The Tale of Writing Yet Again

I am very happy and proud to say that Kylie and I are yet writing Becoming Bekah again. Kind-of like crazy, actually. Between the two of us, in the last couple of days, we've written a couple thousand words by writing really long sections.


I don't know if either of us really explained how we write together - collaborate is probably a better word. 


Well, I guess you could say we share and take turns. We simply write a section - could be anywhere from 2 paragraphs to 15 paragraphs - or even longer. Sometimes they are long, sometimes they are short. Depends on how well our creative juices are flowing. Usually when one of us gets stuck and can't think of anything to write, we hand it over to the other knowing that they will probably have an idea or two up her sleeve. 
The only time we truly get stuck is when neither of us have an idea of where to go next in the story. This doesn't happen often, but every once in a while it does. We sit in front of our computers, staring at the Google Doc, wonder ''mmm...where could I go with this next?''. Like I said, this is rare and doesn't happen often enough to stop us writing altogether.


We also sometimes just don't feel like writing our stories. Do you guys ever feel this way? You sit down to write and almost feel too lazy? Or you aren't exactly understanding your characters at the time being? Well, sometimes it happens. We sit. And try to write, but nothing comes out. And if we write when we feel this way, it usually comes out sloppy and doesn't make sense in the story anyways.
This is when Kylie and I sit back and say ''maybe it's time we took a break.'' Sometimes we work on a different story that we have started, and sometimes we simply don't write anything together.
This doesn't happen very often either. We pretty much always have something we're working on together. But it does happen, just like it happens to everyone.


What is REALLY interesting is when one of us is in the mood to write and the other isn't. We get discouraged that the other isn't writing. We want to know where the story is going to head next. We want to keep going. And the other just....doesn't.
That's the most annoying thing about writing with another person. When they're not in the mood for it and you are. But of course, Kylie and I are pretty good at understanding each other in this respect. 
Actually, the two of us get along really well when it comes to our writing. There are only a few times that we've actually gotten into an argument about our writings. It's usually about something stupid that has nothing to do with the main plot, but ends up being a big deal, because we're both too stubborn to back down. 
But of course, once it's resolved, the story starts flowing again and we get back to writing and all is well with the world.
Er, I mean, our story.


Anyways, what was the purpose of this post? Oh, right. To say that the two of us were simply writing Becoming Bekah again, at a nice rate. 
I think that I got a little off topic, wouldn't you say?
Yes.


Our current word count is: 69,579.
Only a couple more hundred 'til we reach 70K. And only 10,000 more words and we'll be happy to finish the book.
She and I have decided that we will not let the book be under 80,000 words. Our longest book so far was 73,000 words. It was an amazing word count to reach, but we're definitely wanting to get more word count on this story.


Okay, enough of my random ramblings.
~Ashley


PS - when I published this post, an advertisement came up in the sidebar, saying something about self-publishing a book. Isn't is SCARY how the Internet can figure out exactly what you're writing about? It's like they are mind-readers. scary. 

Chipmunks & Totebags. And Hayden and Tori!

