Monday, January 31, 2011

One Year

Dear Bloggie,
      It's been one year since I started blogging. Wow, what I year it has been! Today was also the day of my school's big move. This is the view outside my school

Ohhh, Pretty Dome. EWWW, SNOW!
     I love the new building. I guy I know named Jakk found a place to skip classes today. It's only the first day and already people are searching out skip places. Oh, how I love the kids who go to my school!

    I have never personally skipped class, but I've always wanted to try. Maybe now I will. Tomorrow I'm going exploring around the place Jakk found. I have a fifteen minute interval between my normal classes and my art classes. Hopefully I can convince one of my friends to look around with me. I would look around alone, but I hate getting in trouble by myself. It's never as fun and it's always twice as scary.

    Last but not least, I've started a new blog! I realized this blog has a lot of personal stuff on it. When I actully get published one day, I just want to be able to make this blog private and block people from reading it without having to make a total new blog and basically erasing everything about my journey to publication. So I've started another one now. It's under my pen name Libby Shaw and it will track my writing life. That's why this blog is just under my real name, Ariana. This one is my personal, while the other is my professional. I had fun making the other blog look the way I wanted it to.

    That's all the time I have for today folks. Follow my other blog and I'll love you all forever.

                         ~XOXO,
                                   Ariana

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Congrats Leigh Fallon!

Dear Bloggie,
        So I just heard today that an author off inkpop (and a person whose blog I follow) is getting published by Harper Teen! This is the first inkpop book that will be published by the hosts of the site. I now regret having never read her book (it made the top five in 2010), but I'm defiantly putting it on my future wish list. I just wanted to make this post and 1) congratulate her and 2) sorta advertise for her book. Once it comes out I'm definitely doing a review of it! With inkpop producing it's first real novel, who knows who may be next...?

                                 ~XOXO,
                                             Ariana

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Guilty Pleasure Wednesday: Teen Movies

Dear Bloggie,

                  I’ve been running low on blogging material recently. I mean, I have this 30 day challenge thing I’m going to start come February (I was inspiration by Cat’s new-new blog) but until then (and basically until I run out of things) I’m going to start doing Guilty Pleasure Wednesday. Wednesday is already called Hump Day, so why not just add the words “Guilty Pleasure” to it?

      My first guilty pleasure has to be teen movie. All of them. From 80’s classics like Pretty in Pink, Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, and St. Elmo’s Fire, to 21st century gems like Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging, Bring it On, Juno, and Almost Famous. And of course we can’t forget the 90’s. Teen movies were coming out by the dozens then. But are all teen movies the same? No; some are good, some are bad, and some are so bad that they’re good. Though, since I love almost all movies, I have never truly come across movies that fit into the “bad” and “so bad that they’re good” categories.   

    While I may have never come across ones that I thought was bad, I came across plenty that I thought were great. The following list is some of my favorites (they aren’t in order, I can’t decided which one I like best so I’m just writing them down as I remember them).

 

       Favorite Teen Movies

 

  • 10 Things I Hate About You: I positively love this movie! I know they have a TV 10 things i hate about you postershow based off it, but I refuse to watch it. It won’t be the same and all it can do is ruin the movie for me.  This movie is so funny and great. It’s all about these two sister. The older one, Kat, is an outcast and an all around smart-ass/bad-ass, while the younger, Bianca, is the pretty, valley girl  blonde who is popular.  The only way their over protective father will let the Bianca date (she  has her goals set on male model and popular boy at school Joe) is if Kat is dating too. New kid and geek, Cameron, has his eyes set on Bianca. After finding out about Bianca’s dad’s rule, he hatches up a plan to ask Patrick, another outcast who is much like Kat (and who is played by a very hot looking Heath Ledger) to ask Kat out. But nothing can go as planned.  I totally recommend this movie.

 

  • Sugar & Spice: Another one of my favorite teen movie. Definitely in my top five.Sugar and Spice poster When popular head cheerleader Diane Weston becomes pregnant by her star quarterback boyfriend Jack, their parents financially cut them off. In need of money, Diane and her friends Cloe, Lucy, Hannah, and Fern decided  to rob a bank using their kickass cheerleading moves. But with their rival, Lisa, having figured out their secret, will they get away with it?  I know the story line doesn’t sound like something magnificent, but I personally really enjoyed it. It’s funny and a bit raunchy, and the ending is a bit unexpected (I know; I say “a bit” too much in my writing").

