kimlajevardi

It’s time yet again for the monthly posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group (IWSG). The once a month twittering sharing of nervous writers whose words surf the connections of the web in search of commiseration. If you haven’t clicked on the image above and surfed their blogs, do. You will be entertained.

Thank you to our fantastic co-hosts today Tonja Drecker, Beverly Stowe McClure, Nicki Elson, Fundy Blue, and Tyrean Martinson!

The optional question this month is: Let’s play a game. Imagine. Role-play. How would you describe your future writer self, your life and what it looks and feels like if you were living the dream? Or if you are already there, what does it look and feel like? Tell the rest of us. What would you change or improve?

My future writer self is a best-selling author with a completed fantasy series and several stand alones in print. If the experiences of several successful authors I’ve heard talk about the subject match my own, writing at that point will continue to feel like I alternately do not know what I’m doing and I’m a genius. Roller coaster rides I will survive with mouthfuls of chocolate and binge-worthy shows as I weep uncontrollably. So, you know, something to look forward to. 🙂

Time for some news.

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WTF?

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/josh-brolin-perineum-sunning_n_5de6de75e4b0913e6f870d67?guccounter=1

Peloton is lapping up the near-constant coverage of their ad, even if it half of it’s negative.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/peleton-christmas-ad-exercise-bike_n_5de5a660e4b0d50f32a775be

Last but not least, science. Trees that drip nectar through the night to attract pollinator bats made me envision vivid fantasy worlds like in Avatar. Science for the win.

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/tree-brazil-arid-northeast-rains-nectar-flowers-bat-pollinators

That’s all for tonight. See you in seven.

I’m a day late. Again. I don’t have a good excuse. Wednesday became Thursday before I realized it. Time–it constantly slips in my little corner of the world. Since it’s Thanksgiving, I’ll stop with the excuses and move on to what really matters: Thanksgiving gifs. 🙂

https://media0.giphy.com/media/QC1TssrPbkD2menNfz/giphy.gif?cid=19f5b51a94ef878f2067b931626b1dde9f8be068043cdea7&rid=giphy.gif

https://media3.giphy.com/media/h10tqbDSy3Doc/giphy.gif?cid=19f5b51a94ef878f2067b931626b1dde9f8be068043cdea7&rid=giphy.gif

https://media1.giphy.com/media/5xaOcLHYjefWcDl6GWc/giphy.gif?cid=19f5b51a94ef878f2067b931626b1dde9f8be068043cdea7&rid=giphy.gif

https://media0.giphy.com/media/V2aZFAvjInCx2/giphy.gif?cid=19f5b51a524e565b0f98c6b8e4abeca0258a3da6f87639e0&rid=giphy.gif

https://media0.giphy.com/media/YkZS1NvpfKQPS/giphy.gif?cid=19f5b51a4d5e84ce6cbb3ede3307fce03c1c2f94790aac68&rid=giphy.gif

That’s all for me today. See you back here in um…six days. 😉

Welcome back to another week–a gigantic news-blitzing week. Since I cannot come anywhere near the hugeness of this week’s news, I will gift you art, castles, and Christmas music instead. 😉

So cool!

https://www.lolwot.com/15-of-the-coolest-art-installations-you-will-ever-see/

Castles! Need I say more?

https://www.travelchannel.com/interests/arts-and-culture/photos/worlds-best-castles

Christmas music, my friends. Tis the season.

That’s all for me tonight. See you in seven.

Welcome back, y’all. It’s Wednesday once again, and we’re halfway through November. The decade’s about to end, and I am absolutely gobsmacked. Is it just me, or is time screwing with everybody? Hmm… I guess it’s time for some distraction-worthy news.

This first article elicits one response: WTF?

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/elephant-dung-gin-south-africa-indlovu_n_5dcade7ce4b0f9f04955dc3f

Some animals are just legendary. The cat in this next article is one such animal.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/quilty-shelter-cat-houston_n_5dca918be4b0fcfb7f6c77e4

And in the spirit of saving the best for last, the concept of evil may have derived from disease avoidance.

https://www.livescience.com/disease-root-of-evil-beliefs.html

That’s all for tonight. See you in seven.

It’s that time again–the monthly posting for The Insecure Writer’s Support Group (IWSG). Time to check in on the twitchy masses who spend far more time at keyboards than they should. We’re weird, wonderful, and wired. Don’t believe me? Click on a few of the blogs found linked to the image above. You will believe. You will definitely believe. 😉

Our wonderful co-hosts this month are Sadira Stone,Patricia Josephine, Lisa Buie-Collard, Erika Beebe, and C. Lee McKenzie!

The optional question this month is–What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever googled in researching a story? 

Hmm…the shape of the continents during parts of the tectonic shifts after Pangaea. I wanted a certain geological area in my fantasy world, so I looked at how the supercontinent looked/was positioned to enable more water outside the continent than between, mountains in a certain location, and large tracts of land with climatic zones that were true to the geology.

I’m a nerd. I know. Time for the some actual news.

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This is a good university. PB&J rocks anyways, but when you’re a college student scraping by, it is a gift.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/alaska-university-peanut-butter-jelly_n_5dc2f725e4b0f5dcf8fefa70

This guy either has a lot of nerve or a very sad story. I hope he just had a lot of nerve. I’d hate to think someone took advantage of him to the tune of a million dollars.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/fake-1m-bill-bank-account-nebraska_n_5db9abede4b066da552a739f

Last but never least, science. Voyager 2 has reached interstellar space. Go, Voyager, go!

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/11/191104112823.htm

That’s all for me tonight. See you back here in seven.

