Time To Work On My Short Story

Hey guys,
  I hope everyone had a great weekend. Mine was better than expected. Sorry for not posting on Friday, I was feeling extremely lazy. (I know, it's not a good excuse). I hate to do this to you guys but I'm taking a break from my blog this week to work on some other writing I'm doing. I'll be sure to share some of it with you next week. I'm off to go work on my short story. Have a great week everyone!

                        Sincerely,
                                        Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

It's Not An Obsession, It's A Lifestyle

Hi guys,
  I hope you're all having a great day. I've spent the day reading and relaxing. I finally made a trip to the library on Monday so I'm all stocked up on books. If there's going to be another snowstorm like they're predicting for Sunday then I definitely want to have plenty of books to read. (Although I would rather just have spring weather right now).
  Everyone obviously knows I'm a huge bookworm and one of the things bookworms do best is collect books. I'm no different from any other bookworms in this aspect. I buy books anywhere: online, bookstores, and basically any place they're available. This doesn't mean I buy just any books though. Years of buying books and reading have taught me to pick and choose which books I really want to own.

  I've learned which books I would rather just borrow from a friend or check out from the library and I've learned which books I absolutely have to own. The past few years I've begun getting rid of many of my teen novels. This is not because I don't enjoy them but because I don't like them enough to re-read them. I still read many teen novels but I don't see the need to own them if I don't feel the absolute need to buy them. I've kept a select few teen books that I love and want to share with my niece (or my own children) someday. I also have some children's books I've kept because I can't possibly get rid of every book from my childhood.
  I now own more adult novels and non-fiction books than teen/children's books. These include poetry collections, dictionaries (I'm not talking about regular dictionaries though), travel guides, history books, fictional books, and lots of classic novels. Among these are books I've acquired from my grandma and books given to me as gifts. What I really want to explain though is my method for buying books, because I don't just buy any book I think sounds good.

  I read so often that I'm never without a book and I constantly look for new books. The decision to buy a book is really quite simple for me. I buy a lot of books that I've already read but fell in love with and absolutely need to own them. Most of these are series or books by my favorite authors. These include the Outlander series, the Harry Potter series (or anything by J.K. Rowling), Dan Brown books, the All Souls Trilogy, classic novels (ones I've read and haven't read), J.R.R. Tolkien books, the Song of Ice and Fire series, and a lot of Shakespeare.
  Those are books I usually have to buy new because I want them to be in pristine condition when I get them. However, there are many books that I buy from Half-Price Books. There are so many great books I've randomly found there by looking through the clearance section. I also peruse the history section every time just in case I come across a book on a subject that interests me. While there are a lot of books I want to buy new there are some I don't mind buying used and Half-Price is where I always go for these.

  If you think this sounds like too much thought to put into buying books just try being a bookworm. If I didn't have rules for buying books I would buy everything in sight (no, really, if I had the money I really would). I will only say this once but book collecting is not an obsession, it's a lifestyle. To collect books you have to be dedicated and you have to want books more than other things you could be buying.
  I'd ideally like to have enough money someday to be able to buy first editions and other special books. Nothing is better than an old book with history, and I love imagining who could have owned it before. While I'm writing this I'm thinking it's time for another trip to Half-Price with my best friend. We find the best books when we're there together. Well, I'm off to eat a snack. Have a great day everyone! Thanks for reading!
                               Sincerely,
                                               Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

Why Read Just One Book?

Hi guys,
  It's Wednesday, Happy Hump Day! I hope everyone is having a good week so far. My week is going well despite a few things that are upsetting me. After yesterday's post about the Voynich manuscript I'm  back to talking about books. To be exact, the subject of reading more than one book at once.
  I have been known to read multiple books at once almost all the time. I've been doing this since the third grade so it's nothing new. When I was in school I had to read multiple books at once because I usually had a book or two for class and a book or two at home for my own pleasure. If you think that sounds hard to deal with, you're wrong. I have a knack for remembering the plotline for each book I'm reading, and I have the ability to come back to a book months later and remember exactly where I left off.

