Labotomy of a Writer

*confetti falls*

It still needs a lot of editing work, but at least I got all the plot points figured out. Now it's just polishing things up (including getting ALL that passive voice outta there. It's a nasty habit I have but for the sake of 'Just get it written', I just wrote it.)

So, it's on the backburner for a little while to give my brain a break (My characters are crying over this fact, btw.) Then - editing and polishing time! I'm so looking forward to that - it'll be SO much easier than the rewrite I just did - seriously.


I know I did a long series earlier about world building, but I think it needs a revisit. I forgot one very important element in any fantasy series - MAGIC. (How on earth could I forget that? I know!) I made sure I talked about technology (especially for the sci-fi folks out there) but totally spaced about magic! *facepalms* I am so ashamed!

Magic in Society

How does magic work in the society you have built? How do people view it? What types of magic do you have? What are the rules to using magic?

Let's answer those questions one by one.

How does magic work in the society you have built?

• Where does the magic come from? Inside the characters? Outside?
• Do they have powers or can they use spells? Do they have both?
• Are they born with a power then develop it or do they choose for themselves and learn it?
• Who has magic? Everyone? Only a select few?

In The Faery's Tale, the faeries' magic comes from inside of them. It's a part of who they are, just like an arm or a leg. They can use spells, but mostly they just have a power that resides within them. Other worlds have only spells or the magic comes from outside the characters. They draw the power from the earth, sky, etc. It all depends how you want your world to work.

Once you have this figured out, you have to put it into your story without just saying it. Do you have someone just learning their magic? What does it feel like to them? Explain how the magic works that way. It is much better to show it through a characters view than to just write it all down in an 'information dump'.

Why would only a select few have magic? Is it because they are a woman or a man or a certain race? Think about all the different reasons (or created tension) caused by only a select few having powers for whatever reason. Then of course, you can always make the exception to this rule! (Like in a society where only men have magic - suddenly have a girl have it! *gasp*)

How do people view it?

• Is magic frowned upon? Punishable by death? Hefty fine for using it?
• Do people need to pay a tax to use magic?
• For those that don't have magic - how do they feel about not having any?
• For thos that do - how do they feel about having it?

Since my novel has all the faeries having a power, it is considered the norm for them. It's a regular part of their life just like growing up. It is not the focal point of their society, it's just -- THERE. But what about other worlds?

Magic that is frowned upon could cause a lot of tension for a story. A magical revolution! What if in the situation above where only men had power but suddenly a woman did? How would everyone react to that? What sort of uproar would that cause?

It's easy to center an entire plot around magic but it's not the only way to write a fantasy novel. In 'The Faery's Tale', their magic is not the main plot - it is a side plot in a way as I have one character who was born without a power - and thus is tormented by everyone else for being different. Others stories have magic just the common place with the plot and subplots focusing on other things entirely. It all depends how the author wanted to write the story! That's the great thing about fantasy (well writing fiction at all really) you get to make it up!

What types of magic does your world have?

• Chaos and Order? Black and White? Good and Bad?
• Elemental? (Fire, Earth, Air, Water)
• "Mundane?" (Magic can be found in every day things too! Cooking, sewing, gardening, etc - think of how you can turn that into something MORE magical.)

The faeries in my novel have a mix of powers. Some are elemental types but there are some "mind powers" like telepathy and telekinesis. Each world is different and it depends on how you planned out your world. If the elements are a huge focus in your story, it might be good to have elemental type magic. Chaos and Order, Black and White and Good and Bad Magics are popular to use but it is something that will never get old. Take the same idea and make it your own!

What are the rules to using magic?

• Do your characters become tired when they use their magic or do spells?
• If they used them too much could they hurt themselves - even die?
• What about the ramifications of using their powers for "personal gain?"
• How long must they attend school/tutoring before they are allowed to use their power without permission or supervision?
• Do they recieve some sort of sign (medallion, tattoo, etc) that show what level of power they are?
• Is there anything that can prevent them from using their magic (besides other magic)?

This is another question that makes you think of how magic works in your novel. Characters that are born with a power would obviously need to develop it in some way. Even if they choose their own power they must be taught how to use it. (If not, serious consequences could result!)

When I say "prevent them from using magic" I don't mean laws or rules that say they can't but something that physically prevents them from using it. Iron is a popular element to keep a person from using magic. (Like Kryptonite to Superman!) Would your world have something else? A certain gem or plant? Another type of metal? How does your character react being around the object? Do they get sick or could it kill them? Pain? In The Faery's Tale, my faeires become nauseous around iron and a little 'off balance'. Slow reaction time, a bit of dizzyness, etc. If they try to use their power around or while touching it, they could die.

