Hey guys. I know this isn’t a Sunday, but I have a quick request.

My friend's dad died this past weekend, and their family’s going through a rough time. Can you add her and her family to your prayers?

-Nicole

Happy Sunday!

I love tags. I love reading them, I love doing them. But for some reason I’ve only done one - ever! (You can find that one here.) So, since I’m really busy right now and don’t want to write a super deep post, I’m going to knock down two tags with one stone!

« Thank the blogger who tagged you and link back to their blog. (Thank you, Ivie and Kara! If you guys aren’t following them, go check them out - Ivie is right in the middle of an inspirational series, and Kara’s book reviews are killer!)
« Create seven new #CoverLove questions or just use mine.
« Answer the seven questions your nominator gave you. (I’m going to answer both Kara’s and Ivie’s questions, and you can pick which set you want to do!)
« Nominate seven other bloggers and let them know they’ve been tagged. (Oh, boy......because I’m so good at letting people know they’ve been tagged..... -_-)  

Okay, here we go! (Also, not gonna lie - I spent way too much time staring at my bookshelf for this tag. XD)

I really love this cover of Heartless (by Marissa Meyer.) I mean, look! It’s just so pretty! (Completely unlike the book, which will leave you heartless by the end.)

Okay, am I the only one who doesn’t like this cover? I mean, it looks good and all, but is that supposed to be Cinder??? Or is that Levana? And what is up with her hair? I’m honestly confused, guys.

One of the reasons I picked up The School for Good and Evil was for the cover. My friend was reading it at the same time, too. But gosh - I absolutely DESPISED that book. I was getting weird vibes throughout the entire thing. Then I hit the ending.

Worst. Ending. Ever.  

(Also, my friend hated the ending too. XD)








Alvin’s Secret Code was the first “older” book I ever read, and I ADORED it. I was obsessed with cryptography for years afterwards, I kid you not. (I still am, to a degree....) I need to reread this.












I think we can all agree that The Blood Race’s cover is everything we could hope for in a cover. I could stare at it for hours and still find something new.  

All the books in The Secret Series are great (although I do not condone some of the content) but the third book - This Book Is Not Good For You - is especially great because it is literally about chocolate. It will also make you hungry. I recommend you eat something while you read this.












Haha, yes, I had to bring up Keeper of the Lost Cities at some point, right? While Lodestar wasn’t my favorite of the series, I still love this cover. (I would have put Flashback, but......it hasn’t released yet. :(













Yes, I just made this one up. Just look past that. 

Guys, there are honestly so many covers I could do for this (just look at Gray's and Ivie's) but while I’m on the KOTLC mindset, just LOOK AT THIS COVER!!!! If I get published I want this guy to design my covers.....  







Can I cheat and say Everblaze again? 

No?

Fine. This was the closest I could find to a pink cover on my shelf. Dawn made me cry so much. So, of course, you all need to read it. XD 




Not many people know about this book, which is sad, because it really deserves more attention! I actually met the author a couple years ago - which was epic - and she signed the first three books! 




Yes, this technically isn’t a picture book, but there are pictures in it! And yes, the movies are good, but the ending of the book series is everything I needed in life. If that’s the only reason you read the book series, you will not be disappointed. 




I’d never even heard of The Orphan King before my grandparents gave it to me for Christmas. I still haven’t read the other books in the series because I want to read TOO MANY BOOKS, but the first book was pretty good!  




I am going to just go with Alvin’s Secret Code again. I spent wayyyy too much of second grade thinking of this book. I even made notes for when I had to return the book. *facepalm*   




Aaaaaaannnd, we’re back to Keeper of the Lost Cities again. :) I read Nightfall in one day. And during my reread, I read it in one day - again. So this qualifies. XD Seriously, though, guys, you need to read this series. It is SO GOOD. The books are light, but have some great characters and mind-bending plots. 

Allison @ the little bookworm
Lilian @ Green Tea With Books
Danielle @ Snapper
Danielle @ Life Is Like A Book
Ceci @ Ceci Creates
Faith (when she returns from hiatus) @ The Writer’s Song
Nicole @ Wild Pennings

And here are the questions! And remember - you can pick either set to do.
A cover you loved the moment you saw it.
Your least favorite cover on a book you love.
A cover you love on a book you hate.
A cover that makes you think of your childhood.
Aesthetic goals book cover.
A book that hasn’t come out yet. 
A book cover with your favorite color.

