Saturday, June 26, 2010

It's the weekend!

Yay!

But then again, I have a few chores to finish so...

First off, I completed graphics request from my Graphic Site. I don't know why I still keep my Graphic Site running even though I barely have time for it. Hmm... Maybe because I've kept it since 2008 and because it's the only place I can display my Photoshopping skills? haha

Secondly, I started the draft for Chapter 09 of Keeping the Casanova. I haven't finished it yet and I don't know exactly when I'll update. I know readers are waiting but meeeehhh... sometimes, my laziness can get out of hand especially if I need to do a lot of things.

Third, well, I decided to join a networking business. I'm officially joining next week if I have enough funds for the capital which is 7, 450 Php. Now, that's a big sum of money already. For a College student like me, I don't know where I could get that sum. I guess I have to check my savings and borrow from a few friends.

This networking business was actually introduced to me by a friend who's also in it. So far, she's earning at least a thousand pesos per week and that's already good enough for a College student. And if you work harder and get more pay-ins under your name, you get more profit.

My mom is actually against it. She thinks it's a scam or something and you'll never get enough money back to compensate for your capital, but I've already made up my mind. I'm going to join and work in it part-time because I need the extra money. I need to save up because I'm on my last year of College.

Now, after College, I plan to take up Law. And that would, no doubt, need more funds. Education isn't exactly cheap. I don't want to be a burden to my parents anymore. I want to be independent. I'm already nineteen, turning twenty this year and I have yet to earn my own money.

Yes, I have never tried working for money in my entire life. And yes, I'm ashamed of that. So, I'm trying my best, although my mom is against it, to prove myself capable of earning. Hopefully, everything turns out well for me...

I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Oh, and on the bright side, if I join this networking business, I'm going to work with a 19-year old self-made millionaire. Yes, he's 19 too and he's already a millionaire. How cool is that? =) Oh, and he's hot too. That's one of the plus reasons why I wanted to join. haha


regards,
shatteredteardrops

Monday, June 21, 2010

Formspring me! + TCI Chapter 32


Ask me anything and I'll my best to answer honestly. =)
Just don't ask for spoilers about my stories because
I would not answer them. haha

-//-//-//-//-//-

TCI Chapter 32: Friends and Foes

Whoah... It's been so long since I've posted an update. I apologize. Classes just started for me again two weeks ago and I'm still trying to get a fixed and somehow stable schedule where I could fit my writing in.

Good news is... my schedule is a bit lax!

Bad news is(are)... I'm a member of our University's Debating Team. I'm also the head officer for the creation of a Debate Society in our University. My sister and I just recently decided to do part-time work as tutors for grade school pupils.

Yes, I'm a bit busy at the moment.

REPLIES:


__cahaya -As usual, thank you for your detailed comment! =) You really are a fanfic addict, aren't you?

__dyang4 - You're welcome! haha I've got you intrigued, didn't I?

__potion - Oh, it's okay if you can't comment on every chapter. I'm a little lazy myself. =)

__pkv
"and shin basically told the grandpa that he likes her right?" -Yep. XD

__nalouche
" I'm a bit confused though I don't remember her saving him" - At the Charity Ball. Miharu risked her life just to get back to him since he was trapped in a room-full of bad guys. hehe

__simpleangel
"Sucks how he's still a bodyguard to her." - THIS. I agree.

__xXKymmXx - Thank you! Glad you liked it! =)

__TOPsarang
"about time they kissed =3=
--> i sound like a creeper" - Don't worry. You're not the only one thinking that! haha ILY too!

__miss_dolly - Thank you! Glad you liked the 'juicy' chapter. haha

__babsy10
"what a way to fess up his feelings to his future grandfather in law who is actually holding your pretty neck hahaha..." - I was cracking up with the 'pretty neck' part. teehee!

__betty_7_30 - Lt. Nakamura is such a meanie! haha But I loved that part. =)

__lady_luv
"lt nakamura just waits for long enough for miharu to respond to the kiss eh???
does miharu still have feelings for ryou?" - Haha Yes, Lt. Nakamura wanted to see some of the juicy parts as well. XD As for Miharu having feelings for Ryou, well, I think she's a bit confused. She hated the man for the last two years of her life and drastically changed herself to get even with him right?

