It’s the Holiday Season

Greetings and good tidings, all!

I hope my American friends had a splendid Thanksgiving and that all my Jewish friends had an amazing first night of Hanukkah.

As usual, my family spent the first part of Thanksgiving watching (and critiquing) the Parade.

After the parade, we headed over to our family friends’ house, where we spend every Thanksgiving and Christmas.  The day always starts off with pre-dinner refreshments…

Followed by a bit of holiday shoot ’em up games.

Thanksgiving and Christmas… the only two days of the year I indulge in video games.

Then, once dinner is ready, the kids (i.e. those of us ranging from ages 25 to 16) mosey on down to the kitchen, where those of us over the age of 21 prepare the alcoholic beverages.  This year, however, we had a bit of a mishap.

In case you can’t tell what this is, my friend tried to open a bottle of wine… and somehow managed to push the cork INTO the bottle. So far, in fact, that it got stuck.

Seriously, how does this even happen?

The absolute failure in this picture is overwhelming.

Once the cork has been freed and the wine is finally flowing, we head into the dining room to claim our rightful seats…

At the kiddie table.

Yup.  25 years old.  Masters degree.  Published author.  Still at the kiddie table.

I can’t lie.  We all secretly love it.  Seriously, who wants to sit with the grown-ups?

After we’ve thoroughly stuffed ourselves, it’s time to decorate the Christmas tree, or as the grown-ups say, to earn our desserts.  At the Kiser-Smith Thanksgiving Dinner, we have to work for our right to cheesecake.

I think that looks pretty cheesecake-worthy.

Finally, before the night ends, it’s time for the annual years-of-friendship photo shoot.

This includes the traditional Kristen Stewart Face group photo.

Kristen Stewart Face 2011

Kristen Stewart Face 2012

Kristen Stewart Face 2013

And of course, I had to get a picture of the newest edition to the family in front of the Christmas tree…

In case you’re wondering, yes, everyone did make fun of me for this.

Now that Thanksgiving is over, we are in full-fledged Christmas mode.  That means non stop Christmas music, decorations, and regular viewings of The Muppets’ Christmas Carol.

On the Cemetery Tours front, I’m still hard at work on the sequel.  I am still aiming to have the first draft of the manuscript finished by the end of the year.  That’s going to mean some serious focus and dedication on my part, but I think I can do it.  Cemetery Tours is still receiving amazing reviews on Amazon and that motivates me more than I can even tell you.

Well everyone, let the Christmas festivities begin!

My First Trip to Lubbock or Seven Hours in a Movie Theater or OMG There is Snow Everywhere

I wish I had been updating throughout this entire weekend.  It probably would have been a lot funnier as it was happening.  As it is, however, I have about an hour and a half to kill sitting here in the airport, so I’ll try to recap everything to the best of my comic abilities.  

My sister and I have been planning to see “Catching Fire” at midnight since the first movie came out.  She is a freshman in college and we both agreed that it didn’t matter where she ended… one of us would fly out to the other so we could see the movie together.  She ended up at Texas Tech in Lubbock, so as soon as movie tickets went on sale, I bought two tickets and booked my flight to Lubbock. 

Now, my parents love Lubbock.  Every time they visit my sister, they come home absolutely raving about it.  Me, I’d never been, but the way my parents made it sound, Lubbock was just paradise on Earth and I would just love it so much and places like Scotland and the Gulf Shores would pale in comparison.  Naturally, I was eager to visit this exotic piece of Texas Heaven.  

I was so excited when I finally arrived at the airport on Thursday afternoon.  Not only would I get to see my sister, but we were going to see “Catching Fire!”  THE cinematic event of the season!  Also my favorite book of The Hunger Games trilogy.  My optimism didn’t waver one bit when my dad warned me that Lubbock was expecting snow storms over the weekend and that I needed to pack boots. 

