Two days left until November 1st. Micaela still has to work on her outline. I need to put the finishing touches on my own outline. Derek might participate as well. Time is ticking. And I am thoroughly excited. Unlike last year, I'm really looking forward to this year.
I think I'm going to do Shayanna's story.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
And the winner is...
Micaela has decided to write a story about a sleuth like Nancy Drew. She has been very specific in that she does not want to follow the traditional Nancy Drew format of item lost, person kidnapped or hurt, item found. So, I'm eager to see what she has in mind.
I will be working on... ugh, I keep changing my mind. I can't decide between the second book for Cora, my amazon mage, or the story about Shayanna, my elven beast rider. Cora's is outlined already. Shayanna's has time travel and is still evolving so much, it hasn't been outlined.
So, 50,000 words in 30 days, while taking a writing class where I am rewriting Serpe's story. This should prove really interesting.
I will be working on... ugh, I keep changing my mind. I can't decide between the second book for Cora, my amazon mage, or the story about Shayanna, my elven beast rider. Cora's is outlined already. Shayanna's has time travel and is still evolving so much, it hasn't been outlined.
So, 50,000 words in 30 days, while taking a writing class where I am rewriting Serpe's story. This should prove really interesting.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Nanowrimo - Young Writer's Program
Micaela has agreed to write with me in November. Her word count goal is 1000 words, which I think is a tremendous goal for a 9-year-old. She keeps asking me if she can start, but I have to remind her of the rules, that she can't start until November 1. She also asks me what I think she should write. So, obviously, we're going to have to work on an idea for her, one of her own.
I'm really excited to have Micaela writing with me. I think it is good for her to do different kinds of things.
Derek has only shown interest in it if he gets extra credit for school. Of course, I can't force his teacher to give him that, but he's already written short stories, I think it would be good for him to finish something like this.
We'll see. I still have time to talk to him about it.
I'm really excited to have Micaela writing with me. I think it is good for her to do different kinds of things.
Derek has only shown interest in it if he gets extra credit for school. Of course, I can't force his teacher to give him that, but he's already written short stories, I think it would be good for him to finish something like this.
We'll see. I still have time to talk to him about it.
The Death of The Five Lions
The Five Lions went into the Vast, against the advice of their King and without anyone knowing where they had gone.
The lovers saw their relationship die, as each day they drifted further apart.
The largest saw his faith in his new deity tested and found himself strong in his beliefs.
The priest found his convictions and needs did not receive the support from the others.
They traveled to find the Dark Lord and his minions, to end the threat to their home.
What they found was the man who had betrayed their country, strengthened by the alliance he had made.
Though they had warned others about him, he had been allowed to go unquestioned and strengthened his hold within the Vast and against Theonalar.
Though their battle was valiant and their need to survive strong, one by one, each fell to the Dark Lord’s minions.
Angus died in battle, the first to leave this world.
Postuellyo died soon thereafter, crying out the name of his god as the killing blow fell upon him.
Tal met his fate at the hands of the man who tortured him.
Natani met her fate at those same hands, after watching the man she had loved slowly tortured to death and regretting that they would never be able to make their apologies to each other.
Of the Lions, only Kaz survived, though where he is now, no one knows.
The lovers saw their relationship die, as each day they drifted further apart.
The largest saw his faith in his new deity tested and found himself strong in his beliefs.
The priest found his convictions and needs did not receive the support from the others.
They traveled to find the Dark Lord and his minions, to end the threat to their home.
What they found was the man who had betrayed their country, strengthened by the alliance he had made.
Though they had warned others about him, he had been allowed to go unquestioned and strengthened his hold within the Vast and against Theonalar.
Though their battle was valiant and their need to survive strong, one by one, each fell to the Dark Lord’s minions.
Angus died in battle, the first to leave this world.
Postuellyo died soon thereafter, crying out the name of his god as the killing blow fell upon him.
Tal met his fate at the hands of the man who tortured him.
Natani met her fate at those same hands, after watching the man she had loved slowly tortured to death and regretting that they would never be able to make their apologies to each other.
Of the Lions, only Kaz survived, though where he is now, no one knows.
