The End of the Quest

Nothing clicked.

The stones were smooth and gray, lifeless in her ink-stained hands. She shifted, the pebbles grating under her shoes. In vain, Izori tried once again to press the two objects together, hoping for something to change. The cool, indifferent faces of the stones stared blankly back up at her. Nothing.

Sighing, Izori flung them away onto the enormous pile, watching them tumble and clank against their brethren before she stared up into the black sky. A bitter breeze shifted her unkempt hair.

All ink-bloods had faced this quest. So many had declared victory against the stones, mastering them at last. She was different.

How long, she thought, have I been doing this?

Years, the stones answered her. You've been here for years, trying to break our secrets.

"But you're not telling," Izori said aloud into the night. The pile of stones did not move, but lay in the night like a monument erected to remind her of her hopeless quest. Slowly, she reached down to touch the cold surface of another stone.

With a startled exclamation, she brought the new stone up to her face. Somehow, it was different. It's gray sides dipped in to form a tiny bowl, like the mouth of a volcano, and Izori knew that she had seen a match.

Frantically, she leaped up and charged the indifferent, mocking mountain of rocks. Where was it? She desperately dipped her hands into the smooth stones and they tumbled down the mountain face to get out of her way. In her mind's eye, she saw the rock. She had tossed it away, like all the other unwanted stones that made the mountain.

With an exclamation of satisfaction, she held up a small pebble. Then she raced back to where she had left the dished stone, bounding over the dark ground. Kneeling, for a moment she stared at the two objects.

Hardly daring to breathe, Izori gently set the pebble inside the dish. For a moment, nothing happened and her heart sank like the ominous tones of a minor chord.

A faint glow sprang up from the two stones. The dawn of the day. The end of the quest. Izori noticed her hands were shaking so much that she could hardly scoop up her prize--those two humble stones that fit together like pieces in a puzzle. Black with the ink stains of a years work, her hands were illuminated in the triumphant light.

"I found it!" she shouted aloud.

___ ___ ___ ___

Yes, indeed, it's been well over a year since I wrote my first book about the land of Caeleryn. In some ways, the quest is ongoing--I'm still revising my books. But in a very important way, my quest is over. Finished at last!

For the life of me, I could not think up a title for my book. So many thoughts ran through my head, but nothing connected.

That was written in the past tense, happily.

*takes a deep breath* I THOUGHT UP A TITLE!!! OH, YEAH! LET'S PARTY!!!!

Ahem. I thought up a title. Finally. Now that's over, I can take a deep sigh of relief. That was a weight off my shoulders!

The title I think will work is Myths Rising. Isn't it wonderful? *sighs in rapture*. I really like it.

On a scale of 1-5, how do you like that title? Would you want to know what the book was about if you saw a title like that? What image does it give you?

Yours oh-so-thankfully,

Izori

Excerpt from my NaNo 2010 Book! And NatureFreak's Answer

...You shouldn’t have taught me the sneaking bits of the art of assassination, Daelier, Kate told her master silently as she searched for a reasonable toehold in the stone walls of the palace. The lessons on being silent, blending in with the motions and rhythm of the surrounds, and staying to places where people don’t look echoed in Kate’s head as she wormed down the wall. She was about ten feet off the ground when she let go and dropped, silently landing in a crouching position...

___ ___ ___
I know I haven't been posting writing stuff on this blog very much anymore, but that's because I have another writing blog! Click here -->Traveling Tales<--to get to my writing blog, which I share with iGirl!

(You want to give me a Christmas present? Visit the blog and follow! Yes, Merry Christmas to you, too)

=)

Izori

P.S. NatureFreak, I am so sorry I couldn't get back to you before. I got the snowflakes from the blog of the lady who designed my blog! At the bottom of my sidebar, there is a button for 'My Designer Girl'. Click on that, and then you have reached Awel Prince's designing blog. Then go to her 'Tutorials' page. It's the very last tutorial, I believe. It's a simple HTML code.

