Romance novels are frankly boring and predictable. At least this series that I'm going through is. I'm tempted to skip to the last book to see if her writing style gets any better. Some authors get better with experience. I'm hoping I'll be one of those. A good example is Karen Marie Moning. I started with her Fever series since that's the one that caught my interest and then took a look at her romance books which had been written first. Alright, so the men and women fit the stereotypes. I had been extremely critical when I read Beyond the Highland Mist. I had gotten used to a single perspective way of writing and suddenly this book has the point of view jumping from one character to another. It gets darn right confusing at times. Ah, but I continued, sucked into the need to finish what I started, including series that can be predictable. By the MacKelter books, I was hooked and I noticed the clear improvement in writing style, in my opinion. Now I eagerly await her fifth and final book of the Fever series which gets released in stores January 18th. (She even has a count down on her website and some pretty "interesting" music)
Given that I know it's possible that people get better with practice, I'm thinking that jumping ahead will give me a glimpse of whether or not the Christine Feehan series gets better. I've never been a vampire fan to begin with and as most romance novels go, each book is stand alone in plot. Skipping ahead will likely only make me miss tidbits of background on characters. I skipped ahead to book 4 since I found Gregori interesting in the first book, but alas, it was the almost the exact same. Same game, different players. Maybe book 19 will be different.
Don't worry, my books aren't going to be like that. I have a clear progressive plot in my head. It spans 4 books, but I have other stories in my head, enough to write 4 additional books with my main hero still taking lead before he reaches his final resting place and his children take up the legacy. Actually, it'd really only be his youngest son. And then I was thinking about doing a spin off series with that son's sons. But that is far, far in the future.
The progressive plot:
Book 1 - My hero deals with his situation and learns who he really is, only to act out blindly in vengeance and endangering everyone around him
Book 2 - My hero has to deal with the consequences of the first book while his beloved struggles to unite the people under her rule
Book 3 - Just as things were settling down, the instigator to the problem that set the precedence for my books arrives with a foe from the first book and imprisons my hero. With the help of his daughter, he manages to set things right, the way they had been intended from the start, but not without paying a price
Book 4 - My hero is recovering and struggling with the trauma from the third book. His son is taken and his daughters fight to get him back, making life even more difficult for my hero since he is very protective of his family and yet he's helpless to do anything while he recovers
That's the arc. The arc ends happily. I could end the series right there. After that, I don't have any other arcs, just stories that are more fun. My thought is that book 5 will pertain to my hero's granddaughter causing problems due to his doting on her every whim. In book 6, it's my world meets traditional fantasy. Yes, Michelle, in this book, there will actually be fairies! And goblins. And gnomes. And dragons. And wizards. And you get the point. This book is a fun book in my mind. And it heals my hero completely as it's in this book that his fourth and final child is conceived, a formidable power that exceeds his own. There's a thought of a book 7 where the boy has to defeat some sort of evil to save his parents. And then in book 8, my hero makes the choice to allow his body to be destroyed rather than live in what he views as imprisonment. With his overwhelming power, he creates a world of second chances, giving those that died unfairly in the series a chance to find happiness in a safe environment. My hero lures his grieving widow to this world and helps her to learn how to love and live again with human part of him that died. The boy is full grown by this book and feels obligated to care for his mother as that was his father's parting request. Per his mother's request, he helps her rid herself of her immortal nature and allows her to grow old and die a natural death along with her new family. Though part of my hero still exists as pure, raw power and energy, his story is over with.
I haven't really thought much on the son's story except that in that eighth book, he had been with the Queen of the Fairies when his father died so he feels guilty for that, and the Queen surprises him with triplets. She keeps the girl and raises her among the fairies but drops off the boys to be raised by their father who had just barely come of age himself and is unprepared for the responsibility. Due to their fairy heritage, the boys are shape shifters and a rather wild pair, rivals in all things and constantly at each others' throats. It is my thought that at the end of the eighth book, after his mother has passed on, the son goes to return to his siblings, only to disappear. That's the spin-off series I was thinking about. Blake and Brandon, the boys, are battling an evil force on our world, gets an unsuspecting woman mixed up in all of it, and she has to deal with the reality of magic users existing in a very destructive way. I figure I can come up with a few books and near the end, their father can make a come back.
Of course, the story will eventually end up back on my created world.
I was also thinking about writing a collection of short stories called the Cera Chronicles. Cera is my hero's oldest daughter and she spends a number of years searching other worlds for a way to help her father. I thought it'd be interesting to see what weird and exotic lands she visits. And there's one where the world parallels her own, except for one decision that completely changed how events play out.
