Checking out Tumblr and Twitter

So, I've experimented with Tumblr recently because a lot of my friends have gotten into it. Some people just complain. Some people use it as a diary. I tried te diary type thing and I haven't gotten past the 2nd post. Oh well, it was worth a try. I also tried Twitter because all the journalism conventions I go to say that Twitter is where the news industry is going. Fast, short news. That's really sad because I personally love the long in-depth stories. Anyways, I just got myself a twitter and honestly, it's not clickng. I don't see the point because no one really cares what I'm doing and I don't really care what celebrities or athletes are doing. My friend mentioned today that celebrities are usually just normal people. Sure, maybe they have a little bit more money and more public exposure. But more friends or more confidence? Nahh, they probably have about the same as the rest of us.
So anyways, in conclusion, I've decided to stick with this blog. Inkwaves. It's who I am. And for a while there, I was pretty good at updating consistently. Hope everyone is still writing! If not, turn off the internet and get to it! <3

I'm Back

I guess I'm back for now. I'm thinking about starting a new blog, but I'm not sure what it'll be about yet. Any ideas?

New Contests

A contest with almost new limitations. Talk about freedom of expression. Check it out! Deadline: Aug 15. Prizes: Publication in an anthology. Link: http://literarylab.blogspot.com/p/contests.html

Humor Contest from the Young Voices Foundation. Submit a funny story. Deadline: Aug 30. Prizes: Money!
Link: http://www.youngvoicesfoundation.org/tellafunnystory.html

Looking for Inspiration

Sorry for the long hiatus. No good excuses. Because life is just not an excuse. So lately, I've been looking for some inspiration. I have this idea, but it's not quite right. I know how I want it to feel and I know which characters I want to use. But the conflict is conveniently missing. Every antagonist I can think of is just some stupid copy off of something that has already been done. Ughh. I hate this feeling. I've been trying to write tidbits here and there, but I need an antagonist pronto! Oh, and I've been reading F. Scott Fitzgerald. He is an amazing writer. I want to write like him. And go read his short stories. He accomplishes character development in a few pages better than most authors do in entire novels.

Success!

I won Script Frenzy! Yay! I read a quote recently that "Success largely depends on hanging on after others have let go." So anybody who is ready to stop writing because nothing is working out, remember that success will find you if you have the determination to find it. I also just came to the realization that I have been published ever year since 2007. Wow! Sorry for all the exclamation marks. I think I get a little too worked up about all this writing stuff. :P

The End of April

So, it's almost the end of April. And surprisingly, I am right on par with my Script Frenzy page count. Man, it was hard, though. I seriously considered quitting back when I was 18 pages behind. But I really needed to win some writing thing because my work has been going through a dry spell as far as recognition goes. So, I sat down one Monday and wrote for a couple hours, right through a episode of Gossip Girl. Then on a Saturday, I sat down for another few hours and wrote some more. Now, I'm finally back to where I should be and the end is almost near. "To be or not to be: That is the question." I chose to be a writer, and not to be a quitter.
I'll be checking in soon! :P

Busy

It's been a busy week. I'm officially 12.5 pages behind on Script Frenzy, but I hope to catch up this weekend. Grrrr I just found out about a contest hosted by Polyphony HS but the submissions were due today. However, they do have information about becoming a "First Reader", or basically an editor, which I probably will look more into next year. I must add their link, too. Polyphony HS is a great literary magazine for high schoolers and edited completely by high schoolers. Too late to submit now, but check their website later to submit. You can't read any of the magazine online, but you can buy an issue for 10 dollars. http://www.polyphonyhs.com/
Alright, talk to you later!

By Design

Hope Script Frenzy is going well for everyone! I started today with 6 pages, now I'm at 11, and I have to get to 21 to catch up with today's word count. It shouldn't be too hard though. This week has just been kind of crazy with homework and skating and stuff. And I'm studying to get my permit next month.

Anyways, so I saw an ad in a magazine for a magazine. Hahahah it basically said that film did not destroy the radio, tv did not destroy film, and internet should not destroy magazines. They mentioned that "Internet grabs you. Magazines embrace you." I found that so true. One thing I definitely love about magazines are the layouts are better. The designs give it a certain tone, whether it's Seventeen's handwritten tidbits about certain products or Sports Illustrated big pictures and strong, bold font. Internet doesn't have that same feel. What do you think?

Ready to Roll

So, I'm back from vacation. My family hit South Carolina for Spring Break this year. We stopped by UNC and Duke on the way there, and I am in love with UNC. The campus is beautiful. The restaurants are good. There were lots of kids just sitting around or walking around outside. I'm definitely going to consider going there.

