I know I have not done any updates for a good portion of the month. The thing is, my attention this month has been on a novel that I have been writing for National Novel Writing Month. Thus, I haven't had a lot of time to read.
If you don't hear from me again in December, I'll be sure to have more updates in January.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Released "The Winter Widow" Today
I released my copy of The Winter Widow today on the college campus. I left it on a bench on the bottom floor of the student center.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Miss Scissors: Reading is the Key, Part Eight (Finale)
ModMouse got up later than she had inteneded to. She read for an hour and three minutes but then realized that today she would have laundry to do. She read for another 18 minutes before it turned out that she had some urgent busniess in the other realm. She read for another eight minutes until time to take care of what was left of the laundry. After that, she finished up The Winter Widow in an hour and four minutes. After that, she had some lunch and read the first chapter of The Outlaw's Bride. This took 14 minutes. She looked up at the locks and at the clock. There were eleven locks whose timers had yet to be activated, and the twelfth one had 39 minutes left on the timer. Even if she were to have no interruptions of any kind and read completely straight through, she wasn't going to make it. Knowing that it'd be all over for her at the stroke of midnight, she had a choice to make. She could just quit altogether and just accept that it'd be a matter of time before she was done for, or she could keep reading, knowing that when she met her doom, it wouldn't be because she gave up.
ModMouse: Looks like I'm not going to pass my test. It's too bad though. Since this will be my last day, there is one thing I need to do.
She grabbed some paper and a pen and started writing to someone whom she had mentored in her bookcrossing ways, someone who had been a fan of ModMouse. Hopefully, this person could carry on ModMouse's legacy of salvaging used books from the confines of shelves, reading them, and then sending them out into the world in search of another reader. She wished this person the best of luck in continuing the cause and hoped they would remember what she had taught them. She stuck the letter into the envelope and addressed it.
ModMouse: At least I've gotten that taken care of. I wonder if I'll at least get a last request and can have this delivered. Maybe I could get in a few more hours of reading before I go.
She read another chapter of The Outlaw's Bride, which took her 14 minutes. The time, though, was bascially immaterial as ModMouse's downfall would be inevitable.
ModMouse: Well, since I'm going to be gone as of the stroke of midnight, I might as well take care of one last piece of unfinished buisness.
She spent much of the day cleaning out her inbox. She took a break from this in order to have her last supper. She finally finished with barely over an hour left to live. She figured she'd do what she could on a writing project she had been doing but leave instructions for someone else to finish on her behalf. There were four minutes left until the stroke of midnight, and then it would be game over for her. Perhaps though, that certain person she had been mentoring would be able to accomplish what she had not been despite various attempts. The TV turned on once again, showing the doll.
Molly: Hello, ModMouse, or should I say, farewell as you have failed your test and at the end of this message, the gas from the remaining locks will be released and it will be game over for you.
ModMouse: I know. It was pretty clear to me this afternoon that I wasn't going to pass, so what was the point of reading any further? Oh well, can't say I didn't try.
Molly: That is true. It is such a pity, though, as for the most part, you had been doing so well up until today. But as you have failed, you know what you have coming.
ModMouse: I know. But before you kill me off, is there any way I could get a final request?
Molly: I beg you pardon.
ModMouse: I've got a letter here that I need delievered to a certain friend of mine. I've got it addressed and everything. Whenever you or whoever's working for you, comes to get my body, could you see to it that the letter gets to my friend?
Molly: Well, that is a bit unusual, but I'm sure I can grant your request. But right now, I must leave you to meet your end. Goodbye forever, ModMouse. (TV turns off.)
ModMouse: What's that smell? (Looks behind her, sees the red gas.) Oh, that's right. It's the gas. (Coughs.) Goodbye world. I regret that I never fulfilled the 24 hours. Maybe that friend of mine will. (Coughs some more as the red gas surrounds her. She drops.)
Thus was the sad fate of our friend ModMouse. Hopefully, the mysterious friend of hers will carry on her bookcrossing legacy and even go above and beyond what ModMouse had done.
The End.
ModMouse: Looks like I'm not going to pass my test. It's too bad though. Since this will be my last day, there is one thing I need to do.
She grabbed some paper and a pen and started writing to someone whom she had mentored in her bookcrossing ways, someone who had been a fan of ModMouse. Hopefully, this person could carry on ModMouse's legacy of salvaging used books from the confines of shelves, reading them, and then sending them out into the world in search of another reader. She wished this person the best of luck in continuing the cause and hoped they would remember what she had taught them. She stuck the letter into the envelope and addressed it.
