What’s Making Me Happy {4}
This week has been one of freaking fantastic weather. It’s been in the 70s and near 80, which is unheard of in NYC in March. So there was a lot of me sitting outside eating lunch in the sunshine and getting a little bit sunburnt because I am so gingery.
But there was also a bit of fretting on my part. I’m a planner by nature and all of a sudden I want to PLAN like a crazy mad lady. My yoga teacher swears this is because Mercury (the planet, not the element) is in retrograde. I’m not exactly sure what that means. But, as I have no other explanation for my sudden need to drive everyone around me bonkers with my excessive planning, I’ll go with it.
But! There are a few things I encountered this week that made a very happy lady.
1. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
Lately I’ve been out of the YA genre because I’ve been making my way through the Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin. But the other night, I was really wanting something other than medieval wars and marriage alliances and lots of grisly death. So I picked up Lola, which I’ve had for months but for some reason never took the time to read despite hearing only WONDERFUL things about it. So I sat down and read the sucker from cover to cover.
AND IT IS SO GOOD, OMG.
2. Pretty Trees
Cherry blossom at my office.
Pretty tree through yoga studio window.
Trees at Grace Church near Union Square
3. Green Tea Frappuccinos
Why have I never had one of these before this week?! SO NOMMY.
4. Punch Brothers
Another thing that I’m a little late to the party on is listening to Punch Brothers, who are my new favorite musical thing.
And those are the things making me happy this week! 🙂
What I’m Writing: Visual Interest & Being a Boy
I try really, REALLY hard not to look for “real” pictures that I could envision as my characters or as book covers, because—let’s be honest—that is getting WAY ahead of myself.
But.
But!
I was on Pinterest (what else is new?) and a legit author (who has an agent and shit) pinned this image to one of her writing research boards and I saw this picture and was like 
. . . because it is Willa. Almost to a T. (She prefers aisle seats.) Anyway, this freaked me out (I was Muppet arm flailing and on the phone with my mother) and completely inspired me. And now I’m obsessed with it.
And since this one picture had created some many FEELINGS within me, I decided to go through the Interwebs to find other pictures that might kick-start some ideas in my head in regards to my beloved Willa and Dan.
And y’all.
I found some.
Like this.
I don’t exactly know how to explain the way these make me feel. It’s not really warm and fuzzy. Because there’s a little more fear involved in it than warm and fuzzy normally conjures up. But it’s very very very exciting. It’s a good feeling. And it makes me almost TOO enthusiastic. Like, I want to crazy fangirl over these pictures because they make me fall madly in love with my characters.
And, yes, I’ve actually written this week too. (I didn’t just sit around searching for pictures.) And I’ve written a whole bunch from Dan’s perspective, which is hard for me to do since I’ve never been, nor will ever be a teenage boy. But I knew a bunch of teenage boys back when I was still a teenager, so I’m doing my best to channel them so that Dan isn’t some idealized male figure that will make people who like boys have very unrealistic expectations.
But I digress.
So, without further ado, here’s a little snippet of Dan. [Aside: I wish I were as good at writing from a male perspective as Holly Black is. Because HOT DAMN are the Curse Workers books good.]
TGIF: Book Trends
This week, Ginger at GReads is asking:
What are some bookish trends you are noticing in the literature world today? Is there a particular trend you’d like to see more of?
Why, indeed, yes there are.
1) Strong Girls
It’s no secret that YA is dominated by female-narrated books. Ok, maybe not dominated, but MANY YA novels are about a girl are from a female character’s perspective. And something that I really appreciate is that a lot of books I’ve read lately are centered around strong, smart girls.
I love seeing characters like Myra McEntire’s Emerson Cole, Cassandra Clare’s Tessa Gray, and Anna Carey’s Eve. They may not have it all together all the time, but really, who does? These characters are nowhere near perfect, nor do they have their lives figured out, but they are strong in who they are and keep their heads about them the majority of the time. I absolutely love seeing characters like this, who can serve both as great role models and great characters that are multi-dimensional and are allowed to grow.
2) The ‘Things are Not as They Seem’ Trend
A trend that I a) greatly enjoy reading, b) find infinitely interesting and complex, and c) mind-boggling when thinking about the amount of organization it takes to write, are the books that offer a world where either things are not as they seem or where the narrator isn’t necessarily one hundred percent trustworthy. As a reader, I’m FASCINATED by this last point, and as a writer completely terrified of it. Because HOLY HELL would that be a challenge to write.
But I would definitely like to read more books that are in tone and pace like Michelle Hodkin’s The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, Tahereh Mafi’s Shatter Me, and Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone. I love the off-kilter feeling these books provide and the thrill of thinking, “I have absolutely no idea what is about to happen,” and turning page after page because you’re driven to figure out what exactly is going on.
So those are my two offerings! I am digging and craving more of great female role models (Don’t get me wrong, I love the guys too. But we seriously need to cut down on the, um, Ella-Bay An-Sways of the YA world.) and books that make me question the information I’ve been given.
I hope that you all have a wonderful Friday and a fantastic weekend ahead!
Words of Wisdom for Your Wednesday
Tune In Tuesday: Soundtracking Legend
For this week’s Tune in Tuesday, Book Playlist Edition, I’m sharing my playlist for Marie Lu’s Legend.
Despite the fact that I’m not a huge lover of the dystopian genre, I adore this book. The story of June and Day, Legend is about two kids of the same age from two very different backgrounds who are both preternaturally gifted at all things badass. It’s really intriguing and full of power-plays and twists and that sense of never quite knowing where the characters’ loyalties lie.
1. Assassin—John Mayer
Just. Yes.
2. The Game Has Changed—Daft Punk
This song is stark and industrial and determined, which are qualities both Day and June possess when it comes to achieving their goals. The first time I heard this, I thought it was a perfect fit for Legend.
3. The Everchanging Spectrum of a Lie—The Joy Formidable
So, mostly I threw this in because I love the name of the song so much and definitely think it fits the ideas and themes in the book. But when I listened to the song with Legend in mind, it really did seem to fit the characters. And, I mean, I know that it’s easy to find meaning when you’re looking for it, but I’m stickin’ to my guns here. 😉
4. Carmina Burana—Written by Carl Orff
This song is just so—and I really am loathe to use this word because it is so overused, BUT—epic. It just IS. And there are some parts of Legend, especially toward the end, where I could just hear this song playing as the scenes were unfolding and biznass was going down.
So those are my picks for Marie Lu’s Legend. If you’d like to add anything or let me know what you’d include on your Legend playlist, please do so in comments!
Bethany Larson 