Tickled Pink

This morning, when I woke up, I remembered something:

The Go Teen Writers prompt winners are announced today. 


I've never gotten up so fast in my life. It helped that I'd left the page open in my browser, so all that kept me away from the news was a tiny little reload button (well, I also had to open the laptop and log in- but that's aside from my point). And what greeted me when I read the list?

Honorable Mention

P.R. Golden

I didn't even get into third place, and I don't care. Because while winning is fine, getting into Honorable Mention out of 82 other writers, while being judged by published authors? I think that's really, really cool.
As usual, I did not get nervous until right before who wins is decided. Try being half asleep, then suddenly remembering the winners for a judged writing contest--that you entered--are going to be announced the next morning. Especially when you are torn between jumping around from joy at having made it as far as you did or sitting petrified with that horribly unsure fear that you wouldn't win, that you weren't good enough. Nasty stuff, I tell you.

But it doesn't matter. You know why? Because I, P.R. Golden (my pen name, FYI) are hereafter and forever more tickled pink. Pink from hope, that someday, my books will sit snugly on the shelf in the bestseller aisle for many years to come, that one of these days I will have my very own author website, with all kind of slick JavaScript, HTML and CSS. Because let's face it, only 3 or 4 authors I know of have a truly nice website, and that's not counting J.K. Rowling, because hers is pretty epic.

Speaking of J.K. Rowling, Pottermore's opening soon. I'm glad, because it's been in Beta for a very long time. It looks pretty safe as well, since users can't truly interact and you have to choose one of the user names they generate for you when you sign up. It all looks pretty awesome.

Also, for your enjoyment, here is the piece of writing I entered:

Mira was the type of girl who didn’t care what anyone thought. But when her entire future rode on someone’s opinion, she didn’t have a choice.
“Posture, Mira. Your spine must be an elegant, graceful I.” Madame Pettit glared, rapping her solid wooden cane at the base of her charge’s spine. Mira winced, but stood straighter, ignoring the pain flowing warmly up her back as she pirouetted again.
“Dismissed,” the judge said suddenly, waving his hand at the right side of the room. Mira smiled proudly. At least until she realized her position. She froze, but then raced from the room, a trail of tears in her wake.

A Burning Inspiration

Fire doesn't really scare me. Not unless it's untamed. Or a threat. Still, I don't really care for it. Usually. 

But lately, I've kind of had a fixation with it. Not the fire itself, the embers, really. And yes, that does mean:

My favorite name is currently Ember 

My favorite phrase is 'Playing with fire' (by the way, I don't condone this. I just like the dangerous edge to the words) 

It has inspired some writing

Something is alluring about the glowing red orbs that linger for hours after you snuff out the flames, barely keeping their hold on life. They eventually go out and are relatively harmless, but remember, they are fire. You can't forget that.  

Literary Heroine Blog Party!

Hiya! Annika here. Ashley over at Cheery-O  did one of these, and I thought it was really neat, so here we are! 


Introduce yourself!  Divulge your life's vision, likes, dislikes, aspirations, or something completely random!

• 
  
• Likes? Writing, Blogging, RPing, learning new things. Not to mention... Star Wars and Artemis Fowl! And Harry Potter. And Anne of Green Gables. And Percy Jackson and the- you get the point ;) Dreams... hmnn... beign a bestselling author, definitely. 
• 
  
• What, to you, forms the essence of a true heroine? 

• 
  
• One who is kind, well educated, resourceful, outspoken and just. And a major book worm.
• 
  
• Share (up to) four heroines of literature that you most admire and relate to.  

• 
  
• Anne Shirley, Marguerite St. Just and... Annabeth Chase.

• Five of your favorite historical novels?  

• Anne of Green Gabels, Rainbow Valley, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Anne of the Island and  Anne's House of Dreams  
• 
  
• Out of those five books who is your favorite main character and why? 

Anne. She is kind, resourceful and her antics are heartwarming.

• Out of those five books who is your favorite secondary character and why? 

• Gilbert Blythe or the Scarlet Pimpernel. They are both kind and heroic.

If you were to plan out your dream vacation, where would you travel to - and what would you plan to do there? 

• 
  
• Egypt! Or England... or Paris? I would write in Paris, explore England and find a lost tomb in Egypt!