  I'm not sure if this is a common talent among readers but I've never questioned my ability to read multiple books at once. All throughout school I had the excuse that I didn't just want to read books I was assigned but also books I chose for my own enjoyment. Right now I'm not in school so what's my excuse? Technically I have no real reason for still reading multiple books at once but I just can't help myself.
  I finally figured out the reason I continue to do this. I have this strong desire to read every book I can. If I could I would read every book at once. (If I had photographic memory maybe this would work). Not a day has gone by when I'm not thinking of the next book I want to read. I have at least 4 different to-read lists yet I still search for new books to read. It is most certainly an obsession, and one I'm not willing to give up.

  If I didn't have books to fill my time I'm sure I would find other things to do but it wouldn't be the same. Maybe that's another reason I continue to read multiple books at once. I can't imagine doing anything else with my free time. Now I'm off to go read 1 of the 3 books I'm currently reading, and who knows, maybe I'll even pick a 4th book to read.
  Have a great day everyone! Thanks for reading!
                            Sincerely,
                                            Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

The Mysterious Voynich Manuscript

Hi guys,

  I hope you all had a great start to your week yesterday. I spent a lovely afternoon playing with my niece. I absolutely love seeing her imagination at work, the mind of a child is amazing. I also did some brainstorming to come up with new ideas for posts. I have some great posts planned for the rest of the week. 

  Recently I stumbled across a television show on the Travel Channel called Castle Secrets and Legends. I love history so I knew I would love learning the history of famous castles. I've visited a few castles in my life (Edinburgh Castle and Sterling Castle in Scotland) but that hasn't lessened my interest in them. 

  One of the castles mentioned is the Villa Mondragone in Italy. Now, Italy itelf has many beautiful castles. This castle is special because it's where the famous Voynich Manuscript was discovered. In 1912 book dealer Wilfrid Voynich stumbled across the manuscript while looking for books to add to his collection. He was known to have many books that no one had ever heard of so adding the mysterious manuscript to his collection made sense. 

  Voynich believed the manuscript must have been written in the 14th century by scientist Francis Bacon (I'm not completely sure about this so you may want to look it up). He also believed it held the secret to eternal life, or the formula for the philosopher's stone. Thanks to carbon dating it was discovered that the manusript dates to the 15th century, making it 600 years old. It may have been written in Northern Italy during the Italian Renassaince. 

  The manuscript is an illustrated codex that contains over 170,000 glyphs. It was written on vellum pages, some are missing but 240 remain. There are many theories as to what the manuscript actually contains. Here are a few of those theories: 

-A pharmacopeia of medieval or early modern medicine

-A record of a highly advanced civilization that remains undiscovered

-An account of a person's travels in a language created by the author

-It's a hoax (but really, who would go through all the trouble for just a hoax?)

  The manuscript has belonged to multiple people since its creation and disappeared for 200 years at one point. Today the manuscript is held at Yale University. If you're wondering why this is relevant I'll tell you. After years of the manuscript remaining completely untranslated an applied linguistics professor at the University of Bedfordshire has translated 10 words. Professor Stephen Bax has written a paper and filmed a video explaining his theories about the manuscript. If you want to know some of the translations watch the video here. Just to warn you, it's 47 minutes.  

  I'd like to think that the manuscript really does hold the secret of eternal life and that the reason for the unknown language is to keep the information from getting into the wrong hands. It's farfetched I know, but isn't it nice to dream about? My dream is to discover my own mysterious manuscript someday. 

  I know this post wasn't exactly about books but this was one story I just had to share with you guys. Have a great day everyone! Thanks for reading! 

                        Sincerely, 

                                        Erin a.k.a. Bookworm 

It's Monday!

Hi guys,
  It's Monday!

