Wakela Runen's World

Disclaimer: I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive any form of compensation. With NaNoWriMo almost upon us, I have been trying to get myself back into the mindset of a writer.  I have always dabbled, but I truly want to start putting pen to paper on a regular basis.  One of the things on my bucket list is to write a book.  I have started many times, but just never get around to finishing because something always comes up.  This cancer scare has made me sit up and realize that life is too short not to do some of the things that I have always wanted to do. One thing that I felt the author touched on that many other writing books don’t is the feeling of being exposed.  Even if you are writing fiction, you are exposing aspects of yourself that would otherwise be hidden.  And when you are submitting these to be published, not only are you exposing yourself, but you are now being asked to be judged.  T...

So this is my first Soap Opera Sunday. Each week, they are hosted by someone different. This week it is hosted by Jenn in Holland . The following is a true story, but names have been changed. Let's travel back a few years. The year was 1993. The place was somewhere in the south US. This was a time for risk taking for me. I had moved out of the house for the first time to a town where I absolutely knew no one. It was time for me to find out who I truly was. You have to understand that I didn't exactly have it easy growing up, but those are tales for other Sundays. I found a job working for a small company doing customer service phone calls. Most of the people that worked there were in the early 20s just like me. That is where I met Chad, Robert and Jason. I ended up dating Robert while Jason was dating Sandy. I guess I really clung onto Robert since I was so scared living on my own. Jason, Chad and I all became really good friends. So when Robert decided to move ...

Ok. So I had fully planned on going and doing last week's workout, but I just couldn't get motivated. I have just been feeling really crappy lately. I went to get some labwork done on Friday. We will see what the doctor says this coming Thursday. Anyway, on to the workout. This week The Accidental Novelist challenges us to write A Postcard Story. There was only one person left on her Christmas list. She wasn’t even sure why she was going to bother buying anything for him. Her boyfriend had turned into her own personal Grinch. However, she didn’t want anyone to be able to say that she just gave up on the relationship. She wasn’t going down without a fight. She had put three long years into the relationship. She felt that she had to keep going. She just had to keep trying. She could not believe that she would have wasted those three years. It wasn’t possible. Amy had stopped by earlier today and gave her a book to read. It just sounded completely silly...

I got me award for placing in the 2nd Annual Spicy Cauldron Awards . I had entered a Halloween writing contest. I have never won anything for my writing before. Yes, I only got 2nd place, and it is only a web competition, but still. I really does mean alot to me. If you would like to see the entry go here . It was a short story that I wrote off the cuff.

This is the second weekend the I am going to do one of the great writing workouts over at The Accidental Novelist . I don't have a story that I am working on at the moment. So I will just continue using the character that I created from my last exercise. Who knows, this character may round out enough to help create a story. Exercise #1 Mother duck waddling by 5 little ducklings struggling to keep up Intent on reaching the lake squawking and quacking Merrily on their way Reaching the liquid brilliance of life Swimming merrily on their way The day strolls lazily along Sun gleaming on the refreshing water Not a care in the world Relaxed and enjoying the moment White clouds dance lazily in the sky Reflections of the world in the lake A small rain shower Baby ducklings playing in the water Splish, splashing around Exercise #2 When Sarah thinks about her apron, it always reminds her of her mother. In her eyes, her mom was a domestic goddess. Their house was always lovingly well kept...

Found this little gem over at a great blog called The Accidental Novelist . I thought I would give it a try. The Precious Object Exercise 1) Decide which character you are going to develop / work on for this exercise. 2) Pick a random object, let's say a drum. 3) Imagine that this object is the MOST precious object in the world to your character. Set your timer for 5-7 minutes. Using the start line below, write (without stopping, without editing) until your timer goes off: The most precious object in my character's life is her... _________________________________________________________________ The most precious object in Sarah's life is her statue of Bast. All of her life, she had been drawn to cats. As a child, kittens would follow her home from school. She had posters of cats hanging from every available space on the wall as a teenager. She couldn't get cats out of her head. She also had these recurring dreams of being in ancient Egypt as a priestess of cats. ...

