The Sunday Currently | Vol. III

The past week was all about The Hustle. I've been reading books, listening to podcasts, and checking out blogs about self-publishing like a fiend, trying to absorb everything. Whenever I felt down, I looked at pretty typography in shades of pink and gold on Pinterest and immediately felt better. Good times.

reading Write. Publish. Repeat. by Sean Platt, Johnny B. Truant, and David Wright. This book was highly recommended by several bloggers as the definitive guide to self-publishing and marketing your own book. Since I've only read articles and listened to podcasts about self-publishing in general, I decided it was time to invest in gaining more knowledge about the industry I hope to be a part of. Now, I'm kind of obsessed with books about self-publishing and want to buy EVERYTHING.

writing my current work-in-progress. My first draft is currently at 4,000 words, and I aim to add at least 500 words everyday. At this rate, I'll finish it by mid-May. *crosses fingers*

listening to Reforget by Lauv. This song is basically about a guy who goes out to--wait for it--reforget.

thinking of taking a nap. Like always.

smelling the baby lotion I've started using.

wishing for the entire first season of Supergirl. My co-workers who've seen the show keep comparing me to Cat Grant, and I want to personally decide if that's a compliment or an insult. Maybe a little bit of both?

hoping for more sleep this week.

wearing a T-shirt my mother got me as a souvenir when she went to Cebu two years ago. It's old and comfy.

loving the David Gandy gifs I keep encountering on the Internet (by encountering, I mean hunting like a fiend).

wanting a copy of Indie Author Survival Guide by Susan Kaye Quinn. I'm not getting a copy yet since I'm only halfway done with Write. Publish. Repeat. I want to practice some of the strategies in that book first before buying another self-publishing guide.

needing to learn how to format an epub file. Same as last week. Now you know about my procrastinator tendencies.

feeling excited about my current work-in-progress. There are days where writing is like pulling out a stubborn tooth, but the words have come easy for the past couple of days. I know it won't last, so I'm enjoying it as much as I can.

clicking on the Young Adult Romance category on Amazon. I'm already researching cover trends for books in my genre, because I'm O.C. like that.

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Bookish Thoughts | Act Like It by Lucy Parker

Guys, let me start this review by saying that Mr. Darcy absolutely ruined me when I first read Pride and Prejudice at the tender age of twelve. Since then, I've had a thing for rich, gorgeous and completely fictional men with nonexistent social skills. You've been warned.

Act Like It tells the tale of Lainie Graham and Richard Troy. She is the current darling of the West End Theater, pitied by all after she was dumped very publicly by her ex-boyfriend via gossip tabloid. He, on the other hand, is a complete gem on the stage, but a total bastard to the paparazzi… and everyone else in general. When they’re forced to pretend to be a couple for the sake of the media, sparks fly. The question is, are they the right kind?

Where do I even begin talking about how much I love this book?

I just want to squeal and shove it into the face of every person I know, but that wouldn’t do the book justice, would it?

First of all, the characters in this book are so freaking fantastic. Lainie might scare me with her Jessica Rabbit looks in real life, all vivacious curves and bright, red hair, but after a while, I would totally love to hang out with her. She loves shopping in places like Topshop and Primark, and feels like a fish out of water when faced with glamorous women. No, she isn’t one of those stereotypical characters who have no idea how beautiful they are. Lainie is confident about her looks, but she has little bouts of insecurity from time to time, making her even more real.

And did I mention she makes Harry Potter references in her interior monologue? I seriously wanted to reach into my Kindle app and bond with this girl over chocolate biscuits and tea. Is that creepy?

here's a David Gandy gif for your viewing pleasure | source

I know I compared Richard to Mr. Darcy earlier, but reading about him was still like a breath of fresh air. After reading about billionaires with traumatic childhoods, angsty stepbrothers, and fictional men in general who toed the line between obsessive and romantic, a hero like Richard was exactly what I needed. Yes, he was completely rude at times, but it was due to his utter lack of social graces. He did have a somewhat traumatic childhood, but it didn’t completely define him, unlike most of the heroes in contemporary romance.

Also, I was imagining David Gandy as Richard the whole time I was reading, which made the experience BURST INTO LIFE.

I mean, David Gandy, you guys. Need I say more?

Act Like It is one of the few books that have literally made me laugh out loud in quite a long time. Lucy Parker is a whiz at coming up with turns of phrase that will not fail to make you giggle. If you need further explanation, please see the quote below:

“Are you firing him?" Her voice squeaked as if she had uttered the most outrageous profanity. Voiced the great unspoken. The mere suggestion of firing Richard Troy was the theatrical equivalent of hollering "Voldemort!" in the halls of Hogwarts.”

Now, do you people understand how much I love this book? The reader in me was delighted by the sparkling wit that seemed to leap off my phone’s screen. I hadn’t read anything so utterly funny and just plain fun in a while, and I kept stopping to make the experience last a little longer. The writer in me, however, wanted to hunt down Lucy Parker (nicely, of course) and make her tell me all her comedic secrets over banana chocolate muffins.

Rating: 5/5

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The Sunday Currently | Vol. 2

image via Design Love Fest

The Sunday Currently was originally created by Sidda Thornton.