Now here’s the thing about me.  I believe in packing the absolute least I need to get by.  Boots take up a lot of space in a suitcase and they are a nuisance to wear through airport security.  After insisting over and over to my dad (by the way, I get my stubborn side from him) that I would be fine, he relented and I went about my happy little way, sure that I would not actually need boots.   

Almost as soon as I made it through security, I noticed that my flight was delayed.  Again, not a big deal.  Flights get delayed all the time.  I don’t think I’ve ever taken a plane that actually left when it was supposed to.  Heck, the plane I’m supposed to be taking in an hour is delayed.  Hence the blog post.  And actually I’ll be home when I actually get to post this.  I’m just writing it at the airport.  

For the record, I just tried to take a selfie with my laptop to prove that I’m at the airport, but I just ended up looking really stupid.  I’m trusting you all to just take my word for it. 

So back to Thursday.  Plane’s delayed, but I wasn’t worried, or even fazed by it.  I was in too good a mood.  Finally boarded the plane, the flight attendants tell us to buckle seat belts and turn off electronics.  Check.  Okay.  Got it.   

We pull back from the gate.  

Then we stop.  

Okay, again, no big deal.  They were probably just checking something or communicating with the control tower.  

 But then twenty minutes passed, and I began to wonder.  Finally, the Captain came over the speaker and announced, “Uh, hello ladies and gentlemen.  You might be wondering why we haven’t moved.  We’re experiencing some technical problems.  We’ve discovered we have no steering.  We will know in a few minutes if it can be fixed so we will either be headed back to the gate or on our way to Lubbock.”

 Okay.  Not cool.  

 I don’t know if I’ve ever told you all this, but I am a very nervous flyer.  I think it has something to do with my control issues.  Or you know, the fact that there is absolutely NOTHING between the plane and the ground after it takes off.  I hate turbulence, I hate that feeling you get when your ears pop, and I hate being closed in tiny little places and knowing I can’t get out.  I love traveling, but I’ve got to tell you that the only thing I like about flying is LANDING.  

 So, Mr. Captain, you’re trying to tell me, an already anxious passenger, that you might not be able to steer the plane?  Oh, that’s awesome.  

 However, I knew that the Captain would never knowingly endanger the lives of his crew, his passengers, or himself, so I knew that he wouldn’t take off unless he was absolutely 100% certain that the plane would land safely in Lubbock.  And we did.  Twenty minutes after we were supposed to.  

Lubbock! Very flat.

Pretty sunsets though.

 The reason that was an issue was because I had a shuttle waiting to take me to my hotel.  Well, apparently shuttles don’t like sitting around and waiting on planes that are almost half an hour late, because mine left.  While I waited for my bags, my mom called the hotel for me to let them know I’d finally arrived and that I still needed a shuttle.  The lady said that she would have sent the shuttle that was supposed to get me back to the airport, but it was stuck in traffic.

 Wait a minute, what?  There’s traffic in Lubbock?  Hey Mom, where’s your magical land with no traffic?  

Stranded in Lubbock. Making sure to stay inside because it is COLD.

 Anyway, to make up for the lack of shuttle, the hotel called a cab for me.  They told me to look for a checkered cab.  Now that right there confused me.  I’d actually never ridden in a taxi cab, but weren’t they all checkered?  Well, it turns out that Checkered Cab is a company!  I found that out only after I ran over to a not-Checkered-but-still-checkered cab and asked if they had been sent by La Quinta.  The driver was very nice and honest and he told me that no, he hadn’t been, but he would love to take me since A) I was in no way dressed for the frigid Lubbock weather and B) I wouldn’t have to wait around.  I told him thank you, but I thought it was best to wait for the cab that was scheduled for me.  I didn’t tell him that the real reason I wanted to wait around was because the hotel was paying for the other cab and I’m a poor writer up to her ears in student-loan debt. 

