Tag Archives: Inspiration

It All Comes Back To Harry Potter

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For me, I owe a lot to Harry Potter.  It’s the one series I can read over and over, and never get tired of, it’s the example I use for so many things, and most of all, the very first thing Iwrote on my own, besides journal entries, was a Harry Potter fanfiction.

The fact that Harry Potter inspired me to start writing on my own is amazing!  Would I have started writing my own novels regardless?  Maybe, but it might have taken me a lot longer if it weren’t for Harry Potter.  Writing fanfiction gave me the confidence to come up with my own novels and commit to the the screen.  The more I write, the better I get at writing, but writing Harry Potter fanfiction let me write, and just focus on my writing.

Hogwarts is one of the very few places I can escape to when I need a break from the real world.  It’s comforting to know that Hogwarts is always there when I need it.  And if I ever have kids, Harry Potter is one of the stories I’m going to share with them.

Here’s a great video for everyone: It’s from the London Premiere of Deathly Hallows, Part 2, and it’s speeches from Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, and J.K. Rowling.  I started crying during Emma’s speech and completely starting bawling during J.K. Rowling’s speech.  Watch it now!  You know you want to!

Random Thoughts About The Harry Potter Series

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Since the last movie came out, a few things about the series have wandered their way into my head.  The movie review will come sometime this week, once I’ve seen the movie for a second time.  So, onto the things I’ve wondered.

  • Why didn’t Mrs. Weasley get a job?  Seriously, this randomly popped into my head over the weekeend.  The Weasley’s are known for being poor, and if money was such an issue, why didn’t Mrs. Weasley go to work?  I get that she has 7 kids to raise, and so it wouldn’t make a lot of sense for her to get a job, but once Ginny went off to Hogwarts, why not go to work?  It’s very odd, especially since she seems to be a stay-at-home mom.  Granted, it’s not a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but you really do have to wonder…
  • Getting a job as a teacher: How exactly does this work in the wizarding world?  It seems like a position for life- once you get a teaching position, it’s yours until you die or retire.  I’m curious as to how one would go about being a professor.  You clearly need to have a pretty decent knowledge of the subject you want to teach, but exactly how long do you need to study, say, transfiguration, before you can teach it?  Do you get a job where you use potions or charms or whatever on a regular basis, and then go into teaching?  This is really random, and something I can probably figure out myself, but still, I find it rather interesting.  As for substitute teaching, Snape did teach a DADA class during PoA, and Professor Grubbly-Plank filled in for Hagrid several times, so is there a pool of teachers they can choose from?  Calling in sick clearly isn’t an issue, since a lot of the problems can be solved by magic, but when it can’t, how do they know who to choose as a substitute? 
  • Speaking of school, we’ve only heard of a handful of other schools, the most notable being Beauxbatons and Durmstrang.  There’s a school in the U.S., and Bill wrote to a friend in Brazil, so there’s a school there, but it would seem like there aren’t very many wizarding schools.  It does make sense there aren’t many, as the wizarding population is a lot smaller than the muggle one.  I’d like to know more about the different wizarding schools, like how many are in Europe, and the differences between the different schools.
  • I’m also curious about the muggle-born students.  We know someone comes to speak to them and their families when they get their letter, and I would assume that the person sent to the muggle-born students would should them to Diagon Alley, explain the monetary system, and help them with their school supplies.  The thing I wonder about is the paper-trail.  It can be explained by their families as going away to boarding school, but are there records of their grades and such for the muggle world?  I don’t know why there would be, because why would a student want to go back to the muggle world after knowing about magic?  But if they were to be expelled and have their wand snapped, or sent back to the muggle world for whatever reason, how would they prove that they had an education?  Hogwarts doesn’t exist to most of Britain, so they’d have a tough time explaining transfiguration and potions to the muggles.

That’s all I managed to think of, but I know there’s a lot more that I forgot to mention!  I’m sure I’ll think of them later, so I may have to do another post on this.

Mixed Emotions, Part 2

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I just got back from seeing Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, Part 2.  Don’t worry, I won’t spoil anything for you!

