Tag: Authors

Ain’t got time for messin’ around, and it’s not my style.

Sara Mazariegos

John Green’s Hollywood, Ending. This is not a review of the book, I’m on page 80. This is about seeing John again, and the jumble of emotions I feel.

Luis and I saw John Green again for his Hollywood, Ending book tour last Thursday. It’s always a pleasure to see John and hear him read his work, and hear him talk about the process of writing and existing as a human in this messed up world. His discussion with Clint Smith was great, a lot of insightful questions were asked and it felt like two friends having a chat rather than John being interviewed, which I liked. I’ve been so spoiled in the past by these book tour stops. My first one was for The Fault in Our Stars, which led me to finding my local Nerdfighter community. My second one was for Turtles All The Way Down, and I don’t need to talk more than I already have about how that turned out…

So it’s natural for the book tours and events that followed to feel somewhat…less magical, right? I still love seeing him and reading his books, and watching his videos, and being part of the Nerdfighter community. But, as I posited to Luis at dinner after this event, John had to have known that he made the Turtles All The Way Down event the most special for us. I feel very honored and spoiled that something as great as that ever happened to us. But also, I think about the time of that book versus now and it kind of goes along, at least a little, with the themes of this book’s tour. 2017 was so different from now. I know things were not great by any means, but I look back at 2012-2017 with such wistfulness. When we went to the Turtles All The Way Down event, Hank was there. Our friends were there with us. It felt like such a community to us. And I feel like, at least from our vantage point, so much of it has splintered now. Friends aren’t really friends anymore; they’ve either moved away or grown away from us. Our Nerdfighter group isn’t really active anymore. Which is fine, it happens. But it still makes me miss them and that time.

I can’t always meet my future husband at a John Green event. I can’t always be given a wedding gift or clink red Solo cups with the guys. But I also can’t always have our friends there with us, and that’s perhaps what makes me saddest of all.

But, by that same token, one of our Nerdfighter friends is helping take care of our cats when we’re out of town. So I really shouldn’t be too sad. Nostalgia can be a dangerous trap.

The cat-sitter saga. Our usual cat-sitter is going to have a baby so she can’t come take care of our cats while we’re out of town. Luis and I went onto the pet sitting app we use to try to find a replacement, and we found a person named Ashley who seemed great. She’s a vet student, so she’s got plenty of experience taking care of cats. But then, a few weeks ago, she messaged saying she realized she’ll be out of town several of the days we’re gone, so she can’t take care of the cats the whole time. We had to cancel with her and try to find someone else, with time running out to give them the keys and show them what’ll need to be done.

Then we found our friend Emily*’s wife Ashley on the pet sitting app! Luis messaged her and told her we could pay her directly instead of through the app, and it’s all worked out that our friend who already knows the cats can take care of them. She’s going to be out of town some of the days, too, but Emily will be able to cover those days she’s gone. We came full circle, because Emily and Ashley used to help take care of our cats.

It is much better to have good friends help, because they know us and the cats already. Even Boo might behave herself with them as opposed to a new person. (And they already know not to try to cuddle her, haha.)

Josh Johnson’s Comedy Band Camp! On Saturday, we’re seeing Josh Johnson on his latest comedy tour. If you don’t know who he is, he’s one of the correspondents and sometimes hosts of The Daily Show. I’m very excited to see him; I’ve liked him so much when I’ve seen him that I subscribed to his newsletter and that’s how I found out about his tour. I thought it might be a long shot to see him, but he announced he was coming to D.C. pretty soon after I started following him.

I don’t know what to expect, because there’s a whole camp theme to the tour. He has a personality quiz you can take to find out which troop you’re in. It’s a whole thing. This is mine:


So that’s fun. I kind of love that I have no idea what to expect, but it’s sure to be funny and thought-provoking. I recommend his YouTube videos.

Writing update. My story is still coming along well. My outline has been invaluable this time, and I’ve taken plenty of notes for other ideas to add in or make sure to include. I feel like I’m sailing with a map this time, instead of having to come up with a bunch of stuff on the fly. I’m leaning more into the Planner part of me instead of Pantsing so much. To borrow the parlance. I make up scenes as I go, and little vignettes to fill out the story, but I also add the new ideas I’ve introduced in the story to my notes so they’re accounted for and given more room to develop in later drafts.

I learned at John’s event the other day that he doesn’t use outlines. I knew he erased most of his drafts and rewrote everything a bunch of times, but I didn’t realize he didn’t use any kind of outline. It takes a special kind of brain to be able to create without any kind of planning, in my mind. He also has aphantasia, which blows my mind because his books are always so visual. I wish I could talk to him about writing.

Anyway, I’m already going to be writing the final chapters of my novel when we come back from our trip. It feels like it hasn’t taken me long to write this one at all, probably because this process has been so pleasant. I just hope when it comes time to read it I’m not horrified. I know it’s going to need work, but how much remains to be seen.

* Emily is one of our Nerdfighter friends. She was at our wedding. 🙂 And we were at hers! How ’bout that?

Little notes that sing, little words that rhyme, make the mighty memories and the dreams of time.

