The Tinkers Excerpt

I haven't posted an excerpt in a very long time, as I've been preparing to finish my novel. Now, with only 10k left, my secrets can be revealed.
Ahem.
I'd love to hear what you think, but keep in mind that this is a first draft, so I will be making it better in the next few months.

***

"I'm--"

"What, Luria?"

"I'm not going to be a Captive," she vows.

"Well, neither will I." We run faster, faster, until we can't hear [the Guards'] footsteps anymore. We dodge through hallways and offices, hoping they won't find us. My heart races. Finally, I see the exit sign glowing in the distance. I sprint towards it, my sides burning. Luria pants, sprinting beside me. I reach the door and press on it, my muscles weary and nervous with adrenaline. Luria's pale eyes glow. We run through the door into a shock of bitter fall air, and then the alert comes.

My watch buzzes. I stop for a minute, just to look at it. I read the message.

"No."

Luria smiles bleakly. "It's true." She pulls her hair back, her face red and flushed from the ride.

"Guess we'd better turn ourselves in."

"I won't."

I nod. "Well, I won't either."

"I knew you wouldn't," Luria says. She shudders, slightly. Goosebumps rise on her arms.

The fear hangs in the air, almost tangible. What if? They'll be coming for us soon. We've got to hide, do something. It doesn't matter. They'll find us anyway. But still. Still.

Overcoming Temptation

It’s easy to succumb. Too easy. Just like it’s easy to get distracted with social media, blogs, reading, and checking your email. Some days, writing feels like it’s the worst thing in the world. You sit down at your computer and suffer from yet another case of blank-page syndrome. Plus, your keyboard is completely unreliable and most likely misses several letters. You have no idea if a plot even exists, the characters seem bland, and the story doesn’t seem to matter.

But it does. Those minutes spent hacking away at your novel are painful, yes, and maybe you do have plot deficiencies, and your characters could be more multifaceted, and right now that’s not going to happen. That’s disappointing, true, but you should still continue. Yeah, Facebook can be a lot more fun than trying to outline a coherent plot, but at the end of the day, Facebook doesn’t matter like your story does. It can be incredibly frustrating, but when you look back at what you’ve done a year from today, Farmville won’t matter. Your novel will.

So, maybe you’ve been procrastinating. No one’s going to force you to write, so you have to make yourself. You have the willpower, so why don’t you write? My characters aren't good. I'm too busy. So many other writers are better than me. Excuses. It doesn’t have to be good, and it doesn’t even have to have a point. If you’re a writer and you’ve read this far, you’d better write something down.

You say you write novels, so why are you stopping yourself? It doesn’t take much, just a few minutes a day. You say you’re a writer, so you should write.

 That is, if you think it’s worth it. I think it is. Make the choice today. 

2013 TeenInk NYC Writing Camp

When I signed up for this camp, I thought it was going to be a bunch of teenage girls geeking out and writing for two weeks at Juilliard, which was true, but it was so much more. Most of the girls I met (and got to know) were really cool and unique, as well as awesome writers. I mean, how often do you meet amazing people your age who read and write for fun?

It was so cool to connect with them, whether through sharing our writing, writing together (and laughing and telling stories and dancing in the rain), or having nightly discussions about life, philosophy, and the crazy world of professional ballet. I didn't get too much sleep, but I already knew that going in, and everything that we did was really cool (with great company) so I didn't mind.

The writing classes were really thought-provoking as well, and I got some good writing done while at the program. Although I'm not a big fan of sightseeing, it was still cool. After all, we were in New York. The chaperones were all very nice, while strict. We were chaperoned constantly, which did feel stifling at times, but it worked out well, and it was definitely a safety thing.

The plays we got to see and the writers we got to talk to were so inspiring. The New York Times visit was my favorite. We got to talk to five different editors/ journalists, and then listen in on a "Page One" meeting, where the heads of each department talked about the article they thought should go on the front page, and made the decision towards the end.

In case you're wondering, the furniture in the dorms possesses the amazing ability to creak every time you breathe, let alone move. As for the food, well, Juilliard isn't exactly a culinary school. However, everything else was awesome, and I loved it. The trip is expensive, but I’d highly recommend it. For me, it was the trip of a lifetime.