It was amazing, and I loved it!  I’m also really glad I went at midnight, because that was pretty cool too.  When I got to the theater, the line was already wrapped around half the building!  It moved pretty quickly, but for about an hour or so, I was stuck in the same spot.  But then it started moving again, and I got into the theater about 10 minutes or so before midnight.  I had just enough time to go to the bathroom, and get some snacks, and settled into my seat. 

I went as Hermione, because that was the only costume I could pull off easily, especially as a DIY, last minute costume.  I had a red cloak (it wasn’t black, but it worked), a black witches hat (which has sparkly cobwebs all over it), a black skirt, and a pink top.  Plus black flats.  It’s not a school uniform or anything, but it was something I could see Hermione wearing, so I went with it.  Plus, I carried a bookbag and wore a time turner I had. 

Me, In My Costume!

 So, looking at that picture, it’s slightly more Luna than Hermione.  But whatever, I dressed up and it was awesome!  When I got to the theater, I didn’t see anyone dressed up in costume!  I thought a lot more people would have been dressed up, but then I realized that my costumed bretheren probably got there a lot earlier than I did.  Later on, I did see a few kids dressed up in costume, plus a few scarves, so I felt better about dressing up.  Not that I cared in the first place, because I was in costume, and I enjoyed it!

I did love the movie, and it was so fitting.  There were a lot of great moments during the movie: I laughed, I cried, I cheered, and there were some very moving scenes.  It was really well done, and a great send-off for such an amazing series.  I can’t say how much I love the series, and it was very bittersweet.  It still hasn’t sunk in yet, not completely anyway.  I know there are always the books, and the movies too.  And we can’t forget about Pottermore! 

I am so glad that I got to travel to Hogwarts with Harry, and have so many adventures with him, Ron and Hermione. 

But most importantly…

To J.K. Rowling: I know you will never read this, but thank so much for writing about Harry and sharing his story with the world.

Is It Over Yet?

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Yesterday, I was surprised that I managed to hit my 1667 goal.  We’re definitely in week 2, and I didn’t even need to look at the calendar or anything, because I have no idea what to do next.  I’ll go into my old standby of winging it…which I have been doing anyway, so I’m not sure what good that’ll do. 

Yesterday was such a weird day.  I felt really tired, because I’m not sleeping very well, and yesterday was a “curl up in bed and watch tv day.”  I was hoping writing would distract me, but sadly, it really didn’t. 

I’m at 20,155, so I’ll be at the halfway point this week!  Hopefully everything will be easy sailing after that.  I have to say, it’s turning out to be a lot different than I was expecting.  It’s focusing more on the micro-chip and what’s on it, and why it was in Levin’s arm, as opposed to who the mole is.  I still need to think about my ideas on what’s going to happen, but that can come later.  When, I don’t actually know, but I might get to it at some point. 

According to the Camp NaNo stats, I’m on pace to finish July 29!  It’s weird, because usually I tend to finish the last day, but it would be nice to be done several days early for once. 

Hopefully I get something done today, and things will pick up again.

Not Much Was Done Yesterday

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Yesterday turned out to be…not very productive.  I did get some writing in, but not a lot.  It’s okay, though, because this is fun, and there are going to be ups and downs.

Still, I am having fun with it, and things are starting to fall into place.  I’m not as stressed out about it as I was last week, but that was a fun kind of stress, the kind that goes along with starting something new, and if it’ll work out okay. 

My current wordcount is 19,185 words, which means I just need to write 819 today.  Who knows, maybe I’ll get on a roll, and write a lot more than I need to?  I definitely try to write as much as I can, but at the same time, sometimes I just need to stop at an earlier point.  I’ve been reassessing at different points- once at 667, then at 834, and again at 1000.  If I decide to keep writing, good, but if I don’t, then at least I wrote something. 

For me, it’s not just about reaching a number: it’s about the actual writing, and telling the stories that I have in my head.  There are so many stories to be told, not just by me, but by others as well.  And if I can get that idea onto paper, then I accomplished what I set out to do.

