Events

Hey everyone! This is a reminder that I have a few events coming up...

Courtesy of my events page, the dates and sites are (drumroll please)...

February 11, 2012, 1:00 pm, State College, PA --> Book signing at B&N
http://store-locator.barnesandnoble.com/event/3162451

February 17-19, 2012, Farpoint Convention, Timonium, MD http://www.farpointcon.com/

Saturday April 28th, 2012, 11-00AM - 12:00 Noon. Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group Morning Program - Kieryn Nicolas: "Create While You Can Relate: Why Being a Young Writer is an Asset Rather Than a Disadvantage."
http://glvwg.org/monthlyprograms.htm#April

Looks like February is going to be pretty fun!

It Hath Returned

(Disclaimer: I don't know if the title is correctly phrased or not--it just sounded adequately dramatic.)

Today I came down with something, again. That something is called I Need To Write My New Story NOW Fever. And it is a wonderful, fabulous kind of illness I hope never to find the cure for. (Kidding, I know what the "cure" is--homework. Homework zaps my will to do anything.)

Anyway. I had a sort of epiphany during school Friday, which pretty much added a sense of purpose to my story idea--which was the only thing it had been missing. (The idea has to do with monocles. So cool. Just saying.) Admittedly, the idea made it difficult to concentrate the rest of the day, and I may have been scribbling ideas in my writing notebook rather than my notes notebook...shh.

This excitement to plan and write is the kind of feeling I can't imagine when I don't feel it. I know it exists, but I forget how it makes everything I do just a bit more exciting, because there's something extra stringing me along. I hope the feeling sticks around a while--I like this story.

Over and out.

2012

Happy 2012 everyone!

Looking back on the past year, I'd have to say it was a pretty good 365 days. In January I did my first half marathon with Team in Training--and it was awesome. Also, I learned to drive (and used that skill to successfully pull the wool over my mom's eyes). Over the summer I added Tennessee to my list of Places I've Been, and also ate cake. I survived the SAT, the PSAT, and SAT subject tests. I became addicted to Doctor Who. Maybe best of all, I earned my black belt.

That being said, I have plans for 2012 to be even better. I am going to travel, do another half marathon, finish junior year (after which I expect to feel immense relief), and prepare for the zombie apocalypse (are you excited? I am). Oh, and I am going to write like crazy (because when it comes to writing, I am).

If you want to see where my books and I will be this year, keep an eye on my events page!

I hope everyone has a great new year!

TV

This past Thursday I was on TV! You can catch my interview here.

The experience turned out to really neat--my mom, apparently, was nervous (I'm not sure why--what did she think I was going to do, start dancing? Or, worse, singing?) but I was just excited.

FR on the shelves!

Check out what I saw at my local B&N!

Flawless Ruins is on sale at B&N online, too. :)

Ya Lit Six members

You might have seen earlier this month on YA Lit Six, but it's worth a mention/reminder: we're looking for new YA Lit Six members!

Check out this post for information on how to contact us! Our deadline is December 13th, and we'd love to hear from you if you are interested.

In the meanwhile, Laina, Zoe and I are posting!

Glasses

I think my next character will have glasses.

By that I mean my next main character. I've yet to write one with glasses (which, as I am sitting here peering at the screen through glasses, seems kind of disappointing). And, as I just let slip, I have glasses...though on a daily basis I wear contacts. Can I get three cheers for contacts? Yay!^3. Maybe I haven't worn glasses regularly enough to get used to the ring of color around my vision, or maybe my face isn't really glasses-compatible, but my glasses issues aside I think they could be a great asset to a character.

For example, what would she do with the glasses when she's nervous? Take them off? Adjust them? Use them to hide behind? (Metaphorically.) Would she be constantly pushing them up her nose? Maybe wear them on top of her head and flip them down when she needs them like people in movies do when welding something, such as the broken side of a spaceship. (Except she'd have glasses and not a visor. But the same idea.)

Also, what kind of glasses would they be? Bold? Square angles? Round? Wire-rimmed? Plastic? Bright? Patterned? ...Hipster? (Well, maybe not hipster.) That's a hint right there about her character. (Or, at least, her mom's character, if the main character is stubbornly disinterested and refused to pick out her own.)

So I just wanted to share my thoughts about glasses. I'm going to start the Google Machine Picture Research and find some good glasses candidates...

Of course! Harry Potter, Most Incredible/Famous Main Character Of the Current Age and Maybe Ever, wears glasses.

(kidding)

Going Wilde

So I have a dance tonight, and with all of the who's-asking-who-and-wh0-said-yes-and-who-said-no-and-who-doesn't-know-how-to-ask-who, I thought I'd offer a suggestion for the nerds out there who'd like to win the heart of another equally nerdy or well-read individual. That suggestion? Go Wilde. Oscar Wilde, that is.

You could start off with a quote from The Picture of Dorian Gray. Actually, half the lines in that book could be a line. But this one--"The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it"--probably takes the cake.

Scenario:

Guy: Go out with me?

Girl: Um.

Guy: You know, the only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it.

Girl: *stunned expression*

Perhaps you are a girl asking That Guy Who Is Incredibly Smart But Not The Homecoming King Type* to the dance, and he points out that you've never spoke to him before, let alone showed any interest in dancing with him. You can point out that "genius lasts longer than beauty," something Oscar Wilde also told us via Dorian Gray, so you're making an investment in your future. A mutually beneficial endeavor!

If you need to turn someone down, remind him/her that "The heart was made to be broken." (They'll totally appreciate that.)

Now that I've imparted this wisdom upon you, allow me to introduce The Truths:

1) Do Not Try This At Home.

2)Very few people would give you anything other than a sharply raised eyebrow in any of these instances.