 

 

  • Mean Girls: The best teen movie ever. heck, best movie ever – teen or not. Everyone knows this movie (if YOU don’t, go now; Mean Girls posterlook it up, watch it, enjoy) and of course love it. I could try to describe it, but I found this summer online that I like better then what I would say. “Raised in African bush country by her zoologist parents, Cady Heron thinks she knows about survival of the fittest. But the law of the jungle takes on a whole new meaning when the home-schooled 16-year-old enters public high school for the first time and encounters psychological warfare and unwritten social rules that teenage girls face today.” Yeah, that about covers it. Love this movie. 

 

 

  • All I Wanna Do (Strike!): This is not only a teen film, but also a girl power one. When Odie is forced to transfer to Miss Godard's Preparatory School for Girls All I Wanna Do poster(though not real, in the movie it’s located in Connecticut – just like every other boarding school in movies) by her parents after she is caught planning to lose her virginity to her boyfriend, she is sure she is going to hate it there. Upon arrival, she meets her two new roommates: the ever-scheming Verena von Stefan, and the sexually mature Tinka Parker. They soon introduce her to their friends Tweety (real name Theresa) Goldberg and Momo (real name Maureen) Haines. These girls are the school trouble makers/ rebels and the founding members of a secret club called Daughters of the American Ravioli (DAR). During their meetings, they sit around eating cold cans of ravioli (which they steal from the kitchen) while discussing their lives, goals, and overall ambitions. In a time period ( the movie is set in 1963) where women were taken as second class citizens to men, the girls at Miss Godard’s are treated as if they are equal – if not better – in every way to males.  But when the school hits financial trouble, the Board of Trustees decided that they should merge with the neighboring all boy school, St. Ambrose Boys Academy. Upon hearing this, the girls of DAR decided to take matters into their own hands and hatch up a scheme to stop the merge from happening and keeping the girls first, something that would would sure not happen once the boys are their. The movie has an overall happy, light, teen feeling about it, but underneath lies a strong feminist message. Placing it in a time when feminism was just starting to regain momentum, we see these girls take pride in who they are and what they want to be – and it’s not a house wife! 

 

  • Teenage Dirtbag: Popular high school senior Amber Lane has been harassed by Thayer Mangeris, a white trash delinquent who she is placed both in creative writing and next to in study hall, for a while. Though they can’t stand each other in Teenage Dirtbag poster the beginning, as the year progresses they start to open up  and learn about to other through a notebook. He has a brutal home life (as seen in his father who beats him and his older brother who rapes their sister) and her parents basically don’t give a damn about her (as in seen when her father yells at her for not tying up the boat right, even though she is in massive pain from an injury she received just a couple hours earlier during cheerleading practice – which he doesn’t even comment about, never mind worry) while she feels social pressure because of her popular status. The movie is touching and realistic – most likely because it’s supposedly based on the writer/director’s life. It’s not one of those “love prevails all” movies so don’t expect a Disney ending, but the ending does have some happiness in it.  More in a bittersweet way. It keep you wondering for days after the last scene. The performances varied. Her friends were flat characters who only seemed to be interested in partying and being popular; his friends just seemed like they wanted to party and get high. Overly typical. On the other hand, the actors who played Amber and Thayer put on wonderful performances. They came off like most people – neither all good or all bad. They’re complicated and make dictions that you wish you could jump into the screen and sock them in the head for.  His family (brother, sister, father) were also great. The film quality was good most of the time, but during the dream-like sequences and the flash forwards to the present (the movie is told as if Amber was looking back) are not the best. The gray-blue they put over them subtracts, not adds to the movie. Overall, I love this it, a must see for sure.

     That’s all the time I have for today. Next Wednesday I will have more guilty pleasures up.

