Happy Reformation Day!

Here is the Wikipedia explanation of Reformation Day. We celebrate this instead of Halloween, because of the occult and basically the holiday in honor of death is something we do NOT want to mix with as Christians.

And it makes sense, too! As children of the Lord and Giver of Life, we don't want to celebrate death, do we?

No, I thought not.

So instead of going trick-or-treating, we're (hopefully) going to a soccer game and then I guess we'll just hang out around the house. Although maybe we won't because there are quite a bunch of Halloween-celebrating younger kids in our neighborhood that would probably ring our doorbell if we had a huge sign with the words: 'DO NOT RING ON OUR DOORBELL' on our door.

=)

...=)

Hmmm, I think I'll experiment with something...

(.) (.)
0
|___|

Man, that looks weird.

Anyway...

HAPPY REFORMATION DAY!!!

Writers Daybook

Enna-Rin had given me a perfectly beautiful button for the Daybook...but my computer won't let me copy and paste it for some reason. Maybe it's just being ornery today (the computer, not the button). So, a thank you to Rin, and I'll try to copy/paste next Saturday.

WRITER'S DAYBOOK
Entry 2

What time is it...1:15

I'm feeling...tired. Reason will be later.

Outside is...gray and chilly.

Today I...went to a meeting for a 4-H alpaca club. I'm the secretary. And horses are so much better than alpacas.

I am hearing...water running in the kitchen.

I am hoping...that I get a good start in NaNoWriMo tomorrow!!!!!

I'm looking forward to...NaNoWriMo...and watching Return of the King hopefully soon.

I am glad that...I got to watch 'The Two Towers' last night! Luthien and Galdor went to bed, and then we watched it!! It was awesome. Eldarwen, you're right, Haldir's AWESOME *sniff*.

What I'm currently working on writing-wise...Sarea

What I just finished reading...'Five Children and It' by E. Nesbit.

What I'm hoping to read...Return of the King (for the fifth time)

What time is it now...1:19

Sunsets or Sunrises?

Okay...I know that this has little to do with fantasy, but do you like sunsets or sunrises?

I like sunsets. They're so pretty, with all the red and gold. Go up to Cape Cod and see the sunset there...it's gorgeous! But it's soooooooo fast! You can actually see the sun sinking toward the horizon. I also think sunrises are pretty, though.

Random Stuff

Just finished cleaning out Ana's fishbowl. And actually, I believe that Ana is a boy, so therefore I will call him Ano.

You are probably thinking, "Oh, what a selfless older sister Izori is! She's taking care of Luthien's fish for her!" Well...actually, it's so that Mom and Dad will notice that I'm a responsible young lady and will buy a dog for me for Christmas...okay, it's not really. Luthien's too young to take care of Ano herself, so I do it. And I really like it anyway. I hold conversations with Ano and his room service (the shrimp. Erestor named him Vestus, but I call him Shrimp). Did you know that Shrimp's favorite character in LotR is Gollum? Erm...

Speaking of Christmas...I have my Christmas playlist up on my blog now!! I'm in a really Christmas-y mood. My playlists are at the bottom of my blog, immediately after the 'older posts'. You will have to turn off the first one to listen to my second one (which is the Christmas playlist).

Enjoy,

Personalities

What are your guys' favorite personalities for characters? I have a lot.

The easiest to write, I think, is the chatty twit. One of my characters, Aera, turned into that on accident (whoops!). It actually turned out great! I had at first thought of her as the brilliant, beautiful and strategic girl who does everything right and that my main character, Ehra, was slightly jealous of her. Well, she turned out to be a bit of a klutz, although she was still pretty. The reason why I was okay with that was the beautiful and brainy Aera would have been no use further in the plot, whereas the not-so-brainy Aera fit in perfectly!

Another easy one is the shy, greatly skilled character. Leela is that, which was sorta of what I thought her to be. Reserved, quiet and gentle at first glance, shrewd and insightful on the inside.

Yet another commonly-used one is the bitter person. Maybe something happened to them, and they blame somebody(s) for it, whether they really caused it or not. They're usually proud. I think that this is a tiny, tiny bit like Ehra, the main girl. That is not how I thought she would turn out...AT ALL! I thought she would be an optimistic, happy-go-lucky kind of person, sort of like what Aera turned out to be. But as we have observed, authors have a hard time controlling that stuff.

Probably another good one is the hovering guide, an older person, steering, protecting, and advising the main character (especially if he is young). This is played by Gnomi, the old 'peddler' in my book. And that is what I expected him to be like.

One of the reasons why I like all these personalities is because they all have faults and strengths. A faultless character is a very boring one, you know. A strength-less one can be a little boring, too.

The first personality--the cheerful twit--is vulnerable to walk into a trap because they don't use their brains much. They also have a habit of being dependent and annoying to the other characters. However, this character can easily spot a glimmer of light when everyone else is ready to give up. Sometimes they are even dumb enough to be smart, helping solve things by thinking up really crazy solutions that actually work...only everyone else at first dismisses them because they're too silly and impossible.

The shy but skilled character often has the fault of being very observant of their surrounding and yet hesitant to speak up. They are often rather serious, but they are smart enough to help, when they talk.

The bitter person--a lot of faults, there! Often blinded by their anger and pride, un-bending and un-forgiving, these characters are often very good warriors. On a positive note, they are useful for fitting some good virtues into your story by having them finally soften.

