Labotomy of a Writer

Happy Monday everyone! How was your Thanksgiving for my fellow people in the States? Black Friday go okay? I was safe (and smart) and stayed inside on Friday! Besides, I'm not a shopper type of person anyway.

Now, on to the real reason of this post! Yesterday from midnight to midnight, a few of my new friends and I participated in the 10K in a Day Blogfest on Twitter. It was a lot of fun! Today, we are posting excerpts from what we wrote yesterday!

Guess what? I got an amazing 10,122 words written yesterday!!!! That brings my NaNo total to 53,549 and I still have a few days left!

How did you guys do?

Here is my excerpt! I hope you enjoy! Remember it's first draft so don't rip it to shreds too much!

Excerpt from "Tutelage of Mortality" Book 2 of The Faery's Tale Saga

Drache lifted his head to gaze into her eyes. He balanced his weight on one elbow, and smoothed her hair with his hand. Her blue and green eyes looked at him in adoration. She was absolutely beautiful. He ached to be at home with plenty of faes running around the castle. Faes with blonde hair and blue-green eyes like hers. Her chime-like laughter and bright smile.

"I love you."

The corner of her mouth curled up. "You do?"

He nodded. "Very much so."

"I love you too."

His lips brushed over hers in a feather light kiss. He gently nipped her bottom lip before deepening the kiss. Her lips tasted sweeter than anything he had known before. She definitely was addictive; but he did not mind the addiction.

The door to their room burst open, banging against the wall. Ten year old Karina raced into the room giggling madly. She froze in the center of the room to stare at her brother and his wife.

"Are you kissing? That's so gross!"

Drache burst into laughter. "Why is that?"

Karina's face turned serious as she leaned forward. "Cooties," she whispered.

Drache and Rosyani both laughed, clutching each other in their amusement.

The young fae put her hands on her hips. "Well, it's true."

"Maybe I want cooties." Drache chuckled.

"Gross!"

Drache and Rosyani continued to laugh as they sat up and threw their feet to the floor. "Now what were you giggling about when you rushed in?"

"Uncle Cadmus and I are playing tag."

Cadmus jumped into the room and growled. Karina screamed in delight and raced under his legs out of the room. Cadmus shot them a cheesy grin before he ran after the young fae.

Go check out the other excerpts posted by everyone that participated!

Yay for Teaser Tuesday! I hope you guys like the scene! It's from "Burden of Prophecy" of course!

Excerpt from Chapter 3 - Home Sweet Home?

Drache and Rosyani (recently married) return to her childhood home to confront her family, after she ran away two months before.

A hammer beat into her skull. Rosyani opened her eyes but slammed them shut against the sunlight. A heavy weight pressed against her stomach. She cracked open one eye to see Drache’s arm draped across her waist. Trying to find a more comfortable position, she shifted and his arm wrapped tighter around her.

The blankets on the bed were wrong. Where were they? She bolted up and cast her eyes about the room. They lay in her old bed in the small room atop the tower. Every thing was as she left it - only with a thick film of dust. Her desk in the corner held small trinkets from her youth, most mementos from her father. The tall wardrobe to her left stood ajar. Drache must have helped her into a night gown.

Her head throbbed. She rubbed her temples to alleviate the pain but it did little to help. The princess sighed heavily then threw her feet to the floor. With small, wobbly footsteps, she made her way to the wash basin.

"You’re awake," Drache said from the bed. "Are you feeling all right?"

She groaned.

He chuckled. "Yes. The Healer said you’d need a lot of rest and food to recover from what you did yesterday."

"I still do not know what happened."

"From what I gather, you brought your brother back from death."

"That is what I mean. I do not know how I did it."

"Maybe your power is something that can’t be learned. Your powers may be healing powers yet they only work when you’re highly stressed or really close to the being that’s ill. We won’t know until you recover your strength. When we return home we can do some tests. Now come…"

"No! No more tests! I am done taking tests and being a piece of meat to the Healers. Do not do that to me, Drache!" Dizziness took hold and she braced her self against the vanity.

Drache leapt from the bed and wrapped his arms around her. "I don’t think you are all right." He led her to the bed and pushed her down to the mattress. "Now, I only meant that we could play some beginner games. The ones they teach you when our power first shows?"

Rosyani let out the breath she had been holding. "Oh. Sorry. My mother forced me to go to the Healers for years to find my power. They were really painful and I have scars from the needles and shots." Her shoulders slumped.

"How can you have scars? Didn’t the Healers heal the wounds?"

"I do not think they ever noticed how badly their instruments really hurt me. Also, after a time, I do not think their Healing would have worked. Over and over again, they poked and prodded. Took blood, even skin samples. They repeated the same tests every month as if the results would suddenly change. They never did." Her bottom lip trembled as she held back the tears that threatened to fall.

Drache pulled her to his side and rested his chin on her head. "You will never - ever - have to deal with that again. I promise."

Ah yes, the goals of a writer can vary from day-to-day. However, it is a good idea to at least write down some month by month goals for the year.

First you take a main goal for the year then go through each month and detail how you are going to reach that main goal.

I can tell you right now from experience that I have not followed by goal schedule for this year. But, it does keep me moving, even if it’s had a slower speed than I initially plotted out.

And that’s the point here people – write your goals down, so you don’t lose the plot. (Oh yes, I totally made that pun on purpose!)

So take a minute to write your goals down for the rest of this year. Split it up by month or even week if you want to. Whatever way works best for you. The point is to write something down. Hang it up where you can see it everyday, to keep you moving in the right direction.

A Writing Collage

A great way to really see your goals is to make a writing collage. Take images that represent your goals – even your life goals. Do you want to own a house? A nice car? Have a family? Anything! Cut out pictures and paste them all into one image for a collage. Choose colors that inspire or calm or excite you, whatever you want the collage to convey.

For me, I already had my life’s ambitions already. I have a wonderful husband and a beautiful son. My only “life” goal or dream left is to be published. So my collage was centered around that, filled with images that inspire me or that represent my writing.

(or Discovering your Characters' Unique Voice)

An idea for a novel comes to me when a character shows up and says "Anastasia, I have a story to tell you." More often than not, the characters come first and then the plot. I know other writers are the opposite, they have a plot and create the characters to fit into the setting. Regardless of how you come up with a new story, it is very important to know your characters inside and out to convey their personalities on the page.

There are different techniques writers use to achieve this, but today, we'll talk about how I get to know my characters.

Like I said, my characters show up, unannounced, in my head and proceed to annoy me endlessly until I tell their story. They talk to me on a daily basis just as my husband talks to me when we are watching television. I'm reminded of a quote that says "Writing is an acceptable form of Schizophrenia" Thank the Gods! Otherwise, I'd be committed. Some would argue I should be anyway, but I digress.

Instead of filling out Q&A character sheets myself, I let my characters do it. How would they answer the questions? I can be hard to do as I do have characters that have ideas that I don't agree with. I don't agree with everything my husband or friends say, but I still love them! The point is to let them fill in the answers, not you.

I tend to talk to my characters like they were sitting next to me. They're are some of my best friends! Like right then, I heard a chorus of "Awww really?" inside my head. It's rather odd sometimes, but I've gotten used to it.

Freaked out yet?

Seriously though, the point here is to know your characters like you know your best friend or your spouse. I know my characters well enough that I can take them out of their story and interact with characters from other stories and still maintain their voice. During those chat sessions, I learn more yet. It puts them in a new situation outside of the story plot and I learn more about who they are.

Example for you. Drache, the hero in Burden of Propecy was chatting with Etharas, Chakor and 3 guy vampires from J.D. Brown's Dark Heirloom (J.D. was there too with her characters of course). I never thought Drache was the violent type, seeing more as a Beta rather than an Alpha type of guy. However, during the little get together, someone (ahem, Etharas) said some not so nice things about Drache's wife. Lo and behold, Etharas was put into his place with a well smacked hand! I was shocked but when I thought about it, it fit. Drache is fiercly loyal and protectice of his wife and won't tolerate anyone putting her down. I was missing his strength of passion in the novel - but I promise you, it's there now!

However you discover your characters inner feelings, thoughts, and voice, just make sure it's their voice and not yours. Yes, authors have their own voice that comes through their writing, but that's a different topic.

