I’ve noticed recently that every couple of days or so, a Harry Potter character or term or spell (today’s is Avada Kedavra) will appear on Twitter’s Trending Topics and I think to myself “who on earth starts these things??”
Personally I think it’s hilarious that even while Eclipse was debuting at the theatres, not a single Eclipse related term or character, or even the word itself was trending. There must’ve been a Twi-hater in the Twitter head office, I think, because there were a lot of Twilight fans also wondering why it wasn’t trending. And yet there was Cedric Diggory at the top of the trending list.
A lot of the time I wonder what the heck half of the trending topics mean, for example, today there is #pll. Everyone else probably knows what it means – I’m probably just too far behind with the terminology. Damn it – makes me feel like an old woman. “Back in my day there was no lol or wtf…”
Anyways, I do love it when HP makes an appearance. Makes me happy to know that vampires and werewolves haven’t taken over the world completely.
If you don’t know what it stands for, then shame on you. Team Starkid released the sequel to their hilarious Potter-inspired musical, A Very Potter Musical, last week to much anticipation from the Harry Potter fandom. I, myself, had been eagerly anticipating the release for several months and we weren’t disappointed. Even though I didn’t think it as good as the first, it was still hilarious and definitely had it’s moments. I just thought that Draco needed to be more nasty, like he (or she?) was in the first one. I loved Lucius Malfoy and Firenze (seriously, his costume is fantastic) and there indeed were some heartfelt moments in regards to Snape’s unrequited love for Lily Potter.
If you haven’t already seen it, I propose you start with the original as it will definitely explain a lot of the jokes in the sequel. Check it out below or go to StarKidPotter’s YouTube channel.
I have finally gotten around to creating a video of bloopers and outtakes from the filming of my official book trailer. It was fin going through all the raw footage and seeing what was in there. I have so much extra stuff I could probably make another trailer (though I think I will leave that for now!). Check it out!
And in case you missed it the first time around, here is the Official Book Trailer:
I thought I would start a series of blogs based on the random stuff I see around town accompanied by photos taken courtesy of my mobile. Although I can imagine there is not nearly half as much random stuff or people that make you go “what the…?” in Canberra as there would be in, say, New York, but you do come across it evey now and then. I like a little giggle, especially if it’s thanks to something just that little left field.
So here we go…
This dress is hideous. There, I said it. It’s nasty. I know the 80’s are back in style in all their fluro tube-socked glory, but this is going way too far! I think my mum had a dress like this once. In the 80’s. She doesn’t wear it anymore. She doesn’t even have it in her wardrobe anymore. And no, this wasn’t in a vintage store…
I took this one at the markets. There was a big dog exhibition going on at the time, and I know some people love their dogs, but really? iPoodle? It’s not owned by Apple so what’s with the ‘i’. Or maybe it is. Maybe it’s the new interactive pet driod from Apple. Doubtful though.
I like this. I found this during one of my Computer Forensics classes. Cheeky bugger.
I have a few more, but I think I’ll save them for later. Can’t give away too much!
If you don’t know about this already, this is huge! At Universal Studios in Orlando, USA, they have built a full on Harry Potter Theme Park which is a Potterfile’s most fantastic dream! I cannot wait until it opens nor until I save up enough money to get my butt all the way over from Australia to the US just so I can buy a wand, get a Gryffindor uniform and suck down some Butterbeer. A friend of mine, Tobey, who lives in Florida was awesome enough to send me an article from the local paper about the theme park that I’ve decided to show it here. Click on the pic to enlarge and read on!
To check out some behind-the-scenes videos of the theme park, click here. I seriously can’t wait – I wonder how peppery those Pepper Bertie Botts Beans are?
So I just finished reading this article. It was by another YA author and it was all about why she wrote her book and it really got me thinking – why did I write mine?
Let’s start at the beginning.
I was always one of those kids with an overactive imagination. You know, the ones that would sit in their room or in the sand-pit by themselves, playing with their dolls whilst all the other kids ran around like wild animals. I would spend hours wandering around the back-yard running through scenes of half-formed stories, having conversations with characters that were never put down on paper. I grew up with Enid Blyton and classics like Moby Dick and Oliver Twist. The very first ‘novel’ I read was Fantastic Mr Fox - I was seven and I finished it in one night. I was so proud of myself.
When I was 14, my sister started reading some book called Harry Potter and the Philospher’s Stone. I had never even heard of it before (something which changed very very quickly, mind you) and on a trip up to my Grandfather’s one holiday, I borrowed it from her and started reading. Needless to say, I finished that one in one night too. This was followed by Chamber of Secrets and Prisoner of Azkabhan in fairly quick succession. I had turned into a Potterfile and it had reawakened those stories in my head.
