Merry Christmas!

Hello readers!

I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and give an update on my writing.

My writing is currently on hold due to some research I am doing for my father. They are working on an Anti-Abortion documentary called Babies Are Still Murdered Here which is a sequel to Babies Are Murdered Here. 

This research does stunt my writing only a little because, in the end, it also helps my writing. Following a slippery slope approach is what makes Dystopian books possible. I am a Pro-Life Christian writer and I hope that is reflected in how I write.

I have not had a lot of time to edit my book, but the moment I am able I will start editing it again. I am currently reading other stories on Inkitt and writing reviews. I hope to get my own readership back up after my story is successfully edited for a second/third time.

The chapters are likely to be shortened again, I am going to change from 20 pages per chapter to between 10-15, which is more manageable for online consumption.

Thanks for your patience.
Sam

Writing Update

Hello,

I now have a facebook group that is dedicated to editing my book. It has around 6 or 7 readers in the group, so hopefully, I can start working out some issues.

On the same line of thinking, if any of y'all are interested in a Facebook Page for my story, if there is enough interest, I'd be happy to consider coming up with one. I would want to wait until I had the 6th chapter up. Historically, I have only ever been able to write 5 chapters before my brain runs out of ideas. I am on five chapters now, I have been attempting to write a paragraph a day.

During the school year, I get so busy that I am unable to write. This summer I plan to focus most of my time on Blogs, When the Sky Caught Fire, Knitting, and other work I have lined up. (Mostly odd jobs) And of course, I am doing my normal photography.

How did my school year go? I know most of y'all probably don't care, but here it is anyway. I got two As, one B, and a C. In my health course I got an S, so I passed all my courses. Next semester I am going to work hard to get either As or Bs and no Cs. I would like my GPA to go up a little, if at all possible. I have a 3.1 which is too close to a 2.9 for me. Can you tell I'm a perfectionist?

Sometimes because of my perfectionism, I have difficulty when writing. I want it to be perfect the first time. So, I'm forcing myself to write and upload chapters first before editing. The raw/rough draft is on purpose so I can get reader feedback on dialogue, character representation, and grammar.

Thanks for reading!
Sam

Politics and writing

When writing a dystopian novel you tend to look at the politics of the current nation. In most public speaking classes they will discourage you from going to the extreme. While I understand that, in my book, I go straight to the extreme. Whenever you look at history nobody expected the extreme when it happened (the holocaust, genocides, etc). If nobody ever talks about it then nobody will expect it.

The first thing that I want to discuss today is our president. I respect him because he is our president, he has made the economy better, and I do believe he has the best intentions for America as a nation. However, when people start bringing him to the level of God, that's where I have problems. I recently saw a meme that struck a nerve.

"He gave up his million dollar home (company) to be mocked, ridiculed, and dragged through the mud just to save the American nation that he loves."

Okay, back up. Last I checked he is still making money from his company? (maybe I'm wrong here) He's already taken expensive trips and his kid is still at his original school. Secret Service agents don't do their job for free.

The other thing is, the people I saw posting this were Christians. That bothers me a little. We don't worship President Trump. We worship Jesus, He died for sinners. He was mocked, ridiculed, and beaten on our behalf to save sinners. Trump isn't God and people should stop elevating him to that level. It is nothing short of blasphemy.

It also scares me a little. When people start admiring humans to that level crap starts to hit the fan. We can't allow ourselves to become so enamored with a man that we forget about the God who made us.

Culture and Writing

Hello, today I wanted to talk about two major things that I'm studying/doing right now. The first of the two is about Culture.

I've started taking cultural anthropology and studying Deafhood (which dives into the culture of the Deaf). I am not a cultural relativist, I am far from it. Despite my views on it, I am learning a lot of interesting things about language development and other things that develop differently depending on the culture.

With Deafhood I'm having some problems with culture shock. Deaf culture is very different from hearing culture and that's going to be hard for me to overcome. And then you hear them raging against hearing people because of what we've done to them. As a result, I would end up exhausted on my short day. What I'd like in the class is transparency, for example, where are the sources for this information? (Students are required to cite sources, teachers should be held to the same standard) Was there anything that hearing did that was good? (If you constantly push the negative then you have the potential for jaded students.) Why is it bad for hearing people to help? Nurses don't get ragged on for wanting to help, why should interpreters have to put up with it?

With writing, I am close to the end of editing my 3rd chapter in my book. I am hoping to get it up in a couple of months. I am also still working on my prequel (When the roads ran red) and I'm unsure of when the first chapter will be up.

