Fairly soon, I will be embarking on a new journey (no, not college) that I only have an inkling of where I am going.

I have a new novel idea. There isn't much too it right now. Here's what I have so far.

When the Day Met the Night

Main Female Character: Eliana
Main Male Character: Artemis, "Artie"

The two main characters are complete opposites. Artemis is named after the Greek goddess of the hunt/moon and Eliana's name means "daughter of the sun." So yes, slightly obvious, but nevertheless, fun.

I'm not exactly sure where this is going plot wise. I do know, there will be a very much "opposites attract" for Artie but not so much for Eliana. She's a bit of a flirt in my mind.

The idea of the story is slightly based on the song, When the Day Met the Night by Panic at the Disco.

Anyway, I shall let you all know when I have more!

They say the first million words are practice.

For some participating in WriYe, and crazy enough to try it, those million words will come in a year. If you want to write a million words in one year that's... 2,740 words a day, every day. I have friends that could easily accomplish this.

However, not everyone is that prolific. For some, those million words of fiction (or creative nonfiction) may take years. David Hendrickson, a very successful published author, suggests it will probably take ten years.

Ten years.

That's a lot of time. That's a lot of commitment.

Last year I wrote 290,000 words. This year I am going for 325,000 words. Let's say you are more conservative. You go for 150,000 words a year - a reasonable goal. That takes down your million words to 6 and 2/3rds years.

But does it matter how long it takes to get there?

And who decided one million words was a good indicator of the quality of your writing?

Exactly.

Writing is about making yourself (and those pesky voices) happy. It's about fulfilling your goal to write something meaningful. Maybe some write for publication, but they don't have the right idea.

Writing, sure, can always be improved. Anyone going to a workshop, creative writing class or in an MFA knows this: your writing can always be improved. That does not mean that if I go out and write one million words next year and don't focus on anything in my writing, I will magically get better.

Writing for the sheer fact of getting your million words is stupid, honestly. You should write for you. If you want to improve, then do so. If you like your writing where you can't decide between 'gray' and 'grey' in a manuscript, fine. It's your writing.

Do with it what you like. And toss that million word goal out the window.

I've always liked filling out character sheets, up until a point. Then, I realized how tedious they are. And yet, I am realizing how important they are.

My roommate and I have been Facebook chatting and emailing, finding out all the weird things about each other. This is way beyond what we look like and what our favorite colors are. We're telling each other our quirks (afraid of the sound of flushing toilets, thinking pickles are cucumbers soaked in evil to name a few [both are mine]), our fears (not being challenged) and weird things like our high school mascot and class size.

All of this is helping me get a better picture of Sarah. It's very random what questions come up. We've had questions from do you like jigsaw puzzles to what would you see in the Mirror of Erised. (Thank you J.K. Rowling for uniting the world!)

So next time you need to do a character sheet, don't think of it as tedious work. Think of it as a conversation between you and your character, letting it take off in whatever way you want, as long as you get some answers.

Sometimes I love reading YA Lit as a teenager because they get it right. And sometimes they don't...

One thing I have never gotten a proper feeling for in a YA book is the mixed emotions about college. I mean, there have been undertones of college in one of my favorites - Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen - but never as the main theme.

Here's what I know about going to college, as a senior who graduated this Spring. Some of these are generalizations but many are experienced by myself, my friends and family.

1) You will cry at sappy family commercials. The one about a mom sending her daughter Jiffy peanut butter gets me every time.

2) You are so excited to be moving on and yet you want to stay at your house forever.

3) You are terrified that the class work will be too hard and that maybe, you chose the wrong major.

4) Conversely, you're afraid you'll never find the right major.

5) You are sad to be leaving your friends from high school, ready for new ones.

6) You hope your roommmate isn't from hell - especially those that have always had a bedroom to themselves.

7) You don't want to grow up, can't wait to.

Here's a little glismp at what's going on in my life right now as an example:

I found out my housing and roommate assignment yesterday. My roommate, from Minnesota, sounds amazing. However, I'm also terrified that our Facebook chats will be better than our interactions in person. She has a boyfriend coming with her to college. I'm terrified that I'm going to be a third wheel. Some of my fears are irrational, some aren't.

I am so ready to major in creative writing and history but I'm afraid I might be taking on too much. What if my passion, writing, isn't good enough for college? What if I'm not challenged? This is a huge one for me and history. I have never been challenged academically history wise during high school. History Day, yes, challenged me, but that was extracurricular.

I love my family more than anything in the world. But I've never spent more than a week apart from one of them. I'm afraid I'll be so homesick I won't want to continue with college...

I could go on forever.

The point is that I want YA authors to ask the teenagers around them - especially the graduated seniors. Ask them about college - what they're feeling. Part of the appeal, for me, in YA lit is that it's an escape, but also a learning experience.

