#TCotMK

[henbooks]

WIP Tag

I was tagged by the lovely @dreamsofbooksandmonsters! Thank you so much!

When starting something new, how much of the story do you actually know before you start writing?

It depends what sort of novel it is. With a shorter and simpler story, like Joie, I’d much rather just draft with no more direction than a concept and a few basic details in my head. However, with books like TCotMK, I need a detailed outline of events to keep myself from getting muddled and confused.

What draws you to your WIP(s) and what made you write them above any other?

9/10 times, this will be the characters. I always write to explore the people in my novel. 

But for some other specifics, here are a few other elements I love.

TCotMK: The relationships. I deal with a bunch of family themes. Some good, some bad, some biological, some found families. These are my favorite relations in the book with all of their complexities and mixed emotions. I just love it.

Joie: I love my magic system in this book. It’s a bit strange and I’m still working with it, but I love the general concept.

Celestia: The central friendship trio and how that relationship plays into the plot.

Favorite writing spot? Why?

Anywhere warm and squishy. I need to have a relatively straight back so I don’t get super sore, so I tend to smoosh up against the wall when I write on my bed (which is most of the time) to keep from slouching over.

Share your favorite line you’ve ever written.

“Aiolos are all the same,” The Captain whispered, a smile playing across her lips. “We can run and run, but we will never escape the truth of our own powers. Occasus watches, and he will find us.” (TCotMK Ch. 5)

If you had to choose one OC to bring back to life, who would it be and why?

Can’t say the one I really want because spoilers.... so instead I’ll go with Louie’s Mom. She died at a young age, and his life would have been very different if she hadn’t died. Probably happier, although it would probably end up with him never meeting Alastor or Helene.

Are you looking to get published? If so, do you plan to make it a career?

Yes and yes, although I enjoy writing more for writings sake. If I never get published or become successful, I’ll still be very happy with just writing for the sake of writing.

What’s something that you would read about but never write about (or the other way around) and why?

Unconventional one, but I don’t use vulgar language. I think the most hardcore I get is ‘whore’, ‘bastard’, and other similar caliber words. And I don’t use those lightly. I will read something even if it does include swears and whatnot, but I don’t personally want to write them in my stories.

What’s something you are most proud of in your writing so far?

Character relations. I love exploring how two or more characters interact, and I think that I can usually find something interesting for any two characters to find common ground on, whether they are friends or enemies.

Badly describe your WIP in one sentence.

Joie: Girl enters castle and falls in love with the nervous fluffy thing inside.

TCotMK: Dad dies, daughter has a prolonged nervous breakdown while trying to deal with the aftermath.

Celestia: Three friends run into a forest to escape their problems.

Why did you want to be a writer?

I read books, thought they were cool, and wanted to do that as well. Then I practiced a whole bunch.

I’m going to tag @anjareed, @mirror-of-too-many-books, @bluenightfire, @gloriawriting, and @halfbloodlycan! No pressure if you guys don’t want to do this, though. <3

Thank you so much! <3

[henbooks]

This Doesn’t Make Any Sense

Thank you so much for tagging me @dreamsofbooksandmonsters!

Rules: Find the first sentence of your WIP that contains each of these words: ‘this’ ‘doesn’t’ ‘make’ ‘any’ ‘sense’. Post them in order as if they’re a single excerpt.

This is very, very bad. When he doesn’t believe in The Seven Saviors? He squinted, trying to make out what was going on. She was well aware of the dangers the foreign emperor posed, but didn’t know of any direct link between him and her father. He didn’t want to believe she did, but it made sense.

I’m going to tag @anjareed, @mirror-of-too-many-books, @gloriawriting, @ekinsellaauthor, and @embarrassingwriter!

[henbooks]

Novel Snippet

Thanks for the tag, @anjareed!

Here’s a snippet from TCotMK, in which Vox breaks into the Academy and hides under the floorboards of a bunch of young kids. (It’s a rough draft, so there will be typos.)

Vox had been curled up for hours and hours, staying that way until her limbs began to cramp and the air around her was so stuffy she could barely breathe. By now, it was the middle of the night, and the sounds of the academy had all but ceased.

They would still be looking for her, without a doubt, but the heavy shadows and sleeping tenants would make it easier to sneak around the building.

Launce must be close. She thought, twisting her arm out from under her to move the board above her. Carefully, she lifted it and shifted it to the side, gently setting it down to the side. The rug lifted with it, flipping it’s corner over and exposing Vox’s hiding place to the moonlight streaming into the room.

She lifted a second board, then a third. Soon the hole was large enough for her to slip out of. She stood, stretching her limbs up towards the ceiling and inhaling good, clean air.

One of the children had woken up to her movements and was watching her with glittering eyes.

Vox felt a pang as she looked towards the child. So young— too young to be here. She walked over and kneeled next to the bed, doing her best to smile.

“Thank you,” she whispered. The little girl nodded, smiling wanly.

Vox took the little girl’s hand, encasing it in her large ones. The girl’s arm was already pockmarked with scars and fresh cuts. Vox’s stomach boiled.

All of these kids need out. You can’t only save Launce.

She knew it was improbable. Impossible even. But she had to find a way.

Vox stood up, taking the girl in her arms. “I can take you away from here,” she promised.

The girl’s eyes widened and she nodded, her black hair bobbing around her round chin. “Please.”

Vox looked at the other children. There were far too many for her to carry, and this was only the first room. There were undoubtedly many just like it.

Vox set the girl back down on the bed, gently wrapping the thing blanket around her frame. “I’ll come back for you- all of you. I promise.”

The girl nodded again, her brown eyes wide and hopeful.