I hope you all had a great weekend. Today I'll be taking a break to work on some other writing, get some things done around the house and spend the afternoon with my niece. I have a great post planned for tomorrow though. Have a great day everyone!
  Sincerely,
                  Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

My Writing Method

Hey guys,
  It's Friday! I hope you all have fun plans for the weekend. I'm sure I'll find something fun to do with friends. I plan to do some writing as well since I have a short story to work on. Speaking of writing, I thought I would share a bit of my writing method with you all.
  I've been writing for years and I've never loved it more than I do now. In the past, I've written poetry, short stories, and diary entries. I still write diary entries when I'm feeling overwhelmed and need to get my thoughts down on paper. I don't write much poetry anymore but I want to start working on it again. I always have ideas for short stories floating around in my head and the hard part is turning my ideas into words that make sense.

   Since I've started writing my novel I pay even more attention to the way other authors write. I've been told I'm a good writer but I still second guess myself because I never think my writing is good enough. I constantly compare my writing to the works of great authors and find it lacking. I have to remember to tell myself that I'm still learning and I have plenty of time to hone my skills (I'm only 23 after all).
  Writing this blog every week day has been refreshing because I can share my thoughts about anything pertaining to books. It also forces me to write even when I don't want to because I feel an obligation to put something out there for my readers to enjoy. Recently, I started thinking about what my actual writing method is and I'm honestly not sure. I've read about a lot of authors who map out what they're going to write each day but I've also read about authors who simply write what they want when it comes to them. I think I'm more of the writer who writes what I want when it comes to me.

  If there's any method I have it's this: main plotline, characters, settings, scenes as they come into my mind, extra details, then I put it all together in the order I want. In other aspects of my life I'm extremely organized and it used to annoy me that I couldn't use that approach when writing. I've learned that it's not a bad thing to be disorganized when it comes to writing as long as I get the ideas out. I've never been one who can easily write about an assigned topic, unless it's a fairly broad topic. I feel more comfortable when I can choose my own topic and elaborate on it.
  Just to give you an idea here's a step-by-step list of how I write.

My Writing Method

-Brainstorming/thinking of an idea: my ideas usually come randomly. Sometimes they come from a life experience and other times from something I'm interested in like the Victoria Era or history in general.

-Coming up with a character/characters: I usually think of a female character first because I prefer a female main character. Then I come up with any other main characters along with the supporting characters. I also come up with descriptions for most of them at this point.

-Picking a setting: depending on the subject of my story I will choose different places for my stories to take place. Thanks to today's easy access to maps and history I can even choose a place I've never been to. I sometimes choose specific buildings or descriptions at this point.

-Basic plotline: these are the main plotlines without all of the extra details included. Basically, the beginning and end. Sometimes I know more details than other times and the middle can be included in this.

-Details: this could mean anything from the more specific plotlines to more descriptions about a character or settings. I start writing anything that comes to mind. My ideas are rarely in order, which takes a lot of pressure off me.

-Combining everything: this is the part where I combine all the sections I've written and put them into an order I like. It might not be the final decision but it makes the story as real as can be at that point.

-Editing: I put all the finishing touches on the story. I fix any grammar issues and make sure the story flows the way I want it to.

-Sharing the story: I finally let someone read the story ask for their opinion. This is not always the first time I let someone read it, sometimes I have someone read it while I'm writing it to give me extra ideas or keep me going in the right direction.

  Obviously, I have a different method for writing poetry and no method at all for diary entries. Regardless of what I'm writing I know the finished product will be good when I enjoy writing it. My writing is another reason I enjoy reading because if I can't tell the difference between good and bad writing then how I will I know if what I'm writing is any good. Now, I'm off go do some more writing and reading. Have a great weekend everyone! As always, thanks for reading!

                              Sincerely,
                                              Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

Books I Can't Wait to Read

Hey guys,
  I hope everyone's day is off to a great start. I'm having a great week and tomorrow I get to spend the day with my lovely niece.
  I realize I always talk about books I've read or books I want to read but today I want to talk about specific books I want to read. These are books that continue a series I've been reading or new books by an author I love. All of these books are supposed to be published sometime this year so I'm pretty excited to read them.

Books I Can't Wait For

-Written in My Own Heart's Blood by Diana Gabaldon: the 8th book in the Outlander series. It continues the story of Claire and Jamie and their families. Since I've been obsessing over this series I can hardly contain my excitement.

