#allisonreader

[fictionadventurer]

Oh... I just had a thought. I know I sent you an ask about fictional book recs of sorts when you had first posted it, but if I can, I'd like to make an amendment to it. (As rambling as I was that time too.)

What if; The Scorn Prince, was a time travel story instead.

Oh, are you talking about The Scorn King? Because let me tell you, that is one of the wildest sequels I've ever read, and if you want to know where I stand on the fandom controversy, it's that I love it to bits.

The more I think about it, the more I love that Meryl North had the audacity to follow up The Scorn Prince this way. Because it starts as such a normal-sounding sequel--a few years after the bittersweet ending of The Scorn Prince, the Yates siblings have at last found a magical artifact that will let them travel to Jerrigan's kingdom of Ardwick. And we naturally assume this will lead to another cozy-yet-silly fish-out-of-water tale, this time with the Yates siblings learning to navigate Jerrigan's world.

Except, the artifact that lets them cross worlds also messes with time, and the very act of their arriving changes history--the ripples across time created phenomena of glowing lights that were interpreted as omen signifying that Jerrigan was meant to rule, which meant that the coup that displaced him and drove him to our world never happened, so he was able to take the throne and has been ruling for several years without undergoing the character reformation that happened when he was in our world.

And I've seen people outraged at the fact that the sequel erases the events of the first book. But the thing is, it doesn't. The fact that the Yates kids are from a different world lets North justify some timey-wimeyness where the kids remember the old timeline while finding themselves in the new timeline, facing a King Jerrigan who's a great big jerk who doesn't remember them at all. And the tension between those two timelines, as they try to reconcile who they know Jerrigan could be with who he is now is so painful and so great.

The political intrigue alone! Ruth stubbornly holding onto the idea that Jerrigan can be reformed despite no signs that it'll happen in a place and a time where he's secure in his power, while her brothers are tempted into helping a revolution to overthrow him. On the one hand, you want to side with Ruth in liking this guy we grew to love in the last book, but on the other hand, the boys kind of have a point that maybe the revolution is the only way to spark his character arc, but on the other hand, if the Yates kids betray him, they're not going to be in a position to help him undergo the character arc the way they did in the last book.

And they're stuck in a scheming royal court with its intrigues, which they have no experience navigating, and Ruth is kind of wrestling with the tiny bits of romance with Jerrigan that came from the last book, and Jerrigan himself is having to face the fact that these weird people from another world are disappointed in him and for some reason he cares and starts to undergo a character arc that might be too little too late.

It's just so complex and not at all what I'd have expected as a follow-up to The Scorn Prince, and I know that makes some people mad, but I adore it. If people want to ignore the sequel and write their terrible fluffy fanfic versions, that's fine, but I am going to treasure this story instead.

[for-the-writing-artist]

💾 Have you read any of the challenge stories that have really stuck with you? (Any stories you still think about/go back and read)

📝 If you’ve previously participated, which team (or teams) have you ended up on?

🖋️Which team are you hoping for?

💻Which team do you least want to end up on?

Have you read any of the challenge stories that have really stuck with you? (Any stories you still think about/go back and read)

Tell Your Dad You Love Him, by @queenlucythevaliant

The salt metaphor resonated just a tad too close to real life. Like, right in the feels. 10/10 would definitely recommend a reread.

If you’ve previously participated, which team (or teams) have you ended up on?

I have not participated before! But I'm very excited about it (:

Which team are you hoping for?

Oh I can't decide! Team Tolkien and his time travelling wizards (<- longest idea by far) vs Team Lewis and his sweet epistolary letter from a planet exploring botanist? It's damn near impossible!

Which team do you least want to end up on?

Team Chesterton for sure. Though I have un-ironically placed my shortest and simplest idea on his team, the trouble would be three-fold. Little time writing it and plenty of time to agonize over it. ;D

[confetti-cat]

📓Which of this year’s theme/s are you most drawn to?

