Revamped Blog, Moving to WP

Hello everyone,

Exciting news!

I know, I know - fell off the blogging sphere for a bit. Only publicly, actually. I've been working on transferring everything over to WordPress.

I debated a long time about the switch. Blogger has been incredible, and it's certainly more popular in some ways. But I've been working a lot with WordPress for work, and to be honest, I like it more. Plus, one day I hope to have an actual website, not just a blog, so I'd be switching to WordPress then anyway. Plus, my WordPress blog, KSLewis.WordPress.com, is my author name, which I think is a little more advantageous, if not quite as fun, ^_~.

I figure the jump might not be too confusing because, all things considered, Adjective Not a Noun is a fairly young blog, but I understand if this is annoying.

No worries, I've still got all of you in my GoogleReader. I'll try to be less of a reading-ninja about things - reading posts and sneaking away before commenting.

So check out the revamped blog on WordPress if you like, ^_^.

In other news - I've been working hard on editing KNIGHT, and I've completed it to the point where I've started querying! In celebration, I've started working on its sequel, DAMSEL! I've got my other W.i.Ps on the back-burner, and I'm prepping for NaNo.

Hope everything is going well with you!

WWW Wednesday #2

WWW Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by @shouldbereading. To join in all you have to do is answer the three following questions:

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish?
• What do you think you'll read next?

Since I'm reading more this seemed like a lovely meme to follow. Below are my answers. Feel free to leave comments below, or link to your own WWW Wednesday post. I'm always looking for more awesome book suggestions.

What I Recently Finished:

Image from GoodReads.com

Image from GoodReads.com

Image from GoodReads.com

I've been reading up a storm. Where to start...

First off, if I had to recommend only one, it'd be Five Flavors of Dumb hands down. A really heartwarming story with an ending that rocked - literally! I loved the characters, loved the music, I just all around enjoyed it.

Lure advertised itself as a group of bad ghost hunters doing their ghost hunting thing - which they do for maybe 10 pages out of 300, haha. I can't say I didn't enjoy it, because it was a quick read and for the most part I liked Sam and Shells. That said, this is really a book for people who just want to watch 20-somethings get drunk (all the time) and hit on cute guys and gals (all the time) and have lots of sex. Not really want I wanted.

The Perfect Husband - the next book in my quest to find a good FBI investigative series. A little better than Kava's A Perfect Evil, but ultimately I found myself queasy about the main romance. Also, I realize that the cops and detectives can't be too good or the killer won't be able to do a lot, but I found the killer's skill level to be a little too much for me - it made everyone else just seem incompetent. I hate when I feel like no one but the main characters are allowed to do things/be competent. Also, a couple of the deaths by the killer seemed really needless. It's the first in the Quincy series (Quincy is a minor character in this one), and I will be continuing. I read book 4 way back, and I remember really liking it, so I think the books will get better.

What I Think I'll Read Next:

Image from GoodReads.com

Writing Great Book for Young Adults, by Regina Brooks

I think I'll switch things up a bit and read a little non-fiction soon. Something different before jumping back into the next fiction book. Since I consider my current w.i.p a YA book, I'm hoping this will help me shake off some of the snags I've found myself tangled in. If nothing else, it can't hurt.

What I'm Reading Now:

Image from GoodReads.com

Game On, by Kyra Lennon

BLURB FROM GOODREADS:

"After swapping her small town life to work for one of the top soccer teams in the U.S, Leah Walker thought she could finally leave the ghosts of her past behind. However, when she meets serial womanizer, Radleigh McCoy, the memories of her old life come swarming back, and she is forced to ask herself whether she has really changed at all."

I'm about 1/2 way through this one.


I have to admit - I'm not digging the two main characters. I don't think you're supposed to like Radleigh, seeing as he's a very physically arrogant playboy. And Leah, though "spunky," seems to have a more shallow strength than I was expecting. Leah's past (which we learn) may be feeding this, but it really doesn't make me feel any sympathy towards her for her actions. Maybe by the end her character will grow to the point I thought she'd be at the beginning. These two send me into mini-rages, haha.


