Hello everyone! So the title of this blog post might seem a little bit.. extreme. Don't worry though, I didn't write all of it in the past few days (duh!), this has been a long process. Well just in case you're interested, you can find all of what I have of Kidnapped right here!
I hope you all will enjoy it! Feel free to give me feedback on here or on Figment! All criticism is welcome. :)
Thursday, December 11, 2014
Monday, December 8, 2014
Music of the Week
As Christmas rolls around the corner at an excitingly quick speed, so does the music and decor. So as the spirits of Christmas begin to take over, I have decided to go along with it by making a playlist for the upcoming holiday.
Most people have probably heard of the a capella group called Pentatonix, but if you haven't, let me introduce you to them - you will certainly find a lot of their music on my Christmas playlist. PTX was founded in Texas by five members: Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kirstie Maldonado, Avi Kaplan, and Kevin Olusloa. Kirstie, Mitch, and Scott were high-school buddies and met the other band members of Pentatonix through a mutual friend and YouTube.
Together these new friends decided to audition for the TV show Sing-Off. They successfully moved up the ladder of the show and ended up winning season three. Since then they have gained popularity through YouTube. Their music style ranges from pop, dubstep, reggae, and much more.
So let's continue on to the playlist now that you know a little bit about my "featured band."
"Mary, Did You Know?" performed by Pentatonix.
"That's Christmas to Me" performed by Pentatonix.
"Let it Go" performed by Pentatonix.
"Silent Night" performed by Pentatonix.
"The Christmas Shoes" by Newsong.
"I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" performed by Casting Crowns.
"Away in a Manger" performed by Jeremy Camp.
"Emmanuel" by Chris Tomlin.
"When Love was Born" by Mark Schultz.
"O Come, O come, Emmanuel" performed by Big Daddy Weave.
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" performed by Sidewalk Prophets.
Well that's my Christmas playlist for everyone to see. I hope you all enjoy it and listen to more of Pentatonix's music!
Most people have probably heard of the a capella group called Pentatonix, but if you haven't, let me introduce you to them - you will certainly find a lot of their music on my Christmas playlist. PTX was founded in Texas by five members: Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kirstie Maldonado, Avi Kaplan, and Kevin Olusloa. Kirstie, Mitch, and Scott were high-school buddies and met the other band members of Pentatonix through a mutual friend and YouTube.
Together these new friends decided to audition for the TV show Sing-Off. They successfully moved up the ladder of the show and ended up winning season three. Since then they have gained popularity through YouTube. Their music style ranges from pop, dubstep, reggae, and much more.
So let's continue on to the playlist now that you know a little bit about my "featured band."
"Mary, Did You Know?" performed by Pentatonix.
"That's Christmas to Me" performed by Pentatonix.
"Let it Go" performed by Pentatonix.
"Silent Night" performed by Pentatonix.
"The Christmas Shoes" by Newsong.
"I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" performed by Casting Crowns.
"Away in a Manger" performed by Jeremy Camp.
"Emmanuel" by Chris Tomlin.
"When Love was Born" by Mark Schultz.
"O Come, O come, Emmanuel" performed by Big Daddy Weave.
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" performed by Sidewalk Prophets.
Well that's my Christmas playlist for everyone to see. I hope you all enjoy it and listen to more of Pentatonix's music!
Friday, November 21, 2014
The Wonderful Topic of Holidays and Fudge
Well with the holidays literally right around the corner, it's about time to get our baking skills out of the old cookbook. Unlike my older sister, my baking skills don't come naturally, they come from cookbooks and the great land of Pinterest.
However! I am excited (okay, ecstatic) to say that I have a lovely recipe for chocolate peanut butter fudge that I practically came up with on my own. My proportions simply stemming from multiple fudge recipes. Can I call it my own? I think so.
Here's what you will need:
Now let's move on to your next subject: holidays. What is a holiday? Well by definition a holiday is..
However! I am excited (okay, ecstatic) to say that I have a lovely recipe for chocolate peanut butter fudge that I practically came up with on my own. My proportions simply stemming from multiple fudge recipes. Can I call it my own? I think so.
Here's what you will need:
- 4 and 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
- 1/3 of a cup of milk
- 1/2 a tablespoon of salt
- 1/3 of a cup of natural peanut butter (natural is optional)
- 1/4 of a cup of butter
- 3/4 of a cup of cocoa or carob power (I used carob - tastes great, but again, carob is optional)
- 1/2 a tablespoon of vanilla extract
- Melt your butter in a sauce pan. Once completely melted, mix in milk and vanilla extract.
- In a large bowl, mix together the powdered sugar, salt, and cocoa or carob powder.
- Sift the mixture of powdered sugar, salt, and cocoa or carob powder.
- Gradually add the sugar mixture into your butter mixture, mixing well.
- Once this is completed, stir in peanut butter. If the mixture is too powdery and beginning to separate, add milk by the tablespoon until the correct texture is made.
- Pour fudge into a container of your choice (the length and width effect the size of your fudge).
- Cool fudge in fridge for at least 2 hours, longer if necessary.
Now let's move on to your next subject: holidays. What is a holiday? Well by definition a holiday is..
"A day of festivity or recreation when no work is done."
Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't Thanksgiving a lot of work? Preparing for this holiday is quite exhausting and today more than ever, a lot of hard work goes into preparing a Thanksgiving feast and cleaning up after all those Thanksgiving beasts. Yeah, that's right. Those people that dig into the delicious food before it has been served - they're Thanksgiving beasts.
And then you have the shopping beasts. Those people who insist of staying out in the freezing cold weather just for a good deal on something. Their Black Friday actually starts the day before Black Friday - on the day that is supposed to be set aside for giving thanks to everything that we take advantage of throughout the year. Instead of doing just that, they take advantage of the good deals that are going on.
I am definitely not saying that Black Friday shopping is wrong - I go shopping on Black Friday. I just believe that maybe, instead of overlapping Christmas and Thanksgiving by waiting until Christmas to be thankful, everyone could be a little more thankful on Thanksgiving and leave Christmas to celebrate it's own purpose, the birth of our savior. And leave Black Friday for shopping.