Monday, October 02, 2006
D&D Session 9.30.06
We left before anyone awoke for the day. Into the Vast again, and for the entire winter this time. Tal is insane. I can’t believe he really wants to do this. Either he’s desperate for us to be killed, or he’s got some information that will keep us alive and safe this season. It’ll be months before we’re able to come home again. Months before the snow clears from the saddleback and allow travel through again.
Before we completely left Theonalar, Pots met us. It’s good to have him back with us. We traveled for several weeks, going back to the plateau where we last saw Kre, until we saw a large group of orcs riding worgs, traveling in our direction. Being such a large group, it would be easy for us to outdistance them, which we did, until we found ourselves basically caught between them and another group of fifty or so orcs on worgs ahead of us, going to the plateau as well. The mountains were covered with snow. We had actually already spent five days holed up because of a snow storm. So, we decided to move up the mountain early and try to get a vantage point above the plateau.
It was easy to see that the area had already suffered one avalanche this season, and we hoped that we would be able to avoid another by being quiet. Unfortunately, that didn’t work.
The snow swept down on us quickly. I don’t really know what the others did, but I tied myself to a tree, after cutting my saddlebags from my horse. I saw Tal get swept away, but there was nothing I could do for him. Then the snow hit me.
I woke up some time later, not real sure how long I was out. Or the others. We were in a cave. Somehow we were rescued by one of our own people. Kaelix Thurgar, Angus’ cousin, who was exiled from Eisenhorn about sixteen months ago. I appreciate being rescued, but having to associate with a clanless man does not necessarily make me happy. Angus was very insistent that Kaelix was wrongly exiled and only because of Angus, and the help Kaelix could give us, I didn’t protest. Unfortunately, Ewane was not with us and no one knew where he went or if he even survived the avalanche.
Kaelix took us to a place where he has spent the winter months since he left Eisenhorn. As if it wasn’t stressing enough having to deal with Kaelix, he calls an ogre, orc, hobgoblin and bugbear friends. The ogre was nice enough. The bugbear and Gort took to each other pretty well. The hobgoblin didn’t say too much, unless we spoke to him first. The orc spent a lot of time those days we were with them, outside.
In an effort to pay them back for their hospitality, I repaired their armor and their weapons to the best of my ability without a proper forge or tools. The others did their part, I think. I didn’t really pay attention to that.
Tal and I had argued when we first arrived. I had been trying to tell Pots about his older sister, Nathaira, being pregnant, before her wedding night. Pots acted almost like he expected it, then pointed out it was no different than Tal and I. That may be true, but I have not come up pregnant. Tal made some comment and I reminded him it had been months since he and I had been together. Then, the comment about how, since my father hates him and doesn’t think he deserves my hand, and since he hasn’t made an effort to reconcile with Father, that it was some ‘pass’ to do whatever he wanted. Taking what he said personally, and to mean he could sleep around, I told him if he did, he would not wake up in the morning. He then said that I was a weak fighter, only able to kill someone in their sleep. That floored me. I can’t believe he made such a personal insult to my honor. I turned to Pots for retribution, demanding that he defend my honor and in the customer our group has developed with each other, though the challenge was made, Tal cut his hand and it was called good. I was proven right, but that didn’t help to improve my mood.
Soon we were moving again, Kaelix guiding us to the Dark Tower, so we could gather more information on Kre. It seems there is a group of orcs called the Dead Moon Clan, who is currently in control over the other humanoids. These are the same orcs we encountered in the dwarven keep. Kre is in control over those orcs and then the Dark Lord is over Kre. Also, the dark, storm-like clouds in the North, is actually an area that seems to run with liquid iron. Kaelix showed me a chunk he had brought back with him some time ago. The giants are there, but for some reason, everyone who had lived in the North were quickly making their way to the South, for reasons unknown and that includes the giants.
We came to one winter camp for a group of orcs Kaelix knows and while the men smoked some kind of... grass or something, I took a look around the camp. My peace didn’t last long, as the non-mated orc males took notice quickly. I ended up knocking many of them down, and when the others joined me, I had successfully shown the orcs that I was no female to mess with. We stayed there one night, then moved on the next day.
