ever be able to replace her in our hearts.

Lucky, wherever you are, I hope you are happy, and running and jumping around to your hearts desire. May you rest in peace.

Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon - Hour 0

Good morning! For the third or fourth time (lost track) I am participating in Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon. Here we go with the starting post.

1) I am reading from Michigan in the United States.
2) I am most looking forward to finishing the DeathNote V manga, as I will then only have one more volume to read to finish the series.
3) I don't have a particular snack I am most looking forward to. I'm somewhat of a mood eater. I eat what I feel like, but I do have a few snacks planned like some fresh apples that I know I'll enjoy at some point later.
4) I actually prefer tea over coffee, but the teas I mostly enjoy don't have a lot of caffeine content so I do tend to drink coffee in the morning to wake up. I will then likely switch to tea or soda.
5) I've participated in the readathon before, and am hoping to take more naps so I can read for most of the 24 hours and actually see the end, rather than sleep through it and see all the posts after.

Friday Reads October 21, 2016

Due to technical difficulties, this week's Friday Reads is coming to you as a blog post. Apologies to anyone looking forward to a vlog post.

This weekend is Dewey's 24-hour Readathon which you can still sign up for if you want. I will be a cheerleader again and will once again be attempting to stay up the whole 24 hours. Okay, realistically I know I will be taking a nap or two, and probably sleep for a few hours.

My books for this weekend are mostly the books I hope to read during Dewey's Readathon. Without further ado, let's see what I've (as of maybe a minute ago) set aside for me to read this weekend.

I have the audiobook of Shatter Me by Tehereh Mafi I checked out from my library via Hoopla Digital. Thanks to some adulting I had to do, and a 2.5 day long meeting - yes you heard me, I was locked in a room for 2 full work days and half of a third - I was unable to really get into this audiobook yet. I think I'm maybe 5 minutes in.

I also have DeathNote volume 5. I'm only about one-quarter in to the book. So I will have this to get through and help break up the reading time. It is also a fast read to help keep motivation high to keep reading.

Last, but not least, I chose a graphic novel. Since the readathon is only for 24 hours I wanted to choose something short. Although I'm still doubtful I will finish all 3 during the readathon, I'm hoping to finish all 3 this weekend. Wish me luck! And good luck to any joining me in Dewey's Readathon!

Friday Reads Oct 7 2016

This weekend is looking to be another busy one. You could say the office followed me home. Plus my husband and I both have dentist appointments tomorrow. Which is something I really need to do since I haven't been in...well, let's not go there.



Please let me know what you're planning to be reading this weekend.

You can find me on Twitter,
Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook. Or email me at sarah_telling@outlook.com.

Rapid Fire Book Tag

I recently filmed the Rapid Fire Book Tag. Not sure how "rapid fire" I would consider this, but, here it is. Hope you enjoy, and please feel free to let me know what some of your answers would be to the questions.

Friday Reads Sept 30 2016

If you are interested, you can sign up for Dewey's 24-hour readathon: http://www.24hourreadathon.com/ I've already signed up to be a cheerleader again. I had such a blast last time.

Friday Reads Sept 23, 2016

So this weekend I'm hoping to get a lot done, so I only have 2 audiobooks planned, with a third undecided if needed. I have a lot to get done for my office job, and some items I want to get done around the house.



Office work will include new procedures, updating procedures, and the dreaded annual courses. Speaking of those courses, does your office use the same videos and courses each year? Mine does; and it gets seriously boring. I almost don't need to watch the videos anymore, I have them pretty much memorized. But I'm not in our HR department, so, I get to continue with the same courses year, after year, after year, after year.....



Speaking of work, I only have a few minutes before my car pool will be here so I need to march off now to get my lunch together. Hope you all have a fun and productive weekend. :-)

Bull - My thoughts on the Pilot 'The Necklace'

I'm not sure what to think of this new show Michael Weatherly is starring in. The first episode titled 'The Necklace' just aired last night (Tuesday, September 20, 2016) on CBS.

