Thunderbolts and Lightning

Posted on by scott

Long time, no see. Like, a lot longer than usual.

Turns out I didn’t post for our whole six weeks away in St Louis, Las Vegas, New York and South America. It was a very awesome and exhausting trip. But sorry to leave you hanging.

Luckily, good times were had by all, and were well documented, so there are a ton of cool pictures and videos to share with you. Spoiler alert: Brazilian fans are very awesome.

At this exact moment, however, I’m jetlagged to buggery, and will share with you just this one amazing thing.

On our flight from Rio, Brazil to Santiago, Chile, Justine tapped me on the shoulder and pointed out the window. (She is a window sitter and I am an aisle-ist. Is there any more perfect marriage?) Outside, somewhere over Argentina, was a huge anvil of clouds, its structure revealed by the lightning flickering and flailing within.

It was a very big and violent thing to witness, especially from the fragile vantage of a flying machine. But any nerviness was totally outweighed by old-fashioned awe.

My iPad camera I managed to capture a fraction of what it looked like:

Pretty intense, right? But go look at it bigger on YouTube.

More cool stuff soon. Promizes!

162 thoughts on “Thunderbolts and Lightning”

  2. Glad that you were all safe. Thanks for sharing the video.

    Due to your blog title, I’m now singing Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, which I assume was your intention, Galileo, Figaro…

  4. I hope your trip was enjoyable! I understand your jetlagged-ness. One of the problems with traveling.

  5. Icy view! Storms while flying are the bubbliest- as long as there isn’t extreme turbulence and no one gets hurt.

    Also, I finally got to reading Shay’s Story (school was evil to me and I had literally no time to read for pleasure since I had 2-3 books a week for my lit class). And David’s letter to Shay – just wow. I had to stop reading and just thought about the whole tril and wow. That was painful. Can’t wait for Cutters!

  7. That storm’s quite something. How do you think Deryn would have responded to that? Awe, or worry for her airship’s safety? (it’s pretty close to what happened in the book…)

  9. Barking spiders! That would be terrifying! And also really exciting….sigh….I haven’t been off the ground for five years and counting….

  10. ooh, air travel! always gets me. i just have to watch the takeoff and landing, and be alert of the clouds and turbulence no matter how many times that day i’ve already seen it. airman instinct.

    wait whoa you were in New York and i didn’t know about it??? Scott, you need to tell us this stuff! NOOOOOOOO i missed my chance!

  11. Haha, that looks epic. I love airplanes…. I can’t really explain why, it’s just kindof a strange fascination…

  12. YESSS! i’m sure TrueUgly will find this interesting: i begged and pleaded for the Uglies so guess what my holiday present is? a brand new, shiny, boxed set of the Uglies. yay! now i can finally read them and not have to deal with the stupid library! MINE. ALL MINE. 😀

  16. You’re lucky, Scott! I love flying through storms cuz i never get sick so while everyone else is like UGH TURBULENCE i’m glued to the window like “oooh look at all the pretty lightning!” 😀

  17. You’re still alive! I was starting to get worried! Sorry to hear about your jetlag-ness. And that’s an awesome video!

  18. If I had seen this when I was 8 I would’ve died of a panic attack (I used to hate lightning) but now I just wish I was there cuz that looks pretty frikin’ awesome.

  19. Also Scott, don’t disappear for so long ever again! I thought some secret ninja organization had captured you! I was worried sick! 😉

  20. @14: You’re not the only one who’s read Uglies. I have, too. I just haven’t read the rest….Because then I started rereading Goliath….

    By the way, if anyone here is on DeviantArt, do you know what’s wrong? I keep exiting and coming back, logging in, going back to bookmarks, etc., but everything comes up in a really weird view like different lines and links that are usually there (create a muro, create a journal entry, etc.), but it’s nothing like dA at all and I can’t see any art….HELP!

  22. @20- you must read the rest. Prettiest is my favorite (just cause I’m a total sucker for Zane.) it is absolutely mind blowing.
    I’m working on reading Leviathan, but I’ve been really busy lately…

    @21- I know right! Not a day passes that I don’t think about the series!

  23. @21&22: I haven’t read it all because a) I got it from the library and I only checked out the one, b) I have too much homework, c) I have hundreds of other books that I actually own (not really hundreds but whatevs) that I need to read, and d) I reread my favorite parts of Goliath way too much….XD it’s mostly my fault, but I can’t help the rereading book. YOU WILL UNDERSTAND ONCE YOU FINISH THE BOOKS. Now THOSE are books I think about every day….
    OkaystopmeI’mgoingtostartramblingandgiveawaytheentiretrilogy. My comment signature on dA is bad enough….Maybe I should put it in Portuguese….(It’s from the Bonus Chapter, which got translated into Portuguese a while back. ^^ Only on the blog, though….)

    Leviathan people fill in the blanks if you can: Deryn was [blank blank], really, and [blank] worth throwing [blank] an [blank] for. Maybe that was too many blanks….blank=one word. If you get it, DON’T SAY WHAT IT IS. IT GIVES AWAY THE ENTIRE TRILOGY.

    Oh, on the subject of dA: It’s back to normal; I have no barking idea what happened.

    (Ooh! Uglies people: With reading Leviathan comes awesome swear words, too!)