That said, I love the secondary characters! Honestly, they're what's keeping me going. I don't think Lennon's introduced a single side character I haven't smiled at. The main plot is starting to unfold and I want to see how it wraps up. The writing itself is smooth and flowing, and I like the overall soccer setting.


The ending may make up for what I've found to be a frustrating start. I also can't wait to read the section where Leah's family comes to visit! Seriously, love the secondary characters. She should give them all their own books, haha.

And that's my reading update! I'm looking forward to checking out yours!

The Big Bad & Writing Snags

I've hit a snag in my current w.i.p.

To compensate and not fall into a depressed spiral, I've just been chugging through books like boxes of Yoo-hoo (can you tell what I'm craving?). I took a mental break this weekend to re-charge, and get the next couple of books I want to read in order, and during that time I had a pow-wow with my muses about writing Leonard Kaine (LK).

I had hit a similar snag when getting into the meat of the writing for Wandering Shadow (WS). Ultimately, despite loving the characters, I decided I wasn't ready yet to write Wandering Shadow and I must need to work on something else. Hence LK.

But now I've hit the same snags - love the characters, love the world, can't seem to motivate myself to write what they're going through.

On one level, I think it's that I'm impatient. Leonard Kaine is essentially an origin story, and I want the intros to be over and done with and all the characters to be just out doing their thing. Not possible.

This is what hit me with WS.

But I also thing, with LK, it's the Big Bad. The villain. I know that he's there, and that Len and friends beat him up, but that's it.

What's the Big Bad's backstory? What's his motivations? What little hints can I drop about him along the way? And most importantly, what's his name?

It's strange. With my first two novels, I didn't need mega specifics to get me through. It was enough to have a line of big scenes to work towards. All the minor (or even not so minor) other details unrolled themselves for me as I walked towards those check-points. Sure, sometimes it was annoying, and I was impatient, and sometimes I missed a deadline or two while I worked out a particular snag, but I felt compelled to work through those because they were illuminating and awesome and they introduced things I hadn't even realized yet.

I need this for LK. I need to recapture that compelling feeling that this isn't just another book and I'm hoping learning more about Mr. Big Bad will help... this is Leonard Kaine, one of my books, filled with my characters, and it will rock if I let it. Pep-talk over. Time to write.

WWW Wednesday #1

WWW Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by @shouldbereading. To join in all you have to do is answer the three following questions:

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish?
• What do you think you'll read next?

Since I'm reading more this seemed like a lovely meme to follow. Below are my answers. Feel free to leave comments below, or link to your own WWW Wednesday post. I'm always looking for more awesome book suggestions.

What I Recently Finished:

Photo from Amazon.

Insurgent, by Veronica Roth

(Book #2 in the Divergent trilogy)

BLURB FROM AMAZON:

"One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love."

Loved it! It was an action-packed, tense sequel to Roth's first book, Divergent. I don't want to give away too many spoilers... Tris has a lot of new problems to deal with, and some old. Her relationship issues felt very real, and unforced. And the ending leaves me agonized that I'll have to wait a year or two for Book 3.

What I'm Reading Now:

Photo from Amazon.

A Perfect Evil, by Alex Kava

(Book #1 in the Maggie O'Dell series)

BLURB FROM AMAZON:

"The brutal murders of three young boys paralyze the citizens of Platte City, Nebraska. What's worse is the grim realization that the man recently executed for the crimes was a copycat. When Sheriff Nick Morrelli is called to the scene of another grisly murder, it becomes clear that the real predator is still at large, waiting to kill again."

This is a bit of a cheat, since I actually finished this last night. But I haven't started anything new yet. I enjoyed the book, but I sometimes felt the level of description was overused. It also jumps between many POVs - but they all say (more-or-less) the same things about one another. The plot was engaging, especially further in when more starts happening. I'm in no rush to read the sequel.

What I Think I'll Read Next:

Photo from Amazon.

Five Flavors of Dumb, by Antony John

BLURB FROM AMAZON:

"Piper is a seventeen-year-old high school senior, and she's just been challenged to get her school's super-popular rock band, Dumb, a paying gig. The catch? Piper is deaf. Can she manage a band with five wildly different musicians, nurture a budding romance, and discover her own inner rock star, though she can't hear Dumb's music?"

