New Beginnings

Hey-o! Firstly, HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope 2014 is better for you than 2013 was, and I hope your holidays were lovely. :)

But moving right along, I have so BIG news. It's pretty exciting, really, even though most of you probably already know it.

I am moving have moved to another blog URL/another blog.

Yup, that's right! My motto thus far has been, "New Year, New Blog." It's quite exciting, as I mentioned. I'm doing this for a couple of reasons, despite how hard it sort of makes my (blogging) life. ;) All in all, I wanted a fresh new start, and I'm able to get that now. It's been a lot of work, but I'm really happy with it. If you go, you'll see that it looks fairly similar to this blog now, but I'm telling you, there will be differences. 

I think this is the right decision for me, and I just want to thank you all for sticking with me. My 6 month blogoversary is coming up soon, but I'm celebrating it there. The last post here will likely be the wrap up post for the What's In The Snow? event.

If you have any questions, concerns, thoughts, suggestions, etc, please comment below and let me know!

Before I go, don't think I forgot to announce the new blog name/URL.

My new blog name is: Fly to Fiction

Click here to be taken to the new blog.

Update

Hey guys! As you can see, I haven't been posting lately. This is for a couple of reasons, mainly that I'm moving over to a new URL soon. I don't want to have to repost anything extra, which is why I'm not posting the reviews I have drafted. Those will go up, along with all the reviews that are already on here, once I switch over. I have yet to make a big announcement about the switch, but don't worry. It's coming. ;)

Anyway, thanks for being patient as I get ready to switch. I hope you all understand. I'm really excited for you guys to see my new blog, and I'm happy to start over on a clean slate, learning from what I've done here. I never intended for this URL to become permanent, so I'm glad to have finally figured something out that I like and that fits my blog a lot more.

That being said, please continue to check out the What's In the Snow? event. I KNOW I haven't been tweeting about it lately but PLEASE check it out (just click on the picture in the sidebar). The second big giveaway has started, so if you're interested, check it out. I hope to get back on track with tweeting about it, but I've been so busy. My apologies!

I love you all!

I'm Back!!!

Hello everyone! I'm back!

So the past few weeks have been really busy for me, but then again, what week isn't? So I'm not going to do a post to wrap up November because I've barely posted anything. But I did participate in NaNoWriMo! It was awesome, albeit stressful, and I finished with a word count of 50,800. The most exciting part of it was not actually winning though! It was the fact that I actually wrote it all the way to the end (okay, I skipped a part and just added an epilogue, but I'll revise all of that later). IT'S THE FIRST TIME I'VE EVER FINISHED A NOVEL (even though it's a WIP)!

As you can tell, I'm incredibly proud of this accomplishment, and I plan to somewhat revise and edit this story for once. It's tough because it's not really a priority right now and just because I think it sucks so much, but you know, whatever. I figured out where I really wanted my story to go, and I realized that I wasn't going to write in a romance and that that's okay. But I am continuing on with this, both for myself and for school.

The bad thing is that after reading a couple of books (not much, but still a lot considering how much work I've had), I'm now in a slight reading slump. I just finished Prodigy, and I have an ARC of Champion. I tried to start it and just couldn't get into it, no matter how much I wanted to. So I picked up Crown of Midnight again, which I started a while back. I also could not get into the reading, even though I really enjoy the book so far. I also have a couple of books I have to review this month, and I can't get into them either. I feel so stuck, and it's such a horrible feeling because it's not like I don't want to read the books because I do! Who knows...hopefully this will go away soon!

Anyway, I hope you've all been well! I want to remind you of the What's In the Snow? event that's coming up. You can find info on that if you click the picture in my sidebar. I still have to send out emails and fix everything, but I'm really excited! It's been a lot of work, but it's also been really fun, and Cal is an awesome co-host!

Lastly, here's just a quick list of what will likely be up on the blog sometime soon (you know, if life doesn't get in the way again, especially since I'm prepping for an MUN conference again):

Reviews: Throne of Glass, Altered, Shadow and Bone, Legend, Prodigy, Catching Fire movie, My Yellow Umbrella (Children's book; request), possibly NCIS/NCIS:LA/Elementary (not sure! I might just make a post about my general thoughts of recent episodes), Almost Human (may not be a formal review but rather a thoughts post)
Other: Event Recap of Fierce Reads signing at Books of Wonder, discussion post about the 50th Anniversary Ep for Doctor Who, Liebster Award, return of features (HUGE STS/SS post if I remember what books I have/have not already made a vid for; Music Monday, etc)

Also! Many changes will be coming in 2014, including the fact that I'll be moving over to a different URL. Almost all my pages are the same, but I was never that fond of this URL, and it was meant to be temporary, so I found one that I like a lot better. I will probably start posting there on New Year's, but all the event posts will still be on here for convenience.