Vox felt a warmth spread through her stomach as she looked down at the little girl. Nobody had ever looked at Vox like that before. Like they believed in her. Like she was a hero.

Vox stalked towards the door, glancing back at the children.

I will free all of you.

[henbooks]

Writing some interactions between Romulus and Gwendolyn right now and I am loving their dynamic! It’s been a while since I’ve written with Gwendolyn, and I forgot how much fun she us to write!

(Also just did a tag that lowkey called out how little I post my writing, so have a piece of the writing I’ve been doing. XD)

Gwendolyn turned back to the desk, beginning to rifle through the parchment scattered across the surface. “Now, what have we here?”

“Hm?” Romulus asked, moving closer to see. Lines of spidery text were scrawled across pieces of parchment all across the desk. “They look like records.”

“They are. Trade records, I think.” Gwendolyn said, looking closer. “With Zandrian, interestingly enough.”

Romulus reached over, taking the record on the top. It detailed exports from Eldahide, which were grouped into two different columns.

“There’s no mention of any crops here,” Gwendolyn said, glancing over her own copy. “What does yours say?”

Romulus glanced back at the top of the page, and felt his breath catch in his throat. “These are people.”

Gwendolyn scoffed. “Can’t be— Eldhaide banned slaves ages ago. It’s about time the other kingdoms catch up, in all honesty.”

[henbooks]

WIP Tag

Thanks for the tag, @dreamsofbooksandmonsters!! <3

1. What is the working title of your book?

The Court of the Murdered King.

2. Where did the idea for your book come from?

It started at a murder mystery party that my friend and I hosted, sporting a similar plot and similar characters. I changed a lot for the novel, but the basic idea remains.

3. What genre is your current work in progress?

Fantasy

4. Choose the actors for your movie rendition.

oooh fuun! (This is what took me so long. I had trouble finding them sometimes since I really don’t know much about actors. These are also based almost purely on appearance. XD)

Jewel- Ashley Madekwe (She’s a lot older than Jewel right now but she looks so close to perfect!)

Romulus and Remus- Tyler Posey

Gwendolyn- Zhou Dongyu

Cecily- Celeste Thorson

Vox- Gabrielle Union

Pith- Wilbrock Caldwell

Shiun- Dustin Nguyen

Pildro- John Boyega 

Callia- Cobie Smulders

Terrin- Diego Luna

Ahara- Kajal Agarwal

Devi- Mamta Mohandas (This one is almost exactly as I imagine Devi!)

5. Give a one-sentence synopsis of your book.

A young queen seeks her father’s murderer while trying to win a religious tournament while two lonely gods try and solve the problems of the mages.

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agent?

Not sure yet, but I keep leaning more and more towards being self-published. The problem with this book is that it’s so gosh-dang long I’m not sure if there’s many publishers who would even want to touch it.

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft?

Still in progress and it’s gonna take me a million years to finish, I swear. (I’m now over 1/7 of the way through!!! It feels a bit like a victory.)

8. What other books would you compare your story to?

These honestly aren’t the best comparisons ever and it feels very wrong to compare my WIP to these books, but I’ll take what I can get. XD Way of Kings (Political intrigue and a large magic system), Game of Thrones (Lots and lots of characters with complex power dynamics and relationships between them and a lot of character death), and Tale of Two Cities (Characters with really strong bonds and convictions).

9. Who or what inspired you to write the book?

I just really like the idea and the characters and I want to make it exist.

10. What else about your book might pique a reader’s interest?

Character-driven plot and a lot of strong friendships

High fantasy magic system

lots of political intrigue

But also fight scenes

Mystery and hidden plots everyone

I have females all over and they fill all types of roles and personalities in the story and have differing strengths and weaknesses.

I just love my ladies so much

This was super fun, so thank you so much for tagging me, @dreamsofbooksandmonsters! 

I’m going to tag @anjareed, @gloriawriting, @mirror-of-too-many-books, @embarrassingwriter, and @ekinsellaauthor! No pressure if you don’t want to though!

[henbooks]

Mythos Part 3

(Part one) (Part Two)

Here’s the last part, for now! I’ve got a lot of work on NaNo in front of me, so i will be... less present. 

Thank you!

Somnia was the first to rise, a new power emanating from her. She held her hands out in front of her, unsure of what had changed inside her.

She’s seen what the turning had done to her sister. Metus had become a monster. She was bent on victory and blood. Somni hoped the same wouldn’t happen to her or the others.

But she needed all of them to stop Metus.

Occasus stirred a short distance away, his eyes opening slowly, a smile beginning to spread on his lips.

“It worked.”

“Of course it did. Did you expect anything different?”

“Not necessarily,” he explained. He shifted his weight up onto his elbows. “I was simply skeptical of the effectiveness.” He looked about the room. Lituus was staring to stir, as was Matercula. “What is our next move?”

“Head to the border. Metus needs to be detained.”

“Laurus will want to deal with the invaders as well,” Occasus reminded her. Somnia’s face scrunched up, as though she smelled something rancid.

“Our power has no place in war. That is what corrupted my sister.”

Occasus stood up, dusting off his robes. “Then we will find another way.”

One by one, the others rose. As soon as they all rose, they set off to find Metus.

Matercula discovered her healing while re-dressing Cartus’s wound. As a drop of her blood fell onto the cut, she watched the skin heal together all on its own. Soon, all of their wounds had disappeared.

Somnia discovered hers when she accidentally burned through the sleeve of her dress, hitting her skin where the wound had been. She then burned the grasses that lined the path, pieces of her hair, and the hem of her dress.

A day later, Lituus found his gift when he pricked his finger and set it against his painting, starting to paint in his own blood. The design grew on it’s own, a perfect representation of his intent.