Holly fought hard to keep herself from calling Tom. She knew that he was bad news from the day that she met him. However, she couldn't stop thinking about his smile. There was something kind in the way he smiled. He couldn't be completely bad. Or could he? Opening the door to her office, she noticed that it was ransacked. Who could do such a thing? Everyone knew that she was such a neat freak. Maybe they were trying to play a cruel joke on her. Sasha walked in behind her and gasped. "What happened here?" "As if you didn't know already!" screamed Holly. "Everyone knows you are the biggest practical joker around." "I promise that I had nothing to do with this. Maybe we should call the police. Do you know if anything is missing?" Panic suddenly struck the very core of Holly's being. If Sasha was suggesting that they call the police, then this isn't a joke. This is for real. Someone rummaged through her office. Wer...

Smoky green haze filled the air. She was at it again. Syltenia was convinced that there was a secret faerie world. She was convinced that if she found the right potion, she would be able to access it. All of the other witches were tired of her incessant stirring up crazy concoctions in her cauldron. Her cauldron had been in her family for centuries. Her great grandmother swore that she had mistakenly mixed up a batch of potion that granted her entrance to the faerie realm. The rest of the community thought she had gone mad. No one believed in faeries anymore. It was believed that the faeries had became extinct during the Great Witch-Dragon wars over a millenium ago. So here Syltenia sat, stirring away at the cauldron day in and day out. She was practically shunned by the rest of the community. The aweful smells and horrible smoke was always eminating from her little cottage. Yet, she knew that this cauldron would once again be the birth of the Faerie Land potion. Each day, should would...

I could have killed him. He was supposed to have been here an hour ago. Where the hell was he? He could just go rot in hell for keeping me waiting. Today of all days. So here I sit, under the beech tree just waiting for Conrad to show up. The breeze is so gentle. The leaves are talking to me in that soft rustle. Clouds lazily paint the sky white. So he's late again. Should I really be so surprised? I would think not. I might as well just sit back and enjoy the afternoon. Hearing a strange crunching sound, I bolt up to a standing position. "How dare you be late and then sneak up on me?" "Well, Jen you were the one that decided to doze off," Conrad stated as he gave me his lopsided grin. "Are you ready for my surprise?" He knew that I was more then ready. He had been hinting at this surprise for over a month. He just loves to keep me in suspense. We had been dating now for three years. The only thing predictable about him was the he was a...

Its time for me to start warming up the brain cells that have been laying dormant for so long. Next month, they will be running a marathon. It is time for the annual NaNoWriMo . That is the National Novel Writing Month. I heard about it for the first time in 2005. The last few years unfortunate incidences arose that prevented me from taking part. In 2005, we were hit by a hurricane and were without electricty for most of the month. Last year, my mom was extremely ill and was needing to be taken care of. This year, I told everyone that they aren't allowed any disasters. I want to take part in it. So I am going to have to start warming up the brain cells if I am going to be able to write a novel in one month. Heck, half the time I never complete stories that I have already started. I figured that if I have a time limit, then I will have more chances of completing it.

When he finally spoke, his voice was low and defeated. "I just don't think there is a way to stave off the attack." Marcus had finally given up. This was something entirely new to him. He had never before admitted defeat. However, even he realized that he was no match for the orc attackers. Sofia gingerly placed her hand upon his shoulder. She knew that this was difficult for him to deal with. The lives of their town depended on this. They could not allow the orcs to take over. There has to be a way out of this. There must be something that he over looked. He could not disappoint his family this way. Terror drove him. His little Chelsea needed a loving stable home to grow up in. The orcs would make sure that they lived in fear the rest of their lives if they even survived the attacks. Krystae came pounding on the door. "Let me in. I think I figured out a way." Krystae was the elderly crone of the village. She had known many magicks that no lo...

I don't know the details about this project. I didn't write them down at all. :-( Anyway, it ended up being a poem. Looked away Deep inside Cold and bleary I stay and hide Emotions creeping Just like vines Trapping me Inside my thoughts Escape, escape I need to run away Stuck for an eternity Choked by emotions Bleak world Void of color The only sound Is that of silence It is time to emerge From within my tomb Break free from the vines That I have chosen

Write ANYTHING, so long as all of the following words are used (different tenses may be used, though using the word exactly as it is would be preferred): Egg nog Garland Snowshoes Fahrenheit Cloudy Stocking Christmas of The Heart My heart was cloudy and dismal as I went on with the day. Christmas was only a few days away. I couldn't shake the sadness that pervaded me. Christmas was an enchanted time of year when I was younger. As I grew older and more jaded, the spirit had left me. I had turned cold inside. My heart was a chilly 10 degrees fahrenheit. I felt that love could no longer blossom within the wintery land of my emotions. The thought of spending another Yuletide without Craig caused an ache that ran deep. It was 5 years ago that his car skidded on the frozen highway. It was 5 years ago that he was stolen from me. I remember that night vividly. It was a chilly destitute night. Craig had ran out to the store to pick up some egg nog. He was afraid to let me drive in the horr...

