Books of 2011

Okay, so now that it's 2012, I am going to post a thing I did last year on my blog.
Hope you enjoy :)

How many books read in 2011
I am a bit embarresed by this but I've only read a hundred...I was just really busy this year and didn't have as much time. I usually read more than this.. :p

How many fiction and non fiction?
Most of them were fiction but I read some non fiction for school


Male/Female author ratio?
About the same.


Favorite book of 2011?
The Chaos Walking books-Oh my gosh, were they good. You have to read them. By the way, these books were science fiction.
Science fiction- The Last of the Jedi books I have read so far, Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader, Episode I Journal: Queen Amidala, The Scorch Trials, Old Republic: Deceived, Coruscant Night trilogy, and A Paradise Snare
Fantasy- Angel: A Maximum Ride novel, The Warlock, The Throne of Fire, Artemis Fowl: The Atlantis Complex, and A Great and Terrible Beauty
Historical Fiction- Les Miserables, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Private Peaceful, All Quiet on the Western Front, and The Chosen
Contemporary Life- The Patron Saint of Butterflies, Speak, Hate List, The Chosen One, and Positively,



Least favourite?
I really haven't read anything to terrible this year. Maybe some of the books I had to read for school that were kind of boring? The MenD'lee and Exodus kind of had sloppy writing.

Newest?
Throne of Fire and The Lost Hero

Longest and shortest book titles?
Longest title- The mostly true adventures of Homer P. Figg and Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader. Shortest title- Angel

Longest and shortest books?
The longest was Les Miserables- It was 1222 pages long and took we about two months to finish. Shortest book would have to be The Metamorphosis

How many books from the library?
Most were from the libaray but I a lot I owned since they were school books(I haven't been able to read as much as I normally do. WAAAAA)


Any translated books?
Les Miserables, The Metamorphosis, Siddhartha, and The Christmas Mystery

Most read author of the year, and how many books by that author?
Jude Watson I suppose. I read an assortment of authors this year.


Any re-reads?
No

Favourite character of the year?
Todd Hewitt, Viola Eade, Ferus Olin, Melinda Sordino(from Speak), Thomas, Valerie(from Hate List), Eponine, Paul, Artemis Fowl, Holly Short, and Trever.

Which countries did you go to through the page in your year of reading?
Russia, Germany, England, India, France, and many fictional planets and worlds

Which book wouldn’t you have read without someone’s specific recommendation?
Les Miserables, The Chaos Walking Trilogy, The Forest of Hands and Teeth, The Dead-Tossed Waves, Speak, Hate List, and A Great and Terrible Beauty



Which author was new to you in 2011 that you now want to read the entire works of?
Patrick Ness and Laurie Halse Anderson

Which books are you annoyed you didn’t read?
The Diary of Anne Frank(I'm reading that now), The Gone series, and the rest of The Last of the Jedi books.

Did you read any books you have always been meaning to read?
Some of the classics

What books are you planning to read in 2012?
Any book that sounds good. I want to read The Amber Spyglass, The Gone series(I have the first book in my pile now), Elantris, Xenocide, and the rest of the Star Wars book I need to read(including the comics)

2011 in Retrospect

Now that I think back, I have done a lot of really amazing things this year :)
I have done so many things I've wanted to do and I'm working on things I've always wanted to do. :) Of course it hasn't been a perfect year, but since was life perfect? I'm so glad to have had a good year and I'd like to share some of it with you :D
I'll start from the beginning of the year and go to the end of the year.



We went to a Civil War reenactment earlier this year(since we were studying the Civil War in History at the time). It was really neat and I liked the sword duel pictured above.


My sister, brother, and I protesting for union rights(It was really cold that day :))
It was very cool! We stood outside the capital building and several people spoke. Everyone had these signs with really great quotes on them.



The Homeschool History Fair. My sister and I have done this for the last few years and have always enjoyed it. This year we did one together about the Napoleonic Wars (since we had studied about that earlier in the school year). I was Napoleon Bonaparte and my sister my Lord Horatio Nelson(I'm the taller of the two). It was so cool since I thought we kind of looked our parts!! :)


I went to a Medieval fair with my sister and cousin. Here is me wielding a crossbow.



The movie competition!!! My cousin, sister, brother, and I all made a movie together called - Sun and Moon. We tied for audience's choice with the first place winner and got a director's chair. It was an awesome experiance and we are definetely going to do it again in 2012 (we've already started on our new film!)



