Hello and Happy Friday!
Today has been a rather productive day in this neck of the woods. My brother, grandma, and I did a little bit of shopping, and then we had sandwiches on the deck. What a nice way to start the weekend. Oh, and I might also get a chance to practice golf with my mom tonight, so that will be nice! Then, I get to see a lot of my friends graduate from college tomorrow, and then my sister and I will probably sing a lot of random songs together once I come home. Really, I've been trying to figure out my work schedule and then a time that I can continue on with my project with The Magic Video Game and potentially The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs, as well as time to put together hardcopies (which I'm desperate to get done by August!). This summer will be busy for sure. Then, for this weekend, I have still decided that I should continue my talk about differences and similarities of the main characters of each series. I will give you the similarities first, since David Ingram (Rockybado), Andrew Grzedek (The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs), and Levi Cranston (The Magic Video Game) look relatively similar. Then, I will talk about ten traits that Levi has that Andrew and David do not have. Similarities: * David, Andrew, and Levi have brown hair. * They all play tennis in high school and college. * The three boys are athletic. * David, Andrew, and Levi play video games. * They have all had their tonsils taken out at some point in their lives (David's brother, Brody, also had his tonsils taken out). * The three boys do share similar interests in a lot of different aspects. * David, Andrew, and Levi are white. * They are all about the same height, 5'11". * The three boys love science fiction. * David, Andrew, and Levi keep their hair about the same way. * They graduated near the top of their high school class. * The three boys love funny movies and game shows. * David, Andrew, and Levi are all excellent at math. * Two of the three boys have had their appendix taken out at some point in their lives (Andrew when he was four, and Levi when he was in college). * All three boys are in good relationships. * The three boys are all incredible artists. They love to draw pictures. * The three boys love roller coasters and amusement parks in general. * David, Andrew, and Levi like the same kind of food: Italian, Mexican, and Chinese food. * All three boys prefer rock music over other genres, and they realize that there are some rock bands that they really like. * The three boys have cats at home. Now, I will give you ten more traits that Levi has that neither Andrew nor David have. Levi's Differences: * Levi is from Valparaiso, Indiana. * He is the youngest of five biological siblings, but he has a younger sister who was adopted from Dublin, Ireland. * Levi has dark blue eyes. * He was born in Warwick, Rhode Island. He and his family also lived in Crown Point before moving to Valparaiso. * Levi graduated third in his graduating class in high school. * He has two cats, Duchess and Prussia. * Levi's favorite food is fried chicken with barbeque. * He likes going to rock concerts with his dad. * Levi has five sisters altogether, with two of them his half-siblings on his mom's side. * He and his family go to Rhode Island for two weeks during the summer to visit family. They rent a house there. Here is Levi. As you can tell, he shares a lot of similarities with Andrew and David, but he also has a lot of differences! Another difference between the three boys is that Levi's middle names are Andrew Caleb. Andrew's middle names are David Michael. And David's middle name is Baker. Speaking of David, Rockybado and its sequel, A Run in the Game, will be FREE on Amazon for Kindle on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday! So, please check them out by reading the summaries below! Rockybado: "It is June 2006, and, after school lets out for the summer in Crown Point, Indiana, five boys find out about a robot in Texamilio, a fictitious island due west of the eight Hawaii Islands. When they meet Rockybado and his two close Bobino comrades, they are all confronted by Susan and Claude McSmith, who are both out to steal Rockybado's position as King of Texamilio, after a sour debate regarding physics in high school." A Run in the Game: "It is the summer of 2006 in Crown Point, Indiana, and Brody Ingram and Andrew McCalsky make it on the Watsons baseball team, and the team must try hard to defeat the Pratts team, their opponent, from Hebron, Indiana, that plays rough. In the meantime, Brody's older brother, Brett, must come out of his shell in order to communicate effectively with his love interest. Everyone is faced with different challenges throughout the summer." Have a great weekend, everyone! Again, don't forget to check out Rockybado and its sequel, A Run in the Game! B. Levi
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Hello, and Happy Memorial Day!
