Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Ahh Rhythm

Ahhh yes, rhythm, what a wonderful thing. I feel like if my life were a movie, this is the point where everyone would break out in song. I finished chapter six yesterday and did my read through so it could be sent out to be edited. I felt so cool. Like I should belong in the Rhythm City group over there --->

Anyways, so I even started my mind set on chapter seven. I wrote the first sentence, it may not seem like much but just opening myself to the document was really significant to me. It was like telling myself Did you see that shit!!! Dayumm girl you just wrote chapter six in like four days when chapter five had taken you fifteen days, way to go...now keep your ass moving on seven! I apologize for the "French" words but when I talk to myself I need to cuss myself out with encouragement in there to keep me going.

So here we are 'writing experience' last time we got to about chapter...nothing, we were just writing. Now we are all the way to chapter seven and we are still moving strong! Awesome.

Very important thing to comment here is that I found my rhythm! So, for all the inspired writers out there that are hoping to become that kick-ass best selling author, it is VERY important to find your rhythm. I am just discovering it for myself. Now, does that mean that I am going to be an award winning novelist...by all means, no. It just means that I have hit my stride with my book and now I know it is going to be finished, that I am going to love it and that no matter what this book flows. So I encourage those that want to be a writer that just cant seem to find there funk to search for their rhythm. A reason you may not be finding it is because you haven't found the story you love yet. I am not saying you have to live, breathe, eat and sleep your characters but you do have to love them. Love them enough that they may even become a multiple personality of yourself. Tamiko is soooooo my alter ego. She is the part that is head strong and resilient. When I feel like I am invincible and just want to beat my point out there...that is all Tamiko. I may be the person calling the shots but, I know where my best character-pal Tamiko is at all times.

Keep up the funk!!!
Happy Reading!

Kelley Lee

Monday, January 30, 2012

Chapter 6...Unfinished

Don't you just love a good superhero. I know I do. They are strong, bold, brave, and intelligent. Most of them have bodies that seem physically impossible to nature but that is something easily overlooked. I have always been a fan of superheroes whether I watched them in the movies or imagined them inside of my head.

Currently Tamiko has taken over my brain and has become the ultimate realistic superhero. I wanted to make her unbelievably strong and fast, while still cunning and intelligent. But, I wanted her to have the personality of someone you feel like you know or could know. She is just a normal girl on the inside. She has fears, but she still does incredibly remarkable stuff.

She is the realistic superhero, the modern mystical fighter. (She gets to be mystical because she is part vampire.) Tamiko is your high school best friend, or maybe even that girl that you always thought was cool, but never really got a chance to get to know. Basically, Tamiko is who I would want to be or who I would want my friend to be. But, I couldn't overlook things like vulnerability. No one is perfect, everyone has a weakness, which is what gives the villains a fighting chance. Tamiko is just an average girl who does some pretty spectacular things! I hope once I finish this book everyone will be able to see the girl that Tamiko is and care for her as much as I do!

Progress Report on Writing:
Currently I am in the midst of chapter 6. Not all the way done but semi-close. If I had to put a number on it I would say I am about 3/4th of the way through. I was able to get some writing done at my mom's church yesterday so I wrote some stuff down on paper and I have yet to type it up. I can't wait to share my story with the world!

Happy Reading and Happy Dreaming!

Kelley Lee

Friday, January 27, 2012

The Stone Guardian


Can you say BEAUTIFUL!!!!! I love it. This is the cover of The Stone Guardian. It is the first book in a trilogy written by my dear friend Theresa McClinton. This is her first novel. I am so excited that she is about to enter the world of indie authors. 

I have to tell you Theresa is a superwomen in the disguise of a mother and housewife. What is her superpower you ask?? Well that would be...Writing!!! Duh. (Did you see that one coming?) This novel is beautiful inside and out. It will be available soon as an ebook in March. I personally cannot wait to buy it even though I have read it already. It will be great to have it on my nook!

So let me tell you a little about The Stone Guardian. Meet Ashley, she suffers from night terrors and lives in an orphanage that doubles as a school and psychiatric center for youth in Ohio, with her best friend Tara. One night a fire alarm goes off and this leads Ashley and Tara deep into the surrounding woods after a small child they believe is lost from the crowd.

The little girl ends up possessing a secret power of an ancient species, the Riyata. This leads to Ashley and Tara waking up in a foreign land, Belize. There she meets many other Riyata, who will mean great importance to her future. She discovers that she is a descendant of this ancient race and has inherited the title of the stone guardian. It was passed down to her from the mother she never knew. Convinced that this is a part of her destiny to uncover the truth about her past, she sets out on a mission to stop an evil sorcerer who has stolen the stone she was destined to protect. Relationships and bonds begin to form, when a former love from her past ventures back into her life and disrupts the peace she was growing used to.

Ashley finds herself stuck in the middle of two great men, unable to determine her feelings. Meanwhile, the mission of recovering the stone brings her all over the world and threatens those she loves most. Some may not make it out this mission alive....changing life as she knows it, forever.

If that doesn't sound good to you then man I don't know what will. So I invite you to look up her website, there is a link above and if you click here you will find it again.

