Taylors Streams

Author, Writer, Lonely Wander.

[taylorsherman-author]

Been way to long

I really should write something other the python code. Maybe next week!

[taylorsherman-author]

Your Neighbor Tom - WIP

As Tom entered the small coffee shop on Tuesday night at 5pm he looked around and noticed it looked clean and a acceptable for this evenings warm beverage.  Approaching the counter he ordered his iced late and head to the window bar and had a seat.  The darkness stirred inside him and he knew it was just a matter of time before it would become to great a force to resist.   Just then he noticed a beautiful redhead exit from a shared condo complex security door.  As his eyes followed her it became clear to him that she was the one.  Trying to fight his urge Tom left the coffee shop promising himself he would never return, never be tempted, not ever. Just two days later Tom was once again at the small coffee shop, it was exactly the same time as two days ago and he was sure to grab the same seat looking out across the street at the old dark entrance to the condominium.  He sat there for nearly an hour as he drank his warm mocha, and pretended to read the paper in-front of him.  Every once in a while he would pause and just look out the window blankly as though he was lost in his thoughts, but tonight he would not see his beauty and that was fine with him.  Knowing where seeing her would lead he left with a peace deep inside, maybe this time he was going to be OK. It was Tuesday again, and this time Tom brought a book and his laptop and as he sat at the bar he wrote a book report for a college class he might have been taking had he ever taken his fathers advice and enrolled in the community college.  As he sat there he blended in perfectly with all the other students studying, reading their books then watching out the window as they drifted away wishing they could be anywhere but here.  Tom on the other hand found he wanted to be no where else but here.  Luck would have it at 5:30 PM the redhead came out the door just as she had last Tuesday night and the darkness welled up inside.  For weeks Tom made this a regular routine, each time bring a new book who's title did not matter in the least as he sat there watching out the window for his glimpse at her.  On the fourth week Tom knew her routine of coming in and out from 5pm to 9pm Monday nights so well he could have written a book on it.  This would not be enough! Toms imaginary class schedule was loading him down with more work and that resulted in more frequent trips to the small coffee shop.  Over the continuing weeks Tom would leave his day job as a ?????? at 4:30 and hop the L over to his favorite study area every day.  On weekends he would frequent the coffee shop with only a news paper and watch for his beauty to exit.  Tom quickly learned that she was rather predictable and that most week days she would head out at 5:30 carrying a small back pack and then would return almost exactly an hour and 30 minutes later.  The weekends we less predictable and Tom quickly tired of trying to catch a glimpse, deciding his weekends where better spent at the local movie theater near his house. Nearly 2 months had passed since the first time Tom eyed the beauty coming out of the small doorway and he was confident that he was ready to move on with his dark desire.  As the time approached 5:30 Tom headed across the street and waited at the bottom of the steps to the doorway of the her building.  Looking up and down the street as if waiting to meet someone Tom kept looking at his watch.  At 5:30 she stepped out the door and Tom smiled at her, as she smiled back Tom asked her if she knew Larrel Billings.  The redhead thought for a second and then apologized but she did not.  Tom, shook his head and explained that he was supposed to meet Larrel a local real estate agent who was to meet him and show him a unit in the building.  Tom looked at his watch one more time, "Thank you anyway" and held out his hand to her "by the way my name is Frank Trimblee".  As expected instinctively she shook his hand "Normagean Blanchete, and your welcome".  With that Tom shook his head "O well I will have call and see what went wrong, I have another viewing in 20 minutes knew I should have given it more time" as he gave a nod and smile to Normagean and headed down the street.  With his newly acquired info Tom headed home with a smile that went ear to ear. Immediately upon waking up Saturday morning Tom went to his computer and brought up his trusty search engine.  He entered Normagean and her building address which as he hoped returned the her apartment number.  As he glanced over the search results he also became aware that she was 28 and a school teacher at a local elementary school.  Each additional piece of infomation he found on the web put him deaper into her life, but Tom would need to wait until Monday to explore it further.  

