Motivational Monday

I know that we often get down on ourselves. We get negative thoughts that tell us our goals are too far away and unrealistic. Sometimes those thoughts turn into a constant nagging voice that makes us feel like we can't do it. We don't want to become disappointed, and it's easy to sabotage ourselves.  Eventually, that little voice eats away at our goals and dreams. 

And you know what I say?

DON'T LISTEN TO THAT NEGATIVE VOICE.

You're dreams are important and you can reach your goals. 

Before I was published, I would sometimes get so down on myself that it became hard to write. One thing that helped when I became discouraged was to listen to the words of authors and leaders who worked hard and made their dreams happen. 

Reaching your goals is hard, we know that. It's easier to give up before we even have to leave our comfort zone and try. But you know what? We can do hard things! 

So here are your words of inspiration for the day from Walt Disney, Henry David Thoreau, J.K Rowling, and Ralph Waldo Emerson.

"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." 
Walt Disney

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined." 
Henry David Thoreau 

"Anything's possible if you've got enough nerve." 
J. K. Rowling

"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them." 
Walt Disney. 

"What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals."
Henry David Thoreau 

"Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string."
 Ralph Waldo Emerson

Happy Motivational Monday! 

Cover Reveal for The Siren's Secret

The cover for my sequel is here and it's beautiful! Once again, Cedar Fort has designed an amazing cover that completely captures the essence of my story. 

I think the siren on the cover is breathtaking. Her red flowing hair looks like it's caught in a sea breeze and I love how she's looking down, as if holding in a secret (I like secrets, okay?). The aquamarine and emerald tones are perfect, and I couldn't be happier with the under-the-sea theme. 

I hope you love it too, and I hope you read it when it comes out this June! 

Sirens and Mermaids

Because it's Siren Week, I decided to post some of the coolest mermaid, siren, and water nymph pictures I could find. Sirens and mermaids are absolutely fascinating to me, and I had so much fun introducing them into my sequel. I hope you think they're just as magical as I do and that you enjoy Siren Week!

Thanks for sharing this one, Tausha! 

This comic is from mermaidspiration.tumblr.com, which has tons of amazing siren and mermaid pictures. 

These are the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida. I would LOVE to go there and see them perform!

My friend Valerie is a real mermaid. She makes beautiful mermaid jewelry and I absolutely adore my pink fishing lure earrings! You can see her other jewelry here and here.

Thanks for swimming by! 

SIREN WEEK

I just got to see the cover for my sequel, The Siren's Secret, and I AM SO EXCITED! I decided to declare this week to be SIREN WEEK. For the next couple of days I am going to dedicate my blog to all things siren. Then next week I will reveal the cover, WAHOO! Okay, okay, I can calm down (nope, don't think I can).

 

If you have any cool siren pictures, poems, or stories please feel free to share them! You can post them on my book's Facebook page here, and then I'll share them on my blog. 

Dream On

Dreams are a strange phenomenon, but I've always found them fascinating. It seems like often our subconscious tries to solve our problems by working through them in our dreams--unfortunately this often results in nightmares. 

It's fun to dissect dreams and try and understand them. Whenever someone tells me what they dreamed about, I try to break it down and see how it applies to their life. 

When I was younger, I had this little dream book that gave vague descriptions of what symbols in dreams meant. Dreaming about a key meant you were feeling successful in life, a ladder meant you were trying to achieve something important, and a snake was symbolic of your fears. That was probably when I first became enthralled with dream interpretation. 

While some dreams may mean nothing, others can be a window into our relationships, thoughts, fears, and  desires. 

Writing about character's dreams is important because it shows an in depth, unique view of who they are. We might find out about fears we didn't know that character had. We can go into their head and learn things about the character that they might know themselves. Or sometimes their dreams will be a warning from their subconscious. 

Julia, my character from The Shapeshifter's Secret, often suffers from nightmares. Some of her dreams are simply based upon thoughts weighing on her conscious, while others are a lot deeper and are symbolic of her life.

On Dreammoods.com I found a great dictionary for dream meanings. Here are some common themes in dreams and what they might mean: 

Spiders 
To see a spider in your dream indicates that you are feeling like an outsider in some situation. Or perhaps you want to keep your distance and stay away from an alluring and tempting situation. The spider is also symbolic of feminine power or an overbearing mother figure in your life. Alternatively, a spider refers to a powerful force protecting you against your self-destructive behavior. If you kill a spider in your dream, then it symbolizes misfortune and bad luck.



Falling

To dream that you fall and are not frightened signifies that you will overcome your adversities with ease.

