Getting Sentimental. (And Stuff.)

So leave it to me to post this at the last possible minute. *glances around nervously* Note: this post is a part of the TCWT blog chain, which, if you’re a teen writer, you should totally check out. This month’s topic is:

“Is there one particular book that changed your life? If so, why did you originally choose to read it? What impact has it had on you?”

Honestly, I don’t think just one book changed my life. Books in general have, yes, but it’s a combination of all of them–all of their themes, their characters, their stories–that has changed me. It would take too long to highlight all of the books that have changed me, and the truth is, I have no idea what books have changed me, because I am certain that every book I read affects me somehow, sometimes in ways I don’t even know. So to make an accurate list for you, I’d have to write about every book I’ve ever read, which would take way too long.

That said, when I think of books that have changed me, one in particular stands out as being the first book that really got me into reading—and then, later on, publishing. Without this book, I probably wouldn’t be here right now. And the book is… drumroll please… Inkheart by Cornelia Funke.

I read this book when it first came out years ago. I have no idea why exactly I chose to read it, or what I loved so much about it, but something there sparked my interest in books. I mean, I’d always enjoyed reading, but this book was what really had me set on it; it’s what got me addicted to books. I remember staying up “late” with my little reading light on (I WAS A KID, OKAY), furiously going flipping through page after page even though I didn’t understand a good number of the words. Something about this book just grabbed me, and from what I remember, it was one of the first books I ever read on my own. I am so glad I did, too. Inkheart, and if I remember correctly, is about the characters in a book coming to life—which, by the way, would be AWESOME if it could happen now.

Back then, when I first read this, I didn’t understand characterization, or unique plots, or what makes good writing. The only thing I knew about books was when I enjoyed them—and I loved this one. I haven’t read this book in a long time, admittedly, and I would not be surprised if I dislike it now, but the point is, I loved it then, and it eventually got me into read the books that I love now. Without reading Inkheart, I might not have turned out to be the passionate writer I am now. I might not be here—blogging, critiquing, querying.

It’s amazing to think that pulling just one book off the shelf can alter the course of your life. But it can.

Note: I’m writing this in a complete rush, (because, let’s face it, I’m a professional procrastinator) so I apologize for any typos!

January Blog Chain Participants: 

January 5th – http://fida-islaih.blogspot.co.uk – Muslim Spirit by Fida

January 6th – http://theteenagewriter.wordpress.com – The Teenage Writer

January 7th – http://missalexandrinabrant.wordpress.com – Miss Alexandrina

January 8th – http://cinderscoria.blogspot.co.uk – Between The Lines

January 9th – http://avonsbabbles.wordpress.com – Avon’s Babbles

January 10th – http://www.nonconformistwriter.blogspot.co.uk – Life.

January 11th – http://weirdalocity.wordpress.com – Inside The Junk Drawer

January 12th – http://notebooksisters.blogspot.co.uk – Notebook Sisters

January 13th – http://musingsfromnevillesnavel.wordpress.com – Musings From Neville’s Navel

January 14th – http://theloonyteenwriter.wordpress.com – The Loony Teen Writer

January 15th – http://mirrormadeofwords.wordpress.com – A Mirror Made Of Words

January 16th – http://epistolarygirl.wordpress.com – Epistolary Girl

January 17th – http://www.inklinedwriters.blogspot.co.uk – Inklined

January 18th – http://zarahoffman.tumblr.com – Zara Hoffman’s Blog

January 19th – http://sydneyjoto.wordpress.com – SydneyJoTo

January 20th – http://realityisimaginary.blogspot.com – Reality Is Imaginary

January 21st – http://thelittleenginethatcouldnt.wordpress.com – The Little Engine That Couldn’t

January 22nd – http://www.katrinakennedy3.wordpress.com – Writers Response

January 23rd –http://incessantdroningofaboredwriter.wordpress.com – John Hansen Writes

January 24th – http://miriamjoywrites.wordpress.com – Miriam Joy Writes

January 25th – http://teenscanwritetoo.wordpress.com – Teens Can Write, Too! (We’ll announce the topic for next month’s chain)

Don’t Give Up: A Small Pep Talk

I’ve been thinking a lot lately. (*gasps from the crowd* Whaaaat? John? THINKING? What is this madness?) I’ve been thinking about writing, about publishing, about all of these great people doubting themselves and their writing, thinking they aren’t good enough, or should just give up now–or ANYTHING. And it always hurts when writers doubt themselves, or question why they are even spending their time writing their books because they think they aren’t good enough.

So, why?

We write because we love it, because we can’t not write; writing is hard because you care, and that in itself is an amazing thing–to care about something so much that it causes you this amount of stress.

And sometimes, publishing, or the need to write a perfect book (spoiler: there is no such thing), gets in the way of that, that love. Of course, this sucks, but it’s also only natural. Sometimes it’s important to go back to the little thing that got you into writing in the first place: your passion for it. No matter what stage of your writing career you are at, remember why you’re doing it. It’s natural to feel stressed over writing–in fact, it’s probably a good sign that you are–but never, ever, think you can’t do it, or you aren’t good enough, because if you love what you’re doing, you will be good enough. Maybe you are right now. Maybe not. But you. will. get. there. Also? There is always room to improve no matter what stage you are at, except you can only improve if you truly love what you’re doing. Which, if you’re a writer, is a resounding, “YES IT STRESSES ME THE FREAK OUT BUT YES I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT.”

So my point? Don’t give up on writing just because you think your book will never be published, or because you don’t think you’re any good at it. Just write. Just work as hard as you can on every book and enjoy it. ENJOY IT. If you love to write, then write. And I promise, if you keep working at it, you will get there.

