Absence Explained

I apologize for my absence. Shortly after my most recent post, we were in France for a week, where I did not have my computer. Afterwards we spent a long weekend in Devon, without computer once again. Since then, I have not had a moment's rest and have been barely able to access my computer.

But I will begin to post more about what we have been doing for the last few weeks in a series of posts, staggered over a period of time.

Maybe a post a day? :)

Cheers,
Julia

Quick Update on Our Travels

Cousins @ the Family Party

Sunset in Cambridge

Cambridge

Cambridge- original Tudor house

Cambridge

Buckingham Palace

Entrance towards Trafalgar Square

Now we are off to France!

-Julia

Hampton Court & Ghosts!

Not quite as imposing as Henry VIII, but still...

Today we visited Hampton Court, home to King Henry the 8th and then many of the Stuart rulers (William and Mary, etc...)

It was, simply, bloody freezing. Coming from 80-degree weather to rainy weather with nearly a 40 degree difference is quite a shock to the system. I made the silly mistake of wearing sandals. My toes have still not fully recovered.

Hampton Court is actually quite an enchanting castle, despite the dreary rain of today. In addition, there are GHOSTS, which naturally feeds my creative curiousity. I've come to terms with the fact that regular fiction will not be enough for me- I much rather prefer the supernatural. Mythology, lore, witchcraft, and hauntings are quite my cup of tea.

Jane Seymour

 So naturally, learning how Jane Seymour (Wife #3) wanders the hall above the chapel in which her heart, and possibly some of her other organs are buried is quite intriguing. It is said that the reason she is still here, caught between death and heaven, is because of the extremely guilty conscience over her role in the downfall of Anne Boleyn. She won't be at peace until Anne forgives her, which for obvious reasons, will never happen.

Catherine Howard

Or what about Catherine Howard (Wife #5) seen rushing through the Great Hall to the chapel where she stops suddenly and lets out an unearthly shriek before hurrying back towards the top of the stairs with a ghastly look of despair. Legend has it that on the night after she was arrested for treason, she ran shrieking down the gallery while Henry was hearing Vespers in the Holyday Closet. She begged him to spare her life but was caught by the guards who dragged her away to her execution. So it is a thought that this is a reinacting of the tragic scene right before her untimely death.

Anne Boleyn

Lastly, there is dear Anne Boleyn (#2), who is said to wander around Hampton Court, but not quite like the others. It is said that she appears beheaded in her appearances around her old home.

There are also another 7 ghosts that wander Hampton Court, including a phantom dog and a ghostly cat. Exciting!!

As an afterthought, it is a good thing King Henry the 8th didn't turn out to be a ghost. I think as he was so imposing and terrifying in life, as a ghost he would scare people to death!

Cheers!
Julia

Snippets and Clips

Quick little post for today, as I've decided to revive the blog. (I'm really bad at this, aren't I?)

Some things that have happened recently? Well, first of all...we are going to Europe!! And for being-a-lovely-person-who-loves-her-teachers, I'll be posting some photos on here while we are over there!! Exciting! 

We plan to do a lot. I have some places I want to visit as research for one of my novel ideas (The Royal Mews Girl, I believe I've mentioned it before.) So several museums which include things from the Victorian Era are on my list. We are also planning on heading down south to Devon, with a stop by Stonehenge. (Time to start the apocalypse!)

Also, we will be seeing family. That is probably the one thing I am most excited about. Not only because of the family tree, but also I haven't seen most of them in ages. Plus they inspired a novel idea!

Saintes, France

Then we are also going to be in France, in the town where we lived. That photo above? That will be my view every day. :) 

Something I hesitate to share on here is my growing interest in learning more about sexuality and researching it. As it is something close to my heart, (12 states and just over 13 countries to legalize gay marriage!) I find it a very fascinating topic. I have found a few people who have published work about it and I plan to read more about it. We'll see where it takes me.

(Let's not even talk about the new interest in drag queens, okay?)

Also, I've decided to make The Hazel Tree (aka Cinderella Wolf) part of my Capstone project, so talk about deadlines! Mr. Wilkey, my mentor, has been amazing though so it doesnt seem like quite such a daunting task. It still is though.....I'm just not looking at it directly in the eye. It's going to be fun though...right?

Here is the new cover!