Reading Tip

Do you have a genre that you read exclusively? Like, fantasy or romance? Then take this piece of advice...stop reading it.

After a while, reading one genre can become boring. Predictable. Flavorless. Cliche. The genre starts to feel bland.

If you can identify with that, then mix up your genres. If you always read fantasy, try murder mysteries. Switch romance with sci-fi. It really helps.

Help! My Characters Are Rebelling!

Aaargh! I so didn't mean for...oh, wait. I might as well warn you that the next things I'm going to say are **SPOILERS!!** and you shouldn't read them if you would rather be surprised when my books get published. When, not if. =)

Okay. So, the two characters that are bugging me are Arimathea and Abriel.

Arimathea

age: 14
height:5'5"
build: On the slimmer side, although not quite wispy.
Personality qualities in brief: Forgiving, optimistic, content, unshaken, trustful.
Personality faults in brief : Forgetful, tends to overlook other's faults so much that she would trust a traitor.
Brief Bio: Raised as an orphan in Draelaet, she comes along on the quest to close the portal and proves to be an invaluable member of the group. A follower of Light.

Abriel

age: around 16
height: 5'11"
build: fairly average, okay for athleticism but not excelling athletically.
personality qualities in brief: Sensitive, protective of loved ones, strong leadership and organizational skills.
personality faults in brief: Able to detach himself emotionally, selfish.
Brief Bio: No one knows very much about him, but he claimed falsely to be a prophet and tried to lead his traveling companions into traps to accomplish tasks given to him by Dark.

And this is my problem.

You see, Abriel was supposed to marry Skye (one of my other characters) and Thea was either going to remain single or marry Erri (another character). But...

...Abriel and Thea are falling in love! I wrote a scene of dialogue between them and they matched perfectly. Just awesome. But...aargh.

I suppose this is a good sign, that my characters are real to me and that I can't force them what to do. If I could, that would mean my characters are weak. But still.

Why. Must. They. Be. Like. That?

Sigh.

The Time Has Come!

It's October, which means...sign up for NaNoWriMo has begun! Click HERE to get to their site! Signing up is incredibly easy, and I also suggest looking at the FAQs and the About NaNoWriMo if you're a first time participant.

And I've decided that I am doing NaNoWriMo. I may have to get up at 5:30 AM, but I will do it, and I will finish. I hope.

So, as you can imagine, this is going to effect my posts. Here are some of the things you'll see through October:

1. How to outline your novel idea
2. How to cure writer's block
3. Incentives for writing
4. How to find your writing style (and stick with it)
5. How to inspire yourself
6. When (and when not) you should stress
7. My NaNoWriMo plans for this year

And those are just seven of them!

One more thing: Guinevere, you asked if you could use an idea for your blog. Go right ahead! =)

Also, if you want to read some more reasons for pseudonyms, then just look under the comments in my posts of pseudonyms. Illunse had some great things to say!

See you all pretty soon!

Book Review: Castaways of the Flying Dutchman

Been a while since I've done a book review. I've been meaning to review several books, actually, but it slipped my mind and my to-do list. I also might (MIGHT--key word) review 'A Series of Unfortunate Events', which I'm greatly enjoying.

'Castaways of the Flying Dutchman'
by Brian Jacques

'The Flying Dutchman! The legend of the wind-tattered ghost ship and its mad sea captain, cursed to sail the seas forever, has been passed down throughout the centuries. But what of the boy and his dog who were trapped aboard that ship? What was to become of them?

Send off on an eternal journey of their own by an avenging angel, the boy and dog roam the earth throughout the centuries in search of those in need. Braving wind and waves and countless perils, their travels lead them to Chapelvale, a sleepy 19th-century village whose very existence is at stake. Only by discovering the buried secrets and solving the dust-laden riddles of the ancient village can it be saved. This will take the will and wile of all the people - and a very special boy and dog!'

(Book description taken off of BRIAN JACQUES' WEBSITE)

Well, I'm kind of have a mixed opinion about the book.

