Site stats focusing on 2015
Site stats focusing on 2016
Top ten viewed pages/posts of the year:
Popular search terms to find my page/posts
More on reading stats…. How much I spent on Indie books in 2016: $137.44
Money spent on Indie books in 2015: $305.07
I’ve spent time watching movies as research. No joke! Donuts is all about young adults, how they interact, and what crazy things they do so I wanted to immerse myself in books and movies about teenagers. I love movies, so this research was super fun! Here are some of the movies I got to watch. What movies do you think represent teens and teen culture?
Mean Girls – So good! The only part I had trouble with was how ‘dumb’ they made Karen Smith’s character and how ridiculous they made Regina’s mother. There are so many good quotes from this movie and such great dialogue and character interaction. It may not be an entirely accurate depiction of high school, but it’s one of the best representations of the New-Girl-Made-Popular trope. The movie is chock full of teenagery goodness (and badness).
Clueless – A classic, even though it’s getting up there in age (21 years old!). The slang is regional (California), but oh so adorable. Cher is a great main character/narrator and shows a bit more introspection than your average teenager. This movie also showcases the New-Girl-Made-Popular, though I think Tai is a bit more ‘clueless’ than Cady.
Brick – If you want teenagers that act like adults, then you’ve got them in this fast-paced unusual-dialogue-filled film about the underworld of high school. I recommend putting on the subtitles to catch all the wonky phrases they say. This movie is clever and satisfying with its complexity.
Prom – I threw in a Disney movie to fill out my “what does our entertainment culture think about teens when the movie is geared toward pre-teens” category. This movie had the most overdone dialogue of the bunch. I liked how it contained multiple storylines and it was fun to make fun of the cheesiness while watching it. Prom was never as big a deal in my life than in this movie.
Easy A – My editor recommended this one and I was all too happy to re-watch it. Emma Stone is great in this movie and even though it portrays an even more ridiculous version of high school than Mean Girls, it is fun to watch. As a play on the Scarlet Letter, Emma Stone is a character that gets caught up in a rumor. The parents in this movie are super duper hilarious and the comedy in the movie is spot on, even if the teen promiscuity is a bit over the top (even if it’s only a rumor).
4-Film Favorites – This was a throw in because who can’t turn down a good deal when buying movies? I have only watched What a Girl Wants thus far and was not impressed with this modern Cinderella-esque rendition. It was rather generic, though Amanda Bynes has such a lovely and bubbly personality in this movie. Also, she’s in England and who doesn’t love a good English accent?
Local young adult writer, Rachel Barnard, will release the first novel in her young adult For the Love of Donuts series titled Donuts in an Empty Field with Life’s a Book Publishing, June 3rd, 2016 (AKA National Donut Day). Pre-order your copy HERE.
Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.
Vanessa hasn’t been the same since her father’s death. A hero until the end, he died saving a restaurant owner’s son from a burning building. Nessa blames the boy, but her best friend Nichole thinks it’s time to let go of the past. In a last ditch effort to break Nessa’s obsession, Nichole hopes signing up for the local food challenge will bust her out of her shell. A single choice defines the road ahead for Nessa. Doing the right thing isn’t easy, but living with the consequences of doing nothing might be worse.
Don’t forget to subscribe to Rachel’s newsletter to receive important updates and promotions, if you haven’t already. Signup HERE
Come celebrate the awaited release of the first book in the For the Love of Donuts series – “Donuts in an Empty Field” by Rachel Barnard, Online Here
Don’t forget: Enter the free raffle to win neat goodies HERE
Add the book to your Goodreads shelf HERE
Love Donuts? Want to win an Amazon Kindle and some donuts swag?!
Swing by my rafflecopter HERE for a chance to win some cool prizes.
Winning could be as easy as telling me your favorite donut…
Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter to receive important updates and promotions, if you haven’t already. Signup HERE
Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.
Vanessa Smith hasn’t been the same since her father’s death. A hero until the end, he died saving a restaurant owner’s wife and son from a burning building. Nessa has always blamed the boy, Ben, for her loss, and her thoughts are consumed with ways to make him as miserable as she is.