To dream that you fall and are frightened indicates a lack of control, insecurity, and/or lack of support in your waking life. You may be experiencing some major struggle and/or overwhelming problem. It may also imply that you have failed to achieve a goal that you have set forth for yourself.

To dream that you are free-falling through water indicates that you are feeling overwhelmed with emotions. You may feel that it is easier to give up, then to try to stay afloat or prevent yourself from going under.

House 
To see a house in your dream represents your own soul and self. Specific rooms in the house indicate a specific aspect of your psyche. In general, the attic represents your intellect, the basement represents the subconscious, etc. If the house is empty, then it indicates feelings of insecurity. If the house is shifting, then it suggests that you are going through some personal changes and changing your belief system. To dream that a house has no walls represents a lack of privacy. You feel that everyone is looking over your shoulder or up in your business. If you live with others in your walking life, but dream that you are living alone suggests that you need to take new steps toward independence. You need to accept responsibilities and be more self-reliant. If you are locked out of the house, then it represents rejection and insecurity. You feel you are being left behind.

To see an abandoned house in your dream implies that you have left behind your past. You are ready to move forward toward the future. To see an old, run-down house in your dream represents your old beliefs, attitudes and how you used to think or feel. A situation in your current life may be bringing about those same old attitudes and feelings. 

To dream that you are inside a stranger's house indicates that there is something that you have yet to discover about yourself. It may mean that there are repressed memories, fears or emotions that you are not confronting.

Pretty interesting, huh? 

How do you feel about reading or writing character's dreams? Do you ever try to interpret your own dreams? 

Authorpalooza

I had such a great time at Authorpalooza on Saturday! It was packed, and we were so happy to see so many authors, readers, and bloggers show up for the event. 

I got to sign next to these wonderful ladies, Lisa Rumsey Harris (The Unlikely Gift of Treasure Blume), Shannen Crane (The Break-Up Artist), and Jennifer A. Nielsen (The False Prince). 

 Frank Cole, me, Tyler Whitesides, and Shannen Crane. 

Books, balloons, and authors, oh my! (I know, it's cheesy--but I couldn't help myself). 

And the awesome James Dashner.

The whole event was so much fun. Thanks to everyone who came! 

Disneyland's Haunted Mansion

At LTUE I went to a presentation called "Disney's Haunted House." I am a DIE hard--no pun intended--Haunted Mansion fan, so naturally I had to go, and IT WAS AWESOME. I mean, anything to do with The Haunted Mansion always is.

I'm the kind of person who scours the internet looking for interesting facts about the Haunted Mansion so that I can tell my husband and he'll think I'm cool (yep, he's obsessed with it too).

This is the gift I gave him for Christmas. 

Seriously, I would love to move into the Haunted Mansion and be the 1,000th happy haunt. 

So I decided to compile a list of *some of the coolest, creepiest, and strangest things I've learned about The Haunted Mansion. Here you go! 

• The organ in the ballroom is from Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. 
• The knight in the hallway used to be an actual cast member. He was later replaced with an animatronic knight because too many problems arose from having a live cast member scare people. 
• The Haunted Mansion is the only place in Disneyland where the cast members do not smile. 
• Madame Leota's voice is also Maleficent's voice from Sleeping Beauty, and the wicked stepmother in Cinderella. 
• The air conditioner is so effective in the Haunted Mansion that every year employees go through and re-scatter dust.  
• Master Gracey (pictured below) was a character named after the imagineer Yale Gracey who worked on the ride for years. 
• Many of the ghosts share the same face as pirates in Pirates of The Carribean (example: the ghost woman blowing out the candles on the birthday cake has the same face as the whistling pirate in jail). 
• A mother once spread her son's ashes throughout the ride because he had loved The Haunted Mansion so much. 
• All of the gravestones are tributes to imagineers who worked on the ride.
• The Haunted Mansion is narrated by Paul Frees. He also voices most of the pirates in Pirates of the Carribean. 
• The Haunted Mansion was originally going to be a walk through attraction.
• The Hidden Mickey made of plates on the dining room table is not an "official" Hidden Mickey. It was made by cast members. 

*I have more fun facts to share, but I might have to save them for another blog post. I'll do a part II. MWAHAHA!

P.S. My obsession may have started when I was younger and my mom played this movie called Disneyland Fun. I watched the Haunted Mansion "Grim Grinning Ghosts" sing a long part over and over. Which is funny because my husband watched it when he was younger too! We are creepy soul mates. 

Anyone else watch this growing up?