Tag Archives: novel-writing

December 30, 2011 · 4:07 pm

Breaking the 10 Simple Rules for Writing a Novel

Maybe check if you've got paper first.... (Writer John, by Onomatomedia. (Creative Commons BY-SA 3.0))

There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are. — W. Somerset Maugham

 Well, while surfing the net I stumbled across a lovely article advising people on how to write a novel in 2012 – you know, if that’s your New Year’s Resolution or something. And some of the advice is good. You really shouldn’t try to write a book based on what topic you think is “hot” right now (vampire novels are probably going to get stale pretty soon, by the way), or get distracted about what the “proper” way of going about writing is. But while lists like this usually bring up some decent points, there are always a couple rules that can be ignored or broken without hurting the novel too much.

For example, I’ve read numerous books that included the phrase “laughing eyes” or “warm eyes,” and have been guilty of using such phrases myself. Now, I don’t RECOMMEND you use the phrase, and I should probably re-edit several passages where I use the phrase. But I’d just like to point out that some editor probably noticed the poor author used a hackneyed phrase on page 282, and the book got published anyway. Remember, Twilight included the sentence, “He lay perfectly still in the grass, his shirt open over his sculpted, incandescent chest, his scintillating arms bare,” and it became a best-seller. My point is – you can’t predict this kind of stuff.

To take another example, a widely quoted review of Lord of the Rings complained both the work AND the characters were “anemic and lacking in depth.” You know how writing advice goes on and on about how you can’t have flat characters in your work? Well, as much as I love Lord of the Rings, I can’t claim the characters are the deepest things the literary establishment has ever seen. That, and the book goes through pages upon pages of description, poetry, and random characters that pop up and are never seen again. A classic? You bet.

Lastly, I’m going to mention Harry Potter. These books captivated me as a kid. I still have fond memories of them (though, sadly, I can’t love them as I once did). But some of the plot twists in them don’t exactly make much sense. The first book practically ends in a deus ex machina, just after a couple of kids get through protections that are supposed to keep the evilest wizards alive out. And the fourth book – tell me why the whole caboodle with the Triwizard Tournament really was the easiest way to get Harry to Voldemort? That’s still one of my favourite parts of the series, by the way.

So I feel better about the chunk of the list I’m planning to ignore. I’m not going to start outlining every story I write, because my mind doesn’t work that way. Shoot, I don’t even outline blog posts or university papers. I’m not going to shoe-horn a sex scene into every book just because it’s a “part of life.” And I never, ever have a title for my works till I’ve written a good part of them.

I guess my point is, readers and publishers overlook many, many faults in novels. Writers get nervous, because there’s absolutely no way to predict which faults they’re going to overlook. Perfectly reasonable, but you can’t let that stop you, and you’re never going to achieve perfection anyway. Just keep writing.

 

Ever read a novel yourself that broke all the rules but was fantastic anyway?

 

 

 

(Yes, finishing my current work-in-progress is one of my aims for 2012, but I really don’t need to finish another novel. I need to get the ones I have finished in publishable shape, and submit them. I’ve got so many stacks of writing, because apparently I find writing itself far more fun than the mundane reality of trying to get a book published. But in 2012 – who knows?)

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June 27, 2011 · 10:53 am

A Chaldean Lady’s Temper: Chapter 7 (Why Polly?)

Recap: Polly, while impersonating the princess, has been kidnapped by an enchanter and his trainee, and taken far, far away from her home… where she meets the very princess she was impersonating. It is revealed they all are being threatened by a malevolent magical being known as a jadess. While learning all about various magic objects in this new land, none of which seem very useful, Polly succeeds in getting herself into a variety of scrapes. Can she get along with the arrogant enchanter long enough to figure out how to survive with a jadess after them? Chapter 1 is here...

Chapter 7: A Chaldean Lady’s Temper

I couldn’t face the Enchanter after that and avoided him, which thankfully wasn’t hard to do since he was so often out. Juggling the Rajah’s demands, his own many ladies, and keeping track of the jadess, I assumed. Couldn’t be easy. To keep busy instead I cooked more often, creating elaborate menus and experimenting with new recipes. Paulina was eager to learn, and so she cooked too sometimes. The only problem with that was then Radagast would follow her around and generally get in our way.