***If you'd like to read the entire confrontation with Drache and the rest of the guys, visit The Life and Times of Imaginary People on Aug 28 to read the Poker Party.***

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*

THIS IS MY 100TH POST! **throws confetti** Thus the 100th strike there in the title. But it does still go with the topic of this 100th post! *sigh* 100 posts and almost 100 followers! YAY! I feel so famous! Okay enough of that...

All this month I have been attending a workshop about writing a 2-page synopsis for a novel. It was the hardest thing I have ever had to do! Take my 90K word novel and smush it into 2-pages - are you serious!?

Oh yea, and I fought tooth and nail about it too! Poor Frankie! (Frankie, if you're reading this, I want you to know that I do appreciate everything and I am satisfied with the result even if I hated the process!)

Then yesterday we had the wonderful Logline Blogfest by Bryan. What? I just squeezed my 90K manuscript into 2 pages and now you only want one line!? *screams* I tried my best and thanks to wonderful comments I am trying this again!

I am also including the 30-second pitch here that I learned about through Bryan. When he explained about Loglines and Hooklines for the Blogfest, he linked to an article about writing the One-Sentence Pitch. That one led me to another article for the 'Elevator Pitch' which is about 30-seconds long! So after reading - and re-reading- these articles, I figured I'd give it a shot. I'll need these someday anyway right?

You can read the 5 hooklines I came up for the blogfest here - and there is one more in the comments as well. But here are a few more that I thought up after reading everyone's great suggestions!

1. An ancient prophecy that promises to unite the kingdom once again, throws Rosyani into an epic adventure to save her parents, her husband, and her own life. (This one I put in the comments but I wanted to post it again - because frankly, it's the best one I had yesterday so...)

2. An ancient prophecy promises to unite the five faery kingdoms of Diesquia once again throwing Rosyani into an adventure around the world to save her parents, her husband, and her entire world.

3. Traveling across the world to save her family and her world based on the promises of a forgotten prophecy, Rosyani learns the true meaning of unconditional love.

4. Rosyani must gain control of her powers in order to save her parents, her husband, and herself as she journeys to the human lands to fulfill a prophecy that will unite the faery lands once again.

What do you think? I think they are much better then yesterdays at the very least. I do like #2 the best but I think #4 is good too.

So, on to the 30-second pitch. This one was REALLY hard to do but please be honest! I typed it up and read it outloud (with a stop watch) to make sure it was 30-seconds!

1. (This one is a shortened version of the back cover blurb I wrote for the novel. So I cheated a bit, but I did write a new one too.) Princess Rosyani Celter ached to belong. Little did she know, she'd find that in the Prince of an enemy kingdom. As soon as she finds happiness however, she is thrown into an epic journey to rescue her emotionally detached mother and distant in-laws.

With her new husband by her side, and four other companions, they trudge forward to fulfill a prophecy promising to unite the faery kingdom of Diesquia once again. The obstacles ahead seem insurmountable. Rosyani fears it will destroy them all. In truth, they hate each other based on old laws and myths and that alone is cause for absolute failture. (29 seconds)

2. The humans kidnapped the faery Kings and Queens from five small kingdoms that once fought under one banner. Princess Rosyani Kestar travels with her husband and four other companions to fulfill an ancient prophecy that promises to unite their kingdoms once again.

The obstacles ahead seem insurmountable. Hatred reigns surpreme because of old laws and myths. Their new allegiance is fragile and it seems they will destroy each other before the prophecy comes to pass. All hope is lost for the faery world if they cannot learn to trust each other. (28 seconds)

I think the second one is best as it focuses more on the plot than Rosyani's character. What do you guys think?

This blogfest I think was the hardest for me! But, I was in a synopsis workshop this month too so my mind was alredy thinking of "What's really important here?"

Make sure you go to Bryan's blog to see the list of the other entries! I'm pretty sure the other participants have something better than what I came up with here - after all, I did it at the last minute!

So, here we go. I wrote five different ones for this. Tell me what you guys think! This novel is the one I'm desperately trying to rewrite, and have ready to query by the end of this year - so this is perfect practice!

The Faery's Tale: Burden of Prophecy

1. Spurred by an ancient prophecy, Princess Rosyani Celter desperately tries to hang on to her new marriage as they battle old ideals rooted in ignorance and hatred.

2. Princess Rosyani Celter is thrown into an epic journey spurred by an ancient prophecy, but will her marriage survive the onslaught?

3. An ancient prophecy threatens to tear apart Rosyani's new life with a loving husband who saved her from the hatred of her sisters and his own Father.

4. Prophecy and a journey across the world threatens to tear apart Rosyani's wonderful new life with the faery that saved her from death.

5. Will Rosyani's new life, threatened by old ideals and an ancient prophecy, fall apart before it even begins?

I like #4 the best! What do you guys think? You have read the many blurbs I have put out there so you basically know the jist of the story - so please be honest and tell me what you think. I can take it! Give suggestions if you have anything better! I'll take them gladly!

Oh and on a side note - you all know that I have two other series I'm working on "The Kinir Elite Chronicles" and "The Ryn and Ciyme Adventures". I was able to get titles for the individual books the other day AND thought of plot lines for the rest of the series too!

So here they are!

"The Kinir Elite Chronicles"
Book 1: Cleansing Fire (This is the one that is already written)
Book 2: Death Air
Book 3: Water Requiem
Book 4: Earth Blood

"The Ryn and Ciyme Adventures"
Book 1: Incinerating Harmony
Book 2: Broken Ally (This is the one already written)
Book 3: Pack Bonds

I can't wait to come up with some cover art for these - esp the ones for The Kinir Elite - since their titles have elemental themes it'll be great to come up with some cover art covered in flames or raging water! And of course, I'll post them up here so you guys can see them!

Yes, ladies and gentlemen - a spur of inspiration and frankly, genius struck me last night! I finally had a vision for the cover art for "The Faery's Tale" - the best part? I was able to create covers for ALL THREE PARTS!

I'm so excited about this! Now, I'm sure the sizing is a bit messed up - but hey, it's better than nothing! So, tell me what you think! I just love them! I don't know which one is my favorite either.

Funny note - I made these backwards, as in I made Part Three's cover first - and Part Three is not even finished yet! But the image just came to me! Once that one was done, Part Two popped into my head, then finally this morning, I got Part One's done too!

*claps gleefully!*

And for those that missed the post about me finally getting titles for these, here is a little reminder: Part One "Burden of Prophecy", Part Two "Precipice of Hostility", Part Three "Vestige of Passion".

So yea, in the span of one night, I was able to creat FOUR wonderful works of art! *sigh* Sometimes, it's great being me! Mwahahah!

Oh and I once again redesinged my website. I know, I change it like every other week it seems, but I think I finally found one that fits ME. So go check that out too!

(Yes, for those keeping track, I did not get any sleep last night with 4 cover arts, new web page design, oh yea and 20 assignments graded for "The Writer's Academy".)

Another fun blogfest! I just love these things! This is the "Let's Talk Blogfest" hosted by Roni Griffin aka "The Fiction Groupie".

I'll keep this short, as I am working on super secret project! Well okay, it's not super secret, but I will make a post about it in just a few moments, so come right back to check it out!

I had a hard time picking out a dialogue scene here but I finally settled on a cute little scene between Rosyani and her brother Farien (For those that don't know, these are characters from "The Faery's Tale: Burden of Prophecy") It's a flashback of Rosyani's as she tells her new husband why she ran away from home and why her life was so painful. (Note: It's actually a short entry! GASP!) A new character is mentioned in this scene, Isetaris - Farien's wife.

Her heart ripped from her chest as all the painful memories passed before her eyes. The sight of Eilian with another faery, her sisters chanting that terrible rhyme, her Mother taking her to all those painful doctor visits to find what was wrong.

There was a soft knock at the door and Isetaris poked her head into the room. Instead of waiting for Rosyani to welcome her in, Isetaris went over to the bed and scooped the crying princess into her arms. When Rosyani was down to hiccups, she began to tell Isetaris everything. It poured out of her like a dam had broken. Isetaris listened intently as she rubbed Rosyani's back.

"They just can't see you for how wonderful you are," Isetaris said gently.

"But why? Just because I have no powers," Rosyani hiccupped.

"Some beings just can't be nice while others are so ashamed of their own faults they have to find fault in everyone else. That's how they feel better," Isetaris explained. "You know I don't have any power either."