Holidays aren't for working out your brain thinking about gifts or food or shopping, they're about celebrating what God has done for us in a festive manner and celebrating it with the people that we love most. So what are you thankful for? What are you especially thankful for this year?
I'm thankful for everything that God has done for us in this year. In this lifetime. Even though sometimes it doesn't seem like He has done much, I just remember that He is doing things in my life even when I don't notice it. Moving here was a blessing, not a curse, even if I don't know it yet. God provides the clothes on my body, the food on my family's table, and the very computer that I'm writing this post on. Although sometimes it seems like my Father or my Mother is providing me with these things, I humble myself and remember that if not for God, they wouldn't have the chance to provide these things.
So there's my answer. It may be a simple one, a lame one, but there's much more depth to it than a lot of things I could have answered. Well good afternoon everyone, I really hope that you will enjoy this holiday season with your family and stay true to the real meaning of all of these holidays.
Friday, October 31, 2014
Happy Halloween!
Happy Halloween everyone! I hope you have fun things planned.
So what are you dressing up as? Comment below!
As for me, my costume can be seen below. I'm going as a car hop girl. Don't know what that is? Think Sonic worker... but 50s syle.
Adorable, right?!
Hopefully.
As you know, I recently moved to Georgia. My neighborhood is very up and coming, so most of the couples are younger, Unfortunately that means I may stand out against little five and six year olds.
So will my giant Lego 16-year-old sister. Yep, giant Lego. Her costume is amazing and very on point, but also very bulky and uncomfortable. But it's all worth it.
Well I hope you all have a great Halloween and give out / get lots of candy!
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Abbi's Book Nook / Mind Games
Notice a few changes about my blog, my nonexistent readers?
Well, if you didn't, you might want to refresh because as of today, abbisbookblog.blogspot.com no longer exists.
Yep, you read that correctly. It is now abbisbooknook.blogspot.com. Cute, right? I thought so.
Also, there has been a pretty drastic change in my lovely layout. It's much lighter and floral-y. And music-y. I guess my point to all of you is - although my url may say this is a book nook, it's really more of a book and music diary so to speak.
I hope everyone isn't upset with this decision, but if you are, I would like to point out that 85% of what I did on here was not talk about books. It was a just lot of rambling about my life and whatnot.
Fear not!
There will certainly still be book talk. Trust me, book talk is a must.
With that note, I would like to take you on a journey into the exiting and hilarious book Mind Games by Kiersten Whites. This book was certainly something for me to read. Originally, the cover got me thinking, "Hmm, this seems a bit weird, do I really want to read it?"
And again with the description of the book. Putting those odd thoughts to the side, I forced myself to sit down and take a look into the book. What I got out of it was more exciting that what I could have imagined.
Sofia aka Fia is in a rough situation with her beloved, blind sister Anna. In order to protect her special sister, Fia must do whatever the Keane Foundation - a foundation for kids with special 'powers' - wants her to. Although her stunning instincts told her not to go, Fia found that she had no choice because of what the Foundation offered her sister.
The powerful, insane, and hilarious Fia finds herself struggling to follow orders one day and does something that could cost her sister's life. In order to cover this mistake up, Fia returns to the Chicago headquarters and pretends to act normal. Well, whatever is normal for Fia.
See, Fia has done some crazy things because of the Foundation - things that have driven her to attempt suicide and worse. So it isn't surprising when Fia returns to her home with a defiant spirit and a cold, crazy heart.
If I have anything to say to Kiersten Whites it's this: If you ever decide to make this into a movie, cast me for Fia.
Her character was incredibly relateable (for me at least) and I felt like Fia really brought out my inner crazy. I would certainly play the part well.
The book ended with a dramatic turn. An end that brought me to tears. Lots of tears.
But again, fear not! There is a second one already out! It is called Perfect Lies.
So get yourself to your local bookstore or library and get these wonderful books. They will make you laugh, cry, scream, and become a bit nuts.
But it's worth it.
Well, if you didn't, you might want to refresh because as of today, abbisbookblog.blogspot.com no longer exists.
Yep, you read that correctly. It is now abbisbooknook.blogspot.com. Cute, right? I thought so.
Also, there has been a pretty drastic change in my lovely layout. It's much lighter and floral-y. And music-y. I guess my point to all of you is - although my url may say this is a book nook, it's really more of a book and music diary so to speak.
I hope everyone isn't upset with this decision, but if you are, I would like to point out that 85% of what I did on here was not talk about books. It was a just lot of rambling about my life and whatnot.
Fear not!
There will certainly still be book talk. Trust me, book talk is a must.
With that note, I would like to take you on a journey into the exiting and hilarious book Mind Games by Kiersten Whites. This book was certainly something for me to read. Originally, the cover got me thinking, "Hmm, this seems a bit weird, do I really want to read it?"
And again with the description of the book. Putting those odd thoughts to the side, I forced myself to sit down and take a look into the book. What I got out of it was more exciting that what I could have imagined.
Sofia aka Fia is in a rough situation with her beloved, blind sister Anna. In order to protect her special sister, Fia must do whatever the Keane Foundation - a foundation for kids with special 'powers' - wants her to. Although her stunning instincts told her not to go, Fia found that she had no choice because of what the Foundation offered her sister.
The powerful, insane, and hilarious Fia finds herself struggling to follow orders one day and does something that could cost her sister's life. In order to cover this mistake up, Fia returns to the Chicago headquarters and pretends to act normal. Well, whatever is normal for Fia.
See, Fia has done some crazy things because of the Foundation - things that have driven her to attempt suicide and worse. So it isn't surprising when Fia returns to her home with a defiant spirit and a cold, crazy heart.
If I have anything to say to Kiersten Whites it's this: If you ever decide to make this into a movie, cast me for Fia.
Her character was incredibly relateable (for me at least) and I felt like Fia really brought out my inner crazy. I would certainly play the part well.
The book ended with a dramatic turn. An end that brought me to tears. Lots of tears.
But again, fear not! There is a second one already out! It is called Perfect Lies.
So get yourself to your local bookstore or library and get these wonderful books. They will make you laugh, cry, scream, and become a bit nuts.
But it's worth it.