A cover with your OTP on it
A pink cover
A cover of an autographed book--or one you would like to get autographed
A cover of a picture book
A cover of book you were given as a gift
A cover of a book that gives you nostalgia
A cover of a book that you read in one sitting
I was also technically tagged by Ivie to do this, so thank you again!

This could also be very rambly. Prepare yourselves.

My biggest goal for this school year is to finish a novel. Not a book: a novel. I have never written a story that is larger than 42k. Even my current WIP, in its first draft stage, is only 30k. This NaNo, I want to write a 50k-long book - or even longer! *fingers crossed*

Well, a major goal for this year was to write the first book of The Inhumans trilogy, and I completed the first draft for it this summer! *confetti* Other than that . . . I’m not a huge goal-setter, so I haven’t really completed any “big goals.”
Well, I did a post about it last month (you can find it here), but, following Abbiee’s steps to telling people what it’s about:

It’s a middle-grade modern fantasy novel about a boy who wants to find the person who tried to kill him, and it’s also about forgiveneness and letting go of guilt.

I want to write stories that bring people hope in this dark world. I want to bring people closer to God though writing. I want to help people see the good in this world, even though it’s not very obvious.

I’m not very adventurous.....but, at some point in my life, I want to go ziplining. (Yes, I’m a touch afraid of heights, but I don’t see how that’s relevant. XD)
To write for a living. Maybe write and publish a couple songs. Blog in between.

You know. The usual.

But what kind of consequences are we talking here? Physical? Mental? Spiritual? Fandom-related? (Yes, those are a thing. Don’t ask.)

Okay, if there were literally NO repercussions for what I would do, I would take a YA library book, get a permanent marker, and scribble all over the sex scenes. Because really, why would we want to read those????

I play a mean recorder.

..............

Just kidding! I’m really good at reciting entire movie scripts by heart. (You can ask anyone I’m close to - they hate it.)
Just one? Well, Sam’s little speech from The Two Towers gets me every time. (You can Google it if you want to know. I’m really tired and don’t want to put it on here.) It’s the speech about how the inspiring stories had characters that could have given up at any point, but they didn’t. <3

To be published. I still don’t know whether I should traditionally or indie publish, but I just want to have at least one of my books out there for people to read. That’s the dream, anyways.

............I’m not sure. On the one hand, I really do like school. But on the other, I don’t have as much time to write as I wish I did, and that really bugs me.

So I’ll say no, I’m not, but hopefully I’ll get there soon!
Now, as for people to tag - I tag the people above, and:
Lila @ The Red-Hooded Writer
Gray Marie @ Writing is Life
Kara @ Kara Armstrong
Savannah @ Inspiring Writes

And here are the questions!
What is your favorite quote, and why?
What is your dream career?
How do you want to change the world?
What song do you really relate to, and why?
What is one of your biggest pet peeves?
How do you want your life to change, or are you fine with where you are right now?
What was the moment that made you decide to write (or sing, or whatever you want to do in life)?
What is the biggest dream you have in life?
How do you react to stressful situations?
If you could have any superpower, what would you have and why?
Do you have any big goals for either 2018 or 2019, and what are they?

-Nicole

Okay - how the heck is it already the end of September?? THE YEAR’S ALMOST OVER AND I AM NOT READY.

Also NaNo is in a month and I barely know what the plot of my novel is. This is going to go well.....

But enough complaining! Let’s take a look over September and see how it went....


Obviously, school kicked into full swing this month. I’m actually starting to get used to the homework load now, which is nice!

In other news, my wisdom teeth got taken out (but you already heard me complaining about that, so I’ll just stop now), and MY NEIGHBOR’S HOUSE CAUGHT ON FIRE. They live down the street from us, and a lightning bolt hit them. It was really scary. Please pray for them.

Other than this . . . September was all school!
Miraculous Ladybug. You guys. My friend introduced me to this series and I AM HOOKED. And while I think the main character is just a LITTLE too obsessed with her crush, it is also one of the most shippable couples I’ve ever seen! 4/5 (because let’s face it, some Season 2 episodes are weeeeird.)

