Flight Of Fancy: Weddings

Happy Monday All,

How many of you are fans of weddings?

I'm a huge fan. Some I like more than others. But I love wedding stuff. I always tell folks I'm a hopeless romantic. Not because I didn't find my "other half", but because it doesn't look like I'll ever quit being a romantic--not that I mind.

If I wasn't sure I couldn't take the stress (let's face it, some brides get very emotional) I'd consider being a wedding consultant in some capacity. However, due to other responsibilities (personal and writing related) I don't see that avenue being explored anytime soon. Luckily for me, there's been times I've been able to lend my thoughts, experience, and joy of wedding-planning to people.



Caption Reads: May 8, 2004 marked the
 beginning of my happily-ever-after with my
wonderful husband.  I love him more NOW
than I did then :-)

 When I got married, I was so nervous about going over-budget I asked my mom about every, "Is this okay? If I'm going over-budget let me know." It got to the point that my mother said, "I'll TELL you if you go over-budget. You're FINE." Of course, she said it nicely, but also firmly (I'm very grateful to her, she was absolutely wonderful through everything). I loved my wedding, I had a blast at my reception, and with a few slight hitches (no wedding ever goes off without something going wrong--hopefully in most cases it's something small), it was as close to perfect as any wedding can get.



Picture taken at my wedding reception of
one of the bridesmaids' bouquet.
Red and lavender roses.
Red roses mean passion/love
Lavender/purple roses mean fantasy
(I didn't know about the meanings at the time
but how perfect!)



Since marriage isn't perfect (even the really good ones have their difficult moments) it's nice to have something that can be almost-perfect...something romantic, light, fun, and beautiful to cherish.

Some of my favorite TV shows are wedding-related. I love Say Yes To The Dress and Say Yes To The Dress: Atlanta. I've watched several episodes of My Fair Wedding With David Tutera.

What is it about weddings that spark the imagination? Many girls dream about them from the moment they know what a wedding is (I know I thought about mine). Girls often have weddings with their Barbie Dolls (I did!) And you find them in books. Even some Shakespeare plays end with a wedding (all of the Shakespeare plays that end in a wedding are considered "comedies" even if they're not really comedic).

There's just something about the romance, the idea of forever, and all the little details that make some people sigh with happiness.

So, what about you? What do you like about weddings? And do you even like weddings? Why or why not?

Have A Memorable (in a good way) Monday!

By Shakespeare, I Think We Got It!

Happy Wednesday All,

Whoo-hoo! Your good wishes, prayers, and positive thoughts have rendered an idea for a blog post! (Thank you, God!)

This post has 2 sources to it.

The first one is the book I'm currently reading (not yet reached 100 pages and there's over 400, so I can't say much about it, just that I'm intrigued and enjoying it) called Juliet by Anne Fortier. 

The second one is my dear Critique Partner, Tess St. John's post on English History Authors Blog talking about Shakespeare sayings we still use (very good post, by the way, fascinating and fun!)

Shakespeare is a favorite of mine. I've read so many of plays--I've also seen several on stage. I've studied several in high school (probably 10?)

So anytime there's something with Shakespeare involved it always catches my attention. I don't know how many different Romeo & Juliet inspired books, plays, and ballets I've seen (oh the ballet is so beautiful!) I've seen The Taming Of The Shrew so many times, but I still laugh watching it.

You hear a lot about who Shakespeare pulled/"stole" from or whether or not he was the "original" author of something--but whether or not a story was "his" or someone else's doesn't seem to be the point to people who enjoy his work.

There's something about the stories, the words ("A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!"--Richard III ) and the passion behind the words that makes people come back again and again ("Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow..." -- MacBeth).

So, do you have a favorite Shakespeare play/sonnet?

Have A Witty Wednesday!

Book Reporting: "Wondrous Strange" by Lesley Livingston

Happy Tuesday All,

Hope everyone is having a good week so far. My week's been pretty good. I've gotten some editing done, so I'm happy about that.

Okay, last night I just finished reading Lesley Livingston's book, Wondrous Strange. It's a YA novel (although, I don't see why grown up adults wouldn't enjoy it, seeing as how I, and several other adults I know, read YA and like them).

Picture if you will, taking faerie lore, Shakespeare's A Mid-Summer's Night's Dream, add some paranormal elements, and romance and presto! You've got Lesley's book.

Wondrous Strange was awesome. A real page turner. I had to know what was going to happen next. I really had a hard time putting this book down. 

I'm practically chomping at the bit to read the second book, Darklight.

It's different than a lot of things I've read...in the sense that it mixes fairies in a way I've not seen them. They might actually be dangerous creatures.

Oh yeah, and if you're a fan of Puck...you've gotta check this book out. Our lovable and playful fellow makes a grand appearance. (See if you can guess who he is! I had a feeling when I met this one character "Maybe that's him." and I was right!)

The romance is there, and it's a central plot thread, but there's so much more going on, so it's not purely romantic. It's got action, it's got conflict, it's got suspense, it's got gruesomely frightening creatures, it's got magic,  it's got flying, horses, sirens, mermaids, adjacent worlds to the human world, it's got acting, it's got a horse standing in a bathtub eating soap.

It really didn't take me long to finish this book and I love it. The cover is gorgeous, which kind of made me wonder about it in the first place, then I read the synopsis on the back and thought "Hmmm, maybe." Then I read it and I was like "Oooohhhh this is good!"

Anyway, hopefully I can pick up Darklight soon and let you know how that one is!

Have A Tremendous Tuesday!