Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain

The State of the Writer: 2/10/19

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 5 Comments

<–The State of the Writer: 1/27/18          The State of the Writer: 2/24/19–>

A post updated every other Sunday discussing my current writing projects and any completed the prior two weeks.

Finished Projects: 1

Project: Story
Title: The Broken Rose
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Type: Fanfiction (FFVII) Novel
Current Word Count: 255,002
Prior Word Count: 255,229
Word Difference: -227
Status: Editing
Progress: Chapter 14 Second Edit

I’m thinking of splitting this chapter into two now that the first edit is done.  I’m not quite sure yet because the theme of the title runs throughout so it’s making it a bit tricky.  I can see two distinctive patterns in it though, and I think it would flow better if it was broken up.  I have only a few notes to either add and/or figure out where else they can go, and I think I’ll make the splitting decision when and where I figure out the best place to do so.  Either you’ll have a really long chapter to enjoy or two regular sized ones.

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The State of the Writer: 1/13/19

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 10 Comments

<–The State of the Writer: 12/30/18          The State of the Writer: 1/27/19–>

A post updated every other Sunday discussing my current writing projects and any completed the prior two weeks.

Finished Projects: 3

Project: Story
Title: The Broken Rose
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Type: Fanfiction (FFVII) Novel
Current Word Count: 255,627
Prior Word Count: 256,067
Word Difference: -440
Status: Editing
Progress: Chapter 14 First Edit

Tiny tiara on top of an open bookThis is a much longer chapter than the prior and more stuff happens in it.  I partially want to split it up, but the chapter title really encompasses everything that happens, so any of you enjoying this fanfic will have an extra long chapter to read when I post it 🙂

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The State of the Writer: 12/30/18

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 14 Comments

<–The State of the Writer: 12/16/18          The State of the Writer: 1/13/19–>

A post updated every other Sunday discussing my current writing projects and any completed the prior two weeks.

Finished Projects: 2

Project: Story
Title: The Broken Rose
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Type: Fanfiction (FFVII) Novel
Current Word Count: 256,067
Prior Word Count: 256,065
Word Difference: +2
Status: Editing
Progress: Chapter 13 Second Edit

Sephiroth braiding Aeris's hairIf things go well, I should have the second edit of this chapter by the end of this week.  I don’t think I’ll need a third.

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Top 20 Books of 2017

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 20 Comments

I set my Goodreads challenge to complete 15 books, and I read 73.  There’s something to be said for underestimation.  I low-balled it because last year, I put 20 on my challenge, but only finished 19; however, I discovered that by putting books on my schedule/to-do list, I could complete them like a fiend.  At some points I was reading eight at a time, but I mostly stuck with my favorite number: seven.  That…was too much though, and while I love to read, I also want to have enough time to do other things.  So I cut down to four, which might still sound like a lot, but one is a Kindle that I read on my lunch break; one is a fiction/fantasy; one varies between a classic or a non-fiction/reference (before I was reading one of each); and the last is a graphic novel/manga, which are easy to breeze through.  Compare this to two Kindles, one fiction/fantasy, one classic, one non-fiction/reference, one graphic novel/manga, and one library book. I’m currently borrowing Death Note from the library for my manga, and I’ll borrow fictions/fantasies from there, too.