Bull, or Dr. Bull, is a psychologist and works as a jury consultant. Just don't call it jury consulting in front of him. It's more, jury science. He reads body language like someone would read a book. In this episode, the defendant even at one point comments that he doesn't have to testify if he doesn't want to. Bull points out he's been testifying since he walked into the courtroom.

There's no car chases, no action. But one wouldn't expect those things in a show classified as a drama. There were no great one liners, nothing I'd bother quoting verbatim. However, there are some great insights into the court system and how it actually works; rather than how it was designed and is supposed to work.

The viewer, like the jury and those involved on Bull's team, we don't know if the defendant actually did the crime he is accused of committing. I do like, and I'm trying not to completely spoil things, the culprit is found. That's all I'm saying, you'll have to watch the episode to find out what I'm talking about.

I will be tuning in next week for episode 2. I'm still trying to figure out where I sit with this series - is it something I'll tune in weekly? or will I let others watch and I'll just go on reading?

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

Review Ignited by Laurie Wetzel

I realize you usually start at the beginning, but I got to talk about the end. Talk about a cliff hanger!! I turned the last page and went, "wait, where's the rest of the story. I gotta know what happens!" There were more questions circling in my mind, but I don't want to give anything away.

I just finished Ignited by Laurie Wetzel, the second book in the Unclaimed series. The book is told from multiple perspectives. Usually this drives me nuts, and it still did a little, but change of view happens at the beginning of each chapter, and each chapter clearly tells you whose voice the story is being told from. It's still not necessarily easy for me to keep it straight in my head, but this book did better than others have.

The story follows Maddy, a teenager who was adopted, but has special abilities and a complicated life, that only gets more complicated. In a world like we live in today, Maddy struggles to keep her emotions under control. If she gets sad, it rains, depressed, it storms, and don't even think about getting her mad. Let's just say, you'll get burned, literally.

Her life is complicated by her angel protector, MJ, who she has feelings for. MJ complicates things because he's several hundred years old, and is a little out of touch from how relationships work in today's world. Such as, when the parents of your girlfriend take the two of you to dinner, it's not a double date. Oi.

Not only is MJ complicating things, but there are demons out to get her; and at least one wants her dead. To counter the demons after her, there are also both demons and angels who realize the significance of Maddy and her abilities and are working to protect her. Maddy is the rope in a bad tug of war, with emphasis on war. There is a great war brewing between the angels and demons, and Maddy seems to be the key. The demons and angels realize she's a great ally to have with her abilities...or will be once she learns to control them.

Maddy's life is put on the line every day. And the demon wanting to kill her is getting close. He's now able to suck her soul into his victims. The demon hunting her knows what she looks like and that she was adopted, and has a list of girls, born the same day as her. Maddy almost dies with the last victim because she was unable to separate her soul.

I gave Ignited 4 of 5 stars. I was stuck to my chair, and wanted nothing more than to quit work to go read and find out more of the troubles Maddy was facing and how she and MJ were going to get through. Ignited is the second book in the Unclaimed series by Laurie Wetzel, although you don't need to start with the first, it would probably help with some of the backstory for this book. I did not start with the first book, but hope to go back and read it soon, as well as the next book in the series. Alas, we will all have to wait for book 3 as it does not yet have a release date.

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley.com.

2016 Spring Goals Wrap up & Summer Goals

So, this I can see being a world of embarrassment for me.