Finally we get to the hovering guide. This character can be overly protective, yet he also serves an important purpose--making sure your main character can survive their early days in the book! :) An interesting thing about these guides is that the author usually kills them off when the main character has become mature enough to live on their own. An example of this is Brom from the Inheritance Cycle.

What are y'all's thoughts?

I am feeling rather burnt. And we can't forget torture. And any other random thing.

Sigh. I burnt my pinkie on the tea-kettle on Friday (the lid fell off as I was pouring my tea and landed on my little finger) and now I have a sun-burn from watching Mom's marathon.

My skin is actually kind of dark-ish for a girl of mostly Caucasian descent. But it still burns rather easily, which isn't fair. If I got the easy-burning skin, why couldn't I have got the red hair that usually goes with it?! But no.

So, I will stop feeling sorry for myself.

--- --- ---

Oh, here's a quote from my main baddie.

"Of course I admit it! Without treachery, life would have no flavor! Now go back to your cell, boy, and stop questioning me."--Baashil, from Sarea

--- --- ---

Also, as you can see from my title, this post has the subject of torture in it.

How many of you like torture scenes in books?

I do...sort of. In movies, I don't. In 'The Princess Bride' that torture scene really was a little...painful?

Except I can't write good torture scenes in my books :(. They are often un-realistic, as in not painful enough. But I can't help it!!! I'm great friends with my characters, so why should I torture them?

Because it's good for the plot.

So?

So...it's exciting. It gets the readers on the edge of their seats.

Not to mention my poor character!

Ah...yeah. I talk to myself. Ahem.

--- --- ---

... ...

I have it! I will flip open the dictionary, and will write about whatever word I see first!

Ginglymoid--Pertaining to or resembling a ginglymus [American Dictionary of the English Language, by Noah Webster, 1828]

Okay...what's a ginglymus?

Ginglymus--In anatomy, a species of articulation resembling a hinge. THat species of articulation in which each bone partly receives and is partly received by the other, so as the admit only of flexion and extension, is called angular ginglymus. [ADotEL, by Noah Webster, 1828].

Wow. Whoever thought up that word must have been very, very...interesting.

--- --- ---

Ever wanted to make up a language? I sure do, but I really don't want to spend my days looking at every single word in the dictionary, thinking up new words for every one of them, and then commiting them to memory.

But then I discovered that you can just change grammer, verb endings, and spelling and come up with a complicated-sounding-and-yet-really-easy dialect!

I really like languages, and try to put as much Elvish, Centuarian, Dwarvic (all of these made up my yours truly, naturally) in my books. And it's SO FUN!!!

--- --- ---

With NaNoWriMo just around the corner (yipee!!!), I have a feeling that my poor blog will be rather neglected in November. So I'm going to try and schedule some posts, and I'll make time for Weekly Debates and Writer's Daybook. Also look forward to possible book reviews, excerpts of Sarea, and...

A CAPTION CONTEST!!

Yep, I'm planning on starting one soon. Maybe once we're in November.

My mom ran a marathon today.

Yes, it's creepy.

She ran the Marine Corps Marathon (full 26.2 miles...although she walked a good bit).

And do you know what? She said she is never, EVER going to run another marathon again.

Writer's Daybook

I got this idea from a lot of blogs...seems like there are a lot of variations on Daybooks! So I decided to start my own. If you would like to do this too, feel free! All you have to do is answer the questions on your own blog on a day of your choice every week. Confusing? Then watch mine.

I choose Saturday to be the day I do this

WRITER'S DAYBOOK
Entry 1

What time is it...5:11 PM

I'm feeling...pained. I burnt my finger earlier today while pouring hot water :(

Outside is...gray and wet.

Today I...went down to Washington, D.C. with Mom so she could pick up her Marine Corps Marathon bib. She's running it tomorrow!

I am hearing...Luthien watching some Veggie Tales episode in the family room, something breaking in the kitchen (yikes!) and Dad talking.

I am hoping...that I'll be able to write more often and better. I have two scripts due, not to mention my own book.

I'm looking forward to...Spanish class on Monday. I'll be able to ask Tatiana how the editing's going (I must admit, I have been bugging her some about it. I'll try not to be so pushy, Tan!)

I am glad that...I got to go outside in the woods today. Overcast sky, swollen creek, autumn colors in the leaves, and me combine for plenty of adventure...not to mention great pictures! I might post them on my blog.

What I'm currently working on writing-wise...nothing. Not enough time!

What I just finished reading...'Inkdeath' and 'The Two Princesses of Bamarre' (if that is how you spell it)

What I'm hoping to read...One book that I can't remember the title of.

What time is it now...5:25 PM.

Now do you see what I'm talking about?

Probably.

Book Review: Inkdeath

Book description taken from the book.

'Inkdeath', by Cornelia Funke
Third book of the Inkworld Trilogy

**POSSIBLE SPOILER FOR 'INKSPELL' IN THE BOOK DESCRIPTION. IF YOU HAVEN'T READ 'INKSPELL' YET AND DO NOT WANT ME TO SPOIL A RATHER IMPORTANT ELEMENT OF THE PLOT, DO NOT READ THE BOOK DESCRIPTION**




'The fire-eater Dustfinger is dead, having sacrificed his life for his apprentice Farid's, and now, under the rule of the evil Adderhead, the fairy-tale land is in bloody chaos, it's characters far beyond the control of Fenoglio, their author. Even Elinor, left behind in the real world, believes her family to be lost--lost between the covers of a book.

