Teens Speak Series: Volume 1--Gay Marriage

I am happy to introduce the new Teens Speak Series.  The articles in this series are largely unedited and are written by teens between the ages of 13 and 19.  This series is intended to illustrate that teens form intelligent opinions about serious issues.  I hope you enjoy this article as much as I did.

Teens Speak Author Profile

Name: Leira
Age:  19
Grade: Sophomore at University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez
Major:  Mechanical Engineering
What do you want to be when you "grow up"?  I want to be a mom, a wife, a mechanical engineer, a psychologist, a writer and a role model.
What is your biggest annoyance?  The situation in Puerto Rico between the students and the government.

Same-sex Marriage and the Changes: by Leira

mar·riage   [mar-ij]

-noun

1.

a. the social institution under which a man and woman establish their decision to live as husband and wife by legal commitments, religious ceremonies, etc.

b. a similar institution involving partners of the same gender: gay marriage.

                                                                                     From Dictionary.com

  

Early societies needed to guarantee the continued existence of the human species. To do that, they formed an institution which they called marriage. This consisted of symbolically uniting a man and a woman for life. Once married, the couple's job was to have children. They did such a great job reproducing that we have overpopulated the Earth.

  

If human extinction is not a worry right now, why do people still get married? Reasons range from religious to convenient. Some believe that God's purpose for them is to get married; others do it to satisfy society's standards; and a few do it for money, insurance or citizenship. A well-accepted answer to this question is, "We are in love." After all, the Beatles said it, "All you need is love."

Reasons to tie the knot are not the only part of marriage that has evolved. The ceremonies have a great variety. If you were to get married you could choose between a religious or spiritual ceremony or a legal one. You can also do both. Each one has special requirements and different rewards and responsibilities.

Most of them, however, agree on one thing: a marriage is between a man and a woman. Some religions let the man marry many women at the same time. The legal system has even let a woman marry a dog and another a snake.

Yes, a woman can marry her pet, but a woman that loves another woman cannot marry her. Neither can a man marry another man. Only in eleven out of almost two hundred countries in the world have legalized gay marriage.

Why can't two people who love and are committed to each other get married? If the feminist revolution happened way back in the sixties, aren't men and women supposed to be equals and have the same rights? Apparently, no. A woman doesn't have the same right as a man to marry a woman. A man doesn't have the same right as a woman to marry a man.

Religions are relative. They believe in certain things and if the church you're going to doesn't agree to same sex marriages then you don't believe like they do. Maybe you should re-think you're religion. Or, maybe, you should accept that the fact that your church doesn't agree with same-sex relations doesn't make same-sex relations wrong. If they don't want to marry people who are the same sex, they have their right to. I say this, even though I know that "under the eyes of God, everyone is equal."

The legal system doesn't have it so easy though. Because of the separation of Church and State, the government can't prohibit something on the basis that it's immoral or against God's wishes. And if we're just numbers (Social Security numbers) then they don't have the right to choose who each person marries.

One popular excuse to prohibit gay marriage is that they are protecting the sanctity of marriage. Sanctity has to do with God which has to do with religion. Those actions go against the separation of Church and State. Moreover, if they are so preoccupied with the sanctity of marriage, what are they doing to protect it from gold-diggers, people that do it for citizenship or as a result of a drunken night?

Same-sex marriage has to be legalized and the separation between Church and State re-established.

Thank you so much for your wonderful insights Leira!  As always, comments are welcome but will be moderated.  Thoughtful comments and intelligent debating are encouraged.  Rude or otherwise disrespectful comments will not be published.  Please keep all comments respectful.

If you are interested in writing for Teens Speak, please email me at jenniferwelbornwrites@gmail.com for more info.

Bookstore Spotlight #1: Oblong Books and Music in NY

Millerton Location

 Oblong Books and Music

26 Main Street, Millerton, NY 12546 

(518) 789-3797

6422 Montgomery Street, Rhinebeck, NY 12572 

 (845) 876-0500

    
      

Oblong Books and Music in New York boasts two locations and is family owned and operated.  The first store opened its doors in Millerton, NY in 1975 and they've been serving their community ever since!