Then the jadess came to the Peak. I had wanted to see what she looked like when she wasn’t the princess, but I didn’t get a chance because Stefan dealt with her at the gate. All I could hear was an outraged scream, before all was silent. But, as Paulina pointed out to me, if the jadess could look like any female, how would I know if she looked like herself or if she had taken the appearance of someone else?

That night, in a low and anxious voice, Stefan told Casper what had happened. We were sitting by the fireplace in my kitchen, Paulina in the rocker with Radagast by her feet, and me across from her trying to embroider by the lamplight. Stefan and Casper were seated at the table, speaking quietly. Their profiles were in such contrast in the firelight, but each of them had a teardrop in one ear, and around them you could feel by the magic that they were both enchanters.

“I don’t understand how it took her so long to get here,” Stefan was saying, leaning forward across the table.

“Well,” Casper replied. “I expected she would come, and set out some things to confuse her as to where we’d put the girls. I believe her hedge wizard has had quite a time breaking them all. He’s not nearly as powerful as I am, but he’s dogged. He’ll crack our defences eventually.”

“I had a hard time making her leave,” Stefan said. “She’s so blasted strong that way.”

“At least you can make her leave,” Casper answered. With the firelight flickering off his deep eyes he looked more dangerous than ever.

I shuddered, wondering how I’d ever managed to get as powerful an enemy as the jadess. How do I get myself into these things? Drat everything, I just wanted to go back home.

“I’ll strengthen the defences around the grounds of the Peak too,” Casper sighed. “Just in case.”

The next day I went around the third floor balcony to look out on the front yard. My room was at the back and looked out on the back yard, but if I went out onto the balcony around the entrance hall I could look out on the front yard. The sky was dreary grey, casting long shadows over the lawn of the Peak. It looked rather like I felt.

To my surprise I saw a large white and gold coach drive up to the gates. Out of it stormed a tall young woman with flaming red hair, dressed in sumptuous green velvet. Below the knocker went rat-tat on the door. I hesitated, wondering what to do. Both Casper and Stefan were out – they seemed to trust us so much more now – and I had no idea where Paulina was. Sighing, I ran down the steps to the front door.

“Where is he?” the woman shrieked when I opened the door. “Let me at him this minute!”

Looking at her I could tell she had a temper at least as fiery as her hair, and she was used to getting her own way besides. Her eyes snapped with fury.

“Where is he?” she shrieked again.

“Excuse me, but who –” I tried to put in, but she wrenched the door out of my hands and stormed into the entrance hall.

“That cursed Enchanter, of course,” she said. “How dare he! To me, too. Me!”

I groaned. What had Casper done now? And why did I have to deal with it?

“He is out,” I told her, trying to restrain her. “Calm down! Why do you want to see him?”

“He jilted me,” she told me. I thought back lately. Casper had been here last night, but the night before that…

“He left me to pay his bills!” she shrieked.

“Actually, I think the Rajah…” But she wasn’t listening to me. Taking up one of the fantastically shaped vases by the door she smashed it against the floor. It would have worried me a lot more if I hadn’t know the vase was made by magic and wasn’t a priceless heirloom.

“Tell him I want to speak to him,” she told me fiercely. “Tell him I won’t put up with it!”

“Of course not,” I tried to tell her soothingly. “He’s sure to be in soon, and I’ll…” I trailed off, not quite sure where I was going.

“You do that,” she said, and turned away. “Tell that arrogant man he can’t get away with doing this to me!”

I closed the door behind her, muttering ‘good riddance’. Sighing I looked at the shards of porcelain vase on the floor. If one of the enchanters had been home they could have cleaned it up in an instant, but since they weren’t…

“What happened in here?” Paulina asked when she saw me. Her eyes travelled from the mess on floor to my disgruntled expression.

“Just one of Casper’s lady friends,” I sighed.

“Wow. Some temper,” she said, and bent down to help me.

We got all the pieces swept up before either of the enchanters came home, and had started making dinner. I told Paulina all about the lady with flaming hair, and she laughed.

“I almost wish nobles were like that in Angaria,” she said. “They are so dull sometimes.”

“You think she was a noble?” I asked.

“Of course,” Paulina replied. “The Chaldean upper class all have flaming tempers. They would visit Father’s court sometimes, and it used to amuse me to watch them.”

I wondered if it amused Casper too, and that was why he did it. It would be the sort of thing that would amuse him.

I caught Stefan on the way up the stairs that night, and told him about it. Stefan groaned, and rubbed his forehead with his hand.

