A Sketch

not the finest artist,
but i have the heart.

.

Happy. Like how you felt at your fifth birthday party, or that time when you played in the sprinklers when you were ten, or at that concert when you were fifteen. Maybe getting engaged when you're twenty or doing whatever twenty-year-olds do.

Memories with smiles and true laughs, coffee or tea with your best friends, discussing novels or movies or just life. Babysitting little kids, giving the piggyback rides after so many years of being the rider. Growing up has a sense of sadness but then something thrilling because it means adventure and new places and new people.

Baltering through the kitchen or your bedroom in time to your music because your music is the best. Or laying on the floor in a nest of blankets reading and falling asleep and staying there for the night. Maybe spending time alone or with friends, depending on who you truly are, deep down at the bottom of your heart where it really matters.

Being with family and giving to them and making them happy. Getting compliments. Not the, "Oh, you're so gorgeous." from the not-really-friend, but the "I love you to bits and pieces because you love me to bits and pieces and if you ever leave me I'll kill you because I kind of really need you." kind of compliments.

Eating breakfast at McDonalds with a good friend, or clinging to a best friend in a parking lot because it will be ages before you see her again and just no.

Fangirling with friends because hello, sweetie. (Plus who else is going to ruin the hipster posts? Ohwaitcrapisn'tthisone?)

Watching the stars in the sky (I'm pretty darn sure there's supposed to be a meteor shower on the 23rd, so keep your beautiful eyes open) or the moon or the sun (haha, don't actually watch that. Ow).

Just stay beautiful and true and honest and loving and be happy. Okay? Okay.

♥

Bekah Joan

This is from today's Practice. Since I seriouslydesperatelyreally need to take a break from The Three Worlds, I thought this would be fun. And don't go by this definition. Go by this one.

Let's Have a Writing Contest

I wanted to do something to celebrate fifty followers (*happy dances*), so why the heck not? A lot of you guys are writers, and I want to read your work. Desperately. So what better way to do that then to have a contest? (I don't know. There probably is. But I want to have a contest.)
So. Let's do this.
THE RULES:
-Anyone can enter. You don't have to be following my blog. You don't have to be a fantastic writer, just a passionate one (and you don't even have to be that). I will seriously accept things from five-year-olds, because five-year-olds are adorable.
-Please keep your entries below 1,000 words. If it's close (within a hundred-word range), I'll keep it in. It can be below that, too. I love six word stories. Or three word stories. One word is a little small, but hey, if it's a cool word... ;)
-Speaking of those entries, you can do whatever you want. Flash fiction, short stories, poems, excerpts from your WIP, fanfiction, whatever. Although please no essays. Pleaaase. (If it is an excerpt from your WIP and it's not the very beginning, give me some explanation/backstory so I'm not lost. Please.)
-Keep it little-kid friendly, Christian friendly, God-honoring—whatever you want to call it. You get the point.
-One entry per person. Email your entry to rjlbooks@[at]gmail.[dot]com, with the subject title of "Writing Contest 2014, *your name*." Please give me an actual name, even if it's a fake one. It doesn't have to be your full name. It can just be a first name.
-The contest runs from May 18th to May 25th. I'll give a few hours extra for time zone differences. I'll email you a few thoughts on your piece (most likely my fangirling over all of your awesomeness) by the beginning of June. Possibly before that, depending on how many entries there are.
-There will be one winner. Possibly honorable mentions. They'll be posted here.
If you have any questions, I'll be answering in the comments! Also, don't worry about your entry going to spam. I'll be checking there.
Hope you guys can enter!
♥
Bekah Joan

30,000

[flowers are pretty, and unedited, random, half-out-of-focus pictures are amazing.]

30,000 words in this baby's fourth draft.
*Happy dances.*
The problem? There was a slight mix-up when I was outlining with the word count/chapters, so the first disaster hasn't happened yet (oops). But it's coming very soon. Just a few thousand words late. But that's okay. I can fix it. Later.
Actually, I'm a bit behind. I wanted to be closer to forty thousand by now, but I'm not. Part of that is school's problem, but guess what? I'm doneeee! Well. Minus history. But that's just a bit of reading that I can handle.
Now that my math is done, I can start writing in the mornings. It seems that I'm the most mentally active in the mornings, so that's when I was doing my math. Before my family was up, I'd get it done, and then eat breakfast once everyone was ready.
Now I get up and write, write, write! My daily word count has gone up, which is superawesome.
And I need to get back to writing.
But I wanted to give you guys a word count/school update. But it's time to go now. And write. Because writing is awesome.
♥
Bekah Joan

an excerpt [8]

via

From The Three Worlds. I'm a little uneasy about this scene... It feels off. You know? Like too much description and not enough action. And weird sentence structure. You know?
Let's just say opinions would be appreciated muchly.
(Edit: this is from Alexa's POV. She's one of the three main characters in the first book.)