In 2001 Oblong opened a second store, this one located in Rhinebeck, NY.  The stores are owned by an amazing father-daughter team and provide a friendly atmosphere and host several events each year.

Oblong Books graciously agreed to be my first ever Independent Bookstore Spotlight and Suzanna, an Oblong employee, offered me the following information:

Founded in 1975 in Millerton, NY, Oblong Books & Music has become the anchor of independent bookselling in New York's Hudson Valley. With a second store opening in 2001 in Rhinebeck, Oblong has grown to serve a larger community of readers. The stores are owned by Dick Hermans and his daughter, Suzanna, both of whom have leadership roles in the New England Independent Bookseller's Association. In 2011 they plan to expand their Rhinebeck store to increase the visibility of children's books and increase available seating at author events.

Rhinebeck location

Please check out Oblong Book's upcoming events:

Saturday, 1/29, 7:30pm - Thelma Adams, PLAYDATE (at Rhinebeck store)

http://www.oblongbooks.com/event/reading-thelma-adams-playdate

Saturday, 2/5, 7:30pm - Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya, THE STORYTELLER OF MARRAKESH (at Rhinebeck store)

http://www.oblongbooks.com/event/reading-joydeep-roy-bhattacharya-storyteller-marrakesh

Saturday, 2/12, 7:30pm - Ralph Sassone, THE INTIMATES (at Rhinebeck store)

http://www.oblongbooks.com/event/reading-ralph-sassone-intimates

Friday, 2/18, 7:30pm - Jay Wenk, STUDY WAR NO MORE (at Rhinebeck store)

http://www.oblongbooks.com/event/reading-jay-wenk-study-war-no-more

Saturday, 3/12, 7:30pm - Margaret Roach, AND I SHALL HAVE SOME PEACE THERE (at Millerton store)

http://www.oblongbooks.com/event/reading-margaret-roach-and-i-shall-have-some-peace-there

Thank you to Oblong Books and Music, and most especially to Suzanna for being so very helpful!  

If you live in the Hudson River Valley then please stop Oblong Books and tell them Jennifer says hi! Happy reading!

Cairo in Chaos: Protests in Egypt Grow Violent

For a great break down of what spurred the current political unrest in Egypt please click here for an article by Mother Jones Magazine.

Egyptians facing mass poverty, rampant corruption, and a largely autocratic government are revolting. On January 25th the streets of Egypt erupted with people protesting the current ruling party and Mubarak, who has been President for nearly 30 years. Despite opposition and political discontent, Mubarak, aged 82, has been grooming his son to take over his role as President of Egypt. The question of government corruption must be raised in the face of a "democratic" country who has had the same "President" for nearly three decades. When someone has ruled for that long it begins to become more a regime than a democracy.

Mubarak has not done much to quell the growing poverty in his country, and he has turned a blind eye to the pleas of his people.  Egypt ranks 138 of only 167 countries on The Economist Democracy Index which measures political freedom.  Tunisia, whose government was recently overturned following similar mass protests, ranked just seven spots beneath Egypt.

As the protests began the Associated Press released this video showing a fleeing protester being shot in the back by Egyptian police.  Immediately following the AP release of the video, the Egyptian government shut down all internet access across the country.  There are also reports of difficulty communicating using both cell phones and landlines.

Guardian reporter Jack Shenker was brutally beaten by police on Wednesday night. He recorded the incident and you can listen to it here.

"I am here today because I cannot afford to feed my family," Maha Egadi, a 50 year old accountant, tells a U.K reporter. "We have come because we want our freedom, and we want to stop corruption and theft by the government," he continues as his nose runs and his eyes water from the effects of tear gas.

Earlier today (after dark in Egypt) demonstrators set fire to NDP headquarters in Cairo.  The NDP is the current ruling party. Police instituted a curfew and the streets of the capital are engulfed in tear gas and smoke from various fires set by protesters.  There are continued reports that police are shooting protesters with live rounds, but these reports remain largely unconfirmed at this time.

Images of the protests are difficult to locate because of the government's communication blackout.  I was able to locate the following images:

Demonstrators gatheirng in Cairo on Wednesday night

Protester being arrested. Reports conflict, but an estimated 700-1000 demonstrators have been arrested.