"Yes, but you are not supposed to. Your race is not born with a specific power. It is not the same thing."

"Yes I know. Just know Rosyani that you aren't the only one that feels left out here. Why don't you take a nap? Sleeping always helps me to feel better."

Rosyani nodded. Isetaris gave her a hug and quietly left the room. Rosyani stayed in her room for the rest of the day, but sleep eluded her. Farien came to check on her after dinner.

"I had Mrs. Dyami make you a tray since I'm sure you haven't eaten since breakfast," he said as he set the tray on the bed-side table.

"Thank you," Rosyani whispered.

"Isetaris told me what happened today. Do you want to talk about it?" he asked gently.

Rosyani shook her head. "I remember when I was little - I would come to you every time I was upset. You would tell that talking about it helps the pain go away," Farien said.

"Not this time, brother," she whispered.

He sat next to her on the bed and put his arms around her. She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed.

"I love you Rosa," he said, calling her by the name that only he and their father were allowed to use.

"I love you too."

They sat that way in silence looking out the window as the sun fell below the horizon. He comforted her the best he could, but they both knew that no amount of hugs from him would make it better. Rosyani wished she could find someone like her brother, who would accept her and love her unconditionally - like he did. When he left, Rosyani lay down and cried herself to sleep.

Okay, the rules of this awesome blogfest was to take a book and write a scene for it that could be considered as a "deleted scene" or a "could have been scene". Well, I could not choose a book! I just can't write about characters that are not my own. Well I can, but it's very hard and takes a lot of work for me.

So, I am going to break the rules a little bit here and post up a deleted scene from one of MY own books.

Make sure you go read the other entries at Mia's blog, Literary Jam and Toast! I'm sure they will be great (and following the rules)!

This scene comes from "The Faery's Tale: Burden of Prophecy" (Yes! Part One has an official title now woot!) I took it out literally just yesterday! You all know from reading previous excerpts that Rosyani and Drache "unite" (get married). Well this is their actual ceremony. I took it out of the story because while it's great, it slowed down the plot. So, I had to take it out. But, now it is here for you all to enjoy!

Set up: Drache's Father sentenced Rosyani to death. Drache saved her and nursed her back to health. He feels the only way to protect her from the wrath of his Father is to make her his wife. This scene happens just after she says yes to his proposal. (As always, it is a bit long. I won't be offended if you don't read the entire thing!)

At nightfall, Drache snuck Rosyani into the castle. They flew over head to avoid the guards and went through the open window to Drache's bedroom. She felt odd being in his room, so she stayed close to the window.

"Wait here," he whispered. He stepped out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.

Curosity got the best of her and she slowly began to walk about his room. Her eyes noticed the small toys on the floor by the fireplace first. She smiled as she envisioned Drache on the floor playing with this sister. She scanned the rest of the room noticing how the bed was not made and his clothes hung out of the wardrobe. It reminded her of her own room. She hated the servants coming into her personal space, only allowing them to clean every once in a while.

She shook her head to keep her thoughts from drifting into more thoughts of home. She sat in one of the plush chairs by the fire and continued to take in the details of Drache's room. Paintings hung on the wall, but she did not recognize the characters depicted in the artwork. She wondered if they were Drache's family or characters from heroic legends.

Rosyani dozed off and was startled when Drache came back into the room. Another faery was with him but she waited by the door.

"Let's go," he whispered. He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the hallway. The other faery followed behind them. "This is Tosca, you remember her?" he said as he tiptoed down the hallway. "She's our witness," he explained.

"We are uniting right now?" she squeeked.

Drache stopped at the top of the stair case and turned to look at her. "It's the..." He struggled for the right words.

"It must be done in haste, Princess. The sooner the better. Then you can move into the castle and begin your new life." Tosca smiled.

Rosyani slowly nodded. Drache squeezed her hand then led her down the stairs. Rosyani struggled to keep up with his pace. He was practicially running down the halls. They came upon a set of large double doors, ornately carved with beautiful designs. Rosyani assumed the center piece was the Kestar crest.

Drache pulled open the doors and stepped inside. He held the doors to keep them from slamming shut. Rosyani surveyed the small room. She guessed it was the family's private temple. There were only enough seats for maybe twenty faeries but the temple was still elaborately decorated. Gold filigree glittered on the walls and the back of the pews. The pews had velvet cushions and backs for plenty of comfort. Blue silk hung on the back wall behind the gold Circross, the symbol of the Gods.

Drache grabbed her hand again and led her down the blue velvet aisle. Their footsteps whispered and echoed off the vaulted ceiling as they made their way to the small altar. Tosca took her seat in the front row and the Priest and Priestess appeared from behind the blue satin wall.

Rosyani felt guilty for she was sure Drache had to wake them up for perform the ceremony. She did not have time to be nervous as the Priest and Priestess began the ceremony.

"We are gathered here to join these two faeries in the ties of union," the Priest said softly. "We will begin by making the pendants they shall wear as a symbol of their devotion."

The Priestess stepped forward and opened a small box that sat on the altar. She pulled out two small vials and a knife. She handed one vial to Drache and the other to Rosyani.

"As is tradition they will now fill the vials with their own blood, to show that they are bound to only each other." The Priestess handed the knife to Drache.

He kissed the handle of the knife first.He slid the blade across his palm as he said the vows. "I, Drache Akual Kestar take you to be my wife." He put a few drops of his blood into the vial then continued. "My blood I give to you as a symbol of my devotion, honor, and love." He kissed the handle of the knife again then handed it to Rosyani.

The Priestess wrapped a bandage around his hand as Rosyani kissed the handle and ran the blade across her own palm. "I, Rosyani Nidea Celter, take you to be my husband. My blood I give to you as a symbol of my devotion, faithfulness, and love." She kissed the handle of the knife a second time then handed it to the Priestess.

The Priest gently bandaged her hand then stood next to the Priestess. They each held one of the vials in their hand and sealed them with their powers. They hung the vials from silver chains and handed them back to the bride and groom.

"These seals will never break or wear away. Give each other the pendants as a seal of the promises you have stated before the witness here."

Drache wrapped the pendant around Rosyani's neck and said, "This promise I make, sealed with my blood."

Rosyani repeated the words as she wrapped the pendant around his neck.

"By trading of blood, they have promised to honor and love each other till the day of their deaths. The witness here has seen and heard this promise," the Priestess said.

The Priest and Priestess glasped hands then raised their arms to the sky. "May the Gods bless you. We prounced these two beings united!"

"Prince Kestar, heir to the throne of Enthril, you may kiss your wife and Queen," the Priest said with a smile.

Drache did not hesitate to lean in and plant a small kiss on Rosyani's lips. Tosca stood and clapped, tears sparkling in her eyes. Drache thanked the Priest and the Priestess and led the Rosyani out of the temple. Tosca wrapped him up into a hug once they were back in the hallway.

"You have grown to be a wonderful faery, Drache. I am so proud of you."

Rosyani stood to the side looking at her pendant. It was all so sudden and she was not sure how to feel or what to think. She was united, she was someone's wife. She never thought it would happen. Now here she was, Princess Kestar.

She was startled out of her thoughts when Drache grabbed her hand.

"You feel all right?"

"Yes," she said with a smile.

"Let's get some sleep. I'll show you the castle in the morning."

Rosyani suddenly realized that they would share a bed. Drache must have just thought of that too for the smile faded from his face and he chewed on his bottom lip.

He squeezed her hand and led her back upstairs, at a much slower pace this time. Rosyani felt a little dizzy. Drache was her husband and she should not feel nervous about sleeping in the same bed as him, but she was. Everything happened so fast, it really had not sunk in that she was united, that it was all right for them to share a bed.

Drache opened the door to his room and she slowly stepped inside. He shut the door then leaned against it. He stayed there, obviously just as nervous as she was.

"If...if you would feel comfortable..."

"No, it is all right. Just still sinking in." She giggled nervously. She turned her back to him. "Could you, uh, help me with the buttons, your highness?"

"S..sure." She could feel his hands shaking as he unbuttoned the tiny buttons. She smiled to herself, finding comfort in the fact that she was not he only one that felt a bit out of sorts. "You know, you can call me Drache now. We are united after all." He took a step back when all the buttons were undone.

She giggled. "Yes. Thank you."