  26. @23 your blanks were a little too easy, at least for me. but i won’t spoil it for the poor people who still haven’t read LBG

    @24 gotcha. i’m trying desperately, but spare time has gone extinct in my world.
    🙁 *sigh*

    @25 no not floods! i hope you’re safe now! but even if you’re not you still have Westerblog 😀

  27. Hey guys! I’m sort Of thinking about making a book trailer for Leviathan, only I can’t decide on the soundtrack. Any song suggestions??

  28. @26: I know. It’s so easy….I could quote so many LBG things at you, like, pages. And pages and pages and pages. And now I’m supposed to be memorizing two quotes from Lord of the Flies for our essay test tomorrow and I’m like, “EET EZ IMPOSSIBLE!!!!!” Favoritism can be crippling. XD

  29. @27 Young Pilgrims, by the Shins. I don’t really know why, but that song reminds me of Leviathan. Deryn mostly.

  30. @27: “The Minnow and the Trout” by A Fine Frenzy. It reminds me of when Alek and Deryn met, and the whole alliance between the Clankers and Darwinists.
    *checks playlist again*
    WhydoIjusthaveDaleksongsXD
    “Starlight” by Muse maybe. Maybe that’s too Dalek based….I can’t think of a good overall theme….I have too many songs for individual scenes. XD

  32. @31: Hello! how are you doing? i’m scrambled over all the work we’re getting before winter break! does your school torture you with this madness, too?

  35. Anyone here Pentatonix fans? I went to their concert on Tuesday!!! It was awesome, needless to say.

    Christmas break starts tommorow!! Although with basketball it’s not completely a break.

  36. that is so intense i love air travel. one time my plane got struck by lightning on a unrelated note i will have been obsessed with this blog for a year on christmas

  37. @32
    Psh!! I went on break last week xD all my finals are D-O-N-E!(: also, I got a 101.53% on my Algebra 2 final(: lol sorry I kinda wanted to show off xD

    @33
    What are you talking about crazy? We text like all the time lol(:

  38. hey everyone look at what i just noticed: we’re all posting comments on the 21st! screw the Mayans, looks like we’re all still here!

    @32 i get out for break today… this afternoon… T-minus 8hrs. 14minutes 28seconds and closing… i can’t wait any longer!

  39. @38- psh, no. I totally died when the world ended and now I’m part of the Zombie apocalypse! Haha

    @37- NICE! And it was sarcasm, my friend lol

  41. Hello, all. It seems that we’ve survived the apocalypse. We should tell all the little ones our epic survival stories when they grow up and just be like, “You were too young to remember it but…” or, “You weren’t born yet, and…”
    It will be amusing.
    Anyways, I trust you’ve all had a nice week or whatever. So some of you have had finals, I can see. Both of our school days for finals were cancelled, so we have two extra days of Christmas break, and they won’t be until the ACTUAL end of the semester. So none of my finals are done…
    *laughs* I remember Algebra II. *laughs some more* *fist pump* Got an A!
    Also, HI DEREK!!! (a.k.a. Daliz)

  44. @41: I had an A for like a day. Then she put the quizzes in and I went down to a B-. Again. Maybe I’m too much of a perfectionist, but I used to LIKE Algebra. I have no idea what happened. I do all the work right and somehow my answer is wrong? I don’t understand! I’d rather just calculate how many inches of water spread across the Leviathan’s membrane equals eight tons. (One inch, but it said so in the book.)

  45. I’m just wondering:
    Is anyone else DYING for Leviathan to be made into a movie? Because I think that would be just the best thing ever!

    I think everyone would have to be unknown actors, at least Alek and Deryn. And everyone would have to have their appropriate accent.
    I also think it’d be cool if they actually had everyone speak in the actual languages they’re supposed to (since most of it’s in English, anyway), with subtitles!

  47. So I went on a walk today to survey all the damage from yesterday’s apocalypse and some of the wreckage was pretty awful. I even saw a crack in the road and a patch of dead grass.
    😉

  48. I just saw the Life Of Pi movie. It was totally AMAZING.
    Does anybody know if the tiger was actually a real tiger??

  49. @45: YESYESYESYESYESYES
    They should totally do what they did for The Da Vinci Code, which was cast actors that were actually the correct nationality of the character. And yes on the languages and just YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES

    By they way, I just saw The Rise of the Guardians. Did anyone else? IT’S SO CUTE.

  50. I want to see Rise of the Guardians AND Life of Pi (wanna read that one too)!

    @47 Person With Hat: You. Are. Awesome. lol. 🙂

  52. @47 hahaha but i had more damage than you! a leaf fell off a tree and my favorite twig snapped. 😉

  54. @50- Thanks! 🙂
    @51-Of course. Be my guest.
    @52- That’s brutal. I hope you’ll make it through this time of hardship and suffering.

  56. The funny thing is that we actually had a snow storm on Friday and the power went out and a couple trees fell lol

  58. Je suis terrifié!
    Une fois, j’étais dans un avion qui s’est frappé par la foudre et renversé mon verre tout sur ??la personne à côté de moi.

  59. Bel orage!
    Une fois, j’étais dans un avion qui a été frappé par la foudre et j’ai renversé mon verre tout sur ??la personne à côté de moi.