1. Create a Website. FAIL I started doubting my plans for this, and wasn't sure about going the route I had looked at. I also didn't have much time for implementing - creating the art I wanted, picking names, and picking/designing a layout - I've been spending a lot of time on my office job.
2. Organize our Home Office. FAIL. I did start this, but like the website, things got in the way.
3. Publish 6 Book Review Vlogs. FAIL. If you've been following me on Goodreads, you may have seen I'm a bit behind on my reading challenge.
4. Outline my Story. DONE. Finally, something to dance about! Will the story be published...not likely. But it is something to let me experiment with what I would like to do.
5. File Taxes. DONE. 
6. Finish fixing our Bedroom. FAIL. So...when your husband sleeps in and you don't want to go to sleep in a room that smells of paint; it doesn't leave much time for painting. It's also been hot as heck, and not exactly conducive to opening a window to get the air flowing to help the paint dry.
7. Organize my Coupons. DONE. Shout out to my sister, Amy, who got bored one night and completed this for me. I'm happy to say, I've kept up the filing system.
8. Complete the online course for work. DONE. 
9. Post an average of one Vlog per week. FAIL. If you follow my YouTube channel, it's looked a lot like this blog. I've just been spending too much time working from home as well as the office.

This summer I only have a few goals, since my office job has been taking up so much of my time. I'd like to avoid the embarrassment of failing most of the goals I make for myself for once.

1. Fix the hallway wall. One of the things we did while improving our home, was we removed the house fan. I could always tell when it had been on, even if my husband turned it off an hour or so before coming home. The hole for the switch for the fan, is still there. 
2. Find 3 new writing opportunities. I'm not being challenged with what I do at the office; it just takes a lot of my time. I'd like to challenge myself, and get into something I'd enjoy, and wouldn't be bored doing.
3. Create a Website. I'm admittedly still figuring things out about myself, and where I'd like to end up, but I know it's important to have a website.
4. Upgrade my laptop. My current laptop is being hijacked by my husband from time to time, and we also share a desktop. The desktop is the only computer between the two that can edit videos. This makes it hard for me to plan out my day since I don't know which computer will be available. 
5. Find 3 new booktubers. I'd like to meet some more booktubers, and work schedule being taken into consideration, I think 3 is a reasonable number.
6. Find 5 book reviewers. This one may be a little harder with time constraints, but I do want to challenge myself.

So Spring was a fail, but hoping Summer won't be as bad.

You can follow me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

New Planner: the Bullet Journal

You probably saw the title and thought, "What? A new planner, but the year is already half over." You are correct. But I also don't believe in waiting to change something that isn't working. Right now one of those things not working for me, is my planner.

The closest I got to a planner that worked was a Franklin planner I had in middle school (grade 6) and got me through college; and it followed me for a while beyond. But, I was at the point where I wasn't busy enough to need daily pages anymore, and those things are expensive. So, I ditched it. Planners I've had since have never seemed to be as successful as my Franklin Planner once was. There was always something that didn't work well enough.

Well, I was scrolling through my twitter feed, and came across someone I thought I may want to follow, so I clicked and checked out some of their older tweets to see what they were about. One of those tweets was a link shared for a blog about a bullet journal. I was intrigued. "What is a bullet journal?" I followed the link (and followed this tweeter). The more I read, the more I thought, this could work for me. Or at least has the highest chance of success. So when I went to the store later for dog food...I picked up a few supplies.

I didn't have a small notebook that was still big enough to work, and I didn't want a regular sized notebook either. Knowing my grocery store also had a variety of inexpensive notebooks - under $1.00 - I decided to splurge and purchase a new notebook. I added some colored pens (can never have too many pens), and colored tape to decorate the cover, all was much to my husband's dismay.

What I think will work for me is the, as you go, functionality, and daily log. My head is seriously jumbled lately, and I think this will help organize the mess. I now have my bullet journal, ready for experimentation. Ready to see how to best set up each month, day, week, and just whatever comes to mind.

Special thanks to Kendra, The Lazy Genius for creating her own bullet journal and providing a how to for the rest of us. (Here's her post for how to create your own bullet journal.) And special thanks to Books and Baubles, @booksbaubles153, for tweeting the link for the rest of us.

Review Midnight Betrayal by Melinda Leigh

Midnight Betrayal by Melinda Leigh I gave a solid 3 stars out of 5. This is the third book in the Midnight series.

