Welcome back!
Here are my goals for the month of February:
What about you? Do you have any goals for this month?
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
Welcome back!
Here were my goals for the month of December:
I decided to push back the release of “Specialton.” I’ve made a lot of progress with the suggested edits and formatting, but I’m not ready to release it yet. Making this decision was tough, but I immediately felt better afterward, which tells me it was good decision.
We had a nice, quiet Christmas. We loved being with our parents and celebrating Addy’s first Christmas.
I’ve decided on the format that I want for my American Girl inventory in Excel. I just need to dive in and execute the plan.
I reconciled my thoughts about NaNoWriMo in a recent post. This was a hard one to write. You can read it here: Commentary #120: Thoughts on NaNoWriMo
Come back tomorrow to see my goals for February!
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
I decided to not participate in NaNoWriMo 2023, mainly because I thought I would be at the last month of my pregnancy and I wanted to make sure I was getting enough rest.
Turns out there was something else going on.
My friend Ren shared the news with me first. I was initially shocked and dismayed. And then I started doing my own research.
Full disclosure: Many things I’m going to discuss are allegations. No names have been brought forward, and I’m not sure they ever will be.
In the beginning, I also couldn’t find a lot of information online about this alleged incident. But as the months have passed, a clearer picture has emerged. I’ve listed my resources below, including information from NaNoWriMo.
Regardless, the research that I have done has solidified one decision: I don’t want to participate with NaNoWriMo going forward. The way the NaNoWriMo staff handled this incident, whether it’s true or not, was atrocious. Good for the people who stepped up and raised red flags and reported the incident(s). NaNoWriMo’s initial response to the entire thing was, in a word, odd, and I can’t tell if that was on purpose or not. I’ve studied some public relations, and I have a bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies Mass Media.
I’m honestly surprised this didn’t make the national news in November, especially because the allegations include a moderator grooming an undisclosed number of minors in the NaNoWriMo forums and Young Writer’s Program.
I fully understand that NaNoWriMo is a nonprofit, and they have a small staff. However, they are so well known among writers and get so much attention throughout the year for their Camp NaNoWriMo and NaNoWriMo sessions, so color me surprised when there wasn’t a lot of information or media coverage.
I think they tried to save face because they screwed up.
The good news, if anything, is that they did acknowledge, eventually, that there were multiple failings with this particular incident. From what I’ve read, they have already made multiple changes to the organization, including staffing. They say they are committed to further changes and are actively learning from this experience. It doesn’t excuse their initial response and handling, however.
Going forward, I won’t be supporting NaNoWriMo. I’ll track my progress on my novels independently.
In a way, this makes me sad. NaNoWriMo had been a big part of my life for the better part of 11 years. But, I’m thankful to Ren for sharing the initial information with me several months ago. It’s taken me this long to reconcile all of my thoughts and feelings about this.