A protester stands in front of a burning barricade in Cairo on January 28, 2011.

Nobel Peace Prize recipient Mohammed ElBaradei, who has long been a vocal leader for Egyptian democracy, returned to Egypt Thursday after a month long absence to support the protests. He and his supporters were attacked by police following Friday prayers.  He has been placed under house arrest.  This is the fourth day of protests.

You can watch a live video feed on the English Al Jezeera website.  I urge you to look at the video feed.  This is what happens when governments do not listen to their people.

New Stuff and a Reminder...

Rain is beating a subtle rhythm against my windows and pattering against the leaves I never seem to get around to raking.  The sun never brightened the sky today, huddled as it was behind a thick mass of clouds.  It was a gray day.  It was a lazy day.  I spent most of the day curled up on my couch, covered with a thick blanket and wiping at my nose with a handful of tissues.

I haven't managed to accomplish a thing I wanted to do today. My hamper is overflowing with dirty clothes.  Last night's dishes are stacked in the sink.  A pile of wadded, used kleenex peeks out from behind my feet because I'm too lazy to get off my rear and throw them away.  I haven't even managed to make the short jaunt to my local bookstore to pick up January's Debut Novel pick for this blog (it was released today). 

In my defense I think I have the flu.  I did slink off the couch just long enough to take my temperature and the thermometer glared a rude 102 at me.  My body aches and my nose has turned into a broken faucet.  Plus I have this horrible cough and my throat feels so raw if I didn't know better I'd think I must have swallowed broken glass.  I'm sick and I am not good at being sick.  I get mad when I'm sick.  I get mad that I can't find the energy to get up and do the stuff I need to do. 

So I'm cranky and I haven't accomplished a darn thing today.  What was the point of all this?

Oh yeah!  I wanted to tell you some things.  First, next month I will begin highlighting one independent bookstore each month!  I am really excited to support indie bookstores and our first store is a good one!

I also hope to begin my Teens Speak Series next month.  If you're a teen and you think you might want to guest write for me click here to find out more.

I would also like to remind all of you of the Debut MG/YA Writer Challenge/Book Club. I've had a reader request to extend book discussions to one month after the date of publication for each book.  Our first book is The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal.

It was released yesterday.  I haven't gotten my copy yet, but I will be picking it up ASAP!  I will post a book review and some discussion questions to get people talking one month after the publication date (so February 25th).  I hope some of you will be reading along with me!

The rain has slowed a bit, but my dog is howling.  I guess it's his way of reminding me to feed him.  He must be hungry and no matter how sick I am, he's gotta eat.  Happy reading!

My GPS Lies To Me

Some people are born with some kind of internal mapping system.  These people always know where they are.  They are good with directions.  These are the people you call when you are lost and have no idea where you are.

My grandpa is one of these people.  He is a walking, talking atlas.  He drove a bread truck 35 years ago in a town he has never lived in.  I moved to that town and my first week there I got horribly lost.  I called him. He hadn't been in my town since his last day driving that bread truck. He still remembered the roads from 35 years ago.  He helped me find my way to my new house, a house he'd never even seen.

If my grandfather drives somewhere once, his brain creates this internal map of that place and he can get to it again years later with no problem.  I don't know how he does it.  My daddy could do it too.

I can't.  I have never been good with directions.  When I first got my license I got lost with such frequency that both my grandpa and my uncle began answering the phone with, "What do you see?" instead of "Hello" when I called.  They just knew I had gotten myself lost again.

My daddy used to tell people I could get lost in a round room with one door.  Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure he was right about that.

Then someone somewhere invented the GPS.  Cue singing angels and halos.  My grandpa, uncle, and husband probably heaved sighs of relief.  No more phone calls from a frantic, lost and horribly cranky Jenn!

Ha! That's what they thought.  You see I have a problem.

I don't trust my GPS.  I believe that snooty bitch with her supposedly soothing voice is lying to me.  I am convinced she is going to get me lost.  Sometimes she says "Turn right here" but there is no here!  No road.

Turn right where you GPS whore?  I don't see a road!!!

