I Live on Paper

Reader, writer, blogger. Published novel Out of Orbit available on eBook and paperback.

[latenightpageturner]

Farewell

I’m moving on to other blogs. If you’d like to keep tabs on what I’m reading, I have a new book blog. I also have a writing blog.  

[latenightpageturner]

Since You’ve Been Gone - Morgan Matson

I’ve read Matson before, with Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour, and absolutely loved her style. I was not disappointed with Since You’ve Been Gone. 

Emily and Sloane are best friends, but then Sloane disappears, and all she leaves for Emily is a list of things to do over the summer. Kiss a stranger, steal something, skinny dipping... Every item on the list is beyond Emily’s comfort zone.

This novel showed excellent character growth, and I loved getting to know each individual. It was funny, adventurous, and exactly what I expected after having read A&RED. Definitely check Matson out! You won’t be disappointed. 

[latenightpageturner]

The Hashbrown Winters series is aimed at younger readers, but I had the privilege to receive a free copy of the first novel when I was in 11th grade at a writer’s night. Frank L. Cole was a speaker, and I was very interested in what he had to say. I read the first book, and it was so funny that when we began reading it out loud as a family, there were several minutes we couldn’t read because we were laughing too hard.

I just recently ordered #2-4 from Amazon, and while the first is my favorite, they were still so creative and hilarious. It’s about the students at an elementary school that isn’t your typical school. They get into unrealistic situations, but it captures the very imagination of kids, and it spoke to the kid in me. I’m proud to own all four and I’ll read them all again. 

[arwiddison-deactivated20190725]

Out of Orbit by Ashton Widdison is available on Nook, Kindle, and iBook. Find paperback editions on the following sites: http://www.amazon.com/Out-Orbit-Ashton-Widdison/dp/1312722002/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1452997686&sr=1-1&keywords=out+of+orbit+ashton+widdison https://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?keyWords=Ashton+Widdison&type= http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/out-of-orbit-ashton-widdison/1120936283?ean=9781312722002

Goodreads: Ashton Widdison Instagram: Ashton Widdison Twitter: @AshtonRWiddison Facebook: Ashton Widdison Author writingofashtonwiddison.blogspot.com latenightpageturner.tumblr.com

[arwiddison-deactivated20190725]

I have already received a submission to Ramblings, and I have sent out a questionnaire for February’s Writer Spotlight to one of the writers contributing to the blog (she has a self-publishing novel she would like to advertise, and that would be a great place to do it). If you’re interested in writing for a literary journal in a blog format, regardless of what style of writing you love, check out this post or email [email protected]. Submission deadline is January 29th. 

[latenightpageturner]

Hello from the other blog

[astriferous-summer]

Holy. Shit. I can’t even begin to explain how nervous I was to get these in the mail and they literally turned out so perfect that I can’t even function anymore. Thank you so much @ulekstore for the awesome picks! This puts me one step closer to Seven Cities! #sevencities #ulekstore #margoandtheshockgirls #hellsfighters

[latenightpageturner]

So excited for my friend! Had the pleasure of reading a draft of her novel, Seven Cities, and these guitar picks are incredible.

[latenightpageturner]

Follow my author’s profile on Goodreads to check what I’m currently reading as well as to get updates from me, read ratings of my novel, and you’ll be able to ask questions. 

[arwiddison-deactivated20190725]

Writers Wanted

I’m starting an online literary journal of sorts called Ramblings. The site is up, no posts as yet, but I was hoping to officially start in February. I’m bouncing back and forth between posting once a week, once every other week, or once a month, but it all depends on how many participate. And I can’t have a collection of random writing without writers. And so!

Keep reading

[latenightpageturner]

Everything I Never Told You - Celeste Ng

On the one hand...

This beautiful book destroyed me. The feelings were raw, real, the family and their flaws so touchable. I could visualize every scene, experience every emotion. 

On the other hand...

I. Wish. I. Could. Write. Like. That.

When an author drops me in a situation I’ve never been in, and yet I can walk away and know exactly how it feels, that’s when they’ve succeeded. And as a fellow writer, I am so envious of their talent. 

This story follows the Lee family, before and after the death of the favored child. It shows darkness, pain, secrets, forgiveness, understanding. Real, real, all so very real, and please read this novel. Please.

[latenightpageturner]

Coraline - Neil Gaiman

I’ve never seen the movie, but I’m curious if I get the chance. There came a point where I looked at my mom and said, “This is a children’s book?” It was creepy, but in a way that was more entertaining than stay-up-all-night-with-the-light-on scary. I liked this a lot more than Stardust, thought it was creative and a fast read. 

I also loved the cat in it, and have decided that my cats would definitely keep me safe from a creepy lady thing.

I hate you, Other Mother.

I recommend this for all, young and old! 

[latenightpageturner]

The Phoenix and The Lark - Nicole Hymas Conner

"I stare at mirrors. ....I don't look at myself because I think I'm pretty or anything special. I look because I feel like it tells me who I am."

I have the pleasure of reviewing another novel of a friend. This book is about a place that was once Arizona and is now called Phoenix, for the city that governs the rest of the Zones. After the mass blackout, the people were sent to live in Zones and a select few were chosen to go into the Epicenter of Phoenix, to learn from them in different areas, and if they could help Phoenix progress, they were allowed to stay. They could also return home, to the Zone they know. Or, even worse, they could become Wanderers.

This story follows Kate Kennedy, whose voice I found to be pretty unique. She’s distant, tough, and she’s an outsider in the Mesa, her home. When she goes to Phoenix, she uncovers the truth about herself, that there is not a Kate Kennedy. With her discovery, she plunges into a world where she does not know who to trust, but as someone who has depended on herself and only herself for all these years, she might find she cannot survive on her own.