Total Books Read: 73

  1. Tuf Voyaging by George R. R. Martin
  2. In the House of the Wyrm by George R. R. Martin
  3. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
  4. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
  5. Rest in Piece by B. W. Ginsburg
  6. The Missing Orchid by Fia Black
  7. The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater
  8. The Quantum Door by Jonathan Ballagh
  9. Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater
  10. The Illustrated A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
  11. Descendants by Rae Else
  12. The Mabinogion Tetralogy by Evangeline Walton
  13. Riddled With Senses by Petra Jacob
  14. The Quantum Ghost by Jonathan Ballagh
  15. Radiance by Grace Draven
  16. Saga: Volume 1 by Brian K, Vaughn
  17. The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
  18. Eidolon by Grace Draven
  19. A Father’s Protection by K. J. Hawkins
  20. Saga: Volume 2 by Brian K. Vaughn
  21. The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia (edited) by Patrick Thorpe
  22. Saga: Volume 3 by Brian K. Vaughn
  23. Silent Child by Sarah K. Denzil
  24.  A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
  25. Saga: Volume 4 by Brian K, Vaughn
  26. Saga: Volume 5 by Brian K. Vaughn
  27. Half a King by Joe Abercrombie
  28. Saga: Volume 6 by Brian K. Vaughn
  29. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
  30. Talon by Julie Kagawa
  31. Saga: Volume 7 by Brian K. Vaughn
  32. Stone & Iris by Jonathan Ballagh
  33. Gaslight Hades by Grace Draven
  34. A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas
  35. Locke & Key, Vol. 1: Welcome to Lovecraft
  36. My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Volume 1 by Katie Cook
  37. Poetic Edda: The Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes by Anonymous
  38. Never Never: Part One by Colleen Hoover
  39. The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow
  40. Never Never: Part Two by Colleen Hoover
  41. Never Never: Part Three by Colleen Hoover
  42. The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess by Akira Himekawa
  43. Goldie Vance Volume 1 by Hope Larson
  44. Shadows on Snow by Starla Huchton
  45. Red as Blood and White as Bone by Theodora Goss
  46. Monstress #1: Awakening
  47. An Unattractive Vampire by Jim McDoniel
  48. A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir
  49. Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain by David Eagleman
  50. The Archived by Victoria Schwab
  51. Dweller by Jeff Strand
  52. Abstract Clarity by B. W. Ginsburg
  53. Chobits, Vol. 1 by CLAMP
  54. The Winter’s Tale by William Shakespeare
  55. The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
  56. Death Note, Vol. 1: Boredom by Tsugumi Ohba
  57. Master of Crows by Grace Draven
  58. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs
  59. The Diamond Tree by Michael Matson
  60. Promethea, Vol. 1 by Alan Moore
  61. Blink Once by Cylin Busby
  62. Death Note, Vol. 2: Confluence by Tsugumi Ohba
  63. The People of Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau
  64. The Daemoniac by Kat Ross
  65. The Bonesetter’s Daughter by Amy Tan
  66. Death Note, Vol. 3: Hard Run by Tsugumi Ohba
  67. Death Note, Vol 4: Love by Tsugumi Ohba
  68. Gyo by Junji Ito
  69. The Metamorphosis and Other Stories by Franz Kafka
  70. Parallel by Anthony Vicino
  71. Death Note, Vol. 5: Whiteout
  72. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
  73. Death Note, Vol 7: Give-and-Take by Tsugumi Ohba
Total Fiction/Sci-Fi/Fantasy: 46 (63%)
Total Classic: 3 (4%)
Total Non-Fiction/Reference: 4 (5%)
Total Graphic Novels/Manga: 20 (27%)

I was going to do this whole shebang with “Most Read Author,” “Favorite New Author,” “Favorite Series,” and all this other stuff, but I decided on just doing a Top 20 with that number as an increase from the original 10.  I marked around 14 books as potential Tops and figured I could find six more.

20. Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain by David Eagleman

The cover of Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain by David EaglemanOne of the best parts of reading this book was the perfect timing when I read it: in the midst of watching a Let’s Play of SOMA, which I’ve spoken of at great length (even though the review/essay is still to come).  Incognito explores the intricacies of conscious, subconscious, and unconscious processes and how the latter two form the foundation of the first.  It’s written in such a way that psychological novices can still follow with relatable analogies and examples, but the volume is not without some major issues, which I started noticing around Chapter 4 with Eagleman’s views on beauty/attractiveness that spiraled unfortunately towards racism (yes…really).  He also didn’t fully explore the reasons behind why we have unconscious biases, which never just come out of a vacuum.  While the author has a flair for piquing interest in subjects that could easily come off as tedious, his essentialism and (seemingly) unwillingness to take environmental influences into account raises my brows (and hackles) a bit (e.g. his insistence that having a Y chromosome essentially makes one more violent without considering this propensity could be due to how those perceived as having a Y chromosome are treated from [often before] birth is only one of many).  While I enjoyed the book for what information it imparted, especially for those unfamiliar with psychology, the fore mentioned (and other) issues prompt me to insist it be read with a discerning eye and copious grains of salt.

19. Dweller by Jeff Strand

The cover of Dweller by Jeff StrandThis novel was like a more fucked up version of Harry and the Hendersons, if the Hendersons were a once brutally bullied loner and Harry was a man eating abomination.  I really wanted to know where the monster came from.  Was he some government experiment gone wrong?  A throwback from an early time?  A creature from an alien dimension?  Everything about him just breeds more questions, but his relationship with Toby is both poignant and disturbing.  A lot of fucked up things happen in this book.  I was initially unsure about Strand’s writing style, but it grew on me as did Toby’s character.  It made sense why the author wrote it in this way: it perfectly reflected the MC’s mental state.  This is one of those books that has the perfect ending, as in there’s no other way it could’ve ended for these characters that would’ve been as satisfactory.

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The State of the Reader: 8/30/17

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 28 Comments

<–The State of the Reader: 8/23/17          The State of the Reader: 9/6/17–>

A weekly post updated every Wednesday detailing my current reading projects and where I am with them in addition to what new titles I’ve added to my to-read list.  Title links go to Goodreads to make it easier for interested parties to add any books that might strike their fancy.  I attempt to use the covers for the edition I’m reading, and I’ll mention if this is not the case.  If you have a Goodreads account feel free to friend me!  I’d love to see what you’re reading and/or planning to read.

