Meet The Blogger


I am in the process of overhauling this blog in an effort to be an active book blogger again.  I've had a few years in which life just...took over.  My passion for books is a constant in my life, but I'll admit that it has been pushed back in recent years.  It is finally re-immerging, and with it, (hopefully), this blog.  So until I feel confident enough to post regularly again, until my overhaul is completed, I'm just going to leave this here as a preface to my old bio.


We all know that I'm obsessed with books.  I fangirl over fictional
characters and adorably dorky writer guys more than any hot celebrity or boys-next-door.  By a ridiculously wide margin.  I'm more likely to be sipping coffee or tea under a warm blanket with a book in hand on a Friday night than to be out partying.  But what else is there to me?

Well, I'm in my mid twenties.  I often feel a little left out because, while I have an amazing family and some awesome friends around here, there aren't too many word nerds in my area.  Hence the blog, taking advantage of the social power of the internet.  I'm a huge softy when it comes to animals, and an even bigger wimp when it comes to anything that wears its skeleton on the outside and is bigger than my thumb.  Or flies.  Or bites.  Or has more than four legs.

Since I was young, I've wanted to be a prefessional writer.  I don't know if that will ever happen, but I have decided a long time ago to write for me first, and any possible paychecks or careers second.  I never, ever want to put money before passion.  I'd be happier surrounded by people and things I love on a minimum wage salary than a success who has lost her enthusiasm to deadlines and pressure, writing not because it's what I love but because it's what pays my rent.

With that revelation, I'm not sure what I want to do with my life now.  Twenty-five and still stuck in limbo.  That can't be a good thing, can it?

I have a cat who is my baby, two brothers who have suffered through my over-active sarcasm enough to know how to deal with me, and parents who do the best with what they have.  I have an issue with self-esteem that stems from childhood and adolescense, but I'm also blessed with friends who are quick to kick my confidence back into me when it seems I'm losing it.

I've met enough amazing people that society would call losers in my life to never judge a person by their mistakes, but by their heart.  Because of this, I am extremely open-minded and inclined to liberal political stances, though I tend to steer clear of politics when I can for the sake of my sanity.  I love music from the top of my head to the bottom of my toes, as the kinship I've found in it is what got me through the hardest times of my life.  I'm rock-inclined (and almost all of its subgenres), but I have an ever growing ear for pop, as well.

I have two tattoos and a huge desire to add to them but no piercings yet, not even my ears.  I have an addiction to scented lotions and sprays, mostly from Bath And Body Works or Victoria's Secret.  I also have an addiction to boots, the higher the better.  Fall is my favorite season.  I hate wearing swimsuits, and I blame fried food, donuts, almond joys and cheesecake for that.  I pretty much exist on caffeine at this point in time.  Not because I don't sleep much, but because I'm pretty sure I'm chemically addicted to it by now.  I love learning random facts, and have spent hours looking them up online.  Did you know the strawberry is the only fruit to wear its seeds on the outside?

I'm also really easy to get along with, and I absolutely love meeting new, like-minded bookworms, so never, ever hesitate to follow and comment.  I truly and genuinely appreciate each and every new follower and each and comment I get.

Thanks for taking the time out to meet the blogger, and I hope you enjoy it here at Paper Fantasies!

13 comments:

  1. Hi Kelly,
    I found you via a Goodreads group we're both in. I'm always trying to follow blogs that read a bit different, and yours looked promising (I've only browsed around a little for now, being at work, but will explore better in the near future). Your profile is funny and interesting...you should really go and make a career out of writing - though I understand your concern about deadlines and losing enthusiasm. Oh, and BTW, I agree with you on music and other stuff (I'm a rock chick basically, though I love a lot of different genres). Well, anyway, keep up the good work...and since it's the 24th...Merry Christmas!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aww, thank you so much! And Merry Christmas back, though I'm...11 minutes late on that front.

      I'd love to make writing a career, but so many published writers are, well...really good. It's discouraging lol. But I'll always write for me, like I said, and if something ever seems good enough, I'll query it.

