While working on my new project, I came across something I wanted to share with you. Authors are constantly telling you to avoid stereotypes and to ‘think outside the box’ when it comes to characters. I’d heard it, but I never fully understood the impact it could have on your work until now.
My next novel has a minor character who is an assassin. I was very tired when I wrote the scene and didn’t really try to figure out anything about the character since I didn’t think it mattered. I called him ‘Victor’ and went on writing. Or tried to, at least. I didn’t get very far before scrapping the whole paragraph. On a whim, I started over, this time calling the character ‘Viper’.
That little change got me much farther.
Why? Because Viper is a girl, and a very strange one at that. She’s supposed to be an assassin, yet her very being screams otherwise. White-blonde hair swept back into a ponytail, light blue eyes, minimal make-up, a cream-colored outfit, and heels. She’s mute, so anything she could say to negate the image she projects is not likely. While it may not be the most original appearance, I find myself intrigued now, and so does my main character. Viper opens up an entirely new atmosphere than the throw-away ‘Victor’ did, and for that, I am grateful.
I can more forward now.
So, today's lesson: Think outside the freaking box already! :D
Alex
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
I Swear, I've Got to Start Blogging More Often!
It’s been a while since I last blogged, so I think bullet points are in order if I’m going to recap what’s been going on:
* So, I was invited to audition for Talented Theatre in February. I made it! So, every week, alternating between Tuesdays and Wednesdays, I meet for Talented at school. Basically, I now get to work with some amazing people on whatever crazy thing we’re doing that day. I love it!
* I wrote an essay I’ll be posting here soon: Mad Love: A Psychological Analysis of Harley Quinn. My psychology teacher certainly enjoyed it!
* I was offered the chance to take an online writing course for free. Holy Lisle’s 7-week Plot Course is very helpful, even after only two weeks! I think it is the only free course available, as it serves to entice writers into possibly taking the other courses one day. I’ll certainly be taking it again next year, as it is something beneficial to all writers, not just novices. While plot isn’t necessarily difficult for me after three novels, this course added extra insight to characters, scenes, and beginnings I would not have gotten otherwise. The simple exercises resulted in more ideas than an hour’s worth of sitting in front of the computer scene. Ha ha! Anyway, it’s disclaimer time: I am in no way affiliated with Ms. Lisle or anyone associated with her. I only wanted to make this writing course known to anyone who might be interested.
* Just in case you were wondering . . . I took Ms. Lisle’s course specifically because I had only just started a new project and felt it the perfect opportunity. Since I don’t want to build it up before I actually finish, I’m keeping info on the project very hush, hush. For now.
I promise to post on a more regular basis. I’m working on a schedule or something right now.
For your entertainment, here’s the latest blogging sensation, the poster-child for How NOT to handle a review, Ms. Jacqueline Howett. I’ll refrain from giving my input for now, as I’d like to see how you react in the comments. Go read this review, then read ALL of the author’s comments below it. All I can say is ‘Wow. Just wow.’ *shakes head* This woman must be what gives the other Indie-authors a bad name! The review was highly professional, in my opinion, and certainly not as harsh as it could have been. Anyway, enjoy:
http://booksandpals.blogspot.com/2011/03/greek-seaman-jacqueline-howett.html
Alex
* So, I was invited to audition for Talented Theatre in February. I made it! So, every week, alternating between Tuesdays and Wednesdays, I meet for Talented at school. Basically, I now get to work with some amazing people on whatever crazy thing we’re doing that day. I love it!
* I wrote an essay I’ll be posting here soon: Mad Love: A Psychological Analysis of Harley Quinn. My psychology teacher certainly enjoyed it!
* I was offered the chance to take an online writing course for free. Holy Lisle’s 7-week Plot Course is very helpful, even after only two weeks! I think it is the only free course available, as it serves to entice writers into possibly taking the other courses one day. I’ll certainly be taking it again next year, as it is something beneficial to all writers, not just novices. While plot isn’t necessarily difficult for me after three novels, this course added extra insight to characters, scenes, and beginnings I would not have gotten otherwise. The simple exercises resulted in more ideas than an hour’s worth of sitting in front of the computer scene. Ha ha! Anyway, it’s disclaimer time: I am in no way affiliated with Ms. Lisle or anyone associated with her. I only wanted to make this writing course known to anyone who might be interested.
* Just in case you were wondering . . . I took Ms. Lisle’s course specifically because I had only just started a new project and felt it the perfect opportunity. Since I don’t want to build it up before I actually finish, I’m keeping info on the project very hush, hush. For now.
