Two Thousand and Nineteen

It's that time of year when people start looking forward to the new year and make resolutions. I never used to make a lot of resolutions in the past, but I enjoyed holding myself accountable to the resolutions I made last year. Let's take a peek:

1. Three books to finish writing.
2. One book to write for nanowrimo.
3. An entire series, consisting of eight books to edit.

Yup. That's what I said I'd do. What did I actually do?

1. I only finished two books. But...
2. I did write a new book for nanowrimo (after going back and forth about not knowing what to even write and I did it in 12 days, so I'll take it!)
3. Well, I'm still slowly making my way through this. One of the books is fully edited and could probably be published at any point, but I'm not ready for that. The others are getting there.
4. I published a book this year! It wasn't in my resolutions list, but who cares? It's a huge accomplishment for me!


 And now for 2019's resolutions!

1. Two books to finish writing.
2. Publish at least two books this year. (I say at least, because I think I can squeeze out three, but I'm not sure.)
3. Finish editing that series!

Here's to a great 2019 for everyone!!


- Natasja

So many books, so little time

I have had the longest week ever. It seems like the closer I get to finishing my next manuscript, the more life gets in the way. Sometimes being a writer feels like you're living at least a double life: your real one and the one(s) you live in your story. 

I would never push aside the needs of my family to be a writer or to finish what is, at the moment, a mediocre book. Still I managed to get this far and I'm still going. This current book has been in the works for a good five years and I'm almost, finally, just-about-to-be done. Which is, of course, why I'm on my blog, procrastinating.

Oops! Better get back to it then!

- Natasja

Themes and other things

I think one of the hardest things people ask me when they find out I'm a writer is what do I write. It's hard because I have a variety of interests and tastes, and I can't even talk about the baker's dozen of unfinished books on my laptop. I write contemporary YA. Or dystopian YA. Sci fi. Historical fiction. Christian fiction. And a little bit of romance sprinkled throughout.

I also occasionally write blog posts

When I think about the books I have written and the ones I'm still working on, I notice a trend in themes rather than types of stories. I love a good coming-of-age story, or even just one with a lot of character development. I like to write about bullying, or just good ol' good-vs-evil type stuff. I like to throw my characters into situations where they're unequipped or unwilling and they always end up better for it.

Another major theme in my books is love, and I don't mean just romantic love (though there is a lot of that, too.) I mean like friendships and family and deep bonds that last forever and ever, far past the last pages of the book. I guess I'm just a happily-ever-kind of gal and I prefer saccarine endings to, well, anything else really. Sorry, Geoge R.R.R.R.R. (how many Rs?) Martin.

I guess the next time someone asks me what I write about, I'll tell them "happy things."

Happy reading!

- Natasja

Let's hear it for the B team!

Just wanted to post a little update...

I know tons of people are always wondering "What's Natasja up to these days?" (Okay, I know that doesn't really happen, but when you're a creative fiction writer, you can imagine just about any old thing that pops into your head.)

Anyway, lately I'm been doing a lot of beta reading for other unpublished authors, which is actually a very interesting and rewarding experience. Funny enough, it gives you a pretty good idea where you sit on the quality scale. There are some authors out there that I would say have some work to do before they get to my level, but there are certainly a lot that are way better than me. It's a learning experience and the more I do, the more aware I am of how I write and how to better myself.

By the same token, I've been having a few of my novels beta read as well which is... well also interesting and rewarding, but it's hard. I know, it doesn't sound like it's hard to just have someone read what you've written but trust me, it is. When you love something as much as I love my books, it's sometimes hard to hear any negative thing about them. On the other hand, it's also twice as rewarding to hear good things about them.

So between the beta reading, the editing, and trying desperately to finish writing a book, I haven't had a lot of time for my blog. But I'm still here and it's still here and I'll update it when I have time for it I guess.

Interested in all this beta reading jazz? Hit me up!

- Natasja

Here's to Making Up Words

I haven't posted in a while, mostly because of reasons,* but I do apologize. To make up for that, I would like to share about how I recently have been introduced to the concept of listicles. What is a listicle? It is an article made up of a list (or lists), solely for the purpose of posting something easy, light, and entertaining. Supposedly, I should write a listicle if I'm having trouble coming up with things to post. (Oops. Was I not supposed to mention that?) So, without further ado, here are some lists for you!

Things I have been reading lately:

1. Overqualified by Joey Comeau (A hilarious set of overly truthful cover letters)

2. Personal Days by Ed Park (A novel about a bunch of people who work in an office)

3. Call Me Mrs. Miracle by Debbie Macomber (Yes, it's a Christmas book and I'm not even ashamed that I watched the movie afterwards)

4. City Love by Susane Colasanti (Yes, I do read a number of books at the same time)

5. The Cage by Megan Shepherd (Come on now, no one said I couldn't do that)

6. The Accidents of Style by Charles Harrington Elster (Everyone in every vocation should read this)

Things I have been writing lately:

1.

