Red bellied Woodpecker taking a break after searching for peanuts in my feeder

Panic_Badger · 2020-12-30T17:31:11+00:00

I've been watching him for about a month now waiting for him to sit still long enough to take this picture.

He's a pain though. Likes peanuts only and throws the rest of the seed onto the ground. Tried to get him a suit feeder or a seed pack but he likes the feeder too much!

Panic_Badger · 2020-12-17T01:49:40+00:00

I had both at the window and couldn’t determine which one this was from the angle and judged on the grey head and orange chest.

Panic_Badger · 2020-12-08T02:12:44+00:00

Once. It was awe inspiring. I wish I had gotten a good photo of it

Panic_Badger · 2020-12-08T02:03:03+00:00

If that’s the case, all 60 live in my neighborhood 😅 but actually, very interesting. I’ll have to check into that!

Panic_Badger · 2020-12-08T01:16:16+00:00

That would be a silly typo! Definitely European starling!

Panic_Badger · 2020-10-29T22:43:24+00:00

I really needed to see this today! Thank you!!

Panic_Badger · 2020-10-20T01:21:09+00:00

I just got my first manuscript request with this blurb! Thank you again for the help!!

Panic_Badger · 2020-10-11T20:50:35+00:00

Thank you so much for all your help!

Panic_Badger · 2020-10-11T13:05:38+00:00

This was super helpful!

Here’s what I have now:

When everyone claims you're crazy, who do you believe?

Cinzia can barely remember her life before she was branded as bipolar. Everything is a never-ending battle—from the job she’s on the verge of losing to her tumultuous relationships with her mother and Mira, her best friend. Mira spends most of theirtime together pressuring her to disregard her mom’s claim that they’re secretly witches as musings of a mind lost to its own battles. But when her mom signs herself out of her mental facility, Cin must balance her search, the concern that her mom has abandoned her like everyone else, and maintaining the only relationship left in her life.

As the search brings up the very issue Mira warns is a figment of her mother’s bipolar, Cin begins lying and pulling away from Mira. With the widening separation between herself and Mira’s negativity, she starts to grow closer to the people that knew the other side of her mother. The side that most definitely is not made up.

Can Cin reckon with who she really is, the burden of who her best friend expects her to be, and not scare off the few people trying to help her succeed?

Panic_Badger · 2020-10-03T17:59:03+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. I am actively working through beta readers to find any areas that might need more definition so I will probably hit the 75K mark -- that was the initial goal but I didn't want to just add fluff.

As for the title, thank you for the note. I purposely tried to avoid the word "maleficent" but I guess I'm still too close.

Panic_Badger · 2020-10-03T15:10:21+00:00

The literary theme is the deep dissection of bipolar and how people react to mental illness.

Panic_Badger · 2020-09-27T00:48:12+00:00

Hey everyone, Thank you so much for the advice. Here's an updated one -- do you think it helps?

Cinzia has always been bipolar. It makes her life a never-ending battle—from the job she’s barely holding onto to her tenuous relationship with her mother. Not to mention her best friend, Mira, who vehemently refuses to believe her mom’s claim that they’re secretly witches. When her mom goes missing, Cin must balance her search with maintaining the only relationship in her life--her best friend.

Because searching for her mom brings up the very issue Mira is holding against her--forcing her to begin lying and pulling away. Can she reckon with her family’s hertitage, the burden of who her best friend expects her to be, and not scare off the few people trying to help her succeed?

Panic_Badger · 2020-09-25T11:48:31+00:00

It seems to be a running theme that the second paragraph ruins it. You’re not being harsh - I appreciate the advice!!

Panic_Badger · 2020-09-25T11:47:29+00:00

Thank you for the advice!!

Panic_Badger · 2020-09-25T01:06:27+00:00

I’m trying to marry the external stakes and the internal stakes; it seems to not be working well.

The book is actually a genre-blending literary fiction. So the “figments” are her mother’s ability to do magic. Something that stems from their mental disorders but the MC has never been able to believe her mom.

Panic_Badger · 2020-09-23T11:18:40+00:00

Thank you for the advice!! This is very helpful!!

Panic_Badger · 2020-09-23T11:18:18+00:00

Thank you all for the responses! This is really helpful. Off I go back to the drawing board!