• What is your favorite time period and culture to read about? 
• 
  
• 
  
• Tudor England and Ancient Egypt!

• You have been invited to perform at the local charity concert. Singing, comedy, recitation - what is your act comprised of? 
• 
  
• Easy. I would read my book out loud, alternating the voices for each character!

• If you were to attend a party where each guest was to portray a heroine of literature, who would you select to represent? 
• 
  
• Elizabeth Benett or Anne of Green Gables, if we're going old school. For a book from now? Hermione Granger!

• What are your sentiments on the subject of chocolate? 
• 
  
• Not completely crazy about it, but yes, I like it quite a bit.

• Favorite author(s)? 
• 
  
• Rick Riordan, Eoin Colfer, J.K. Rolwing, Lisi Harrison, Gail Carson Levine, L.M. Montgomery and E.D. Baker  

• Besides essentials, what would you take on a visiting voyage to a foreign land? 
• 
  
• Books. And a computer. 

• In which century were most of the books you read written? 
• The 21st! 

• In your opinion, the ultimate hero in literature is…
• 
  
• It's a tie between Harry Potter and Percy Jackson!

• Describe your ideal dwelling place. 

• Big, cozy with a bigggg study and tons of inspiration and pink! Plus some Tudor touches and roses! And a perfect writing place...
•  

Sum up your fashion style in five words. 

• 
  
• Pink, chic, comfortable, action, fun!

• Have you ever wanted to change a character’s name? 
• 
  
• Actually... No!

• In your opinion, the most dastardly villain of all literature is... 
• 
  
• Lord Voldemort! Oh yes, his noseless villainy is delightful! 

• Three favorite Non-fiction books? 
• 
  
• 
  
• I don't read non-fiction much... but perhaps Writing Magic by Gail Carson Levine,  most books on Egypt :)

• Your duties met for the day, how would you choose to spend a carefree summer afternoon? 
• 
  
• 
  
• Writing and reading outside... 

• 
  
• Create a verbal sketch of your dream hat - in such a way as will best portray your true character. 
• 
  
• Hats?! Hmnn, not really my style, but a sparkly pink beret!

• Share the most significant event(s) that have marked your life in the past year. 

• Winning nanowrimo and having my first finished novel.

• Share the Bible passage(s) that have been most inspiring to you recently.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” - the Holy Bible, 

• 1 Corinthians 13:4–8

No Matter What

 Sometimes, people want to chance things about themselves. On a bad hair day, you may wish it was straighter or thinner. On days when math is feeling too hard, you wish you'd never ever have to do it. On days when you just want to cry or something made you upset, you never want to see them/it again.

But wait.

What about the things you'd never change about yourself, no matter what? 

I know that I solemnly swear to:

Never, ever, stop writing. Even if I have to make the ink by melting my own hair and writing on leaves. 

Never, ever, stop being Queen of Imaginationa, where all are welcome. 

Never, ever, stop laughing.

Never, ever, stop believing there is a hero in all of us waiting to fly. 

Never, ever, stop being my geeky, epic self. 

Never, ever, stop being happy. If you make me upset, yeah, I'll cry a bit if it's really bad, but who cares? 

Now, what do you solemnly swear to never change?

P.S.  I am so sorry I never got spotlight author out this week. Even though I have tons of authors I love, I'm not sure which to do. Sigh. Well, we'll try again next week...

Screenwriting!

Hiya! Annika here. I have recently found a new love in addition to my obsession with writing: screenwriting! It was sparked yesterday when I was debating whether or not to do the Script Frenzy YWP  and was checking out the site and reading the info and guides. For some reason, when it hit me I could make my TV Show/Movie a promotional poster, I suddenly became very interested. After that I had an idea and everything was smooth sailing.

 But I got way too excited and started on what I decided to be the 13 episode first season of my show, The Powers That Be. It follows the adventures of 13 year old Fae Powers and her 12 year old little brother, Ryan. They have to prevent the Black Magicians from finding the 12 shards of an ancient Mayan disc that has the power to destroy the world. They have to destroy all the shards to prevent the Black Magicians from using the power for their own selfish agendas.

So, I know a lot of you might not know exactly how screenwriting works, so to demonstrate today we have Elice and Rob.