Samples Read This Week

  1. Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison: Passed – Urban fantasy has to work really hard to get my attention, and this doesn’t do it. Way too many UF clichés for my taste. I know Kim Harrison is pretty popular and has other books/series, so I’ll try some of her other stuff before writing her off (yes, I suppose that was a writer pun).
  2. The Spirit Within by Sheila Renee Parker: Passed – It didn’t hold my interest despite its Final Fantasy-esque name, though to be fair, that was not a good movie.  It (the novel) is about domestic abuse and withstanding that, which I’m fine with as a narrative, but I don’t think there’s enough of a fantasy element for my tastes..
  3. First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones: Kept – Witty and wonderful writing, and the beginning saw the main character in a situation hilariously dire, awkward, and strange.
  4. Hounded by Kevin Hearne: Kept (RWTR) – 21 centuries old, hot, Irish shapeshifter with a magic/holy sword.  Yes please.
  5. Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray: Kept – As grim of an opening as First Grave on the Right was humorous.  The main character Noemi knows she’s going to die in three weeks (20 days), and she wants her death and therefore life to have some purpose.
  6. Planetfall by Emma Newman: Kept – Opening with something I can fully relate to is a good way to start a story, and I was already drawn in by what the blurb itself promised.
  7. Eating Robots: And Other Stories by Stephen Oram: Kept – Kept and purchased for a low price.  It’s a collection of short sci-fi stories recommended by a fellow blogger.
  8. Dealing With Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede: Kept (RWTR) – This was recommended by none other than Hungrygoriya herself.  It took me a while to get to the sample, but I loved it.  I’ve read a lot of unconventional princess stories, but when done right, they never cease to delight.
  9. Blood Rose by Danielle Rose: Kept – It’s good enough to borrow from the library.  There’s an ancestral war between witches and vampires.  That’s a new one for me.
  10. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut: Kept – I’m definitely interesting and probably would’ve kept this even without the sample.  It’ll more than likely be put on my library list, which I may actually make on the library’s site.
  11. Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury: Kept – Same as Vonnegut above.  I want to get more into science fiction and the science fiction greats.
  12. The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley: Kept – Wibbley wobbly timey wimey!  I’m usually pretty good for any story that features well done time travel.

Books Purchased This Week: 2

Title: Master of Crows
Series Title: Master of Crows
Author: Grace Draven
Date Added: May 12, 2016
Date Purchased: August 26, 2017

Master of Crows

Media: eBook/Kindle
Price: $3.99
Retailer: Amazon

Title: Eating Robots: And Other Stories
Author: Stephen Oram
Date Added: April 10, 2017
Date Purchased: August 27, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Price: $2.99
Retailer: Amazon

Total Price: $6.98
Average Price: $3.49

Books DNF This Week: 1

Title: The Metaphysical Detective
Series Title: Riga Hayworth
Author: Kirsten Weiss
Date Added: October 22, 2016
Date Started: August 20, 2017
Date DNF: August 27, 2017
Reading Duration: 7 days

Media: eBook/Kindle
Percentage Read: 20%

The premise is interesting, a widow potentially murdered by her dead husband, but none of the characters really intrigued me, and I’m not interested enough in the mystery to get past that.

Books Finished This Week: 2

Title: Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain
Author: David Eagleman
Date Added: May 7, 2017
Date Started: July 2, 2017
Date Finished: August 25, 2017
Reading Duration: 54 days

Media: Paperback

I have so much to say about this book.  On one hand is was a marvelous venture and exploration into the literal stuff that makes us us, but on the other I have fairly egregious critiques.  I’m not even sure how I’m going to rate this.  The information presented and the insights it gave are invaluable, and the amount of notes I have on the subject show that, but I can’t divest them from the biases of the source.  By the time I get around to reviewing this (and it’s at the end of a 20 book list at this point), I’m sure I’ll have had plenty of time to ruminate upon it.  Suffice it to say I do recommend this volume for anyone interested in the mysteries of consciousness, and by some lucky coincidence I happened to read this around the same time I was watching SOMA.

Title: The Archived
Series Title: The Archived
Author: Victoria Schwab
Date Added: July 12, 2016
Date Started: July 11, 2017
Date Finished: August 29, 2017
Reading Duration: 49 days

Media: Hardback/Library

This book was an absolute delight to read in terms of Ms. Schwab’s prose.  I had very little problems with any of the plot (save for some annoyance at one of Mackenzie’s foolish, yet understandable, decisions).  I was surprised that the love triangle produced two likable candidates, though one was obviously a bad choice, and I was playfully irritated at one of the villains, because (for me) it was just too expected.

Books Currently Reading: 7

Title: The City of Ember
Series Title: The Book of Ember
Author: Jeanne DuPrau
Date Added: June 28, 2016
Date Started: August 30, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle (Library)
Progress: 8%

What a time to be alive!  I borrowed this from the library through Amazon Kindle.  I have it for 21 days (hopefully I can renew if necessary), and this means I don’t have to make a trip to the library in order to borrow books.  It’s a fantastic resource that will help people who have mobility, transportation, and/or any other issue that makes it difficult for them to be out and about.  This is why I love technology.  It can be a wonderful tool to provide ways and means for the entire population.