And lastly, I just want to thank everyone that slowly comes back on here. I know I had a long hiatus, and I'm so sorry about that! I know you all understand, so thank you for that! I appreciate all of your help and encouragement, especially those of you on Twitter. I know that since I was on Twitter, it almost didn't seem like I had stopped posting though I did. You all rock, and I'll try to put up a giveaway once I move over to the new blog. :)

EDIT: I'm also aware that there's an issue with the comments thing for my posts and that you can't seem to see the comment link. If you'd like to comment, please just click on the title of the post, so that it'll bring you to the post page. I'm not going to bother to fix the comment issue because I'm focusing on my new blog. HOWEVER, it may factor into the giveaways for the WITS? event, so!

Comments Heads-Up

Hey, guys! Just a quick heads-up. Some of my posts aren't allowing me to comment, so if I haven't responded to you, that's why! If you're not able to comment on any of my posts, please let me know! Thanks!

Jess

Announcement (+Giveaway!)

Hello! *waves*

As you can tell, I haven't been posting much lately. Part of it is that I've been procrastinating a lot on Twitter. But the other part of it is school work and all that "fun" stuff. That being said, I do have some reviews coming up, some even hopefully today.

HOWEVER, I will be taking a slight break from blogging. This is partially due to just being really busy (I have dance 3x a week, I recently got a tutoring job (probably 2x a week), I volunteer, and I still have homework and tests to deal with), but partially because my grades have slipped a bit from last year, and I need to keep them up/pull them back up. I also have an MUN conference in early November, so I'm trying to focus on that.

I am also participating in NaNoWriMo (although I'm still not sure exactly what I'm doing), so I really actually want to win this year because I don't know how feasible that is at the moment. It will also cut into my TV watching and sadly, book reading. I do have tours scheduled for November, so I do still have to read, but I have a large TBR immediately pile right now, and I want to get as much of it read as I can (probably won't succeed with that).

THEREFORE, I will be taking a break from now until the end of November. I will most likely still be around on Twitter because I can't give that up, but I'll try to be on less. I will try to schedule some posts, but I'm not sure how much I can get done. I will still have my tour posts. And I will still review when I can (probably not during November). I just don't want to feel as if I have to get something posted. I'm going to try to host another giveaway when I get back to thank everyone for sticking around and to get people to remember my blog again. ;)

BUT before I go, I want to announce my very first giveaway! I actually haven't talked to my parents about this, but I'm sure that as long as I pay, they'll let me do it. SO! I've had an extra copy of The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson for some time now, but I've never known what to do with it. Given that it's so close to Halloween, I figured it'd be a great book to give away! It is a sequel, but I promise that the series is great so far. It's not creepy, per say, but it's still a viable Halloween read. I hope there's some demand for it, despite having been out for a while now. Enjoy, y'all!



Giveaway Rules:
~13+ or with parent's permission
~US ONLY (Sorry INT followers!)
~Winner has 48 hours to reply. If winner does not respond, another winner will be chosen.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Love you all!

Summary Saturday 10/5/13

In all my excited-ness, I forgot about this post.

Sunday:
Set Up Sunday
Showcase Sunday/STS

Monday:
A Month in Review
Music Monday (Part 1)
Music Monday (Part 2)

