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berry-books · 3 years ago

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Berry Book Challenge: November Edition

What is it?

As a writer, November has always been writing challenge month. This year, since I've had to step back from writing, I decided to bring the spirit of nanowrimo to my reading life too.

Rules:

- Pick a page count. Keeping the nano spirit, this challenge goes by the number of pages read rather than books. You can either select one from the Reading Tiers list below, or customize your own. If you'd like to add a book goal, that's good to! Pages are just the focus.

- Pick your books. This step is optional, but can help make sure you're picking books that fit nicely into your page count. If you have a large TBR pile or no idea where to start, try using some of the prompts provided in the Prompts list

- Read! Starting November 1st in your local timezone, dig into your books and knock out those pages. The challenge ends on November 30th.

- Share your progress. If you decide to participate, use #BerryBooksNovember to chat about how things are going for you! Challenges always work best when others doing it can interact and have fun together!

Reading Tiers

Casual: 300 pages (10p/day). Roughly 1 novel.

Dedicated: 750 pages (25p/day). Roughly 2 novels.

Avid: 1500 pages (50p/day). Roughly 4‐5 novels.

Enthusiastic: 2250 (75p/day). Roughly 7-8 novels.

Voracious: 3000 pages (100p/day). Roughly 9-10 novels.

Nano: 5000 pages (167p/day). A special November tier. Roughly 16-17 novels.

Prompt List

(below the cut)

This or that

Shortest on your TBR / Longest on your TBR

Oldest on your TBR / Newest on your TBR

Highest goodreads rating / Lowest goodreads rating

A cover you love / A cover you hate

A debut author / An author with 10+ published works

1st person / Multiple POVs

About the book

2 authors

From an indie publisher or self published author

From a trans or nonbinary author

The first in a series

Has discussion questions inside

Published in November

Published in 2021, 2011, or 2001

Has a show or movie

An anthology

Has a blue cover

About the reader

Book you've been avoiding

Next in a series you already started

Book you started but never finished

Genre you don't normally read

Outside your age group

Seen a lot on social media

A gift

Recommended to you

Picked by a loved one

#booklr #bookblr #reading challenge #tbr challenge #reading #berrybooksnovember

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softly-savage-mint-yoongi · 5 years ago

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Wow I’m feeling the love today seeing as @guardians-of-exo, @kyungseokie, and @j-pping all tagged me in this, love you ladies thank you! uwu

1. what is your ideal setting for focusing on your writing?

Usually in the morning, or those rare occasions of 10p-midnight-ish. Coffee, woodwick candles, piano music only. I can’t focus on writing if there is any sort of talking or singing. Lately it’s been a lot of writing on the go on my laptop, in the car between jobs or before/after a shift, or if I just want to get out of the house. I drive a jeep so I go sit in the woods as often as possible when the weather is nice with the back open. Nature is a great muse!

2. what is your favorite genre to write?

I would love to say it’s romance, but I think- if I could even call this a genre- it is the kind of descriptive writing about expressions. In pain or pleasure and the feelings of it. I most enjoy writing with the intent to evoke a strong emotional response, whether it is fluffy giddiness, painful heartache or overwhelming love.

3. do you prefer to write on paper, or digitally?

I usually start on paper or on my phone just for synopses and then go digital in two drafts. I storyboard strictly on paper, in a notebook dedicated to writing. Ask @guardians-of-exo, she knows I’ve done a lot of research on things for our collab au, and all of the information I have is handwritten in that book. :) This also goes for drawing maps and charts to go with my work or blueprints of prevalent spaces in fics so I can remember what is where and such to manifest that greater sense of physical space. The more detailed I can be on paper the better.

4. it’s the middle of the night and you suddenly wake up with an idea. what do you do?

Grab my phone, curse at the brightness I forgot to turn down before bed, and then type out my idea in an app I use specifically for things like this. When I have ideas at work too and I’m not at my desk it’s nice to be able to put it in my phone for reference later.

5. who is your favorite person to write about?

