Showing posts with label book updates. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book updates. Show all posts

Friday, January 11, 2019

Hello, 2019 & HELLO, DARLING DRAGONS! 😘


I'M FINALLY WRITING THIS POST.

Something that started as a belated May highlights, then morphed into May/June, and eventually made it all the way to some "May/June/July/August/September/October/November/December Highlights BASICALLY I FAILED AT BLOGGING LAST YEAR" hybrid. So, yeah.

I've been gone for a while, and, to be honest, there are a lot of reasons why (you can read my full post on that here). 2018 was rough. Jam-packed of wonderful new people + amazing experiences + SO MUCH FUN, but rough nonetheless.

My goal and prayer is for 2019 to be better.

Today, I'm going to take a look back at just a few of the blessings 2018 had to offer,* and some dreams + plans I have for this year. 😉

*Fair warning: all the photos might make this post look a little wackadoodle on some phones/tablets/feeds. 😅 I did my best!

Without further ado, let's dive in!


J A N U A R Y
  • Returned from my first ever New Year's Meeting
  • Stayed up late with my mom on Sunday nights to watch Victoria (PBS) 😊
  • Finished my fifth semester of high school + started my sixth
F E B R U A R Y
  • Returned to Universal Studios / the Wizarding World of Harry Potter 😍😍😍
  • Had my wisdom teeth removed (WHILE AWAKE???)
  • Probably did something else significant but it's been almost a year since then so I honestly can't remember rn?? 😅

M A R C H
  • Took the SAT for the first time
  • Finished my editing job
  • Grandparents came to visit 🙂
  • Spent spring break hiking + visiting coffee shops / museums / beaches with da bestie and our families 💚



A P R I L


M A Y
  • Joined Instagram (my handle is @livkfisher, btw 😉)
  • Went on a jeep caravan to Borrego Springs
  • Traveled to Sacramento for a friend's graduation 😭💞
  • Took my first ever AP exam 😏
  • Launched The Language of Worlds linkup
  • Da bestie came to visit! 😁

J U N E

J U L Y
  • Passed out flags for a realtor
  • Watched fireworks from the driver's seat 😍
  • Launched my readers' group (!!!!)
  • Spent a day at SeaWorld + watched fireworks from the sky trolley 😍😍
  • Camped for a weekend in Julian
  • Found a TARDIS-styled little free library

A U G U S T
  • Da bestie came to visit again 😊
  • Attended my church's twelfth annual Youth Meeting (ft. sermons by Jonathan @ Pure & Simple Bible)
  • Went on a two-week road trip with my family & went on SO MANY ADVENTURES 😍😍😍 camping, exploring, etc... the whole trip felt very lovely + bohemian! 😍😍😍
  • Decided to go full-blown vegan 😬 (food-wise, at least 😉)
  • Started my senior year
  • Attended Livermore's Labor Day Meeting

S E P T E M B E R
  • Registered at community college 😱😱😱

O C T O B E R
  • Outlined Ignis (formerly titled The Scent of the Stars)
  • Had a fun, pizza-filled Halloween with a school friend 🙂

N O V E M B E R
  • Started writing Ignis
  • Saw The Crimes of Grindelwald (totally noteworthy & honestly probably my new most favorite movie EVER 😍😍😍)
  • Had my senior pictures done by the lovely Gina Lee Photography
  • Attended Oakdale's Youth Meeting
  • Grandparents came to visit for Thanksgiving 🌝

D E C E M B E R
  • CHRISTMAS!
  • Attended Oklahoma City's New Year's Meeting



chasing shadows by ashley townsend // where trains collide by amber stokes // the moon master's ball by clara diane thompson // an enchantment of ravens by margaret rogerson // scarlet by marissa meyer // fawkes by nadine brandes // waltz into the waves by sarah holman // common by laurie lucking


books: 53/53

writing: started ignis

travel: hollywood, ca // placerville, ca // borrego springs, ca // sacramento, ca // la miranda, ca // seaworld, ca // julian, ca // lost coast, ca // livermore, ca // oakdale, ca // oklahoma city, ok

