JAPAAAAAN!!! XD (and some rants..)

Hey Scholar Berry readers!!!

Some of you might know that I'm going to be studying abroad in JAPAN for a year!!! "Woot, woot!!!" as they say in English (at least that's what I use) or, "BANZAI!!!" in Japanese! (okay, 11 months, since if it's 12 exact months I'd have to pay for re-entering US...) My departure is MONDAY, AUGUST 16!!! I'm so excited!!! It's MONDAY and it's just 40 hours and 8 minutes away!!! I'll be in Japan, being a junior in a private high school, learning violin, learning some kendo, judo or even archery, and learning a lot of new things!! (sponsored by Rotary Student Exchange)

Some kendo...
Some pretty sakura/cherry blossom...

And now, about book reviews!

I have been asked by authors if I will review books during my exchange year, and here's some answers and explanations:

I will continue reading and reviewing, although I may not update Scholar Berry as often as usual.
Thankfully, I have a Nook (Barnes and Noble's product of eReader) that's been AWESOME, so if any of you have an eBook file (or would like to donate me a book or two) that's in my In My Mailbox page that I HAVE NOT reviewed (hint: it means, the ones that are still WHITE and without link), that would be great! Email me about it!

Or, if anyone has some eBook files that they're just dying to share (especially YA), I'd love to read them!!! I'm still building my eBook library (on a limited budget, here, being a jobless 16 year old...) but I'll dedicate a page to share eBook files that I own later on, probably at the end of the year--when I have more than just 1-5 titles to share, that is. :)

So...follow me on twitter, peeps!!! @elioravespera
Facebook too!!!
Also, if you can speak Japanese...here's a special blog dedicated to my student exchange IN JAPANESE!!

By the way...yes, I can speak Japanese! (And also some Spanish, French that I self taught myself along with Indonesian since I am, Indonesian) I skipped level 1 when I was a freshman and just went straight to level 2, and last school year I was in level 3 because I'm a nerd/geek who watched too much anime that I picked up so many words that I only needed to learn the hiragana (one of the alphabet) and katakana (another Japanese alphabet) from Internet and memorized them around a week before freshman year started! (I'm kind of a procrastinator...)

So that's one thing you guys didn't know about me; Foreign languages are so interesting to me that I pick it up "too easily," says my family...

Like with French? What made me want to learn French was some expressions from a novel (which title I have forgotten). Seriously. Next up is probably German and Italian..But for the year I'm going to fill my head with only Japanese and minimum English!! XD

I also have a blog (with different content than the Japanese one) for the trip. Sometimes I will share my experience--in less than one huge paragraph, I promise--on Scholar Berry too!

ブロッグ、日本語で
Blog, in English

P.S: When I get back, I'll of course, give some book/non-book related things from Japan as a giveaway!!! I'm so excited!!!

AS: Emma Michaels' The Thirteenth Chime

Emma Michaels' The Thirteenth Chime is coming to stores Friday the 13th in August 2010!

Emma Michaels' Official Website
Emma Michaels' Blogspot

No one knew of its existence until it was removed from the attic upstairs.

In a beautiful house that overlooks the sea, an antique clock has the power to change the course of their lives.

The power the clock resonates will not only force Destiny and ex-boyfriend David on a journey into the depths of one man's mind long dead, but into the mind of a man filled with hatred and bent on revenge.

With the only clues to the nature of the clock having disappeared into the sea, Destiny and David must retrace the steps the man had taken into the darkness, before they fall prey to the trap he had set in motion over half a century ago.

Hatred never dies.

+ + +

1. What was the biggest obstacle writing The Thirteenth Chime?

A: Rejections. I think deep down, I was really afraid that I would never get published. I've always been told I'm a great writer by many people, but to actually be faced with knowing that a story I have given life to would be sent out into the world? It was a daunting experience, but I am so glad I stuck with it!

2. I've only read the summaries, but the one thing that really caught my attention was this antique clock. Do you have a special connection with something similar? If not, where did the “clock” idea came from?

A: I live on an island out in Washington State that occasionally loses power during bad storms. One night, I was at a neighbors and we lost the power. It was late in the evening when this happened and after we had retrieved a few candles and lit them, the storm was going full force outside. Then the grandfather clock in the house began to chime. It made me jump, it was so eerie the way the sound echoed through the house and made my heart beat faster. It was as if the clock came alive during the storm.

3. Where did the inspiration for writing The Thirteenth Chime come from?

A: Lots of places. Everything here in the area I live in is full of inspiration for me. I sometimes feel like every time I get up in the morning, a new book, filled with promises of a new story, opens before me. I just wish my hands could keep up with the way my mind races with ideas!

4. Did you always want to be a writer? If not, how did you change and become one?

A: I think I first realized I wanted to become a writer when I was reading a book and thought about the ending. I imagined what the book would be like if it continued - what would happen? Within no time, I was creating characters and giving them a life of their own, letting them weave a story as they came alive.

5. What is(are) your favorite book(s)?

A: Tamora Pierce's "In The Hand of the Goddess"

6. Did you listen to music while writing The Thirteenth Chime? Can I get a list of the playlist???

A: (I'll have to put together a playlist for everyone)

7. As a writer, I feel like putting personality to the characters and not putting myself as the character is a challenge. Who is the most difficult character to write in The Thirteenth Chime?

A: For me, I feel like most of my characters come alive in my writing. I really don't think I give them personality, so much as they develop their own personalities as they make their journey through the book, just like people in real life. I think when writers allow it to happen, they become like readers - they meet the characters for the first time and they never know what is going to happen next. Life is such a beautiful thing. It is filled with so many possibilities and interesting twists and turns that we can never truly expect!

Thank you so much for your interview and to everyone who reads it! I am so blessed to have so many people supporting me!