Thursday 31 December 2015

The Blogger's note: Subscribe!

Hi there!

Happy New Year 2016!!!!!!
Congratulations on surviving 2015, that was one tough year.

So along with the new year comes new resolutions, new starts and new things. And I am happy to announce that I have a brand new "Subscribe" bar on the top of my blog! You can just enter your e-mail address there to get subscribed to my posts! Note: If you are reading this in the mobile, switch the view into web version. You'll get it. Plus, how's the new template? I liked the web version more than the mobile one. Check it out! Fitting, right?

Anyway, this year, I am going to post lots of creative things on my blog (or that's the plan) and maybe I will get to interact with some of you too! I am going to make my blog more 'Books and Creativity' centered so that I will have a theme to stick to. Plus this year, I am starting my 12th grade so I might not be able to post more frequently in my blog. But I'll make sure that whatever the things I post on are worth the wait.

For me, 2015 was a great year. I scored good marks in my 10th grade finals, I joined a new college, made new friends, discovered new T.V shows, books and fandoms *sigh*. I created this blog in April 2015. I had a great time.

I want 2016 to be a...well, basically a good year. I don't think I will have much fun this year because 12th grade finals are EXTREMELY important in India and I will be drowned in a massive, relentless ocean of books, an avalanche of perplexing formulae and a vast syllabus of boredom. So, yeah, wish me luck.

What I am interested most, though, is this: How did 2015 go for you? And what do you expect to happen in 2016? Tell me in your comments below!

Do subscribe to my blog! I promise I'll make time to post good stuff in my blog! Maybe, that will be my new year resolution.

Random fact: I am currently reading 'Cinder' by Marissa Meyer right now.

E-mail - manasa2510@gmail.com
Instagram:  @manasa2510
Twitter: @manasa2510

I hope you'll have a great year ahead!
Adios!

Saturday 19 December 2015

4 SIMPLE steps to make your own DIY Character bookmarks!

Hello there!

Hope you are having a great festive time!
So as I said in my previous posts, I wanted to give a Pre - Christmas gift to all the book readers and so here it is: DIY Character bookmarks!

         
     I was making a few drawings on Microsoft Paint a few months earlier when I thought, Hey! Why not draw some characters from books! And when I did that, another thought came to my mind, Hey! Why not turn them into bookmarks! Thus it began.

               So here are the self-made bookmarks that I wanted to share with you!

Step 1: Download this picture.









Step 2: Take a colour print-out.
Step 3: Cut it out.
Step 4: Fold the red strip on the top backwards to make a bookmark.

  And Done! Viola! You have got your own Character bookmarks, ready to accessorize your books!




Freshly prepared bookmarks.


The awesome foursome.


I really hope you'll like this! You can DM me pictures of your bookmarks in Instagram and follow me for more creative posts! My Instagram account is @manasa2510 .You can email me on manasa2510@gmail.com  or you can just leave a comment below! I would love to hear from you!
Twitter: @manasa2510

If you liked this, please click the 'G+1' button down there or you can even follow my blog by entering your e-mail address on the bar on the top of the blog. I might even make another set of bookmarks with the characters you want. 

I hope you enjoy this holiday season and here are some virtual hugs and chocolate chip cookies from me! Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year!

Adios!

P.S. - I have an AWESOME DIY idea for Easter! Stay tuned (what?) till then!

Friday 11 December 2015

The Blogger's note: School Days

Hello everyone! Hope you are having a great day!

So I was going through my Instagram feed and saw that many people were complaining about school.  I saw loads of posts that were captioned "I hate school", "School sucks" ,etc.

And being the person who will gladly spend any amount of time by just thinking about random things in order to postpond the overwhelming mountain of work in front of me, I wondered what was the reason why so many people simply hate school.

Then the little voice on the back of my head said, Duh! Who are you kidding? You hated school too.

True. Actually, I did not hate my school.My school was the best school in the whole city! I had absolutely no problem getting up early. My school itself was big and beautiful, with spacious classrooms and airy corridors. I loved the faculty (maybe except a few) and the other staff members. It was just that I couldn't fit in with my classmates.

Now don't get me wrong. I had such fun time with few people who I really cared about. But the thing was, I couldn't really understand the character of my classmates. So yeah, I was basically a loner.