This is a repost of an old project that I had taken place in. I miss the Alchera Project. It was really great. Unfortunately, life had slid downhill and I was unable to take place in it for awhile. When I went back again, it was gone. :-( This project was originally done on 3-9-05. Anyway, here is some info that Laura had written on the site about this particular project. Explanation of the option from Alchera Project : "I modified the Grab Bag option a bit this time, too. I felt requiring six random words might be too much of a time-consuming challenge with everyone's school and work loads, so while there are still six words, you are required to use only three of them. The three of your choice, actually, which makes the heading "Grab Bag" much more applicable to the actual fulfillment of the project. Temple Placid Criminal Misanthrope Faction Folly Here is what I had written back then: I was in the process of making a website for an online game that I play, ...

I found an interesting writing prompt online . It gives you the setting, the first few words of your story, and several more words that you must use in your story. You then give yourself 10 minutes to write. Setting: at a resort Starting phrase for story: Nice guys Four words you must include in your story: quest, lopsided, drag, and poem Nice guys seem to be a rare species. Stephanie and I decided that we were no longer going to wait for them to show up on our doorsteps. We made it our quest to go in search of them ourselves. We thought long and hard as to where we wanted to search. We were both very stressed out from our jobs. It had become a total drag. So we decided to go stay at a luxurious resort so that we can be pampered as we plotted how to best locate these nice guys we kept hearing about. Our flight left around nine in the morning. It was a peaceful time. Just knowing that we had two weeks off from work seemed to relax us immensely. We reached our destination in t...

Defrost the glacial chill upon my soul Existence floats by Upon the ethereal mists Void of all meaning Chasms open devouring the heart Leaving a cavernous hole Despair Destruction They know no bounds Burned at the stake of my thoughts Crucified by pain Lost in the labyrinth Gloom leaves no trails to follow The only course is the bloody Entrails of those who have passed before Fiends waiting Watching for a slip Ready to devour the next prey Treading a tremulous path Intent on grasping death on my provisos My demise will come in its bitter time Bringing with it A respite

Ok so last night at 3am I couldn't sleep. I didn't feel like walking back up stairs to turn my computer on. I ended up writing. Below is what I wrote before I got sleepy. She stumbled blindly down the street trying to get away from the terro racing through her mind. Never in her yound life had she seen anything so ghastly. The brutality of it was beyond her comprehension. She knew she had to hide. It was only time before they came after her. She didn't know of any place she would be safe. As she was fleeing, fog started rolling in off the bay likfe a predator looking for its prey. It made the night even more fiercesome then it already was. Her lungs were aflame from running. She was tiring quickly. He body was not used to such feats of athletecism. Yet, if she stopped they would get her too. She had never known the true identities of those who claimed her husband's life. All Bella knew was that she had seen them before. Each time she saw them, someone was b...

I found an interesting site tonight. Its called One Word . The site gives you a word at the top of the page and you have 60 seconds to write about that word. Tonight I got the word going. Below is what I ended up writing about it. When you are going you are constantly in motion. Motion prevents the mind, body and spirit from stagnating. Therefore, we must continue going. It doesn't matter where, but don't stay still.

Waking up with the hopes of new changes Seeing the dreariness of times ahead Never changing Always same Floating through the motions Like a ghostly apparition Sun rising to burn off the fog Brightens up the dark shadows of the mind Spotlights on insanity Highlighting the way Never knowing where you have been Never knowing where you are going Endless misery

Sitting alone in silence Nothing but my thoughts Darkness takes over Chilling my heart A tear slips down my cheek Icy trail of salty emotion Alone and empty With no where to turn And no where to go Silence is no longer golden It is dark and dismel It pushes in on my soul Taking me over so that I am empty Devoid of humanity Just a shell of what I once was Where is the bliss I was promised Its beyond my reach I see people smiling Don't they know there isn't a reason to go on?