📝 If you’ve previously participated, which team (or teams) have you ended up on?

💾 Have you read any of the challenge stories that have really stuck with you? (Any stories you still think about/go back and read)

🖋️Which team are you hoping for?

(or any questions that you haven't otherwise been asked and want to answer.)

📓Which of this year’s theme/s are you most drawn to?

I really enjoy stories about the different aspects of Loving In Hard Times - comfort the sorrowful, bear wrongs patiently, and forgive all injuries are ones I'd love to use.

📝 If you’ve previously participated, which team (or teams) have you ended up on?

Team Lewis in 2021, Chesterton in 2022, and Lewis again in 2023! I had to go look at my notes because somehow I forgot there were two years I didn't finish my stories. Oof. Hoping to complete one again this time!

💾 Have you read any of the challenge stories that have really stuck with you? (Any stories you still think about/go back and read)

I haven't read as many of the challenge stories as I'd hoped to, but I plan to change that as I can! One I absolutely love is The Remnant by @taleweaver-ramblings. The imagery is beautiful, and reading (and rereading!) how the two mysteries simultaneously unravel and tie together was a wonderful experience.

🖋️Which team are you hoping for?

I have bravely decided to not think about it too much until I get sorted, as I tend to start getting attached to ideas for teams I don't end up on if I'm not careful. That said, it would be fun to complete the trifecta by being on Team Tolkien, but I love Chesterton's genres this year too! (If I get Lewis again, I might try writing a short, fun piece with the characters from The Silver Stars. Trying to hype myself up on all fronts here. 😂)

[griseldabanks]

🖋️Which team are you hoping for?

💻Which team do you least want to end up on?

🖨️Which genre/s excites you the most?

🖋️Which team are you hoping for?

I'm hoping for Team Lewis, because I've got a few thoughts already for a portal fantasy I'd like to explore. Team Tolkien would also be great, because Secondary World fantasy is my bread and butter.

💻Which team do you least want to end up on?

Team Chesterton - partly because I know him least out of the three authors (I've only read a few Father Brown stories and The Man Who Was Thursday, which I barely remember because I feverishly read it over a spring break during a semester of college where I had to read an unconscionable number of books in a crazy-short time), partly because I don't feel like I have a great grasp on what counts as intrusive fantasy or earth travel.

🖨️Which genre/s excites you the most?

As mentioned above, I'm excited to explore a portal fantasy! I'm trying not to plan too many specifics until I know what team I'm on, but this could be a great excuse to work out some of my fledgling Narnia-esque imaginings. I've also got a few Secondary World fantasy novels already on the back burners, so it would be fairly simple to just write a short story in one of those worlds. I've also got some vague ideas for a sci-fi story, but if I get Team Lewis, I'd totally doing a portal fantasy.

Inklings Challenge Ask Game

[lydiahosek]

💾 Have you read any of the challenge stories that have really stuck with you? (Any stories you still think about/go back and read)

📓Which of this year’s theme/s are you most drawn to?

💻Which team do you least want to end up on?

🖨️Which genre/s excites you the most?

🖋️Which team are you hoping for?

💾 - Oh yes! The first to come to mind are

"Floor It" by allieinarden

"Fable" by fictionadventurer

"Lily & Leandros" by mademoiseli

"Tidings of Comfort and Joy" by imissthembutitwasntadisaster

📓 - "Counsel the doubtful", "Pray for the living and the dead". Depending on which team I end up on, "Forgive all injuries" could work with an unused idea from a year or two ago.

💻 - There are no bad options, but I've been on Team Lewis the last two years.

🖨️ - That shiny new earth travel genre sounds promising. I think a bunch of the themes could be used in interesting ways with time travel, too.

🖋️ - I've never been on Team Tolkien...

[popcornfairy28]

🖋️Which team are you hoping for?

💻Which team do you least want to end up on?

📃Which genre/s do you feel least confident about?