Facing the threat of eternal winter, Mo inks a dangerous deal with Death itself. There yet remains a faint hope of changing the cursed story--if only he can fill its pages fast enough.'



**END OF SPOILER**

This so far has been my least favorite of the series. It is exciting, and (even though you certainly can't tell at the beginning) it has some family values. For example: Mo...oh, yeah, that's a spoiler, and I already told you that the spoiler ended. So let's just leave it at it has its values. (That's the hard thing about reviewing series', if you aren't careful, you might give plots away in the earlier books.

Oh, yes, and the bad-guys were very well written...most of them.

The negatives, unfortunately, are a lot. First of all, the ending was a little...disappointing. It just left me going "What? Why..." And there is a large amount of romance. A lot is between Resa and Mo, who are married (that is good, actually) and then there's some between Meggie and, not one, but two young men (and that is not good). There's some swearing (a lot by Aunt Elinor, but you may have already guessed that :) and Funke did some things with her characters plot-wise that I wouldn't have done.

What really bugged me was that this book was mainly about out-smarting death until it was inevitable. It seemed sort of...hopeless, y'know? It has a happy ending, but there are some parts of the book that are a bit dark.

Overall...

I'm glad I read it. But I would advise, for you younger readers, that you have a parent look at the book before you do, just to make sure that's it's good for you to read.

Here is the Amazon link if anyone is interested in buying it...

We have a pet! Or rather...Luthien does

We went to our 4-H recognition banquet (wow, we're getting pretty good here--banquets in our honor :) just now. Grandma and Grandpa stayed with Erestor, Luthien, and me while Mom and Galdor and Dad stayed home. Erestor and I are both greatly involved in 4-H--we both got 1st place on portfolios and were outstanding members for two clubs!!

About the pet thing...

There was a sort of contest, where everyone who was sitting on a chair that had a 4-H clover sign on the bottom would get the fish (with a fish bowl, of course) on the table. Well, little-sister Luthien was the one for our table! She named her fish, which is a neon tetra, Ana (the shrimp-thingy that goes with it is named Vestus).

We are no longer a no-pet family!

(Boy, Mom and Dad were thrilled when we all burst into the house, shouting that we had a pet!)

Tagged by J.T. Norlander!

Thank you, J.T. Norlander!

The rules for this tag...

List seven songs (and who they're by) that are your favorites, and then tag seven people.

1. 'The Prayer' by Celtic Woman

2. 'Concerning Hobbits' by Howard Shore

3. 'May it Be' by Enya

4. 'Brave' by Nichole Nordeman

5. 'More Beautiful You' by Jonny Diaz

6. 'Painting Pictures of Egypt' by Sara Groves

7. 'Beyond the Sea' by Celtic Woman

I tag Tatiana, Catherine Whiterose, Ëarwen, Eruanna, Nahla, Eldarwen Failariel, and Andrea. If I tagged you and you've already done it, you don't have to do it. This tag has been around a lot.

Sorry this was so late after I was tagged...

Just some random thoughts on my mind...

...We had a wonderful dinner, courtesy to a friends' family! It was German, with really yummy noodles, soup, rolls and *mouth watering* pumpkin pie!

... I like all the good guys in LotR, but I think in the movie (Fellowship of the Ring--haven't watched the others yet :( But hoping to soon!) my favorite character would have to be Aragorn. I liked Arwen, but she didn't appear much, and half of that time was a really mushy scene. I see how a lot of people are wondering 'Arwen--pure?' because it didn't really seem that way in FotR. But in the book she is, and that's what counts!

...Galdor's name for himself is Wee-ba. Erestor is Da-Da (Dad is just Da), I'm Bowie, and we don't know his name for Luthien yet.

...I really need to get the Elandai series going again! But I'm busy working on two scripts, a complicated book, and NaNoWriMo is starting up soon! Whohoo! By the way, my username is Izori on there (suprise!) so if you're doing NaNo, look me up!

...About the movie I'm working on with my friends--the original movie (fantasy) is sort of on hold while we work on another one that we will be more able to do right now. (It's about this large, 10 child, homeschooling family who decides to go camping for the first time. After all, what could go wrong? Well, nothing, unless you count...everything!) I'm the fourth (I think) oldest child named Miriam. It's going to be soooooooooooooooo fun!!

...Dad is doing...well, like what was expected. It takes a long time for him to eat, and he's really tired. Last chemo he basically spent all night throwing up. If y'all could pray, that would be great!

...we went to the library today, so book reviews will be coming up soon! Also, Mom and I got cappuccinos (I think that's how you spell it) at Starbucks. I LOVE COFFEE!!! Ahem. Coffee is one of my favorite beverages.

...I'm teaching myself to play on the piano as many LotR songs as I can. I also made up my own arrangment for the song 'Alouette' (spelling?) on the piano.

Elves vs. Dwarves

At soccer practice today, I realized that I forgot to schedule the weekly debate! Whoops!

Soooooo...Elves or Dwarves? Which one do you like better?

My opinion...I don't have one. I mean, I really like Elves (dude, I am one! Just look at my profile and you'll see it--occupation: Elven-Scribe!), but in FotR (Fellowship of the Ring) I really liked Gimli...and I can't let him down. So it's tied for me!





P.S. Thank you to Tatiana, who gave me the idea for this debate. I was clueless about what I should debate about, but then she came up with our subject! Thanks again, Ta.