Sometimes right when she's led me to the middle of nowhere and I am some place that I have never been in my entire life she says "Signal lost."  Then she freezes and refuses to give me directions. She doesn't even answer me when I push all her buttons and yell, "Tell me where I am you GPS bitch!"

I think she gets me lost on purpose.  That GPS bitch is a serial killer and she's trying to kill me.

So then I pick up my cell phone and call my exasperated grandfather who does not believe the GPS is actually a serial killer and does not understand how I keep getting lost despite the GPS in the car.  He always gives me directions anyway. He is fooled by her soothing voice, but I'm not. I remain convinced the GPS whore is trying to kill me.

Characters That Define...

My twitter friend Gina writes a great blog called Fantasy Casting.  In a recent entry she posed an interesting question:  what fictional character(s) resonate(s) with you enough that  you could "be" them? 

I did not have to consider the question for long--I already knew the answer.  There are two characters that have always resonated with me. I have identified with these characters since the instance I came into contact with them. One of these characters is far more like me than the other, so it is she that will I discuss.

The character, and this is perhaps most obvious to those who know me well, is Hermoine Granger from J.K. Rowling's famed Harry Potter series.

Hermoine appeared in the very first book and here is what happened:

"Are you sure that's a real spell? Well, it's not very good is it? I've tried a few simple spells myself and they've all worked for me. Nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, it's the best school of witchcraft there is I've heard - I've learned all the course books by heart of course. I just hope it will be enough - I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?"

The second I read that passage, I knew a kindred spirit.  Hermoine is very direct. Hermoine is a self-righteous, bossy know-it-all.  And so am I.  In fact, I've even written about my annoying know-it-all attitude and you can read that entry here. I frequently alienated my classmates in the same ways Hermoine does: pointing out when others are wrong (yes, even adults), waving my hand madly in the air because I KNOW THE ANSWER SO YOU NEED TO CALL ON ME NOW, and rolling my eyes in annoyance at other people's immaturity.  Yep, I did all of those things (okay, so I still do sometimes).

I was also frequently called a know-it-all, and like Hermoine it never really bothered me.  We share the same hubris.

We also like the same things.  For instance, when Slughorn brews a love potion and Hermoine explains that the potion smells differently to each person but it smells like something that appeals to them, Hermoine says she smells "freshly mown grass and new parchment."  I am fairly certain that if such a potion did exist, that is precisely what I would smell.  I love the smell of freshly mown grass and new paper.I would rather smell those things than perfume. 

Hermoine always has her nose buried in a book, and can frequently be found in the library.  Likewise, I always have my nose in a book and when I am in school you can find me in the library.  She is not popular, but she is respected.  I was never popular, but for the most part I was respected.

Hermoine loves books, history, and learning.  I do too.  She fell in love with Ron.  I did too (lol).  She is fiercely  loyal, brave, bossy, and yes, she is a know-it-all.  I am all of those things.

Hermonie is so much like me (right down to the bushy brown hair and the sarcastic quips) that I am fully convinced that J.K. Rowling is in fact a witch and must have based this character on me.  If not, well...Rowling captured the soul of bossy know-it-all children so very well that people like me instantly fell in love with Hermoine Granger.

So what character defines you?  Is there a character that resonates with you, a character that made you think "Wow! That's me"?

Ice is Bad (But Snow is Good)

If you've read my bio (What?! You haven't read my bio? *gasp* Well you should) then you know that I live somewhere in the sweet, sultry south.  Let me tell you something about living in the south:  it does NOT snow here.

Okay, so it does.  On occasion. RARELY. It snows here.  We might get one short lived flurry every winter.  We hardly ever get any substantial amount of snow here.  It might snow a few inches once every 10 years or so (yes, really).

As a result I love snow and I'm terrified of driving in it.  So I simply do what pretty much everyone else around here does and I don't leave my house until the snow melts.  It snowed at the beginning of this month.  It snowed  A LOT.

That's my dog.  He loves snow too.  He roots around in it with his face (thus the snow all over his big head).

I love snow.  It's fabulous.  You know what I don't love?  ICE. Stupid, stupid ice!

