N is for Alice.

"I quite agree with you," said the  Duchess; "and the moral of that is--'Be what you would seem to be'--or if you'd like it put more simply--'Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be otherwise.'" --Chap 9 Alices Adventures in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland is probably one of my favorite stories. I think I enjoy it so much because its to a degree quite nonsensical. Although, through all the nonsense, it is very logical. So, it’s logical nonsense.

I mean, it does make a great deal of sense to tell someone a dry story if they want to dry off, however it’s not very practical. Or for instance to insist that if serpents eat eggs, anything that eats eggs must be some sort of serpent. It’s quite logical to assume such things, although such logic doesn’t make something in fact correct. 

However, when I read Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, I can’t help but wonder if such a book would make it in today’s market. I mean, in a lot of ways its plotless, and wandering. Yet in it’s plotlessness it creates so many different ways you can go, which is why I think the story has captured the imaginations of so many.  

What is your favorite Alice in Wonderland?

M is for Home is where the Heart is.

neighbors house...(they have a six story porch)

In case you’re visiting for A-Z and don’t know me all that well, I have a mildly morbid sense of humor. That being said, I live in a very conservative neighborhood. I mean, I say what street I live on and people give me odd looks super conservative neighborhood.

The street is lined with McMansions, and houses that look like they were just plucked out of the French Riviera. Then you’ve got the house that I rent, which has had minimum work done since it was built in like the mid 50’s. Brick and stone, with a two stories and a sub basement, an over run garden and a poorly maintained driveway. It looks out of place. It’s a super nice house. It just doesn’t fit in with the others in the neighborhood.
For a while my roommate and I’ve been joking about what we, (and by we, I mean he, cause I don’t have any money) would do if we bought the house, and tore it down. His plan is to build a giant glass tower. I however, really want to build Minas Morgul. Now I’m gonna go ahead and assume that you’re not a super geek like I am and need a reminder of what Minas Morgul is:

Yes, if I had my way, it would light up, and play that music. And I’d maybe invest in some robot Nasgulls to fly about the tower.

Now I just need to find a millionaire to marry who would think this is the best idea ever. I have a couple of pretty solid reasons for wanting to build Minas Morgul, one being it would really really upset my neighbors, not that they’ve ever done anything to me. Two, cause it would be awesome. Three because people would never have a hard time finding my house again. As of right now people often get lost when they are coming over to my house. Part of that might have something to do with my directions:

Don't follow google maps it will take you the long way around.

Step 1: Exit the metro station through the mall entrance

Step 2: Walk straight through the food court (to the parking garage), avoid middle school kids

Step 3: Walk through the parking garage tunnel, up the stairs and cross the street, through the tunnel

Step 4: stop and marvel at the silly people ice skating. (only in the winter…if its summer time don’t get mugged by the toddlers)

Step 5: Continue past Sine, and all the other random restaurants (don’t be tempted by their food. Its full of lies)

Step 4: Turn LEFT at DSW

Step 5: Once you are across from the entrance to World Market turn Right, so your back is to world market, and cross the street. Into the parking lot

Step 6: Walk straight through the parking lot.

Step 7: Turn in a counter clockwise manner 3 times. You should see the stairs appear. If you do not see the stairs turn in a clockwise manner 6 times.

Step 8: Call Sara if the stairs have not appeared.

Step 9: Walk up the magical stairs and cross the street.

Step 10: Follow the sidewalk up the hill (don't go down the hill the trolls & pixies live there)

Step 11: Cross the street again, in the crosswalk

Step 12: Follow the crosswalk; we are like the 5th or 8th house on the left.

Have fun and avoid the dangers of the road.

But if I could just tell people, I live in Minus Morgal, follow the green light till you get to the house. You’ll be set. Best directions ever.

L is for Whiny

Leni is my MC in my current WIP I know she's an important character to get right, so I've done a lot of background on her, and quite a few character sketches. In my first draft she came off as two whiny. In my second draft she is coming off as too selfless. But she isn't selfless. Bellow is one of the most recent Leni sketches:

Leni know’s she is going to die. Not in an everyone dies type of way, she knows she is going to die in a soon and painful type of way. She is okay with it. In fact, in many ways she agrees with it. She thinks it’s justified, since she has taken life. What she cannot stand, what she cannot tolerate is if her death means nothing. If those she feels like should be spared are not by her sacrifice. Specifically her best friend, Ameil, and the other sacrifices.