“Not another!” he said. Then he looked at me. “This has happened before. Chaldean women are so – feisty. And somehow Casper is never around when they show up at the door.

“And you have to deal with them?” I asked. “Well, you were lucky this time.”

“Yeah.” He grinned.

He looked so young, dark and exasperated standing there on the stairs that I had to laugh. The Enchanter was quite something to put up with.

“Well, they must be easier to deal with than the jadess,” I said. “For you.”

“Oh no, just different,” he said. “Blast it, some of those women really scare you.”

“Yeah,” I laughed. “Any idea who this one was?”

“Likely Maria DeAballah,” he replied. “If you said she had red hair.” I nodded.

We continued up the stairway to the second floor.

“How come Casper can’t fight the jadess and you can?” I asked. “Are you stronger?”

“No,” he said. “It’s just the jadess has more power over him.” He stopped and looked at me. “You see, Casper was in love with the jadess once.”

I stared. “What?”

“Well, okay, not really in love,” he said. “You know how jadesses are – more interested in seduction than love. But he was infatuated with her. Because she has always been trying to get her hands on magic, you know, and she wanted Casper’s.” He paused. “A jadess’s power over a man doesn’t come instantly, all at once. At first, as long as they’re looking at you they can make you do what they want. But if you’re exposed to them enough they can make you completely in their power, even when you aren’t near them. Her hedge wizard, for instance, will always do her bidding because he’s been with her so long.”

He sighed. “When Casper first met her he didn’t know she was a jadess. He was crazy over her, he thought he was in love with her. But he was vaguely uneasy too. Then he discovered she was a jadess, and he knew he had to escape her clutches.”

He smiled at me. “That’s how I met him. I had some ideas about defeating a jadess’s power, and so I helped him. In return he took me as an trainee and gave me magic. But he can’t defeat the jadess himself because of the hold she’d got on him.”

“I wonder,” I said. “Why doesn’t she just go to the Sabeans and entrap one of them?”

“But the Sabeans know about jadesses,” he replied. “And they’ve purged their land of them.” He looked at me again. “One of her greatest dreams is to have magic strong enough to defeat them.”

I shuddered at the thought of that.

Go to Chapter 8A

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June 14, 2011 · 1:53 pm

Update on the Splayed Novel

As you can see from the picture, my organizational system for keeping track of the plot of my novel is getting unwieldy. (For comparison, see the picture in this post). On the plus side, I am one tenth of the way through! The trick now is to not bog down in the middle part, but to keep my excitement going all the way to the end. I can’t believe I wrote a novel in eight weeks once, it seems to be taking a lot longer this time around.

For fun, I’m going to look at some of the tropes I’m planning to use. Go ahead and see if any of the tropes seem familiar to you (from other books, movies, etc.) “Tropes” are devices used by writers as a kind of storytelling shorthand, usually because of audience familiarity with that type of story (yet tropes are not clichés – click the link for more explanation). All trope descriptions listed below are from TvTropes.org, and are linked to the specific page.

The plot of the novel probably falls under the heading of “Romantic Comedy.”

1.) Heroes Want Redheads

From TvTropes: “Love Interests have always been Color Coded for Your Convenience. Traditionally, the hero’s significant other would usually be a blonde, to contrast with the brunette Vamp or Femme Fatale. But today, the passive Distressed Damsel have been replaced by a sassy, bold, brash, sharp-tongued heroine — easily compatible with the “spunky Fiery Redhead” stereotype.”

-       I was going to make my main character blond, but then I realized I’ve written tons of blond main characters (possibly because I am blond?) But I want her looks to indicate she’s popular with the guys – think Cheryl Blossom in the Archie comics. Ellie doesn’t quite fill the whole trope description though. While she’s a bit sassy, she’s more bubbly than sharp-tongued, though she does love to take down the Insufferable Genius (see below) a few pegs…

2.) Single Woman Seeks Good Man

“Frequently they’ve been burned by a previous lover; and generally they’ve matured. But it is not necessary. Any heroine who finds the hero attractive exactly for his more admirable qualities falls under Single Woman Seeks Good Man. This can range from liking his sense of humor, to appreciating his poetry skills, all the way to his Heroic Sacrifice.  Immature and hormonal souls may wonder What Does She See in Him?, but the heroine is much more likely to end up happy this way.