2.

3.

4. This list.

It's true. I've spent much more time reading than writing. I mean, that list would be at least twice, if not three times as long if I included all the books I read to my son on a daily basis. But I'm not discouraged. Sometimes I need to do a good clean sweep by reading a lot of outside writing and then I can get back into my own stuff with a fresh mind. Anyway, there we have it. A listicle!

- Natasja

*Reasons include: being a bookaholic mommy and librarian.

Write, Write, Write!

Okay, so I've been back to work for two weeks now, which - as you can imagine - has left me with very little time for myself. I was also busy preparing for my one-year-old's birthday party (I just had to mention that). However, I have been keeping up my writing and I promise that my new super short story series is coming soon! (Ish. Soon-ish.)

However, I've been writing something lately that I have no intention of letting anyone else read. Not that there's anything wrong with it, but just that I've been rediscovering the meaning of the phrase "write for yourself." Trust me on this - writing something you know no one but yourself will read is one of the most freeing exercises you can try. And it's completely motivating. Much like during nanowrimo, I barely read back, I don't edit, and sometimes I write complete nonsense. But you know what? That's not a bad thing. In fact, it's rather cathartic in a way.

So that's what I've been up to (other than helping a certain little man learn to walk on his own). Again, new stuff to read is coming very very very soon!

- Natasja

Books and also, more books

I have just one week left of my maternity leave before I return to my job at the Clarington Public Library. And as much as I love love love my little guy, I am very much looking forward to going back.

Every job has its ups and downs but fortunately for me, mine has more ups than downs. The biggest one being the obvious - I am surrounded by books upon books upon books. Not only that, but I am surrounded by book lovers, my favourite type of people. It's kind of like... being an alcoholic who works at a liquor store, except my addiction isn't as unhealthy.* My first year I worked there, I got so attached to two certain books** that my sister ended up buying them for me that Christmas and I think I've maybe read them about 5 times each.

So what will I do with my last week of "freedom"? Probably the same thing I did before I had a baby and during my maternity leave - write!  I've been writing so consistently the last week and a half that I would hate to interrupt the flow and lose my sense of purpose. It isn't easy to get away with writing every day when you have a baby that needs attention and it certainly won't be easier when I'm back at work, even though I'm only part time. But I've already made my promise to write every day and I'm going to stick to it.

Here's to many, many more books in my future!

- Natasja

*Symptoms of a book addiction include, but are not limited to: lack of sleep from reading too much, seeing words everywhere you look, inappropriately falling in love with fictional people, feeling naked while not holding a book, and utter horror when people say they "don't really read."

** Here and here

Where have you been?

When I came back to my blog today, I learned that the last time I posted was in August of 2013 - nearly 2 years ago! And why is that, you may ask. I have to be perfectly honest; around that time, I was going through a rut. I wallowed in self-pity over my lack of being able to write anything worth mentioning. I felt virtually useless in my craft. I couldn't pen a single thing. It was awful.

Soon after that, I got pregnant and I honestly didn't even have the stomach to sit in front of my screen and attempt Nanowrimo that year. I wanted to, but if you've ever experienced morning sickness, then I think you could forgive me for that. I was also busy working two jobs and preparing for the greatest change of my life.

I got back into the groove after my little guy was born and I'm proud to say that over the last year I finished writing 3 books, and started 2 new ones and 4 sequels. So, I haven't done that badly. And from now on, I won't neglect my blog either.

That's is for today! Anything you want to know, just ask. Interested in being a beta reader? Send me an email! Love you guys.

- Natasja

Ergonomics... and other useful things to know

There's this little thing called "ergonomics" which is basically about the relationship between the human body and your work environment. If you were ever in a high school band, you might link this to when your music teacher yelled at you to "sit up straight!" and "don't play out of the side of your mouth." Or perhaps you've never even heard of ergonomics, which is probably due to the fact that most people don't really care. It's kind of one of those things where hindsight is 20/20, because apparently you can ruin parts of your body just by typing wrong, but you won't know it until way after the fact. Allow me to illustrate this point...

Proper posture looks like this:

I think you mean, "write a sentence every 30 minutes."

Improper posture looks like this:

At least I'm drinking water today.

Apparently there are other really important things to do/not do when you're an author. Like not forgetting important words in a sentence. Example:

"You probably hate my guts now, don't you?" he asked teasingly.

"No," she laughed. "I do hate your guts."

"HA HAHAHA HAHA WAIT... what?"

Verb tenses! Don't mix up verb tenses. Not even in a query letter...

So he asks me, "Do you hate my guts now?"

"No," I said and laughed. "I do not hate your guts."

"So then, the characters will find out that they've switched bodies. And then after that, they tried to find a way to switch back. But now, they're stuck."

(I know it's subtle, but also incredibly annoying.)

So now you know - some things to keep in mind while you write.

- Natasja