  61. @45. A little slow on the uptake, are we? Just kidding! But I’ve wanted it to be a movie since I read them…. almost a year ago. Whoa. The Bonus Chapter came out a year ago yesterday (or something), right?
    @47. Yes. Just, yes.
    @49. I want to see Rise of the Guardians so bad! It’s from the creators of How to Train Your Dragon, which is pretty much the best movie EVER.
    @52. I’m so sorry. Have you received government assistance yet?
    Also, I thought I should let you all know that I’m sick and on the Westerblog. That’s a trend, right? Here, everyone, have some of my germs and get a (computer) virus!

  63. @62- I haven’t seen her since I came back.

    So guess who has no life and looked up the words to another song in German today? THIS GIRL!
    I can now sing La-La-Lie by Jack’s Mannequin in German with only a few timing issues… I’m such a loser lol

  64. @63 you’re not a looser! don’t be so down on yourself! hey, looking up German lyrics is always fun. German anything really.

    who here listens to The Beatles? my science teacher had us write about minerals, so i’m writing a parody to Taxman about diamonds. sadly all Leviathan parodies are on hold.

  65. @64- haha, thanks. I don’t actually have that low of self esteem, it just came out wrong. Lol

    I love the Beatles!

  66. I must say, that is some badass lightning, illuminating the cloudscape like that. I like Scott’s writing here, particularly the line “…from the fragile vantage of a flying machine…”. Reading that, I get the feeling Scott obviously had while filming this, the awesome majesty of the Earth, the sense of danger, the narrative of an isolated observer witnessing something strange and beautiful. Also, the branching burbles of lightning within those enormous puffy clouds is reminiscent of the illustration in Goliath immediately preceding the scene where Deryn and Alek are topside on the Leviathan, you know, the part where they kiss for the first time. Is Scott trying to surreptitiously promote his book? Probably not.

  67. @60: YES. And I wants to see it again, precious. O.O
    Yeah, I think I wrote a REALLY long comment on it and how reviewers need to read the book. And a really long journal entry on dA…. And I saw a huge poster for it today and took pictures. _<

  68. And what just happened to my comment? It got weirdly cut off….
    Trying again:
    @61: Didn’t the Bonus Chapter come out on December 16th? I don’t remember….*strokes chin thoughtfully* I actually wasn’t around for it. I started frequenting this place a few weeks later. I had to hunt it down because I wanted to know why I kept coming across pictures of Alek in a dress with mysterious references to a ‘Bonus Chapter’….XD

  69. Every once in a while, I lay in my bed staring up at the stars and I can’t help but think “Where the heck did my ceiling go?”

  73. THE GUY I KNOW WHO LOOKS JUST LIKE ZANE JUST LEFT MY HOUSE! no one would understand how epic this is unless they had read Uglies. Nonetheless, it’s true. He was sitting at my kitchen table. Lol

  74. @73. I have read Uglies…and Pretties…and Specials…and Extras. Still failing to feel the epicness, though. It would have been cooler if a girl who looked just like Deryn or a guy like Alek or Volger was at your house.
    In my opinion, of course.

  75. @74- but Zane is inhumanely attractive! I could not take my eyes away from him!
    If I got a haircut, I’d look like Deryn. But I love my locks too much. Especially my stupid flippy bangs lol

  76. @ 23: I’ve read Leviathan, Behemoth and Goliath extensively and attentively, but I couldn’t fill in all those blanks, or even one of them. Am I just being stupid? Is this a brief relapse into idiocy? Am I going to look at your comment tomorrow or sometime and understand it completely? I do know many quotes from the Leviathan series; I could probably quote you the last chapter of Goliath almost verbatim, or at least more or less accurately. Just someone give me the chapter and book name, and I’ll have it cracked!

    @ 27: A song that always makes me think of Leviathan is “Adam Raised A Cain” by Bruce Springsteen. It’s darker, yes, and it doesn’t cover all the facets of the Leviathan series, (namely Deryn and Alek’s relationship) but taken metaphorically it fits perfectly, in my opinion. I’ll quote you a lyric from it: (note, these lyrics would from the perspective of Alek.)

    “We” (Alek and his father?) “were prisoners of love,” (quite literally) “a love in chains, he was standing in the door,” (to heaven?) “I was standing in the rain,” (the public’s eye?) “with the same hot blood burnin’ in our veins,

    Adam raised a Cain

    All of the old faces” (the pope?) “ask you why you’re back, fit you with position, and the keys to your daddy’s Cadillac.” (empire?)

    “You’re born into this life payin’ for the sins” (ill-advised love) “of somebody else’s past. Well, daddy worked his whole life for nothing but the pain, now he walks these empty rooms” (purgatory?) “lookin’ for something to blame, but you inherit the sins, you inherit the flames,” (anger?)

    “Adam raised a Cain”

    (especially this line) “Lost but not forgotten, from the dark heart of a dream,

    Adam raised a Cain”

    Lyrics reprinted without permission.

  77. @ 27: Or, if you prefer something sweeter, I recommend “King of Bohemia” by Richard Thompson. This song is, at least to me, reminiscent of the scene towards the end of Leviathan where Deryn comforts Alek after learning of his parent’s death. Here’s a lyric or two:

    “Let me rock you in my arms, and hold you safe and small. A refugee from the Seraphim in your rich girl rags and all.

