I'm Past Patiently Waiting: The Most Motivational Hamilton Quotes

If you don't live under a rock on a deserted island in the middle of a different dimension, you've probably heard of Hamilton: the Musical. A transformative performance about America's history, Hamilton follows the life of our first treasury secretary--with rap music. It's become the musical of a generation, getting kids excited about history, diversity, and music.
Every time I listen to Hamilton, my heart soars in a way that it rarely does. The music is inspiring and motivational--it makes you feel like you can do anything you set your mind to. Hamilton's story is one of facing adversity openly and aggressively, with a determination to achieve your goals no matter the cost. Each character faces their own struggles; there's someone for everyone to relate to! No matter who you are, Hamilton makes you want to create.
Today, I've decided to curate a master list of inspiring Hamilton quotes: print them out and place them in your place of work. Be your own community's Hamilton!

1. You could never back down; you never learned to take your time.

2. He looked at me like I was stupid--I'm not stupid!

3. I'm a diamond in the rough, a shiny piece of coal trying to reach my goal; my power of speech: unimpeachable!

4. Don't be shocked when your history book mentions me.

5. I am not throwing away my shot.

6. I'm past patiently waiting! I'm passionately smashing every expectation every action's an act of creation. I'm laughing in the face of casualties and sorrow--for the first time I'm thinking past tomorrow.

7. 'Cause I've been reading Common Sense by Thomas Paine; some men say that I'm intense or insane; you want a revolution? I want a revelation, so listen to my declaration.

8. Dying is easy, young man. Living is harder.

9. I will never be satisfied.

10. Love doesn't discriminate between the sinners and the saints; it takes and it takes and it takes; and we keep loving anyway; we laugh and we cry and we break and we make our mistakes. 

10. Death doesn't discriminate between the sinners and the saints; it takes and it takes; and we keep living anyway: we laugh and we cry and we break and we make our mistakes; and if there's a reason I'm still alive when everyone who loves me has died, I'm willing to wait for it.

11. I am the one thing in life I can control. I am inimitable, I am an original. I'm not falling behind or running late. I'm not standing still I'm lying in wait.

12. Don't do a thing. History will prove him wrong.

13. My name's been through a lot; I can take it.

14. Look around at how lucky we are to be alive right now.

15. Oh, let me be a part of the narrative of the story they will write someday. 

16. History has its eyes on you.

17. You have no control: who lives, who dies, who tells your story. 

18. Immigrants--we get the job done!

19. When you knock me down I get the f-ck back up again!

20. You'll blow us all away.

21. Man, the man is non-stop!

22. Why do you write like you're running out of time? Write day and night like you're running out of time? Everyday you fight like you're running out of time!

23. How do you write like tomorrow won't arrive? How do you write like you need it to survive? How do you write every second you're alive?

24. There is no more status quo; but the sun comes up and the world still spins.

25. You can write rhymes but you can't write mine!

26. When you got skin in the game, you stay in the game--but you don't get a win unless you play in the game. You get love for it, you get hate for it, you get nothing if you wait for it. 

27. If you stand for nothing, what'll you fall for?

28. I've got to be in the room where it happens.

29. We'll teach them how to say goodbye, you and I.

30. I wrote my way out.

31. When my prayers to God were met with indifference, I picked up a pen, I wrote my own deliverance.

32. You and your words flooded my senses; your sentences left me defenseless; you built me palaces out of paragraphs; you built cathedrals.

33. I'm not afraid; I know who I married; just let me stay here by your side--that would be enough.

34. I will not equivocate on my opinion; I have always worn it on my sleeve.

35. What is a legacy? It's planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.

36. I ask myself, "What would you do if you had more time?"

My Top 5 Favorite Books (+ Why!)

Good afternoon everyone! I've been an avid reader for as long as I can remember, and my love of books prompted me to want to write my own. Today, I thought I'd share my favorite books with you!

1. Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Mariller

Daughter of the Forest is a Celtic retelling of the fairy tale of the Seven Swans. This book is the first in a series, and my mom suggested it to me a couple years back--I've only read it once, but it will always hold a place in my heart as one of my favorite novels! The best description I can give of this novel is one of chocolate cake: each page is rich with warm, delicious storytelling. I read this book over the course of two months, reading a couple pages each day and savoring it. Don't worry though, Daughter of the Forest is anything but boring! The details are made interesting with poignant plot twists, great dialogue, and meaningful characters. The climax of the novel had me in hysterics at about one in the morning. Truly an incredible read!

2. The Harry Potter Series by JK Rowling

I love Harry Potter. You love Harry Potter. We all love Harry Potter. Do I really need to explain?

3. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

I was suggested this book by a friend of mine, and I'm so thankful that I picked it up! With a lot of unoriginal YA fiction around these days, Daughter of Smoke and Bone is enchanting and vivid, with characters you really want to root for. It centers on Karou, a girl caught between two worlds--our own, Earth, and another filled with monsters and angels. Her world is turned even further upside down than it already is when she meets Akiva, her love interest (surprise!) and someone she feels drawn to for reasons she can't explain. The detail in this book is incredibly intricate, and this book manages to be touching without being overwrought, romantic without being predictable, and exciting without being annoying. A true win for YA fantasy!

4. The Engelsfors Trilogy by Sara B Elfgren and Mats Strandsberg

I picked up the first book in this trilogy, The Circle, in Traverse City on a weekend trip when it was suggested at the bookstore--I read the summary, and when I found it had six female main characters that were witches, I knew I had to read it. Despite it being a huge book, I finished it within days, and was hungry for more. The Circle focuses on a group of girls who gain magic powers after the "suicide" of a boy at their school. Set in a small town in Sweden, Engelsfors, these girls' use their powers for good, evil, and just about anything in between. With a rotating perspective, you get lots of time to understand and sympathize with ever character. The writing is vivid and interesting, making you feel incredibly involved with the plot. I suggest this book to anyone looking for a fresh new read!