In the middle of the night, following this beautiful and rare snowfall, it began to sleet. By morning the entire world was encased in ice.  It was beautiful, shimmering stuff.  The soft, fluffy snow was now trapped beneath a thick layer of frosted glass.

After three days of being stuck inside I brilliantly decided that my driveway looked clear enough to walk down.  I could take the dog on a walk!  YAY! 

Not yay. My driveway was covered in a sheet of black ice.  I went down--HARD.  The dog went down too.  I decided since we were already down the hill that is my driveway, we should continue our walk.  Bad idea.  The sidewalks were covered in ice.  It was like skating.  I finally gave up and returned home.

Except I couldn't get back up the hill.  I fell down three more times.  The last time I heard something cur-runch.  It was really a sickening sound.  I yelled out in pain.  My dog whimpered.  I think he knew I had hurt myself.

My hand was on fire.  And it was swelling.  I quickly yanked my glove off and shoved it in my pocket.  I tried to get back up the hill.  I fell again.  My hand was huge and turning purple.

I decided it was time to give up whatever pride or dignity I had walked out my door with.  Clearly I was going to be forced to crawl up my own driveway on all fours.  I had no choice.  I couldn't gain purchase.  I kept slipping.  So did the poor dog.

So the dog and I made our way (both crawling) up the hill next to the driveway and into the house.  I realized I could not get my car out of the driveway (too much ice).  I also realized that my hand was twice the size it should be.  I've broken bones before.  I just knew I'd broken something.

Sure enough, several hours and a trip to the ER later, my hand was in a brace and it was confirmed that I had broken two metacarpals and re-fractured a several years healed break in my wrist.  How did I get the break in my wrist the first time?  I am so glad you asked!  There was an ice storm in 2002 and I fell down on the way to a college final. Snap. Crack. Broken wrist. Lovely.

That ladies and gentlemen is why I hate ice. 

What did you say?  How am I typing this?  One-handed.  Boo yeah!  Because that's how I roll.

The Suck Up (But Not Really)

I have a ridiculously high I.Q.  Now I'm not saying that to make you feel bad, or even to point out how smart I am.  I'm saying that because it is necessary to understand the point of this post.  I'm smart.  I'm a bonafide smartypants.  In fact, my grandma still calls me Ms. Smartypants. 

In elementary school I was the annoying student in the front row whose hand shot up to answer every question, and not only did my hand shoot up--I waggled it around and made "ooh ohh" noises.  Why?  Because I knew the answer, and I knew whoever the teacher called on was probably going to get it wrong anyway.  Yes--I was that annoying.  Sometimes I still am.

I was like that pretty much all the way through school.  I couldn't seem to help myself.  At first my fellow students were certain I was a giant suck up, but eventually they discovered that I got in trouble too much to be a suck up.  I got in fights.  I punched boys on the playground.  I even once stood up in the middle of class and told the teacher she was an ignorant ass--right before storming out and slamming the door in her face.  That one earned me ISS by the way--worst, most boring thing ever.

Needless to say, by high school most of my peers had figured out I wasn't a suck up.  I was just an incredibly irritating smarty pants.

Fast forward to my second year of college.  I'm still the annoying person whose hand always shoots up to answer any question the professor throws at the class.  But here I'm not a suck up, I'm just a smart.  That is until I enroll in a Violent Film Females course taught by a genius professor named Dr. Mark Pizzato.

I had taken some of his courses before and I really enjoyed them all.  I couldn't wait to take VFF. Dr. Pizzato assigned us four big projects for the semester.  We had to watch a movie from his list and analyze the film for gendered violence.  Then we have to present our findings to the class. Awesome, right? Well it really was awesome.

I make my choice for the first film.  I can no longer remember what film I chose.  I still have my paper around here somewhere.  Anyway, so I choose my first film on day one of the class.  I'm excited about it.  The prof and I are on a first name basis (I'd already taken two or three classes with the man) and we joke a lot.  This friendly banter is not going to help my case later in the semester.

The day comes to present and what happens?  Right before I present Mark announces that he is very interested to hear my analysis because he's written a chapter in a book all about the film I chose.  Well crap.  The rest of the class starts shooting me dirty looks and I start hearing that dreaded word snickered behind harsh whispers, "suck-up." 