-The Vampires of Manhattan by Melissa de la Cruz: this is a sequel to the Blue Bloods series. It takes place some years after the events of the last Blue Bloods book but involves some of the same characters from the series as well as some new characters.

-The Ring and the Crown by Melissa de la Cruz: this is the first book in a new series. From the summary I gather that it's an alternate history of the royals of the Franco-British Empire and Prussia with magical elements.

-City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare: this is the 6th and final book in The Mortal Instruments series. I'm anxious to see how the story ends.

-The Iron Trial by Cassandra Clare: this is the first book in a new series called Magisterium. I'm not sure exactly what this is about but I will basically read anything by Cassandra Clare. The summary briefly explains the book is about 12-year-old Callum Hunt and magicians.

-The One by Kiera Cass: this is the 3rd book in The Selection trilogy. The trilogy is set in the future and could be described as the Hunger Games as a dating show. It's kind of like a futuristic version of The Bachelor.

-Dangerous Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl: this is the first book in a sequel series to the Beautiful Creatures series. Instead of focusing on Lena and Ethan this is about Link and Ridley in New York.

-Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor: this is the 3rd book in the Daughter of Smoke and Bone Trilogy. I would personally like if Karou and Akiva could be together (I'm sucker for romance and I hate when a couple is not together when they should be).

-Panic by Lauren Oliver: this is a new book by the author of the Pandemonium Trilogy (which I love). Oliver has written another original story about a town called Carp, that's in the middle of nowhere. The graduating high school seniors play a game called Panic. If it's anything like her other books I know I'll enjoy it.

  Of course this is just a very short list of books on my to-read list. My actual list is about 8 pages long (and that's just one of my lists). You should probably expect me to write a review about a few of these books in the future. Have a great day everyone! Thanks for reading!

                             Sincerely,
                                             Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

Modern-Day Mythology

Hey guys,
  It's Wednesday! We're halfway through the week and today is another sunny day. I'm hoping a lot of the snow melts before we get more, I would actually like to see the grass. After spending yesterday getting my cleaning done around the house I plan to spend today reading.
  I always have ideas for my posts floating around in my head and I've been thinking about today's post for a while. I finally thought of the right way to get my ideas written down. I've been interested in mythology for years now. I think it all began when I learned about King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. I even had King Arthur paper dolls to play with (yeah, I know what you're thinking but I had so much fun). In 7th grade I learned about Greek and Roman mythology and I found it to be extremely fascinating.

                        My Encyclopedia of Mythology Book

  Since then, I've read much more about mythology and I have an encyclopedia of mythology that I love to look it. Not only do I read the original myths but I love reading modern fiction that incorporates mythology. I prefer reading about my favorite kinds of mythology: Greek, Roman, Celtic, and Norse. In the last few years I've also become more interested in Egyptian and Asian mythology. When I'm reading a book that incorporates mythology I immediatly have to look at my mythology book for any extra information.
  There are many books I've read that have incorporated mythology and I'll share a few of those with you in the hopes that it might make you more interested in myths.

Modern Novels with Mythology

-The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series by Michael Scott: this is one of my all time favorite teen series. There are so many mythological and historical figures throughout every books. The books incorporate mythological figures from all types of mythology. Some of the mythological figures included are Quetzalcoatl, Scathach, and Morrigan. I think the most prominent types of mythology are Norse, Greek and Native American. (6 books)

-The Tiger Saga by Colleen Houck: this is another favorite teen series of mine. The series focuses on Indian/Hindu mythology. The mythological figures Vishnu and Shiva are featured heavily throughout the series. (4 books, could possibly be a 5th)

-Abandon Trilogy by Meg Cabot: this is a modern-day retelling of the Greek myth about Persephone and Hades. I loved the changes made to make this a modern story and I felt that the author stuck to the basics of the story without elaborating too much. (3 books)

-Avalon High by Meg Cabot: this is a modern-day story about the myth of King Arthur. I read this years ago but I still love it. (Even though Disney ruined the movie.) It features all of the prominent characters like Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot, etc. Some of the characters have names that are a bit different but it's easy to tell who they represent.

