It’s amazing how the universe can turn things around. Yesterday, I was feeling the wobbles. But today, I’m inspiring to someone. Wow. Thanks Kourtney. I love being inspired and I love to inspire others. I was amazed how many of you have felt wobbles too when you’re all so talented and generally fabulous to me so just goes to show how we’re unable to see ourselves and our qualities sometimes.

I felt pretty sucky about my writing skills yesterday but today I’m editing my WIP and am feeling more inspired to improve it. I can see the good bits, the bad bits and the ugly bits and I’m inspired to tackle the changes needed and hopeful that I can make it something worthwhile.

To accept this award, I’m meant to share seven things abut me. Instead, I’m going to share seven inspirations as it feels like we all could do with some!

I hope this inspires you today.

Please check out my blogroll for the bloggers who inspire me everyday – I hope they will inspire you too!

What’s inspiring you guys today?

Victoria

xoxo

I had one yesterday when I started to get pretty down on myself and wondered what the hell I’m doing. Mine was related to writing but wobbles can strike at anytime, usually when you’re on the cusp of a change or birthday! You wonder if your life is going the way your want or planned and whether you are good / clever / talented / pretty enough etc.

Why do we look down on ourselves like that?

I think it’s a fault of all us humans. We see the negative stuff far more easily than the good bits.

I was lucky that when I fired off some down emails to writer friends, I got support and encouragement back and I managed to go to sleep feeling just a little bit better. I’ve realised it’s better to talk it out, tell someone who you’re feeling than suffer in silence.

I woke up today to sunshine and some new ideas that make me realise I just need to re-focus and get some confidence and self-belief back.I need to chalk up yesterday as a wobble day and make sure today is brighter and better!

Do you ever have a wobble? What picks you back up when you do?

Victoria

xoxo

I think everyone has heard this song now, it’s everywhere. It’s catchy but the reason I think it’s so popular is the story it tells. It’s a timeless break-up song. We’ve all been there and we all know what it feels like. It doesn’t have to just be a partner, it could be a friend or family member – someone you were close to but are now out of your life and it feels weird knowing what a big part they used to be of your life but now they’ve gone. And now they are just someone that you used to know.

Life is made up of meetings and partings, that is the way of it 

That quote if you didn’t know is from The Muppet Christmas Carol. Yes, The Muppets are geniuses Well, it could actually be a direct Dickens quote but admission time, I’ve never read the book. Regardless, it always struck me as a pretty good insight into life and love. It would be nice if some people stayed forever but sometimes it’s a good thing that not everyone does. Learning to move on and let go of the past has been a tough lesson for me to grasp. I over analyse things, I wish I could things over again but we all have to say goodbye sometimes. Sometimes it’s good to look back but not if it holds you back.

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime 

This is such a true saying. When I think about who many people I’ve met in my life and then the ones that have stuck around, I wonder how different things would be if they were still in my life. But I like to think that there’s a reason why some people come and go and others stay fixed. I have learnt things from these people – good or bad and I’ve made mistakes with them – making me stronger, wiser and the person I am today.

As I grow up, I realise more and more that you can’t change things, all you can do is hope to do things right in the future. Even if you can’t see it at the time, life does have a way of working out.

Now and then I think of all the times you screwed me over
Part of me believing it was always something that I’d done
But I don’t wanna live that way
Reading into every word you say

You can’t rewrite your history even if you want to. Probably it wouldn’t work out even if you did. You think it was your fault but it wasn’t. Not every love lasts. And most of the time it was right that it didn’t.

But one love you can make sure lasts is the love you give yourself and the love you let yourself deserve. Because you are the constant in your life.

Make sure that you are somebody you want to know. 

Victoria

xoxo

This song is everywhere right now but I do love it. Alex Clare – Too Close

Rumer has a gorgeous voice. PF Sloan:

I don’t usually like this kind of thing but it’s stuck in my head. Jennifer Lopez – Dance agaib

What are you listening to?

Victoria

xoxo

This is just a quick post to say hello and thank you to my recent new followers. A big smile always creeps over my face whenever I get an email saying someone has subscribed to my blog. It feels amazing to know that people want to read my words. I try my best to check out your blogs if you have one and I love finding fabulous new ones to read and enjoy. Thank you for taking the time to read mine. A big fat cyber hug to you all!

I haven’t really read any Stephen King books. Don’t shoot me please! It’s just not my favourite genre but he has a lot of great writing advice and tips. This quote caught my eye the other day. Writers are often told to read widely and this is vital to help us write.