Y’all know it’s Junmyeon, right? I have told many of you when you’ve asked, but allotrope was all started because of how much depth I think Junmyeon has and I really wanted a chance to be able to explore some of those sides to him. I want to be able to say Chanyeol, because he is easy to write and love and have fun with and feel a lot of emotion for when he wears the essence of his soul on his sleeve so boisterously. Just, as is my style, I’m better at capturing the hidden moments of a person and I think I enjoy doing it just a little bit more.

6. do you like making your own characters, or do you usually write about real people?

So it actually took me over a year to take the next step and write about real, actual people. I felt like it was breaking some sort of respectful barrier and I had a lot of mixed feelings about it. Ultimately, I’m not writing anything about them with the intent to slander them in any way or harm them so I decided not to fight it. I only enjoy writing reader-inserts when I can be as absolutely obtuse with their looks and personality as possible. This has been quite the challenge in An Adventurer’s Guide to Romance in particular. Mie and I had a conversation about how difficult it is to write nine different reader-inserts for our boys. They need to feel vague so anyone can put themselves in those shoes, but they need to differ from the other 8 inserts because they show up in each other’s stories and I think writing the same personality nine times will get very old very fast.

7. have you ever written a book, or a story with more than 15 chapters (or 100k words)?

I’m not sure how good I feel about saying this because looking back it was literal trash, but I wrote 100k+ fics for Naruto back in the day so I’m used to writing long works. I think Moonchild will be over 100k when I’m done but I’m not sure. Allotrope will be close but not (sitting at 55k now), and the Chanyeol Dark Fic I have planned to write after Allotrope might be as well, I have no idea.

8. how often do you get ideas?

Hmmm, pretty much constantly? I definitely try to stick to the ones I think about the most or have the most world-building experience with. Thirst-trap ideas end up being shorter fics of course, but they’re no less fun or exciting to write! I quite enjoy dropping fics in less than a week since conception. The challenge is stressful but fun and rewarding when it’s out to the world and the excitement of fulfillment lingers! I also tend to stick with ones where I have a greater sense of emotional connection, or straight up fantasy au, LOL.

9. do you ever get an idea that you really like, but just can’t seem to finish?

I think this is what’s happening with Moonchild right now, haha! I haven’t written for it in almost a year, but the idea is still there and I’ve got paaaaggeessss of detail for it, plus the rest of the story is outlined. I just have to write and detail it! Too many other stories taking up my inspiration and motivation atm.

10. what is your least favorite plot?

I mean this in the nicest way- but plots for highschool aus (funny considering how fucking W E A K I am for college coffee shop aus) or fics where there are copious original characters. Y/N doesn’t need a posse to bitch about so-and-so. I think the only fics I’ve read where this was absolutely not a bother and made the stories better were Steph’s Sweeter Than Sweet (Sam, who became a prevalent character and was not over-done), and Sarah’s Welcome to the Exodus Mall series where she has done something similar to AAGTR- in that each member knows one another and their respective love interests do, too, so a few have names or aliases. I’m certain I’ve not read them all though so if you have any recommendations to sway me, send them my way! I don’t hate them, I just think they’re at the bottom of my sought-after tropes!

11. tag 5 or more people

I’m pretty positive I’m literally the last one to do this so I don’t want to tag anyone else because y’all have done it already lmao.

#tag games #raz rambles about writing #fanfiction

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by-endurance--we-conquer · 8 years ago

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I have no races planned til June. The focus over the past few months has just been building the base. I’ve been itching for a challenge and decided a while back that tomorrow’s the day. It’s a little different and inspired by this guy. David Goggins. If you’ve never heard of him do yourself a favor and listen to one of his many podcasts out there. He really goes deep with the mental strength training which is an area I’m always trying to improve. So this challenge is inspired by a story from “Living With A Seal.” Tonight starting at 2300 hrs I’m doing the 5 every 4 for 24. Run 5 miles every 4 hours for 24 hours. When it’s all said and done I should end with 30 miles and 3,000ft of elevation gain (based on my route). I’m definitely posting this now for accountability purposes because getting up at 3am to run is going to take some of that mental strength David Goggins is always talking about. Oh and he did this same challenge but I think it was the middle of winter and he went for 48 hours.