[taylorsherman-author]

Memories of Me - Chapter 1

Hell my name is Jason Angelo and this is my last will and testament, I leave it in hope that maybe someday a life will be spared by learning from these word.  Now many will say its not very tragic but if you had lived it you may disagree, or I may just be weak.  The detailed notes I have left might help you piece together and find a solution I over looked, although being a bright and fairly open minded person I seriously doubt there is one. As most teens do I was having a rough time in life, 1998 my parents separated and in a ugly custody battle and state law said that I would have choose where I was spend my week days.  The joys of growing up in a state where at 12 you become a toy for the legal system, was a weight I was not ready bear.  After choosing to live with my mother my dad expressed that he felt very betrayed and I could feel the distance between us grow on my short weekend visits to my secondary home.  I tried to explain to him that mom needed my strength and the I was only doing what he had raised me to do.  "Always look after those who need help", was constantly repeated to me every time he would give me a dollar or two to hand to the homeless men and women we would pass.  It seemed lost on him now that he was the foundation of the house hold that now has been shattered, and I had to be the new support.  14 years old and already trying to take on the full burden, something that would haunt me my entire life. To fully understand all that sits within these pages we must go back to around my 14 the birthday and look at the mind set of the medical profession of the time.  Let see that would be 1990 and the medical profession was in love with their wonderful drugs that where starting to flood the market.  The marketing teams where pushing Fluoxetine hydrochloride like crazy and with the perks provided to doctors and the appearance of great results it was a wonder drug for the apparently depressed teen.  Of course personal I think if you can find a teenager the is not considered depressed then you have a real candidate for medial attention.  Unable to sleep at night I was constantly up until the early hours of the morning then would sleep all day.  Also this is the year my first sexual encounter fell into my lap.  Sounds like a funny way to put is now that I write it down on paper but the truth is I really was not looking for it.  My first sexual encounter was a odd one to say the least, a friend for many years was moving away and for some reason decided we had to have sex before she left.   While we had fooled around in the past I was not ready for this, but what 14 year old male is going to say no to such a offer.  How was I to know she would get caught sneaking back into the house and spill her guts to her dad!  And that the next day both my parents would come together to inform me that we where going to have to meet with this girls parents.  "Fuck that", was my first thought and I stuck with it! After going to my room to get ready for this meeting I slipped out the window.  This is how I wound up at the doctors office, after worrying my mother and disappearing all night she wondered if I was on some kind of drugs. As I tried to tell her all the test cam back clean, no drugs of any type.  I kicked back and was checking out the car magazines as my mother and the doctor talked, while I am not sure what exactly was said some how I was given a proscription for this miracle drug Fluoxetine hydrochloride, or Prozac as it would be come more commonly known.  This was sure to help clean up all my problems and make the whole world better.  It sure did make me feel better, but I noticed some other changes that should have had me concerned more then I was.  After only two weeks I started sleep regular hours, and my mood swings where not happening as often.  After another two months my mother would often comment about how much nicer I was to be around and to top it all off I finally had my first girlfriend.  This is where I found another benefit about this wonder drug!  Every teenage male jokes about having high sexual stamina and well I am pretty sure most of them are full of shit, but I had an edge.  At 14 I just figured I was one of those lucky guys who could go forever and I mean forever.  It would often take a exaggerated effort for me to orgasm, which was awesome.  In fact it often sex reached the point that my girlfriend would climax and then start to ask me if I was close!  I was a total stud, living the wonder life it was nothing to last an hour or more of full hard core sex.  Hell my girlfriend even started joking about it with her friends which I must say did not get me negative attention.  I was 14 and being rather new to sex I figured that is how I was built, anorgasmia was not even in my vocabulary. In all this excitement other things slipped my mind, things that did not seem to matter much now that life was going so good.  My writing of poetry stopped, yes every 14 male writes poetry girls if your guy says he didn't he is lying, it was not a conscious decision to stop but rather I did not feel the creative flow.  Life was so good maybe I had nothing to write about, after all poetry is the expression of sorrow in many cases.  Maybe I was only creative when miserable?  With poetry explained away, why did it not bother my that my drawing had stopped?  While I was not a artist in the least bit, i did draw a lot.  I was especially good at drawing still life type drawings, which no teenager appreciates.  Why could I not have been good at cartoon characters or fantasy women like the popular young artist where.  My drawing where kept to myself, many where dark in natured and reflected dark images depicted horror moves.  Often i would draw a hand with severed fingers which looked almost life like to my untrained eye.  These drawing ceased to flow from mind, and would not return until I was 15. Life was good!  