    Did your dreams die young? Were they too hard won? Did you reach too high and fall? And there is no rest for the ones god blessed, and he blessed you best of all,

    Your eyes seem from a different face, they’ve seen that much, that soon. Your cheek too cold, too pale to shine, like and old and waning moon.

    And there is no peace, no true release, no secret place to crawl. And there is no rest for the ones god blessed, and he blessed you best of all.

    If tears unshed could heal your heart, if words unsaid could sway, then once you melt into the night, adieu, and rue the day.

    Did your dreams die young? Were they too hard won? Did you reach too high and fall? And there is no rest for the ones god blessed, and he blessed you best of all”

    Besides being absolute poetry, this song has a beautiful melody. I believe would work very well for a Leviathan trailer of sorts. Grooveshark these two songs. And even if you don’t use either of these songs, you have to admit they’re pretty damn good. Me, I just love sharing them with people.

  81. Actually, that smiley is just kinda creepy looking. It’s like a perverted smiley face lol. It kinda scares me. I’m gonna go lock my windows….

  82. Nice to see the random chatting here has somewhat rebounded.
    Merry Christmas everyone! There was no snow when I got up this morning, but then it started snowing like mad! 😀 😀

  83. ahh, a white Christmas! as in about 4mm of snow that melted as soon as it reached 11:00 am, but it still was snow.
    snowing like mad… i wish my winter could’ve been like that!

  84. @83: It’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it’s the first snow we’ve had this year that hasn’t melted on contact, and it snowed nearly all day.

  85. We have about three inches of snow, which is strange. Usually at this time we have like two feet of it. But, it was still a white Christmas, so I really couldn’t have asked for much more.

    Did you guys get anything cool?

  86. @85, i would usually have enough snow to need snowshoes by now, but nope. as for cool gifts, i have a gift card to the lego store that i’m saving for if/when they ever make Leviathan legos. beasties and machines!

  87. @85: It snowed quite a bit last night, but it’s 40 degrees now. So no sledding. 🙁 I’m glad it was at least a somewhat white Christmas, though. I got a Wii U for Christmas (if you don’t know what that is, that’s fine.)

    @86: I really hope there are Leviathan Legos sometime in the future!

  88. @86&87- nice! I got like three pairs of shoes, some sock monkey hand warmers and the books “Killing Kennedy” and “Killing Lincoln” by Bill O’Reilly. And a Something Corporate sweatshirt ^-^ it was a good year.

  89. @85- It’s snowing really hard right now! We have like 1 foot already!
    And for Christmas I got 100 dollars in itunes gift cards. I have no idea how I’m going to spend it.

  90. @89- cool! I got a $100 walmart gift card. I never even go to walmart! Lol oh well,
    What kind of music do you like?

  91. @76. *shakes head* That’s one of the most memorable quotes from the books! I can fill in all of them but the first [blank blank].
    I actually had a white Christmas! I was so excited! We didn’t get one last year, and that was just depressing. But there’s been snow on the ground for about a week now!
    @89. Big Time Rush. That’s how you will spend it. Or The Script.
    @90. An interesting gift…
    I got a pillow pet and HtTYD in 3D for Christmas! Oh, and a “*facebook ‘like symbol* a boss” t-shirt and socks. 🙂 It was indeed a good year.

  92. @90- I like a lot of different music. I sort of go through phases. For example, a few weeks ago I was listening to almost nothing but Of Monsters and Men, and right now I’m listening to Fun. mostly.

    And a Walmart gift card… well… you could buy pillows or something with it (they sell pillows at Walmart, right?).

  93. @76 – Thanks for the suggestions, I was thinking on Closer To The Edge, by 30 Seconds To Mars (the music fits for me, not necessarily the lyrics). And Also Take Me As I Am, by David Cook, that one is because of the lyrics.

    @91 – The Script!!!!! Oh, yeah, I’m so glad I found someone who likes them. Nobody at school knows them. I got to see them live for my birthday!

    For Christmas I got a new iPod. My old one is an iPod Video, real old and practically falling apart. I got an iTunes card, a sweater and candy, lots of candy!!

  94. I’ve been missing for 8 days…there’s too many comments to read!!! :<
    Anywaaays, I want Leviathan to be an anime, as in Studio Ghibli ( that's how you spell it, right?) because that would be bloody amazing!

  95. I got a Kindle Fire, two iTunes gift cards, three Amazon gift cards, a check for $50, tons and tons of books (including The Fault in Our Stars…does anyone else here just love John Green? Or am I the only one?), and tons and tons of clothes.

  96. @92- I go through phases too, but I always end up coming back to the same general thing. It’s a lovely combination of rock, alternative rock and punk that I like to call emo piano rock even though its not emo.

  97. @76: I’m so so sorry. Maybe I didn’t make it clear, but the quote is from the Bonus Chapter, published December 16, 2011 on this blog. (And then later in Portuguese so I have the same quote in Portuguese on my door. <3) I believe the blog post title is 'Bonus Goliath Chapter and Art' or something. I had to look it up for my cousin recently.

    And wahhh I wish I could've been on here for Christmas, but my grandma's house doesn't have wifi and her computer is….not great. Did anyone see Les Mis? <3

    @91: quite astounding (I think that's what I blanked out? 'Deryn was [blank blank]', right?)