📜Which genre/s do you feel most confident about?

Thanks for the ask!

🖋️Which team are you hoping for?

I'm hoping I'll get Team Tolkien this year, since I've already got an idea that would fit Time Travel the best. I could probably find a way to make it work with the other teams though, and hopefully it will not be my only idea lol.

💻Which team do you least want to end up on?

Since I was on Team Chesterton last year, I don't really want to end up on that team again this year. I'm also just a bit more familiar with Tolkien and Lewis' works anyway. It would be cool to try out the new Earth Travel genre though, since I was one of the few that tried the Adventure genre.

📃Which genre/s do you feel least confident about?

Probably Intrusive Fantasy, followed by Space Travel.

📜Which genre/s do you feel most confident about?

I'd have to say Secondary World Fantasy.

[plainshobbit]

Trick or Treat🎃

Two children are born the same night in the same hour -- the heirs of two rival kingdoms. A girl is born to the leaders of a kingdom whose symbol is a dragon. A boy is born to their rival kingdom whose symbol is a phoenix.

That night the weaver finishes a magnificent tapestry of a phoenix and dragon intertwined rising into the night sky, trailing flame over crossed swords. Below the Pheonix crown lies crushed and shattered amid smoke and ash.

It is clear to the Pheonix king that this means that if his child should meet the child of his rival, they would unite and overthrow him. But he is a cunning and cruel man. He takes measures that he believes will prevent the prophecy from seeing its fulfillment. 

The years pass and the two children grow to be skilled warriors and fierce protectors of their kingdoms.

[allisonreader]

Well that's certainly an interesting way to misspelling my own name.

[inklings-challenge]

Inklings Challenge 2024: Team Chesterton

It is time to officially announce the members of Team Chesterton for the 2024 Inklings Challenge

Members of Team Chesterton are challenged to write a science fiction or fantasy story within the Christian worldview that fits into one of these two genres:

Intrusive Fantasy: Stories where the fantastical elements intrude into the real world

Earth Travel: Science fiction or fantasy stories that feature any kind of land, sea, air, or underground travel on a past, present, future or alternate Earth

These genres are open to interpretation, and creativity is encouraged. You can use either or both of the prompts within your story, or if you’re feeling ambitious, you can write multiple stories.

Members of Team Chesterton are also asked to use at least one of the following seven Christian themes to inspire some part of their story.

Admonish the sinner

Instruct the ignorant

Counsel the doubtful

Comfort the sorrowful

Bear wrongs patiently

Forgive all injuries

Pray for the living and the dead

Writers are challenged to complete and post their story to a tumblr blog by October 21, 2024, though they are encouraged to post earlier if they finish their story before that date. There is no maximum or minimum word limit. Writers who have not completed their stories before the deadline are encouraged to post whatever they have written by October 21st and post the remainder at a later date. Writers are also welcome to post the entire story after the deadline.

Posting the Stories

All stories will be reblogged and archived on the main Inklings Challenge blog. To assist with organization, writers should tag their posts as follows:

Mention the main Challenge blog @inklings-challenge somewhere within the body of the post (which will hopefully alert the Challenge blog).

Tag the story #inklingschallenge, to ensure it shows up in the Challenge tag, and make it more likely that the Challenge blog will find it.

Tag the team that the author is writing for: #team lewis, #team tolkien, or #team chesterton. 

Tag the genre the story falls under: #genre: portal fantasy, #genre: space travel, #genre: secondary world, #genre: time travel, #genre: intrusive fantasy, #genre: earth travel

Tag any themes that were used within the story: #theme: admonish, #theme: instruct, #theme: counsel, #theme: comfort, #theme: patience, #theme: forgive, #theme: pray

Tag the completion status of the story: #story: complete or #story: unfinished

Team Members

The writers assigned to Team Chesterton are:

