A Busload of Inspiration

Aiya!

Well, can I say that this has been many weeks in a row now of me faithfully doing these posts. Let’s hope that they continue!

I must confess though, much of my inspiration has been coming from amusing bus stories, that or being written on the bus. This one —as you may have gathered— is no different.

On a long bus trip, a friend and I were discussing how everyone has their own seat, and what would happen if someone sat in ours. (That has happened to me a few times, on of the more memorable ones resulted in me accidentally throwing my over sized school bag onto a poor kid!)

As it was, I told my friend that I would drag them out of my seat.

She took that as a challenge.

When we got onto the next bus, she sat in my seat, a smirk on her face. She didn’t think that I would actually do anything. And under normal circumstances I probably wouldn’t.

As it was, I grabbed her by the arm and half tackled her out.

I’ve always known I’ve had a strong grip, and, well, I didn’t quite break her arm…

But it certainly didn’t look too comfortable to be her crushed arm

Well, I hope the story was amusing, but it was all true. Not fiction. And I’m Inspiring you to write fiction.

So, it’s your turn now.

Character ideas? Stories? Anything?

Feel free to share in the comments! Or if you write a best-selling novel based off this, then please tell me so I can read it!

Wisteria Writers' Tag (Not Hysteria)

Aiya!

Well, another tag. I was tagged with this a while ago, by Ral (Thank you!), and yes, I figured that I should complete it and send it on its way. So, I’ve been given a bunch of questions, and no rules apparently, so I assume that I just answer the questions.

Okay! On with the Wisteria Writing Tag!

1. Do you draw your characters? *Hint Hint*

*Shakes head* No, sorry, I am lacking in artistic skills. They went to my siblings and left me. So, yeah, I can’t really do your hint and put up pictures of them that I drew, but I could put up a few pictures.

So, this is my main character, Connor (Constantine) Rae Daleson.

This is an overview of the main cast, so, Connor, Laura, and Ashley. They’re cool. (At least, I think so...xD)

2. Is there some strange thing you do to help you write? If so, what?

Um, not sure how much of this is strange but I like to drink chai tea, listen to songs or sound track specific to my characters, wear something that my character would wear, have word wars, pictures of them, devise character arcs, and have profiles of them. I also like to check in with another writer, (often Jane) To say, “I will have written 1500 words by 4:00” and things like that. Those are a few of the things that help me write, strange, not sure. Maybe some of them are, I don’t know.

3. Is there a time you've been interrupted while reading/writing and gotten so bored of reading the same thing over and over again? If so, what book?

Er, what does this mean?I don’t think so. I’ve been reading up until past midnight and fallen asleep after reading the same line about 149.85 times. Does that count?

4. Does your main villain have any special 'connections' with the main character? (Eg; Star Wars)

Uh… Well, Connor used to train under my main villain. Not a really big deal though. But Connor has a cooler connection to an antagonist. He had saved his life and installed him into the position he is currently in.

5. Is there a time you've never seen a plot twist coming and it surprised the living daylights out of you?

THE WARDEN AND THE WOLF KING! It shocked me.And made me almost cry. And in general just freak out. And spend the remnants of the book trying to work out that it didn’t happen even though it did. Yeah. That was shocking to say at the least.

And there was a bit of a surprising plot twist that I didn’t see coming in my own WIP, one of those things that you didn’t plan but it happened. I’m not sure if it will be there after my next edit though, could be a bit too, well, random.

6. 3 WORST books you've EVER read.

Twilight no1.

Okay, look, I’m not sorry all of you fans, but this is one of the most revolting pieces of writing in the universe, and that was from a skim read because one of my friends recommended it. Needless to say, I never took their advice in reading again.

My reaction when I see these books is an intense desire to BURN RIP AND DESTROY THEM! ALL OF THEM!!!!!!! Then scatter the ashes into the ocean.

Then drain the ocean and send it to a black hole never to be seen again.

So, you can probably gather from that that I am not a fan.

The Red Queen

Okay, this was less appalling. More of a let down.

I had waited for this book for a round 3 years, then when I read it, (The conclusion to the Obernewtyn series) It was just, meh. I mean, the plot didn’t get resolved right, the characters were forced, and the relationships and romances kinda went haywire and just horrible. The theme and plot was lost in the futuristic concepts and the prophecies were solved in a way that was kinda cheating. Like, not doing the predictable, but not doing the unexpected. It was in general not that great of a book. The first up until the third book in the series were good, but they just kept getting worse.

Brisingr

Blegh.

Stolen.

Plotless.

Pointless.

And the three good characters were never expanded on. (Angela and the two other randoms who had the werecat prophecy and had the scars and saved Roran’s life randomly)

Yeah. I’m sorry but this wasn’t the best by any standards. It drew too much on other works until any of the originality was kinda lost in the theft.

7. 3 BEST books you've EVER read.

The three best, wow, um… *Thinking, thinking, thinking*

I’m going to have to say that the Silmarillion was definitely one. Along with the rest of those epic books.