Ashley: Hey everyone! Welcome to this week’s typecast! :)
Sky: Again. ;)
A: So I’ve been starting to edit the first story that Sky and I ever wrote together.
S: SHE started editing without MY permission.
A: Since when do I have to ask your permission? Wanna remind me whose older? By two and a half years? ;)
S: Oh, fine. I’m just kidding. Anyways, I’ll be editing it as soon as Ash is done.
A: Yep, we thought it would be smart if we both did it,so that it would hopefully get edited well enough.
S: I’m sure it will. Anyway... our story is called Love Anyway.
A: Yes, it is. It’s about a girl named Tori.
S: And a guy named Hayden.
A: Yes. We don’t wanna give too much away though, because then you’ll know what happens.
S: But we can tell you some of it. Basically, Hayden and Tori are sworn enemies.
A: Yes. They are. But Tori is best friend with Hayden’s sister, Hannalee.
S: Tori & Hannalee met at school... Tori is homeschooled, but had to take anatomy and chem at a local high school. That’s also how she met Hayden... in chem class.
A: They interestingly enough became chem partners. And like we said before, they don’t get along well.
S: They strongly dislike each other. Tori nicknames Hayden ‘The Jerk.’
A: Which is really rude, by the way, but so is he.
S: It stems from the fact that he’s not a Christian.
A: Yes. Right. That too. Anyways. She decides that she wants to help tell him about Christ.
S: But it’s really hard because of all his rudeness.
A: Yeah, sometimes he pushes her away and sometimes he wants to talk to her about things. It’s like she’s a boomerang.
S: Haha! Exactly. And Tori really doesn’t like being a human boomerang.
A: Did you all know that Kylie’s name means a boomerang that doesn’t come back to you?
S: You. Are. So. Mean. ;)
A: But you love me anyways. Haha, love anyway.
S: Yep, that’s the title of the book. Love Anyway.
A: That would be what makes it kind-of ironic. Anyway, where were we? Oh. Yes. Hayden was treating Tori like a boomerang.
S: Which was NOT inspired by name, I assure you.
A: Nope. Not at all.
S: So she gets mad at Hayden... and even though she’s trying to witness to him, she still thinks he’s a Jerk with a capital J.
A: And truthfully I don’t blame the girl. He is a jerk.
S: But he isn’t always. *smile*
A: Okay okay, we’re starting to give this away.
S: Aw. You’re ruining the fun.
A: No. I am stopping before we give this away. Do we want them to buy the story when it’s published someday? ;) ;)
S: Of course I do!
A: Good. Then we better stop with that. As for stopping altogether, we can’t do that because we haven’t given anything away yet!
S: Okay then. What are we giving away this time?
A: Didn’t iGirl asked for chipmunks?
S: And totebags?
A: Yes! That’s what she asked for. So guys, here ya go! *sprinkles chipmunks and totebags from the sky.*
S: Sky? Where?
A: The sky. As in outside. As in...up there. *looks up* Oh wait, that’s the ceiling.
S: I can see the sky, but it’s cloudy. I can also see the ceiling too. ;)
A: It’s sunny here. But not very warm. I want warmth! It is spring!
S: I want warmth too. I’m wearing shorts, in the faith that it will get warm soon. ;)
A: Haha. It was 70 here one day last week and now it’s cold again. *sigh* I have a headache,in case everyone wanted to know that.
S: Aw. I’m sorry, Ash. :(
A: That’s fine. :( It’ll go away eventually. ‘
S: So how are you, readers? We want to know!
A: Yes, comment and let us know! :) We’ll be back next week with yet another typecast!
S: And leave us suggestions with what you want us to talk about! :D
A: Definitely! :D Until next week, ciao ya’ll!
S: Adios. ;)

Ashen Sky Life Episode #4: 13 Questions with Ashen Sky, featuring Blackberries and Hitting 60k

S: Hi guys! How are y’all doing? See, I said y’all this time.
A: You’re stealing my thunder, Sky! ;) Well, people, today we are going to answer the questions that you asked us last time.
S: No, I’m not stealing your thunder, I’m being the lightning to accompany your thunder! Anyways....
A: Yes. Anyways...are you guys ready for these questions to be answered?
S: Of course they are. *insert the crowd’s applause here*
A: Okay, so Sky...what’s our first question?
S: *goes to look* … Okay, Hannah Grace over @ Walk in Thy Truth said:

1. How long have Ash and Sky known each other? [or did y'all answer that somewhere else and now I look lame?]

A: Ash and Sky have known each other for a while. Since June of 2008. We met on HomeschoolBlogger.com. We started talking and got to know each other better. And then....Sky, continue my story.
S: Actually, we’ll tell you the full story later, when we get to the question of how we met. ;) Anyways, yes, we met in 2008, and so that means we’ve been friends for 3 years this fall. Not including the summer we were so busy that we never talked to each other. :P So, in answer to the question, three years. :P Oh, and Hannah, no you don’t look lame. No worries! :D
Next question is also from Hannah.

2. Which one of you loves Matt Thiessen the best? [muwahaha...jk]

A: Didn’t we tell you that we wouldn’t answer questions like this? Well, truthfully, I don’t love MATT THIESSEN. Well, that’s a lie. Well, not really. Yes. I like Matt Thiessen, because I like Relient K. But I really love Cale O’Connor. Which, Matt is his cover model. But yeah. I love Cale more than Matt.
S: Which actually makes NO sense. But since we don’t know Matt Thiessen, we can’t say we love him. Which would be awkward anyway. But I would say I like Matt Thiessen a lot, probably more than Ashley does, because she only likes Cale. And Cale is different than Matt, because Cale is our character. They just look a LOT alike.
A: And you call me confusing?
S: It’s really hard to explain something like this. Why don’t we just keep it simple and say we both like Matt Thiessen in general?
A: And we both LOVE Cale. Okay. Next question.
S: Next question is from Hannah, too. :P