                                             ~XOXO,

                                                           Ariana

 

P.S. Tune in Monday. I will be both celebrating my one year of blogging (Wow, what a year it has been!) and my schools big move. They(the people who the school’s high ups paid) have been renovating an old weapons factory (the Colt factory in Hartford, CT) or over a year and Monday (if all goes to plan) everything will be ready and we’ll be moving in! I would post pictures, but to be truthful, the building looks really messy from the outside if you Google it, so instead here’s the link to my schools Facebook page. There are better pictures and even a video of the inside (though it’s over a month old and the building is sure not to look like that anymore). Can’t wait to move!

 

P.P.S. I also have a sort surprise/broadening my horizon thing to unveil on Monday. I’m going to make sure everything is set this weekend.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Cat's Blog

Dear Bloggie,
       Just realized that I never put up a link to Cat's new blog. Here it is. She posts a lot of random stuff so it can be quite entertaining. Now, I'm dead tired so I'm going to take a nap before dinner.
              ~XOXO,
                       Ariana

Sunday, January 23, 2011

The Treehouse Gang

Dear Bloggie,

      Though I would quickly share this new blog called The Treehouse Gang. It's a blog made formed by writers (non-published) and it gives tips and help with writing. Each week a different piece of writing (depending on that weeks theme and that months genre) will be picked to be posted up on the site. That way the readers of the blog can give you back criticism and ways to improve. One of the bloggers I follow (her own blog can be found here) designed it and is apart of the writers who run it. Check it out!
                ~ Ariana

Excerpt, Excerpt, Read All About It!

Dear Bloggie,
       Last night I finished chapter four (I can't believe it either) and today my goal is to write chapter five. this, I know, will prove to be harder. It's a high emotion scene. My character, Chelsea, is for the first time since they were children starting to connect with her sister. Part of is because her sister needs her for the first time in a very long time. She's eighteen and pregnant. Yeah, she may be engaged, but obviously it's got to be scary when suddenly everything you had planed to goes out the window and you find yourself on an unknown path. The other reason they are re-connecting is because Chelsea is starting to see her as less then perfect. She can understand her now and isn't trying to live up to her.
    So I have to write about these buds of a sisterly relationship, but also about their parents who have a very complicated relationship. So it's a chapter about her family life and how it pertains to her and all. It's going to be hard, but I'm up for the challenge.
   Last night, as I tried and failed to sleep (I think I might seriously have insomnia; I should probably tell a doctor or something, but whatever)  thought on a somewhat alternate ending. It's almost exactly the same, except for her relationship with one of the characters. The only reason I haven't chosen this option is because I think it might actully work better as the end of the whole Addie Baudelaire book. I don't know, it would work well both. Maybe I'll keep it a mystery until the end, then write the last scene whichever way it comes best to me.
    For now, I want to instead give you an excerpt from the story. Enjoy (hopefully).


    After high school, I’m off to New York. Loud, fast, and noisy New York. It’s so different from Clearport. Clearport is where you go to raise a family. Go to live peacefully. Go to die. It’s the Florida of the north. We might not have the heat, or the city life, or really anything at all, but we have quite and relative tranquility.
    Maybe that’s why I want New York. I want to go somewhere that, if I choose, I can get lost in. I want to be some place where it’s all happening. I don’t want to be my parents in thirty years, both of them have risen to the top of Clearport and now find can’t move up anymore. Maybe that’s why they do what they do. Do who they do. Because in Clearport, it’s so scandalous and gossip worthy that it’s become something new in a town where everything is so old. 
                              
                                 ~XOXO,
                                            Ariana
                      

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Procrastination, Meet Your Master! **Whoop Ass**

Dear Bloggie,
          It's 5:41 in the morning and after procrastinating and trying to write for *dose math in her head with assistance from her fingers* six and a half hours, I have finished chapter three. Yay, I'm on track! Now I just have to get chapter four done by next Saturday. Maybe I can have chapter five done by Saturday too! I probably won't, but I have to have hope.