[thewritershelpers]

Hello! I used to read a lot (really, a lot), and to start writing a lot of stories. Nowadays, I'm stuck. It became really difficult for me to finish the books I started and I abandoned every story I had in my mind. It makes me really unhappy, because I really need stories in my life, I need my mind to keep active and it's like my head is dry. Can you help me? Thank you so much, really.

Blocks and periods of time where we just fall off the reading and writing wagon happen sometimes. The first key is not to beat yourself up about it. Know that it is natural and sometimes happens for concrete reasons, and sometimes no reason at all.

Getting yourself out of these funks can take some work, but if you’re dedicated to getting things done, you can do it. It sometimes may seem like you’re sucking the joy out of it when you’re just starting to get back into it, but eventually you’ll find your groove again.

For writing, try these suggestions:

Use writing prompts. Take characters you have in unfinished stories and use the prompts to put them in different scenarios. Don’t worry about writing a complete story, just exercise your brain to get used to your characters again and the story should follow.

Do some world building exercises. Explore a part of your story you haven’t yet. Write about a different location in your world, or a different character in the same setting who is unrelated to the rest of your characters.

Set aside fifteen minutes a day to work on a story. No matter how much of a slog it seems at first, just do it. Write. It could all be crap at first, but you’ll soon fall back into the story just by sticking with it, and you can always fix the crap parts in editing. Sometimes you just need to finish something to get you working on stories again.

For reading, try these tips:

Audiobooks. Sometimes listening to a story rather than reading it can help you get back into things.

Read in a new place. Find a park or a library or a cafe somewhere new to read. If people noise distracts you, try a library to start or use your headphones and a white noise app or music.

Set aside fifteen minutes a day to read. Start with short stories and/or an anthology, so you complete stories in 1-2 sittings. Again, sometimes just pushing yourself for a few minutes a day can help get you back into the habit more naturally over time.

Also, in both cases, don’t be afraid to give a story a chance for a few days and move on to something else if it’s not working. Explore something new and different that you wouldn’t usually read or write. Give it a week. Even if you don’t like it, the exercise of it may lead you to new ideas for your current projects or lead you back to the kind of stories you do like reading.

Hope these help!

- O

[taylorsherman-author]

We all get their

[taylorsherman-author]

Short stories

Every time I read a short story I look for the good in it, if I can not find any it really pisses me off. I talking about a story that is so poorly written that even the avg 8yr old would be ashamed to claim them. Stories that feel like random words written on paper ... Nah actually not even that good. So always go over your work twice before publishing it please!

[neverregretlittlethings]

Reblog if you thought the movie adaptation of Divergent WAS good

because all critics are doing is insulting it and I personally thought it was amazing.

[taylorsherman-author]

Sure it left the book a little be over all very true to it, really enjoyed the movie and even the cast impressed me.

[taylorsherman-author]

Review Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead * * *

Maybe I don’t read enough modern vampire stories but Vampire Academy was full of new terms to me.  Morie, strigoi, and Dhampir where all new terms to me and actually added a level of newness to me that I really enjoyed.  The story was not overly complicated and was a pleasure to read.  

Rose was a little narcissistic and it was odd watching the character try to balance that with the role of dhampir and servitude, but that added the little depth that the character actually had.  Lissa was under developed also, the whole time I felt like I was being setup for a series rather then a story that could stand on its own.  

Rose is training to be a body guard and due to a special and unusual connection with Lissa its likely that she will be assigned to Lissa by those in power.  As they explore the journey from friend to body guard and protector Rose becomes more aware of what that role actually entails and how much she underestimated what it would to protect the moire royalty.  Lissa just wants a to be safe and her friend makes her feel safe, but is she really.  As Rose and Lissa navigate the tides of power in the vampire hierarchy their strength together grows as they learn to lean on each other in a time of need.  Each having special gifts that grow in strength and usefulness. 

My only downside of this book is the total feeling of being setup for a series.  The book did have a plot although weak and rushed, it was a fun and simple read.  If your looking for depth in a story this is not the book for you.  If you like series this might be ok for you but your going to be committing some time and possibly money.  Honestly for my time and money I preferred the Morganville Vampire series but you millage may vary.  