But hey, Miraculous gave me a new story idea, so I’m happy!

Pirates of the Caribbean. Our band has played the themes from this for literally YEARS, and yet I’d never seen the first movie, or any other, before now! I . . . actually didn’t really like Jack Sparrow - but I loved Will Turner! 4/5

Aaaaaaannnddd, I also got a story idea from Pirates. Go figure. :)

Lord of the Rings. I think you already know my feelings about this, so I’ll spare you for now. There may come a day when I decide not to mention Lord of the Rings any more. BUT IT IS NOT THIS DAY. ;)
Ha ha ha.

Did I write much?

Heck no.

School is really taking a chunk out of life right now. But - I DID start outlining my NaNo novel! (Don’t worry, you WILL hear about that at some point - I promise!)

Also, I learned just two days ago that an essay of mine that I had submitted for a contest had been published in our local Catholic newspaper!!!! (Let’s not mind the fact that I wrote it a year ago......)
Here are the posts I wrote this month:

Am I Being Authentic?
This Is a Serious One
WIP SPOTLIGHT: The Inhumans
7 Reasons Why You Should Read the Amulet Series

Elsewhere in the blogosphere:

The always-on-point Abbiee did a YouTube series on creating relatable and unique characters! You can find her videos here.

Go Teen Writers moved to an awesome self-hosted website!

Allison did a post on why she loves Harry Potter which features some of her amazing calligraphy!

And MiddleEarthMusician posted her vlog for her blogoversary! Congratulations!

——————————————————————————————————

Well, guys, the year is almost done! School's getting busier, of course, and clubs and such are getting into full swing.

If you notice that I miss a post this month, don’t worry - I’m not dead! But I miiiiiiiight have to cut down my posting schedule a little. We'll see how next week goes.

See you around, my friends!

-Nicole

So I was planning on writing a book review today, but then I realized:

This is it, folks: the moment you’ve all been waiting for.

There was a blog post foreshadowing it. I’ve been meaning to put a page up about it. But still, you haven’t the faintest idea what exactly it is.

Never fear: your curiosities will be put to rest. It’s time for:


also let’s not point out my poor naming skills, shall we?

Yes, it’s about time you heard about my current Work-In-Progress, otherwise known as the Reason I Lose Sleep At Night.

Honestly, I’m kind of freaking out. Only two people (besides me) have any idea what this book is about. Which means . . . you are one of the FIRST PEOPLE EVER to hear about The Inhumans! *chocolate party*

But, because backstory always makes everything more interesting:
(SPOILERS FOR "MURDER, SHE WROTE" AND "HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE")

So, if you will, turn back time to August of last year (that’s 2017, for any of you from the future). My family had just finished reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and my brother and I were on a major Murder, She Wrote bingeing spree. (Both are excellent, by the way. 10/10 recommend) And yes, both these points are relevant.

There are many differences about this book and this TV show, but they have exactly one thing in common: there is a murder, or at least an attempted murder. This is also important.

One day, I sat down and watched an episode of Murder, She Wrote that the rest of my family had seen, but I hadn’t. It was called Lone Witness. In case you’re not familiar with the episode, here’s a brief summary: a teenage boy named Tommy witnesses the murder of his crush, and the murderer begins to hunt him down. It’s a great episode (TWO CHARACTERS ARE WRITERS!!!!!) but I couldn’t help wondering: wouldn’t Tommy be a little paranoid after these events?

I believe it was the same week that I watched the movie The Half-Blood Prince. Now, I am a firm believer that the book is always better than the movie, and this applies to the sixth Harry Potter movie. However, the movie did something that I sorely wish the book did: they gave us some scenes from Draco Malfoy’s perspective.

I used to hate Draco Malfoy. He was a pretentious little jerk who clearly thought himself superior. But the sixth movie made me pity him. I mean, come on, he had to kill a mentor figure! And he was a conflicted character! (Yes, I’m a sucker for those.) And - the important part - he couldn’t kill Dumbledore.

And then one night, those two pieces mashed together in my head: a boy who was hunted, and a boy reluctant to kill his target.

Thus, The Inhumans was born. *rousing applause*
“So, Nicole,” you’re probably asking, “what the heck is this book even about?”

