Housekeeping Things

Tags

assignments, college, family, gardening, nature, outdoors, personal things, raccoons, school, stress

Sorry to have been gone for so long, people. I swear I was doing… important… things…

To be honest, I just had way too much to do. Sorry.

Anyway, I’ve been working on a project that I’m pretty excited about with some friends. We’re making Doctor Who fan audio dramas! *throws confetti* And the blog just went live, I’m working on putting content up there but since I’m still approaching Finals Week and have not passed it yet, it’s going to be an uphill battle.

I’m working on my time-travel story (the one with Emrys.) I had an idea for a sequel, featuring a young lady named Persephone Williams (Seph for short.)

I missed an assignment through no fault of my own. This is the first time anything of the sort has ever happened to me and I lost it the night it was supposed to be due and was cruel to a bunch of people who I should have been kind to, and this is also my public apology, and please pray for me.

Let’s just hope things get better from here on out, because if there’s one thing this semester has done to me, there are three:

1. It has dumped me on my backside in the dirt and then dragged me face-first through a pile of leaves and THEN laughed at me.
2. It has, as a result, stressed me out (like butter scraped across too much bread)
3. It has taught me just how much of a survivor I am. I am not a quitter. On the other hand, just holding on is hard. It hurts. It’s only by the grace of God that I haven’t hit my breaking point yet. I need you guys’ prayers.

On the bright side, I spent the morning outdoors in the wind in the middle of nowhere and thought of ways I could volunteer this summer by renewing a garden at the place I used to volunteer at a lot (I stopped after finding a job–I shouldn’t have, it’s therapeutic and I need to make sure that people know yes, I’m a person, I’m not a machine, I have a LIFE outside this store, thank you very much), bought a bunch of beading supplies so I can hang with the sister tomorrow when not writing my poetry and creative nonfiction revisions, and saw a RACCOON on the deck tonight! (His name is Mr. Coon-Coon and he is my fluffy and I want cuddles with him, even though he’d probably bite me and give me some horrible incurable disease. He’s a big fluffy chubby chap.)

All in all, I think I’m doing pretty well for now. Pray that I’ll keep on being okay (ish).

Oh, and by the way, I might put progress posts for my creative writing pieces on the blog when the semester’s over and if you want a piece of that action, remind me at the end of the first week in May. 😉

Thanks for reading and God Bless!

Why Anakin has a cowlick rather than a part, and other mysteries of the universe

Tags

birthdays, doctor who, family, games, nanowrimo, star wars, writing

Wow, it’s been a while since I did a post about my personal life! At least, it sure feels that way, since I’ve been so busy with humor and had so many good things to say about noveling and other creative writing. Besides, I’ve been busy. And not so much with nice stuff. More with mundane stuff, like finding and keeping a job… and taking care of Raya, who recently turned four. Huzzah.

Anyway, yesterday I went hiking with Iris and discovered that my family’s membership was expired (that sucked), a few weeks ago there was the Homeschool Formal Winter Ball, which was fun but noisy (I tend to prefer a lot of quiet… that’s just how I am…) And Sunday, we played a game that centered around creative writing. Basically, every time we moved on the board, we got a plot prompt, a character, an adjective, a sentence… It was like a writer’s dream come true for plot prompts (and bunnies!) Except it doesn’t really work when one is noveling… (Look up Month of the Novel. Seriously.) Anyway, so we played it. My story at the end was about dragon racing, the empire state building, and the Mafia (and a slimy Pharaoh… X-P), Jewel’s was about a talking fish and an ancient Chinese medicine man (does that even make sense…?), and my dad told a completely HILARIOUS one about racing yachts (at least, I think it was yachts…) on a lake in the Jurassic time period, flying monkeys, a time machine (remember his secret fandom, people! :-P), a rubber band, a crystal vase (which he had to replace with a Deus Ex Machina, which was hilariously lampshaded and everyone thought was just plain awesome!), and his mom. (She sounds more than awesome!!!) Sprite was hard pressed to think of one, until he put heads together with Dad and came up with a story about a warty stinky pirate in Scotland, the Tardis, explosions, the revolutionary war, weird footprints (you’ll know why in a second!), the Doctor in a diving suit (I told you!!! And don’t ask me which Doctor… though I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the one played by Christopher Eccleston. ;-P), and (of course!) time travel and sonic screwdrivers! It was awesome. In fact, I think it was the Best In Show!

Moving on… I was meditating on Anakin’s cowlick for no reason… well, not exactly no reason. I was just bored. 😛 Anyway… I think there used to be a joke that the reason why Anakin turned dark was because he had a cowlick and couldn’t find his part. Either that, or there should be one… What’s my point?

My point is… well, I guess I lost my audience there. 😛

Thanks for reading, and God Bless!

Bound to the Flame, Chapter I, Part II

Tags

bound to the flame, family, stories in progress, story dynamics

These chapters are going to be long (about ten pages of 12 pt. type in Word,) so the parts I’m posting are only about two pages long… Enjoy!

Bound to the Flame

Chapter I

Part II

                “You wish to speak about our son, do you not?” Melilana asked, softly, as she stared out the open window, elegant hands clasped lightly behind her back. Halbryn sighed.

“You know me too well, my love,” he said. Melilana smiled.

“And you know me,” she murmured.

“And yet, you never fail to impress me by your perceptiveness,” Halbryn said. He sighed.

“You’re weary,” Melilana commented. Lifting a long knitted blanket from the bed of their chamber, she wrapped it around her husband’s shoulders.

“I wonder if we may have been wrong—about Rowan,” Halbryn said, sitting down on the bed. Melilana sat down next to him.