Cartus cut his finger on his scroll, staining the document with a patch of blood.  As he did, the words the blood spread over changed. He found truth.

Laurus never found his gift. Despite everything, the most he could offer to the other saviors was his leadership, which they took in stride.

It took them a week of tireless travel to reach the southern border, where Metus was waiting for them.

“We need a plan,” Cartus said as they walked through a village. It was nearly emptied, only a few stray civilians walking around the streets. The children, the elderly, and the sickly.

“Detaining Metus is the priority,” Somnia said.

“What of the invaders?”

“We will deal with them afterwards.”

“Don’t we need a plan for them as well?” Laurus sad, exasperated. “I need to deal with them- my people are in danger.”

“Metus must come first if we want to have any success, my lord.” Somnia bowed respectfully. “If my theory is correct, she holds the secret to our victory. A peaceful victory, at that.”

Laurus fell silent, stewing over his frustration.

Cartus was the next to speak. “What do we do about Metus? How can we stop her?”

Somnia paused, unsure of her own plan. “I don’t know yet. But I will.”

They began to discuss ideas. Matercula and Cartus both agreed that setting a trap for her was the wisest course of action. They planned on finding a place to dig a pit, and then would use Lituus to lure Metus to the trap.

Somnia didn’t like her sister being referred to like an animal. Like something to be hunted. A Prize.

She picked up a rock, tossing it in her hands as she walked. She traced its pattern, back and forth, back and forth.

Then, it stopped. The rock hovered in mid-air, suspended between her hands.

She walked straight into it, a sore spot forming on her chest where she’d run into it. She touched the rock again, inhaling as she did so, The rock fell to the ground.

“Laurus, hand me your crown,” she said, turning back to them. He hesitated, his hands hovering around the rim of the golden crown.

“Why?”

“I just found something useful. I need to see if it works on metal.”

Laurus took the crown off, and Smnia set off to work. She closed her eyes, concentrating on the crown. As she pulled her hands away, the crown hovered in air, as if suspended by a string. Somnia pushed on it, but the crown did not budge.

“It works… I have a plan!”

This is actually where I have to stop the narrative-style of this. There are spoilers for my book after this, so I’m going to finish the myth in a summary fashion, glossing over siad spoilers.

*Somnia uses her spirit-power to freeze Metus where she is in her suit of armour.

*From there, Occasus and Laurus use their spirit powers to stop Metus from continuing her rampage.

*Somnia and Occasus make their plan on how to stop the invaders- Taking the entire landmass and lifting it up so that the armies cannot attack en masse like they have been. Somnia tries to do this, but fails because she doesn’t have enough soul to do it.

*She goes about and takes half the soul of the other saviors, and uses that to make the landmass stay up, out of reach.

*Laurus uses this new weakness in the troops, which had until then been kept pretty well at bay by Metus, to get rid off the other invaders. Mylina is safe, and so the Saviors return to their lives.

*Lituus continues making art, and now branches off into music after discovering his spirit power. He mentors many others and starts an art boom throughout Mylina.

*Cartus goes through his texts and seeks the ultimate truths that his blood powers reveal. He fixes many mistakes made in the histories before him.

*Matercula uses her powers of healing maladies and injuries alike and travels throughout the lands, healing any who come to her.

*Occasus uses his spirit power on a pool of water, and finds access to The Underworld. Somnia decides to follow him, having a certain fondness for him. They start to organize the many dead.

This is only one chapter in these guy’s lives… there’s a ton of stories between this and the last myth about them, and then there’s the ending myth that starts my magic system. I may write some of those out sometime as well, but not during NaNo.

Either way, there is the most essential myth in my world! Hope you all enjoyed!

[henbooks]

NaNoPlanMo #20

(I’ll only be doing one more of these- a wrap up, and the last part of this myth!

So, here’s the housekeeping before the myth starts.

Middles: Huge. This is most of the book, which is seven parts with on average 10 chapters in each part, each chapter averaging about 6,600 words. This book, as projected right now, is huge. Editing it is going to be fun, because my goal is going to be to dial it back quite a bit.

Either way, this is most of the mystery. By the end of the middles, I feel like the reader will have figured out the murderer. (As projected right now- might change.) This is the part where most of the secrets leading into the plot come to light. Where we will see my character’s change the most as time goes on. The most sudden changes happen at the end, but I feel like these moments are overall more important to my arcs.

The Midpoint: OOoh this is a certain point which I am very excited to write, but it is a huge spoiler. Let’s just say that someone dies, and it’s dramatic and I love that character and I’m not prepared.

The Final act: This is when everything comes together. My timelines converge completely at this point, and that act causes for the murderer to be revealed! (Now they have to catch them.)

The Climax: Magical, action-packed fight scene with all of my characters. ‘Nuff said.

Lastly, How to NaNo: My plan as it stands hinges on writing a lot on the weekends. I’ve set up a plan on Pacemaker that will have me write about 1,300 words on weekdays, then 2,600 on weekends. I hope I can keep it up alright, but my life and school will come first. I’m doing it again in December, so I’m hoping to get about 100,000 words over the space of two months.

And now, here’s part 2 of the myth. Part three comes on Halloween, if all goes as planned. :D (Part One, if you missed it.)

Laurus wasn’t sure what to do. Somnia, on the other hand, had an agenda to fill.

She immediately took off, disappearing from the room. Metus made no moves to stop or follow her, instead choosing to walk boldly to the corner and pick her sword up from the corner. She turned it over in her hands before unsheathing it and stabbing her arm in a swift moment. She grunted, but did not recoil from the wound, instead positioning her blade underneath so that the blood fell onto the tip.

“Where do I go, my king?” Her eyes didn’t eve lift from the red-tipped blade.

