Top 10 Most Popular Posts on This Blog 2012 (Sorta)

Happy Friday, everyone! I'm glad we're all alive.

Thanks to something I stumbled on via Google+, I was able to compile a list via Google Analytics based on number of pageviews. Unfortunately, it isn't an entirely accurate list, since I only installed the code on my blog at the beginning of July, but it's a good reflection on what happened during the last six months of 2012.

Besides, the Blogger stats are broken.

Seriously. Don't rely on those. Use Google Analytics instead for the true numbers.

Drumroll please..

The Jelly Bean Crisis [Tour & Book Blast]

Hey, this will be the second of two book blasts I'll be a part of this month.

This time, it's an actual YA book. Unlike yesterday's post, there won't be an guest post by the author.

The people in charge are giving away a $100 Amazon gift card.

So go at it.

But first, this post is sponsored by...

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For What It's Worth Blog Tour: How a Cake Inspired a Novel [Guest Post]

Hover over this picture.

Remember the giveaway from Last Wednesday?

Well, the event wasn't over then. As apart of the blog tour, I'm bringing in a guest post. Technically  it won't be my first guest post (by any definition), but I personally think it's a tasty contrast from the rest of this blog.

See what I did there?

Now, give a welcome to Karey White.

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"How a Cake Inspired a Novel"

by Karey White

This Blog Is Going into Semi-Haitus...Again

With 2012 closing down and the end of the world looming, I've decided to enforce another semi-hiatus, like the one earlier in the year.

What does this mean?

• Monday posts, Dogtown Weekly, and yMusic will not be posted for the rest of 2012.
• Other posts, like tomorrow's guest post and another book blast, will still be posted.

Why am I calling this semi-hiatus?

• To focus on studying for finals.
• To focus on writing actual fiction.
• To focus on writing a better quality line-up of blog posts for January 2013.

I hope you don't mind, and I hope you understand.

Hopefully, 2013 will be this blog's year, and it will be a year that a community is formed, unlike the feeble attempt I tried earlier.

Happy holidays!

PS: What do you think of the differently styled subheadings?

Dogtown Weekly: School Shenanigans

Weekly Round-up: 12/7/12

• While I'm obsessed with hyphens.
• Try associating characters with more abstract or concrete concepts.
• Here's a checklist for a NaNoWriMo project.
• You can write like Hallmark with this simple formula.
• You can also tackle NaNoWriMo the Janice Hardy way.
• You are great. Now, write that somewhere.
• Need to make an unlikable character likable? Flip those flaws!
• Lastly, a great guide on creating to-do lists. I should try out a few of these.
• Some convient situations need some thinking about to optimize their plausibility and effectiveness.
• Try using the "Bowflex Method" to get a lot done in thirty minutes.
• Mask poems seem like a great way to get into your character's skin. Not literally--hopefully. Buffalo Bill nauseates me.
• The Hobbit takes the helm--in terms of writing lessons.
• Don't worry! I'll stop talking about NaNoWriMo...soon.
• Lastly, words of wisdom from Roni Loren.

(Yes, I'm still messing with the format. Comment on your preference.)

Last-Minute Update!

Google+ have added communities, and I've created one: Young Adult Lit and Writing.

Even if you're not a friend of YA, I suggest checking it out. It was just formed last night, but I'll be happy to see any fellow writers on Google+ taking apart in organized discussion.

Writer's Update: The School Filter

Something bad happened in the school district.

I can't go into detail, because everything I heard about the incident is second-hand. Let's just say that it's newsworthy, if the teachers are right.

Regardless of nature, this led the tech department to crackdown on a few website and bulk up the school filter. The results?

A Quick Word on Story Cartel

This post will be quick to the point. No padding, no redundant concluding sentences.

Right now, I'm reading a YA novel, Roxy by PJ Reece, for the price of reviewing it.

It's not a new concept. In fact, I first became familiar with reviewing ebooks for free with Grasping at Eternity. However, I didn't receive Roxy directly from the author.

Instead, I received it via a brand-new review website that I joined during the day, if not the hour, of its launch. That site is called Story Cartel.

For What It's Worth Tour and Book Blast!

Take a slice.

Today, I'm hosting a different kind of giveaway.

Instead of being apart of a blog hop or being a solo endeavour it's one Rafflecopter form on multiple blogs, for the purpose of "blasting" For What It's Worth by Karey White into the book blogosphere.

It's hosted by I Am a Reader, Not a Writer.

Although the odds are low, a $50 Amazon Gift Card is in stake here. That'll be great for Christmas shopping.

Before we get to that though, let me give a...taste of the lucky novel being highlighted here today.

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For What It's Worth by Karey White

Twenty-four-year-old Abby Benson has dreams of owning her own wedding cake shop. An inheritance from her aunt gives her the ability to make those dreams come true. She hires Dane, a handsome contractor, to help her get the bakery up and running and soon they’re moving toward their own happy ending.
Unsure what to charge for her cakes, Abby has a crazy idea to let the customer decide what they think their cake is worth. This plan has its ups and downs, but the novelty of the idea makes her a local celebrity. When she is interviewed on television about the unusual idea, business booms and Abby has cake adventures she never dreamed possible. But as her fame grows, Abby is swept up in a whirlwind that threatens everything she values. With the challenges that face her, will she be able to determine what is worth the most?

Although clean adult romance is usually not my genre, the premise of this particular novel stuck out to me.

PURCHASE AT: Amazon or Barnes & Noble

Book Blast Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Open to anyone who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent's permission. The winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

One More Thing

Don't forget to return on the 11th for a guest post from the author! Also, check out the other blogs a part of this event.


YOUR TURN: Does this novel sound interesting to you? Would you buy it?

NaNoWriMo: Reflection

Here! Take this.

I passed 50,000 words one and a half hours before midnight November 30th. It felt underwhelming, because at that point, I had written myself into a hole and was ready to bail the draft.

Yep. It was a little hard, but I made it. I wrote more than I wrote in six months, if not more. It's proof that I can get my game up and stick with a goal, even if the means are less than glamorous.

With it being December now, it's time to dissect my adventure and analyze what I can take from it.