Tuesday:
TV Tuesday

Wednesday:
Waiting on Wednesday
NCIS and Elementary Season Premieres

Thursday:
Leap of Faith Book Blitz
A Darkness Strange and Lovely Review

Friday:
N/A

Saturday:
Picture Me Gone Review

~~~Also: I will not be doing Set Up Sunday anymore, as I usually don't stick to it anyway. I have a calendar that I try to follow and all, but school always messes up my schedule, so I don't think I need to post something like Set Up Sunday posts.~~~

Features Update

So I have decided to cut down very slightly on my features.

At the moment, I have decided to discontinue doing Flashback Friday. I love the idea of it, and I think that it was one of my more creative feature titles (which is not saying much). I'm not going to keep doing this anymore just because then I feel like I'm tied down to reviewing older books/movies/TV shows (or episodes I guess)/music. This doesn't mean that I won't continue to review them; it just means that it won't be a set feature. They'll just come up as they do. :)

I'm also going to make Talk About It Thursday a little more random. Sometimes, I'll get ideas for discussion topics, so I'll schedule them one right after the other (in terms of weeks). Then other times, I'll have nothing to talk about or discuss, so I just won't have them for however long that lasts.

For now, the other features will probably remain the same.

I am also thinking about adding a feature involving letters, as I've mentioned before. It'll probably be something that I would invite others to do as well. It's just for fun and much more arbitrarily posted than other features. I'm thinking that it's basically going to be me writing letters to people, whether they be authors, characters, bloggers, other friends, relatives, etc. Of course, bashing and hate will not be permitted, but I love the idea of writing letters, and I'd do it more often if I could. So that's kind of where this came about. The people they're addressed to aren't necessarily supposed to read it. Letters written to people "in real life" will be addressed as Dear Whomever It May Concern, or some version of that (just as long as it's not their name. This is my own set rule, but you're free to do otherwise. Also, if I know it's a positive message or not as personal, I may just address the person by name.)

I don't really know how I feel about the idea yet, and I'm trying to come with a name for it. The main one that's been sticking to me has been Letters To No One because they're not really meant to be written to be sent, if you know what I mean. It's not that the person isn't supposed to read it so much as that you're not actually sending it to them. Does that make sense?

What do you think of my new feature idea? Do you have a suggested name/title for it?

News/Announcement/Something Awesome!

Holy cow, guys! I'm nearly at 400 Twitter followers. So a lot are from the book blasts, but nonetheless, I want to THANK YOU ALL. So someone suggested a giveaway. You have no idea how much I'd LOVE to do a giveaway. But I don't have nearly enough money to get books for myself even (library books FTW). The few books I do have, I treasure dearly and bought for an important reason since I can't pre-order/buy many. Plus, there's also the issue of my parents. See, the thing is, I honestly haven't told them about this blog almost at all. Whoops... They'd disapprove. They'd say it's just a distraction (okay, it is in some ways).

So, I wanted to know your thoughts. What would you like me to "give away"? I'm still a newbie with very few followers. See above for my hypothesis as to why I have so many Twitter followers. (The thing is, I might not do it as often anymore because then I don't get a sense of accomplishment. I don't feel like I earned half, if not more, of those followers.) BUT STILL. Do you have a proposed solution?

My biggest thought is that I may be going to a book signing at Books of Wonder this weekend. Perhaps it would be a good time to tell my parents about this blog. And maybe I could get something to give away. We'll see. But please let me know!

Thank you so much!

~Jess <333

EDIT: I just remembered, thanks to my sister, that I still have an extra copy of The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson. I'm sure those who wanted the book got it long ago, but that's always a choice too. (It's the second book to the series, and it's fabulous.)

EDIT II: I also realized I should make this open to music/movies/tv shows as well. So I was thinking maybe like a personalized mix? It could either be digital or physical. You could pick a theme or book/tv show/movie that you'd like it to go with, if at all. You could request genres. You could just ask for my favorites so that you can maybe find new music. Or really just about anything. (Just PLEASE don't mention rap, kay?)

Question Time (It's Not As Scary As It Sounds)

Okay. So this is me basically asking you guys what you'd like to see more of (probably less book reviews, more other types of reviews, but let me know if that's the case too). It's hard when I have school and everything, but my blog feels so empty and boring on days when I just have something like Music Monday (aka today). I was thinking about starting a feature/meme/whatever you want to call it that's a bit more personal so that you guys can get to know me better. Plus, it's probably slightly more feasible for me.

I was originally thinking of some drabbles or song pieces, but that's also slightly time consuming (probably less so if I have ESP, but whatever). My other thought was something relating to me writing letters to people that I know. I'm not going to give away a lot of personal stuff, but I think it's a good way for you guys to get a look into my head and my personality. I don't really know how I want it to work exactly just yet, but I do like the idea, especially since I've always had a fascination with writing letters for some unknown reason.