work: finished editing job // volunteered at polls // delivered realtor flags

education: finished junior year // started senior year // registered for college


books: read 30 // join netgalley // re-read the harry potter series

writing: finish + revise ignis (draft 1) // write fey novella // write two books in medieval fantasy quadrilogy

travel: fullerton, ca // julian, ca

work: complete socalcwc registration job // find + start part-time job

education: finish senior year // graduate high school // start college

soul: spend one hour+ with God every day

health: stay vegan // eat more greens // do 15 min. yoga every morning // walk dogs three times each day // do stretches every evening

art: start + keep + add to bullet journal


HAPPY 2019, DRAGONS!!!! 😘💕 I hope you had an amazing 2018 + your 2019 is completely FANTASTIC & everything and more than you hoped for!

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all the love and support you've given me -- this past year especially. I'm so thankful for each and every one of you, and I pray your new year is absolutely wonderful. 💖

Now...

LET'S CHAT!

How was your 2018? What are your goals for this year?

❤,

Wednesday, April 4, 2018

January/February/March Highlights + I'M DOING CAMP NANO, GUYS


"OMW LIV YOU'RE ALIVE!!!! i thought you were dead + this person posting on ur blog was a ghost or something"

YES MY DRAGONS YOUR SUPREME FROZEN YOGURT QUEEN IS  B A C K. Forgive my lack of Liv-has-a-life-beyond-obsessing-over-books-all-the-time posts. The end of first semester / beginning of second semester BASICALLY ATE MY LIFE. #rude

But, I WAS able to pop in a few times with the occasional interview, blog tour, and cover reveal. Speaking of which, Victoria Lynn (of Ruffles & Grace fame) and I are hosting a giveaway! You can enter to win a paperback copy of London in the Dark (Victoria's debut novel)... HOW AWESOME IS THAT?! This giveaway ends soon, so be sure to enter asap!