World building is an intense process - I know. But it's so worth it when you hash out the tiny details before, trust me.

Wow! I am so sorry to all of you that have been looking forward to my new schedule. I'm having the worst trouble getting back into the swing of things here since my break! But, I spent the weekend getting ready to get back on the band wagon here and I'll be spending this afternoon doing a bit more organizing. (My desk is a disaster area!) I need get my space organized and cleaned up here, and hopefully that'll spur me to get back on track here.

I have nothing to report on this Mundane Monday really besides that fact that I am just a few chapters away from finishing the epic rewrite of "Burden of Prophecy"! FINALLY! I know! Those of you that have been following me for a long while know how much of a struggle this has been for me, but I am very pleased that it is almost done. I finally worked out all the plot holes and sub-plot story lines, so that they now work cohesively with each other. Thank the Gods! I was beginning to think I would never figure it out!

I am hosting a WriMo in July over at Writing.Com for anyone that would like to join! It's just like NaNoWriMo in November, except you can work on rewrites and things like that. NaNo is a great month and I always have some great writing come from it, so I wanted to host another month of it to really spur the creativity! So, come join me to JulNoWriMo! It's open to any novel writer regardless of genre or type. (Note: You have to be a member of writing.com to participate, but it's really easy to sign up!) I'll be posting my daily progress in the JulNoWriMo page of my blog here linked in the right side bar. I'll also post a weekly total during Mundane Monday's post for a weekly update sort of deal.

Anyway, I think that is all that is going on with me right now. I'll probably think of twenty other things once I post this, but I'll save it for next week to make sure I have something to post!

Oh wait! I did recieve a lovely award from Bryan Sabol over at the "Time Guardian Blog"



The rules of this award are pretty simple:

1. Thank and link the person who sent it to me.
2. Tell 7 things about myself.
3. Pass the award to 15 recently discovered bloggers that I think are fantastic.
4. Tell the bloggers you have given them an award.

Thanks Bryan for this great award! It really made my day! I just hope I can find seven things about myself I haven't already said on this blog! Might have to pull out some silly things for this one, but that's okay!


1. I only need about 4 hours a sleep a night, but then once every two weeks or so, I need about 16 hours!

2. I am a junk food junkie! Seriously, I live on one full meal a day (dinner cooked by my wonderful hubby - a chef!), chips, candy, pepsi, and cigarettes. (Amazing I'm still here right?)

3. I don't carry a purse, although I own two or three of them (all black). I carry money and cards in a wallet - with a chain. The black leather wallet has "Live to Ride, Ride to Live" in a banner over an eagle.

4. I hate the sound of my own voice. I find it very annoying. It sounds worse when I record it.

5. I have a very loud obnoxious laugh -- made worse by the fact that when I'm really laughing hard, I snort - loudly and repetatively.

6. I am the messiest organized person. I'm weird about how things are organized in my house. The DVD's and VHS's are in ABC order, my closet is color coded, and my book shelf is in order by author and series. I don't keep up with the dishes and regular house cleaning like I should -- but I will stop everything to make sure the videos and books are in the right order!!

7. Honestly, I never planned or wanted to be a parent. It was not in my list of things to do in my life. But, the Gods had different plans for me it seems as I have had two chidlren. I would not give them up for anything and I do love being a Mom!

And the 15 wonderful bloggers who recieve this award: (Okay, I didn't follow the "newly discovered" rule here, as I that could mean any number of things - newly discovered for me, to blogger in general...)

1. Haley Jo @ A Journey Through The Mind
2. Tamara Heiner @ Chasing Dreams
3. Simon Larter @ Constant Revision
4. Mireyah Wolfe @ Where the Zombie Bunnies Roam
5. Eric Trant @ Digging With The Worms
6. Eisley Jacobs @ Eisley's Ellipses
7. Amalia T. @ Good to Begin Well, Better to End Well
8. Nicle Decleroir @ One Significant Moment In Time
9. Shannon Messenger @ Ramblings of a Wannabe Scribe
10. Roland Yeomans @ Writing In The Crosshairs
11. Lauren (aka True) @ Anatomy Of A Gummi Bear
12. Annie McMahon @ Dutch Hill News
13. Kurt Chambers @ Genius Bordering Insanity
14. Jay Eckert @ Jay Eckert's Sharpened Pen
15. Tessa Conte @ Tessa's Blurb

And now I am off to tell all this lovely folks about their award! See you all on the flip side!