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After two years of study, I got confirmed earlier this year. One of my Confirmation gifts was a real sword!!(it's a replica of Excalibur) We used the sword to cut the cake! My Confirmation verse was - Ephesians 6: 10-17 :) By the way, if your wondering, I'm a Lutheran :).












This year I was cast in the play 'Annie' at my local theater!!!! It was an amazing experience and probably the best thing I did all year :D Fun fact: To make our faces look dirty, we put cocoa powder on our faces and when I took a shower I smelled Hot Chocolate :).




This summer I went to on a Mission Trip to South Dakota. While there we stopped at Mount Rushmore. It was a long drive and I was the only one who stayed awake the entire time.



This summer I also went to a Film Acting camp where we learned how to act on film(it's a lot different than acting on stage). We also filmed a movie which was awesome! My sister and I were the good guys which was nice since I almost always play a mean person or a bad guy.


My sister, cousins, parents, and I got to see Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2 and it was amazing! I had been wanting to watch this film since I read the first book many years ago. :)


Here's me helping people whose home had been destroyed by tornadoes.





Finally got my Jedi apparel made this year! I wore it for Halloween and I'm planning on wearing it to Conventions! :)


Our church celebrated it's One-Hundredth year! I got to participate in the skit about the churches history and got to play some of the founders!(One time I was this guy whose daughter still goes to our church! In the play I was trying to get out of Russia and got chased around by a guard who was played by my sister).


This year I had a really great birthday and birthday party! My birthday party was a scavenger hunt around town which was a lot of fun. And I got a car for my birthday party!!! :D


Me singing at my church on Christmas morning!!!

Also, I made my Obi-Wan fanpage(as well as the other ones I created), met a whole bunch of awesome Star Wars fans who share the same interests as me, and joined the Lakehouse Forum!. And of course there was Christmas and such :D

My New Years resolutions
Finish the re-write of the first book in my series and finish the rough draft of my fifth book!!
Get into a movie
Learn Tae-Kwon-Do
Go to Celebration VI
Get better at acting, writing, singing, and piano playing
Read many books, including the Star Wars books I haven't read as well as the comics
And have a good year :D

Book questions

1. Favorite childhood book?
Little House on the Prairie series, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Great Brain series and Running Out of Time.

2. What are you reading right now?
I just finished Coruscant Nights: Patterns of Force and I'm going to start on The Diary of Anne Frank (which I started on but never finished)

3. What books do you have on request at the library?
Darth Revan. I want it now!!!!

4. What do you currently have checked out at the library?
Coraline, Sabotaged, Gone, and Howard Zinn's History Comic (not sure what it's called)

5. Do you have an e-reader?
No, but I have a Kindle Fire

6. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
One at a time

7. Can you read on the bus?
Yes, but since I'm homeschooled I hardly ever ride buses.

8. Favorite place to read?
In bed, outside, on the couch, and in the car.

9. Do you ever dog-ear books?
No

10. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?
No

11. What makes you love a book?
Amazing writing, epic plot, awesome characters, action, and emotion.

12. What will inspire you to recommend a book?
When I think it's just so amazing that EVERYBODY ELSE SHOULD READ IT!!!!!!!

13. Favorite genre?
Science Fiction, Fantasy, action, and adventure.

14. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
Well, if it's not a good book I'll give it a bad review but I won't curse out of the author and all those who like it.

15. Favorite Poet?
Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, and e.e cumming, I guess, I'm not much into poetry.

16. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?
Depends. Anywhere from four to six now days since I'm so busy.

17. How often have you returned books to the library unread?
A lot....I hate doing it :p

18. Favorite fictional character?
Obi-Wan Kenobi, Siri Tachi, Anakin Skywalker, Qui-Gon Jinn, Frodo, Sam, Harry, Hermione, Ron, Peter, Edmond, Lucy, Jill, Eustace, Gregor, Katniss, Todd, Viola, Matt, Scarlet, Jamie, Scott, Pedro, Percy Jackson, Annabeth, Jack, Thorgil, Sabriel, Scout, Whie, Lyra, Peeta, Jaden, Khedryn, Relin, Johune, Ferus Olin, Ender, and the characters in my series.

