30 Questions with Kristin | Part 1 of 3

YoursTruly

Good morning, everyone! I saw this questionnaire on Twitter yesterday and thought it might be a great idea to create a blog post answering the questions. It’s 30 questions, but I’ll break it down into three separate posts. We live in a time where people “get to know you” based on quick little pic posts on Instagram or character-limited posts on Twitter. I wanted to give a bit of insight as to who I am away from the screens, so here goes nothing:

  • Explain your Twitter handle.

I wanted to have the same handles for all of my social media platforms and there was always one that was already taken. So, I tried this one out, it was available, and I liked it. Simple as that! (After I changed it, the show This Is Us aired and it’s one of my favorites. So @thisiskristin_ reminds me of the show now, too)

  • Who inspires you and why?

To be a walking cliché, I want to say my mother because she’s held my family together for the past 40+ years. When my dad passed away, she took a huge step and moved out of our old house, which I never thought she would do. She’s not the type who likes change, so I was really surprised when she packed up our home of 28 years without hesitation. She’s strong, she’s funny and she’s just the best.

On a professional level, I would have to say one of my friends, Keisha Hatchett. Keisha and I have always had similar interests (i.e. baseball, TV shows and writing), but there’s one huge difference between us. She was determined enough to sell her car and pack her things for an internship in New York. She’s fought her way through internships and freelance jobs to a position at TV Guide and I couldn’t be more proud. We don’t get to talk as much anymore, but she inspires me to fight for what I want and to be a better writer.

  • Do you care what others think about you?

As much as I try to convince myself that I don’t care what others think about me, I think everyone does on some level. In some areas of my life I really don’t care. But in other areas, I do find myself wondering what people think about me. I haven’t had much luck in the guy department (thanks, Miami), so sometimes I wonder if they thought I wasn’t good enough or whatever. It’s a horrible thing to do, but for the most part I’m the way that I am and, in the end, I think that’s a good thing. While I might care in some aspects, I’m proud of myself for not changing to conform to their idea of perfection.

Also, when you’re a writer who submits work to literary journals, it’s hard not to question your abilities when you receive rejections from people that have no idea who you are. Their opinions are based solely on your work, and it’s so incredible subjective. When I get rejections I start to question whether I should continue pursuing a career in writing, but then I remember that Stephen King, J.K. Rowling and a ton of other authors also received rejections. Look where they are now!

  • What are you most looking forward to?

At the moment, I’m looking forward to seeing Justin Timberlake live (again) here in South Florida this May! Long-term, I’m looking forward to establishing my career now that I finally have my Bachelor’s Degree in English/Creative Writing.

  • What is one life rule you follow?

I actually have two that I like to follow:

The most important is to stay true to yourself. I’m okay with having to ask for help rather than trying to pretend like I know everything. I’m not the smartest or the funniest, but I try to be the best version of those things every day. I’m awkward, I have anxiety, and I’m way too trusting of people, but I’ve learned to embrace those things about myself.

The second life rule that I follow is to never go after a guy that one of my friends is interested in or has been interested in. A “friend” of mine didn’t follow that rule, and it resulted in literal heart break for me. I would never inflict that kind of pain on anyone.

  • What’s your dream job?

When I think about my dream job I immediately picture Liza from the show YOUNGER on TV Land. She works for a publishing company and started her own imprint with her friend, Kelsey. I would love to write for a magazine or to work in publishing. Being able to read books and discover unknown authors would definitely be a dream. Either that or something (anything) in the music industry. Recently, I’ve been looking into being a music journalist–someone who goes to live shows and reviews them.

  • Which fictional character do you wish you could meet?

I have three, actually. Four (Theo James) from Divergent, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot). All of them are bad ass characters who fight to protect those around them. Corny answer, I know, but it’s true. Plus, they’re all gorgeous.

  • As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I actually always wanted to be a writer or singer. Writing and music have always been two of my favorite things, so to be able to do either? That’s what I wanted, and that’s still what I want. It’s taken me a while to figure out where to start, but better late than never!

  • If you were a cartoon character, who would you be?

A lot of friends have told me I should dress up like Daria for Halloween lol. She’s extremely sarcastic (which I can be) and pessimistic (which I am not), but she kind of looks like me, so I’ll say her. It’s hard to think of a cartoon character that I would want to be anyway lol.

ATT128931

  • What skill would you like to master?