I'm on a contemporary kick. I'll probably be jumping back and forth between FBI thriller types, and YA types. I've heard great things about the book, and the blurb really has me hooked. It helps that I've got a character in my WiP who's in a band, so this will also be good research. ^_^

And that's my reading update! I'm looking forward to checking out yours!

Busy Apparently Doesn't Include Blogging

Long time, no post.

Sometimes I go in and out of phases in my writing. High productivity for a couple of months, and then a huge crash. The crash, unfortunately, tries to last forever. I think, at its worse, I went a year without writing a single word, which I justified by being mega busy and in college at the time.

Well, I'm no longer in college and I shouldn't be justifying that sort of thing anyway.

So, for the month and a half while I was in NJ, I didn't write much. Maybe about 4000 words, which is just sad. I read quite a bit, which was fun and useful, but visiting NJ means high-stress, and I'm still working on managing that too. Thankfully, I have been doing a much better job combatting the crash since I've gotten back home. I've been fairly steady with my newest project - a YA comedic ghost-hunting romp - and hammering out a query for my second novel, KNIGHT.

The query writing it touch-and-go. It's on about stage ten or eleven now, at least three weeks of major obsession, haha, and I think it's finally getting close to completion. The synopsis needs some touch-up, but it's stronger than any versions of my query so far, and I'm hoping to have edits on the actual novel complete by the end of August. Basically, I want to be hunting for an agent starting September. *Fingers crossed*

Maybe I'll do a query update post, and show then and now. Any helpful critiques would be appreciated.

Another thing I've been working on is a cover update for my self-published novel, THE ETERNAL QUEEN. I really like the cover I was able to produce for EQ (you can see it on the sidebar). But I do think it could be better. Now, wiser to the ways of book cover production (and still a little too poor to immediately seek out an actual design professional - design is sometimes a part of my job, but I wouldn't call myself an artist), I've been having... fun... testing out new ideas.

Maybe fun isn't the right word.

It's been an... experience.

So, that's my news for the past few weeks. I've also heard very exciting news from all the bloggers I follow. I generally read them all in my Google Reader, which isn't really conducive to commenting (oops). At the very least, though late to the game (ho-hum, word choice ^_~), I know Kyra Lennon's book GAME ON (#1) has hit the digital shelves. I'm looking forward to checking it out - I love soccer and have been craving some contemporary YA. Seems like a perfect fit, ^_^.

How long have you let yourself be unproductive? How do you combat the great writing crashes?

Home and Regrouping

I'm back home.

I spent the first week back just relaxing and sleeping - a lot of sleeping.

My visit to family and friends in NJ for my sister's wedding was awesome, but exhausting. It's this sort of "out of my element" feeling that grows and grows and grows, and then by the time week 6 hit I was really just in a daze.

Living out of a backpack is fun for, oh, maybe a week or two, haha!

Needless to say, I've been a complete writing bum for the past four or five weeks. I like to think I made up for it by reading a lot more, and at least sort of planning out some Leonard Kaine, but that's mostly just searching for excuses.

I also totally thought I had actually posted a post about not blogging much until June, but apparently I didn't, and I never checked, so, good one for me.

So I'm going to be easing my way back into this blogging sphere, ^_^. You'll probably start to see a lot more of me after this weekend.

Dust It Off Bloghop #3: Reflections

Big thank you to Theresa Paolo & Cortney Pearson. You've hosted an awesome bloghop.

Dust it Off Bloghop Notes/Dates:

May 3rd: Post a 1-2 sentence pitch about the shelved WIP.  The second day, May 5th:  Post your favorite excerpt (300-350 words)The third day, May 7th: Post what you learned from this WIP.

    What have I learned from the Dust-it-Off Bloghop?

    Probably, the number one thing, to read instructions better. *Laughs*

I think if I had realized it would be best to snag a W.i.P that was really old, and really not looked at recently, I would have chosen the very first book I tried to write (the only one that wasn't recycled into something I actually wrote and finished – be it short story or novel). I shelved Knight for a few months, but I always knew I'd be going back to it to edit. Indeed, I have recently started editing it to become it's second draft form. Ah, if this means Knight doesn't count, that's ok, it was fun to share anyway.

