Reading Stuff and MUCH More (You won't be disappointed!)

Sometimes I use my car as my office.  That's what I'm doing right now and the library is so kind as to give me free wi-fi, even when they're not open.

Reading Stuff
I am coming along not so swimmingly with my library reading list.  I have been keeping up in two of the four books I'm reading right now.

1. Nicholas Nickleby
2. Dickens: A Biography

I must say I find his biography more interesting than his novel at the moment.  I was enjoying it at a level 5 tizziness, but the next day the chapters were arduous, the descriptions painfully long, thousands of unnecessary words per page (maybe not quite that many, but the print is small so it might be possible).  Maybe the book became my fo-o-e-e because of how thick it is and I'm thinking "I've got to finish my library reading list!  I've got to keep up!  And YOU, Nicholas Nickleby, are making it so. much. harder!  You horrid thing!  Ok, I detest you now.  You're going from a 5 to a -5.  Ha!  How do you like that????"

Yes, I do think that is what happened with me and poor Nicholas.  Well, it cannot be helped.  It's more important to complete your reading goals than to enjoy what you're reading.  (BIIIIGG sarcasm alert there.  If I had a siren, button, thing, I would make it howl very loudly right now.  EAH!  EAH!  EAH!  EAH!  That's supposed to be the siren, button, thing.)

In Closing
Well, that's all I have for you today.  Think of me while I read N-i-cho-las Nick-le-by--heh-ee *sobbing a river...sobbing like a river?*.  After that I'm going to read A Spear of Summer Grass by Deanna Raybourn which is actually not too bad (even though it's published by Harlequin).  No "defense" (as my brother says) to them but they usually publish very fruity (as in light, fluffly [I meant to spell it that way *sarcasm!*], boring plot) or very sexual stuff.  

I'm not a huge fan of sex scenes in books.  I mean how embarrassing is that to be reading in a public place and feel your cheeks getting hot and your pulse racing and you think "Oh my word!  Everyone can SEE me!  It's like I'm doing it with a BOOK or something!  This is so odd and EMBARRASSING."  I mean, the person that is reading it might as well be acting it out cause it jars all the same bodily responses.  And in public??!!  To me, private is not any better.  It's still just as embarrassing.  But that's me.  Maybe you like that kind of thing.  I'm just not that into it.  

I cannot show my face because my skin will sparkle.  Ha!

That's why I'm liking A Spear of Summer Grass right now.  Deanna writes about a very racy woman who sleeps around a lot.  The woman "did it" once already and I've never been more impressed by a sex scene.  You knew they did it, but the way Deanna wrote it, it was quite clean.  And keeping it discreet, vague, clean, whatever you want to call it, did not make the story or the character one bit artificial.  I feel like Deanna allowed readers to choose what they would imagine.  And I like that.  

There are some books that are really great plot-wise, but then they are filled with sex scenes.  So where do (that was on purpose) one go to get a good story without sex scenes?  The Christian Romance genre does not automatically fit the bill because, yep, no sex scenes there, but hard to find a plot that is interesting.  I'm not busting on them.  I'm a follower of Christ.  But I don't think you have to be boring because of it.  And I don't think adding sex scenes to a book makes it automatically interesting.  In fact, it does the opposite for me.  

The closest example I can pick of interesting without literal sex scenes would be in screen form, and that's Downton Abbey.  There is scandal time after time without everyone sleeping with everything (oops, I meant everyone) else and showing entire steamy scenes about it.  I think discretion and modesty go a long way in creating an interesting plot and characters.  All that excitement over sleeping around is for teenagers.  Sorry, teenagers, that's how I feel.  (It just doesn't work in real life.  It's HURTFUL, not exciting.  *in stage whisper so I don't bweak their wittle hearts*)

Ok, enough of that.

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Read my book for free in an exciting chapter by chapter release!

Blog Post Day

Fun Stuff

Here are all the ways I've accidentally misspelled "blog" while typing.

"blob"

"blot"

and today while writing my post title "blop" 

Those tickle me, so I decided they were one of those important pieces of information that you should know about.

Writing Stuff

I posted Chapter 2 of Innocence (the first book/episode to the ever wonderful Gold Dragon series) on Friday.  Links below to refresh your memory and enthusiasm.

Wattpad

Tablo

This is free reading here, folks!  Can't beat the price and can't beat getting in on a cool series from the ground up.  Don't be left behind.  Click on the link TODAY.  (I know I should be writer for commercials or advertisement or something.)

