weathered things

The Useless Etymology of a Name A Vignette About my Name and its History The meaning changes whenever I look it up. One day it means peace, another it means olive branch, and yet the meaning behind the meaning stays the same: peaceful, weak. Throughout my life, the peace forced upon me by my name has led to injury—emotional and physical. The moment I began to be referred to as Olivia, it twisted me. My nature was calm, demure, matching my name, matching my blonde hair, matching my pale skin, and my pale attempts at strength. It was not always supposed to be a delicate word. The name was stolen from my great grandmother, Lila. Her middle name was a mystery, only known as O. My parents assigned the name Olivia to it, and, in her honor, assigned the name to me. Only after it was set in stone was it revealed that the O I was named after was Olive, not Olivia. A disgusting, sour fruit that very few have a taste for. While the fruit was not fully assigned as my name, it stayed as ...

Hello everyone! I'm posting on a Friday, shocking, I know. I just wanted to give an update on my un-scheduled hiatus. I am currently polishing the last draft of my book (for now, who knows if more edits will come), and that, along with directing a play which is bringing up interesting challenges. I plan to write a post when we perform that is gonna be called something like "things i learned by directing a play." Look for that around November 11th *wink wink*. It's actually making me think about making a new series called "things i learned" to chronicle my new experiences and things I learned (clearly). What do you think? It's my name! My book is going well, thanks for asking although I'm not sure you even did. As you all probably know, I'm represented by Hartline Literary Agency , specifically Cyle Young and Tessa Emily Hall. It's really weird to go onto the website and see my name listed––but cool too. I'm polishing it a...

So, for those of you who know about this, I am part of an international writing collaboration called Project Canvas . Project Canvas is a book for teen writers by teen writers, and in it we all share tips, tricks, relatable author life content, and how-to's (of course, all of them have very open possibilities since everyone writes differently. It is merely to give help to those who want it). My chapter in this book is called The Human Behind the Gun... and it is all about crafting a great villain. So, in this little post, you get a glimpse of my chapter and ten the headers in the chapter! Hope you enjoy it and buy the book when it comes out––I hope you all enjoy the book too. | | | DRAWN TO DARKNESS. We all love good a good villain. Some we love, some we hate, some we love to hate, and some we hate to love. But the villain we are presented with on the page or screen is just the product of layers and layers of planning. Sad backstories are only the basics, and sometim...

So, if you haven't already noticed, I changed my blog theme... again. I am never happy with what I made it to look like, even with the banner. so, I'm simply going to keep it like this. I do like it. It's nice. Clean. Aesthetic. Also, I've decided I'm going to post on Saturdays. I feel like that'd work a lot better with my schedule and ish. Anyways, on to the original reason for this... I'm running out of inspiration. Ideas. Everything, really. I missed the last to blog posts. I wanted to write something good for this week, but I just can't. School is back in session, and I've got a wordpress blog for my Christian Worldview and Analysis course, and that requires weekly posts. I'm working on my book. I'm polishing it since I finished the big-picture edits and word-cutting edits. Luckily I've got a class where that is literally what I'm supposed to do for two hours. I'm directing a play at my school, as well as ...

a letter to me before my senior year in the style of "sincerely, me" from Dear Evan Hansen. | | | Dear Olivia, We've been way too out of touch. Things have been crazy, and it sucks that we don't talk that much. But I should tell you you've been doin' okay. You've learned when to stand your ground and when to walk away. I gotta tell you growing up has been real nice                                                        been real cool                                                        been real weird. And I just wish anxiety hadn't interfered. I like my job I love my job, but each day's another fight If I just eat healthy food, then everything might be alright. Wait, no. If I stop stay...

I forgot to schedule this, so it's late, but here ya go. | | | This is a new series I'm going to start, telling the inspiration for whatever story I'm writing in an aesthetic way. This is going to be the story of how I came up with the idea for Mended and Torn , my current WIP. | | | It's 2012. I've read this amazing series called The Gallagher Girls  by Ally Carter, and it opened my eyes to the world of espionage. I mean, I've always been interested, but this... these were teens who were being trained at a secret academy. The main character spanned sophomore to senior year, ages 16-18, and everything was so compelling. I started writing something that was pretty much fan fiction with my own characters, too young to figure out that I can take this inspiration and weave my own story, completely different. It captivated me, and I found myself planning it into a 5 book series, with eleven chapters each book. Around book 3, I got bored. It's too...

First off, sorry this is late. I was going  to  paint my room this weekend, and I wanted it yellow. We brought the swatch in and they didn't have the color so they had to mix it. We poured out the color into the pan and it looked right, so we painted it the yellow color I wanted--but when it dried it turned a disgusting shade of green. So, now I'm sleeping in the basement for 5 days and we're repainting it the color it originally was. Chaos has happened, and I didn't get to write. But here's the post now! | | | As I get older, I realize a few things. One of them being I’m no longer a kid. I don’t get all the freedom I used to, but in some ways I get more than ever before. I am not allowed to be childish and joke around because I’m supposed to be mature. I'm not allowed to waste days away just hanging out with friends,  because  there are things I need to do, and just one day off can mess up my schedule. I can't go to parks unless I...