Laurus was struck with both wonder and fear. A power- some unknown magic- coursed through her blood. Everything she said and did was with an authority that he, a king, couldn’t fully understand.

“Where do I find the invaders?” She lowered the blade and took a step towards him- covering more space than should have been possible in a single stride. Had he not been against the wall, he would have backed away from her.

“They’ve stayed to the southern edge,” he said. He was surprised his voice didn’t tremble. “The southeastern corner. I last heard of their presence in Peiraine.”

Metus nodded and took two steps, covering the distance to the door. As she was about to leave, she turned back, smiling. A trickle of blood leading from the corner of her mouth to her chin was still there, beginning to dry in the air.

“Thank you, my king. I shall see you soon. I will bring you the emperor’s head on my sword.”

With one movement, the medals on her chest clattered to the floor, the threads connecting then severed by her sword. She turned on her heel, digging them into the ground and disappearing through the door.

Laurus was the last to leave the accursed room.

Laurus didn’t hear anything of Metus for another fortnight. Rumors spread like wildfire, but he didn’t believe any messages that came to him until a young woman showed up at his throne.

“My sister is losing control.” Somnia looked wildly different. Her hair had been cut to nearly the scalp, revealing everything about her face- the bones, the freckles, and the eyes. “Last I saw her, she was cutting off the heads of anyone who spoke out against her. The people are scared- they’re worshipping her to preserve their lives.”

“And the invaders?”

Somnia shrugged. “They don’t concern me.”

“They concern me an awful lot.”

“A King should first worry about his people-”

“What do you think I’m doing, woman? Your sister is the only hope we have at the moment. What do you expect me to do?”

“I came to donate my blood.”

Laurus fell silent. He hadn’t considered trying again. “I still need all of the other’s as well. And a warrior’s…”

“Warriors are easy to come by. As are artists and scholars. I’m sure you could call your original choices anyhow.”

Laurus called in Cartus, Lituus, Matercula, and a guard and a slave in the palace who were willing to volunteer. Occasus appeared without being summoned, but shared a knowing smile with Somnia as he approached.

“I doubt my blood is sufficient anymore, but I came to witness the event,” he said, smiling.

The knife came out again, the cup was again stained red. Matercula immediately began to dress the cuts.

Laurus paused before reaching for the cup. Metus’s actions still echoed in his mind.

“Does anyone wish to use this cup for themselves?”

He wasn’t surprised when Somnia raised her hand. “I wish to stop my sister’s reign of terror. I know her far better than any of you can claim.”

“And you agree to dispel the invaders as well?” Laurus asked.

“They do not concern me, but they concern you, my king. I will do as you ask me.” She held out her hand, and Laurus delivered the cup to her. She lowered her head, murmuring into the cup again. When she was silenced, she looked among the group.

“Please, could you fetch me some wine to wash this down with? I’m not quite as brave as Metus is.”

Lituus smiled. “Ah, yes. Fetch some wine for all of us. A celebration is in order!”

Occasus and the slave disappeared down a corridor, heading for the kitchens. They returned, carrying a wineskin and several goblets.

Somnia helped them pour, dumping some of the blood into her own glass. She turned towards the others with a smile, offering a goblet to Laurus. Occasus and the slave passed them out to the others.

Somnia sipped at her cup daintily, Matercula took one sip before setting the drink aside to again turn to her duties, Laurus kept it in his hand, occasionally swallowing the liquid. Lituus’s was gone almost immediately, Cartus took one sip to be polite, then gave his glass to Lituus.

It hit Lituus first. He fell to the floor, his wine glass shattering. Matercula bent over him, checking him over in horror.

“What happened to him? I’ve never seen someone get drunk so fast!”

“He’ll be fine. It didn’t harm my sister in any way.” Somnia said, taking another swallow of her wine. “I assume I’ll fall next. Then it will be you, my king.”

“What did you do?” Laurus asked, staring at the cup of wine in his hand.

“It only takes a drop for the powers to manifest themselves. Lituus is experiencing his turning right now.” She fell down, a smile still on her lips. Matercula ran over to her, making sure she had not fallen on any shards of glass. The others began to panic, the wine and pleasantries forgotten.

“I hope you will not be offended,” Occasus said, turning towards the soldier and the slave. “Somnia believes one soldier goddess in the world is enough, and she wished me to fulfil the role of the slave. I suppose I’ll never fully shake the title.”

The slave and the soldier didn’t answer. They still didn’t touch the wine, instead choosing to support their king as he started to fall.

Occasus dropped after that. Then Cartus. Then Matercula.

And so, Six of the Seven Saviors lay on the castle floor. A single guard and slave passed from person to person, panicked.

And then, they rose.

[henbooks]

NaNoPlanMo #13

Today is setting descriptions!

Alright, here are some descriptions of some major places in TCotMK-

The Castle ballroom- A large and open room, somewhat ovular shaped, columns making a second ring in the middle. The outer walls are lines with fourteen stained glass windows, two for each of the Saviors, which wash the marble floor in colors when the sun shines through them. Obsidian chandeliers of sorts are hung all around the room, candles set inside large cups to keep wax from dropping onto the floor. 

The Library: Filled to the brim with books. The shelves are all full, but tidy. The overflow books are stacked on tables, the only thing messy in the room. Every surface seems to hold something, whether it’s scrolls, books, lights. The room smells of myrrh, old paper, and dust. Everything is dark wood- the bookshelves eating every semblance of light that falls on them. The book bindings are bright in comparison, standing out beautifully.