But please let me know if you have any ideas AT ALL (including POST MORE TYPES OF REVIEWS, although let me be honest, it's because I'm trying to get into the book blogging community a bit, but I get it). :D

Thanks as always!

Jess <3 (<--I also plan to make this more creative soon...and same for my features and stuff. It just hasn't happened yet...)

Quick Update

I'm sorry, but the Talk About It Thursday post will have to wait! I didn't think I'd be so busy after only one day of school, but my APES homework is already killing me, and I just keep procrastinating.

Thanks for understanding!

Jess <3

Book Tour and Book Blast Announcement!

Hello! So I'm tired and currently procrastinating (already!) because today was my first day back at school, and I already have a lot of homework. But that probably doesn't matter to you guys, SO!

First, this is long overdue, but I'm participating in a Book Blast this month! It's for the book For Nick, which you will obviously learn more about in the blast! It'll (probably) be up on September 10th, so that's soon!

And secondly, you may have spotted that I added another upcoming book tour! This tour is also hosted by Candace, and it will be for the book Rook. It will stop here on November 8th, so keep an eye out for that! I'll be reviewing it and maybe giving a list of songs that go along with the book (that second part is still up in the air right now). I'm looking forward to reading the book! (Sorry I'm not giving more info like I did for Lethal Circuit. I'm just really worn out.)

New Look!

It's fairly late at night right now, but after working for hours on trying to make a drop-down menu, I gave up. Instead, I added social media buttons, and I clearly changed up the theme color a bit. I'm still not sure if I preferred the brown, simple one better or this new one, but we'll see! If anything's too hard on the eyes, please let me know because I'm drowning in color now and can't tell. Thanks!

Jessica <3

(Audio)Book Tour Announcement!

I just wanted to announce that this blog is one of the stops in the Lethal Circuit audiobook tour!

Here's some info on the book! (It is an adult book!)

(Source)

From Best-selling Amazon author Lars Guignard comes the number-one turbo-charged, action spy thriller Lethal Circuit. 

A Chinese satellite is on a crash course with Earth.  

It contains enough plutonium to irradiate a large city. 

And that's the good news...


Michael Chase is a twenty-six year old backpacker, a recent college graduate, an amateur. He flew to Hong Kong to find his missing father. Four hours later, he's running for his life. The Chinese Secret Police want him dead. The Conspiracy wants him dead. And the one person who he thinks is on his side, may want him dead too. If Michael is going to live, he'll need to find a hidden piece of Nazi technology lost since World War II. And he'll have to do it before anyone else. Because if he doesn't, a little plutonium is going to be the least of his problems.

Can Michael Chase team up with a beautiful but deadly MI6 agent to locate a lethal piece of Nazi technology that will save the world?



If you can't get enough of the action of Lee Child and Vince Flynn, the intrigue of Robert Ludlum, and the adventure of Clive Cussler and James Rollins, you are going to LOVE Lethal Circuit!

This tour is hosted by Candace, and it will stop here on November 21! There are still slots open, so if you're interested, head over to Candace's page!

Greetings From Canada!

Hello all!

I had drafted a Summary Saturday post, but I then lost my Internet connection and couldn't finish it and schedule it, so that didn't happen.

Anywho, I'm on vacation in Canada, so I'm not sure how often I can post. I have my Music Monday and TV Tuesday posts scheduled so at the very least you get that. I can't guarantee anything else, so I won't make a Set Up Sunday post.

Also, on a completely separate note, have any of you read Dash and Lily's Book of Dares? What'd you think of it?

And lastly, as an update, here's what I'm currently reading this week:

Reading-Once We Were by Kat Zhang

Listening-A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly

No Post on...Friday? (aka GMA tomorrow!)

Hehe. I'm quite proud of that title. I know...it's lame. Sorry.

But anyway. I was going to post a review tomorrow (Friday), but I'm going to be really tired and worn out because I'm going to The Wanted in Central Park tomorrow morning (for Good Morning America), and I'll be up at around 3:30-ish. The Wanted are a bit of a guilty pleasure for me, but I'm SO excited. I'm going with my best friend (she was the one that got me into them in the first place).

I'll try to make a post about it on Saturday, but I have auditions in the morning, and then I have to pack. So basically, I may or may not post anything for the next few days/weeks (unless I procrastinate or actually find time to write a review). Also, my friend and I may or may not be starting a writing project soon, so if that happens, I'll be sure to share!

Thanks for sticking around (those of you that actually read my posts :) ).

Introducing Set Up Sunday and Other Features

This was meant to be up yesterday, but I got home from volunteering and was just so exhausted, so I left it for today. My apologies!

Today, I'm going to introduce some features that are going to be implemented onto the blog! Although I list how often each will occur, they're always subject to change depending on my schedule and how busy I get once school starts. If a post comes out late, I'll explain that it was meant for another day and will label it as I would if it were on time.