#lola's story

[grimfolks]

I was a bit unsure whether fine dining would be a proper setting for the first date considering Daphne's slob trait but I think they managed just fine... And right when I thought everything is going great my game dropped a bomb

[happy-lemon]

Look all around, there's nothing but blue skies. Look straight ahead, there's nothing but blue skies. ~ Johnny Nash, 1972 (and Jimmy Cliff, 1993)

Summa cum laude, meaning "with highest praise", typically awarded to graduates in the top 1%, 2%, or 5% of their class, depending on the institution. Not bad for a high school dropout with morning sickness, huh? 💅🏾

(I haven't told my family yet. One surprise at a time.)

[kamiiri]

“You have got to stop antagonizing them, Chloe,” the black-haired woman said, shaking her head with disapproval. “That’s what got us locked in this stupid room in the first place.”

“Oh, shut up. They deserve it.” her sister replied.

Two years ago, the Curious twins were detained shortly after their father’s family. PT9 had fathered Chloe and Lola during his days as a pollination technician, and though he wasn’t able to be present during their early childhoods, they’d grown close after his spaceship crash made his visit to this planet permanent. When the military showed up on the Smith family’s doorstep, Johnny, their half-brother, sent them a quick text before his phone was destroyed. His message was clear: Get out of Strangetown NOW. But it was already too late.

Now they were stuck there.

Usually, like the Smiths, they had their own room, complete with beds as soft as rocks and fridges stocked full of food void of nutrients. But Chloe’s running mouth had sealed them in solitary confinement.

[lola-theshowgrl]

World-Building #1 - Vadramia

Hello, and welcome to the very first of my world-building posts! I'm not sure how frequently I'll do these, but for now I'm thinking maybe once a month, or so? Today I'm going to give you an overall view of the main continent the foreseeable stories will be set in, Vadramia.

Vadramia is made up of nine countries, each ruled by various races, though there are many more mythical creatures who also make their homes there. Despite the fantasy setting, magic is extremely rare across the peoples of the land, and usually comes with some great burden of expectation whenever it manifests itself.

There is a single, widely followed religion, though this is split into two temples, which has often been the cause of conflict across the land. The Hallowkin Cloister follow the ways of the goddess Vitari, bringer of life, and the Hollowkith Cloister follow the goddess Mortis, bringer of death. They are both queen and consort to one another, their powers dependant on the other, and so unity is encouraged by both temples. The Protectorate are the religious soldiers who quell any disputes, and enforce the religious scripture of both temples, referred to as The Maxim. This is overseen by the high priests of each cloister, and the grand-high priest, who has supreme power over all religious matters across all nine countries of Vadramia.

The first country is Peregrine, in the south, and home to the humans, or "Peregri". Peregrine is a warm climate, rich in trade as their people can adapt to most weather or surroundings, and so can comfortably move between all realms of Vadramia.

To their west is Remni, home to the gnomes, and the smallest and only landlocked country in Vadramia. I've kept my gnomes fairly traditional, living as one with the land, and one of the only two small-statured races on the continent. They are easy to get along with, and often left to their own devices, which they prefer.

In the south-west is Anzude, a large, tropical forest nation, inhabited by wood elves, who are deemed to be the most vicious and dangerous of all the ruling races, and are largely given a very wide berth where possible. The wood elves of Anzude have an almost Roman influence, where feats of physical prowess and fortitude are prized, and lineage is everything.

The west coast is the realm of Isorna, home of the bovaur, a race of humanoid, horned people with hoof-like feet and cow ears. The bovaur people have one of the greatest educational systems in place on all of Vadramia, and many of the high nobility across the continent will be much more inclined to hire one of their people to tutor their children as a matter of course.

In the north-west is Runzod, a strange, cold, mountainous country that is essentially split into two. Upper Runzod is the home of the Dragai, or dragon shifters, who make their homes in the high peaks and vast valleys of the land. Lower Runzod is the home of the dwarves, whose kingdom lays far beneath the ground, cities and mines all the way to the borders. The two realms have a somewhat tumultuous relationship, but currently are at peace thanks to the two sitting monarchs.

