Monday, September 24, 2012

A little something I read....

I was doing English today, and the page that I finished for the day on was for correcting run on sentences. But that's not what I was going to tell you, cause surely just about every educated kid knows what a run on sentence is.
Here is what my English said that I liked so much, I'm going to post it:

"Honest is the best policy, especially in the life of a Christian. But honesty should never be practiced merely because it is the best policy. A Christian should be honest because it is right. Honesty is pleasing to God, and it also presents a good testimony before others. Second Corinthians 8:21 says, "Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men."
Being honest may be costly at times. Telling the truth about a wrongdoing could bring punishment. Not cheating on an exam might bring failure. A businessman who is honest in his dealings and advertisements may not be as prosperous as his deceitful competitor. 
Many times honesty goes unnoticed, and we become discouraged. It is not always easy to be honest, but it is necessary to a Christians life.  
Although honesty is sometimes costly, the cost is outweighed by the rewards. Honesty helps build a strong character. An honest person gains a clear conscience and a pure heart. Proverbs 3:4 tells us that those who follow truth shall find favor and good understanding with God and men, and honesty gains the respect and good will of those around us. More important, it brings blessings from the Lord. "A faithful man shall abound with blessings." (Proverbs 28:20)
Honesty is the best policy for a Christian. Sometimes men may not see Our honest acts, but God sees and will reward."

People will tell other people the truth sometimes, but the person who recieves the truth may take it the wrong way, and although the other person apologizes, the other will not be honest back and say that they're sorry too, for not following their advice. They'll say they forgive the other, but they really aren't forgiving them, and they won't apologize either. I don't mean to be rude and direct this pointedly at anyone in particular, but I did so feel a great need to post this. I am being entirely honest, too, unlike other people i've seen who pointedly write about other people and are rude but aren't honest and say that they were not directing it at anyone. 

I hope you think on these things, and are always honest and always apologize when you're rude or dishonest. 
God bless you all! Blessings!
M. J. 

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Indianapolis

So I did not, in fact, leave my iPod in Louisiana like I though it did. Sam found it in the truck. Just one little problemo.
I cannot connect to the Internet.
Sam's and Christie's connected with no problem, but mine will not connect so I will continue to use Sam's iPod to post pictures in instagram and to post.
Oh, uno momento, por favor.
I have to go make cinnamon strudel muffins for dinner.
Miss Jeanne shall be joining us for the True Women's conference that is happening this weekend, with some well known speakers, including my moms good friend, Elyse Fitzpatrick.

Cheerio!
Molly

Indiana!!

We're in Indiana now! I forgot my iPod in Louisiana so I don't think you'll get any pictures on instagram. :)
Although, I DO have sams iPod so that's how I'm posting. ;)
I brought a camera so when we get home in Slidell or Florida I'll post the pictures then, which should be about two more weeks. Oh well.
Oh on instagram Sam and I signed out of his account to see if we knew his password but we didn't so we created a new account. Heh heh. We'll tell you who it is. :)
Well, post later! Hopefully I can get a
few pictures on here BEFORE two weeks.

Cheerio!
Molly

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Moonblood Prologue

Anne Elisabeth Stengl wrote the series 'Tales of Goldstone Wood,' a fantasy book with dragons, princesses, princes, faeries....even a unicorn in one book.
The first book she wrote was Heartless, then Veiled Rose, Moonblood, and Starflower. Starflower is not out yet, but it will be available in October, I believe.
I follow Anne Elisabeth's blog at anneelisabethstengl.blogspot.com and every now and then she hold contests and giveaways.
I won Moonblood from a giveaway; my name came up on the randomizer, but to enter, I had to write a blog post about one of her books. I did a while back, if you remember.
A recent contest, one of my dear friends Clara won third place! It was a short story (or poem) contest. There were 24 submissions in all. I entered in a poem (see post below) and very much enjoyed reading the judge's critiques and comments.
But Clara!! I was very excited for her. :)

Well, one of these days I'm hoping the Anne Elisabeth will hold another fanfiction contest. When I wrote the poem in the post below, I had no book to reread to see if I could have put something else in that I had forgotten.
Now, since I own Moonblood, I have a book to work with.
So I went ahead and did a poem for the Moonblood prologue, where you can read the prologue (yet you don't get all of it, because sometime I left out something) but this is to get you interested or tell me what you think of the poem. Be honest! Please. Pretty please with a cherry on top. :)

