Nerves. Everybody has them. They're the fat covered strings that run through our bodies telling our parts what to do. Nerves are divided into specific categories, just like everything else in the universe. We categorize them into systems: Central Nervous System (CNS) and the Peripheral Nervous System (PNS).
The CNS is the brain, spinal cord and retina. The PNS is pretty much everything else.
The PNS is then broken into two more divisions: Sensory and Motor. It is the motor division that I'd like to talk about today. But first, to be precise, let's split this division even further into the Autonomic Nervous System and the Somatic Nervous System. I'll leave it at that. I'm sure you really don't care to know the exacts about these two. If you do, send me a message.
Autonomic Nervous System played the antagonist at the Willamette Writers Conference. Let's call this system ANS--even though ANS behaved like an AS*, I'll be nice and call him by his true name.
Fifteen pitches in three days. Can you imagine? ANS had a ball at my expense. He led me to the restroom before and after every pitch. He stomped on my guts, vibrated my heart, screamed in my ears, and stuffed cotton in my mouth and sand covered rocks down my throat. I pretty much hated him.
But, to be honest, I stroked ANS very well the first day. Six pitches for my novel and six requests for pages equates to a blissfully happy Angela.
Day two, not so good. ANS isn't the one to blame, though. He did his job, kept me on my toes, pushed me beyond my comfort zone. I had no business pitching a screenplay. I'm a novelist and will stick with pitching novels for now. Screenplays aren't my thing--yet. So, day two wasn't a loss; it was a learning experience.
Day three, ANS must have slept in. I pitched my novel twice and received two requests for pages.
Willamette Writers Conference gave me the opportunity to meet as many agents and editors as I could and to get my words in front of them. Several of the agents I met fall into the My-Dream-Forever-Agent list. I PRAY that at least one of them feels the same way.
The 2010 Willamette Writers Conference rocked.
Peace out.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
HEAR YE, HEAR YE!
While rubbing bodies at my day job the other day, the idea fairy and I had a conversation. We do that on a regular basis. Sometimes our chats are pretty ridiculous and others are ultra-fabulous, like this one.
The ultra-fabulous idea will take form in reality on September 1st. At that time, this blog will become somewhat of an awesome place to be. Not only because Yours Truly will be posting on it more often, but because there will be teenagers here, too. Not just one or two, but a new teen every single week! Talk about teen-spirit!
This blog will be dedicated to the ordinary yet extraordinary teen voices of this generation. They will talk candidly with me about the issues they deal with on a daily basis and about books and about drugs and about school and about growing up and about fantasy and about life in general. Heck, they may even decide to burst out with something totally random--which would be rad.
Although the goal is to be teen oriented, we will also have an occasional interview featuring an upcoming, unpublished YA or middle grade author. Because, after all, we love books! We may also feature a famous author or two. **gasp**
But, don't hold your breath because interviews with famous authors can be found everywhere else. What can't be found elsewhere are the interviews of the unknown. And that's exactly what you will find here.
Our first guest will be Bree--I think she's awesome, and so will you!
So follow the blog, learn about some really cool unknown people, and enjoy life.
Peace out, yo.
The ultra-fabulous idea will take form in reality on September 1st. At that time, this blog will become somewhat of an awesome place to be. Not only because Yours Truly will be posting on it more often, but because there will be teenagers here, too. Not just one or two, but a new teen every single week! Talk about teen-spirit!
This blog will be dedicated to the ordinary yet extraordinary teen voices of this generation. They will talk candidly with me about the issues they deal with on a daily basis and about books and about drugs and about school and about growing up and about fantasy and about life in general. Heck, they may even decide to burst out with something totally random--which would be rad.
Although the goal is to be teen oriented, we will also have an occasional interview featuring an upcoming, unpublished YA or middle grade author. Because, after all, we love books! We may also feature a famous author or two. **gasp**
But, don't hold your breath because interviews with famous authors can be found everywhere else. What can't be found elsewhere are the interviews of the unknown. And that's exactly what you will find here.
Our first guest will be Bree--I think she's awesome, and so will you!
So follow the blog, learn about some really cool unknown people, and enjoy life.
Peace out, yo.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
"MY SOUL TO LOSE" by Rachel Vincent
My Soul to Lose. Great title, don’t you think? Too great. In fact, I totally boycotted the Soul Screamers series by Rachel Vincent just because of the rad titles—most likely out of jealousy (shhh, did I say that?).
The boycott ended recently when I read My Soul to Lose. Now I’m not so much jealous as a I am a fan of Rachel Vincent. I might become a groupie. Do authors have groupies? Well, maybe not a groupie because that would be gross, but I'll definitely join a fan club.
I only stumbled upon these books when I decided to call my next book My Soul to Steal a while back. After I Googled it, as I do every little idea that pops into my brain to make sure that my idea is the only one like it, up flashed the Soul Screamers series. Google’s smart like that.