The Patron Barracks- Largely dark and dry. The lights are spaced just so that the dimmest rings of light touch, no space truly dark, but no space truly light either. The stone is much rougher here. Scraping your arm along  it hurts, and being pushed into it will cause a major scrape. The floor is largely smooth, but dust and sang and other grits have built into the cracks of the flooring and lined the tiles. Most of the Barracks is large, open rooms for the Patrons to sleep in, or thin hallways that twist everywhere into a maze.

The Underworld- A huge black cave. Without a torch, you couldn’t see a thing. With one, however, you can see the rough rock left behind, the blind creatures scurrying away from your footsteps, the pools and underground rivers left when the over world disappeared. The sound of water dripping and of the earth rumbling is common here. The rare spots where the sunlight leaks in are where you find vegetation growing, trees cracking through the rock or thick moss growing on boulders. Little spots of fertile land in a dark wasteland.

[henbooks]

NaNoPlanMo #11

Today: Dialogue

OK, not entirely sure what I can post about this one, other than some examples?

Here’s a few pieces of dialogue from a scene I rewrote/edited today. I’m going to just go ahead and put the dialogue with no descriptions, actions, or even tags. (This is a conversation between Jewel and Romulus. They are my favorites! <3)

“Would you care to dance with me?”

“Shouldn’t you dance with Lady Gwendolyn?”

“She might murder me if I asked. Besides, it’s you I want to talk to.”

“People would get the wrong idea about us. They’ll think that you’re looking for a side romance. Or just a good time.”

“We barely met. Nobody will think anything of it other than the fact that you and I are dancing and talking. Besides, everyone knows that Gwendolyn and I have a… tense relationship. I truly think nobody would care.”

“What about your mother?”

“I didn’t realize you and Gwendolyn had the same wit.”

I’m still not 100% happy with it, but it’ll do for now. I’ve found a couple problems with voice by removing the tags. I’ll have to fix them. XD.

[henbooks]

Writing Update 9/26/27

Today I got through all of our beta comments thus far, and so all of the things we need to change are compiled together. Now we just need to get through another edit. This one should be pretty big and fix a lot of the problems with the book, so I’m really excited! The world is getting a bit more developed, and the characters (Particularly Robert) are getting a lot more development as well.

I also had the time to write a scene in TCotMK today, just for fun. It’s not very long, but it’s a good interaction between Gwendolyn and Romulus (AKA, two of my absolute favorite characters. I love them sooooo much.)

Favorite Line Written: “If you hate spending time with me so much, why are you helping me carry my books?” She asked, raising her eyebrows and smiling knowingly. “Queen Lupa getting on your nerves? What for, I wonder.”

“That is not what I meant!” Romulus sputtered, standing up taller. “I just want to spend more time with the woman I am apparently going to marry.”

Gwendolyn rolled her eyes and sighed. “You shouldn't lie, Romulus. You’re dreadful at it.” She began walking again, making her way closer and closer to the study of King Gavin. To the murder scene. Romulus helplessly followed, not sure what to do with himself otherwise. Hopefully, this wouldn't take too long.

That’s abut all I could do today, sadly. I hope to get more done tomorrow, but the longer this school year goes on, the more I realize that my writing time is going to be greatly reduced. I’m going to shoot for 4,000 words written a week, but that’s only and estimate for now. My schooling, family, and health do come first in my life, and I will be focusing on getting Celestia edited in a lot of my writing time. That is priority number one for me, so the written words may decrease.

Weekly wordcount: 894/4,000

[henbooks]

Writing Update 10/29/17

I haven't done one of these in a long while.

Well, let’s talk about new story ideas, and old stories in progress.

I’ve written a lot on TCotMK. I finished two chapters, which are super long, and am about 1/3-1/2 of the way through another since I last checked in, so I’m feeling pretty good. Especially with how busy I’ve been lately.

Words written: Around 10,000, I think? Maybe?

Either way, not great, but not terrible. Especially since I took a week off for this little bugger:

The Rock and The Falcon. That was a week from hell. XD

Basically, I woke up with this little idea seed in my brain about two weeks ago, and I started to write it down. Then it grew into a fully-fleshed story in about a day, and by the end of the week had become a trilogy. I only give myself a week to get a new story out of my system, so I’ve set it aside for now. (Until I have a new breakthrough on it. Then Ill give myself a day or two so I won’t forget it.)

This is the life of the maladaptive daydreamer, I guess.

Anyways, I actually had to google a weird thing today, and I’ve noticed that Shaelinwrites will put this on her writing updates, so I’m going to steal it (with credit where credit is due.)

Weird thing googled: Can strong wine mask the taste of blood?

If you’ve read part two of my mythos, that will make sense.

Favorite Line Written: (This one really sucks. My first drafts are always really rough.)

The sword was padded and dulled, fashioned to be flexible and not cause harm. They wouldn’t always be like this, but that one fact kept him sane. He didn’t have to hurt anyone yet.

I’m heading to bed now, but I’ll see you guys later.

Writing updates will be a lot more frequent during NaNoWriMo. I’m fairly determined to hit my goal this year.

[henbooks]

NaNoPlanMo #18

Sorry for missing two days- This weekend was full of writing essays and getting sick, and today was largely resting. So, today we’re covering myths, structure, and first pages!

I’m actually going to cover structure and first pages first.

Structure: I’ve divided my story into seven parts, one to represent each god. I start every chapter with a short couplet that is part of an epic poem describing the gods. otherwise, the chapters are usually told from multiple points of view, where one scene will be from Jewel’s POV, and another will be Romulus. I was debating starting every section off with a ‘prologue’ of sorts, which would tell the story of The Ascension, but opted for the poem instead.