@afairmaiden

@agirlbelovedbygod

@allieinarden

@allisonreader

@apieters

@artist-issues

@butterflies-and-bumble-bees

@called-kept

@casa-anachar

@clarythericebot

@courage-is-when-we-face-our-fear

@dearlittlefandom-stalker

@dragonladyzarz

@drharleyquinn-medicinewoman

@ellakas

@esters-notepad

evanard

@flightsoffancyonpaperwings

@frangipani-wanderlust

@humanradiojmp

@iminlovewithpercyjackson

@katiethedane12

@kazeharuhime

@knight--error

@lover-of-the-starkindler

@maltheniel

@mels-library

@novelmonger

@novice-at-everything

@queenlucythevaliant

@ravenpuffheadcanons

@sashakielman

@secretariatess

@stealingmyplaceinthesun

@swinging-stars-from-satellites

@thalioneledhwen

@thebirdandhersong

@thefinaljediknight

@thelayofsolmonath

@ughnofreeusernames

@weird7habburger

@why-bless-your-heart

@wildlyironicbee

@zelda-was-here

Writing resources, including the Challenge overview, FAQ, writing prompts, and discussions of the genres are available at the Inklings Challenge Directory. Any writers with further questions can contact the Inklings Challenge blog for guidance.

Welcome to the Inklings Challenge, everyone! Now go forth and create!

[nurfhurdur]

🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction? 

🥑 ⇢ you accidentally killed somebody, which mutual(s) do you text for help?

🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them

🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction? 

I have to go back as far as middle school probably, where I would write my own 'stories' in notebooks with ideas from different fandoms before I even knew what fanfiction was. Then I did find fanfiction.net AGES ago. Those were some interesting and definitely cringeworthy times.

🥑 ⇢ you accidentally killed somebody, which mutual(s) do you text for help?

I'm not sure I want anyone to know that's happened lol

But it does remind me of a really old post I tagged @24hrsoda in about how people would probably die if we ever teamed up to do anything 🤣

🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love

I am so out of the loop on fanfics. I'm in multiple fandoms at the moment but really couldn't tell you a specific fic off the top of my head.

@allisonreader is a good writer.

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them

@allisonreader has been there pretty much since the beginning.

@velitmentis has awesome asks and makes me really think about my characters on a deeper level

@peachymcqueen 's and my mutual love of the face claim for Jesse Hudson 😂

There are other mutuals I haven't talked to in a long time but I am applauding them in their different fandoms from affar.

[late-to-the-fandom]

Find the Word Tag

Thank you very much to @owlsandwich , @amewinterswriting @tildeathiwillwrite @thewritingautisticat for the find the word tags over the last few days. I don’t usually do these anymore, but in honor of me successfully coming off hiatus and working on Wend in the Shadows again, I read through what I’ve already posted to try and find the assigned words: moon, noon, soon, spoon, trick, refuse, cruel, energy, draw, velvet, inspiration, side, scatter, listen, study.

Tagging: @mousterian-writes @pancakewithamace @magic-is-something-we-create @sesshy380 @imbrisvastatio @sleepywriter00 @indecentpause @allisonreader @frozen-fountain to find any four words of the above list (if you like)

MOON

No moon! Revendreth doesn’t have one.

NOON

No noon, either – Revendreth doesn’t have one of those either. As one character explains away for me: “Ha. Welcome to Revendreth," said Nadjia, executing a particularly elaborate lunge. “Time is really more a social construct here. You’ll get used to it.”

SOON - found in Chapter 2: Lay of the Land

It took a few seconds for Renathal to rearrange his face into something more appropriately inscrutable, before saying, “I see. Well, that is… highly unusual,”; then several minutes more to assure the dredgers he did not hold them personally responsible for their errand’s failure. Another full minute spent thanking them as graciously as his tumultuous mental state allowed, then, as soon as they had all trudged out again, visibly relieved, Renathal threw himself back into his chair.