    Secondly, I need to get back on my schedule. I'm letting my visit to NJ mess with me, when really, it's more my own nerves blocking my blogging and writing.

    Thirdly, man I missed Knight. It was only shelved for two or three months, but during that time I was trying to get through the first section of The Wandering Shadow. Which was torture. I've never loved an idea so much and had such a hard time writing it. Not like Knight, which I adored from beginning to end, despite a slight rough patch the last few chapters when it was, haha, right smack dab in the middle of another visit to NJ. (Are you sensing a pattern? K.S. does not do well with traveling! And she misses her apartment and boy like crazy.)

    It really helped to re-read Knight, to dive back into characters and scenes that moved fluidly and felt energetic and connected. It really helped to talk with those characters again, have a heart-to-heart with Erin, and start thinking about the next in the series (though that won't start being written until November, most likely).

    And lastly, I learned that the blogging community is awesome. They'll even post on people's blogs who are crazy, and feather-brained, and don't read instructions clearly enough. >.<

    Thanks for stepping into Erin's world for the past week. I can assure you, she was glad to show you around and introduce you to her friends.  

Dust it Off Bloghop Day 2, writing update

Bachelorette party for my sister successful! Busyness level back to manageable. Plans for the rest of the weekend include: 1. Continuing the Dust it Off Bloghop (created by the amazing Theresa Paolo & Cortney Pearson). 2. Actually tackling the many blogs and commenting I've been wanting to do. 3. Writing another chapter for my current W.i.P

Dust it Off Bloghop dates:

May 3rd: Post a 1-2 sentence pitch about the shelved WIP.  The second day, May 5th:  Post your favorite excerpt (300-350 words)The third day, May 7th: Post what you learned from this WIP.

 DUST IT OFF BLOGHOP EXCERPT

     
     “A dark stranger. A shadowy past. A suspicious conversation,” he continued. “Mist Walkers, mystery, murder-”

     “Woah,” Erin said, sitting up straighter.

     “Murder?” Jolene repeated in bewilderment.

     “Not one right now, but there could be. Any day. What if this Matthew fellow is a crazed killer? Mist Walkers all have to be a little off in the head. Being outside his natural habitat, he could snap at any moment.”

     It was how dead serious he sounded that made Erin gape for as long as she did. She sent a silent look, pleading for some understanding from Derrin, who until this point had been fairly silent. His long legs were stretched out, his head resting on his arms. Derrin had always been too tall for his own good, and his six feet five inches were even more apparent seeing him like this. In sharp contrast to Humphrey, Derrin kept his brown hair short, almost completely shaved. He gave Erin a small grin. He had a small scar on the left side of his chin that just reached his bottom lip, which Erin had given him their first day of school.

     “Well,” he said slowly. “He could be a murderer.”

     Humphrey and Derrin were both Guard Mages. Like her father, they guarded the farms, and so had the same bright yellow and orange uniforms. With two years under their belts, three for Humphrey, they were both considered standard Guard Mages instead of novices. Finishing school was how students marked their passage into adulthood. Moving past the novice level was how the actual adults marked another's adulthood. By that point, one would hopefully have gained more experience and maturity.

     'Obviously not the case with these two,' Erin grumbled in her head. Her magic slid up and into her fingertips, making them itch, telling her that it was happy to help her express her displeasure at any moment. Erin wished her magic really was a dog. She'd have given it a good scratch behind the ears.

Dust It Off Bloghop: The Pitch

Time for a new bloghop! Though I'm still reeling and trying to get my feet back under me from the last one! Haha. Details are:

The amazing Theresa Paolo & Cortney Pearson are having their first Bloghop!!! The Dust It Off Bloghop will be three days, May 3rd, 5th and 7th. 