I loved the characters, and in general the realistic history and world. It felt so real, the world, the races, the myths, all of it. It was well devised, well written and showed a great example of how an allegory can work in a more subtle manner, not a bluntly as Chuck Black.

I also love the awesome descriptions in it. It really is beautiful and masterfully crafted. The complexity behind that characters is amazing and, yes, awesome.

Plus, there’s a lot of Quenya stuff and cool references. That’s always cool!

A Time to Die and the rest of the trilogy were epic.

I could rave on for a looooong time about them. Relatable characters, and it always kept you on your toes as it was in first person present tense. I got really attached to everyone, and all of the cool concepts. I loved the way that it was clearly Christian, but not really preachy. I have read it a lot now, which is a good sign, and I still get emotional. I can feel all of Parvin’s pain, and can see what she sees. It’s amazing.

Okaaay, now, only one more… *Tosses a coin* Ilyon Chronicles it is!

So, the best of these I reckon was Resistance, although, I loved the others too. But the first was the best.

Jace. I- oh poor Jace. I was attached to the kid way too soon to be healthy. He went through so much, and was just, such a deep character. His backstory, physical struggles and internal struggles were just amazing. I was so attached.

And then Kyrin, she was a cool character, I loved her strength and her determination, and ugh! I loved everything!

This entire book was awesome. So good.

8. Your character and their friends have to go on a looonnnnggg journey. Monsters attack. What does the main character do?

*Snorts in amusement* Connor would grab onto his friends and then dimensional travel with them to another layer, probably NZ23L. Then he would probably be unconscious and his friends, (Connor kinda lacks these...) would get really frustrated at him because now they’re in a different country, time, and don’t know what it is.

9. One of your favourite things you've ever written.

Oh wow, ever written… um… well, I’m afraid I will have to just take this from my WIP, because otherwise there are too many options. I mean, happy, sad, or just cos I got to use an awesome word. Or the word avalanche spelt with an ‘e’ like it is meant to t be. (I spelt it without one in a spelling test earning me 99.5% in an exam. It has never been spelt wrong since.) But, well… hmm… I’ll see.

Oooh, here's a villain convo I just dug up, I don’t think it’s my favorite, but, it caught my eye.

~~~

Screens flickered in front of his eyes, painting a scowl over his face. Why now? I don’t need to be summoned. I’m busy. The holographic images were still moving and he dodged one of the enemy shots carelessly before retaliating with a volley of his own. His eyepiece kept flashing and a groan escaped his lips as he realised who it was. Slapping audio transmitter into action he muttered, “Drenstern, can’t you tell I’m busy?”

A dry voice replied, “My mistake, of course you are. What level are you on this time?”

“I was on level seventeen.” He growled as a bullet  grazed his chest, signifying his loss. He brushed a pad on the wall and the room went back to normal, the stimulations fading rapidly. He sighed and flopped onto a chair. “Anyway, what do you want now?” He flicked his monitoring screens so they showed Drenstern sitting in his office, still staring at the files on the Daleson family. “The vanishing kids again?”

“I want you and Irene on their case 24/7. You have the technological skills, she knows what could be going on in the dimensions.” His voice was clipped, as per usual. Ryan frowned slightly. I wish I had never brought up that point. I don’t want to have anything to do with this. Anything at all. All I wanted was extra pay, not for him to get caught, but if Irene is monitoring me…

“Why do I have to work with Carlton? I can manage it on my own.” Ryan smirked as Drenstern stopped typing and hit the desk in front of him.

“You are working with Carlton. I will have no less than our two best experts of these fields working on this case. Now go. Do what you can to get the pair of them back. Now.” The audio ended and he leant back in his chair and rubbed at his eyes, wincing as he shifted one of the contacts that made his eyes seem a more normal blue colour opposed to their natural purple shade.

The thing is Drenstern, is that I don’t want to do that. And I get my way. Every time.

~~~

10.Your character has the opportunity to kill the super-ultra-evil-villain BUT, he's unconscious, he doesn't have a weapon, he's severely wounded and someone else had already beaten him up. Would your main character spare him (for now) or straight up kill him?

*Blinks* Okaaaay… Let’s see, Drenstern defenceless, and Connor is somehow capable of killing him.

Hmmm, I don’t know. It would depend on where in the story. I mean, in the first quarter, no way. In the last three, definitely. *Pats Conner* But he isn’t cold hearted, he’s just had his entire view of the world ruined and is highly traumatised and would act without thinking.

Soooo, I don’t really know that many of you bloggers out there, and i don’t want to be tagging the same people all of the time, so, I’ll toss up some questions, and then if you feel like answering, please do so, either in the comments or in a post of your own! Enjoy!