Izori

Tagged Again!

Was tagged by Melian. Thank you, Melian!!

What is your favorite childhood memory?

Maybe going to Busch Gardens or getting to watch LoTR. Those are both recent, though.

What is your favorite junk food?

I don't really like junk food...I guess icecream--no, brownies! LOVE BROWNIES!!

When is your Birthday?

May 20.

Do you like to sing in public?

Sorta...

What is your favorite time of day?

Early morning when no one else is up, or later at night.

Do you have an active brain?

Some people don't think I do, but yes, my brain is very active!!

Do you like sports?

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ahem. Yes, I like sports.

When was the last time you danced? (any kind)

A few minutes ago, when the Angels just beat the Yankees in baseball in the 12 inning. I'm not really an Angels fan (I'm a National fan, actually) but I don't like the Yankees...so I was rooting for the Angels. And they won!

Have you ever had a seven course meal?

Ummm...yes, I believe I have. At my cousin's wedding. No wait, that was five course. So no, I haven't.

Are you a shy person?

One side of me is shy, the other is...not.

Do you like to wrestle?

Yeah.

What is your favorite past-time?
Writing, reading, playing soccer (or any sport, really) hanging out with my friends, shooting, blogging, and a lot more.

Do you want to live in the city or country?

COUNTRY!

What do you want to be when you grow up?

Author/Mom/Singer

Are you getting tired of this tag?

Sort of.

Are you an aunt/uncle?

No.

What are you most thankful for?

That God is in control of everything. It's sort of hard to remember in such a chaotic family...

Are you happy this tag has only two more questions?

Not really. I like being tagged!

What is your favorite website?

I don't know. Maybe bionicle.com. (I'm sorry--I have a brother.)

did you enjoy this tag?

Yep!

And now I tag...

Anyone who has ever played soccer.

[too lazy to put my signature here]

Izori

Pinching your ears really does work! (not)

I was passing by a mirror earlier today, and was very surprised to find that MY EARS WERE POINTY!! I had been pinching the tops for a while, trying to get them to look more Elven, but I didn't really think it would work!

After a closer look in the mirror, however, I found out that it was a false alarm :(. My hair was covering part of my ear, making it look pointy. But it wasn't really.

Oh, well.

What makes bad guys good?

It is so hard to make your bad guy convincingly bad and not sappy and cliche (Don't say it, Rin). I'm sure most people want their readers to be staring at the page in fascinated horror as they read about your main baddie, and not rolling their eyes.

So, how do you make your bad guy good?

(You do know that I mean, when I say 'make your bad guy good', to make your bad guy convincing? This isn't about how to get your baddie to turn to the good side.)

First, don't cackle. Cackling is probably one of the most cliche things your baddie can do.

Second, make him truly evil and cruel. Maybe a few...interesting...torturing devices lining his throne room or something.

Third, he doesn't have to look evil. Think of Feragho (I think I spelled that right) in Salamandastron, by Brian Jacques. He's handsome and has baby blue eyes, and yet he is a really, really evil bad guy.

One of the hardest parts for me is when the bad guy speaks. You know what I mean? It's then that my bad guys are most vulnerable to looking rather fake. I've actually considered having a bad guy who doesn't talk at all. But that would be a little hard.

Any other advice for bad guys?

Tagged and Awarded by Rin!

Thank you, Enna-Rin!

Award:

Rules:

1. You can only give this award to one (1) person, make sure that either you tag someone you know that is random, or someone you’d like to see be random, or at least try!
2. You have to write a post of the minimum of 150 words, this post must follow the rules and be VERY random
4. You can only have a minimum of 4 subjects, but if you can PLEASE do more then 4 it makes it all the better because it’s all the more random!
5. Have fun and don’t break the rules!

Alright, here I go...

My family and I went to church today and the sermon was really good! Pastor Dan is a really great preacher. And then my friends and I worked on a play. It's about this family with a whole bunch of kids going on a camping trip. I'm in charge of writing the script, naturally. I like writing a lot! I think I've been writing since I was...six, maybe. My first book was stories about cats and dogs--like this cat called Mittens who played with a ball of string. I had more cat stories than dog stories because the only pets I've had were two cats and a gazillion hermit crabs. Not at one time, of course. The hermit crabs were all one after the other, and so were the cats (Nile and Max). When Nile died at age 17, our aunt and uncle gave us Max. We kept him for a while, but then he had to get put down. I'm hoping that we'll move to a farm and be able to get a whole bunch of animals, but now our house is too small for six people and an animal. That's why we were looking to move this summer, but Dad got cancer so we decided not to move. We actually had a house picked out when we called it off. Mom and Dad's anniversary is in just a week or so, too!

There, I think that's random enough!

And I tag...Tatiana!

It's been rather chilly out for the past few days--the kind of weather that turns your face red when your out in it for long. I'm going to have to pull out my winter clothes!

This, I think, is my favorite weather. Perfect to curl up in front of the fire with a cup of hot chocolate and the book you're writing. Which is exactly what I'm going to do now!

P.S. Got an opportunity to use my friend's typewriter! It's so fun!

Tagged by Eldarwen!

Trivia Tag

Describe the cover of your favorite book without looking at it.
Sea-green with silver words 'Bible'--obviously this book is the Bible.

Describe the cover of your favorite movie without looking
Picture of a wardrobe design (the wardrobe from Narnia, to be exact) in red, and it says on the front: 'Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe'.
(I would have described Fellowship of the Ring, but it came from Netflix, which just sends the DVD without a cover in a red envelope. Therefore, I don't know what that cover looks like.