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Kidnapped - Chapter 7
After long days - and nights - of writing, chapter seven of kidnapped is finally finished.
It can be found here. Enjoy!
Writing for me is a slow, drawn out process that involves lots of coffee and too many distractions. My room is where I write and it's not like it's distracting or anything, because it isn't. Most of my distractions come from the evil social networking site, Facebook, and music. Although music is a must for my writing, it's also a major distraction. One thing leads to another and suddenly I'm on Youtube looking at videos of kittens playing peek-a-boo.
Any tips for staying focused? Leave them below in the comment section. As for my tips - hey they've helped me finished half a novel, they can't be that bad.
It can be found here. Enjoy!
Writing for me is a slow, drawn out process that involves lots of coffee and too many distractions. My room is where I write and it's not like it's distracting or anything, because it isn't. Most of my distractions come from the evil social networking site, Facebook, and music. Although music is a must for my writing, it's also a major distraction. One thing leads to another and suddenly I'm on Youtube looking at videos of kittens playing peek-a-boo.
Any tips for staying focused? Leave them below in the comment section. As for my tips - hey they've helped me finished half a novel, they can't be that bad.
- Set a work timer for about 20 - 30 minutes depending on how much you want to get done.
- When that timer is up, give yourself a 5-10 minute break.
- Try to keep your distractions minimal. Perhaps allow music but no texting or Facebook time.
- Keep your work space organized. This helps you to not want to clean it as a form of procrastination.
- Stay motivated! Don't let anything bring you down that could effect your work quality.
- Don't let your brain get worn out - stay awake with coffee, tea, or fruit.
- Plan! Plan out what you want to write or work on so that it's not improvised and half-hearted.
Sunday, July 20, 2014
Good News
This past week has certainly been a busy one, full of joy, noise, and blessings.
To start the week off, I received an email from The Lit Leak saying that my poem that I entered for publication was accepted! My poem "Redemption" is going to be published in August of this year!
After literally just checking the website, I am proud to say it's featured on there as a preview of the magazine! What a great way to start the week, right?! After that I went to go see The Fray perform with my older sister at Chastain Park Amphitheater on Friday!
They are incredible live!
I would love to see them again. On Saturday morning, my family (with the exception of my father & sister) went to South Carolina to get my brother's senior pictures taken at my uncles house. It was a lot of fun to spend time with my cousins while helping my uncle take some great pictures of my brother! We also went to downtown Greenville to take some pictures and it was so beautiful. Rustic buildings lead you down long streets filled with cute restaurants, art galleries, and different types of stores. From there, we headed over to a gorgeous park with this large bridge hanging across "The Falls," a river with a medium-sized water fall.
Even though I dislike bridges with a passion, it was nice to see the lovely site. Moments like that had me wishing I would've thought to bring my camera on the trip. Of course, my camera doesn't hardly compare to my uncles, which was incredibly sharp and quick. I've also started thinking about what camera I would like to start saving up for. I already have a nice camera - a Nikon Coolpix L320 - but the type of camera I want isn't for just taking everyday pictures. It's specially designed for "astrophotography," the art of taking photographs and videos of the stars, planets, galaxies, and everything in between.
The camera I'm interested in is called the Nikon dslr3200 - an amateur camera for this type of photography. It ranges from between $450 to $550 depending on who you buy it from. It's much more expensive than my current camera, but you can imagine why! It's for taking far, far away pictures. Better versions of this camera may go for $4,000+, but those are for professionals.
I'm not a professional.
The final thing on my "Good News" post is that I'm going to see RadioDriveBy, Shout London, and a few other bands on the 29th! You may not be excited for me, but I love any concert, haha. Well, I think I'm coming to an end for this post; it's beginning to get late here. Thanks for reading!
To start the week off, I received an email from The Lit Leak saying that my poem that I entered for publication was accepted! My poem "Redemption" is going to be published in August of this year!
After literally just checking the website, I am proud to say it's featured on there as a preview of the magazine! What a great way to start the week, right?! After that I went to go see The Fray perform with my older sister at Chastain Park Amphitheater on Friday!
They are incredible live!
I would love to see them again. On Saturday morning, my family (with the exception of my father & sister) went to South Carolina to get my brother's senior pictures taken at my uncles house. It was a lot of fun to spend time with my cousins while helping my uncle take some great pictures of my brother! We also went to downtown Greenville to take some pictures and it was so beautiful. Rustic buildings lead you down long streets filled with cute restaurants, art galleries, and different types of stores. From there, we headed over to a gorgeous park with this large bridge hanging across "The Falls," a river with a medium-sized water fall.
Even though I dislike bridges with a passion, it was nice to see the lovely site. Moments like that had me wishing I would've thought to bring my camera on the trip. Of course, my camera doesn't hardly compare to my uncles, which was incredibly sharp and quick. I've also started thinking about what camera I would like to start saving up for. I already have a nice camera - a Nikon Coolpix L320 - but the type of camera I want isn't for just taking everyday pictures. It's specially designed for "astrophotography," the art of taking photographs and videos of the stars, planets, galaxies, and everything in between.
The camera I'm interested in is called the Nikon dslr3200 - an amateur camera for this type of photography. It ranges from between $450 to $550 depending on who you buy it from. It's much more expensive than my current camera, but you can imagine why! It's for taking far, far away pictures. Better versions of this camera may go for $4,000+, but those are for professionals.
I'm not a professional.
The final thing on my "Good News" post is that I'm going to see RadioDriveBy, Shout London, and a few other bands on the 29th! You may not be excited for me, but I love any concert, haha. Well, I think I'm coming to an end for this post; it's beginning to get late here. Thanks for reading!
Saturday, July 12, 2014
The Rut of Writing
Funny how I can sit down and write a blog entry, but when it comes to continuing my chapter, I'm lost. I finally finished editing chapters 1-6 of Kidnapped and now I'm working on chapter 7. I've only gotten to 30k words and in order for it to be more drawn out, I need more detail and more action. Unfortunately detail is my downfall.