    @90: I suggest the audio books of the Leviathan trilogy. ^^ And then Les Miserables, 25th anniversary maybe, but I like the 10th anniversary Eponine better. And if you have a problem with Nick Jonas (I tolerate him), then don't get any of the 25th songs with Marius. But I have no Mariuses to suggest, except maybe 10th for their "One Day More"….And then The Phantom of the Opera 2004 movie soundtrack, then The Fray, Coldplay, Onerepublic, and The Script. (A note on The Script: They're song "If You Ever Come Back" is very Malec-y, isn't it? I know not a lot of us like the Mortal Instruments (not even I do), but I like Malec.)

    @94: I think a Studio Ghibli animation would be brilliant, especially since Myazaki (is that how you spell his name?) has a thing for anything that flies. Evidence: Castle in the Sky, Howl's Moving Castle, every movie I've seen by Studio Ghilbli….(I love Howl's Moving Castle….*dies* And the books! Anything by Dianna Wynne Jones is good, my fantasy-loving friends!)

    WHO'S EXCITED FOR INTO DARKNESS? Come on Trekkies, don't be shy! Sherlock fans, are YOU excited for Into Darkness? You know who our villain is this time around, right? 😉

  99. @98
    right as i was reading that you know what my kitten did? He attacked my Macbook charger like the charger had just insulted his meow. if he wasnt so adorable i would be a bit pissed, considering my charger currently has several kitten-fang-sized holes in it.

  101. Hello, Rue!
    My cat always attacks me…I have SCARS on my ankles. I bought a sign that’s currently hanging in my room which reads, “Death From The Knees Down” and has a picture of a cat on it. It suits him so well.

  103. @everyone talking about cats, be glad you even have a cat. all of my family is allergic except for me. instead we have an adorable/vicious little ferret who i think is secretly a vampire because she bites much.

  104. @97. I’ll leave the door on the latch if you ever come back, if you come back. There’ll be a light in the hall and the key under the mat if you ever come back. There’ll be a smile on my face and the kettle on, and it will be just like you were never gone. There’ll be a light in the hall and the key under the mat if you ever come back, if you ever come back, yeah. (Ooh, ooh, ooh, oo-ee-oo)
    From memory. Bang. I could quote the majority of that CD, actually.
    @103. That explains the name…
    The local vet clinic (where I work 🙂 has a clinic cat that we adopt from the Humane Society, and his name is Stoney. He’s awesome. I’m sort of in love with that cat, except that he tried to kill me today (He drew blood…)

  105. Oh, and a question for all of you:
    Do you think that London would be lighted by gas lamps or worm lamps by the time LBG happened? I need to know for rewriting ch.1 of Orion…

  106. @104, yeah. i’m ever so slightly obsessed. some ferrets look like Perspicacious Lorises! mine is a little rascal.

    @105, in my opinion it would totally be worm lamps. eerie Darwinist bioluminescent lamps. creepy but awesome.

  107. totally off topic, but whatever
    i read uglies: cutters today and OH MY GOSH i could KILL shay-la
    btw the hole on the wall is so BUBBLY

  108. @107- I totally need to get that book. But I’m pretty much broke right now. (seriously, 8 dollars and a walmart gift card). Was it epic?

    @106- I didn’t even make the connection with your name and ferrets haha. Sorry, I can be really prettyminded sometimes (look! For once autocorrect didn’t make me say something dirty instead of my bogus words!)

    I didn’t sleep well last night because I was at my friends house and it is incredibly creepy to have Harry Styles smiling at you as you try to sleep.

  109. @97- I can’t wait for Into Darkness! You know, weirdly, I understood the teaser better than the actual trailer. The latter was much too confusing. Still, it seems like it’ll be one AWESOME movie.

    In spanish they called it “En La Oscuridad”. It sounds like some lame horror movie title, I hate it when that happens. With books and with movies, the spanish translation sounds a lot worse. Take Inkheart. It’s not a good movie, but in spanish they named it “El Libro Mágico”, which is “The Magic Book”. The world needs some good translators.

    I also found out that Benedict Cumberbatch will play Smaug in The Hobbit.

  110. @108 that’s creepy. i don’t have anything against Harry, but i don’t want him or a poster of him watching me especially at night. that’s terrifying. you have my sympathy, and quite frankly your friend does too.
    and nothing from UPSE is bogus!

  111. @107&108: I was recently at a bookstore, so I naturally went straight to the teen section to see how much LBG they had. (Does anyone else do that?) Anyway, they only had Goliath and the Manual (hmph), but they had both Uglies graphic novels. Except no Uglies. That bookstore….I don’t even….I mean, what’s the point if you don’t have the beginning of the series or even the series itself? XD

    @109: I don’t care if it’s teaser, or trailer. I just watch it over and over….O.o

    And really? ‘The Magic Book’? *hides face and groans* Did you know they changed barking Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to ‘Harry Potter y el misterio del principe’? It’s not that different, but….gah. No.

    And, yeah, I know about Benedict the dragon. It’s why Sherlock skipped 2011; they were both in New Zealand. And, weirdly, Benedict was in the cast in the end credits of An Unexpected Journey. You know like when they flash the names of the actors for the most prominent roles? My sister and I were like, “But he didn’t do anything yet….”

