Weekend Blues...

So.... my writing has ticked over the 35,000 word count mark now which I am extremely proud of myself for. I know I can always get better though so I have found that:

• Reading other people's experiences is really helping .... I am not a confident person when it comes to my writing and I feel that I am alone .... but the truth is all of my fears and anxiety is exactly what other writers are feeling to. Scared that my writing isn't good enough, scared that no-one will like my book, scared of everyone knowing that it is me that has written the book. But do you know what from all of my research over the last few days, I am not alone in my fears and neither are you. It takes a lot of courage to be able to sit down and write what you think and feel and even greater courage to realise your dream. 
• If you're meant to be a writer, writing should come easily to you. It should not be a case that you have to force yourself to sit and write, it should come out of you easily. Typing what you think and feel and reading over it later. It's not like homework in school where you have to have your parents sat looking over your shoulder, if you don't enjoy writing you shouldn't be a writer. Simple! 
• Don't be afraid of other people's opinions. Many people live their lives caring about what other people think, scared to voice their opinion in case someone disagrees. Well who cares! Your opinion is what matters to you! I have never been one to follow the crowd in terms of the latest phone (I don't have an Iphone) or the latest music crazes (except maybe Taylor Swift but I liked her before she became the phenomenon she is now) so why should I care if the book I've written gets a bad review? I shouldn't. You shouldn't. 

So, there is a few words of wisdom for you. If you want to write, go into fashion or be an artist whatever your passion is don't let anyone hold you back. 

Hope your weekends are going well. Let me know who you like to read, who inspires you and even who holds you back :) 

Lots of love 

KA x

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

I know this book is not exactly new but I wasn't interested in reading it before. I have now finished the first one of the trilogy and I must say I was missing out! (and I now want to watch the film)

The story follows Mickael Blomkhist who is hired by Henrik Vanger to solve an old family mystery. During his mission he ends up working with Lisbeth Salander (the girl with the dragon tattoo). Now you might think this is just another mystery novel...  Wrong!!!

This book has so many twists and turns you feel as if you're on a roller coaster, the mystery and the Vanger family are very intriguing and make you want to keep reading the book. I struggled through the first few chapters but once you're past them the book becomes addictive. Finding out about Lisbeth's life and what she has faced is interesting and mysterious. Following their lives for a period of just over a year you learn a lot about the characters which I love. Stieg's writing is nothing short of amazing, he keeps you interested throughout the whole book and keeps you guessing about the mystery surrounding the Vanger family.

Stieg writes phenomenally throughout the book, going into depth on all of the characters and the mysteries they uncover. A must read for any book lover even if you don't enjoy crime this is still a book you will enjoy.

10/10

Struggling...

Pretty Girls - Karin Slaughter

So I finally finished Karin Slaughter newest book. It is a stand alone Novel similar to Cop Town. It's all about a family who is wrought with tragedy and how all the questions they have had throughout the last year's all come into place. Claire Scott is our primary character, she loses her husband at the beginning of the book and starts to search through his things after his funeral which leads to more questions than answers. We then have her sister Lydia Carroll, they haven't spoken after an event tore them apart but the events of Claire's husband death pulls them back together. Paul Scott is the man of the book, Claire's husband.

Now I don't want to reveal too much as I don't want to spoil the story but I did struggle to finish this book. At just over 500 pages I should have been able to finish in less than a day but it took me three! The story was very slow and full of "what the hell are you doing???!!! " which I hate in a book, I mean I know the actions of the characters are to build the story but sometimes they are just being stupid. As she was in this book.

The characters were a little one dimensional until the end of the book after everything is sorted which only lasts for a few pages which is a shame I would've liked to read more of the characters interact at the end.

The story itself was good a little predictable in terms of who the bad guy is but, it is a crime book so I guess predictability is inevitable. It was quite dark and similar to her Triptych the way the victims were killed was quite brutal.