Sara Mazariegos

PowerPoint Party! On Saturday, we went to our friends’ PowerPoint Party. I’ve heard tell of such things *tips cowboy hat* but I’ve never been to one before. I made a PowerPoint (actually a Google Slide, shh) about Tim Curry. It’s mostly silly, with pictures of some of my favorite characters of his, and amusing sound clips. Example: the slide for Hexxus from Fern Gully plays, “A special kind of horny!” Which is from the complete version of “Toxic Love” he recorded for the soundtrack.

I hope I haven’t lost you already.

Anyway, the party was fun. Everyone’s PowerPoint presentation was interesting and amusing in its own way. I think Luis’s zombie escape one was the best, but I’m also biased. He made a PowerPoint like he makes escape rooms: well thought-out, cool graphics, humorous, and fun. There was another guy there who made one all about people named Kat and it ended with Kat, my friend who was hosting the party. That was very cute.

Getting in the Spirit (Halloween.) I’ll see myself out. On Sunday, Luis and I went to Spirit Halloween. The one closer to us didn’t open this year, so we went to one all the way in Wheaton, which means I had to ride the dreaded bus again, but with Luis it didn’t feel as long and I didn’t have to worry about cars. I set out to get a new Haunted Mansion item, though, and they didn’t really have any. At least we’re going to Disney World soon. #privilege

However, they did have something I really want but probably can’t have maybe ever and I’m sad about it. They had the Freddy Fazbear animatronic. I made it move several times and posed for pictures with it, but I want one of my own so he can live in my house. He’s so cool. The only thing I’d change is that I’d make his jaw move. Then he’d cost even more, probably, but whatever. The cost is less of an issue than the fact that none of the stores have the supply to meet the demand. 😭

Widow’s Bay is so freaking good. Speaking of spooky things, a few weeks ago, Luis recommended that we start watching Widow’s Bay since it’s a Halloweeny show. Oh my god, it’s so good. I’ve said it’s like Parks & Rec mixed with Stephen King stories. It’s everything I wanted Castle Rock to be. It’s spooky, it’s quirky, it’s a small town, it’s full of weirdos, it’s funny. Castle Rock feels too much like a lot of other police shows to me. It’s too slow. I also thought it would be a little more fun. How fun would it be to live in a town made up of Stephen King characters? I mean, in real life, it would be awful, but for a show? It’d be kooky and cool. Sadly, the show isn’t. But Widow’s Bay has that. Plus Stephen Root, and who doesn’t love Stephen Root?

Widow’s Bay won all of the Emmys this year, which is fun and exciting. We started watching right before it won, so we were a little late to the party, but it still feels cool to be able to say the big winner is a show we like. Matthew Rhys won best actor for it, and he also won for a dramatic, limited series, so he has two acting Emmys this year. And he was Nite Owl in the great, animated Watchmen miniseries we watched recently. I like him.

We’re usually behind on watching a lot of the popular shows. Being behind on Shogun or Severance would be okay, though…We caught up on both and now we have to wait until next year (at least.) Widow’s Bay also uses a lot of special effects, so the second season of that might take a while, too. Ahhhh, I hope not.

Writing update. Things are coming together in my story. There are definitely a few areas where I want to add more detail or subplot stuff, but for the most part this story is coming out the way I envisioned, which is reassuring. Normally it takes a few more drafts for me to think, “Ah yes, I’m on the right track now.” So I take this as a sign of real improvement.

It also helps that I wrote a slightly different version of this story once before, though I didn’t get very far. The ideas have been flowing around in my mind for a few years now.

Relatedly, Luis and I are seeing John Green tomorrow! 😀 I’m so excited to hear more about his new book, Hollywood, Ending and see other Nerdfighters. Last time he went on a book tour for one of his novels, Turtles All The Way Down, Luis and I got married three days later. So it’s been a while*!

* Yes, we saw him twice last year, but that was for his nonfiction book. Not the same thing.

It’s time to move on, it’s time to get going.

Sara Mazariegos

7 days left to deal with the Metro Red Line shutdown // 45 days until vacation! But who’s counting? 😉

Kate McKinnon at the DC Book Festival! Luis and I went to the DC Book Festival last Sunday with one goal. We went straight to Kate McKinnon’s meet-and-greet line and stood there for over an hour. We bought her book, Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science: Secrets of the Purple Pearl, which served as a ticket for the meet-and-greet, and we met her! She shook each of our hands and asked for each of our names, and then she posed for a few photos with us. She was really polite and smiley. She looked the same in person as she does on camera; she’s so pretty. I was a little worried that I’d look into her beautiful blue eyes and forget how to form words, but I didn’t. Also I wasn’t able to say much to her, because the line was moving quickly. But still! Ahhh!


So now I can finally say I’ve met a former SNL cast member. And also a Ghostbuster.

She was the only person we wanted to see at the Book Fest this year, so we went and got Chinese food afterward, and saw Spider-Man again (at long last!) in 4D this time, which was kind of insane. Every time we took a drink of soda or ate some popcorn, it felt risky because the action scenes made our seats move a lot.