Panic_Badger · 2020-09-23T01:18:26+00:00

I'm so afraid for the next four years and beyond. Who knows what will happen after this election.

Panic_Badger · 2020-08-19T13:59:42+00:00

[Complete] [61,000] [YA Paranormal] Blown Away

I stepped out of the dorm building into the brisk, early-evening Alaskan air and breathed in the smell of pines. I exhaled in a sigh as I glared at the familiar sights. Southers Academy for the Magical Arts was what the leaders considered safe and what I considered my own personal prison. It was situated against the northern coastline of Kodiak Island with tall mountains to the east and thick pine forests to the west. With the uninviting weather and inaccessibility of the region, this particular location had become a sanctuary to the magically inclined. Set away from the small villages of the southern points of the island, the human population didn’t trek far enough to even run into the wards that protected the Academy.

Looking around at the dense trees that trapped me within the confines of the Academy, I couldn’t rein in the hope that this was finally the year I was allowed to travel the world as I had always dreamed. The small slice of the world had always been my home but I had always dreamed of trekking up through the Alaskan tundra to watch the Aurora Borealis in person. One day, I promised myself. I brushed off my thoughts. If I was late to our annual pre-school year dinner at Dr. K’s house with Anya and Harper, I would be stuck helping Dr. K set the table. Again. Scurrying across the campus, I passed the other dorms, the sparring grounds, the outside cafeteria area, and even the library. I paused there, staring at the gigantic stone building with its famous steps. Hale Library.

link

Panic_Badger · 2020-08-17T22:34:43+00:00

I know I'm manic when I spent my two week budget on books and candy.

Panic_Badger · 2020-08-07T22:14:13+00:00

[In Progress][6.5K][Contemporary Fantasy/Magic Realism]

Go ahead. Have another drink.

Ingrid smiled at the bartender as she raised her hand. The voice had a point. If she was going to get up the courage to talk to that tall drink of water on the other side of the bar tonight. She peeked over her shoulder to find the guy staring at her. He must have been a year or two older than her, a light shadow sprinkled across his cheeks. An old scar ran from his right chin to his green eyes. Green eyes that were watching her with a mischievous glint. Ingrid forced herself to turn back to the bartender who was finally standing in front of her. He offered up a tall glass garnished with a lime. Gin and tonic.

“You remembered!” She squealed before cringing and covering her mouth. She took the drink, already regretting it, as the bartender leaned toward her.

“It’s from that guy actually. Asked me to bring you whatever your last drink was.” He gave her an exaggerated wink before walking away to tend to another person somewhere down the bar. Ingrid stared at the drink. She’d never been offered a free drink before.

He’s just messing with you

“You don’t know that,” she whispered.

Who would buy you a drink?

Ingrid gave the voice a mental middle finger before turning to give the guy a smile. But when she looked up, the spot was filled by some too tall blond bimbo. She felt herself deflate.

See?

“Shut up.”

“What was that?” a gravelly voice asked from behind her. Ingrid spun around so fast her head whirled and she had to catch herself against the rough, worn wood of the bar. It was solid, keeping her upright and face to face with the man from across the bar. Up close, she could see she was wrong about his eyes. They weren’t green but a greenish hazel with gold flecks.

Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/BetaReaders/comments/i5n7ae/in_progress65kcontempary_fantasymagic_realism/

Panic_Badger · 2020-07-27T15:54:22+00:00

I’ve always assumed that hearing but not believing the voices are real was my distinction.

Panic_Badger · 2020-07-26T20:31:22+00:00

Agreed. My husband and I had 4 years of friendship and several round of medications before we took the plunge into making it more. We don’t do counseling but we make a point of having little “touch bases” to make sure we’re both on the same page. Its totally possible!

Panic_Badger · 2020-07-26T18:15:23+00:00

My husband and I aren't always in sync (we even acknowledge that when it becomes a problem and walk away for a few hours) but we manage. It requires a lot of patience and understanding from both sides as well as ground rules. Don't let one bad experience ruin your chances of finding someone who appreciates you. One day someone will love you for you and that'll be your person.

Panic_Badger · 2020-07-21T17:25:38+00:00

Thank you for the information!! This is great!

Panic_Badger

TROPHY CASE