-Furious by Jill Wolfson: I read this book a few months ago and was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. It's a story about the three Furies of Greek mythology set in a modern-day high school. I hadn't previously read much about the Furies but I liked learning more about them.

  These are just teen books that I've enjoyed which incorporate mythology. There are many adult books I've enjoyed that also incorporate mythology. I'm sure I'll continue to read more about mythology, and maybe I'll even write a modern-day retelling of a myth someday.
  I hope you all enjoyed today's post. If you're interested in mythology you should definitely check out some of these books or look up some others that might interest you. Thanks for reading. Have a great Wednesday everyone!

                               Sincerely,
                                               Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

Bond, James Bond

Hey guys,
  I hope you're all having a great day so far. Temperatures are finally above freezing AND it's sunny! I'm going to enjoy the warmer weather while it lasts, because we all know this won't last. We still have more cold awful weather to deal with until spring gets here.
  Recently I began watching a miniseries about the author of the James Bond books. It's called Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond. Now, I've known for years that Ian Fleming is the author of the famous books that inspired the movies but I've never thought about reading them before. I began watching the movies when I was young. My brother and I spent hours watching them over and over again. Today, I've seen all of the movies multiple times and can name all of the men who have played Bond.

               Dominic Cooper as Ian Fleming

  The James Bond movies started my obsession with spies. While other kids were playing Power Rangers on the playground, my friends and I were playing Charlie's Angels (yeah, we're awesome). Growing up I can remember loving spy stuff. Besides James Bond I loved Charlie's Angels (the movies and the original show) and Harriet the Spy. I even carried around a notebook to make observations in so I could be like Harriet.

               Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond

  My best friend and I took things further than the playground and continued our spy adventures in my backyard. We made up a secret code and made our own spy gadgets. We even had our parents' old cell phones. Needless to say, we had a vivid imagination. You would think that after all these years my obsession with spies would lessen but it certainly hasn't. If anything, I love spy stuff more than ever.

  While watching the Fleming miniseries I've started thinking about why I haven't read any Bond books. I honestly don't know why I've never thought of reading them before. I read other books about spies, mostly historical fiction novels. Last year I added the Bond books to my list of books to read but I still haven't begun reading them. I even have a copy of the first book, "Casino Royale."I've finally set the book in my pile of soon to be read books and I fully plan on reading it as soon as possible. I also want to collect the rest of books.

  If you've never seen a Bond movie I highly recommend that you watch at least one. In case that doesn't interest you, try watching the Fleming miniseries. Before writing the books Fleming actually lived the life of spy so the Bond books and movies are fairly accurate when it comes to spy life. If you're more into books than movies try reading one of the Bond books. I have to say I'm quite excited to read an entire series about the famous James Bond. I'm sure I will write a review of "Casino Royale" in the near future.
  Have a great day everyone! Thanks for reading!
                                   
                                    Sincerely,
                                                    Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

Why My Dream Guy Is A Bookworm

Hi guys,
  I hope you all had a great weekend. I had an awesome weekend with friends and family. I'm ready for another good week and the warmer weather we're expected to have. I would personally like it if all the snow went away. I would also like spring to be here now but I guess I'll have to suffer through the rest of winter.
  Since Valentine's Day was on Friday it got me thinking about a few things. First and foremost, what kind of guy would I like to date. Well, what better person for a bookworm than another bookworm. I feel that if I were to date another bookworm I wouldn't have to explain all of the inner workings of my mind when it comes to books.
  In fact, I've come up with a few reasons for why a bookworm would be the perfect guy for me.

Why My Dream Guy Is A Bookworm

-I wouldn't have to worry about boring him by going to a bookstore/library.
-I could talk about what I've learned from books without him thinking I'm strange.
-I wouldn't have to explain why I would rather stay in and read a book instead of going out.
-I could quote famous authors without having to tell him who said it.
-I wouldn't have to explain why I have multiple "to-read" lists. (5, to be exact)
-He would enjoy quiet reading time with me.
-I wouldn't have to explain why I obsess over characters in books, or books in general.
-He would understand my hesitation when watching a movie or television show based on a book.
-He would understand when I want private time to write. (He would probably encourage it.)
-He would know exactly what to get me for holidays/birthdays. (Books!)
-I wouldn't have to feel strange for considering my books to be my "babies." (Yes, they are!)
-I would never have to feel weird or apologize for being a bookworm.