The Palace Var
The land of the Veiled People
In Vahe's land, far,
The Queen of Arpiar
Gave birth to a daughter
The Princess Varvare.
King Vahe cried,
"A daughter! A pretty daughter,
my pretty bride."
Queen Anahid was afraid
And when Vahe left,
Anahid turned to her maid.
"Bring me clothes and a cloak of midnight."
But the maids did not stir for fear of Vahe.
They just stared, frozen in fright.
The queen stood, and the princess cried.
The maids leapt to attend to their needs.
A maid went to the crib where the babe lied,
Gently lifted her out, and gave her to the queen.
"Tell no one I have gone," she said, striding to the door.
Anahid made her ways through the corriders, unseen.
"I swore I would never call upon you again,"
she said, but it was from the voice of her heart.
Breaking her vow made it feel like a sin.
An answer came close to her ear in the voice of birdsong.
I am always waiting for you, child.
Anahid stepped onto a Path, feeling gratitude, and feeling wrong.
She followed the birdsong, until the Path ended finally.
Anahid took a breath and almost gagged.
"The Near World," she said. "I smell mortality."
But the birdsong just said simply, Follow me.
The unicorn sang, Anahid started to run, but fell.
The birdsong reassured her; the queen got to her feet, moving unsteadily.
Anahid placed the babe underneath a bush,
A rose bush, with roses big and red
And leaves so green and lush.
Your child is safe in my protection, now and always.
"Then I shall return to Arpiar glad."
The bird told her she was not bound, that she may stay.
"I will return," she said.
"Oi! Who's there!" an old voice cried out.
A stocky mortal man knelt under the roses red.
I claim her as one of mine, sang the wood thrush to Anahid.
The queen watched the gardener lift her child,
Then unwilling to see more, the queen bowed her head.
Then she vanished down the trail, into the Wilderlands below.
The unicorn met her there.


Ta Da!! That's all I have for now, but I'll be working on it some more. I found that I am better at poems than I am for short stories about the book, so there will probably be more poems coming up.
Don't worry, they're not all about the prologue. :)

Cheerio, and I hope you liked my poem! Tell me if there's anything wrong with it!
Molly

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Contest Critiques

Oh, did I tell you that I entered a contest? The winner got an autographed copy of the fourth book in a series, and mug (and probably something else). second place got a mug with the books' pictures on them, and third place also got a mug.
But winning first, second, and third also meant that the judges' really like your story.
I didn't win, but I got some critiques and comments! I loved reading them; they were very helpful and one of them made me laugh out loud (I don't normally do that when I read something)
Here is my poem (revised since the first time I posted it)

When Una came of age,
Suitors came on her life’s stage,
Among them a dreaded prince.

That dreaded prince
(Whom Felix fenced)
Was the Prince Aethelbald.

That lovelorn prince
She had hated since
The day that she had met him.

Princess Una said
“I refuse to wed
That odd Prince Aethelbald.”

Her loathing grew
After quite a few
Restless, hot nights.

During those nights,
Una’s ring became tight
And singed her finger.

Prince Aethelbald tried
To help her fried
And aching dainty hands.

But Una did not relent
To this poor kind gent
And instead walked away.

She soon fell in a trance
Of sighing romance
Swooning for the king’s jester.

The jester, she found out
Though people thought him a lout
Was Prince Lionheart in disguise.

She gave him her ring
(And inside, it made him sing!)
And joyfully, he departed.

But he soon betrayed
Una, that fair maid
And gave her ring away.

Una finally became
No longer quite so tame
When she became a dragon.

But lo and behold,
That prince so bold
Rescued Princess Una.
By the prince’s arts,
He changed her heart
Formed it like his own.

Una relented,
Formally repented
And gave up her hardness of heart.

So Una finally married
And then she got carried
To Aethelbald’s kingdom.

And so it ends
All become friends
And live Happily Ever After.


Judges' Comments

Helpful Critiques:

Judge #1: One potential problem that can arise when a poet works within the confines of a set rhyme scheme, however, is that the proper word for a given line doesn’t always rhyme with the line before it. This forces the poet to reach and stretch for words that rhyme but don’t really fit, giving the poem a contrived feeling (“age/life’s stage”). Be careful when working with rhyme; if you can’t find the proper word that will still rhyme with the previous line, consider changing the previous line.

Judge #2: It would have been nice to have a verse about the dragon and Eanrin, since they’re such major characters, especially since it’s the dragon that causes Una to become one herself, and then it’s the dragon that Aethelbald has to slay to rescue her. Since all the other factors of the novel were so well covered in the poem, the fact that the dragon isn’t afforded a verse seems amiss.

Judge #3: When I read it aloud, the meter worked in a 2-2-3 beat most of the time, but some of the stanzas could use some adjusting, especially the first one. But it was still fun!

Encouraging Word:

Judge #1: This poem does an admirable job of sticking to its established rhyme scheme (aabccd) throughout the poem, which is of considerable length. Well done!

Judge #2: It was fun to see the whole of Heartless in this poem. I especially got a kick out of the verse about Una’s “fried” hands. The writer has a admirably quirky sense of humor, which is appreciated.

Judge #3: Clever rhymes and a nice storytelling flow here!



Judge #2 in the Encouraging Word was the one that made me laugh. I ave a professional judge tell me I have a quirky sense of humor (which is appreciated) and that made me feel really good. And it made me laugh.
I loved reading the other comments, and I'm hoping for another writing contest, which, if you want, I can write the story and share it with you.
I won't be offended if you DON'T want me to post the story, but I WILL post it if you don't say anything. So tell me if you want me to post it or not, 'cause I know that there will be another story writing contest soon.

Cheerio!
Molly