I’m a college student who has unrealistic dreams of being a famous authoress who writes mystery novels. Either that or a goblin... haven't decided which. I live on a farm up on a hilltop where the wind likes to mess up my hair and the trees sway poetically in the wind.
And the reference lists keep coming! But if you’re anything like me, you have a bookmark folder primarily for writing references and lists such as these to perhaps you will find some use for these! Though don’t get too distracted with lists and references. Keep writing!
Hello, ladies and gents! and welcome to another contest entry!
I’ve been enjoying getting more involved in the writing wordpress community and it’s been quite fun I must say! Especially considering all the fun little tags and contests floating around. So its no surprise that I’m participating in another community contest hosted by Inky. So, I present you my entry for Inky’s Custom Contest!
logo copyright credits- the ruby and flower are not Inky’s own images
Rules
add the featured image on the start of the post (but you can make your own design, and place Inky’s at the end.)
follow the selected categories: writing, painting, digital designing or baking.
max three entries (but you can only win one)
for writing, max words is 350. it also has to be family friendly.
for painting+ designing ; make sure it’s kid friendly. if you’re unsure; send it over to my gmail.
when pasting the logo; make sure to add the copyright credits. (caption)
use “inky’s custom contest” tag in the post.
My Entries
Originally, I wanted to enter in the Writing, Painting, Baking, & Digital Designing categories but, alas, as I am running low on time to work on creative projects these days (Yay College! :D), I’ll only be entering in the Baking, Painting & Digital Content categories.
Digital Design Entry
Fun fact about me (if anyone cares but I’m gonna tell it anyways), I started doing digital editing & Art when I was 11. And oh boy, was it bad. Like really bad. But now, 9 WHOLE YEARS LATER, I can look at my creations without cringing (sometimes). My favorite digital pieces have always been ones in that disney-esque CGI style (because the animation of Tangled enraptured me). If you’re interested in seeing more of my pieces, I generally upload them to my pinterest & I have a instagram for it. (I would love to see my fellow bloggers on other platforms! Also pinterest is like 90% of how I waste my time…)
Baking
These are Pecan Pie Tartlets (I freaking LOVE tartlets. They make me want to throw a teaparty or something, I swear). Generally they’re best right out of the oven and look so cute on a little plate. ❤
Painting
Blasted people are so hard to paint but they also feel so rewarding when you’re done if they turn out right. You really feel like you’ve accomplished something, yaknow?
Nominations:
And that concludes my entries! Nominations for entering are open right now so feel free to enter and tag Inky so she can see your lovely works of art! See ya, readers!
Welp, my winter break will be over next week, as much as it saddens me to say. So, in honor of that, I’ve decided to do yet another college/school related post to help all the students out there. If you’re like me, you struggle with a little bit of test anxiety so below I’m going to leave my personal tips on how you can tackle the little testing butterflies. Enjoy, readers & fellow students!
★Make a study plan.
Be prepared for this test. Know in your mind that you’re doing what you can. Don’t burn yourself out studying but definitely make a plan of attack so you can walk into your test feeling more confident in yourself and your abilities.
★Practice positive self talk.
Encourage yourself. Tell yourself that you are capable. But also remind yourself that your worth is not derived from your performance.
★Get plenty of sleep the night before.
This plays into your mindset going into the test. You will feel worse about yourself if your sluggish and exhausted from studying all night.
★Have a nice breakfast or meal before leaving for school in the morning.
You want your brain ready for this test. Plus, sometimes having something on your stomach can squelch that “pukey” feeling. Coffee on an empty stomach can sometimes make that feeling worse as it’s pretty acidic.
★Visualize Success.
Think about how good it will feel to have the test out of the way and, even better, making a good grade on it.
★Give yourself practice tests.
This will help you get used to the feeling of being tested on these things and will help you study the material itself.
★Separate your fears.
Some fears are ridiculous and sometimes you gotta recognize that. Some are founded and I would recommend talking those fears out with someone close to you or a teacher or even writing them down. But the fear that “everyone will think I’m a moron and a failure” is probably not a very realistic one. It definitely exists in your head sometimes as I know it can exist in mine, but it is vital to label these fears as lies that we agonize over.