Dr. Louisa Hancock is a museum curator who left Maine and her past, for Philadelphia. Her past comes back to haunt her though when the body of an intern, who worked at the museum, turns up beaten and burned. And now another intern has gone missing. Louisa goes looking for the intern, tracing her last known steps. This brings Louisa to a love from her past, Conner Sullivan. He owns and runs the bar her missing intern was last seen in. Not only that, Conner was the last known contact the intern had. Conner becomes the primary suspect which makes Louisa's and Conner's movements difficult as they work to find the missing intern.

The story for me was more of a love story than a mystery, and moved slow for me. This was somewhat of a plus as it made it easier to stop listening when I was interrupted at work with questions.

Another thing, was the misdirect at the beginning. I wasn't engaged in the story yet, and figure I missed something when the reader is walked through the taking of one of the interns. I can't say much about this without spoiling the end; so all I'll say is listen or read carefully. The key to figuring who dunnit is likely hidden here.

I would recommend this book if you are into love and mystery. If I get the chance I would consider reading the other books of the series.

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Book Review: Salem's Vengeance

As panrt of the TBRTakedown Readathon, put on by Shanon from Leaning Lights, I read Salem's Vengeance by Aaron Galvin, the first of a trilogy. I did not want to put this book down.

I've always had a small interest in the Salem witch trials. This book is based loosely on what happened, and even takes it a step further. One of the victims of the Salem trials is now hunting down those who started the witch hunt that nearly killed everyone in the town.

The reader sees what happened in Salem through the eyes of one of the men who was talked into starting the hunt, via his journal provided to the main character. A young girl named Sarah, who loves to go out at night and dance with some of her friends. An innocent act, but the usual dancers are invaded by newcomers who want to show how it's done.

Sarah is wary of the newcomers. Something is off about them. She tries to get her friends to leave and return home, but they don't. This becomes the downfall of their town, and the moment Sarah's life will change forever.

Trying desperately to keep her late night wanderings secret from her parents, this fails after she is forced to tell of what happened in the woods. Now, her father turns out to be someone else. He moved to the town with her mother to get away from his past.

This story is full of suspense, and twists hiding around every corner. Not everyone remains standing in the end; to find out who survives, you'll have to read the book. I loved the writing, characters, and loved how I was hooked. This is exactly what I want from a book.

The twists kept coming. They weren't one right after the other, but came just fast enough that I wanted to know what was going to happen next.

And the suspense before the battles, I was hanging on for dear life. I literally stopped breathing a few times, or had a deep inhale of breath.

You don't have to be hooked or interested in the Salem witch trials to enjoy this book. Heck, you could absolutely hate history or know nothing about the Salem witch trials. If you want to be surprised, and have the air knocked out of you with the twists the story takes, you have got to read this book.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

You can follow me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and now Facebook.

Writing Scenes to Outline

It's funny. I have scenes running through my head all day. A trip to the store turns into a fight for life in my head. A walk around the office turns into a treasure hunt. Then I sit down to write them out and suddenly I can't seem to think of them.

I guess I feel writing them out feels so final, or like it has to be perfect the first time. I wonder where to start; funny, when they come to me they just start wherever and don't worry about what is right. It's only when I sit in front of the computer that I have an issue; wondering what others will think, or what one of my English professors would have said about starting here, or phrasing something there.

If I close my eyes though, so it's just me and the characters walking through the scene. Suddenly the scene comes to life on the screen. I don't judge it though since I can't see that it's being written. I live in the scene and forget that my hands are flying over the keys of my keyboard.

Having found this answer to Writer's Block, makes me think back to my childhood and dancing. I used to dance in competitions. If you look down, you can usually see the front row, which in a competition means you can see the judges talking into their microphones. The trick is to look out to the rest of the audience. The lights are so bright, it's just a black room beyond the lights. I made the mistake of looking down once. I totally messed up after doing so. When I looked down, one of the judges seemed to be looking right at me.

The step I was doing at the time was, and is, one of my favorite combinations. I do the combination to this day, walking down the hall. Yet when I saw the judge, my brain froze. Same as if I'm starring at the computer screen. I think about those who may read what I'm writing and the Writer's Block kicks in. I freeze under the pressure. So, now that I found the trick of writing with my eyes closed, I'm hoping to be successful in outlining the story in my head and figure out where it goes.