I read a blog post the other day and completely failed to take down any of the links but the blogger was talking about an author who was quoted as saying she never read as she was worried she’d end up copying other writers. I don’t understand this. One – I love to read and even if I didn’t write, I couldn’t give up reading. But as I do write, I’m confused by her point of view. I write YA so I read a lot of YA – it helps me to see what else is being published in the genre sure and it helps to understand teens trends etc, but mostly I just enjoy it. Why write something you wouldn’t enjoy reading yourself?

As for the potential to copy, I don’t think there really are original stories anymore – how many books have you read with a love triangle, or a girl who discovers she has supernatural powers, or forbidden love between a human and a creature or boy meets girl, they fall out, then they get back together? The point is to put your own spin, your own voice on a story. I just don’t think it’s possible to write like someone else, because even if you know their writing, you don’t know them. Our environment, our past and our likes and dislikes all shape our stories and unless you knew everything about them, I don’t think you could write the same way and the same story as them.

Plus other writers can be inspiring – their setting or their story might inspire you in an emotional way,might make you want to tap into the same feelings but it doesn’t make you want to write the same exact story. That would be boring and pretty pointless. I’ve read a few YA books that do have some of the same traits and plot lines but they always have a unique plot and new characters, a hook to stand out. They have their own voice.

I think that author is missing out on discovering not only great books to enjoy, but great writing. And every writer should be inspired by great writing – to make their own writing better. Surely that’s the goal of all of us.

So I’m sticking with Stephen on this one. I’d never give up reading. Reading helps my writing. And I love them both too much to do one without the other.

What about you?

Victoria

xoxo

Writers and film makers often use weather to convey mood. Whether using rain to tug at our emotional heartstrings or a storm to create suspense or fear or warm sunshine to let us know the characters are happy. But they also use it in the opposite way – hang the sun jar a character who is upset or depressed or having characters who have just fallen in love kiss in the rain (though I’ve never understood the appeal of that!)

I often wonder if people living in warm sunny places are happier than those of use who live in a country with unpredictable weather. I mean, you can plan days out without contingency plans, you probably get less colds and coughs, and you don’t need to buy a coat that makes you feel like a sump wrestler. Conversely, I bet those who live in the warm miss the seasons and fantasise about playing in the snow. We usually want what we can’t have. But I’m sure all of us have discussed the weather in relation to our mood and have had weather in a story make us feel something.

As I’m writing this, a hint of sunshine is appearing through the clouds. Suggesting new possibilities.

I like the sound of that.

“The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain!” 
― Dolly Parton

Does weather affect your mood? Do you like how writers and film makes use weather to make us feel something?

Victoria

xoxo

I’ve decided I need to make myself take more photos and at least share them on here so they aren’t forgotten forever. I went outside on Saturday for the first time in like a week as the sun finally came out. I didn’t go anywhere exciting – just a garden centre but I got some much needed fresh air and was inspired by the pretty flowers and took a couple of photos. When I got home, I decided to make use of the new photo technology and jazz them up a bit.

I checked out Instagram but I prefer two older photo apps actually – Camera+ and ShakeitPhoto. Here are the results:

And here was my self-portrait. You really can jazz up any photo

Photos capture moments. I must remember to capture mine.

Do you miss printed photos? How do you use photos now?

Victoria

xoxo

The last song I’ll write for you:

This Snow Patrol song is gorgeous. This isn’t everything you are:

Train are fast becoming one of my favourite bands. Drive by:

I’m a big Carrie Underwood fan and am looking forward to her new album coming out here. Good girl:

What have you been listening to?

Victoria

xoxo

Whatever it brings, it looks pretty bleak.

I love dystopian fiction – they are always imaginative, stark and scary. Even if the future is nothing like they predict, they are guaranteed to keep you on the edge of you seat. And they tend to include things that could happen, making you think about the direction our society might go in one day especially if there’s another World War. But mostly I enjoy their escapism and dark danger and the strong central characters that will do anything to survive. People you can really root for.

I’m pretty sure if you suddenly transported me to one of these future worlds, I’d fail miserably at surviving

I just finished the sequel to Divergent – Insurgent. I was nervous about the sequel as I loved Divergent so much but it was better than I hoped. Both books are thrilling page turners and the sequel has a mighty cliff hanger at the need. If you like dystopian fiction or just a cracking good read, don’t miss this series. I might get shot for saying this but I think I like it more than The Hunger Games

I think this YA trend might go the same way as vampires soon but for now, there’s some great books out there to read. And hopefully more films like The Hunger Games. I’d love to see Divergent on the big screen! I just hope that none of these stories get the future right because that would mean the world is going to become a very scary place

Any recommendations for dystopian books I should read?

Victoria

xoxo