ModMouse: At least I've gotten that taken care of. I wonder if I'll at least get a last request and can have this delivered. Maybe I could get in a few more hours of reading before I go.
She read another chapter of The Outlaw's Bride, which took her 14 minutes. The time, though, was bascially immaterial as ModMouse's downfall would be inevitable.
ModMouse: Well, since I'm going to be gone as of the stroke of midnight, I might as well take care of one last piece of unfinished buisness.
She spent much of the day cleaning out her inbox. She took a break from this in order to have her last supper. She finally finished with barely over an hour left to live. She figured she'd do what she could on a writing project she had been doing but leave instructions for someone else to finish on her behalf. There were four minutes left until the stroke of midnight, and then it would be game over for her. Perhaps though, that certain person she had been mentoring would be able to accomplish what she had not been despite various attempts. The TV turned on once again, showing the doll.
Molly: Hello, ModMouse, or should I say, farewell as you have failed your test and at the end of this message, the gas from the remaining locks will be released and it will be game over for you.
ModMouse: I know. It was pretty clear to me this afternoon that I wasn't going to pass, so what was the point of reading any further? Oh well, can't say I didn't try.
Molly: That is true. It is such a pity, though, as for the most part, you had been doing so well up until today. But as you have failed, you know what you have coming.
ModMouse: I know. But before you kill me off, is there any way I could get a final request?
Molly: I beg you pardon.
ModMouse: I've got a letter here that I need delievered to a certain friend of mine. I've got it addressed and everything. Whenever you or whoever's working for you, comes to get my body, could you see to it that the letter gets to my friend?
Molly: Well, that is a bit unusual, but I'm sure I can grant your request. But right now, I must leave you to meet your end. Goodbye forever, ModMouse. (TV turns off.)
ModMouse: What's that smell? (Looks behind her, sees the red gas.) Oh, that's right. It's the gas. (Coughs.) Goodbye world. I regret that I never fulfilled the 24 hours. Maybe that friend of mine will. (Coughs some more as the red gas surrounds her. She drops.)
Thus was the sad fate of our friend ModMouse. Hopefully, the mysterious friend of hers will carry on her bookcrossing legacy and even go above and beyond what ModMouse had done.
The End.
Miss Scissors: Reading is the Key Part Seven
ModMouse slept later than she had intended which meant she was unable to get any reading in whatsoever before attending to her business in the other realm. After she returned, she was so caught up in some computer-related projects that she wasn't able to get any reading in until late into the night, which she only got in 32 minutes, which meant that 15 locks altogether still remained. She had until midnight the next night to get in the remaining reading time. Will she succeed and make it out alive, or will it be "game over"? Tune in tomorrow for the final part to find out.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Miss Scissors: Reading is the Key Part Six
ModMouse was up the next morning. Sometime after breakfast the TV turned on, with who else but Molly the Doll.
Molly: Good morning, ModMouse.
ModMouse: Okay, what's up this time?
Molly: Remember that talk we had on Friday about how if you want something done you should ask a busy person?
ModMouse: Don't tell me. I'm going to have some business calling me into the other realm today.
Molly: Good to see that we're on the same page. By the wall, you will find two bags. One will have some items that need to be recycled. Another consists of the two books that you have thus far finished since you had started on the read-a-thon. On the coffee table, you will find a list of things that need to be done before you will be able to resume your reading. I'd get the tasks over with if I were you. Good luck to you, and unless unforseen circumstances dictate otherwise, I will speak to you again closer to midnight Thursday night or whenever you have fulifilled the 24 hour reading goal, whichever comes first. (TV turns off.)
ModMouse: O-kay. Let's see what the list says. (Picks up list from coffee table.) The first thing it says to do is to put on the outfit that is folded on the table before proceeding with anything else. (Goes to bedroom to dress.) Okay, now it says I need to take the cans and bottles to a couple of recycling bins, put the two books somewhere out in a public place, check on an application that I turned in last month, and pick up another.
ModMouse ran these errands and was back from the other realm at 1:35 in the afternoon. After eating lunch and doing a few other things, she began with the next book available to her to read, The Winter Widow. She read the first chapter, which took her five minutes. She wasn't able to get any more reading until later in the evening. She read the 54 minutes needed to disable the next lock. Now, 15 locks remain, 14 of which the timers have yet to be activated. How far along will she get the next day? Tune in tomorrow for part seven to find out.
Molly: Good morning, ModMouse.
ModMouse: Okay, what's up this time?
Molly: Remember that talk we had on Friday about how if you want something done you should ask a busy person?