FADE IN:

INT. SMITH HOUSE/ ELICE'S ROOM

A large bedroom comes into view, full of many pink frills. The entire room is pink with lace on every surface. Sitting on the bed is ELICE (12), a small girl with brown hair and eyes.

                        ELICE

                    (sighs)

                   It's so boring today...

ROB (11), a tall boy with freckles and braces, enters.

                         ROB

                    (smirks)

             Only boring people are bored.

                        ELICE

                 (rolls eyes)

                    Very funny. 

That's that basic idea. I could go on for pages and pages with their conversation, but we only needed a snippet. Note that action and description is done in present tense, which is somehow easier to write in while doing this for some reason.

Now, I also know a lot of you think that Courier is one of the ugliest fonts out there. I used to not like it very much either, but it does have easy readability, I'll give it that. And there's another reason why it pretty much the only font that is used for screenwriting: it is rumored that Hollywood executives will throw entire scripts away without reading one word if it is not in this font. 

Yep. O.o

These are the main types of scripts:

Screenplays: a script for a movie.
Stage Plays: a script for a play.
TV Scripts: a script for a TV Show. Also called a Teleplay.
Comic Book Scripts: believe it or not, comic books and graphic novels are scripted before the artists even think sharpening their pencils. 

Okay, if you want to learn more, here are some resources:

Script Frenzy

YWP Script Frenzy

Script Writing Terms

Well, that's today's post. May the Force be with you!

Spotlight Author: Gail Carson Levine

Hello! Annika here. Today on Spotlight, we're going to talk about one of my favoritest authors ever: Gail Carson Levine.

I came upon this outstanding author by chance a couple years ago. I was milling around in the paperback section, thinking there weren't any more good books. Boy was I wrong. Ella Enchanted caught my eye. It looked like it would be a gook book, so I brought it home and started reading... it was AMAZING! 

The fantasy world seemed so real, the characters right next to you, the danger your own! And Ella was just a darling, like an old friend. I read it again sometime later. Still I was blown away! 

Now, I will admit I've only read a few of Gail's books. But the ones I have read were superb. After I was done with Ella, I discovered the Princess Tales, retellings of old fairy tales that usually featured a princess or a to be princess. The only downside was that they were a quick read, as I read them in about two hours, even with distractions. But they were still very entertaining, with good morals, plots and characters overall. 

Now, for something that kept me just as captivated as Ella: Fairest. 

Enter Ava, a chubby, frying-pan-black haired girl, an orphan that was adopted by innkeepers. But there is one thing about her that is more beautiful than any of the other characters: Her singing voice. In the language they speak in the book, Ava actually means 'lark'. Despite her looks, she is one of the best characters I've read in a book in a long time. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes outstanding books and fantasy. 

And now, to a book I'm actually reading now: Writing Magic. I bought it because I kind of needed a writing book and I wanted to learn some of the master's fantasy writing secrets. It's really good and I'm about halfway through, but I can say it's improved my writing already and even induced a few new ideas!

Well, that's today's post. May the Force be with you!

Present Tense, Stylized Lists and Other Things of Note

       

The cloaked maiden floats through the hall, her dress, which is the color of a sky that can't choose between sunny or cloudy, trailing behind her. You can't see her face, but somehow you know she is beautiful . As she walks away over the black and white tiles, you are left alone in the grand, deserted hallways. 

An attempt at present-tense... Nah, still don't like writing it. 

Also, I noticed that Qui from Freckles and Pointe Shoes has this neat little thing where she does these type of stylized lists. I think I'll try it:

<< Loving >>

Writing

Blogging

Star Wars

Followers <3

<< Wishing >>

That August would come

That it was NaNoWriMo every month

<< Listening >>

Unstoppable- China Anne McClain

Watch Me- Bella Thorne and Zendaya

                                                               Hit the Lights- Selena Gomez

  

              

Days Like Golden Honey?