The good things about it: Captain Vanderdecken is severely punished for blaspheming God. Ben and Ned (also known as Neb and Den) are saved for their 'pure and innocent hearts', to paraphrase the book. There is not a spot of romance, thankfully, and friendship, loyalty, bravery, and purity of heart are strong points in the story. It was for the most part (some parts were a little cheesy, cliche, just plain first draft-sounding) well written, and I found myself very attached to Ben and Ned. They help and care for others, which is also very good. Oh, and the Bible and God are treated very respectfully, with the exception of Captain Vanderdecken.

The bad things about it: (SPOILER) I'm not sure that it's exactly Biblical for an angel to curse/bless people with immortality. (END OF SPOILER) For some odd reason, I felt like Jacques was treating God more akin to a Greek legend or something like that--something to be respected, but outside of a story, not to be taken seriously. It may have just been me, though. Oh, and a lot of book descriptions for 'CotFD' make it sound like Ben and Ned are ghosts. The book has them more like guardian angels. That was why I was a little hesitant to read it.

Overall opinion: It was good. Catchy plot, strong characters, bitter-sweet endings (which I usually hate, but this one was pretty good). I'm looking forward to reading the next one, 'The Angel's Command'. I'll rate it 3 out of 5 stars. Would have gotten a 4.999999999999 if I hadn't gotten the impression that I had in the previous paragraph.

Oh, and I've met Brian Jacques a few years ago! He also wrote the Redwall books, and he's absolutely HILARIOUS!!! Had a complete blast at the book signing. And it was really cool, because we were last in line and there weren't much other people, we got to talk to him and took a picture with him. It was so inspiring!

Izori

GUESS WHAT I GOT!!!!!

Yeah, I know that it's really recent after my last post...

BUT YOU'LL NEVER EVER EVER GUESS WHAT I GOT FROM MY GREAT-GRANDMA FOR CHRISTMAS!!!!

Enna-Rin has been raving to me about it for so long that I wanted it really bad...

'The Shadow of the Bear' by Regina Doman.

Okay, majorly hyper moment.

Izori

Guarding our eyes

THIS post by a wonderful fellow blogger, Ëarwen, has got me thinking, "Am I guarding my eyes well?"

For starters, I read the Inheritance Cycle. I started reading it because some people that I know really liked it. And I was drawn right into it.

Let me tell you, I'm a real sucker for adventure. And that's why I have to be extra careful when I read a book. If I'm not, I'll like it simply because the battles are really awesome, or there's amazing adventure in it. And I tend to brush aside the 'other stuff'...that matters much more than adventure.

Sure, I was bothered when Angela predicts Eragon's future, the Elves declare themselves atheists, that the magic is not an allegory of God's power (as it is in Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia) and that Eragon's love for Arya is more of a lustful crush than real love. But I just ignored it and tried to convince myself, "Well, at least it doesn't have any 'good' sorcerers or anything like that in it."

And then I realized that Eragon and the other riders are basically sorcerers by another name.

After that, I started noticing other things such as Roran and Katrina's disgusting relationship before their marriage. And the book didn't even portray it at wrong! At the most, it was only 'different'.

And that lead to me thinking, "How different is Eragon from Twilight?"

Yikes.

Okay, I have never read Twilight, and I'm not sure if I will. If I do, it will be mixed in with hours of reading my Bible and praying, and it will be when I'm much older. But a Christian review that I read a long while ago (and that I can't find right now...sorry!) said that Bella lies and forsakes her parents for the vampire-dude, who I think is named...Edward? Yeah, anyway, for all of you who have already read Twilight, is that true?

If it is, then wouldn't 1 Corinthians 13:6 apply here? Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth (1 Corinthians 13:6 NIV) You may argue that Edward (if that's the vampire-dude) is a good vampire, but is he really?

If you have read Twilight and know that I have the facts wrong, please correct me.

