Project Canvas Blog Tour!

Guys, a truly special book is releasing!

COMING NOVEMBER 15^TH, 2018

 

Summary

An international writing community.

61 authors

11 countries

6 continents

Are you looking for advice on how to create the perfect villain? Do you need the courage to put your story down on paper?  Find this and more in Project Canvas, a writing resource written completely by teen and young adult writers and compiled by Caroline Meek and Olivia Rogers.

Project Canvas includes:

●   71 short chapters, each written by a different author

●   bonus interviews with authors such as Tessa Emily Hall and Q. Gibson

●   world building and character development worksheets

●   and other helpful resources!

“This is a writing teacher’s dream – not a how-to book, but more of a literary testimony and homage to the process of writing.  A sweet balance between the practical and the spiritual, Project Canvas is concise enough for daily meditation, yet robust enough to move the writer’s soul beyond the temporary.” –Brian Dolezal, professional development and spoken word coach at Sumner Academy of Arts and Science

Project Canvas will be available for purchase through Amazon on November 15.

This is a truly special book, guys. There's even a little section written by me, though it's just a drop in the bucket compared to some of the inspirational and informative articles inside. This project was fun and an amazing outlet for many, but I feel it was truly a passion project for Caroline and Olivia, the ones who worked the hardest to help Project Canvas meet the world.

About the Founders

Caroline and Olivia have been friends ever since kindergarten, when they met in a homeschooling group.  Their writing journey was a slow evolution over the course of many sleepovers, games of pretend, writing stories together, and finally publishing some of them.

Caroline Meek is the editor-in-chief and co-founder of Project Canvas. She’s originally from Kansas City, Kansas, where she co-authored The Drawing in of Breath and attended Sumner Academy of Arts and Sciences. Caroline has a passion for bringing writers together and is currently studying English & Creative Writing on the Publishing track at the University of Iowa. She’s been published in The Kansas City Star, Ink Lit Mag, Wordsmith, and blogs at Of Stars and Ink-Stained Things.

Olivia Rogers is the co-founder of Project Canvas. She’s originally from the great state of Kansas, where she showed sheep, competitively debated, and also became involved in politics. Olivia believes that writing is the gateway to change. She’s currently studying Political Science and Philosophy at Kansas State University, with the goal of becoming a lawyer and continuing to advocate for others.

 ~

I am thankful to these amazing women for helping so many have their voices heard and giving the opportunity to share inspiration. While my article isn't what I originally planned, I certainly hope it inspires. You know a funny thing is that our former words can inspire our present selves. No matter where you are in your writing journey, Project Canvas can inspire you over and over. 

Check out more about Project Canvas:

 

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42446616-project-canvas

Website: https://projectcanvasbook.weebly.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/projectcanvas_
Blog: https://projectcanvasblog.blogspot.com/

Project Canvas is running a Rafflecopter giveaway from November 1-15^th! Go to the main site for a chance to win free copies of Project Canvas and more. It's a great giveaway!

Don’t forget to stop by the other blogs on this tour! For a complete tour schedule, see the Project Canvas blog. 

Thank you for dropping by! I hope you'll check out this wonderful work by so many varied authors. Blessings!

~ The Dramatic Bookworm, Bethany Baldwin

Update Time!

Spring Christmas concert at Regent University where I was a soloist. I'm in the middle with the black dress and heels next to the only guy. :) PC: Darl Horning

Hello, everyone! There has been a ton going on in my life lately. Blogging has fallen by the wayside. I hope to increase my posts, though, at least to once a week. I can't decide on a day yet, since I don't know my full fall schedule for classes.

Recently was the first anniversary of my dad's surprising death. It's been a hard year for me. I think I was stronger yesterday than I've been all year, so I'm thankful for that. The Lord is truly our Heavenly Father. He proves that over and over to me. Though I miss my dad and I have many regrets, I know he is having the greatest time in Heaven and I can't deny Him that. I may be writing a post over at www.apinchofclassy.com about grief and grace so keep an eye out for that.

Life has been a roller coaster the past couple years, but God is faithful.

I'm going to be updating my blog gradually. As you can see, the name has changed. Instead of being The Ramblings of a Young Author or Tales From a Bard, I am changing my 'brand' if you will to being called The Dramatic Bookworm. I think it's a nice nod to both of my creative pursuits--writing/books and theatre. I even have a bookstagram now! You can find me under the_dramatic_bookworm. I'm trying to post all kinds of booksy/writerly stuff so if that's your jam, head on over.

For a little writing update... I'm working on a couple of different stories. I'm very close to the end of my post-apocalyptic novel, Save Yourself, which is different from my normal fare, but an interesting experience nonetheless. When I finish that, I'm going to get back to the second draft of my fairytale retelling/adventure novel, The Siren's Call, which I"m hoping will be the first book with which I pursue publishing. But who knows what adventure awaits?

In a life event/academic update... I'm transferring schools! It feels crazy. I've been in school for four years already so I kind of just want to be done. But I've prayed and was accepted into a program I didn't expect, so I'm chalking that up to God's plan. Still praying for His total guidance. I want to be in His will in everything I do. So I'm heading to Liberty University this fall as a part of the inaugural Musical Theater major. Exciting and scary stuff!