ModMouse: Don't tell me. I'm going to have some business calling me into the other realm today.
Molly: Good to see that we're on the same page. By the wall, you will find two bags. One will have some items that need to be recycled. Another consists of the two books that you have thus far finished since you had started on the read-a-thon. On the coffee table, you will find a list of things that need to be done before you will be able to resume your reading. I'd get the tasks over with if I were you. Good luck to you, and unless unforseen circumstances dictate otherwise, I will speak to you again closer to midnight Thursday night or whenever you have fulifilled the 24 hour reading goal, whichever comes first. (TV turns off.)
ModMouse: O-kay. Let's see what the list says. (Picks up list from coffee table.) The first thing it says to do is to put on the outfit that is folded on the table before proceeding with anything else. (Goes to bedroom to dress.) Okay, now it says I need to take the cans and bottles to a couple of recycling bins, put the two books somewhere out in a public place, check on an application that I turned in last month, and pick up another.
ModMouse ran these errands and was back from the other realm at 1:35 in the afternoon. After eating lunch and doing a few other things, she began with the next book available to her to read, The Winter Widow. She read the first chapter, which took her five minutes. She wasn't able to get any more reading until later in the evening. She read the 54 minutes needed to disable the next lock. Now, 15 locks remain, 14 of which the timers have yet to be activated. How far along will she get the next day? Tune in tomorrow for part seven to find out.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Miss Scissors: Reading is the Key Part 5
[This is another part where Miss Scissors does not make an appearance. Don't worry, though. She'll be back in part 6. As I did in part three, I decided to try to cut to the chase, so there's only one spoken line. Click here for parts one, two, three, and four.]
In the morning, ModMouse was able to read for 30 minutes until the wall to the other realm glowed, this time summoning her to her volunteer work at a local thrift store, which she usually did three times a week. She returned after six hours but had so much to do that she hadn't gotten any more reading done yet. She finally did twenty more minutes of reading while waiting for time to feed her cat on Facebook's Petville. This left her with nine minutes before she would be able to disable the sixth lock. After having fed her Petville cat and playing a bit of Frontierville, ModMouse looked at how far along she was on the book that she had been reading and saw that she had roughly 125 pages left to read.
ModMouse: I wonder how long it'll take for me to finish the book.
It took her 2 hours and 10 minutes to finish the book, after which it disappeared. This was enough time to disable the sixth and seventh locks. She would need to read for another 59 minutes in order to disable the next lock, but as it was getting late, she decided that she had done enough reading for the night, and she would get to the next lock the next day. Will ModMouse get past the eighth lock? Tune in tomorrow for Part Six to find out.
In the morning, ModMouse was able to read for 30 minutes until the wall to the other realm glowed, this time summoning her to her volunteer work at a local thrift store, which she usually did three times a week. She returned after six hours but had so much to do that she hadn't gotten any more reading done yet. She finally did twenty more minutes of reading while waiting for time to feed her cat on Facebook's Petville. This left her with nine minutes before she would be able to disable the sixth lock. After having fed her Petville cat and playing a bit of Frontierville, ModMouse looked at how far along she was on the book that she had been reading and saw that she had roughly 125 pages left to read.
ModMouse: I wonder how long it'll take for me to finish the book.
It took her 2 hours and 10 minutes to finish the book, after which it disappeared. This was enough time to disable the sixth and seventh locks. She would need to read for another 59 minutes in order to disable the next lock, but as it was getting late, she decided that she had done enough reading for the night, and she would get to the next lock the next day. Will ModMouse get past the eighth lock? Tune in tomorrow for Part Six to find out.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Miss Scissors: Reading Is The Key Part 4
[Due to various obligations that I had today, I wasn't able to get this posted as soon as I would have liked. Click here for parts one, two, and three.]
Today would be the final day for ModMouse in her overnight stay within the realm. She got in 16 minutes of reading before it was time to return to that house she had been kept in since late Thursday night. When it was time to go, she managed to get in 31 more minutes of reading while she was in transit. When she was finally out of the realm, the TV turned back on with none other than Molly the Doll through whom Miss Scissors had been speaking.
Molly: Welcome back ModMouse. I see you have made a safe return.
ModMouse: Uh, thanks. So, what's up this time?
Molly: Though I was unable to communicate with you while you were in the other realm, I must say that I am quite impressed by the fact that you got in some reading time while you were away. If you will look at the door, you will see that two of the locks have been opened as a result of the time you have put in so far and that the timer on a third lock has been activated.
[ModMouse walks up to the door. Two of the locks are opened. The timer on the third lock has :52 on it, the amount of time that she would need to read before she could disable the lock and activate the timer on another.]