She hesitated before taking the dress off. She felt his eyes on her as she gently laid the dress over the back of one of the chairs. When she looked at him, he stood with his arms crossed over his chest, his feet planted firmly to the floor. Rosyani held back a giggle. He looked like he was ready for an attack, as if at any moment she was going to tackle him.

She took the time to straighted the covers of the bed before climbing in.

"Drache? Are you...coming to bed?"

He shook his head and sucked in a breath. With more speed than she thought was possible, he took off his belt and tunic and threw his boots into the corner. Rosyani could not help but stare at his lean muscular body as he went about the room blowing out the candles and turning off the lanterns.

He crawled into bed next to her and sank into the pillows. The moon shone through the window allowing her to see the outline of his face. He was handsome and kind, compassionate; all the things Rosyani had ever wanted in a husband. He was right, they would be happy together.

Timidly she reached out and wrapped her arm around his waist and rested her head on his shoulder. His body tensed for a moment before he relaxed and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. She meant it only to be a hug but she fell asleep to the steady rhythm of his heart beat.

Okay, I'm posting this early since there is another blogfest going on tomorrow too! Oi! Got a bunch of them coming up this week!

Anyway, this one is for a baking/cooking scene! Woot! My scene is a deleted scene from "The Faery's Tale" The beginning at one time was completely different than it is now, so this is the deleted, will never be used again, so thanks to Charity for giving me a chance to share it!

Check out the other entries for this here!

**The Scene - for those that know and have been readin the excerpts I put up lately, about Rosyani and Drache you know their relationship status and what not. Anyway, in this version, Rosyani got a job at a tavern and has her own house in Enthril - hiding from the King and her family. Drache comes over to have dinner with her once a week. Here is the scene**

She opened the door and saw a large shopping bag with feet. Drache popped his head over the bag with a smile.

“Hello. I brought dinner," he said.

“But I already have groceries.”

“Yes, but I thought tonight I would cook.”

“You can cook?”

“Of course.” Rosyani cocked her eyebrow at him. “Okay fine. I spent the whole day with the cook.”

“That is kinda sweet.”

“You know, working at the tavern has ruined your vocabulary.”

She smiled sweetly. “Thanks.”

Drache rolled his eyes and headed for the kitchen. Rosyani sat at the table to watch him attempt to cook. She found the whole ordeal amusing. It was the first time she had seen him second guess himself as he tried to remember the ingrediants.

Drache finally sat a plate in front of her.

“Oh goodness,” she whispered. “What is this?”

“Stew,” he said matter of fact.

She hesitated before picking up her spoon. It looked nothing like stew. It looked like something she would find on the side of the road. However, she didn’t want to hurt Drache’s feelings. After all, it was his first try.

Taking a small spoonful to her lips, she prayed for courage. She had to fight the urge to spit it out but she managed to swallow it.

She smiled at Drache who smiled back, looking pleased with himself. He scooped a huge spoonful into his mouth and quickly spit it out. Rosyani couldn’t help herself and burst out laughing.

“Sorry,” he said.

“No. It is fine. Truly. Just not my taste is all.

“Liar. I don’t understand what I did wrong.”

He looked down at his plate with the saddest look Rosyani had ever seen. She giggled.

“I think you just added too much spice then overcooked it. Otherwise it is great.”

“Sure. Are you still going to eat it?”

“Goodness no!” she laughed.

“That’s what I thought.”

He cleared the plates and put them in the sink.

“Here, we will start with something simple.” She smiled.

She took out bread, meat slices, cheese, and lettuce. She set the supplies on the counter before getting all the utensils she would need.

“Okay, what we are going to make is called a ‘sandwich’. You take this - called a ‘knife’…”

“Very funny,” Drache said crossing his arms.

She smiled innocently then handed him the knife. Drache made the sandwiches while Rosyani talked him through the process. Once back at the table, Drache seemed proud of himself.

Yes, the day is finally here! I have to say I scrambled to put my own entry together! I know, I'm terrible! I almost missed my own blogfest!

Anyway, don't forget to check out the other entries! I'm sure they are great!

Here is mine - I had to take out the dialogue and edit the scene a bit for this - so let me know if you think it works this way or not.

(Etharas is tied to an iron stake in a tent)

He kicked himself again. If he had been able to stay alert, they would not have been captured. Drache would have found them with the grenan leaves and Letarri certainly would be fine. He had no way of knowing if she was still alive or not and without his powers, he could not find out. He thought about fighting against the iron and trying anyway, at least to gain knowledge of her well being. He shook his head. He could die trying making it a wasted effort.

Sefiya entered the tent with another tray in her hands. She set it on the ground next to Etharas. She filled the spoon and held it up to his lips.

He quirked an eybrow at her in question. She nodded. He rolled his eyes and turned away from her. He heard the spoon clank to the tray and he turned to look at her again. Her arms were crossed over her chest and she looked at him in question. Would he eat or not? He wished he could but the iron made his stomach roll.

She lowered her gaze and played with the poon. She looked back at him, her eyes gentle, and for a moment Etharas thought she would untie him. She raised a glass of water to his lips. He gazed at her over the brim of the cup, trying to read her face. She must have changed her mind about untying him as her eyes hardened once again and she left the tent. He sighed and wished he could have a real drink. At least it would ease his head ache.

So there you go, my scene! It did have a bit of dialogue the original way, but I sort of like it this way! I might leave it!

Okay, so I covered the basics of showing and telling but I felt that emotions deserved a post of their own. And now that I have started writing this, I'm sure I'll make a lot of posts about this particular topic.

Emotions are everywhere and they often run our lives - so why not our characters? They have emotions too! The key is to present them in the right way.

In real life, when a family member or someone close to us has something bad happen to them what do we do? We cry, we panic, we freak out, etc. But how to convey that in a novel is hard to do. Having your character endlessly scream "Oh my God!" doesn't really give the reader much to go on.

If you really think about what happens inside your head when you have a freak out moment (or when your crying, or sulking, or angry, etc) there is so much more than "Oh my God!" Seriously. This is hard to really think about as usually at the time you are too busy freaking out to really pay attention to your thoughts.

But - if you can do it, it really helps to write that scene with a character going through the same thing. So, let's try an exercise.

Think about the last time you had a freak out moment, you were panic-y, not sure what to do. What did you think about - really? I'm sure it was a jumble of thoughts, sentences running over one another - thus the feeling of manic. See? So much more than "Oh my God!"

In a story, of course, you can't just say "Her mind was a whirlwind of thoughts." That's telling, you need to SHOW the whirlwind. I was going to give you two examples of my latest freakout, but then decided I'd save you all the pain of knowing what goes on inside my head. Seriously. I scare myself.

So, here is the first example of telling, with an old scene from one of my novels.

Rosyani silently looked at her sisters with tears in her eyes. She flew to another branch on the other side of Harmona’s trunk.

“What's wrong with you?” Bel asked.

“What is wrong with me? Are you serious?” Rosyani whispered harshly. "Well, go on. You know where I am now so rush home and tell Mother. At least you will leave!” Tears angrily rolled down her cheeks now. She could not help herself. Rosyani just could not believe her own sisters would stoop so low as to follow her just to get her into trouble.

“Rosyani, calm down,” Harmona said.

“Calm down? Calm down? This is…Why can…” Rosyani was so emotional she could not speak. She wanted nothing more than to curl up in a ball and cry. She would not though. She refused to show more weakness to them then she already was.

“Rosyani you're acting like a child,” Bel said. “I don't understand you.”

Rosyani did not say anything. The words would have come out all wrong and she knew it. So she did not even try.

“Rosyani, you need to learn how to talk to faeries. Maybe then you'd have friends,” Soraya said.

Rosyani was beyond angry. She flew away as fast as she could. She did not know where she was headed but had a feeling Harmona guided her. So she just flew to wherever the wind took her. Anyplace would be better than near her sisters.

So let's see where I could have expanded this::

"Tears angrily rolled down her cheeks now" I really need to expand the why here. I only had one explanatory sentence.

"Rosyani was so emotional she could not speak" I had a little bit of explanation there, but not much. I really could have added more to show the reader just how awful her sisters were.

This entire conversation could have really used some more to show why Rosyani is so emotional and so show her emotions better. Her sisters really are awful and I need to show why so that Rosyani's reactions make sense.

So, here is the rewritten version for you to compare.