Life has been, in a nutshell, overwhelming, especially when you want to make time for your day job and your writing projects. Sacrifices need to be made, and sleep is usually the first thing to go.

reading Songs to Get Over You by Jay E. Tria. This book is sooo good. I could've finished it days ago, but I've been trying to savor it, letting the characters leap off the pages and steal my heart. Full review coming soon.

writing my current work-in-progress. In my last The Sunday Currently post, I mentioned that I was working on a new adult short story/novella set on the beach called Just a Bit of Trouble. But I'm as fickle-minded as a kid in a toy store when it comes to choosing my next writing project. While looking through old files, I rediscovered an outline for a young adult love story I made when I was nineteen, almost a full six years ago. It felt like a sign, and, you guys, I love signs. Just plain crazy about them.

listening to Goodbye by Who is Fancy. God, I love this song so much. It's bittersweet and hopeful at the same time.

thinking of the recently released posters for season six of Game of Thrones. Is Jon Snow alive or not?! I can't deal with this anymore.

smelling nothing.

wishing I knew how to edit an epub file.

hoping to finally gain some traction on the book I'm writing.

wearing my old Edgar Allan Poe shirt from college.

loving the authors I discovered this week. I've heard of Jay E. Tria on Twitter, but I never actually read one of her books until I got an ARC of Songs to Get Over You, the second book in her Playlist series. I loved it so much that I purchased the first book, Songs of Our Breakup, without thinking twice. Also, I one-clicked Act Like it by Lucy Parker and Level Up by Cathy Yardley. Both books received great reviews on Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. I can't wait to curl up in bed and start my romance reading marathon.

wanting nothing. For the first time in a long time, I don't have a sparkly dress or a pair of loafers on my online shopping wishlist, which is something short of a miracle. Writing, editing, and getting everything ready for Prom Queen Perfect's release on July 7, 2016 have completely taken over my life. It's a wonderful feeling, being busy with a passion project.

needing to learn how to format an epub file. I've downloaded a software called Calibre, and it has me stumped.

feeling sleepy. Last week, writing kinda sorta took over my life, resulting in me getting four or five hours of sleep two days in a row.

clicking on random finds on Pocket, an app that lets you save articles for offline reading. This app has already led me to so many amazing articles about random murder mysteries, being more productive, and getting your shit together in general. It's a pretty cool procrastination tool.

Backlist Revival Tour | In Over Her Head by Anne Plaza

Review

In Over Her Head by Anne Plaza is the siren song of every girl who’s ever been left hanging. Ten years ago, Erika Marie Apostol was dumped by her college boyfriend, and even if she’d never admit it, the memory still stings after all these years. Now, Richard, her ex-boyfriend, is back from Singapore, and Erika is about to find out if revenge is indeed a dish best served cold.

She and her crazy friends enlist the help of the handsome DJ Jerome in a crazy scheme that just might work. Whether Erika will get her happy ending or another broken heart remains to be seen…

God, I loved the premise of this book. Who wouldn’t want payback after you get an it’s-not-you-it’s-me speech instead of the proposal you were expecting? Erika, the protagonist, is completely relatable. She’s not one of those brainless heroines who just goes along with everything. She’s a real human being who understands that the situation might be crazy but tries to make the most out of it.

The Sunday Currently | Vol. 1

photo found via pinterest

 

The Sunday Currently was originally created by Sidda Thornton.

Happy Valentine's Day, guys!

Now that we have that out of the way, let's proceed to important business.

So, I've been wondering how I can share about my life without boring my two or three readers to tears. I then remembered this regular feature on Sidda Thornton's blog. It seems like a great way to talk about life, books, and all the things in between.

Here goes nothing...

reading The Bye-Bye Bouquet by Chi Yu Rodriguez. It's official release date is today, but I was lucky enough to receive an ARC through the author's giveaway. I'm only a couple of pages in, but I love it already. It's about a girl who owns a flower shop and the mysterious guy who sends bouquets to different girls every month. Sounds like my kind of love story.

writing my current work-in-progress. The tentative title is Just a Bit of Trouble. It was originally inspired by Perfect by One Direction and contains lots of beach scenes, a very hot boy, calamansi muffins, and a slightly dangerous to-do list. I'm not sure yet if it's going to be a novella or a short story. We'll see.

listening to You Belong to Me by Lifehouse. #feels #plotbunnies

thinking of all the different things I still have to do.

smelling the scent of fabric conditioner on my pajamas. Lazy Sunday mornings are the best.

wishing I had more time in the world/better time-management skills.

hoping to finally finish editing Prom Queen Perfect next week.

wearing pajamas!

loving Game of Thrones. I'm currently watching Season 5, and I can't believe I waited this long to watch it. Tyrion Lannister is my spirit animal. I love the conversations between him and Varys, so witty and has the kind of wit I'd like to emulate in my own writing.

wanting to read like a 'normal' reader. It doesn't matter if you're an amateur writer or have fifteen published books under your belt. When you're a writer, you can't help but analyze how this author had such purple prose in this novel or how this other author's skill with dialogue made you want to weep in envy. You can't turn off the writer part of your brain that analyzes fiction the same way a mechanic would take apart a car.

needing a nap.

feeling a little overwhelmed. Prom Queen Perfect will officially be released on July 7, 2016, and there are still so many things I have to do. Also, I keep asking myself if the book is good enough. I mean, is it?!?!? Seriously?!?!?!

clicking random links on my Twitter feed.