I will end this review with one point. Why doesn't she finish the Grant County series. That series requires one more book just to wrap up the ending and the future for Sara and Will and she hasn't done anything!! These stand alones are all well and good but it's Sara that I love and want to read more of especially now she has Will.

Pretty Girls is not a book I would read again. It was pretty average for Karin Slaughter who normally I can't put down her books. 

5/10 

It was very low standard when compared to her previous novels and was a pretty pointless book at the end of the day.

Recently Moved

I have recently moved to the Emerald Isle of Ireland; I couldn't be happier. I am still looking for a job  (but it has only been a week so I think I can last a little longer) what I have been doing though is exercising!

Now I have not paid any attention to things like healthy eating and exercise previously because to be quite honest I was happy with who I was but... with all my spare time I have started jogging (which nearly killed me) I have cut out carbs and most sugar (this is probably worse than jogging) but do you know what I feel better. I am more awake and happier and I am slowly losing the weight I want to. After sitting on my laptop writing for what has now been .... two hours I am happy to say I have done exercise today for well two hours actually but I did also go out for an Indian... this has probably put a slight dent in my routine but do you know what who cares!!!!

I have come to the realisation (after nearly killing everyone in the house) that if you are happy you shouldn't have to sacrifice things that make you happy. So what is now on my agenda in terms of healthy eating and exercise is keeping a food diary, you can get an amazing app My Diet Diary and on this app you can track your calories (with very little effort) and it takes into account the exercise you do. Therefore, their logic is the more exercise you do the more food you can eat!! Who wouldn't be happy with that!

So in my job searching I will be writing more obviously I need the practice. Reading more... I am currently reading the new Karin Slaughter book 'Pretty Girls' so a review will be published shortly on this.

I have also noticed today how sad my blog looks when looking at others but do you know what everyone has to start from somewhere and this is my somewhere.

The worst part about moving is leaving my friends behind but as they keep reminding me:
Friends are like stars you may not always be able to see but they are always there.

And that is my little bit of wisdom to share for the evening :)
Lots of Love
KA x

KAEditing

So, in true writer fashion I am not happy enough with just a blog. I have some spare time on my hands at the moment and I have decided to not wait to be picked but to put myself out there... despite insecurities. So I have created KAEditing.

KAEditing is (at the moment) a free service in which any aspiring writers can send their work to me to be proofread and copy-edited and sent back to them. I know that now-a-days many people are self-publishing but I have read the results and they would have benefited from going through a second pair of eyes before making it to Amazon's Kindle Store. This is a completely free service and confidential! (I am a writer myself so I know the importance of keeping work under wraps until it's ready)

 Please visit us at: 

• https://www.facebook.com/KAEditing
• @kaediting
• LinkedIn: Kelly-Ann Green
• about.me/kaediting31

A website is now in the works however, any work or questions can be sent to: kaediting31@gmail.com during this time. 

I accept all forms of work be it fiction, non-fiction, biographies, short stories and novels. I aim to get it proofread and edited back to you within 48 hours, if for any reason there is a delay I will notify you. If you book is the next Game of Thrones this may also extend the turn over!

...................................................

Since writing this post back in August, today is now 15th October. I have had a few clients through who have been extremely happy with my services. Please find a testimonial below for a client who has entrusted their whole book to me! 

"Kelly Green's editing service is fast, accurate, and professional. She provides feedback in two formats, edits marked directly in the document and a chart which breaks down the different aspects of her review. I would recommend her services to other writers."

- Alex Patterson, author of Choices 

"Kelly isn’t looking to be just an editor but to be a writer’s partner-in-crime. In the long, arduous journey ahead of her, I hope she never loses her sunny enthusiasm in guiding the turd out of the writers’ babies and helping the babies grow into resentful--but successful--grownups.  Perhaps only the first sentence of this testimonial was actually necessary. I'd recommend her to only use the first sentence of this testimonial for her promotional purposes. Kelly, I recommend you to only use the first sentence of this testimonial. Thank you for your sincerity and for your dedication. You were awesome. In the minefields of self-publishing, it's always thrilling to find good help."