      You say you're a rocker chick - favorite bands? I'm always looking to be turned on to new music and artists I may not have heard of.

      And again, really, thank you so much for your comment. It really put a smile on my face, and I do hope you like my blog and maybe even get turned on to a new book gem through it! ^.^

      Delete
  2. Hi Kelly,
    first off, thank you for following me back : *. I hope you'll like your stay. Well, yes, making a career out of writing may be though for many reasons...but this applies to pretty much anything, especially in the arts field. Also because, when your favourite hobby becomes a job, you are suddenly submitted to various kinds of pressures...and can't avoid losing a small or not-so-small fraction of your freedom - which seems particularly unfair when we're talking about arts. Sadly, there's always a compromise to make :(. For example, if you're interested, there's this blog excerpt by author Jeri Smith-Ready about her struggle to finish her WVMP series. Even if you haven't read any of those books, it's pretty self-explanatory:

    January 2010: I start writing Let It Bleed the novel, fourth in my WVMP Radio urban fantasy series...
    October 2010: I finish Let It Bleed and turn it in to my editor. Like all rough drafts, it has major problems, but I think I know how to fix them.
    Early December 2010: I get a revision letter from my editor...the rough draft isn't even worth editing--it was THAT BAD. But it's okay--I know how to fix it!
    Mid-December 2010: I turn in the proposal for Book 5, Lust for Life, which has the perfect ending for the series...
    Early January 2011: It turns out, I do not know how to fix Let It Bleed. The rewrite is a giant mess...The story doesn't hang together, and there's nothing I can do to fix it.
    Late January 2011: Let it Bleed the novel is a failure. It just. doesn't. work. Sometimes this happens. If you're a writer and it has never happened to you, just wait.
    February 2011: My agent tells me that my publisher has turned down my proposal for Lust for Life, due to the series' sales numbers. There will be no fifth book. I do something drastic..."Hey! What if I take the plot for Book 5 and make it Book 4, then boil down what was Book 4 into a novella, Book 3.5? Then the characters and the readers still get the wonderful ending they deserve. Plus, this unsalvageable novel becomes an excellent novella!"...I understand that this means essentially writing an entire novel for my publisher FOR FREE. (Imagine telling your boss you'll gladly work for six to eight months for no pay, just for the chance to do your job right.)
    Luckily, Pocket was happy to let me make this unorthodox move. They changed the title and publication date for Book 4 from Let it Bleed and Summer 2011 to Lust for Life and Fall 2012.
    The Rest of 2011 through May 2012: Between contracted projects...I convert Let it Bleed the novel into "Let It Bleed" the novella. I attempt to serialize it on my website, but delays make this very cool idea unworkable. I receive angry emails from WVMP readers who think I've forgotten them.
    I continue to work on it when I can, ripping out subplots, characters, needless meanderings--all the crap that didn't work in the novel form. It turns out to be much, much harder than I thought. I get stuck on Chapter Nine for about six months.
    The delay is fortuitous, though! Because...I have a grand epiphany on how to end "Let It Bleed.".
    June 2012: I put the finishing touches on "Let It Bleed," my beta readers love it, and finally, after years of pulling my hair out and cursing its very existence...I love it, too.


    I didn't mean to discourage you though :). A limited amount of freedom doing what you like is still better than the same thing hating what you do...as in most jobs.
    As for music, well, my favourite band ever is called Queen...born in the early 70s, with a deceased leader, a retired member and two still-active-but-not-exactly-bursting-with-energy ones LOL. I'm really into classic rock - also because it's the music I happened to grow with, being an, err, ex teenager! Also, there's much more pop than rock around nowadays, so it's not easy to discover exciting new bands.

    Well, I'm done for now! Sorry for the long post, but the site wouldn't let me post a link.

    ReplyDelete
  3. No, long posts are great. And the stuff from the other blog was the opposite of discouraging. I'm well aware of the pressures and aggravation and rejections that come along with serious writing, but seeing a happy ending to it shows that even the most successful writers have once been where aspiring writers are now. I really appreciated it. May even show it to my friend, who has been on the verge of giving up countless times because of rejections and the whole editing hassle.