Also, if you guys are interested, here is the link to my new Facebook page. All the cool writers have one now. Click here. It will have snippets of the chapters I write, not only for The Hazel Tree but also for other novels. Also, it will have information as to when The Hazel Tree will be available to buy and where, etc...etc.. :)

Cheers!

Julia

Time to reawaken the blog. First, shall we start with some theme redesigning? :)

Stress of Deadlines

Boo!

Deadlines and time limits are the worst. Even if they are beyond my control, they have an unbelievable amount of influence on me.

School in general. Counting down to summer has never been more terrifying, especially with what lies on the horizon. Also, that ugly grade in Chemistry is a time bomb.

Capstone Senior Project deadlines are coming at me every week. I've been keeping ahead of schedule though so I am doing well.

Early Graduation deadlines. May 17th is when I have to decide if I can graduate in December or not, and the factor determining this is whether or not I get an internship. Which ties into the last deadline stressing me out...

Internship deadlines. More specifically Supernatural and Vampire Diaries. They both finish filming/production in a few short days! (SPN quickly approaching the 183 day mark) and what if my letter doesn't get there in time? What if they don't reply until the fall and it's too late then? (Never too late for the right opportunity! *superhero tune*) Blah, all very boring I know. Just needed to get it out there.

A much more thought out and time-worthy blog post on the way.

Cheers,
Julia

Comfort Zones and All

Fellow readers,

So I'm writing letters for internships and all. And a few of the places that I'm writing to are kind of big deals- I'm a huge fan of, and the chances of anything becoming of it are little to none. Writing and actually SENDING these letters are a huge step out of my comfort zone.

But the last time I stepped out of my comfort zone was when I applied to the Sewanee Young Writers Conference. And you know what just happened? I JUST GOT IN. I got into the playwriting workshop because of my interest in screenwriting. SYWC is a huge deal, and held at a very high standard. And I got in.

So if things like that happen when I step out of my comfort zone, maybe it's worth trying it again? I decided it's good enough reason to bring back the picture above. Remember the last time we saw it? It was when Emily came up for that workshop in June.

So now, like times before, I just need to push through and step out of this comfort zone and hopefully, maybe, just maybe...something good will come of it.

Speaking of Sewanee Young Writers Conference, here is a video explaining it.

It is odd that I find inspiration to write as the sun is rising and peering into the windows of a small house of whispering lovers in Alabama.

To This Day video

You should- no, NEED to watch this right now. Not only is it a beautiful work of animation, the poem and the story told are so true, it actually hurts.

I'll be over here having a life-changing moment.

http://vimeo.com/m/59956490

Dreams

[This was written yesterday, Saturday]

I should be writing right now. Either working on Chapter 1 of Cinderella Wolf (which is now The Hazel Tree) or writing down a possible novel idea (a gay romance, if you must know)  But no. 

I had a dream last night that completely threw me off writing. I can't tell you what it is. Sorry about that. 

But it had me thinking. When I was younger, before I hit puberty (yup, I went there), I used to dream almost every night. Oops, not true. You actually dream every single night. What I meant is the ones I remembered. They were light hearted things though, children's dreams. Things that you wouldn't really think about more than once or twice, and why should you? You are only a child.

Since about the time I started high school, though, I dream rarely. When I do, they are usually very complex and layered with meaning, symbols, and emotions. I've spent entire days consumed by a 

dream before.

Probably an unhealthy habit, but I often find myself so affected by them I can't help it.

It makes me wonder though, why this happens. I think the writer part in me becomes absolutely fascinated with deciphering the plethora of meanings in these dreams. On the other hand, they are usually so deeply emotionally connected to me that it sort of knocks me breathless...but not in a good way. 

These dreams always end unhappily, no matter how they start or how happy they are for the majority of the dream. Every single time, it ends badly, but never by anything I do. Curious, isn't it? 

Demonstration of the loss of control I have in life, or I cannot control the actions of others....the possibilities are endless.

That is all. I wish I could tell you what it was, but every time I try and write this dream 
down, I can never get it right.

So instead of writing, I'm writing this. I suppose it is a decent substitute. But still... I wish I was writing something else.

And, in a rare song recommendation, you should listen to 'Demons' by Imagine Dragons.

Cheers,

Julia