Holy Relics

This might turn into a bit of a rant, so bear with me.

I was looking at pictures of my family's vacation last summer, and I came upon the lovely one you see on the right.
Yeah. That's a bloody sock.
Why, you may ask, does my family vacation pictures include a bloody sock?
To me, this is unfathomable. But, as my brother patiently explained when I stood beside him in the Baseball Hall of Fame, this is a very special bloody sock. Indeed, this was the very same sock that Curt Shilling, the Boston Red Sox starting pitcher, wore on the day in 2004 that he pitched the game that allowed the Red Sox to enter the World Series, which they won, breaking the legendary "Babe Ruth Curse" that had prevented them winning a World Series for many years. Curt Shilling had pitched this whole monumental game despite a badly injured, bleeding ankle, and the sock had been put in the Baseball Hall of Fame as a memento to his perseverance.
I was unimpressed.

Am I the only one who thinks that this practice of regarding sports objects as if they are something special is a little... well.... weird?
Curt Shilling's sock wasn't the only thing in the Hall of Fame. There were many other "relics," such as David Ortiz's bat and seats from the old Yankee stadium and a whole lot of other things I can't remember.

You know how some churches have, like, a lock of hair from some saint?  Well, the Baseball Hall of Fame couldn't help reminding me of that. Lock of hair, bloody sock-- you can see the connection. And some baseball fans talk about their favorite players as if they were saints, e.g. "Did you see that amazing home run Big Papi hit? He's so awesome!" or "Roy Halladay just pitched a no-hitter! He's so awesome!"
And at the Hall of Fame "Whoa! Hannah, come see! This is David Ortiz's hat! He actually wore this! And come watch this awesome video detailing every World Series since the very first one!"

Thank you for sticking with me through this ramble. All of that was just to say: Baseball fans are just a little, um, crazy.

Now if you'll exuse me, I have to go hide from the majority of my family.

                                                                                         ~Hannah

Points of View

In writing, there are five basic points of view (POV), at least that I know of or have ever read. Here they are: (The first four of these I got mainly from Victoria Hanley’s book, Seize the Story, which I highly recommend.)

First-Person. In first-person Point of View, everything is told from the perspective of an “I” character. 

Some advantages are that in first person you feel very close to the character. Disadvantages are that you can’t write about anything the main character doesn’t experience.

Second-Person. In second-person POV, everything is told from the perspective of a “you” character. 

Advantages: It’s very informal sounding, and gives the story a sense of motion, as if you were talking to a friend.

Disadvantages: It’s really hard to write, and to read.

Limited Third-Person. In any third-person POV, a narrator tells the story, using “he” and “she” and “they” to talk about the characters.

In limited third, the story is viewed from the perspective of a “he” or “she” character. Limited third is very similar to first, only showing the thoughts and feelings of one character. It has the same advantages and disadvantages of first person: A feeling of closeness with the main character, but you can’t write about anything he or she doesn’t experience.  

Omniscient Third-Person. In omniscient third-person, the narrator is all knowing and can reveal to the reader whatever suits the story: the thoughts and feelings of all, including secondary characters and bad guys; events long ago or far in the future, even a lightning strike on a hill with no people nearby.

Advantages: This is the most powerful POV. You can write about whatever you want, wherever and whenever you want it to take place.

Disadvantages: Readers may feel detached from the main character, not caring quite as much what happens to him or her.

Semi-Limited Third-Person. This is actually a POV that I made up. I was wondering which POV I wrote in, and I realized it was none of these!

In semi-limited third-person, the story is viewed from the perspective of two or three main “he” and “she” characters. Semi-limited is a cross between omniscient and limited. I think of it like the narrator can reveal anything, but only chooses to reveal the main characters and occasionally a bad guy or two when it suits the story.

Some people say that this is merely a sub form of omniscient, but I disagree.  

Advantages: Like omniscient, you can reveal more in semi-limited than you can in limited, but you also feel close to the main characters like in limited.

Disadvantages: You don’t feel as close to the main characters, and it’s hard to tell which character is actually your protagonist.

If you don’t quite understand what I’m talking about these are different Points of View for the same scene, an interchange between the “star,” or protagonist, Robyn; the “co-star,” or second protagonist,  Jeremy; and the antagonist, Kelsey.

(First) I knew that something was wrong, but I couldn’t figure out what.

“Robyn?” Jeremy said again. “Are you okay?” I could tell by his expression that he was worried.

“I’m fine,” I said, shaking myself. “Let’s go get some lunch.”

“Okay...” Jeremy seemed suspicious, but he didn’t say anything more.

(Second) You know that something is wrong, but you can’t figure out what.

“Robyn?” Jeremy says again. “Are you okay?” You can tell by his expression that he is worried.

“I’m fine,” you say, shaking yourself. “Come on, let’s go get some lunch.”

“Okay...” Jeremy seems suspicious, but he doesn’t say anything more.

(Limited Third) Robyn knew that something was wrong, but she couldn’t figure out what.

“Robyn?” Jeremy said again. “Are you okay?” Robyn could tell by his expression that he was worried.

“I’m fine,” Robyn said, shaking herself. “Let’s go get some lunch.”

“Okay...” Jeremy seemed suspicious, but he didn’t say anything more.

(Omniscient) Robyn knew that something was wrong, but she couldn’t figure out what.

“Robyn?” Jeremy said again. “Are you okay?” He couldn’t help being worried about his friend. She had seemed distracted all day.

“I’m fine,” Robyn said, shaking herself. “Let’s go get some lunch.”