Now, about that purchase link.  I am working on it this week and have made it priority to get it up this Friday, September 18th.  I'll put it on Wattpad, Tablo and my wonderful blog here.  That will be your chance to buy the full book (now remember it's like an episode so it's six chapters long, not a 300-page book, ok?  But everyone's so impatient these days, who's gonna sit down for five hours to read an entire book.  Innocence is tailored for impatient people who want a good story in manageable doses to fit their busy schedules...what? You get the point?  Ok.).

If you're good, I'll give the book to you at a discount.  If you're a book blogger or book reviewer, I'll give it to you for free for a 5-star review.  Just kidding.  You get it for free for an HONEST review, of course!

Ok, I gotta go, but go over to Tablo and Wattpad and check out the first two chapters and leave me a comment and like and vote and all that good stuff.

See you later!

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My Aside Reading List

In addition to that hilariously massive Library Reading List that I talked about yesterday, I have an “aside” reading list.

1. After Tex (by Sherryl Woods)
2. Garden Spell (by Sarah Addison)
3. Desperation (by Stephen King)
4. Your Best LIfe Now (by Joel Osteen)
5. Eyes Wide Open (by Ted Dekker)
6. The Gate House (by Nelson DeMille)

Books 3, 5 and 6 are from a store called Ollies.  There were two of these stores where I lived in Pennsylvania, one on the east end and one on the west end.  Here in Clinton, NC, there are none.

A couple weeks ago my boyfriend Jorge and I went to a town called Goldsboro where we were indulging in Sheetz (nope, none of those in Clinton either; what is in Clinton, you ask?  Nothing!).  Down the hill from Sheetz was an Ollies.  Praise be!  Jorge was intrigued by my enthusiasm, so he had to check it out.  For any who don’t know, it’s a store that sells stuff cheap.  They even have some name brands in there like Paula Dean, Jack Links jerkey, and I already mentioned Stephen King!

Jorge fell in love.  We bought two packs of beef jerkey, a toilet brush (odd, I know), and six books, all for $20.  Now we try to think of excuses to go to Goldsboro so we can stop at Ollies.  First, we go to Sheetz.  He orders sliders from their MTO menu and I get a cream soda (another thing they don’t have in Clinton, not in the gas stations, that is) and we eat and walk down the hill to the Ollies.  We throw our containers in their outdoor trash and enter the cheap heaven of Ollies merchandise.  They even have a coffee pot at the back of the store where you can get a cup for free and sip and shop.

I meant to write about my Aside Reading List, which are the books I want to read after my Library Reading List is complete.  I have started three of the six.  I’m reading one of them on an almost daily basis right now (Your Best Life Now) in addition to my library list.  I just wanted to give you a small taste of the things I put myself through.  Haha!

And one more thing.  A cool girl named Olivia in the UK invited me to do a guest post on her blog today, so go over to Lovelaces to check it out.  She reviews books and writes about other fun stuff.  I like the way she writes.  She makes me want to read the books she reviews.  I have added Tiger Lily to my Goodreads reading list just because of her review.  You can follow her via Bloglovin’ on her site.

Thanks for reading.  Remember to subscribe by email in the right hand panel and follow my story Innocence being released RIGHT NOW chapter by chapter via Wattpad and Tablo.

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If You Like Books, Read This; If You Don’t, Look Away

I seem to like getting started when everyone else is getting off work.  I woke up from a short nap thirty minutes ago, took a walk and still don’t feel awake.  There is a tree removal service currently removing trees in our neighborhood that I find far more fascinating than trying to rouse myself into the editing mood.  

Today’s subject is my ridiculously long Library Book Reading list, that I posted about a while back, put upon myself by no one other than...me!  In case you don’t remember, the story goes like this…

I had fourteen books checked out from the library.  Some I’d had out a month while others were going on three months.  (Our library is great, in that, if you aren’t finished with the book and you’ve already used up your three, three-week allotted renewals, you can simply ask the librarian to check it in, then check back out to you immediately.)  Because of the aforesaid liberalness of our wonderful library, I knew I was never going to finish reading these books when the due dates meant absolutely nothing.  So I came up with a plan.  (Here’s where it gets good!)  I vowed to read ALL fourteen of the books I had checked out before their next CHECK-IN DATE.  That means that if I can renew them online (those three allotted renewals), I may.  But by the time the last renewal has run out, I must have the book read because I’m not allowing myself to check it in then check it right back out to extend my borrowing period.