“How so?” she asked.

“I saw something today—something that made me wonder, if it might not be a sign. I think we may have made the wrong decision in our eagerness to keep Rowan safe.”

“You know why we did it, Halbryn,” she chided.

“I know—and yet, there’s something else going on—something…” Halbryn paused. “We thought all the signs were right. And then, when Rowan was injured, we wondered if we had been wrong…” He turned suddenly to face his wife. “You know what we thought Rowan was—who he was. And then, we thought we were mistaken, after the accident. The signs just seemed more right for him… than in over a hundred years. And now, Rowan is teaching Adyn to be what he might have been himself… but Adyn isn’t Rowan, and never will be.”

“He came the closest,” Melilana sighed.

“After Rowan,” Halbryn finished. “But it doesn’t feel quite as right. Not so pure, or as radiant. Melilana, what I saw today… it’s not going to be easy to dismiss, you know.”

“I know,” Melilana murmured. “But what did you see?”

“Rowan… well… he said he hears the Guardian Angel’s voice, sometimes. Not in as many words, but it was there. I could see it. What he exactly said was that he feels as if the Guardian is a part of him; I think he has heard his—her—voice, and doesn’t quite trust himself that that is, in fact, what it is. And then… when he was in the Hall of Images, he was looking at the painting again, and he seemed to lose his balance for a moment. He almost fell against the picture—” Melilana gasped, her eyes wide.

“Is his leg getting worse again?” she asked fearfully.

“No, not quite like that. It was almost like a sudden attack of vertigo; as if his world had suddenly shifted around him. A little like the disorientation a seer experiences, coming out of a vision. I think he actually felt better than normal, today. But anyway, he caught himself—quickly—with one hand, directly over the painting of the Guardian itself. The mytar dust was showing on the painting—he had forced it into the visible realm himself, and with such ease—and his hand left a bright streak when he took it away, like a star peeping out through clouds; it was like a ray of hope.”

“You said he forced mytar into the visible realm? Was it very thick, Halbryn?”

“I’m afraid so,” Halbryn admitted softly.

“The kingdom is in danger then. Or—” The Queen rose, majestically. “It will be soon.” She shook her head, sadly. “Too soon.”

“Unless…” Halbryn began. He sighed. “Mytar dust, Melilana. You know how hard it is to force evidence of the darkness into the visual plane.” He took a deep breath. “Adyn comes close to all the correct signs, yes,” Halbryn continued, “but, with Rowan, they were all perfect.”

“If only we could allow him to fight for us, to lead our people,” Melilana murmured. “But now… with his leg… we would be doing him a terrible wrong by letting him go with his brothers. We would be failing in our duty as parents and guardians. Rowan must not go to war.” She sighed and looked down, rubbing her arm. “Not even if he wants to. We have no choice, Halbryn.” Silently, Halbryn held her, rocking her gently as she cried, mutely, for all that had been lost that one terrible day, two years before.

Author’s Note: Here’s hoping you’ve been enjoying the story! I’ve been having fun writing it! And don’t worry, all that is unclear will be clarified in time… ;-P

Thanks for reading, and God Bless!

Functionally Dysfunctional: Families in Fiction

Tags

bbc sherlock, disney, family, j.r.r. tolkien, lord of the rings, sherlock holmes, sir arthur conan doyle, story dynamics

And, on that cheery note of repeated and unnecessary assonance… 😛

WE WILL TALK ABOUT FAMILY!!! Fathers! Mothers! Sons! Daughters! Cousins! Aunts! Uncles! Nieces! Nephews! Grandparents! Great-grandparents! Great-great-great grandparents! (But only if you’re dealing in Elves, which is rare… sigh) Obscure relations to the fifth degree!!! (If you’re playing with Hobbits. ;-P)

All right, first thing you need to know: Every family is dysfunctional on some level. For instance, sibling rivalry. But not every family is called dysfunctional… don’t ask me why. Talk to CPS about that, okay? Child abuse is not what I’m talking about here…

Or maybe it is? Nevermind…

Though overactive child protection agency social workers pestering an innocent family might make a good plot… MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Second thing you need to know: Families. Are. Important. Family background is one of the first things you should be thinking about when you begin character development. (The second thing is whether they like the Jays or not… shut up, Kysherin… sorry. My muse is a football fan and I’m not. I’d rather be playing it. Though she does have a point–is your character much of a bird watcher? :-P)

Father/son relationships. Mother/daughter relationships. Family dynamic as a whole. Who here is sick and tired of characters with family sob stories? *raises hand* Honestly, disobedient kids get old. REALLY fast. Hence, since so many Disney movies involve them, they are so last millennia! Though if you want to have a disobedient kid, go ahead. I’ll like him better if he has a healthy relationship with one parent at least, though. Anyway, people like respectful kids better than obnoxious brats; it’s a scientifically proven fact. Have your characters have a healthy relationship with at least one family member and you’ll have some background to go on. And someone to punch Sally Donovan in the face when she calls you a freak. (Aren’t kid sisters awesome, Sherlock? If only you canonically had one… sigh)

Besides, the family is not only a tool for pathetic backstory. It’s also a tool that you can use to indicate personality. Characters who are faithful to their families are trustworthy, kind-hearted, and willing. Characters who are not are lying cheats with no principles. This is how you make your villain; just have him stab his dad in the back.

Families also make a good catalyst for conflict. For instance, when family members don’t agree, it causes fiction–even if they do agree to respectfully disagree. And if a character has to make a difficult decision, like having to seemingly betray his/her family in order to save them… delicious.

And there are no happier endings than those that end safe and sound, beside a fire, in a room full of happiness.

With family.