  112. @110- thanks. It will be nice to know that only my cat will be watching me tonight. I actually have a very strong dislike for One Direction (no offense) so my friend says that she’s gonna get life size cardboard cut outs of them and make them watch me as I sleep. On the bright side, sleeping is not a very time consuming activity for me. Nonetheless, the faces of all of the posters will most likey have mustaches when the morning comes.

    The only book in the UPSE series I ever see in the local book store is Extras, and I’m like “it’s the last book of the freaking series! Who is going to buy just the last book?!?!?” then of course someone goes and buys it, because that is just my luck… Haha

  113. @111: About The Hobbit: Apparently Cumberbatch is the Necromancer as well. And Bilbo is Watson, and Smaug is Holmes! Kind of interesting if you ask me. He DID snort at the end. 😉
    @112: I don’t like One Direction either, but for the sake of their fans here I’ll leave it at that. I loved Extras, but it would be confusing to read it first. I once read the third book in a series first, and it was a very odd experience.

  114. @113- we agree! Haha, I dont like One Directon, and thats what makes me beautiful! But yes, leaving it at that is best.
    With UPSE I kinda read Pretties first. I got it from the school library and didn’t know that it was the second book. And I think that’s why I love Zane so much, honestly, I met him first lol.

    Happy New Years everyone!

  116. Did any one else pick a song to describe their year in 2012? Mine’s one of those songs that’s kindof a Monday in detail, and I really think that that’s how my year was. Just one Monday after the next. Not that that’s all that bad, I got a ton of Monday’s off of school this year then…

  118. @93: Did you even read the lyrics that Sergeant Pepper quoted? Did you look up the songs themselves? I doubt it. It depresses me to no end when people such as yourself will happily gobble up the crap that passes for music nowadays, and then, when somebody kindly shows you the door to something real, you either ignore it, or shun it simply because you don’t understand it (or don’t want to). I did look up the songs you were considering. I could barely get past the first 10 seconds. It’s just the kind of drek you’d hear in a gas station any old day. It’s oppressive. And it certainly doesn’t represent the Leviathan series at all. If you read the lyrics to the two songs that Sergeant Pepper (a Beatles reference, btw) quoted, you’d notice the striking correlations that they share with this series of books. Whereas I’m guessing you picked your two songs off the top 40 at random. I think Sergeant Pepper’s idea was to compliment the Leviathan series with two (awesome) songs that, when really listened to, would give the viewer a new perspective on the series. But maybe that’s not what you want.

  121. @120- yes! It gets very confusing when I’m like “It’s my birthday…. Well it was before I came on this website” lol

  122. @108. True dat. I’d have nightmares. Try Big Time Rush instead. You’ll have wonderful dreams.
    @111. All the time.
    @118. I sense that your personal bias is affecting your opinion on the matter. And your mood. Calm it down and keep it classy.
    @121. Indeed. Wait. When was your birthday?

  123. Well, I trust that the lot of you are doing well. If you aren’t, do better soon.
    Anyway, it’s nice to know that we’ve survived the year ended, so that’s a good thing.
    Happy 2013! May the new year bring you good fortune in your lives. May it put your mind at ease and your body at rest, calm your nerves and give you a smile or two.
    (At this point, I could type out a long and touching speech about life, but I won’t unless it’s requested and you need a pick-me-up 🙂 )

  124. @121: Happy belated birthday! I find it a bit confusing as well, but I know it’s a little over half a day ahead in eastern Australia. Just a little mental adjustment is all.
    @123: What a heartwarming comment.

  125. @122 & 124- well, my birthday isn’t until March, I just couldn’t think of any other examples because I’m uncreative lol. But hey, you totally are the first people to wish me happy birthday this year.

    @123- I would welcome your long speech about life, bit I don’t really need a pick me up.

    “Today I felt like part of something awesome; the human race. I know it can be ugly, it really is in so many ways, but there was nothing ugly to see today, just people trying to be better. And maybe thats the key. Not resolutions and forgotten promises, but instead a commitment to do this year a little better than the last. I’m feeling good about this one, I really am.” -Andrew McMahon

    I’m thinking I’ll follow that. Just cause I’m awful with resolutions (of course, that was said by a guy who wrote a song called The Resolution… Many of his words contradict each other…) but I think I can do this one.

    I’ve developed a habit of only painting the nail on my left thumb. I’m not sure why, but it looks kinda pretty. I currently have it painted blue and in white I wrote “swim” in cursive and dotted the “i

  127. @118 – Hey there, calm down a bit. No need to be rude.
    As a matter of fact, I’m listening to “King Of Bohemia” right now. I liked both songs Sergeant Pepper quoted. The first one is not my type, but I recognize they are really good, honest songs, and they fit with scenes in the books perfectly. I just didn’t have time to write more in my previous comment.

    About my recommendations, well, I don’t mind if you don’t like the same music I do, but don’t criticize like that! I too think that the music that is popular now is not music at all, and you’d be surprised by how many people don’t know the songs I recommended. Perhaps you didn’t want to understand them, but I think they are great songs, and deserve to be heard for more than 10 seconds.