SPOON - found in Small Bites, the drabbles that go with Wend

"Surely, you did not think discretion was required purely in regards to your status?” Elisewin's little shrug was the picture of casual unconcern, but her hair swung suspiciously across her face again as she spooned sugar into Renathal's cup.

TRICK - found in Chapter 7: Formal Refreshments

Renathal turned tactfully away, allowing her time to recover, and inspected the reflection of his irrepressibly smug smile in the mirror of the chiffonier. This was no expertly crafted, anima-imbued Venthyr creation, but a slightly warped mortal looking-glass, acquired from the Night Market epochs ago and chosen specifically for the way it lent Renathal’s torso a slightly more generous breadth. He admired it for a few satisfied seconds, then flicked his gaze to the image of Elisewin straightening up behind him, and wondered if the dark, almost hungry glint in her blue-white eyes as she appraised him was simply another trick of the imperfect glass.

REFUSE - found in Chapter 6: Home Improvement

She glared at him. An expression of such insolence the Dark Prince could have had its wearer condemned to a crypt for an age. Instead, he caught up her reluctant hand, brought it to his lips and pressed his smug smile against it. And what could he tell himself about that besides how soft and warm her skin felt and how much he enjoyed the flush suffusing her suddenly expressionless face? Nothing believable. It refused to be spun into anything but the sheer, dangerous indulgence it was.

CRUEL - found in Chapter 5: The Proper Punishment

Then, Denathrius smiled. Not a cruel smile, or a punitive one. Something had shifted in his face, sliding quick as mercury from fury to fatherly benevolence. He cocked his head, appraising his Firstborn with an almost formal interest, flicked his eyes to the half-hidden mortal, then back to Renathal again.

ENERGY - found in Chapter 6: Home Improvement

“Elisewin," and the echo of dominion in the way he said her name seemed to still some of Elisewin's manic energy. "You are... tired," he chose after a pause. "Nightmares are taxing, I expect. Come." He extended a slow, careful arm, and when Elisewin did not flinch away, draped it loosely across her shoulders, guiding her back to the bed.

DRAW - found in Chapter 8: Safe in the Shadows

It was, strictly speaking, treason. By right, he ought to have summoned Stone Legion representatives to clap the Accuser in chains and escort her to the nearest convenient crypt. But the re-education of a Harvester would necessarily draw the Master’s eye, something Renathal was actively avoiding as his dredger driver raced his carriage at unprecedented speeds through back ways and side roads in an attempt to avoid the castle grounds.

VELVET & STUDY - found in Chapter 10: Mix, Mingle, and Meddle

For all his personal animosity towards the Harvester of Desire, Renathal could not deny she was unparalleled in her expertise at choreographing an event. The groups of guests, whether posing together or perambulating across the immaculately manicured garden of the Eternal Terrace, looked placed, and likely were; as much a part of the decor as the polished sinstones or the topiaries. There were precious few stoneborn or dredgers to be found, except in the roles of guards or servants. The Countess extended invitations only to Venthyr aristocracy, each one a study in the finest luxury goods Revendreth had to offer. Deep crimson velvets, vibrant vermillion silks, stark and stately black leathers all dripping with silver and jingling gems dotted the garden like ornate, expensive flowers.

INSPIRATION – closest I had was this variation in Chapter 8: Safe in the Shadows

Elisewin blinked. She shot a glance at the closed parlor door before accepting Renathal’s outstretched hand and letting him gather her onto his lap. His fingers stroked almost reverently through her dark, silky waterfall of hair, basking in the colligation of comfort and arousal her warm mortal flesh inspired. Renathal closed his eyes, and imagined eternity like this: his lover a permanent fixture instead of running on stolen time. But he knew better. She had spoken the inexorable, infuriating truth. Nothing stayed secret from the Sire

[fictionadventurer]

Just because I am so curious what you would come up with this title….