The way the humid summer nights Clings to your skin, To your breath, To your soul, Capturing you and instilling magic Held by millions of fireflies Into your being. The way waves lap the shore, And the smooth rock slips from your hand, Slapping the water, Darting out to the deep, Giving you hope for a new day, Giving you love for this life. The way bonfires snap in the dark, Sending shadows and light across faces, Displaying the truth behind eyes, A light for secrets to be shared and kept In the small glowing circle. The way the night sky changes you, Making you curious, Making you calm, Bringing out the excited child, Bringing out the content adult, Mixing all aspects of your being Into the true version of you. The way your friend laughs, On a day when you don't feel 100%, And brings joy back into your heart, And reminds you there is good in this life. The way mist forms on a cloudy morning, Swirling and tw...

DISCLAIMER: This is a completely un-solicited review and book talk, all comments are honest. In other words, #notspon but I love it so I'm talking about it. | | | This is a short story by Kennedy Vega (I know her as @januaryrabbit on Instagram), and it is a Hades and Persephone retelling. Her plans are to have it out by the end of the summer, however she is debating on turning it into a full-length-novel. ~•~ Persephone is a beauty born with a curled foot, making her the family's least treasured posession and maid. When her younger sister, Anathema, is born with a blood disease destined to end her life before three years of age, Persephone's parents make a bargain with Hades, promising that if he pushes her death farther out (into old age), they'll give him Persephone when she turns 18. But, there's a catch. Persephone must choose to willingly go with Hades––if she refuses, he will bring back Anathema's blood disease and she will die. P...

WHOO this was a long time coming. Yes, I"m not posting on a Monday. I missed the 2nd, so I'm posting on the 5th. I promise there'll be a Monday post next week (I'm literally so excited for that one). The Minneapolis Young Writer's Workshop was AMAZING this year. Last year was great, but they totally took it up five levels this year. The classes were so much more in depth, we got to talk to an agent from Red Sofa Literary, an editor from BlinkYA, and four great authors! Not only did I get to talk to people in the industry, I saw a friend I know from plays when I was younger as well as my old church (if you're reading this wassup Jonah), I saw friends I made from last year, and I made a new friend who is honestly awesome (Kristana hey girl)! If you are able to, I highly suggest attending next year. People from around the states came, and it was so fun to meet with everyone. Sorry this was short, I don't really have much to say other than that it was...

Holy crap, Olivia, where the heck have you been? I know, I know, I haven't done a blog post for... *checks timeline* Jeez, May 19th. I am so sorry. I have got some stuff going on, and if you follow my Instagram (@the.real.olivia.ann) you know bits and pieces of it. Long story short, I've got blog posts coming out. Next week there will be one looking back on my experiences of the Minneapolis Young Writer's Workshop, I've got a flash fiction I've been meaning to post, and I've got a few writerly things I want to post. For now, I've got a few things to share with you. First off, yes, my blog changes a lot. I'm trying to get it to fit my aesthetic and I am never content with it, but I'm actually okay with the design now. Anyways, onto the whole thing that I just realized I didn't share with you when it happened. I am now a represented author. And here is the story of how it came to be. | | | 2013, I had a story in my head I wa...

I didn't write a post yesterday! I'm sorry. Finals is horrific and I may not be able to post on schedule for the next bit. Either way, I decided to go the easy route and just copy-paste a section of my story in. I hope you enjoy this excerpt from The Sleipnir Chronicles Book 1: Mended and Torn. | | | Mended and Torn The Sleipnir Chronicles by Olivia Ann Schwab Excerpt One: Chapter One Leaning my backpack against the chair, I glance over her shoulder and see what’s pulled up on her laptop—the name of a lawyer. A divorce lawyer. “I’m sorry your parents are getting divorced,” I tell her. “I know how hard it can be to lose them.” She whirls around, fury and hurt welling up behind her dark eyes. “What?” I lean forward, forearms bracing against my desk, any and every hint of care dissipating from my voice. “Your parents are getting divorced. Must suck, but, hey—nowhere near as awful as being an orphan.” Her hair violently whips her face as she shakes her...

I am sorry! I missed last week because it was the week after the play and I was absolutely EXHAUSTED. Also it was my birthday so I had a load of crap to do with people. Either way! I'm going to try and get back up on schedule. This is my job, I can't slack off. However, it's finals for me so I don't make any promises until June. Either way. I actually don't  have a topic for today. So... I've decided to give updates and open a Q&A in the comments! I'm planning on starting a Youtube Channel soon, and I am planning on doing multiple types of videos (books, writing, art, cooking, vlogs, etc). I have a tentative name for it (not my own, because I like the channel names that aren't people's actual names) that I'm not going to tell you because SPOILERS. I've furthered my agent quest, and am most likely going to be signing on with them (more on that when it happens). And yeah, that's about it. So about the Q&A. I'm plan...

Olivia where have you been!? I am sorry for my un-expected hiatus these last two weeks. It started because I put off writing and scheduling a blog post and then I got way too busy with rehearsals and such (in fact, this week is tech week and some cast members still  don't know their lines so I'm going crazy) so I ended up not doing any writing––in my blog or  in my book. I know, I know––I've thrown myself off my schedule, I've neglected my children and I'm really sorry for that. Anyways! Onto the actual topic. Being a teen entrepreneur. I myself am one––I'm writing books (therefore starting my own business kinda), I'm preparing to launch my acting career (and maybe a YouTube channel), and I'm only 16 (almost 17). And people often write us off as kids that are in a "phase." *TANGENT* I cannot tell you how much I hate the phrase "Oh, it's just a phase." But the thing is, if we are saying "we want to start a ...