Snail Mail is like THE ACTUAL BEST THING, we're blessed in this time of modern electronics and instant contact but the worn beauty of letters on paper remains so much more meaningful. It's almost like magic. The stack of worn letters each speaking their own message, encapsuling a time that you will never live again. Words that maybe someday will be found by your children and theirs, or words you will bury in your heart forever along with the paper they're on. So where does one start with Letter Writing? While I am yet a beginner, I have a few tips and tricks that will jumpstart you or add sparkles to your snail mail :) Let's jump in, shall we?

{pics via pinterest}

Because honestly? What better New Year's resolution to make than add these two stellar reads to your TBR.

read now, thank me later :)

{Advisory Warning: these books may or may not emotionally destroy you, cause large tears to drip down your face, and increase your book appetite}

Midnight at the Electric

  {★★★★★}

This book just tore my little heart into shreds. Not because it's particularly sad or anything, it's just so alive and feeling and even though we don't always understand why stuff happen they way they do it's ok. The three POV's are written with so much beauty and care, I fell in love with all three girl's voices. I also like in particular how this book wasn't focused on romance, it happens in the story but that's not what the story is truly about.

The vibe of this book is  constellations / turtle / full hearts and space / old English mansions / lying awake at night / circus / worn yellowed pages / luminescence / love / family 

{ pics via pinterest}

Journaling has immensely helped my writing. From teaching me about character growth to POV, to even giving me interesting b-rolls and situations to put in my own writing. It's given me a deeper insight on how to properly form a character and above all how to write realistically and leave a deep emotional impact on your readers.

Journaling has helped me immensely because it's given me real life examples. Seeing how my life looks on paper, removed from all the million feelings and sensations I feel day to day can give me a much more straightforward look at things.

The same goes for writing. It's helped me to narrow down to what really matters to the story.

And plus it's seriously fun, if you like aesthetic things this is your daily go to. If you guys would like, I can share tips on how I do my own journal and stay motivated in another post. Just ask me below :)

Let's jump in, shall we? :)

1. Learning from Real Life

I swear by it. Things look different on paper than in real life, especially when you're the writer. But a good writer can harness every single one of those feelings in without even mentioning them. 

I don't have a word for it other than vibe. It's that thing that draws you to some writers more than others. It's that thing that makes you feel a golden light over a scene without the writer once mentioning it.

And I also bet you that every single one of you has one, you just need to find it. Journaling is perfect for finding it. Is something good happening to you? What is bursting out of your heart? It can be perfectly strange and unusual like the stars outside your window or the hug your friend gave you after that talk yesterday. Write it down, it's not an english paper...you start however you feel and you finish whenever you want. Don't focus on tense or grammar or structure, write what comes to your heart. 

Some of my journal entries are pages long but most are half pages or even less. Some of my journal entries are simple lists. 

Some will fall short of my standard, but more times than others I will feel that same electric shock of happiness, smell that same thing i did a week ago, revisit the feelings...the importance of a moment that has passed.

And that is the kind of emotion we strive to capture in writing. That little sparkle of magic that brings our words to life

 {this is the sort of journal I do minus that ^ 100% level of aesthetic, I like to scrapbook and add all sorts of coordinating stuff to my journal} 

2. Understanding a Character

It's not always easy to develop a character, much less understand them. As far as I go, if I do not explore a character enough I will reach pitfalls in my writing. My characters will be whiny, cookie cutter people. They will miss the complexities that emerge with the TRUE character of their "created nature".

Funny enough sometimes it's also hard to understand yourself, looking at yourself inwardly and wrestling with life challenges day to day is overwhelming. In in the mix of things, it's easy to start wondering who you really are in the grand scheme of things?

Journaling has helped me immensely with that, not only do things start to take shape much clearer on paper but I can revisit my entries and learn more about myself. I can see how I reacted to certain situations and dealt with one hard incident. How I felt when so and so happened...and how I saw other people through my eyes.