School is now over for me, and I have a week off before I have to do anything else. Well, I have to meet with my supervisor for one of my amazing jobs tomorrow, so I'm NOT completely off! I have decided that I should continue my talk about differences and similarities of the main characters of each series. I will give you the similarities first, since David Ingram (Rockybado), Andrew Grzedek (The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs), and Levi Cranston (The Magic Video Game) look relatively similar. Then, I will talk about ten traits that David has that Andrew and Levi do not have. Similarities: * David, Andrew, and Levi have brown hair. * They all play tennis in high school and college. * The three boys are athletic. * David, Andrew, and Levi play video games. * They have all had their tonsils taken out at some point in their lives (David's brother, Brody, also had his tonsils taken out). * The three boys do share similar interests in a lot of different aspects. * David, Andrew, and Levi are white. * They are all about the same height, 5'11". * The three boys love science fiction. * David, Andrew, and Levi keep their hair about the same way. * They graduated near the top of their high school class. * The three boys love funny movies and game shows. * David, Andrew, and Levi are all excellent at math. * Two of the three boys have had their appendix taken out at some point in their lives (Andrew when he was four, and Levi when he was in college). * All three boys are in good relationships. * The three boys are all incredible artists. They love to draw pictures. * The three boys love roller coasters and amusement parks in general. * David, Andrew, and Levi like the same kind of food: Italian, Mexican, and Chinese food. * All three boys prefer rock music over other genres, and they realize that there are some rock bands that they really like. * The three boys have cats at home. Now, I will give you ten more traits that David has that neither Andrew nor Levi have. David's Differences: * David is from Crown Point, Indiana. * He is the third oldest of five children. * David has blueish-greenish colored eyes. He says that they're blue. * He was born in Valparaiso, Indiana and has lived in two houses in Valpo before moving to Crown Point. * David graduated second in his graduating class in high school. * He has two cats, Felicia and Honeybunny. * David's favorite food is Italian food. * He likes going to see basketball games in Chicago with his dad, Uncle Alan, and Brody. * David looks more English and Greek. * He and his younger Irish twin brother, Brody, are consistently victims of wake-up pranks. Here is David. As you can tell, he shares a lot of similarities with Andrew and Levi, but he also has a lot of differences! Speaking of which, Rockybado and its sequel, A Run in the Game, will be #FREE on #Amazon for #Kindle on #Friday, #Saturday, and #Sunday! So, please check them out by reading the summaries below! Rockybado: "It is June 2006, and, after school lets out for the summer in Crown Point, Indiana, five boys find out about a robot in Texamilio, a fictitious island due west of the eight Hawaii Islands. When they meet Rockybado and his two close Bobino comrades, they are all confronted by Susan and Claude McSmith, who are both out to steal Rockybado's position as King of Texamilio, after a sour debate regarding physics in high school." A Run in the Game: "It is the summer of 2006 in Crown Point, Indiana, and Brody Ingram and Andrew McCalsky make it on the Watsons baseball team, and the team must try hard to defeat the Pratts team, their opponent, from Hebron, Indiana, that plays rough. In the meantime, Brody's older brother, Brett, must come out of his shell in order to communicate effectively with his love interest. Everyone is faced with different challenges throughout the summer." Have a great week! B. Levi Happy Friday, everyone!
Today is my last day of classes for the summer. I am almost on my way home from the college and will not be back until next week when I am helping out with the upcoming graduation ceremony. While I am home for the little while that I am, I will resume my writing (since I have not been able to do so for the past few weeks), and I have decided that I am going to proceed in writing more stories in The Magic Video Game series, so that is exciting! Today, I am going to give you David's and Brody's (Rockybado) friend, John Garfield. This kid moved from Crown Point to Valparaiso at the beginning of the Rockybado series, and he might actually cross over into The Magic Video Game series because he lives in Valparaiso. Well, here he is. * Full name: John Adam Garfield * Date of birth: August 9, 1991 * Residence (As of 2014): Valparaiso, Indiana * Relationship status (As of 2014): Single * Year of high school graduation (If applicable): 2010 * College degree received (If applicable): Bachelor's in Marketing and minor in Graphic Design * Likes: Tennis, Chinese food, basketball, baseball, video games, spending time with friends and family, going on vacation, cats, bowling, being on a boat * Dislikes: Football * Favorite music genre: Rock * Most favorite event(s) in life: College. * Strangest event in life: Can't think of any at the moment. As you can see, John is a pretty cool guy. Even though he has made quite a few friends in Valpo, he still has the Ingram's, Andrew McCalsky, Adam Levistad, Mark Robbins-Levitt (Oak Lawn, IL), John Harrison (Glen Ellyn, IL), and other friends from the Crown Point area. Tune in next week to learn more about diversity and how that affects the World of Sci-Fi. Until next time, B. Levi Hello everyone, and Happy Monday. At least try to make it happy.
