Young Adult Book Review: This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner (Starbound Trilogy #2)
Early this year I reviewed These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner, book #1 of the Starbound Trilogy. I loved that book, so I wasn’t surprised when I feel right into This Shattered World. The second book of the trilogy has two different main characters, Jubilee and Flynn, but the tension, world, and romance were similar enough that I found the transition easy. Because the mystery is bigger than the characters themselves, it is easy to get hooked.
I listened to This Shattered World as an audiobook. It was nice that the book was ready by two narrators, one for the part of Flynn, and one for the part of Jubilee. Without two separate narrators, I might not have so easily been able to tell the chapters apart. There’s one more book left in this trilogy, and I imagine I’ll be listening to it soon.
Well, it’s been a long time since I updated. Probably the longest gap yet. I’ve been feeling pretty guilty about this, yet telling myself that it’s alright because it’s summer and that means I’m on summer vacation, right?
Wrong.
A goal is a goal and I’ve been slacking. A lot….
As you can see from the chart, writing has been sporadic at best. This weekend I’m blaming it on spending most of my time building a patio. But that’s done now, and I have four weeks left to make up 60,000 words. The good news is that I already signed up for the 3-Day Novel Writing contest, which means I will likely write at least 20,000 words at the end of the month, during those last four days I gave myself. I’m also going on real vacation – the kind one gets at a day job – this Thursday. First stop is a writing conference, which will hopefully get my mojo going and most of those words written.
Meanwhile, I’ve also spent a bit of time taking pretty pictures of my books. What do you think?
Here’s to a very busy month. I hope your own goals are going well.
Well, I’m not going to post my word count table this week, because I’m feeling pretty horrible about it. Overall, I’m still 18,000 words behind my target. The good news is that I haven’t fallen any further behind this week. I’ve come to realize a few things about achieving a daily writing target:
Writing multiple times in a day helps me reach my 1,000 words/day goal. I find in one “sitting” I can easily write 600 words. Which translates to needing a minimum of 2 writing sessions in a day (preferably morning and night).
Focusing on how behind I am only makes me not feel like writing. It is much easier if I remind myself that I’ve already written well over 200,000 words since September 1, 2017! Go me!
Trying to catch up (write 18,000 words) in one day or one weekend is an unachievable goal with how my life is currently set up (day job, kids, etc.). It works much better if I just tell myself to keep pushing for another couple minutes after I reach my 1,000 word goal. This often gets me to 1,100 or even 1,600 words in a sitting. Which means that I’m slowly catching up, bit by bit.
So, that’s what I’ve learned this week, and that’s what I’m focusing on. I’m still distracted by my Kindle Scout Campaign for Under Jupiter. I’ve got 4 Days left and I haven’t made it onto the Hot and Trending list for even a single house. Please help me out by nominating if you haven’t done so already. This is your shot at getting my book for free, and I will be eternally grateful. Just go here.
Other good news is that I’ve finally broken through my writer’s block and found an idea that I love. I’m going to share some details as I work on it. It’s kept my word count high this week, and so far the story is lovely and so fun to write. I can’t wait to share more details with you.
Also, I’ve been doing a bit of gardening (and less going to the gym, but I figure all that squatting time counts for something, right?). Here’s some pictures of my flower boxes.
It’s been almost two weeks since I updated. During that time I’ve been working fairly diligently on two of my main projects, Under Jupiter and MF. And tonight I passed 200,000 words!!!!!
PARTY TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Obviously this nice round number feels pretty big. I started this goal in September of 2016, and a lot of time has passes since then, and obviously I’ve written a lot of words. But sometimes I wonder just where all of those words have gone, because I feel like I have so many unfinished projects that I must still be an undergrad. Seriously. It feels like it is taking forever to finish things. I think part of that is the fact that I’m often working on more than one book at a time. Like right now I’m doing rewrites of Under Jupiter and doing a first draft of MF. Also, I have about an hour a day (if I’m lucky) to get all my words and rewriting in. And that’s if I’m not so tired that I just pass out the moment the house is quiet. I do wish that I would have been tracking daily the project I was working on, that would really help me understand where all the words have gone.
But I made it! Deep breath. To Two Hundred Thousand Words. Which means I can totally do this. I can totally do this. And come September. I will have finished things. And they will be wonderful.
Okay, this week wasn’t as good as last week. The main reason for that is I wrote nothing one day because I was too addicted to reading The Girl on the Train. I consciously made this choice, but I’m still wondering if that makes it okay or not. I did write more the next day to make up for it, as you can see on the chart. I made it to the gym twice, and I also made it out to writing group for a weekly writing session, where I got a lot of work done on Under Jupiter. I also found a new favourite tea collection which is currently fuelling my writing session.
