The Confabulator Cafe

Author: ajaquays

  • Making Time

    Have you ever had an overpowering urge to do something at the expense of everything else in your life? If you have, then you’ll know how I feel about writing… well, at least about two percent of the time. The rest of the time writing almost seems like it comes in last place of my priorities. That’s why I frequently feel like I have to make the time to write.

    Shhh, don’t tell Belgarath the Sorcerer that I’m making time! He’d start lecturing me on the dangers of messing with magic that is way over my head! It’ll be our little secret. Seriously though, if I could fit extra hours into the day, I would, consequences be damned. There simply isn’t enough time to do everything that I need, or want, to do.

    It’s not that I don’t want to write, it’s just that there are so many other things I could be doing. I have friends that want to spend time with me. I have to go to work. There are TV shows I have to watch so that I can fangirl over them with my friends when I spend time with them. There are books to read. There are rooms to be cleaned and dinners to be made. And by the time I’m done with all of that, all I want to do is curl up with a glass of wine before going to bed. (more…)

  • Escaping Reality

    Every person has their own reason for picking up a book. Sometimes it is because a teacher has given them an assignment, other times it is because they need to escape to a fantasy world, and sometimes it is simply for the sheer delight of reading. The world needs stories. It needs people to come up with these tales and twist the words into phrases that will tease the imaginations of their audiences.

    For me, reading has always been an escape. It is a chance to immerse myself into the life of another person. I cry with them. I laugh with them. For the duration of the book, and usually hours after as well, my life revolves around theirs. I can set aside everything that troubles me in my life and live the life of another person and, when the book ends, I walk away with a new friend. A friend I know is always waiting for me whenever I need to escape from the stress of the real world. (more…)

  • Rewriting the Past

    I have a soft spot for ancient civilizations. I find their history fascinating. If money and time were not an issue, I would learn as much as I could about these ancient civilizations and write texts about them. Is this strictly non-fiction? No.

    One of the reasons I love ancient history so much is because there is so much of it that is unknown. So much that can never be known. Every writer on the subject writes with their own agenda, utilizing the limited primary sources to envision what they think society was like. I suppose in a sense writing about ancient history is like writing a novel. You build from a few small details and use those details to create a larger picture. If you do it right, you end up with a believable backdrop. (more…)

  • Dawn’s Curse (Flash Fiction)

    Sibylline Academy was a school for the cursed. Or at least, that’s what every student who attended the private high school thought. Most of the time, they were complaining about the strict rules and archaic practices. Some of us, however, actually were cursed. Okay, well, maybe just me. Or at least, that’s what I’d always been told growing up. That I was cursed.

    My mom had two older sisters. I know, I know, what do my mom’s older sisters have to do with my supposed curse? Well, I’m getting to that.

    My mom had two older sisters. Her oldest sister was smart, kind, and did absolutely everything perfectly on the first try. My mom was always considered to be funny, charming, and absolutely gorgeous. Then there was my Aunt Mallory, who had the unfortunate luck to be the middle sister. Her teachers always compared her to Aunt Camille, who effortlessly achieved straight A’s and the boys always favored my mom over her. Apparently Aunt Mal had a huge crush on my dad, but he fell in love with my mom and not her.

    So she cursed me when I was born. Yeah. My aunt’s a witch. Supposedly. (more…)

  • Learning to Dream, One Book at a Time

    The books I read as a child and teenager shaped my perception of the world and molded me into who I am today. From those books I learned friendship. I learned to dream. I learned love. I learned sorrow. I learned happiness. I learned that no matter what happens, as long as there are still books in the world, I will never truly be alone.

    Hopefully the books I write will create that same sense of yearning for adventure in other children. Even if I don’t accomplish that goal, my writing brings me back to those days of discovery. (more…)

  • Becoming Technical

    It’s hard to say how, exactly, my writing has changed in the past year. Most of the writing I’ve done has been in new, uncharted territory. This past year I put a pause on creating new content and instead have been working on editing my novel, writing blog posts, and buying guides. So, I suppose, if I were to judge how my writing has evolved, I’d have to say it became a lot more technical in nature.