-       This is Ellie. She’s gone out with a string of jerks, and just wants to meet a good guy. She hasn’t exactly matured yet though…

-       She was attracted to her last boyfriend, Leroy, because of his “Good Man” qualities. Unfortunately, that relationship is currently on the rocks. Just one part of why Ellie’s life is currently spiralling downhill…

-       The “immature and hormonal souls” in my story are the rest of the “Good Man’s” friends, excepting the “Insufferable Genius,” who has other problems.

3.) Insufferable Genius

“At first glance, the Insufferable Genius appears to be exactly the type who’s doomed to learn a lesson: he’s very talented, knows he’s very talented, and doesn’t mind telling you repeatedly what a talented person he is. But the difference between him and your standard loudmouth is that he really is that good, and when placed in a difficult situation he can actually work his way out of it — so maybe he does have a right to brag…”

-       Writing this character amuses me. I didn’t know pretending to be a know-it-all could be so much fun. No wonder insufferable geniuses do this.

-       This trope leads to another trope known as Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness – using long words. Finally, a chance to use the words in my vocabulary that make other people stare blankly at me!

-       The Redhead, Ellie, drives my Insufferable Genius up the wall. He can’t figure out why his roommate ever went out with her…

3.) Nice Guy

-       This is Ellie’s last boyfriend, Leroy. His “niceness” is why she likes him.

4.) Those Two Guys

“Two characters, usually in a school setting, to be the mundane Greek Chorus. They may or may not be snarky, but they are completely ordinary. Often the best friends of the main character.”

-       To round out my group of friends are a couple characters (actually three, not two) who could be described as “Those Two Guys.” You know, just to fill up the empty spaces. They might get filled out a bit more, or get some minor subplots, or get cut entirely by time I finish. We’ll see.

-       They are useful for snarky insights into the main characters, though.

5.) The Power of Friendship

-       Can Ellie remain friends with the group, when her relationship with Leroy, might very well be over?

6.) Perpetual Poverty

“Despite always being desperate for cash, food or other supplies, some people never seem to actually run out. They might always be desperate for money, but somehow manage to live in the same house for the duration of their story, never getting kicked out once. Or they might always complain about being hungry but never starve.”

-       Another one of Ellie’s problems

So there you have it, a very brief idea of what I’m working with. Hopefully this will be enough to pull me through the other nine tenths of the novel! What about you, are there any projects you are currently working on?

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June 6, 2011 · 1:27 pm

Threat of a Jadess: Chapter 5B (Why Polly?)

The chapter’s a bit dis-jointed and could use a smidge of editing, but my brain’s bit tired from studying for my Psych exam. So here it is:

Recap: Polly, while impersonating the princess, has been kidnapped by an enchanter and his trainee, and taken far, far away from her home… where she meets the very princess she was impersonating. Further discoveries  reveal that Polly, the princess, the Enchanter and his trainee are all being threatened by a malevolent magical being known as a jadess… Chapter 1 is here.

Chapter 5B: Threat of a Jadess

It was a dog. There was a gigantic dog snarling in my face.

“Back off, Radagast,” came a commanding voice. It was Stefan. From behind him Paulina rushed over to me.

“Polly, are you all right?” she asked. I looked up. Stefan was holding the collar of the hugest dog I’d ever seen.

“This is Radagast,” he grunted, trying to hold it back. “He’s just mad because he doesn’t know who you are yet.”

I had every intention of getting as far away from that dog as I could, but Paulina went right up to him and let him sniff her hand. He growled at first, but soon quieted.

“Hello Radagast,” she cooed.

The dog was huge, but its coat was sleek and shone red-gold. When it stopped growling its chocolaty brown eyes looked warm and friendly.

Hesitantly I held my hand out to him too. After snuffling it for a moment he opened his mouth and licked me with his long red tongue. Paulina giggled.

“He likes you,” she said. She rubbed his forehead, and he looked up and licked her too.

I rubbed my hands through his silky coat. It really was a nice colour, positively red.

“Casper bought him because he has a long nose,” Stefan told us, letting go of his collar. “Though Radagast hasn’t shown he’s anything other than a normal dog. He lives outside because he won’t come in the house.”

“Why not?” Paulina asked. Stefan shrugged.

“I don’t think he likes being enclosed.”

“He’ll come in if we go in, won’t you Radagast?” she told the dog. In reply Radagast gave her a sloppy kiss on the forehead. “I bet you’re a wonderful watchdog.”