There were editing issues throughout, but looking beyond them, this was an interesting dystopian novel. Kate was a fascinating character whose head I enjoyed being in. This would be perfect for anyone who enjoys novels like Divergent. 

[latenightpageturner]

Hyperbole and a Half - Allie Brosh

I’ve seen this book around, on the shelf at Barnes and Noble mainly, but I decided to give it a shot at random. It came with a load of books I ordered online and it looked like fun.

And then I opened it up. 

I. Busted. A. Gut.

At one point, I was laughing so hard, I had tears in my eyes and had to try and explain to my parents what passage I was reading that had me wheezing and giggling.

Humor aside (and there’s quite a bit between fun illustrations and the writing in between), this book got right on my level. I may not know the author, but Brosh and I have things in common, and I was glad to see my thoughts on paper in another’s voice. This book was amazing. It made me feel good; I looked forward to getting home from work to finish it and just hugged it to me once I had.

Read this book. Now! Or, you know, when you’re able.

Which should be now.

[latenightpageturner]

Struck by Lightning: The Carson Phillips Journal - Chris Colfer 

Wow. I saw the movie first, was very impressed with the whole creation, and decided that I definitely needed to read the novel. Of course the two were very, very similar but I loved, loved Colfer’s writing as well as Carson’s voice. He was such a jerk, but in a way that made me root for him in the bleachers the whole way through. I cracked up. 

The story is told through a journal of young Carson Phillips, who has goals. First, get accepted to Northwestern so he can finally leave the small town where nothing ever happens and the people seem unable to process unique and ambitious thought, much less understand creativity. Once he makes it to Northwestern, he can better his chances to achieve his dream of being the editor of The New Yorker. 

There’s a slight bump in the road. He needs to impress Northwestern, and being the editor of the often-used-for-paper-mache school newspaper and the president of the writers’ club (membership: 2) just won’t cut it. So he’s only got one option to get the heck outta dodge...

He’s going to blackmail his classmates. For what? Entries for a literary journal.

Heard you like to fornicate!

Darkly funny, with passages I could have highlighted for memorization had I had a highlighter on my person, I definitely recommend the book and the movie! Colfer’s talented on the page and on the screen.

[latenightpageturner]

Poet Anderson...Of Nightmares - Tom DeLonge and Suzanne Young

I wanted to love it. I wanted to devour it, and cherish it, and be so immersed in the world that I would give anything to have more. I read plenty of five star reviews of this novel, praising it as one of their favorite novels. So I purchased it immediately (of course I read what it was about first) and sat down to open the book.

Two. Months. Ago.

Two months! Two months!

It never takes me that long to read a novel, especially one that’s only 368 pages!

Let’s start with the beginning. Jonas Anderson is being raised by his brother, Alan, and they’re both lucid dreamers, meaning they can control their dreams. Wicked! They get in a car crash and Alan ends up in a coma, so Jonas is looking for him in the dream world. Woo! There’s a creature called a Night Terror hunting Jonas, and if that wasn’t bad enough, a big bad called REM is after him, too, because he’s a Poet that could either defeat REM or help him rule the world. Sign me up to read this!

I found myself...disappointed. The writing was okay. The characters... Well, I found myself not really caring what happened. It was work picking the book up. It was okay--not terrible, just not something I was devoted to. At the end of the book, I shrugged, thought that I was glad to have read it because it was very creative, but in the end I won’t be rereading it. Likely if a second one is released, I won’t run out to buy it.

I know there are many people who loved it. Thought the world building was awesome, the story line as interesting as Harry Potter (I saw a couple comments referencing that amazing series), so it could be that many will love it as much as I was hoping to.

Definitely give it a shot. I would at least recommend picking it up from the library to scope it out. I’ve been through worse books with hardly any plot and dislike-able characters, so I’m happy to admit this wasn’t one of those novels.

[latenightpageturner]

Free Ebook

Until the end of the year, get Out of Orbit by Ashton Widdison (yours truly) for free on any electronic reading device from lulu.com, or specifically on Kindle, Nook, and iBook.  

[latenightpageturner]

It’s Not Me, It’s You - Mhairi McFarlane

It was the title that caught me. I loved it. Then I saw that the character’s comics were included in some of the pages, I was excited (I was starting to get more into comics then).

Delia proposes to her long-time boyfriend, he accepts, and then he messes up big time by sending a text to Delia that was meant to go to his side-girlfriend.

She’s distraught, and then she thinks she’s insane because she goes right ahead and quits her job. Nay, her career. Now what?

Off she goes to London, to where her best friend has a fancy apartment, and she tries to reassemble the shattered pieces of her life. But was the old life really what she wanted? Throw in a criminal boss and a handsome yet annoying reporter, perhaps the mess she’s landing herself in now will help her discover where she really wants to be.

I liked this. I thought it was creative, that the characters were likeable. There was one scene that really bothered me, but the rest of the book was four out of five stars. The writing captured me and it didn’t let me go until I had finished it, and even then I thought about the book several days after.

[latenightpageturner]

Cinder - Marissa Meyer 

New Beijing -- a city of humans and androids, and the cyborg Cinder, who is raised by a step-mother who forces her to work as a mechanic. The population lives in fear of a plague where no known cure exists. But when the King is sick, and Prince Kai is searching desperately for a cure, Cinder finds herself in over her head, for they wonder if the cure lies with the cyborgs.

She’s special, though, for she’s not what she seems. She is Lunar, a race of beings that live on the moon, under reign of a terrible Queen who seeks to marry Prince Kai.

This book was incredible, and I need to continue the series, but with my mountain of books in my room, I haven’t been able to purchase the next one. I hope the rest of the series is as captivating and exciting as the first book, and I recommend this to anyone who loves fairy tales, science, and/or futuristic settings. Read it, read it, read it now!