What's on the paper is what matters to my story. And sometimes I'll include some secondary details but those matter too, I'm not being my real human self if I don't ramble about how good those waffles were this morning. {those things belong in your WIP too, insert in some splashes of extra happiness :) }

If you've ever had a hard time understanding your character, keep a short journal for them. Try to think of real situations that would happen to them and write it through their eyes. It does not need to be lyrical or proper, in fact it's much better if it's crude and real and incomplete. In the end those things will not all be part of the story, but your viewpoint will be refreshed. You will get deep insight into your character and begin treating them like a real person.

{ unless you are writing a comedy, than you can ignore all this :P }

3.  Arcs: Character growth and Story Development

There is something that changes in each of us over time (most of us). And that's all that a story is about, arcs....both in story development and in character growth. By the end of the story something has changed deeply within the MC (sometimes more characters too) and by the end of the story, things have taken a turn.

Maybe it's just because my life is a bit wild sometimes, but reading back on previous entries I can sense a direction of things...I know my own thoughts but i can begin wondering about so and so. How will they in the future have an impact on her? Will they abandon her or will they stay friends with her? I can sense arcs.

I can even see character growth or character regression. Having a journal is giving you a more objective look at your life, our feelings change and conform but what you put down on that paper...that day, with your own hand isn't going to change. It's gonna stay there forever to remind you who you were, what you wanted, what your heart was moved by. And believe me that can move you generations later to say to yourself the one of the two...

Thank God, I'm not like that now.

or

Can I only go back to being that way?


That's the impact that a good book should leave on us. Either a warning, or an encouragement.

But it has to be real, it has to be deep. And I don't know about you...but journaling has helped me immensely with that.

What do you all think? If you journal do you agree or disagree? What have you learned about writing through other things? Whatever it is, talk to me below! <3 ALSO,who's listening to the "Greatest Showman" soundtrack??? I"M OFFICIALLY OBSESSED.

Also do drop by the poll in my sidebar!


Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
    bind them around your neck,
    write them on the tablet of your heart.
(Proverbs 3:3)

 {all pics via pinterest}

I love my English tutor...many say she is too hard on her students or too strict but I find her to be my greatest source of inspiration and advice. She's funny and loves books and can never pass up a good conversation. She marks up my papers until black ink consumes their depths, but instead of being discouraged I'm inspired by all the smart corrections and little tweaks she offers. She yells about how much she likes my writing until she remembers we are in a room where someone else is also trying to tutor their student. She is just as honest when it comes to offering praise as for her corrections. We share the same faith and she encourages me to dig deeper into my beliefs, challenging any superficiality that may lie on my page.

I've learned a bunch of things from my tutor but today I'm going to share three, even though I've acquired them while discussing English essays they apply to ANY sort of writing.

1. Tie Your Shoelaces Sentences Together

Guys you know I love metaphors, I CAN"T EVER resist weaving a concept down my writing or posts. Ok what I'm about to say is going to sound overly simple, yet don't doubt it's power of coherence...

Sentence number one is tied to sentence number two, then sentence number three is tied to sentence number two AS WELL as Sentence one.

Your stream of thoughts should flow down your writing and when you introduce a new one it should begin a new paragraph. The smartest way to connect your writing is by seeding a metaphor. Circle the most packed and powerful words and use their depth to continue seeding more related concepts down into your WHOLE work, or perhaps chapter.

Example 

Do you see how powerful metaphors in our stories can be??? Theme is much developed through these weaving concepts. Enjoyable books often retain an element that weaves down the story carrying intrigue and hints that lead the reader forward. Which leads us to our next point...

2. Bread Crumbs!

Do you remember the story of Hansel and Gretel? At one point to find their way back home they dropped bread crumbs so they could follow them back (never mind that it didn't work so well). 
Drop tantalizing little bread crumbs in your writing AKA little hints. Your readers will be eagerly searching for the next bread crumb and get fascinated and drawn along by your story.


These bread crumbs could include but are not limited to...

1. Character backstory
2. Foreshadowing
3. Symbolism
4. Alternating character scenes
5. Letting the villain action's be seen by the reader and not the MC
etc.

Now as in anything...TOO MANY bread crumbs and your readers will get full and bored. TOO LITTLE bread crumbs and you will have raised up your reader's hopes for nothing. 