“He is,” Stefan replied. “You saw the way he reacted when he first saw you.”

The dog seemed to really like Paulina, because he followed us inside when we returned to the house. Stefan looked startled, but he let him in. He lay at my feet while we drank tea in the first floor room. I really did like this room best; it looked like our kitchen back room, and felt like Angaria. It seemed strange no actual cooking really was done here.

“That blasted jadess is up to something again,” Casper said, coming in and throwing his hat down in a chair. He looked at the dog at my feet.

“So you managed to coax him in, huh?”

“I didn’t!” I protested. But he wasn’t paying attention to me. Draping himself over a chair he began talking to Stefan.

“She got her hedge-wizard to bring her to Araba,” he was saying. “Blast it! She must be somewhere in the city.”

“What do you mean?” Stefan asked.

“I mean she’s quit pretending to be the princess and has come after us,” Casper replied.

Stefan leant back in his chair and looked anxious. He really is very young, I thought. Barely older than me, meddling with dangerous creatures, at the beck and call of an arrogant Enchanter. He didn’t look like he thought he was capable.

“Blast it! I wish I could deal with her like you can,” Casper continued. “But I don’t trust myself around her, even doing it your way. I just don’t dare.”

Well, being honest about your limitations for once, I thought sourly. My main problem with the Enchanter was the way he’d just whisked me off to be rescued, without even explaining it to me first. He assumed I would be gratefully indebted to him when I learned his reasons. Stefan I didn’t blame at all. He didn’t have much influence, if any, over the Enchanter, though he was the Enchanter’s partner.

“Why do you want the dog in here?” Casper asked us suddenly. Paulina put her arms around Radagast’s neck.

“He’s our protector,” she said. “He loves us.”

Casper snorted. “Some protector. He acts fierce, but he’s got no bite. He’s a coward.”

“Well, I love him anyway,” Paulina said fiercely. The amused light flickered into Casper’s eyes again.

We had supper, and then Casper disappeared somewhere. I realised I was getting slightly sick of bought Chaldean food. There wasn’t much variety, and I missed the food at home. But how could you expect two bachelors to cook, even if they were Enchanters?

Afterwards Paulina and I walked through the entrance hall, and Stefan followed us. He followed us a lot, but I think it was because Casper had ordered him to watch us. Drat that Enchanter!

In the middle of the entrance hall, set in the floor, was a jet-black flagstone. We were looking at it curiously, and Paulina asked Stefan what it was, but Stefan didn’t seem to like to look at it.

“That is what keeps us here,” he told us.

We were still looking at it when Casper came down the steps, looking carefully handsome. Under his coat he wore a suit of blue traced with gold, and his cravat was flame-red. He walked past us to the door.

“I’m going out,” he told Stefan. “Hopefully not too long.”

“Another one?” Stefan groaned. “Blasted women.”

I stared at him in amazement, wondering what he meant, then looked at the Enchanter, but he was already gone. Paulina asked Stefan, “Where’s he going?”

“Blasted women,” Stefan repeated. “The Rajah isn’t married, you know, and nearly every dratted woman in Chaldea chases after him. But they don’t mind settling for an Enchanter instead. And so the Rajah loads them all off on Casper.”

“And he likes it,” I said.

“I don’t know if he does,” Stefan answered, looking slightly confused. “I mean, he never says no, and goes out and gives them a swinging time, but usually leaves the bills behind for the Rajah to pay.”

“And if the Rajah doesn’t?” Paulina inquired.

“Then the woman’s left with them,” he replied.

“He’s a scoundrel!” I exclaimed.

Stefan shrugged. “It’s not the Casper can’t afford to pay them, he’s just making a point.”

I was still looking at the black flagstone, but since Stefan seemed so uncomfortable around it we went back into the main first floor again. It should be called a kitchen, I thought.

“I don’t see how you put up with that Enchanter,” I said to Stefan. “I mean, you let him make you do everything. Guard us! And you say you’re his partner? I haven’t seen him consult you about a thing yet. What is it, do you owe him your life or something?”

“No,” Stefan said. “I owe my magic to him.”


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June 2, 2011 · 5:11 pm

Luck of the First-Time Novelist

Guess my Statistics course was good for something...