  Now, doesn't it make sense for me to date a bookworm? I definitely think so. I guess I'll just have to find the perfect bookworm for myself. Well, I'm off to go read. Have a great Monday everyone! Thanks for reading!

                        Sincerely,
                                        Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

Winter's Tale

Hi everyone,
  Happy Valentine's Day! I'm spending today with my niece to celebrate her birthday and she's my Valentine (LOL). As I'm writing she's sitting next to me and watching Peter Pan. I hope that you're all celebrating Valentine's Day in some way but really we should celebrate love every day.
  Two days ago I finished a book called "Winter's Tale." The novel was written by Mark Helprin in 1983 but today movie adaptation is in theaters. I had added the book to my to-read list months ago but soon forgot about it, that is, until I found out about the movie. Of course I had to make sure to read the book before seeing the movie so that's exactly what I did.

  I wasn't sure exactly what to expect when I began reading it but soon found myself immersed in the story. The story begins with the escape of a white horse from its master and the horse's rescue of Peter Lake from the Short Tail Gang. Peter Lake, a nineteenth century burgalar, is in a constant war to stay away from the Short Tails. The leader of the Short Tails, Pearly Soames, harbors a strong dislike of Peter Lake. Pearly's dislike stems from the fact that Peter Lake ruined his plan to construct a golden room.
  Peter Lake has an interesting history that begins with his parents being refused entrance to New York City from Ellis Island. They are slowly dying of consumption and make the difficult decision to leave Peter in New York to give him a chance to live. He is set into a miniature boat and drifts into the Jersey shore and the Bayonne Marsh where he is found by the Baymen. The Baymen are descendents of Indians who live in much the same way as their ancestors did. Peter stays with the Baymen until they send him to the city because they feel that he will never be one of them.
  Peter is introduced to the harsh life of one of the poor of New York City. Soon after entering the city he meets the Reverend Mootfowl and begins working as a mechanic. Life seems to be going smoothly up until the famous Jackson Mead comes to the city to build a bridge. Mootfowl slowly becomes unhinged the longer Mead is around, he tricks Peter and his friend, Cecil Mature, into killing him. While on the run from the police the two are found by the Short Tails where they are forced to join the gang lest Soames turns them in for the murder of Mootfowl. After ten years in the Short Tails Peter betrays them by warning the Baymen of a planned attack.

  Thus, Beverly Penn is introduced. Her father, Isaac Penn is the publisher of the very successful paper The Sun. Despite her family's wealth her father cannot save her from the consumption that is slowly taking her life. At 19 years old she has seen little of the world but has an otherworldly knowledge of life. Peter and Beverly meet when he is trying to rob her house while the rest of her family is away in the mysterious Lake of the Coheeries. In just one night they fall in love. They travel to spend the holidays with the Penn family in the Coheeries and they spend New Year's Eve dancing together. In the New Year they are married but soon after Beverly dies. Her family expects Peter to stay with him but he soon disappears. Heartbroken, Peter Lake goes back to his old life where he is still being chased by the Short Tails. Eventually they catch up to him and kill him. Or so you think...
  The story continues almost a hundred years later, becoming much more complicated and mysterious. I will keep the rest of the story to myself so I don't ruin it for everyone. There's more to this book than just the story. The writing is exquisite. The descriptions conjure up amazing images of the scenes described. I found myself completely in the dark about what was to come next in the story. And the characters, these are some of the most interesting characters I've ever read about.
  I will say that you definitely need to concentrate while reading this. Some of the concepts take a while to sink in so if you don't pay close attention to what you're reading you will become confused. My only issue with the novel is the ending. It doesn't really give a clear answer about what has conspired. It is mostly up to the reader to decide how the story ends. I, of course, have decided it ended happily just the way I wanted it to. I'd have to give this books a 9 out of 10 just because of the ending and some questions not being answered. It's most certainly worth reading though.