★Let go of perfectionism
You’re not going to make all A’s all the time. That’s not realistic. Definitely study in hopes of getting an A, but please don’t put pressure on yourself to be perfect all the time. College is hard and can be even harder if we heap insane expectations upon ourselves.
★During the test, remember to breath and think positively
Take it one question at a time. Select the answers you know are correct first and then go back. If you find yourself spiraling into fear and self doubt, take a moment to take a deep breath and remind yourself of your past successes and that you can do this.
★Don’t obsess over questions
Agonizing over a question can often result in you changing the correct answer (your gut answer) to a wrong one as you second guess yourself. Check your answers but don’t obsess over them.
★Keep it in perspective.
Your life doesn’t hang in the balance here. This is a test. And while you want to do well, sometimes you’ve just gotta do your best and what will be will be. Besides, you’ll probably do worse on the test if you’re feeling rattled. It is in your best interest to keep it all in perspective and have a healthy mindset going into it.
Hey there bloggers! Just like with my superpower masterlist (which you can find here), this is done for character creation and writer reference for whatever story you’re working on. I plan to do more lists like these in the future. I have one in the works for a list of fantasy creatures and a list of medieval/fantasy town jobs. Until then, enjoy my extensive list of fantasy classes.
Joy of joys! I have been tagged by the lovely Stara to do the GIF-Y Love Tag! And this is where I ask everyone to discuss the correct pronunciation of the word down below because me and my family are divided. “JIF” sounds so much better in my head but one could argue that “GIF” should be pronounced similar to “Graphic” as it is a moving Graphic? It makes sense, it just sounds weird in my head.
Just another tag I saw floating around on weheartit. You can find the original post that I saw here. Feel free to do it too if you’d like!
a – animal i love
A humming bird. A Ruby throated humming bird to be precise. I saw one once in my homeschooling science textbook when I was about 9 and decided they were the most gorgeous creatures ever.
b – best feature/trait
Hardworking. I tend to overwork myself a little in fact. I’m sorry, there’s just so much I want to do! The struggle is real. I want to try everything and do all the things.
c – color i like
Any shade of blue really.
d – dream of mine
To get a book published. This is no secret. It’s been my goal since age 11. And someday I hope it will come to fruition. Fingers crossed!
e – element i connect with
This is hard. I like water but my personality seems more akin to air. Hmm.. air and water…so maybe like…steam? Rain? I don’t know man.
f – favorite tv show
Probably Merlin. It made me cry but I love it so, so, so much. I also adore Avatar The Last Airbender- the show of my childhood. I was into watching RWBY for awhile too until the very unfortunate and sudden passing of one of the main creators, Monty Oum, and the show took a strange turn as they switched writers.
g – great achievement
I survived high school? I have a blog? I finished the rough draft of my novel? I don’t know, while I love these achievements, I don’t really think about them a lot because I always want to do better or move on to the next thing.
h – height
5’1 and 1/2. Don’t forget the 1/2. (though that might be my shoes??)
i – in love with
Sleeping. And rain. Sleeping while it rains.
j – job of my dreams
Author! Shocking to no one.
k – kids i want
Like 2 or 3 maybe? Depends on what my life ends up looking like.
l – languages i speak
Sorry, dumb American here- I speak English. Das it. I took Latin in high school then quickly forgot everything I learned in the class when I graduated.
m – magical powers i want
I want to control elements of nature! Either that or control time. That would be pretty stinkin awesome. Or shape shifting… ummm… its hard to decide, what can I say?? Final answer is shape shifting I think.
n – number of siblings
Three. Two younger, one older. I am one of the dreaded middle children.
o – one favorite song
Just one, huh? Okay… the Narnia soundtrack? Just all of it.
Crud, I already failed, that’s like 20 songs.
p – personality
I honestly don’t know. Quiet if I don’t know you that well, loud if I do? Introverted? Sometimes moody?
q – quote i live by
Probably one from Tolkien but I personally have a lot of quotes that I adore and want to integrate into my existence. But for now, we’ll settle on this one by Van Gogh.