Conventional wisdom in the writing world says that it takes at least three published novels to establish your name in the public eye. Don’t even think about quitting your day-job until then. But then, while leisurely reading the morning newspaper, I come across the name of Shilpi Somaya Gowda, whose first novel sold 300,000 copies in the first twelve months alone. Then I wonder, what’s the secret?

Because, while conventional wisdom may be accurate for the middle of the bell-curve, you’ve always got the extremes to think about. On one hand you’ve got workhorses like Diana Wynne Jones, or Stephanie Grace Whitson, who churn out books and become well-known but not household names. On the other, you’ve got phenomena like J.K Rowling (who lived off benefits until Harry Potter hit it big-time), and potentially Shilpi Somaya Gowda. Or even Margaret Mitchell (who wrote Gone with the Wind) and J.D Salinger (who wrote Catcher in the Rye) – two authors who only published one novel in their life, and yet said novels are incredibly famous.

I haven’t read Gowda’s book (entitled “Secret Daughter,” in case you were wondering), but I’m going to say there’s probably no reason she doesn’t deserve to be successful. The thing is, there are most likely hundreds of hard-working novelists out there right now, producing brilliant books which never see the kind of success Gowda found. What makes the difference? As someone who hopes to be publish a novel someday myself, is there anything I can do to reduce my chances of slaving away in obscurity?

Why, oh why, do some novelists strike it and some don’t? If I can figure out this pattern, I can turn my first novel into a sure thing.

Dream on, Harma, dream on.

The life of a writer is a bumpy road, full of unpreditabilities.

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May 30, 2011 · 2:32 pm

Something Like Friendship: Chapter 5A (Why Polly?)

Question - you guys can tell which is which, right?

Recap: Polly, while impersonating the princess, has been kidnapped by an enchanter and his trainee, and taken far, far away from her home… where she meets the very princess she was impersonating. Chapter 1 is here.

Chapter 5A: Something Like Friendship

 “What do you think of those two?” I asked as we climbed the stairs to the second floor.

“I truly am indebted to them,” Paulina admitted. “The jadess was cruel. She was horribly angry when I told her I really couldn’t do magic – she didn’t believe me. Then she changed herself to look like me, and her wizard changed to look like my Nanny, and locked me up. She was actually deciding,” she shuddered, “whether, if she decided to kill me, it would be possible to cover up the murder of a princess, when Stefan and Casper came to rescue me.”

“Oh,” I said. We went down the halls to her room. It was similar to mine, except her drapes were mostly green, and the weaving on the wall was of a bowl of fruit.

“Casper was right, I would have tried escape if they hadn’t locked me in,” I sighed. “And then it is possible jadess would have caught me again. But the Enchanter is so – smug.”

“Yes,” Paulina laughed. “Very much so. But he has a right to be, hasn’t he?”

I sat on her canopied bed and picked at the fabric of the blanket. She sat down beside me.

“That’s one of my under-dresses, isn’t it?” she said. I nodded.

“The jadess gave me one of your dresses,” I replied. “It’s rather – wrecked, now. Did you know she fooled me completely? I didn’t suspect a thing.”

“Perhaps if you had met me before, I would be more surprised you didn’t see through her,” she said. She looked at my skirt. “Didn’t Stefan or Casper provide you with anything else to change into? They left me a whole chest of dresses.”

I looked the other way and shrugged.

Over the next couple days I got to know her well, and I would almost have counted her as a friend, if I hadn’t know she was a princess and above me. But we forgot that while we hung out around the Magician’s Peak, and raced around the halls together. Our guard seemed to be lessened somewhat, but I knew we couldn’t have escaped the house if we’d tried.

“Have you seen the garden of the Peak yet?” Stefan asked us. We shook our heads, so he led us out the front door and outside.

I could now see why the house was called the Peak. It was on a hill, and if there were not so very many trees you could probably see the whole city of Araba spreading around us. Down to the gate a stone path wound, through the fruit trees and numerous shrubs. It was oddly peaceful too, with only the calls of the birds breaking the silence.

The sunlight felt good on our faces, and we ran laughing through the grass and under the trees. Stefan ran after us, down to the gates at the bottom of the lawn.

“I should have brought you outside before,” he said, panting. “It’s better than staying inside that dark Peak.”

“Yes.” Paulina laughed. “Shameless of you.”

We went around the house to the back. There the path took an even more meandering way through the gardens. Flowers of every kind grew in banks, and little streams of water ran chattering down the hill.