So far, I’m really liking this novel.  I just started it right before I left work, and it’s the perfect example of when a prologue is valid.  Ember’s mysterious builders needed the citizens to stay in the city for at least 200 years, but they provided a box on a timer that would open up on the appropriate date with instructions therein.  Each mayor had instructions about the box, and they were supposed to pass it on to their successor, but as things can often go, the information was lost and the box forgotten.  Now Ember is in trouble.  Food is growing scarce and famine is imminent.  The electricity is unstable, and if it goes out, the city will be left in utter darkness.  It’s been 241 years, 41 since the box has been open, and time is running out.

Title: Abstract Clarity
Author: B. W. Ginsburg
Date Added: June 27, 2017
Date Started: August 28, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Progress: 25%

This is a series of short stories by the blogger friend who also wrote Rest in Piece.  I’ve read two stories so far and the premise of each was very interesting.  Because we’re in email communication, I’m probably going to send her one with my critiques before posting anything on Goodreads or Amazon.

Title: Chobits, Vol. 1
Series Title: Chobits
Author: CLAMP
Translator: Shirley Kubo
Date Added: August 27, 2017
Date Started: August 28, 2017

Media: Physical/Paperback
Progress: 17%

So far I haven’t gotten beyond what I saw with the anime yet, but I do remember how messed up this story was haha.  Where Chi’s “on” switch is located is quite…interesting *headdesk*  This was clearly written for a particular demographic, but I’m not giving up hope yet :p

Title: Popular Tales from Norse Mythology
Author: George Webbe Dasent
Date Added: June 19, 2016
Date Started: August 27, 2017

Media: Physical/Paperback
Progress: 5%

As much as I love Norse Mythology, the writing in this is really dry.  It’s less of a story and more of a stating of information.  I’ve only read “The Story of Gram” so far, but I’m hoping the next ones are more prosaic, else this might end up in my DNF pile.  If it does, I’ll just pick up The Prose Edda, and call it a day.

Title: Strange the Dreamer
Series Title: Strange the Dreamer
Author: Laini Taylor
Date Added: April 18, 2016
Date Started: August 26, 2017

Media: Physical/Hardback
Progress: 11%

I can’t imagine a world where this book isn’t going to receive five stars.  I love when authors hide cleverness in simplicity, and the title does just that.  Double entendres are one of my loves (I use them myself all the time), and I’m happy I figured out the one in the title before it was blatantly revealed in the text.  It’s both describing the Dreamer as “strange” in a poetic way, and it’s also giving the main character’s name and title/description as (Lazlo) Strange, the Dreamer.  It’s so simple, but so clever.  Also, I thought I’d already picked my Book of the Year for 2017, but I may have been wrong.  I love everything about this novel, and the more I read, the more I adore it.

Title: Dweller
Author: Jeff Strand
Date Added: February 13, 2017
Date Started: August 23, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Percentage: 73%

I actually was close to declaring this DNF, because the writing seemed a bit too juvenile for me, but I realize it perfectly fit the character, and it “grew” as he did.  This is one of the most unique books I’ve ever read.  We’ve all heard of monster stories, but stories where the protagonist not only befriends, but is best friends with the monster is something new to me.  Some really fucked up stuff happens in this book, yet you can’t help but sympathize with Toby and understand how in his loneliness he found a friend in the creature he named Owen.

I thought I figured out how this novel would end, but I now have no idea, and I love that: when an author makes you constantly reassess where you think a story is going.  I’m about three-quarters done, and the stakes could not be higher.

Title: The Winter’s Tale
Author: William Shakespeare
Date Added: August 24, 2014
Date Started: August 14, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Progress: 55%

I haven’t reached the problematic part of this play yet (problematic in that it doesn’t fit into Shakespeare’s four categories of comedy, tragedy, history, or romance).  I’m quite invested in the story and am happy I’m adept enough at Shakespearean English to have little trouble comprehending it.

Books Removed from Goodreads TBR List This Week: 1

Title: Magicians of the God: The Forgotten Wisdom of Earth’s Lost Civilizations
Author: Graham Hancock
Date Added: August 22, 2017
Date Removed: August 24, 2017

Yes, this is a new section.  I’ve removed quite a few books from my TBR list that I haven’t mentioned, and I figured I ought to.  After talking with my mythology/theology/symbology expert friend, she more than agreed with my trepidation and misgivings about this volume and told me it wasn’t worth my time even for the symbolism aspect.  She’d heard of the author who was, as I’d put it, a “History Channel aliens” type.  This conversation cropped up, because I specifically asked her for recommended reading on Venusian symbolism and wound up disclosing this addition.  She’s the one who gave me the recommendations on the first two books added to my TBR list below.  So though I removed one; I added two.  No luck in clearing or even cutting down my list I suppose.