I promise to post on a more regular basis. I’m working on a schedule or something right now.
For your entertainment, here’s the latest blogging sensation, the poster-child for How NOT to handle a review, Ms. Jacqueline Howett. I’ll refrain from giving my input for now, as I’d like to see how you react in the comments. Go read this review, then read ALL of the author’s comments below it. All I can say is ‘Wow. Just wow.’ *shakes head* This woman must be what gives the other Indie-authors a bad name! The review was highly professional, in my opinion, and certainly not as harsh as it could have been. Anyway, enjoy:
http://booksandpals.blogspot.com/2011/03/greek-seaman-jacqueline-howett.html
Alex
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
ARCs!
I won all five books in that picture! :D This is 'The Penguin Five', a promotional thingie Penguin did with five ARCs. The books included are:
- Eternal Ones by Kristen Miller (Romance) (August)
- The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff (Horror) (September)
Nightshade by Andrea Cremer (Paranormal) (October)
Matched by Ally Condel (Dystopia) (November 30th!)
Sapphique by Catherine Fisher (Fantasy) (December 12th!)
As you can see, I got this way late. However, if it hadn't been for a drawing I won, I wouldn't have read 4 out of 5 of these books. I wanted to read Nightshade and am very happy to have a unique coppy. Hopefully I'll enjoy it and be able to get passed any typos. Although Eternal Ones, The Replacement, and Nightshade have already come out in finalized coppies, I think it is cool to own unedited ones. Plus, I can always compare at the bookstore if I feel I'm honestly missing something. However, I've heard many people want to get their hands on Matched, so I'll be reading that this week and posting my review before the 30th! How exciting! The same goes for Sapphique, but before I can read it, I'll need to get the first one in the series.
NaNo update:
Novel(s): Golden and Watching You Burn
Days: 23
Total Word Count: 6,232
Cups of Coffee: 0 (Lots of Coke and Dr. Pepper, though.)
All-Nighters: 0 (Several failed attempts)
Panic Attacks: Too many to count)
Things Researched: School fights, acrobatic falls, hand grenades
See ya soon!
Alex
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Why Do I Want To Do Everything But Write?
Hey guys! I really have little excuse for not blogging as my word count for NaNo is sickeningly low. Golden is turning out so well for some reason. I open the document every day and . . . nothing. I hate it. Usually, I don't hate my rough drafts for a while, so this is strange.
I learned the hardest part about being a writer is just . . . writing. Does that make any sense
Novel(s): Golden and Watching You Burn
Days: 21
Total Word Count: 5,559
Cups of Coffee: 0 (Lots of Coke and Dr. Pepper, though.)
Cups of Coffee: 0 (Lots of Coke and Dr. Pepper, though.)
All-Nighters: 0
Panic Attacks: Too many to count)
Things Researched: Sociopaths, circus trains, the One Child Policy, circus animals, Chinese outdoor markets, etc.
So far, I've started reading a new book (Nick Lake's Blood Ninja), started two new AMVs (Animated Music Video) for Avatar: The Last Airbender, and watched another episode of Fruits Basket.
See ya! *goes back to tearing hair out over novels)
Alex
Thursday, October 14, 2010
The Word Cloud!
Authors Scott Westerfeld (Uglies series) and his wife, Justine (How to Ditch Your Fairy) teamed up last year to post NaNoWriMo tips daily during November. Aside from Justine's wonderful advice, I also learned she never uses white protagonists in any of her novels and she loves Avatar: The Last Airbender! Although I applaud her for both of these amazing things, I am here today to talk about one of Scott's posts.
Yes, Justine's husband posted something so cool, it got me to crawl back into the world of blogging. And way from homework, but that's another problem altogether. He talked about how readers snicker quietly when the same handful of words are overused. What can be done about this? you ask. Now that you mention it, I wonder what words I overuse.
He introduced us to this amazing thing called The Word Cloud:
http://www.wordle.net/create
It is a cool device that, once you feed it text, gives you a visual of frequently used words, the overused ones in bigger text. It automaticaly excludes words like 'a', 'and' and 'the' so no worries. Here's an example of the Word Cloud for my story Children of the Sun:
The words will vary depending on your novel, but a handful of words will always be bigger than the others. There are words you can forget about or that you want to be big. For me, the biggest words appear to be character names: Zuko (Prince), Areida, and Uncle. As you can see, 'Prince' is slightly bigger than 'Zuko', but this is because Zuko often uses or is refered to by his title ('the Prince', 'Prince Zuko', 'I am Prince of this Nation').