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon Hour 0

Good morning! It is once again time for Dewey's 24-hour readathon. I hope it is nice out where you are and you may be able to enjoy some ourdoor reading today. I likely will be, at least of the audiobook variety, while I take care of some weeding. Blah! Not fun, but it needs to be done.

I am joining in from Michigan, in the United States. We've been having a funky start to Spring, but it looks like things are finally straightening up and it should be a beautiful day outside.

I don't have a book in my stack that I am most looking forward to. This is kind of a problem as it is probably why I don't really have a TBR for this readathon, and am still, as I'm writing this at 7:57 am right now, am not sure what I'm going to start with. Do I go to something new? Or something I have already started? Choices, choices. I am currently leaning to something new; and that would be Death Note Volume 1.

Snacks...I have a variety of fruity candy, and fruit of the healthy variety - apples and oranges. Thanks to my husband going seriously overboard on a sale for pop/soda, I have plenty of that too. I am most looking forward to the, drumroll...fruity candy snacks.

Something about myself...hmm...I stayed up longer than I should have last night, but had a blast with family. I hold my family close and consider family important.

As for something I'm doing different this time from last time; he he, I already did this. I put the readathon on the calendar so my husband would know I was planning on reading for a readathon. This way if he invites people over again, I won't be expected to participate, or will be allowed to read while participating. Something else different, is I signed up to be a cheerleader this time. So you'll find me really active today on Twitter.

Well, I'm late to start now, I see the clock has rolled on to 8:05 am now. So time to wrap this up and I'll see you over on Twitter. Happy reading everyone!!

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

Spring Goals 2016

Here we go. I'd like to say new quarter, new goals, but since last quarter was such a failure, most of these are not new.

1. Create a Website.
2. Organize our Home Office. This, I have at least started.
3. Publish 6 Book Review Vlogs.
4. Outline my Story.
5. File Taxes. This is already complete!
6. Finish fixing our Bedroom. 
7. Organize my Coupons. 
8. Complete the online course for work. The course expires the end of June, so if I don't finish, I will fail the course.
9. Post an average of one Vlog per week. I may not be able to post each and every week, but I can hopefully keep up with an average of one a week. No, correction, I don't hope, because I'm going to make this happen.

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

Winter Goals 2016 Review

Time for public humiliation. I totally failed on these goals. Most required overcoming the monsters in my head, and I hoped making them goals would help me overcome those monsters. That apparently didn't work, at least not this time.

1. Create a Website: FAIL I mostly know what I want to do for this, but I worry about any changes I may want to make in the future, or how marketable the website will be. The whole idea after all is to spread the word about the reviews and things I write.
2. Organize my Home Office: FAIL Yeah, so, this didn't happen either. It started to happen, then I got busy, and it got messy again before I was even halfway done.
3. Publish 6 Book Review Vlogs: FAIL I recorded a review of 3 books...but I still haven't edited the video, and it would only be one vlog. When I made this goal, the intention was to be 6 separate vlogs.
4. Outline my Story: FAIL This is started at least. I kept trying to focus on the story, but certain points trigger scenes to play in my head. I think I may need to start giving in to these just to help shore up what the story is exactly because even I'm not sure at the moment. I keep changing things before I've even started.
5. File Taxes: FAIL We're not going to talk about this one. We are now at the do or die period for this. Yet again, another year of filing taxes at basically the last moment.
6. Finish fixing our Bedroom: FAIL There hasn't been a lot of time for this, plus I caught a cold. Not exactly great circumstances to be painting. Last thing I wanted was to sneeze and have primer or paint go everywhere or bump a wall or the ceiling with the wrong color. Speaking of color, we are considering changing the color of our bedroom, but haven't picked one. We've been discussing general color families; gray, blue, those kinds of color families. Then we can go look at sky blue or ocean blue type colors.
7. Organize my Coupons: FAIL I could consider this done, but I'd be cheating. I know there are some printed from online that are buried in the paper stack I haven't tackled yet while cleaning the office. These are likely too old and will need to be just tossed in the paper recycle box, but the fact remains, I have not organized them. Ergo, I have not completed organizing the coupons I have.
8. Caulk the Bathtub: DONE Wohoo! Finally, something I can check off the list. I was getting worried there. There is one corner I would like to redo, but the fact remains, no moisture will be getting behind the walls of the shower.
9. Complete the online course for work: FAIL I did complete an online course, but it was not the course intended to be completed when I made this goal. So this is a fail. It is hard to complete a course when you're busy doing other projects you've been assigned. Basically, I hit my wall, and needed a break after finally signing off from work each day. This did not leave a lot of time to get through the course.
10. Undisclosed Goal: DONE After being engaged for almost 4 years, we finally got married on March 3. Now our family has switched over to asking about a reception and what we are doing for our honeymoon. They can never be satisfied. And just to be clear, we did not get married just to make our family stop asking, that was a minor part. We decided a long time ago we were just going to go to the court, the hesitation was me, I didn't want to offend anyone by not picking them as a witness. As it turns out, we were allowed to bring as many people as we wanted, since we wanted it small we only had our immediate family there.