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
Resources
https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/nanowrimo-grooming-controversy
https://christianwriters.com/threads/accusations-of-child-grooming-overshadow-nanowrimo.24933/
Books
Isabel’s Journal
Jim Henson: The Biography
Nicki’s Journal
The Night Swim
Movies
Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania (Seen in theaters, February 2023)
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. (Seen in theaters, May 2023)
Barbie (Seen in theaters, July 2023)
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Seen in theaters, May 2023)
Haunted Mansion [2023] (Disney+)
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (Seen in theaters, July 2023)
Jesus Revolution (Seen in theaters, March 2023)
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (Seen in theaters, July 2023)
Murder Mystery 2 (Netflix)
No Hard Feelings (Netflix)
Pete’s Dragon [1977] (Disney+)
Pete’s Dragon [2016] (Disney+)
Remember The Titans (Disney+)
Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse (Seen in theaters, June 2023)
The Beanie Bubble (Apple TV+)
The Marvels (Seen in theaters, November 2023)
The Super Mario Bros. Movie (Peacock)
We Have A Ghost (Netflix)
TV
Babylon 5 (Tubi)
Bake Squad (Netflix)
Cold Case (Seasons 1-7, Max)
Doogie Howser, M.D. (Seasons 1-4, Disney+)
Family Matters (Max)
Finding Your Roots (PBS)
For All Mankind (Seasons 3-4, Apple TV+)
Glow Up: Britain’s Next Make-Up Star (Season 5, Netflix)
Guy’s Grocery Games (Max)
Killer Sally (Netflix)
LEGO Masters (Seasons 3-4, Hulu)
Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God (Max)
Next in Fashion (Netflix)
Only Murders in the Building (Season 3, Hulu)
Poker Face (Peacock)
Pressure Cooker (Netflix)
Secret Chef (Hulu)
The Afterparty (Season 2, Apple TV+)
The Mandalorian (Season 3, Disney+)
Unsolved Mysteries (Hulu)
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? (YouTube)
Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? (YouTube)
Podcasts
48 Hours
Cold Cases
Criminal
Dateline NBC
Disappearances
Embedded
Mind Over Murder
Serial Killers
Small Town Dicks
Snapped
Solved Murders: True Crime Mysteries
StoryCorps
Unsolved Murders
Unsolved Mysteries
Up and Vanished
Well, that wraps up my favorite things for 2023!
What about you? What were some of your favorite things of the year?
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
Welcome back!
I’ve been away from the blog for several months. One major reason is that I found out I was pregnant at the end of March! We found out we were having a girl during Memorial Day weekend. Her original due date was December 4th, but I had some complications due to preeclampsia, so our baby girl officially arrived on October 22nd. She needed some time in the NICU, but she’s home now and doing well! We have enjoyed loving on her and taking care of her. Being a mom is the hardest thing I have ever done, but it’s totally worth it. She’s small but feisty.
Thanks to everyone who continued to read my posts during my months-long absence. I’m excited to be back!
Here are my goals for the month of December:
What about you? Do you have any goals for this month?
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
Welcome back!
Here are my goals for the month of June:
What about you? Do you have any goals for this month?
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
Claudie is one of American Girl’s newer historical characters. Her story takes place in Harlem in the 1920s!
I really enjoyed learning more about Harlem and how people lived during that time.
I’m not the biggest fan of how American Girl is releasing their historical character books now, but it certainly builds the excitement. Her next book is expected to be released very soon! I’m excited to read it and learn more about her adventures in New York and Georgia.
4 1/2 out of 5 stars.
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
Welcome back!
Here were my goals for the month of May:
I’ve been so busy this month that a lot of writing projects have been put to the side. But, I’m determined to work on one project per month going forward!
Mother’s Day was really nice. Al and I took Chinese food to my parents. There’s a great place near our house called Dragon City. Their portions are huge! My parents got at least four separate meals out of what we brought!
We enjoyed a long Memorial Day weekend away at the farm. Look for a new Adventure Time post coming soon!
I’m very excited for the 2023 P.E.O. Virginia State Convention. Instead of co-chairing the convention, I get to be a visitor this year and enjoy it. I’ll also be participating in the annual memorial service for those women who have died in the past year, along with a fun skit to encourage new ideas and strategies for membership.
What about you? Did you have any goals for this month?
Come back soon to see my June Goals!
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
Welcome back!
Here are my goals for the month of May:
What about you? What goals do you have for this month?
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
Welcome back!
Here were my goals for the month of April:
April was a whirlwind!
I wasn’t able to give blood at the beginning of April, but that’s okay. There will be other blood drives! It was great to volunteer like always.
I had a fantastic experience with Camp NaNoWriMo April 2023. Look for a recap post on that very soon.
I’m actually going to start incorporating the edits for “Specialton” in May. One project at a time.
Most of our weekends were full of family visits, in between getting estimates for house projects. The joys of home ownership!
I’ve started to read again, chapter by chapter. I’m currently about eight chapters into re-reading Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret. Super excited to see the movie adaptation very soon with Lane!
What about you? Did you have any goals for this month?
Come back soon to see my May Goals!
Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂
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