LIFE HAPPENINGS
  • I finished my fifth semester + started my sixth which means I only have two semesters of high school to go after this #WHAAAA
  • Stuttering (idk why??) while studying for my Physics test in January PROBABLY BECAUSE THE STRESS I MEAN 20% OF THE ENTIRE SEMESTER GRADE YO
  • Staying up late with my mom on Sunday nights because VICTORIA'S BACK ON (but not anymore because apparently season two decided it need to end at some point??? I WANT IT BACK NOW THO)
  • The two of us sobbing at 10PM last Sunday because the end of Victoria, season two, episode two, part one = TEARSSSS
  • Alfred + Wilhemina = ALL THE HEARTS 💗💗💗
  • VISITING UNIVERSAL STUDIOS WITH MY PARENTS AGAIN AND RETURNING TO THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER 💛🖤💛🖤 (pics below)
  • Going to the Jurassic Park lot and getting a picture with a robotic raptor who had a personality the size of Russia
  • Doing the Studio Tour and especially loving it because THE TOUR GUIDE LOOKED/TALKED JUST LIKE LORD MELBOURNE
  • Crying on the Harry Potter & the Forbidden Journey ride because I LOVE IT SO MUCH YOU GUYS *sobs some more*
  • Also screaming on the Fobbiden Journey because SPIDERS AND DEMENTORS IN REAL LIFE ARE BASICALLY THE SCARIEST THING EVER
  • And screaming even more on the lower lot Mummy ride because (1) MUMMIES ARE CREEPY, (2) there was one part where it felt like there were bugs climbing all over you, and (3) IT WENT BACKWARDS AND DOWNWARDS REALLY FAST YOU GUYS
  • Drinking butterbeer outta a souvenir cup (I'VE NEVER BOUGHT A SOUVENIR CUP BEFORE)
  • Trying pumpkin juice for the first time (it was good BUT THERE WAS A LOT OF CINNAMON)
  • Meeting the Hogwarts Express conductor and ALMOST PROPOSING ON THE SPOT BECAUSE AAAAH HE HAD A BRITISH ACCENT, LOVED CLOCKS, AND I GOT TO TAKE A PICTURE WITH HIM WITH OUR ARMS LINKED TOGETHER (even though my hair was a beast and I'll probably never show that picture to another living soul STILL THE MEMORYYYY)
  • Wandering Hogsmeade at twilight
  • Eating pizza at City Walk in Universal Studios
  • Realizing that a five-ounce chocolate frog right before bed = definitely not my best idea
  • GETTING MY WISDOM TEETH OUT, but honestly the worst part was not being able to eat tacos for a week-and-a-half + getting my stitches out (apparently I'm a "superhuman healer like Wolverine" (to quote my dentist) which meant that MY GUMS ATE MY STITCHES AND GETTING THEM OUT INVOLVED KNIVES AND CANNONS AND SWORDS AND MACHETES AND STUFF (basically?))
  • The rest of February / the beginning of March was all JUST KINDA A BIG BLUR?? (I SURVIVED THO)
  • I FINISHED MY EDITING JOB!!!!
  • I learned that taking the SAT with the intention of being the happiest soul in the room is (1) pretty easy and (2) makes the SAT so much easier and way more fun
  • Serving as a student representative at a WASC meeting made my emotions a bag of mixed vegetables (it was both fascinating and intimidating at the exact same time, I guess?)
  • MY GRANDPARENTS CAME TO TOWN
  • The MEA Theatre Company performed A Midsummer Night's Dream (original text and everything) and OH. MY. WORD. IT WAS SO AMAZING!!!!
  • March (the part before spring break) just about killed me (as mentioned above), but I SURVIVED THO (also mentioned above)
  • SPRING BREAK!!!!
  • One of my besties came to town and thus SPRING BREAK WAS A MAGICAL COMBINATION OF BEACHES, HIKES, COFFEE SHOPS, AND MUSEUMS 💕
  • I TURNED SEVENTEEN 🎊 😳 🎊
  • I met up with my AMAZING friend Ashley! As always, if you haven't read her Rising Shadows trilogy, YOU NEED TO. IT'S AMAZING!!!! 😍😍😍 You can check it out on Goodreads here!
  • I attended the Five Poisoned Apples FB party and IT WAS ABSOLUTELY FANTABULOUS 😍😍😍 (if you missed the winners announcement, you can check out my post on it here)
  • ONLY 58 DAYS UNTIL SUMMER
  • I'M DOING CAMP NANOWRIMO! My project is The Scent of the Stars (yup, that sci-fi novella I mentioned in my sleep-deprived October Highlights). My current goal is 25k... but we'll see how it turns out. 😉

PHOTO DUMP

Disney's got nothing compared to this place. 😘

From under the roof of the Three Broomsticks.

I stood on my tiptoes to get this picture. #beproud 😜

HOGWARTS. 😻😻😻

A different view of Hogsmeade.

Wandering Hogsmeade at twilight = basically THE MOST MAGICAL THING EVER.

Goodness, I love this place...

BUTTERBEER.

I WANT TO GO BACK ft. me drinking butterbeer. (📷 cred: mi madre)

Spring break adventures kicked off with a mission visit and a hike at Torrey Pines!

That view, though.

📷 cred: da bestie

The IMAX theatre at the Rueben H. Fleet Science Center. Opinion: all IMAX movies should be played on the ceiling.

Artist Village, Balboa Park. (📷 cred: da bestie)

Locked and loaded for the Five Poisoned Apples party. 😉

BOOK HAUL
  1. The Kingdom Keepers by Ridley Pearson. A church friend recommended this to me, describing it as "Rick Riordan meets Disney Parks." Um, YES!
  2. Wisdom's Kiss by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. Medieval fantasy is always a must.
  3. Jackaby by William Ritter. I started this last Tuesday, and idk how I feel about it yet? It's fun in an odd sort of way, but the writing's a little too classical for my taste. 🤷
  4. Defying Shadows by Ashley Townsend. This is the LAST book in the the Rising Shadows trilogy, and ofpewwrb fgblgg,. THE FEELSSSS
  5. Sinking by Sarah Armstrong-Garner. I've been wanting to read this one for months now, so I finally bought it to review for the Drifting blog tour! Keep an eye out for my post, coming April 29th. 😉



READING CORNER

1. Chasing Shadows by Ashley Townsend [5/5]. THIS BOOK, YOU GUYS! 💗 IT WAS SO GOOOOOOOD 😍😍😍

2. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones [dnf]. I think this is the farthest I've ever read with a book I didn't finish. It just wasn't my gig. I know a lot of people love it though, so I'd still recommend giving it a try!

