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Nanowrimo 2007! (Oct 11, 2007)

Quiz Results for Vaughn (Oct 11, 2007)


I'm not sure I like the prologue...I might take it out with the next draft, but it keeps the word count going, so why not? I kind of liked the idea of encapsulating the novel at first by encasing it in an interview, sort of like Interview with the Vampire, but then again, maybe not. It's very contrived, and I think I was exercising or warming-up my characters for the real run.

Here it is:

Many people know Anibel Mayleve. Daughter of Drew Mayleve and conqueror of the conflict two years ago, Anibel Mayleve is a figure that not many have forgotten. But the true story has yet to be heard, the story right out of Anibel Mayleve’s mouth, the story that will set all rumors and speculation to an end. Anibel Mayleve has kindly agreed to sit down and recall the events of the last two years.

We are sitting in a dark room, closed to the sunlight outside and open to the dust that gathered over the years. By the looks of things, every surface has a thick layer of dust that is not so much dust anymore as it is a layer of grease and dirt. I can make out her fain outlines against the oily curtains, but Anibel Mayleve is still there, crouched in her seat, barely avoiding my eyes. She is a crumpled figure, yet still young – a wonder since her face is contorted in such a way that her eyes are barely visible behind the crinkled folds of her brow, her mouth agape in a silent choke. I wonder what emotion must be going through her once-beautiful face. It seems at one point she was attractive, with a heart-shaped face and wavy brown hair to frame cold blue eyes. Now her skin is filled with wrinkles, like her features are stuck in an eternal laugh, or more likely an eternal grief. A lot has happened to certify the transformation of Anibel Mayleve. Perhaps this interview can set things straight and help clear the public’s perspective on this prominent character.

“Are you comfortable, Miss Mayleve?”

She pauses as she takes a shaky breath. A cough rankles her frame and she doubles over, a piping whimpering emerging from the folds of her cloak. She withdraws after a while and steadies her breath. “Yes. Quite comfortable.”

I position the tape recorder on the arm of my chair. Balanced on my knee is my notebook, a pen tucked between the pages ready to be filled.

“If you feel we are ready to begin, then we may start. But if at any time you need to stop, feel free to do so and tell me so I can stop my recorder. Are we ready?”

She nods.

I watch her carefully for any signs that might hint at her unwillingness, but the darkness obscures most of the detail, so I can only bet on her word. I open up my notebook to the page held by the pen, and I fold the cover over. I scan the page and look up. “Now everyone knows of your confrontation with the dragon, but not many people know that you knew the dragon personally. Could you tell the readers out there about your connection with the dragon and what made you choose to go against him?”

Anibel Mayleve, who had started to shake, stills, and I hear an intake of breath. It wasn’t like she was surprised, or like she was gathering her nerves, but more like she was on the edge of a chasm, and it was the breath you take before you plunged into the water and the blackness.

“But I can’t start from there; I have to start way further than that. Knowing the dragon is just a little part of my story.” She shifts in her seat, just a little, but now she is upright and I can see her face. I am startled to see she still retains her youthful beauty, as the wrinkles have softened on her face now that she is calm. The shadows still play with her nose, making it appear much longer than it should.

“Where, then, should we begin?” I ask.

Anibel Mayleve shifts forward in her seat and leans in. “Why, two years and six months ago, I believe. It’s quite a long story, but I’m afraid if you want to hear the whole of it, then there’s no getting around it.”

Her face is almost beautiful in this sub-darkness. But then she withdraws sharply and her face is masked in wrinkles once again. She is shaking.

I am so absorbed I almost forget the tape recorder sitting next to me. I raise it to my lips and press a button.

“This is the first of November, third year. Subject: Anibel Mayleve on her encounter with –” I see her stir in the shadows – “her story of the encounter.”


Introduction

Prologue

Chapter One
(Angelface)


So. I decided, at the very last minute, to pull out of my novel idea for this year, Babylonian Gods (aka Mesopotamian Devil) and invest my talents into a work that has been distilling for years. I present to you: Green Tea & Angelface. I realize this may be a bad title to market my book, as it is too weird, but that is the title I am very happy with at this point.

So...being that I changed my novel, I had to change my blog layout too. So the girl up there looks like my main girl and she is on a dock and there is water and sky (main elements in my book) and "Believe you can fly: Experience new wonders" is EXACTLY the theme and plot of my book. SO fitting. Plus, what you hear right now is basically the theme song for my book. It is called "He's a Pirate (DJ Tiesto remix)" from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. My soundtrack for this story is a mix between Pirates of the Caribbean soundtracks and a bunch of trance music, so this song is quite the fusion between the two. Overall, this is the perfect blog to host my inspiration.

I will write more later. I have 5,090 words right now, and today I must get to 6,668. So, no talking! Must. Write. Now.


So I decided to try something a little special this year. I'm characterizing my main characters by taking online quizzes for them, you know, to find out their personality. I figured, I already have been characterizing with role-playing, and have done so for years: Neverwinter Nights, a Dungeons and Dragons game, and Oblivion comes to mind. So, I might as well "roleplay" by impersonating my characters taking these online quizzes (and some of them are purty ridiculous). I got a lot of these quizzes from this very fun site called Blogthings.

Here are some of the results I got for Vaughn:

You Are Creepy

Serial killers would run away from you in a flash.