My (albeit biased) thoughts on Hank Green. There was a livestream last week for the donors to the Dear Hank & John podcast, which is hosted by John and Hank Green. (Makes sense.) A lot of it felt like an intervention for Hank, because he has been struggling with an addiction to using LLMs to help him do research for his videos and projects. Emphasis on his videos, for his YouTube channel, not for his videos with John and not for Complexly’s content. He does his own research and writing for Vlogbrothers, and he doesn’t really write for SciShow, etc at all. There’s a big team at Complexly and it is important that people don’t assume all of those good people are using AI, because they are not.

Anyway, all of us in the livestream, which is pretty much exclusively made up of Nerdfighters, feel for Hank because we have been following him for years and we’ve seen him putting more and more pressure on himself to create things. He has so many ideas and he feels like he alone can make them happen. I commented, “Hank, let other people do things.” And John read it back to him, and said it was good advice. I understand the feeling of having a lot of ideas and excitement for said ideas, but it’s important to take a step back and realize the burden of every new thing doesn’t and shouldn’t fall on one person’s shoulders.

John pointed out that Hank should stop trying to make so many things for the greater Internet, where people can be mean and unsupportive, and he should focus on creating things for the Nerdfighter community instead. Because we are kinder, and we know him well enough that we can be gently honest when he’s made something we don’t like. It’s a little bit like when The Fault in Our Stars came out and suddenly everyone had a mountain of opinions about this little author in Indiana named John Green. Not everything is for everyone, and that’s also okay.

No books til John Green. Please tell me you read that in the rhythm of “No Sleep Til Brooklyn” by the Beastie Boys. Speaking of John Green, I’ve given myself a quasi-rule not to start reading any other books because I’m going to have John’s new book next month! I’m currently reading three books: Death at Bishop’s Keep by Robin Paige, As You Wish by Cary Elwes, and House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. They’re all sort of neck-and-neck in terms of how far into them I am, because two of them are short and one of them is House of Leaves.

It’s been difficult to read a lot lately, because I’ve been extra tired from the longer commute. I was literally falling asleep while holding As You Wish the other night. (It’s my before bed book*.) But I’m determined to finish all three of them by September 24th, when I get John’s new novel!

I may bend this rule slightly and read Kate McKinnon’s book while I wait, too, but only if I’ve finished one of the other ones first!

Stuck in the past. As I write my novel, I’m noticing how nostalgic it makes me. I’ve been looking back and remembering all sorts of things from my life, and using them as gentle inspiration. It’s been cool to go back through my memories and my old emails and try to piece together what happened and what was going on in my life. I randomly remembered the name of one of my professors, but not quite how to spell it, and then Facebook brought her up as someone I might know. That was jarring. Does Facebook have access to my literal memories in my brain?

Writing this story has been cathartic and fun. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

* I usually have a purse book for my commutes, a living room book for evening/weekend reads, and a before bed book that lives on my nightstand

Where lovers steal and beg for time.

Sara Mazariegos

People in public pet peeves. A lot of this is probably going to make me sound old, but I have a few pet peeves regarding how people behave in public. I dislike when people use their phones without headphones, be it for TikTok videos or just phone conversations. It’s very rude and annoying. I personally don’t like it when people talk on their phone in public in general. I know cell phones make it possible, but I think too many people do it too often, and for too-long conversations. As if everyone else on the bus needs to hear about your plans for the evening, Denise.

I’ve also noticed and dislike when people assume public toilets are automatic. I don’t need to go too into detail with this; you get the idea. I’ve stood in restroom lines at venues before and realized that several of the toilets in the restroom weren’t broken, they just hadn’t been flushed. 🙄 Not every toilet is automatic. We’re not living in that utopia yet.

The Odyssey reaction. Wow. I went into it without knowing very much. I never read it in school, so I only knew about things like the cyclops and the Trojan horse because of pop culture references. I was very enthralled by the movie. It’s a great story. It doesn’t even feel like it’s nearly 3 hours long. All the actors in it are great, the practical effects are amazing. I think it’s my favorite Christopher Nolan movie. I’ve seen most of his movies without setting out to do so. I also love The Prestige.

When it got to the army of the dead scene, I was very excited. I didn’t know there were also zombies/ghosts in it! That story really does have everything. I’d watch it again. Though probably at home so I can pause to go to the bathroom. I went at a perfect place where I didn’t miss anything, though! There seems to be one place where you can do that, because so much happens and you might miss something if you go at a different time.

I’ve seen some people saying it’s a good introduction to the story for people who aren’t familiar with it. I’ve also seen a lot of “purists” complaining that the movie has changes from the original story. I watched the Crash Course episode on The Odyssey after seeing the movie, and I think the changes enhance the story and give reasons why I should care about the characters.

Thoughts on Every Version of You. I finished reading it yesterday and I enjoyed it! There are lots of twists, some of which I predicted and some of which came out of nowhere. It kept me guessing, which is great. There’s also a little side plot with a cat, and I died in that part. It comes together so sweetly. I’m glad I got myself a copy as a comp, because I think I’ll read it again someday. It’s inspiring for my own writing, too, which is a fun little extra perk.

Writing update. My writing spurts are starting to take me less than thirty minutes to get to 500 words. I’ve put a lot of thought into this story, so writing it so far has been a pleasure. The other day, I thought, “Oh no, I still have two thousand words left in this chapter!” and then I immediately figured out a scene to stick in that moves the plot forward and even adds some foreshadowing. I love foreshadowing.