Leni is not selfless. But she has, in order to accept her imminent death stopped wanting things for herself. Arguing that if she wants things, it will be too painful to admit she’ll never have them. So she suppresses any want or desire she has into things for other people.

Here is an excerpt I wrote about her...although I haven't figured out what to do with it. It takes place about a year prior to anything in the actual novel: 

Leni sighed, this was the worst part. Watching all of the other sacrifices enter the field. Most of them dressed in the best clothes they could afford, thinking a show of wealth would help them. Ages ranged from six to sixteen, although younger children could enter, could be forced to enter, as Leni knew all too well. Leni could see the tear streaked faces, she could smell the fear radiating off those around her. 

She closed her eyes. She didn't need to watch to know the elderly priest took the stage. To know the motions of the blessing, to hear the familiar chant. She had done this before. It was to be her twelfth time to go through the trial, one year more than anyone thought she would have to endure, but they had changed the law, and now you aged out at 17. 

The chant ended, and she heard the priest say "Now we pray".  Leni smiled, slightly, she knew the prayer, but said her own, in her head. 

"Oh Goddess of Death and Judgment, I am already dead" I'sald, I have forsaken you. 

"The crimes I have committed against you have stripped my soul" I will not ask you for mercy, or apologize. I do not deserve mercy. 

"My flesh remains. Reclaim what is yours. I await your judgment of my guilt" I am guilty of the crimes against me. I have killed, I will kill again.

"Oh Goddess of Souls, rejoin my body, rejoin my flesh and soul, decide my fate" All I ask of you, is to spare the others, they have not lived. They are children. 

"Let me take another turn on the wheel"  Give me another turn on the wheel and give them back their lives. 

"Bring me home, to honor you" If you have honor you will do as I ask, and give Ame the strength to understand. 

K is for Death, or perhaps Empty Orchestra.

So, this morning I did not wake up early to write my blog post. I in fact, woke up very late.

You see, on Wednesdays I go from work, to a bar to meet up with friends (sometimes I write but most of the time I go to the bar) then I duck out for an hour for dance class, and after class I rejoin my peoples at the bar, just in time for karaoke. Where I heckle and sing along, but don't sing. I don't sing, mostly because I cannot consume enough alcohol in such a short period of time to be sufficiently drunk enough to sing.

But last night, karaoke killed my phone. Which means, my alarm didn't go off. Which means I didn't wake up.

So instead of my planned post which either had something to do with romance, or excess violence, or both cause really they are the same thing. I'm going to leave you with a song:

Decemberunderground By AFI is one of my favorite alblums to listen to when writing, they are Leni's band, cause they are the appropriate amount of dark and angsty: Kiss and Control--not my favorite song but it does have a K in the title

But because I know AFI is actually not awesome music, nor a good Karaoke song :

p.s. I should be getting a new phone tomorrow. YAY manufactures warranty.

p.p.s Sorry for the exceptionally lazy post! 

J is for Plotting

There was a time in my life, where me and my friends ended the night with Journey...specifically “Dont Stop Believing” This of course, is always better when you're completely drunk, and believe its socially acceptable to stand on tables and sing...not at karaoke. What can I say, we knew how to end a night. And I think in that year I did more damage to my liver than I have in my entire life.
 

Freytag's Pyramid on Plot

If I was to write a memoir, that could be a good place to end it, or a good place to start it. I think it would depend on what story I was trying to tell. I probably won’t ever write a memoir though, for a few reasons. One being I can’t sort out what story to tell. I can’t figure out which plot line to follow.

I’m a big fan of the Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland quote “‘Begin at the beginning’, the king said gravely and go on till you come to the end: then stop’” It’s a good rule for writing, well a good rule for life really. I tell it to my boss at least once a week.

Yet, when you’re telling a story, you have to decide, where the beginning is, and where the end is. Often times these things are not all that clear cut. And more important, for any Journey, at least in a story, you need a plot.

Plots are things I struggle with, they tend to meander, and develop lives of their own, growing in organic and unexpected ways, and then I realize I’ve written 50,000 words and haven’t told a story. I think part of the problem is that my MC in my current WIP doesn’t actually know what she wants.

Recently I’ve decided to stop on the rewriting and go back to the conception stage of things, and try to figure out what my plot is. What my story is. Where it begins and ends. And perhaps more importantly, something left out of my Lewis Carroll quote, what the conflict is, cause no journey is complete without a conflict.

p.s. I never really announced my theme, but I’ve loosely been following one, any guesses as to what it is?

I is for Team.