Well, for my college, we are in Finals Week, the second to worst week of the semester, with Hell Week being the absolute worst. I don't have any "final exams," per se. However, I have two papers (one is turned in already), a take-home final, and a portfolio, all of which are due by the end of the week. Then....FREEDOM!!!! Today, I would like to share with you the differences and similarities in my main characters from each novel. The idea is based on an activity that someone who works at the college came up with. This activity includes standing back-to-back with one other person, and stepping away from each other if there are any differences noted. Then, the two participants have to turn around and look at each other. When there are similarities that are noted, the two participants have to step forward toward each other. This is a very powerful activity to use at meetings or other events because this teaches us to become more open-minded about other people from all different walks of life. I will give you the similarities first, since David Ingram (Rockybado), Andrew Grzedek (The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs), and Levi Cranston (The Magic Video Game) look relatively similar. Similarities: * David, Andrew, and Levi have brown hair. * They all play tennis in high school and college. * The three boys are athletic. * David, Andrew, and Levi play video games. * They have all had their tonsils taken out at some point in their lives (David's brother, Brody, also had his tonsils taken out). * The three boys do share similar interests in a lot of different aspects. * David, Andrew, and Levi are white. * They are all about the same height, 5'11". * The three boys love science fiction. * David, Andrew, and Levi keep their hair about the same way. * They graduated near the top of their high school class. * The three boys love funny movies and game shows. * David, Andrew, and Levi are all excellent at math. * Two of the three boys have had their appendix taken out at some point in their lives (Andrew when he was four, and Levi when he was in college). * All three boys are in good relationships. * The three boys are all incredible artists. They love to draw pictures. * The three boys love roller coasters and amusement parks in general. * David, Andrew, and Levi like the same kind of food: Italian, Mexican, and Chinese food. * All three boys prefer rock music over other genres, and they realize that there are some rock bands that they really like. * The three boys have cats at home. Now, on to the differences. David Ingram (Rockybado): * David and his family do not normally go to church. But when they do, they go on Easter and Christmas Eve with their extended family. * He has two older brothers, Dawson (now 29) and Brett (25), and two younger brothers, Brody (22) and Toby (19, was adopted). * David can play the guitar, and he can sing very well. * He is of English, Italian, some Irish, German, Greek, and some Polish descent. The Polish and Irish were not discovered until recently. However, he is still half English. * David prefers car racing games because they are more fun. * He attends college at a small university just thirty minutes away from Warsaw, Indiana. * David studies Marketing and Finance in college. * He had a girlfriend in high school, whose name is Cera Berringer. After the beginning of college, they broke up because they figured that the relationship would not work out. Now, he is dating Olivia Flavenshevich, a college classmate who is also from Crown Point. * David's favorite color is blue, as is Brody's. * David's birthday is on September 30, 1991. Andrew Grzedek (The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs): * Andrew and his family are Catholic, but they are not strict. * He is the oldest of five. His younger siblings are Caleb (now 21), Adam and Cameron (19), and Alyssa (almost 15). * Andrew is excellent on the piano, but he cannot sing well at all. * He is three-quarters Polish, one eighth English and one eighth Irish. * Andrew likes a variety of video games. He has no preference. * He attends college in Valparaiso. * Andrew studies Marketing and Spanish in college. * He had a girlfriend in high school, whose name is Eliza Colbert. They broke up during their junior year in high school, since they went to different schools. Then, since college, they have been dating again. * Andrew's favorite color is green. * Andrew's birthday is on August 17, 1991. Levi Cranston (The Magic Video Game): * Levi is Jewish on his mother's side. They celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas, and Levi and his siblings have had a bat/bar mitzvah. * He has two older half sisters, Louise (34) and Elizabeth Baranovsky (33), two older sisters, Victoria (26) and Olivia (25), and one younger sister, Evelyn Maeve (15, was adopted). * Levi does not play a musical instrument, but he has been interested in taking up the guitar before. * He is of Irish, English, Italian, Polish, French, Israeli, and possible Spanish descent. * Levi prefers classic video games. * He attends college in Angola, Indiana. * Levi is studying Biomedical Engineering. * He has had a girlfriend since four days after he had his tonsils taken out in October 2005. Her name is Mackenzie Burbanks. They have been dating since then. * Levi's favorite color is red. * Levi's birthday is on October 30, 1991. See? Diversity matters. No matter how similar you may look, you will come across so many differences. I am sure that there are so many more differences with these three guys, but ten is all I will give you right now. In the meantime, I am off to a celebration at my job. Until the weekend, B. Levi Thank Goodness It's Friday!