Aidan Aramiru author of Black Halo: The Witch and the Guardian

Lots of Love
KA x

Surrendered....

I surrender series - Monica James 

Now I am not ashamed to say despite liking all things superhero and nerdy I do also love a good romance. The first in the I Surrender series was a free e-Book on Amazon and I thought let's give it a try now I have read many e-Books and don't review them all as well there isn't enough time in the day however, I read all four books in this series in the space of two days staying up until I finished them. For books to be able to do this I felt I had to write about them.

I Surrender is the first in the series and we are introduced to Ava Thompson, the beginning of the book is when her long term boyfriend Harper has just broken up with her and she is travelling home to L.A and to her best friend 'V'. Now a book that starts with heart break is bound to be depressing right? Wrong! V is the light of Ava's life and her voice of reason dragging her out of her stupor and into her life. V begins by taking Ava to meet her yummy boyfriend Lucas who is in a band Passenger's of Ego (P.O.E) along with the hot Jasper. Now as in any other romance Ava and Jasper see each other and fall from there. 

Ava and Jasper spend the rest of the book building their friendship as a basis and this eventually (yes you guessed it turns into love). The rest of the series focuses around their relationship and the obstacles they face including people trying to break them up. Now the one bad point about this whole series is you are sat thinking why Ava? Why would you do that? Because as with other romance books the cause of Ava and Jasper's turmoil is her not telling him something thinking it is in their best interest - when is it ever in the best interest to hide something from one another - it isn't. And so this continues throughout the series. What I like however, is the third book they agree to spend some time apart and they want to leave it up to fate whether they are re-united and whether it works out for them in the end. I thought this was a nice thing to do as instead of their turmoil continuing they used common sense! The fourth book White seems to have been written to finish up the story and tie up lose ends. There is a bit of tragedy in this one, one that had me tearing up just a little - I won't ruin the ending because honestly there was a short amount of time when I wasn't sure how the series would end.

I like the Fifty Shades of Grey books (although very poorly written) but this series surpasses them. It is well written with only a few minor errors in the writing. I enjoyed going through the relationship with Jasper and Ava and Monica James really shows the love that is between them. Any girl will be wishing for her own Jasper White by the end of it. If you love a bit of romance and drama this series is something to consider. And if you are unsure that is why the first book is free download from the Amazon Kindle Store now and let me know what you think, whether these books keep you awake at night.

I give this series a 9/10, these were extremely enjoyable to read the only downside is the What are you doing? thinking during the first three books. Monica James creates a knight in shining armour any girl would be happy with (one that sings like an angel as well) The secondary characters V and Lucas really help to bring the story together and you see the best friend love between Ava and V which is also nice to see. I would highly recommend the first book as it is free and a good way to get a feel for the books and the characters.

Could-Be-Better Four

Fantastic Four - Film 

Went to go see the reboot of Fantastic Four yesterday and I was less than impressed. I know the reviews haven't been great but I thought it can't be as bad as everyone says.... It was close.

Firstly the film was only 100 mins!! This is too short for a decent film, they should have used the last 30 minutes or so to focus on the story and the villain.

Secondly, I have seen Miles Teller in Whiplash and let me tell you he did not do himself justice in this film, none of them did. All of the characters had less personality than a cardboard box. Ben Grimm was barely in the story it was like they added him at the last minute remembering oh shit he's The Thing he needs to be in this.

Now what I didn't know until after the film that this was in no way based on the comics except their powers. The origin story has been changed, what they do for a living has changed and trust me I am all for pushing the boundaries and being unique but this is not something to be messed with. The origin story of superheroes are sacred not something to be played around with. And for an original story it was uninteresting and didn't really make much sense.

The first what felt like 3/4 of the film was spent in the lab building the Quantum Gate and they only had their powers, and Doctor Doom for the last small part of the film which was a complete waste of a villain. He had zero lines and quite frankly had no idea what his problem was and why he was a villain in the first place. 

