Monday, September 26, 2022

Journal of a Tired Indie Writer ~ Pt. 1

 

Journal of a Tired Indie Writer ~ Pt. 1


Welcome to my black hole website/blog/rant sessions, you must be new here. Don't worry, so am I.

These ''journal of a tired indie writer'' blog posts are going to be just some of the kinds of posts I put out. They're going to be a kind of venting with coffee session for me, but advice and tips for others that are at any stage of any kind of writing.

They also will be humiliating for me because I'm not going to sugarcoat or hide any of it.

I have always been big on honesty so these blog posts/journal entries will be full of all kinds of embarrassing mistakes I make at all points of the writing process, but hopefully they can help encourage other writers or just make someone laugh today.

 

Welcome to my chaos as an author and my coffee ramble-- toast! *lifts mug for lonely cheer*

 

                                                            ☕️☕️☕️

 

 The Actual Writing & The Procrastinating

11:14pm | A Saturday we're not naming

 

    Ironically for a person that likes honesty so much, it's very hard to be so honest to myself. Last night I told myself firmly I would wake up early to write and have plenty of time before going to work at my full-time job later the next day.

Journal, yours truly, is an idiot that lied to herself.

I did wake up early technically.

Only to take one look at the time and dive back under the cover (it was only 5:45 am at this point, and is nothing considering I'm usually a morning person), convincing my sleep-loving brain that I would only sleep for twenty more minutes or so.

I did not get up twenty minutes later, journal.

And now, as I type this up once I've gotten back home after a long shift at work (with my blessed Garfield mug of coffee).... I've decided to just start being brutally honest with myself about my horrible writing and procrastinating habits.

 

*Pause to sip coffee*

 

I have made a bullet list below just for me and you journal, pls pls don't share 👀:

 

  • You will NOT wake up early to write, while in the past you've done this maybe a total of three times successfully, your a lazy panda that doesn't like to move from the warm soft cocoon you sleep in. You're a night owl, so deal with it and adjust. 

 

  •  You are not a writer that makes plans and goals well and can stick to them. You don't even average your time actually writing very well....ooh look another character board we can make on Pinterest!!

 

  • Progress-wise....you actually end up just stress-crying as you rush to get everything done last minute because you procrastinated so much. That's it. That's your process.

 

  • You will *not* remember that crucial idea or plot line when you get out of the shower or when you wake up in the morning, get out now- and WRITE THAT **** DOWN!!

 

  • If you ever try to write without coffee again, you will know what torture truly is.

 

  • And finally, stop trying to make all the characters and plot lines do what you want and fit how you planned. It's a draft that lets everything flow as you write it- you can go back in the next draft and make sure everything goes right with an outline, but that's not for right now.

 

  • You idiot, you already knew all this.

 

*quietly sobbing into a mug of coffee*

    And to think if I'd been so honest with myself about my writing habits and procrastinating...maybe....no. Not even then. Those nights crying on the kitchen floor surrounded by half-eaten twinkies and discarded pieces of paper definitely would've still happened. (I glance to my left at the draft, sticky notes, and twinkie remains in the kitchen.)

Pugsley & Noel stare-down

 Yeah.... let's pause here for now journal dear, I'll be back to tell you more of my disasters and mistakes soon!!


Lot of love!!
NoelW

Friday, September 23, 2022

Loving Rosenfeld by Leighann Hart | Coffee & Cigarettes...

                              


                GoodreadsAmazon | Author's Website

 

   The Blurb:    It's four minutes to closing time at The Roast, and all Peter Rosenfeld wants is a steaming cappuccino as he rushes off to an assignment. But they've closed early.


So, he does what any level-headed, mature adult would do: pounds on the windows and demands his caffeine fix.
 He boycotts the shop upon their refusal to serve him, but returns weeks later and meets Ryleigh, the gorgeous new barista who bore witness to his childish outburst. And while Peter's initial interest only lies in her cappuccino-making skills, her wit and charm soon have him reeling—but she’s young. Too young. A freshman in college.
Or so she says.
Ryleigh has him convinced of it until an article runs in his newspaper and reveals her not so innocent lie: she's a senior in high school.
Her age, and the ghost of a failed relationship, give him sufficient reason to shy away from their peculiar but undeniably budding involvement.
Despite knowing she's moving out of state for college in the fall, Ryleigh is insistent on having him in her life. As that deadline approaches, Peter questions everything he believes—and what it would mean to go against it.

                                ~            ~            ~            ~

This wasn't the typical romance book I tend to pick up, but um excuse me-- coffee shop romance?? I'm there.
I am usually super duper picky with my romance, alright? I like it served a certain way (no instant love) and I also have to be in the mood to read most of the tropes or honestly a book that doesn't have dragons or wizards at all.
It's gotta lot to carry for me.

However, when I AM in a romance novel mood I have certain keywords that will have me pick the book up in an instant and ''coffee shop romance'' is definitely at the top of the list!



 
 I will say that while I did like the two leads, I was a little put off by the age-gap. BUT it's literally an age-gap romance, so I'm in no way using that to mark down against the book.



It delivers that and is no doubt going to be a favorite read for those that enjoy that trope. I'm not the biggest fan of that specific trope but that's personal opinion.



Aside from the age-gap, Peter Rosenfeld was my favorite piece of this story-- it's funny how much I'm like him to the point where a friend was laughing with me and saying ''I was reading, and all I could picture was you!''. 
Brutally honest, addicted to coffee, and great music taste- yep loved him! (Personally I believe my music taste my be just slightly better though.)


 

The story and plot developed nicely and I rather enjoyed the ride. The story is meant to continue and be a duet, and I can't wait to see what Hart does with the sequel! *cue heart eyes*

 Hart has now made sure that I'm constantly craving a good cappuccino now with this book. In fact, I ended up finishing it at a Starbucks with a caramel cappuccino in hand haha!





                                    [My Rating:  ☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️]

 
 
Have you heard of this author or this book?? If you've read it, what were your thoughts??
Do you enjoy coffee shop romances too, or any other tropes?


Please share your own rambles below!!


Happy coffee sips!
NoelW