To the central north of Vadramia lays Dizut, the home to the orcs. They aren't going to be what most of you will expect from the race, as while they are strong, proficient warriors, they are also a nomadic people. For the most part, the orc clans of Dizut are cattle-drivers, living in tents and moving from place to place with their families and their livestock. This said, there is a lot of infighting between the clans, and this is what often keeps the rest of Vadramia from worrying too much about the possibility of them turning their weapons outwards of their borders.

In the north-east is Tarve, home to the wulver, a shape-shifting race of wolf people. The wulver have a feudal culture, each Pack ruled by a single leader, and internal territories that are fought over regularly. There is an established pecking order within each Pack too, and often this means a great deal of politics, but the idea of betraying your own is abhorrent and therefore punished severely.

To the far east is Atraria, an almost entirely landlocked country, save for a strip of coast only around twenty miles wide. Atraria is the home to the sun elves, a peaceful race that value beauty above all things. They are widely known as skilled artisans, musicians, and dancers, and due to their long lifespans, will often dedicate their lives to following their artistic endeavours.

In the south-east is Toth, the realm of the marsh elves. The marsh elves are a race of lavender-skinned dark elves, and Toth is a humid land of wetlands, broads, swamps, waterways, fens, and, of course, marshes. They have a built in resistance to poisons due to the toxic surroundings, and trade often in alchemical supplies that can't easily be obtained, as well as rare animal hides that have exceptional protective qualities. Marsh elves tend to have a very dry wit that not everyone catches, and are often mistakenly labelled as very serious, with no sense of humour.

I hope you've enjoyed this little insight into my world. If there's anything in particular you'd like me to go into next time, whether it's an area I haven't yet addressed, or something I've mentioned that you want me to expand on, please let me know.

Thanks for reading!

[short-story-unhappy-ending]

Sample of preliminary artwork for my upcoming South Park comic Short Story; Unhappy Ending.

[ramblings-of-lola]

There are so many passages in Anne of Green Gables that perfectly describe childhood, maturing and growing up, and grief. The story is just so raw and doesn't shield away from the hardships of life but it also stresses the importance of finding or creating beauty in everything to make it through the hard times.

[hellodahliah]

son of the grim reaper: PROLOGUE

previous / beginning / next

ophelia: i was never very close with my aunt. We had our sweet moments now and then, but most days she kept me at arms length.

She had a weird fascination for the morbid. She organized many funerals, sending of the dead with respect and grace.

I tried to do the same for her. I don't know how she would have her funeral to look like.

as suspected she left all her assets for her son. to be honest i didn't care what she did with them. but lola did, mainly because she wanted to finish her job. she needed the last puzzle piece: nyon's whereabouts, as she had struggled to get in contact with him. sadly, I couldn't help. can't remember the last time i saw him.

---

ophelia: *snores*

ophelia: i ended up sleeping the whole day. by the time i woke ripp had left. johnny and i stayed up talking for hours.

our talk led back to aunt olive.

there were many times when i was afraid of her and hoped that she'd disappear like a ghost.

now that she is gone for real, i can only remember those few sweet moments when she'd sometimes drop hints about her and mom's childhood or talk to me about her day. I wish there were more of those moments to cling to... after all she was still my aunt and i miss her.

[idcallmyselfhuman]

This quest was short and sweet; I enjoyed it. I was kind of afraid they were going to pull another fetch quest that jebaits you into an assassination attempt, so this was really nice.

With all the survivors' talk of how Pilgrims 'are', as well as Aiden's general attitude towards the shitheads he encounters, you can sometimes forget that first and foremost, you are playing a brother.

My favorite quests are the ones where Aiden just shows how playful he can be, contrasting his own memories of himself as a child, ever the worrywart while his sister wanted to play with him. You start to wonder how much his memories of Mia affected his personality, since that was all he could hold on to in her absence.

[rachelillustrates]

@ockissweek day seven: Caught. 