Nichole Adams knows Nessa can never heal until she learns to let go of her hatred, but bringing back her best friend is proving more difficult than she could’ve imagined. In a last ditch effort to break Nessa’s obsession, Nichole hopes signing up for the local food challenge is just the thing to bust her out of her shell.
A single choice defines the road ahead for Nessa. Doing the right thing isn’t easy, but living with the consequences of doing nothing might be worse.
But Why Donuts? Why did I write this book and who should read it?
Why would someone pick up and read this book?
Donuts in an Empty Field is for a young adult audience, specifically teenagers or emerging adults who want to read about a protagonist who’s working through grief and how to be a best friend amidst personal issues. This book is also a fun insight into the teenage mind and what really goes on after school.
What does this book say about society?
Grief is very personal and others can’t and won’t always understand how you are healing or what you need to heal. Sometimes teenagers act out for a reason, and in Vanessa’s case, she has a lot of things on her mental plate and she needs help. She needs a best friend to help her interact with the world sometimes.
What can someone learn from this book?
Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge. How can Vanessa let go of her anger toward this boy who caused the death of her Dad? How can anyone let go of what some might call righteous anger? What does it mean to move on and live your life, even after something like the death of a parent happens? Those who read Donuts will be able to better understand and potentially answer these questions.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter to receive important updates and promotions, if you haven’t already. Signup HERE
Donuts in an Empty Field is a young adult novel about two best friends, the local food challenge, and a mysterious bucket list. The more that main character Vanessa fails the food challenge, the more she takes it out on the boy she blames for her father’s death because letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.
Available June 3rd, 2016 (aka National Donut Day).
Where will you be June 3rd?
National Donut Day is the first Friday in June
Local Seattle area events for National Donut Day and Beyond – Have you heard of a cool local donut shop celebrating National Donut Day or another awesome local Seattle area event? Let me know and I’ll add it to my list!
Northwest Pinball and Arcade Show
Bellingham Scottish Highland Games
Blacklight Slide at the Washington State Fair
Book Release Party for Donuts in an Empty Field!
Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter to receive important updates and promotions, if you haven’t already. Signup HERE
Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.
Vanessa Smith hasn’t been the same since her father’s death. A hero until the end, he died saving a restaurant owner’s wife and son from a burning building. Nessa has always blamed the boy, Ben, for her loss, and her thoughts are consumed with ways to make him as miserable as she is.
Nichole Adams knows Nessa can never heal until she learns to let go of her hatred, but bringing back her best friend is proving more difficult than she could’ve imagined. In a last ditch effort to break Nessa’s obsession, Nichole hopes signing up for the local food challenge is just the thing to bust her out of her shell.
A single choice defines the road ahead for Nessa. Doing the right thing isn’t easy, but living with the consequences of doing nothing might be worse.
Can’t get enough about donuts? Check out these blogs and let me know about any other cool donut centered blogs
Dunkin Donuts Behind the Beans Blog
Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter to receive important updates and promotions, if you haven’t already. Signup HERE
Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.
Vanessa Smith hasn’t been the same since her father’s death. A hero until the end, he died saving a restaurant owner’s wife and son from a burning building. Nessa has always blamed the boy, Ben, for her loss, and her thoughts are consumed with ways to make him as miserable as she is.
Nichole Adams knows Nessa can never heal until she learns to let go of her hatred, but bringing back her best friend is proving more difficult than she could’ve imagined. In a last ditch effort to break Nessa’s obsession, Nichole hopes signing up for the local food challenge is just the thing to bust her out of her shell.
A single choice defines the road ahead for Nessa. Doing the right thing isn’t easy, but living with the consequences of doing nothing might be worse.
Thank you, K. J. Farnham, for nominating me for this awesome award! Here’s a little about Ms. Farnham:
“I was born and raised in West Allis, Wisconsin, home of the Wisconsin State Fair and the Pettit National Ice Center. In 1999, I graduated from UW-Milwaukee with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. I went on to earn a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction while teaching full time. After teaching first grade and third grade for six years each, I am proud to say that I had the privilege of helping hundreds of children learn to read and write.
In 2011, my family of four relocated from Milwaukee to western Wisconsin. (We are now a family of five!) While I was sad to leave teaching, I was ready for a change and excited to explore my love for writing. I got caught up for two years writing and editing for various clients while the book that I’d started back in 2009 went untouched. I finally made it my New Year’s Resolution for 2014 to finish Click Date Repeat, and it was published on August 21, 2014 (my wedding anniversary).