Rosyani silently looked at her sisters with tears in her eyes. She flew to another branch on the other side of Harmona’s trunk. She hated to be around her sisters, it hurt too much.

“What's wrong with you?” Bel sneered.

“What is wrong with me? Are you serious?” Rosyani whispered harshly. “I was followed by my sisters who enjoy nothing more than tormenting me and you want to know what is wrong with me?! I cannot believe this!" she thought. "Well, go on. You know where I am now so rush home and tell Mother. At least you will leave!” Tears angrily rolled down her cheeks now. She could not help herself. Rosyani just could not believe her own sisters would stoop so low as to follow her just to get her into trouble. She knew that's why they did. It was not from concern for her safety or worry for her - no. They will rush home to tell Mother so she will guarded, not allowed to leave the castle. Was it not enough that they teased her relentlessly? They had to get her into trouble too?

“Rosyani, calm down,” Harmona said.

“Calm down? Calm down? This is…Why can…” Rosyani was so emotional she could not speak. She wanted nothing more than to curl up in a ball and cry. She would not though. She refused to show more weakness to them then she already was. It was only give them more ammunition to use against her later. She could be smiling right now and it would not matter. They would find something to make of her about. Perhaps today it will be her hair style and tomorrow her nose, and the next day it would be her round hips.

“Rosyani you're acting like a child,” Bel said. “I don't understand you.”

Rosyani did not say anything. She could not. The words would have come out all wrong and she knew it. So she did not even try. Why stutter and give them something to laugh about? She tried to pull her emotions back, to reign in the tears and the trembles racking her body. The more she tried, the worse it got. How much longer did she have to deal with them?

“Rosyani, you need to learn how to talk to faeries. Maybe then you'd have friends,” Soraya said.

Rosyani flew away as fast as she could. She did not know where she was headed but had a feeling Harmona guided her. So she just flew to wherever the wind took her. Anyplace would be better than near her sisters.

All right, I'll admit reading it again, it's not totally awesome, but it is a little better I think. At least it hopefully gives you the idea that there is MORE to freaking out and being emotional that just screaming "Oh my God!" and having a "whirlwind of thoughts."

I will expand on this and hopefully talk about each of the emotions in turn. This is just a starter for you to start thinking about. Let me know if there are any specific emotions you want me to talk about!

Yesterday I posted up some examples of telling, the wrong way to show detail and action. Today, I'll be rewriting those blurbs to show showing, the right way.

This post may end up a little long as showing ups the word count considerably. But, in the whole context of a novel or story, that really goes a long way.

As with all things, you must remember balance. Going overboard with showing can drag the story down. Show the important things! If your character is running at full speed, would she/he really notice every single detail? Probably not - so you don't need to talk about every single detail - but it still needs to be shown the correct way.

Setting

Rosyani threw herself on the silk covers of her four post bed. She punched the pillow in frustration and stood to pace around the crowded room. Her toe hit the corner of her dowry chest as she tried to round the end of the bed. She held back the curse, kicked the chest, and cursed aloud. The dowry chest was practically empty anyway, so why did she have it sitting there at the foot of her bed? She opened the lid and took out the few things resting in the velvet interior. Full of cheap, childish keepsakes instead of an actual dowry for marriage, her eyes swelled with tears.

Anger took hold and she picked up the large stone and threw it at the mirror on her vanity. The satisfactory shattering of glass fueled her to pick up a thick tattered book and chuck it at the wardrobe. The strong mahogany held and the book fell to pieces on the floor.

I rewrote yesterday's example on the spot because in the rewrite that the novel originally came from, that scene no longer applied. This is a bit rough I'm sure, but it still shows you how showing the room through Rosyani's perception and actions made for a much better read then listing off the specs.

Characters

I was not sure at first how to rewrite this part as I feel it is necessary to spread out character detail over the course of the novel or based on what other characters would take notice of. I have one male character that is constantly mesmerized by the heroine's eyes but another male character (from another novel) has a fascination with the girl's markings on her skin. So, I posted two paragraphs here, from two different scenes (with the same characters) so that you can see how it's better to space it out instead of listing all a characters assets in one paragraph.

1. Her hair was a frizzy mess with tendrils falling about her face. The green gown she wore was dirty and wrinkled. She looked more like a commoner as opposed to a princess. Drache felt guiltier than ever. She walked with small steps to avoid tripping over the iron chains that hung around her wrists and ankles. She never once looked up from the floor.

2. Drache watched her talking with her brother. Her green eyes sparkled with blue hues, a unique pattern that hypnotized him if he was not careful. While her muscles were tense at the sounds of her sisters cackling and whining at her back, he could tell she loved her brother very much. Her smile was radiant as they talked and Drache wished he could find a way to make her smile the same way. Her smiles toward him had always been genuine over the past year, but none were to that level of utter happiness.

For those that know the general idea from this novel from reading previous excerpts, you know that the first paragraph was when Drache first met Rosyani and the second one is after they were married and he was meeting her siblings for the first time. So you can see how bringing details as Drache noticed them, instead of listing them off, made for better reading. Even though I didn't talk about her hair in the second paragraph, you could easily picture it shiny and golden.

Action

Yesterday, I said to show the action, instead of tell it but as I fell asleep last night my brain when "What the heck does that mean?" So, I'm going to try and explain it as there is a difference. So I hope I don't completely confuse you with this.

The example yesterday was a good example of repetitive sentence structure. "This, then this, then that." To me that is considered telling the action. To show the action instead, emotions, details, and other things need to come into play. As you will see below, I added more to what Soraya did in reaction to what happened to her instead of just listing the action - OH! There it is, telling is just the action, but showing includes the reaction. Yes. I think that works.

Soraya gave up trying to talk to him and flew into the woods towards the castle. She looked over her shoulder to see if the faery was following her. Turning over her shoulder caused her to veer off her course and she ran into a tree. The knock to her head made it impossible for her to recover her flight. She caught branches on her way down and grasped at anything in order to save herself. The ground came up fast, smacking her with a force that knocked the wind from her lungs. She quickly covered her head with her hands as branches and twigs fell on top of her. Once she was able to breathe, she opened her eyes and saw a pair of sandaled feet.

Okay, there are other things wrong with that paragraph, but you get the idea of what I'm trying to say. Obviously, if she ran into a tree like that and fell, she would have some major reactions (i.e. disorientation, short of breath, etc.). So make sure to show action the right way, by explaining the reactions along side the actions.

Dialogue

This one I don't think needs to be explained really. Dialogue is very useful to move a story along and reveal more information. But it still needs to be done correctly! While the example I made yesterday wasn't necessarily wrong, think of all that was missing from it? Internal thought, action, etc. In real life people talk with their hands, their eyes, their bodies at the same time they speak words. So in writing we need to show that too!

"Damn it all to hell!" she muttered. She stepped from his embrace, already missing the warmth found in his arms.

"What's wrong?"

She could see the pain and confusion swirling in his amber eyes. She hated to hurt him, but she knew it wasn't meant to be.

"I do want you but you know that this can't work," she said.

"Why not?" he asked. "The chemistry is there. We care about each other."

But is that enough? She wanted more. A commitment. That required more than just chemistry and care. What about love, passion, and fire? She felt those things for him with such fierceness it hurt. He obviously did not feel the same. Her heart broke into a million pieces as she took another step away from him.

"It just wouldn't!" she choked, trying to hold back the tears. She ran from the room to make sure he didn't see her cry.

Again, there is a lot still wrong with that scene there, but you can see how adding in her internal thoughts added SO much more to the scene. It really carried stronger emotions and got you to understand her pain. (A little. Like I said, there is still a lot wrong with it, but it is still better than yesterdays - hopefully you see the point still.)

Speaking of stronger emotions, I felt that they deserved a show vs tell post of their own. So come back tomorrow for some great examples of emotions and how to show them rather than just tell them.

All writer's know the saying "Show Don't Tell" but what does that really mean?

This post will talk about Telling - the wrong way and tomorrow I'll show the right way - to Show.
Setting

Setting is easy to just tell about it. List off the specs of a room or area. It's rather boring and when reading I often skip these paragraphs.

Here is an example, taken from an old draft of mine.

Her four post bed was large - something Rosyani thought was ridiculous - and took up most of the floor space in the room. Her wardrobe sat along the wall to the left of the bed, while her writing desk was on the opposite wall. Rosyani's dowry chest rested at the foot of the bed, preventing the door from opening all the way.