That said (and if you’re utterly confused by now just abandon ship), I launched into my reading.  Within the first couple days, I realized the awful truth:  I was not going to finish three of the books that were next due.  The only way was to read ALL DAY LONG, but I couldn’t do that and forsake my writing.  That was making this challenge far more important than it should be.  So I made myself a few allowances.

1. That I could renew 2 of the 3 books due since I still had over 500 pages EACH to go in them.
2. That I could return the one entitled Harry, A History about the phenomenon behind the Harry Potter books.  My reasoning: I am currently reading through the Harry Potter series for the first time and don’t want to accidentally read any spoilers.  So I felt it ethical to return this book until such time as I had finished the series (books and movies, btw) and could enjoy reading about Harry’s history fear-free.

My list is currently at eleven titles.  Since I began the challenge (on August 20, 2015) I have completed two titles

1. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (by I’m Pretty Sure You Know Who, but not You-Know-Who from the books of course)

(This one made me cry.  Maybe I’ll tell you some other time why.)

2.) This Wicked Magic (by Michele Hauf)

(Don’t ever read this one.  I would have to write a full review in a blog post to explain why, but there are so many other WONDERFUL things I’d rather write about.  So you’ll have to suffer for eternity not knowing.)

Here are my remaining books to be read (roughly in the order I plan to read them).  Those with one * are ones I have started (I like to read one chapter of a book then set it aside to do the same to two or three more).  Those with two **’s are ones I am currently reading out of every day.

1. Anybody Out There (by Marian Keyes)**5
2. Nicholas Nickleby (by Charles Dickens)**4
3. Dickens: A Biography (by Fred Kaplan)**3
4. From First Draft to Finished Novel (by Karen S. Wiesner)**5
5. Guilty Pleasures (by Laurell K. Hamilton)
6. A Spear of Summer Grass (by Deanna Raybourn)*
7. The Secret Keeper (by Kate Morton)
8. Silent in the Grave (by Deanna Raybourn)

I should hope those in the graves are not making sounds!!

9.) Twilight (by Stephanie Meyer)*

10.) Vampire Academy (by Richelle Mead)*

11.) The Fire Sermon (by Francesca Haig)*

What do the numbers on the right mean:  Here is my scoring system for how much I like the books I’m currently reading.  One (1) is a little bit, 5 is a lot bit and you understand the numbers in between.  These numbers may change as I read.

Well, that’s it for now.  You can follow my reading progress on my Goodreads profile.  See you later! I got a-a-a-all these books to read. I better get started.

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Remember to follow the story Innocence on Wattpad or Tablo.  Chapter 2 will be released this Friday!

It's Here!

As promised, Chapter 1 of Innocence is now available on Wattpad and Tablo for FREE!

Come follow Mint's story as her life unfolds in a new town that holds mystery and danger.

I have included a photo of the trailer that is much like the one Mint and her mom Trixie move into.  (Great inspiration down south here!)

As always, if you want these updates in your inbox, subscribe by email in the right hand panel.

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Character Pics

Here are some pictures that I said I would share.  I’ll just make this quick since I’m writing this kinda late.  This first one is how I imagine 16-year-old Mint to look, the hair and the style of clothing especially.

 

This second one is a look I could imagine on Mint’s face when she’s just irritated with the general immaturity of the people around her (mainly her mom!).  Side note:  Wait till you meet her mom, Trixie.  She is a piece of work and does everything to make Mint’s life miserable, but she is one of my favorite characters.  She’s so...noticeable...as a character.  Definitely not a boring woman.

Aside from the expression, nothing else resembles Mint, though.  Lol.

This pic makes me think of Ben, a guy Mint will eventually meet in her high school--a-a-actually a bit sooner than her first day of school.  But I can’t tell you the particulars.  You’ll have to wait till that chapter is released.  Don’t worry, it’s near the beginning of the book.  I will hint that this guy’s half-hidden face is a clue as to what their first glimpse of each other is like.

In finding these pictures I just looked up random images.  Some writers use celebrity pics, but those always seem like I’m looking at Barbies or something and not real people.  So I like anonymous pictures.  Funny enough, I didn’t realize until later that the pic for Ben is actually some character on the CW (a local TV channel around here).  Some of you probably recognized him right away.  Oh well, he serves my purpose with the half-hidden face.  That’s all I wanted him for.