I mean, I know how to add detail. I can add lots of detail, sure. But when I read over it, I feel like it's too drawn out and boring. I don't know if that could be my own judgement or if it's true. Ultimately my goal is to get published, but I don't want to send in some boring work. I need to spice it up, add some action. I have all of these plans for my book and I know what I want to happen - my problem is getting there. I desperately need to get there. Once I finally do.. all of this writers block and distress will go away. I have issues with jumping from my character's thoughts back to the current time without it seeming short or cut off.
If any of you guys have tips please give them to me! I am in serious need of them right now. I want my first novel to be around 50 or 60k words so that it might be 250 pages or so. But most of all, I want my first novel to be good. I want it to be a hit and I want it to be published with a relatively good company so that it will be more popular. I don't want this because of my own desires for it to be a famous book, I want the message of the book to be heard. I think that Kidnapped has a good message to hear because it shows a young girl in distress, trying to escape from her life of lies and hurt - even if it means giving everything she loves away - because it's for the best. We all know the hardest things in life to do are the best things for us. What I'm trying to get people to see is not that you have to be in a difficult situation like Erica, but that no matter what situation you're in, you can overcome. You don't have to be in pain anymore because you can escape. You can conquer whatever is holding you back from being who you were created to be.
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
That Frustrating Moment when...
You're editing your work and change tabs just to find out when you go back, your work isn't saved and you're now logged out of that website.
I swear I'm going to cry. I wasn't too far in to editing chapter four but I had made a lot of good changes that I can't remember now. My frustration doesn't come from myself but the Figment website for randomly signing me out. I guess I can't complain too much, it was inevitable. SO I guess I'll stop complaining and go back to revising chapter four. Before I go - chapter 1, 2, and 3 are finished and you can find them here. Thanks for listening to me rant. :p
Tuesday, July 8, 2014
The Revised "Kidnapped." Chapter one.
Hey, look who's posting! Yay! So I read through Kidnapped and revised it - or at least one chapter (It took me over an hour!) - and I've decided to share it with you guys! I made quite a few changes to the wording and fixed spelling and punctuation errors. I hope you enjoy it and leave comments about it down below!
ONE: November 12th, 2004 (Past)
I was eight years old when I was kidnapped. Dad had just left for work and Mom was teaching Nicholas, my older brother, how to use the washing machine. I couldn't take the noise, so I decided to go outside. I will never know if my Mom heard me when I said that I was going outside, but I did try to tell her. I was playing with my little doll that I got as an early birthday present; my birthday was the next day. Anyway, while I was playing I saw this beautiful dog walking down the street. My mother had told me many times before not to leave the yard, but there was something about this dog that made me just block that thought out and follow it.
Every time I would get within a few feet of the dog, it would turn around and look at me for a moment before walking even faster. Finally, we reached the park. The dog ran back down the street minutes later, leaving me behind, all alone in the park. Not completely alone, though. There were a few mothers, maybe a father or two. I decided to go play on the swings since I was already at the park. Suddenly I had firm hands of someone pushing me on the swing. I hadn't thought anything of it at the time. I let him push me until I was so high I could touch the tree branch that was resting just above the swing set.The man who was pushing me, who I now call Nathan, took hold of the chain that was connected to the seat. Him doing that sent me flying off of the swing, nearly breaking my arm. I remember him shouting,"Oh, sweetheart! Are you alright? C'mon darling, let's go home and get your scratches cleaned up."
I thought he was really going to take me home to help me. He didn't. He held my hand, walking me far away from my home. We went off of a road and into the country. I tried at least three times to take my hand from his, but his was too big and he kept his grip. We soon arrived in a very big field, a large SUV parked next to a small, withering tree. Nathan tightened his grip and began to kind of drag me toward the tree. By now I was crying, unaware of what could happen. A little boy, ten at the time, walked out from behind the tree with a rope in one hand, and duct tape in the other.
They tied me up and stuck layers of duct tape over my mouth, causing me to hardly be able to breathe. "Aiden," Nathan spat,"this is the one you wanted, right?" Aiden smirked at his father and nodded his head. He thanked his father, and did the "honor" of throwing me in the back of the car. I tried to scream, no noises escaping from my mouth, but tears streaming down my face. I soon ran out of energy and to my surprise fell asleep. When I woke up Nathan was hauling me into a small cabin. The grass there was, and still is, slowly dying. I've lived in this cabin most of my life and have never seen that grass a beautiful green like the grass at my old home.
The woods that the cabin was located at was far, far away from where I had lived, I soon learned; not that I was able to go to town many times. Nathan lead me to a small room in which walls were painted pink, my favorite color at the time. There in the corner of the room, lay a twin bed, - something I still have - a purple comforter with pink butterflies neatly sitting on top of it. A small bedside table, a lamp upon it, was right next to that twin bed. And finally, a small dresser on the opposite side of the room. The only toy I had was my little doll I held tightly on to.
But on that bed there was a little girl who looked like me.
She had wavy brown hair, hazel eyes, and was tall, exactly like me. I was afraid at how much she looked like me; we could have been related. She had tears in her eyes as she said,"W-what are you doing with her? Are we going to be friends - there will be two of us? I - she. . .you're not getting rid of me, are you?! Where will I go?"
Tears began to stream down her face as Nathan nodded his head at Aiden and pulled out a small pocket knife. "Follow me, Hannah," he said, holding his arm around her chest and the knife to her throat.
"Now." He pulled the doll from my hand and I cried and hollered.
She followed him and that was the last I ever saw of her. A few months later, the police found her in the middle of the woods behind a little grocery store. They called my parents thinking that she was me. My parents took one look at the doll and just assumed she was me - no DNA tests. Nothing. And that was that. I was dead to them. Gone. Vanished. The entire crime was over. The man who people saw lingering around the grocery store was a butcher and apparently my killer. His hands were bloody. Hannah's body was bloody. So was my doll.
~`~`~`~
As days, weeks, months, and years have gone by, I found myself feeling as though Nathan was my father and this was home. I developed a crush on Aiden that is now a healthy relationship. At first, I must admit, I would do anything to get away. If he took me out to town, I would try to scream and do anything to be noticed, unless Aiden's hand wasn't clamped over my mouth. But as the days went by, I noticed something: I'm never going to be able to leave. I'm here forever; not that I mind. Although I wouldn't mind going to visit my parents and telling them that I'm safe, okay, and well... alive. I hope to do that on my sixteenth birthday, with my new identity as Erica Blackstone, daughter of Nathan Blackstone. And Aiden as Nathan's ex-girlfriends son whom he got custody of after her death.Everything, as Nathan would say, is going to turn out perfectly.
