January | Make Way for Crazy

Happy weekend, Wordlings! 

How's 2016 going for you? Did you start off the year well? Is it still going well?

I know for me, I'm pretty behind on my goals but at least they're still moving forward. I've never edited a full length novel before so this is new territory for me. Since I'm learning a lot though, I'd definitely say that the month has still been productive. After all, when is learning not productive? ;) 

Onwards to the summary! 

Previously, In the Month of January.... 

1) I made good headway in editing the first draft of my novel, "Living City". However, I didn't finish the first read through like I had planned. I procrastinated during the first week and had assignments in the third and fourth week of the month; which lead me to only editing 15 out of 44 chapters. *dramatic sigh*

In my defence, I underestimated the work needed to be done on the first draft. Never do that, my little wordlings! First drafts need lots of attention! They're like small children: messing up a lot and needing your guidance to reach their full potential.

Despite the lack of advancement on my Alpha edits, I have high hopes to finish them in the next month (or by the middle of March at the absolute latest). Now that I know what to expect, I feel as though I can do better in the coming months.

Thank you, Haymitch! It's so kind you to say so. 

2) School started up again so I'm now in my second semester of University. Woot! My classes this term are an English literature analysis course, world history form the 1500s to present day (the plot bunnies have taken over this course!), and another Spanish class!

3) I've signed my first contract ever! As of this month, I'm a signed author (I goggled the definition to make sure it included writing articles). This calls for a celebration! *pops cork on sparkling pomegranate juice*

Nerd Stuff

1) I finished watching up to the end of season 4 of "Once Upon a Time" on Netflix. Oh my goodness that finale though....so much emotion! I can hardly wait for season 5 to be released! If you haven't seen the series, you gotta give it a shot. It's really good! From a writing standpoint, I've learned a lot about creating villains and backstories by watching that show. From a fan's perspective? Well...

This gif says it all. 

2) I went on a spontaneous book haul at the bookstore...twice. There was literally no reason for me to buy books other than the fact that I had money and happened to be in the store. But let's be honest here. You never need an excuse to buy new books! (especially when one of them is a leather bound book of Emily Dickinson's poetry)

3) Noragami Aragoto wrapped up this month. My friend, Kendall and I fangirled throughout the entire season and now have our fingers crossed that the third season comes out soon. I might have to just read the manga though XD The anticipation is killing me!

In the Meantime, we started watching and have nearly finished Akame ga Kill. It's a little weird: hilarious at times, eyebrow raising at others. I wouldn't recommend it but I feel the need to finish it now XD

4) I read "The Sword of Summer" and really, enjoyed it! I hoped to have a review up this month but that will have to wait until February. I'll have it up soon though, I promise.

Coming Soon to the Month of February...

1) February will be a crazy month for me! But crazy is my middle name, isn't it?

Shhh, it's actually Taylor. (But Cassia Crazy Schaar sounds better)

The month will be pretty normal for the first ten days so I hope to get lots of writing and editing done in that time. If I'm at least three quarters of the way through my preliminary edits, I'll be elated.

Alright. Here we go!

2) As far as writing new stuff goes, I'll be working on Crec as much as I can. My word count goals will be seriously scaled back though—not to mention flexible. By the end of the month I hope to have Act 1 complete (for real this time) but it's not a priority with midterms and the next few items on my list *points down*. 

3) On the 11th, a close friend of mine, Tori, will be flying from Georgia to stay with me for a few weeks. I'm beyond excited to see her! We'll have so many adventures and do a lot of writing together :)

Tori's in the centre. We'll get more picture this year ^.^

4)  The day after Tori leaves, I'm catching a plane bound for Florida where I'll be attending the Florida Christian Writer's Conference. There, I'm meeting with editors, agents and authors in hopes to get picked up or at least have some interest in my work :)

Also, I'll get to see my mentor, Bethany Jett :D I've been messaging her in the last few days. We're both counting down the days ^_^

Future Nerd Stuff

1) When Tori comes up, I'll be watching "Spirited Away" and "Guilty Crown" as well as re-watching "Your Lie in April" and "5 Centimetres Per Second". We're sharing our favourite animes and Japanese movies with each other ;)

Your Lie In April is the most beautiful anime I've ever seen.

2) Another film we'll be watching is "The 5th Wave". To be honest, I really didn't care for the book but I have a feeling it at least has potential to make a good movie. I'll let you know when I find out. 

3) My reading this month will consist of "The Gracekeepers" by Kristy Logan and if I get around to it, I'll read "The Giver" again. It's gonna be a busy month though so I'm not sure how much time I'll have for reading. There's always the plane ride though ;)

Can we just pause and take a moment to admire this beautiful cover?

So that's my month! Next month will be nuts but in the best way possible. I can't wait to tell you all about it!

What were some of the highlights from your month? Have any goals for next month?

Keep up the awesomeness, Wordlings!