As we traveled to another winter camp, a little over a decate away, we saw smoke billowing up. By the time we arrived, it was dark, though we did hurry. We found the entire camp dead, burned. We camped a distance away, then in the morning found further information about the attackers. With Kaelix’s assistance, we were able to determine that the attackers seemed to be heading in the same path we had already taken, almost like they were killing any who would offer us assistance. Their next stop appeared to be the winter camp we had left a decate ago. There was nothing we could do to reach Kaelix’s friend before the attackers. They were on horseback and we had only our feet.
We continued on our way and when we were still miles away from the Dark Tower, we came across a two wagon train of orcs on horses and people locked within the wagons that were actually cages. Tal used his glass tube thingy and found that the first wagon actually held Braesil, who I had expected to find here, somehow.
Tal used his magic and made it look like a larger group of people were attacking the wagons. A smaller group broke off and headed toward us. I was able to swing onto one of the horses and kill the orc riding it, taking the animal as mine. I chased after the wagons, going for the first one. When I reached it, I killed the orc driving the wagon, then turned to deal with the guards surrounding it.
The battle seemed to last forever and eventually, my chain shirt had taken enough hits, protecting me, that it fell off. And one by one, I lopped off the heads of the orc guards as best I could. When there were only six left, I stopped, not even thinking about the mistake. Now I was surrounded and though I could hit with my full force, so could they. I was able to take out one more and injure others before I eventually fell.
I awoke bare moments later to find that the orcs had turned on Tal and Pots, who I had not realized had reached me finally. As I watched, one of the orcs sliced through Pots’ chest, knocking him to the ground. Tal was able to kill the rest as I tried to stand and move toward him. He came over to me and helped me to Pots’ side. He healed Pots some, then turned to heal me. I had returned to the ground, going to my knees and knowing how important it was that Pots be returned to consciousness, I pushed Tal’s offer away.
I don’t know where the others are.
Before we completely left Theonalar, Pots met us. It’s good to have him back with us. We traveled for several weeks, going back to the plateau where we last saw Kre, until we saw a large group of orcs riding worgs, traveling in our direction. Being such a large group, it would be easy for us to outdistance them, which we did, until we found ourselves basically caught between them and another group of fifty or so orcs on worgs ahead of us, going to the plateau as well. The mountains were covered with snow. We had actually already spent five days holed up because of a snow storm. So, we decided to move up the mountain early and try to get a vantage point above the plateau.
It was easy to see that the area had already suffered one avalanche this season, and we hoped that we would be able to avoid another by being quiet. Unfortunately, that didn’t work.
The snow swept down on us quickly. I don’t really know what the others did, but I tied myself to a tree, after cutting my saddlebags from my horse. I saw Tal get swept away, but there was nothing I could do for him. Then the snow hit me.
I woke up some time later, not real sure how long I was out. Or the others. We were in a cave. Somehow we were rescued by one of our own people. Kaelix Thurgar, Angus’ cousin, who was exiled from Eisenhorn about sixteen months ago. I appreciate being rescued, but having to associate with a clanless man does not necessarily make me happy. Angus was very insistent that Kaelix was wrongly exiled and only because of Angus, and the help Kaelix could give us, I didn’t protest. Unfortunately, Ewane was not with us and no one knew where he went or if he even survived the avalanche.
Kaelix took us to a place where he has spent the winter months since he left Eisenhorn. As if it wasn’t stressing enough having to deal with Kaelix, he calls an ogre, orc, hobgoblin and bugbear friends. The ogre was nice enough. The bugbear and Gort took to each other pretty well. The hobgoblin didn’t say too much, unless we spoke to him first. The orc spent a lot of time those days we were with them, outside.
In an effort to pay them back for their hospitality, I repaired their armor and their weapons to the best of my ability without a proper forge or tools. The others did their part, I think. I didn’t really pay attention to that.
Tal and I had argued when we first arrived. I had been trying to tell Pots about his older sister, Nathaira, being pregnant, before her wedding night. Pots acted almost like he expected it, then pointed out it was no different than Tal and I. That may be true, but I have not come up pregnant. Tal made some comment and I reminded him it had been months since he and I had been together. Then, the comment about how, since my father hates him and doesn’t think he deserves my hand, and since he hasn’t made an effort to reconcile with Father, that it was some ‘pass’ to do whatever he wanted. Taking what he said personally, and to mean he could sleep around, I told him if he did, he would not wake up in the morning. He then said that I was a weak fighter, only able to kill someone in their sleep. That floored me. I can’t believe he made such a personal insult to my honor. I turned to Pots for retribution, demanding that he defend my honor and in the customer our group has developed with each other, though the challenge was made, Tal cut his hand and it was called good. I was proven right, but that didn’t help to improve my mood.