Prompts from the official prompt list – list and event coordinated by @artofmisi 💗

Jumping back out of Tockishness for this last day of the smooches to feature the amazing and lovely Nedra and Silas from my dear dear dear friend @lola-theshowgrl 's upcoming novel, "Star-Crossed Blades" 💘⚔💖 Which is a sunshine/grumpy hero/assassin romantasy!! She is sharing more of her progress and development process on her blog as she goes, so check it out here to find out more �� I, for one, am stoked and cannot waaaaaaaiiit.

(And that's a full challenge!! 🙌 Not that anyone's required to do all the prompts, including me, BUT with winter always being so heavy for me, it meant a lot to me to prioritize doing all 7 days, despite the fact that/especially since I didn't get to prepare the pieces in advance this time. Take that, SAD!!)

(Back to regular posting schedule this week, that is, too. World Building Wednesday and Thank Gnome it's Friday, with Funguary scattered in as inspired/prioritized/able 🍄💕)

~

Bonus art and stories ~ Prints, comics and more!

[ask-lola-cloudmaker]

Here's a new profile picture!

Lola loves you <3

[monkeyssalad-blog]

1964 illustration by Lola Fielding by totallymystified Via Flickr: For the story Em And Vi by Susan Lyle-Scott. From Homes And Gardens magazine.

[happy-lemon]

For your kindness I'm in debt to you, and I never could have come this far without you. ~ Natalie Merchant, 1998

For our first Harvestfest together, we invited my family, along with Herman, who didn't feel much like making the trip to his brother's house in Chestnut Ridge. We all squeezed around an old drafting tale on folding chairs that Nine borrowed from the Rasoyas next door. It was the first time I've celebrated a holiday with my family since I've been sober and I see them more clearly now. Not through a lens of grief and resentment, but through a lens of gratitude.

[lola-theshowgrl]

"Star-Crossed Blades" - Writing Update #3

Month: February Stage: First draft Word Count: 14,287 Currently Listening To: "Meet Me In The Woods" - Lord Huron Beverage: Spanish latte Mood: Sleepy

First of all, I wanted to thank everyone for the outpouring of support and excitement for "Star-Crossed Blades" and for taking the time to read my little updates each week! It's such a boost to know there's any interest at all, and I really appreciated all the feedback, advice, and suggestions after last week's post. I'm checking out some options to be able to post serialised chapters of the first draft for those who are interested, so watch this space!

I've finished chapter three now, and given that I'm in the very unusual position of having a fairly detailed outline for this book, I suspect it's going to be getting on for about 150k words by the time I'm finished. You know me, I live for a slow burn! I know this is technically "too long" a book for the genre I write, but I know from past experience that paying too much attention to these sort of things can cut the heart out of a story. In the end, I'm here for the love of writing, and I've taken the executive decision to do whatever I want. I'm not one for arbitrary rules at the best of times (it's the *autism* lol) particularly not when it comes to writing, but I feel like that's a whole other post all by itself.

Speaking of other posts, I've been thinking about other things I could write about here. I enjoy the updates, and I mean to do them fairly frequently, but at some point I suspect it's going to get boring. (I'm also in something of a reading slump just now, so no book reviews coming up for a bit, unfortunately!)

I was very inspired by my good friend, @rachelillustrates artist and author of the amazing webcomic "Tock The Gnome" which you should absolutely go check out if you enjoy unique fantasy settings and beautiful artwork. Anyway, she does a weekly series of posts that I enjoy called "World Building Wednesday" which is exactly what it sounds like, and is a lovely way to dive into the lore of her world! (Seriously, go read it! The art is stunning, the story is magic, and she's a lovely person!)

I don't have her dedication and skills, of course, but I did think that if there was interest, maybe every so often I could make a post about the worldbuilding in Vadramia - what do you think? Would anyone be interested in that?

To be honest, I really want you guys to be involved in what I'm up to, and I'm so excited for this project, so any excuse to talk about it with you will be fun. I'm open to suggestions on what you'd like to see, but equally if you're happy with me just coming here each week to update on progress, I can keep doing that. Honestly, I'm just glad you're here!

[guerrerooo]

Morgan and Lola

[shesthespinstersimmer]

Gathering (1)

Previous / Next / Beginning

[thena0315]

Animated Ships