1. Have you ever written a character who you cried over? If so, are there any snippets for sharing?
2. Do you tend to write in large amounts of time, like, for Camp NaNo, or do you just write spaced out over the year?
3. What do you struggle with most as a writer?
4. What are some of your top tips for other writers?
5. What do you feel you have learnt over the past year of your writing journey?
6. Do you have any favorite characters? Who are they and what are they like?
7. What are some things that help you write? (Excluding stuff like fingers and brains and computers.)
8. What genre do you write in the most? Is it the same as what you read?
9. Which would you rather; travel into the future with your MC or into the past with your villain?
10. Don’t you think that “Wisteria” Sounds like “Hysteria”?

So, that’s all from me!

Feel free to proceed and complete this tag, or, feel free to laugh and celebrate and not do it.

Namarie!

Yes, I am a Camp NaNoWriMo-er

Aiya!

Well, um, so much for opening the door to June. Sorry guys! Do you forgive me?

My excuse is brilliant though. Very muchly so. I could go on about school, or the fact that I was at the beach, or- well, you get the picture. However, I will instead talk about something very interesting.

Some of you may know that I’ve been Ccamp Nanoing. Yes. That is a word. So, I was requested (by one of my Cabin member’s actually) to do a post on my WIP. So, I figured that made sense, I mean, end of Camp and all, I may as well tell you guys what I’ve been doing!

So, now on with the post!

Well, my current WIP is not too horrific, at least, I don’t think it is.

This is my brief synopsis thingy…

Connor Daleson grew up in an interesting family. His mother, a successful scientist accidentally killed his brother seven years ago, his father, a secret agent, works for a society who aims for world domination, and his sister has discovered more in dimensional travel than almost anyone. Connor, arriving home from a day of training in agent work like his father, is injected by his mother with a new test, an attempt to right her wrong in killing his brother. He spends the next few weeks lying low, hoping that no one discovers his secret. One day, he meddles with it too much and accidentally kills both of his parents. That's when he had to tell his sister the truth. He was a Dimensional Traveller. The Society, intent on overtaking the universe try to take Connor's blood for testing, but he and his sister run, hoping to get away. After a few near death experiences as Connor practices his new talent, Laura is captured by the Society, and Connor by a gang of Chimney Sweeps in London 1810, intent on getting their friend, Ashley, out of prison. He must chose; Does he hunt his sister down, or stay and save an innocent life?

This is the stats for my cabin, and my own WIP which I was VERY excited to reach my goal of 50k before school started, hence my pace kinda decreased.

Now, I was asked that I shared some snippets, and I think that could be cool.

This is a nice bit in my prologue, just before things start getting too messy.

~  “Captain, what’s this?” His son winced as his rough thumb brushed over a purpling bruise on his cheekbone. He shuffled his feet, avoiding eye contact for a few moments, before drawing a deep breath and straightening, putting his hands behind his back and looking Rae in the eyes.

“Ralen was picking on Mikala, and I told him to stop. He then stole Mikala’s new wristband, and I took it from him and gave it back. He shoved me.” He bit his lower lip. “It wasn’t fair though Rae! He shouldn’t have taken it, and I was only doing what was right! I couldn’t let him get away with it.”

Rae nodded, trying his best to keep his expression serious, “What happened then?”

Connor stared at the ground now, shoulders slumped. “I lost my temper, and I punched him. He hit me back. Training Mistress Glint came and got me into trouble. Ralen’s friends backed him up, and he got out of it.” He scowled at the dirt, “And they didn’t even check the records. As always.”

Rae straightened and placed a hand on his son’s shoulder, “Connor, good job.”  ~

My epilogue, or, the end of it! *Grins* Is it evil, or not-so-bad?

~Agony tore through her limbs as the electricity jolted through her, forcing a scream from her throat as she convulsed where she lay, her eyes blinded. Pain. So much pain. When will it end?

Everything fell silent and she could hear only her own shuddering gasps. Footsteps approached her and she squinted up at the form.

“Tell me where he is. Then this will end.” The voice growled at her and she flinched backwards, expecting pain. None came.

How much longer can I stand this? She met Cliff’s eye.

“I will never speak.”

“Then you shall die.” ~

Villain Convos are sooooo much fun.  If you haven’t written one, you should.

~A slight knocking came to the door and Drentern raised his eyebrows. “Yes?” He asked, not looking up from his screen, his fingers tapping the keys.

“You may find this somewhat to your interest Michael.” A sarcastic voice drawled to him and he lifted his eyes, continuing to type.

“Ryand Sands.” A thin film of bile coated the inside of him mouth, “What is it now?” Not a war. I’m sick of these threats. The coldness in his gut was unnerving. I only his threat of a war was empty.

The IT specialist smirked, “Don’t worry, this has nothing to do with me.” He hesitated, “Although, a pay rise would be good.”

“Get on with it.” Drenstern growled, turning his eyes back to the screen. Where is Regina’s report? She hasn’t come in for days. A frown settled over his face. Neither has Rae. But their children have still been attending classes. What’s going on? ~

Heheh, so, what do you guys think? Some names were disclosed because, y’know, spoilers!

If you want to know more about my novel, then, feel free to look at Jane’s Blog and see me join her in awkward rambling.

What about you? Any cool snippets? (If so, feel free to share!!!)