It gets worse.  He LOVES my analysis.  He praises me in front of the class.  And I can't help myself--I'm proud of my hard work and it shows on my face.

Suck-up.

The next time we have to choose a movie to evaluate I try my best to pick something I'm sure he hasn't written about.  I choose Joan of Arc.  I get up to present.  I love what I've found.  I'm sure it's an A.  I'm sure he hasn't written about it.  I am excited.  And then....BOOM! Same thing.  He wrote a fricken book on this movie.  Freaking A.  Suck-up. 

The third movie project comes around, and sure enough yet again I select a film the man has written about.  I swear it is not intentional!  I swear I didn't do it on purpose!  I swear I'm not sucking up.  No one believes me.

Oh it gets worse.  For the last project I am so determined to select a film that he has not evaluated that I actually spend hours researching his work.  I find a film on the list that is not evaluated in any of the books or articles penned by him that I can locate.

I come to class with a big grin on my face.  I've done it.  I've selected a film he never wrote about.  I've selected a film he'd never want to write about.  Who would ever want to write about Natural Born Killers?  It's violent, but it's also not very good.  Ha! Call me a suck up!  In your face class!

Wrong.  Right before I stand up to  present Mark passes out a flyer for his newest book.

I know you can't see that very well, but right there on the cover of his yet to be released book--yeah, that's right---an image from the very movie I selected for my final project.

You can only imagine what the rest of the class was thinking of me, but I swear to you I was really, really not sucking up.  But I did get an A in the class.

James Ellroy's LA: A Sordid Past and a New TV Show

James Ellroy is an American crime writer with a sordid past. He is the child of a nurse mother and an alcoholic accountant father. His parents divorced in 1954 and Ellroy moved with his mother to a low-income area of Los Angeles.  Just four short years later his mother was brutally murdered there.  Her murder remains unsolved.

Following his expulsion from Fairfax High School for "ranting about Nazism"  and his father's death, Ellroy was caught attempting to shoplift a steak from a local store and he wound up in juvenile hall.

At age eighteen Ellroy somehow ended up living on the streets.  There he struggled with his own personal demons:  alcoholism, drug abuse, and possible mental health issues.

After getting arrested for squatting in an abandoned building, Ellroy somehow procured a job at an adult bookstore.  Despite his new steady employment, Ellroy continued to battle alcoholism and drug use.  He eventually joined AA and was able to kick his bad habits. 

Spurred by his mother's own unsolved murder and a childhood love of The Hardy Boys, Ellroy began writing dark crime novels.  He penned his first book, a mystery called Brown's Requiem which he sold at age 30. Ellroy is perhaps most well known for his book L.A. Confidential which inspired the 1997 film of the same name.

It is this man, a man with a dark and twisted past, who narrates Investigation Discovery's newest show:  James Ellroy's L.A.:  City of Demons.  The premiere episode, "Dead Women Own Me," highlights the gruesome murders of a 16 year old girl, a kidnapped woman, and the infamous murder of Elizabeth Short, better known as the Black Dahlia.

Later episodes will explore Los Angeles' seedy underside: mob crime and the city's famous nightclub scene. He will also discuss 1950's tabloids, dead celebrities, and serial killers.

Ellroy's narration is reminiscent of the stereotypical 1930s detective: dark and gritty.  He explores these cases in grave detail and with a large dose of gallows' humor.

James Ellroy's LA: City of Demons premiers tonight, January 19th, at 10 PM ET on Investigation Discovery.

Calling All Teens!

Yeah, you.  The one sitting there with 20 tabs open, blaring your ipod into your eardrums, and messaging about a hundred people at once instead of doing your homework--I'm talking to you!

Now that I have your attention, I'd like to ask you for a favor.  It's a simple favor.  Hey you--yeah you--don't stop reading yet.  You're gonna like this!

I am looking for some teens to guest write for this website.  You get to pick your topic and you get to write about it truthfully--and I will respect your opinions and expect my readers to do the same.