Wow, how did I get veered off? I guess listening to romance novels really gets my book thinking in gear.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Not enough hours in a day
Each day consists of 24 hours. Ideally, I would spend 8 hours sleeping and 8 hours working. That leaves me with 8 hours to accomplish my life's goals. Eight hours minus the 2-3 hours spent feeding Kimi a day. And the 2-3 hours to change, comfort, entertain, and teach Kimi. And minus the hour it takes to prepare dinner. And the half hour to eat it. And the hour commuting to and from work. And the half hour lunch. Alright, I'm at negative 1 hour so far to use towards accomplishing my life's goals.
You perhaps know of my intense liking for Japanese if you've known me for very long. I took the plunge and invested in Rosetta Stone so that I can make my goal of learning Japanese a reality. I need to make the investment worth it. So add to my list an hour every day spent studying with my software.
I also want to lose 10 lbs in body fat and tone my midsection. That's not going to happen on its own. I need to work out. That's another hour out of my day.
I have a piano now. I want to learn how to play it so that Kimi will be inspired to play when she gets older. Check off another hour of practice.
And my passion, my books. To get my books written, I need to sit down and do some diligent typing. At least an hour a day for that.
I'm at a negative five hours a day so far. And that leaves no time to shower, brush my teeth, do chores, or even spend loving time with my husband. /sigh
Someday, I'll find a way to accomplish all of my goals. I'll just have to quit my job to do so. :)
You perhaps know of my intense liking for Japanese if you've known me for very long. I took the plunge and invested in Rosetta Stone so that I can make my goal of learning Japanese a reality. I need to make the investment worth it. So add to my list an hour every day spent studying with my software.
I also want to lose 10 lbs in body fat and tone my midsection. That's not going to happen on its own. I need to work out. That's another hour out of my day.
I have a piano now. I want to learn how to play it so that Kimi will be inspired to play when she gets older. Check off another hour of practice.
And my passion, my books. To get my books written, I need to sit down and do some diligent typing. At least an hour a day for that.
I'm at a negative five hours a day so far. And that leaves no time to shower, brush my teeth, do chores, or even spend loving time with my husband. /sigh
Someday, I'll find a way to accomplish all of my goals. I'll just have to quit my job to do so. :)
Friday, December 3, 2010
The book strikes again
So I just finished listening to a romance novel by Christine Feehan. I think it's safe to say that my writing style is not that of romance though romantic undertones do appear within the book. From my review of romance novels, they all seem to have a similar thread. The man is very... masculine. Not to say that my hero isn't masculine, but he's not exceedingly tall or overbearing. In fact, due to his heritage, he's rather short and slender for a guy. He doesn't have manly chest hair or that sexy five o'clock shadow. He is an artist and was raised to care for plants as a garden's keeper. Definitely not romance novel material.
Don't get me wrong. My hero isn't effeminate. Derek is as hotheaded of a fighter as any guy, perhaps even more so since he's been picked on by the jocks who do fit the stereotypical romance male. But he has the personality of a playboy. He's spent his life charming women with his winsome smile.
Another thing I've noticed in romance novels is that the man is exceptional in bed having gained knowledge of how to please women from practice. Go figure. You'd think that Derek would fall into the same category. I mean, he knows all the right words to make a woman fall willingly into his arms. Flirting has great benefits with the ladies. Only Derek has a secret. He's a virgin. Not of his own accord, he insists. He's been as eager as the next man to explore his curiosity. But Derek finds that his attempts are unfruitful as odd accidents keep him from getting close enough to doing the deed. He flirts and teases to gain kisses, but he's given up hope of ever getting past first base.
There is one similarity between my hero and a romance novel guy. It's his desire to have kids and start a family. Romance guys have the trait to want to get the romance heroine fat with their romance babies. Derek may not be thinking that far ahead, but he hopes to someday find a woman who can be happy staying with him, knowing his accident induced abstinence, and possibly adopt. He's an orphan and only child. He knows how the system works. He knows what it's like to want a family.
That's my rundown of the comparison between my hero and a romance novel male. Hope it doesn't destroy your hopes and dreams of a hero.
Don't get me wrong. My hero isn't effeminate. Derek is as hotheaded of a fighter as any guy, perhaps even more so since he's been picked on by the jocks who do fit the stereotypical romance male. But he has the personality of a playboy. He's spent his life charming women with his winsome smile.