    I’ll say one more option for a Leviathan trailer. At least listen completely to this one. Both the lyrics and the song seem to fit perfectly for Leviathan, specifically for Deryn and Alek. It’s “Perfect Stranger”, by Civil Twilight. Here are the lyrics for you:

    Tonight I feel something over me
    Something I can’t change
    Many nights I have spent sailing
    With many reasons to be brave
    But tonight I feel my heart begin to fail
    And my head begin to fall
    Like two ships crossing their path
    I see you like a new dawn
    My perfect stranger, don’t sail away
    It was meant to be, we met this way
    So many nights I’ve been in this place
    The winds haven’t blown in 7 days
    I turn to the stars and the moon at night
    But the more I look, the more I lose sight
    And heaven knows and heaven shows
    Pieces of its glory
    It’s moments like these
    And treasures we must seize
    So we can tell the story of
    My perfect stranger, don’t sail away
    Tell me your secrets, and be on your way
    Hold me here cause there’s no fear
    My perfect stranger
    Arms open wide to me
    Tell me your secrets
    And tell them as you lay
    I sing
    Hold me now, my perfect stranger

  129. @127: What an ass I’ve been! Clearly I misjudged your thoughts based on your short reply to Sergeant Pepper. I was also (pointlessly) a little confrontational. I now see that it was presumptuous of me to assume that you hadn’t actually listened to Sergeant Pepper’s recommendations. I’m glad you did. I hope you do seriously consider at least using “King of Bohemia” as a song in your Leviathan trailer. It’s a beautiful song, played by a truly talented musician, who wrote it himself. This is what seems to be lacking in modern popular music (if you can call it music). Real talent. I mean, it’s out there. You just have to search to find it.

    I was unable to find a full version of the other song you were considering. If I had, I would have certainly listened to it. However, I did find the lyrics interesting.

    @122: Of course my personal bias is affecting my opinion on the matter! Aren’t the two pretty much indistinguishable? I will admit that my presentation left a little to be desired, though.

    “I guess it doesn’t matter anyway…” – “Morning Dew” (by Bonnie Dobson, notably covered by the Grateful Dead)

  130. @ 118, 122 and 127: I think something A Dude forgot is that in music there is no right or wrong. Both of your opinions are equally valid. Both of these musical choices are concurrently good and bad, because different people believe they are. When I posted those two long-winded comments about musical suggestions I was just trying to recommend a couple of songs that I personally love. If you like them too, great, and if you don’t, well, that’s fine too. I realize, unlike some, that people’s personal decisions about musical preference are particular to themselves, that is, they only speak for themselves when they say that Artist X is better than Artist Y. In someone else’s opinion Artist Y makes Artist X look like Artist Z. But both of these statements are true. It’s like religion. Someone may say Christianity is the truth, while another may say Buddhism is, or Islam, or The Flying Spaghetti Monster (an actual theology). The “truth” is, they’re ALL right. And wrong. Because it’s all opinion. That’s what art is, a world with no right or wrong, only opinion. Everyone has their own truth that they believe, and because the truth is improvable, everyone’s right. I prefer Richard Thompson to 30 Seconds To Mars, but my preference isn’t right; it’s just my opinion. And I’m not saying majority rules, because opinion is just that: opinion. It’s intangible, with no basis in reality. You can say the sound of tree branches scraping against the side of a house is music, and then proclaim to like it. And you have every right to like it.

    And someone else has every right to dislike it.

    I’m glad A Dude posted a more diplomatic follow-up comment. That first comment was pretty rude. His/her remorse is indicative of introspection, a virtue tragically all too uncommon. And I agree with his/her basic sentiment, about the pervasive nature of what I consider to be “bad” music. But of course, that’s only my opinion. I’m also glad that Middy Me has listened to those two songs, especially “King of Bohemia”. That Thompson is somethin’, ain’t he? 🙂

  131. Everyone keeps on saying bohemia and it makes me want to sing Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.

    “thunderbolts and lightning,
    Very very frightening.
    Galelaeo! Galelaeo! Galelaeo figoroh!
    I’m just a poor boy,
    Nobody loves me.
    He’s just a poor boy from a poor family,
    Spare him his life from this monstrosity.
    Easy come, easy go, will you let me go?”

    I’ll stop there, I guess.

  134. @131, wow! that’s exactly what that made me think too! aaack all of you are great, but reading some of these comments was just wayyy to much diplomacy and big words for my brain to process in the dead hours of morning. my bad.

  135. @133 & 134- I think it’s kindof a natural reaction. But that song is like the funnest (I know that’s not a word) song ever to sing in the shower. Until people yell at you to shut up. Haha then you just sing a little more quietly with a little smirk on your face and think “make me! Mwahahahaha!”

  136. @129 – Don’t worry about it, we can all get carried away sometimes.
    It’s weird that you didn’t find the complete song. I found it on Youtube and Spotify. You should check out other Civil Twilight songs, those guys are geniuses. And yeah, I’m thinking the melody of King of Bohemia would make a good trailer. Now I just need to take photos of the book to get started.

    @130 – I agree with your point about opinions. I guess they are at the heart of almost every wrong thing there is. We should all, like Middy Miles said, “keep it classy”
    And, yes, Richard Thompson knows how write one hell of a song 🙂

  137. I’m just going to say that I love all of you. ^^

    Okay, weirdness over. Happy New Year Four Days Late! Scott! Update? Pweeez?