Update: Start time bumped up to 10pm Central so I’m not running during kiddos pre-bedtime routine tomorrow night. So 10p, 2a, 6a, 10a, 2p, 6p.

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garconsworld · 7 years ago

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Wei Tsay is the founder of APOLOGUE, a brand consulting practice that counts Marc Fisher and Sigerson Morrison among clients. Wei’s experience in advertising and fashion is vast, with experiences working with Tiffany & Co., sports giant Nike, renowned skincare brand Erno Lazlo.

Outside of his expertise with branding, Wei is also co-founder of Avantur, a womenswear line based in New York.

We’ve been ogling his Instagram to get an inside look at his cityscape shots and skincare rotation. We are excited to have gotten the opportunity to learn more about Wei and think you’ll enjoy this interview!

“I was born to Taiwanese immigrants but was adopted when I was an infant. I grew up in a small, southern town in North Carolina. Imagine large fields, lots of cattle, too many BBQ restaurants for any one city, and a Taiwanese-American with a very southern accent… that was my childhood. There very few minorities in my town, so any sort of ethnic influence was minimal. I knew I had to get to a bigger city and at the time, Charlotte felt like the biggest city accessible to me, so that’s where I went to college. Charlotte was a great home but it felt too small and at the time it didn’t offer enough diversity.

I got to New York by way of Philadelphia. Although I didn’t study finance in college, I landed a finance job that planned to bring me to Philadelphia for a year and then back to Charlotte – I loved this setup because I was in a relationship at the time. We broke up right before I moved back, and even though I had already signed the lease for a new apartment in Charlotte, I chose to stay in Philly. The breakup offered a lot of freedom and liberation to focus on my career and self-exploration. I came out in Philly, and I have many great memories there, so the city will always be very special. After two years or so in Philly, I decided to focus on advertising, and I knew I’d have to move to New York to take it seriously.

My first job in advertising was very stressful – I forgot to eat, couldn’t sleep, worked late hours. It was the typical New York intro. I had no idea what I was doing but thankfully my survival skills kicked in. I ended up working for some amazing clients – Marriott, Tiffany & Co., Rachel Roy, Nike, United Airlines, Lifetime, History, A&E, to name a few. I was happy with my job but I wanted something more – I wanted to create something. I come from a family of entrepreneurs – both my biological and my adoptive parents started their own companies. Starting my own company felt natural, and I was already familiar with many of the challenges.

I started my first company while I was working full-time at a social media agency. Avantūr, a women’s outerwear line, was started with one of my very close friends, Gina Principato. We met while we were both living in Philly and working at the same financial firm – and we both ended up moving to New York. We started the brand with no experience and no relationships in the Garment District but somehow we made it work. Our coats and scarves are all designed and made in New York, which comes with its pros and cons. We love being a Made in NY brand but it’s very costly to source materials and to manufacture goods in New York. Our line is small batch, meaning we don’t keep a lot of inventory, and we only produce a few items each season. Since founding Avantūr, I’ve decided to become a full-time entrepreneur, so I founded my second company which helps to diversify my income.

I quit my job at a global media firm and started Apologue, a social and digital consulting practice. Some of my current clients are Marc Fisher, Easy Spirit, and Sigerson Morrison. My company focuses on developing social and digital strategy, community management, influencer campaigns, creative strategy, content distribution, etc. It’s a great time to be in the industry because brands big and small rely on social media to connect with their audiences, from awareness to advocacy. Many brands are missing a huge opportunity to connect with current and prospective fans because they only use social and digital for sales. My goal with Apologue is to help brands create a holistic strategy with social and digital so that they can create real relationships with their fans.

A typical day for me is usually dictated by what my clients need. I start the day by making a cup of pour-over coffee, usually around 7a, and then I walk our dog – my partner and I are lucky to be the parents of an adorable Frenchie.