Another thing I've noticed in romance novels is that the man is exceptional in bed having gained knowledge of how to please women from practice. Go figure. You'd think that Derek would fall into the same category. I mean, he knows all the right words to make a woman fall willingly into his arms. Flirting has great benefits with the ladies. Only Derek has a secret. He's a virgin. Not of his own accord, he insists. He's been as eager as the next man to explore his curiosity. But Derek finds that his attempts are unfruitful as odd accidents keep him from getting close enough to doing the deed. He flirts and teases to gain kisses, but he's given up hope of ever getting past first base.
There is one similarity between my hero and a romance novel guy. It's his desire to have kids and start a family. Romance guys have the trait to want to get the romance heroine fat with their romance babies. Derek may not be thinking that far ahead, but he hopes to someday find a woman who can be happy staying with him, knowing his accident induced abstinence, and possibly adopt. He's an orphan and only child. He knows how the system works. He knows what it's like to want a family.
That's my rundown of the comparison between my hero and a romance novel male. Hope it doesn't destroy your hopes and dreams of a hero.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Holy Snowflakes Batman!
Have I ever mentioned how wonderful my sister-in-law is? Abigail Townsend is one month younger than me, notoriously accident prone, and has a sense of humor that I don't always follow. I have to admit that I love the girl.
The snow is piled so deep that it is up to the dogs' shoulders. Three black figures bound through the powdery goodness. They leap like gazelles through the banks and over the hole designated to be the future pond. Their furry pointed ears are speckled with white and their muzzles are wet from snacking on the snow. And still the flakes fall.
On the opposite side of the house, Abi diligently shovels her way down the walk to clear a path for those who dare brave this weather. Had I known she was doing so, I would have gone out to help her much sooner than I did. I didn't know what she was up to until Chris opened the door to start his car for work and called down the stairs to me, asking if I had shoveled. She was almost finished by that time.
I've observed on many occasions how alike Abi and I are. She and I have similar tastes in music, TV, and movies (save for that whole alien/predator selection). We both wear the same shoe size. We like to watch anime, we have the same taste in books, and we enjoy drawing and writing. I have a liking for bottles and she is a fantastic supplier of cool looking glass containers.
There was once where I was looking for a song that I liked in high school. I couldn't remember the lyrics, the artist, or the title. So I looked at Abi, said "it's something about not being able to get back home, but they don't care". She thought a moment and said "Oh, Fastball." Fastball, The Way, was the song I was looking for. Chris just stared at us with dumbfounded amazement and asked "how the he** did you get that out of what she said?"
When Abi first moved in, she had said "I'm only staying until Amber and Laura get a new place." Three years later, I'm guessing she changed her mind. We thought the introduction of a screaming child might drive her away. Thankfully, the floor/ceiling is thick enough to muffle Kimi's demands of my attention at 3 AM. We'll see if toddler-hood will change the auntie's mind.
Hmm, I looked at my iPod weather and it said current temp was 32 degrees with a high of 38 and a low of 34... That just doesn't make sense.
The snow is piled so deep that it is up to the dogs' shoulders. Three black figures bound through the powdery goodness. They leap like gazelles through the banks and over the hole designated to be the future pond. Their furry pointed ears are speckled with white and their muzzles are wet from snacking on the snow. And still the flakes fall.
On the opposite side of the house, Abi diligently shovels her way down the walk to clear a path for those who dare brave this weather. Had I known she was doing so, I would have gone out to help her much sooner than I did. I didn't know what she was up to until Chris opened the door to start his car for work and called down the stairs to me, asking if I had shoveled. She was almost finished by that time.
I've observed on many occasions how alike Abi and I are. She and I have similar tastes in music, TV, and movies (save for that whole alien/predator selection). We both wear the same shoe size. We like to watch anime, we have the same taste in books, and we enjoy drawing and writing. I have a liking for bottles and she is a fantastic supplier of cool looking glass containers.
There was once where I was looking for a song that I liked in high school. I couldn't remember the lyrics, the artist, or the title. So I looked at Abi, said "it's something about not being able to get back home, but they don't care". She thought a moment and said "Oh, Fastball." Fastball, The Way, was the song I was looking for. Chris just stared at us with dumbfounded amazement and asked "how the he** did you get that out of what she said?"
When Abi first moved in, she had said "I'm only staying until Amber and Laura get a new place." Three years later, I'm guessing she changed her mind. We thought the introduction of a screaming child might drive her away. Thankfully, the floor/ceiling is thick enough to muffle Kimi's demands of my attention at 3 AM. We'll see if toddler-hood will change the auntie's mind.