Happy Reading!

Kelley Lee

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Thanks for the Killer Personality

There is one character out there that has truly stuck with me as that WOW factor. Written by Richelle Mead in the epic series Vampire Academy is Rose Hathaway. She is everything you want to be yourself and more. I absolutely loved her character. Although, maybe I didn't love all of her choices. *Cough Adrian cough, cough* However, her character has still inspired me throughout. I have a lot to thank for the person that Tamiko is because of Rose. She is strong, smart, impulsive, not afraid to say anything, plus she can kick some ass.

I really wanted to give Rose some credit and of course by default Richelle Mead credit for creating such a wonderful character that really made such a lasting impression on me. I hope someday I can have a half, I would even settle for a quarter, of the WOW factor that Rose has made.

So bravo and thank you!

Happy Reading

P.S. Please read the Vampire Academy series followed by the Bloodlines series. They are truly fantastic reads.

Kelley Lee

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Chapter 5 Complete

Wow, I finished chapter five. That took me a loooooong time. It feels so good to be done with it but, I feel it was well worth the wait.

This chapter really showed me something. I really thought that with how long it was taking me to write it would kind of lack in the flow department. Maybe be a little dry and boring compared to the rest of my chapters that I wrote in half the time. But, I was wrong! This chapter read excellent. It was as if I was reading another book because it had been so long since I had actually wrote it that I was picking up details I didn't remember. 

So, I found I was inspired. I now know that even if I do go beyond my self given deadline, I can still write something worth reading. Tamiko is really grasping hold within me and I couldn't fail her even if I wanted to.  She really writes herself now. I guess that makes things easier for me.  :]

Here is some music that has helped me write so far

First Love - Adele
Someone Like You - Adele
Bella's Lullaby - Twilight Soundtrack
Your Body is a Wonderland - John Mayer
She Will Be Loved - Maroon 5
You're Beautiful - James Blunt

I have been on more of a mellow kick lately since I tend to get anxious when I write and need to be calmed down! 

Happy reading, listening, writing or a mixture of them all!

Kelley Lee

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Still Going Strong!

Oh yes. Attitude. I got it! I possess it! I say 'BooYahhhh Biotches' to the ones who try to hold me back or stand in my way. Why do I do that? Well like I said, I have attitude. Some say it is all about the Benjamin's. I say it's all about the...well you get it.

So I am still writing. I am on Chapter 5: Untitled. I would like to give myself a pat on the back. So far I have kept up with my goal. I am writing slowly but surely. Even though school has started this week, and that's been a real pain in the ass, I am holding strong.

Currently my word count stands at 16 thousand. So it is moving steadily along. I really cannot complain. One of the best things I have found out is that I can still read! I was having trouble at first with the idea of letting myself read. I did not want my mind to sway or be mislead in any direction based on the influence of the book I was reading at the time. So for the past month or so I have been having this itching feeling like I really needed to read. I was starting to think that maybe I was getting crazy. Moral of the story...I broke down and read. Not only did I just open up a book and start reading it I finished two books in one day and then just last night I was up till 4am reading the third one in the series. I must say it was very peaceful and refreshing. I am now at the point in my story where I feel I have fully defined characters that know who they are. They are no longer being created so they cannot get turned around in any direction. What wonderful news! 

So great. Also another excellent thing going on is the fact that I know exactly where the story will end up. Now it is just a matter of getting there. So I will just continue with my attitude and keep going strong! 

Happy Reading!

Kelley Lee

Sunday, January 1, 2012

New Year a New Start

So I am back to it. Writing for me has been a very difficult challenge. I have completely revamped my idea and now I am on to a completely different story then before. Say goodbye to Emory and Hello to Tamiko.

Right now I have two chapters completed. My friend is borrowing me her NewNovelist3 program so I am able to keep everything organized. On another happy note I found a picture that reminds me of my main character. Her name is Sofia Boutella and she is a professional dancer. I picture Tamiko a little more meatier than Sofia but her overall facial appearance is similar to what I see.

She is beautiful right! So this is my main characters image that I am going for.

I am very happy that I have picked up my metaphorical pen again and am getting back to the writing game. I love to read and get wrapped up in a story so I hope to share that with at least one person of my own story. I hope someday Tamiko touches someones life the way she affects mine. I have a great friend who is beta reading for me as I am for her. She is wonderful and has been my main motivation for getting started again. She wrote her novel in a little over a month and I read it over and edited it to the best of my ability. She is a wonderful writer and really has been the path leader for me on this journey. I feel like I cannot quit now because I have had such a great role model to lead the way. I would never want to let her down. So as she beta reads for me while she is in the process of trying to get her novel published AND writing her second novel I am attempting to make it through my first.

My schedule so far is to try and complete one chapter a week. So two weeks in I am two chapters complete with the third started. My idea is steadily forming and developing. My plot is getting stronger. So I hope I can let Tamiko shine and not let her down. Now back to writing...

Happy reading and a Happy New Year!

Kelley Lee

P.S. My new years resolution is to finish this novel by the end of the summer! Wish me luck!