I was 15-years-old when the idea for The Order of the Rose sprang into my head. It was on a family camping holiday to a nearby island; it was the school holidays and it was during the 2000 Olympic Games. I remember that because I came up with the idea the same day as Cathy Freeman’s win in the 400m sprint. You know, the one where she wore that one piece running suit. Anyway, I had been sitting on the rocks, just thinking to myself whilst the other kids were off playing, when a scene started playing in my head. Strange, I know, but it happens. It was of a young girl being held in an orphanage by a horrid man and his wife. The only thing was was that this girl was special. She was witch.
Of course, this initial idea has changed and morphed a hundred times since then, the title changing from The Seekers to The Order of the Rose, characters being added or taken away, links to sequels being established. When I first started I hadn’t even thought of having any sequels. I just wrote. As soon as I got home from that camping trip I bought a folder, some foolscap paper and I just started writing. My whole original manuscript was handwritten. I was super keen. I didn’t have a deadline or any real outline. I had the most basic of outlines scribbled down, but that changed too. I just wrote what was in my head.
And that’s how it happened. That’s why I wrote my book. I didn’t write it to get it into a book store or to earn lots of money. I didn’t write it to satisfy critics or to impress anyone. I just wrote it because I had a story in my head that wanted to get out. So I let it out. It’s part of the reason why I want to indie-publish. I don’t want someone dissecting it and telling me what’s relevant and what’s not because they believe the only reason I wrote it was to get published. I want to send it out into the world as I intended – the idea of a 15-year-old sitting on the rocks.
Alrighty! So I said a little while ago that one of my friend’s may be helping me with the cover art for my book. However, I think I might do it instead as I have had the biggest brainwave for the artwork. Since The Order of the Rose is going to be one of a trilogy, I’m thinking way ahead in regards to matching cover and spine art. Right now it’s looking pretty awesome so as long as I can get Photoshop to do what I want, it’ll all turn out spectacularly.
Now I’m just debating between hard cover with a dust jacket or ordinary paperback… Decisions, decisions!!!
Now I’m not a published author (yet) and when I do finally get published it will be on my own terms. Yep, I am going indie because I don’t write to have publishers decide what’s going to happen to my book and decide when my next one will come out. As much as I would love to live off my writing, unless I turn out to be the next JK Rowling or Stephanie Meyers (although I prefer JK Rowling), I doubt I will earn enough to leave my other career pursuits behind. In any case, I want to write for the enjoyment – I don’t want to write for the necessity, which, I’d imagine, would be a major creativity killer.
Which brings me to deadlines. I have always wondered how writers manage to get a novel out in a set time. I mean, seriously, if I hadn’t taken as long as I did to get my book done, it wouldn’t have developed like it has. For example, if I had gotten myself an agent and scored a publishing deal while I was still writing it back in High School and been given the deadline of finishing it in 2002, it would’ve been completely different to what it is now. Back when I started writing, it was a one book adventure fantasy and that was it. There was a story in my head and I just put it down on paper. But now, it’s a 3 part series with interweaving storylines and characters that go all the way through, their stories developing with the series. If I had spewed out my story and whisked it away for publishing straight away, it would never have had the chance to mature and grow like it has. Given that when I started writing I was 15 so my ability to look ahead in a story wasn’t like it is now. To tell you the truth, when I started writing my book, I just wrote whatever came to my head. Now I’ve got notebooks full of storylines and scenes fully developed in my head so my writing ability has changed considerably since then. However, I still can’t imagine pulling a fully-developed story out of the preverbial hat in a matter of months. I don’t know about other authors, but there are times were I just can’t write because I’m just not in the mood. The inspiration is just not there, and no matter how much Red Bull or other caffeinated stimulants I consume, that doesn’t change.
So how do they do it? Maybe it’s the fact that they have more time than me? Perhaps they’re not working and studying and running 3 different websites and blogs like myself – but then again, maybe they are. In any case, I take my hat off to them. Anyone who can produce quality writing on a deadline is awesome in my eyes. It’s just not my thing, I’m afraid, which is why I suppose I will be sticking with indie-publishing, so I can write in my own time and on my own terms. Oh, and the fact that I can design my own cover.
This is my official website for all things writing and random. Check out the different pages for info on my books, artwork I've done for them over the years and to follow my journey into publishing land, which I hear can be treacherous and sometimes bumpy. You can follow me on YouTube and Twitter and read up on my recent exploits through my blog.
I hope you enjoy the ride as much as I (hopefully) will!