3. The Midsummer Captives by Lea Doué [4.5/5]. This was even better than The Firethorn Crown. Next up, The Red Dragon Girl! 😍

4. Sentinel by Jamie Foley [4/5]. I read this guy for the Sage blog tour, and WOW. I'm not really into Christian thrillers, but this was great! You can read my full review here.

5. Love Needs No Words by Faith L. Potts [4/5]. This was adorable! Full review forthcoming. 🙂

WRITING DESK

The past few months have been CRAZY. Like, INSANE. So not much writing has been done, but I fully intend to tackle Camp NaNoWriMo and (hopefully) finish The Scent of the Stars this April!

April Goal: Finish draft one.

Current/Overall Goal: Start edits and hunt down betas in May/June.

JANUARY/FEBRUARY/MARCH BLOG ROLL

I'm skipping this part. There are just too many posts. 😆 But, you can scroll through my monthly posts at any of the links below.

ELSEWHERE IN THE BLOGOSPHERE


What's up with you, Dragons? I feel as if we haven't talked in ages! How has your year been? Have you had spring break, yet?

❤,






P.S. Lord willing, my post schedule will change to Wednesday mornings with blog tours / cover reveals on the weekend! This'll allow me way more time to dole out posts. 😉 Have a marvelous week, my loves! 💕

Saturday, November 4, 2017

October Highlights (In Which I Introduce My New WIP)


HELLO YES SO IT IS OFFICIALLY COLD NOW AND I AM HAPPY. I also managed to survive October somehow and I THINK IT HAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH ALL THE CHOCOLATE (and probably the cold, too)?? (#Halloweenperks)

Also, I finished my first quarter of the school year so YAAY! *throws confetti* (After Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's, I'll be ready for summer, though. 😎)

PHOTO DUMP

I WENT TO SEE MY SACRAMENTO BESTIES!!!! After one night of only six hours of sleep, another of four, and the last one of five, I woke up at three on a Saturday morning, tossed all my belongings into a suitcase, and scurried off to board a red-eye flight.* AND I SURVIVED.

*I make it sound like this trip was a spur-of-the-moment decision, but I promise that IT WAS PLANNED. 😁

Airport breakfast, featuring my carry-on.

A one-and-a-half-hour plane ride and a thirty-minute car ride later, SECOND BREAKFAST (a.k.a. hot cocoa again -- not actually more food -- BECAUSE WHY NOT).


Mid-afternoon, after a brief shopping trip, we ventured out again, this time to Jamba Juice, where another bestie works. And, despite the freezing sixty-degree weather, WE DEVOURED OUR SMOOTHIES WITH PRIDE.


Sunday morning, we went to church; that afternoon, we went to a coffee shop, and in the evening, we had a Bible study on creation.

Three out of five of our "froofy" coffees. 😏

Monday (my last day in Sac! *sniffles*), two of us explored another coffee shop (we might have a problem 😂).

Pardon the lighting. Coffee shops and my camera carry a bit of a feud. 😉

Monday evening, three of us went out for sorbet/gelato, sat by a fountain, and just talked. 💗


Tuesday morning, another airport, another red-eye flight. PLUS ANOTHER CALL FOR MORE SUGAR COFFEE.


On the plus side, THERE WERE LIKE, FIFTEEN OTHER PEOPLE ON THE PLANE. #score

This is my "yeeessss! I'm sitting alone!" face... featuring a Harvard sweatshirt that I picked up at a Downtown Sac second-hand store.
(Nope, I'm not actually going to Harvard. I was cold and I'd packed insensibly. 😜)

Caraval by Stephanie Garber, my travelling companion. 🌝

The weekend after (last weekend, in fact 😀), we went to church at one of our desert congregations, where a family friend was holding a gospel meeting. 🙂

Here is a picture of a pile of boulders... it was much more impressive in real life, I promise. 😂

READING CORNER

NOW FOR THE GOOD STUFF.

1. Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn [DNF]. This just wasn't my groove, man. I REALLY thought that I would like it, but... the main character was hardly in it?? I mean, I only read nineteen pages of it, but it felt like every other character was getting screen time but her?? IT WAS JUST SUPER CONFUSING, BRO.

2. Dandelion Dust by Faith L. Potts [4.5/5]. I owe this one a review!!!! (It's coming, Faith, I promise!) I won't say much just yet, but... I laughed. I cried. I loved this book to bits. 💜

3. The Passion of Dolssa by Julie Berry [DNF]. Such a large ratio of DNFs, this month! This one... I gave it seventy pages (which is a lot, when I'm considering DNFing a book). BUT THE WAY THE TOPIC OF JESUS WAS HANDLED. It made me so squirmy! The Passion of Dolssa is based on Spanish history, so apparently peeps back then considered Jesus their actual spouse?! Eeeew, no. I don't want to think of Jesus the way the characters did, and I doubt he wants it much, either! o_O I'd like to keep my relationship with Him based on the love He -- and the writing in the Bible -- express, thank you very much.

4. Caraval by Stephanie Garber [4.5/5]. I really, really, really liked this book! I did have some issues with it, but otherwise, it was magical. AND I NEED LEGENDARY RIGHT NOW!!!!

MUSIC ROOM

Lots of Owl City. Lots and lots and LOTS of Owl City. 😄

And TAYLOR SWIFT'S NEW ALBUM IS COMING OUT IN SIX DAYS!!!! *fangirls* Out of the four singles she's released thus far, Call It What You Want has to be my favorite! ...BUT I NEED THE WHOLE ALBUM.

WRITING DESK

Last month, I mentioned the possibility of doing NaNoWriMo. That's... not happening. November is just far too crazy for me to take on writing 50k in thirty days, this year.

But... the novel I'd considered for NaNo is going to be written. Which brings me to Because of Midnight Poison.

The past month or two, I've been struggling to write BoMP, to find the inspiration -- the joy -- in telling Jayna's story. This month, I realized that Jayna's story is not my story -- at least not now. When I first began developing Because of Midnight Poison, it was a story very near and dear to me. But now, there's a story that's weighing heavy on my heart, and it's a story I feel would greater glorify God. It's the sort of story I believe this world needs. It's called The Scent of the Stars.

I know that a lot of you have been rooting for me and Because of Midnight Poison, and I am so very grateful. 💜 I have no plans to abandon my Snow White retelling, -- and I won't be giving up -- but it's not for Five Poisoned Apples. It's a story that, perhaps, within a few years, I might return to. But it's not for the here and now.

I want "to sit down at a typewriter and bleed", something I haven't done in ages. And The Scent of the Stars is something I'm very passionate about: it's is about abortion. It's about the value of each individual human. It's about what it means to be human. It's about purpose. It's about courage. And it's about faith.

I'll be certain to share more with you about TSotS over the next few months, and I'm ecstatic for this new journey; I hope you'll join me on it! If you'd like to learn more about TSotS, click here. 💖

November/December Goal: Outline TSotS.

Current/Overall Goal: Finish draft one by spring 2018.

OCTOBER BLOG ROLL






ELSEWHERE IN THE BLOGOSPHERE

Q&A: THE BOOKISH TAG

A huge hug and thanks to Shantelle @ Between the Pages of This Bookish Life for tagging me for The Bookish Tag!

1. WHAT BOOK HAS BEEN ON YOUR SHELF THE LONGEST?

Uummm... I don't know! *hides* I've had my own library since before I was born, SO I BASICALLY HAVE NO CLUE. 🙈

2. WHAT IS YOUR CURRENT READ, YOUR LAST READ, AND THE BOOK YOU'LL READ NEXT?

Current reads: A Time to Speak by Nadine Brandes and Night by Elie Wiesel.

Last read: Caraval by Stephanie Garber.

Next-ish read: A Time to Rise by Nadine Brandes.