I’m looking forward to being finished so I can read it and see how it all fits together. Hopefully it’ll make as much sense as it does in my head. I expect to spend a few years on this one. I have realistic expectations for once!

And if I had an aeroplane, I still couldn’t make it on time.

Sara Mazariegos

Getting used to new commutes & a little TMI. It has been rough taking a different route to the office. I get up at 6:40 in the morning instead of 7, which you’d think wouldn’t be that big of a change, but my body disagrees. I’m still getting used to the longer bus ride and the, frankly, terrifying escalator at the different Metro station. And it’s also hard because, between the anxiety and the caffeine, I end up feeling like I need to hit the nearest bathroom. Last week when I went home, I decided to go to the mall near the Metro station to use the restroom and, long story short, I nearly got lost in JC Penney trying to get out and find the restroom in the food court. It was Backroomsesque, especially when I went downstairs into the totally empty children’s department. Horror. Movie.

Anyway. Luis recommended that I stop drinking caffeine in the evenings, which already seems to have helped. *knock on wood* I drink a little caffeine in my cold brews at work (made by Luis, because he is the greatest) and then when I’m home I have some caffeine-free fruity soda now. There’s less of an issue during my commutes if my body isn’t telling me I need to pee at every point along the journey.

I just hope I get used to the journey and stop feeling so exhausted, though.

Seeing John Green again! John announced his tour for his new book (Hollywood, Ending, available September 22nd!) and I thought for sure there was no way we’d be able to go, because Luis’s job doesn’t finish until 6pm and the show’s at 7pm and he’s at home in Rockville (remote) and I’m in D.C., but then Luis told me we could make it work! So I bought us tickets. He’s going to meet me there, possibly a little late, but awwww! We’ve seen John Green every chance we’ve had, pretty much, so it’s great to not have to break the tradition of me thinking it’s impossible and Luis telling me we can do it. I cannot wait to read John’s new book. It sounds amazing. I may be biased, but still! This one is for adults, too, so it’ll be a little different. We literally saw him twice last year. Ahhh! We’re still spoiled.

Sorry, carry on. 🙂

Nail-biting World Cup games. After the game between Cabo Verde and Argentina, I thought the games would chill out a little. But then Egypt said, “hold my Karkade.” The game between Argentina and Egypt was also crazy close, and Egypt hates Argentina and FIFA now. FUN. So fun, these games. When Messi scored the equalizing goal, Luis collapsed and our cat Boo flew across the room in surprise. A lot of haters think Argentina was helped in that game, but come on. No one helped them score three goals in a little over ten minutes. That was all Messi and his team. They’re amazing.

People also complained about England beating Norway (I’m sad for Norway) but they won fair and square. I feel like the cable thing is so minor, and Haaland shouldn’t have pushed the guy. Sigh. And then Argentina beat Switzerland in another insane game with red cards and controversy. It’s been fun to watch these games, but they’ve also all been ridiculous. It’s hard to believe it all ends this weekend! My order of favorites in the top four is Argentina, Spain, England, France. I’d like anyone but France to win, honestly, because France winning is just boring. They’re too good, haha. I feel like people might think the same about Spain, though. Or Argentina. So it’s subjective.

By the time I’ve posted this, one of the teams (Spain or France) will have moved forward and another of the teams (Argentina or England) will move forward a few hours after I post this! This weekend will have a winner. So you have a summation of all that to look forward to next week.

When 14ths aren’t on the weekend. As I’ve said previously, Luis and I try to have mini celebrations on the 14th of every month—not like big, expensive trips or even big expensive meals every time, just little acknowledgments and date nights—but it’s sometimes difficult when the date doesn’t fall on a weekend. They actually usually don’t fall on weekends. When they don’t, we usually Doordash something fancy for dinner together or sometimes watch a movie if there’s time (this likely won’t happen while the Metro is messing up my schedule.) And I like to do something extra special on the weekend before or directly after, depending on the day of the week the 14th falls on.

I put a lot of thought into this, okay?!

This past weekend, we went to a nice Tex Mex restaurant near our house since we couldn’t go to a place on Tuesday the 14th. We also got some delicious Indian food before the games on Saturday. I also got a lot of reading done, which is something I don’t usually have left over time for. It was a relaxing weekend, which was what I needed since I’d been so drained. Then, on the 14th, we ordered Thai and watched The Four Seasons (the show, not the movie.)

August 14th is on a Friday, at least, so we might be able to watch a movie! Even when we have time to do things, we don’t do anything too crazy. 😅 Maybe when the Metro’s back to normal, we’ll go to D.C. to do something fun again. But September 14th is a Monday. Argh. We have time to plan a nice, fancier 14th then, for the future.

Just having fun with writing. Between reading Every Version of You and taking a different commute to and from work, I’ve had some interesting inspiration for my writing. I got an idea the other day while riding the scary escalator in Wheaton station. I obviously didn’t take out my phone to write it down, because I’ve gotta hang on for dear life while I’m riding the escalator to Hell. But I wrote the idea down as soon as I got off the escalator and onto the bus. {The scary escalator was the idea.}

So far, it’s been nice to have fun with writing this story and see where my thoughts take me. I’m following my outline, but it is loose enough that I can play around with things. Pizza has already come up as a plot point. I can’t avoid writing about pizza. Sorry not sorry. At least this time it has more of a reason for being in the story. Sort of like Every Version of You and its lobster. If you read it, you’ll see what I mean.