“It is good to love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is well done.”
*Slinks into a corner to weep*
r – reasons to smile
I’m alive, aren’t I? Sometimes that fact is great weight to me, but often it is a gift.
s – style
Warm. I get so cold. Bring the sweaters and the fuzzy socks. I want them all.
t – time i wake up
Varies like crazy. I have the morning shift at work when I do work in the summer so I would get up at like 4:30 AM, but during school its about 7AM. During breaks, I am a lazy slob so the time can range from 7:30-9:30AM depending on what I have to do that day or how late I stayed up the night before.
u – underrated feature/skill of yours
I can cut strawberries very nicely (I used to work at a tea shop where cutting fruit to look cute was VITAL).
v – vacation place
New Zealand.
w – worst habit
Was Nail-biting but I’ve actually stopped within the last year. I’m pretty addicted to thrift shopping but honestly my worst habit is probably isolating myself when I’m depressed or upset which makes stuff even worse. Angsty girl problems. I also have an unhealthy addiction to iced coffee. White girl problems.
x – x-rays i had
Only one, on my collar bone when I broke it. I was so small I had to stand on a chair while they took it. The chair nearly slid out from under me and I very nearly broke the other one.
y – your comfort movie
How to train your dragon, Toy Story, Rise of the Guardians, Inside-Out, Aladdin, any animated movie I watched young especially. The Lord of the Rings movies could be included in this list as well. And the disney Narnia movies.
z – zodiac sign
Capricorn. The Mermaid goat, ya know?
And that’s a wrap! Farewell for now, bloggers! Thanks for sticking around to know a little bit more about me! Feel free to do this tag if you so desire!
New year’s is not going how you expected. Not in the least. During the New Year’s Eve celebrations, you noticed a strange cloud on the horizon of the sky that no one else seems to pay attention to. Quickly, it culminates into an enormous storm before blowing everyone and everything about. Somehow, perhaps by falling and hitting your head, you’re knocked out. Only to wake up and find yourself on January 1st of the previous year.
★Vulnerable
You’re a reckless teen who has little to no regard for your own safety. Fed up with your act, your guardian angel quits. But little did you know what he was really protecting you from….
★A Mysterious Read
You go to check out book at your local library to find there is a book reserved at the desk for you. The cover is blank so you don’t know the title. Confused and unable to remember whether or not it was you who reserved the book, you take it home and begin to read. To your surprise, the book describes the beginning of your day, right up until you checked the book out. But there is more to read….
★Fish Bait
You are a farm boy who lives near a lake and herds goats and sheep for a living. One day, you decide to fish for your supper. But, to your surprise, you find something much bigger than a fish at the end of your line. You have caught the famed Capricorn.
★Cursed Castle
You are the daughter of a wealthy family who happens to own a castle. You don’t exactly live like a princess like expected. In fact, the castle is simply a tourist attraction and is the means by which your family makes their living. One day, while helping your mom clean the basement of the castle, you see a full suit of armor walk from one end of the hall to another before disappearing around the corner. Confused and amazed, you inform your mother who of course doesn’t believe you, chalking it up to the wild imagination of a child. But you know what you saw. And other weird things begin to happen….
★ Garnet Heart
The year is 2052, and you are a robotic scientist who has achieved much in your life. Your specialty is developing incredibly intelligent AI, and, for an upcoming Science Event, you decide to design a new, and innovative Robot: The GEM. The GEM design is a humanoid robot design with a chamber in the robot’s chest where you can place an item. You chose a Garnet, and your first GEM robot comes to life. You later find out that the personality of the robot depends on the gem you place in their chest.
★Maybe take a break from that coffee? It can make you jittery sometimes and keep you from hydrating. Grab a quick glass of water instead of another coffee refill.
★Messy notes are a thousand times better than no notes. As long as you can read what you wrote, keep charging on. Your notes don’t have to look cute, just legible and somewhat organized.
★Showing up to class looking a little sloppy is better than not showing up at all. I know its tempting to skip but it is a risky decision. Plus, you don’t want to use of your “sick days” for when you just don’t feel like going or you got up a little late.
