Nanoooooo

Ok. Been a long while since I've written anything. Not gonna lie...been working on my food blog:D

And I'm not going to post much here...only this:
I am officially (and finally) a Nano.

Yep. Nanowrimo. I've never done it before and am super excited/nervous/optimistic/pessimistic about it. 50 THOUSAND words in the month of November. No problem! Right?

Hopefully I'll keep my progress posted here...cheers to 50k!

Eldest

Going to start reading Eldest today! YAY!

Challenge ideas

I thought I'd post a few ideas here for my self imposed 'challenges' :) I haven't picked one for this week yet, its been crazy busy. Hopefully it'll calm down enough so I can write!

• Temples: how many, how do they work, what are they like, what is their purpose, etc.
• The Elements: this one...is tricky. I still haven't decided yet if I want to use four, or five Elements. I also haven't decided yet (and probably won't til the time comes) if this will be one challenge, or four/five. As of right now I only have the basics down for each one, and I want to go more in depth.
• ...ok, so I only have two ideas on the books right now. More to come!

Cheers, and happy writing.

Sometimes

Sometimes you need to write chapter two so you know what to put in chapter one. Just sayin'.

The Keys to the Kingdom: Mister Monday by Garth Nix

I picked this book up on a whim while browsing the small selection currently available at my local library. I read some of Garth Nix's other novels (the ones about the Necromancer...) while in middle school and remembered really enjoying them, so I decided to give this one a shot.

Arthur isn't one of the cool kids. He never was. So on the first day at a new school, he has no intentions of being the center of every one's attention. Then they gym teacher asks him to run. Which puts him in the center of attention for, you see, Arthur has asthma. Very bad asthma. So, as he begins to run and become short of breath...on comes an asthma attack. He gets help from a brother and sister named Ed and Leaf, who run for help. While in the middle of the attack, Arthur has a hallucination.

A man named Mister Monday, in a wheelchair appears, out of nowhere. He tells him something about a Will, and mentions something about an heir, and after being assured that Arthur is most certainly about to die, hands him something. Only...Arthur doesn't die.

From the minute (no pun intended) that he grabs hold of the 'Key' he can breathe. He later finds out that he can do other things as well...like unlock doors. Or freeze people...literally, if he has the key in his hands. He is drawn into a fight for...well, right? I suppose?

This book started out very confusing to me, with asthma attacks and strange people showing up out of nowhere and deep booming voices...and there were several times that I almost put it down. Its a book that is definitely meant for children. But then I would read a passage like this and it would fill me with wonder and I had to keep going:

The elevator opened out onto a shaded grove of very tall, very thick-trunked trees. They formed a circle around a roughly trimmed lawn, which had the remains of a campfire sitting in a burnt patch at its center. A narrow but beautifully clear stream cut through one corner, burbling gently along. A wooden footbridge crossed the stream, with a paved path leading across to an open summerhouse that was like an old-fashioned bandstand. In the summerhouse were a desk, a lounge chair and some bookcases.

"Here we are," said Suzy. "The Office of the Efficiencer General."

I mean...come on! Who wouldn't want to open an elevator and see an office amidst a forest?? Its the sort of thing my childhood dreams were made of. A forest to sit around a campfire and read in, but still have a place to get out of the rain? :) So maybe its most certainly a kids book. But I'll be reading book two as soon as I can, to find out what happens, and to see what adventures they have next.

Challenges and Libraries.

I quite liked the outcome of my first self-imposed challenge. In fact, I liked it so much that I'd like to impose a challenge on myself frequently. Perhaps once a week? Sounds reasonable to me!

Today, my 'challenge' (not official!) is to finish Eragon. Its taken me far too long to read it. Now, it is a long book, and I have been trying to get a plot line together and keep a house clean...but still, no excuse! I'll probably have another picnic outside with the Tornado today, and finish it then.

Anyway, sort of a short post today. I have a million and one things I'd like to get done today, including going to the library! Ours has been under construction for some time...They built a new addition, which is super exciting...only problem? They opened the new addition, then closed the main part to work on that...and, while they did, they put 95% of the books in storage!!!!!

Isn't that sad? All of the movies were kept out...because, sadly, those are the most popular items that get the most circulation. This is sort of hard to grasp for a bibliophile like myself...but, oh well. Hopefully they bring back my lovely books soon.

Ta, for now.

Bad Guy, Part 2

So, my challenge. Create, at least a wisp, of a Bad Guy. And I do believe I have succeeded!

He is, as of yet, unnamed, and I have not a clue what his...'power' will be, but, he has a back story! And a pretty damn good one, if I do say so myself!

Once again, I found some invaluable links and articles on creating a Bad Guy. I learned that Bad Guys (indeed, all guys) have to be three-dimensional, in order to be convincing. I learned about...different types of Bad Guys, if you will. Madness, revenge, jealous, bad guys that aren't really bad, bad guys that are very bad...the list goes on and on. Mine...

Well, I don't want to tell too much about him yet! I'm still developing him. But I will tell you this. He wasn't always bad. One bad choice lead to another, and before he knew it...yep. Bad Guy. One thing though...at this point, I'm not sure if he is THE Bad Guy, or just A Bad Guy...I'm thinking that...fanatics will be the Bad in this story. Religious fanatics? Perhaps...

So...I did complete the task. I came up with a good Bad Guy. He has a back story. Nameless, yes, but he is there, and if I do say so...he is a little more than just a wisp.