Thanks for reading!
(Questions, comments, advice is encouraged)
Sam

Immigration, bans, writing

Hello!

Today I have decided to cover a couple issues. 1. Immigration/bans. 2. Writing. I hope I can cover both of these thoroughly.

1. Immigration. I saw the executive order that had to do with immigrants/refugees. This is a very evil order. How do you tell people who are being murdered, "I'm sorry, we don't want you here," or "Fend for yourselves?"   How can you do that?
And then everyone jumps up and says, "God Bless America."  How can God bless America when we are aborting our babies? And now we're turning people away when the Bible clearly states how we are supposed to treat the sojourners in our land.
Yeah, turning away the refugees will certainly help with the terrorism problem. *Sarcasm*

2. Writing. I have been editing my book over the past few days. I plan on working on it some more today after I've finished my homework. I will have enough for at least 3 chapters. I thought I had more than that but editing has taken out a lot of unneeded information while adding a little bit of needed information.

Thanks for reading,
Sam

Editing, reading, writing, and homeschooling

Hello again!

Today I am editing more of my story and have found some inconsistencies. One of the biggest ones is after Moisés is shot he doesn't have as much trouble as he should during the story. That is one of the biggest detail fillers I've had since I've started the story. I am currently on page 33/34 and hope to get up to page 40 done within the next few days. I would like to post a couple of my chapters back up on Inkitt before I start school again which is next week. 

I have also been reading a book called The Perfect Horse by Elizabeth Letts (I believe that's her name) it is an excellent book about the Lipizzaner horses in Nazi Germany. It made me hate the Nazi's even more, not because of how badly they treated the horses but because of how well they treated the horses in comparison to people. I'm about a quarter of the way through but I hope to be done with that book in a couple days. 

Recently I saw an article about how home-schoolers shouldn't go to college. While I agreed with them in one sense I also did not agree with them. Part of the reason is because I am in college, I have been in college for two years. The career I'm going for cannot be attained without a B.A. degree so it is a direct insult to home-schoolers who want to be doctors, nurses, midwives, interpreters, teachers, and so on. 

In the area I agreed with them on was the fact that not every job needs a degree. For instance: To start your own business or become an salesman you don't really need a degree, you can learn that from other people. Or even a writer, you don't need a degree. Some of the best writers did not have a degree in writing/creative writing. It isn't a necessity to write. 

Anyways, those are my thoughts. Thanks for reading!
Samantha

College, writing, postcrossing

Hello!

Today I've started to get ready to go back to college. I've been gathering info about SAT tests (transferring), checking to make sure that my application for graduation went through, getting my transcripts sent to my colleges of choice, and next week I'm getting my books for the college I'm attending now.

For writing I plan on editing my book at some point. I am on page 27 and still editing. Changing back to third person is very difficult, it causes the story to morph once again. I hope that it turns out in a way that I can like. (Either that or I end up scrapping complete paragraphs).

And finally, postcrossing. I love postcrossing because you get mail from all over the world. Just yesterday I got two postcards from France and one from PA (USA). I currently have 6 postcards travelling and hope to get a few more out before I'm too busy with college.

Have a great weekend!
Sam

Writing Disabilities

Today I am talking about how to write disabilities. I am obviously no expert, but I think some of these things could help other authors with writing. (Published or unpublished)

I have two disabilities I have written before (unpublished/fanfiction) and I think there is always something to be learned about writing it.

1. Blindness.
You need to be very careful with how you depict any person with a disability. It can become very easy to offend people by acting like they are unable to do things. (Driving is a given but even some legally blind people can, technically, drive.)
The first thing you need to do is get educated on the subject. If you aren't informed you will come off the wrong way.
The second thing you should do is get to know the people. Go out of your way to meet blind people. Be transparent about what you're doing. Being honest is the best way to go.
The third thing you should do is read literature (fiction) that focuses on blindness. It will give you a general idea on how to write it.

2. Deafness
Again, you need to be extremely careful with how you depict any group of people. This applies for deafness as well.
The first thing you need to do with this is take some ASL courses and/or a Deaf culture class. This will help you become mildly educated on the subject. I would also suggest reading a variety of books on the subject.
One such book is called: Inside Deaf Culture. This particular book brings you back to the eighteen hundreds and earlier (if I remember right) and details Deaf culture from that point forward. I am currently a little more than halfway through it.
The second thing you should do is go meet some Deaf people. Take an Interpreter with you if you know you won't be able to understand. Be transparent about what you are doing, they will appreciate your honesty.
And the third thing is read literature that focuses on it. I haven't read much literature with Deaf people in it, unfortunately, but there is a Manga called A Silent Voice and is an excellent manga. I am very picky about what type of Manga I will read but that particular one is and always will be one of my favorites. I have read the first three and will soon have more on hold at my Library.