As with most YA vampire novels this book is only approbate for 15 plus in my mind.  The sexual overtones and basically  Rose is well know with the boys as a tease.  Heavily relies on her uniq body structure in the wafer thin moire class to stick out.  This part does not make sense since there a other dhamphir on campus but lets look past the holes in the story.  I would give this book three stars.

[lifeslikeacupoftea]

[taylorsherman-author]

Every generation feels this way,

[taylorsherman-author]

Stuck need advice

It's really to bad that no one reads this because I really would like so,e advice! I had originally laid "Hungry Forever" out as a dystopian novel but am having second thoughts. It's not to late to change it but if I do there is a concern that it turns out to Nikitaish. Are dystopian novels played out?

[charmaineevangeline]

Marie Lu, what have you done to me. I am a wreck! How do you expect me to get on with my life after this book!

Okay guys. I can’t.. I can’t even. This series was absolutely amazing! I cried at the last few chapters on this book and it’s currently 7:31am in the morning. IT IS TOO EARLY FOR THIS KIND OF EMOTION!!

Read the legend trilogy! You won’t regret it!

[taylorsherman-author]

One of the greatest things about books is everyone gets something different from them.  Just because one person does not find value in them does not mean they lack value.

[taylorsherman-author]

Review "The Giver" by Lois Lowry

To start with let me say the ending of “The Giver” by Lois Lowry felt like the lazy way out.  Joanas is about to turn twelve years old, the age of maturity in his utopian society, the where his life time specialty will be chosen.  There are many choices from care giver of the old to nurturer of the young.  Joanas will find out what he has been assigned to based on a life time of tests and observation.  When Joanas finally gets his assignment his reality is changed and his eyes are widened, to the many things that go on hidden.

I really did like the story but when I hit ninety precent though I realized that something was not right.  Being on a e-reader I did some searching to make sure that there was not pages missing.  Turns out the book comes to a very quick conclusion which is not always bad but in this case left me feeling empty.  To compound the problem I read the section from the author about looking back at it and that just ruined it for me.  So if your reading it, stop before you read that section and give your self a day or two to digest the story before you get her feelings. 

Its funny that this is called a kids story when I think the ideology is advanced for what I would consider a kid.  This book would be better for a young adult in my opinion not because the subject matter is adult but more because I think the maturity needed means many of the lessons of this book would be lost.

In the end I give this book three stars on a five star scale meaning I did not hate it but it was not something I would recommend to anyone.  If someone told me they where reading it I would be very interested in hearing their thoughts and observations.  I might reread this book next year just to see if it holds to this rating.

I struggle with book reviews wanting to give enough info to inform the reader but not give away the story.  Should I lean more towards giving away the plot?

[burninggravity]

Novels aren’t just happy escapes; they are slivers of people’s souls, nailed to the pages, dripping ink from veins of wood pulp. Reading the right one at the right time can make all the difference.

Brandon Sanderson (via burninggravity)t

[lifeslikeacupoftea]

[taylorsherman-author]

But it might take three books to get there!

[its-a-writer-thing]

[taylorsherman-author]

I love this, and its very true.  If we wrote from experiences we might put Stephen King out of business!

[taylorsherman-author]

Review "Born" by Tara Brown

I wanted to love “Born” by Tara Brown, but I could not get past the constant rape theme.  Emma has been alone in the world, after loosing her father at nine years old, a world that is very different.  A virus has ravaged the world leaving only broken groups of healthy people, untrusting people with various agendas.  There are the people that live out in nature, hiding and to themselves.  Then the people who are in the towns who group up and try and keep some kind of order, with only one thing missing in them healthy child bearing age women.  Then there are the other places, where the woman are taken to, the healthy child bearing women.  There are rumors what they are taken for but no one knows the truth until Emma finds it.

I have to sadly admit that I did not pay attention to the author before before starting it and it made it a real shock when I found out it was a female author.  I even went as far at to find pictures and see if maybe it was just a pen name.  My problem with the story was all the violent sexuality.  The word is a mess and yes there is going to be some bad people but why focus so much on it?  I read to escape and this book made me feel vial.  While never actually having a detailed rape scene, Tara walk the line as close as she could.  I would have sworn this twisted book was written by some teenage boy or middle aged man who lacks a girlfriend and watches to much pay television if you know what I mean.