I didn't get a chance to start my Script Frenzy until today, but so far so good. I've sort of caught up with my page count. Though I really need to work on silencing my inner editor. Plus, I'm getting paid to edit my step dad's medical book chapter. It's hard stuff to read, but once you get all the fancy words out of the way, there are still nouns and verbs and problems with agreement and parallel structure and comas.

Signing out.

Adventures in Outlining

Well, I downloaded my Hollywood Formula Worksheet from Script Frenzy yesterday and spent a considerable amount of time filling it out. Have you ever noticed how many plot points teachers never teach you about??? Like there are kind of two climaxes: the "All is Lost" moment and the "Final Push" moment. Both are very high points of tension. Like in Avatar, the "All is Lost" moment is when the humans destroy Hometree and Jake feels helpless, but the "Final Push" is when they fight the big battle at the end. I guess I've always subconsciously known about this (because I know some of my old writing had this in it), but why don't they teach you about this in English class? Anyways, you really should look into this Hollywood Formula Sheet. It's one of the better worksheets I've seen that helps you really write out your plot. Go to scriptfrenzy.org and click on Writer's Resources.

If you're still in need of some plot help, check out this article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/10/AR2009071002768.html?sid=ST2009071002833

NEW Contest:  Young Voices of America Tell a Story. Brought to you by The Young Voices Foundation. Submit stories under 10,000 words. Deadline: May 31. http://www.youngvoicesfoundation.org/tellastoryrulemar2010.html

Script Frenzy

Hey it's almost April! Another Script Frenzy is upon us!

Don't worry if you're not feeling the excitement just yet. Script Frenzy is a national challenge to write 100 pages of a screenplay, stage play, tv show, mini series, etc. in 30 days. It's from the makers of National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo). As always, there are amazing resources and a very open community of writers like yourself. You can even go to write ins and stuff. Check it out! www.scriptfrenzy.org

This is gonna be my first year of script frenzy, though I tried Nanowrimo last year. Only made 19,000 words, but it was still fun and a very good exercise in self discipline. I'm really excited. I've got a great idea and this time I'm going to try outlining, instead of running into it blind. Then maybe I'll make it into a novel during this year's nanowrimo. Then I'll get the novel published. Then they'll want to make a movie out of it. Then I'll whip out the screenplay and the movie is gonna blow away audiences and critics alike. Then I'll pick out the prettiest dress in the world and go to the oscars cause it was nominated for best screenplay but they won't know whether to put it into adapted or original screenplay category because technically I would have written the screenplay first but the novel was published first. I might be getting a little bit ahead of myself. Hehe. It's nice to dream, isn't it?

Alright, even if you're not up for the challenge, do take a look a script frenzy's resources, especially their 100% awesome workbooks for high schoolers. Their advice about plot and dialogue and whatever else holds true for novels, short stories, and memoirs alike!

Happy writing :D

Never Underestimate the Nonfiction

Having one of those days? Where your creativity seems to be going through a dry spell? Well, I've found that going to the refuge of nonfiction can be just the thing you need to get your creative juices flowing again. (Wow, what a cliche. I must be tired) Anyways, so don't underestimate them. Real life can indeed be way crazier than fiction.

Now the trick to reading nonfiction is read something you're interested in. You don't have to read history books necessarily. For example, I love reading biographies. They offer so much insight into why people are the way they are and how they got to a certain point in their lives. I particularly enjoyed Peg Kehert's autobiography (she's a children's fiction writer). I also read biographies of some of my favorite sports figures and though they don't have nearly the same writing quality as autobiographies written by writers or journalists or well-spoken politicians (and i mean well spoken *cough, cough), sports autobiographies can be just as entertaining. So pick up a biography or autobiography this weekend. You might learn something.

Symbolism

So, in English class, we were talking about symbols today. Water represents purification. Dove represents peace. Stuff like that. And some not so common stuff. Who knew that pink roses represented young love and yellow roses represented friendship? Well, anyways, that got me thinking, has an author ever written a story for the simple reason of telling a story? Does there always have to be some sort of deeper meaning or allegory? For instance, did George Orwell actually want to write a story about communism and Stalin and all that when he wrote Animal Farm? What if he simply wanted to write a story about a farm taken over by pigs?

I know it's a narrow way of thinking. I know the best stories have deeper meanings and are able to teach us something and reveal an insight into human existence. However, sometimes all I want is a story to entertain. That's ok sometimes isn't it?

Rejections and New Projects... muhaha

Sorry about being away for so long. Geez, I really need to keep up with this. No excuses! Anyways...