99% of the film was based in the lab which was well boring, the remainder was based on Planet Zero which looked cool, but nothing about this planet was explained why was there green stuff floating about? What caused the eruption? Why did it give them super powers? None of these are answered in the film it's like they just expect us to accept they have powers now let's move on. After they gain powers Reed Richard's did not translate well in this film. Everyone else's power is okay in terms of effects but unfortunately, for Miles Teller his character just looks weird; I don't know if you have ever seen the anime One Piece but there are many more things you can do with rubber powers than just punch someone ... I mean that's just pathetic.

This film was a poor attempt at a superhero film and in the film industry at the moment there are high expectations of superhero films that Fox just did not live up to. 

I hope for the future of Fantastic Four Fox give the rights back to Marvel and Marvel re-make the franchise as it is supposed to be made because I for one would love to see a re-boot... but a good one. 

I don't have one nice thing to say about this film, it is shoddy work that should have never been released. Josh Trank needs to re-evaluate his career and I suggest working on a different genre of film as he clearly has no idea how to direct a superhero film. 

I am ashamed to say that I have to give this a 2/10 - the only reason it has 2 is because I enjoy Fantastic Four as a group and I think the name gives it that two points....anything more is blasphemy. 

Size Doesn't Define A Hero

Ant-Man - Film

A bit late I will admit however, saw the new Ant-Man film with Paul Rudd. Despite being a Marvel fan I wasn't hugely fond of seeing this film based upon its trailers. However, I went and what I saw was totally unexpected. 

Paul Rudd played  Scott Lang (Ant-Man) and he was brilliant at it, he had the same sort of humour as Robert Downey Jr where he has quips back every now and then. I didn't know anything about Ant-Man and this film taught me everything I needed to know. How the suit was developed. How he controls the ants (which reminded me a lot of Jurassic World). 

Yellow jacket is the villain in this film and you don't know who he is (you can guess) until very near the end of the film. All of the actors are excellent in this film and Marvel are continuing with their reign on films. (which could change soon) Paul Rudd was an excellent choice of actor and he suits the role very well.

Now as I said the trailers did not thrill me however, after seeing the film I realise that actually the reason being that if much else was put into the trailers it would have ruined the story of the film. The film is extremely story based in that there is not one part if the film that doesn't contribute to the story. 

Now (not that I mind this) the romantic side of films is not an important fact and for this one I did appreciate the one romantic relationship was not shined on throughout the film. Which was refreshing, this is not a film for romance!

Marvel are still going strong with their films and I would personally like to see more of Ant-Man in MCU.

9/10

This film is suitable for all ages in keeping with their other films. The actors were amazing a long with the story. It is a must see for the Marvel Universe.

This Is Your Mission Should You Choose To Accept It

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation - Film 

I have always enjoyed the Mission Impossible films, they aren't the best but they are enjoyable to watch. I don't get bored throughout the films. I went to go the see fifth one not expecting a huge amount but expecting enough that the film was enjoyable and do you know what I was wrong. 

This is the best of all of the films in my opinion. The story was very good as they were taking on the syndicate (they are basically the opposite of the IMF), Tom Cruise was actually very good. He isn't my favourite but I can appreciate him for the fact that he does his own stunts which I admire. He plays a big role in these films such as having a part in writing and producing them which normally that makes films go tits up, but no it was a damn good film. 

It is as always with this kind of franchise a bit predictable but that can't be helped because you have to put in his famous pretend to be someone else act the same as always it's what makes it Mission Impossible. Despite a few predictabilities the story itself was actually a little bit turny which was refreshing. Simon Pegg added the humour side of things which is refreshing when everyone is trying to kill each other. They do very well teetering on humour that's funny enough to the audience but doesn't make it inappropriate which I think is the best kind. 

Mission Impossible is not my favourite franchise but this film was an excellent film and I would recommend to anyone.

I would probably give this film an 8/10 the production and execution of the film was excellent, the story was excellent and Tom Cruise was well Tom Cruise.