First Pages: This part is finished- (I’m considering this the first scene of my story, which takes up about five pages.) The first scene is Jewel and her father discussing the tournament, and their unexpected guest in the form of Emperor Kalipus. It’s a bit exposition-y at the moment, which I really need to fix once I start edits, but it introduces the world and themes of the story decently well in my opinion. It introduces the characters of Heir Jewel, King Gavin, Mage Gy, and Lord Miles, and sets the tone and mystery of the book in motion (although not entirely. The real mystery doesn’t begin until the middle of Chapter 3, but chapter one is important setup for it.)

Myths: I’m going to write out the first part of what is called the Saviors’ Ascension in the world. It’s the myth of the creation of the gods. It’ll be below the cut, since I don’t want to have an overly long post.

In the times before the saviors, the people lived without gods. In every struggle, they had nowhere to look but to their ruler. Time after time, kings and queens were the people’s guidance. Some succeeded, others failed. Most weren’t notable.

In the times after King Puriah, Mylina saw their worst times. The year froze early, killing many crops. Without wise distribution of the crops, many people would perish. Zaldic invaders rose up from the southwest, attacking coastal cities

In this time of need, the people looked to King Laurus. He had solved the farming crisis, he had defended them from the Zaldic invaders, and now, they knew he would save them from the approaching Tralvean Empire.

Laurus knew that Mylina’s army wasn’t enough. To engage in battle would be a suicide, and just sitting and waiting for the Tralvean Empire to come was passive. He couldn’t sit by and let his people die, but he had no  actions to take.

So he waited. Waited for an opportunity.

And opportunity comes to those who watch and wait for it.

One night, Laurus woke up in a cold sweat, visions dancing through his brain. Visions of blood, or war, and of salvation.

He knew the way to save his people- Something, whether it was an unknown divine being, his own intuition, or the land itself, had given him all the answers he needed.

He needed the blood of seven- a king, a scholar, a healer, a slave, a criminal, a soldier, and an artist. If he drank this mixture, he knew that he could save his people.

First, Laurus sought out the scholar. His advisor, Cartus, was a wise man with a perchance for texts. He was tall, a head full of curly, dark hair and a hooked nose.

Cartus would take nothing in exchange for his blood. He claimed that a man of service would never take any physical gains for such a noble cause.

The bottom of Laurus’s cup was stained red.

Next, he found the slave in his own castle. He was a man from the north, black hair curled up on top of his head carelessly. He had never allowed it to be cut. He had been given the name Occasus- one who sees- by the guards. Nobody knew his real name.

Laurus offered him freedom in exchange for his blood. He didn’t hesitate to agree.

Next, he tracked down the artist. There was a man called Lituus that was lauded for his abilities with paint. It was said that any pigment he laid down would jump off the page. Laurus found him in the capitol, painting on the street corner. He hadn’t expected to run into such a travel-wearied man. He was rugged in looks, tangled blonde hair, a face covered in dirt and yellow paint.

He was offered a home and supplies in exchange for his blood. Lituus nodded, never taking his eyes off of his work.

There was an inch of blood at the bottom of the cup.

Next, he sought out the healer- a young woman named Matercula. She was beautiful, her chocolate waves falling down over striking olive shoulders. At her waist was a gathering of pouches, all filled with healing herbs. Her home was filled with the sickly, but she otherwise was alone and barren. There was no furniture in her house without a patient laid across it. There were no books, no trinkets. Just walls, a floor, a ceiling, and the coughs and moans of the sickly around her.

Laurus had nothing to offer her but money, which she took with thanks. Her pouches of medicines would be filled once again, and she could save another few lives.

“You’re not actually going to drink that, are you?” She asked, gesturing to the goblet as she worked on a patient.

“I see no other option.”

“I could tell you about a few nasty bloodborne diseases that would change your mind.”

“How else can I save us?” He asked. Matercula pulled a needle out of her dresses pocket, strung it, and began stitching up a wound on her patient’s arm. She didn’t answer.

“Thank you for your service,” Laurus said, exiting the room, feeling the presence of sickness trail after him like a cloud.

Lastly, Laurus found the soldier and the criminal together. Two sisters, one working at the prison that the other was held in. The soldier was an eager young woman named Metus, her uniform carefully laid over her breast, proudly displaying her rank. It wasn’t a rank of any glory, but she wore it with pride.

Her sister was interesting- a young woman with a mischievous smile and twinkling eyes hiding behind messy and matted locks, cut short along her collarbone. Even behind bars, she was enchanting in the way that sends shivers up your spine. Laurus couldn't take his eyes off of her for fear that she would attack him. Metus referred to her as Somnia.

The exchange for their blood was small, glory and freedom respectively. Metus gladly accepted. Somnia just nodded, never uttering a word.

Laurus pulled out his knife, doing as he had done with all of the others. His heart lifted into his throat- whether from hope or dread, he could not tell.

As the blade touched Somnia’s skin, she began to murmur, her voice inaudible behind her matted locks.

As soon as the criminal’s blood dropped into the cup, Metus dived for the goblet, swiping it out of Laurus’s hands, and draining the blood in a swell swallow.

“Stop!”

A moment later, she fell upon the floor, gagging. Blood drained out of the corner of her mouth, pooling between the cracks of the stone tiles.

“She survives.” A soft, crystal voice said from behind Laurus. Somnia stood, on the same side of the bars as him. He hadn’t heard the door even open, but her freedom had been promised.

“How do you know?”

“Because I asked her to.”

Laurus stepped away from Metus’s body, watching her. She twitched once. Twice. Three times. Then, her eyes opened. She stood up, her limbs strong. Unnatural.

Laurus stepped back as she faced him. She seemed taller now. Stronger. Then, she spoke.

“I will fend off the invaders. I will lead the armies away. I will be the hero.”