Hmm, I looked at my iPod weather and it said current temp was 32 degrees with a high of 38 and a low of 34... That just doesn't make sense.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Light sleeper, no sleeper
It never seems to fail. I get the baby to drift off into nap time slumberland and I crawl into the welcoming comforts of my own bed. As my head hits the pillow, a "woof" resounds down the hallway, demanding attention. I suppress the urge to scream "QUIET!" from where I lay by acknowledging the even greater urge not to wake the baby. And so, I crawl from where the comforter had just molded to my shape and hiss angrily at kennels. The next half hour proceeds with whimpers and whines. The slightest scritch and scratch on the kennel floor or the rattle of a paw against the kennel door causes me to jerk awake, wondering if my daughter has stirred.
Of course, it doesn't help that laying horizontally seems to kick the thinking into overdrive. Each passing moment changes or adds to my story. That is what happens with thinking. Sideswiped by the book van once again, and I'm down the road wondering what other evils I can throw my hero up against wishing that my mind would just shut off for once so that I can get to sleep. The worst part is, I can't stay in one book! Tidbits pop into my head, adding twists and turns, and I spend the next several minutes working it out in my brain to make certain that everything flows. I know what I want to happen in the book, it's just getting there that's the adventure. Everything that happens has consequences. If the consequences are meaningless, then what was the point of the thing that happened? The scene changes and the events shift. The thief once whisked the slave girl away so that she would live protected ever after... but it didn't add to the story. Why even waste the thief's time with the slave girl if she isn't going to do anything? Warm fuzzies don't count for much here. Besides, I wanted the slave girl to die to throw my lead character off the deep end, since he felt responsible for the slave girl to the point of hiring the thief. Alright, scratch that last scene. So the thief doesn't whisk the slave girl away, but instead hangs around protecting her. Then the slave girl is threatened by the main bad guy and heads start to roll. But I didn't want everyone to stay dead. I just wanted to cause my hero to snap. Oh look, the thief's son... The plot shifts again. Who is the boy's father? Heck if I know. He was just named after the only man that the thief ever loved. He was just a random drop in to show the thief's devotion that started in the first book. Holy cow, our hero has the powers of a fertility deity. I forgot about that. Yeah, the thief petitioned our hero to help her conceive. And when was this? Well, I did need some interaction between the thief and our hero in the second book. What better timing? So the boy is conceived with supernatural powers and... Hmmm, alright, what purpose does that serve? I can't just decide to throw that in and have it go nowhere. Viola! The boy pops up in the fourth book to antagonize our hero's son. But I decided that the thief and her brother (an assassin) would swear loyalty for them and their offspring to serve the hero's family in the third book. Then the boy isn't a villain, he's an antihero. Now the boy has a role in the fourth book when he didn't even exist beyond a simple mention a moment ago! Egads. Can you see why I have trouble sleeping?
Kimi is asleep now, so I should be laying down for a nap myself. However my stomach is grumbling and the dogs want some freedom. I guess I'll forgo sleep once again.
Of course, it doesn't help that laying horizontally seems to kick the thinking into overdrive. Each passing moment changes or adds to my story. That is what happens with thinking. Sideswiped by the book van once again, and I'm down the road wondering what other evils I can throw my hero up against wishing that my mind would just shut off for once so that I can get to sleep. The worst part is, I can't stay in one book! Tidbits pop into my head, adding twists and turns, and I spend the next several minutes working it out in my brain to make certain that everything flows. I know what I want to happen in the book, it's just getting there that's the adventure. Everything that happens has consequences. If the consequences are meaningless, then what was the point of the thing that happened? The scene changes and the events shift. The thief once whisked the slave girl away so that she would live protected ever after... but it didn't add to the story. Why even waste the thief's time with the slave girl if she isn't going to do anything? Warm fuzzies don't count for much here. Besides, I wanted the slave girl to die to throw my lead character off the deep end, since he felt responsible for the slave girl to the point of hiring the thief. Alright, scratch that last scene. So the thief doesn't whisk the slave girl away, but instead hangs around protecting her. Then the slave girl is threatened by the main bad guy and heads start to roll. But I didn't want everyone to stay dead. I just wanted to cause my hero to snap. Oh look, the thief's son... The plot shifts again. Who is the boy's father? Heck if I know. He was just named after the only man that the thief ever loved. He was just a random drop in to show the thief's devotion that started in the first book. Holy cow, our hero has the powers of a fertility deity. I forgot about that. Yeah, the thief petitioned our hero to help her conceive. And when was this? Well, I did need some interaction between the thief and our hero in the second book. What better timing? So the boy is conceived with supernatural powers and... Hmmm, alright, what purpose does that serve? I can't just decide to throw that in and have it go nowhere. Viola! The boy pops up in the fourth book to antagonize our hero's son. But I decided that the thief and her brother (an assassin) would swear loyalty for them and their offspring to serve the hero's family in the third book. Then the boy isn't a villain, he's an antihero. Now the boy has a role in the fourth book when he didn't even exist beyond a simple mention a moment ago! Egads. Can you see why I have trouble sleeping?