And time doesn’t wait for me, it keeps on rollin.

Sara Mazariegos

Metro adjustments. I started taking the bus in the opposite direction, to take the Metro from the other end of the Red Line, since there’s construction at a few stops along my usual route. So far, it’s been okay. I have to get up twenty minutes earlier and I get home about half an hour later, but it could be worse. I’ve been doing my best to remind myself that I’m not missing out on too much time I’d normally be at home. Luis and I can still watch our shows and the soccer matches (while the World Cup lasts.) It’s an adjustment, but it’s not bad. And it’s also not permanent. It’ll end on September 6th. I’ve been taking in the different sites and different people I see while I’m taking these different routes. It also gives me a little bit more time to read and think about my novel.

Watching soccer in a crowd vs at home. I asked Luis if he wants to go to a restaurant or bar somewhere to watch the World Cup final and he said it depends. A lot of the time, watching games in public when we care about the outcome can be frustrating because other people are cheering for the other team, people can be annoying/distracting, etc. At least if it’s a game in person at a stadium, the majority of people are focused on watching the game and not getting in the way or trying to talk about other things. It’s nice to hear the crowd cheering for the same team you’re cheering for, and to have that brief sense of connection, but I get what Luis means. It’ll be easier to focus on the game if we watch it at home on our nice, big TV with our air conditioning and our cats.

On the 4th of July, we watched the France vs. Paraguay game with my parents at their house. It was actually one of the least exciting games, haha. I feel pretty meh about France. I hope they’re not in the final. I’m still reeling from that amazing Argentina vs. Cabo Verde game. That was by far the best game. So far, but c’mon. Hopefully none of the last few games will be quite so insane. I don’t think my blood pressure can take it.

I hope the final will be fun and cool, though, like a lot of the games have been this time. Hopefully it won’t be “ho hum it’s just these two teams.” The chances of that are low, though!

Hardcover instead of paperback. The latest comp novel I’ve received is a hardcover. I don’t often get hardcovers, except when it comes to the newest John Green book. Those always start out as hardcovers. I prefer paperbacks because they’re easier for me to hold and stuff into my purse when I want to read on the train. Hardcovers are more of an effort because I can only read them at certain times and they hurt my hands after a while.

That being said, I’m excited to read Every Version of You by Natalie Messier. I got it in the mail yesterday and read the first 20 or so pages. It’s a hardcover, so I spend time pushing the dust jacket down and it gets uncomfortable to hold, but I’m enjoying the story so far! It’s got more afterlife stuff than my story does (my story is more about “past lives,” in a way) but I still think it’s a great comp. We’ll see, though.

It might be dangerous to have comps from 2026 if it takes a million years to write the novel plus send out queries plus get an agent plus get a publishing deal, etc. The comps I find are more like inspiration for me at this point in my ~writing journey~.

My latest writing project! I started writing my new novel on Monday! It was rough at first, because of Metro and soccer distractions, but I’m on track at 2,500ish words as of this moment. It’s fun to write, which is important. The fun will hopefully sustain me so I don’t give up on writing it. Already, I think it stands apart from my other stories, which is a great change of pace for my brain. I can’t say too much more than that for now, especially since only a little of it has been written. I better get back to it and then get back to you!

I never knew me a better time and I guess I never will.

Sara Mazariegos

This year’s been challenging. Without going into too much detail, because it’s personal, this has been a difficult year so far. I’ve been feeling my usual unreality about a lot of things, like how we’re going to Disney World and Universal in October but so much of it has already been booked, I’m just sitting on my hands now. It doesn’t feel like it’s really going to happen. There are also some reasons for me to feel that way that are about more than not having things to plan. Having our ducks in a row is actually the more enjoyable aspect of it. Many other things are up in the air right now… But enough of my vague posting about things I can’t really post about. I’m ready for things to calm down and be more certain.

Mother’s Day delay. My parents are out of town for my grandma’s memorial service, so we’re delaying our Mother’s Day festivities for when they come back. Luis and I went to their house last weekend to visit their cats and spend time with my sister who lives nearby. We met her new puppy! That was some impromptu fun. We spent time with his family on Mother’s Day and then saw The Sheep Detectives, which was also a pretty Mother’s Day-y movie. We weren’t planning to see it, but we wanted to go to the movies and it was playing at a good time. We don’t usually spontaneously see things. I’m glad it worked out well this time.

Saturday Night Live feeling more classic. Matt Damon was the host on SNL last Saturday. Since we recently saw The Martian, my brain kept thinking he was hosting to promote that, but he’s actually in the new Christopher Nolan version of The Odyssey! I had no idea. I only knew “Spider-Man” was in it.