3. What sort of things inspire you two?

A: Ohh...there are so many things that I could write about here. But I definitely would say music. I almost always have music on. Oh, and other authors. Anyone who has had a book published, inspires me. I would love to be published one day, so they inspire me a lot.
S: Well, my answer will probably echo Ashley’s. I am a music addict, so people like Matt Thiessen, Adam Young, and the Stellar Kart guys inspire me too, through their music. Also, published authors inspire me, just because I too want to be published (how ironic!). Ashley and I always dream about publishing our novels. I have respect for lots of authors (with a few exceptions) for getting a book published. That’s a LOT of work. If you can write, and get published, then I’d say you’re pretty well off. Other authors that inspire me are J.R.R. Tolkien, Jenny B. Jones, C.S. Lewis, Donita K. Paul, and lots of others. Including the musicians I mentioned earlier. Plus my parents and my family members. Sheesh, what a mix. Okay, I’m done.
A: I just remembered something that I seriously wanted to add here, but can’t remember what it was. Never mind...
S: Well, if you remember, let me know...
Hannah’s next question:

4. What else do you two do besides write, photograph, and play guitars?

A: Uh. Nothing? Kidding. Sorta. I sometimes feel like those three things are the only things that I find myself doing. Although, I do love reading. I just got an Amazon Kindle and have been having a lot of fun reading books on it. I also enjoy listening to music - which, if you people didn’t know that, you haven’t been reading the blog near enough! I also do lots of school. Especially lately. We’ve been trying to get ahead lately and school has been a lot of hard work. I’ve just gotten a job too, so every Thursday, I get up early and go to work. I do anything from putting data onto the computer to filing paperwork.
S: What she said. Just kidding. Sorta. Everything she said was what I was gonna say. But I do write on my blog a lot, and Ash and I both tweet. So if you have Twitter, go check us out. @ashleystrawser, @lovehascome, & @ashenskylife. I do a lot of school too, and I listen to music all the time. My parents have joked that my earbuds could be surgically implanted into my ears. Ashley and I also babysit on a regular basis, which is really fun and interesting all at the same time. I also like to talk on the phone and chat with friends. And I read a lot, when I’m in the mood. Currently I’m in a phase where I’m loving Karen Kingsbury’s books.
A: Oh, yes, I love babysitting. And my earbuds are implanted in my ears most of the time too! Oh. And I also love Karen Kingsbury books. Anyways...next question.
S: See, this is why we’re friends. Okay, so we have one more question from Hannah Grace.

5. Can you give away blackberries? <3 those. Muchly so.

A: I don’t know, usually Sky figures out what to give away. Can we give away blackberries today, please?
S: Of course! I was wondering what we would give away this time around. So, help yourself to some blackberries, people! Ash, do you have any other ideas as to one more thing we could give away? Preferably non-food-related?
A: Mmmmmmmmmm. We gave away Converse...how about Toms? ;)
S: HAHA... yes. Let’s do it. Today’s free virtual gifts are blackberries and TOMS. Could it get any weirder?
A: Yes. But let’s not go there. Next question please.

S: Okay. Now we’re moving on to the next comment. The next questions are from iGirl @ iDream.

6. What is your favorite genre to write or read?

A: Christian non-fiction.
S: This is new... Like what?
A: Huh?
S: I didn’t know you liked to read Christian non-fiction... what books are your favorites?
A: Whoops. I meant Christian Fiction......
S: Okay, I was wondering. For reading, I’d have to say the same. I like Karen Kingsbury. Some more of my favorite book series’ are The Katie Parker series by Jenny B. Jones, & The Hollywood Nobody series by Lisa Samson. Both of which I read on a regular basis, as well as the Lauren Holbrook series by Erynn Mangum. I read all of them every few months or so. I also like fantasy, but it’s getting harder for me to find good fantasy books to read. And as far as our favorite genre to write... Ash, your thoughts?
A: Oh, definitely Christian Fiction. It’s the same as we read, definitely. :P
S: Yeah, probably like chick-lit or Young Adult Christian fiction, with a touch of romance.
Next question!