Kimi is asleep now, so I should be laying down for a nap myself. However my stomach is grumbling and the dogs want some freedom. I guess I'll forgo sleep once again.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Dear Kimi...
Dear Kimi,
I haven't lived up to my full mommy potential. Among the many things that I would like to do but I just never get around to it is to make you a baby book. Honestly, I'm not a scrapbooker and the most creative I get with paper is making an origami crane or two. But I could have at least remembered where I set that little book with your newborn footprints stamped in it. In an attempt to make it up to you, I'm writing you this note to tell you what your infant days were like.
We named you Kimiko Ann Mori Townsend. I always wanted to name a daughter Michita and your daddy said, we can call her "Chi" but we first need to have a girl named "Kim" so together, they could be Kim-Chi. I didn't like Kimberly, so I reached to my Japanese roots and pulled out Kimiko and you were thusly named. The Ann comes from me and your Grandma Mo, since both of us have the middle name Ann.
You were born on August 22nd, though you were due to come out August 6th. You just didn't want to drop (stubborn girl)! But I put up with you kicking me and head-butting me in the bladder for the extra 2+ weeks. I tried eating Kim-Chi, spicy ramen, spicy tacos, and pineapple, but you still refused to come out. I marched up and down several flights of stairs every weekday morning to get to my desk on the 5th floor, and I walked at lunch. You were just too comfortable on the inside. Finally the doctor said that it was time and at 7 AM, your daddy and I checked into the hospital and started the long wait for you to come out. When things finally started moving along, I opted to go with the drugs and sleepily pushed for three hours. The doctor gave me an ultimatum, either push you out or he was dragging you out via cesarean. And so finally, at 11:10 PM, you finally popped out weighing 7 lbs 6 ozs and measuring 21 inches long, sporting a full head of beautiful dark hair. The ultrasound had told us that you were a girl, but no one bothered to check until I asked.
I've been rather diligent about taking pictures throughout your life, but what I don't have are pictures from your return visit to the hospital where you had to sleep under a bililight. You may never know how terrified I was when I took you home slightly jaundiced and had to take you back to the hospital because your bilirubin levels soared to a 17. I was so worried, but I stayed by your side the entire time, sleeping on an uncomfortable excuse for a bench and checking on you every few minutes. Thankfully your levels came down like they were supposed to and we got to take you home again.
I'd like to make mention to you that you were an angry baby from the start. It sounded as if you were born with the lungs of a 2 month old as you screamed throughout the night and got so worked up that your crying turned to coughing and your daddy commented how much you sounded like a scooter. The nurses looked at him strange when he called you his little scooter.
You're three months old now and you just had your first Thanksgiving. You wouldn't let me put you down for very long which made mashing the potatoes difficult, but we managed. Your aunt Abi cooked a delicious turkey and your dad played the piano for us. Then we all watched a movie on the projector while we ate.
I need to tell you how proud I am of you. On the 8th of November, you rolled over from tummy to back. You hate tummy time. It's a surefire way to get you screaming. I'm thinking it'll probably change once you're able to crawl, but for now, it just makes you miserable. On top of that, I'm fairly certain that you're teething.
I love you little girl. You're the most beautiful child I have ever seen. I will get better at recording your life... maybe.
Love you always,
Mama
I haven't lived up to my full mommy potential. Among the many things that I would like to do but I just never get around to it is to make you a baby book. Honestly, I'm not a scrapbooker and the most creative I get with paper is making an origami crane or two. But I could have at least remembered where I set that little book with your newborn footprints stamped in it. In an attempt to make it up to you, I'm writing you this note to tell you what your infant days were like.
We named you Kimiko Ann Mori Townsend. I always wanted to name a daughter Michita and your daddy said, we can call her "Chi" but we first need to have a girl named "Kim" so together, they could be Kim-Chi. I didn't like Kimberly, so I reached to my Japanese roots and pulled out Kimiko and you were thusly named. The Ann comes from me and your Grandma Mo, since both of us have the middle name Ann.
