New Years Wrap Up

 

Hello Readers!

I can't believe this year is over. This year has been difficult for me, one of learning and growing. And both of those things aren't always the most enjoyable. A lot of fun things happened this year, a lot of not-so-fun things happened as well. I didn't write much, compared to some, but I'm learning that comparing myself to others isn't a great habit. I had a lot of firsts this year; I entered my first poetry contest; I went to Kauai; I went on scary rollercoasters; I won the 100-for-100 challenge... 

Reading

As of writing this, I've read 42 1/2 books as I write this. A highlights from my reading were....

Rescue in the Rockies, by C.R. Hedgecock. This was the 8th book in her series, The Baker Family Adventures and as usual it was amazing and I'd highly recommend the whole series!

I reread most of the Chosen Daughter Series. If you ever can get your hands on any of those books, read them, and your life will be better for it. 

You're Not Enough (And that's Okay), by Allie Beth Stuckey. My sisters have been listening to Allie's podcast, called Relatable. It was an excellent book, and I really enjoyed her points. We can't ever be enough for ourselves and other people. But that's okay, because God is. 

The White Rose Resists, by Amanda Barret. The book should be a must read on your list. I don't care what you read, what genres you like or don't. You will love this book to bits and pieces. And if you do read it, please share your thoughts with me and let's fangirl together! 

A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens. I don't think I've ever read anything by Dickens before and this was a treat. I remember watching the movie adaptation of this and was intrigued, and I was not dissapointed by the book. 

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson. I didn't think I'd enjoy this book as much as I did. I honestly really enjoyed it. It had a lot of interesting points that I'd like to pull out in a blog post or review at some point. 

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. This is a classic, I've seen the movie with Gregory Peck and I was excited to see the characters come to life on the pages. I enjoyed the story very much. 

The Lamentation of a Sinner, by Queen Katherine Parr. This is a short book that'd I'd recommend. Her humility was inspiring, and it was neat to read something written so long ago. I think this book wins the oldest book I read this year it was originally published in 1547. 

A fun read was Bible in Pocket, Gun in Hand, by Ross Phares. It was rather entertaining. My dad originally bought the book for me while I researching Everlasting Gold. I'd recommend it if you love historical books with the kind of stories that make history come alive! 

Dear Author, by Laura A. Grace. If you're a writer, read this. Especially if you're discouraged and wondering why you even thought writing was a good idea. 

Echoes, by Miranda Marie. I love this book. I love the story. I love the characters. I love everything about this book. Please read it and fall in love with it with me. (Technically, I haven't finished it... but as of writing this I have about 10 chapters left and I've already read it once.I'll likely finish it later tonight...) 

So those were the highlights of my reading this year. 

Writing

I didn't do NaNo this year, but I did do the 100-for-100 challenge this summer. It was really fun, and it felt good to write again. 

I wrote about 500 words on my WWI project

I edited the Christmas Truce scene

I wrote and entered the Story Embers poetry contest. You can read that poem on my Writing Page. 

In total, I wrote 18,399 in the year 2021.

In the next year, I'm planning on editing and working through my WWI project. 

Podcast

I started my podcast in June and published 13 episodes, two episodes a month. So far, it's been a success for the amount of effort I've put into marketing... which isn't much. 

Life

We got snow! Quite a bit for the area that I live in. We got two decent snows. It was lovely. I love the snow so much. Here are a few *pictures...

Something I really love about the snow is the day after the storm. Usually the sky is bright blue and there are only a few scattered fluffy white clouds. It's like a lot like life; after the darkest storms, there is light. 

I pray this next year is your light at end of the storms of the past two years. 

Blessings in 2022,

Mattie May, The Blossoming Writer

*These pictures are mine and I kindly ask that you don't use them without asking like a decent human. ;)

November Wrap-Up

 

Dear Readers,

After trying more times than I'd like to admit to, my idea of writing a blog post earlier this month on the struggles of a writer being unable to participate in NaNoWriMo and simultaneously feeling guilty for not participating did not happen. And so here we are with a rather boring monthly wrap-up post. 

The month started slowly as I tried to once again form a sort of routine to fall into. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. It feels as though as I wandered through the month of November looking for something to do while being surrounded by things to do. 

Then it hit me. I was behind on the number of books that I wanted to read this year, so I have challenged myself to read at least 20 books during the month of December. Will I actually finish 20 books in one month that is filled with Christmas fill-in-the-blank-everything? Probably not, but who doesn't love a good challenge?

In other exciting news, I poked my old NaNo project... I wrote about 500 words that will probably get edited out later, but hey, I wrote, so that counts for something. 

The podcasts for this month centered on the Reformation because that was where my brain was last month and I think I'm running about a month behind schedule in my processing functions. This month I'm doing at least one person who had a connection to the first Thanksgiving... 

For the 400th anniversary of the first Thanksgiving, my family and I went down to our old romping grounds and spent the weekend with family. I also got to spend an afternoon with one of my roommates from camp, which was a blessing. 

I don't know what next month will look like posting-wise, but I'd like to do a Story Behind the Carol post, comment below if that is something you'd like me to do!

I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving! Merry Christmas! 

Blessings,

Mattie May

NaNoWriMo Annoucement an October Posting Schedule!

Hello All! 

I'm super excited about today's post!

First I'm going to go over what I'm posting in October, Lord willing 😅

I'm going to do two posts on two different women of the Reformation time period, I'm going to have a fellow HisFic writer, do a third one! 😀I'm not sure what the 4th week of October looks like, but we'll see! 😄 

I'd like to officially announce my current WIP (which is what I will be drafting for NaNoWriMo!) This novel is set during The Great War, now known as World War One. I've always wanted a write a story during this era, so I'm super excited about this! 

For fun, I designed a cover and have a working title! 

Working Summary: 

Kenneth is fighting for the Navy in The Great War. Jenny is a simple girl from the English countryside; longing to do all she can to help with the war effort in any way she can, like her Mother. An anxious woman, a part of the Red Cross searching for a lost husband. George is a devoted husband and father. He longs to get home to his blind daughter and worried wife. A couple with a son fighting in the war volunteer to care for a young blind girl. Allan is a soldier on his way to ANZAC. Only time will tell if he and the other brave soldiers will come out alive. A tale of bravery, hardship, and tears, On The Field, tells the story of the brave husbands, fathers, sweethearts, and brothers fighting in The Great War. 

And now for the MC's: 

Jenny Blair:

She is my most developed character so far... she has a special board thing for her: 

George and Mabel Blair:

Parents of Jenny, George joins the Marines and Mabel helps with the Red Cross. We won't talk about what author schemes I have planned for them. *evil laughter* 

Kenneth Martin:

My navy guy. I'm really excited about him for a few reasons. One, since my great-grandpa on my dad's side, had the middle name of Kenneth, and second, both Daddy and his daddy, Papa, were in the Navy.

Those are my MC's I have a few supporting characters that I'm also very excited about, but they have yet to be better developed.

That's all for now folks. Hope y'all enjoyed a peek at what I'm working on! 

Blessings,

Mattie May, The Blossoming Writer 

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