It was a great episode. I feel kind of hit-or-miss with the current cast, and each episode depends on the host more than it did with other casts, but this was a good one. Luis and I (and a lot of people online) particularly liked this auctioneers sketch. The writing and concept make it feel like a classic. I could easily imagine Gilda Radner or even Julia Louis-Dreyfus in this sketch (but Sarah Sherman is great, too.) Many times, SNL wants to be current with what’s popular and in style, but it’s nice for them to relax every once in a while with a more ‘anytime’ sketch like this one. A sketch that doesn’t rely on the audience knowing about x. As long as you know what auctioneers are like, you’ll get it.

Noticing writing mistakes in other novels. When I read books in the genre that I’m writing (romance) I find myself reading more closely than when I’m reading other books. I think about the writing more, and the choices made. People on Threads agreed with me that it’s a sign of a writer to be more observant about the way the story is being told. In the novel I’m currently reading, which I really like, I’ve noticed a few things I’d change, like overly telling sometimes or using the same word or phrase too much. It can be a little distracting from the story, but it’s not too much for me to still enjoy reading it. Reading this closely is another way that reading helps one become a better writer.

I know that many, many authors have noticed mistakes or things they’d change once their novel has been published and printed. No one is expecting perfection, because it’s nigh impossible. Novels that have been published and printed have been read by so many pairs of eyes, and mistakes still happen. So there’s no offense meant when I say I’ve noticed things. It’s likely the author has noticed as well.

Writing my “spare parts” draft. My writing is more laid back now that I’m not thinking about anyone reading it. Maybe that’s the secret to better writing. 🤔 I’m allowing myself to enjoy the words and have fun with things. I keep reminding myself that I won’t worry about editing this draft either, if I’m mainly writing it as a completionist at this point. It may end up being a “spare parts” draft, where I’ll use bits of it for a story but not all of it. There are good bits in this story. I wonder if, reading it back, it will feel like night-and-day from when I was writing it with the intention of querying it someday. I was still having fun with it, but I was harsher with my word choices and scene work. And then, a little over halfway through, I got more relaxed.

I wonder if I should try to write my next story’s first draft in this looser way and then sharpen it in later drafts. I have a tendency to want to get things right the first time, but I’m finding it’s not really the way things turn out. Revisions will always come into play, even with a draft I completely love. (Does such a thing exist in real life?)

It’s lonely out in space, on such a timeless flight.

Sara Mazariegos

Immersive experiences for children. On Sunday, we went to the “Hershey Super Sweet Adventure” in Tysons Corner for Luis’s mom’s birthday. It’s a bunch of kids’ activities, like popping a balloon or going through one of those optical illusion tunnels with the walls that make you feel like you’re going to fall over. In the end, you win some candy, and you also get a candy bar with your photo on the wrapper. At first I was worried the activities/place would be like Chuck E. Cheese or something, but it wasn’t too bad. I did keep thinking about Willy’s Chocolate Experience though. Can you blame me? Thankfully, the people working at the Hershey thing didn’t seem miserable, though I thought they might be thinking, “Why is this group of six adults doing this?” 😝

My issues with Shrinking, a show I do like. We started watching Shrinking a few weeks ago. We like Harrison Ford and Jason Segel, so why not? It’s a cute show, with a lot of fun, likeable characters… But we’re about seven episodes in and we’ve noticed an unusual trend. You know how on most comedic shows there are groups of characters? There’s the main character and their friends or family or both. Then there are the side characters that add levity to the situations. Then there are the recurring cameo characters that show up sometimes and they’re not part of the main group but they add a bit of extra flavor or whatever. Think of Seinfeld. There’s the main group of friends, then there’s their parents or other friends (hello Newman) or what have you, and then there are the recurring but not as frequent characters like Putty or J. Peterman. The recurring, random characters mainly interact with one of the main characters, maybe two but it’s not like J. Peterman hangs out in Jerry’s apartment.

But here’s the glaring issue I have with Shrinking: everyone on the show, all of the characters, seem to be best friends with each other. Jason Segel’s daughter is friends with Harrison Ford even though he’s much older and her dad’s boss. There’s not really much connection there (at least not one that’s shown.) Shawn, the patient Jason Segel becomes too close with, is immediately buddy-buddy with Jason Segel’s nosy neighbor, his daughter, his boss, and his coworker (oh my god, I love Jessica Williams though. She’s my favorite character.) It seems like every time a new character is introduced, they get sucked into being intimate friends with all the other characters. The estate lawyer guy showed up and was also insta-friends with everyone, including the patient who shouldn’t know him at all probably.

I feel like I’m the only one who’s noticed and is bothered by this. Well, besides Luis. I like the show, but almost in an “this irks me but I enjoy watching it anyway” kind of way. It feels like lazy writing.

Overwhelming oneself with monetized “advice.” Many people have noticed this, I’m sure, but there are countless websites and influencers online who offer advice and tips on writing and getting published. They’re often behind some kind of a paid subscription plan in order for people to get the full advice. I started noticing this on Substack, so I stopped using Substack. I don’t think it’s right for everything to cost money, especially if it’s someone telling you the same thing others will say on YouTube for free.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve started following an author or literary agent who claims they offer guidance for writers, only to be greeted with ‘sign up for the webinar, only $60’ or something like that. Now I know services are performed by people who need to make a living. I get it. But then again, a successful author who’s making money from book sales shouldn’t be taking a bunch of money from other writers who come to them for help. Many writers don’t have a lot of extra money for every random webinar.