Happy All Hallow’s Eve Eve! I don’t know about you, but I’m all hyped up on sugar. I may have bought my candy bag on my way home tonight. Perhaps I should focus on news instead of the hundreds of Kit Kat’s and Reeses’s calling out to me.

This first story is a creepy gift from me to you. Enjoy the dolls!

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/creepiest-doll-minnesota-museum_n_5db222cee4b03285e87c34c6

This next story is a giant facepalm.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/backyard-bug-explosion_n_5daff9a6e4b0f34e3a7ea7c2

And last but not least, science. Google has claimed quantum supremacy by solving a problem in 200 seconds that was predicted to take 10,000 years. Um … that is cool. But, isn’t this the prologue to Terminator?

https://www.livescience.com/google-hits-quantum-supremacy.html?_gl=1*18daxc7*_ga*YW1wLUNJV0Zwd0FJcXlJX3dWTkY4SUVWOVRYX21IakE0ZVY0aWxfMngtSjlET1NRNEpsNEkzc2lhbTUyZUdNR3MwQmY.

That’s all for me tonight. See you in seven.

It’s that time of the week. I’m back to share some of the most interesting news bits I stumbled on this week. Lots and lot of stumbling through news, let me tell you. 😏 I won’t share the trials and tribulations–just the good bits.

This first story demonstrates animal badassery. Walking from Norway to Canada–😯.

https://www.npr.org/2019/07/02/737993673/arctic-fox-sets-record-in-walking-from-norway-to-canada

Burn the place down. So gross!

https://www.ripleys.com/weird-news/blood-flood/

Monkeys can have more flexible thinking than civilized people. So interesting!

https://www.livescience.com/monkeys-outsmart-humans.html?_gl=1*hycvrp*_ga*YW1wLUNJV0Zwd0FJcXlJX3dWTkY4SUVWOVRYX21IakE0ZVY0aWxfMngtSjlET1NRNEpsNEkzc2lhbTUyZUdNR3MwQmY.

That’s all for tonight, folks. See you in seven.

Happy Wednesday, all! Fall has made itself known in my neck of the woods, and I couldn’t be more content. I love the temperatures, colors, and feel in the air. I am a happy writer at the moment. Let me share the happiness with y’all via some news.

Can you imagine telling people your job is to chase bears out of homes and watch cubs parkour? So cool!

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/bears-break-in-lake-tahoe-parkour_n_5da1dd85e4b02c9da04b2426

Nice catch!

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/roller-coaster-cellphone-catch-video_n_5d72221fe4b06d55b971c53e

And in science news, bionic runners. I immediately remembered the theme music from The Bionic Woman tv series when I read the article. Did I just date myself? Oh well, I heart science.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/10/191002144243.htm

That’s all for tonight. See you in seven.

Welcome back! It’s a blustery Wednesday evening in my neck of the woods. Our first snowstorm is blowing in as I’m curled up watching re-runs of Psych. It’s a nice way to spend a Wednesday, in my opinion. Time for some news.

This first story is appropriate to the cooling temps, but the squirrels definitely need to rethink where they stash their nuts.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/squirrel-car-shock-discovery_n_5d9db30ce4b02c9da04187de

Instant karma for the thief. Can you imagine his/her surprise?

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/snakes-duffel-bag-san-jose_n_5d9cbf35e4b06ddfc50f37aa

Dsup is not a cool rap name or fumbled greeting. Instead, it’s a protective protein that make Tardigrades badass survivors. Who knows where this knowledge will take us, but the knowledge itself makes me heart science hard.

https://www.livescience.com/tardigrade-protein-radiation-protection.html

That’s all for tonight, folks. See you in seven.

It’s the first Wednesday once again. Time for a posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group. If you haven’t clicked on the link above and taken a tour of the blogs of talented writers in a virtual bloghop, what are you waiting for?

The amazing co-hosts this months are Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Mary Aalgaard, Madeline Mora-Summonte, and Ellen @ The Cynical Sailor!

The optional October 2nd question–It’s been said that the benefits of becoming a writer who does not read is that all your ideas are new and original. Everything you do is an extension of yourself, instead of a mixture of you and another author. On the other hand, how can you expect other people to want your writing, if you don’t enjoy reading? What are your thoughts?

I think reading is integral to good writing. Reading isn’t about picking up others’ ideas. It’s about ingesting the effects of story; watching how characters can change and grow, and gasping when they do not; interacting with settings so fully you can feel the changes in temperature and light; and it’s about feeling how the right word, phrase, or description can capture a moment so perfectly that you can see it from hundreds or even millions of miles away. None of that comes from sitting only with your own ideas and basking in your very limited, single-person life. The purpose of good writing is to open up a part of the world for your reader to experience personally. How can a writer possibly do that if that if they never bother to step through the gates of a wide-open book themselves?

Time for some news.

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This is a cool idea, but I doubt most of us would be willing to wait six to nine years for a piece of furniture.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/growing-trees-furniture-gavin-munro_n_5d88e542e4b070d468d0bc3b

Um…there’s a PANTHER on the roof. I would have shit my pants.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/black-panther-lille-france_n_5d83d9b8e4b0849d47261195https://www.huffpost.com/entry/black-panther-lille-france_n_5d83d9b8e4b0849d47261195

My science story tonight is the best type of science story: New volcanoes! Well, 780,000 years old is new for volcanoes. I can never pass up a volcano story. I heart volcanoes!

https://www.livescience.com/new-undersea-volcanoes-weird-fault.html

That’s all for tonight, folks. See you back here in a little over seven.