So, this quarter was a total fail! Another factor likely contributing to this failure, was I didn't have my goals posted anywhere for me to view and see them. There were a few times where I would try to plan out the next day and would wonder what I had put down for my goals. This needs to change this quarter and maybe we will have a successful quarter this time around.

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

Book Review: Keep Moving by Dick Van Dyke

I recently finished Keep Moving by Dick Van Dyke. I've always enjoyed watching Dick Van Dyke; I first saw him in Mary Poppins as Bert, the chimney sweep, but did you know he had another role in the movie? He jokes he wouldn't need all the extra makeup to play the part now. Which character was he? Mr. Dawes Sr., the head of the bank.

My parents enjoyed torturing me growing up, and having me sit through some of their favorite movies. One of which being Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, another movie featuring Dick Van Dyke. Something else you may not know, it was during the filming of this movie Mr. Van Dyke was diagnosed with Arthritis, through his entire body. The doctor was surprised he could move at all. Today, he is still showing he can move and recently joined Derek Hough with a tribute to Disney songs and danced a little to Step in Time.

In the book he talks about the importance of just getting up and moving. You hear a song you like on the radio while your at the grocery store shopping, start dancing. Don't worry about what others may think, life is too short to not enjoy each and every minute. He talks about this and other life lessons as he takes you through some of his life's high and low points.

Mr. Van Dyke teaches us the importance of continuing to move and enjoying life. I definitely recommend this room.

I received a free copy from NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

Quarterly Goals - Start 2016 with a Bang!

So, if you've been reading this blog for a while, you may remember I tried doing monthly goals. I found these a bit stressful...okay...a lot stressful. When work would suddenly get busy and I'd have to bring it home, I wouldn't have a lot of time to work on the goals. This year, as a result, I've decided to try quarterly goals. Since I have no goals to review or recap, let's just get in to the goals I have for this quarter.