    I know Queen lol, any self-respecting rock fan has to. They're right up there with Metallica and Rolling Stones. Don't own any of their albums as of yet, though I wouldn't mind checking them out. I like all kinds of rock, though I'm more of a fan of new-ish stuff - late 90s and beyond. Yeah, I have the same problem finding new rock bands, it's all pop-rock on the radio anymore. Even my favorite modern band, Shinedown, has kind of lost their edge with their latest album. Sucks. I like both genres of music, but seperately, y'know? One more Fall Out Boy rip-off and I'm liable to punch the nearest radio.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Fluent in English and Sarcasm, I love it! Handy skill when you are a reviewer and a blogger too as it makes for good reading. I like what I have seen so far so I'll be sticking around to follow your blogging adventures.
    I'm a big cat lover too, I love how they are not afraid to show you exactly what mood they are in, that's so honest.
    Happy reading and blogging :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hey,
    I am Safina from Lahore, Pakistan. I found you through twitter. I was just reading through the above post and we have a lot in common. Like i have a cat at home and more importantly that i want to become an author someday as well.
    I hope you don't feel like I'm some kind of stalker but actually I am new Blogger too and want to meet new people with common interests.
    I love reading as well but I kind of had a lapse in the last two years. Now I am back at reading and it is nice to meet like minded people.
    Good luck.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha not at all, Safina! And even if you were to become one, I love stalkers. They make me feel important. Lol.

      What kind of genre do you want to write in? I've always wanted to write YA since it's my favorite genre to read. I understand reading lapses all too well, I think I read like 30 books between 2010 and 2012. But I'm more than making up for it now lol. Blogging helps with that.

      I also wish you the best of luck with your blog! It's hard and confusing at first (or at least it was to me, because I'm, well, bad at all things technological), but it gets easier with time. And it's a great way to meet other bookworms and find new favorites!

      Delete
    2. I am also interested in YA books. As a writer I'd like to proceed with the same genre but I am also thinking of adding Fantasy to that. However creating a Fantasy novel is real hard. A lot of plots come to my mind but it always feels like someone has already done that before.
      It feels nice talking to you.

      Delete
    3. Yeah, I know the feeling. Everything really has been done at least much, I think it's more about putting your own original spin on the already existing ideas. But it's a daunting task, really getting serious about writing a novel. Probably why I have half a dozen started-and-scrapped stories, but not one completed one haha.

      It's nice talking to you, too, Safina!

      Delete
  6. Hello Kelly,
    I've got two books that I'm interested in having reviewed. They were both published through Rhemalda. One is a YA fantasy, the other is a humorous memoir. Here are the links, let me know if you'd like a .pdf of one or both of them!
    http://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Birkie-Fever-Walter-Rhein/dp/1936850028/ref=la_B008Z6RIOC_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1369390165&sr=1-1

    http://www.amazon.com/Bone-Sword-Walter-Rhein/dp/0982743726/ref=la_B008Z6RIOC_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1369390176&sr=1-2

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hey Kelly, nice blog!
    Check out my blog www.aplaceonthebookshelf.blogspot.com,
    I'm currently looking for people to interview for my Talking Tuesdays post, let me know if you're interested in being interviewed about reading/writing by commenting on my blog or drop me an email: charllouise1994@hotmail.co.uk

    Charl :) x

    ReplyDelete
  8. Since I was young, I've wanted to be a prefessional writer. I don't know if that will ever happen

    Not if you spell professional like that it won't! But that aside, you seem smart enough and perky enough, and creative enough to have a novel or two in you so best of luck. I wish you well. In the meantime, and it can be a mean time until the first book is published, please keep on writing those lengthy books reviews. They're the onyl kind I like!

    ReplyDelete

As you may or may not know, life is eating up way too much of my spare time right now, so pretty please don't hate me if it takes me a few days to get back to your wonderful comments. I read each and every one from my phone, and they always make my day. <3