Tag Archives: magic

December 11, 2013

Oh, the Wednesdayness

By Kate Sparkes

SO much Wednesday.

I didn’t link my WIPpet Wednesday offering back to the linkie-poo last week, because I knew I wouldn’t have time to visit everyone, and it seemed unfair to link and run. I’m going to make time this week, though, even if it kills me.

Okay, maybe not if it kills me. But even if it kills my productivity. 😉

ROW80

Hey, speaking of productivity… I worked out a tentative schedule for next year, involving the release of two books, participating in two writing events (NaNoWriMo and JuNoWriMo), and drafting a third novel. I even colour-coded this plan so I could see what I’d be working on each month, and I scheduled in “read over edits, cry, regroup” at the end of February, just to be safe. I AM SO ORGANIZED.

It’s doable. It’s insane, but it’s possible. It’s also subject to change. If my TMJ is caused by stress, the next year won’t help, but what the heck. I said I was going to do this. I’m going to do it.

*hyperventilates*

I got nothing done this past weekend. I think December is going to be a month of rest, once I finish this draft of Torn (one scene to go!). There’s just too much else going on. And that’s okay. January is going to be nuts, what with revising and pre-editorial edits for Bound HOLY CRAP WHAT AM I DOING.

*breathes into paper bag*

I may have gone into the wrong business.

WIPpet Wednesday

Moving on…

Remember the character I (sort of) introduced a few weeks back? This week’s snippet is from her again. Nox has just gone for a sunset walk in the woods with a man she hardly knows, against her better judgement. She got a little weirded out when he said he wanted to go swimming…

…and got quite a surprise when he resurfaced and revealed that he’s not human. In his defense, this is not an easy thing to tell a woman you’re growing fond of.

I know it needs work yet, but I kind of love this moment. Nox is usually such a hard-ass.

11 paragraphs for the 11th, and two bonus paragraphs because… um… I like them?

—

Suddenly I felt shy. “Can I see it?”

Kel grinned, then pulled himself out of the water and onto the rock. He rested his chin on his crossed arms and flicked his tail. “Go ahead.”

He was unlike anything I had ever imagined when people spoke of the mer-folk. There was no clear place where man ended and mer began. My gaze moved over the greyish skin that stretched over sleek shoulder muscles, then along the valley of his spine to that incredible tail. It was longer than his legs had been, ending in a thick, notched fluke that he moved slowly, rippling the surface of the water where it touched.

“Can I-”

“Mm-hmm,” he said, and closed his eyes. I reached out, hesitant, and placed my hand flat against his hip. His skin was as smooth as it looked, as flawless as his face and the rest of his body, except for a scar that curved diagonally around the side half-way down his tail. I traced the scar with my finger, and found it just barely raised over the rest of the skin.

“That was a net,” he said. “I was young and didn’t know any better. I got tangled, and the rope dug in. It only scarred because I was stuck for so long. We’re quite hardy, usually.”

“That must have been frightening,” I whispered, not wanting to disturb the near perfect silence of the forest. I shifted myself toward the end of Kel’s tail and he lifted it out of the water. I ran my hand over the fluke, then back up the centre of the tail toward his back. I could feel the bones there, just under the skin. He shivered, and I pulled my hand away.

“No, don’t stop,” he said. “It’s nice. Odd to have a human touching me when I’m like this, but good.”

I put my hand back where it had been and continued up. Strange how his body became more human as it got closer to the middle. I’d seen pictures of something called a dolfin, and its tail looked like his, but it didn’t have the narrowing at the waist, above what would have been his-

I jerked my hand away. I just touched his butt.

Kel rolled onto his side, propped himself up on one arm and gave me a lazy grin. “Time to get back? You must be getting cold.”

“Um, yes.” I was actually feeling fairly warm, but he didn’t need to know that. “I’ll wait for you to get dressed.”

I sneaked one more look before I left. His front was more impressive than the back. Stomach muscles strong from swimming drew my gaze toward his tail, which was flat and a lighter grey on the underside.

I wonder how–

I cut that thought off before it could start, and walked back into the woods far enough to give him privacy to change and dress. I’d have to be careful with this one.