As for what you may expect on the blog in the coming weeks, well... I've got you covered. Book reviews, possible headshots and other updated photos.
I'm gonna do better on this blogging thing, I hope. Life is crazy but it's a good kind of crazy.

Blessings!

O.M.G. Official Money Guide For College Students (book review)

College is a struggle. I’ve been in college for almost four years now (there’s a story to that and it’s not over yippee) and I still feel like I don’t know what I’m doing half the time.

The Official Money Guide For College Students by Susan P. Beacham and Michael L. Beacham with Allison R. Beacham is a little resource I probably could have used when I began my collegiate journey. Full of facts and fun illustrations, it’s goal is to help the college bound student know what they’re getting into—and how to handle it.

As the name implies, the Little guide covers money matters. They include Messy Money Moment and Major Money Moment scenarios to express good and bad choices the student could make. One of my favorite inclusions are little spreadsheets under the Monthly Spending Plan page to help the student budget. Budgeting is a real struggle in college and this book pulls no punches, advising against all kinds of normal college money drainers for the purpose of saving money. It even covers banks and credit cards. Overall, I think this is a nice resource and at only 50 pages (including resource pages) it isn’t going to put you to sleep. You can get it from it’s publisher, Money Savvy Generation, or wherever it’s sold.

2017

I know my posts have been sporadic for a while now. I wish I could say I knew that would change and that my posts would become far more regular, but I don't want to make promises I might not be able to keep. Blogging has been hard for me, especially with college and what has happened in my personal life. In fact, being creative has been hard. But I do want to do better, so I look forward to 2018 with optimism and hope that I can be more productive as a creator. For now, here is a run down on what 2017 looked like for me.

• Filled with excitement, I started my first semester at Regent University (as technical Junior, since I transferred). It was the first time I lived away from home, in my own on-campus apartment with two roommates. A big adjustment for a homebody like me! But I settled in, excited to be doing something new and to actually have the chance to study what I loved--theater--instead of the required general classes at community college. My first classes this semester were Movement for the Stage, Stagecraft, Playwrighting, and Making of a Christian Mind, a Biblical aimed requirement.  Things went okay at first. I was required to work 20 hours in the scene shop where they built sets as part of my class, which is totally out of my comfort zone. Only a couple of weeks into school, an incident in the scene shop caused me to struggle with fear for a while. Also, there werea couple other incidents at school that were scary. I lost my grandparents at the end of 2015 and 2016 respectively, so being away form my family when stuff was happening made it even harder. 

• I auditioned for my first college show at the beginning of the year (didn't get cast, but I was new and hadn't taken any college level acting classes yet). I did get callbacks, which was pretty cool. 
• I passed with all A's in my first semester! I also found a friend to be my roommate for the next semester. And I wrote my first play, a ten minute called Three's a Crowd. 
• Near the end of the semester I also auditioned through video for Addams Family the Musical and was cast in the awesomely challenging part of Alice Beineke. I also worked the spotlight for the school's production of Oklahoma!

•  I finally got to go home and enjoy being with my family and getting to bond with my show family in the role of Alice. My parents left for Florida about a month after I got back to visit with my sister and be there with her when she had her baby. I wish I'd hugged my Dad longer.

• I continued to rehearse and whatnot. One day on the way to rehearsal I called my mom and eventually got news that my dad was in trouble. We left rehearsal early and eventually my brothers and I decided we needed to travel to get there because he'd had a cardiac arrest. 

• I stayed in the hospital nearly every day from the end of June till July 11, sleeping there with my mom, waiting for my Dad to wake up. Praying hard. He didn't wake up, but the time I spent there was good. I hope that he could see me there and that I cared even though I hadn't seen him for a month. My dad passed away that day. I had to drop the role of Alice. It was a hard thing for me because I'd never dropped from a show before and I had put in preparation I wanted to see in performance. But it was harder to lose my dad. I don't think people really understand loss until they've experienced it. I feel like I can relate to so many who are grieving now. I lost my Mammaw, my Pappaw, and my Dad less than two years apart. It hurts so badly sometimes, but at the same time I know I have a witness and an opportunity to encourage others who have felt loss.

• I really felt the desire to go to my church's youth camp, so I did a few days after the funeral. It was a great blessing to me and I was able to pour my heart out in the altar. When I returned, my mom and I got back on a plane to see my new niece, Hannah. I was an aunt again! A moment of joy. 

• I went back to school and the next semester brought new challenges. I had more auditions, more callbacks, performed in one show, joined my first club (Sketcherz Comedy), and even had the awesome opportunity to perform What Child is This in the first ever Christmas Concert. I grew as an actor and realized just how far I still had to go. Thankfully, I once again received all A's. The semester was one of the hardest things I've experienced. I'm so glad I have Jesus because there were days when life's weight seemed to crush down on me with grief and despair. But because of Him I can walk through the fires and come out stronger in the end.

