I love this weeks prompt. It's always nice to read about people who love books as much as I do. It's nice to find kindred spirits in the books I read. To be honest I would probably be best friends with all of these people.

1. Cath from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I mean she writes fanfiction.She's a top tier book worm and I love her for it. She's so into the world of Simon Snow that she's invested her own time and energy to make it her own. I think it's awesome. I also can't wait to read Carry On, which is going to be an actual book. How awesome is that?
2. Sam from Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone. I love this book and I love the poetry aspect of it. I love how it's through words that people heal and grow in this novel
3. Meggie from Inkheart by Cornelia Funke. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Inkheart trilogy. Meggie has grown up with a love of books her whole life. Her father and her go and buy used books, save old books, and not to mention bring book characters to this world. It's all really awesome.
4. Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter Series. Hermione Granger is just an overall badass and I love her bookish side. She reads for fun and thoroughly enjoys learning and understanding things. She gets things done and honestly where would Harry and Ron be without her?
5. Charlie from The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Charlie has got this cute, shy, bookworm personality that makes me want to just hug him. He does book reports for fun and reads amazing novels. I used to love writing book reports too. It would essentially be me fangirling over the book I just read.
6. Liesel from The Book Thief by  Markus Zusack. I LOVE this book. It's so sad and beautiful and just wow. Liesel has this affinity for books and storytelling that's just amazing. 
7. Tessa Grey from the Infernal Devices. "Words have the power to change us"
   
8. Celaena from the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas. She is badass with a soft spot for books. She understands the power of the written words and I love her even more for that. While I did find this book to be a little bit overhyped and a little disappointing I did enjoy it overall.
9. Hazel Grace Lancaster from The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. Granted she was really only obsessed with  one book, but whose to say that she never had a connection with another book. She went out to Amsterdam to meet the author with Gus, she was a total book fangirl. Granted the author was a jerk.
10.  Clay Jannon from Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Book Store by Robin Sloan. The guy works at a magical book store. What can I say?

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and Bookish

6 Ways to Be a Happier Person

Okay so I've been thinking a lot lately about being happy and about how hard it is to be happy.Sometimes life is hell bent on being crazy and difficult and scary. It's hard to remember to be happy in the face of it all. Sometimes we get caught up in all the crazy that we forget to smile and just enjoy the moment.

1. Set up time for yourself. I can't stress how important it is to set up time where you can just do nothing or maybe something you've been wanting to do. Whether it's just listening to music, watching your favorite show, doing some yoga, or having a dance party, it's important to give yourself a break. My sister is constantly telling me to practice self care. For me that means deep breathing and relaxation exercises as well as some reading time. You need to out yourself first because this is your life and you deserve to enjoy it. 
2. Let go of what you can't control. I have this really bad habit of wanting to control everything and anything. And that means I get stressed out  a lot. I have to remember that I can't control people, or situations. I need to let go and just breath, For example, right now I can right the best personal statement I can and make sure my application is perfect, after that it's out of my hands. I know it can be crazy scary to let go of the reigns but trust me you'll feel a lot better for it. 
3. Exercise. You don't have to get all fitness guru and try out crazy work outs. You just need to have a couple moments out of your head doing something that release endorphins which in turn make you feel better. You can try Zumba (its really fun) or Kickboxing, or watch some videos online. Walk your dog, go for a run with your dog. Someone once told me that having a dog is like having  a drunk best friend. 
4. Create a reasonable work schedule. Don't try and push yourself to the brink constantly and not expect to fall a couple times. Don't try and pack things in when you know it'll make you stressed out and tired and miserable. You know yourself best, do the things you handle, push yourself, but don't burn yourself out. If you have work due soon, then work on it slowly so you don't have to do it all in one go. Procrastination causes stress which creates a not so happy person. Also you become very sleep deprived this way. I would know. So work on something the minute you know about and slowly get it done. You'll stress less this way. 
5. Stop comparing yourself, your life to others. I saw this quote on tumblr that read "don't compare your beginning to someone else's middle" and it's true. By becoming an envious person upset that life isn't like their idols, or friends your letting your life pass you by. You shouldn't compare yourself to others because everyone has their own thing going on, you need to find your own. Looking around at how someone dresses and how they live life isn't going to help you. You need to do you without trying to look at what the rest of the people in the world are doing. You, my friend, are awesome and beautiful and badass. You got this. You are you and that is more than enough don't try and lessen that by comparing yourself to someone else.
6. Spend time with people you care about. Don't shut yourself to the world. Go out, have fun give yourself a break from all the crazy. Make a coffee date with your best friend, go watch a movie, or better yet have a movie marathon with some junk food. Trust me a few hours of just having fun with people you can vent to or can make you forget about the bad stuff is worth it. 