You will.

–John

2012 Roundup + Giveaway!

(Guys, I have a different sort of post planned for tomorrow, and it’s something pretty important to me, so I’d appreciate it if you all could check it out. )

Warning: this contains a lot of information about me, and information about me has been known to get boring, frightening, and/or burn your eyes out. If you’re just here for the giveaway, you can skip to the end.

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Oh 2012.

You have been incredibly awesome to me. It doesn’t necessarily feel that way, I know, but when I look back on where I was in early January, it’s amazing how far I’ve come. (I can sense you all rolling your eyes already. Here comes the bragging.) I was, let’s be honest, pretty clueless back then, and in just a year, I feel so much more knowledgeable about books, about writing, about publishing. To the point where I feel like I can give decent advice and help people, when a year ago, I was the one who had only a very vague idea of how this whole writing and publishing thing works. I’m going to attribute this jump in knowledge to the literal hours each day (I FEEL YOUR JUDGEMENT) I spent reading blog posts, reading critiques of other’s works and getting critiqued myself, reading Publisher’s Lunch and publishing discussions, and researching publishers and agents (okay, maybe a little bit more to the point of stalking. But in an innocent way! I swear!) and learning what to do and what not to do when writing. Also, you can add reading and beta-reading to all of that. But more than just the above, 2012 was a successful year for me because I met amazing people online and learned from them. Every blog post, every tweet taught me something, and just listening to what all of you have to say has gotten me so far. So thank you, writing community, for being awesome.

And now we’re to the part where I brag about what I accomplished this 2012. Quick! Close your eyes! Cover your ears! Don’t let me win!

- I discovered John Green. Okay, so this is not bragging, but SERIOUSLY guys, how come no one got me hooked on John Green before this year?! And I don’t just mean his books–I love them too, of course, but I can also understand how you wouldn’t–but his YouTube channel and his personality and everything. Vlogbrothers, in which he vlogs with his brother Hank, is basically the greatest thing I’ve ever seen, and I’ve spent an unhealthy amount of time watching his videos. They’re not only fun but they’re enlightening and weird and OHMYGAWSH SO GOOD. Anyway. *coughs* *puts on professional face*

- I met awesome people. This has got to be my highlight of 2012, if anything. Seriously. It sounds kind of pathetic, I know (I FEEL YOUR JUDGEMENT AGAIN), that I made friends with people who exist only in my phone–rumor has it they’re real or something, but I don’t buy it–but honestly, this online writing/publishing community is the greatest. It has definitely been the greatest part of my year. All of your support and advice and jokes have been amazing, and I appreciate all of you, and that I have the opportunity to do this, to follow my passions, because a lot of people don’t have that opportunity. You guys make writing less difficult and stressful. It is definitely a more interesting process with the internet involved, but interesting is good. Interesting is fun. So to all of my critique partners and people-I-beta-for and online friends: I’m just so glad to have met all of you. You are beyond great.

- I got my remote agent internship. And I am SO GLAD and SO THANKFUL for it. I’m incredibly lucky to have the opportunity.

- I beta-read a ton of manuscripts. I don’t know how many manuscripts in total I beta-read, but it’s at least twice as much as I read normal published books. Yeah. I know. I’m crazy.

- I finished my second novel, also known as my first not-totally-sucky novel. Yeah, pretty much says it all. I guess all of that time spent writing and critiquing and reading about writing paid off in the end, at least sort of. I also got my first R&R from an agent! (Revise & resubmit, for those who do not know.) Woohoo!

And then a ton of other things happened, like me becoming an author assistant, getting my first ARC, etc. but I’m currently on 12 a.m. brain so I can’t remember all of them. But regardless, thank you all for such a great year.

Looking forward to 2013, I have a few small goals:

- Spend less time on the internet. I know, I KNOW, but this has become a problem, guys.

- Write more. This year, I hope to start and complete two novels on top of my current rewrite. Can I do it? We shall see.

- Blog more. I was a blogging fail this 2012. Let’s fix this.

- Querying. This is the part where I’d put my goal of getting an agent this 2013, but I don’t know, I’m not sure if I’m there yet. Instead, my resolution is to finish a book I am truly proud of, revise it to the best of my ability, write an awesome query for it, and send it off. Even if it gets no agent bites, I still want to be proud of what I did.

- Make at least $10. Okay, so this is a weird goal, but I’d like to be able to profit from either writing or editing this year. Maybe sell a short story to a paying magazine, or maybe freelance edit for someone–I feel like, from all of my beta-reading, I’ve become a pretty good editor. I don’t actually care about the money, of course, but I want to feel legitimate, you know? (Translation: I’m weird. Just go with it.)

I think writing/publishing-wise, 2011 was, for me, about experimenting and experiencing and getting my feet wet with “all of this.” 2012 has been my learning year, where I’ve gone from a pretty-horrible-and-clueless writer to a decent-and-actually-pretty-knowledgeable writer. And I’m hoping, that if the pattern is followed, 2013 will be my breakout year. But even if it isn’t, I know it’ll rock anyway.

In the end, 2012 was great. 2013 will be even better.

Giveaway!

And to celebrate the great year/even better coming year, I’m giving away eBook copies of three 2012 books. The books:

An eBook copy of SHADOW & BONE by Leigh Bardugo

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An eBook copy of THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green

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An eBook copy of CRUSHED by Dawn Rae Miller.

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Since Rafflecopter is mean and refuses to post in WordPress, click here to enter the giveaway.

Note: if you win a book you don’t want/already own/you’re outside the U.S. for winning the ARC, please let me know and I’ll select a new winner.

So, what books are you looking forward to in 2013?