—

I know how. I don’t think that’s appropriate to discuss here and now, though. Jeez, think of the children, guys.

So, WIPpet Wednesday. Swing by to see our host, K.L. Schwengel here, and find the other WIPpeteers here, adding their lovely goodies as the day progresses. Check early, and check often. If you want to join in… well, most of you know the rules. I really need a post to link to every week. Post a snippet of your work in progress on your own blog, make sure it relates to today’s date (somehow… heh), and link back. Make sure you like and/or comment on other WIPpeteers’ posts, too! What goes around comes around and all of that. 🙂

In other news: Snow. Yay.

20131211-084741.jpg

19 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , | posted in ROW80, Torn, WIPpet Wednesday

November 13, 2013

Wednesday Stuff: So Many Question Marks

By Kate Sparkes

ROW80:

I think my twitter feed says a lot about how writing went for me this week.

*Wrote. Ugh.

But…

I count this as proof that BICFOK (butt in chair, fingers on keys) works, even when distractions abound and motivation seems to be at a standstill. And the words, they are not all crap. True, I did have to write circles in that one scene with an uncooperative character, and ended up skipping it for now, but this is how the story gets written.

It also gets written with a lot of typos. I blame the excessive amounts of caffeine I’m consuming.

So there you go. Closing in on 30,ooo words now out of a 50,000 word month and a 100,000 word draft goal.

And speaking of those words that I hope are not all crap…

WIPpet Wednesday

For the thirteenth of NOVEMBER (jeez, I wrote October again!) I offer the last 13 paragraphs I wrote, as of right now (this being Tuesday at 11:10 am, because I’m on the ball this week). Aren’s hubris (that should be his middle name, I swear) has got him into trouble, and he’s getting schooled by a secretive warrior-monk-wise man type. We’ve all been there, right?

He released me, and I dropped to the floor, gasping.

“Who are you?” I whispered.

“I think a better question might be who you think you are, Aren. Powerful? Undoubtedly. Intelligent, though inexperienced, and blinded by pride. But what else? You’re not a prince anymore, or your brother’s tool. What will you use your magic for now? What would you be without it? Is there more to you?”

I ignored his questions. “How did you block me without magic?”

“Our potions master is quite good, isn’t he?” Phelun crouched on the floor in front of me. “You don’t understand as much about this world as you think you do. You have been given great gifts, and you squander them. You use them for selfish reasons, to harm and kill and destroy. Do you think this is what the Goddess intended when she blessed you so?”

He offered a hand, and I ignored it, instead pushing myself up from the floor by pressing my back against the door and forcing my legs to straighten.

“I don’t know. Was it her plan for my father and his father before him to plan their marriages to produce the strongest children? Was she at work in his bedroom when I was conceived, or Severn? And where was she when my father and my oldest brother turned me into what I am? It seems she was absent when my mother died, when my caretakers were killed, when I lost the only friends I’d ever had. Did she expect me to rise from the cesspool of hate and mistrust I was born into, to turn my back on the advantages of belonging to the wealthiest and most influential family in the world? To betray them for a deity who’s never given a shit about me?”

“You did betray your family, in the end.”

“Not for her. You said yourself that the magic I use is dark, and not her will. And yet you also say it’s a gift from her. Which is it?”

He stayed where he was, crouched at my feet. “I don’t know,” he said. “But I don’t believe she would have sent you to us if you were beyond redemption, or if I couldn’t help you.”

“So you believe you’ve done good here?”

“Perhaps. The results of our actions are often not immediately apparent. I trust in the Goddess, in my experiences and what my brothers have learned over the centuries.”

“Do you? I trust in myself.”

Oh, my beloved character. You are going to get cut down like a friggin’ Christmas tree.

So there you go, my contrubution in all of its NaNo draft glory. FEEL THE GLORY, HUMANS!

