Whimsically Yours

@whimsicallyours

Hi, I'm Patrice! I'm a 21-year-old introvert gone wild & modern-day Renaissance girl. I like reading everything I can get my hands on, baking messy treats, following my favorite designers (J'adore Elie Saab), and laughing (a lot). I write genre-bending, speculative fiction stories for young adults and middle graders. Most of them feature life-changing secrets, forbidden friendships, and the coolest girls you'll ever meet.

1,466 posts

Posts

Worldbuilding: A #DVpit Blog Hop Roundtable Discussion: Part Three

Patrice Caldwell Hi Everyone, Tis the final post for the #DVpit Worldbuilding Roundtable. (View part one/intro post. View Part Two: Rules, Structure, and Detail). In case you missed our first part, this is a Worldbuilding Roundtable Discussion with Kait Feldmann at Arthur A. Levine Books, Stephanie Stein at HarperCollins Children’s Books, Saba Sulaiman at Talcott Notch Literary Services, and…

View On WordPress

Worldbuilding: A #DVpit Blog Hop Roundtable Discussion: Part Two

Patrice Caldwell Hi everyone! We’re back for Part 2! In case you missed our first part, this is a Worldbuilding Roundtable Discussion with Kait Feldmann at Arthur A. Levine Books, Stephanie Stein at HarperCollins Children’s Books, Saba Sulaiman at Talcott Notch Literary Services, and Jim McCarthy at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret as part of #DVpit’s Blog Hop. During this part we’ll be talking Rules,…

View On WordPress

Worldbuilding: A #DVpit Blog Hop Roundtable Discussion: Part One

Introduction by Patrice Caldwell Patrice Caldwell Hi all, I am so incredibly excited to be hosting the kickoff to the #DVpit blog hop! Thank you, Beth for trusting me to begin, thank you readers and visitors, and many many thanks to the participants! This is a worldbuilding roundtable featuring: Editors: Kait Feldmann at Arthur A. Levine Books and Stephanie Stein at HarperCollins Children’s…

View On WordPress

Publishing Insider #1 - Jennifer Johnson-Blalock of Liza Dawson Associates

The #PublishingInsider kickoff with @JJohnsonBlalock of @LizaDawsonAssoc talking queries, career advice, & tea is up!!

Good Afternoon, Readers :D Today I’m starting a new series: Publishing Insider!! It was inspired by my realtalk post on getting your foot in the (publishing industry) door: https://twitter.com/whimsicallyours/status/738056025434148864 Publishing Insider will give you a peek into the publishing world as told by my daring interviewees who’ll come from all areas within the industry. The amazingly…

View On WordPress

#first publishing job #Jennifer Johnson-Blalock #literary agent #publishing insider #querying process #querywin #Rebecca Barrow

fyblackwomenart

Yemaya and Oshun

: ; submission : :

Review: Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova (+ a Giveaway!)

For @zlikeinzorro’s book bday, I reviewed & am giving away LABYRINTH LOST + books from @tracichee & @cindypon! <333

“Enchanting and complex. Every page is filled with magic.”–Danielle Paige, New York Times best-selling author of Dorothy Must Die Nothing says Happy Birthday like summoning the spirits of your dead relatives. Alex is a bruja, the most powerful witch in a generation…and she hates magic. At her Deathday celebration, Alex performs a spell to rid herself of her power. But it backfires. Her whole…

View On WordPress

Pitch Wars Mentor Wish List 2016

Hey Readers :) Or should I say Pitch Wars Warriors *grins* If you’re here, it’s likely to view my wishlist (mwahahaha) but first, a little about me: I love Once Upon A Time, although as with all the shows I watch, I’m severely behind I participated in Pitch Wars in 2014. I was one of Marieke Nijkamp’s alternates (along with Brooks Benjamin (who’s also mentoring!) and Genetta Adair we…

View On WordPress

To Recent Grads Seeking a Job in Publishing

Sharing a post I wrote, based on advice I just gave, to recent grads seeking the elusive first job in publishing.

Hey, recent grad :) How ya doin? Stressed? High of recent-grad endorphins? Missing the people who’ve been by your side for the past 4 years? Excited at what the world of adulthood offers? All of the above. Yes, likely that. Well, while I’m here (In bed. Sick. Not at what is my first post-grad, full-time job in publishing) I thought I’d share some things and thoughts and tidbits of advice I…

View On WordPress

#advice for recent graduates #getting first job in publishing #getting your foot in the door #internships #publishing industry jobs #skill building

THE DARKEST CORNERS by Kara Thomas (<333)

I loved THE DARKEST CORNERS by @karatwrites, read my (spoiler free) review and enter to win a copy of it (US only)!!!

My Review Owl Rating: I want to preface this review with saying this is THE book I’ve been looking forward to reading for the past year/since the author, Kara Thomas, hinted at it via a tweet (I believe the tweet compared it to Gillian Flynn’s Dark Places, which I was reading (& loving) at the time). Luckily, I received a copy at ALA Midwinter. Because I work in publishing, I rarely review books…

View On WordPress

#gillian flynn #kara thomas #mystery thriller #pretty little liars #the darkest corners #ya

RIP Alan Rickman #RaiseYourWands

My tribute to Alan Rickman, as a member of the Harry Potter Generation #RaiseYourWands

As we all now know, Alan Rickman has passed away. To say a light is gone from this world is an understatement. And although I didn’t know him in the way his friends and family did. I like to think I knew him well enough. For those of us of the Harry Potter generation, Alan Rickman was Severus Snape. For me, although I grew up with the books, I truly grew up with the movies. I was eight when the…

View On WordPress

#alan rickman #raise your wands #severus snape

Sexuality, Gender, and Race: On YA's Lack of Intersectionality for Queer Girls

I blogged about sexuality, gender, & race in light of the Twitter discussion on f/f representation in YA #diverseYA

I’ve written about diversity in children’s literature here and here. I’ve also talked about it a ton on social media. There are times when I feel I’ve expressed everything there is to express and then, there are times like this morning, when an incredible discussion on identity politics, sexuality, and gender breaks out on Twitter and I need to express my thoughts in a longer form. Here. I’ve…

View On WordPress

Taking a Break to Write

Taking a Break to Write #amwriting #NaNoRebel

Hey guys! Long time no chat… just an update to say I’m doing great and, though I love this blog and can’t wait to get back to it and grow its readership, right now I’m on a blogging break. The truth is, I can’t do it all. And, I’m at a point in my life where I have to be upfront and honest about that and my priorities. And, right now, it’s really important to me to finish the MS I’ve been working…

View On WordPress

Fall '15 Writing Bootcamp Update One (#YABfwb2015)

My first Fall '15 Writing Bootcamp Update (#YABfwb2015)!! #FallisHere #timetowrite

Hey Readers– How’s it going? Things have been pretty busy on my end (got sick, changing jobs, life…). The YA Buccaneer’s Fall Writing Bootcamp started last week and, since I’m behind, this will be one mega update post! I’m aiming to update y’all weekly from here on out. It’s very fitting that it’s fall and this is the YAB fall writing bootcamp as my story is set during the fall. (haha, can I say…

View On WordPress

A Different Kind of Sick

A Different Kind of Sick: My thoughts on #suicideprevention, creativity, & putting yourself 1st #mentalillness #writing

Sick days. Everyone is allowed to have them, right? But what happens when they occur all too frequently? What happens when they’re not a result of an illness that’s easy to explain? As you probably know, today’s World Suicide Prevention Day. And because I’ve struggled with depression & anxiety my entire life and have been pretty vocal about those struggles on this blog (especially as of late) I…

View On WordPress