A lot of people told me that I should START a blog because I can make people laugh without ... trying. Half the time when I say something and my friends start laughing, I am completely clueless.
This happened to me the other day when I was at work.
A customer asked me ... "What do you think of the Salted Caramel Mocha?"
I replied with something like "It's sweet, and salty followed up by DELICIOUS!" Apparently, that was too funny for her because I was making a funny face and she laughed really loud and said "I'm getting it."
I got a pretty good tip from her that day too. YAY!!!
Anyway, sometimes I wonder what makes me say stuff. Words. And stuff. I've always gotten in trouble for running my mouth too much. Trust me ... it's not pretty when you're a little TOO honest with people. Youch!!
Words are pretty powerful things, aren't they? What we say can and WILL have an effect on people. Sometimes, we're not around to see it. Sometimes we are. But ultimately, I think I have to remember to THINK before I speak. It is NEVER my goal to hurt someone's feelings. Never. Ever.
If it was up to me, I'd just keep making my wry little zingers to make someone's day but bad days CAN happen.
I always think back to a verse in James 3:5
"Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark."Sometimes if I'm blatantly honest, I hurt people's feelings. And when I decide to hold back my real feelings, I'm holding it ALL back and eventually I blow up. It takes a great deal of effort and meditation to keep everything in balance. (Yin and Yang can be quite pesty) I have a bit to atone for, but that's the blessing of God. He always forgives.
Oh the joy of being able to KNOW when to shut up.
Speaking me talking too much ...? I haven't been reading since this week started. I am ashamed. I probably read 10 pages of Rush by Maya Banks. And ... it's a bit ... dull. I get that I was told that it was amazing ... and if you love the book, I apologize if I'm making you upset.
I just think that the character Mia is really whiny. She's all 'blah blah, I'm in love with Gabe and he'll never love me', but then she acts like she doesn't really care and still follows him around like a lovestruck puppy. It's just NOT very believable to me. Granted with that kind of book, I'm not exactly looking at a Pulitzer prize winner, but still ... I was hoping that it would be more entertaining.
Don't worry. I'll finish it.
Another little factoid about myself: Once I start a book, I can't NOT finish it. I will fight my way to the last page. Even I have to drink 10 gallons of coffee to keep me awake to do it.
For example, I'm going to tell you a book that I had to FORCE my way through. Conveniently enough, this book is ALSO the book chosen for the Barnes & Noble Book Club this month. I told a couple of my friends to not bother. Save themselves. Run away now. Hahahaha.
Here's the book. The Hotel On The Corner Of Bitter And Sweet by Jamie Ford.
It was just ... so ... BORING!
I mean, I get what the author was trying to say, but did he have to do it in such a way that made the reader WANT to go to sleep?
It's about the friendship and love between Henry Lee, a Chinese American boy and Keiko Okabe, a Japanese-American girl. And it's in the time of World War II when the government was forcing the American-born Japanese people into internment camps where there was little food and poor housing. The story is told by an older Henry who is on a renewed search for Keiko when some of the Japanese people's things are found in the basement of this abandoned hotel.
And that's IT! Seriously, the story just drags from there. I just wanted him to hurry up and start looking for her instead of moping around and talking about Keiko and wishing his relationship was better with his son.
I've heard Jamie Ford's other books are better. Perhaps I will give him another chance. I just didn't get into this book. But. I. Finished it.
Any books that you have NEVER been able to finish reading? What were your reasons? Would you ever go back and finish it?
I'm nosy. Sue me.
Let's go now into my Wednesday Writers Workshop.
This is a lesson that I have learned from classes in the past.
Today's Topic: The Little Details.
Where I'm going with this is ... do you know WHO you're writing for? Who's your audience?
I think that in order for you to get an idea off the ground, I think you need to think about WHO YOU ARE WRITING FOR.
Age range: Are you writing for Adults? Teens? Kids? (Example: Let's pick Teens since that's who I mostly write for)
Next question. Will it interest them? Think about what's selling at the moment. For example, if it's the historical biography of Marie Curie, but you're only going to talk about the science and use huge words .... then no, I wouldn't say that's a great book for Teens. Now if you take that same topic and go the route of 'This was her life and what brought her TO the science and what she's known for' then you have a better chance of capturing a Teen reader.
Are you stuck? Ask for feedback? Tell a friend or better yet, ask another Teen ... would they read what you're writing? Show them a bit of what you've written and ask questions. The worst thing that can possibly happen is you have to start over! It sucks, but it's easier to fix something that's not fully completed in my opinion.
The last thing I can suggest with remember your audience and who you're writing for ....?
Here it is!
Remember your Purpose! If you feel like what you're writing is SO changed compared to what you'd typically write ... don't hesitate to change it. Ultimately you have to be yourself. If you're writing for a teen and what you're reading back to yourself sounds childish and not in your voice ... CHANGE the tone to your own voice. If YOU don't believe your writing ... your audience won't believe it either.
The point of writing is to let your soul free for you to express yourself. Not change who you are.
WHOA! That sounded really philosophical.
Who you're writing for? Is it for you as well? You're never going to be able to actively be a part of your own book if a piece of you doesn't LIKE what you're writing.
Before you decide who you're just going to randomly write for ... think about what you most typically READ. If you typically read Young Adult ... don't just suddenly decide to write for Adults until you're absolutely SURE you know what the story is. Or at least ... if you DO decide to do that ... don't change your voice to suit that audience. Make it your own.
All right, there's my Wednesday Writers Workshop for today.
I hope that it was helpful. It sounded a bit jumbled to me.
But it's my blog.
I can do what I want. *snickers*
And hey, I'll improve as this blog continues on.
Be open, Be loving, Be yourself
-Taryn
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