That's what we all say. Except....for one thing. Next week, we have finals, and we, of course, have to prepare for them. I luckily do not have many finals. I have two papers, one exam, and one portfolio. Does that seem like a lot? Trust me. It still is. I am still sad that I have to put aside the Rockybado series for a few months, but I still think about all of the characters every day. I haven't left them for long, nor have they left me. I believe that the next series that I will work on will be The Magic Video Game series (Book 3 only) and The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs (Book 3 only). I would like to get Rockybado 3, The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs 3, and The Magic Video Game 3 books published by the end of August, so I know what I will be working on for the summer! Now, on to more important business. Hahaha, just kidding. I am going to introduce to you John Harrison, another of Brody's roommates in college. He is also a friend of David's, who has also made friends at his college near Warsaw, Indiana. However, David just likes to make friends in general. * Full name: John Harrison * Date of birth: June 29, 1992 * Residence (As of 2014): Glen Ellyn, Illinois * Relationship status (As of 2014): Single * Year of high school graduation (If applicable): 2011 * College degree received (If applicable): Working toward degree in Computer Engineering * Likes: Everything except Brussels Sprouts * Dislikes: Brussels Sprouts * Favorite music genre: Rock 'n' Roll, baby * Most favorite event(s) in life: Spending Friday nights in a residence hall or house eating Chinese food or pizza and playing video games with friends until 4 in the morning * Strangest event in life: Too many to count. Here is John Harrison. Now, next weekend, I am going to talk about another guy named John, who is a friend of both David and Brody Ingram. But....I will give you more info about him next weekend, so stay tuned! Until next week! B. Levi Hello all and Happy Tuesday!
Today, I am going to do something completely unconventional, and I am going to write a poem that talks about this week and the fact that it is Hell Week. Last night was my last night working on the Rockybado series for a while. I will go back to that series when I finish The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs and The Magic Video Game. Oh yeah, and also the next book of the Amazing Sci-Fi Compilation series. Silly brain does not want to function well during Hell Week. Well, without further ado, here is my poem titled, "A Poem About Hell Week." A Poem About Hell Week by me Welcome to Hell Week. I have two papers to write. One should be eight to ten pages. Another should be no more than four. Then, I have a take home exam In Marketing Management. Oh, and I almost forgot About that portfolio for Spanish. And a test in Tennis That I must take on Friday. I have a new home. It's the computer lab, Where I spend all of my time. I have friends next door In the library. We have decided to have a block party. We are gonna have a BBQ To celebrate Hell Week. That's my poem, and you will most likely not see me again until the weekend, as I have my two papers to work on. See ya, B. Levi Hello, and welcome to B. Levi and the World of Sci-Fi!