~`~`~`~
Present (November 12th 2012)
I laugh uncontrollably as Aiden stands over Nathan, re-dying his orange hair. Earlier today Aiden was asked to dye Nathan's graying hair brown. But they rinsed it too quickly and it turned bright orange. Now, after spending a while looking up how to get newly dyed hair color out of your hair - on our very, very slow internet I might add - we're finally re-dying it. This is the only solution we could find that wouldn't involve bleaching his hair."Stop laughing, Erica," Nathan says, trying to help himself from laughing.
"Sorry," I reply sheepishly. "It's just hilarious seeing you with orange - I'm sorry, red - hair!" I manage to lower my laughter to just a giggle. Nathan shakes his head, letting everything go like he always does. He takes everything so smoothly; he is a very mellow person. I stand up and walk over to Aiden, saying," I told you you should've let me dye his hair. Now see what you've done?" I kiss him on the cheek and walk back over to the uncomfortable couch I was just sitting on.
"I can fix anything I mess up, Erica." He mumbles, smiling in my direction.
Now let me tell you something about Aiden: he's one of those quiet people that don't really talk much. But when they do everyone listens, whether or not it's important. If he's talking about school, dinner, or his friends - anything. Everyone always listens. He doesn't really have a problem talking around me, though. No, really. He won't stop talking when it's only me and him. He's like one of those little house toys that I used to have. You press a button and it just won't shut up, asking you a bunch of questions until you answer. But Aiden's cuter than an annoying house toy so I enjoy listening to him. I grin watching his movements which are almost elegant.
Just thinking about Aiden makes me smile. I look at him, studying his amazing features. He's tall, probably six-foot-three. He has straight brown hair that falls over his eyes in that lazy, not-even-trying way. Speaking of his eyes, they're the most intriguing eyes I've ever made contact with and they're dark blue, almost black. You see them and just can't stop staring. Plus he's mine. I seriously still can't get this wrapped around my head. He's mine. I'm his. We're dating. We have been for three years now. Sometimes when I get angry at him(which is rarely), I want to run away. I get so angry that he chose me.
He chose me.
He was the one who pointed me out to his father; he wanted me. So what if we fight sometimes? He's never hurt me and I doubt he ever will. It's an hour later when Aiden's done with Nathan's hair, much longer than the internet said it would take. Aiden told me that he wanted to take me out for ice cream since my birthday is tomorrow, so I'm back in my room changing my clothes. Nathan gives me fifty dollars every month for clothes, so I have too much to choose from. I sigh in frustration and dig through my closet. I find a cute tank top with a pink, brown, and red flower pattern on it. I pull out a light brown cardigan too. It's probably a bad thing that I don't remember buying any of these things or getting them as gifts.
I pull the camisole over my head with a huff. It has gotten tighter since who-knows-when I last wore it, I think to myself. I dig out a pair of dark blue denim skinny jeans to go with the rest of my outfit.
"Erica," Aiden calls out,"ready to go yet?"
I tell him that I'll be down in a minute and fish through a basket that's full of shoes. I dig out some strappy light pink sandals and quickly shove them on my feet. I walk out of my bedroom and into the hallway, looking on the walls to see the pictures on them. There are a few of me and Aiden on a beach. Me and Nathan, with Nathan's arm around my shoulders. Then as I walk down the hallway closer to the living room, the pictures change and I'm younger. Nathan's holding my hand and I'm staring at something with my mouth open slightly, gleam of fear in my eyes.
A sudden feeling - I'm not sure what - runs through me. I try to think back to that day. My breath catches in my throat and my eyes fill up with tears. I remember I was looking at three people. A woman, a man, and a little boy. I can't quite remember what they looked like, but I thought they were my parents. I'm not sure why I thought they were my parents, but I did.
Suddenly I feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn around to see Aiden."You okay?" he asks me. I can't read his expression.
I nod and sprout a smile at him."Yeah. Just looking at good times."
We walk outside and head to the car. Not much later we arrive at a small soft serve ice cream joint called Icey's. My feet hit the hard, rocky gravel as I step out of the car and shut the doors. Aiden walks over to me and takes my hand in his, holding it firmly like he always does when we're in public. My heart still flutters whenever he holds my hands. He guides me to the door and opens it for me, still not taking his hand from mine. It's chilly in the ice cream shop, causing goosebumps to cover my pale skin. My gaze bounces around the room, noticing the cute baby blue walls and white tiles with blue specs in them. Along the walls hang black and white pictures of an older man and his son, I'm assuming from the resemblance. The store has little gray, round metal tables with matching chairs lining the walls and napkin holders on those. A smile escapes my lips as I feel like I've just taken a step into the 1950's.
I step out of my daydream and look at Aiden,"I'll have a va-"
Aiden cuts me off,"-nilla cone with colorful sprinkles? I know." He winks at me and lets go of my hand as I grin and excuse myself to go use the bathroom. On the way to the bathroom, you have to go through this little hallway, directly in front of me are two old-fashioned water fountains and above those are a bulletin board. On it there's a white paper with the word "MISSING" written on it in black ink. Below the word, there's an aged picture of a girl.
And she looks just like me.
________________________________
How did you like it?! Too short? Too Long? Let me know below! Also, the rest of kidnapped is available here! Some of it may or may not be revised depending on when you read it. I can't believe I'm almost 30,000 words into it! I'm hoping to finish it at about 60,000 or 80,000 words depending on how many pages that is.. my goal is about 280+ pages. Anyway, thanks for reading!
Prologue:
PROLOGUE:
Everyone thinks I'm dead. But they don't really know that I'm alive. They don't know that the person they found in the woods isn't me. And that guy they put in jail? He didn't kill me, he doesn't even know me. Well I'm sure he does now, because I'm pretty famous around town as the girl who was kidnapped and killed.