Avoid every kind of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:22 NIV
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Romans 12:9 NIV

Let those who love the Lord hate evil. Psalm 97:10A NIV

And because of those verses, I am considered whether or not I should read the last book of the Inheritance Cycle.





P.S. HERE is a review on Twilight. Not the one I was looking for...but I would still suggest it.

Character's can be very stubborn...

...right when you don't need them to be!

Has anyone ever had a great new idea for a plot twist in your book, and tried to try it out, only to have your characters refuse to follow it? I know at least my characters can be downright persnickety sometimes!

So, what do you do? Other then tell them they have to follow it because you're the author and you said so, here's some advice.

1). Hold an interview. No, I'm perfectly serious. Write down a list of questions about the characters in your book. Something like (here I'm going to use a sub-character in the book I'm writing. She's not really giving me grief, but she's my example) this:

name: Lydia (this is just for keeping track of whose interview is who's.

job/profession: tavern-maid

personality: spunky, energetic, observant and quick-witted but at first glance acts like a silly twit.

problem: she wants to quit her job at the tavern. I want her to stay and gather information for my main characters.

Now that you've written it down, think on the problem. Maybe you could compromise some way between your opinion and that of your character's.

#2). Your character may have a point in their suggestion. You could try to do it their way and see what results. You could come up with something very interesting! This is the one I use most often and that helps the most.

#3). Kill the character! Uh, might I add that this is only useful when your problem character is only a sub character that can't add anything more to the story and you have no emotional attachment to (is it possible to have no attachment to characters you made up?). Once again, this can lead to interesting results.

#4). Conflict with your character and do it your way, just to experiment if the character really will refuse to work for you. This is something I DON'T suggest.

Out of all the cures, number 2 is most suggested.

Izori

(Oh, by the way, this post popped up a day ago. If you were reading it, and it suddenly disappeared, sorry about that. It was right in front of a rather important announcement)

P.S. This was a scheduled post. For all who are curious, this was really written on September 15, 2009.

Family in Books?

Has anyone ever noticed that in a lot of stories and movies, the main characters (especially if they're kids) have almost no respect for their parents or siblings?

Take, for an example, the books about that aardvark named Arthur. You know, the kids books? One of them is called something like 'The Poetry Contest'. Innocent enough, right?

At the beginning, Arthur recites a poem that makes fun of his sister. And then one of his friends says something along the lines of "I'd be saying that too if I had a sister like D.W. [Arthur's sister]." During the book, Arthur ignores her, and even though I don't think he actually says it out loud, everything he does to her is basically yelling that she's a nuisance.

And that's a kids book.

There are many more books and movies out there like that. Isn't that sad?

But in a major, uncomfortably obvious way, it's reflecting our own culture of disrespect for the people in charge. Lisa, the newest character in my Elandai book, has a brother that ignores her because he thinks it's cool.

So in the book that I'm not writing on my blog (which has the working-title of Sarea) I'm trying to make the main character love and respect her father, mother, brothers, and sister. It's not easy, because right now she's away trying to get an alliance with the Elves, but I have managed to add a few scenes that show how much she loves her family.

Izori

P.S. Thank you, everyone who suggested ways to put un-mushy romance in Sarea. I'm in the middle of it, and so far it's going great!

Chapter 2 of Unnamed Book: One Last Visit

This book might be going a little slower than the first two. Sorry about that; with my dad's cancer and all, things are getting sorta hectic.

Chapter 2

A few days later, Kaela, Ben, and their cousins, Josh and Lindsey, sat on the floor of Josh's room.

"What? You're moving?" Lindsey stared in disbelief. "What will that mean for Elandai?"

Kaela shrugged. "I wish I knew. Yeshua promised that we could go back again--all of us, not just me and Ben--so maybe something will work out. Maybe...maybe the whole moving thing will be called off or...something! Anything!"

Ben frowned. "I have a suspicious feeling that we will move. What that means for Elandai, I have no clue. Probably doesn't mean much good."

Josh ran his hand through his patch of light brown hair. "Well, Yeshua promised that we all would go back. And Yeshua isn't one to break his word."