Soon we were moving again, Kaelix guiding us to the Dark Tower, so we could gather more information on Kre. It seems there is a group of orcs called the Dead Moon Clan, who is currently in control over the other humanoids. These are the same orcs we encountered in the dwarven keep. Kre is in control over those orcs and then the Dark Lord is over Kre. Also, the dark, storm-like clouds in the North, is actually an area that seems to run with liquid iron. Kaelix showed me a chunk he had brought back with him some time ago. The giants are there, but for some reason, everyone who had lived in the North were quickly making their way to the South, for reasons unknown and that includes the giants.
We came to one winter camp for a group of orcs Kaelix knows and while the men smoked some kind of... grass or something, I took a look around the camp. My peace didn’t last long, as the non-mated orc males took notice quickly. I ended up knocking many of them down, and when the others joined me, I had successfully shown the orcs that I was no female to mess with. We stayed there one night, then moved on the next day.
As we traveled to another winter camp, a little over a decate away, we saw smoke billowing up. By the time we arrived, it was dark, though we did hurry. We found the entire camp dead, burned. We camped a distance away, then in the morning found further information about the attackers. With Kaelix’s assistance, we were able to determine that the attackers seemed to be heading in the same path we had already taken, almost like they were killing any who would offer us assistance. Their next stop appeared to be the winter camp we had left a decate ago. There was nothing we could do to reach Kaelix’s friend before the attackers. They were on horseback and we had only our feet.
We continued on our way and when we were still miles away from the Dark Tower, we came across a two wagon train of orcs on horses and people locked within the wagons that were actually cages. Tal used his glass tube thingy and found that the first wagon actually held Braesil, who I had expected to find here, somehow.
Tal used his magic and made it look like a larger group of people were attacking the wagons. A smaller group broke off and headed toward us. I was able to swing onto one of the horses and kill the orc riding it, taking the animal as mine. I chased after the wagons, going for the first one. When I reached it, I killed the orc driving the wagon, then turned to deal with the guards surrounding it.
The battle seemed to last forever and eventually, my chain shirt had taken enough hits, protecting me, that it fell off. And one by one, I lopped off the heads of the orc guards as best I could. When there were only six left, I stopped, not even thinking about the mistake. Now I was surrounded and though I could hit with my full force, so could they. I was able to take out one more and injure others before I eventually fell.
I awoke bare moments later to find that the orcs had turned on Tal and Pots, who I had not realized had reached me finally. As I watched, one of the orcs sliced through Pots’ chest, knocking him to the ground. Tal was able to kill the rest as I tried to stand and move toward him. He came over to me and helped me to Pots’ side. He healed Pots some, then turned to heal me. I had returned to the ground, going to my knees and knowing how important it was that Pots be returned to consciousness, I pushed Tal’s offer away.
I don’t know where the others are.
NANOWRIMO - 50,000 Words in November
It's that time of year again. Time to sign up for National Novel Writing Month, 50,000 words in 30 days. This takes place in November. Not a single word can be written before 12:00 a.m. November 1. Outlines can be done, notes can be created, but not a single word within the body of the novel. Works out to be about 1667 words per day. And, guess what? That also means on Thanksgiving.
If you are interested, the website is www.nanowrimo.org. I have cross-posted this on my personal blog as well and will be keeping track of my progress here. Also, if you go to the website, you can pull up the authors that are registered and follow their progress through their profiles. If you do decide to give it a try, let me know. I'd be happy to follow your progress as well and maybe we can exchange a little moral support in this very stressful 30 day period.
If you are interested, the website is www.nanowrimo.org. I have cross-posted this on my personal blog as well and will be keeping track of my progress here. Also, if you go to the website, you can pull up the authors that are registered and follow their progress through their profiles. If you do decide to give it a try, let me know. I'd be happy to follow your progress as well and maybe we can exchange a little moral support in this very stressful 30 day period.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