Things I enjoy: travel (especially road trips), running, biking, nature walks, beach outings, coffee and tea.
Things I love: watching my children participate in various activities, reading, writing, Body Pump at the YMCA, The Walking Dead, peanut butter and coconut milk.”
For more about K.J. Farnham, visit her blog here.
The Versatile Blogger Award is given in recognition for the great commitment, diverse talents and generosity shown by bloggers here in our community. There is so much creativity on display that it is difficult to reduce a list to only a few, but for those nominated, it is hoped that it will motivate them as well as celebrate their work to date.
Here are the rules:
1. Sheri J. Kennedy – sherijkennedyriverside.wordpress.com
2. Ana is the Bookworm – anaisthebookworm.wordpress.com
3. Author Lee French – authorleefrench.com
4. Verbosity Book Reviews – verbositybookreviews.wordpress.com
This blog tour stop brought to you by the lovely Takako Wright at http://www.tommiastablet.wordpress.com. She is an avid writer of multiple forms and multiple formats. Thanks for this opportunity to join your tour! And here I go answering the following questions:
My list of goals and deadlines is always growing. I’m working on promoting my novel Ataxia and the Ravine of Lost Dreams (which happens to be free for Kindle today!) by getting reviews and telling people how wonderful it is. I’m editing a different young adult manuscript, At One’s Beast. I’m also attempting to write a trilogy, starting with Camp National Novel Writing Month Project with a 25,000 word goal that is not going very well at all. I’m having plot complication difficulties and am only a couple thousand words in. I did write a connected short story that was my very first attempt as an accomplished writer at a short piece.
Ataxia and the Ravine of Lost Dreams is unique in that it is in first person (I like to do this. I thought that. I said those things. Etc.) and employs my own writing style. The story features a bizarre training landscape for the characters that is a mix of dodgeball, capture the flag, and laser tag that you won’t want to miss!
I have always liked to write and only recently have developed enough skills and knowledge to write good stuff that others would care to read (like you dear reader). I write young adult in particular because that is my favorite genre. I love dystopian fiction and have incorporated elements of a dystopian world into Ataxia. I write for myself, essentially, and since there are so many readers similar to myself I know that many others can enjoy my writing much as I have.
I have a lengthy list of novel/short story/etc possibilities in google drive that I have been developing over several years and when I am unusually inspired I grab one of those ideas and run with it. Ataxia was born from a dream I had one night about the training landscape and the story followed from there in a very natural way for me. The characters begged me to write sarcasm for them. I write what I see and I saw so many cool things I just had to write them all down. Of course, during the editing process I cut some of the unnecessary parts to make the story a more cohesive whole.
As I write I edit so that my first draft is essentially a fourth or fifth draft and quite nice. After finishing I like to let the story sit so that I won’t immediately recognize every individual sentence. Then I dive into editing, going through several rounds of painstaking readings. I enjoy marking up a physical book during this process and Createspace lets you order proof copies quite easily for this purpose. During this time I will finish the cover and formatting as well so that during proof review I can make sure both the cover and interior formatting are perfect.
If possible I’ll have some beta readers jump in to help and point out anything I might have missed and then copy edit. I copy edit multiple times so that I won’t miss anything ridiculous and voile: finished work of art (aka manuscript has turned into novel).
Dearest blog readers,
This blog post is coming to you from a new blog host. You may notice that the blog has been completely revamped (changed). I’m excited to say that the transfer from blogger to wordpress was not entirely too difficult. The worst part is attempting to redirect from rachel-barnard.blogspot.com to rachelauthorbarnard.com, which I have not figured out yet how to do. Any suggestions?
This change comes in part from the wonderfully informative workshop by Casz Brewster from SnoValley Writes in which I learned that my author platform was not quite up to par. More changes, hence, are on the way!
Also, I’m working on publishing the updated/revised version of Ataxia soon (you may notice the new cover already posted here). Thanks to Dodo’s Design for the wonderful book cover. Bravo and well done.
Sincerely,
Rachel Barnard
Rachel Author Barnard 