•  Once home, God opened up more doors for me to minister in song. I sang a Christmas set for a club (my first paid performance) and helped my family with a Christmas themed church singing. I hope to continue using my voice to praise the Lord because there is always joy when you lay your heart down in worship.

• I got to spend Christmas with my mom's side of the family in the first time in a long time, eating Christmas dinner with my Papa and Grandma Jane. I loved being with and seeing all of my family on that side.

•  When we returned home my sister and family arrived for our own family Christmas. They stayed for a few days and we spent time together and opened (mostly watched the kids open) lots of presents. There were roaring dinosaurs, mounds of playdough, and chew toys for all. Also books and a game for me thanks to lovely family members.

The end of the year is a time of reflection and reminder of what I want to do better next year. This year I grieved a lot, I probably felt sorry for myself way too much, and dwelled on matters I can't control (I'm looking at you future husband). Next year I want to do better. I want to cherish those I love because the last two years have taught me that you can never hold your loved ones tight enough and  you will treasure those moments later or miss them if there weren't enough. 

I've taken part in the One Word 365 challenge before. Once my word was dream, a word full of excitement for future expectation. I still dream, but I want my dreams to always be those that God has placed in me. This year, because it has been something I have struggled so much with in 2017, my word will be TRUST. God is my solid foundation that I can lean on and trust. I want to relinquish to him my worries, my stress, my sorrows, and thoughts of my future, whether academic, romantic, writing, or otherwise. He knows every thought and desire within me, and He never fails. In 2018 I want to Trust. It's a scary thing, but so necessary.

2017, you were not my favorite year, you will probably not be my least favorite year, but you were a year of learning, a year of good and bad, a year that has taught me that I must lean on God for support, and that is why in 2018 I will trust.

God bless. Happy New Year!

The Girl Who Could See: Release Day Review!

 Hello, all! Today is the release day of The Girl Who Could See, a novella by Kara Swanson. I was lucky enough to be on the launch team and receive an early copy of the book, so I'm releasing my review today.

All her life Fern has been told she is blind to reality—but, what if she is the only one who can truly see?

Fern Johnson is crazy. At least, that's what the doctors have claimed since her childhood. Now nineteen, and one step away from a psych ward, Fern struggles to survive in bustling Los Angeles. Desperate to appear normal, she represses the young man flickering at the edge of her awareness—a blond warrior only she can see. 

Tristan was Fern's childhood imaginary hero, saving her from monsters under her bed and outside her walls. As she grew up and his secret world continued to bleed into hers, however, it only caused catastrophe. But, when the city is rocked by the unexplainable, Fern is forced to consider the possibility that this young man is not a hallucination after all—and that the creature who decimated his world may be coming for hers.



What a title (and storyline), am I right?

Cover

I know I'm on a roll with loving the covers I've reviewed lately, but this one is truly exceptional. It even won a cover contest, so I'm not the only one who thinks so. 

Characters

Okay, but who couldn't love Tristan, the boy from another world who's protected Fern from childhood? That's adorable, right? I think it is. Tristan sort of reminded me of one of my own characters at the beginning of the story, but as I read more of him, he was quite different, multi-faceted, and kind of precious in a tough warrior boy sort of way. I liked Tristan an awful lot. 

Our main character, Fern, is the star of character growth. She starts the book pretty much legally insane and trying to keep it a secret that she's illegally raising her niece. Seeing Fern's character development from someone who was afraid to even think about her childhood, to a strong woman willing to fight for those she loved was pretty incredible. 

I also have to mention that I enjoyed the use of the F.B.I as major players. You don't see this a lot in fantasy books, so it was a fun and unique addition. 

Story/Plot

Getting everything you want to say into a 50,000+ word book is hard. Getting your story into a novella? Crazy difficult, in my experience of writing novellas. I prefer novels because you can get so much more information in.

But Kara Swanson takes that thought and turns it on its head. Not only does she write a good novella, she writes one with just enough detail and a perfectly sized plot to fill her pages just right. The story is action packed, doesn't drag with needless exposition, and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I saw someone mention this as a good beach-day read and I agree. If you want a quick summer read that isn't a romance novella, this is a good choice. Action packed and it will only take a couple of sittings. 

I really enjoyed this one and liked that with its short length, it was easy to get through, but also well-developed. I was left with some questions, so I wouldn't be adverse to a sequel, but if there isn't one coming... I think this novella stands well on its own. 

Guess what? This novella is only 99 cents today because it is release day. You should grab it here while you have the chance!

About the author: As the daughter of missionaries, KARA SWANSON spent sixteen years of her young life in the jungles of Papua New Guinea. Able to relate with characters dropped suddenly into a unique new world, she quickly fell in love with the speculative genre and was soon penning stories herself.

At seventeen, she independently published a fantasy novel, Pearl of Merlydia. Her short story Distant as the Horizon is included in Kathy Ide's 21 Days of Joy: Stories that Celebrate Mom. She has published many articles, including one in the Encounter magazine. Kara received the Mount Hermon Most Promising Teen Writer Award in 2015.

Congratulations to Kara!

~ Bethany