Sorry. Too much coffee again this morning. *tweeks*

If you’d like more WIPpet Wednesday fun, click on over here to see what the other WIPpeteers are up to this week, and as always, feel free to join in! Just post an excerpt on your own blog from a work in progress that somehow relates to today’s date (chapter, number of lines, whatever). We’re a good bunch, I promise. We probably won’t bite… Except for maybe our host, K.L. Schwengel. *flips through notes* Wait. No, she’s bright, not “she’ll bite.” Sorry.

Curious about ROW80, the flexible writing challenge that’s not as insane as NaNoWriMo*? Here’s the link to the site and the blog, from which you can find links to see what everyone else is up to this week. It’s never too late to join in!

–

*You know I love you, NaNo. gimme a kiss.

 

28 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in NaNoWriMo, ROW80, Torn, WIPpet Wednesday

October 28, 2013

The Fox

By Kate Sparkes

Have I ever told you about the magic that comes with the fog around here? It’s not something you notice right off.  In fact, I’d say most people just curse and fiddle with the high beams, or use it as a topic for small talk at the grocery store. But for those who pay attention, whose eyes are open to magic, the strangest things happen around here when the fog rolls in.

Take last week, for example. It was a cloudy day, but the roads were clear as I took the highway in to town. It’s a simple enough drive to do on auto-pilot, if you’re so inclined, but it’s a bad idea. In Newfoundland, you have to keep your eyes open for moose. Bunnies and weasels are tiny tragedies when you hit them, but a moose will total your car.

So sure, I was paying attention, but I was enjoying the drive, too– music cranked up, temperature controls set the way I like them, and enjoying the fact that the back seat, though as messy as ever, was free from any small people who might interrupt my passionate caterwauling. It’s not often that I get out without the kids, and I was making the most of my alone time.

The October leaves had captured my attention as I came around a wide bend in the road, and at first I didn’t notice the small, dark shape trotting down the shoulder of the highway through the thin fog that had settled in the low places. A fox, but not red. Come to think of it, I don’t remember ever seeing a red fox here. They’always got darker, black-tipped fur. Still, certainly a fox, bushy tail and all. I tapped the brakes and slowed in case he decided to dart in front of me, but I shouldn’t have worried. In fact, the fox stopped, parked his fluffy butt on the gravel shoulder, and raised a forepaw in the air.

I slowed again as I approached. The fox twisted his paw, holding it out like a human offering a handshake, and jerked it upward.

He’s hitchhiking, I thought, and pulled over. I’d never picked up a hitchhiker before, never trusting them not to be serial killers, but it seemed like a good time to make an exception. I leaned over and popped the passenger side door open, and the fox leapt up onto the seat. I excused myself as I pulled the door shut, and started down the road again.

“Thanks,” the fox said, and reached up one back foot to scratch at an ear. “I wasn’t sure that would work.”

“No problem,” I said. A car honked at me as it passed, and I checked my speed. Ten under the limit. I pressed harder on the gas pedal and tried to pay attention to my driving. “Where are you headed?”

“Just down a ways. You know the entrance to the dump?”

“I do.”

“That’ll be fine.”

I reached out to turn the music off. “You know, this is quite unusual. I can’t say I’ve ever met a talking fox before. Or given one a ride.”

“Yeah, well. What can you do?”

He didn’t seem inclined to say more, and we traveled for a few minutes in silence, save for the sound of his frequent scratching.

I turned in to the dump road. “You can just let me out here,” the fox said.

“Oh. Sure.” I hesitated, then asked, “Is that it, then?”

“I’m a little short on payment options.”

I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel. “No, that’s okay. It’s just that in stories, talking animals always appear to offer advice, or a warning, or to share something at a turning point in a person’s life. I thought maybe…”

The fox sighed and closed his eyes, then stretched his neck and stood. “Open the door,” he said, and I did.

He turned and sniffed the air, then raised a leg and pissed all over the back of the seat. He bounced out and trotted a few paces away before turning back and holding out a forepaw again, this time in a gesture that brought to mind a human flipping the bird.

“You want advice?” he asked. “Don’t pick up hitchhikers. It never ends well.”

And with that he was gone, bounding away into the mist.

I’m telling you guys. Things get weird around here when the fog rolls in.