7. What are each of your writing styles like (It'd be cool if you described each others :)?

A: I think if one of our writing styles is described, so is the others. But of course, I think of Sky as a better writer than me, because well....she is. But anyways. She has an amazingly funny, creative, quirky, easy to read and listen to, type of writing style. Reading what she has written always makes me happy.
S: Okay, okay. I’m seriously blushing here. But truthfully, I think Ashley is a better writer than I am. She has a hilarious sense of humor, and the relationships between her characters are always so unique and amazing. Her guy characters are also awesome, which is a plus, when I’m reading romance. And while she used too many commas when she first met, I can safely say that habit has been broken. ;)
A: Tehe, you stop that! ;) Yes, I did used to use commas way too much, but thanks for letting everyone know that I have broken that! ;) I actually love writing WITH Sky more than writing ALONE. But that’s just me.
S: I like writing with Ashley so much. My stories aren’t the same without her. I do enjoy my own stories, but asking me to compare the two - my stories with Ashley and the ones without her - just isn’t possible. They both have their own different quirks about them, and that’s what I love.
A: Yes, definitely. I like doing both.
Next question!!!
S: Haha, this question is going to be fun to answer.

8. Do you have a song that you like to listen to together?

A: Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! YES! “Nuisance” by John Reuben and Matt Thiessen.
S: That probably takes the number one spot. And you can find it at the very top of our sidebar. Seriously, if you haven’t heard it yet, please do. It just makes me happy, no matter what. Also, we like a ton of the same music artists, like Owl City, Stellar Kart, Relient K, Thousand Foot Krutch, and FM Static.
A: Yes you just named all the bands that we both like! ;)
S: Haha. Oh, and tobyMac. Ashley has introduced me to a lot of the bands I like, and I’m the one who got her started on Owl City. It’s a win-win situation.
A: Yes. Win-Win.
S: Also, you can check out more songs we like in the playlist on our sidebar. A lot of them are related to our books, so if you want to know the story behind a certain song on there, just ask!
Nexttttt questionnnnnnn.....

9. Do you think that sparkle is a color?

A: Yes. As easy as that. Although, when I see Sparkles, I get easily distracted. “And then they said..hey! sparkly!”
S: I never really thought about it before, but if sparkle isn’t a color, it should be. I like sparkles because they remind me of all the good things in life... princesses, fireflies, stars, Jesus, and Tinker Bell.
A: HAHAHAHAHAHA! Tinker Bell. Okay I’m good now.
S: I seriously did NOT even catch the irony behind that. Inside joke. Moving on. Now.

10. If you could make one wish to change the entire world, what would it be?

A: That everyone would be able to see how amazing God’s love is for us, and if they only accepted Him as their Savior, the world would be a much better place.
S: Wow. This is seriously a hard question to answer. Honestly, I would like to change all the suffering in this world. But then I realized that without suffering, we don’t need Jesus. If we didn’t have to deal with the pain everyday, we wouldn’t need to turn to God to help us through it all. So I wouldn’t take away suffering. Instead, I would change the world so that everyone knew about Jesus, so that they could turn to him in the midst of their pain. That’s what it’s all about.
A: Of course it is!
S: Now, I’m sort of trying not to cry... :P
A: Nexttttt quessstiiionnnn.
S: Okay, so we’re done with iGirl’s questions. Thanks for submitting them, iGirl! It was tons of fun! :D

 Now we have questions from Lia over @ theDreamer. Hey, Lia! :D

11. What are your favorite sports?

A: I played soccer for 8 years (12 seasons, thanks for indoor soccer), basketball for 1, softball for 1. I like all of them. But I don’t play any of these sports anymore.
S: Umm, well I’ve never played sports officially. But one time our friends played an unofficial game of flag football, and I loved it. I didn’t love it enough to play full time, but it was still really fun. Over here, my brother & dad are football fanatics, so I’d have to go with that as my favorite sport, since I really haven’t been exposed to many others. I do like going to baseball games occasionally, though. *bursts out singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game”* But other than that, I’m not really a sports kind of girl.
A: I used to love sports, from when I was 4 to when I was 12. But I stopped.
S: And became a girly-girl?
A: ANYTHING BUT! I still like to wear sweats and tees. I am not one of those girly-girls who wear skirts all the time. (Except for this morning...)
S: Hahaha. Ha. That did not make much sense... but still, I’m the same way. Want to move on?
A: Yeppppppppppppp.
S: Ah, here we go. Here’s the question we said we’d answer later.