(I’m going to end it there. It’s not even halfway done, in all honesty, but I want to post what I have, and I can continue it later. Let me know if you guys are enjoying this!)

[henbooks]

NaNoPlanMo #16

Today is Magic Systems, and this is where I get really excited. I now get to cover my land’s religion and magic system, since they are very interconnected.

My magic system is based on my world’s history,particularly of the creation of The Seven Saviors. Long story short, foreign invaders were threatening, and the people rose up and created their own gods based on a prophetic dream King Laurus had. These gods, called The Saviors by the people, gained powers from a sacred mixture of blood and were granted powers to help them lead the people.

After the war was won and the Tralvean Empire was no longer such a threat, The Seven Saviors decided on a plan to remove themselves from the people, as the whole ‘now we’re gods and these people are worshiping us’ thing was creeping them out They are, after all, normal people, and they still had lives to live. So, they set up a plan (That may or may not be the complete truth. Folklore and it’s reliability is a huge concept in my story- particularly in Pith and Gwendolyn’s arcs.) to remove themselves from the people.

The Saviors all split their souls in half, distributing half of each of their souls among the people. Then, they used the other half of their soul to bind the entire landmass and lift it out of the sea, rising it around 200 feet into the air to make it nigh impossible for invaders to attack.

Years later, the half souls are still passed around the population is small parts, manifesting in my magic powers. Each gods has two branches to their magic system- that of blood and that of the soul, and while it is possible to have both a blood and a soul magic type naturally, it is incredibly rare. (I only have one character born with this.)

So, finally, here are what the powers of my magic system do, as well as a short description of the gods.

Laurus: God of kings, wealth, victory, and corruption.

By Blood: This designates you as a royal. If you hold the blood of Laurus in your veins, you are connected to one of the royal families and are technically fit to rule, should the crown ever fall to you. There are rumors of it having other uses, but nobody has uncovered the exact specifics yet (hint hint.)

By Spirit: Another mystery of sorts- despite Laurus being the most central and beloved Savior, his powers are little known because they do not manifest themselves as easily as the other god’s do. You can’t test for his as well. There are rumors that those chosen by his spirit are naturally better leaders, but it’s completely speculative.

Matercula: Goddess of motherhood, beauty, medicine, and plague.

By Blood: Your blood can heal another person’s wounds. The more blood you can give, the more potent the healing will be. Only works for physical symptoms, such as cuts and bruises, and cannot bring  dully dead person back to life, nor re-grow entire limbs like an arm.

By Spirit: You can give part of your soul (which is synonymous with life force in this world) to heal another person’s illnesses. In very extreme cases, they can use their souls to heal mental illnesses, although never permanently and not completely.

Cartus: God of knowledge, writing, history, and predjudice.

By Blood: A person’s blood can reveal the perfect truth hidden in a text, dispelling any historical inaccuracies and lies told by historians. This one is rare and difficult to use, as it must be on the original text written by the original author, and can easily ruin a tome. Only really used when there is serious doubt in a letter between officials.

By Spirit: The chosen one gains a near perfect knowledge of any text they place a part of their soul into as long as their soul is in it. Much more useful to scholars than the blood one, as it works on copied versions (Although it can muddle it depending on a few factors...) and doesn’t ruin the tome in the process of using it.

Lituus: God of music, art, travel, and frivolity

By Blood: These chosen ones exist in the domain of physical art, whether it be painting or sculpture. Anointing an unfinished work of art of any sort with the chosen one’s blood will bless the artist with inspiration and cause for the work of art to become great in the eyes of the people.

By Spirit: Music comes very naturally to these people. Too naturally, in many cases. Some are incapable of making a mistake on any instrument they play. These people often become bards, but many can feel passionless about the music because they are incapable of making mistakes, and thus making it their own. 

Metus: Goddess of glory, heroism, war, and bloodshed.

By Blood: Any weapon anointed with a chosen one’s blood will be sacred to Metus, delivering much harder blows and truer strikes. 

By Spirit: A chosen one can infuse any weapon of their choice with a part of their soul. This causes for a part of their soul to be unable to be harmed, and while it cannot grant them anything near immortality, it makes them able to fight much longer. If the weapon is broken, the piece of soul is lost.

Occasus: God of time, prophesy, justice, and death.

By Blood: These people are able to spill their blood into anointed water, and then see a prophesy of the future. The more blood they spill, the clearer the picture of what will happen is. It is not always accurate, but it is good council for the rulers. These people, called Aiolos, are often sent to a training academy that basically trains them on how to nearly bleed out and die, but still survive.

By Spirit: Seen as mostly useless in the world- they can anoint water to Occasus, but nothing else.

Somnia: Goddess of magic, shadows, trickery, and betrayal.

By Blood: Chosen ones can place their blood on any surface, and then burn their blood.It’s very potent, very volatile, and very dangerous. They can also bind substances together with their blood. Practicing members of this group are called Simuls. (I’ll get to them more when i talk about the spirit.) This is illegal magic. It was deemed far too dangerous, and all practicing blood mages are put to death. 

By Spirit: A mage can use a part of their soul and infuse it into an object. Based upon it’s properties (plant, animal, or mineral), they can manipulate their surroundings in different ways. Plant based materials harden, animal based materials (without a soul inhabiting the body- must be dead.) can be controlled, and minerals will become completely immobile. (They could make a rock float in the air, for example.)

Back to Simuls- they can take two components, like a rock and a plant-based liquid, and combine the two properties with their blood, allowing mages to access both of the properties. Many simuls, instead of being killed, are instead hired by the crown and watched very closely.

That was very long. But now you guys have a basis of my mythology! I have sooo much more, and I can’t wait for Saturday, when i get to talk about myths. (Occasus and Somnia have several really good ones, as do Matercula and Metus.)