"We've all had those manuscripts that we poured our heart into, fell in love with the characters and still think of them at random, but unfortunately had to shelf. Now it's time for a little spring cleaning. Take out those manuscripts and Dust It Off!" - Theresa Paolo 

The first day, May 3rd: Post a 1-2 sentence pitch about the shelved WIP.  The second day, May 5th:  Post your favorite excerpt (300-350 words)The third day, May 7th: Post what you learned from this WIP.

So, a little bit about my W.i.P! It's called Knight: Book 1 of the Mist Walkers series (planned to be four books). It's a YA fantasy. Set in a world shrouded by a chaotic fog called the Mist, and involving magic, mage vs. non-mage conflicts, mystery, and the strange Mist Walkers. I'm not sure how much we're allowed to give away, or should, so, onto the pitch!


Knight: The Pitch

Erin Langley is two years overdue on graduating, thanks to her magic, which acts like a pyromaniac puppy with a prankster's heart. When a caravan cuts through the dangerous Mist that blankets the world, bringing fascinating news and trinkets from other cities, they also bring the mysterious Matthew, and a heap of trouble that Erin will find herself smack dab in the middle of, faulty magic or no.

You should definitely look into the bloghop if you haven't yet. And then check out the one hosted by Kelley Lynn and Emily King - Oh, Those High School Dances Bloghop.

A-Z Challenge #26: Z is for Zoic

Z is for Zoic, A Message from the World

[oh my... a bit of strange one to end on, a lot... more intense than I expected, O.o]

If the world could tell the despairing one thing, it would be, 'Look...'

Yes, it is scarred and cracked. But inside those cracks are shoots of green.

Yes, many buildings are being dragged down, crumbling. But the space left behind can be cleared.

Yes, the fight was terrible and all reaching and not a single thing did not get hurt. But scabs form for a reason.

If the world could tell the despairing one thing, it would be, 'Look, I have not given up on you. Don't give up on me.'

A-Z Challenge #25: Y is for Yearning

Y is for Yearning, An Ache Fulfilled

[Fulfilling my weekly quota of sap and fluff... ^_^]

Art:
There’s little about life that Art lets get him down. But even he notices, when he meets Chester and then Baggaro and then Elpirt, that suddenly there’s a lot more reason to have fun.

James:
James has a hard time describing music to the others. Sure, he can talk about sound and lyrics, instruments and rhythm. But to James, that’s not what music is about, or what it means, or how a guitar can be worth almost everything to a person brave about nothing. But he finds he likes trying to, all the same, because they always stop to listen.

Elpirt:
Elpirt likes to climb. To swing around and lug up ropes and sway with the teetering buildings. She had never thought anything could be better than a cold drop brought to an end by the snap of thick, bruising rope, the breath crushed out of her by excitement. But now she like clinging to Barnard’s back, or wrestling while being tangled in Art’s limbs, or, best of all, sneaking to stare at Chester when he wakes up - he screams, he curses … he laughs.

Barnard:
Barnard doesn’t lie. He tells them things as he sees it, and he tells them things as he saw it. He saw the End coming, he saw the reactions coming, and he thought he saw the time where even he would fade away. But he didn’t see, never, how a couple of knuckle-headed thieves with snot running down their faces could paint such a beautiful picture, turning everything he had been seeing on its side.

A-Z Challenge #24: X is for Xylomancy

X is for Xylomancy, One of Barnard’s Quirks

It takes Ellie to notice it. Or maybe, it takes Ellie mimicking it to make James notice it. Either way, it takes James a lot longer than it should have.

It’s innocent enough. They often don’t have a specific destination in mind, and Barnard has lived - and survived - the longest out of all of them. So Art is content to let Barnard change their course whenever he wants, and James doesn’t much care unless they’re running low on supplies, and Ellie..... James doesn’t know about Ellie.

But there are times they are walking along and Barnard will stop. He’ll cock his head to the side and stare down at the road and he’ll mutter to himself and he’ll grumble to them and, more often or not, they’ll end up changing directions with little fuss. They can’t really get lost, since they never have a destination in mind, so all seems well. For all James know, Barnard has a map of every place in the world memorized inside his head. It wouldn’t surprise him, not at all, if Barnard did.