I'll show this again tomorrow, rewritten in the right way. (Or at least a better way)

Characters

The only time I feel it's right to raddle off a list of character specs is if the character doing the observing is a spy or a cop or someone who would literally list specs of another person. Otherwise, I skip over these list of specs as well when reading. You can usually find a list of character specs in one full sentence - at least I do.

Pulling the soft flowing dress over her head, she smiled to herself. The green color accented the green flecks in her normally blue eyes. She continued to smile as she tied a simple silver belt around her waist with her pouch. Rosyani glanced in the mirror as she added her one piece of jewelry - a colorful bracelet her father had given her before he died. The princess pulled her long blond hair into a single braid - her usual style - before looking around her room.

This example here, might not read exactly as a list of specs, but it is rather boring I say. I mention every aspect of her looks in one paragraph. I think the very original version of this paragraph also included her high cheekbones and full, pouty lips but I don't have that version on this computer. But still - it's a dull paragraph.

Action

But Harley, action is supposed to be short commanding sentences. Yes, but it loses the edge when the sentences fall into a pattern of "this, then this, then that". Some may not say this is part of the "show don't tell" but I think so. SHOW the action, don't just TELL it.

Soraya gave up trying to talk to him and flew into the woods towards the castle. She looked over her shoulder to see if the faery was following her. Since she was not looking where she was going she ran into the top of a tree and fell. She landed on the ground with a thud. She opened her eyes to see a pair of sandaled feet.

Seriously, I am very dissapointed at myself with this original draft. It's all telling, no showing.

Dialogue

Once again, I think this fits into "show vs tell" nicely but some may disagree with me. SHOW me how the characters talk, don't just tell me. This is where the adverbs tend to take over thus losing the actual feel of the scene or conversation. (I made this scene up on the spot, so it's probably worse off than normal.)

"Damn it all to hell!" she whispered harshly.

"What?"

"I do want you but you know that this can't work," she said.

"Why not?" he asked. "The chemistry is there. We care about each other."

"It just wouldn't!" she yelled then stormed out of the room.

Yea, didn't really tell you much about what was going on did it? It was hard for me not to fill in all the holes and such here as the scene played out in my head - but don't worry. You'll get the whole scene tomorrow!

Yay! Yet another blogfest! I just love these things! This one is thanks to Tara, over at Secret Story! Make sure you check out the other entries too!

Okay, to set you up a little bit, many of you remember the beginning part of this in an earlier post I made about listening to your characters and compared two scenes. This is what happens after that! (And since I'm awesome, if you want to read the beginning part of this, you can find it here. It's the second half of the post, in purple font.)

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He caught sight of Letarri coming back into the tavern. She looked a little more steady on her feet but not much. She wobbled through the crowd but was stopped by a tall faery. Etharas nudged Cadmus to get his attention. The faery was talking to her and she responded back. Seemed innocent enough, but Etharas kept an eye on them just to be sure. He did not know the type of faeries that came to this tavern.

Letarri leaned against a chair for support. Her eyes were half closed, almost in a seductive way. Etharas’s senses were on full alert. He doubted any other male would see that look for what is was - a first time drinker feeling the effects of three shots of Caderis. They would see her teetering as a sign that she was trying to get closer to them, not keep her balance.

“Think we should go get her?” Cadmus asked.

“No. Not until he tries something. I don’t want to cause a ruckus if there is no reason.”

He probed Letarri’s mind for her thoughts. Even in her brain she sounded slurred and drunk.

“Why is he talking to me? I don’t know him. Where is Etharas? What did he just say? Wants me to go upstairs?”

Etharas stiffened but stayed in his seat. He saw her mouth from the words “No thank you.” The faery apparently did not want to take no as an answer and continued to push the issue.

“Is he stupid? I just said no. I wish I could move. Why aren’t my feet working?”

Etharas decided enough was enough. She was too drunk to control the situation. He slid off the barstool and made his way over to them. He slid his arm around her waist and smiled down at her.

“Hello, love! I have been looking for you everywhere.”

“What?” she mumbled. “Love? Gods his arms are strong.” She leaned into him and his grip on her waist tightened. She giggled seductively into his ear.

“I should get her to bed,” he said to the faery with a laugh. He started to half carry, half drag Letarri away.

The faery tapped him on the shoulder. When Etharas turned back around, his face met with the faery’s fist. He and Letarri fell back into one of the tables.

Etharas stood back up and spit the blood from his mouth. “I don’t want any trouble. Just want to get my lady up to bed.”

“His lady? Is he talking about me? Oh if only.” Letarri giggled.

Momentarily caught off guard by Letarri’s thoughts, he took another punch to the face. Cadmus came over and gathered Letarri from the floor where she sat.

Once Letarri was out of the way, Etharas swung back. The faery crashed into the table behind him. The patrons gathered around them, chanting for more blood. Etharas knew that bets were being made about who would win the fight.

The faery stood back up. Blood trickled from a cut on his forehead and he was already showing signs of a black eye. Etharas probed the mind of the faery and easily dodged the next swing.

The fight went on like that for a few moments, the faery swinging and Etharas ducking. Etharas dodged another and when he stood back to his full height, he swung his left fist into the jaw of the faery. Etharas counted on the fact the faery was much drunker than he was.

Etharas was surprised when the faery stood back up though. This time Etharas hit him with a right hook and the faery stayed down.

A second faery stepped forward to defend his friend. Etharas rolled his eyes and groaned. He hated this part of any fight. He stopped paying attention to what punch was thrown and merely concentrated on not getting hit. He spread out his power into the minds of all of the patrons to make sure no one snuck up on him.

Cadmus apparently had gotten into the fight after he made sure Letarri was safely curled up on the stairs.

Etharas was so lost in the sea of punches and kicks that he failed to notice the fire that had started before it was almost too late. As if in slow motion, he watched the fire eat its way across the bar to all the liquor bottles.

“Every one get out of here!” he yelled.

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Tada! Etharas is definitely one of my favorite characters. He's just so much fun to write! His telepathy makes for some really fun scenes (especially around Letarri!)

*sigh* I love writing!

Okay, this is technically supposed to be posted tomorrow but it is also the Murder Scene Blogfest so I am putting this one up here today!

Also, according to my schedule, it should have been Fantasy Friday. When have you ever known me to follow a schedule!? Exactly.

Here we go! This scene is the first kiss between Letarri and Etharas, and it's Letarri's first kiss ever too! (Of course, from "The Faery's Tale") Enjoy!

And as a note, a few scenes before this one, all their clothes burned so they had to buy new ones that are a bit - unmodest. Letarri is in something like a genie would wear and Etharas basically is just wearing pants! So...

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She did not have time to scream when a strong hand grabbed her arm and pulled her into the alley. She was thrown against the wooden walls of the building. She kept her eyes tightly shut, frozen in fear. She felt the being place its hands on the wall, his arms right next to her head.

"Why are you following me, little faeya?" she heard the harsh whisper.

She peaked through one eye to see Etharas smiling at her. She let out the breath she was holding and sagged against the wall.

"What, uh, what makes you think I was following you?"

"I can read your thoughts," his voice echoed in her head.

Her eyes widened in shock. "All of them?" she whispered. She was more embarassed than shocked. Her own brother was telepathic so hearing his voice in her head did not bother her. It was the fact that she had been thinking of him all day - and he definitely knew it.

"All the time," he whispered back.

Their faces were mere inches apart. She could feel the heat radiating off his body. Him so close made it hard for her to think. The lamp from the street cast a shadow over his face but she could see the devilish gleam in his eyes. She wished she could read his mind, to know what he was going to do next.

"All the time? What am I thinking now?"

"You think I'm dangerous." The look in his eyes almost proved her point. "And you like it."

She giggled nervously. Her vision flashed in her mind of him kissing her, a deep demanding kiss that left her wanting the real thing.

"That's not fair," she breathed. "Filling my head with visions like that. It's not nice."

He smiled but the look of innocence was lost. "I think you thought of that all by yourself, little faeya."

She giggled again and tried to back away, forgetting she was already against the wall. Etharas still had her pinned by his arms on both sides of her head. She could easily duck under his arm and run, but her feet would not cooperate.

"I...I've never kissed any one before," she admitted.