Today is Saturday, as we all know. Today is a busy day. Next Saturday is going to be busy, and my life is going to be busy until the end of finals, which is two weeks from yesterday. This year has gone by very quickly, and, even though I may not have done my personal best, I have made so many amazing connections, both with faculty, staff, and students. I could go on and on about this whole year, but then my blog would be at least twice as long as most blogs are. Right now, I am going to talk about one of Brody Ingram's roommates and teammate on the college tennis team, and his name is Mark Robbins-Levitt. * Full name: Mark David Robbins-Levitt * Date of birth: September 23, 1992 * Residence (As of 2014): Oak Lawn, Illinois * Relationship status (As of 2014): In a relationship with Maggie Bailey * Year of high school graduation (If applicable): 2011 * College degree received (If applicable): Working toward degree in Marketing (major) and German (minor) * Likes: The German language, bowling, running, baseball, tennis, video games, Chinese food, German food, learning something new every day * Dislikes: People who talk only to hear themselves talk * Favorite music genre: Rock and R&B * Most favorite event(s) in life: Spending Friday nights in a residence hall or house eating Chinese food or pizza and playing video games with friends until 4 in the morning * Strangest event in life: Mark is roommates with Brody Ingram, and they are on the college tennis team together. They found out that, even though they graduated from different high schools, they have so much in common, including having the same birthdays and having their appendix taken out when they were younger. However, Mark has a twin brother, Ian Kevin Robbins-Levitt, who goes to a college in Romeoville, Illinois. Brody has an Irish twin brother, David, who goes to a college that is thirty minutes away from Warsaw, Indiana. Ladies and gentlemen, this is Mark Robbins-Levitt. Now, on an unrelated note, The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs and its sequel, The Sound of a B Flat, are going to be #FREE on #Amazon for #Kindle THIS FRIDAY May 8th and SATURDAY May 9th! My sci-fi compilation, The Crazy Chicken Escapade, will be #FREE on #Amazon for #Kindle THIS SATURDAY May 9th! Please check them out, and the summary for each novel is listed below! The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs: "It is June 2006 in St. John, a town in Northwest Indiana, and five siblings find out about the existence of dinosaurs through their neighbors who actually visited them. At a swimming party, the neighbors give the three younger siblings a book with a T-Rex's number on it. When all five kids visit Galavanti Island, they help Dacston, a T-Rex, Valpatic, a velociraptor, Jokie, a brachiosaurus, and Sammy, a stegosaurus, locate a case of saxophones that Selfish Arnie, Dacston's cousin, has taken from all of the citizens of Galavanti Island." The Sound of a B Flat: "Summer of 2006 commences in St. John, a town in Northwest Indiana, and Caleb Grzedek's band is starting to get known. Andrew, his older brother, starts his first tennis season in high school. He also spends time with his girlfriend and best friends, and Caleb finally comes up with the band's name with his best friends. And, coming from a big family, the Grzedek's are often visiting their relatives, and the five kids are always learning new things. Therefore, summer is off to a good start." The Crazy Chicken Escapade: "Three boys meet at a birthday party and realize that they have more in common than what they have previously thought. David Ingram, from Crown Point, Indiana, Andrew Grzedek, from St. John, Indiana, and Levi Cranston, from Valparaiso, Indiana, then play a magic video game at Levi's house. They all eventually meet Marty and his creature friends in Wakahakai, Dacston and his dinosaur comrades on Galavanti Island, and Rockybado, the King of Texamilio. Everyone finds out that the nearby chicken community has been taken advantage of, and they all set foot to free Radcliffe, the elected leader of the chicken community, as well as bring the overall group back to normal." Have a great rest of the weekend! B. Levi Happy Hump Day, errbody!