Even if they aren't character names, don't freak out just because you see a lot of big font on the page. That is a good thing at times. Though it varies depending on the content of your story, there are words you want to show up often. In my case, the words 'Avatar' and 'Fire' are used often. 'Firebender' shows up as well, but in smaller font, as it is often replaced with things like 'able to bend fire', 'Firebend', or 'bend/bender'. Nation is also fine, as it is a common word in this world, though one I may want to cut down on for the rare instances it isn't needed.
However, amid those words are those I use far too often. So far, the story is only 12,553 words. 'Eyes', 'know', 'away', 'though', 'hand', 'thought', 'back', 'just', and 'one' should not take up so much space! Each bigger word should be examined, however, with care. Don't begin hacking your novel to pieces yet. (Since I don't have much time, however, I'll simply talk about the ones I feel others may overuse as well.)
Eyes- In this story, eye-color matters. Fans of the show are aware of how each Nation's natural benders have different eyes colors unique to them. Green for Earthbenders, blue for Waterbenders, gold for Firebenders, and grey for Airbenders. Non-benders can also have this eye-color. Sometimes, the word 'eyes' cannot be avoided. You need to close or open your eyes, examine the color of someone else's . . . Areida's eye-color is an important plot device and you certainly don't want to go around using words like 'orbs'! However, the word should still be used less. I could do some rewording to avoid it or replace it 'gaze' when I can get away with it. Something also tells me I may be using eyes to convey emotion: a big no-no for me.
Know/knew- These are tricky words. They show up often in everyday life, so you may be able to get away with using them . . . but just in case, you may want to watch out. Sadly, I'm unsure of many ways you could avoid it, at least without making everything too complex. Simple is better. Perhaps 'I didn't know his name' could be replaced with 'his name evaded me' or 'I couldn't remember his name. Carl? Joe? Carl/Joe paced the room' . . . blah, blah, blah. I avoided the words this time, but they'll come back to haunt me! In cases of interrogations, like with my story, it may be okay to use 'know' a few times . . . sparingly.
Hand- What on earth could you use to replace 'hand'? In cases of action or violence, this word might be okay, along with 'feet' or 'head'. If you still want to avoid it, you can possibly be more specific (Simple is better?) by using 'fist' or 'palm'. Hands usualy convey action, so this word isn't bad. 'Hands' is also much bigger than 'hand', oddly enough.
Yes, Justine's husband posted something so cool, it got me to crawl back into the world of blogging. And way from homework, but that's another problem altogether. He talked about how readers snicker quietly when the same handful of words are overused. What can be done about this? you ask. Now that you mention it, I wonder what words I overuse.
He introduced us to this amazing thing called The Word Cloud:
http://www.wordle.net/create
It is a cool device that, once you feed it text, gives you a visual of frequently used words, the overused ones in bigger text. It automaticaly excludes words like 'a', 'and' and 'the' so no worries. Here's an example of the Word Cloud for my story Children of the Sun:
The words will vary depending on your novel, but a handful of words will always be bigger than the others. There are words you can forget about or that you want to be big. For me, the biggest words appear to be character names: Zuko (Prince), Areida, and Uncle. As you can see, 'Prince' is slightly bigger than 'Zuko', but this is because Zuko often uses or is refered to by his title ('the Prince', 'Prince Zuko', 'I am Prince of this Nation').
Even if they aren't character names, don't freak out just because you see a lot of big font on the page. That is a good thing at times. Though it varies depending on the content of your story, there are words you want to show up often. In my case, the words 'Avatar' and 'Fire' are used often. 'Firebender' shows up as well, but in smaller font, as it is often replaced with things like 'able to bend fire', 'Firebend', or 'bend/bender'. Nation is also fine, as it is a common word in this world, though one I may want to cut down on for the rare instances it isn't needed.
However, amid those words are those I use far too often. So far, the story is only 12,553 words. 'Eyes', 'know', 'away', 'though', 'hand', 'thought', 'back', 'just', and 'one' should not take up so much space! Each bigger word should be examined, however, with care. Don't begin hacking your novel to pieces yet. (Since I don't have much time, however, I'll simply talk about the ones I feel others may overuse as well.)
Eyes- In this story, eye-color matters. Fans of the show are aware of how each Nation's natural benders have different eyes colors unique to them. Green for Earthbenders, blue for Waterbenders, gold for Firebenders, and grey for Airbenders. Non-benders can also have this eye-color. Sometimes, the word 'eyes' cannot be avoided. You need to close or open your eyes, examine the color of someone else's . . . Areida's eye-color is an important plot device and you certainly don't want to go around using words like 'orbs'! However, the word should still be used less. I could do some rewording to avoid it or replace it 'gaze' when I can get away with it. Something also tells me I may be using eyes to convey emotion: a big no-no for me.