    And the song “I Won’t Give Up” by Jason Mraz I find to be very Dalek-y. Since everyone is talking about music….Ack! I find too many songs Dalek-y! So much music….Does anyone else on here love Celtic and classical just as much as gothic rock? I like too many genres….

    (And “Here(In My Arms)” by Hellogoodbye. LEAVING NOW!!!!!!!)

  138. @137- we love you too! Lol that was weird.
    And I like gothic rock. I think. It really depends on the definition of it, although I prefer emo/piano rock.

  139. I LOVE YOUR BOOKS!! Especially the Uglies series!!!! 🙂
    A month ago one of my friends told me, “So…I’m reading this awesome book, it’s called Uglies and guess what? IT HAS YOUR NAME IN IT!!!”
    So at first I just had to read it because I was being seriously self centered about the whole name business (not everyday you find a character with the same name you when your name is something like Shay…).
    Then, halfway through Uglies, I became seriously obsessed. Not just because my name was in it:).
    I LOVE YOUR BOOKS!!!

  140. @139- WOAH
    THAT’S SO BUBBLY
    i won’t spoil anything for you…but i’ll just say shay-la isn’t my fav character…

  142. It’s supposed to be January FOURTH, actually. It’s also Isaac Newton and Louis Braille’s birthdays. :3

  143. @All the People Talking About One Direction: Okay, I know the guys are way, way overrated, but they are sweet and funny. I personally hate their music, and I know hate is a strong word but I’ll wing it, but I love them as people. And their accents are so cute. :3

  144. This isn’t a Dalek-y song, but I think that Viva la Vida (Coldplay, but y’all probably know that) is a PERFECT song for Alek. You know, “I used to rule the world”?

  145. @Middy Joe- Happy birthday! Well, it’s belated now, but I just found out.

    Has anyone actually seen a boomerang come back? I haven’t.

  146. @137 – you know, I saw a video of Jason Mraz’s If It Kills Me, and I actually thought it was a song made for Leviathan! Of course, then I looked it up, found out it was his and all. Though that one is better suited for Deryn.

    @141 – happy birthday!!!!

  147. @146: OMYGOSH I LOVE THAT VIDEO!!!!!! That’s actually how I started loving Jason Mraz. I searched for Leviathan on YouTube. That’s also how I found an awesome video book review of Leviathan that’s like ten minutes long, but so funny and SO worth it. I watch it when I want to reward myself for doing things, like homework. XD It’s by Cassidy Tucker….CassJayTuck or something is her username….I have most of it memorized because I am so weird. XD

    @141: HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  148. 140- Ohhhh.. does she go to the DARK SIDE?! I read a little bit of Pretties today, and she seemed so bubbleheaded, I can’t imagine her snapping out of it or anything!!!
    141- Happy birthday! happy being a teenager too!!! 😀
    Being a teenager is bubbly!!! (well, I’m only fourteen, so i’ve only had one year of experience!;))

  149. @148- well… Sort of. It’s really complicated. It’ll make a ton more sense after you read the whole series and then begin the Shay’s Stories. I don’t want to spoil anything though.
    I admit, I fell in love with Zane. I actually cried a little bit when he died, and that’s saying a lot coming from emotionless me over here.

    So I found out that Penelope was the most popular baby name of 2012. Since that’s my full name (I never go by it though) and I’m a teenager, are my parents hipsters because they liked the name before it was cool?

  150. @149 – hmm… I think you just spoiled something pretty big there…

    I saw The Hobbit again yesterday. I lost a bet with my brother about who was Fili and who was Kili, luckily he hasn’t remembered. I also found out Kili is the guy from the BBC series Being Human! I knew I remembered that face!

  153. I’m cool, except for the fact that I have to go to school today, but it’s better than being stuck in the house

  154. Hey everyone!
    That’s a lot of long, deatailed comments so I’m only going to scan through them.
    HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIDDY JOE! Or belated birthday. When I turned 13 I was afraid everyone would hate me… I’m not sure why.
    So anyway… How’s it going? 🙂

  155. @149- My name is Frances. It was the most popular name in the country 110 years ago… I’ve never met anyone over 80 with my name. Anyway, how did Penelope beat Isabella? TWILIGHT HAS BEEN OVERTHROWN!!! *Victory Dance*

  156. @149&155, why’s everyone talking about their real names?! my name stays Scorpio-Ferret when on the Internet, that’s that. but you will always be TrueUgly and PWH to me. Internet friends! it’s fun how on email and websites we can have whatever name we want.

  157. @156- I think it’s less of a “hey everyone, this is my real name so think of me with that name” and more of a “hey everybody, the name Penelope was the most popular name in the country this year and it also so happens to be my name. Isn’t that cool?” in TrueUgly’s case. In my case it was more of a “hey TrueUgly, it was cool that your name was most popular this year. I was named after my great grandmother AND IT SUCKS.”

    I can’t speak for TrueUgly, but this is the way I interpret it.

  160. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! so i was sooo stalking your blog and i realised you posted on my birthday!!!! ahhhh you just made my day

  161. Nikola Tesla was probably controling that storm. (See what I did there)

    P.S. Kudos for adding Tazza. I knew about Tazzi Tigers long before I started Leviathan and knew Tazza was one of them as soon as i read the description!

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