Motivation Monday # 7

So I've gotten into Marvel recently. I'm not entirely sure why or how this obsession started but I'm really glad it did. I rewatched the Cap movies and fell in love with both of them and I can't wait till the third one comes out (the day before my birthday). Anyways so that prompted me to finally watch Agent Carter. I was going to watch it when it originally came out but I missed the first two episodes and then couldn't catch up cuz I couldn't find them anywhere. Finally I got my hands on the entire season and DEVOURED it. I finished it in about a day. I know I'm obsessed. Anyways, this show deals with a lot of things, sexism being one of them. Peggy is a badass but because she's a woman no one see's it. She's invisible and is treated like shit. To everyone at her job she's just another pretty face.

She proves herself time and time again but her sexist co-workers and boss refuse to see her as anything but what they painted her as. By the end of the season Peggy realizes that she has nothing to prove to anyone. She doesn't need validation from men who don't know better, who are ignorant, and quite frankly are stupid. She is above that. She doesn't need the whole world to know her name, she's happy knowing that she's saved countless people and will continue to do so. Even though the men in see her differently and treat her differently by the end of the season, they still act the same way. What I admire about Peggy is that she learned and accepted the fact that people are always going to treat her as inferior, but that will never change the fact that she is one badass, amazing, good, person. The people who see her negatively don't matter because their opinions are irrelevant she knows who she is and she done't need a medal to prove it.

I love Peggy. Peggy Carter is goals. We all live in a world where people share opinions, where people say what they think, where people disagree. Most people try and try to gain validation through other people's word that they forget that the person who has to live with it all is themselves. We often forget that the only opinion that matters is our own. We can't let other people's negativity, bigotry, or ignorance affect the way we view ourselves. So what someone doesn't like you, that doesn't make you any less awesome, it just makes them a judgmental person. This is why we need feminism. We need to fight in order to be viewed as equal. Just because some people don't see it that way doesn't change the fact that women know their value and know they deserve equality So fight against the need to make other people happy, or make them like you, or force them to see something they don't want to see. Don't waste your time trying to impress people who are just going to look the other way. You are worth more than that. You are badass, my friend. Don't let anyone's words change that.

Stay Gold,

Ten Tips For Writing Personal Statements

I'm no expert, I don't really know what i'm doing but I thought I would share some tips that have helped me while writing personal statements. And actually I have to credit the majority of this list to friend of my sisters who was helping me not to freak out whenever I brought this up. Hopefully you'll find some of these tips helpful and useful :)