Fact, Fiction and Folklore In Harry Potter’s World

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Book: Fact, Fiction and Folklore in Harry Potter’s World by George Beahm

Pages and Length: 256/Paperback

What I Thought: The book goes into detail about the different people and myths found throughout the Harry Potter series.  It’s basically the story behind the story, and I found it to be really interesting. 

It’s divided into 4 different sections- the fabulous beasts, famous wizards, magical objects and magical places.  I thought it was organized really well, and how connected a lot of the places and things and people were to different myths, legends, and history.  Each entry ranged from a few sentences to a page or two, and I was amazed at the different events and people and myths that she worked into the series. 

I knew that she drew on different myths and stuff, but to see how much she really drew from that was completely amazing, and made me love the series even more.  The thought she put into it was something I didn’t fully realize until this book.  And I would recommend to everyone, not just Harry Potter fans, because of that.

I also liked the different quotes from J.K. Rowling scattered throughout the book, and it shed some light on the series as well.  One of the quotes was about how she saw a big fluffy ginger cat in London in the late ’80’s that looked like it ran face-first into a wall.  This cat would later become Hermione’s cat, Crookshanks. 

Rating: 4 out of 5.  I felt like some entry’s were way to short, and others went a little longer than they should have, but overall, it was a great book.

Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone

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Book: Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling

Pages And Format: 309, Paperback

My Thoughts: This was the book that started my obsession love with Harry Potter.  In The Sorcerer’s Stone (aka Philospher’s Stone everywhere else in the world), Harry Potter turns eleven, and learns he’s a wizard.  He goes to Diagon Alley, and travels to Hogwarts on the Hogwarts Express. 

For a debut book, it’s really good!  Plus, we get introduced to a lot of the major characters, life at Hogwarts and Quidditch.  My love of the Weasley twins definitely started when they joked about sending a toilet seat back home, and I love that they’re so funny! 

Every time I read Sorcerer’s Stone, I’m reminded of how magical the books are, and what made me fall in love with them.  At random intervals, I imagine one of the actors saying one of the lines.  And what’s weird is that I don’t really imagine the people and places from the movies when I read the books.  Maybe it’s because I became a fan after the 1st movie came out, and so I had plenty of time to read the first 4 books before the 2nd one came out. 

Rating: 4 out of 5.  Not the best thing ever, but for a debut book, and for the book that changed my life, it’s really good.  Harry Potter will always be a part of my life.

Word Can Be Very Evil!

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Microsoft Word is evil!  Evil, I tell you!  Yesterday morning, I managed to write 800 words so, saved it on my flash drive, and when I went back to work on it later…the document was corrupted!  It was really frustrating, but thankfully I backed up my novel to dropbox after I finished writing yesterday, so I only lost 800 words.  I think I managed to cover most of what I wrote in the morning, and I’m pretty sure I forgot to throw in a few things.   Besides, I got the important stuff back in there, so I think I’m good to go! 

Let this be a lesson: always back up your work, because you never know when you might need that back-up copy.  I’m definitely going to keep a text file saved, just in case.  I’m pretty good about backing up my work, because if I ever lost any copies of my novels, I’d be so sad!  And honestly, it worked out a lot better, because I got to expand on a couple of pretty important things.  The re-write pretty much doubled what had I written in the morning, so that was awesome!  Plus, I liked this version a lot better than the one I previously wrote.

I was on such a roll that I’m almost completely caught up!  I’m glad because I can worry a little about getting to where I need to be.  It is weird writing one novel, because it’s been a while since I’ve worked on one novel.  It is a lot more relaxing, but at the same time, I really like having more than one thing to work on, which I do…it’s definitely interesting though.

So, my word count is 6412, which means that I just need to write an extra 256 words.  So I should be able to catch up today, which makes me happy.

Day Two Of Camp NaNo!