    I’ve learned how to write to fit somebody else’s guidelines. Or rather, I’ve honed that skill from when I was a college student. I’ve learned how to research. I’ve learned that I can only write so many technical articles before I’m ready to snap and give up on writing altogether. I learned from that lesson and resigned from my second job before I did something drastic, because let’s face it, writing is just too much fun to give up on. (more…)

  • Confessions for the New Year

    The end of the year is almost upon us and typically this time of the year is reserved for reflecting back on our accomplishments from the past year and planning for what the new year will bring us. It’s a time for making resolutions to uphold for the year to come. Or at least, ones we will try to uphold. Which means I have a confession to make.

    We were asked to write about which assignment was our favorite and if anyone’s response stood out the most. When I think back on it, I realized that I’ve done a very poor job at keeping up with reading the blog. I could make excuses a mile long and a few of them might even be legitimate, but the fact of the matter is, I haven’t made the time for it. Which means there really haven’t been any responses that have stood out to me. So next year I’m going to try to do better.

    Scratch that. I’m going to make that goal starting right now. There are still days left of this year and if I put off until tomorrow what I really should have started today… well. I’m a procrastinator and tomorrow is always right around the corner. Before I know it, tomorrow will be the start of 2014 and I still won’t have read anything. And it’s not that I don’t read any of the posts, it’s that I read them so infrequently and with so little consistency that I really can’t form an opinion about one response that stood out to me more than the others. (more…)

  • Looking for a Christmas Drinking Buddy

    Merry Christmas? Why the hell are you reading this? Go spend time with your family!

    Unless you’re like me and alone for the holidays. Wow. That was depressing. Sorry. But then, if you’re sneaking on the internet when you should be having Christmas brunch with your parents, you deserve it. If you’re sitting by yourself, I’ve got a couple of bottles of wine in the fridge, come on over and we can split them.

    Ever since my parents’ divorce, scheduling holidays has been tricky. When I was still living at home, it was easier, because they lived about forty-five minutes away from each other, so I could feasibly see both of them for the day. Then I went off to college, and I purposefully chose a college that wasn’t close by to either of my family members. Suddenly I had to decide which parent to spend which holiday with. (more…)

  • Dearest Mama

    Ballroom — 1815

    Dearest Mama,

    It snowed again last night, and this morning I awoke to gardens dusted with a fine white powder. Hopefully the snow will not impede the travel of any of the party guests. Aunt Millie has assured me that it will not. I do wish that little Lizzie was in better spirits. I should dearly have liked to have you here for my first ball.

    My first ball, Mama, can you imagine that? It seems just yesterday I was dashing about in pinafores with my hair in plaits sticking out from under my bonnet. My aunt promises me that I shall look every inch the lady tonight. I do so hope the evening goes well.

    Has papa returned from France? I had hoped that, by now, all the soldiers would have returned home. Surely with Bonaparte’s defeat this past summer, they can have no reason to keep papa abroad. I am sure his return home would be just what Lizzie needs to cure her cough. My aunt agrees with my statement, though assures me that by the time you receive my letter, Lizzie’s health will be much improved.

    I shall return to my letter momentarily, my aunt is calling me away. (more…)

  • If you can’t gift me happiness, give me tequila instead

    In the past, my Christmas wishlists were miles long and filled with one item after another that I wanted. This year, it was a fairly short list. Maybe I’m getting older. Maybe I’m realizing that material things just weigh me down. Maybe I realize that I’m moving in a year and a half and I don’t want to have to pack all of that stuff up and haul it to yet another apartment.

    Books are always a great present. But books are heavy. Allow me to reference you back to my aforementioned comment about moving again in a year and a half. I love books. Lately though, I’ve barely made time to read the mountains of books that I already own, much less discover new series. I’ve fallen in love with my library. I can check out books, read them, and return them when I’m done. And sometimes I’ll love a series enough to want to own it.

    That’s becoming more of a rarity, though. (more…)