Well, that’s it for now.  Chapter 1 of Innocence will be released tomorrow on Wattpad, a website where you can read my work for free!.  I’m trying to have a purchase link available for next Friday so you can download the entire book immediately instead of waiting to read it one chapter per week.  So stay tuned for that.

If you want to get updates on the story to your inbox, follow my blog via email in the right hand panel.  I will post an update tomorrow once I have uploaded the chapter tomorrow.

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Good News and Bad News

One week ago I wrote a blog post that you’ll never get to read because it is eternally frozen on my phone’s Blogger app.  I can’t even click on it to read what I wrote so that I can retype it on my PC.  It was brilliant, of course, something about having finished my newspaper articles (that I write every three weeks for a local paper) and being free to work on my edit for Innocence.  But only my obstinate Blogger app will ever know now what exactly it was.

That’s not even the bad news.  That was only to let you know the great loss I suffered exactly a week ago, to the day.

Good News
Now, here is the good news.  The first chapter of Innocence (updated and in your face) is prepped and ready to upload on Friday, the big NEW LAUNCH of this first book of the Gold Dragon series.

Bad News
The bad news is that the updated version of the entire book will not be available for sale this Friday.  (Awwwwww!)  I know.  I hear you.  There is nobody to blame but me.  I am doing my utmost to get it ready for week 2 (September 11, 2015 MARK YO’ CALENDA’S)...now that I think of it, I could try blaming my friend-editor who is being THE BOMBE...THE BOMB (with an e or without an e?) and editing my chapters for me.  But if I did that, she might bail at my lack of appreciation, then you wouldn’t get to see ANY of the update or book 2 or book 3 or book 4...you know what I mean?

What Does This Mean for You?
Well, if you are a patient person, all that means nothing because you’re planning on reading the free version of Innocence that I’m uploading to Wattpad each week.  If you are An Impatient One, you will have to suffer until week 2 when the book is (hopefully! *hand to mouth with raised eyebrows*) available for purchase.  Barring a third World War, an early winter cold or an obsessive desire to do nothing but drink coffee and read every day, I will have it ready by then.

What You’ve Been Waiting For--Pricing!
For The Impatient Ones who must know IMMEDIATELY what happens at the end of Innocence, you can download the book for ONLY $2.99 as an Amazon Kindle ebook or an iBook.

For the Caver who can only hold out until Chapter 3 is released before the suspense kills you, you can download the book for only $.99 on Etsy!  (I know!  This is a much better deal, but if you’ve gotta have it right away, then there’s a price to pay!)

For those who are Stronger Than Rocks and can withstand the suspense, the entire book will be released on Wattpad for free, one chapter per week.

Innocence, along with book 2, Awakened, and the others to follow are, on average, 10 chapters long.  They’re made to be read quickly (in one sitting for you speedy readers out there) and to hopefully appeal to people who dislike reading long books.  In these short but captivating episodes, you get the story in manageable bursts of action, emotion and suspense (with a sprinkle of romance and appropriate downtime to balance it all out, of course).

Now, a word about the pricing:  The $.99 version of the book, available after the release of Chapter 3, will only be available as a PDF download via Etsy.com (I will give you more info on that website when the download is available).  This download is awesomely formatted (I know, bad adverb there...just ignore it) and reads beautifully on phones or tablets.  The font has been sized to read well on smaller screens so you wouldn’t want to read this on your PC.  Who does that anyways??  The file will download to a PC, though, if you really want to read it that way.  The might just look kinda big.

The website I publish the ebook version with will not allow me to price a book at $.99, so just consider yourself lucky that I found a way to do that for you!

I think that’s everything for now.  If you have any questions, leave them in the comments or email me at authorrebeccayoder@gmail.com

Remember to subscribe to my blog via email in the right hand panel to get each blog update to your inbox.  Come on over to Wattpad, create your free account and follow me there so you can know the second Innocence: Chapter 1 is uploaded this Friday!  For Tablo users, you can find and follow me here.  I will be posting the chapters for free there as well.

Also check me out on…

Facebook:  Rebecca Yoder, One Lady of Shalott

Twitter: @EdinanRoman

Goodreads:  Rebecca Yoder

...and on this awesome pic of me this morning getting ready to edit (never mind that the chair in the background completely takes center stage--just pretend it’s not there).