Books Added to Goodreads TBR List This Week: 6

Title: Lost Goddesses of Early Greece: A Collection of Pre-Hellenic Myths
Author: Charlene Spretnak
Date Added: August 24, 2017
Recommended By: Other

What the hell is this “other” recommendation, you ask?  Well, this and the book below it were suggested to me by an old, high school friend who doesn’t have a blog.  I didn’t want to put “N/A,” because that wouldn’t be true, but I guess I don’t see the point in putting a name if there’s no blog or site to link it to.

Title: Ancient Mirrors of Womanhood: A Treasury of Goddess and Heroine Lore from Around the World
Author: Merlin Stone
Illustrator: Cynthia Stone
Date Added: August 24, 2017
Recommended By: Other

I keep meaning to renew my Barnes and Noble membership card; its only $25 to do so, but I keep forgetting.  I desperately need to do another book run, because I have no graphic novels and I’m running out of (interesting) references to read.  Another recommendation by my erudite friend.  The knowledge of the ancients shall be mine mwahahaha.

Title: The Sun Is Also a Star
Author: Nicola Yoon
Date Added: August 25, 2017
Recommended By: N/A

I swore I already had this on my list.  One of my blogger friends posted about it, and I commented such on their page, but then when I looked to verify, I found I inadvertently spoke falsehood.  Since I don’t recall whose page I last saw it on, I can’t add a proper “Recommended By,” and, well, since it wasn’t technically recommended to me by them, but rather reminded to me by them, it wouldn’t be quite accurate anyway, would it?

A fate and the universe story.  I’m looking forward to seeing what all the hubbub is about.

Title: Unraveling Oliver
Author: Liz Nugent
Date Added: August 26, 2017
Recommended By: By Hook or By Book

Dark and psychological with a 5 star review from someone I trust is all that’s needed for me to add a novel.  The first line (or the line Kim used) still stays with me “I expected more of a reaction the first time I hit her.”  It’s terrifying and dangerous to plunge into the heart of darkness, because what you may find may shatter the light rather than be illuminated by it.

Title: Chobits, Vol. 1
Series Title: Chobits
Author: CLAMP
Date Added: August 27, 2017
Recommended By: N/A

This was a lapse on my part.  I’ve owned this book for years, but I must have missed it when I went through my bookshelf.  This is pretty perfect though, as I needed a graphic novel to read.  I’ve only seen parts of the anime, so it’ll be nice to find out the rest or at least more of the story.

Title: Ubik
Author: Philip K. Dick
Date Added: August 29, 2017
Recommended By: Professional Moron

More existential horror for TSN!  I must be a glutton for punishment or perhaps I’m just willing to suffer for my art, which (still) seems to be the fashion.  Since I want to write cosmic and existential horror, it’s crucial I read it.  This is considered one of the 100 greatest novels since 1923.  Let’s see if it holds up to the test of (almost) a century.

Total Books on Goodreads TBR List: 489
Change from Last Week: -2

Books Added to Reread List This Week: 1

Title: The Name of the Wind
Series Title: The Kingkiller Chronicle
Author: Patrick Rothfus
Date Added: August 28, 2017

Not only have I read this before, but I’ve reviewed it, too.  Damn my supervisor/coworker for reminding me about it lol.  He came back from vacation and around Monday at 4:00 or so asked me if I’d read this and why the hell hadn’t the author finished the third yet.  That started a conversation about Rothfuss and Martin, because they both published their last book in 2011, and nary a publishing peep has been heard from them since.  I said I should reread this, because it’s almost as epic of a series as ASOIAF.

Total Books on Goodreads To Reread List: 69
Change from Last Week: +1

Fanfictions Finished This Week: 0

Fanfictions Currently Reading: 1

Title: I Will Call You Home: A Recounting of the Fifth Blight
Fandom: Dragon Age/Dragon Age: Origins
Pairing: Leliana & Various
Author: AthenaTseta
Date Started: March 16, 2017

Progress: Chapter 30

I have this scheduled to read on Mondays, but I don’t think I got to it before I played Mario Kart with one of my Twitter friends.  I think I need to change the day I read it or add another day of the week (if possible).  I still have a lot of chapters to get through.  Maybe I’ll be able to catch up on vacation.

Fanfictions On Hold: 2

Title: I’m the Darkness, You’re the Starlight
Fandom: Final Fantasy VI
Pairing: Celes Chere & Setzer Gabbiani
Author: runicmagitek
Date Started: June 19, 2016

Last Update: February 18, 2017
Latest Chapter: Chapter 18

Title: The Broken Orrery
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Pairing: Sephiroth & Aeris
Author: CymbelinesHalo
Date Started:  April 1, 2015

Last Update: August 1, 2016
Latest Chapter: Chapter 39

Fanfictions Added to TBR List This Week: 0

What are you currently reading and/or what’s on your radar to read next?  What would you recommend based on my current and recently added?  As always I look forward to your comments and suggestions!

<–The State of the Reader: 8/23/17          The State of the Reader: 9/6/17–>

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The State of the Writer: 8/27/17

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 12 Comments

<–The State of the Writer: 8/20/17          The State of the Writer: 9/3/17–>

A weekly post updated every Sunday discussing my current writing projects and where I stand with them.  This will include any and all work(s) in progress (WIP) be they creative writing, essays/analyses, or reviews of any type.