Oh wow. This is a loaded question because I think there is always a skill that needs to be mastered. Right now I would have to say grammar lol. I always thought I was great when it came to correct grammar in writing, but after taking a course at UCF, I realized just how wrong I was. I mean, I know the basics, but there are so many rules and exceptions when it comes to grammar. I would love to master that for sure.

 

Well, that’s it for Part One! I hope you enjoyed learning a little bit about me. Feel free to comment with some of your answers to these questions! Post Two will be up tomorrow, so stay tuned for that!

Have a great day!

 

 

 

 

 

Movie Review: THE DIVERGENT SERIES: ALLEGIANT

IMG_3503

After what seems like the longest year ever, the third film installment of The Divergent Series was finally released!!  Allegiant is the film adaptation of the first 1/2 of the third novel of the same name written by Veronica Roth.  As announced, the second (and final) 1/2, titled The Divergent Series: Ascendant, will be released in March 2017.

SYNOPSIS: After the earth-shattering revelations of Insurgent, Tris must escape with Four beyond the wall that encircles Chicago, to finally discover the shocking truth of the world around them.

————————————–

As a reader of the novels, I’m one of those who search for differences in the films.  Many of you might have done the same for the second installment, Insurgent, where there were quite a few noticeable changes.  The same applies for Allegiant, but they actually work!

Despite a few minor character changes and several landscape differences between the film and novel, I actually enjoyed this one. Perhaps a bit more than Insurgent!  The escape scene was probably my favorite and was definitely a bad ass way to escape a horrible situation.  The world beyond the wall wasn’t at all what I imagined because I’d read the novels beforehand.  The world was described as an abandoned city with crumbled buildings, much like what the group has been used to.  In the film, however, the world is a toxic waste land that rains red, tinting the ground.  They’re rescued by members of the Bureau, where they’re taken for detoxification, which also wasn’t part of the novel.

Allegiant focuses on the genetic material of those involved in the experiment with the factions, along with those in failed experiments in other major cities. People were placed in these experiments to try and “heal” damaged genes in order to create those who are genetically pure, like Tris.  After discovering information regarding her mother and where she came from, Tris begins to trust David (Jeff Daniels), the director of the Bureau, despite Four’s warning not to.  When he discovers what the Bureau is actually up to, they try to erase him.  In an attempt to gain his sister’s trust again, Caleb tells her that Four has gone back to Chicago to try and stop the impending war between Evelyn and the factionless, and the group called the Allegiant, spearheaded by Johanna.

When someone betrays the group, Tris, Four, Caleb and Christina try to figure out who they can actually trust while finding a way to save the city they’ve called home, and expose the secrets held at the Bureau.

That being said, I thought this was a good installment!  Divergent is still my favorite of the three, but this one had great special effects, an abundance of bad assery, and a TON of Four!  The production value was great, considering the majority was filmed in front of a green screen.  Acting was great, and I’m still happy with the way this franchise was cast.  This film sets everything up for the fourth and final installment, and I can’t wait to see how they do it!  Just keep an open mind to the changes in the films.  There are always changes when a novel is made into a film, so just remember that it’s still the characters we know and love!

The Divergent Series: Allegiant was released in theaters on March 18, 2016.  Check it out and let me know what you thought!

 

Official Site
Facebook: Allegiant
Twitter: Allegiant

‘ALLEGIANT’: Trailer

Image-1

Hey everyone!  So…I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for this release!  I admit, I read all of the books and then went FIVE TIMES to see Divergent in the theater lol. I think they’ve done a great job bringing Veronica Roth’s story to life, and I’m loving the trailer for Allegiant.

Check it out and let me know what you think!

SYNOPSIS:  Beatrice Prior and Tobias Eaton venture into the world outside of the fence and are taken into protective custody by a mysterious agency known as the Bureau of Genetic Welfare.

 

ALLEGIANT is set for release on March 18, 2016

Official Site – Allegiant

The Divergent Series: Allegiant Official Teaser Trailer is here!!!!

The Divergent Series: Allegiant Official Teaser Trailer is here!!!!

2

Hey everyone!!

If you’ve been following news about the film releases, you already know that Allegiant was going to be broken down into two parts.  Allegiant was the third and final book of the series, so the fact that we get an extra movie out of the deal is fine by me!  It was announced this week, however, that the next two films will not be titled Allegiant Part One and Allegiant Part Two.  Instead, it will be Allegiant and Ascendant!

In any case, see below for the official teaser trailer for the latest installment of the Divergent Series: Allegiant!  Let me know what you think!