Hello again! It’s time for WIPpet Wednesday, the day when adventurous authors from many a genre share a snippet form a work in progress that relates in some day to today’s date.
Today I’ll be sharing again from my not-yet-being-ripped-apart-by-my-editor WIP, a prequel novella to the Bound trilogy. Today I’m going to keep it simple in context, if not in math: 15 sentences (9+1+6 for 9/16, minus one for clarity) from the beginning of chapter one.
A perfect party, Maggie thought as she retreated toward the food. If only I deserved it.
A lavish spread of desserts covered the table so that not even a hint of the rich mahogany surface beneath showed between plates of tiny cakes, fresh fruit, spun sugar candies stacked into a glittering castle, and wine that flowed as though from an unending spring. Music filled the air, the notes laughing their way through the crowd of students and guests, mixing with hushed conversations and the soft rustle of dresses on the dance floor.
Maggie reached for a glass of wine—her sixth of the evening—and let her focus soften as she watched the party go by. Her father, headmaster of the finest school to ever teach young Sorcerers and Sorceresses, had spared no expense for his only daughter’s twenty-second birthday celebration. The dining hall had been transformed. Literally, in some respects, thanks to one talented young Sorcerer’s gift with illusion, and another’s skills with light. The lamps on the walls, filled for the night with rare dragon oil, burned brighter than Maggie had ever seen them, casting an ethereal glow over every face, every gown.
A birthday party fit for a queen, or perhaps a Sorceress. Maggie brushed a hand over the skirts of her dress, smoothing the deep red folds, and wondered whether that made her an imposter for playing along with it, or merely a fool. She was no queen, and never would be. The island nation of Belleisle didn’t even offer the position. And she certainly was no Sorceress. Though she’d lived her life surrounded by magic, she’d never felt the faintest hint of it in herself.
And then nothing else interesting ever happened to her, the end.
PFFT.
Not quite.
Want to get in on the WIPpet Wednesday fun? Post your date-related snippet on your own blog, link back to the fun-filled link here, be sure to stop by and comment on the other WIPpeteers’ posts, and… actually, that’s about it.
Big thanks to KL Schwengel who is a fine author and a kick-ass beta reader. Literally. She will kick your ass. It hurts, but it makes you stronger.
disregard the prologue 
September 16th, 2015 at 10:26 am
I want a dragon oil lamp now, and maybe a spun sugar candy castle, too. Six glasses of wine, not so much….
Your descriptions and foreshadowing pulled me right into this world. Now I’m hungry – for food, and for more story!
September 16th, 2015 at 10:52 am
Wooo! What an awesome punch at the end!
I probably should have waited till after breakfast to read this. Now I am really hungry! Great descriptions and pacing.
September 16th, 2015 at 12:02 pm
I’ll take shanjeniah’s 6 glasses of wine – red, please.
September 16th, 2015 at 1:49 pm
Great descriptions in this snippet, Kate!
And while I like my wine, 6 glasses would probably have me under the table …
September 18th, 2015 at 10:57 am
Nice. 😀
September 18th, 2015 at 11:26 pm
Ack, poor Maggie. Gotta suck growing up in that environment and not being able to participate.
September 19th, 2015 at 2:10 am
I loved this! I was disappointed when the snippet ended 😦
September 19th, 2015 at 7:48 pm
Did you make a person switch? Aren’t the other books in first person? (The third one isn’t out yet, right? I didn’t completely miss everything?)
The internal is great. 🙂 And for some reason the color of the dress struck me as very important. Not sure why. Red standing out, maybe? A little too conspicuous? I pictured velvet, by the way.
September 19th, 2015 at 8:29 pm
I did. Boy, you’re good! This one is in fairly deep third person. The story flowed naturally that way, and I wanted to stretch myself a bit. The Binding (the other prequel) was a slightly different style as well, incorporating present tense and memories/flashbacks with first person narration in short story format. These bonus stories felt like a good place to play around and keep things fresh while keeping the main books consistent for those who don’t want to detour off the main road.
And you’re right, the third one isn’t out yet. 🙂