3. Read Your Manuscript Out Loud (and no I'm not talking about your handy computer voice)

You will catch so many silly little mistakes your eyes miss. 
You will correct awkward dialogue
You will get into your characters' shoes
You will bond with your story
You will cut the useless words

  

CHOCOLATE CHIP // A BOOK THAT NEVER GETS OLD 

the hobbit and lord of the rings
 (*considers inserting all the fandom pictures and songs*)
  
DUTCH SNOWBALLS // A BOOK THAT GAVE YOU AN UNEXPECTED SURPRISE

 princess bride

(i was seriously amazed and confused by the outcomes of this tale)


MOLASSES  // A BOOK WITH A CHARACTER THAT GETS INTO A STICKY SITUATION

to kill a mockingbird

(the premise of almost any book but this is my favorite and most notable incident)

OREO // A BOOK DEALING WITH LIGHT AND DARKNESS

 the giver

(in a way i guess it does...) 

SUGAR // A BOOK WITH A SUGARY SWEET VILLAIN

robin hood

false prince trilogy ( i could totally see him {spoiler if revealed name} being sugary sweet)

 MONSTER // A BOOK THAT CONFUSED YOUR EMOTIONS

lust for life

( very very mature book: not really recommended even though I found it painfully good)



SNICKERDOODLE // A BOOK THAT MADE YOU LAUGH

summer of the monkeys

(hands down funniest, got me scream out loud laughing, childhood book, READ IT...you aren't too old for it, it's the best dog/boy story)


PEANUT BUTTER // A BOOK WITH A NUTTY CHARACTER

charlie and the chocolate factory

(very nutty characters ^^^)

distant waves

(warning: interesting story but spiritualism is an important part of the story...seances etc. Not too graphically detailed but disturbing at times)

 

I apologize for this horrendously long post! Did you read any of the books I mentioned? Any thoughts on the writing tips?

Any fun fall things going on for you? Is anyone going to homecoming? How's nano prep going!
Whatever it is talk to me below!!! <3


He refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
 (Psalm 23:3)

 ★★★★★

(book aesthetic made by yours truly)

OK...THIS BOOK <33333

The title grabbed me because dandelions! DANDELIONS! I mean how beautiful must a book with dandelions and cousins be. There are so, so many reasons to love this charming novella. I will try hard to make my review differ from others as I know everyone seems to be saying the same thing. :)

 

- THE PROLOGUE, the prologue was clear, enchanting and it made me want to read MORE...it was a 10/10 way to begin the book.

- The family dynamics were very well done. the truth of the matter is families do fight and there are splits but despite that family will always be family. I love the way Lydia handled this...portraying the bittersweetness of childhood memories to the reality of the present. How to reconnect despite inevitable mistakes of past generations...

- This is a sweet, charming, heart warming book...and though I like this particular story handled that way I see how people could get annoyed and think that this book is cheesy. If this was a novel then it would have been better to develop some backstory and add more intensity but as a novella I think it was well written.

- If you prefer fast paced, thrilling reads this is definitely not the book for you.

-The characters are unique and enjoyably developed.

- The article by Lexie (one of the book characters) called "Loss and Redemption" brought me to tears. It was absolute gold.

- I LOVE how Destiny journals all the time and Noveltea and all the general themes of the book are a writer's dream come true.

 

- The metaphors and symbols are beautiful

- The story has a unique voice. It is definitely told through Destiny's (main character) personality.

This book is 5/5 and I highly suggest you read it when it's a bit colder, cuddled up in a warm sweater, with a steaming hot mug of your favorite drink.... a fireplace would be nice too and so would a window where you could see the leaves fall. A Fall must read. :)

AND PLEASE follow the author, she is really so sweet! :) Lydia Howe

___

Guys I'm so sorry for the late post! I am away from home babysitting for 2 weeks so I am over my head busy explaining for this goodreads copy review! ;) After I come home I'll have a story post so you can get to know about this week's crazy adventures, until then ;) (And I promise I'll respond to all your comments asap)

Anyway did you all read this book, what did you think??? :) Whatever you have to say comment below frens <3