 Well, the Checkered Cab finally came and I made it to my hotel.  My sister came to pick me up and we went to Chili’s.  There, they got my order wrong, but one of the waiters who worked there actually looked like Finnick Odair, so I didn’t mind all that much.  After we ate, we hightailed it over to the movie theater for Catching Fire!  

 We arrived at exactly 8:00.  Four hours to midnight!  But, as anyone who has ever attended a midnight premiere knows, if you want good seats, you’ve got to get there early.  

Movie Theater!

May the Odds be Ever in Your Favor.

 Well, we got there early, alright.  Unfortunately, we went to the wrong theater!!!  Apparently, Lubbock has more than one movie theater!  Who knew?!  

 Well, we finally made it to the RIGHT theater, and still managed to get a pretty decent spot in the line for seats.  For those of you sane people who’ve never waited four hours to see a movie at midnight, it’s a very interesting endeavor.  You’d think it would be long and boring, but you’re so excited and everyone around you is so excited that you kind of feed off each other.  There’s an unspoken sense of camaraderie.  You don’t know these people, but you know automatically that you share at least one similar interest, in this case, The Hunger Games.  Books are powerful.  I bonded with a few of my closest friends over books.  

This is the RIGHT movie theater.

 One of my favorite moments while we were still waiting in the hall was when a few guys walked by, glanced at all of us in line, and said, “Oh, are y’all waiting for the Hunger Games?  Harry Potter dies in the end.”  I don’t know why, but he cracked me up.  

Camped out in the hallway.

 When the doors to the theater were finally opened to us, my sister and I bolted for the best seats in the house.  We settled ourselves down to top row, middle of the theater seats and prepared ourselves for the beginning of the revolution.  

 Two hours later, we were ready.  The lights began to dim, the screen went black…

 And then a lady and two men walked to the front of the theater.

 “Hey guys, we’re sorry to have to tell you this, but we’re experiencing some technical difficulties.  This movie is showing on a lot of screens right now, so it will take just a few more minutes to get yours up and going.  It will probably start around 12:45, but you won’t have any previews.”

 Well, it just so happened, my sister and I didn’t have to wait for Catching Fire for the revolution.  We got to experience an uprising right there in the theater.  My sister was ticked off because she had an 8 AM class.  The people in front of us were ticked off because we were among the first people in line for the movie, yet we’d be the last to see it.  We should have been the FIRST theater to get the movie!  A few of them started angry-tweeting Cinemark, which, I have to admit, while childish, was kind of funny.  I was pretty much just flabbergasted.  Had I brought the Delay Curse with me or something?  What was the deal?!  

This is the movie theater screen while we were waiting for the movie to start.
Illusion that movie theaters still use those cool old movie reels: Shattered.

 Well, naturally, I forgot about everything as soon as the movie actually started.  Catching Fire might actually be one of the best movies ever.  Seriously, I am pretty hard to please when it comes to movie adaptations of books that I love (I hate the third Harry Potter movie.  I’m even more resentful of the fact that Prisoner of Azkaban is my favorite book!), but Catching Fire was PERFECT.  I found myself reading the book in my head throughout the entire movie.  I loved it.  I loved everything.  I loved all the new cast members and I especially loved the returning characters.  I actually cried during Effie’s final scene.  There was nothing I did not love about that movie.  My sister and I are already planning to see it again on Wednesday when she comes home for Thanksgiving.  

 Okay, it is now the day after I began writing this post.  I was planning on having it finished and up as soon as I got home from the airport, but I was so tired that I crashed right after I ate dinner.  

 I’m sure I’ll write another post about how much I loved Catching Fire at a later date, but at the moment, I’m still overwhelmed by how amazing it was.  

 Anyway, the rest of the weekend was absolutely frigid.  I knew it was supposed to get colder, but I had no idea that it would be freezing.  The temperature must have dropped at least twenty or so degrees while we were in the movie.  I even took a picture of the world to remind myself how cold it was.

Are you serious?