I am looking for teens brave enough to talk about real issues like teen pregnancy, drug use, sex, divorce, going to college--stuff like that.  I'm also wanting a few teens who would like to talk about public education--what parts of your education do you think suck? What parts are awesome?  What could be better?

Are any of you willing to do that?  I sure hope so.  I want to know what you think.

If you are interested in guest blogging for this website the guidelines and contact info are below.

Guidelines:
1. Must be between the ages of 13-19
2. Must be willing to set a reasonable deadline (say 2 weeks) and email me your post ON TIME.
3. Must be willing to send me a pic to post and some basic biographical info (age, grade, etc--nothing too nosy)

Contact:
If you're interested then please email me at jenniferwelbornwrites@gmail.com.

Thanks! :0)

Writing Scared

Lots of people think getting published is easy.  Lots of people think they could write a book and get it published.  Lots of people say, "You know I have this idea for a book" and then finish that sentence with some lame excuse like, "but I just don't have time to write it."  They think writing a book is easy.  They think publishing a book is easy.  They think selling a book is easy.

It's not.  It's not easy.  It's hard and it's scary.  I've worked for more than a year to finish my first novel.  I wrote the last page.  It's done.

Except that it's not done.  Now I have to revise it. I have to edit it.  I have to erase parts of it.  I have to chop scenes I loved into little pieces.  I have to kill pieces of my baby, and that's what this manuscript is--my creation, my baby.

Perhaps that sounds overly dramatic to some of you, but I can assure you it's not.  Writing a book is fun.  Editing a book is downright painful.  I've been told to put it in a drawer and forget about it for a month, then come back and edit.  Jennifer Laughran of Andrea Brown Literary Agency (whom I shamelessly follow and talk to on twitter and who has an awesome blog) told me to do it.  Stephen King (in On Writing) told me to do it.  So I'm gonna do it.  I'm putting my story away for a bit and then I'll come back to it.

But what if I don't want to come back to it? Okay, okay.  So I want the book to be published.  I want my book to end up on a bookstore bookshelf like the one in the photo at the top.  I think that photo is of a Borders (I stole it from Jill Corcoran's blog--which you should also follow), but I don't just want my book on shelves at Borders.  I want my book on shelves at Books-A-Million and Barnes and Noble. I most especially want my book on shelves at independent booksellers across the country (c'mon--inde bookstores are AWESOME people). And I know that in order to see my book on shelves, I first have to edit it (and find an agent and a publisher and a whole slew of other little details. I also know I shouldn't start sentences with 'and' but I just did so sue me.).

I know what I have to do.  What's the problem then?  I'll spell it out for you: F-E-A-R.  If I edit my book then it really will be done.  It will be finished.  I'll have to send it off for other people to accept it or reject it.  I won't have any excuses left, any other ways to avoid sending my baby manuscript off to more critical eyes--eyes that might not like it.

What if it doesn't get published?  What if everyone I send it to hates it?  What if I suck?  Worse yet, what if my writing sucks?  That's scary.  I am ashamed to admit that my heart has stopped beating (yes, literally) and I find the idea of rejection more frightening than that was (Yes, I know.  That's ridiculous.  I can't help it.  That's how I feel.).

But I'm going to do it.  All of it.  I'm going to wait a month and then I'm going to start editing.  I'm going to murder my babies--slash scenes that don't further my story, kill words that are unnecessary, get rid of the amazing description of this one thing that I thought was so awesome but is really kind of pointless.  Then I'm going to send that edited manuscript to the prying, critical eyes of literary agents whom I respect and fear.  I'm going to do all of it--in hopes that my dream of publication will be achieved.  In hopes that conquering this fear will be worth it.  In hopes that one day a teenage girl will read my novel and squeal with delight and cry with sorrow and laugh with joy and pass it on to her friend because omg you just have to read this great book!

Are you up for a challenge?

I just discovered an interesting blog challenge--Story Siren's 2011 Debut Author Challenge! Click on the link for the full nitty-gritty but the basic idea is you commit to read one debut YA (young adult)  or MG (middle grade) novel every month in 2011 (for a total of 12 books from new authors).

I believe in supporting new authors (plus I TOTALLY love to read and I would probably be reading at least some of these books anyway) and this sounds fun--so I'm gonna do it!