His head jerked back, a shocked expression on his face. Slowly his mischievious smile returned. Before Letarri could blink, he leaned in closer, his lips touching hers in a feather light kiss.

Letarri whimpered, wanting more. He did not hold back as he pressed a demanding kiss to her lips.

*~*~*~*~*

He had only meant to tease her a little but when she whimpered, he could not stop himself. He forgot about proper etiquette and merely followed his instincts.

He ran his fingers through her air, enjoying the feel of the silken strands. Her hands timidly moved up his bare chest to his shoulders. Goosebumps raised on his flesh as her arms wrapped around his neck. He forgot where they were, lost in the intoxicating kiss.

Reality came flooding back to him, when someone grabbed his hair and pulled him backwards. He tried to fight back but he was thrown to the ground. Letarri was thrown down next to him and their hands were tied behind their back.

"You are under arrest for prostitution," a male faery said.

---------

Aren't I so mean to my characters? Can't let them have a first kiss in peace! Mwahahah!

Oh! And look at that! It's actually a short entry! Woot!

Okay, first thing I'd like to say, is that I am now following exactly 100 blogs. It's crazy right? I know. The worst part is, I actually read pretty much every new post that these wonderful writer's put up. Do I always comment on them? No, but I do read them all! (I'm a fast reader, so it doesn't take me too much time and it's not like ALL 100 blogs post every day....)

Now on the real point of this post. In the Beginning Blogfest! Guess what? This post will be a short one! So yes, I hope you enjoy this (and actually read the entire thing!)

She only had hours to live. In the cold, dank jail cell, she paced, waiting for the inevitable. The waiting bothered her the most. She wrung her hands to keep them from tembling.

Oddly enough, she felt a shred of joy. It would all be over soon. All the suffering she had to endure the last sixty years of her life would be over. She could not wait.

As time ticked by, her pacing picked up speed. In truth, she did not really want to die. Being stoned to death would be a slow and agonizing end. Still, the end result was what she looked forward to. No more pain. No more loneliness. Just the sweet bliss of death.

"It's time." The guard opened the cell door.

"I am ready."

See? I told you it was a short one! Check out the other entries by going over to Kelly's blog and seeing the list there!

And since I am me and can't have an excerpt so short, I'll post the ending of the chapter too, (that's when it switches back to her POV) just for fun! *giggle*

The cart stopped in the middle of the market place and the guards kicked Rosyani onto the cobbled ground of the square. The castle stood tall in the background, the royal banners waving in the breeze. An eerie silence hung over the place, the only sound heard was the squeaky cart and flapping flags. Even infants hushed their crying.

It seemed the entire town showed up for the event. Faeries stood shoulder to shoulder in the square, shoving each other to get a closer look. Faes sat on shoulders of their parents while older faes stood by holding tight to a hand. Rosyani tried to read them, their stone cold faces told her they would show no mercy.

“Faeries of the kingdom of Enthril, the faery you see before you is an enemy of our great nation. She trespassed into our land. The King has sentenced her to death by stoning. May the sentencing commence immediately,” the herald chanted to the crowd.

The crowd cheered as the guards stepped out of the way. Rosyani stood still with her eyes closed as the crowd circled around her. The first stone came from a small fae. It hit Rosyani in the leg. She flinched but did not cry out. A hush fell over the crowd before a volley of stones came towards Rosyani. In just a few minutes, Rosyani’s legs and arms dripped with blood. Tears streamed down her face but she refused to make a sound. It would only fuel the blood lust of the crowd.

She prayed it would be over soon. The pain was intense. She wanted the blackness of death to take over, to make the pain stop, so we would not have to hide her pain any longer. She wondered if Eterven really sat among the clouds. Would she be wanted there? Would the angels judge her too? A sudden wave of panic took over as she thought that even in Eterven she would not be accepted. Death no longer appeared to be a comfort.

Finally, unable to stand, she fell to her knees. Rosyani was covered in bruises, cuts, and blood. Both eyes were swollen shut and her body trembled from the pain. A stone hit her in the stomach and she fell face first into the dirt. She tried to get back up to her knees but her arms gave out when another stone landed on her back.

Rosyani lay still and waited for the pain to stop, waited for the blackness to take over. She suddenly felt weightless as if someone had picked her up. She heard muffled cries of disappointment from the crowd then a male voice said that she was dead.

“Thank the Gods,” she thought. “I am dead and he is an angel come to take me away. It is over.” Rosyani blacked out as her angel took flight and took her away.

It's still a pretty short post anyway! I hope you guys enjoyed it! I have to say this first chapter is my favorite one! There is another 4,000 words to it not posted here but...I won't make you read the whole thing (yet!)

This is my first blogfest so I hope I didn't totally screw it up! It was really fun! I have two different versions here so I hope there is something for everyone here!

Check out the other entries! I have read a few already and they are awesome! The original post has a list with the participants! Check it out! Thanks Livia for putting this on!

Original Version: High Fantasy Genre

She felt heavy. She tried to move her arms but they felt like they were full of sand. Her eyes would only open a sliver, making it hard for her to see. The fog in her brain did not help her either as she tried to remember what had happened. She heard muffled voices and felt pressure on her shoulders.

"Where am I?" she rasped.

"You're in the cave in Enthril," a soft female voice said. Rosyani tried to turn her head towards the sound but her neck screamed in pain.

"What's wrong with my eyes?"

"They're badly swollen. You took quite a beating before the Prince could save you."

"The Prince?" He saved her? Why? From what exactly? She tried to remember but all she could recall was the conversation they had in the jail. Had she been sentenced to death?

"Yes, he saved your from the crowd just before it was too late. Don't worry, you're eyes will heal in time."

"I do not understand."

The female put a damp cool cloth on Rosyani's forehead. "You don't remember? The King sentenced you to death by stoning. Prince Kestar fought with his father about your death and finally rescued you himself."

Rosyani tried to shake her head but her neck protested the movement. She whimpered as she tried to move other parts of her body. Everything felt stiff and heavy. Every inch of her body hurt. The clouds in her brain prevented actual memories from surfacing but she had no reason to doubt the faery, especially since every part of her body ached.

"Calm down, little fae," the soft voice soothed. "I am just going to change your bandages. Let's get some water into you first, all right?"

Rosyani felt the edge of a cup placed against her lips. She drank greedily, trying to wash away the feel of grit and sand in her mouth. She forced herself to relax despite the panic she felt. She did not know who the female voice was, but she had little choice in fighting about it. Finally she was able to relax and she fell back into the painless oblivion of the darkness.

The next time she woke up, she was able to open her eyes a little more than just a sliver. She could clearly see the roof of the cave, the stalactites pointing down at her. She slowly turned her head to the right. Drache sat there, looking down at his lap. She heard the rustle of paper as he turned the page of his book.

"What day is it?"

He turned to look at her and smiled. "It's Ranadae. We've been here for almost a week. You're healing quite nicely."

"Wh.." Her sentence was interrupted by a cough. She felt the edge of a cup against her lips as he helped her to drink.

"Can you see yet?" he asked.

"A little. What are you reading?"

"Oh. 'Fattal's Adventures'."

"Would you read me some?"

She heard the smile in his voice when he began to read. His voice was deep but still held a youthful tone to it. Rosyani found comfort in it as the sound washed over her. She did not pay much attention to the actual story. She simply enjoyed the vibrations of his voice as he read.

*******************

In the middle of the night, Drache woke up with a start. Tosca stood over him with a look of concern on her face.

"Drache, I had to bring a Healer. We can't wait for her to heal on her own. Your Father is angry, wondering where you are," she whispered.

"He wonders where I am now?" Drache said exasperated. "He never cared before if I disappeared for a few days."

"Apparently you are needed for a political decision. I'm not sure on the specifics. I try not to get involved in such things."

"All right." He turned his head to see the Healer kneeling over Rosyani. She softly explained that the healing process might hurt but when it was over, Rosyani would be back to normal.

He saw Rosyani nod then set her jaw in determination. He turned away when he heard her groan in pain as the Healer spread her magic over Rosyani's body. He was filled with anger at his Father. Of all the times his Father noticed his own son was not around, was the time when Drache needed the secrecy.

The Healer came over to them a few moments later. "She'll probably sleep the rest of the night. She'll be good as new in the morning, your highness. She'll be extremely stiff from the effects of her injuries and the healing, so you might need to help her move about for a while."