. . . .

   The glorious peace of the ten-acre forest is only a few blocks away, whispering to me, and I ache for its cover.

   When I step inside, I push back a beech tree branch. The leaves rustle, falling to the ground, greeting me. I’m showered by more rainwater, splashing the back of my neck and chilling me.

   I’ve never been in the woods when it’s this dark before. I was too scared. But I think I prefer it in semidarkness. There’s a thrill in it. Not knowing what’s around the next few trees because the shadows aren’t there to tell you.

   A certain beauty lurks in the unknown.

   I breathe deeply. Being in a house with three kids under the age of ten can be stressful. And loud. Nothing like between the trees and woodsy smells.

   Something pink and glowing flits by, capturing my attention. I step forward, the soft ground shaping to my shoe. Another step onto a twig.

   Snap.

   A flurry of lights with wings rises from the ground. They whizz through the air into different hiding places, the swirls of light dizzying.

   I gasp, stumbling backwards into the rough bark of a tree.

   When I was younger, I had an imaginary friend—a fairy—named Sabrina. But I’m fifteen now. I’m too old for imaginary friends.

   Right?

. . . .

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]
♥
Bekah Joan

The Liebster Award + the Sunshine Award

THE RULES:

• Thank and link back to the person who nominated you. List 11 facts about yourself.
• Answer the 11 questions asked by the blogger who nominated you.
• Nominate 9 bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers (you can’t nominate the blogger who nominated you).
• Ask them 11 questions.
• Let them know about the nomination.

So Thanks to Trinity, Abrielle, and Ajax!

As for eleven facts:

1. Petrichor is one of my favorite words.

2. It's also one of my favorite smells.

3. These two (him and her) are my best friends.

4. I'm terrible about answering emails. Got that from my mom.

5. I had McDonald's French fries for breakfast. Healthy, I know.

6. I should be writing, but I wanted to get these tags done. You know?

7. I love Harry Potter. ^-^

8. Apple juice is my favorite beverage to drink while writing.

9. I realllllly struggle with giving my characters their own voices.

10. I have allergies. Spring ones. So guess who has a stuffy nose, can't stop sneezing, and keeps coughing? Moi. But I don't want this gorgeous weather to go away. I want it to stay. Right here.

11. I had a taco for dinner. Yummy. ^-^

To answer questions... (some are Trinity's, some are Ajax's, and some are Abrielle's.)

1. If you could move to any state in the US, where would you go? I'd either stay where I am in Pennsylvania or move to Illinois with a friend.

2. Do you prefer taking photos of sunrises or sunsets? Sunrises, probably.

3. If you had been forewarned that you would be stranded on aforementioned waterlogged piece of geography, what three books would you take with you, along with your Bible? I'm going with Trinity's answer because it's basically what I would choose. "A macbook, a massive notebook, and a "How To Sail" book. I know. I'm such a cheater."

4. Do you prefer Windows or Mac computers? Windows because I'm used to it.

5.Waterfall or Beach? GAHHHH. I don't know. Probably a waterfall. No, a beach! Merg. I suppose it depends on if I want to be around people or not.
6. How often do you blog? At the moment, about once a week (excluding these tag posts). Although I'd like to blog more often. Maybe now that school is over I can.
7. What's your favorite food? Hahaha one? I can't do it. I'm sorry. I just can't.
8. Have you ever been out of your home continent? Nope. Although one of these days, I'm planning on making it happen.

9. Finding yourself marooned on a desert island with natives, would you:
     A: Make friends with the natives and co-exist peacefully
     B: Attempt to subdue and rule these friendly people
     C: Most likely find yourself the guest of honor at the Cannibal Island's annual potluck

I'd attempt for A, but I'd probably end up with C.

10. Who is a better writer, John Grisham or John Steinbeck? I've only ever read John Grisham, so my opinion is biased, but... Grisham. (:

11. Did you have fun answering these questions? Yesssssss! :)

As for nominating nine bloggers, ha. No. If you want to do this, DO ITTTTTTTT.

My Eleven Questions:

1. Favorite color?

2. Favorite book (besides the Bible)?

3. Favorite movie?

4. J.K. Rowling or Rick Riordan?

5. The Tenth Doctor or the Eleventh Doctor?

6. What's your favorite word?

7. What's your favorite fandom?

8. Winter, spring, summer, or fall?

9. Forest or field?

10. Katniss or Hermione?

11. Favorite kind of weather?

Onward!

The rules for the Sunshine Award:

• Thank the person who nominated you
• Answer the questions they asked you on your respective blog
• Nominate another batch of bloggers (eleven being the standard)
• Question them (evil chuckle)
• Notify them that they have been nominated
• And post the award image on your blog

So thank you, Hannah!