 I finally got into bed around four in the morning.  The next morning, I was rudely awakened by a strange noise blaring throughout the entire hotel.  After the noise didn’t stop, I stepped out into the hall to discover that the fire alarm had been triggered and that the hotel staff were signaling everyone to gather down in the lobby.  Since I was still in my pajamas, I ran back into my room, pulled on a sweatshirt, and grabbed my phone and my computer (obviously the most valuable in my possession) and ran down to the lobby wearing my pajamas, totally barefoot, and clutching my computer like a treasured stuffed animal.  I also still had my night guard in.

Fancy hotel elevator.

 Well, needless to say, there was no fire.  Everything was totally fine.  It was a heck of a way to wake up, however, after such an amazing movie.   

The rest of the weekend was, to put it lightly, COLD. 

That’s the view out of my sister’s windshield. It’s frozen over. That is all ICE.

You can see the cold in the air.

TGFS – Thank God For Starbucks!

However, it was still enjoyable.  My sister and I saw a lot of her professors and a few classmates perform in a local theatrical production of Les Miserables.  Simply fantastic.  

 

Before the play started, my sister and I walked around and looked at Christmas trees!

 

 

 

We also had lunch with my friend Rachel and her wonderful husband, Steve.  Rachel is my oldest friend and just so wonderfully delightful.  We’ve been friends since we were 3.  She’s actually one of my sister’s teachers also and is in the process of earning her PHD.  God bless her soul.   

My sister and I also made a stop at Barnes and Noble, where I almost always have more fun than I should. 

I love this cover of Dracula! Isn’t it beautiful? It makes me wish I didn’t already own it so I could buy this one!

Look! I found my book!

That’s me!

The rest of our weekend was spent trying to stay warm…

And when that didn’t work, we decided to just embrace the arctic chill and went out to play in the snow.  As much as I complain about the snow, I secretly love it.  I don’t like driving in it and I don’t like being cold, but there is something magical about snow, especially when you live in Texas.  

 

Finally mastered the art of the snow ball.

Then I got on a frosty airplane and went home.

The end.

 

A Few Fun Facts About the Upcoming Sequel

As I have mentioned on this blog several times before, I am in the midst of writing the first draft of the Cemetery Tours sequel.  In fact, I am almost halfway done with the manuscript.  Tonight I thought, just for fun, that I’d write down a few facts about the book!  

1) I’ve had the idea for this book in my head longer than the idea for the first one.  I wrote the first one just so I could write this one.  

2) I’m not releasing the name until I have it registered with Bowker.  I’m hoping that will be sometime in the early months of 2014.

3) Unlike Cemetery Tours, which takes place mostly in Dallas and the surrounding area, most of the sequel will take place in a different state. 

4) Brink wasn’t going to play as big a role in this book.  However, after everyone told me that he was their favorite character and that they wanted more of him, I decided to include him on the adventure.  I’m glad I did.  He’s a lot of fun to write.  

5) There’s one particular scene that I haven’t written yet, but I’m pretty sure that when I do write it, I’ll cry.  

I’m stopping here because I don’t want to give too much away, other than I’m really enjoying writing this one and I hope it makes a worthy companion to Cemetery Tours. 

Little Achievements

I actually got a lot done this weekend.  

I finished editing the book that I agreed to read!  It was my first real romance novel.  I mean, yeah, I’ve read almost every single one of Nicholas Sparks’ novels, but I kind of feel like they’re in their own genre.  This book was Beguiled by Laura Parker and it was a historical romance novel set in 1987.  If you’d like to find out more about it, you can check it out on GoodReads.  

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6317457-beguiled

I discovered that I really enjoyed editing.  I’m actually pretty good at it.  Don’t get me wrong, I still prefer writing but there are a lot worse ways to spend your time than being able to read while helping someone out at the same time!  Plus I got a free book out of it. 