13 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in Fiction, writing

June 19, 2013

WIPpet Wednesday: Flashback, and a Farewell to ROW80

By Kate Sparkes

You may recall (and you’re forgiven if you don’t, I know how busy you are) that this month I’m working on a few projects. I’m making good progress in my editing on Bound, and yes, added words are being counted toward my word count for JuNoWriMo. I’m not adding a lot; I’m really trying to cut down on the total word count. But sometimes more needs to be said, and today’s WIPpet Wednesday offering is one of those passages. Will it stay? I don’t know. But experimenting is fun. 🙂

So, the WIPpet math for 19/6/13: 19 paragraphs +6 paragraphs -1 paragraph -3 paragraphs. Don’t worry, it’s mostly dialogue. (Aren’s POV)

–

My return to town was quiet, made late at night and in the midst of a street festival, but Severn knew I was coming as soon as I dropped the magic dedicated to blocking his awareness of me. He had me brought to his chambers before I had a chance to unsaddle my horse. The only reason I made it without a beating was that the palace guards feared me only a little less than they did Severn.

He dismissed them with a wave, and they bowed as they left us. The room was uncharacteristically cluttered, littered with half-empty wine bottles, and I wondered how many other people had been sent away before my arrival. “How wonderful,” Severn drawled after the guards closed the door. “Just what I wanted for my birthday. A ghost.”

I didn’t speak. I’d learned over the years that if I didn’t have an answer that would satisfy him, it was best to give none at all.

“We thought you were dead,” he continued, his voice as cold as I’d ever heard it. “It’s not like you to disappear.”

“I was injured escaping from the mountains. I needed time to recover, and had no way to contact you without being seen.”

Severn poured two glasses of wine and offered me one. I drank the full glass, not because I wanted it, but to show that I trusted him not to poison me. That, or I feared him enough to do as he wished with no thought for what might happen to me. It didn’t matter to Severn; respect and fear were nearly the same thing to him. “I searched for you. There was no sign.”

“Perhaps the distance interfered with your perception. I can assure you that at no time was I dead.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “You weren’t blocking me?”

“I don’t think I could. You know me too well. And I had no reason to.” I held my body still, and kept my eyes glued to his. I have nothing to hide, I thought. I did, of course, but Severn wouldn’t be able to see far into me. He lacked that particular set of skills, and that made me useful to him— and him mistrustful of me.

It was several uncomfortable moments before he released me from his gaze and sipped from his own glass. “You’re ruining my party. Tell me what happened, and go.”

“Annyk is dead.”

“You killed him?”

“His brother did.”

Severn sneered. “I’m not sure whether I’m impressed by your skill or disgusted with your continuing unwillingness to dirty your own hands. Either way, it’s done.” That was the most praise I could expect from him. “Any sign of more magic?”

Now I would have to tread carefully. Severn might not have been able to see my thoughts, but he would know if I lied to him outright. Half-truths would be better. “I think I found someone, but I was attacked before I could bring her in.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Her? Interesting. Where?”

I fought back the tension that cramped my shoulders. There was no chance I was going to let him take her. Not after she saved me. Severn would never understand that, though, and there would be no stopping him if he learned there was an unidentified sorceress in Qittavia. “In the mountains,” I lied. “And well-hidden.”

“Obviously, if Annyk didn’t find her.” He narrowed his eyes at me. “There’s more, isn’t there?”

“No.”

“What aren’t you telling me?” Familiar energy began to build, infusing the air in the stone-walled room, causing the hairs on my body to stand up and remembered pain to race through my body. He wouldn’t be afraid to hurt me if he thought he wasn’t getting what he wanted.

“There’s nothing. I’ll go back and find her again, or I can tell someone else where to search.” The energy leveled off, but did not disperse, and my body broke out in sweat as I fought to not react to the pain.

–

Want to see more from the other WIPpeteers? Click this link to connect to MORE links that will take you to them (updated all day, so check back!), and be sure stop by and maybe leave a nice fruit basket at our host blog, My Random Muse.