From the chart, you can also see that I did better this week at concentrating on Under Jupiter. I’m working on it at the moment, actually, but am taking a quick break to write this blog that I was supposed to write yesterday. Oops! Ah well, I have some more interesting blogs coming up for you next week, including more book discussions and fabulous pictures. Like this picture of the candle and pretty books sitting beside me on my desk.
This coming week, I’m expecting to see a high word count. Mostly because I need to push to finish Under Jupiter, and a couple other projects I’d like to self-pub soon, because I love them and I’m excited to share them, and I’m also kind of addicted to self-publishing. Yes, you heard that right.
Alright, time to get back to the real work. I hope you had a good week, and I’ll chat soon.
Develop a character who keeps all of this stuff on their desk. Why is it there? What does each object mean to this character? Which one is their favorite? Write for ten minutes.
If you’re anything like me, there’s no way you can not buy yourself anything at Christmas time. Especially if you’re spending a lot of time in the book store shopping for other people. I always keep a list on my phone, or really, a roll of pictures of the books I want to read ASAP, but sometimes there’s a book or something else that just jumps out at me and I have to get it NOW. Though I do try to resist, especially if I’m still hoping my husband will buy me something on my list, sometimes I give in. Either way, here are some of the things I will be indulging myself with this holiday season (or shortly after when the sales come in January). When it comes to self-indulgence, these are the things I love
Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate (I could say that way more than three times). I’ll admit, it is one of my favorite reading snacks. I keep a bar in the nightstand just for the purpose of having some chocolate to eat during my afternoon reading session. I don’t eat it every day, but when I do, it’s good, high quality chocolate. Godiva is one of my favorites.
2. Pretty, Pretty, Classics. I have a weakness for pretty books. Especially if it is a beautiful copy of a book I already own, for instance. I may own more than one copy of Pride and Prejudice. That may be more than I need (seeing as I only need one). But sometimes the books are just so darn pretty I can resist.
3. Seven Year Pens. I also may own more than one Seven Year Pen. Maybe because the ink is supposed to be able to last for seven years. Maybe because of the cool colours and awesome designs. Or maybe because I’m just the type to indulge. And hey, a writer always needs a pen, because what if your phone dies? or your laptop? and all you are left to work with is – GASP – pen and paper???
4. Notebooks. I’ve said it many, many times, but I just can’t resist notebooks.
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5. Smelly markers. This is a new one for me. Or maybe a really old one, since as a child I loved the markers that smelled like cherries or blueberries or what not. But nowadays the scents are much more diverse, and you can find markers like roasted marshmallow, tropical punch, and coffee, to name a few.
6. Coffee. Sometimes, all that keeps me alive is coffee. Okay. Maybe I need food too, but Coffee is my creative life’s blood. There is rich dark roast, light acidic coffee, and of course, Tassimo. I’m one of those people in a love/hate relationship with Tassimo – I love the ease of use but hate the waste. I also have a French Press (which I use ever so rarely). As, even though I’m loath to admit, I’ve been brewing a T-Disc daily. French Vanilla is my favorite.
7. Vacations. There is nothing I like more than a trip. Not only does it bring fresh inspiration and a break from the everyday, but it usually means I’m not working and therefor have more time to do my chosen work (see #10). This winter I’ll be heading down to Mexico, but earlier this year I made my escape out to Vancouver, where I spent a good chunk of time drafting Twisted Currents, some of which takes place in this fantastic coastal city.
8. Great, Inspiring Movies. Sometimes, reading a great book just isn’t enough, or I need a change of pace. Sometimes a movie is more inspiring than reading a book (though rarely if it has been based on a book), and it is finished a lot more quickly. Because it’s not reading, watching a movie is an indulgence. Often, I don’t let myself watch a thing unless I’ve finished my daily word count. So when it comes to a treat, movies are at the top of my list. A favorite choice of mine is Star Wars. In fact, I’m going to see Rogue One this coming Monday, and I can’t wait.
9. A new laptop. Okay, I’m going to tell you a secret. I own three laptops. Yes, three. And a table with a keyboard. Two of them are old, i will admit. But they still work. I didn’t have to replace them. But I did. Currently, I do the majority of my work on a MacBook Air. It is light and portable and a beautiful shiney silver. Still, it is getting a bit aged, maybe I should see what else is out there….
10. Time. This is the one thing that I really need more off, and it’s probably the cheapest thing to buy. I buy myself time all the time, by refusing the clean the house, by cutting back on sleep, consuming more coffee, and ignoring the television. When there is a writing project I want to get done, the only thing I need is time (well, I suppose I need my laptop, too). So, if you have time to spare this Christmas, be sure to send some my way. It will be greatly appreciated.
J. E. H U N T E R 