OH WOW! 90 Neighbors!

Isn't it pretty?
This blog is my own version of Tara.
Thankfully, I don't have a war to worry about.

I always have this moment when I look at the Neighbors area of my blog and I think to myself, "Those people are either super awesome or lost." And then I laugh and promise that I'm going to do my best to keep y'all entertained and one day to do something SUPER DUPER FUN.

Like hold a blog contest. Ninety is such a big number. It's almost one hundred. I can't believe ninety people want to follow this little ole bloggy blog. It's mind-boggling. Or...mind-bloggling. Oh boy. I've had too many Starbursts today.

Are y'all sure y'all aren't crazy? (Asked the crazy girl.)

Here's the proposition: we get 10 more new neighbors and I'll have a contest with PRIZES!

Does that sound copacetic? I know I like the idea. I've been itching to have a contest for a while now. I have so much fun entering other people's contests that I can't help but imagine how much more fun it will be to host my own. *stares into the future*

Yep. I see fun in our futures. Fun and prizes and whatever else I can think of to add to the overall FUN. For some reason, I've been using lots of all-caps lately. I dunno why. It's an emphasis thing I guess.

Alright, now that we all have our missions (y'all's is to round up 10 more souls), I'm going to start the plotting for this event. I'll have to create a snappy name for it and everything...this is going to be great.

First ever game for USA Jaguars in 2009.
This is from the student section.
It was darn hot that day.

Once we number 100, this thing will happen and happen big. If you've never been to a football game in the South, there is no way I can describe the atmosphere in my head right now. IT'S BLOG GAME DAY! BRING IT!

Commence yaying! (That's for you, Kills.)

OH! And I want to give a huge shout-out to those readers who happen across this place from other countries. Y'all are great! Latvia, Malaysia, South Korea (Hey, Jim!), the United Kingdom, Australia, Russia, Canada, the Netherlands, Romania, Germany, and everywhere else!

It's so nice to have neighbors from other places. I'm simply astounded at the diversity of Over Yonder's viewership. And diversity makes me happy!

Until next time...

RTW: Deja Vu? Methinks Maybe

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question that begs to be answered. In the comments, you can hop from destination to destination and get everybody's unique take on the topic.


We'd love for you to participate! Just answer the prompt on your own blog and leave a link -- or, if you prefer, you can include your answer in the comments.


This Week's Topic:
What themes, settings, motifs, scenes, or other elements do you find recurring in your work?

I'm BACK! And in more ways than one apparently, as it seems very appropriate to be discussing recurring themes and such after returning from a RTW dry spell. These past few weeks have been uncommonly hectic, what with classes and the writing and the newspaper and the helping of EDM310 students, but thank goodness for slow times in the lab. That's how I'm here right now typing at y'all.

Anyway, on to the fun stuff! *ahem*

Themes:
I tend to be on the side of Good a lot more than Evil, so really that's the only theme that I follow, at least overtly. My WIPs are many times following some sort of conflict either internal or external, perhaps even a combination of both. It may sound a lot cliche, but that's how I think. In cliches, haha! Although lately I've been stepping out of that "cliched" comfort zone and writing characters who have problems and seem more three-dimensional. It's been really fun. At the moment, my MC of the month is an ex-streetfighter who took over running a bar when her dad passed away. She (yes, this girl can fight!) has a penchant for cussing and does odd "jobs" to keep the bar afloat. Her past hasn't exactly been left behind despite what she may claim.

Settings:

This old store in Mississippi isn't that far from where I grew up.
Spooky. Also: tombstones?
Scooby and Shaggy would have none of that place.
None. Of. It. 

Oh dear, this is a doozy. Well, I have one WIP set in the South...then it's in Ireland...and then I have another one set in the South...and I think it stays there. Umm, then there's this one that's set in space...but then it's on Earth, but I haven't really decided where yet. Oh and then there's the one set in a place kind of like Metropolis for Superman, but I never really named it. I think I see a trend though. The settings tend to change or be a little Southern. Except for the WIP of the moment. It's set in a Chicago-like borough that never had a heyday. It's cold and dark and I love it.

Scenes:
I have a lot of introspective scenes, mostly because I write in first person quite often. But other than those, it's either very descriptive third person or ginormous conversations. It's, as we say, a work in progress! I'm constantly learning how some scenes can be made better by adding different elements or by subtracting them. I don't think I'll ever stop learning.

I think that's enough for now. I don't want to be sore tomorrow from all of this fun! Until next week...