Know/knew- These are tricky words. They show up often in everyday life, so you may be able to get away with using them . . . but just in case, you may want to watch out. Sadly, I'm unsure of many ways you could avoid it, at least without making everything too complex. Simple is better. Perhaps 'I didn't know his name' could be replaced with 'his name evaded me' or 'I couldn't remember his name. Carl? Joe? Carl/Joe paced the room' . . . blah, blah, blah. I avoided the words this time, but they'll come back to haunt me! In cases of interrogations, like with my story, it may be okay to use 'know' a few times . . . sparingly.
Hand- What on earth could you use to replace 'hand'? In cases of action or violence, this word might be okay, along with 'feet' or 'head'. If you still want to avoid it, you can possibly be more specific (Simple is better?) by using 'fist' or 'palm'. Hands usualy convey action, so this word isn't bad. 'Hands' is also much bigger than 'hand', oddly enough.
Just- I tend to use 'just' as an adjective. 'Not just yet.' 'She was just standing there.' I, among others, could cut back on this, find another way to convey and stress simple actions.
Some words such as 'like', 'face', and 'back' I don't see how I could use so much . . . At least now I know to cut back on them if I can, play with structure as inconspicuously as possible until I find one that works.
Other words I overuse to a ridiculous degree are 'something' and 'one'. I used 'one' in the above paragraph! 'Even' is yet another word I use to indicate stress ("I even used it in an example!"); I'll look for all this when I reread and edit my first draft. I'll keep it in mind while writing the next chapter.
The point is how helpful/awesome the Word Cloud is! Click the link I provided above the picture, post your novel (or a portion) into the field, and click Save to Gallery. Make a false title and name. They don't save any bit of the text you post, so no need to worry. Let me know in your next blog post how it went. Maybe even post the actual Word Cloud as I did. It's a great tool if you're looking to reduce word count or worried about overuse of noticeable vocabulary. Or just plain interesting. Let me know how it went, what you think your words mean, etc. Don't forget-- every novel is different! If you're writing a novel about monkeys in space, you better hope at least the term 'space' is in big letters! Remember what I said about names and words like 'Nation' and 'Fire'. If they're important to the novel, it is good to see them in big letters!
Hope this post was worth the read!
Let me know if you have any trouble with the picture/link.
Alex
Friday, October 8, 2010
Friday Fiction: Rated R!
Friday again? I haven't posted anything in, like, weeks. If it helps, I have had a lot to do. At this moment, I'm Beta-ing (editing) two FanFiction chapters. I have three more to Beta for someone else. I hate to say it, but all these 'assignments' are taking their toll tonight since I've doing that since I got home from school. Not that I am really complaining, for I enjoy this so much!
Anyway, I want to update more soon, maybe even do a few NaNoWriMo posts next month! For now, I'm working on polishing up the next chapter of my FanFiction, Children of the Sun, which has been delayed for two months because of merciless revisions. But, hey, won't I be doing this for a novel soon? This is just as important to me!
So, can you guess what you get this week? Yet another part of my one-shot FanFiction Between Daggers and Ice. This one is in Mai's point of view while imprisoned in the Boiling Rock. Let me know what you think in the comments below!
Rated R for . . . violence? That's just me being cautious; I'd give it a PG13 rating (or 'teen' rating).
Enjoy!
My cell was cramped, chilly at night and sweltering when the sun came up. I rarely moved from the battered cot on the floor no matter where the other prisoners went. Not so much because I didn’t wish to go outside, to eat, to run, but because I simply couldn’t. Everything hurt too much.
As if on cue, another damn boy entered my cell. I was well past tensing up and fighting. I did not scream; I was prepared, ready with my own unique defense. Closing my eyes, I willed my body to relax. I figured I was not the only one to go through this, but I knew I was better off than most. The stranger overtook me, reeking of sweat and dried blood. A whimper threatened to escape, but I stifled it, my teeth clamping on my lower lip until I tasted blood.
Zuko . . .
Just like that, he was there above me, whispering my name. Pain melted away, replaced by a burning sense of pleasure. He was being more rough than usual, but I didn’t mind so much. It was the kind of thing to do when you were angry and horny at once, the kind of fuck to make a lover feel bad. I felt his teeth graze my shoulder and a thrill traveled down my spine. Once, before I assured him he did not need to remain a Prince, nor I Lady beneath him, Zuko would unwittingly irritate me, nuzzling when I wanted him to bite. Now we could be ourselves. More importantly, now I permitted myself to feel.