The Scorn Prince- historical fantasy

When I picked The Scorn Prince by Meryl North off of the library shelf on a whim, I had no clue that I was getting all my favorite fantasy tropes in one middle-grade (borderline YA) book. We've got a cozy sibling tale. We've got fantasy political intrigue. And we get a portal fantasy where the person from another world crosses to our world.

The Scorn Prince is one Jerrigan, crown prince of the fantasy realm of Ardwick, so-named because of his intense pride and sharp tongue that lead him to disdain basically everyone as his inferiors. As you can imagine, this doesn't make him many friends, and he winds up being overthrown in a revolution and driven into the wilderness, where he stumbles upon a portal that leads him to a coastal village in 1940s Maine. There, he's discovered by Ruth Yates and her brothers Walter and Edwin, who, naturally, think he's crazy, but decide to help him find food and shelter and navigate their world. There's all sorts of silly fish-out-of-water shenanigans, but also a surprisingly touching character arc, as Jerrigan learns humility and the kids learn to overcome some of their own character flaws that they see mirrored in Jerrigan. It's such a touching little tale of friendship (even a hint of romance), which makes the ending that much more bittersweet. I loved that Jerrigan had matured into someone who was worthy of and could reclaim his throne, but I'll admit that I teared up when he had to leave the Yates family behind. It's such a simple (almost too simple) story, but it hit so many things I love that I was kind of obsessed.

[whipplefilter]

Thanks for the tag, @jushiro-ukitake!

challenge -> you’re starring in a movie with the last person you saved in your camera roll and the last song you listened to is the title

At first I was like, do people... do people save photos of people onto their phones?? Like, excluding photos of people you know in your life? But it turns out I had, indeed, saved a screenshot of a person:

Congrats Matt Kenseth on running the Tokyo Marathon!

I was moved to listen to Luxury Disease, the newest album by the Japanese rock band, 1OK Rock. Here's the first song, which feels relevant to the marathon that I guess Kenseth and I are gonna run together in our big movie:

Kenseth's gonna have to carry me tho ToT

I'll tag @dreaming-about-seireitei @bijectiveandinvertible @allisonreader because I saw your names in my Activity recently and want to say hello! :)

[ryanscabinlife]

name 10 songs with 10 names in the titles that I like and tag 10 people at the end.

So I wasn't personally tagged on this, but after reading @allisonreader's post, I was inspired to do it. They left it open for their followers, so here I am listing 10 songs that I like that have names in the title.

I didn't realize writing a post with no pictures is extremely intimidating  🙃

i. Gale Song by The Lumineers - I can easily list the whole album where this song came from, but I only picked two that I like the most. One of them is the Gale Song. One of my go-to's when I'm having a campfire

Favourite line/s: "When you say my name, may it never give you pain"

ii. Marilyn Monroe by Nicki Minaj - I still remember when I first purchased the album Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded back in 2012, and this was the first song that really caught my attention. It's still one of my favourite Nicki songs. It's also special coz one of the few songs where Nicki did not rap.

Favourite line/s: "Truth is we mess up till we get it right" "I can get low, don't know which way is up. Yeah I can get high, like I could never come down"

iii. Vincent by Don McLean - One of the few songs that I remember my dad listened to when he was alive

Favourite line/s: ."..how you suffered for your sanity and how you tried to set them free. They would not listen, they did not know how" "And when no hope was left in sight on that starry, starry night you took your life, as lovers often do"

iv. Cecilia by Simon & Garfunkel - This song is a 'cleaning the house' staple for me. It just gives me so much positive energy

Favourite line/s: "Jubilation, she loves me again I fall on the floor and I'm laughin"

v. Angela by The Lumineers - the second song from the album Cleopatra - where The Gale Song also came from. Definitely a road trip/campfire song.

Favourite line/s: "Strangers in this town, they raise you up just to cut you down"

vi. A Rose for Emily by The Zombies - a really depressing song I discovered from a really depressing podcast. If you haven't listened to the Podcast "S-Town", give it a whirl.

