Monthly Recap: September 2017

It's been a cool minute since I last did one of these, but September was FULL OF THE THINGS, so let's relive it, shall we?

Okayyy, so, I have not done a lot of reading this month, because I have been WRITING like a WRITING THING (more on that below). But so far what I have read I have very much enjoyed.

Finished:
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo
Kissing Max Holden by Katy Upperman

Still currently reading:
Warcross by Marie Lu 
A Poison Dark and Drowning by Jessica Cluess, which I've been reading for like a month but had to pause even though it's REALLY GOOD to focus on my revisions
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, which I'm closely analyzing for my Pitch Wars homework! This book is perfection and I can't believe I waited this long to reread it. I need a yearly dose of Kaz and Inej.

Um, I have been doing a tremendous amount of rewatching because it chills my brain out. I rewatched the entirely of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, and a whole bunch of Gilmore Girls. I can't even remember if I saw anything else??? What are brain???

⚡📚

A post shared by Gillian Berry (@mizgillianberry) on Sep 22, 2017 at 5:09pm PDT

I love old books 📚 What's the oldest book you own? Mine are those Dickens books, which are from 1912! (Swipe to see their gorgeous insides). My favorite old book is my vintage housewife's cookbook from 1937, which was a Christmas present.

A post shared by Gillian Berry (@mizgillianberry) on Sep 24, 2017 at 10:24am PDT

Most of my #pitchwars ms has been revised from this very cozy corner of my living room, and always with the helping hand of caffeine ☕💻📝

A post shared by Gillian Berry (@mizgillianberry) on Sep 29, 2017 at 1:22pm PDT

Nothing in September, but I am doing (or attempting to semi do, because I will surely NOT be able to sketch daily) Inktober, so here's a little witch for your viewing pleasure

Basic witch 🎃🐱☕✨#inktober #inktober2017 pic.twitter.com/JxKd9xdc3J

— Gillian Berry (@mizgillianberry) October 1, 2017

Got cultured
I visited TWO MUSEUMS this month, omg, so art, such intellent, very culture. I went to The Getty and saw an exhibit on Latin American golden artifacts, like crowns and fancy doodads of the Incans and Mayans and Olmecs and everyone in between, then then I went to the Hammer Museum, which I'd never been too, and saw a very THOUGHT-PROVOKING exhibit on Radical Latin American female artist. I felt very Girl Power-y.

Got crafty
I am in the process of turning my bedroom into Ravenclaw tower, and I'm trying to do it in a more DIY and less SPEND ALL THE MONEY way, so I've gotten back into crafting and needlepoint and all the creative-type things I used to love to do. I'm really enjoying it! I can't wait to see how my room ends up. I'm also in the process of making my own DIY dragon eggs, so pics when that happens! (maybe I'll do a post, idk, don't hold me to anything)

GOT INTO PITCHWARS.
Okay, so technically this happened in August, but the full EXPERIENCE of Pitch Wars was in September. If you want to know more about Pitch Wars and what it means to get in, go to THIS POST. I've loved being a mentee and meeting all my fellow mentees and doing all the mentor things. LIKE AN INTERVIEW OMG. If you want to see me babble, go to THIS POST.

Revised my novel like a revising thing who revises and does nothing else
I have never. Revised. So hard. In my life. And I LOVE IT. i am such a Hermione about certain things. Give me all the work, all the homework, all the novel stuff, I WILL DO IT. But also my brain is now sort of made of melted cheese? (Mmm, cheese.) I have written so very  many words and thought so very, very hard, but my book is a MILLION times better and I'm now a lot less nervous aobut presenting it at the agent round. (But still nervous, because, like, OMG.) (Also you can't use the word "OMG" in a high fantasy manuscript, which i find exceptionally limiting.)

Met my Pitch Wars mentor, Tomi Adeyemi!
We forgot to take pictures because we are FOOLS, but we got Thai food and just had the best time. I'm the luckiest, really.

This month's blog posts:
The Books of 2017: Part One of Many

Tea! All the tea!
Every fall, I get obsessed with tea all over again. I am a mega coffee lover, and for years I never even liked tea. And then last year I TRIED AGAIN AND WHO KNEW, I love tea! I'm particularly in love with the Harney & Sons Paris blend, which is black tea (my favorite), but it's very fruity and full and tastes like blackberries! I also adore their English Breakfast blend, which I drink with sugar and milk and it is so cozy, and their Tower of London blend, which is light and sweet. For herbal teas, their lemon tea and their raspberry teas are both amazing! ALL THE TEA ALL THE TIME.

Classics on audiobook
So I have never, ever been an audiobook-er. I do not have the attention span. But I've found that audiobooking classics (especially when they are narrated by a British human) totally works for my brain. So far I've listened to Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and part of Agnes Grey, which I plan to finish very soon.

Decorating my office
You guys. I have a problem. I am addicted to fandom prints. I want to cover all the walls with them, but I'm trying to keep it focused just on my office, but I'm seriously in love with how it looks.