12. How did you two meet?

A: How did we meet? Well, like I said, we first met on homeschoolblogger.com. But we met in person in November of 2010. Wanna tell more of the story, Sky?
S: Sure. Actually, it’s kind of an interesting story. I think we met in 2005, when I first started blogging - but we didn’t ever really talk or anything like that. I just knew that there was a person out there named Ashley. Well, Ashley stopped blogging for a while, but when she came back, I got to know her again, but still, I didn’t know her that well. One day she sent me a message asking if I had Yahoo or MSN messenger. Random, right? Why did you do that, Ash?
A: Why did I do that? I don’t even remember why I did that. I think that I was bored and just wanted someone to talk to. But anyways, she wrote me back, telling me that our moms actually knew each other. Ironic, right?
S: Very! So, since they knew each other, I was allowed to IM her, and a couple days later, we talked on the phone. We hit it off really easily. Like, REALLY easily.
A: Yep. That was really fun. We started writing our first story that summer. One, that under no uncertain terms, would we ever show anybody. It’s somewhere on my computer, hiding in complete and utter shame.
S: *laughs* It was terrible! We wrote a couple more stories, but none of them really got finished or turned out. They all pretty much stunk. But it was a start. That’s when we first started to write stories by alternating paragraphs. I think we both realized our stories stank and then took a while off. Then, we both got an amazing idea and couldn’t help but write it together. That story became Love Anyway, and we wrote it in 51 days with 73,000 words. That was only the beginning.
A: Now, together, we’ve finished two stories, but have plans for like....3 more series’ that we want to write together, along with random books here and there that need to be written. But of course, that’ll have to wait until later, because we have a hard time working on more than one story at a time. So right now, we’re working on Becoming Bekah, and then the other three books in this series.
S: And then, after that, who knows how many more books we’ll write? *grin* It’s our goal to get published. Anyway, so we were friends for two years before we met in person this past November. It was something we had both prayed SO HARD for, and it finally happened.
A: We had such a good time! I flew out to her house and we spent a week together, writing, talking, staying up late, and you guessed it, LAUGHING!
S: Oh my gosh, yes. We have so many inside jokes! Ash, do you want to show them a picture from when we met? So that we can prove we actually did meet? xD
A: Sure. We can do that...

(c) Ashen Sky. Photo credit goes to Sky's brother! :D

S: So, there ya go. The story of how we met.
Aw, this is the last question. :( This was too much fun.

13. What is your favorite food? (besides bacon :P)

A: I like pizza. And spaghetti. And lasagna. I like Italian food.
S: I like bacon. A lot. And Italian food, too. Pasta is my favorite thing ever. And I like ice cream, and I like coffee, although that probably doesn’t count.
A: Oh. I love ice cream too. And guess what? I like salad. It took me 17 years to try it. Now I love it.
S: Seriously? I remember you turning down salad at my house. Things have changed since then! Truthfully, I like salad too. :D

And our latest accomplishment on Becoming Bekah...

A: OH! One more thing before we go. We have officially hit 63,484 words in Becoming Bekah! Just knew we needed to say that before we go!
S: Here are some stats:

We started this story: 1.8.11
We hit 20K: 2.2.11
We hit 30K: 2.7.11
We hit 40k: 2.9.11
We hit 50k: 2.15.11
We are writing: Again, as fast as we can!

Thanks again for all your questions! We really enjoyed it! We’ll see you next week!
A: See ya later, everyone! We’ll be back next week with yet another typecast! ;)
S: Adios!
A: Ciao ya’ll.
S: Hahaha! Enjoy your blackberries and TOMS. Bye!

Meet Hayden & Tori

Today, I would like to introduce you to Hayden & Tori.

Hayden & Tori were two of our very first story characters. Their story, Love Anyway, was our very first novel that we finished; clocking in at about 73,000 words. We were really happy. We wrote it in 51 days. You can read about that here and here.

Anyways, Ashley and I will probably have to do a typecast about them sometime soon, but until then, I made a TON of Polyvore sets for them. Wanna see? Of course you do!

First up is Hayden. I titled this "the Better Half" because for a good portion of the book, Hayden is not pleasant to be around. He's conceited. Hence the rather conceited title. It actually makes me laugh to think back on it - because he is definitely a lot different by the end of the book.

The Better Half {Hayden} by MountainFireflower featuring aviator shades

Another Hayden set. The text is a nod to the book title - Love Anyway. That's the theme of the book.

In His World {Hayden} by MountainFireflower featuring crew neck tops

And now we have Tori. Seriously, this girl's style is AMAZING. Oops, I mean AMAZEENG. ;)

California Frost {Tori's Winter} by MountainFireflower featuring slim fit jeans

California Breeze {Tori's Spring} by MountainFireflower featuring tying shoes

California Days {Tori's Summer} by MountainFireflower featuring oversized hats

This next one is a favorite! I wish I could dress like that every day!