I was given a week to read and complete the edits.  I’ll be honest, as much as I enjoyed reading the book, I did kind of feel like I was back in grad school.  Grad school is, above everything else, a LOT of reading assignments, at least if you’re a Humanities major.  I’ve never regretted my decision to go to grad school (though the mass of student loans that will probably follow me until the day I die might have me taking that back in the coming years).  This week, however, I realized that I’d probably advise anyone who wants to pursue an independent career, if they can, to go to grad school.  

For one thing, people take you WAY more seriously if you tell them you have a Master’s Degree.  Seriously, when I was an undergrad and told people I wanted to be a writer, they’d either laugh or ask, “But what do you want to do for a career?”  Once I got to grad school and told people I wanted to be a writer, they’d all ask what my plans were, what I wanted to write!  Suddenly you’re a cool, reasonable adult!  Also, it looks great on resumes and on your LinkedIn.   

“Oh, she has a Master’s Degree.  She must know what she’s doing.” 

Quick story: Once, my best friend and I were at a party hosted by her brother, one of my lawyer friends, and he invited us and all his lawyer and medical student friends.  We both agreed that being able to say that being able to say that we had Master’s Degrees in that crowd made all the schooling and papers and reading and torture worth it.  Even if it never gets me anywhere in life, at least I looked smart in that group of people!  

The greatest advantage I gained from grad school, however, is that I learned dedication, patience, and how to overcome intimidating obstacles.  It wasn’t as much what I learned in graduate school that helped me out as it was the skills I developed while learning.  Grad school takes everything you learned as an undergrad and forces you to question it all and look at it from a different perspective.  It’s really different from college and in my experience, a lot more useful, especially for an independent writer and publisher.  I learned to finish what I begin, to respect deadlines, and to not let self-doubt get the better of me, because it almost did during graduate school.  Then I read The Hunger Games and immediately felt like I could do anything, but you know, not everyone will be as lucky as I was to have Katniss Everdeen as a grad school ally.  

It’s funny.  All throughout college, I was the only one of my friends who had no intention of going on to grad school.  The only reason I applied was so I wouldn’t have to get a “real” job.  Maybe I should have postponed graduation a little longer…

Aside from finishing editing Beguiled, I also got to do a little photographer, but sadly those pictures are on my other computer.  I’ll share them eventually.  

Cemetery Tours also got another great review!

It also surpassed 300 likes on Facebook!  Woo-hoo!  

https://www.facebook.com/CemeteryTours 

I think that might be all for now.  All I can really think about is how I am a mere three days away from attending the midnight premiere of CATCHING FIRE!  

Be jealous.  

Good night, all! 

 

In Other Exciting News…

I’m happy to share the latest review of Cemetery Tours:

 

As well as the totally thrilling news that Cemetery Tours is OFFICIALLY available on BarnesandNoble.com!!!

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/cemetery-tours-jacqueline-e-smith/1117000854?ean=9780989673402&itm=1&usri=9780989673402&cm_mmc=AFFILIATES-_-Linkshare-_-GwEz7vxblVU-_-10%3A1&r=1%2C+1 

Pretty neat!  

Anyway, I’m still hard at work editing and working on the sequel.  I’m going to see my cover designer tonight, so hopefully I’ll have a verdict on the cover image that I really, really, really, REALLY want.  I’m going to do a book exchange with another author, so that is exciting too! 

Also… IN LESS THAN A WEEK I WILL HAVE SEEN CATCHING FIRE!  I CAN’T WAIT!!!

Calling All Authors: Donate Your Signed Books to our Troops for the Holidays

If you are an author and looking for a great way to celebrate the upcoming holidays, please consider donating one or several of your e-books or signed copies of your books to Blue Remy’s Books for Troops!  You can find all the information you need here: https://www.facebook.com/blueremysbooksfortroops?hc_location=stream 

There is also an event to which you can RSVP: https://www.facebook.com/events/259033564252643/?source=1 

Please consider giving to those who’ve sacrificed so much to keeping not only our country, but countries all over the world safe.  