19. Favorite fictional villain?
Darth Vader, Darth Zannah, the Mayor, Dooku, Palpatine, Voldemort, Sauron, and the one in my series >:)

20. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?
The ones I'm currently reading, a Jedi Apprentice/Quest book, Wild Space, Young Jedi Knights, ROTS novel, Harry Potter, or Shatterpoint.

21. The longest I’ve gone without reading. A week

22. Name a book that you could/would not finish.
Elsie Dinsmore. A whole load of drivel, in my opinion.

23. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
The computer, music, movies playing, and cramped spaces(cramped with people, that is)

24. Favorite film adaptation of a novel?
Lord of the Rings trilogy, Harry Potter films, The Chronicles of Narnia, and Hugo. The Hunger Games also looks good.

25. Most disappointing film adaptation?
Percy Jackson maybe...? There was one but I can't think of it at the moment.

26. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
If it was way, way, WAY, too inappropriate

27. Do you like to keep your books organized?
Yes

28. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
Keep them of course! I like to flip through books I like and re-read sections I like.

From the holodiary of Aran Liander: Jedi Apprentice

981 ARR

I am exhausted. As a Jedi I am able to push through my exhaustion and keep going even when I've went passed my endurance. That is what I've done for the last twenty-four hours; we walked forty miles through the deeply set mire and the pouring rain. Our heavy artillery kept getting stuck and My Master and I helped our troops pull it out which caused the journey from point A to point B to take even longer. My Master is amazing. He barely even looked tired. Only I who has worked with him for so long could see the tiredness he held back. It was evident in the tightness of his cheeks and the slight loosening of his brow. I wish I had that amount of control....
We're at our position and now I'm resting in one of the stronghold's many rooms, using a biowipe to scrape the worse of the mud off my skin and clothes. I know I should sleep but it evades me because I know it will only cause nightmares. So, I'm just going to meditate later and hope that the Force will suffice for lack of proper rest.....I can hear my Master now, telling me that the Force is never a nursemaid; it is a friend and a guide but it won't take perfect care of me; I must rely on myself for somethings.
I thought about this journal a bit on the long trek and I've decided to tell you about my friends.
My best friends, besides my Master, are: Kyla, Rune, and Lint. I've been friends with them- or in some cases...was- since we were Initiates in the Bear Clan. We met back when my memories grow hazy and I can barely remember our first meetings; but I still remember the vivid happiness I felt when we all held hands and spoke the Code together, the words tangling up in our mouths and us laughing.....
I miss Rune and Lint so much.......so very much.
Rune was an Echani boy one year my junior. He was a quiet, kind individual who had an extraordinary connection to the Force. He was such a pure soul that even if he hadn't looked like one, he would have reminded me of the Angels on the moons of Iego. He was killed along with his Master on Caamas during a mega-large surprise attack led by General Grievous. I heard his scream in my mind as he died.........
Lint was an Togrutan boy about one month older than I. He was the complete opposite of Rune; he was loud and brash, always ready to jump in with his lightsaber flashing. But, like Rune he had a kind heart, even if it was rough on the outside. I always wondered if that was why he and Rune had such a connection, because of their differences.....I guess I will never know, now. Lint fell with his Master during a duel with the fearsome Ventress herself. I felt the lightsaber graze my side through the Force as he died......
Kyla is my only friend still alive.... She is a human girl and one of the strongest people I know. Her lightsaber skills are amazing and she wields two as easily as people walk. Besides my Master, she knows me best. I haven't seen her in over a year. I wish I could contact her but I don't want to endanger her position or mine. So I'll just have to trust in the Force that we will meet up soon.......
I'm not entirely sure if that helped; I still miss Rune and Lint with an ache that does not dull. But maybe I'll see improvement over the course of the war....if it ever ends, that is....
Okay, I'll stop now. I really don't think it's a good idea for me to obsess over death so much; it can't be healthy and it's not something a Jedi should obsess over.
I'm going to meditate now and maybe go over my katas....anything to keep death out of my thoughts.
May the Force be with You and may the galaxy know peace.
Aran Liander

My Christmas! :)

Okay, so I've spent Christmas with both sides of my family as well as my immediate family so I thought I'd show you what I got and share some memories of the days :)



Okay, so on the 22nd and the 23rd we spent celebrated Christmas with my Dad's side of the family. We spent the time talking and playing Wii (I won at Wii sports Bowling, Baseball, golf) I got fifty dollars, Jedi Apprentice: The Shattered Peace, a cover for the steering wheel of my car, an apron, Reese's Peanute Butter cups, and M&Ms.:)



