A Boy In The Girls' Bathroom (Re-Post)

I'm going through old blog posts from the archives and have decided to re-post a few. Here is one from 2010: A few weeks ago, I subbed for an elementary school art teacher who had a kindergarten class at the end of the day. For those of you who teach or sub, you probably know that kindergarten can be adorable and fun... but they can also be exhausting and difficult. I had one boy in particular who made my day a bit challenging. We'll call him David. My initial impression of David was that he was a sweet little five-year-old, eager to please. He handed me a folded piece of paper that read, "I Love You." Awww, right?...

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"That's Not Who I Am"

If you're a writer, you know your characters. You know their background, what they like and dislike, and how they'd act in certain situations. It's like they're, well, real. (Some writers may insist their characters ARE real, in fact.) But just like getting to know a person in real life, this takes time. And every writer's process is different. I usually start out with a very basic personality type (I ask questions like, is he/she extroverted or introverted? More left-brained or right-brained? Spontaneous or a planner?) Then as I get to know the character from the inside, his/her physical description pops into my head....

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It's Here -- The Brand New ShelleySly.com!

In my last post, I said changes were coming, and here are (most of) the changes! I know it might seem a little too forward of me to have a domain name when I'm not published yet or about to be published soon. But I'm kind of a techy girl and I'd always wanted one ever since creating my first website at age 13. So here it is, ShelleySly.com! I'm not exactly married to the color scheme I chose, so that might change over the next few weeks/months. But I do like the link slider on the main blog page. If you haven't seen it yet (I forget if it shows up on individual blog post pages), check it out here. I didn't write that code...

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Under Construction

Over the next few weeks, I'll be making some changes around here, so I won't be writing any regular posts. This blog is getting a new look and will hopefully serve as my author website, complete with a shiny domain name. (*insert "oohs" and "ahs" here*) It's a time-consuming process full of lovely HTML and CSS. Let's hope I can balance it all with my other work and get it finished somewhat soon. See you guys when it's done! Hope you're all doing well, and for those who are about to participate in NaNoWriMo, good luck to yo...

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If You're A Creative Person, Consider Yourself Lucky

I don't like to be a downer on the internet. I know I sometimes share unfortunate news on here and on Twitter, but for the most part, I try to stay somewhat positive. I'll be honest, though -- the past couple of months, I've gone through some tough times. (But I've had quite a number of good times too, actually.) One of the best ways I've dealt with it all has been through creativity. Creative people are lucky. When we hit a rough patch, we can look around us and take pieces of what we see and feel, and use those pieces in our creations....

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THOSE WHO TRESPASS Paperback Release & Interview!

Today's a happy, happy day, folks! It's the paperback release of THOSE WHO TRESPASS by Melody Valadez! The e-book released on 8/27, and I've read it and totally adore it! If you like realistic, flawed characters, suspense and plot twists that make you gasp, and an adorably fun romance, you will love this book! Here's the cover: Awesome, isn't it? And here's the premise: Seventeen-year-old Jenn Alistor is a murderer. For months, she and her brother, Jake, have stayed one step ahead of the FBI. Now Jake is missing, maybe even kidnapped,...

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Happy Release Day to A MISSING PEACE by Beth Fred!

I'm a couple of days late, since the official release was on Sunday (but I tweeted about it, if you follow me. If you don't follow me, I'm @ShellSly.) Beth is hosting a Twitter release party for her YA novel, A MISSING PEACE, at 9PM EST. There will be a $10 gift card up for grabs, so don't miss it! Follow the hashtag #AMISSINGPEACE. Here's some more about the book: A turbulent, emotionally charged YA novel that breaks down barriers and challenges the status quo... Angry, seventeen-year-old Iraqi war refugee Mirriam Yohanna hates...

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What's Right For You

Ah, writer friends... I'm so lucky to have gotten to know so many of you over the last few years, through both Blogger and Twitter. I've read lots of your books, and those I haven't read are on my To-Read list. And you know what I've learned? (Besides that you're all lovely people and can write fabulous books?) You're all different. And that's good. This past week, I was pondering the big question of, "Which publishing route is best for me?" and was satisfied with the conclusion that there really is no right way to publish. Just ways that are better or worse for you, personally. Then I thought about ALLLL the books I've...

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Birthday Thoughts

Today I'm another year older, and I have some time on my hands, since my birthday falls on a Monday this year and Monday birthdays are kind of awkward. I just thought I'd reflect on the things that have changed in the past year. Health Changes: I reached my sickest point right before last year's birthday. So, this past year has been all about recovering from that. All in all, I'd say I made a few steps forward in the general "getting well" area. I changed doctors, twice. I finally found someone who really gets my migraines and pays attention to how I respond to treatments, instead of just throwing pills at me. I finally...

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The Monster Under My Bed

Last night, there was a monster under my bed. Actually, it was a large centipede. (I know not all of my followers have house centipedes in their region. Please, I encourage you, take the time to Google them. Now imagine one is under your bed.) The centipede had been on the ceiling, but dropped to the floor, raced across the room (to the amusement of the cat, who, by the way, is FIRED from bug-catching duties), and ultimately hid under my bed. We have boxes and junk under the bed. There was no way we'd find it. So I slept on the couch last night. And by slept, I mean tossed and turned and thought about centipedes. Prior...

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What Is (And Isn't) New

Ah, looks like it's blogging time again, friends. I know, I take lengthy and unpredictable breaks here and there. I thought I'd write a "catch up" post, to let y'all know what's been going on, and then in the comments, I'd like to hear what's new with you. What's New: - As you can tell, I'm not doing the A to Z Challenge this year. Boo. I had a blast with it last year, between the challenge of coming up with posts and the excitement of meeting all new friends and reading their letter posts. I've been around to a few A to Z participants this month, and I like what I'm reading. - I've finished the fourth draft of my latest...

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Simple Fixes

Happy spring! I think... (I'm still wearing more layers than I should be right now, so I'm not sure this is spring OR happy.) What I do know is, it's the season for lots of writing and revising. Well, it is for me, though from what I've read of my followers' tweets and blog posts, it sounds like many of you are spending much time in The Cave, too. The thing about dwelling in The Cave is that sometimes I feel like I'm never going to see the light of day again. I'm finding myself stuck on one petty thing after another. Sometimes it's an enormous plot issue (like that entire chapter I need to rewrite) or just a matter of,...

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How In The World Can I Do This?

Surprise, surprise: I landed myself in the ER two weeks ago (right before a major trip out of town) and kicked everything writing-related to the side while I recovered. Those of you who have been following along for a while know that I'm chronically ill. I have debilitating migraines that tend to come in waves. I can go several days feeling well, but then I have a string of can't-even-move days. It's unpredictable. I know I talk about my health a lot, both on here and on Twitter, but the truth is that right now, the rest of my life is on pause while my body gets its act together. I quit my job a year ago. I write and edit...

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