I will not be reading the second book, and not because it was was not a good plot idea but I want to be entertained when I read.  I am not a mystery or crime reader, I want books that give you hope in the world.  Tara tried to reach for that but her story was so over shadowed by the violent sexual content I had to push myself to finish. 

This book is not appropriate for anyone under the age of 16 years of age, and even then I would not want my kids reading it.  The constant sexual abuse of females as young as 14 years of age made me angry.  I think Tara could write this same book and avoid a lot of the scenes of women being stripped and almost raped, gang raped, molested at 15, and more.

[taylorsherman-author]

Review Rouge by Jess Petosa

As previously stated I was a huge fan of the first book in the “Exceptional” series and Rouge by Jess Petosa lived up to that same level of joy.  Ok lets cover the back story again and to save time I am just going to pull from my last review.  The US has collapsed after creating a super virus that took out seventy five percent of human civilization.  The few humans that remain are split between those whose bodies accepted the virus and gained super human powers and those that survived from being immune or hiding, The Ordinaries.  In this follow up book Luke plays a much smaller role, but that does not mean all is lost for the two.

Ok got that covered lets get to the good stuff.  Ally was once again a great character and while this book did not focus as much on the love interest it still delivered some truly human moments of joy and pain that we all have seen in relationships.  I would have to agree with many reviews that this story felt a little rushed and that the end leaves you craving more with no date on when you can get your next fix.  On the other hand thats better then many book manage to do, and I assure you I will pick it up once book three comes out.  

Rouge give more time to explore the character of Ally and to adjust to the reality of who she is.  Its really hard to not give out to much info and fill in the story but with the recent changes in her life Ally is split between the present and the past and how she interacts with everyone else.  She faces the typical growth into a character who is both the hero and the sinner, but that line is not defined as much by what she does as who she is.  Enter Max and we now have a love triangle and while its definitely there it never really is explored, I am really hoping this gets further developed in the third book.

 I would not suggest this book for advanced readers of a younger age, but I don’t think its anything that a fourteen year old girl or boy could not handle so lets say YA-14+ and I feel pretty strongly about that.  I might be a little on the conservative side but why fill your younger child's head with things they will have way to much time thinking about in their teen years.  If your a teen or young adult who likes the dystopian books pick this up!  Thank you  again Jess for even more good hours of entertainment!

[thewritershelpers]

Hey guys, great blog! :) Anyway, I was wondering how to write a good book review. When I read other book reviews, I find that they don't give me a sense of what the book is like. So I know what I don't want to write. But I still wish I had a checklist or outline to tell what I should write. What should I cover? How long should it be? How do I avoid spoilers? Thanks so much.

Thanks for the love, anon! Here’s some back *virtual hugs and kisses*. :)

All right, to business:

I think that the best book reviews are those that are critical, in that they are  able to bring forth a fair judgement of the books they review, but at the same time accepting enough to allow these books to be what they are and allow for readers to form their own opinions.  A good book review acknowledges that it is merely a blimp in the multitudes of other opinions that exist about this work and that it is in now way superior to other opinions that exist about this book.  It is expressive of its opinion, yes, but not dismissive of the opinions and ideas of others (including the author himself).  It, in short, engages in a conversation rather than competing in a shouting match.

In terms of outline/checklist, one I can recommend is John Updike’s five (well, six) rules for reviewing books.  It’s a list that mixes do’s and don’ts as well as things you should include in your book review (the extended quotation, I believe, is paramount).  The looseness of the list allows you to add your own flavor (it still is your book review, add what you feel is important to you and what will serve your review best).

As for length, this is entirely up to you, unless you’re working with a pre-set limitation (i.e. an editor or limited space in the school paper).  For me, a 500 to 1000 words is enough space to give a really meaty review.  But I’ve read some that accomplish a lot with much less.

If you want to look at some examples of great book reviews, head on over to The New York Times Book Page.  It’s where I go to when I want to read about books.  

- A

[taylorsherman-author]

I keep looking for ways to write a helpful honest and caring review of a book I really hated ..