                ~ XOXO,
                            Ariana

Outlining: Part One Done

Dear Bloggie,
        Guess what? I outlined the first part of my book today! That's one third outlined! Well, sorta. I used flash cards (a writing tip I read in a book once) to write down scenes. Now I know what my plot is to work off of. It's only the first half (up to the part where she decides to...[no spoilers!]) but at least it's something. I know how the last half goes, but it's the middle part that's going to be hard. I normally never really know what is going on in the middle. Oh poop.
     Still, I have a while before I even have to start outlining that. I'm only on chapter three (though it's my goal to finish it tonight) and have written a total of sixteen cards,  meaning I probably have six to eight chapter of material (that would bring me to ten chapters for the first part). That in mind, I'll probably end up with around twenty-five to thirty chapters in total. At around 2,500 words a chapter (around my average), that's about 70,000 words, 300 pages. Not bad. Becoming was almost 400 and over 90,000 words. On average, a YA manuscript is 50,000 to 80,000 words. This book should fit that bracket perfectly.
    I really need to stop procrastinating. I can do all
the math in the world (with a calculator since I suck at math) on how many pages my book will be and how many words I will write, but at the end of the day, if I don't write anything nothing is going to happen! I'm like the biggest procrastinator! I'm writing about procrastination, all the while procrastinating on writing my book! *Sigh* More more later. (Much later, like after I have written chapter three!).

      ~Ariana

Thursday, January 20, 2011

The Writing Gods Have Found Favour In Me

Dear Bloggie,
        As you can tell by the title of this post, I have been getting back into the writing mojo. I don't want to jinx myself since I'm only on chapter three, but I really hope this all works out. I love writing, but recently the only writing I have been doing is for essays and this blog. Oh, and a bout a billion and one poems that I have written since I've become a creative writing major. Gawd, I have written so many poems that I am all poemed out! I swear, soon I'm going to be writing about my Polar Springs water bottle. That seems to be the only thing I haven't written a poem about. Well, not really, but you get the point.

    So your probably wondering what story I'm working on. Because I'm only on chapter three (almost 6,000 words in) I'm not going to give it it's own tab yet (you may have noticed that I took down the C.O.A.O.P. tab and just placed the story under Current/Future Projects), but it is under the projects tab. It's called The Curse of the Good Girl and you may remember that I first mentioned it back in September. At the time, I hadn't really written much, just the first draft of the first chapter. Nothing was really rolling with that idea past that point, so I put it aside. Eventually, my schedule became a bit over whelming so I basically put writing aside except for school work and this blog.

     I had written the beginning of chapter two and was dabbling in about a hundred different projects, when last week or so I started back up with this. I finished chapter two and am almost down with chapter three. Plus (!), I have a good idea what the storyline is here. Things are going smoothly. For now. I want to finish chapter three this week and then try to do a chapter a week. I don't know yet how many chapter there will be, but it's probably over 20. So, with that in mind, if all goes smoothly and I can figure out the plot line and outline it all out and ect., I should be done before summer. Then, if that really does happen, then I can edit during the June and the beginning of July, and have it up on inkpop and wattpad (a writing site my friend Sierra introduced me to) by hopefully the second or third week of July. I have the first two chapters up on inkpop now, but I'm not putting anymore up until I'm done.

      I learned a very valuable lesson with C.O.A.O.P: Once you put it on inkpop, you have almost NO time to write. You're constantly reading other people's work so they can read yours, that you barely have time to do anything else! That's basically why I stopped writing it. I only really had time to write during the summer, but I was always reading. Once school started, I had almost zero time so writing was put on hold completely -- so was reading (inkpop and published books). But I've found time now and am going for it. Hopefully. Good night.

                     ~ Ariana

P.S. This is the cover I've made. Actully, I've made many, but this is my favorite and the one I'm going to use.




              
  

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

The Doll

The Doll


You are the cherry in my Cherry Coke,
The orange shade in your sweatshirt,
And most importantly, the doll to the lonely child.

However, you are not the branches on the tree of life,
The lone jacket to the poor man,
Or the last crumb for the scavenging mouse.
And you certainly not the lion.
There is just no way you are the lion.

You may be the shadows in the night,
The rope burn from the yanked binoculars,
And the whines from the restless child,
But you are not the broken strap on my favorite purse.

Just so you know,
I am the missing piece of the puzzle,
The wind that snaps the branches in the midst of the storm,
And the winding tornado which destroys all.

I am now and will always be that tornado,
But don’t worry,
You are still the cherry in my Cherry Coke,
And thankfully the doll. 