Project: Story
Title: The Broken Rose
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Type: Fanfiction (FFVII) Novel
Current Word Count: 263,770
Prior Word Count: 266,548
Word Difference: -2778
Status: Editing
Progress: First edit of Chapter 11

After a bit of preliminary work, I started the first edit…today…right before posting this.  I got about two or three paragraphs edited.  This chapter is a bit different from others prior since I initially went through each paragraph, marking whether or not each was significant (adds new information, gives a new insight et al), and in some of the significant cases, color coding it further with what that particular paragraph was about.  I was going to try to put everything into order when I realized this is a letter chapter, as in Aeris is writing a letter to herself, so there’s going to be a lot of stream of consciousness.  Randomness is not only acceptable it’s expected.  But because a narrative is supposed to lead the reader to a particular place, it can’t be entirely haphazard, so it really has to be more “organized confusion.”  I hope I’m able to pull that off.

Quote: *They* hurt me, but it wasn’t my fault.  It was wrong and now I’m safe.

Project: Book Reviews
Title: Various
Status: Upcoming

I’ve been a reading machine lately, and finished five more books since last update, which means I have five more reviews.

  1. Monstress #1 – Awakening by Marjorie M. Liu & Sana Takeda
  2. An Unattractive Vampire by Jim McDoniel
  3. A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir
  4. Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain by David Eagleman
  5. The Metaphysical Detective by Kirsten Weiss (DNF)

I was going to reread Monstress, but I decided not to even though I have no other graphic novels on my list (which I’m hoping to remedy soon).  I declared The Metaphysical Detective DNF this morning.  I just didn’t have any interest in reading anymore.  It’s a shame because I think it’s an interesting premise, but I couldn’t really relate to any of the characters.

Project: Game Review
Title: SOMA
Developer:  Frictional Games
Let’s Player: ChristopherOdd
Prior Word Count: 2397
Current Word Count: 3118
Word Difference: +721
Status: Drafting

I found a great resource for plot summary, and it was right under my nose:  the SOMA Wiki.  Not the main plot page, but the pages for each Site.  There’s an explanation for what happened in the past and for what happens during the events of the game (there’s some serious wibley wobbly timey wimey shenanigans going on, wow…), and it even has the order you visit the sites, so I no longer have to jump between Wikis and Mr. Odd’s LP to cobble a summary together.

I haven’t had time to work on it today, and I’m not sure if I will, but I’ll certainly finish it during my vacation in September.

Project: Game Reviews
Title: Various
Status: Upcoming

No additional ones to add this week, but I’m going to change the order.  I have the Mass Effect Series before The Last of Us, but I think I’m going to review TLOU first, because it’s much more controversial or it’s controversial for (arguably) more moral reasons, and that’s better fodder to write about.  I’m hoping to get to both of them during my vacation.

What are you currently working on?  Is it a creative writing project, essay, review, or something else?  Have you just started something new or are you wrapping up a long term project?

<–The State of the Writer: 8/20/17          The State of the Writer: 9/3/17–>

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The State of the Reader: 8/23/17

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 20 Comments

<–The State of the Reader: 8/16/17          The State of the Reader: 8/30/17–>

A weekly post updated every Wednesday detailing my current reading projects and where I am with them in addition to what new titles I’ve added to my to-read list.  Title links go to Goodreads to make it easier for interested parties to add any books that might strike their fancy.  I attempt to use the covers for the edition I’m reading, and I’ll mention if this is not the case.  If you have a Goodreads account feel free to friend me!  I’d love to see what you’re reading and/or planning to read.

Samples Read This Week

  1. Traitor’s Blades by Sebastian de Castell: Kept – This wasn’t a hard sell for me at all given the series is called Greatcoats, and I love greatcoats in general (nothing beats a Badass Longcoat).  It was also an easy sell since it was also really cheap.
  2. Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry: Kept – I had no idea The Giver was the first book of a quartet.  This is a definite must-read.
  3. Hunted by Meagan Spooner: Kept – More revamped fairy tales. This time it’s Beauty and the Beast.
  4. Santa Took Them by William Malmborg: Passed – I’m pissed about this pass.  Maybe this was the author’s intention, but I hated all of the characters introduced in the first chapter.  The dad was a douche.  The mom was annoying.  The kids were irritating, but them I gave a pass, because they were just normal kids.  I guess it’s more I hated how they were written, and there was a really bad pussy joke (not as bad as the Game of Thrones one, but still pretty awful).  Anyway, this is about murders that took place on Christmas Eve 2005, and the sole survivor is released from a mental institution ten years later when they start again.
  5. For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund: Kept – This is one of those books I added because I loved the title, and it doesn’t seem as if the text is going to disappoint.  Starting off as a series of letters exchanged between a boy and a girl, its foundation seems to be young love, heartbreaking rejecting and re-reconnection through adventure.
  6. In the Garden of Iden by Kage Baker: Kept (RWTR) – I would’ve bought this if it wasn’t over my $2.99 insta-limit.  Intertwining the concepts of time travel and immortality with a sense of greed and a lack of bio (or really any) ethics is one clear way to get me interesting in a novel.
  7. A Brother’s Price by Wen Spencer: Kept – In my grand tradition of reading subverted stories (like the Flipped Fairy Tales), this novel takes place in a world where male children are rare and therefore coveted.  The main character, the oldest male with around 28 sisters, only has one use: to be sold off to marriage for to the highest bidder.  It’s a painfully common trope for girls, and it doesn’t make it any better when the tables are turned, because Jerin’s world has always been this way.  I wasn’t quite certain about it initially, but it was interesting enough to go on my library shelf.
  8. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff: Kept (RWTR) – Holy fantastic opening line.  It’s brutal, raw, and reminds me of ASOIAF.
  9. Bull by David Elliott: Passed – Disappointing to say the least.  I love retold stories, especially fairy tales and myths, but I didn’t like the style of this.