Well, when Ellie joined the group she’d walk right up to Barnard during these stops, cock her head to the side, look down, and hum. She’d nod along with the older man’s whispers, let Barnard cuff her shoulder lightly, and then Barnard would announce the new direction. It was a relaxing pattern, if a little odd.

Well, one day James joined them. He found that what they were staring at, and discussing, were a pile of sticks. Barnard was muttering things like, “no good,” “we should go west,” “too risky to go north, even if it has potential to give us a boon,” and then he straightened up, cuffed Ellie on the shoulder, rubbed a knuckle into James’ head - James scowled, did Barnard think he was five? - and announced, “We’re changing direction. Heading west now. Let’s go.”

“Wait,” James snapped. “Why?”

Everything stopped. It was like James had asked why they didn’t feel like going along the same road, even it lead them over a cliff. Art frowned.

“Barnard says we need to go west.”

“Because of, because of...” James gave a frustrated look at the older man. “A pile of... sticks.”

“If you don’t believe in the supernatural and superstitions, you’re plain mad.” Barnard shrugged.

“Ohhh,” Art said, bouncing on his toes. “Drivition.”

“Divination,” Barnard corrected. Ellie hopped onto the man’s back, grinning at the fuming James over Barnard’s shoulder.

“Yeah. Like, talk to ghosts-”

“I didn’t say that,” Barnard corrected again, gently. “But I’m telling you, I can see things sometimes. Real clear like, in the way wood and sticks pop up. And we do not want to keep going north.”

James gaped, at a loss for words. His perplexition lasted too long, because Art announced, “What are we waiting for? To the west!”

And, well, that was that.

“It’s called Xylomancy,” Barnard told James later.

James shrugged. “Yeah. Ok.” Not like that makes it any better.

Though, they’d soon find, it was a very, very good thing they went west.

A-Z Challenge #22: W is for Winter

W is for Winter, A Time for Tales

The Old Lady has a name, but Art can’t remember what it is. She doesn’t mind, and doesn’t correct him. He thinks she likes it, sort of, because whenever he greets her she smiles. They sort of, kind of, live together. Art’s parents are... somewhere.

“A better place,” the Old lady says. Art believes her. She knows a lot.

Art likes to roam around, so he’s not always living with her.

But now it’s winter, and the weather is cold. Art likes snow because its pretty and tastes okay, but he also hates it, because it’s wet and cold and boring. It’d be a lot cooler if it was purple or something.

“We don’t need to add to our problems,” the Old Lady would laugh. Art doesn’t see how purple can ever been a problem.

It’s a winter day and Art is bored. No. He’s B-O-R-E-D. When Art spells certain words right - sometimes the Old Lady likes to test him - she unearths strange treats. Hard candies that burst with flavor, or burn his tongue. He doesn’t much like the mints, and lets the Old Lady have all of them. But Art is bored and just wants to go outside already, to do something. The Old Lady is coughing a lot, and Art turns to stare. She smiles at him when she’s done, wiping at her lips.

“Come over here, Art. Have I told you about King Arthur yet?”

“No.” Art says. Though she has. A lot. But if he tells the truth she won’t repeat the story, and its Art’s favorite, and it’s ok, he thinks, to live life telling only a couple of lies, right?

“Well come over here. I think you’ll like this tale. It’s about knights, you know. And quests. Do you know what a quest is?”

Did Art know what a quest was?

“No,” he says. And settles down to listen.

A-Z Challenge: V is for Victory, A Few Small Ones

Whew, I almost missed this one, didn't I? Though it's a short one, and not connected to WS.

I'm afraid I've been quite scatter-brained lately, and travel never bodes well for my productivity. And it's been a crazy fews days with family stuff. That said, I'm going to do at least a little victory dance on a couple of things.

1. I'm still working through this A-Z shindig. I hope everyone participating is still going strong and having fun, and those not participating don't mind the blogs that are.

2. I wrote a full chapter (well, maybe it could use another paragraph or two). I feel this is particularly exciting because lately all I've been able to manage are snippets. I like snippets, but at some point I need to get back into writing meatier chapters.

3. I may have forgotten to hand out two of the five copies of EQ to various family members, but I finally remembered to sign and give out one. I'm sort of super excited it's available in paperback, though I need to start learning more about marketing and connecting with readers.