On my snooze button days, I’m up by 8a. I immediately jump into the day’s work, which typically warrants a few conference calls or in-person client meetings. Daily tasks include working on my client’s content calendars, strategy for upcoming campaigns, writing analytical performance reports, creative ideation, etc. I also try to go to a networking event at least once each week. My workday usually ends around 10/11p, depending on the day. Then, I like to end the evening at the gym. My favorite time at the gym is after 10p because there’s no one there and I sleep better after a good workout. I go to sleep around 1a… staying up late is a bad habit that I can’t quit.

Other than work, I’m really interested in skincare trends, specifically Korean beauty and clean/natural skincare. American retailers are really starting to pay attention and are supporting k-beauty and natural products like never before. You see big retailers like Target, CVS, Bergdorfs, and Barneys curating these brands. Consumers are responding well because they’re more knowledgeable about ingredients and want to avoid the harsh additives many American brands are known for. My skincare routine is really explorative – I do my best to educate myself about all the ingredients in a product before I buy it, and I’m constantly going from one product to the next. I’m chasing that glow!

Over the next few years, I’ll continue to focus on Apologue – business is going well, and I know there’s a lot of opportunity in this market. I also have some new business ideas that I’ll eventually want to work on… passion projects that I’m hoping to turn into real businesses.

As told to Garçon’s World

Wei Tsay, Entrepreneur: Co-Founder Avantūr & Founder of Apologue Wei Tsay is the founder of APOLOGUE, a brand consulting practice that counts Marc Fisher and Sigerson Morrison among clients.

#Entrepreneur #fashion #interview #pro

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jamieclawhorn · 7 years ago

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2 top stocks I’d buy in February

Commentators often tell us not to try to time the market as many failed traders will tell you this is an almost impossible task. Although I totally agree with this advice, I personally believe we should still try to do our utmost to buy quality stocks at the best possible price. So today I’m looking at two smaller London-listed firms whose strong upward share price momentum seems to have paused for breath in recent months, perhaps signalling a buying opportunity for new investors.

Historical highs

Less than a decade ago shares in AIM-listed Scapa Group (LSE: SCPA) were changing hands for less than 10p each, but after delivering very strong and sustained levels of growth over the years, they now trade at more than 40 times that value. In fact, for a brief moment last summer, the share price closed above the 500p mark for the first time in the company’s history, before drifting lower to today’s levels around 470p.

The group based in Ashton-under-Lyne, near Manchester, is a global supplier of bonding solutions and a leading manufacturer of adhesive-based products for the Healthcare and Industrial markets. The company has a truly global footprint with manufacturing sites right around the world, with the vast majority of sales coming from within Europe, North America and Asia.

Geographic ‘insulation’

This wide geographic spread has somewhat insulated the company from many of the uncertainties that have made the current environment very challenging for many of its peers, particularly the effects of recent currency fluctuations and the as-yet-unknown longer-term impact of Brexit.

From a valuation standpoint, the current share price translates into an expensive-looking price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of 27 for the current fiscal year to March. But with City analysts forecasting more double-digit rates of growth in the coming years I think the shares are well worth that premium price tag.

Electronic warfare

If Scapa’s pricey-looking valuation is still a little too rich for your taste, then fellow AIM constituent Cohort (LSE: CHRT) might be better suited to your palate. The Reading-based technology group also saw its shares take a little breather in 2017 after an impressive run that led to a sixfold increase in its market capitalisation in as many years.

The group currently operates four innovative, agile and responsive businesses based in the UK and Portugal, which provide a wide range of services and products for domestic and export customers in the defence and security markets. Particular areas of focus include electronic warfare, cyber security, surveillance technology, and advanced communications systems.

The group’s shares have fallen back from last year’s all-time highs of 462.5p and now look to be offering greater value at 12 times earnings for the current year to April. For this reason Cohort is currently my top pick from the defence and aerospace sector.

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