__pinkslippers - Let me guess, the kiss scene blew your mind away? haha

__mangoes_ - Shin is ALWAYS cute. =3 I sound biased, don't I?

__Princess_Wincyy - Yay for Lt. Nakamura! XD

__SHINEjaejoong
"That must've been soooo awkward for Shin, since Lt SAW it!!!! Eeek!" - I don't know about Shin but if it were me, I would want to evaporate! Imagine a senior officer seeing you make-out. haha

__teresaa-
"you are so violent.
D;
YOU LET NAKAMURA INTERRUPT WHEN IT WAS GETTING HOT." - Mee? Violent? *innocent eyes* I didn't do anything bad. I just made Lt. Nakamura interrupt a make-out session. haha

__shushshuckspui
"omg my heart totally goes out for shin!!! (which i always imagine to be jaejoong)." - Jae Joong is my self-proclaimed husband! Awww... Shin has been doing so much...

__curiousitykills
"time to eliminate his ex-bf!
you just didn`t know how much i was craving for Shin and Miharu moments!" - When you say it like that, you almost sound like an assassin. haha Evil much?

__reddynamitez
"great chapter. especially the kissing scene.
it's about time. Why did the Lieutenant have to ruin the moment for?" - Because I wanted Lt. Nakamura to ruin it. haha I'm evil like that, yo! XD

__icecreamiie - Hiya! Glad you found me here too! hehe I rarely post up updates at FP anymore... I try when I get a lot of free time and that's very rare... Anyways, you're on the PM List now!

__BEBE_AN
"you have a way of making shin irresistible. if she doesn't want him, i'll take him : )" - You should know that you have a lot of competition for Shin. The other readers want him too. haha About the part where Shin murdered five people, the reason why I allowed Shin to shot them was his desperation. He was caught up in a lot of things. And this mistake was to show that Shin is merely human and he also makes mistakes. However, the truth will be revealed to him somewhere along the future chapters. =)

__s0fi3
"I stayed up till 12something in the morning trying to finish this today
but stayed up till 3 in the morning trying to get to chapter 18 yesterday:L
And being dead at school was all worth it" - I really appreciate the fact that you stayed up all night to read my story... But really, I'm a student myself. Being dead at school is not fun at all. haha When this happens to me, I usually fill myself with sugar and caffeine just to stay up. XD

To Everyone, thank you so much for the support!



regards,
shatteredteardrops

Monday, June 14, 2010

As a Graphics Designer and Writer...

I write for self-expression.
I design graphics for self-expression.

I just didn't think that both hobbies would entail me to sacrifice too much of my time.


Writing takes up a few hours of my time. It starts with the brainstorming or planning the sequence or flow of a chapter. Next, of course, the chapter needs to be written and constructed. This part takes up most time. And finally, after producing a chapter, of course, it needs to be proof-read and edited. Most of the time, I make sure that the chapter I've just written will have less mistakes/errors/typos as possible but of course, I'm not perfect. And after starting to write, I realized that I can't just drop everything when I'm tired because the readers who have come to love my stories have become my responsibilities as well.

On the other hand, Graphics Designing, although to some may appear less demanding, is actually just as demanding as writing. I handle a Graphics Request Site which caters to writers who wish to have posters for their stories. In most cases, when I'm working on a poster request, being the meticulous OCD that I am, I make sure that the posters I make would be of high quality. And most of the time, when I don't like the poster I just made, I usually just delete it and start all over again, hence, I have to do more work than what is necessary.

Just this weekend, I planned to binge-write for my current on-going stories. That is until I discovered that I have three wallpaper requests and seven poster requests waiting for me. In total, I have ten graphics requests. So my initial plan of binge-writing was canceled to cater to the requests of other writers for posters.

Working two days in a row for graphics requests, not to mention, having a trip to the house of relatives from my mother's side of the family today, I am exhausted. I'm just beat and before I knew it, the weekend is over. It's Sunday today and tomorrow is Monday, and I have classes AGAIN.

I haven't written an update for my stories. I don't know when I'll have time again.

*sigh*

As a bonus, here are a few of the graphics requests I've done this weekend.




They're low quality because I just uploaded them on Blogger. I'm too lazy to actually put them up in an image-hosting site. meeeehhh... I'm just tired.


regards,
shatteredteardrops

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Depression and Withdrawal...


credits to yukiyukiko @ photobucket for banner.

I'm having an intense Prosecutor Princess Withdrawal. TT_TT

Let me set the record straight, I started watching Prosecutor Princess (PP) along side Cinderella Sister (CS) and Personal Taste (PT). Half-way through CS and PT, I stopped. Why? Because my mind was constantly wandering off to think of when the next soft subs of PP will be out. Yes, I watch PP by downloading the full HD HAN video and having soft subs from WithS2 Fansubs.

Mind you, while waiting for the subs, I dare not allow myself to peek at the uploaded and subbed videos on Viikii because I want the complete and highly detailed subbed version. I'm THAT OCD when it comes to dramas.