Well. *rubs hands together* I’ve prepared this little synopsis for you just for this occasion:

Three months ago, Ben Evans was hunted down by a hooded figure. His life was threatened four times. Then, his attacker vanished.
Now, with summer just beginning, Ben’s eager-to-please cousin Shannon tells him that she saw his attacker in her home town, Monsoon. Desperate to find the person who changed his life, Ben embarks on an almost impossible mission: find someone that he’s never actually seen before. He reluctantly teams up with Shannon, the only one who’s seen him. 
But what Ben doesn’t realize is that there’s more to this attacker than meets the eye. Before he can comprehend what’s happening, he and Shannon are thrust into an underground society of people who may not be completely human.
And Ben might just be one of them. 

This is a rough synopsis for a rough draft (that I’m just NOW outlining, my word), so this is subject to change. In fact, everything from here on out is subject to change.

It’s mainly told in dual perspectives, although that might change to three. I don’t know.

Oh yeah. And this is a trilogy. Because APPARENTLY ONE BOOK JUST WASN'T ENOUGH.
So. On to the most important part of any story: characters.

Some people will make aesthetics about their characters and post them here. I almost did that. Then I decided to just do bullet points because to me that’s easier on the eyes. Also, after each character, I’ll put a little snippet about them!

Ben Evans:

• Main character 
• Was hunted by someone he never saw for four weeks straight
• Wants to go into forensics
• Likes country music (I don’t understand why, though.....)
• Is hopefully smarter than the average protagonist
• MOST LIKELY TO obsess over stupid wrongdoings for 48 years
• Has an EXCELLENT character arc that isn’t wrapped up until book 3

Okay . . . how do I write this?

This is something that’s really hard for me personally to write about, partly because it has had a major impact on my life, as well as countless others.

It’s hard to talk about. It really is.

This is not especially going to be a “fun” post. I don’t know how much I’m going to format this. Some posts just have to be blunt and raw. Some things just have to be said. (and honestly I’m exhausted right now.)

Okay. Here we go.



How much do you think about what you do? I mean, really? Do you ever stop and think about the words coming out of your mouth? About the words you post online in comments and tweets and posts? About the way you treat others, even unconsciously?

More specifically: how much do you think about this: how anything you do can affect someone’s life for better - or for worse?

It’s kind of a hard topic to think about. Maybe it’s because you have a hard time putting yourself into someone else’s shoes. That can definitely be hard for everyone.

Answer this question honestly: Do you try to make a positive impact on everyone’s life?

I know this isn’t making much sense yet, but bear with me.

Why do we even say cruel things? Does it make us feel better? Does it convince us that nobody’s perfect? Do we think “Oh, they can take it”?

Or do we think about the kid who sits alone? Do we think about their life, and how we can make a difference in it?



Almost one and a half years ago, a classmate of mine committed suicide.

It was completely unexpected.

He’d been a good, quiet kid. I’d admired him for his ability to listen and for his determination. But I didn’t really know that much about him. Not really. I should have gotten to know him, though.

And then, one day, my family and I were coming home from my brother’s basketball game, and my mom and I saw an email saying that he had passed away. They didn’t say how or when. Not surprising.

I’m not gonna lie: that week was the worst week of my life.

It’s one thing to have someone in your family die. It’s another thing to have a classmate die, and then go through days of school, where everyone knew him, and everyone is trying very hard not to lose it in class. I’m tearing up just writing about this.

I’m not saying this for a pity party. I’m using this as an example.

No one truly knows what goes on in someone’s head. Only that person and God knows (unless the person tells). We don’t know how bad their mental state is. So why do we intentionally hurt others?

If we truly knew the impact our words had, we would start saying more positive things. And if we truly knew the impact our prescence had on others, we would spend more time with the people we love and the people who need it.



Please. If you get nothing out of this post, please don’t just drift through life. Actively try to help people. Actively make a difference in people’s lives. And don’t take life too lightly. We only get one. Don’t waste it.

Thousands of people commit suicide every year. And yet, this is becoming a norm.

Why? Why are we as a society becoming used to this?

Let’s do something about it. Let’s be a positive influence in everyone’s lives. Let us be selfless, caring, and above all, loving.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

-Nicole