You were born on August 22nd, though you were due to come out August 6th. You just didn't want to drop (stubborn girl)! But I put up with you kicking me and head-butting me in the bladder for the extra 2+ weeks. I tried eating Kim-Chi, spicy ramen, spicy tacos, and pineapple, but you still refused to come out. I marched up and down several flights of stairs every weekday morning to get to my desk on the 5th floor, and I walked at lunch. You were just too comfortable on the inside. Finally the doctor said that it was time and at 7 AM, your daddy and I checked into the hospital and started the long wait for you to come out. When things finally started moving along, I opted to go with the drugs and sleepily pushed for three hours. The doctor gave me an ultimatum, either push you out or he was dragging you out via cesarean. And so finally, at 11:10 PM, you finally popped out weighing 7 lbs 6 ozs and measuring 21 inches long, sporting a full head of beautiful dark hair. The ultrasound had told us that you were a girl, but no one bothered to check until I asked.
I've been rather diligent about taking pictures throughout your life, but what I don't have are pictures from your return visit to the hospital where you had to sleep under a bililight. You may never know how terrified I was when I took you home slightly jaundiced and had to take you back to the hospital because your bilirubin levels soared to a 17. I was so worried, but I stayed by your side the entire time, sleeping on an uncomfortable excuse for a bench and checking on you every few minutes. Thankfully your levels came down like they were supposed to and we got to take you home again.
I'd like to make mention to you that you were an angry baby from the start. It sounded as if you were born with the lungs of a 2 month old as you screamed throughout the night and got so worked up that your crying turned to coughing and your daddy commented how much you sounded like a scooter. The nurses looked at him strange when he called you his little scooter.
You're three months old now and you just had your first Thanksgiving. You wouldn't let me put you down for very long which made mashing the potatoes difficult, but we managed. Your aunt Abi cooked a delicious turkey and your dad played the piano for us. Then we all watched a movie on the projector while we ate.
I need to tell you how proud I am of you. On the 8th of November, you rolled over from tummy to back. You hate tummy time. It's a surefire way to get you screaming. I'm thinking it'll probably change once you're able to crawl, but for now, it just makes you miserable. On top of that, I'm fairly certain that you're teething.
I love you little girl. You're the most beautiful child I have ever seen. I will get better at recording your life... maybe.
Love you always,
Mama
I should be sleeping
I've decided to take up blogging since it's almost midnight on Thanksgiving/Black Friday, I'm tired as all heck, and I can't fall asleep because I can't stop thinking. So here it is, Loni's blog, and I'm not really expecting anyone to read it. Alright, maybe I might clue in my mom (Hi Mom!) about it since she's one of the people that really seems to enjoy knowing what is going on with me.
I'll start off with what is keeping me up and awake, lying in bed with my eyes closed in the dark. I like to write. I've had a book stuck in my head since my pre-Sailor Moon days which I think was before I even hit tween. This book has morphed over the years (and years) so that there's actually more substance and less "magical conveniences", but the basis behind the story is the same. Here's the rundown of the differences.
It started out with Derek, a biology student living a mediocre life in his parents' downstairs who has a shallow girlfriend named Britney whose friends dig Derek and a brilliant younger sister named Melanie, who gets magically sucked into another world where he meets a mysterious woman with teal hair who has amnesia. Derek instantly falls for Tika (odd looking woman from another world) and he tags along on her journey to this tower she is being lured to by an evil fairy named Iresu who has control over a prince named Akito and wreaks all kinds of havoc just because she wants to rule the world. During this journey, Derek comes across Jebaliah, a young woman who is in love with him to an obsessive point, hates the Princess MaTisha (who is Tika's true identity), and accidentally kills Han (Derek's former self) in a mishap battle. Jebaliah is also the leader of a rebel group and her right hand man is Kieser, a dashing man who is ever faithful to his leader. Also there are the guardians, Komiko, Senu, Yone, and Nicky. Derek finds out that he was actually a prince who rejected the evil fairy's offer of power and as a result, his family was killed and he was forced into hiding as a child. Eventually you find out that MaTisha loved Han and when he died, used her power to send him to another world and another life. I also have a bit about taking the entire gang to our world to explore the joys of traffic and the mall. Overall, Derek is a nice guy and MaTisha is an innocent little princess.