Tommorow is the last day of this round of A Round of Words in 80 Days. It’s been fun; I’ll do things a bit differently next time (starting at the beginning, setting clearer goals at the start), but I’ll definitely do it again. I’ve found some interesting bloggers to follow, and it’s always nice to just go through and visit someone new. I like being reminded of how many of us are in this together, writing and struggling and loving it.

As far as my own goals are concerned, I’m catching up on my JuNoWriMo word count, which means I’m currently trying for more than the 2,000 words a day that I’d set as my goal. My reading didn’t have as measurable a goal, but I’m getting it done when time allows. I’m surprised at how much I’m enjoying Matched; it really didn’t seem like my thing at all, but I like the set-up of the Society (and some of you know how picky I am about that sort of thing), and I like how Cassia is developing as a character. Now, I’ve heard from several people that the other two books in the trilogy are a big disappointment, but I’ll at least try the next one. This is one advantage of library books, isn’t it?

School is almost out here; Simon gets a day off on Thursday and only goes in for a few hours on Friday, so I guess today is really the last day of school. We’ll see how having both kids home will affect my productivity. We also have a week-long vacation planned for the end of July, and I don’t see myself getting a lot of writing done there (not sure if I’ll even take the computer), but I can read.

Annnd… that’s about it. Thanks for stopping by, and don’t forget that the next round of ROW80 starts next month. 🙂

18 Comments   |  tags: , , , , | posted in Bound, JuNoWriMo, ROW80, WIPpet Wednesday, writing

June 5, 2013

WIPpet Wednesday: First Five (and tiny ROW80 update)

By Kate Sparkes

*sings* Wednesday, Wednesday, gotta WIPpet on Wednesday…

Since it’s the fifth, and since this is the first Wednesday of JuNoWriMo, here’s the first 5 lines of this month’s work in progress, Torn. This is a few months after the end of Bound, and Aren gets to start this one off.

–

“Just try to relax.”

“I am relaxed.”

“No, you’re not. You’re thinking about it too much. If you want it too badly, you’re never going to get there. Don’t try to do it, just let it happen. You’ve almost got it.”

She shot me a look that told me to shut up before I said something she’d make me regret, then closed her eyes again.

–

Yep, starting with dialogue. Because I’m a rebel like that.

Want to join in the fun? Every Wednesday the WIPpeteers post a selection from a work-in-progress that relates in some way to the day’s date (today could have been something from chapter 5, page 56 [for the fifth of June], yadda yadda). To see what everyone else is offering today, head on over to our host blog, My Random Muse (and check out a fun new option today!), and click on the linkie in the side bar. Feel like contributing? Come on in! After all…

seanbeanwippet

–

Now, as for my ROW80 update: JuNoWriMo is in full swing, and I’m doing… OK. It’s going. I’ve been having trouble squeezing writing time in, though. Also, yesterday I had the stupid. No, I didn’t DO something stupid, I had a bad case of it. My brain got borked, yo. The weather changed overnight in a big way, but instead of a headache, Mother Nature gifted me with a thick mental fog that made me feel like Back Seat Guy in the opening scene of Super Troopers, except less paranoid. Everything anyone said to me sounded like “Littering and? Littering and?”

(warning: drugs and swearing)

So no writing for me. O.o

But I’ll get there. The story is coming along, I’m almost on track for words. The reading goals aren’t happening so much as I might like, but you know how that goes.

Happy Wednesday, everyone! I gotta go put out the garbage.

24 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in ROW80, Torn, WIPpet Wednesday

January 23, 2013

Wednesday Bonus

By Kate Sparkes

Hey, look up there! No, not your ceiling. Up there, under the title. There’s a new page there, see it? Fiction. And there’s a story there, too! Hooray for truth in advertising!

It’s a story that takes place in the same world as Bound, but the writing style is different from the novel. It’s a bit more adult (but then, so’s the story). I thought that the story would make the most sense to my Beta readers who are familiar with the world, but I’ve had some very positive comments already from people who haven’t read it, and who don’t particularly like Fantasy stories. So no worries there. 🙂

Have a look, comment, whatever you like.

Happy Wednesday!

(for anyone reading this who can’t see the banner and pages above, here’s the link)

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Short Stories, writing

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