Bernadette Benda

*We’re gonna pause here for a second to talk about my two missing blogs in the last two weeks. My Unannounced Hiatuses were unplanned and I totally meant to post this blog on Saturday but then Friday blew by and that night I only had energy to watch the Mandalorian *AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH* and then go to bed. In general, due to a long litany of reasons I have been very overwhelmed and exhausted. But anyway here we are. Let us proceed*

It’s that most wonderful and magical time of the year: everyone’s Spotify Wrapped has been released.

I’m gonna take you on a wild magical mystery tour down my Spotity Wrapped which is….interesting.

*Disclaimer: I also listen to a lot of things on itunes so this doesn’t include all the Beatles and “oldies” I listen too plus Lord of the Rings and Interstellar at least weekly and….more Hans Zimmer*

First off, the two first songs that started playing were from Veggie Tales because I went on a weird binge at some point during the summer (I went on this Veggie Tale binge because I needed something “happy” and childhood lane did it).

Then a lot of songs from Frozen II (which I didn’t even like the movie) played because I went on another weird binge in the spring (this was when I was editing Lily (which I’ve kinda shoved in a drawer for now) and for some reason the music from Frozen II just worked really well with the story??? I don’t know but it was weird and I listened to it like every day for two months).

AND some of the song that made it to my 2020 Wrap Playlist (leaving out all the Sleeping At Last songs which is like half of it, because again, I was trying to sleep)

• Friction by Imagine Dragons
• Rise from The Dark Knight Rises
• Show Yourself from Frozen II
• Mr. Blue Sky by ELO
• The Gang from The Mandalorian
• Lake Shore Drive by Aliotta Haynes Jeremiah
• Hunger from Black Hawk Down
• Run Boy Run by Woodkid (which I also ran a lot to this year, so if you play it, watch out, I’m gonna start running)
• The Mudhorn from the Mandalorian
• Action-Reaction from Wonder Woman
• Like a Dog Chasing Cars from The Dark Knight
• Hooked on a Feeling by Blue Swede
• My Blood by Ellie Goulding
• End Credits from the Giver
• Sixteen Hundred Men from 1917

So yeah. I’m not sure what you would call my music taste but personally, I like it.

And if you’re like me, I just have to write to music, and the music has to match my story, though sometimes the matching up may seem a bit odd to it, it works for me. And I discovered some new music this year which was cool. The 1917 soundtrack, The Last Samurai, the Mandalorian….

But looking back at the year has made me realize how looooooong 2020 has been. Like…I looked back at my journal and saw that I didn’ t take a real dance class from like March 15 to July????? We were in lockdown for FOUR MONTHS??? I DIDN’T REALLY DANCE FOR FOUR MONTHS??? WHAT DID I DO???

*the answer is binge listen to Frozen II*

*and walk the neighborhood in maddening loops*

*and wrote. I did write a lot*

So anywho. I’m currently taking a break from querying because most people have closed queries in December, and am trying (not very successfully) to finish Red Heart, Ice Mountain (my NaNo) novel) which is coming along, though slowly.

And I mean slowly because this battle scene is currently over 5k words and is. still. going. Though I am nearing the conclusion (of the battle, not the story).

And again, all my planning didn’t pay off as much as I thought it would. Like, this one city I did not plan out the geography AT ALL, so know I just keep changing it in the middle of the story, and during this battle the geography keeps changing and be added too so yeah that’s gonna fun when editing (also, geography is everything during a battle so I’m really just creating a huge problem for my future self).

So there’s that. There’s my Spotify wrapped and there’s my writing update. Have a nice night (well, morning, or whatever time you’re reading this. I’m wishing you the time of day).