Well, then I got to thinking. It's a bad habit really. I, for some reason, no longer liked the concept of princes and princesses. So I threw that out the window and created my own social structure revolving around my created race, Drethamir, Teymir, Thanmir, and the rest are just commoners so to speak. And then I didn't like the thought of fairies. So I decided to create a race of elementals, humanoid beings smaller than humans and divided into five clans, each with their own branch of elemental power. They now have distinctive hair, eye, and skin color which lets me pass off MaTisha's once teal hair now as silver-blue, since she's of the water clan. And then I moved into deeper thought. Why would a powerful fairy want to rule the world? It didn't really make sense to me. What would be the point? Iresu the power hungry fairy turned into Ira, a Teymir (clan leader) who lost her power and now seeks to restore it by taking the Thanmir's (half-elemental, half-human offspring born for the purpose of being vessels for corrupt power) power. She convinced one of her sons, Thanmir Aito instead of Akito, that she has his best intentions in mind and uses him to try to draw Thanmir MaTisha to her with intent to kill her. In this version, Han steps in to save her when Aito tries to capture her, and is maimed to near death. His Teymir grandmother intervenes to save his life, sending him to be reborn on another world (our world) and in the process, messes up MaTisha's attempt to save Han and scatters her and the guardians, inflicting her amnesia to all of them. Jebaliah in this version is Han's foster daughter and she ends up in the care of a military commander, Kieser who is less of the suave and dashing figure and more of the neat and tidy sort. And the guardians got different names: Naomi, Jack, Liz, and Nicholas. The story plays out with much the same plot but far more meat. Derek's life took a turn for the worse. I'd tell you all about it, but hey, you'll just have to read the book(s) when it(they) come out.
One of the things that worried me about writing my books (I have about six with Derek as the main character and more with his children taking the lead) was the theological side. I'm a Christian, but my books are not. In my books I created my own religion with its own powerful deities, and that's on top of the Drethamir being gods to the elementals since they created the elements and elementals. I've always been concerned that someone who knows me personally would read my writing and shun me for the un-Christianly theology of my mythological fantasy world. I want to reassure you all that my books are works of fiction and no way represent my actual beliefs. There. I'm glad that's off my chest.
Alright! Now that I finally got the part about my books written down in my blog and it's now about an hour later than when I started, I'm moving on to other topics I wanted to write about.
I'm lazy and lack self-discipline. I would like to do something about it, but when I attempt to, I find that I'm lazy and lack self-discipline to do so. Go figure. I'm horrible at starting something and not finishing it. Or wanting to do something and not getting around to it. I've decided to put down my list. Maybe, just maybe, it'll help me accomplish some of my goals (listed as I thought them up, not in order of importance).
Goal #1: Get my weight down to 135 lbs by working out regularly and using our weight set for at least 1 hour a day. I bought it. I should use it.
Goal #2: Finish my blanket. I've got numerous crochet squares that I've got to make and I really should be doing that instead of playing "PocketFrogs" on my iPod Touch.
Goal #3: Return to pole dancing. For those of you who don't know me, it's not what it seems. Ophidia studios teaches pole dancing and it's great fun and helps boost sexy self-confidence.
Goal #4: Write my books. With the history I gave earlier, this goal should be self-explanatory.
My ultimate goal though is Kimi. Kimiko is the most adorably beautiful child in the world. She's also my 3 month old daughter. I'm going to be getting up in about 3-4 hours to go buy her a jumperoo from Babies 'R Us. I want to exercise her constantly kicking legs. I'm also endeavoring to potty train her. Being lazy and lacking self-discipline makes this a daunting task. I need to recognize her signs that tell me when she needs to go. This means I need to look at her instead of my computer. Hrmmm. Things I plan on buying while I'm at Babies 'R Us: jumperoo, waterproof pads, and child potty. But I'd also like to get her some leg warmers and this nifty elastic belt that I can just tuck cloth diapers into so that taking them off is really easy. I figure I could probably make both. But that'd take putting forth the effort and putting down the PocketFrogs.
Ah, 1:04 AM. I think I'm going to bed now.
I'll start off with what is keeping me up and awake, lying in bed with my eyes closed in the dark. I like to write. I've had a book stuck in my head since my pre-Sailor Moon days which I think was before I even hit tween. This book has morphed over the years (and years) so that there's actually more substance and less "magical conveniences", but the basis behind the story is the same. Here's the rundown of the differences.
It started out with Derek, a biology student living a mediocre life in his parents' downstairs who has a shallow girlfriend named Britney whose friends dig Derek and a brilliant younger sister named Melanie, who gets magically sucked into another world where he meets a mysterious woman with teal hair who has amnesia. Derek instantly falls for Tika (odd looking woman from another world) and he tags along on her journey to this tower she is being lured to by an evil fairy named Iresu who has control over a prince named Akito and wreaks all kinds of havoc just because she wants to rule the world. During this journey, Derek comes across Jebaliah, a young woman who is in love with him to an obsessive point, hates the Princess MaTisha (who is Tika's true identity), and accidentally kills Han (Derek's former self) in a mishap battle. Jebaliah is also the leader of a rebel group and her right hand man is Kieser, a dashing man who is ever faithful to his leader. Also there are the guardians, Komiko, Senu, Yone, and Nicky. Derek finds out that he was actually a prince who rejected the evil fairy's offer of power and as a result, his family was killed and he was forced into hiding as a child. Eventually you find out that MaTisha loved Han and when he died, used her power to send him to another world and another life. I also have a bit about taking the entire gang to our world to explore the joys of traffic and the mall. Overall, Derek is a nice guy and MaTisha is an innocent little princess.