I've been sort of a slacker lately. I just got rejected by Shaking Like a Mountain, but no worries, the story is still pretty good so I'll probably just send it somewhere else. Oh, and I never got anything back from the journalism workshop, so I guess I didn't get in. But really, how many teenagers are willing to give up eight consecutive Saturdays to go to a journalism workshop in DC? It can't be that many I imagine. Well, it's fine.

The good news is I've started writing a book with my best friend! Hahahahaha. It's a nonfiction book: Girls 101. Or, well, I think that's a little cliched, but I figure we'll find a good title soon enough. It's about the stuff guys should know about girls. We're really not that complicated! Things like how not to be awkward, creeper vs. crush, ideas for dates, stuff like that. Plus it's funny! XD (btw: I'm not usually this girly when it comes to writing, but might as well try a new genre/audience, you know?) If you have any ideas for it, post a comment!

Anyways, happy writing!

Snow Days Are For Reading

Oh my gosh, we're snowed in again. AGAIN! This never happens. Ever. For example, last year, it snowed maybe twice. I live in a wimpy district that'll close school before it even starts snowing. We got one two hour delay and one snow day. On the snow day, all the snow was melted by noon. But this year, we got a whopping 54.9 inches of snow this winter; thanks to two blizzards. The earliest I'll be going back to school on monday. And I haven't been to school since last thursday. Wow.

I guess I should be doing productive things with my time. (*cough, cough* writing) I haven't even finished the homework that was due last friday! hahaha. However, I have been finally getting through The Catcher in the Rye. J.D. Salinger (the author) died not too long ago. I still don't know quite why the novel is titled "The Catcher in the Rye" because it has nothing to do with catchers of any sort and I'm more than halfway through. Anyways, I've been tackling this great long list of classic literature, and figured I might as well get through this one. It's mildly entertaining. What I love is the main character's personality. He doesn't like phonies. He's very frank with everyone. And he notices those little habits about people that make a person annoying, or cute, or whatever they happen to be. There's not much of a plot. Yet, the book has managed to keep my interest.

Which reminds me-- good stories are really about characters, aren't they? They don't need extraodinary things to happen to them. They don't need lucky coincidences and perfect entrances to make you want to keep turning the page. Because face it, you'll follow a character you love (or love to hate) anywhere, whether that's to the top of Mount Everest or just back and forth to work everyday. Keep that in mind when you write. Make your story about the character, and not about the things that happen to them.

Teen Ink

Just fixed a broken link on my sidebar. The YA Review Network just moved it's website. Btw, have you ever checked out those links? You should. Talk about great resources (plus inspiration and motivation when you read the other amazing writers on there).

I think I'm going to start reviewing them. Just so you have some background on them. I guess I'll start from the top. Teen Ink. It's perhaps the biggest and most updated of them all. They publish a monthly magazine full of teen writing and artwork. Let me be the first to tell you, they publish quality. That's why it is incredibly hard to get published in the fiction or poetry sections. I was published for a piece on Obama. They are always looking for quality college/music/movie/book reviews. Especially college reviews.
Either way, everything that you submit is published on their website. Some are chosen for the magazine. The profile that you create gives you incredible feedback, like average rating, number of views, number of comments, number of ratings. They also have good forums, but some are sparsely participated in and they monitor comments profusely.
I'd say if this is your first time looking to get published, this is a good place to start. You can submit as many as you want about anything you want. The circulation is in the millions. Millions. Think of the millions of teens who could be reading your work.
It's just a click away.

Midterms and Cop-offs

Sorry for the long break. Midterms were stressful. And there was a snowstorm, so that was distracting. Haha

Anyways, I got some good news! I'm an honorable mention in Merlyn's Pen Humor contest. Yay!! I've been trying to get published there for ages. But I guess the third time's the charm! I wrote about playing scrabble. That always has some -uh- interesting results. at least in my house! :)

Just something that has been bothering me- why do teenagers insist writing the stories that have been done and overdone again? I'm on goodreads and people keep inviting me to answer polls about stuff, like what should they write about (and then the answers were all cop-offs of twilight, pretty little liars, and harry potter). Or naming their characters, which are almost completely identical to Edward and Jacob in both personality and nature. People, please write about something original. Nobody wants to read another lousy copy of twilight unless it's an unusually funny parody (like this one: http://www.ericdsnider.com/snide/my-rejected-twilight-screenplay/). Writing something unusual will help you get published, too.

:)

Don't Even Bother Reading This

Yay! No track practice today! woot woot. :) Sorry. i feel like being lazy today. Will be back with more.

Time to Slow Down

Ok, my marathon of writing is finally over! (That's a lie. I'm always on a marathon of writing.) But nonetheless, I am temporarily taking a pit stop. I finished three essays for a journalism workshop in DC last week (and discovered how important the First Amendment is). I finished writing an article for Current Events magazine from Weekly Reader and was only 4 words above the "limit". Hahaha but it's all good. Time to have some fun. Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day everyone!