"You are sworn to secrecy." Drache said firmly but his face softened when he added, "Thank you."

"Yes, your highness." She bobbed a curtsey then followed Tosca out of the cave.

Drache went over to Rosyani's side. She was sleeping peacefully. Her eyes were no longer swollen and all the cuts and bruises were gone. Dried blood still stained the straw mat and the cotton gown she wore. Drache made a note to burn those things later. He hated the fact that a Healer had to become involved. He knew that Tosca would keep the secret without ordering her silence. He hated having to order silence to the Healer but it was the only way.

New Version: Urban Fantasy

She felt heavy. She tried to move her arms but they felt like they were full of sand. Her eyes would only open a sliver, making it hard for her to see. The fog in her brain did not help her either as she tried to remember what had happened. She heard muffled voices and felt pressure on her shoulders.

"Where am I?" she rasped.

"In the cave in Enthril," a soft female voice said. Rosyani tried to turn her head towards the sound but her neck screamed in pain.

"What's wrong with my eyes?"

"They're badly swollen. You took quite a beating but my Lord rescued you before it was too late.

"Who?" Who saved her? Why? From what exactly? She tried to remember but all she could recall was the conversation she had with Lord Drache. Had she been sentenced to death?

"Yes, he saved your from the crowd just before it was too late. Don't worry, you're eyes will heal in time."

"I do not understand."

The woman put a damp cool cloth on Rose's forehead. "You don't remember? You were sentenced you to death by bittening. Lord Kestar fought with his father about your death and finally rescued you himself."

Rosyani tried to shake her head but her neck protested the movement. She whimpered as she tried to move other parts of her body. Everything felt stiff and heavy. Every inch of her body hurt. The clouds in her brain prevented actual memories from surfacing.

"Calm down, little girl," the soft voice soothed. "I'm just going to change your bandages. Let's get some water into you first, all right?"

Rosyani felt the edge of a cup placed against her lips. She drank greedily, trying to wash away the feel of grit and sand in her mouth. She forced herself to relax despite the panic she felt. She did not know who the female voice was, but she had little choice in fighting about it. Finally she was able to relax and she fell back into the painless oblivion of the darkness.

The next time she woke up, she was able to open her eyes a little more than just a sliver. She could clearly see the roof of the cave, the stalactites pointing down at her. She slowly turned her head to the right. Drache sat there, looking down at his lap. She heard the rustle of paper as he turned the page of his book.

"What day is it?"

He turned to look at her and smiled. "It's Ranadae. We've been here for almost a week. You're healing quite nicely."

"Wh.." Her sentence was interrupted by a cough. She felt the edge of a cup against her lips as he helped her to drink.

"Can you see yet?" he asked.

"A little. What are you reading?"

"Oh. 'Fattal's Adventures'."

"Would you read me some?"

She heard the smile in his voice when he began to read. His voice was deep but still held a youthful tone to it. Rosyani found comfort in it as the sound washed over her. She did not pay much attention to the actual story. She simply enjoyed the vibrations of his voice as he read.

*******************

In the middle of the night, Drache woke up with a start. Tosca stood over him with a look of concern on her face.

"Drache, you have to turn her. I'm afraid she's beginning to show signs of bite sickness. Your Father is angry, wondering where you are," she whispered.

"He wonders where I am now?" Drache said exasperated. "He never cared before if I disappeared for a few days."

"Apparently you are needed for a clan decision. I'm not sure on the specifics. I try not to get involved in such things."

"All right." He turned his head to looks at Rosyani's still form. He did not want to turn her. She was innocent, human, normal. He hated to take that away from her. It seemed he had no choice. She would die if he did not help her.

He was filled with anger at his Father. Of all the times his Father noticed his own son was not around, was the time when Drache needed the secrecy. He searched Tosca's face for any help, but she only confirmed his fears.

Bite sickness would not kill her but it would turn her into something terrible. A vampire sure, but one that would never be satisfied. He had to turn her now, in a natural way to save her from the horrible thirst. He struggled with his own often enough. To never be satisfied was something he would not wish on anyone.

He slid over to her side and pulled the knife from his belt. Her physical wounds were merely red lines of scabs but he knew underneath was a raging torrent of poison. And now he was going to add more to it. He was going to curse her in order to save her.

Her chest rose and fell with her steady breathing. Drache hesitated only a moment before plunging the knife into her chest. After all he had done to save her, he was killing her. He turned his head away as her eyes flew open and she screamed out. He could not bear to look into her eyes. He was certain fear, doubt, and confusion swam in her blue pools.

Her arm reached out to grip his arm. He tried to ignore it as he twisted the knife in her chest, another scream escaping her throat. He heard her heartbeat in his ears began to slow. He focused on it, counting the beats, waiting for the exact moment.

His eyes opened as the moment approached, his normally stormy blue eyes turning blood red. His fangs extended and a growl escaped his throat. Another moment passed. Rosyani's heartbeat slowed more and more as the seconds ticked by. Drache finally turned his head to look at her. He avoided looking to her eyes and instead looked at the pulsing vein in her neck. His thirst took over and any hesitation he had before drowned in her blood.

New Version: Mystery Genre
(I changed the names a bit for this one, just to make them look more "normal" Rosyani is Rose, Drache is Drake, Tosca is Tessa)

She felt heavy. She tried to move her arms but they felt like they were full of sand. Her eyes would only open a sliver, making it hard for her to see. The fog in her brain did not help her either as she tried to remember what had happened. She heard muffled voices and felt pressure on her shoulders.

"Where am I?" she rasped.

"Bellvue Hospital," a soft female voice said. Rose tried to turn her head towards the sound but her neck screamed in pain.

"What's wrong with my eyes?"

"They're badly swollen. A police officer rescued you before it was too late."

"I do not understand."

The female put a damp cool cloth on Rosyani's forehead. "You don't remember? From what I couldn't gather, you were attacked. Officer Kestar happened to come along. You're very lucky he did."
Rose tried to shake her head but her neck protested the movement. She whimpered as she tried to move other parts of her body. Everything felt stiff and heavy. Every inch of her body hurt. The clouds in her brain prevented actual memories from surfacing but she had no reason to doubt the faery, especially since every part of her body ached.

"Calm down, little one," the soft voice soothed. "I am just going to change your bandages. Let's get some water into you first, all right?"

Rose felt the edge of a cup placed against her lips. She drank greedily, trying to wash away the feel of grit and sand in her mouth. She forced herself to relax despite the panic she felt. She could smell the bleach and feel the whiteness of the hospital room. Finally she was able to relax and she fell back into the painless oblivion of the darkness.

*******************

In the middle of the night, Officer Kestar woke up with a start. Nurse Tessa stood over him with a look of concern on her face.

“Officer, there is a man here looking for her. I left him at the nurse’s station and thought I should tell you.”

Drake shook his head to clear the cobwebs from his sleepy brain. “Yes, thank you. Did he say who he was and why he wanted to see her?”

“He said he was her brother. The thing is we checked her medical records and found no evidence of a brother.”

“Okay, thanks for letting me know.” He stood and his legs protested the movement. Sleeping in a plastic chair was not good for him. He opened the door to Rose’s room to check on her. Nurse Tessa’s shoes squeaked as she made her way back down the hall to the nurse’s station. The only other sounds were Rose’s soft breathing and the steady beep of the ECG machine.

A crash echoed down the hall. Drake’s hand instinctively went to his holster. His gut told him he had to get Rose out of there. There was something more going on than a simple mugging or attack. He could feel it.

He saw a silver food tray hit the wall and saw a man fall backwards. Nurse Tessa was giving the guy a run for his money. Drake smirked and stepped into Rose’s room. He made quick work of unplugging her from the machines.

He picked her up and stepped out of the room, heading in the opposite direction of the fight. Drake took the stares hoping to avoid any security that would have been called to help Tessa.

It wasn’t until he had Rose secured in the back of his squad car that he began to doubt his decision. Where was he to take her? He shook his head and jumped in the driver’s seat. His gut screamed to get her away from this place. The engine roared to life and he squealed out of the parking lot. He knew of one place where she could be safe. Turning the car towards the edge of town, he prayed that she would still be there and would help him.

There we go! I hope you guys enjoyed it! I sure had fun writing them!