Books Purchased This Week: 3

Title: Traitor’s Blade
Series Title: Greatcoats
Author: Sebastian de Castell
Date Added: March 5, 2017
Date Purchased: August 17, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Price: $2.99
Retailer: Amazon

Continue reading →

The State of the Reader: 8/16/17

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 23 Comments

<–The State of the Reader: 8/9/17          The State of the Reader: 8/23/17–>

A weekly post updated every Wednesday detailing my current reading projects and where I am with them in addition to what new titles I’ve added to my to-read list.  Title links go to Goodreads to make it easier for interested parties to add any books that might strike their fancy.  I attempt to use the covers for the edition I’m reading, and I’ll mention if this is not the case.  If you have a Goodreads account feel free to friend me!  I’d love to see what you’re reading and/or planning to read.

Samples Read This Week

  1. The Pendragon Protocol by Philip Purser-Hallard: Kept – Arthurian Knights in the modern day with modern technology doing what they do best.  Certain types of urban fantasy are growing on me.  I like the speculation of how classic fantasy characters and tropes would look with modern technology.  It was also inexpensive, so I now have it on Kindle.
  2. Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough: Kept – I hoping this psychological thriller is more satisfying than the last one I read.
  3. Komarr by Lois McMaster Bujold: Passed – It just didn’t grab me.
  4. One by Sarah Crossan: Kept (RWTR) – I had no idea this was written in free verse lending it a lovely poetic air.  I was already interesting in it for it’s subject matter (conjoined twin sisters), though I have a feeling I’m going to be a bawling mess by the end.
  5. Dweller by Jeff Strand: Kept (RWTR) – Gripping from the very first sentence, and the monster (or monsters) from the blurb are clearly sentient.  At only $2.99 I had to buy it.
  6. Raising Stony Mayhall by Daryl Gregory: Kept – This has been a week of cheap samples.  I keep reading samples for books that are really inexpensive on Amazon.  This is a zombie story with a twist (of course, since zombie stories are old news now).  The Mayhall family finds the body of a pregnant teenager with a seemingly dead baby, but though the child has no pulse, he appears to be “alive.”  They hide the child from the authorities who will kill him (sounds similar to The Last of Us), keeping his existence a secret until circumstances force the boy, whom they name Stony, to run.  This is the second Daryl Gregory book I’ll have read, the first being The Devil’s Alphabet, which had a great deal of potential, but was ultimately disappointing.  I hope Raising Stony Mayhall doesn’t fall into the same trap.
  7. The Children of Húrin by Christopher Tolkien: Kept – This was one of those books that had too much introduction, so I didn’t actually get to read any of it, but it’s the work of J. R. R. Tolkien edited by his son, so I have high hopes.  I was also able to borrow it on Amazon Prime.  Apparently, you can do that with some books with the limit being ten at a time.

Books Purchased This Week: 5

Title: The Pendragon Protocol
Series Title: The Devices Trilogy
Author: Philip Purser-Hallard
Date Added: January 15, 2017
Date Purchased: August 10, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Price: $2.95
Retailer: Amazon

Continue reading →

The State of the Reader: 8/9/17

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 25 Comments

<–The State of the Reader: 8/2/17          The State of the Reader: 8/16/17–>

A weekly post updated every Wednesday detailing my current reading projects and where I am with them in addition to what new titles I’ve added to my to-read list.  Title links go to Goodreads to make it easier for interested parties to add any books that might strike their fancy.  I attempt to use the covers for the edition I’m reading, and I’ll mention if this is not the case.  If you have a Goodreads account feel free to friend me!  I’d love to see what you’re reading and/or planning to read.