Being the odd one out in my class, I had to face many problems. As my luck factor was really low, most of my friends were are almost always in different divisions . So I would be stuck alone in my class unable to get any help from anyone during homework submissions, projects, assignments, etc. I was really late in making friends when I was young (now don't blame me! I was a shy but hot tempered kid) and when I was old enough and ready to make new friends, the friend circles were already formed and obviously I was left alone without any group or squad. I felt like an outsider and I always had an I-am-not-supposed-to-be-here feeling. More than anything, I wanted people to talk with me. But people would do that only when they were bored of everything else or if they wanted a favor. So my usual past time was just sitting on the lectures, studying and daydreaming about the time when I would finally meet my real friends, escape my school life and become social person.

And this was the time when I was introduced to the Harry Potter novels which set a chain reaction in motion and I began to discover the world of books, fiction, fantasy and possibilities. I began to derive strength from books and they helped me survive through my lonely days. My books have literally become my best friends during high school years.

Now since I have joined junior college, I am finding new opportunities and making new friends. I have finally learnt how to mingle with people and have fun.But I wouldn't have known the meaning and importance of friendship if it wasn't for my school.

This whole experience taught me that times change. If your having a bad time right now, remember every person has ups and downs in their lives. Like the drowning man who kept clinging on to a plank on a raging sea until he was finally washed ashore, just hold on to your happy memories, hope and determination. Things will definitely change for the better. Then your school will be proud of you since you'd become the successful person you always wanted to be. They might even put up billboards with your picture in it.

Well.

I think that was enough inspirational speech for this year.


Do click on the 'G+1' button and leave a comment below if you had any similar incidents in your life. You can even add my blog in your reading list or simply share it on different social media. If you don't have a blogger account, follow me on Instagram   (@manasa2510) to be notified whenever I post a post. Twitter: @manasa2510 . I'd always like a new friend!

So don't hate school, be happy and have a great day ahead!

P.S : To any of my former schoolmates reading this, I love you all! Please don't take it in the wrong way. And thank you since you have made me stronger.

                                                            ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!!
                 
 Check out my blog at 20 December for an awesome Pre - Christmas surprise!
                           
Adios!
             



Saturday 5 December 2015

Book review: The Heroes of Olympus series

Book review ; The Heroes of Olympus series

Author: Rick Riordan

Books in the series: The Lost Hero
                                 The Son of Neptune
                                 The Mark of Athena
                                 The House of Hades
                                 The Blood of Olympus





Summary:

This is the spin-off series to the Percy Jackson and The Olympians series.

(To see its review, click here. )




A new Great Prophecy, a new generation of demigods – the adventures have just begun! In this five-book series, expect to see your old friends from the Percy Jackson books along with a great new cast of main characters, as the heroes of Camp Half-Blood embark on their most dangerous challenge yet.(Goodreads)


My review: The Heroes of Olympus series was one of the most interesting spin-off series I have read so far. We meet Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase again, but this time, with a host of new, interesting characters and a whole new world. But this time there is a greater danger than the one before.

The series was fun and thrilling but in some places, it was disappointing. Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's see more about this series!




Pros: There are a host of diverse characters in this series that you will definitely love. You can relate the characters with real life people. The series is an epic adventure and the plot is so good and thrilling that it will keep you on the edge of your seat. As it is in Rick Riordan's books, every chapter ends with a cliffhanger. Personally, I loved The Mark of Athena and The House of Hades a lot. They felt so real! All the characters are strong, brave and lovable. The female characters are well written. The plot is just incredible.

Cons: When I started reading this series for the first time, I barely got through the first chapter. The Lost Hero was a boring book. Only a character named Leo kept me going. Once I got through the book, the rest of the series swept me off the feet like a hurricane of amazingness. Another con is that after all the buildup, the ending disappointed me. Not that it was not amazing and awesome and all that, but I felt like it was too rushed. But the last book had the POVs of two misunderstood characters that everyone loved a lot after The Blood Of Olympus, so the book was totally worth it.

Conclusions: I totally recommend this series because it is worth reading and takes you to a fantastic journey. Do not miss it or stop reading it even though the first book is a little boring. Oh, and this spin-off series has an another spin-off series! Yes, The Trials of Apollo series comes out during May 2016!

Stars: 4/5

Recommended age group - 11 to 18

Hope you liked this review! If you did, do click the 'G+1' button and add my blog to your reading list!
        Also, since Christmas is coming soon, I would like to gift you all something....special! Check out my blog at December 20, 2015 and have an awesome pre - Christmas gift from me!

Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
Twitter: @manasa2510


 Adios!