Note: This is NOT limited to Americans!  The giving has reached authors all over the world!      

New Game Plan

So, for the past like, two months, I have been blabbing on and on and on about marketing.  I need to get my book out there, I need to get people to read and review my book, etc…  I’m still obsessing, reading articles, trying to put every effort into promoting Cemetery Tours.  I’m not an aggressive person by nature, so I often feel like promoting my work is the same thing as bugging people.  I definitely prefer to let my work speak for itself, and, at the risk of sounding like an arrogant, self-important dingbat (one of my favorite words at the moment), I’m pretty confident that it will.  I, like several writers, am very sensitive to criticism and humiliation, and I would not have put Cemetery Tours out there if I wasn’t damn proud of it and confident that people would enjoy it.  So far, I’ve heard only good things.  I’m curious as to how I’ll feel when someone looks me in the eye and says, “You suck.  Your book sucks.  Get thee to a nunnery, you hopeless loser.”  

As much as I love my book, however, I have found I’m not all that fond of marketing.  I have a few more ideas in mind.  For example, there will be another Kindle promotional thing for Christmas.  It won’t be free again, but it will be discounted.  Amazon won’t let me schedule it yet, but as soon as I can, I will announce it… over and over and over again…  

I was talking to my dad (basically my business brain since my own brain is all sparkles and dolphins and rainbows) and his advice to me was, “Focus on the sequel.  Get that done.  Then, at the beginning of the year, make one last big push for Cemetery Tours while spreading the word about the upcoming sequel.”

See?  This is why it pays for writers to know BUSINESS.  I never would have thought of that.  I would have just gone on my merry little way begging people to read my book while sporadically working on the sequel.  I know how to write stories, but my dad (and other lucky smart people) knows how real life works!  I used to joke around that the world would be a better place if everyone was more like me, but the truth is, I’m really glad more people aren’t like me.  If they were, nothing would ever get done.  Absolutely no one would do anything productive at all.  They’d all sit around by lakes, writing stories about ghosts, and wondering if things that happened in the past are actually happening now… but in the past.  Or if everyone sees color the same way.  

The world really doesn’t need very many people like me.  I do try to do good things and give back though, so maybe I do contribute something.  

Anyway, that’s the new game plan.  Promote still through the holidays, but really focus on getting the sequel together.  I’ll announce the title as soon as its registered on Bowker, which it won’t be until it’s finished… However, I am very excited about it.  I’ve had the idea for this book in my head longer than the idea for Cemetery Tours.  I basically wrote Cemetery Tours so I could write this book.  

That’s all for now!  Gonna go eat blackberries and edit and write!  I’m also going to go get socks because it’s actually COLD here and my feet are freezing!    

Just Rolling Along

It’s a new week, and as usual, I am still learning, still writing, and still single.  

That last one was a joke.  Sort of.  

Anyway, as you all probably know, I like to keep this blog updated, even when I don’t have all that much to say, so here it goes.  

1.  I think I’ve found an image for cover of the Cemetery Tours sequel.  I’m still waiting for approval from my graphic designer, but I’m super excited about it.  I hope he likes it.    

2.  Upon finding said image, I have determined that I need to find cover designs for every single book I have in my head.  Needless to say, I wasted  spent a LOT of time on Shutterstock.com last night.  

3.  I’m still making progress on the CT sequel.  I’m halfway through chapter 12.  Hoping to finish first draft by the end of 2013, but I think I’ve already mentioned that.  

My manuscript and my cat.

4.  Cemetery Tours is up to 8 reviews on Amazon, and 8 ratings (All 5 star!) and 3 reviews on GoodReads.  Here’s the latest from Amazon!  

 

5.  I’m editing a book this week!  It’s important in this line of work to lend a helping hand.  Always be willing to read, edit, review fellow authors!  It’s a great way to build friendships, develop new skills, and network!  