I believe I shouted his name, only to receive a sloppy kiss to shut me up.
Then, I remembered the last time I saw him, the images overwhelming me despite my protests. “You miscalculated. I love Zuko more than I fear you.” His bitch of a sister was going to kill me— and I was prepared to die if it meant saving him.
Hair, coarse and dirty, brushed my cheek, and my eyes flew open to see the stranger’s strikingly pale strands. Confusion took hold and this did not belong here, where all should be perfect. As reality surfaced, I struggled to hold onto my lovely delusions . . . before they shattered.
My eyes closed and I clamped down on my lower lip, praying to Agni for it to be over. This I could bear no longer. This man was no lover, no Zuko. My body ached, fighting him without my knowledge or consent. Pain crested unbearably and a scream ripped from my throat. This time, he slapped me so hard my face whipped to one side and color exploded behind my eyes.
When it was over, I’d lost at least an hour. I lay there, sobbing, murmuring Zuko’s name, not in ecstasy, but as a plea.
He would come to save me. He had to. I could only feel so much.
Anyway, I want to update more soon, maybe even do a few NaNoWriMo posts next month! For now, I'm working on polishing up the next chapter of my FanFiction, Children of the Sun, which has been delayed for two months because of merciless revisions. But, hey, won't I be doing this for a novel soon? This is just as important to me!
So, can you guess what you get this week? Yet another part of my one-shot FanFiction Between Daggers and Ice. This one is in Mai's point of view while imprisoned in the Boiling Rock. Let me know what you think in the comments below!
Rated R for . . . violence? That's just me being cautious; I'd give it a PG13 rating (or 'teen' rating).
Enjoy!
My cell was cramped, chilly at night and sweltering when the sun came up. I rarely moved from the battered cot on the floor no matter where the other prisoners went. Not so much because I didn’t wish to go outside, to eat, to run, but because I simply couldn’t. Everything hurt too much.
As if on cue, another damn boy entered my cell. I was well past tensing up and fighting. I did not scream; I was prepared, ready with my own unique defense. Closing my eyes, I willed my body to relax. I figured I was not the only one to go through this, but I knew I was better off than most. The stranger overtook me, reeking of sweat and dried blood. A whimper threatened to escape, but I stifled it, my teeth clamping on my lower lip until I tasted blood.
Zuko . . .
Just like that, he was there above me, whispering my name. Pain melted away, replaced by a burning sense of pleasure. He was being more rough than usual, but I didn’t mind so much. It was the kind of thing to do when you were angry and horny at once, the kind of fuck to make a lover feel bad. I felt his teeth graze my shoulder and a thrill traveled down my spine. Once, before I assured him he did not need to remain a Prince, nor I Lady beneath him, Zuko would unwittingly irritate me, nuzzling when I wanted him to bite. Now we could be ourselves. More importantly, now I permitted myself to feel.
I believe I shouted his name, only to receive a sloppy kiss to shut me up.
Then, I remembered the last time I saw him, the images overwhelming me despite my protests. “You miscalculated. I love Zuko more than I fear you.” His bitch of a sister was going to kill me— and I was prepared to die if it meant saving him.
Hair, coarse and dirty, brushed my cheek, and my eyes flew open to see the stranger’s strikingly pale strands. Confusion took hold and this did not belong here, where all should be perfect. As reality surfaced, I struggled to hold onto my lovely delusions . . . before they shattered.
My eyes closed and I clamped down on my lower lip, praying to Agni for it to be over. This I could bear no longer. This man was no lover, no Zuko. My body ached, fighting him without my knowledge or consent. Pain crested unbearably and a scream ripped from my throat. This time, he slapped me so hard my face whipped to one side and color exploded behind my eyes.
When it was over, I’d lost at least an hour. I lay there, sobbing, murmuring Zuko’s name, not in ecstasy, but as a plea.
He would come to save me. He had to. I could only feel so much.
See ya!
Alex
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Happy Birthday to . . . ME! :)
I bet I am the first blogger to post about her own birthday, but I'm elated and felt like sharing. lol! I'm going to start on the next chapter of my FanFiction (Children of the Sun) and maybe begin the outline for my NaNo novel since the contest starts on the 31st! :0 Then again . . . it is my birthday. I'll save the outline for tomorrow, I think.
Writers: Do you write on your birthday/holidays, too? :)
Off to have 17 year-old birthday fun, whatever that is. lol!
Alex
Writers: Do you write on your birthday/holidays, too? :)
Off to have 17 year-old birthday fun, whatever that is. lol!
Alex
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