   I'm planning on seeing the movie sometime this weekend so I will see if it lives up to my expectations. It has some talented actors in it, including: Colin Farrell, Jessica Brown Findlay, Jennifer Connelly, and Russel Crow, with an appearance by Will Smith. I'm quite excited to see it.
  Sorry for the long post, I just had to share my thoughts about this story with you all. Have a great Valentine's Day and a great weekend everyone! Thanks for reading!

                                  Sincerely,
                                                  Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

My Favorite Literary Love Quotes

Hey guys,
  I hope you're all doing well and enjoying the warmer (just a little bit) weather. I'm currently being entertained by three-year-old niece whose wild imagination reminds me so much of myself when I was her age. Tomorrow is her birthday (yes, she's a Valentine's Day baby) and her birthday party is Sunday afternoon. I'm also counting her as my Valentine.
  Since I have a fairly long post planned for tomorrow I thought I would write a short post today with some of my favorite quotes about love from novels. There are so many love stories but very few make an impact on me. I've chosen a select few quotes to share with you that I think are a good example of love.

Love Quotes

-For where all love is, speaking is unnecessary. It is all. It is undying. And it is enough. -Outlander, Diana Gabaldon

-Ye are Blood of my Blood, and Bone of my Bone, I give ye my body, that we Two might be One. I give ye my Spirit, 'til our Life shall be Done. -Outlander, Diana Gabaldon

-It is a blessing as well as a burden to love so much that you can hurt so badly when love is gone. -A Discovery of Witches, Deborah Harkness

-As he read, I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, and then all at once. -The Fault In Our Stars, John Green

-We are all fools in love. -Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen

-Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. -Lord Alfred Tennyson, British Poet

-Love is life. All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love. -Leo Tolstoy, Russian Novelist

-Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind, /And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind. -A Midsummer Night's Dream, William Shakespeare

-If music be the food of love; play on. -Shakespeare

And just for fun...

-Nothing takes the taste out of peanut butter quite like unrequited love. -Charlie Brown, Peanuts Comics

  There are so many other great love quotes but these are a few that I really like. Thanks for reading!

                                        Sincerely,

                                                        Erin a.k.a. Bookworm 

Why Fictional Men Have Given Me Unrealistic Expectations

Hi guys,
  It's Wednesday! Only two more days until the weekend and Friday is Valentine's Day. I'm not sure about everyone else but I'm excited because Valentine's Day is my niece's birthday and I get to spend the day with her. I have a great post planned for Friday as well (and don't worry, it won't be a mushy love post).
  Speaking of love, have you ever noticed how love stories are so much more romantic in books than in real life? I've noticed this way too many times yet I find myself wishing life could be like that too. I continue to read books with male characters who make me fall in love with them even though there's that little voice in the back of my mind reminding they're fictional.

  So in honor of Valentine's Day I've compiled a short list of fictional men who have given me unrealistic expectations. I know there's many more than just this short list but I've chosen the ones that are fresh in my mind at the moment.
  Here's the fictional men who make me wish that real men were as great as they are.

The Top 5 Fictional Men Who Have Given Me Unrealistic Expectations

-Jamie Fraser: from Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. The handsome young Scottish Highlander that main character Claire falls in love with. He can be very stubborn and has quite the temper but sees Claire as something precious that God has given him. He loves with her with all of his soul and still loves her when they are reunited after a 20 year separation. He gives himself completely to her.

Sam Heughan as Jamie Fraser

-Roger MacKenzie: from Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. Introduced as a young boy in the first Outlander novel, he is a 28 year-old man in the second novel and he falls in love with Breanna (Randall) Fraser. He continues to love her through everything and treats her with the utmost respect. He does everything he can to protect her and keep her happy. He's also Scottish and sings.