6.  There’s an event on Facebook going on this month that is designed specifically for helping independent business owners/artists/whomever has a “like” page to meet other people and build their following.  It’s great!  This is the link: https://www.facebook.com/events/607484369298466/626990287347874/?notif_t=like

Thanks to this group, Cemetery Tours has gained 23 “likers” in one day!  

https://www.facebook.com/CemeteryTours 

7.  IN EXACTLY TEN DAYS I WILL BE GETTING READY FOR THE MIDNIGHT PREMIERE OF CATCHING FIRE!!!  

Goals

Well, it’s the end of another week.  It’s been semi-productive.  I’ve made a little progress on my books, I’ve attended my first writers’ meeting, I had lunch with my high school English teacher who is also writing a book (I’ll probably be helping him out with the social media aspect of book marketing), and I’ve done my best to keep spreading the word and hoping for reviews for Cemetery Tours.  So far, it’s going pretty well.  I have seven reviews on Amazon and three on GoodReads.  

My new goal, aside from hopefully getting more reviews, is to finish the first draft of my next book, which I’ve decided will be the sequel to Cemetery Tours, by the end of 2013.  I really hope to have it published sometime by late spring, early summer.  

When I started writing this entry, I had this whole idea that it was going to be about goals and dreams and freedom, but at the moment, I really just want to work on my manuscript, so I think that’s what I’ll do!  Good night, all!  

About Time

Okay, so there’s this new movie out.  It’s called About Time.  It stars Rachel McAdams (one of my favorite actresses ever… I’ve never not liked anything that she’s been in) and Domhnall Gleeson AKA Bill Weasley from the last two Harry Potter films.

In case you are not aware, Domhnall Gleeson (son of actor Brendan Gleeson AKA Mad-Eye Moody) is one of the cutest people alive.  But that’s totally not the point of this post.

The point is I had seen trailers for this movie and thought, “Aw… that looks cute.  And Rachel McAdams and Bill Weasley are in it!  I kind of want to see that.”

I had completely forgotten about it, however, until tonight.  My friend and I decided to have a somewhat impromptu girls’ night and she mentioned going to the movies.  Being the little hermit that I am, I had no idea what was playing.  This movie came up.  I remembered that I wanted to see it.  Okay, let’s go!

I thought it was going to be one of those cute chick flicks that you see once, think, “Aw, that was cute,” and then never think about it again.  Not even close.  I’m not sure I’d even call it a “chick flick.”  Yeah, it’s a romantic comedy, but it’s one that I really like that guys would enjoy too.

Domhnall Gleeson is perfect as Tim, the gawky, slightly awkward, too-tall, too-skinny, and too-ginger protagonist, who turns out to be a time-traveler, as are all the men in his family.  Thanks to this ability, he is able to go back and relive all the moments and save himself from totally embarrassing situations (several of which are laugh-out-loud hilarious and adorable).  He also ends up using this little talent to meet the love of his life, but I don’t want to go into too much detail.  I’d hate to give away the entire movie!  All I can say is, as part of a generation who really loves the tall, dark, and broody bad boys, it’s so refreshing to see a leading man who is awkward, fair, and real.  He’s cheerful, sweet, by no means a lady’s man, and just simply the cutest guy ever.  I’ve heard that guys hate it when girls call them “cute,” but seriously, it is a huge compliment.  You should take it and run with it.  Rachel McAdams is delightful as ever.  I don’t even feel like I have to tell you she was wonderful, because she always is.  I loved Tim’s kooky family members as well, particularly his sister, Kit-Kat, a pure-hearted free spirit who is the very heart and soul of the film, and their slightly crazy but ultimately sweet and lovable Uncle D.

Aside from amazing casting and characters, About Time had one of the single best messages of any film that I’ve seen in recent times: Live each day like it was so wonderful that you meant to go back and relive it.  I have nothing to add to that, because I think it’s pretty perfect on its own.