1. Make a list of possible themes, topics, memories etc. This is a great starting point for you to expand on, or just have a general idea of how you want your essay to look like. 
2. Make t-charts. Now I don't mean outline the entire essay, but you totally can if you want to. What i've been doing is picking different topics I want to talk about and slowly expanding on them so that I have an array of things to talk about and mention. I like doing this because it provides structure and helps me get an idea of where I want to mention things and how I want to go about it. 
3. Have a cute notebook. Maybe this is just me but I love going shopping for school supply stuff so i'll jump at an opportunity to buy a notebook and pen. Plus it's a nice motivator to push you to write and plan.
4. Do: Word Dumps. One thing that has definitely helped me is just writing whatever it is I want to write about in that moment and just write. It might suck but at least you now have a starting point from which you can only grow. Plus it's nice to just say everything you can think of in one go because it allows you to have an idea of what this section might sound like. 
5. Set aside time everyday. Just spending 20 min a day writing or planning or just trying to figure out the prompts helps. This most important part of this essay is your voice. You have to find it and make sure it's infused in your essay. The second most important thing is revision. You need to dedicate time to get both of those things done.
6. Find a peer/teacher/person to help you edit. As I just mentioned in number five, revision is important and more often than not a fresh pair of eyes is helpful if not integral top this process.
7. Killer playlists. I swear music just makes things so much better. If your are frustrated you can take a five minute dance break, or maybe you can find a song that reminds you of a moment in your life. Or maybe it just stops you from wanting to throw everything you've written out the window.
8. Don't be afraid to be personal. Sometimes you need to share personal experiences to show people who you are. You don't have to share everything, but don't be afraid to share some personal things. It helps you seem like a real person and helps keep your voice stable and genuine.
9. Write this as if you were writing a story. This helps me become more invested in writing it and in turn makes my essay easier to read. Instead of it being a stiff boring essay, you can add life with metaphors and jokes and memories. You shouldn't lose the structure, you just need to make your voice shine when writing your essay.
10. Make every word count. Don't't just write something to write it, make sure every sentence helps show your voice and answer the prompts.
11. Just breath and remember that you are more than the words you write down. It can get pretty overwhelming trying to fit your life, your entire being into a word limit. So just breath and do your best and give yourself time to do your best. So just breath and if things don't work out one day, come back the next day with new ideas and fresh perspectives. It's important that even though this is such a long process, you just need to take it step by step.

So what are your tips or tricks for writing personal statements?

Creative Blogger Award

Currently I am listening to "Carry on My Wayward Son" by Kansas and its past midnight. I have to say I am so happy and grateful to be nominated for this award. I think it's awesome that people like what I do here on this blog so much that they think I deserve things like this. It's crazy and it's surprising. It's just a nice feeling knowing that there are people out there in the world who like what I do here. So without further ado I would like to thank Neriah from My Life In A Tab for the nomination :)

So the rules are:

1 | Post a link to the person who nominated you and give thanks.
2 | Share 5 facts about yourself.
3 | Nominate 10 other blogs and give links.
4 | Contact your nominees to inform them of their nomination.
5 | Provide the rules to your nominees.

So I am not a very interesting person. I spend most of my time working or on the internet. Mostly the second one. 

1. I am obsessed with Captain America/Agent Carter franchise at the moment. I love Steve and Peggy and Bucky (OMG I can't even) and Sam and Natasha, and Jarvis etc. Like I mean obsessed, it has taken over my fangirl tumblr (yes I have several tumblrs) and most aspects of my life. I also found out that Cap 3 comes out the day before my birthday and I'm so excited!!! It's kind of like an early birthday present.
2. I am a really bad swimmer. I can swim a bit but i'm not very good at it. yeah... I should work on that lol
3. I am a senior in high school. Which means I'm working on personal statements and brag sheets and SAT prep. It's all a bit bonkers but it'll be worth it once 2015 is over and I get accepted into college. 
4. I'm going to see Twenty One Pilots as well as Echosmith in October :) I'm so excited, like my fangirl emotions can barely contain themselves as I am writing this.
5. I am a feminist. I believe, like most decent people, that men and women should be treated as equals and the fact of the matter is that this society does not treat women as equals. 

