Writers are Humans, Thomas, Duh

Sometimes I idealize people. Take for example, my most recent failed crush. When I read his writing, I thought, oh my goodness, this man is perfect, so this is the kinda guy Ariana Grande sung “Everyday” about. I later learned that this guy kinda sucked at in-depth interpersonal communication, or at least that type of communication to me. I had built him up in my head, my foolish, foolish head.

After this man and I stopped talking, I started to freak out about writing and my favorite authors. Wait a second, I thought to myself, if this man came across as such a talented, thoughtful writer yet actually treated me like a molded potato, how can I trust any writer to be a decent human being? As anyone who read this blog knows, I love books with all my heart, so the thought of my favorite authors treating people like dirt made me feel so hurt and gross.

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A Love Letter to My Favorite Dead Writer, Caroline Knapp

Dear Caroline,

Your memoir Appetites saved my life. I first read it four years ago, at 18, the summer after my freshman year of college. You see, I had anorexia too, several years ago in my early adolescence. I starved myself for many of the same reasons you did. I wanted control over my life and didn’t have it, so I starved. I wanted to erase all the emotions I felt but I couldn’t, so I starved. I learned from my mother and the media and so many other sources that I could and should change my body, so I starved.

But I didn’t truly understand why I starved until I read Appetites.

thank u, books

I hit 1,000 reviews on Goodreads recently, so I wanted to write a post expressing my love for books and how much they have saved me. I grew up in an abusive household and books gave me a place to escape even when I had to stay right where I was. Books have helped me accept and love myself, expand my empathy and compassion toward others, and connect with so many cherished friends, in real life and through the internet (looking at u, Goodreads friends).

Gay young-adult novels saved me from hating my homosexuality.

Love Me, Hate Me, Talk to Me: Why I Will Keep the Quiet Voice

I remember screaming in the middle of a filled parking lot several months ago. My sophomore year in college had just ended, and my entire high school friend group had discarded me, for reasons belonging to both me and them. I felt so alone sitting in my car, right outside the central shopping mall of my hometown where we all used to hang out. My hands gripped the plastic covering of the steering wheel as ugly animal sounds shot out of my body and filled the stale air around me. I hated myself in that moment: I hated how isolated and weak I felt, I hated how I had pushed my friends away and how they had stayed away, and most of all, I hated my inability to treat myself with the compassion I so often applied to others. This is painful and this is pathetic, I recall thinking to myself. Pull yourself together. Now.

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

Cover via Goodreads.

Rating: 5/5 stars.

Bird by Bird is my new bible. Not just for writing, but for life – it is my favorite work of nonfiction so far.

Personal Update: July Adventures

Contrary to the excitement promised in the title, it’s time for a dear diary post! If only I were a celebrity who was famous for no real reason, then I could get away with writing these and still be loved… or at least liked… by someone…

Do not play Candy Crush. This is not a warning, this is a promise: if you play this wretched game, you will live to regret it.

What have I done all summer?

18 and Flailing

One week ago I turned 18. Since then I’ve been dealing with bouts of depression by drugging myself on Queer as Folk. In a perfect world I would write “hey, guess what guys, I’m not a teenager anymore, so no more angst on this blog!” But this is not a perfect world, and I am not a perfect person. Adult angst exists. I just need to conquer it.

Personal Update: 400,000 views, 3,000 comments, and a Tidbit On Grammar

I had to screenshot this.

Hi everyone! This is just a quick little post to thank all of my readers for being radiant and splendorous individuals. Either last week or two weeks ago this blog got its 400,000th view and last week it received its 3,000th comment. I’m so incredibly thankful for everyone who’s taken the time to lurk or comment or stalk or spend any amount of time with my writing. Reading and responding to every comment widens my perspective, and I hope it enhances my readers’ as well.

How to Read Novels Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster

Cover via Goodreads.

Rating: 3/5 stars.

I love reading books about books. How to Read Novels Like a Professor has excited me and made me more enthusiastic to start my next novel. For those who do not have much experience in learning about what constitutes a novel – for example, I’m only a high school student – Foster’s book would be a great place to begin. He provides a fantastic list of rules (which you can find in this review) and uses a wide array of examples from novels published decades apart.

However, because I have already read his book How to Read Literature Like a Professor, I felt that I already knew and was rereading some of the sections in this book.

The Importance of Being Awkward (How to be Awkward)

Hey guys! This week I’ve been pretty busy, which is quite unfortunate because I have a lot of things to write about. However, I don’t want to leave you guys hanging, so I’ve decided to share a piece of my writing that I originally wrote for my Advanced Composition class. Your feedback would be appreciated tremendously, as always.

My assignment was to write a process essay – basically, a how to-do type of essay that incorporates chronological steps, logical transitions, etc. Being the awkward turtle that I am, I chose to create a piece on how to be awkward. The following is the result (if you recognize the literary allusion of the title, respect points!):