Long time, no see!

Well hello, WordPress world!  I am writing to you on this beautiful, snowy (wait? Isn’t it supposed to be Spring?) day in the northeast.  This is how it looks outside my house right now: 

So, since it has been a minute since I last updated this blog, I wanted to catch up and explain what has been happening in my world.

1. My husband and I bought a house!  Super exciting, right?  We’ve lived in it for just over two months now and we’ve never been happier (well, besides the mortgage and all of the responsibilities that come with homeownership- kidding!  It’s all great honestly).  Look at our cute picture at the house right after closing! 
2. The day after we moved into our house, we rescued a pit/lab mix named Oakley!  He’s turning 2 in April and he’s just the cutest, happiest little pup of all.  He was super skinny when we first got him because he was a stray found on the streets in Virginia, but we’ve given him lots of love and treats and food and exercise and he’s doing so much better now.  He likes to stare out windows when his daddy leaves for work.  He also loves to cuddle and loves to play with his friends Stella and Odin (our friend’s dogs).

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3. I’ve recently had this creative urge and it has been making me want to write again.  It’s the best feeling and I’ve missed it.  I try to embrace it as much as I can as I’ve had an endless bout of writer’s block (I know, you other writers out there are probably shaking your heads right now).  Luckily, it has been slowly subsiding.  So every day I’m looking up writing prompts on Pinterest or old fanfiction I’ve written for some inspiration.  Not to mention I’ve been rereading the Harry Potter series (aka the series that inspired me to write in the first place) since October and I’m finally a third of the way into the Deathly Hallows. I’ve been making notes of the parts that are so interesting to me and how Rowling foreshadows throughout the whole series without us (okay, maybe just me) realizing it.

So with the above being said, I wanted to ask you guys:

1. Do you think fanfiction is dumb?  Do people even still write fanfiction, let alone about Harry Potter?
2. How do you cure your writer’s block?  Do you listen to music, travel, read/watch movies?  I’m interested to see what helps you!
3. To go off my last questions, what type of movies do you watch, books do you read, and music that you listen to?  What’s your favorite place you’ve ever traveled, and how did it inspire you?
4. Have you rescued any animals?  If so, what kind?
5. Is it snowing where you are now, or is it warm and sunny?
6. How have you guys been?  What’s been going on lately?

Short blog today, my friends.  But I look forward to hearing your responses and I’ll be back again soon.

Em

 

October: National Book Month

As you may know, October is National Book Month and everywhere bookworms are rejoicing!  Reading is one of my absolute favorite pastimes, not only because I get to immerse myself into another world to get away from real-world problems for a little while, but also because it’s relaxing (well, for the most part- I suppose it depends on what book I’m reading!).  In honor of National Book Month, I’d like to share with you what I’ve been reading so far this month.

Back in September, I started reading Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.  I never finished it.  Never in my life have I stopped reading a book because I disliked it until now.  Okay, you caught me- with the exception of required novels during school, I have never stopped reading a book because I disliked it.  After a few weeks hiatus, I decided to give it another go.  I had only heard good things from people I know who have read it, so I really wanted to give it another chance, but I just couldn’t get past the strange first-person narrative with abnormally long paragraphs that held conversations within them rather than in separate paragraphs.

Maybe that’s because that’s what I’m used to when I read books- conversations being broken up into separate paragraphs for each person talking.  However, I realize that there is no “correct” way to write and that rules are meant to be broken when writing.  Even so, I placed the book back on my shelf last week for good.

I have been entranced with reading lately, however.  So late last week, after I set Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close aside, I decided to pick up an old book and visit some old friends.

Perhaps my desire to reread the Harry Potter series was due to the cool fall air (finally!) infiltrating the east coast.  Maybe it was because of the incessant previews for Freeform’s (many) Harry Potter weekends playing relentlessly on the TV.  Or, simply enough, perhaps it was because it has been several years since I’ve reread them in their entirety.  Regardless of the reason, I’m ecstatic about my decision to restart this journey.

I finished the Sorcerer’s Stone in just under six and a half hours, which must have been a personal record.  I believe it would have taken me less time if I didn’t have a full-time job and several other distractions (or responsibilities) that had to be completed prior to my reading binges.

Kyle came home from work Friday afternoon/early evening and could hardly believe I was on the last few pages of The Sorcerer’s Stone.  “How?!” he asked, astonished that I had somehow found the time to finish the book so quickly.  Without even asking, he went into our bedroom and grabbed The Chamber of Secrets from our bookshelf and laid it on the end table beside the couch where I was sitting at the time.  He just knew that I’d want to start the next book as soon as I was finished the first.  That, my friends, is true love.

Anyway, I started reading the Chamber of Secrets on Friday and I’m still currently reading it.  Not because I’m not interested in it or because it’s taking a long time to read- Kyle and I were just incredibly busy over the weekend so I had limited time to read.  But I’m truly enjoying every page of the series thus far and I’m loving it even more now than the first few times I read it.

Harry Potter holds a special place in my heart, and it remains high on my list of books that I love.  Rowling’s series is the first series that I can remember that truly inspired me to write.  Whether it was HP-related fan-fiction, online roleplaying (Neopets, anyone?) or even an original story of my own, I was writing almost every day when I was younger because I was so inspired.  I wanted to create a world as mystifying, extraordinary and magical (pun intended) as Rowling created.  It’s still my dream today.

I’ve realized over the past few weeks that maybe the reason I’m having difficulty writing anything of substance lately (creative writing, that is) is because I’ve been lacking inspiration.  I have been told that in times of severe writer’s block, I should revisit a favorite book’s world and find the reason why I wanted to write my own story in the first place.  Then, I should explore new worlds in the same genre that I’d like to write about and write down what makes them good and what makes me love them.  I’m currently on the first part of that with Harry Potter being my first stop.  I’m excited to see what happens while on this ride and what potential stories come out of it.