I'm hoping some of you will decide to take on this challenge too.  On the last day of each month I will post a book review for the novel I chose to read.  I will also host an open thread for discussion about that book (and maybe even a few questions to get the discussion started).  If you have kids then please feel free to let them read along and participate.  I'm hoping this will be a sort of online book club.

Without further adieu, here are my 2011 debut book picks for January through June:

January:

The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal       

Release date: 1/25/11

February:

Waterfall by Lisa T. Bergren

Release date: 2/1/11

March:

Born at Midnight by C.C. Hunter

Release date: 3/29/11

April:

The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens

Release date: 4/5/11

May: 

Ruby Red by Kersten Gier

Release date: 5/10/11

June:

Forgotten by Cat Patrick

Release date: 6/7/2011

I will post the rest of my 2011 picks sometime in June.  I hope you like the books I chose, and I hope you will be up to the challenge!

Ramblings

I'm not sure this post will be anything other than random ramblings typed out to still my ever-whirring mind.  I'm job hunting. It's stressful.  Every bill in my mailbox sends me into a tizzy.  I'm also doped up on Nyquil because I have the worst cold I've ever had in my life (ok, that may be a slight exaggeration--maybe it's not the worst but it's damn close).

I spent the better part of my day working on this website.  If you had any idea just how amazingly inept I am at computers then you'd know changing website layouts was paramount to climbing Everest.  Actually, I think I'd have better luck with Everest!  But I did it.  Kind of.  So what do you think?  Personally I'm loving the pink typewriter.  Now who wants to buy me one? 

The weatherman is calling for snow.  Again.  I don't think I've seen so many snowflakes in all my life.  I'm from the south. I still live in the south.  It doesn't snow here--that is until recently.  Suddenly the weather gods have gone mad and they seem to have forgotten we southerners don't know what to do when white stuff starts falling from the sky.  It's not snowing yet.  While everyone else is praying it won't (but rushing to the grocery store to buy milk and bread--and why milk? Could someone explain that to me.), I find myself hoping that it will.  I'm unemployed.  It's not like there's any chance I'll have to drive in it.  So I hope it snows. What can I say? I really love snow. I also think my dog wants it to snow.  Yep, he does.  Bring on the snowstorm!

I'm sitting here sipping wine (which may or may not be a good idea considering I just took Nyquil) and watching "The Jewel of the Nile" (because I'm half in love with Kathleen Turner) and glancing furtively out my window every few minutes in hopes of catching a glimpse of a snowflake. What are you doing?

2011: New Year, New Blog, New Posts

This year I hope to bring a lot of new and exciting stuff to the table, er blog, and to you dear readers.  I am hopeful that 2011 will be a year of positive change for me.  I plan to embark on many new pursuits, some of them writing-related, some not.

I am excited to begin the year with some happy writing news.  Investigation Discovery  has asked me to preview their new series James Ellroy's L.A.: City of Demons.  I will be reviewing this series sometime before January 19th (when it is set to premiere). 

I am also happy to announce that I have finally hit the 200+ follower mark on twitter!  Thank you for following me @wordsmithjenn and thank you for reading my blog posts! You can also check out my facebook page ;)

What's New in 2011:

1.More ed posts!  I am going back to school (yes, again!).  I have decided that I should be a teacher.  I am hoping to return as soon as this summer.  I will be pursuing my M.A.T--likely in secondary social studies (grade 9-12).  As a result, I will probably be posting a lot more about education.  As a YA author, I feel that education is very important and therefore issues related to education are relevant to this website and to my readers.

2. I will be submitting my manuscript to agents by April 1st.  Cross your fingers for me.  I'm sure my pursuit of publication will be both exciting and frustrating. Wish me luck!

3. I am going to *try* to post more stuff relevant to teens.  If you're a teen reader then please feel free to send me emails with ideas, questions, or comments.  I love your feedback, so keep it comin'!

4. I might finally invest in a digital camera.  If I do then you're going to be inundated with picture posts ;)

What are your plans for 2011?  Anything exciting?  What are you looking forward to?  What do you want to read this year?