Answers to her questions:

• Which number (1, 2, 3, etc.) is the best, based on it's personality and morals? (Example: 7 is best because of his wise and patient personality.) Four. Because...

via

Sorry. Couldn't help it.

• Fruit-flavored candy or chocolate? CHOCOLATE.
• Under what circumstances would you jump on a shark's back? Never. Everevereverever.
• Would you rather grab a handful of cow poop or drink milk straight from the cow? Drink milk straight from a cow. Although grabbing a handful of poop wouldn't be *that* gross.
• Batman or Iron Man? Psh. Iron Man.
• Fantasy or sci-fi? Are you kidding me? AUGHHH THOSE ARE MY TWO FAVORITES. *Grumbles.* Probably fantasy.
• Three years of famine, three months to be destroyed by your foes, or three days of the angel of the Lord destroying throughout all the coasts of the land? Probably three months to be destroyed by my foes. That's just me. Not everyone else.
• Favorite season? At the moment, spring!
• Is the Lochness Monster real? Nope.
• Death by fire or death by ice? Fire.
• Out of any animal, what would be your dream pet? My dog Daisy. (:

I nominate (heck, no. I'm not doing eleven):

Bethan from Think. Read. Write. Dream.

Neeli at A World of Randomness

Lila at Creative Thinking

My Questions for them (yes, they're the same as above):

1. Favorite color?

2. Favorite book (besides the Bible)?

3. Favorite movie?

4. J.K. Rowling or Rick Riordan?

5. The Tenth Doctor or the Eleventh Doctor?

6. What's your favorite word?

7. What's your favorite fandom?

8. Winter, spring, summer, or fall?

9. Forest or field?

10. Katniss or Hermione?

♥
Bekah Joan

The Sunflower Award

I was planning on not doing tags. And then Tane and Rachel nominated me for the Sunflower Award, Trinity, Abrielle, and Ajax nominated me for the Liebester Award, and Hannah nominated me for the Sunshine award. Thank you to all of you guys! :) I figured I might as well do them.
So, let's get started. I'm only doing one today. Not enough time for all of them.

Just a picture (unedited), because I like them.

The Sunflower Blogger Award

Rules:

1). Share 11 facts about yourself

2). Answer the questions set by your nominated blogger

3). Nominate your bloggers

4). Set seven questions for the nominated bloggers

1. I'm lactose intolerant. :p

2. I'm the middle of two sisters. (Olivia is the youngest at 16, Jenny is the oldest at 20. I'm seventeen.)

3. I love chocolate. IT'S SO AMAZING.

4. I'm a Whovian. And a Sherlockian. And a Wholockian. (Basically, Steven Moffat owns my soul.)

5. I love art, especially drawing and painting, although I'm not too talented in those areas. Yet.

6. I have recently become obsessed with the Piano Guys. And this soundtrack.

7. Speaking of that soundtrack, GUESS WHO HASN'T SEEN THE MOVIE YET? Moi. -_-

8. Words mean so much to me. So. Much.

9. I want to dye my hair an unnatural color, but I'm not allowed to because of summer camp (*sigh.* Staff policies and all), and I'm too terrified to try. :p

10. I once had a dream about BBC's Sherlock and John and a mansion and gooey monsters and chairs and cars and an old lady who Sherlock pushed off a balcony. Weird, I know. O.o

11. I don't have very much time to do all these tags. >.< But I sososo appreciate being tagged. <3

Answers to the seven questions (some are Tane's, some are Rachel's):

Is your hair curly/straight/wavy? Straight and short. (:

Do you have a favorite singer? Ehhhhh. There are so many. Right now I really like Birdy.

Do you like painting your nails or not? Haha no. >.< Can't draw, can't paint, can't do nails.

Have you ever visited another country? Does Canada count? :p

Do you prefer flowery fields or a flat mowed lawn?  Flowery fields, absolutely. Although I love the smell of freshly mowed grass. (Ahem...)

Do you like watercolor or sketching better? Sketching. Never really done watercolor.

What is one thing you really want to learn? French. (:

I nominate...

Liz from Anomalous

Sarah from Half a Heart

and Ashley from A Girl After God's Own Heart

Now, for the questions to ask...

1. How many siblings (if any) do you have?

2. What's your favorite season and why?

3. Photography or writing?

4. If the TARDIS showed up in your front yard and you saw a strange man beckoning for you to join him, would you go?

5. Loki or Thor?

6. What's your favorite flower?

7. What's one of your life goals?

*Takes deep breath.*

*Looks at the clock.*

I have gone over my time limit for doing this. -_-

Byeeeeeee! :)

♥

Bekah Joan