There is no I in team. But no one writes, or lives in a bubble. Which means novels are hardly ever written without some form of help or inspiration. I am a believer in Critique groups, not just for help, but for inspiration.

I’ve been in a group off and on since I was in college…some odd 6 years. Although in college they called them creative writing workshops and were moderated by a professor. Now they can be anything from writers groups to critique partners.

For me, the biggest advantages to critique or writing groups is having other creative type people to talk to. People I can bounce ideas off of. Not to mention a group of people I can get to judge my writing, who understand the hours it takes to put something down on paper.

Finding a good writers group can be challenging too. It’s a combination of finding something that meets your needs, and where you feel like you can fit in, because there are very few things more personal then sharing something you’ve created for the first time and asking for feedback.

When I first moved to DC I was lucky to find a really great writers group. Which worked for about two or three years, but then my needs changed…or the group changed, and it was no longer working. I had a falling out with a few of the leaders, and decided it was time for a change. I will still on rare occasion go to that group, like when a friend who is still a member has a piece up for critique and wants a show of support, or if I just feel like I need to hang out with other writers.

But now, I feel a bit adrift. It’s like I’m single for the first time in a really long time, and trying to decide if I should put myself out there or not.

However, I do have a really awesome group of friends who are writers, most of which I met at the old group, and still keep in touch with. So for right now, I’m happy to just have writer friends, and no formal critique group. But a few trusted people that I can bounce ideas off of, or show a scene I feel really uncertain about too. Plus blogging friends.

What about you? Do you have a writers group? Writer friends? Etc?

H is for Nerd

I got my bachelors in History. I specifically studied, Medieval Religions History, and if you want to get even more specific, I studied the ways different cultures/religions interacted with one another in the medieval period. Although the term, Medieval or Dark Age’s as a way to describe Europe from the fall of Rome to the 14th century (or whenever you decide it ends) is kind of contested. I mean the term was coined by a 14th century poet named Petrarch.

Section of the Bayeux Tapestry

But I think I’m off my point. My point is I like history. I read history books for fun. And not just Medieval history. Although it is probably my favorite period of history. I also enjoy reading/learning about WWI…and possibly have perfected how to teach it, at least to middle schoolers. It goes something like “Some black hungry guy named Archie shot the Duke’s Ostrich”

And I think, I’m drawn to both time periods because they are periods of exceptional change. I mean in the Medieval period, you have the Goths, the Barbers, the Franks…etc pushing through Europe, organizing, fighting, and reorganizing into new kingdoms, and new laws, some of which were exceptionally violent. You have Christianity reaching out and attempting to impose order amongst the chaos, you have the founding of Monasteries. You have the reorganization of people’s into villages and the emergence of a feudal society.

In Spain you have what looks like an early Renaissance under Moorish and Gothic rule (The Ornament World). In Parts of the Italian Peninsula, and the Middle East you have different sects of religion emerging, and claiming Christianity, some of which are so unlike anything we have today, they might as well be worshiping aliens (Google Manichaeism Cosmology if you don’t believe me).

This isn’t even mentioning the Black Plague, or the Crusades.

In the years leading up to WWI you have probably, the most rapid change in technology, paired with some of the most rapid changes in social structure that you’ll ever find (if you want to know more read The Strange Death of Liberal England by George Dangerfield ). Case in point: In 1914, in Russia there was a conference, of which name I cannot remember, where the leaders in Europe, mostly still Monarchs, who were all related through Victoria Queen of England (she had 26 grandchildren who survived into adulthood), came together with their advisors to discuss technological advances and War. At which point, a German suggested they ban people going up into hot air balloons, and dropping projectiles on enemy lines. He was laughed out of the conference. Less than a year and a half later, you see this exact thing happening on the battle fields in Europe, something people thought impossible only a year prior.

You have Horses charging alongside tanks. You have books published about the war, written by veterans of the war, translated into all of the languages of the people fighting in the war, and available in those countries before the war was over (Under Fire by Henri Barbusse)

Now, what is my point, other than perhaps the fact that I am a super nerd, and I just completely nerded out on you?

History can be a great and awesome and scary source of inspiration. Plus, a lot of fantasy is written in a type of Medieval Europe setting, and a lot of writers have only a basic fundamental understanding of how Medieval Europe worked.

And I love history. And there are some great resources out there for those of you who also love history. For example, recently I found this: Yale Open Classroom Early Middle Ages http://oyc.yale.edu/history/hist-210 .

If you’re curious about books, let me know, and I’ll see what I can do to recommend some, I have way more than I mentioned, and forgive me if I mentioned anything out of print.