Yes, as the title says there is more than one winner here. I want to thank all of my followers for sticking by me during this rough time in my off line life. It seems that while I needed a schedule, I am running a day off this week. So, I skipped Writer Wednesday all together and will jump into it with Fantasy Friday tomorrow.

Now, on to the point of this post. Winners! Woot!

Only 7 people entered into the drawing for an autographed unproofed copy of "Vampire Vacation" by CJ Ellisson.



While I would love to give all 7 of these great people a copy of this fantastic book, only one person can get it.

I am pleased to announce the winner is --- *drum roll*

It has been a while since I particpated in a blogfest, at least in blogfest time. I was away from the blogosphere for a while to regroup as my brain had a total effing meltdown! (Seriously, my poor hubby didn't know what to do).

So! Character Interview Blogfest! Woot! Hosted by Sangu Mandanna. (Awesome name by the way.) Make sure you go read the other entries! The few I have read so far are great!

I had a lot of trouble writing this as ALL of my characters tried to get into the conversation. I will save that for another post, but for now, I finally got this one character to myself for a few minutes.

He was not originally going to play a major role in "The Faery's Tale Saga". He was meant as a passing character that would impact one of the main characters but he would not stick around to see it. Or so I thought. Lo and behold, he pushed his way into playing a huge role in Book 3, after his first appearance in Book 1. Which is GREAT! So anyway, here for the first time is Chakor Sonrin. (Seriously, this is my first time digging into his brain too!)

Me: Chakor! So wonderful to have you all to myself for a few minutes.

Chakor: Yes. It is crowded in here sometimes. You manage it well.

Me: Why thank you! Let's start off with some easy questions shall we? What do you look like?

Chakor: Oh, I'm ruggedly handsome of course. *wink*

Me: Umm, that really doesn't help me at all. *looks him up and down* Black eyes, black hair, tanned skin, jagged edged butterfly wings, and horns. Ahh, you are from Lizak originally then yes?

Chakor: *nods* I was an Earl there at one point. I gave it up though when I no longer wished to be part of the greed and evil in that place.

Me: And now you are the leader of a group of faeries that travel about?

Chakor: Yes. Most of them were faeries like me, that for one reason or another left home to escape something. Persecution, torment, sad memories... *shrug*

Me: Oh so you started this group then?

Chakor: *chuckles* Oh Gods no. It was there long before I was. I became leader because I was voted into the position. When they found out I was once an Earl, apparantly that was enough 'experience' to lead. *shrug* So I was nominated and voted in to the position.

Me: And then you met Letarri.

Chakor: *smiles* Yes.

Me: I'll be honest, when I first started writing this, Letarri was meant to be with Etharas.

Chakor: *smile vanishes and replaced with a snarl* Him? That's dispicable.

Me: Well, she was going to change him for the better.

Chakor: *laughs* You should know better than that! You're united, or married as you call it, yes?

Me: Well, yes.

Chakor: Then you should know that you can't change a person or any other being for that matter. They have to change on their own.

Me: *smiles* Yes, of course. He does get better though. Just for different reasons now.

Chakor: *beams with pride* It's because he doesn't get the girl as your people say?

Me: *chuckles* Yes. You could say that. So, you still haven't told me how exactly you are going to play the huge role in Book 3. I mean, you can't just show up and help Farien with the war - you have to have a solid reason.

Chakor: Letarri isn't enough of a reason to help her brother then wait for her return?

Me: Umm...well yes, but I mean -- do you love her?

Chakor: ...

Me: Uhh, okay. I'll ask something else. What was it about her that caused you to become a stronger character in this story?

Chakor: I have to pick just one thing? *sigh* Well, at first it was her naivete. I can't lie and say I was not attracted to her physically right from the beginning. It quickly became obvious that she was not wise in the ways of males. *chuckle* Then it was her strength of will. Naive though she may be, she is not stupid by any means. She knows when to stand her ground - and when to walk away.

Me: I'm sure it didn't hurt your ego any that she walked away and straight into your arms right?

Chakor: *smile* Of course not. You should have seen the look on your face too! When that scene came pouring out, *chuckle*, and how she just walked away from Etharas and straight back to me!

Me: Well it was a bit of a shock. I may be the writer, but it's your story. Like I said, I thought she would be with Etharas.

Chakor: *hisses* She deserves better than him. He may change as you say, but right now I have no respect for him.

Me: Is that only because of his relationship to Letarri or...?

Chakor: Or. Look at that character sketch you have of him again. Anyone who drinks that much - putting those around him in danger - is not worth anything in my book. Anyone who thinks they can control others, especially Letarri, is lower than the dirt under my boot.

Me: Well! Tell me how you really feel! So, you steal her heart away and then go help her brother. What prompted you to help her brother instead of just waiting for her to return?