Now that you know what inspired me to begin writing and what I’m currently reading, I’d love to know what you’re currently reading (or rereading) and what’s on your list of books to read prior to year’s end.  Also, if there are any writers/authors out there, let me know what books truly captivated you and inspired you to write.  I’d love to discuss this with you and add to my list of books to read- and perhaps they’ll inspire me, too!

Until next time,

Emily

P.S.  If any of you are interested in my re-read of Harry Potter, check out the hashtag #EmilyrereadsHP on Twitter!

 

The Concert

** Disclaimer: This is all original work.  Please do not steal.  This was based off of a prompt in Ryan Kinder’s “1,000 Awesome Writing Prompts.” **

Prompt #606. You are a woman who has just been stood up on a potential date.  It turns out to be the best night ever, though.

Voices passed as I walked along the crowded sidewalks downtown holding my cell up to my ear.  “I don’t know why you convinced me to do this anyway, Chad.  He probably won’t show…like the last three men I met on Match.”

“Cassie, Cassie, Cassie- he’ll show!” the voice on the other end of the line exclaimed.  “Just meet him outside the coffee shop like you said you would and text me when he shows so I can tell you I was right!”

I sighed heavily into the phone as I approached the coffee shop.  “Fine, Chad.  I’m here five minutes early and there’s no sign of him yet so I’ll text you when you’re right.  See ya!”  I clicked the red icon and placed the phone into my clutch as I took a seat on one of the vintage-looking black metal chairs.

My eyes wandered through the passing crowd in search of a tall, olive-skinned Italian male, but the majority of the crowd looked to be either natives or American tourists.  I picked at my nails nervously as my gaze turned to the glistening sidewalks in the streetlight.  He’ll be here, I thought to myself.  I finally felt as though I was connecting with someone for the first time on Match, but as I looked at my watch and realized five minutes had already passed, those thoughts disappeared.  I’m probably being stood up…again, I thought as I placed my head upon the table.

I was beginning to believe I dressed up for a concert for absolutely no reason.  My head popped up and my eyes grew big as I realized I didn’t even have the tickets for the concert because my “date” had ordered them for us.  Fuck, I said as I grabbed my clutch and light jacket from the back of the chair.  Maybe there’s still a way into the venue, I thought to myself hopefully.

Church bells rang in the distance as the clock struck 6 and I pushed through the crowds whispering “Excuse me,” and “Pardon Me,” to strangers who were all going toward the same place.  This is my favorite band- there’s no way I’m missing it! I thought as I grew closer to the venue.

I was coming up on the last block until the parking lot of the venue when I heard street merchants yelling “GET YOUR TICKETS HERE.”  I ran toward the voice and saw an older gentleman wearing a black flat cap with an unlit fat cigar in between his lips.  “Tickets, ma’am?”  His voice was horse and grizzly and his breath smelled of stale cigarettes.

“One, please!  What’s your price?”  So close.

“Three-hundred dollars,” he said as he held out his hand for the money.

My eyes grew wide and I shook my head.  “Never mind, I’ll try the box office.  Thanks though!”  I rushed past him as he yelled “Suit yourself!” and I pushed myself through the crowd to get to the box office where, magically, there was no line.

I approached the window as the woman on the other side was reaching up to pull down the bars.  “Ma’am, wait!  Ma’am, please, I just need one ticket!” I yelled hoping she was able to hear me.  It didn’t appear she did because the bars were halfway down.

Miraculously, I got there just in time as I threw my hand into the window before she could close the bars completely.  “Ma’am, I just need one ticket.  Please tell me you have one ticket available.”

The woman signed with annoyance, probably because I was preventing her from going home, and she pushed the bars back up so she could handle my transaction.  “You’re lucky,” she said as she rolled her eyes and placed a ticket under the counter to show me the seating.  “We only have one ticket left and it’s front row.”  She glanced at the clock beside her and entered the information on her computer.  “Take it or leave it.  It’ll only cost you one-hundred pounds.”

One-hundred pounds?!  For front row?  That’s it?  I have no idea why I even questioned it for the moment that I did, but before I knew it I was running toward the doors of the venue with my ticket in one hand and my clutch and light jacket in the other.  And then I heard it, the live music became completely noticeable through the open doors as I handed my ticket to one of the workers.  He checked to ensure it was real and a moment later I was on my way to section 3, row 1, seat 5.

As I approached the seat and yelled “EXCUSE ME” to the people already in their seats for the opening act, I realized I was making my way to the seat directly in front of center stage.  I looked at the opening acts and realized I was so close I could see the sweat drip off of their faces and onto the stage.  It was unreal.

I hummed along to the lyrics of the opening act’s final song and smiled at the people standing beside me who were doing the same.  Just like that, the opening act was over and the curtain fell as the crew began setting up the stage for the headlining band.

The lights dimmed after what only felt like two minutes had passed and the crowd began roaring in anticipation of the headlining band making their way onto the stage.  And a moment later they were on the stage in front of us singing loudly above the guitars and drums, the lead vocalist running from one end of the stage to the next, pointing at the audience and getting us to sing along.

I ignored everyone around me who were taking out their phones and snapping the best pictures of the band members that they could get given the fluctuating lighting.  Instead, I closed my eyes and decided to live in the moment.  Despite having a rough start to the evening with another no-show date, this had turned into a pretty incredible night and I don’t think I would have wanted it to turn out any other way.