You Could Be a Vampire... If You Had To

Like most people, the thought of being a vampire has crossed your mind. But you're not sure if you'd do it, even if you could. Living forever doesn't sound half bad, if you could live forever with the people you love the most. But do vampires even love? And would the vampire version of you even be you? It's all too much to contemplate. Luckily, the chances of you ever becoming a vampire are astronomically low. What you would like best about being a vampire: Living forever What you would like least about being a vampire: Blood stained teeth

Your Seduction Style: Prized Object

The seduction game you play is tried, true, and still effective: hard to get. You know that the best seducers turn the tables - and get their crush to seduce them. The one running has the power, and you're a challenge that is worth the chase. You are a master of enticing and pulling back. Giving a little and taking some away. You are controlled enough to know rewards come after a long seduction dance. Even though you want to call, email, or say "I love you" first - you don't! You're style is the perfect mix of hot and cold - so much so that you have many suitors. Think Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany's ... or any of those creepy guys from the Bachelor. You're skilled at inspiring a chase. The real test is picking the person to slow down for.

You Are Surrealism

Dreamy and idealistic, you've created a world that is all your own. It's very likely that you've either dabbled in drugs or are naturally trippy. You are always trying to push beyond the boundaries of your culture and society. You believe that art, love, and freedom can change the world.

Your Intrapersonal Intelligence Score: 71%

Your Intrapersonal Intelligence is High You have a great understanding of who you are, and your place in the world. You know what path you're on. And you are excited about your future. You're always deepening your inner knowledge and introspection. And enjoying it every step of the way.

You Are 28% Emo

You're definitely not emo, but you do understand emo people a little. You are introspective, but not to the point of driving yourself crazy.

There's a Chance You Could Be Violent

Overall, you're a pretty chill person - and you have a good handle on your emotions. Sometimes your anger gets the best of you, and end up regretting how you act. Try to curb your temper more often. It only has to get out of control once to do some damage.

You Make a Bad First Impression

When you first meet someone, you're quite nervous... and it shows. You may not talk enough, or you may find yourself saying the wrong thing. No matter what, you end up presenting a person very different from who you are. You're probably projecting a bad social image - and it effects your career, friends, and general quality of life. Consider getting help from a friend known for social grace and charm. Deep down, you're a great person.... and it's time to start showing it.

Your Superpower Should Be Mind Reading

You are brilliant, insightful, and intuitive. You understand people better than they would like to be understood. Highly sensitive, you are good at putting together seemingly irrelevant details. You figure out what's going on before anyone knows that anything is going on! Why you would be a good superhero: You don't care what people think, and you'd do whatever needed to be done Your biggest problem as a superhero: Feeling even more isolated than you do now

What Your Latte Says About You

You are interested in only pure and simple pleasures. You don't like to pollute your body or mind. You are a very serious person. You don't have time for silly antics. You have a good deal of energy, but you pace yourself. You never burn out too fast. You have a healthy relationship with caffeine. You're definitely not dependent on it. You are responsible, mature, and truly an adult. You're occasionally playful, but you find it hard to be carefree. You are dramatic and intense, but you are never moody.

You Are Rock

Powerful and overbearing, you intimidate people with your presence. People know they can't push you around, and they respect that. Deep down, you are calm, confident, and unmovable. You take everything pretty seriously, and you think deeply about all aspects of your life. You tend to feel smothered by paper people. You don't mind crushing the spirit of a scissors person. When you fight, you: Use all of your strength If someone makes you mad: You're likely to throw something at them

Ah. It is here at last.

Nanowrimo 2007. Hopefully this year I may actually complete the thing.

I have participated in this writer's marathon since 2005 when I found out about it over the summer working in the city at a Borders cafe where my wallet was stolen for the first time. I was devastated. At least, when my wallet was stolen. But it was also there that I discovered Chris Baty's guide, No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days. I devoured it within minutes. Okay, so it took like an hour to skim through, but I did whip out my trusty notebook and record some notes, like exactly what month was National Novel Writing Month and the daily quota of words. 3,500.

My first Nanowrimo novel was called Eye Eat Dreams, about a girl who returns home to find she has no home; it has been destroyed by a vicious monster known only as "Monster" and two odd beings - a man with a double personality and a strange bat-like creature - become her companions in the search for the elusive and deadly Monster. Along the way they meet weird and strange characters, each one with his own reason for discovering Monster. Needless to say I ran out of steam within the fourth chapter, and that is not surprising: I was trying to fill the whole story with shotgun action right from page one. No wonder I was exhausted, and so were my characters. Since then I have reworked the plot and the characters and have made the storyline much deeper than the original and retitled it Vhyleria.

My second Nanowrimo was intended to be a wry take on the fairy godmother tradition, intending to make the fairy godmother do her second and most overlooked duty: to take custody of her godchild. The Fairy Godmother (or just Godmother - I was still uncertain) was to take place on the north side of Chicago, just north of Wrigleyville. In it, Sally becomes an orphan and her eccentric aunt brings her to a world where baby dragons are mistaken for stray dogs, a colony of vampires live quietly at a psychic shop, and a vast cavern lies beneath the breadth of the city consisting of unused underground parking lots...otherwise the home of the fae. It got scrapped when I started writing about a chilling incident when Sally meets her "dead" parents behind the glass of a sliding door - too weird, too creepy. Goodbye.

I hope this year I will be met with more success. This year, 2007, will be host to my new Nanowrimo novel, Mesopotamian Devil (working title). It has been an idea I have been toying with for a while - what would happen if you could never touch the ground? Or allow yourself to, for that matter. It is about Vaughn, a reserved half human with a past, and Sirai, a golden girl who takes on more than she can carry alone.

...I'm still trying to work out the story, so I'm afraid to post it now for fear of ruining my image of it forever. But do not worry - I will post chapters of it as I go, whenever I find time to edit. They will be available on my FictionPress site, so please review to give me your critiques! I would love to hear them, but I also love flattery! *ahem* But yes, I would much rather prefer constructive criticism *cough* because it will make me a better writer.