Ahem, so yeah, as I was saying, now that Prosecutor Princess was done, I'm having a withdrawal syndrome. I constantly lurk at the PP Soompi Thread hoping for any positive PP-related news. Do you know how hard this is for me? I haven't experienced something like this since the So Yi Jung and Chu Ga Eul pairing from BOF!

*sigh*

Anyway, so yeah...
To let go of this illogical and emotionally-upsetting withdrawal, let me tell you why Prosecutor Princess is one of the best dramas I've seen.

Aahem...

Comparing PP to CS and PT, critics have said that PP is the worst-casted drama of all three. Why? Because the actors and actresses who have been casted on the series are nothing like the actors and actresses on the other two series. PT has Lee Min Ho who achieved phenomenal stardom from BOF. And CS has Moon Geun Young and idol Ok Taecyeon who both has somehow a solid fanbase to back them up for the ratings.

The only artist on PP to note was the main actress, Kim So Yeon who acted along side Lee Byung Hyun and Kim Tae Hee in the bug-budgeted production, Iris. Other than that, nada.

But how did Prosecutor Princess charm me?

One. Great character development.
Initially, through the first few chapters, I was constantly upset with Ma Hye Ri's personality. I was LITERALLY cursing at her for being such a clueless and completely unreliable person! And to think that she's a prosecutor and has a job to uphold in honor of the law! (I aim to be a lawyer someday so these issues really stir me up.) The part where her co-workers mocked her, I do believe she deserved it, but at the back of my mind, I didn't want her to suffer. She just needed to learn which things to prioritize.

Anyway, gradually, as the story progresses, Ma Hye Ri slowly matures into a person who learns to value things other than herself, fashion, shoes and bags. She learns to give more of herself to help the people around her. And through her growth as a prosecutor, she earns the respect of her co-leagues and even the admiration of the man she proclaimed to 'like' (Prosecutor Yoon Se Jun).


Two. Intriguing Plot.
What started out as a light-hearted story of a naive prosecutor slowly progresses into a story of mystery, deceit and lies when the past was suddenly intertwined with the present. This was in the form of the handsome and charming yet conniving lawyer Seo In Woo.

When Ma Hye Ri met Seo In Woo, everything seemed to have been purely coincidence. It's a little cliche but when I thought of how they met, everything seemed like pre-destined. To be honest, I guessed that maybe Seo In Woo had something for Hye Ri ever since she was small but only had the courage to pursue her now that he's a lawyer... I instantly thought it was cliche. But BOY was I wrong!

Three. Intense Inner Conflict.
For Ma Hye Ri, it was later revealed in the series that Seo In Woo was the son of Seo Dong Gun, the man accused to have killed someone 15 years ago when in fact, he wasn't even involved. And the truth was that, It was Hye Ri's Father who was present during the crime. And after 15 years, Seo In Woo was trying to clear his Father's name by pinning the crime on Hye Ri's Father.

Imagine, the friend you trusted so much, the only person you turn to when you're scared, in doubt or when you needed help, the very same person you unconsciously learned to love with all your heart... is actually the person who got close to you in order to get back at your Father.

And yet, even if Hye Ri was supposed to hate In Woo for his deceit, she could not find it in her heart knowing how he lived the last 15 years of his life... What was even more painful was the fact that she already loved him.

This intense inner conflict I'm talking about was greatly highlighted in the last scene of Episode 13, when Ma Hye Ri barged in on In Woo's room and accused him but in the end, she confessed her feelings to him. Personally, I cried during this scene. I didn't just sob, mind you. I'm not the type to be usually affected by dramas but for this particular scene, I cried with snot and tears, and the whole crying-out-loud thing. I was crying inside my room so nobody saw me. teehee. I was trying so hard to control my voice though.

As for Seo In Woo, for someone to have worked hard to finally clear his Father's name for the last 15 years of his life and finally, just when things were about to go as planned, he realized that he could not hurt the woman he used as a pawn, the very same woman who was the daughter of the man who escaped innocently while his Father was pinned down for a crime he did not commit.

This was especially highlighted when Seo In Woo had a drink with his childhood friend Jenny and was tearing up because he was being torn about what to do. On one hand, he wanted to fulfill his promise to his Father that he would clear his name; on the other is the happiness and heart of the woman he loved.

In Woo's inner torment can also be seen on Episode 14's elevator scene. It was the time when Seo In Woo and Hye Ri realized that they could never be together. This was a truly heartbreaking scene. Especially the shot before the elevator closed, when Ma Hye Ri looked at Seo In Woo and saw that tears were streaming down his face. Truly heartbreaking.

Four. Amazing Character Depth.
This isn't just your average Romantic Comedy and its characters aren't simple-minded people who are just for laughs. They're funny and comedic at times but they have depth. The characters weren't merely made for the sake of having characters. They were characters that have complex personalities in them, only waiting for the right actors/actresses to give them life.