Okay so here are my very awesome, very cool, totally kickass nominees

1. A Day In Bookland
2. Lissette's Labyrinth 
3. The Teenage Diary 
4. La Belle Siren
5. Cherries and Perfume 
6. Sarah Celebrates 
7. Books by Jay
8. Downright Dystopian 
9. The Thousand Lives
10. Katherade

Book Talk: A Little Something Different

Release Date: August 26, 2014
Book: A Little Something Different
Author: Sandy Hall
Number of Pages: 272
Source: Bookshop

The Basics:The creative writing teacher, the delivery guy, the local Starbucks baristas, his best friend, her roommate, and the squirrel in the park all have one thing in common—they believe that Gabe and Lea should get together. Lea and Gabe are in the same creative writing class. They get the same pop culture references, order the same Chinese food, and hang out in the same places. Unfortunately, Lea is reserved, Gabe has issues, and despite their initial mutual crush, it looks like they are never going to work things out. But somehow even when nothing is going on, something is happening between them, and everyone can see it. Their creative writing teacher pushes them together. The baristas at Starbucks watch their relationship like a TV show. Their bus driver tells his wife about them. The waitress at the diner automatically seats them together. Even the squirrel who lives on the college green believes in their relationship. Surely Gabe and Lea will figure out that they are meant to be together....

My Musings:

So I've heard nothing but good things about this book. I've heard that it was insanely cute. I was recently made fun of for saying that this book was so cute I could die of cuteness. I mean the amount of fluff and sheer cuteness is too much sometimes lol.

The whole idea of reading about a love story from outside viewpoints is so original and cool, that I was instantly invested in this. In some ways it's like reading a fanfic about your OTP and wanting desperately for them to end up together. The plot was great and even though it was slow moving (because the romance was slow moving) I was never bored. Frustrated, maybe,but I never wanted to put the book down! The writing was amazing as well. Due to the fact that the plot was entirely character driven, and the romance was a painfully slow development, the writing had to be good, and it was. It was funny, cute, deep, and different. I loved the mentions of ships and feels and fangirl vocab. Like I got some serious weird looks because I was laughing out loud in public areas, but trust me when you read this, you'll understand.

You don't really get to understand or delve into the minds of the different characters in the novel, but you do grow to like them, or in some cases tolerate them. Most of the characters save for maybe Hilary, are really relatable people that I would probably hang out with. I just really don't like Hilary, for more reasons than I care to rant about, but she just is so annoying and VAPID. I love all the different viewpoints. I think my favorite were Inga, their creative writing teacher, and Charlotte, the starbucks barista, oh and Victor, their classmate. It's nice to see people who are just part of day to day life learn to ship and root for two complete strangers, even if you don't like them.

Okay the root of this entire book is romance.As cute as this book is it's not that cheesy. There are so many unconventional things about Lea and Gabe that make their shy romance anything but icky cheese. I think being able to see them from outside P.O.V's is such an advantage because you get to see the characters in ways they would never see themselves. You get to see them and their feelings grow through unbiased and biased eyes. Plus these two are so cute that's it's just awesome to meet fellow shippers even if they are fictional people

Overall this is a great book and it's just so worth reading. It's a nice cute read that will definitely make you smile and laugh and fangirl.

My Rating:

Coffee for this Book: A Dirty Chai Latte, you will want coffee to finish this book and have energy to fangirl!

Waiting on Wednesday #7

Release Date: October 27, 2015
Book: These Shallow Graves
Author: *Fangirls* Jennifer Donnelly
Number of pages:496

The Basics:Set in gilded age New York, These Shallow Graves follows the story of Josephine Montfort, an American aristocrat. Jo lives a life of old-money ease. Not much is expected of her other than to look good and marry well. But when her father dies due to an accidental gunshot, the gilding on Jo’s world starts to tarnish. With the help of a handsome and brash reporter, and a young medical student who moonlights in the city morgue, Jo uncovers the truth behind her father’s death and learns that if you’re going to bury the past, you’d better bury it deep.

Add it on goodreads.

Why do I want to read it?

Okay I AM IN LOVE WITH JENNIFER DONNELLY'S WRITING. I fell in love with Revolution, it's such an amazing novel and I re-read it every year. It's a beautiful, heart wrenching, soul shattering story that is worth every tear you'll shed. This books sounds really good too. I love the idea of this being set in the gilded age and how it's about this ambitious girl with big dreams in a big city. The romance sounds cute too! I'm just so excited! I think that Ms. Donnelly's writing will be amazing and I'm sure the plot will be amazing and that at some point I will cry.

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine

What Are You Waiting On?