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Camp NaNo started yesterday!  I’ve been waiting and waiting for it, and now it’s arrived!  For anyone who’s not familiar with it, it’s NaNo…year-round.  It’s great for people who can’t/don’t want to do NaNo in November or for people who want to do more than one novel in a year.  While I’m a big fan of multiple novels going at one time, I know it’s not for everyone, so it’s a good way to get all of those ideas out.  Plus, last year, I learned that 2 50k novels is the most I’m willing to do, so it’s perfect for me!.  This month, I’m doing an NCIS fanfiction, and it’s based off of the season finale.  The timing of Camp NaNo is perfect, because I’m hoping to have this thing (mostly) written by the time the season 9 premiere rolls around in mid-September.  I think it’ll also be a good test run for NaNo, because this month, I’m planning to keep up with my other novels while writting a 50k novel.  I’m not sure how completed they’ll be by November, but at least one should be done, maybe 2 or 3 if I’m lucky.  Anyway, it’ll be good to see how it works out.

It’s off to a really slow start, and my own theories about what’s going on aren’t thought out at all, so I’m winging it.  I’ll definitely have to write those down as soon as possible.  I’m not sure if it’ll reach 50k, but I’m going to try!  And if I have to word-pad, I will.  Since I didn’t do any planning, I am having some trouble with it, so once I come up with my own theories, it’ll (hopefully) get easier.  I think part of it is because I’m so used to doing Harry Potter fanfiction, and it’s a lot easier to reference Harry Potter than it is to reference NCIS.  I’ve seen bits and pieces of the first 7 seasons, and only the second half of season 8, so I’m not completely caught up on it yet.  I feel like I have a good handle on the characters, but still, I feel like I’m missing a few things.  There is this fan wiki site which looks like it’ll be really useful, and I’ll probably refer to it quite often this month.  I’ve already learned something: if you’re doing a fanfic based on your theories on what might happen in the next season, it’s a really good idea to write them down before you starting writing the actual fanfic!  Since it’s only day 2, it shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

It’s strange to novel in a non-November month, but it’ll be a good way to narrow down the field for November.  My last (and only) attempt at doing a novel that’s not during NaNo failed- I did get 10,000 words or so, so it wasn’t a complete loss.  I definitely got into the mindset that November=writing, but I’m slowly trying to change that, so maybe I’ll get farther along in noveling the rest of the year.  I can do it!

So, yesterday, I wrote 1746, which was rather surprising, considering how much I didn’t want to write.  I struggled with the first 800-ish words, and after that it got slightly easier.  Maybe today will go better.

Food Update Plus Harry Potter!

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I didn’t cook nearly as much as I had hoped, but at least I made a couple things.

Brown Butter Blondies

I made Brown Butter Blondies, which I found over at My Baking Addiction.  They were pretty good, although I’m not the biggest fan of butterscotch.  It was also my first time making blondies, and I’m definitely making them again.  I don’t know if I’ll use this particular again soon, although I probably will just to get rid of the butterscotch chips.

Rotini With Salsa Di Limone

I also made Rotini with Salsa di Limone, which I found over at the food network.  I didn’t have any tomatoes, so I opted not to use them, but it still came out yummy.  I guess you can’t really call it Salsa di Limone, since there’s no tomatoes in it, but the oil and the cheese and the lemon made it yummy!  After spending some time recently watching the food network, I’ve decided that I like Giada.  I checked out a couple of her books from the library, and I’ll probably review those in the next few weeks.

And of course, I have to talk about Harry Potter!  I finally got my tickets for it- I had a slight change in plans for it though.  I was going to go with friends, but I waited too long to get tickets at the theater we were going to, so they sold out.  😦  But I still want to go at midnight, since it’s the last Harry Potter movie ever, and if there’s a good time to see a midnight movie for the first time, it’s going to be for Harry Potter!  So I’m going with my mom instead.  I’ll try and get some pictures.  At the very least, I’ll bribe my mom with cookies or something to get her to take a picture of me, because I’ll be going in costume!  I’m super excited!  So excited, in fact, that I may see it twice, which is something I so rarely do.