But like I said - I'm not dead. I'm fully alive, I'm healthy, and I am in love. You're probably wondering with who, because since I've been kidnapped, whoever sees me will automatically go to the police, right? Well let me tell you. I'm in love with my kidnapper.
Everyone thinks I'm dead. But they don't really know that I'm alive. They don't know that the person they found in the woods isn't me. And that guy they put in jail? He didn't kill me, he doesn't even know me. Well I'm sure he does now, because I'm pretty famous around town as the girl who was kidnapped and killed.
But like I said - I'm not dead. I'm fully alive, I'm healthy, and I am in love. You're probably wondering with who, because since I've been kidnapped, whoever sees me will automatically go to the police, right? Well let me tell you. I'm in love with my kidnapper.
ONE: November 12th, 2004 (Past)
I was eight years old when I was kidnapped. Dad had just left for work and Mom was teaching Nicholas, my older brother, how to use the washing machine. I couldn't take the noise, so I decided to go outside. I will never know if my Mom heard me when I said that I was going outside, but I did try to tell her. I was playing with my little doll that I got as an early birthday present; my birthday was the next day. Anyway, while I was playing I saw this beautiful dog walking down the street. My mother had told me many times before not to leave the yard, but there was something about this dog that made me just block that thought out and follow it.
Every time I would get within a few feet of the dog, it would turn around and look at me for a moment before walking even faster. Finally, we reached the park. The dog ran back down the street minutes later, leaving me behind, all alone in the park. Not completely alone, though. There were a few mothers, maybe a father or two. I decided to go play on the swings since I was already at the park. Suddenly I had firm hands of someone pushing me on the swing. I hadn't thought anything of it at the time. I let him push me until I was so high I could touch the tree branch that was resting just above the swing set.The man who was pushing me, who I now call Nathan, took hold of the chain that was connected to the seat. Him doing that sent me flying off of the swing, nearly breaking my arm. I remember him shouting,"Oh, sweetheart! Are you alright? C'mon darling, let's go home and get your scratches cleaned up."
I thought he was really going to take me home to help me. He didn't. He held my hand, walking me far away from my home. We went off of a road and into the country. I tried at least three times to take my hand from his, but his was too big and he kept his grip. We soon arrived in a very big field, a large SUV parked next to a small, withering tree. Nathan tightened his grip and began to kind of drag me toward the tree. By now I was crying, unaware of what could happen. A little boy, ten at the time, walked out from behind the tree with a rope in one hand, and duct tape in the other.
They tied me up and stuck layers of duct tape over my mouth, causing me to hardly be able to breathe. "Aiden," Nathan spat,"this is the one you wanted, right?" Aiden smirked at his father and nodded his head. He thanked his father, and did the "honor" of throwing me in the back of the car. I tried to scream, no noises escaping from my mouth, but tears streaming down my face. I soon ran out of energy and to my surprise fell asleep. When I woke up Nathan was hauling me into a small cabin. The grass there was, and still is, slowly dying. I've lived in this cabin most of my life and have never seen that grass a beautiful green like the grass at my old home.
The woods that the cabin was located at was far, far away from where I had lived, I soon learned; not that I was able to go to town many times. Nathan lead me to a small room in which walls were painted pink, my favorite color at the time. There in the corner of the room, lay a twin bed, - something I still have - a purple comforter with pink butterflies neatly sitting on top of it. A small bedside table, a lamp upon it, was right next to that twin bed. And finally, a small dresser on the opposite side of the room. The only toy I had was my little doll I held tightly on to.
But on that bed there was a little girl who looked like me.
She had wavy brown hair, hazel eyes, and was tall, exactly like me. I was afraid at how much she looked like me; we could have been related. She had tears in her eyes as she said,"W-what are you doing with her? Are we going to be friends - there will be two of us? I - she. . .you're not getting rid of me, are you?! Where will I go?"
Tears began to stream down her face as Nathan nodded his head at Aiden and pulled out a small pocket knife. "Follow me, Hannah," he said, holding his arm around her chest and the knife to her throat.
"Now." He pulled the doll from my hand and I cried and hollered.
She followed him and that was the last I ever saw of her. A few months later, the police found her in the middle of the woods behind a little grocery store. They called my parents thinking that she was me. My parents took one look at the doll and just assumed she was me - no DNA tests. Nothing. And that was that. I was dead to them. Gone. Vanished. The entire crime was over. The man who people saw lingering around the grocery store was a butcher and apparently my killer. His hands were bloody. Hannah's body was bloody. So was my doll.
~`~`~`~
As days, weeks, months, and years have gone by, I found myself feeling as though Nathan was my father and this was home. I developed a crush on Aiden that is now a healthy relationship. At first, I must admit, I would do anything to get away. If he took me out to town, I would try to scream and do anything to be noticed, unless Aiden's hand wasn't clamped over my mouth. But as the days went by, I noticed something: I'm never going to be able to leave. I'm here forever; not that I mind. Although I wouldn't mind going to visit my parents and telling them that I'm safe, okay, and well... alive. I hope to do that on my sixteenth birthday, with my new identity as Erica Blackstone, daughter of Nathan Blackstone. And Aiden as Nathan's ex-girlfriends son whom he got custody of after her death.Everything, as Nathan would say, is going to turn out perfectly.
~`~`~`~
Present (November 12th 2012)
I laugh uncontrollably as Aiden stands over Nathan, re-dying his orange hair. Earlier today Aiden was asked to dye Nathan's graying hair brown. But they rinsed it too quickly and it turned bright orange. Now, after spending a while looking up how to get newly dyed hair color out of your hair - on our very, very slow internet I might add - we're finally re-dying it. This is the only solution we could find that wouldn't involve bleaching his hair."Stop laughing, Erica," Nathan says, trying to help himself from laughing.
"Sorry," I reply sheepishly. "It's just hilarious seeing you with orange - I'm sorry, red - hair!" I manage to lower my laughter to just a giggle. Nathan shakes his head, letting everything go like he always does. He takes everything so smoothly; he is a very mellow person. I stand up and walk over to Aiden, saying," I told you you should've let me dye his hair. Now see what you've done?" I kiss him on the cheek and walk back over to the uncomfortable couch I was just sitting on.