I want to see a character struggle through this transition and come out on the right side of it - or even the wrong side. I want to see the anticipation and fear for college.

A break from writing related topics to talk about something I'm truly passionate about: National History Day.

I have competed in National History Day since I was a sixth grader. However, it wasn't until I moved to Iowa (after seventh grade) that I began to realize how important History Day was. My eighth grade Humanities class required me to write and research a topic on the Civil War. My teacher wanted ten sources - only two could come from the Internet. Everyone complained. I knew how to do it. It was nothing.

My junior year paper on Oscar Wilde, went to Nationals with 108 sources, an interview with a professor who wrote a book on Oscar Wilde and some of the best writing I've ever done. My senior year paper on Jane Austen made third in the state of Iowa. It was succinct (word limit: 2,500 words) and well-written. I am a fiction writer, however, I am not ashamed to say my Jane Austen paper, entitled, "'Only a Novel?': Jane Austen's Innovations for the Romantic Novel", is my best written work.

But History Day has not just taught me to research and write papers. Although I'm so happy I have these skills for entering college, that's not it.

National competition involves competitors from every state, DoDDS-E, Shanghai, China, Guam, the American Samoa and and even some Canadians that sneak in through Shanghai. You get about 2,000 kids together who are passionate about history and some sparks fly.

History Day makes me take my learning into my own hands. I want to know all about how polio was eradicated? Fine, that will be my topic. Want to know why Oscar Wilde was thrown into prison (it was illegal to be gay at the time) I can research it. At History Day you chose topics that interest you and then you take off.

Not only are you making history personal to you, but you're also getting personal. I love the people part of history. I want to know, "What did they think? How did they overcome [insert event here]." I want to know about the people and their emotions. History Day allows me to do this. It lets me get close to the person, so to speak. I would have never known about what Roosevelt thought personally, of the United Nations, had I not done History Day. I wouldn't have known that Jane Austen was a snarky person.

History Day has taught me so much - to research, to ask questions, to write well, to find both sides of the story. It's taught me to be outgoing with finding what I need to find to answer those questions I have. It's taught me about thesis, teamwork and hard work.

However, History Day in Iowa is in a bit of a pickle. The major funder of National History Day in Iowa, has decided to drop their support. I ask, even if it's just your time, to help History Day. I wouldn't be the person I am without this program. One thing offered every competition are special awards. For example, my Jane Austen paper won the "Outstanding Entry in Literary History." If you're passionate about an aspect of history, consider giving a special award.

If anyone has any questions about History Day and what it is, either follow the link above (to the National History Day contest site) or comment a question. I'm more than willing to help out in whatever way I can.

Also, here below are links to donate to the National History Day contest and the National History Day in Iowa.

Why Support History Day? (National Contest)

Getting Involved (Iowa History Day)

I thank everyone ahead of time. You are the ones who will keep this amazing program alive.

I am working hard on the list of 1001 Books to Read Before you Die. So far I've gotten 35 or so read with a goal to read 15 more this summer. Slow progress, most definitely, but when the books are War and Peace, Doctor Zhivalgo and Gone with the Wind one can understand why they take a while to complete.

I am also suppose to be reading All about Dreams by Gayle Delaney for my Honors First Year Seminar on Sleep.

What book did I just finish reading today? Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling.

Yep, I'm not doing my required reading (yet! I have to order the book) or books off the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die. I'm rereading the Harry Potter series.

Is that a bad thing? No, actually I think it's good to go back and reread old books and here's why:

You realize what works in a story when you already know the plot
You pick up on little, minute things you missed reading it the second (or hundredth) time
You know you'll enjoy the book so you get more out of it.

While I'm in DC with National History Day I'll be reading Tess of the D'Urbervilles because Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire doesn't fit in my suitcase. But when I get back, the series will be there to great me and welcome me like an old friend.

What are your favorite books to reread; the ones you'll put down anything required just so you can read them?

Although it was less than a week ago, I barely remember anything of the three speaker's speeches. One was about how I didn't plagarize the speech so you shouldn't plagarize your life. Don't ask me what the others were about.

But as I sat, dripping in sweat, listening to speeches I wouldn't remember, I thought about how that related to books and writing.

How many books have I read that I couldn't remember the title or the plot? They weren't memorable. It doesn't mean they weren't good; it just means that they didn't have something to capture my mind and put some tidbit into my long term memory.

Harry Potter for example - I will always remember the scene where Sirius dies in the book. Maybe because of the imagery, maybe because I love the book and Sirius the character. (I named a fish after him, after all.)

I think it's every author's dream that their books will be remembered forever. And it presents a challenge. How do you do that?

Personally, I think you do it with emotions and imagery. What do you think?