4. A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

You know a book is good when you read it as a kid, and then when you read it again a few years later, it's still good! Lemony Snicket's morbid and dry humor makes the outlandish stories of three orphans and their terrifying stalker even more fantastical than they already are. With resourceful, sympathetic main characters, an incredible villain, and a plot that always keeps you guessing with the sheer unfortunate-ness of it all, A Series of Unfortunate Events is truly exciting, with morals and themes that people of any age can appreciate.

5. How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

I read How I Live Now when I heard about the movie (which I've actually yet to watch), and I've held it close to my heart ever since. How I Live Now centers on a girl, Daisy, and her trip to visit cousins in England--a terrorist attack happens soon thereafter, and she and her other female cousin are split from the boy cousins. She and her sister trek across the English countryside to try and find them again. Touching and poignant, How I Live Now paints a disconcerting yet somehow mellow portrait of a family separated, as well as youth issues and a coming of age story. Very interesting!

If you've read any of these and want to tell me what you thought of them, or plan to read any of these, please let me know in the comments or tweet me (@m_kekai)! Happy reading!

Kekai

Top 5 Writer's Resources!

Hey everyone, and happy Friday! Ever needed some good writer's advice? Ever needed something to finally get you into the groove of writing? Well, I'm your gal tonight then, because guess what post I just wrote! That's right, here I have my top 5 writer's resources. Let's get right into it:

1. National Novel Writing Month

National Novel Writing Month (Or, more popularly, and briefly, NaNoWriMo) is an online program by which you can challenge yourself to write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. You can post a synopsis of your novel, update your word count on the site, and talk to fellow writers! This is an incredibly fun endeavor, and how I completed my first full-length novel (rather than the novellas of my youth). Even if you're a more seasoned writer with a writing routine already, it's exciting to participate--there's a sort of motivation that comes with knowing you're working with others towards a common goal.

2. She's Novel

I stumbled upon She's Novel a couple weeks ago, and have been addicted to it ever since! Aesthetically pleasing and infinitely encouraging, I find Kristen Kieffer to be funny and inspirational. This came along at the perfect time for me, as I just started working very hard on creating a writing routine (I'm writing a post involving that very soon), and I needed a little jump start for my motivation. She also has guest writers from time to time. I especially love her articles How I Learned to Write Every Day and My Two Step Method for Finishing Your Novel.

3. Writer's Digest

A writer's advice classic, I often spend time trolling through the Writer's Digest archives, looking for any articles that may appeal to me--I often get the magazine for Christmas. Insightful and interesting, Writer's Digest has a lot of different content, so if you need advice on a particular writing issue, you're sure to find the help you need here.

4. 750words

I used to use 750words a lot when I was younger, and this is another great site for young writers or people just starting out with a writing routine. 750words is where you can write 750 words a day--it tracks your progress and productivity, and saves your work.

5. Written? Kitten + Write or Die!

So, do you work better with a carrot or a stick? Either way, I've got you covered! Written? Kitten! is a site where you are rewarded with a picture of a kitten per number of words that you write, which you can adjust at your leisure. Meanwhile, Write or Die threatens you--if you don't keep writing continuously until you reach your goal, the site gets consistently more irritating until you continue to write. Write or Die is great because it really forces you to focus, or else. Written? Kitten! is great because, I mean, cats.

I hope you like this list! Please let me know if you check out any of these, I'd love to hear what you think of them.

Enjoy,
Kekai

How to Be Productive on Long Plane Rides

Hey everyone! Kekai here, sorry about the long time between postings. Anyways, I'm here today to talk about something that's difficult even for the best of us: being productive on long plane rides--or any plane ride, for that matter. I've definitely been in situations where I've said, "Oh, I'll get that done on the plane ride there/back/in between!" and nothing's gotten done. Whether you're completing some homework, writing a novel, or whatever it is you need to complete, hopefully these tips will help you.

Be sure to be well-rested before your plane ride.

When I'm on a plane, the first thing I want to do is sleep--the whoooole time. When I went to Iceland and England last summer, I was planning on getting some writing done. I just slept instead! If you make sure you get plenty of sleep before the plane ride, and fuel yourself with food or caffeine once you're on the plane, it will be a lot easier for you to feel ready to get some work done once you've boarded.

Start as soon as you're in the air.

Seriously! The longer you wait to start your work, the more likely you are to drift off to sleep or do something else that's off-task. The sooner you get started, the sooner your work will be done; that's true in every instance, not just on plane rides.

Play some inspiring music (in your headphones).

Be sure to make a study/work/productivity playlist of some songs that motivate you before you get on the plane, or ensure that you have access to one that someone else has made. I've found that listening to music on a plane can feel kind of surreal, in a sense that you feel above it all and inspired. Whether it's New World Symphony or Anaconda, plug in to something that pumps you up!

Keep the window open.

That is, if your neighbors don't mind! Having the natural light filtering into your space can often help you feel more awake. On top of that, being able to see the clouds or sweeping landscapes below you can be a huge motivator. (I highly suggest just closing your window and sleeping on a red-eye...those are always the most difficult to work on--if you can do it, I applaud you!)

If you know them, ask your seatmate to hold you accountable. 

Having someone else who's aware of all the work you have to do can really help you get it done. They can reward you with snacks if you complete your task(s), and they can equally punish you by withholding your phone, coffee, or neck pillow until you accomplish your goal!

Well, there they are! I highly suggest trying to get some things done while you're on a plane--it's a fixed place with no internet, so you really don't have much else to do but the things you really need to complete! I hope you all find these tips helpful. :)

Happy travels,
Kekai