Thanks for reading. This just scratches the tip of the iceberg but I hope it can be of some help.

Sam

College, Writing, Editing

Hello! I have not been on very much and for that I apologize. My baby sister was born and then life went crazy. I had projects almost every day that I had to do and presentations in ASL. I was not able to work on my story until now. I will get as much done as possible before the Spring semester.

I am currently editing my story. I put it into a word document and discovered that it was 87 pages and a little over 30,000 words. This shocked me! I am not even halfway done. I printed the document and gave it to my mother so she can edit it. I am hoping that with the extra help it won't take as long.

I apologize again for my absence but I hope to be buckling down within the next few weeks.

College, Postcrossing, and writing

Greetings!  For the past month or so I have not been doing anything with my book. I am a little ashamed by my lack of motivation. But today I'm going to give you an update with what I've been doing.

College:  I have been attending six classes at my local college (18 credits) and my first tests are coming up pretty quickly. I haven't had the foresight nor time to create flashcards and now I'm on crunch time. Maybe on the weekends I can make the flashcards; that way I won't be completely in the dark.

I am also attending three ASL classes this semester. One is ASL 5 (Intermediate) and is more vocabulary and signing skills. There is also quite a bit of turning ASL into English and back again. My second ASL class is Introduction to Interpreting. This class is taught completely in English but I am thankful for that. If it were not taught in English I think it would go over my head.
The third and final ASL class is Linguistics. This is also taught in English but it is mostly self taught. A lot of my classmates seem to really hate this class; but I love it. I grew up learning in a self-taught manner and I have been in my element

My other three classes are Ethics, Intro Sociology, and Math. In the spring I'll be done with math and my focus will be mainly ASL.

For those who do not know what ASL is it is American Sign Language. It is used with the Deaf and the Deaf-Blind. People who can hear also use American Sign Language to communicate and/or interpret.

PostCrossing: For those of you who don't know what this is; it is a place where you can send postcards to anyone in the world. It is randomized. I have gotten one person from Germany and one person from Russia so far; so two American postcards will be being sent.

Writing: I haven't done much writing lately. I was planning on doing some today but I have homework and work stuff to do. I am hoping to get my 5th chapter out by December. Please keep reading my story and please send feedback on it. Until then, here is a quote from the 5th chapter to keep y'all waiting and happy:

"I grabbed the guy’s wrist the next time he came after me and twisted it until I felt it crack. His mouth opened in a silent scream of pain. I’m sure it wasn’t silent, I’m sure it was bone chilling, but my lack of hearing helped with that."

Abe:
"My brother passed out before I could ask how much it hurt. Which was a really stupid question anyways; if your eyes are unfocused as much as his were you wouldn’t have been able to tell what I was signing either."

5th chapter

Hello! My last post was so short, I apologize. I know I have no followers and very few views, but I enjoy pretending like more people look at my stuff. (=

Today I started working more on the 5th chapter which is from Moses's point of view. I'll probably have at least three points of view in this chapter.

"I grabbed the guy's wrist the next time he came after me and twisted it until I felt it crack. His mouth opened in a silent scream of pain. I'm sure it wasn't silent, I'm sure it was bone chilling, but my lack of hearing helped with that."

So, with college starting up it isn't likely that I will get the next chapter out until sometime in September. I hope to be writing a little in my free time after all my schoolwork is done. I also hope to gain a better perspective of Deaf culture so I can effectively write my Deaf character. 

Thanks for reading!
Sam

Editing and writing

Hello, it's me again!

For the past few weeks/month I have been editing my story on Inkitt. I have been working very hard to get the entire book on the same line. I hope to have it done sometime this week or at least before school starts back up. (So, this week)

Inkitt is having a contest right now, I believe I've mentioned it before. My story is not entered in the contest as it does not match the criteria. I also wouldn't submit my story until it's done. (=

Feel free to go on Inkitt's site and read the wonderful stories in the contest. I've already read two that are there. I plan on taking a deeper look into that so I can support more authors.

Have a great week!
Sam

Editing story

Today I am editing my story. It came to my attention from a friend that I kept switching to different viewpoints. (1st person, 3rd person, ect...) So, starting with the 1st chapter I am switching viewpoints. You can watch this process if you wish because I won't be unpublishing the story to make this change.

Because of the change there will be new information added and some information removed. Feel free to read as we go.