Ever had one of those days like golden honey? Well, I love those types of days. There's something magical, something special about them. Something that makes you wanna dance. Like, when you made up with the person who asked to see your novel (and even sent them some of it)? Where you discover you have ten followers (thanksies Sarah!)? That one of your favorite blogs isn't dead and even has a beast new design? That maybe math isn't so hard? That your crazy new Forum is going great? Your new favicon finally showed up? Days when you feel like you could touch the sky? Do anything? Yepo. I'm having one of those. And I can't wait to see what the rest of it brings :)

A Writer's Friend: Yarny

Hiya! Annika here. First, we're going to talk about something that I find completely epic: Yarny.
It helped me win NaNoWriMo and now I do all my original fiction in it. It's simple, easy on the eyes and has a fun aura about it.

Okay, I joined while it was in Beta, so now I will always have free unlimited titles. I think everyone does, but I'm not sure... Anyway, people always say the snippets are good and all, but I rarely use them, mostly because I write everything in one 'snippet'. It was a life saver during NaNo, as it let me write on computers other than my own. It saves automatically and is completely secure. I seriously can't wait for the offline mode, where you don't have to have an internet connection. Also, if you're a NaNo winner, you get a discount on the premium!      

Spotlight Author: Lisi Harrison

Hiya! Annika here. I have a brand new series: Spotlight Author. It's when I pick one of my favorite authors and spotlight him/her.

 This week's author is none other than... drumroll please... Lisi Harrison! Born Elyse E. Gottlieb, this Candian born author might have not even been able to shop at the GAP as a kid, but her glamorous YA books have taken America's tweens and teens by storm. She is the author of NYT Bestselling serieses The Clique,  Alphas and Monster High. All personal favorites for me. I have rarely tried to acquire all the books in a series, but I find myself eagerly devouring each one in each series. There's only a few Clique books I haven't read, one Alphas book and one Monster High Book.

But, there is a downside to reading such high quality books: other YA books that are similar in style and genre come off as cheesy, overdone and pale. There are few authors who match up with her, and those are to name another day.

Okay, truth be told I didn't much like the Clique at first, as at nine years old I thought the books were- I don't know... I was still reading the Ramona books then, mind you. Of course, the more I read them the more I realized how good they were.  I preferred Claire, who's sweet as the gummies she likes so much, even Massie, who made me want to tear my hair out sometimes, grew on me. Alicia, Dylan and Kristen did too. 

After Clique ended February 2011 (D8), I became more interested in Lisi's other series: Alphas. At first I wasn't sure. I mean, I can read a book overnight if I want to, but with Belle of the Brawl I just put it off. Finally, I finished it after a month. My library card didn't take kindly to that. I scooped up the first and last ones during the summer. I. Was. Hooked. I couldn't believe how Lisi blended glamour and sci-fi. One moment a super cute outfit was described, the next it was revealed it had climate adapting qualities! Alpha Island was just epic. And the ending was just epic. I would tell you, but I don't want to ruin that surprise. 

And last, but not least, I finally got to Monster High. At first I didn't have a high opinion of it. But then I read it. It was amazing! I loved Cleo de Nile (I started on the second book) because she reminded me of myself, in a way. Besides, she's an Egyptian Princess! I love Egypt. But the one who I really could relate to was Frankie Stein. Even if she was the daughter of Frankenstein, she was sweet as can be, green skin and all. After that I like Draculaura, then Clawdeen and Melody Carver. 

Well, that's all folks, Annika Elipton signing off! May the Force be with you!

Beautiful People January Edition: Marcelle Williams

I know I already posted today, but the January Edition of Beautiful People is out! :D I'm doing my latest character, Marcelle 'Marcie/Elle' Williams. 


1. If character's house burned down, and they were left with nothing but the clothes on their back, what would they do? Where would they go? 
Well... she would probably go her friend's, (Claire) house and plan from there.
 2. Are they happy with where they are in life, or would they like to move on? 
She loves her life.
 3. Are they well-paid? 
She's 15 :)
 4. Can they read? 
Yes
 5. What languages do they speak? 
English and some Mandarin
 6. What is their biggest mistake? 
She trusts too easily. This gets her into the year 3000, mind you.
 7. What did they play with most as a child? 
Legoes and science kits
 8. What are their thoughts on politics? 
She doesn't really care as long as they don't mess with science. She threw a fit when they stripped Pluto of is planetary rights.
 9. What is their expected life time? 
About 80-90 years
 10. If they were falsely accused of murder, what would they do? How would they react?
She would get a lawyer and then quickly proceed to build a case. She would be shocked and a little disgusted with a mild edge of panic.