--- --- ---

It was a few weeks later. Ben sighed as he shoved the last box into the moving truck, and then turned to look back at their house. The sale had gone quickly-- his Dad's company had arranged a buyer within days--and it had barely begun to sink in that they were selling there house before it wasn't their house anymore.

I guess I was right--we really are moving. This is probably the one instance where I wish I was wrong.

He walked inside the house. It looked like an empty husk now, with all the furniture moved out, and all the pictures off the wall. But that wasn't what he was thinking about.

I think I'm going to check on the creek one last time, Ben told himself, still desperately trying to believe that they would have one more adventure in Elandai. He knew that they wouldn't; neither him nor Kaela had received a dream or anything else telling them to cross the creek. But maybe, just this once, they could just step in and out real quick. Just long enough to see their old friends again.

And we have quite a lot of them, he smiled to himself. There was Klii, Learka, and Yev, who had all first introduced him and Kaela to the world of Elandai. Then there was Nolan, the average Elandaian follower who had become leader, and then later king. In the second adventure, Hans, Tristan...countless others...had helped the cousins, guiding them along.

A noise made him turn. Kaela had entered the door and was looking around at the empty house with an odd expression.

"Well...are you thinking what I am?" she asked, glancing his way.

He nodded. "Yes. Come on."

The siblings briskly stepped out of the house, and then entered the back yard. From there was a small path, that eventually led to a large path.

Kaela grinned at her brother, and then took off running down the path. "I'll beat you to the creek!" she yelled over her shoulder.

Ben gave chase immediately, laughing as he called, "Hey! You got a head start!"

Kaela beat Ben by a close shot, and then the two stood, panting, on the bank of the creek. Finally, Ben moved, wading into the water.

He made it to the other side of the creek, and then stopped there. Looking across, he could still see signs of modern things--unlike last time.

Kaela crossed the creek and stood next to him. Disappointed, she shook her head. "I don't think it's working, Ben."

A voice came from behind them. "You came here for one last look, too?"

Startled, Ben turned. "Oh, hi Mom. You sort of scared us."

Mom smiled. "Sorry about that. I was just taking a walk around the woods, remembering everything. Y'know?"

Kaela nodded. "Mom, do you think our new house will have a creek?"

"Well...it's in a subdivision..."

"But don't we live in a subdivision? Or, didn't we just used to?" Ben persisted.

"This isn't a rural subdivision. We're talking real subdivision. Closer to the city." Mom ruffled Ben's blond hair, something which had grown a lot harder now that Ben towered above his mother. "Don't worry, pumpkin. If Yeshua said you'd come back to Elandai, then he meant it."

Then the three of them waded back across the creek.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I sympathize with Ben when his mom called him 'pumpkin'. I used to get called potato-head for some insane reason.

Izori

P.S. Do y'all have any suggestions for titles for this book? I still have no clue what I'm going to name it.

Book Review: Painting Aalesund

Seeing as Tod Steward is my baseball coach, I got to read the pfd version of it. Aren't I lucky?

'Painting Aalesund'
by Tod Steward

'Growing up in Aalesund, Norway, Trond has always wondered why the city has no painted buildings. When he asks his grandfather, he tells him the tale of a king who re-built Aalesund after it had caught fire. He was planning to paint it beautifully, but he never got around to it.

After hearing the story, Trond decides to finish the job that the king started, and sets out to paint Aalesund. But he has a problem. Several problems, actually. Where is he going to get the money to paint the whole city? Who will help him?'

Before I go any further...

I loved the story!!

With that being said, let's make it a little more official.

Trond is very helpful, cheerful, and respectful to his grandfather and other people. The whole story was very innocent. Quite a welcome change from stuff like The Inheritance Series, or Clovermead. I really recommend reading it.

Drop by and visit Tod Steward's website.

Izori

P.S. I don't think it's quite available for buying yet, so I don't have the Amazon add on the sidebar. Will get it up once Painting Aalesund comes out.