Ma Hye Ri isn't just a naive and spoiled daughter. She's kind, genuine and caring. She may have been gullible but she was kind-hearted and honest. She was true and she understood very well what suffering Seo In Woo had gone through.

Seo In Woo isn't just your typical smooth-talking lawyer. He may appear harmless but he was, in fact, a very dangerous man to deal with. He's rich. He's got connections. He's meticulously smart. And he's conniving. He can plan a whole assault without letting anyone know that he was the puppet-master behind the plan.

Don't even get me started with the other supporting characters. We could go all night here. =)

Fifth. Effective and Capable Actors/Actresses.
Although some people considered this series as the worst-casted series compared to its other competitors in rating during the T-Th slot, I think they casting director was the best. They may not be idols or famous artists but they are capable ones. They brought the characters to life. They gave the characters depth.

Whenever I think of Prosecutor Princess, I think no one would ever be able Ma Hye Ri's character like Kim So Yeon did. It was amazing to see her previously acting as a cold-blooded assassin and then suddenly switch to a naive, outgoing, princess-like, spoiled prosecutor. Her expressions, her gestures, the way she spoke and even when she was crying, Kim So Yeon really gave Ma Hye Ri a life of her own. And for that, I really, really am amazed with her as an actress.

And for Seo In Woo, the handsome and charming of a lawyer that he is, who is smooth, cool and suave, but secretly harbors a heavy burden within his heart. Actor Park Shi Hoo really did give his character justice. The way he playfully teases Hye Ri yet leaves a sincere piece of himself; the way he would appear outgoing and carefree yet secretly suffers when Hye Ri wasn't around; actor Park Shi Hoo has got Seo In Woo nailed both in and out.

Sixth. Actor PARK SHI HOO. (a totally fan-girl reason)
I just had to add him in for one of the things that charmed me in this drama. I mean, come on! I'm a girl and even if he's 13 years my senior, I'm still drooling for him! Gosh! Who could resist that smile?! XD I'm pretty sure a lot of people would agree with me on this.

Aaaahhhh... I still miss Prosecutor Princess. I'm hoping for a Season 2 and more of Seo-Pyeon & Ma-Gom... But I don't know if the PD would allow it. *sigh*

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

DRABBLE #01

June 1, 2010 - 9:32 PM - In my room.

I woke up with a drilling headache forcing my eyes to keep shut even though I was already wide awake. As I stretched my limbs to awaken my sleepy bones up, I felt something warm beside me... WAIT.

Someone is beside me.

My eyes fluttered open and stared blankly into the ceiling. 'This isn't my room...' I realized. I gulped nervously when something heavy suddenly placed itself on my waist. I looked at it and saw that it was an arm... It was hugging me.

And that arm was without an inch of doubt, a man's arm. It was long and muscular. Whoah... Wait, wait... What happened here?

I followed the arm and found my eyes widening involuntarily as I found myself staring at the half-naked glory of a man who was barely covered in sheets. 'Oh, shit...' I mentally cursed as I caught myself breathless just staring at him.

I seemed to have momentarily lost control of my eyes because they started staring unto his serene-looking face. His hair was long and disheveled. They were dark and shiny; almost tempted me to touch them and intertwine my fingers with each strand.

His eyes were closed but that didn't matter because I was allowed a close-up view of his long and cursive lashes. His nose was arrogant and straight. His lips were pinkish and slightly parted. I didn't know why but I found that very erotic.

He had stubbles growing on his chin but that didn't make him look dirty. Instead, by some completely unexplainable reason, I found them sexy. I stared at him for a full-minute, trying to soak in the image of his face.

I realized I didn't know his name.

That sudden thought made me jerk upward as I placed a hand on my temple while trying to collect my thoughts. It dawned on me that I was naked as the day I was born. And what's worse? It didn't take a genius to tell that I slept with him last night.

Gaining consciousness of the situation at hand, I finally realized three things:
One, I had a one-night stand.
Two, I had a one-night stand with a stranger.
Three, I had a one-night stand with a stranger who took away my virginity.

Oh, fuck.


-//-//-//-//-


Just decided to post a random drabble I wrote directly upon sitting in front of my laptop. It's a good exercise for random scenarios that play in my head which demands to be put into words. I don't know. Maybe someday I can collect all these drabbles and weave them into an actual story. Who knows?

Updates...


Just posted Chapter Eight of Keeping the Casanova.
University Enrollment started today. I haven't enrolled yet. I'll try tomorrow.
Classes are about to start in a week or two.



That's about it. keke



regards,
shattered teardrops