Sunday, January 16, 2011

I Might As Well: Dream Hunger Games Cast

Dear Bloggie,
     Everyone in the world (OK, not really, but whatever) seems to have an opinion on who should be cast in the highly anticipated The Hunger Games movie. For those who have been living under a rock, The Hunger Games is a dystopian novel which follows Katniss Everdeen, a seemingly tough as nails sixteen-year-old who saves her twelve-year-old sister from having to participate in the Hunger Games (a televised competition in which children between the ages of twelve and eighteen must fight to the death, the survivor gaining wealth and eternal glory) by offering to take her place. This then sets in motion a series of events that Katniss has almost no control over but is constantly trying to find her footing in. Since this is one of my favorite books, I might as well say who I think should be cast.

Katniss Everdeen ~ Jodelle Ferland or Hailee Steinfeld


Jodelle Dressed Like Katniss For Halloween.
Can you say "hint, hint"?
  Real Age: 16
  Character Age: 16

   I know, most know Jodelle  from her part as Bree Tanner in Eclipse, but I promise you that she's actully a good actress. I know her from the assortment of horror movies she has done. Silent Hill being my favorite, but I also enjoyed the miniseries Kingdom Hospital which was based off a Stephen King book. I still was to see Case 39. She's mainly done horror parts, but I really think she can pull of Katniss.

Hailee Steinfeld

Real Age: 14
Character Age: 16

   Hailee is a relatively new actress, but her performance in True Grit is gaining A LOT of buzz. Still, even though she's become a bit on the famous side for it, it's not a defining role that would make everyone see her as it when she does another role. Katniss is. Not sure if that would be good or bad, but I still think she would make a great Katniss. The only question I have is about her age. Fourteen is a little young (I should know, I'm fourteen) to be portraying such emotions that Katniss goes through with all the war. Plus, the actors that many want to play Peeta and Gale are all over eighteen. That would be awkward if you ask me.

P.S: I also think Alexandra Daddario would do a good job. I liked her in Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief.


Peeta Mellark ~ Hunter Parrish

Oh, What Blue Eyes You Have...
Real Age: 23
Character Age: 16

Convinced You Have I?
I Knew I Would! ;)
 OK, you have to admit, he looks EXACTLY how Peeta is described. EXACTLY. OK, now his acting credits. I've never seen him on Weeds, but I have heard good things about it. I did see him in Freedom Writers (I really like this movie) and in pieces of 17 Again (I didn't like the movie, but he was good). Overall, I think he'll do a good job. Plus...Well, look this.


Gale Hawthorne ~ Gaspard Ulliel

Sexy Beast





Real Age: 26
Character Age: 18

   To be perfectly honest, I have not really found the "perfect" Gale yet. Because of that, I don't really care who they cast at this point. (AS LONG AS IT"S NOT TAYLOR LAUTNER!!!!) I will probably really care is they cast him wrong, but for now I'm whatever about it. I basically only picked Gaspard Ulliel because his name has been mentioned in people who should, and because I think he's very, very, hot. Acting wise, I don't know. I've only seen him in one move (Hannibal Rising) and I wasn't paying the most attention to his acting skills...

Primrose (Prim) Everdeen ~ Elle Fanning or Chloe Moretz or Ruby Jenrins

I'm A Big Kid Now!

Real Age: 12
Character Age: 12

   Dakota Fanning's little sister has grown up! I've never seem her in any movie (well, not in a big enough part to judge her) but she looks the part the most and if her acting skills are near her sister's, then she'll do a fine job. The trailer for her movie Somewhere looks really good. Maybe I'll get my chance to judge her acting then.


You $%@&*$%  !
Real Age: 13
Character Age: 12  

I posotivly loved her performance in Kick Ass as  tough, foul mouthed, super hero Hit Girl. Plus, she's a fan of the series who wants to be a part of it. That's always a good thing. She seems like a great actress on the brink of super stardom.


I See Dead People

Real Age: 12
Character Age: 12


 
   Ruby seems to be a wonderful actress, even though she has a strange resemblance to Haley Joel Osment. I heard she was in Remember Me, but since I haven't seen it I'm not sure how she was in that movie. What I do know, is how she performed in a short indie film named Zoe's Day. I love it! They have the whole thing up on IMDb. Go see it. NOW!