Due to the fact that my week is extremely busy thus far (and I have three papers to write by May 18th), I am going to try to keep this blog post short and sweet. I am currently sitting in the computer lab at my school while waiting for time to pass for my Spanish class. I came out of tennis, and I was able to get a little bit of time to myself. I am happy and sad to say that I am almost done with Rockybado for a little while. I am happy because that means I can move on to either The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs or The Magic Video Game and stick with that series for a few months. Of course, I will return to each series within months. However, I am sad that I'm leaving Rockybado because I have grown so attached to the characters in that series that I don't want to leave them. Well, in theory, I won't. I'll keep thinking about them when working on the other two series. So, that leaves me with the question of: Do I have a favorite series? My answer? Yes and no. As I might have said before, I go through "phases" when I work on one specific series and that is all I think about. So, for example, I have been working on Rockybado (well, always thinking about it) since early October 2014, and I have been putting all of my writing energy on that specific series. However, I love all three series equally; there are just different ideas for each series. I also like the fact that the characters from each series get the opportunity to meet each other in what I call my Amazing Sci-Fi Compilation. So, with all of this in mind, I love all three series. Another thing to take into consideration, The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs, The Sound of a B Flat (sequel), and The Crazy Chicken Escapade (sci-fi compilation) will be FREE on AMAZON for KINDLE on FRIDAY and SATURDAY! Please note that The Crazy Chicken Escapade will be FREE on SATURDAY only. Please check them out by reading the summaries below! The Jazzy Island of Dinosaurs: "It is June 2006 in St. John, a town in Northwest Indiana, and five siblings find out about the existence of dinosaurs through their neighbors who actually visited them. At a swimming party, the neighbors give the three younger siblings a book with a T-Rex's number on it. When all five kids visit Galavanti Island, they help Dacston, a T-Rex, Valpatic, a velociraptor, Jokie, a brachiosaurus, and Sammy, a stegosaurus, locate a case of saxophones that Selfish Arnie, Dacston's cousin, has taken from all of the citizens of Galavanti Island." The Sound of a B Flat: "Summer of 2006 commences in St. John, a town in Northwest Indiana, and Caleb Grzedek's band is starting to get known. Andrew, his older brother, starts his first tennis season in high school. He also spends time with his girlfriend and best friends, and Caleb finally comes up with the band's name with his best friends. And, coming from a big family, the Grzedek's are often visiting their relatives, and the five kids are always learning new things. Therefore, summer is off to a good start." The Crazy Chicken Escapade: "It is the summer of 2006 in Northwest Indiana, and three boys meet at a birthday party and realize that they have more in common than what they have previously thought. David Ingram, from Crown Point, Indiana, Andrew Grzedek, from St. John, Indiana, and Levi Cranston, from Valparaiso, Indiana, then play a magic video game at Levi's house. They all eventually meet Marty and his creature friends in Wakahakai, Dacston and his dinosaur comrades on Galavanti Island, and Rockybado, the King of Texamilio. Everyone finds out that the nearby chicken community has been taken advantage of, and they all set foot to free Radcliffe, the elected leader of the chicken community, as well as bring the overall group back to normal." See you this weekend! B. Levi Hello everyone and Happy Friday!
Here I am, spending a Friday night working on homework, and, of course, my blog! I saw the midnight premiere of a movie that a lot of people are looking forward to, and I decided that it would be best for me to rest up for tomorrow, since I am celebrating my friend's birthday tomorrow night! I am aware that I am using a lot of exclamation marks! Oh well! Now, I am going to tell you a little about Adam Levistad (Rockybado), who is David Ingram's best friend! * Full name: Adam Brown Levistad * Date of birth: June 22, 1991 * Residence (As of 2014): Crown Point, Indiana * Relationship status (As of 2014): Single * Year of high school graduation (If applicable): 2010 * College degree received (If applicable): Pre-pharmacy (major) and Spanish (minor) * Likes: Biology, some chemistry, tennis, video games, Chinese food, everything else that is worth liking * Dislikes: Football * Favorite music genre: Rock, a little bit of everything (except classical) * Most favorite event(s) in life: Traveling with the parents and aunt, uncle, and cousin * Strangest event in life: During his junior year of college, Adam's friends from college encouraged him to sing for an open mic night, even though they have all known that he is not a great singer. Adam reluctantly agreed to sing, and the open mic night was successful. Well, here is Adam Levistad! Speaking of this series, Rockybado, its sequel, A Run in the Game, and my first sci-fi compilation, The Crazy Chicken Escapade, are going to be FREE on Amazon TOMORROW, so please be sure to check them out by clicking the links below! Rockybado A Run in the Game The Crazy Chicken Escapade Have a great weekend! B. Levi |
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About my BlogMy blog contains anything and everything one should know about my books. Aaaaand a lot more as well. |