Chakor: *shrug* I wanted to see her again. Met her brother, a strong sensible sort of faery trying to care for his family and his kingdom. I wanted to help him - and not to gain his good side to have a chance to court his sister either. Sure, that's a nice perk, but I know what it's like to struggle with leading a country or a group. Farien is a great leader and I only wished to help ease him of his heavy burden.

Me: We will flesh out more details later on that Chakor. It was so nice to get to talk to you for a few peaceful moments but I'm sure you can hear the others in the background screaming for attention too.

Chakor: Yes. They have had your attention for so long. You'd think they would let me have more than just a few minutes with you! But alas, I suppose not.

Me: Don't worry. I'll make sure to set aside more one on one time with you when I get to Book 3.

Chakor: I look forward to it. *smiles and winks*

Oh! I'm so excited about this new twist! I can't wait to learn more about Chakor! Going to be so much fun! This was a great blogfest - and perfect timing too! *goes to save a copy of this interview for future reference*

So yea. I am still alive in case any one was wondering. I know I said in my last post I was back and ready to go, but apparantly the powers that be had other plans.

And who are the powers that be you ask? Depression, anxiety, and my muse. I have recently fallen into a huge, deep chasm of depression, I'm not sure what to do with myself. Thus the anxiety. My muse comes into play because she keeps throwing ideas at me that I can't use, adding to the depression. Sure, I am having great ideas - but they are getting thrown into the idea notebook and not doing my actual MS (any of them) any good. So it's a vicious circle and I am having the worst trouble trying to get myself out of it. Usually, it's a day, maybe two and I'm over it - just part of the cycle of me I guess. This time however, it's a bit tougher for some reason. Been in this rut for over a week now and it's just starting to piss me off quite frankly.

So, I logged into blogger at the wee hours of 1:13 in the morning. I couldn't sleep and I am determined to get myself out of this rut or depressive state or whatever you want to call it. I am forcing myself to write a blog post - even if you guys are so NOT reading this post anymore, in order to get off my butt to accomplish SOMETHING.

One of the hardest things for me as a writer, is to balance my dream and love of writing with every thing else in my life. Those of you who have been following me for a while, know this in gory detail as I have shared my extensive list of to do's with you before.

The last two weeks, I suddenly don't have time for anything. Or at least, that's how I feel at the end of the day. I had a strict schedule that I followed that allowed me to do all the things that I do and still have plenty of time with my family. Literally overnight, it was like I forgot how to run my own schedule or keep up with it! Maybe that's it. I burned out my energy and can't keep up with that schedule anymore. Who knows. Either way, it's irritating as hell!

Wanna know the only thing I have accomplished the last week and a half? I went to Guard Drill. Yea. That's it. How sad is that? Me! I was the one that could pull 7,000 words for a MS, teach her son a new song and a few new words to say, watch a movie or two with hubby, keep up with running workshops, the Academy, emails, campfire creative stories, and keep the house clean all in one day!!! Where did that person go!?

I thought if I took a little longer break to really get myself off this stupid depressive kick (yes, I'll be the first to tell you it is stupid), that I'd be good to go. Ya know, maybe I just needed a little more time off to recoup. Apparantly, I only made it worse for myself.

So, I'm taking a lesson from my Drill Sgt - JUST DO IT! And while this blog post took me longer to type up than any other blog post I've made (even the super long ones) at least I did it. And since I am here, I am off to post about the Character Interview Blogfest for today. That's TWO things so far! Let's see how much more I can get done today too. Wish me luck!

I am back! Did you guys miss me?

So, during my break I was able to get almost 2 chapters written for "Burden of Prophecy" and wrote 2 chapters for "Tutelage of Mortality" Oh right, you guys don't know! "The Faery's Tale Trilogy" had turned into "The Faery's Tale Saga" - 4 books. The new Part 2 is now 'Tutelage of Mortality". I'll post more about that later.

I have also temporarily closed "The Writer's Academy" It sucked and I cried all day about it, but it needed to be done. I do love helping people but I just could not keep up with it on my own anymore. When it does reopen next year, on its own site, it'll be focusing only on novels as that is where my passion truly lies.

Also, I have decided that I must make a schedule for this blog. I seems that everyone is going with the MWF thing, so I'll go with that too.

Mundane Mondays - random posts, awards, WIP updates, etc.
Writing Wednesday - posts about writings, tips and tricks
Fantasy Friday - posts about things relating to the fantasy genre (in the future this might include the sci-fi genre whenever I start on the sci-fi novels I have planned)

So there it is! I will see you guys on Monday! Woot!