California Chill {Tori's Autumn} by MountainFireflower featuring converse shoes

And last but not least, I'd have to say this is a FAVORITE. In capital letters. Bold, italicized, and underlined. Like this: FAVORITE.

So, without further ado... my FAVORITE.

Love Me Anyway by MountainFireflower featuring h&m sunglasses

Which one was your FAVORITE?

Oh, and in case you're wondering about Dereck & Bekah... aka Becoming Bekah... Hehehe. Don't ask. Because I'm going to tell you anyway. We haven't written anything in a long time. We'll get back to it, I'm sure, but we're too busy eating virtual bacon & strawberries. ;)

Toodles!

-Sky

Ashen Sky Life Episode #3: We're Talkin' About Strawberries & Book Titles, Y'all!

Sky: Um, hi!

Ash: “Um, hi?” Are you not sure?

S: Of course I’m sure. I’m just not sure how the time passed so fast between our last typecast and this one.

A: Oh. That. Yes. It did seem to pass pretty quickly, didn’t it?

S: Yes. And what do you think we should give away this time? Lia seemed to be missing the bacon.

A: Yes. I seemed to miss the bacon too. I love bacon.

S: And pancakes. This week I was trying to convince my mom to make pancakes for dinner.

A: Yum. I haven’t had a good pancake in a long time. They are yummyyyyyy.

S: Yes, they are. Sheesh, what is it with us and food?

A: We just like food. That’s all.

S: Yeah... so what should we give away this time?

A: We should give away....mmmmm.....

S: Well, we can figure this out. Speaking of giving away stuff, both Lia AND iGirl are amazeeng. And they wanted to know our titles for our current series.

A: Oh. Right. I forgot about that. Should we tell them or keep them in suspense?

S: Well.... I don’t know. What do you think?

A: Mmmm. Suspense seems fun...but I'd like to know what they thought of the titles, too.

S: Same here. So we should tell them.

A: I think that we should. Bekah and Dereck book is called....Drum roll please....

S: Becoming Bekah.

A: We were trying to come up with some interesting names for our books. Shall we go on, Sky? They don't particularly know the other characters yet since we haven't started writing the other books in the series yet.

S: Well, we can always introduce our readers to our new characters now. If you want. But that might spoil the surprise. We are so indecisive.

A: mmm. Maybe we should wait. They got one book title. They shall be happy for a while. Plus, were less than 20K away from the end of Becoming Bekah.

S: How about this... when we finish Becoming Bekah, we can tell them the others?

A: works for me. I think they'll love our other characters. Our next book is about Morgan and Hawk. They are amazing too. Hawk isn't his real name, by the way...

S: And neither is Morgan. But that's another story.

A: yes. And we'll save that for another typecast.

S: Speaking of our next typecast... I had an idea.

A: ideas are good...

S: What if we had a Q&A typecast?

A: such as? We ask each other questions?

S: Haha, well, we could do that. I actually meant that our readers could ask us questions. They would comment on this post and we'd answer them in the next typecast.

A: oh. Well. That was my next guess.

S: Yes. Do you like this idea?

A: Yes. I do. So readers, if you've got a question for us, about anything - writing, our lives- leave a comment and we'll answer it in our next typecast.

S: As long as you don't ask us weird things like who our celebrity crushes are. Or something like that.

A: Cause we seriously might skip over that.

S: Yeah, considering we don't wanna seem like fangirls or anything. Even though we can be.

A: Yup. Let's either wrap this up or change the subject.

S: Because nobody really wants to hear about Matt Thiessen----uh, anyways...

A: Okay readers, we'd better stop while we're ahead! See ya next week!

S: Wait, wait. We didn't decide what we're giving away this week!

A: Oh! Uhhhhhhh.

S: For some reason, I wanna give away strawberries.

A: Oh my gosh, if you're giving them away, I so want some!

S: Me too! They make me think of summer. So here are some strawberries... for Ash & you dear blog readers. 

A: Yummmmmm. I love strawberries.

S: Okay, okay. I want some dark chocolate too. So let's give away strawberries & dark chocolate. Because they're amazing.

A: Sounds good to moi!

S: So, readers, what's going on in your lives? Comment and let us know! We love hearing from you! And ask us questions!!

A: Definitely! We love to hear from you guys.

S: Seriously. By the way, Ash- before we go... I had some other ideas for what we could put on the blog.