I don’t know. I just think it’s a difficult enough industry without making it even harder and more soul-sucking for people who just like creating imaginary worlds and want to share those worlds with others. I wish free writing advice was more normalized. I should unsubscribe from these people.

Writing update. It struck me last Thursday, don’t ask me why or how, that the story I’m currently revising, as much as I love it and want people to read it, isn’t really attention-grabby enough to catch an agent’s eye. I think it’s good to realize and understand, even if it really hurts. Not every story will work as a marketable book that ends up on shelves. Heck, not even every book that lands an agent actually ends up being sold. It’s a tough business. And it’s probably a better, more realistic idea for me to see this revision as what it ultimately really is: skill-building and enjoyment. From this story, newer and better ideas will bloom and grow and my writing gets stronger every draft I write.

This should be my real takeaway. I skipped writing last Thursday night because I was feeling too gloomy, but it’s still great to finish a draft and see myself getting better. Even if no one reads this one (Luis will read it, but besides Luis!) it’s still worthwhile. And my next novel will be even better. Maybe that one will even be the one that can move me forward.

I’m not giving up, I’m just being kinder to myself and allowing myself to explore different ideas.

There was a time, a storm that blew so pure.

Sara Mazariegos

Not all movies need critical analysis. I saw the Super Mario Galaxy movie got some pretty brutal reviews, and it’s made me wonder why we have reviewers for every movie. I appreciate that critics are writers and they need jobs. I get that. But I don’t think every movie must be held to the same standard that some of the critics expect. No one expects a Mario movie to be anything other than what it is: fan service for people who love the games and characters. It’s a little bit like the Five Nights At Freddy’s movies. They’re made for people who like the thing. Anyone interested should go see it and they’ll probably like it. Maybe there needs to be more segmentation with reviewers. What do fans of Super Mario think about this new movie?

I thought the first one was cute. It wasn’t amazing, but I’m glad I saw it and I’d watch it again. I don’t remember why Bowser is tiny. I’m excited to see the new one next weekend.

The allure of Robert Pattinson. Luis and I forwent Mario last weekend because we knew the theater would be teeming with kids for Easter weekend. Instead, we saw The Drama starring Robert Pattinson and Zendaya. That movie is definitely not for kids. I’ve got to say that Robert Pattinson has grown on me. I was never a fan of Twilight so I didn’t like him, but it’s not his fault. He didn’t write it or direct it, and he’s grown a lot since then. I really liked him in Mickey 17, and he was quite good in The Drama as well. He’s someone a lot of people find attractive, and I never have (no offense to him) but I can appreciate a good actor regardless of how they look. I also appreciate that he seems to be shying away from the handsome leading man roles in favor of more quirky, interesting scripts.

The Drama has a controversial subject matter, but I think it’s a subject worth thinking about. It’s not pleasant, but it’s important. I think it’s handled in a pretty realistic way, considering it’s in a dark comedy. I don’t quite understand the people who think it’s a topic than can never be explored like this. It’s not like the movie makes light of it or acts like there’s nothing wrong with it. (I’m not spoiling it; you should see it for yourself, if you’re interested.) It’s intense, but it’s good.

The Martian during real space times. On Easter, we watched The Martian as the next space movie on my list. It’s based on a novel written by the same author who wrote Project Hail Mary, Andy Weir. It’s got a very stacked cast, with all sorts of actors. We liked it, though we liked PHM more. The Martian is more stressful, and it also doesn’t have the cute element. I don’t want to spoil PHM, though I think the Internet is already spoiling it quite a bit. I also think that, while it’s better and makes sense not to have Matt Damon actually lose a bunch of weight, the CG looks a little weird. I suppose it’s always a risk. AI crap in things won’t age well either. It already looks bad.

Now we just have to see Arrival and Interstellar. Speaking of space movies, it felt pretty surreal to be watching The Martian while we have real astronauts in space at this very moment, exploring the darker regions of the moon. I hope they return safely to Earth on Friday and bring back a whole host of new images and stories. So far, it’s been pretty incredible to watch and learn about.

Aging out of things. Lately I’ve been feeling as if I’m aging away from a lot of the Nerdfighter stuff, not through lack of interest but because there’s so much to keep up with. When I first became a Nerdfighter, everything was pretty much online. I was on the old ning website and everything, and I never missed a video. I bought all of John’s books and inhaled them. Then, a little later, I found my local Facebook group and met a bunch of Nerdfighter friends in real life. You know how that turned out. ☺️

But now that I’m older and we’re all older, I’ve got a job and other commitments and I find it hard to keep up with everything going on. I do my best, of course, and I’m still there for a lot of it, but I wonder how much longer I’ll be able to show up. And it’s sort of bittersweet because, like I said, I still love John and Hank and the community, but keeping up with livestreams and events is becoming less tenable. I don’t know. I mostly just wanted to mope a little. I’m going to do my best to go to John’s latest book tour stop (if there is a book tour stop) but I fear something like NerdCon Nerdfighteria might be out of the question for me. We’ll have to see, and I do so hate having to see.

