Come On -- We Know You Have Them

Resolutions, that is.  Now that the new year’s rolled around and everyone’s swapping 2011 calendars out for shiny new ones, most people are also working toward personal goals.

That’s right.  The New Year’s Resolutions are upon us.  A whole nother year of opportunities. One of mine is to blog consistently and on schedule this year: Thursdays and Sundays.  That means no more long, unannounced blogging vacations—sorry about that, but I needed to focus on rewrites.  I’ll be visiting your blogs more regularly, too.  Scout’s honor.

Realistically, I know a ton of people have a ton of resolutions that never pan out.  And that I’m usually one of those people.  But that doesn’t keep me from setting them, because A) it’s always nice to have something to work toward and B) I’m always up for a good laugh.

And like countless other writers, I’ve got some writing-oriented goals in mind.  I figure you probably do, too, so here’s a quote from the Walt Disney to keep us motivated and inspired:

“Get a good idea and stay with it.  Dog it, and work at it until it’s done right.”

So even if you quit your diet, don’t succeed with your plans for world domination, or fail on the whole “be a better person” concept, remember—stick with your writing resolutions as best you can.  Go all Walt Disney on those things.

Any writing resolutions you’d like to share?  Looking back at 2011, how’d similar resolutions work out for you last year?

Liebster Award -- A.K.A., I'm a Cheater

First thing's first:  Thank you, K.V. Briar!  (Now is the part where you follow her if you haven't already.  You know, not to be bossy or anything.)  Also, an apology to her:  I'm sorry I took so long to get this posted.  Back to school stuff and excuses and all that.

    I've already made a Liebster post, but since the award's meant to highlight up-and-coming blogs, I figured it'd be okay if I posted again and shared five more blogs.  (Does that make me a cheater?  Not sure.  Anyway, I come from a very competitive family, where boardgames are cutthroat and the occasional display of cheating happens -- you especially have to watch my 12-year-old sister.  Let's just say there's a reason we don't play Monopoly much.)

    Here's a quick glimpse of the rules:

    "The goal of the award is to spotlight up and coming bloggers who currently have less than 200 followers. The rules of the award are:

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.
2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.
5. And most of all - have bloggity-blog fun!"
    Aaaand here we go (remember, no sales pitches -- it's for your own good):

    AderuMoro's Too Many Ambitions

    Eat...Sleep...Write

    Keep on Writing, Keep on Dreaming

    Live to Write...Edit when Necessary

    Thoughts of a Shieldmaiden

    Okay then, I'm off to alert these blogs like a responsible blogger. 

    For the record, if you laughed/scoffed at me for that last sentence, no worries -- my feelings won't be crushed.

   

Liebster Blog Award

First off, here's a huge thanks to Jenna Cooper!  If you haven't already, go follow her blog.
   

    Here's all the Liebster stuff:

"The goal of the award is to spotlight up and coming bloggers who currently have less than 200 followers. The rules of the award are:

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.
2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.
5. And most of all - have bloggity-blog fun!"

    Got that?  Good.  Let's go. 

    Here are the five blogs I'm passing it on to:

     The Story Queen

    Ink-Splattered

    Hello, World

    Amaranthine Forever 

    Scribbles and Ink Stains 

    Granted, I think I was technically supposed to write up a short line about each blog, and I honestly tried.  But I make a horrible salespitch, and they all sounded forced and robotic, so...I know there aren't descriptions, but don't take it out on them!  Go visit and comment and follow, agreed?

Blog Award and Blogs to Check Out

First off, I want to thank Jenna Cooper for the Irresistably Sweet Blog Award!  You should go check out her blog if you haven't already.  Like, right now.  I'd wanted to write this post over the weekend, but my Internet went mysteriously out.  Anyway, it's mysteriously back on again, which brings you this post.



Ooh. Strawberries.

    Here are The Official Rules:

    1)  Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to their blog.  Which you should do anyway, really.
    2)  Include seven random tidbits about you in your blog post.
    3)  Link to 15 other blogs.
    4) Let those 15 other bloggers know that you've awarded them.  So you can keep the chain going, you know?

    Okay, so here are seven completely random things about me you didn't know, and probably never wanted to, either:

    1)  I switch favorite songs all the time, but I always love 80's music.  Currently, my favorite song is "People Are Strange" by The Doors.
    2)  I'm somewhat addicted to the show "Angry Beavers".  It aired when I was little, in the 90's, but thanks to Netflix, I have instant access.  (When, you know, my Internet is working.)
    3)  I'm insanely jealous that I didn't come up with the X-Men.  Especially "X-Men: The Animated Series" -- again, a 90's cartoon.  (I'm able to watch this one with the help of YouTube.  Bless you, people who make videos of old cartoons that don't air anymore and post them.)
    4)  I'm going into the eleventh grade.  (Thank goodness for summer.)
    5)  My favorite poet is definitely Edgar Allan Poe.  My favorite poem?  "Alone," by said favorite poet.
    6)  I'm incredibly clumsy.  (Scarily clumsy, I guess I should say.)
    7)  For my birthday in April, I got a Sheltie puppy.  I named him Dax -- which means he gets called Daxter, Daximus, and for some reason, Daxy -- and he's also incredibly clumsy.  We make quite a pair.

    Okay.  With that out of the way, I can link to some helpful blogs out there.  You might already know some of them, but that's okay.  In no particular order --

•     Go Teen Writers
•     Adventures in Agentland
•     Carolina Valdez Miller
•     Laura Pauling
•     Laura Lascarso
•     Melissa Writes Fiction
•     LA Starkey Blog
•     Writers' Ally
•     Elana Johnson
•     Writing by Heart
•     In the Dreamstate
•     Big Glass Cases
•     Literary Rambles (enter Elana Johnson's book giveaway while you're there, right?)
•    Amie Kaufman (she explained on her blog she'll be gone for the month, but there's still a ton of other stuff to read, which she highlighted)
•     Getting Past the Gatekeeper

    So there it is.  I really need to let those blogs know -- but that's probably something for tomorrow. 

   

    

Click This Link, Become a Follower

Here's the thing.

    You've been amazing enough to read these posts, agreed?  It was admittedly startling when I logged on this afternoon and saw that the total views had jumped from around 175 to about 230. 

    But hey, I'm not complaining.

    Now Literally YA is taking advantage of your kindness and interest and all that, asking you to take that a step farther.  1) Look to the toolbar on the right, where it says "Google Friend Connect".  2) Notice that Literally YA needs some followers.  3)  Aaaand lastly, become a follower and spread the word. 

    You'll be glad you did...but not as glad as Literally YA.

    Now, for me to remember my manners and such. 

    Thanks!