“Okay...” Jeremy was suspicious, but he didn’t say anything more. He wouldn’t get anything out of Robyn by pressuring her.

Behind a locker, Kelsey Greer watched. Robyn was dangerously close to figuring out the truth. She would have to be taken care of.

 (Semi-Limited Third) Robyn knew that something was wrong, but she couldn’t figure out what.

“Robyn?” Jeremy said again. “Are you okay?” He couldn’t help being worried about his friend. She had seemed distracted all day.

“I’m fine,” Robyn said, shaking herself. “Let’s go get some lunch.”

“Okay...” Jeremy was suspicious, but he didn’t say anything more. He wouldn’t get anything out of Robyn by pressuring her.

Behind a locker, Kelsey Greer watched.

The fact that Kelsey was even there is only revealed in Semi-Limited and Omniscient, and you only know why she is there in Omniscient. You also only know what Jeremy is thinking and feeling in the last two POVs. But you feel a little closer to Robyn in the first three POVs, or at least you would if I continued the story.

My favorite POV is Semi-Limited third. This is mostly because I tend to have more than one main character in my stories, and I want to be able to show the thoughts and feelings of all of them, but I think it would get confusing if I tried to write pure omniscient. I also like first-person for some stories, and I'm thinking of maybe trying limited third for the next series I'm going to write.

Wow, that was a long post. Congratulations for slogging through the whole thing!

                                                                       ~Hannah

10 Reasons Why Real Books are Better Than E-Books

Many people use e-books now. My dad has a Kindle. One of my friends has a Nook. But me? I still prefer an old fashioned, hold in your hands, read cover to cover book. Why? Here are ten of my reasons:

1. Real books can be used as weapons. If you clonk someone over the head with War and Peace, you can knock them out! Can’t do that with a Kindle or Nook.
2. If you lose a real book, it’s not so big a deal, it’s just one book. If you lose your e-book reader, you’ve lost your whole library.
3. Real books can be used as doorstops.
4. Real books have a homey, comfortable feel to them. Not so much with e-books.
5. It’s much easier to flip back to a chapter you’ve already read in a real book.
6. I don’t know about you, but I like to hug my books sometimes. And real books are much more fun to hug than e-books.
7. Browsing a library or bookstore, actually walking among the shelves and seeing books you’d never have thought to search for, is more fun and opens your mind more than browsing an internet store.
8. You can lend books to other people as easily as handing it to them. It’s much, much harder to lend an e-book.
9. I have a beautiful bookcase full of lovely, colorful books in my room. If I only used e-books, there would be no bookcase and no lovely books.
10. The act of reading a book is something that people have been doing for more than 200 years. The act of reading an e-book is something that people have been doing for 2 years.

So that’s why I prefer real books over e-books.

*BOOK REVIEW* The Secret Series, by Pseudonymous Bosch.

When you open the cover of Pseudonymous Bosch’s first book, The Name of This Book is Secret, these huge words greet you: “WARNING! Do not read beyond this page!”

And if you dare to turn the page, you’ll read “Good. Now I know I can trust you.”

After those fifteen words, I was hooked.

The Name of This Book is Secret stars eleven-year-old Cassandra, known to her friends as Cass, and her friend Max-Ernest. Cass is a self-proclaimed survivalist, determined to be prepared for any and every disaster. When she discovers a mysterious box called the Symphony of Smells in her grandfather’s junk shop, the box leads her and Max-Ernest on a dangerous adventure, during which they tangle with the mysterious society of alchemists known only as “The Midnight Sun.”

In the next three books, If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late; This Book is Not Good for You; and This Isn’t What it Looks Like, Cass and Max-Ernest are captured by and escape from the Midnight Sun multiple times, rescue Cass’s mom from a prison in a jungle, and even go back in time.

Throughout all this, the mysterious narrator continues to make snide comments and add interesting footnotes. By the fourth book, you can figure out the secret identity of the narrator. If you paid attention, that is.

Each book has an object in it that focuses on one of the senses. In the first book, it’s The Symphony of Smells (Smell). In the second, it’s the Sound Prism (Sound). In the third, it’s the Tuning Fork (Taste), and in the fourth it’s the Monocle (Sight). I don’t know what the object will be in the fifth and final book, which will be coming out some time later this year.

There’s a character named Owen who shows up, in disguise, at least once per book. Figuring out which minor character Owen is masquerading as is one of my favorite things about reading the Secret Series.

In conclusion, these amazing books do not receive nearly the publicity they deserve.

                                          ~Hannah

P.S. But if you dare to read them, be careful. It could put your life in danger. And watch out for people with gloves!

Welcome to My Blog!

Welcome to my blog! 

I've never blogged before, so bear with me if I sound a bit like an amateur. My hopes are that I'll improve with time. 

First, a bit about me. I'm thirteen years old and in the eighth grade. I love acting, singing, and reading, but my real passion is for writing. I've written ever since I was eight years old, but I was making up stories before that.

Mainly I'm a fantasy writer, but I've also dabbled in adventure, historical fiction, and science fiction. My stories tend to be fairly long. My longest so far is 61 pages, and 30,093 words.

I'm homeschooled, and have been since second grade. I like being homeschooled for the most part, but sometimes I wish I had the social experiences that my public schooled friends have. 

I'm a Christian, and I'm passionate about using my writing and other talents for God's glory.

In this blog I'll mostly write about my writing, but I'll also review books and movies, blog about my faith, about school, about acting, and about anything else that may come up.

Well, thanks a lot for taking the time to read this entry. I appreciate it! 

               ~Hannah