Also Inkitt is having a contest that I encourage you to participate in. Instead of voting the books will be picked based on how many reads it has/how many copies were read. Follow the link to go to the page. Please support these writers and help them get published. There can be 3 winners. (=

Thanks!
Samantha

Thoughts

Today's update isn't really about my story, although it may come into play later. I'm addressing modesty. How far do we have to go with modesty?

As a Christian young women I believe modesty is a very important aspect of life. We don't want to cause our Christian brothers to stumble but where is the medium? Sometimes in our obsession with being modest we forget to dress like young ladies and not old maids.

I have a tendency to dress like an old maid, which is why I believe this is important. Growing up I wanted to dress like an old maid because it felt safe. If I looked like my grandma no guy would ever look at me twice, because chances are, I look like their grandma as well.

Now that I'm an adult my parents are starting to get concerned, so much so that I now hear about how I look like an old lady. I've been taking steps since I turned eighteen to look less like a grandma. Now that I'm twenty-one I think I've figured it out. People expect girls to dress very immodestly while other groups expect very modest.

This blog post isn't very organized today. Here's what brought these thoughts forward:
I decided to dress nicely today in a blouse, blue jeans, and a nice pair of earrings. I'm not one for selfies but I took a picture of myself with my computer and for once I was surprised.

Surprised? Why? You might ask that, but I don't often think of myself as beautiful. Because that would be vain. (=   But I was surprised to see that if I try not to look like a grandma I can look like a young lady.

Today in writing I will try and edit/write more in my book. I hope to have a chapter up by the second or third week in August.

Thanks for reading my rambles!
Sam

Chapter Four

Hello, I'm happy to announce that Chapter Four  is now up to be read. In this chapter our characters are finally freed from the cabin they have been stuck in, they meet Shadow and crew, and finally they face the demons of their past.

Unfortunately there is a problem with formatting right now that the Tech team is working on, so I apologize for that inconvenience. I hope it doesn't hurt your reading too much. I hope you enjoy the story. Chapter five is going to be a little more depressing, so I apologize in advance.

Thanks!
Sam

New Chapter

Hello everyone! I am proud to announce I finally posted my 3rd chapter for my story. Feel free to follow the link and read it. I am now working on my fourth chapter and I don't expect to get it done for a couple weeks.

Here are a couple quotes from the book:

Moses hesitated then wrote, I was still isolated. In a world where you can't hear, can't speak, and can't lip read you have very little opportunity. Besides, you can still hear a little. I literally hear nothing.

"Oh great. The last thing we need is Ross being able to swear at people without them knowing it," Storm covered her face with both her hands, muttering, "What is my life?"

Current writing

Today I am trying to write more in my story while running a bookstore, cleaning, and finishing up my homework. While this is very difficult for me, I hope to sludge  through this by doing a little at a time.

Homework: I am having to analyze literature and I am having trouble keeping my story out of my analysis. When I'm writing I feel more creative and like to have that freedom. When I'm doing homework it's hard to keep my mind inside the confines of the parameters given to me.

Bookstore: I am cleaning up the back room in our family bookstore to make it easier to move around.

This is my last post for the weekend, so all I have to say is have a blessed day! Enjoy your weekend.

My life and my Writing

Hello, so I thought it might be interesting to give a little background on my life and my writing. I originally started getting the idea to write from my sister. My sister started writing little stories when she was between 8 and 10 years old. I watched her do this and she could write pretty good mystery stories as a kid. I wanted to do it because I was a year younger than her and anything she did was cool. 

So what did I do? I copied her. Gasp, plagiarism right? No, don't worry, neither of us have published a story. Now I get permission to use her characters. Storm? Yeah, she was my sister's. Sometimes she asks me to use certain characters because I write them better. 

The first ones I tried were crappy romances. And mine were really crappy, whenever I find one I throw them away. I also tried Sci-Fi and I was really bad at that. And by Sci-Fi I mean Star Trek and Star Wars type things. Then I tried Fantasy, which I am okay at. I'm trying my hand at it again and I think I've a better idea of what I want to do with it. 

So, I tried a lot of stuff, even non-fiction. I tried to write a book about the life of an Evangelists kid, the life of a Pastor's kid, the life of a Home-schooler. Yeah, I've tried a lot. I love writing Dystopian because everyone has that little What If thing in the back of their minds. "What if ___ happened?"   "What if a Monarchy took over the states?" 

What is happening in my life right now? I'm writing a book (duh), attending college, volunteering at a bookstore, and trying to keep up with my sewing and knitting. I am not attending college for English, I am attending for American Sign Language and plan to transfer so I can become an Interpreter. 

I hope this has been informative! 
Sam