Well, then I got to thinking. It's a bad habit really. I, for some reason, no longer liked the concept of princes and princesses. So I threw that out the window and created my own social structure revolving around my created race, Drethamir, Teymir, Thanmir, and the rest are just commoners so to speak. And then I didn't like the thought of fairies. So I decided to create a race of elementals, humanoid beings smaller than humans and divided into five clans, each with their own branch of elemental power. They now have distinctive hair, eye, and skin color which lets me pass off MaTisha's once teal hair now as silver-blue, since she's of the water clan. And then I moved into deeper thought. Why would a powerful fairy want to rule the world? It didn't really make sense to me. What would be the point? Iresu the power hungry fairy turned into Ira, a Teymir (clan leader) who lost her power and now seeks to restore it by taking the Thanmir's (half-elemental, half-human offspring born for the purpose of being vessels for corrupt power) power. She convinced one of her sons, Thanmir Aito instead of Akito, that she has his best intentions in mind and uses him to try to draw Thanmir MaTisha to her with intent to kill her. In this version, Han steps in to save her when Aito tries to capture her, and is maimed to near death. His Teymir grandmother intervenes to save his life, sending him to be reborn on another world (our world) and in the process, messes up MaTisha's attempt to save Han and scatters her and the guardians, inflicting her amnesia to all of them. Jebaliah in this version is Han's foster daughter and she ends up in the care of a military commander, Kieser who is less of the suave and dashing figure and more of the neat and tidy sort. And the guardians got different names: Naomi, Jack, Liz, and Nicholas. The story plays out with much the same plot but far more meat. Derek's life took a turn for the worse. I'd tell you all about it, but hey, you'll just have to read the book(s) when it(they) come out.
One of the things that worried me about writing my books (I have about six with Derek as the main character and more with his children taking the lead) was the theological side. I'm a Christian, but my books are not. In my books I created my own religion with its own powerful deities, and that's on top of the Drethamir being gods to the elementals since they created the elements and elementals. I've always been concerned that someone who knows me personally would read my writing and shun me for the un-Christianly theology of my mythological fantasy world. I want to reassure you all that my books are works of fiction and no way represent my actual beliefs. There. I'm glad that's off my chest.
Alright! Now that I finally got the part about my books written down in my blog and it's now about an hour later than when I started, I'm moving on to other topics I wanted to write about.
I'm lazy and lack self-discipline. I would like to do something about it, but when I attempt to, I find that I'm lazy and lack self-discipline to do so. Go figure. I'm horrible at starting something and not finishing it. Or wanting to do something and not getting around to it. I've decided to put down my list. Maybe, just maybe, it'll help me accomplish some of my goals (listed as I thought them up, not in order of importance).
Goal #1: Get my weight down to 135 lbs by working out regularly and using our weight set for at least 1 hour a day. I bought it. I should use it.
Goal #2: Finish my blanket. I've got numerous crochet squares that I've got to make and I really should be doing that instead of playing "PocketFrogs" on my iPod Touch.
Goal #3: Return to pole dancing. For those of you who don't know me, it's not what it seems. Ophidia studios teaches pole dancing and it's great fun and helps boost sexy self-confidence.
Goal #4: Write my books. With the history I gave earlier, this goal should be self-explanatory.
My ultimate goal though is Kimi. Kimiko is the most adorably beautiful child in the world. She's also my 3 month old daughter. I'm going to be getting up in about 3-4 hours to go buy her a jumperoo from Babies 'R Us. I want to exercise her constantly kicking legs. I'm also endeavoring to potty train her. Being lazy and lacking self-discipline makes this a daunting task. I need to recognize her signs that tell me when she needs to go. This means I need to look at her instead of my computer. Hrmmm. Things I plan on buying while I'm at Babies 'R Us: jumperoo, waterproof pads, and child potty. But I'd also like to get her some leg warmers and this nifty elastic belt that I can just tuck cloth diapers into so that taking them off is really easy. I figure I could probably make both. But that'd take putting forth the effort and putting down the PocketFrogs.
Ah, 1:04 AM. I think I'm going to bed now.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)