A: What? I'm as curious as everyone else.

S: Yes. Because I like to surprise you with random ideas in the middle of typecasts. Surprise!

A: See people, this is why she's my best friend. Because I hate surprises...but she doesn't care. That's friendship right there...

S: Yeah. I'm such a great friend. Anyways, my idea was that we could expand our blog to include photography, and other things. Not sure what the other things are, because they slipped my memory. Anyways... since we're not writing as much, maybe we could slip random photography posts in there. Because, surprise, Ash and I love to photograph.

A: oh great. At least this surprise wasn't on me! But I love that idea.

S: Yes, me too! So, stay tuned for some photography posts... and posts about writing... and our typecast next week! Don't forget, ask us questions... pretty please?

A: yes. Don't forget! See y'all!

S: Y'all? isn't that a Southern thing?

A: Shush. I'm a PA Dutch girl but I'm branching out a bit.

S: Okay, then... au revoir! See? I can do it too!

A: Caio y'all. Wow. That just sounds like an oxymoron. Ciao. Y'all.

S: Oh my word... how weird is that. Adios, peoples.

A: Bye!

Checking in

Hello everyone, this is just Ashley checking in. We haven't checked in for almost a week, so Sky asked if I would post on the blog today. 

So I am.

Just like she asked me to.

Because I'm a good best friend! ;) 

Right, Sky? 

Chose your answer carefully.

Remember...I am your sister, too. 

We haven't been writing near as much lately.

Probably because we've both been busy.

And just haven't had the time to actually write a post.

But we are writing right now.

We are about....62K into the story now..

We'd like to get to 80K.

And I don't think we'll have much trouble with that.

If all goes well, and all. :D 

Anyways, I better get back to seeing what Kylie is writing. 

Cause I'm curious.

Dereck and Bekah totally take my curiosity. :)

~Ashley

Ashen Sky Life Episode #2: Virtual Converse

Ash: Hi, we’re back! This is Ashley.

Sky: And this is Sky. Obviously.

A: Since I’m not Sky, she must be, right?

S: I have to wonder.

A: Good point. Sometimes we’re so scarily alike, it even scares me!

S: Speaking of which, we’ve even been told we look alike.

A: By a lot of people. We’re not sure WHAT to think, since we’re not related!

S: Not unless you count the fact that we’re both daughters of God. :P Hey Ash, remember the older man who asked us if we were sisters?

A: Yup, at the train show when I was at your house! Where we got the handstamps!

S: *laughs* Yep, yep. Those handstamps.

A: People, it’s hard to explain, don’t ask. Anyways!

S: Yes. Anyways. While Ashley was visiting me this past November, we made a bunch of webshows that we put on our Facebook accounts. We can’t put them on the blog, but I decided that I wanted to make a theme song for our typecasts. Speaking of which... what’s a typecast?

A: A typecast is where Sky and I *rhyming!* will type out our random thoughts and put them on this blog. They will be posted, if possible, once a week for our readers, so that they can find out what’s going on with us, our characters and, well, random things that pop into our tiny little heads.

S: Like bacon. And cool points. I wonder what we should give away this time around?

A: CONVERSE!

S: Do you plan to pay for said Converse?

A: No. These are VIRTUAL Converse.

S: Aha! The best kind.

A: Not really. I prefer the ones that go on my feet.

S: You can wear virtual Converse on your virtual feet.

A: I now have virtual feet? This is getting weirder and weirder. What should I expect with you, though?

S: Hey now. Takes one to know one.

A: Well, yeah. I guess.

S: So. If you are reading this RIGHT now, you get VIRTUAL CONVERSE! DING DING DING!

A: Make sure to tell us what color you would like, too!

S: I like red, or black. I wonder if they have rainbow Converse.

A: If they did, they’d match with everything! I want a purple or blue pair before summer comes.

S: Why before summer comes? Isn’t winter good enough?

A: Good point. I just don’t feel like spending my money right now. Plus, I have to save up my money to come see YOU!

S: Very true. Which is why I like virtual Converse. They don’t cost anything. ;)

A: I was just gonna say that. Don’t steal the words out of my mouth. Er, fingers.

S: Sorry. Unintentional. Do you think we need a point to this Typecast?

A: Wellllllllllll, maybe. But what’s the fun in that?

S: Our readers are probably sooo confused.

A: So are we. What’s the difference?

S: We write, they read. It’s simple.