None of Rachel Vincent’s books have this title (My Soul to Steal), but still, it would be silly for me to call my book this when she already has My Soul to Take, My Soul to Save, My Soul to Keep, and now the prequel novella My Soul to Lose.
They are just too enticing and pretty to ignore any longer. Plus, My Soul to Lose is FREE! That’s right peeps, I said FREE! What the…??? With no more excuses outside of the fact that the author totally stole the title from my brain several years before I thought of it, I downloaded the FREE (did I mention Free?) novella My Soul to Lose.
Summary from RachelVincent.com:
Publisher: Harlequin
“SOUL SCREAMERS PREQUEL NOVELLA
Kaylee Cavanaugh's trip to the mall ends with a brutal panic attack and a brainscrambling shriek she can't stop. Her secret fear is exposed. It's the worst day of her life.
Until she wakes up in the psychiatric unit.
But the hospital isn't a safe place for Kaylee, and getting out won't be easy because everyone thinks she's crazy. Everyone except Lydia, who has a secret of her own...”
Doesn’t that sound awesome with a capital A? It is! To be honest, I didn’t know it was a novella when I downloaded it onto my Kindle. I just thought I was a super-fast reader because it only took me about two hours to read it (if that). Truly, I didn’t want to put it down.
Then, just when I’m freaking out about how cool this story is, it ends. What the…??? Not cool. Now I’m going to have to download My Soul to Take.
RATING: “Check It Out.” You’ll enjoy it if you do.
Peace
****Note: The Kindle version is no longer free, but as of today you may still download a free version from the author website.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
To Blog
Blogging is not my forte. Professionals say that writers should have blogs and internet presence, which I have, but don't update often. This is about to change.
There are people in the world who enjoy reading blogs. And since you are reading this, you must be one of them. Once a month, or maybe twice, a new blog will be posted. I hope to make it worth your while, or maybe just worth my own while. Isn't that an odd saying? "Worth your while." Why don't people just say "Worth your time"? Whatever.
My experiences at the Willamette Writers Conference will be posted next week. Other posts may consist of short stories or pieces from my novels. Maybe an article or two will be tossed in the mix. Better yet, a few book reviews. How exciting!
Until then, hold your breath.
Peace out, yo.
Ang
There are people in the world who enjoy reading blogs. And since you are reading this, you must be one of them. Once a month, or maybe twice, a new blog will be posted. I hope to make it worth your while, or maybe just worth my own while. Isn't that an odd saying? "Worth your while." Why don't people just say "Worth your time"? Whatever.
My experiences at the Willamette Writers Conference will be posted next week. Other posts may consist of short stories or pieces from my novels. Maybe an article or two will be tossed in the mix. Better yet, a few book reviews. How exciting!
Until then, hold your breath.
Peace out, yo.
Ang
Friday, July 2, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
First Four Weeks
Meat has become so important to us that we build all of our meals around it—it’s the main course and we eat it three times a day. It hasn’t always been like this though. Only in the last fifty years has meat become so in demand.
Although the leading health experts believe that going vegetarian is something we can do to better our lives as well as our families’ lives, we each still consume over two-hundred pounds of flesh per year. People wonder why we have so much more cancer, so many more cases of diabetes, more cases of heart disease and stroke, but they don’t correlate these issues with our diet. I’m ashamed of myself, even, for being so ignorant for my entire life.
Exactly four weeks ago, after much investigating, I decided to stop consuming all animal products. Health isn’t the only reason for my decision. The main reason was compassion. It has been much easier than I ever thought it would be. If I hadn’t done the research, and if I didn’t know how our meat is “grown,” it would have been very hard. After all, I was like the cheeseburger queen, and I loved my steak a little bit bloody. Just the thought of eating a steak now makes my stomach seize and makes me gag. Disgusting and wrong.
Compassion toward animals has bled into my compassion toward humans as well. Some of you know that people irritate me. Well, it seems that they don’t irritate me as much lately for some reason. I seem to have a bit of compassion for even the stupid and selfish humans. Very strange indeed. Compassion breeds more compassion. Violence breeds hate and more violence.
People have commented on my appearance. They say that I “look” healthier and want to know what has changed.
Without changing my exercise routine, I’ve lost eight pounds, which is usually impossible for me. All I did differently was cut animal products from my diet. In the next week, I plan on adding yoga, weight lifting and cardio to my life and hope to lose twenty more soon.
Pain is a heredity prerequisite of the women in my family. Although my pain hasn’t diminished completely, it has diminished enough to where I can work without my hands going numb. In the forthcoming weeks, months, and years, I look forward to it diminishing more.