Name the main character's full name in your favorite book.
Well, He has an awful lot of names...I Am, God, Yahweh, Yeshua, Lord, Jesus, Lamb of God, Light of the World...I could go on and on.

Name the weather at your home (or wherever you are).
Dark and cold.

Are you writing a book?
Actually, I'm writing several.

What is your character's name?
Their names are Ehra, Ben, Kaela, Josh, Lindsey, Elizabeth, Moìra, and more.

What race is your character?
They're all humans.

Name three things near you that are green.
Erestor's shirt, my dress, and a pencil.

Last question: What is your favorite thing to do?
Reading, writing, running, playing soccer, playing the Bionicle Glatorian Arena II Game (yes, my brother got me into that stuff), taking pictures, swimming, boogy-boarding, fishing, visiting other worlds via books :).

Okay, THIS is the last question: Did you like answering the questions above?
Yes.

Now I tag...

Tatiana

Ëarwen

J.T. Norlander

Saerwen

Arwen or Eowyn?

Due to a whole bunch of awesome comments last debate (should chapters be named or not), I've decided to do a weekly (hopefully) debate! Now, there may be weeks when I can't do it for one reason or other, but I'm hoping that I'll post a debate every Wednesday.

Now, I know that this is a very debated issue, so I hope this doesn't get too out hand...but which do you like better, Arwen or Eowyn?

Personally, I like them both as characters. THIS post, from A Light Unto my Path explains almost exactly what I think. Also, in the books at least, Eowyn always sounds so...discontent and unhappy. It may have just been me.

So what do you think?

New background!

Thank you very much, Emily! The background is beautiful!

Mythological Creatures and all that good stuff!

I love putting mythological creatures in my books. So far in Songaia I have Elves, Centaurs, Fauns, Unicorns, and Nixies.

I think of Elves as taller than humans, with pointy ears, angular faces, and (I know this is strange) orange pupils. Their hair can be blond, silver, black, dark blue, or cinnamon colored, and their eyes are usually silver, blue, green, or pale gold. All Elves have some kind of magical power, and even though they aren't immortal, they do live much longer than humans.

My version of Nixies is that they're slightly smaller than human size, they're ears are usually fan shaped, and they have green or blue tinted skin. They have both gills and lungs, and are excellent ship builders. Their hands and feet are webbed, and they spend nearly all their time in the water. Eye color is usually gray, blue, green, or a coral pink, and their hair is mostly black or green, with a few streaks of other color throughout.

Centaurs in my book are just like the traditional centaurs. Just like a horse, except where the horse neck should be there's a human torso (accompanied by a human head, I would hope). Come in all colors and sizes.

Fauns are only mentioned in my book. I don't have a main character faun so I haven't given much thought to what they look like. But I've figured out that they at least have the lower half of a goat, tail of a donkey, and torso and head of a human.

Unicorns...well, they have one horn centered in their forehead, but pretty much other than that they look like regular horses.

I'm an archery veteran!

No, not really. Well, sort of. I only have one award...but I've been in archery for one year. We had orientation yesterday, and a whole bunch of new kids were there.

I can't believe I was one of them a year ago. They were all holding their bows with their shoulders hunched up and their string not pulled back to their nose...and all of my friends tell me that was how I shot a year ago. Wow.

It was chaos, too. All of us veterans were running (not really running, more like walking briskly) around, finding bows and arrows and arm-guards and whether or not people were left or right eye dominant.

But it was really fun!

Character Sheets: Leela and Lydia

Leela and Lydia--very different, but both loosely based on me! Loosely, I say, because as I have brought up before, my characters have personalities of their own. This time, however, I didn't mean to base them on me. They did that themselves.

Leela is my shy side (sometimes I'm really quiet, other times I'm...not)

name: Leela, Elashi of Fire

age: 15-17 in Sarea.

personal status:
-married: no
-best friend (s): Ehra, Aera, Maki, Karo, Lafael.

appearance:
-hair color: blond-ish red
-eye color: gold
-skin color: fair
-facial features: oval face; slightly pointy, pert nose.
-height: 5'8"
-posture: slight slump.

personality: shy and reserved on the outside, but inside has strong opinions and emotions. Sensitive and gentle. Brave.

weapon: Good with the sword, although she is an extraordinary archer.

fighting style (w/sword): right hand, quick moves.

faults/weaknesses (physical and mental): rarely speaks up when she is against something, a bit timid.

qualities/strengths (physical and mental): physically strong, considerate of others, courageous, willing to listen to other people. Stands up for her twin brother, Maki.

scars/markings (physical): It is assumed she has several from her tough battles, but they are not known.

family:
-father: unknown, dead.
-mother: unknown, dead.
-siblings: Maki (twin)

ancestry: Laith, Latro, and (as later discovered) some Elven [?]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And next up is Lydia, my other side.

name: Lydia

age: between 19-30

personal status:
-married: no
-friends: unknown

appearance:
-hair color: bright red and curly
-eye color: blue
-skin color: very light
-facial features: square jaw, long nose
-height: 5'7"
-posture: straight.

personality: talkative, friendly, merry, though she has a quick wit and a sharp eye.

weapon: food tray (LOL)

fighting style (w/sword): uh...she doesn't have a sword. She has a food tray. But I guess she holds it with both hands, bringing it down with devastating force on someone's head.

faults/weaknesses (physical and mental): loud, quick temper.

qualities/strengths (physical and mental): friendly, intelligent, brave.

scars/markings (physical): Has a whole bunch of freckles.

family:
-father: unknown,
-mother: unknown
-siblings: unknown

ancestry: unknown.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lydia, although she plays an important part in my book, is a supporting character, so we don't know much about her.