A: Exactly. It’s that easy. So...we thought up names for our Dereck and Bekah series today. Except for the last one....

S: Which is going to be really hard to figure out.

A: Yes, exactly. But the first couple were easy.

S: Should we tell them?

A: I don’t know, should we?

S: Well, if they wanna know...

A: Well...maybe we could leave them hanging and make them wait. They can leave a comment if they wanna know...

S: Good idea. They can even guess! Or suggest titles of their own... if they wanna be wacky and fun and cool like the wacky, fun, cool readers they are. ;)

A: Yes. I agree. So, if you have a suggestion for Dereck and Bekah’s title, or if you want to hear the one that we have, let us know. Leave a comment!

S: We wanna hear from you... even though this blog is filled with our ramblings that probably only make sense to us. We actually started this blog just so that we could look back on our writing journey & writing accomplishments... we never expected you to read. But you did. So thank you! (Never mind that we bribe you with bacon and Converse.)

A: Right. Bribing always worked for me, so I guess I’m not the only one. So..yeah.

S: Lately, we’ve been writing a lot - just not in our cowritten stories. We’ve started individual projects that we both love.

A: I have two started right now, actually. I actually just started one this morning.

S: And? Don’t leave me hanging here!

A: It’s about us. Sort-of. Well, it is. But it’s different too. The characters are loosely based on us and parts of the story will be too.

S: I’m really excited to hear more about it. Ash, not to change the subject, but have you ever painted daises on a bright red rubber ball?

A: No. I have never done that, actuallyyy. Maybe we should do that next time I’m at your house.

S: Sounds like a good plan to me... kind of like the time we ate cocoa. So, do you think we should tell them about another story of ours, or leave that for next time?

A: Well, this seems to be getting long enough, so we can wait until next time.

S: Okay, in review... comment and tell us what color virtual Converse you want, if you have any title suggestions for Dereck & Bekah, and what you want us to talk about in our next Typecast. AND! Don’t forget to watch our handy little video intro.

A: Yes, that is really cool. Sky decided to make that for us...and I love it. I’m kinda jealous of her amazing ability to be able to make videos like that.

S: Don’t be jealous. You can make blog templates, amazing stories, and come up with amazing chords for our songs. ;)

A: Annndddd together we can come up with amazing plots for our characters.

S: At least we think they’re amazeeng. Amazeeng is such a Will & Elle word.

A: Yes. It is a Will and Elle word. Will and Elle are amazing.

S: Yes, they are but stay focused! We should probably wrap this up before our readers scream in agony. Even though they’re wacky, cool, amazing, and they love us.

A: No, no, no!!! They are AMAZEENG!

S: Yep, yep - you guys are AMAZEENG! Rest in that knowledge till next weekend, when we’ll be back to annoy you again. Happy Saturday!

A: Bye!!!

Reese's Pieces

Hey all - Sky here. Ash and I have been a little busy dealing with sickness, babysitting, and new jobs, so we apologize for the lack of posts on this blog. (Okay, okay - I'M apologizing, but I'm sure Ashley would be too if she were posting.)

We've been writing our story, still... slowly, but surely. *goes to check current wordcount* Whoa... currently, we have 57,790 - which means we're almost to 60K! That's exciting. It almost makes me want to write more.

I've also been writing a story on my own - called Reese's Pieces. I have been writing it since August of last year, and have about 60,000 words. I'm really thrilled because it's the longest story I've ever written by myself. Ashley and I wrote a novel that was 73k, but it's hard to believe that I actually have written 60k so far, which I wasn't ever sure I could do, much less writing it all by hand. I started this story on the computer but ended up switching to a notebook. I have one notebook finished so far, and I'm ten pages away from finishing this one, and hopefully, ending the entire story. It'll be the first novel I've actually finished, so I'm pretty stoked.

I just can't believe that opening a document and writing the first thing that came to mind would explode into a full-blown story. All I did was open a Word doc and let the contents of my brain spill out - and I've loved it so much. Amazing, huh? I highly recommend writing the first thing that comes to mind - it eventually forms one cohesive plot if you keep working at it. I would have to say Reese's Pieces is one of the easiest AND hardest stories to write - easy, because it was so fun and there really were no rules, but hard, because I had to stick to it and keep writing even when I wanted to throw my notebook out the window. Well, with 10 pages left, I'd say it's been worth it. It's nowhere near being publishable, but I love it, and that's what matters.

Now I just have to figure out how to end it and finish up Reese's matchmaking mission before I run out of time. ;)

-Sky