Thanks to my dad, I’ve inherited his low blood pressure (along with his thinning hair—thanks Dad). Before I went vegetarian/vegan, my blood pressure was 119/80 – which is high for me. Today, my blood pressure is 104/70 – which is very normal for me. Yay!
The other day, as I drove to work, a number of cows were released from their pens at a dairy farm. It warmed my heart as I drove by and saw them "frolic" in the green field. I had never seen a cow frolic before. Perhaps I hadn't paid much attention before. Frolicking cows made me smile. I said to myself, "I'm so glad that I don't eat you."
Many of you will think this is just a bunch of “yadayadayada,” but I hope one or two of you will arm yourself with knowledge. Take your life into your own hands by learning about your food. Food is truly medicine and you are indeed what you eat.
If you choose to consume animal products, please do so responsibly. Buy cruelty free, locally raised, organic and free range animals.
Here is a great article with lots of information from the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/weekinreview/27bittman.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
And another article about the health benefits for going vegan:
HTTP://WWW.GOVEG.COM/HEALTHCONCERNS.ASP
And if you only follow the latest trends, here is a list of a few celebrities that are vegetarian and beautiful (which includes Brad Pitt):
http://www.happycow.net/famous_vegetarians.html
Want to read a book or watch a movie?
"Fast Food Nation" and "Food Inc." will get you started.
Be wise, be loving, and be compassionate. As I tell many of my clients who refuse to care for themselves, "Do whatever you want with your body. But remember, you only get one, and they don't sell spare parts."
Angela
Although the leading health experts believe that going vegetarian is something we can do to better our lives as well as our families’ lives, we each still consume over two-hundred pounds of flesh per year. People wonder why we have so much more cancer, so many more cases of diabetes, more cases of heart disease and stroke, but they don’t correlate these issues with our diet. I’m ashamed of myself, even, for being so ignorant for my entire life.
Exactly four weeks ago, after much investigating, I decided to stop consuming all animal products. Health isn’t the only reason for my decision. The main reason was compassion. It has been much easier than I ever thought it would be. If I hadn’t done the research, and if I didn’t know how our meat is “grown,” it would have been very hard. After all, I was like the cheeseburger queen, and I loved my steak a little bit bloody. Just the thought of eating a steak now makes my stomach seize and makes me gag. Disgusting and wrong.
Compassion toward animals has bled into my compassion toward humans as well. Some of you know that people irritate me. Well, it seems that they don’t irritate me as much lately for some reason. I seem to have a bit of compassion for even the stupid and selfish humans. Very strange indeed. Compassion breeds more compassion. Violence breeds hate and more violence.
People have commented on my appearance. They say that I “look” healthier and want to know what has changed.
Without changing my exercise routine, I’ve lost eight pounds, which is usually impossible for me. All I did differently was cut animal products from my diet. In the next week, I plan on adding yoga, weight lifting and cardio to my life and hope to lose twenty more soon.
Pain is a heredity prerequisite of the women in my family. Although my pain hasn’t diminished completely, it has diminished enough to where I can work without my hands going numb. In the forthcoming weeks, months, and years, I look forward to it diminishing more.
Thanks to my dad, I’ve inherited his low blood pressure (along with his thinning hair—thanks Dad). Before I went vegetarian/vegan, my blood pressure was 119/80 – which is high for me. Today, my blood pressure is 104/70 – which is very normal for me. Yay!
The other day, as I drove to work, a number of cows were released from their pens at a dairy farm. It warmed my heart as I drove by and saw them "frolic" in the green field. I had never seen a cow frolic before. Perhaps I hadn't paid much attention before. Frolicking cows made me smile. I said to myself, "I'm so glad that I don't eat you."
Many of you will think this is just a bunch of “yadayadayada,” but I hope one or two of you will arm yourself with knowledge. Take your life into your own hands by learning about your food. Food is truly medicine and you are indeed what you eat.
If you choose to consume animal products, please do so responsibly. Buy cruelty free, locally raised, organic and free range animals.
Here is a great article with lots of information from the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/200
And another article about the health benefits for going vegan:
HTTP://WWW.GOVEG.COM/HEALT
And if you only follow the latest trends, here is a list of a few celebrities that are vegetarian and beautiful (which includes Brad Pitt):
http://www.happycow.net/fa
Want to read a book or watch a movie?
"Fast Food Nation" and "Food Inc." will get you started.
Be wise, be loving, and be compassionate. As I tell many of my clients who refuse to care for themselves, "Do whatever you want with your body. But remember, you only get one, and they don't sell spare parts."
Angela
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Guide to Literary Agents
...is holding a wicked-awesome contest for middle grade and young adult writers. This particular contest, "Dear Lucky Agent", is to win a 10-page critique by an agent judge (Regina Brooks) and a one-year subscription to WritersMarket.com.
Check it out:
Guide to Literary Agents
Check it out:
Guide to Literary Agents
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