Book Review: Inkspell

Couldn't come up with a description of my own, so I just copied the back of the book.

'Inkspell' by Cornelia Funke
Book 2 of the Inkworld Trilogy

A year has passed, but not a day goes by without Meggie thinking of 'Inkheart' the book whose characters came to life. For the fire-eater Dustfinger, the need to return to the tale has become desperate. When he finds a crooked storyteller to read him back, he abandons his apprentice Farid and plunges into the pages. Before long, Farid and Meggie are caught inside the book, too. But the story is much changed--and threatening to end tragically.

The book was exciting and engaging, but unfortunetely it did have some faults. Dustfinger's family is...not doing that great, and there's a few mushy scenes. And of course, Aunt Elinor (and a few others) swear and take the Lord's name in vain. However, Dustfinger is willing to sacrifice his life to save Farid, and Mo, Resa, and Meggie are a very close family.

Overall, it was a really good book. Very good to read if you're working on a story of your own, as Funke's writing style is very good. Also, once I read it I immediately added a few weaknesses to my bad guys in Sarea, just in case I ever have to fight them =)

Izori

Dun Zarum and VBS

I am sooooooooooo tired! Two and three year old kids can be so cute and funny, but when they start crying because, well, if you had ever gone somewhere when you were a kid, placed in a room with other children that are laughing and screaming, and then your mom hastily exits the room, you'd understand. I just try to remember that it's really good that they miss their parents so much. Some kids, like one little lad in particular, just sat and smiled all the time (it's so cute) but others would be fine until they notice that their parents aren't there. Then they set up a wail. When you've just finished comforting them, someone else starts crying and it starts them all over again. And then one assistant couldn't make it today. But, I have to admit...this is fun!

I'm on the last stages of editing the technical stuff that my Dad pointed out (punctuation, terms, and so on) of the one-third of my book (this section's called Dun Zarum, for all of you who don't remember), and then my Mom will proof-read for plot problems. I'm nearly half-way through the next section of the book, too! Yipee!

It seems like a long time ago that I started writing my book, but it's really only been about...six months. And I'm getting much better at writing for longer periods of time more frequently, so it won't be long when I'm finished!

Izori

Isn't that so cool!?

As you may remember, my baseball coach, Tod Steward, has written a few books. Click here to view his website (and it's also on my sidebar, along with links to the websites of Robert Elmer, Brian Jacques, and Christopher Paolini). I sent him a link to my blog, and he put that on his website!

Izori

Strong Characters and Dark Plots

My friend asked me how to make strong characters, and I thought I'd might as well answer it on here. This is what works for me:

Base them on a real person. A lot of times, I base my main character, at least, on someone I know, including me. Ehra in Sarea for example. She's based on two real people: one friend for personality, and another for looks. If you think you'll get too attached to a character you're going to have die, then...I guess you could make up your own personality or something. I don't usually kill my characters, so I'm not much help there. I also base my bad guys on unsavory characters I know, or even historical ones (such as Sisera from Judges 4, or Judas Iscariot from Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). Basing them on real people helps when you aren't quite sure how your character would react in a situation; simply have them act like the person they're based on would.

Put some of their background into it. Add something more personal about them, so the reader really feels that they know the character. I added a few pages in Sarea when Ehra is talking to her parents, whom she has a very close relationship with. I also added a chapter when Ehra and her sister are chatting with some gossipy village girls, showing how different they are.

My friend also asked how she could keep her plot from being so dark and gloomy. My suggestions are:

Add little children into it. They're so innocent and funny; it lightens up the plot right away. I am naturally very optomistic, so I don't tend to have this problem, but I do have it sometimes. Also add some family into it; if your character is an orphan with a sibling who's her mortal enemy, is running away from a cruel slaverwhile unwittingly falling into a trap their malicious sibling has set, it would make for an interesting story line, but it'd be extremely dark and...not very family-friendly.

Any more suggestions, anybody?

Izori