★Take a shower if you feel like you can’t study anymore. Refresh your mind a little.
★You don’t have to do a deep clean, but try and make sure that at least the surface of your desk is somewhat clean and clear. This will help you focus.
★Seriously, turn your notifications off.
★Try and stay on top of laundry to where you have at least one clean outfit-preferably the one you’re wearing.
★Sleeping the night before a test will probably do you more good than pulling an all-nighter. Wake up with a little time to eat breakfast and drink a whole glass of water before the exam. The information you crammed the night before is useless if you’re so lethargic that you can’t recall it.
★Packed lunches will save you a lot of money.
★If you’re feeling groggy mid-study session, try moving around a little. Get some fresh air, it does wonders.
★You don’t have to feel “cute” all the time to be productive. Romanticizing your education and schoolwork is awesome unless it starts to get in the way of your work. You don’t have to have perfect notes all the time & drink those aesthetically pleasing iced lattes so much. At the end of the day, it’s about the work you put in.
Hey there! Aaaaand we’re still snowed in. But, on the bright side, that leaves me more time for blogging and writing and such. So here’s a little post about my favorite movies. It’s short and sweet because I limited myself to five movies (otherwise we’d probably be here for ages).
Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
This one takes the #1 spot being my entire childhood. The only thing I love more than Lord of the Rings & Tolkien quotes is Narnia & C.S. Lewis quotes. In summary, these two authors made my childhood as did the director of this movie. Though I must clarify, the disney version. There is a British version floating around out there with a…. smaller budget resulting in a slightly… different cinematic experience.
To summarize, this Disney Movie is my most favorite move. I love everything about it. Everyone felt perfectly cast, the music in phenomenal, the animal characters are loveable, Aslan is grand, and the redemptive story of Edmund holds so much weight.
A solid 10/10 movie. I still want to be Lucy when I grow up.
2. The Lord of the Rings Movies
And here is where I sing the Praises of Peter Jackson. He did what seemed impossible- condensed down the enormous works of Tolkien into three wonderful movies that tell a cohesive and developed story that I find myself continually coming back to.
I sort of cheated here as these are technically three movies but I couldn’t pick a favorite among them as they tell one continuous story and each one is masterfully done and has its own strengths in their own rights.
These movies probably have my favorite soundtrack ever, my favorite fight sequences, and some of my favorite characters. My only complaints are Frodo’s character felt a bit off compared to the book and the Frodo and Sam parts sometimes felt like they slogged on too long (or perhaps that was the intention as we were supposed to feel the weight of their looooong journey with them?).
Overall a 9.8457/10.
3. Aladdin
The best disney princess movie that is not actually about the disney princess. Not really. Robin Williams is perfectly cast, the song “A Whole New World” is iconic and probably will be for a very, very long time and rightly so.
9.7/10
4. Star Wars: The Original Trilogy
Yeah, I’m going to cheat again. This is technically three movies but again, just like with Star Wars, its hard to pick a favorite out of these movies (though if you forced me, I’d probably have to say “The Empire Strikes” back but I could easily change my mind at any time. The ranking is that close).
Another iconic and phenomenal soundtrack. Lovably corny CGI effects and all, I love this movie. The writing is amazing and the story so full of hope. I know its simple in structure. A typical good vs. evil struggle but when you pair that with the sci-fi elements that, until that point, had never really been implemented on a big screen (with some exceptions with Star Trek but that was a show and was so stylistically and tonally different, I don’t really see them as that similar).
I grew up watching these which unfortunately led me to having a really high bar as to the level of writing I accept in my Star Wars films so I’m not a huge Disnified Star Wars fan. But, regardless, these movies continue to have a place in my heart.
9.68/10
5. Toy Story
One of Pixar’s crowning glory movies. Sure, this movies animation hasn’t aged that well. Their character models for humans were lacking (Andy may or may not look like a crackhead) but it makes sense for the time period it was in and definitely set a precedent for future CGI Animated movies. Woody & Buzz are THE iconic duo.
9.5/10
And that concludes my list although I could rant about my childhood movies for much longer. Thanks for reading and see you readers later!
By the Brooke 