P.S. Did you notice that both Leela and Lydia have red hair? I didn't until now!

Books to read if you're thinking of writing an allegory

'The Door Within Trilogy' by Wayne Thomas Batson

'The Lord of the Rings Trilogy' by J.R.R. Tolkien

'The Chronicles of Narnia' by C.S. Lewis

'The Wilderking Trilogy' by Jonathan Rogers

There are so many more....what do y'all suggest?

Tagged by Elrania!

Random Questions Tag.

What kind of a car do you want when you're older?

A horse-drawn wagon, or...something. I don't know.

Where do you want to live when you're older?

Wherever God calls me to live, but I would like to live in the country or by the sea, or someplace nature-ish.

Do you want to go to collage?
Not really.

How many siblings do you have?

Three

How many children do you want to have when you're married?

Oh, eight or somewhere up there. Yeah, I'm serious.

Boys or girls?

Both!

This or that?

This

City girl or country girl?

COUNTRY!!

Gourmet meals or steak with salad?

Steak with salad.

Flying or driving?
I've never flown, but I know I'll love it.

Bike riding or swimming?

I like being in water, but I'm not a particularly fast swimmer.

Sports or no sports?
SPORTS!

Books or movies?

Books. What did you think I was going to answer? Movies, although they can be good (like LoTR) give me headaches.

School or chores?

I don't know...I guess school.

Inside or outside?

Outside.

Wednesday or Sunday?
Sunday.

Friends or Family?

Fam--friends, no family. I don't know!

This or That?

Wasn't this asked already? This.

Fried or scrambled eggs?
Fried.

Pancakes or cereal?

PANCAKES!

Big meal or something small?

Small.

Movie or TV show?

Movie

FAVORITES

Thing to do outside?
Horse-ride, write, play soccer, run around, just sit on the porch, sword-fight.

Favorite meal?

Sweet-Potato Souffle (spelling?)

Pass-time?

Writing, blogging :)

Place to read a good book?

In my room, on the couch, on the porch, just not in the car. I get carsick whenever I read while in the car.

What is your favorite vegetable?

Carrots or tomatoes

NEXT QUIZ....

Where do you want to live when you graduate?

At home.

What time or day do you like the best?

Night or morning, or afternoon. I don't know!

What is your favorite flower?

Orchids. All flowers are pretty, though

What is your favorite weapon?

Bow and arrow, sword, my fists.

Do you like sports? If so which is your favorite?

Love sports! Soccer's my favorite.

Do you like writing?

Are you kidding? I LOVE WRITING!

What is your favorite month?
Ones located in the seasons of Autumn or Winter.

Do you not like adventure?

Was this supposed to be a confusing question? Oh, and yes, I love adventure.

Do you collect anything? What do you collect?

Toy horses, sea-shells.

Do you live near your grandparents?

Sorta.

Are you bored of this?
No.

Well, it's over how did you like it?
I liked it.

And (why won't this thing get off bold?) I'll tag...

Tatiana

Ëarwen

Enna-Rin

NaNoWriMo

Have any of you heard of NaNoWriMo? It's National Novel Writer Month (November is national writer's month, BTW). It's a contest in which you have to write a 50,000 word novel from November 1 to November 30. It's really, really cool. I think there's a NaNoWriMo for kids (12 and under) but the one I'm doing is for 13 and up.

Well, a minute or two ago, I thought that I wouldn't have time to do NaNoWrimo. You know, with schoolwork and all of that. But out of desperate last hope, I asked Mom if I could do it, and she said yes! Here is the link to the website:

www.nanowrimo.org/

Have fun! I sure will!

Romance in books?

Is it just me, but is romance SO hard to write!? In Sarea it actually hasn't turned out to be that bad, but it was really, really hard. And it's difficult to find good examples of romance in books these days.

In The Inheritance Series, Eragon basically falls head over heels in love with Arya (or at least it seemed that way to me!). That was fine with me...but I don't want to have it like that in my books. I like romance that is gradually introduced, as long as it's introduced well. Roran and Katrina's romance...was, ah, disgusting. It would be great if I wasn't (weren't?) a Christian, but I am, and the fact that Katrina was going to have a baby before she and Roran got married doesn't sit well with me. It's nice that Roran was willing to go basically to the ends of the earth for her, though.

The Redwall Series has really good romance. No kissing and all that; it's more knight and lady sort of thing. Reading those has helped me a lot.

Although I do have a problem yet unsolved in my book: two of my characters (I won't tell you who because that would be considered a spoiler =) are supposed to fall in love and get married. I was at first going to have it that the young man (for the sake of a name I'll call him...Bob) was supposed to rescue the lady (I'll call her Lulu!) from a dire predicament, but then I realized Bob is so polite and gentlemanly that he'd rescue any damsel in distress and not just Lulu. So does anyone have any suggestions for me? I already used the 'get into an argument and then realize they realize that they care about each other' thing.

Thanks!

You can tell you've found a writing project that will stick with you when...

...you feel homesick after you've worked on another book for a while.