Favourite line/s: "She keeps her pride somehow that's all she has protecting her from pain" "...as the years go by she will grow old and die. The roses in her garden fade away, not one left for her grave"

vii. Hey Jude by The Beatles - classic. Probably my favourite Beatles song.

Favourite line/s: "anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain, don't carry the world upon your shoulders" "Na-na-na-na-na Na-na-na-na, hey Jude Jude, Jude, Jude, Jude, Jude, Jude"

viii. Billie Jean by Michael Jackson - another classic. Don't have much to say about this song

Favourite line/s: "... be careful of what you do 'cause the lie becomes the truth"

ix. Think of Aaliyah by Boys II Men - probably the most 'deep track' on this list. A tribute to Aaliyah. RIP. A cover of "Think of Laura" by Christopher Cross.

Favourite line/s: "Hey Aaliyah, where are you now? Are you far away from here? I don't think so I think you're here taking our tears away"

x. Helena Beat by Foster the People - I still remember that year when I only listened to the album 'Torches' non-stop. It was a good year.

Favourite line/s: "You know those days when you wanted to choose to not get out of bed and get lost in your head again"

I don't know if anyone's gonna read this but if you did, consider yourself tagged!

[inklings-sprint]

Get your timers ready. The @inklings-challenge has been officially announced today. And with that may I bring to your attention Inklings Sprints. Throughout the challenge time I (@allisonreader ) will be hosting several productivity sprints to help us get those stories written.

I have a whole run down of what a productivity sprint/what Inklings Sprints is HERE. And also an idea of a schedule for them HERE.

For those of you who I see flinging Calvinballs around (like @lady-merian ) it's essentially a in real time Calvinball relay, where you write as much as you can in a certain amount of time.

There's no official need to sign up. But it is helpful to know if you want to participate. If there's times/dates that work better for you if you want to participate, let me know and I can try and make something work.

This is my side blog, so any questions can be directed at my main blog @allisonreader or just in notes or reblogs.

Also, because I'm not sure that I have it noted anywhere else currently; I am willing to tag anyone who might be interested in the lead up to any sprints as a reminder.

[bookshelf-in-progress]

Trick or treat, and happy Hallows' Eve! (I would particularly love anything related to Stars and Shadows, if I'm allowed to rifle through the candy bowl here... :P But if you'd rather do something else, anything you feel like sharing is a treat!)

I can give you some background info on the writing process of "Stars and Shadows" (since I can't think of anything else to share related to it).

Every year as it starts to turn colder, I make a point of over-romanticizing the beauty of winter to make the season more bearable. I make a point of paying attention to the snow and stars and the feeling of winter nights whenever I leave work.

When we had a few chilly days this month, I found myself craving wintery fantasy.

I've also been wanting to write an original fairy tale for a while, but never sat down to pursue the idea in any meaningful way.

Several years ago (I think after a failed Nanowrimo), I really wanted to write something with lush, poetical, dreamy prose, so I did my best Catherynne M. Valente impression and wrote the prologue to a Sleeping Beauty retelling in 2nd-person future-tense. The story never went anywhere, but I've always loved that bit of writing, so I've long been tempted to try another story in that POV.

I tossed all those ideas onto my Inklings Challenge idea list. Then as the deadline drew nearer, I took inspiration from @allisonreader's strategy of writing a story in one sitting, and decided to try just freewriting a fairy tale with all those elements. Then if I didn't finish something more substantial, I might have something to fall back on.

All I knew starting out was that the MC would head out into the snow and find some kind of magical child who needed clothing. Everything else just came together as I wrote.

I initially planned to have the MC take the child home and provide more hospitality, but I wasn't sure what the story would be, and it took us out of that wintery atmosphere, so I threw in some monsters instead.

It may be a copout deus ex machina ending, but I'm kind of pleased that it let me use the "give drink to the thirsty" theme in another way.

I wasn't sure about posting something so off-the-cuff, but so far, your comments have been very kind to my experimental little piece.