"I can fix anything I mess up, Erica." He mumbles, smiling in my direction.
Now let me tell you something about Aiden: he's one of those quiet people that don't really talk much. But when they do everyone listens, whether or not it's important. If he's talking about school, dinner, or his friends - anything. Everyone always listens. He doesn't really have a problem talking around me, though. No, really. He won't stop talking when it's only me and him. He's like one of those little house toys that I used to have. You press a button and it just won't shut up, asking you a bunch of questions until you answer. But Aiden's cuter than an annoying house toy so I enjoy listening to him. I grin watching his movements which are almost elegant.
Just thinking about Aiden makes me smile. I look at him, studying his amazing features. He's tall, probably six-foot-three. He has straight brown hair that falls over his eyes in that lazy, not-even-trying way. Speaking of his eyes, they're the most intriguing eyes I've ever made contact with and they're dark blue, almost black. You see them and just can't stop staring. Plus he's mine. I seriously still can't get this wrapped around my head. He's mine. I'm his. We're dating. We have been for three years now. Sometimes when I get angry at him(which is rarely), I want to run away. I get so angry that he chose me.
He chose me.
He was the one who pointed me out to his father; he wanted me. So what if we fight sometimes? He's never hurt me and I doubt he ever will. It's an hour later when Aiden's done with Nathan's hair, much longer than the internet said it would take. Aiden told me that he wanted to take me out for ice cream since my birthday is tomorrow, so I'm back in my room changing my clothes. Nathan gives me fifty dollars every month for clothes, so I have too much to choose from. I sigh in frustration and dig through my closet. I find a cute tank top with a pink, brown, and red flower pattern on it. I pull out a light brown cardigan too. It's probably a bad thing that I don't remember buying any of these things or getting them as gifts.
I pull the camisole over my head with a huff. It has gotten tighter since who-knows-when I last wore it, I think to myself. I dig out a pair of dark blue denim skinny jeans to go with the rest of my outfit.
"Erica," Aiden calls out,"ready to go yet?"
I tell him that I'll be down in a minute and fish through a basket that's full of shoes. I dig out some strappy light pink sandals and quickly shove them on my feet. I walk out of my bedroom and into the hallway, looking on the walls to see the pictures on them. There are a few of me and Aiden on a beach. Me and Nathan, with Nathan's arm around my shoulders. Then as I walk down the hallway closer to the living room, the pictures change and I'm younger. Nathan's holding my hand and I'm staring at something with my mouth open slightly, gleam of fear in my eyes.
A sudden feeling - I'm not sure what - runs through me. I try to think back to that day. My breath catches in my throat and my eyes fill up with tears. I remember I was looking at three people. A woman, a man, and a little boy. I can't quite remember what they looked like, but I thought they were my parents. I'm not sure why I thought they were my parents, but I did.
Suddenly I feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn around to see Aiden."You okay?" he asks me. I can't read his expression.
I nod and sprout a smile at him."Yeah. Just looking at good times."
We walk outside and head to the car. Not much later we arrive at a small soft serve ice cream joint called Icey's. My feet hit the hard, rocky gravel as I step out of the car and shut the doors. Aiden walks over to me and takes my hand in his, holding it firmly like he always does when we're in public. My heart still flutters whenever he holds my hands. He guides me to the door and opens it for me, still not taking his hand from mine. It's chilly in the ice cream shop, causing goosebumps to cover my pale skin. My gaze bounces around the room, noticing the cute baby blue walls and white tiles with blue specs in them. Along the walls hang black and white pictures of an older man and his son, I'm assuming from the resemblance. The store has little gray, round metal tables with matching chairs lining the walls and napkin holders on those. A smile escapes my lips as I feel like I've just taken a step into the 1950's.
I step out of my daydream and look at Aiden,"I'll have a va-"
Aiden cuts me off,"-nilla cone with colorful sprinkles? I know." He winks at me and lets go of my hand as I grin and excuse myself to go use the bathroom. On the way to the bathroom, you have to go through this little hallway, directly in front of me are two old-fashioned water fountains and above those are a bulletin board. On it there's a white paper with the word "MISSING" written on it in black ink. Below the word, there's an aged picture of a girl.
And she looks just like me.
________________________________
How did you like it?! Too short? Too Long? Let me know below! Also, the rest of kidnapped is available here! Some of it may or may not be revised depending on when you read it. I can't believe I'm almost 30,000 words into it! I'm hoping to finish it at about 60,000 or 80,000 words depending on how many pages that is.. my goal is about 280+ pages. Anyway, thanks for reading!
Monday, July 7, 2014
The Good Type of Change
Does anyone read this blog anymore? If so, please let me know in the comments - I'm thinking of scrapping this blog and starting over. I'm going to give a brief update and I have a few things to tell you!
In my previous post I mentioned moving to Atlanta, and I did! We've been fully moved in to the house for a month or so now and we've already gone on vacation! We went to "The Forest" a.k.a the Brosnan Forest in Dochester, NC. It was such a wonderful experience. My family and I had a great time spending a week at this gorgeous lodge and swimming, biking, playing tennis, golf, volleyball - the works. The best part, I'd have to say, was spending time eating (lots of that) and talking to the family of the person who invited us on vacation; They really reminded me of my family up north. Also, since we were so close to Charleston, NC, we took a day trip there. Such a beautiful place!
It's already 6 months into the year and I can honestly say that this year flew by. With school, moving, and vacation, I haven't really had time to focus on anything because everything has been so fast-paced. However, that's going to change! I'm going to try my hardest to continue my blog on a weekly basis all the while continuing to write more. I feel like my writing has been awfully neglected and that makes me feel terrible.
Writing is my escape.
And boy do I need to escape..
I have considered scrapping Kidnapped and starting over - same plot and characters. I'm not sure I feel like it's flowing together like I wanted it to. I may just revise it and change things; I haven't yet decided. I'm also working on a much...darker book. It's about the struggles of a teen with insecurities and depression, I personally think it's great but it scares me to think about telling my parents about it because I believe they'll try to see it as a reflection of my feelings and I don't want to worry them at all.
If you can't tell, I haven't decided on a name. I'm thinking "Sliced" since it has to do with self-harm and issues that go along with that.