Common with most young, unpublished authors, I find that I often wander from writing one book to the next very often. I would get a 'brilliant idea', write some of it down, and then forget about it. When I remembered, I wouldn't feel like writing, and would have no attachment for the book. So then I would move on to the next great idea, which would end up to be a dead end, and then the process would repeat itself over and over again.

However, just a half an hour ago, when I was standing on the front porch feeling the breeze and the sun, I realized that I hadn't worked on Sarea in nearly two days. Instead, I had been working on another idea I had come up with while visiting Enna-Rin (had a whole bunch of fun over at your house, Rin!). And for some odd reason I felt really lonely for my good old book that I will have been working on for nearly a year come December.

So I guess I've found the book that I'll really be sticking with. And it's moving along at a pretty steady clip. I just feel really guilty because I had my poor main character...well, I won't tell you that because that is considered a spoiler.

Should I name my chapters, or shouldn't I?

Just for the sake of debate...

Which is better, named chapters or unnamed chapters?

My opinion...

I like named chapters. The names give you a small hint, not to big but enough to get you hooked, and adds to the suspense. But then again, unnamed chapters add to the suspense too, because they don't give you any hints.

So, what do y'all think?



P.S. If I get a lot of opinions, I might do a weekly (or monthly) debate.

Happy Birthday Rin!

Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday dear Enna-Rin
Happy Birthday to you!

I've known you since we were three, and as it turned out, we both became really avid bookworms and writers! You've caught up with me again. But I'm still taller than you! (I hope!)

New meaning to 'My cup runneth over'

Okay, with Dad having cancer and all, we have been getting a ton of meals from church. One lady who works at the same place my grandma does (we've only met this lady once, I think. I didn't even remember her) came a little while ago with at least THREE boxes of soups, macaroni and cheese, and all that good stuff. Someone's set up a whole meal system in our neighborhood. Not to mention all the people who are praying for us--all you you guys (thanks so much!) and pretty much everyone we know.

But I really didn't expect the DENTIST OFFICE of all things to give us food! No, really, that's what happened. We ate wonderfully tonight, courtesy of the dentist office down the road.

All I can say is, God works in mysterious ways!



P.S. Dad is feeling much better now! Thank you for praying! Let's hope he'll feel this good for the rest of treatment.

Tagged by Elrania!

As you can see from the title, I got tagged by Elrania

What is a very interesting fact about you?
I travel the worlds via books. Been to Middle Earth, Narnia, my own lands, and many more.

What are two things in this world that you love very much?

Jesus and...writing.

What was the last thing you ate?

Chocolate milk last night. We haven't had breakfast yet.

Who is your favorite movie/book character?

Aragorn (movie character--Arwen didn't appear very long in Fellowship of the Rings) and Sir Mallick (from The Door Within Trilogy). Hard choice.

What is your favorite color?

Green, silver, brown

Are you random?

Yes.

Do you have a totem animal?

Uh...no.

How many people follow your main blog?

25 as we speak

What is your favorite animal?

I like all animals, but probably horses, dogs, and bird. I know that's not an animal!

VS

Downhill or Cross-Country skiing?

Don't know. I haven't done either.

Soda or water?
Water. Sorry that I'm typing in bold, it's sticking for some odd reason.

Weekends vs. School days?

I think everyone's going to answer weekends. But school's fun too.

Trees or flowers?

Trees. No, flowers. Trees. I don't know!

REGULAR QUESTIONS

What is your favorite movie?

Fellowship of the Ring!

What is your favorite book?

Lord of the Ring Trilogy

How long have you been on blogger for?

February 2008

Who are you going to tag?
Tatiana, Andrea, Rin, and Princess Catherine.

A Tag made by me!

And another scheduled post. Even though I'm scheduling posts (this is September 16, BTW), I probably will have some time on the computer (I'm scheduling just in case). So I'm going to make a tag. A random-ish tag.

Q. Subtract 5 years and four months from how old you are. What's you answer?
A. Ummm...I'd be 7 and 10 months.

Q. What's your favorite color?
A. Green, blue, silver.

Q. Do you/have you played any sports? What have you/do you play?
A. I've played baseball, and I'm playing soccer.

Q. Do you write?
A. Yes.

Q. What are your favorite book/movie characters?
A. Murtagh from The Inheritance Series, Legolas, Arwen, Gandalf, Sam, and all the rest from LoTR, Dustfinger from the Inkworld Series, Inigo Montoya from The Princess Bride, and a host of others.

Q. Do you believe in miracles?
A. Very much so.

Q. How many siblings do you have?
A. Three.

Q. Have you ever watched the movie 'Cars'.
A. Yes! It was pretty good!

Q. Do you croquet?
A. Yep. Andrea just taught me. Mucho gracias, Andrea!

Q. How many followers do you have?
A. 2o! (At the time of September 16) Whohoo! I bet that by the time this is published I'll have some more, though!

Q. Are you happy that the tag is over?
A. Maybe...

Now I tag Saerwen, Eruanna, and Tatiana.

I am sitting at the computer because...

My arm hurts. It's rather mysterious.

Woke up on Saturday and my arm hurt. I just thought I had slept on it awkwardly, but then it got a tad worse during the day. It still hurts now, on Monday. I don't know what caused it.

So therefore I'm not shooting tonight. Phooey.

I've had aches and pains mysteriously popping up like this before. Sometimes my knee hurts, other times my shin, once my eye...it goes on and on, and all of them without a cause that I know of. It's a little annoying. But it's really good my leg doesn't hurt, because I have a big soccer game on Wednesday!