1. Create a Website: This is something I've been wanting to do for a while, and have done a bunch of research. I've looked at other websites for reviewers and authors, and have a general idea of what I want to do with the website. The thing holding me back, is my waffle brain! I keep changing what I want for the layout, and want on the website. I call this waffling - one minute I'm on one of the ridges of the waffle, the next I'm in a valley, then I'm on a new ridge or go back to the same ridge, and go back to the valley...you get the idea.
2. Organize my Home Office: My fiance will love this goal, if I can accomplish this. Our home office is cluttered with all of my papers, and books, and coupons, and miscellaneous crap. This makes it really hard for either of us to do anything in the room.
3. Publish 6 Book Review Vlogs: I started a YouTube channel because I love reading, and wanted another outlet to publish reviews. It's sometimes really hard to show how excited I am about a book in only words. Yet, I've barely filmed any book reviews. (I also haven't published that many vlogs, but I'm hoping to change this too.)
4. Outline my Story: I participated in NaNoWriMo last November. I did not make the 50,000 word goal. Towards the end I had trouble figuring where the story should go, or what twists to throw in. So, it has been determined I am not a pantser, although I think I partially am. It's how I get interested in a story. I suddenly have several scenes running through my head with the same characters. Each time they run through my head they change slightly, but I've become interested to know more about these characters and what is going on. So I'm hoping to log these scenes, and plan out these characters and what happens now. I'll continue to write the scenes in my writing journal, but I'm going to add to the scenes and turn them into a full novel. Do I think this will be published one day? Maybe, after about 100 revisions, and I get more practice and figure out my process.
5. File Taxes: This is self explanatory. I typically start this early - gathering all the various tax documents in one place, but then I'm actually filing the first or second week of April. I may be a procrastinator, but I do not like filing taxes at the last second. If you are missing a document, or run into a question, it takes time to find the document (another reason to clean the office) or obtain a new copy, and to research the question to find an answer. So, this year, I will file before April. And I mean it this time, I really mean it. (I've failed at this like 3 years in a row.)
6. Finish fixing our Bedroom: Last year, we had to basically demolish a wall of our bedroom. Stripped it to the studs. Before we purchased the home, unannounced to us, there had been a water leak problem around the roof over the wall. Water somehow got into the wall and created a nice environment for some termites. The house was a foreclosure, and needed a lot of work so we didn't move in until the termites had gone dormant or whatever they do for the Fall/Winter. Come the next spring, we laid in bed at night and listened to munching in the wall. We called an exterminator who confirmed, termites. We finally had room in our budget to fix do the needed demolition and replace the needed studs. Now the wall is basically ready for paint - could still use some drywall mud in a few places - I just, umm, haven't finished it yet.
7. Organize my Coupons: I am not made of money, and yes, I coupon. I use an online website, coupons.com, to clip and print coupons. I have pages of these coupons all over our home office. I need to clip them from the paper they are printed on, and file them so I can see what coupons I have before going to the grocery store.
8. Caulk the Bathtub: We had the bathroom redone, I think back in 2014. (Totally lost track of time. Feels like it was last year, but think it was the year before.) With all the getting out and in of the bathtub, the grout has cracked in a few areas. Our exterminator has pointed this out as an issue. One of the cracks has gotten a bit large, and he has warned if we don't get this fixed, we will be right back to where we started and have a nice environment in the same wall for termites. Can't have that now can we. So, this is on the list, I just really don't want to clean the tub. I do this only when necessary because I hate it so much. Well, it's necessary, so we can caulk, I'm just dragging my feet like the expert procrastinator I am.
9. Complete the online course for work: I am working to get certified at my day job, in order to do this I have this online course, and one book course left to get certified. This certification, is basically required for me to have a hope of being promoted. The online course will expire this June, and I'd like to have it completed before then. So, here it is on the goal list.
10. Undisclosed Goal: This goal is a surprise. It needs to get done, so you hopefully won't have to wait too long before finding what this is. I'll announce it on my social medias, and probably do a summary of events leading to this point here and/or in a vlog. So, if you haven't, be sure to follow me at the social medias listed below to find out more about this goal.

These are the goals I have to start off 2016. I'll let you know of any updates to the list as time progresses on my social medias. Such as if I finish the outline, depending on what time is left for this quarter I may add a goal to write so many pages or words.

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.

Reviewing ARC copies - My Thoughts/Rant

I am a NetGalley.com member; as such I have promised you honest reviews. It hurts and makes me sick to think someone would not want to read these reviews, or not want to review ARC copies themselves because people wouldn't trust them.

If, as a reviewer, I lied and said I liked a book I hated, you would loose trust in my reviews. You would go to other reviewers, and see what they thought of these books. I think of you all as friends, if I recommend a book here, you can bet I'm recommending it to my family and friends who read and I see face to face.