Like I said this book is not a reflection of myself.
It's just a subject I feel strongly about and would like to put into words. I hope that someone can read it and realize something about themselves that could help them overcome their problems.
Annnnnndddd.... what do you think about my new blog changes?! Like or no? I felt like I needed a brighter, less dark layout to the blog. I'm also working on changing the "Book Blog :D" part but It's late and I couldn't figure it out earlier so I'll try again tomorrow. Well, that's it for today. I hope you enjoyed this post; whether you're just passing by or a frequent stalker. ;)
In my previous post I mentioned moving to Atlanta, and I did! We've been fully moved in to the house for a month or so now and we've already gone on vacation! We went to "The Forest" a.k.a the Brosnan Forest in Dochester, NC. It was such a wonderful experience. My family and I had a great time spending a week at this gorgeous lodge and swimming, biking, playing tennis, golf, volleyball - the works. The best part, I'd have to say, was spending time eating (lots of that) and talking to the family of the person who invited us on vacation; They really reminded me of my family up north. Also, since we were so close to Charleston, NC, we took a day trip there. Such a beautiful place!
It's already 6 months into the year and I can honestly say that this year flew by. With school, moving, and vacation, I haven't really had time to focus on anything because everything has been so fast-paced. However, that's going to change! I'm going to try my hardest to continue my blog on a weekly basis all the while continuing to write more. I feel like my writing has been awfully neglected and that makes me feel terrible.
Writing is my escape.
And boy do I need to escape..
I have considered scrapping Kidnapped and starting over - same plot and characters. I'm not sure I feel like it's flowing together like I wanted it to. I may just revise it and change things; I haven't yet decided. I'm also working on a much...darker book. It's about the struggles of a teen with insecurities and depression, I personally think it's great but it scares me to think about telling my parents about it because I believe they'll try to see it as a reflection of my feelings and I don't want to worry them at all.
If you can't tell, I haven't decided on a name. I'm thinking "Sliced" since it has to do with self-harm and issues that go along with that.
Like I said this book is not a reflection of myself.
It's just a subject I feel strongly about and would like to put into words. I hope that someone can read it and realize something about themselves that could help them overcome their problems.
Annnnnndddd.... what do you think about my new blog changes?! Like or no? I felt like I needed a brighter, less dark layout to the blog. I'm also working on changing the "Book Blog :D" part but It's late and I couldn't figure it out earlier so I'll try again tomorrow. Well, that's it for today. I hope you enjoyed this post; whether you're just passing by or a frequent stalker. ;)
Thursday, February 20, 2014
update
Woah, it's been a while! Well happy new years, two months late! This is just going to be a quite update.
I found out I'm moving to Atlanta recently, and we should be there in the next few months, or as soon as the house sells. I'm not too excited about this news but wherever God takes me is where I want to be.
I recently went to Winter Jam and got to see many bands such as: Colton Dixon, Plumb, Newsboys, Everfound, Newsong, Derek Minor, LeCrae, Tenth Avenue North, and Love & the Outcome.
All of these bands performed wondefully! We actually not the nicer, more expensive tickets that allowed us to be very close, get early shopping, and a Q&A with a few of the bands and their members! It was very fun and exciting.
I was very excited to meet Everfound and when I got up to them, I asked one of the band members, Ruslan, to sign my lanyard. He asked my name and I replied with,"Abbi."
He said,"Hello, Abbi! I'm Ruslan."
And me, being my nervous self, replied,"Hi, I'm Abbi."
I honestly think that I will never get over that, in fact, I am still embarrassed about it, haha! I truly believe I was simply blinded by Ruslan and Yan's (another member of the band) beauty. The names may seem strange or foreign and that's because they are! The members of the band are all Russian, and came to the US directly from Russia in the 90's. The band members are Ruslan(age 25), Nikita(23),Yan(23 as of today, actually!), and Illarion(19).
Illarion is not currently touring with the band because he is in school still. But he is still a member of the band. As you may see, I'm a bit obsessed with these band members. I call them "my Russian boys." It gets on my sibling's nerves when I talk about these guys so I try not to.
Enough about my Russian boys ;)
Recently, a friend of mine has gone to Uganda for about 5 months I believe, to go to missionary school. Keeping her in your prayers would be appreciated very much! Also please be praying for this move to Atlanta. It's going to be very difficult having to leave all of our friends that we've made here, but I know that we will keep in touch always!
I found out I'm moving to Atlanta recently, and we should be there in the next few months, or as soon as the house sells. I'm not too excited about this news but wherever God takes me is where I want to be.
I recently went to Winter Jam and got to see many bands such as: Colton Dixon, Plumb, Newsboys, Everfound, Newsong, Derek Minor, LeCrae, Tenth Avenue North, and Love & the Outcome.
All of these bands performed wondefully! We actually not the nicer, more expensive tickets that allowed us to be very close, get early shopping, and a Q&A with a few of the bands and their members! It was very fun and exciting.
I was very excited to meet Everfound and when I got up to them, I asked one of the band members, Ruslan, to sign my lanyard. He asked my name and I replied with,"Abbi."
He said,"Hello, Abbi! I'm Ruslan."
And me, being my nervous self, replied,"Hi, I'm Abbi."
I honestly think that I will never get over that, in fact, I am still embarrassed about it, haha! I truly believe I was simply blinded by Ruslan and Yan's (another member of the band) beauty. The names may seem strange or foreign and that's because they are! The members of the band are all Russian, and came to the US directly from Russia in the 90's. The band members are Ruslan(age 25), Nikita(23),Yan(23 as of today, actually!), and Illarion(19).
Illarion is not currently touring with the band because he is in school still. But he is still a member of the band. As you may see, I'm a bit obsessed with these band members. I call them "my Russian boys." It gets on my sibling's nerves when I talk about these guys so I try not to.
Enough about my Russian boys ;)
Recently, a friend of mine has gone to Uganda for about 5 months I believe, to go to missionary school. Keeping her in your prayers would be appreciated very much! Also please be praying for this move to Atlanta. It's going to be very difficult having to leave all of our friends that we've made here, but I know that we will keep in touch always!
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