[henbooks]

Writing Update 9/22/17

Sooo... Homework is a thing. A terrible thing that takes up a lot of time.

In short, I wasn’t as productive this week as I wanted to be. At all. i only wrote about 2,000 words over four days, which is just not very good. This week was worse than most, but I think this will be a theme throughout the year, sadly. 

That said, it is the weekend, and with the weekend comes an opportunity to actually write a thing or two. 

So, here is my plan for over the next two days:

*Finish Chapter 3 of TCotMK

*Edit Chapter 19 and one other one (tbd)

*Finish compiling notes from betas on Celestia for draft 3

I probably won’t be able to do it all, but I know that overloading myself tends to get me in action more than being realistic. I’ll check back on Sunday and let you all know how things went.

[henbooks]

NaNoPlan Mo Day #10

Today is Secondary characters!

Because of how large my novel is, I’m just going to pick my five favorites.

Ren Ranwin: Ren is a powerful mage and a close friend of Gwendolyn’s. He’s a quiet, thoughtful sort of guy. Most people barely know he is a mage, much less know he is as powerful as he is. He struggles with reading and writing due to having bad dyslexia, so he prefers a discussion-based way of study, which partners perfectly with Gwendolyn’s reading obsession. Together, the two of them are great scholars- far greater than the sum of their parts.

Ahara Bajakh: Ahara is the younger sister to Devi Bajakh, and is the patron of Occasus on the Eldahide Tournament team. While she does not have previous experience learning to fight with a weapon, she is an extremely fast learner and is able to pick it up very quickly. (There is a reason- I’m not just making excuses to make my characters kick-butt, I swear.) She’s fiercely loyal and protective over the people she likes, but it’s extremely hard to get through her ‘shell’, as it were. She likes to use her relatively small personage to her advantage by appearing weak, but being faster and stronger than anyone would expect her to be. 

Devi Bajakh: The older sister to Ahara and a mage. Devi is the sweetest and purest person in the book, probably. (Not the cinnamon roll, per se. I still say Romulus holds that title because of his disposition, but she’s another one for certain.) She’s the sort that wants to help everyone- even people that probably don’t deserve her kindness. She’s an opposite of Ahara in that way. She’s beautiful, graceful, clever, and a skilled mage to boot, but is weak-willed and easily controlled by others. 

Launce Aidge: Launce is the son of one of Vox’s close friends, and a late-blooming Aiolo. He’s very powerful, but inexperienced. Because of his powers, he is sent to the Aiolo academy, a place that Vox reviles for its mistreatment of her and the other young children trained within it. After Launce is rescued, he assists Pith and Vox on their quest, lending his powers whenever he can, and using his knowledge on the plans inside the academy to assist them.

Saturio Anaeis: The Heir to Wraewit. He is like his father in many ways- a brilliant soldier and general, prod of his country, and imposing, but differs from his father in one way- Saturio lives and breathes honor. Unlike his father, every word he says will be kept. Nothing is more valuable to him than his word, and keeping an honest life is his recipe for a successful life.

[henbooks]

NaNoPlanMo Day #9

Time for antagonists!

Because my main antagonist is a secret, I can’t really talk about them here. :(

Instead, I’ll talk about some other antagonists who aren’t secrets. Those will be Kalipus, Tansee, Lydus, and Lupa.

Kalipus: Kalipus is the emperor over the Tralvean empire, a continually expanding empire situated to the southeast of Mylina. Over centuries, they’ve amassed a huge territory through their conquests. At first, they fought in bloody wars for their land, but as the years went on they started using less violent methods. One that became increasingly popular among the royals was that of marriage. Rather than waste man power and labor in both their ranks and the ranks of the kingdom they were trying to take over, they found it far easier to marry into royal families, preferably also producing an heir to solidify the Tralvean influence. Kalipus is one of the most prolific rulers in recent history, having already taken over five kingdoms in his six-year rule thus far. When he arrives at the tournament, everyone expects foul play, as they should, as his eyes lie on taking over Mylina next.

 Tansee: There are several spoilers surrounding Tansee, so I won’t go into much detail, but he is basically the leader of the Mage Underground. He was born blind, but with exceptionally powerful mage powers. He harbors any mage that flees into the underworld and uses them to help further the mage revolution above. The only problem with this is that he doesn’t treat them very well. Sure, they are safe, but they are just as exploited as they were above the ground, but now they aren’t allowed to leave. (I may make Tansee a girl- I am undecided as of now, and the character doesn't change an ounce based upon gender. It;s still up in the air, but I’m going with male for now.)

Lydus: Lydus is the King of Wraewit, known for their honor and commitment, as well as for their powerful army. Lydus is a king who claims to be honorable, but is almost anything but. He keeps his word, but only by twisting the circumstance and manipulating everyone around him with veiled threats and half-truths. He was a noted ally of Gavin’s for years, but had done nothing but slander the late king after Gavin’s death. This, obviously, is pretty suspicious, and where Lydus’s petty lies and slander come to fruition.

Lupa: Lupa is one of my favorite characters. I only put her as an antagonist because she is actively going against Romulus, one of my protagonists’s, actions. She is a bitter and cold woman, but has a deep love for her sons, bordering on over protection. She seeks to arrange them into successful marriages, rejecting Romulus’s propositions of true love because of her own past experiences. Lupa likes control and knows when she has it, and can easily come off as cruel, but she really does just mean the best for the people around her. She is not greedy, like many of my other antagonists, simply controlling.

Those are a few of my favorite antagonists! I really wish i could talk about my main baddie, but it would ruin the entire novel if I did! Still- just know that they have been one of my very favorite characters to develop.