Samples Read This Week

  1. Dreadnought by April Daniels: Kept (RWTR) – When I come across a book with a transgender main character, it’s going on my really-want-to-read list for the representation alone.  It doesn’t hurt that the first page instantly makes you feel for her.  All she wants to do is buy some damn nail polish.
  2. Doon by Lorie Langdon: Kept – This starts off as your typical YA high school drama (and I’m not saying this to diminish the drama that happens in high school or invalidate any of the very real feelings about the fore mentioned), but it comes off realistically and not trite despite the common subject matter of a girl fighting with her boyfriend over another girl.  If the mundane aspects of the fantasy are presented in such an interesting way, I have high hopes for the more magical ones.
  3. Maresi by Maria Turtschaninoff: Kept – It was hard not to think of Redwall Abbey while looking at this, since it takes place in Red Abbey, which is a sanctuary for abused women and girls.  The MC’s peaceful life is upended when the newcomer Jai arrives, and I want to know how.  The book was pretty cheap on Amazon Kindle, so I suppose I’ll find out soon.
  4. Nemesis by Brendan Reichs: Kept – Every year on the main character’s birthday, she’s killed by a mysterious assailant, afterwards waking up still quite alive, but like any person who doesn’t get off on their own murder, she wants the cycle to end.
  5. Dissonance by Erica O’Rourke: Kept – This is the fourth sample I read in one day, and I honestly can’t remember what the hell the book is about.  I remember the cover is pretty and I liked it enough to keep.  Haha, what’s the point of me doing this Sample section if I’m not going to have something to say about the books?  Oh, it’s about parallel realities.  Totally up my alley.
  6. Gilded Cage by Vic James: Kept – It’s interesting enough for the library list.  The magic users are the elite and if you’re not one you have to serve a magical family for ten years as an indentured servant.
  7. The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge: Kept – It’s about a tree that grants favors if you tell it lies.  That’s not going to end poorly at all.
  8. The Borrowers by Mary Norton: Kept – I read The Borrowers Afield years ago when I was a child, but it was the second book in the series, which I could tell even then without knowledge of the first.  The Borrowers and their life/situation already seemed well established (or rather in upheaval since they had to leave their cozy home).  I’d like to see how it all begins.
  9. Red Rising by Pierce Brown: Kept (RWTR) – The opening line.  “I would have lived in peace.  But my enemies brought me war.”  Yes.  Hell yes.  The language.  The stakes.  The oppression.  I can tell this is an epic tale worthy of my attention.

Books Purchased This Week: 1

Title: Maresi
Series Title: The Red Abbey Chronicles
Author: Maria Turtschaninoff
Date Added: December 18, 2016
Date Purchased: August 5, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Price: $2.99
Retailer: Amazon

Total Price: $2.99
Average Price: $2.99

Continue reading →

The State of the Reader: 8/2/17

/ The Shameful Narcissist / 16 Comments

<–The State of the Reader: 7/26/17          The State of the Reader: 8/9/17–>

A weekly post updated every Wednesday detailing my current reading projects and where I am with them in addition to what new titles I’ve added to my to-read list.  Title links go to Goodreads to make it easier for interested parties to add any books that might strike their fancy.  I attempt to use the covers for the edition I’m reading, and I’ll mention if this is not the case.  If you have a Goodreads account feel free to friend me!  I’d love to see what you’re reading and/or planning to read.

Samples Read This Week

  1. The Moonborn: or, Moby-Dick on the Moon by D. F. Lovett: Kept – A book by a fellow blogger that has a thousand times more excitement in the first page than the classic had in the entire novel?  Of course!
  2. The Jekyll Revelation by Robert Masello: Kept – I haven’t read the classic this is based on or rather springs from, but it’s a well known narrative, and I’m sure I”ll be able to get by.
  3. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers: Kept – This is touted as a space opera, and given how much I loved Saga paired with the few pages of the sample I read, and I think it’s a good find.
  4. Hyperion by Dan Simmons: Kept – I’m wracking up the sci-fi lately with this one, the above and the first sample book.  The language is a bit tech/jargon-y, but I’m used to that in fantasy, too.  I’ want to know why these Time Tombs are so deadly.  I want to know the nature of the Shrike.  I want to know about the seven pilgrims.
  5. The Secret Life of Souls by Jack Ketchum & Lucky McGee: Kept – It’s a dog story, and the dog better not die.
  6. The Martian by Andy Weir: Kept – I love stories that start after the disaster has occurred.  Even if the explanation is kind of boring (which it normally isn’t for me), you know at least you have something to look forward to in the aftermath.  I like the way it’s written as a journal, and since I’ve never seen the movie, I’m going into it fresh.
  7. Wake of Vultures by Lila Bowen: Kept (RWTR) – I loved the voice from the get-go and when I realized the main character is half-Black, half-Native American and she’s pretty much an unwanted foundling who’s treated little better than a slave, that was all I needed.

Books Purchased This Week: 2

Title: The Moonborn: or, Moby-Dick on the Moon
Author: D.F. Lovett
Date Added: November 15, 2016
Date Purchased: July 27, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Price: $4.99
Retailer: Amazon

Continue reading →