Haymitch Abernathy ~ Robert Downey Jr. or Hugh Laurie

Mr. Bass-Ass




Age: 45
Character Age: About 40 (Middle-Aged)

  Yeah, we all know that Robert Downey Jr. would be bad-ass as drunk and cynical Haymitch. No more explanation needed.


Age: 51
Charcter Age: About 40 (Middle-Aged)


    But oh! How Hugh Laurie would be do a great job too! Decisions, decisions.  
                                                                                                                                  
                                               President Coriolanus Snow ~ Alan Dale

*Sniff, Sniff* What's That Smell?
 Can It Be Blood & Roses?

Real Age: 63
Character Age: Idk

   No matter who they cast as President Snow, Alan Dale will forever be my President Snow. I know him from his part as Charles Widmore on Lost, and since the beginning I have pictured him as Snow. Your welcome to your own opinions on who looks like President Snow, just know your wrong.


Rue ~ Yara Shahidi


Age: 10
Charcter Age: 12

  I don't have anyone I definitely think looks like Rue, but this girl is as close as I can get.

        

               Madge Undersee ~ AnnaSophia Robb



 Age: 17
 Charcter Age:  16          

    Even though Madge isn't the biggest character, I liked her and I seem to picture her as Anna Sophia so I thought I might as well put her up.


Effie Trinket ~ Kristin Chenoweth

Age: 42
Character Age: Idk



   Like with President Snow, no matter who they cast as Effie, Kristin will always be the one in my mind.














     Well, that's all for now. I know I left out some characters, but that is mainly because I haven't found any I really like for them. Like Cinna. If I do, I'll let you guys know.

   ~ XOXO,
               Ari

Friday, January 7, 2011

Something Like Withdrawal

Dear Bloggie,
     I'm currently writing a review for Matched by Ally Condie, but I had to take a break so I can express my current problems. I AM GOING TO DOCTOR WHO WITHDRAWAL!!!! DOCTOR WHO! DOCTOR WHO! DOCTOR WHO!!!!!

     Thank you for listening, no I'll pretend this never happened.

     ~XOXO,
                   Ariana

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Happy New Years My Dear Chums

Dear Bloggie,
     So it's actully just a few hours after January first, but I decided to make a quick post. First, I hope you all enjoyed your holiday vacation. I know I did. But sadly, all good things must end. Monday it's back to the same old routaine until winter break (which I get in February) and spring break (which I get in April, but I am aware that some people just get one break in March or April, instead of one in February and one in April). Still, I thought I might share some of my New Year's resolutions.


  1. Lose Weight: I really need to do this. With the holiday season, it hasn't been working. As soon as I finish the chocolate covered potato chips I received, it's back to healthy eating! 
  2. Get A Boyfriend: That way I you will have to stop listening to me bitch and moan about being single and upset that my crushes don't like me, and I won't bitch and moan about being single and none of my crushes liking me. You see, everybody wins!
  3. Review More Books: I really enjoyed doing that review the other day for Withering Tights, so I've decided I'll do that with all the books I'm going to read in 2011!
  4. Write Another Book And/or Re-Write Becoming: Yeah, I really need to complete one or both of these...
  5. Try To Become A All-Around Happier Person: Can't really promise this one. 
  6. Stay In Touch With My None GHAA Friends: I really need to improve on this. I'm always forgetting to text them or answer their texts because my phone is ALWAYS dead from lack of charging. OK, not always, but it seems like that. 
  7. Purchase The iPhone From Verizon: It's FINALLY coming to Verizon, but I'll wait until the iPhone 5. It's coming out sometime around June or July. Hey, I see it this way: I didn't have a computer until seventh grade, I was able to wait for that -- even if I think I waited WAY too long. I just got the iPod Touch, I waited a while for that too. I have wanted the iPhone for a year and a half or so now, I can wait five to six more months. For a person with zero patience, I have waited for a lot surprisingly. 
  8. Watch More Doctor Who: I started watching it on the eve of New Years eve because there has been a super long three-day-marathon going on, and OMG, I am in love with that show now. I mean, like borderline obsessed! OK, not borderline, I am obsessed! You, there, reading this blog! Yeah, YOU! GO WATCH DOCTOR WHO NOW! I SAID NOWWWWW!
      ~Ariana