Evolving conflicts. While writing the other day, I realized my new story draft has a conflict that evolves as the characters and plot evolve. It starts out as one bit of drama and then it sort of snowballs as the story progresses. I’m proud of myself for coming up with a conflict like that, because I think it means it’s more realistic but also more impactful.

As soon as I finish writing this draft, I plan to wait a few weeks and then dive back in to read it and add a few details/subplots that I came up with while I was writing but didn’t want to stop and go back to add. I’m a little past the halfway point now with this draft, and I’m really enjoying writing it and playing around with things.

It’s definitely true that the best way to improve your writing is to keep writing.

It’s the first time, the last time we ever met.

Sara Mazariegos

Birthday month. March is my birthday month, so last weekend and this weekend were/are all about birthday parties for me. 🥳 Last weekend, we got Indian food and strawberry cupcakes with my family, and we played a trivia game. It’s also my mom’s birthday, so we combine our parties since it makes sense and we don’t have to plan and travel twice.

This weekend, we’re getting dinner with Luis’s family, then we’re going ice skating* and getting fancy sushi with friends on Sunday (my birthday!)

Whenever I feel at all guilty or silly for having multiple get-togethers for my birthday instead of one big one, I think of Sona Movsesian on Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend and how she calls it her “Birthday month” because she has many parties with friends the whole month. That’s the dream!

Just kidding. I like attention, but not that much attention.

Whereabouts. One thing I always find myself thinking about as I write my Nerdfighters novel is the fact that my parents panicked about me going on my first date with Luis because I didn’t text them updates every hour (exaggeration, but not far off.) I was twenty-four years old and I’d been to D.C. by myself plenty of times at that point. Plus, we went to a bunch of museums together, so it’s not like he led me into dark alleys or anything like that. I think it’s one bad thing about cell phones. It makes people feel like they must be constantly aware of things at all times, and if there’s no instant response the world must be ending.

I remember when I was a kid, I’d go off on my bike to my friends’ houses after school and I’d be gone until evening. My parents never freaked out then. I got into more mischief back then! My friends and I used to play in a Virginia creek, for heck’s sake. I also went on a ski trip to West Virginia when I was in middle school and they never checked up on me at that rate. They may have been calling my friends’ parents to make sure things were going well, but there was no sense of urgency about any of it. I’m way more cautious as an adult than I was as a kid, and even as a kid I was careful. I never broke any bones or got lost. There was more stranger danger back then. There were more serial killers.

I think, when I was twenty-four and they were all concerned about me and what I was doing, it was more because it was a date with a boy than it was about the danger of D.C. Which, again, silly. They wanted me to meet people, but also not go out with them… It would’ve been so rude to pull out my phone and text them constantly when I was busy paying attention to my cute, funny date. I remember a time not long before that time, when my parents didn’t like cell phones and thought people who used them in public were rude. 🤔

Anyway. I like cell phones. They’re very helpful. I’m still glad I grew up in a time without them.

Ryan Gosling and space movies. Last weekend, we saw Project Hail Mary. I figured we would like it, but we both really enjoyed it! It’s very cute. It’s the kind of movie people need right now, I think. I want to see it again, even though it’s two and a half hours long. It doesn’t feel long. We’ll probably watch it again when it’s streaming. I’m glad it’s doing as well as it is. I don’t want to spoil it; I recommend you just see it if you like movies set in space that don’t involve big laser fights or anything. It’s like Alien + Star Trek (the series, not the movies) + ET, and a little bit of Moon. I cried, but in a good way.

There are quite a few space movies we need to see. A bunch came out close to each other and we missed them. This one is by the same author as The Martian, which we need to see. We also need to see Interstellar and Arrival. We like space movies, but it’s hard to keep up sometimes! Apparently Timothee Chalamet is in Interstellar. That doesn’t have me rushing to see it. 😝

References and prior knowledge when reading. I’ve noticed in two of the books I’m reading/recently read—Where’d You Go, Bernadette? and Today Tonight Tomorrow, which both take place in Seattle, which I didn’t expect!—that there are a lot of pop culture references with very little explanation for people who might not understand them. I suppose books have always included a bit of that. But, for example, Bee in Where’d You Go, Bernadette keeps saying she’s making a Kubrick reaction face, and I feel so lost myself whenever she says that. Is that a thing regular people say? It takes place in 2012, too. Not really Kubrick’s era.

Now that I see it, I understand but I’m not used to things like that making me have to look them up. I wonder if it’s a sign of the age of the author? Also, what fifteen-year-old would use that term? It comes out of nowhere. It’s not like Bee is watching 2001: A Space Odyssey or A Clockwork Orange and then starts referencing it. Anyway, I think it’s a good idea for writers to try to limit pop culture references because it might age things and also confuse people.

I pay attention to my use of pop culture references in my novel. In my opinion, if it’s relevant to the plot or characters or if it helps place the story in its setting, then a reference is okay. But too many is definitely distracting and can take people out of the story, especially if they’re going to their phone instead of reading!

Sheesh, do I sound old?

* I always envision myself doing spins and tricks like a figure skater, but um. I mostly will be trying not to fall and hoping my ankles don’t hurt too much. Just know I imagine myself as the next Sarah Hughes. That’s what goes on in my head when I’m going skating.