“It’s gorgeous!” said Paulina. “We have nothing like this in my palace in Angaria.”

Stefan looked at her, his boyish face thoughtful in the sunshine. “None of this is real, you know,” he said. “It looks real, and it feels real, but – ” he shrugged. “If me and Casper ever quit holding it up, it would disappear.”

I looked down into the wide stone basin of a fountain, where jewel-bright fishes were darting through the water.

“Even the house?” I asked.

“Even the house,” he replied.

For a moment I felt giddy just thinking my room was on the top floor of a house that could disappear at any time.

“How long will we have to stay here?” Paulina asked with a little sigh. “I mean, not that everything isn’t lovely, but I miss…”

“Casper is working on it,” Stefan told her. His eyes showed understanding. “If only the Rajah didn’t interrupt all the time.”

“I just hate the thought of that – that jadess pretending to be me,” she said softly.

“I wish we knew why she was,” Stefan trailed off.

A wave of homesickness suddenly swept over me, and I slipped away from them further along the path. The gardens around me were lovely, but something inside me wanted real things, things that came naturally and were not the imagination and creation of an Enchanter.

I turned the corner, and was nearly bowled over by a large, dark shape.

Screaming I covered my face and sank to the ground. I could feel teeth in me, I could feel claws…

Go to Chapter 5B

 

 

 

 

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May 23, 2011 · 7:24 pm

Further Explanation of Long Noses: Chapter 4B (Why Polly?)

Recap: Polly, while impersonating the princess, has been kidnapped by an enchanter and his trainee, and taken far, far away from her home… where she meets the very princess she was impersonating. Chapter 1 is here.

 Chapter 4B: Further Explanation of Long Noses

 I turned. Behind us the Enchanter was standing – well, lounging against the doorpost was more like it – his coat seeming over-bright in the whitewashed room.

“Go on,” he said. “You do have a right to an explanation, if now’s the time you’ll accept it.”

I felt myself blush crimson at this. How dare he bring up my stubbornness?

“What does my nose have to do with anything?” I demanded. I touched the tip of it. It was unnaturally long.

“Noses are signs of magical power,” Casper replied, casually touching the tip of his. I realised it was long also, but not as long as mine.

“But hers isn’t long,” I said, looking at Paulina. It was a perfectly shaped nose, slightly turned up the tip.

“But I can’t do magic!” Paulina broke in. “I can’t understand it – ever since I was born I’ve been hearing I’m supposed to, but I can’t! My father has not said a word to me, but everyone else goes on and on about this stupid legend!”

She put her face in her hands. Stefan looked conflicted – as if he were wondering if he ought to pat her shoulder or not. He reached for the teapot instead.

Casper laughed. “Not every story they tell is true.”

“Angaria would benefit greatly if the world at large believed it would someday possess what all the nations covet,” Stefan put in, refilling his teacup. “All nations except Sabea and Chaldea, I mean.”

“Or else Angaria makes up stories because it just plain can’t stand not having what someone else has,” Casper added. “I know, I was born in Angaria. But there is another possibility.”

Paulina crossed her arms. “All I know is everyone goes on and on about how powerful I’m supposed to be, and I can’t do anything.”

“The second possibility is that the stories are true, and you do possess magic. You just haven’t learned to access it yet.” Casper pushed himself up from leaning against the post. “Maybe the power you supposedly have will not be power born in you, but power you obtain from other objects.” He looked at her. “Like mine is.”

Paulina frowned. “Perhaps.”

Casper smiled, a wide, amused smiled. “My nose was not long until I started using magic. Just look at Stefan’s. His has hardly grown since he came here.”

I looked at Stefan. His nose was straight, but not much longer than normal.

“And my nose?” I demanded.

“You, my dear,” said Casper, tapping a finger on the back of my chair me, “have a long nose because you were born with magic. That was why Esmeralda had an interest in kidnapping you.”

I blinked. The pseudo-princess, peeking out of her carriage after I had rushed in front of it, her widening eyes as she looked at my face for the first time…

I shook my head and stared up at Casper. “Just a tiny problem with that. I don’t have magic.”

“You do not necessarily know that,” Casper replied. Lazily he reached up to tug at the red stone in his ear.

I tilted my head to the side and narrowed my eyes. I was still not quite sure how much I trusted him.