This whole rant started when I saw a few videos on YouTube of BookTubers saying how they weren't going to review ARC copies because they didn't want people to not trust them. Just because I'm reviewing an ARC copy does not mean the resulting review should not be trusted! If I think the book stunk, I will tell you to stay away from the book, or to approach at your own risk. If I think a book is good, I'm going to tell you to try it.

It makes zero sense for someone who wants to review books, to give a fluffed review. If they do a fluffed review, they will probably do it again. Readers that see these reviews, read the books, and realize at a minimum, their tastes do not match and will stop watching the reviews. At worst, they will figure out the reviews are fluffed, and never believe a single word out of your mouth. People are smart, they will get on to you if you fluff reviews. They will stop reading your reviews, and publishers will stop sending those free books for review because no one reads your reviews!

To put it bluntly, you may be successful at a few fluff reviews, but ultimately your reign will end.

I think of you all as friends, reading buddies; and I hope you feel, or one day can feel, the same way. I tell you a book I despise is fantastic, and you shouldn't wait to go read it will break your trust with me and you won't consider me a friend back.

In short, anyone who falsifies their reviews is stupid, and I will never falsify a review. Anyways, thanks for listening to me rant.

Attended my First Author Panel

Yesterday, I attended my first author panel. The event took place at my local Barnes & Noble bookstore. They don't have a lot of space, there was probably 60 people in attendance, and yet people were still standing towards the back.

When I first arrived, I was one of the people standing, then they brought out some additional chairs. I managed to sit in one...and later regretted sitting. I know that sounds weird. I was towards the back, and seeing over all the heads in front of me...I couldn't really see any of the authors. If I moved just right, I could see some of them, but there were still some, no matter how I moved I couldn't see their faces, and so there are a few voices I now have stuck in my head, and don't have a face to go with them.


It wasn't until I was there, and they were introducing the authors that I learned, all nine authors were published with Tor, and the event was started by Susan Dennard. The remaining eight authors making up the panel were, Wesley Chu, Lawrence M. Schoen, John Scalzi, Greg Van Eekhout, Tom Doyle, V. E. Schwab, Max Gladstone, and Cherie Priest.


I'm not sure I'd say the event was well thought out. There was one microphone shared between all, and Barnes & Nobel expected Susan to moderate, which was not made clear to her. And they pulled out one table of books, a small table I might add, and filled it with the books the authors published. They did not have all authors represented at this table, so depending on who you were there to see, you had to make sure you had brought a book. But there were a few people, myself included, that learned of other authors whose books I'd like to try. Only one of the authors I decided I wanted to try was represented on that table of books. I think my local Barnes & Noble, could use some professional marketing assistance.


The bad planning aside, I did learn a few things. One interesting tid bit that stuck from one of their start up stories, was you only need to change your manuscript by 12% to publish with another publisher. One of the authors, I think it was V. E. Schwab, but I'm not sure since I couldn't see who had the mike at the time, had a bad experience with one publisher, and went to another publisher with the same book. She threw out that she only had to change 12% of the content, to qualify as a new edition. File this under useless but interesting information. It may come in handy one day, but I hope it doesn't. There are only a few reasons you'd need to jump publishers, and most of them aren't good.


They also provided some tips to get over Writer's Block:

• Remember you have a mortgage/bills to pay, and there is a professional obligation to write
• Muscle memory - put your butt in the chair
• Play video games for ideas in world/character building, especially RPGs
• Take a shower, your idol mind will start to problem solve

I'm really grateful that I went last night. And I must thank my fiancé for kicking me out the door. I have anxiety about being in public and especially when there's large groups of people involved. (This is why when I grocery shop, I listen to an audiobook. It keeps me distracted just enough.) I also wasn't sure about going because every Friday is family night, and we get together and have pizza and play games. But my fiancé came up with a plan so I could still have some pizza before going, and would be back to join the festivities before the night was called.

You can find me on Twitter, Goodreads, YouTube, and Facebook.