3) The real best way to ask someone? A nice moment IN PERSON, and a simple question.

...Or you could try any of these: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yd-0wHETSSY

* These guys are the Cool Ones later in life, FYI.

Kindle Finds

Flawless Ruins is the featured book on Kindle Finds today and Rain appeared a few weeks ago. Check out the site which spotlights a new ebook almost every day.

http://www.kindlefinds.com/

Hey, remember my "RAIN by Kieryn Nicolas" fan page on facebook? It's still going and there's also a "Kieryn Nicolas" author page. You can find me on Twitter @kierynnicolas and Goodreads (www.goodreads.com/kierynnicolas). I always love seeing new ratings and reviews!

Black Belt? Yes!

I tweeted about this, but it deserves a blog post as well: I am a black belt.

No, wait. That's not excitingly phrased enough. This calls for at least three font modifications:

I am a black belt!

Much better.

I earned my black belt (in Taekwondo) on Saturday. In the morning my sister and I, as well as five other (amazing) students, pushed through the four-hour-long physical test portion. We did techniques. We did push-ups. We did forms. We defended against a masked man with a training knife. We did more push-ups. We cried. Did I mention we did some push-ups?

Later in the afternoon we returned to our school (in Korean/Taekwondo terminology, our Dojang) for the graduation ceremony. In front of a crowd we performed forms and broke boards (and boards stacked on top of boards). Finally, after incredible speeches by our equally incredible instructors, we found out we'd all passed.

My Taekwondo family is extremely important to me, and very special. As I told them (and the crowd at the ceremony), I don't cry much. But on Saturday I caught up on my year's quota of tears, to the point where I was talking to the crowd and found I couldn't speak. (And if anyone's seen me speak at a school or author event, you probably know I can talk for quite a while. I can even talk about nothing!) I think there were so many words (not to mention that lump in my throat that accompanies crying) they caused a traffic jam in my throat. There was so much I wanted to say, but I had to stop--luckily, my sister was right beside me to give me a hug (which was convenient, because I was talking about her, and how AWESOME she is). Over three years of training, weeks of focusing every thought on our black belts, and going through the test itself, made me realize how incredibly lucky I am to have the kind of sister who'll not only watch my favorite kick-butt TV shows with me (cough*Buffy*cough), but can also actually kick butt with me.

I could go on (as I mentioned before) but I think I'll wrap up here. Congratulations to Mr. Pete, Mr. PJ, Mr. Alex, Miss Sarah, Mrs. Skinner, and Brynna on their new black belts! (And second degree black belts!) And thank you to Masters Cook, for getting all of us here.

Finally.

Today is a momentous occasion, one that happens annually sometime near the end of September and that is:

I'm chilly.

Yes! It's true! A cool wind is blowing and the leaves on the ground have an audible crunch--audible, that is, if you can hear anything over the chorus of Hallelujah and applause from the peanut gallery about the chill.

I spent a while outside this morning, and I had to layer on a sweater (okay,a loosely knit sweater with large intentional gaps all over it, but still, a SWEATER) and a vest, and my hands and toes were still noticeably cold! If I knew how to do cartwheels, I would be doing them right now.

The reason this is such a momentous occasion, you ask? it signals the end of summer. Yes. That's right. The end of heat and being unable to go outside without succumbing to a cloud of humidity. The beginning of wearing jeans and boots and comfy sweaters. And hats! Hats are important. I wore a hat at my school's first home football game last night. It was exciting.

Also, my creative processes definitely function better in crisp Autumn air and chilled winter air than the sluggish atmosphere of summer. Get ready for a boatload of story-inspiration, brain.

Writing vs....homework writing.

It's the age-old dilemma: should I write, or do the homework calling me from my backpack?

Depends. Is it English homework? Do the English homework. Is it anything else? Well, now it depends on the excitement level in your story. If I'm in the middle of, say, a super amazing intense scene--or if I'm writing for the first time in a few days--I'm going to deem writing more important.

Right now, in fact, I'm getting to the I'M ALMOST THERE point in my WIP. Which is pretty high excitement-wise for me. I did my English homework earlier and got physics and math done Friday, so now all I have is a Spanish assignment...

That can wait.

In fact, why am I even blogging? Must go write!

Never mind, the end is here.

Oh, school tomorrow. School and waking up early and homework and seeing an abundance of people every day.

Yay to the last part, at least.

(Also, it will be fall soon! I hope. Please please please please...)

I find I can write on more of a set schedule during school--probably because, during school, EVERYTHING becomes routine. Every. Day. Is. Basically. The. Same. I say that in One. Word. Sentence. format to convey the robotic monotony that is. Really, the only good thing is I know what day it is and I'll find set times to write.

Here's to hoping I can find a way to make my schedule a little more interesting...

To everyone starting school, have fun!

The End Is Nigh

Yesterday I started to clean out my closet and go through clothes for school. For school...agh! I can't believe there are only two weeks of summer left. Well, at least that means it'll be autumn soon. I hope.

In my last few weeks I'm going to write. I'm also going to look into all those junior-year things I need to prep for...namely, the SAT. I'm not looking forward to that. I'm so unclear on my feelings about standardized tests. What do they really test? Is it worth it to know what you're taking the test on, or just how to strategically fill in bubbles? (I have the same questions about PSSAs, only I care less about those.)

I guess I'll find out. I'll also find out how much I like physics, AP English, psych, and calculus. (Does anyone know what calculus even is? I spent a year in precalc and I still have no idea.)

I hope everyone's summer is going well!

Kindlegraph

I just posted on YA Lit Six about Kidnlegraphs, but if you know what they are, my page is http://kindlegraph.com/authors/KierynNicolas! If you don't know what they are, why not read my post, where I kindasorta explain?

Also, my books are now available on iTunes!