-Peter Lake: from Mark Helprin's "Winter's Tale."Originally a burglar, he changes his ways when he meets the lovely Beverly Penn of the wealthy Penn family. He falls in love with her despite the fact that she is dying of consumption. The story begins at the end of the 19th century and when Beverly dies Peter Lake disappears and is thought to be dead. Almost a hundred years later he is alive. He doesn't know who he is but his love for Beverly is still as strong as the day he met her. Even though he's not Irish he speaks with an Irish accent.

Colin Farrell as Peter Lake

-Matthew Clairmont: from Deborah Harkness' All Souls Trilogy. A British vampire who has lived for centuries. He meets and falls in love with Diana Bishop even though she is a witch. He continues his relationship with her and defies the rules between vampires and witches. (Yes, he's a vampire and not a man but he's such a gentleman; and he's not Edward Cullen).

-Fitzwilliam Darcy: from Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice." The confusing man who both frustrates and annoys Elizabeth Bennet. He has trouble figuring out his feelings at first and then struggles to show how he feels about her. He grows to admire and love her. He waxes poetic to her, at one point saying, "You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you." He's also British.

*Notice I haven't added Romeo Montague. This is because it's way too unrealistic to fall in love with someone after just a few days. Also, all of these characters have accents. I just can't help but love a man with a sexy accent. (Haha).

  These characters all have flaws but know how to love a woman fully and strive to be the best they can possibly be for her. None of them is perfect and that's part of why they entice me. This is not to say that there aren't real men who are as great as these men. It's just hard to find a man that will dedicate himself to a relationship as much as them. If you know of any men that live up to these expectations or you are one, please let me know. (I'd personally like my own Jamie Fraser, can anyone arrange that?)
  If there are any other fictional men you think should be added to this list let me know. Have a great day everyone! Thanks for reading!

                        Sincerely,
                                        Erin a.k.a. Bookworm

Most Famous Male Literary Characters

Hey guys,
  I hope you all had a great start to your week. Yet again, we have temperatures below zero so I'm curled up on the couch with blankets. While trying to stay warm I've come up with even more great ideas for new blog posts that I can't wait to share with you.
  Yesterday, I talked about some of the most famous female literary characters and today I'm going to talk about some of the most famous male literary characters. There are a lot more male characters than female characters because for a long time females were just background characters without much personality. As times progressed they became more common but we still see more famous male characters.
  Here's a few of those famous male literary characters.

Most Famous Male Literary Characters

-Fitzwilliam Darcy: from Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice."The mysterious Mr. Darcy, he falls in love with Elizabeth Bennett but doesn't express his feelings clearly. After much struggling he marries her.

                                  Matthew Macfayden as Mr. Darcy

-Jay Gatsby: from F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby."An extravagantly rich man who lives in West Egg and throws lavish parties every night. He is in love with the married Daisy Buchanan and their story ends in tragedy.

                                  Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby

-Sherlock Holmes: from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes."The eccentric detective who works with Dr. Watson to solve crimes. He has a specific way of figuring out the details to solve a case.

                              Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes

-Dorian Gray: from Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray."A young man influenced by Lord Henry who celebrates youth and beauty and selfish pursuits. Dorian has his portrait painted by Basil Hallward, soon after he pledges his soul so he can stay young while his portrait ages. He begins a downward spiral that ends in his death and his portrait going back to its original state.

                                         Ben Barnes as Dorian Gray

-Count Dracula: from Bram Stoker's "Dracula."The original vampire from Transylvania. He lures Johnathan Harker to his castle and falls in love with Mina Murray (Harker).

                              Johnathan Rhys-Meyers as Dracula

-Ichabod Crane: from Washington Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow."He's the teacher and the choirmaster of the town of Sleepy Hollow. He falls in love with Katrina Van Tassel but is ultimately rejected. He has an encounter with the Headless Horseman and is never seen or heard from again.

                                  Tom Mison as Ichabod Crane

-Harry Potter: from J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. He's known as "the boy who lived" because he survived after his parents were killed by Voldemort. He finds his place when he goes to Hogwarts and becomes a talented wizard.

                                    Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter

  There are so many more I would like to share but I will save those for another time. Hope you all have a great day! Thanks for reading!

                                    Sincerely,
                                                    Erin a.k.a. Bookworm