3. WHAT BOOK DID EVERYONE LIKE, BUT YOU HATED?

Pride & Prejudice. *hides* I love the characters and storyline, but the book just isn't my thing!

4. WHAT BOOK DO YOU KEEP TELLING YOURSELF YOU'LL READ, BUT YOU PROBABLY WON'T?

Ha. Ha. Hahahahaha. EVERY BOOK EVER. Like Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, and The Chronicles of Pyradin. 😬

5. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU SAVING FOR RETIREMENT?

'Kay, I take that back. I probably WILL read Lord of the Rings... I'm just "saving" it "for retirement". 😜

6. LAST PAGE: READ IT FIRST, OR WAIT 'TIL THE END?

HOW IS THERE EVEN A QUESTION?! NEVER read the last page first😱

7. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: WASTE OF PAPER AND INK, OR INTERESTING ASIDE?

To be honest, I always read the acknowledgements twice: once before reading, and again, after I've finished. 😅

8. WHICH BOOK CHARACTER WOULD YOU SWITCH PLACES WITH?

I'm thinking Zara from Sun & Moon by Desiree Williams. Because Jaedon reasons. 😉

9. DO YOU HAVE A BOOK THAT REMINDS YOU OF SOMETHING SPECIFIC IN YOUR LIFE (I.E. PLACE, TIME, PERSON...)?

Oh-so-many! Heartless (Anne Elisabeth Stengl) reminds me of springtime, The Healer's Apprentice (Melanie Dickerson) reminds me of summer, and Ella Enchanted reminds me of summer becoming autumn. 😊


10. NAME A BOOK THAT YOU ACQUIRED IN AN INTERESTING WAY.

At #RealmMakers2017, Jill Williamson provided the Teen Track with free copies of Replication: the Jason Experiment!

11. HAVE YOU EVER GIVEN A BOOK AWAY FOR A SPECIAL REASON TO A SPECIAL PERSON?

For her birthday, I gave a bestie a copy of Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier. There is such a strong theme of hope woven throughout (plus it's just an overall fantabulous book 😃)!

12. WHICH BOOK HAS BEEN WITH YOU THE MOST PLACES?

The Old River Road by Ivy Rose, hands down! I've taken it everywhere. It was the first signed book I ever owned, so I was rather eager to keep it with me (backpack, purse, bedside...). 😄 I'm still not one to part with it. 😉

13. ANY REQUIRED READING YOU HATED IN HIGH SCHOOL, BUT WASN'T SO BAD LATER?

I'm still in high school, and I've determined that every book for high school required reading is terrible. So there. 😜

14. USED OR BRAND NEW?

Liv says brand new. Her wallet says used.

15. HAVE YOU EVER READ A DAN BROWN BOOK?

Who's that?

16. HAVE YOU EVER SEEN A MOVIE YOU LIKED MORE THAN THE BOOK?

Mockingjay (parts one and two)! I kinda slugged through the book, BUT BRO. THOSE MOVIES, THOUGH. 😻

17. HAVE YOU EVER READ A BOOK THAT MADE YOU HUNGRY (COOKBOOKS INCLUDED)?

The entire Harry Potter series (J.K. Rowling), and Red's Untold Tale by Wendy Toliver!

18. WHO IS THE PERSON WHOSE BOOK ADVICE YOU'LL ALWAYS TAKE?

Ashlee Willis @ Finding the True Fairytale! Her books are SO good, I'm sure that I'd love any book she'd recommend. 😁


19. IS THERE A BOOK OUTSIDE OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE (I.E. YOUR USUAL READING GENRE) THAT YOU ENDED UP LOVING?

Ending Fear by Deanna Fugett! I already knew Deanna, and she's such an amazing person that I knew I'd just need to read her book... AND IT WAS AMAZING. 😍 I'm SO ready for Living Brave!


Thanks so much for bearing with me through this freakishly long post, Dragons! Lord willing, I'll see y'all again on Monday, with a tour stop for T.J. Akers's The Final Paladin! 🙂

Tell me, Dragons! Are you doing NaNoWriMo, this year? What's your current WIP?

❤,