We writers don’t believe anybody else truly understands what we’re going through. Writer’s block, giving a character personality, wrestling with conflict and plot…these are obstacles we don’t often discuss with friends. (Unless said friends are also writers, which is often not the case. Otherwise, you’re lucky.)

However, we fail to seek out others who share our pain, especially if they are not in our immediate circles (school, work, neighborhood).

What I’ve recently discovered is that being a part of a writing “community” can seriously help you improve. Whether you’re a part of a local critique group or connected with an online writing community, it’s important to stay “plugged in.”

I wondered for the longest time why I wasn’t getting any traffic on my blog. Two reasons: For a while, I neglected updating regularly. Also, I wasn’t visiting other blogs similar to my own.

There is much to learn from others. After feverishly (quite literally – I was actually very sick for several days) searching for other “teen writing blogs” and quickly subscribing to their RSS feeds, I suddenly felt encouraged and excited about my own writing. I didn’t stop there. I quickly noticed that many of the more successful blogs I subscribed to were blogs with other venues.

The author of the blog often had links to his/her Facebook page, Twitter account, or Tumblr. They reach wider audiences in this way, and in turn form relationships with other bloggers who have Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, and Tumblrs.

So I’ve decided to do the same. I’ve created an author Facebook page and a Twitter account. I’m not much of a Twitter fan (yet) but I really enjoy using Tumblr. The links to my various social media are located in the sidebar.

I didn’t write this post to ask you to subscribe, “like” my Facebook page, or follow me on Twitter and Tumblr. I wrote this post to let you know that I’ve decided to try something new – diving into this online community – because I think it’s going to work. That is, I think I’ll be surprised at the many advantages to connecting my social media and reaching out to other teen writers/bloggers. And I think it could work for you, too.

After (finally!) reading the book (read my review HERE), I went to see the movie with a friend. I really, really enjoyed it, to say the least. *Warning: You might not want to continue reading if you have not read the book or seen the movie.*

Here’s why:

1. Saoirse Ronan (who plays Melanie/Wanda) did a fabulous job portraying both Melanie and Wanda, who share the same body. The voice-over which represented Melanie’s voice in Wanda’s head was very realistic, as well. (Although I still don’t know how I feel about the country accent Saoirse used while speaking as Melanie.)

2. I liked the way Melanie’s flashbacks/memories were filmed.

3. The movie, for the most part, stayed true to the book. Of course, if you’ve read the book, you probably noticed how much was left out. Unfortunately, not every scene from the book could appear on screen, because the movie would probably be much longer than 2 hours.

4. The soundtrack. I especially love “Radioactive,” which is the song in the movie trailer as well as the song that plays when the credits begin to roll.

Although I loved the movie as a whole, I’d have to say I was slightly bothered by several things:

1. I felt like Wanda and Ian’s relationship was a little sudden/rushed. (I have to remind myself of the argument I made above: If every scene was included in the movie, it would be 2+ hours.)

2. The actress chosen to play Wanda at the very end. Her physical appearance differs from the description given in the book, but I think she’ll grow on me. 🙂

If you’ve read the book but haven’t seen the movie, SEE IT. If you’ve seen the movie but haven’t read the book, READ IT.

– Brooke

I often wonder if I am TOO emotionally invested in the books I read.

Whatever book I am reading affects my mood. Action/suspense – anxious. Romance – giddy. If I’m interrupted while I’m reading, I’m cranky. If my parents tell me to put the book away at the dinner table, I’m cranky. When I finish a book – when I read the last line and put it down – I usually cannot move/function for several minutes afterward.

When I read, I’m completely immersed in the world the author has created. The characters are my friends. When a character I love is killed, my heart grieves.

I find myself thinking about the book days after I’ve finished it.

If I’ve borrowed the book from the library, there is a part of me that does not want to return it. Lately, many of my books have been overdue (gasp!) because I just couldn’t bear to take them back. (However, the fine of $.10 for every day the book is late is usually motivation enough to return the book).

So, is this silly? Weird? Slightly pathetic?

No.

Because being emotionally invested in a novel is probably the greatest compliment you can give a writer. Why do authors write books? I know why I write – to give others the same joy I feel when I read. I want to make people laugh, or smile, or cry. It’s an incredible gift, to emotionally influence others.

It sounds sort of cheesy and cliche. But if you’re anything like me, I would just like to let you know that you ARE NOT ALONE.

I stumbled across several teen writing blogs this morning, which somehow led me to the fantastic blog of Kat Zhang, author of What’s Left of Me. What intrigued me about Kat was that she sold her trilogy to a publishing company (HarperCollins) at age 19. This means she wrote a book, found an agent, and revised her book during the height of her teenage years.

Kat Zhang, you give me hope.

When I discover new blogs, I usually spend large amounts of time sifting through old posts. Kat’s post “You Know You’re a Writer When…” made me laugh, and I nodded my head in agreement as I read her humorous list of things that do, in fact, apply to a majority of writers.

I can especially relate to this one:

You know you’re a writer when…

your search history log could probably get you indicted

(Mom, dad, please don’t ever look at my search history log. I promise I’m normal.)

My recent search history log:

teen with freckles
time travel
teenage girl spy
what time is it in Australia?

Of course, this isn’t the worst of it… 🙂