Eldarwen Failariel's 100th post!

Eldarwen Failarial is celebrating her 100 post with a really cool lookin' contest! Click HERE to see it!

Did you know my little sis is an author? Neither did I.

Just for fun, I asked Luthien some author-ish stuff. Here are her answers.

Her writing name: Kaia-mii

Genre: Science Fiction

Book that she's working on now: 'Chin-chin and Me"

Main characters: Tristan
---------------------------------------------------

LOL! The rest of what she said was sort of indecipherable. Even though she's 4, sometimes it's hard to understand her.

Hee-hee, this is fun!

I'm typing this on September 15. So hello out there, everyone from the future!

I will post 5 random things about me that were true at the time of September 15, 2009 at 4:58 PM.

1. I'm scheduling a lot of posts, because I might not have time to do it when Dad's having his treatment.

2. Galdor, Luthien, and Mom are playing outside on the cul-de-sac. Yes, we live in a sub-division. We have woods behind our house, though.

3. I'm wearing a tie-dye T-shirt and khaki shorts.

4. My right arm has little to no reflexes. The nerves got damaged when I was being born. Funny thing is, I'm right handed. Which makes me horrible at dodge ball. Also makes me have nearly all the scars from oven burns on my right hand.

5. I just finished reading the book 'Fly By Night', by Frances Hardinge. I posted a review a few days ago, but back here in the past, I just read it.

There! Now you know five more things about me.

By the way...

What's that standing behind you?





Haha, made you look! (I think)

Stayed up 'till midnight...but it was worth every second!!!! (aka Movie Review)

We FINALLY watched The Fellowship of the Ring last night!! We had to wait until nine or so for Luthien and Galdor to go to bed. And then...we watched it. I suppose I'll do an official review.

'The Fellowship of the Ring'

When Bilbo Baggins vanishes on his 111 birthday, he leaves a mysterious ring of power behind to his nephew, Frodo. Gandalf the Wizard, an old friend of Bilbo's, doesn't know much about the ring except for that it is dangerous and must be kept hidden from all eyes. More research about the ring reveals that it will be the end of Middle Earth, unless Frodo can destroy it in the place where it came from--Mordor.

Frodo and three friends, Sam, Pippin, and Merry, set out to deliver the ring to whoever can destroy it, and find that this ring has even bigger importance than they had realized. When they reach Rivendell, it is decided that Frodo himself will bear the ring, and that two men, Aragorn and Boromir, an elf named Legolas, a dwarf named Gimli, and Gandalf the Wizard will all accompany them. Thus starts the Fellowship of the Ring...

You must watch it.

With that said, I'll be more official. It was wonderful!! Now I understand what everyone else was raving about.

Good stuff: There's a lot of close friendship and awesome fight scenes. I really liked the Ringwraiths (not that it's my style or anything, they just did a good job of looking really creepy and evil). I greatly enjoyed finally seeing the movie that I had been dying to see for years, and I must say, it certainly was an awesome movie in a whole lot of ways.

There is some cautionary stuff, though (yes, I know this seems longer than the good stuff...but it really isn't): First of all, Aragorn and Arwen kiss. I see what people mean when they say that Arwen is definitely not as pure in the movie as in the books. And I could understand why Dad and Mom didn't want me and Erestor to watch it until we had reached the ages we are (also I think it was a good idea to send Galdor and Luthien to bed. Luthien wouldn't even watch parts of 'The Princess Bride') There's some brief torture scenes, and the bad guys are very real looking. I actually enjoyed the part where Aragorn lopped off the Uruk-Hai's (I think I spelled that right) head, but that could also be sort of disturbing.

I must say, I didn't close my eyes during the movie at all!! I also managed to not cry until the ending part (s). I'm usually the last to cry during movies, and if you ask any of my friends, they would most likely say that I'm not a crying type of person.

At the place where we do archery, there was one girl (she's not likely to appear on this blog very much, so I won't bother to give her a name) that said Erestor reminded her of Pippin. I definitely see the resemblence (haha). They even look somewhat alike!!

And now I'm going back to bed.

Answers to some questions that were asked:

Eldarwen: I love Fellowship of the Ring, but I think my overall favorite (talking books) is The Two Towers, too! Also, for the band-thing, we sing mostly Celtic or Contemporary Christian music (that also answers part of Saerwen's question also)

The other half on answering Saerwen's question: Yep, we're planning on a CD. I'm so excited!

Miscellaneous Stuff (all neatly numbered!)

#1. I haven't been posting much of my Elandai book, have I! Sorry about that, but I've decided to put my attention to two writing projects: Sarea, and the script for the movie my friends and I are making. I'm NOT quitting Elandai, but I'm just telling you not to expect a whole bunch of chapters.

#2. The singing group I'm in recorded for the first time today!!!

#3. Songaia (the next third of my book) is going good! I have so many characters that it's hard to keep track of them now.

#4. WE'RE GOING TO WATCH LORD OF THE RINGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sorry, but I'm SO excited!!!! We got 'The Fellowship of the Rings' from Netflix in the mail yesterday. We're planning to watch it on Friday night. Luthien and Galdor are going to be in bed while we watch it (they're too young) so Erestor and I are trying hard not to mention watching a movie in front of them.

AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!!!!

I'm off to record songs for the first time for my band!!! Whohoo!