More hours in the day!

I need more hours in the day. Doesn't everybody? Just more time to work, more time to relax, more time to sleep. An extra four hours would be great.

I'm working on an application for a journalism workshop in DC. Hopefully, I'll get in because  I really want to do this. For some reason though, writing about something I'm passionate about is a lot harder than writing about something I'm not. Example: I had to write an essay to get into the top high school in the nation. That school is really into math and science and I'm not, but I was able to write an amazing essay about why I wanted to go there. And I got in! But I didn't go in the end because I seriously didn't want to be there. Now I really want to go to this journalism workshop, but I can't find powerful enough words to say it in!! Does that ever happen to you?

Anyways, the Columbia College Chicago Young Writer's Contest ends on Friday. If you want to enter it, get writing. The info is in the "One Down..." post.

Today, we got our PSAT scores back. I've been waiting for those forever, and for once I got a relatively good score on the writing section. I don't know what it is about me and standardized tests, but on the writing sections, I never get as high of a score as I want to. The PSAT score wasn't bad, not bad at all.

Alrightee, must go back to studying for two tests tomorrow. C ya!

New Contest

Erma Bombeck Writing Competition. Deadline: Jan 31. Submit: Personal essays of 450 words or fewer. Can be entered in the humor or human interest category. Prizes: $100. Free admission to a writing workshop. Publication on website and in local newspaper. http://www.wclibrary.info/erma/index.asp.

Ideas: The Finished, The In-Progress, and The MIA

Finished: Ok, so my overly ambitious plans to enter all these contests is not gonna happen. I'm just happy I finally finished my Scholastic Art and Writing Award forms signed and put it in an envelope. That's going in the mail tomorrow. Yay! I kissed it for good luck.

In Progress: I also saw the almost finished draft of the school news magazine that my article is getting published in. It looks so awesome. Man, I love that feeling. Bylines. Columns. A big and bold headline. It's amazing.

So today, I just recently thought of two really good places to find ideas.

The MIA
1. Yahoo answers. Have you ever looked at those? Some of them are really vague. Some are universal. Some have the craziest situations with insane answers to match. Wow. Good writing material.

2. Darn. I forgot the second one. Ugh. I hate when that happens. It was today. Hmmmm. Maybe I'll think of it.

3. Well, I have some more anyways. fmylife.com. I'm sure you've probably already been here, but it's the best for finding situations to put your character in. After all, being embarrassed shows a lot about your personality.

4. Carolyn Hax columns. Ok, ok, any advice column would do, but I particularly like hers. Characters need problems after all. And Carolyn Hax is ready to tell you what you didn't want to hear.

Weekend is almost here everybody! :)

The Wonderful World of Rewriting

It was a rough morning trying to get up for school this morning. Then my bus was late, and it was freezing! But even after an intense indoor track workout, all ended well. I finally finished editing my Scholastic Art and Writing Awards entry! This is probably the fifth time I've tackled rewriting it (I'm very particular about making everything sound just right), but I'm finally happy about it and can't wait to send it off. Or it could just be because I'm tired of seeing it. Anyways, two more contests I'll have to find time for before Friday. Hopefully.

If you happen to rewriting something, I always...

-Read it out loud. Many times. Even after you change just one word. You can catch a lot of grammar mistakes that way. Plus it improves sentence fluency.

-Refer to Elements of Style. It's like the writing bible. Seriously, you have to live by it.

-Put it away for a couple days and come back to it. You will finally figure out a way to fix the passage that always sounded a bit awkward.

Later gators!

New Year's!

Happy New Year's everyone! Hope you all didn't stay up too late last night. I was watching the ball drop on tv and I don't know if that's gonna be on my to do list anymore. It looks like so much fun and all, but they had been standing there for ages and it looked so cold and how do they go to the bathroom?? Hahaha.

So anyways, my new year's resolutions are...

1) Write consistently. Do not make excuses.
2) Keep room clean.
3) Get a faster mile time. (I run cross country and indoor track)
4) Land double lutz consistently. (I compete in figure skating, too)
5) Eat healthier. Not that I am trying to lose weight or anything. Just maybe I don't need all those deserts.

If anybody was wondering, I never did finish an entry for the Seventeen Fiction Contest. Everything I wrote didn't seem to fit. I considered sending something I had written a long time ago, but that was like not even trying, and I wasn't about to make the judges read another mediocre story. Not all was lost, though. I ended up writing something that I think I will enter in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards (after a little rewriting, of course). It was like when you're looking for a specific word in a word search, but you end up finding a different word instead. Hahaha I love when that happens!

Best wishes for the New Year!