Here are the things I got in my stocking this year at my house. :)
Legacy of the Force: Betrayal
Clone Wars Adventures Trading Card Game
Pocket Posh Christmas Logic
lotion to put in my 'Jedi Pack' :)
Hot Chocolate packet
orange
Reese's Peanut Butter cups
Candy Canes




I had a really good Christmas at my house this year. We did have to wait to open presents since my sister and I had to sing at church that morning but we still had a load of fun opening our presents. :)
A Kindle Fire
Jedi Apprentice: The Ties That Bind
Jedi Apprentice: The Evil Experiment
Jedi Apprentice: The Dangerous Games
Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Stover
Rogue Planet by Greg Bear
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Star Wars: Clone Wars Volume 1
Old Obi-Wan Kenobi action figure (It came with a Star Wars cup that you can see in the picture)
The old Clone Wars Obi-Wan Kenobi action figure (now I have all the Obi-Wan's!)
Attack of the Clones Anakin Skywalker action figure (now I have all the Anakin's!)
Obi-Wan Kenobi t-shirt (AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!)
Linkin Park: Minutes to Midnight CD
Linkin Park: Meteora CD




Here are some of the things I got in my stocking at Christmas with my mom's side of the family(I will talk about it below)
Music/piano mouse pad
cupcake bandaids
candy cane (that broke :( )
Throat spray for singers (Important if you have to sing and your throat feels weird)
snap on watch
M ornament
Hershey Santa bar
music themed socks
music pencil
emery board
Star Wars playing cards
notepad
computer keyboard duster brush
chap stick
Vanished: A Private novel by Kate Brian




So we spent Christmas at my mom's side of the family on the 26th, 27th, and the 28th(we left today). I had so much fun putting on a play with my cousins(two acts and very funny and action packed), spending time with family, and eating all the sweets there, especially the White Chocolate Fudge that was dyed green :)
Jedi Apprentice: The Day of Reckoning
Jedi Apprentice: The Fight for Truth
music themed umbrella
Freedom Call: Eternity CD
Star Wars bag
Music themed bag

So that's all for today. I'll be back tomorrow with my video of me singing and the next chapter of Aran Liander's tale. Till then have a good rest of your night/day and May the Force be with you....always :)
Shena Tokala

Writing Tips: Part 2: Section A

Writing Tips
Part 2: Plot and/or Idea
Section A: The first spark

Once you know which genre you want to write(that part should be instinctive however; you know what you like) you need to come up with a story. DON'T try to force it; ideas will come at their own pace.
One of the most-asked questions authors are asked I have noticed is 'where do you get your ideas.' Well, the answer is different for everyone. For me, I typically get ideas when I least expect it- like I can either be reading a book, watching a movie, taking a shower, lying in bed waiting to fall asleep, dreams, talking to someone, or just sitting there doing nothing. Once you've got an idea, write it down or put it on your computer/laptop in a document. Remember, your idea will change and evolve as your story matures and your characters sort of take charge of the story(this actually does happen! For example I had some characters drawn to other characters that I hadn't planned on and certain things have changed in the plot- a lot has changed, actually).
Sometimes a story won't work out, but that's okay, you just have to keep at it and find a story that really resonates within you. If you get stuck take a break and do something else- read a book, watch a movie, listen to music, or whatever helps you relax until an idea comes to you. Stories can be very hard to craft so you have to take it seriously when going in- you have to love your story and you have to love your characters- even while you sometimes simultaneously hate them. But the most important factor of writing a story is to enjoy it- write something YOU'D want to read, not what you think would sell the best(though it is important to know some of the writer no-nos which I will go over later).
So that is all for now- next week I will go into what makes a plot and how it's structure work. Hope this helps and May the Force be with you! :)
Shena Tokala Maegen) Also known as Siri Kenobi95, SiriKenobi-ShenaTokala, and Cam Danen.

Favorite Song Monday

The song I am posting today is one of my favorite songs- It is called "Until the End" and is by Breaking Benjamin. WARNING- the song has explicit lyrics in it. Well, actually it's just one curse word, but it's a bad one so if that bothers you, you might want to skip it. But if you want, I can tell you when to skip during the song.