ModMouse: Sweet. Making some progress here.
Molly: Some people would be ungrateful for time they have on their hands when they are a passenger in transit or when they are or when they are staying with someone else overnight. But not you, ModMouse.
ModMouse: Well, thanks, I guess. But I have to tell you, it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be.
Molly: It never is. But now, you are back in your temporary residence. I'd make good use of the time there if I were you, especially given that there will be more instances where the wall will glow again. And besides, you never know when you might receive a phone call that you will need to accept. Remember, you have until midnight Thursday night to fulfill the remaining 21 hours and 52 minutes left of reading if you wish to make it out alive. Good luck. [TV turns off.]
ModMouse: O-kay. That was a bit strange, but maybe after I finish unpacking and take care of a few more things, I can get some more reading done.
While waiting for something to be ready on Facebook's Cafe World, ModMouse managed to get in eight minutes of reading. At some point after having eaten dinner, she got in 46 more minutes of reading, which disabled the third lock and activated the timer on the fourth one. Later, she did some more stuff on Facebook and saw that, in Cafe World, she had an hour and ten minutes left before some angel fruit cake was ready. So she took that time to read some more. This disabled the fourth lock and activated the timer on the fifth one. She saw that there were 50 minutes left on the timer on that fifth lock. The 20 minutes of reading left her with 30 minutes before that fifth lock could be disabled. She was partway into a chapter and decided that she would finish the chapter and that would be all of the reading that she would do for the night. She read for 25 minutes until she started on a writing project that she had to wait until midnight to start. After she finished thr chapter she was on, which took her six minutes. Thus, the fifth lock was disabled, leaving her with 59 minutes before she could disable the sixth lock. But she decided that she had done enough reading for the night and went to sleep. Will she get the sixth lock disabled. Tune in tomorrow for part 5.
Today would be the final day for ModMouse in her overnight stay within the realm. She got in 16 minutes of reading before it was time to return to that house she had been kept in since late Thursday night. When it was time to go, she managed to get in 31 more minutes of reading while she was in transit. When she was finally out of the realm, the TV turned back on with none other than Molly the Doll through whom Miss Scissors had been speaking.
Molly: Welcome back ModMouse. I see you have made a safe return.
ModMouse: Uh, thanks. So, what's up this time?
Molly: Though I was unable to communicate with you while you were in the other realm, I must say that I am quite impressed by the fact that you got in some reading time while you were away. If you will look at the door, you will see that two of the locks have been opened as a result of the time you have put in so far and that the timer on a third lock has been activated.
[ModMouse walks up to the door. Two of the locks are opened. The timer on the third lock has :52 on it, the amount of time that she would need to read before she could disable the lock and activate the timer on another.]
ModMouse: Sweet. Making some progress here.
Molly: Some people would be ungrateful for time they have on their hands when they are a passenger in transit or when they are or when they are staying with someone else overnight. But not you, ModMouse.
ModMouse: Well, thanks, I guess. But I have to tell you, it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be.
Molly: It never is. But now, you are back in your temporary residence. I'd make good use of the time there if I were you, especially given that there will be more instances where the wall will glow again. And besides, you never know when you might receive a phone call that you will need to accept. Remember, you have until midnight Thursday night to fulfill the remaining 21 hours and 52 minutes left of reading if you wish to make it out alive. Good luck. [TV turns off.]
ModMouse: O-kay. That was a bit strange, but maybe after I finish unpacking and take care of a few more things, I can get some more reading done.
While waiting for something to be ready on Facebook's Cafe World, ModMouse managed to get in eight minutes of reading. At some point after having eaten dinner, she got in 46 more minutes of reading, which disabled the third lock and activated the timer on the fourth one. Later, she did some more stuff on Facebook and saw that, in Cafe World, she had an hour and ten minutes left before some angel fruit cake was ready. So she took that time to read some more. This disabled the fourth lock and activated the timer on the fifth one. She saw that there were 50 minutes left on the timer on that fifth lock. The 20 minutes of reading left her with 30 minutes before that fifth lock could be disabled. She was partway into a chapter and decided that she would finish the chapter and that would be all of the reading that she would do for the night. She read for 25 minutes until she started on a writing project that she had to wait until midnight to start. After she finished thr chapter she was on, which took her six minutes. Thus, the fifth lock was disabled, leaving her with 59 minutes before she could disable the sixth lock. But she decided that she had done enough reading for the night and went to sleep. Will she get the sixth lock disabled. Tune in tomorrow for part 5.
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