Christine Smith

Take Your Time: Thoughts and Encouragement for the New Year

Post published:January 21, 2019
Post category:Encouragement
Post comments:31 Comments

I feel like the last week of December is a peaceful, fun time, as we’re enjoying that final bits of Christmas without the bustle of getting ready for Christmas. A time to take a moment to cling to the last remnants of the year, before school and work and life take over once more. But then January 1st hits and it’s like the lulling roll of the train screeches to a sudden halt and you must leap out with the crowd and run, run, run or you’ll be behind, the whole year will be ruined, everyone will be ahead of…

My Top 5 Books and Movies of 2018

Post published:January 14, 2019
Post category:Fangirling Reading
Post comments:48 Comments

It is never too late for lists, right? Because…like, since I took a break from blogging at the end of the year, I didn’t do all those fun year-end list posts everybody and their pet chinchillas were doing. Soooo I thought I’d just do them NOW. Because LISTS. If I had to sum my life up it’d be: Writing, reading, and watching movies. (Geek, anyone?) Since I talk about my writing probably more than I should here, I thought today I’d switch over to my other two favorite subjects and list my top five favorite reads and movies watched in…

Goals of 2019

Post published:January 7, 2019
Post category:Life
Post comments:45 Comments

Happy 2019, my elflings! It’s…it’s…2019. That feels so weird to type out. But I’m trying to embrace it, because it’s A NEW YEAR. Which means new goals and dreams and hopes and adventures and I’M EXCITED. I do hope your Christmas and New Year’s was lovely. I am back from my little holiday break, and excited to be here because, though my break was fantastic and muuuch needed, I’VE MISSED YOU ALL. A LOT. Being as how it’s (somehow) a new year, that means GOALS. My favorite. #nerd I’m going to do like I did last year and list out…

2018 Recap – A Look Back at My Highlights and Goals

Post published:December 17, 2018
Post category:Life
Post comments:33 Comments

Am I the only one who’s in shock that Christmas is NEXT WEEK? And thennn we’ll be zooming straight to the end of 2018. THE END OF 2018??? HOW. Since the year has apparently decided to just go and be nearly over without our permission, that means it’s time for a big ol’ 2018 recap! I’m doing this a little early because I’ve decided after today I’m going on a little hiatus until after New Year’s so I can properly enjoy Christmas and New Year’s. After writing a 129k book in 36 days and keeping up with the blog…

Know the Novel Part 3 – The Writing of Kings Bleed Gold {NaNoWriMo 2018}

Post published:December 11, 2018
Post category:Writing
Post comments:36 Comments

Annnnd I am back to go ahead and answer the questions to my Know the Novel linkup, which I posted yesterday if you missed it. *wink, wink* I have news. Super excited, happy neeews… I FINISHED WRITING KINGS BLEED GOLD. Fiiinally. IT. IS. DONE. I mean, the first draft is done… It needs a total uber major rewrite but we’re not thinking about that right now because IT IS WRITTEN AND I AM SO RELIEVED. I feverishly kept writing through all this first week of December and Thursday night, December 6th, I made it to THE END. I may…

Know the Novel Part 3 – Writing and Beyond {A Writers Linkup}

Post published:December 10, 2018
Post category:Writing
Post comments:25 Comments

IT. IS. HEEEERE! The 3rd and FINAL installment of my 3-part writers linkup Know the Novel. And I’m super excited about this one! It is officially December (WUT???), and a ton of us have just finished NaNoWriMo and have new novels under our belts (and probably some wild stories about writing them to go with it), and thus this last part of Know the Novel is alllll about how writing the WIP went and what our next plan of action is. If you missed any of the parts and have no clue what I’m talking about, here’s all the details!…

NaNoWriMo 2018: Thoughts, Stats, and Snippets

Post published:December 3, 2018
Post category:Writing
Post comments:28 Comments

IT’S DECEMBER. December. DECEMBERRRR. NaNoWriMo is over. WUT???? We have made it through the insanity that is November a.k.a National Novel Writing Month and I MAY BE A LITTLE SHOCKED. NaNo is always this weird paradox of time in that it feels like 3 days long and a lifetime all at once. I think it’s because the days are zipping by in my life, but I’m also so immersed in my characters lives, I feel as if I’ve gone on the same ginormous, life-changing journey as them. When I think back to the beginning of November, it seems like yesterday,…

NaNoWriMo ‘18 Week Four: Involving Ballets, a Ton of Turkey, and Crying

Post published:November 26, 2018
Post category:Life Writing
Post comments:18 Comments

Um. So this will be my last post for the month of November. NaNoWriMo will be over by next Monday. We’re less than a week away from the end. WHAT EVEN WHAT???? Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like my novel will be even sort of over by the end of the month. I thiiink I can finish it within the first week or two of December, buuut unless some magical writing fairy takes over my body for the rest of the week (I mean, if you know of one I’m hiring) I’m like 99.9% sure it ain’t gettin’ done by the…

Know the Novel Part 2 – Within Kings Bleed Gold {NaNoWriMo 2018}

Post published:November 19, 2018
Post category:Writing
Post comments:27 Comments

WE. ARE. OVER. HALFWAY. THROUGH. NANOWRIMO. Not that I’m freaking out. Noooo. Buthowdidthishappenhalp. I had a prettyyy awesome week. A thing may have happened on the 13th… I HIT 50K WORDS!!!! This means I’ve officially participated and won 9 NaNos in a row and just…what is my life? (Answer: I have no life.) I hit 50k on the 13th last year too, so see? 13 is most certainly not unlucky. I also managed to write almost 27k this week because, again, no life, and am now at 71k words on my novel! BUT. This week, instead of doing a day-by-day…

NaNoWriMo ‘18 Week Two: Involving Being Betrayed by Coffee, Halfway Points, and Making My Characters’ Lives Miserable

Post published:November 13, 2018
Post category:Life Writing
Post comments:28 Comments

WHY YES I AM POSTING TWO DAYS IN A ROW. During NaNo. WILD, I KNOW. Buuut yesterday’s post was already prewritten and didn’t really count sooo here’s my regularly scheduled (but actually a day late) NaNo weekly update! (But if you missed it, yesterday I posted Part #2 of the Know the Novel Linkup! And would love for you to join in!) IT IS WEEK TWO OF NANO. And as much as I enjoyed week one, I think this second week has been even better! I mean, I’m in a fog of no sleep and just see a jumble of…