“Magic takes its own good time to appear,” he replied. “Many an elderly grandfather has startled his family by causing explosions in the living room – and this is usually followed by the discovery that one of the family’s ancestors possessed Sabean blood. I would not be surprised if this is your case.”

I snorted. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“The rest of the family then eagerly examines themselves to see if traces of Sabean blood shows up in them…” Casper sighed elaborately. “Alas, in my case, there has been no magic since my grandfather’s grandmother, and I had to resorts to other means to obtain it.” His eyes landed on my nose and he grinned infuriatingly. “Know where your parents came from, girl?”

I glanced down. Gretchen had known little of my family’s roots, except that my mother had died in childbirth, and my father had mysteriously disappeared shortly before that.

“I thought so,” Casper said, seeing my silence. Far too smugly, for my tastes.

I ignored his triumph and examined my teacup.

 “So how do you come in?” Paulina asked. “I suppose you rescued us both out of the goodness of your hearts?”

Stefan had the grace to blush. “We know the jadess, er – rather well,” he answered. “And we were keeping an eye on her after she stole you, princess, and traded places with you. We knew she wanted to control your magic, so we rescued you and kept you here. Was she ever angry! She stormed down here – actually, got her hedge-wizard to send her here – and would have taken you back…”

“If not for your wonderful immunity to her wits and charms,” Casper said, with amusement.

“Well, yes,” Stefan replied. He sounded embarrassed. “She went back to Angaria next, remained in place as the princess for some reason, until she found Polly and spirited her away. She was arranging to take you from the palace to her place when she left,” he told me, “So we took advantage of her short absence to transport down there and rescue you too.”

“And now the jadess is angry again,” Casper put in. Stefan looked at him.

“I suppose we could’ve expected that,” he said. “You – know she is for certain?”

“Yes,” Casper replied. “You may have to deal with her again. At least we can be confidant she can’t get inside the house.”

I finished the rest of my tea and put my cup down. Paulina’s met mine from across the table. She looked as confused as I felt, and suddenly I didn’t feel like I could handle any more of the enchanters’ explanations at this point.

“Would you like to come see what my room is like?” she asked. I nodded and stood up.

“If I’m allowed,” I said to Stefan. “Why did you lock me up, if you were rescuing me?”

“Because people always have such stupid ideas about escaping,” Casper told us. I gave him a withering glance and swept past him out of the room.

Go to Chapter 5A

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May 17, 2011 · 4:33 pm

Yes, That Is My Novel Splayed All Over The Walls

This is my current workspace:

And that is AFTER I spent a couple hours last night organizing my notes. Since I have a lot more free time (in theory) than I do during school, I am trying to get a large chunk of writing completed on my latest novel. I’m posting this pic because I like how it displays the messiness of my thought processes.

For a long time I didn’t have a dedicated place to write. Since I can write just about anywhere, I didn’t see a need for it. But it is useful to have a place to spread your stuff around without having to pack it up all the time.

Where do you write? Do you tack your story ideas to the wall (bulletin board) just like me, or do you have a better system?

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May 14, 2011 · 3:35 pm

Fantasy Clichés – Avoided!

OR, Not Another Prophecy About ‘The One!’

I just ran across this list of tired, overdone clichés in fantasy novels, and decided to post it up here. Since, after all, I didn’t get a proper post out on Thursday…

I was SO surprised to see the fantasy I’ve started posting on this blog doesn’t fall into too many of the clichés… which means it’s got a few original elements in it, I guess.

Here are the first couple items:

  1. Does nothing happen in the first fifty pages?
  2. Is your main character a young farmhand with mysterious parentage?
  3. Is your main character the heir to the throne but doesn’t know it?
  4. Is your story about a young character who comes of age, gains great power, and defeats the supreme badguy?
  5. Is your story about a quest for a magical artifact that will save the world?
  6. How about one that will destroy it?
  7. Does your story revolve around an ancient prophecy about “The One” who will save the world and everybody and all the forces of good?

The rest can be read here.

But I will be the first to argue that re-telling an old story is not always bad – see this previous post of mine. Also, this page on TVtropes sums it up quite well. But clichés can be quite tiring and irritating, especially in fantasy.

What about you? If you’ve ever tried your hand at fantasy, how many of these traps have you fallen into? And do you think any of these so-called “clichés” can still be useful for writers?

Check out Why Polly? to see for yourself if I avoided any of these clichés!

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