4. I finally started the next book I've been meaning to read, which is good, because I don't want to miss my goal of 65 books in 2012. I just started The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. It's a book I've passed over for years, admiring the cover but not buying. I go in and out of my suspense/thriller phase of reading. Lately, I've been craving a good, thrilling mystery, so, perfect timing, right?

Any big or little victories in your lives? I hope so.

A-Z Challenge #21: U is for United

U is for United, Teammates Big and Small

   It was sort of a novel experience, realizing that when Art feared something, he was just as insane about that as any idea or adventure.
   It wasn't just cats, James came to learn. But every animal.

   Dogs - "Big teeth!"
   Rabbits - "Twitchy. Weird ears. Trick you into forgetting they have teeth."
   Horses, cows, deer, etc. - "Huge. What if they kick you?"
   Snakes - "They sneak into your blanket and might try and eat you."
   Birds - "They're after our eyes, Chester. Our eyes!"
   Rats and other rodents - "Bitey."
   Insects - "They're everywhere and can do everything. They jump and fly, and swallowing them is nasty."

  So as Barnard introduced them all to Fidget, James was concerned when Art went rigid and still, eyes fixed on the furry little thing poking its head out from the other man's pack. He guessed the only reason Art wasn't running around and screaming was because Barnard, one of his friends, wanted the thing to become a part of their group.
   James had ignored, for a long time, the heights to which Art placed the happiness of his friends.
   Ellie immediately perked up with interest, holding out her hands to pet it. Barnard sternly said, "Fidget is on the list, Elpirt." And while the girl’s cheeriness faded just a bit, she still insisted on holding and petting the curious - and brave, James thought, thinking about how he hadn't handled meeting Ellie nearly so well - little... thing.
   "What is it?" James asked. Art was still sitting rigid by his side, watching warily as James picked up the creature and pet through the thick, thick fur. It was pretty cute, James thought privately.
   "Chinchilla," Barnard announced. "Surprisingly friendly. Don't hog it, Ches."
   Then the old man scooped Fidget up and placed it into Art's lap.
   Man and beast stared at one another. James would have laughed, if he hadn't noticed the suspicious way Art's lower lip began to tremble. It made something in his gut twist painfully, and suddenly he was really annoyed. Before he could rescue Art, Barnard said loudly, though not unkindly, "Just pet him once, Art. He's the newest member of the team."
   Art raised his hand, lines of tension appearing in his face. Thank god, James thought, that the chinchilla was as docile as Barnard claimed. It's little animal senses must have picked up on Art's discomfort, and it made no movement as Art's fingers, very slowly and carefully, cut through the thick fur to make one gentle stroke down its back.
   "N-nice," Art said. And Barnard scooped Fidget back up with a big smile.
   "He likes you. Us. I'll make sure to take care of him, so don't worry about it Art."
   Art gave a shaky nod, as Elpirt went back to cooing over Fidget, and Barnard continued to talk about everything he could remember learning about Chinchillas, and James frowned thoughtfully. This, he thought, could be a real disaster.
   But Art, true to his obnoxious self, made no comments about disliking the newest addition. James wasn't about to smart his pride by bringing it up.
   So it was a little surprising, after their first big tussle since getting Fidget, when Barnard hollered out in distress, "Fidget?" The pack the bigger man kept strapped around his waist that Fidget traveled in had a big hole in the bottom. James looked around, seeing nothing but blood splatters and dropped weapons from the roving scavengers they'd fought off. Art piped up, voice stressed but cheerful,
   "Don't worry, Baggaro. He's r-right here." Fidget was inside the pocket on Art's shirt. "I didn't let them trample him."
   "Good man, Art." Barnard laughed, running a big hand over his balding head. "I'll get this bag fixed up soon. Think you can handle the little monster until then?"
   "Yea. Yup. He's a part of the team, right?" Art tried to giggle.
   James bit his tongue. He didn't say anything against Barnard, or make a big deal about it to Art. But quietly offering to keep Fidget in his bed because, "You move around too much. You'll squash him," netted him the most brilliant smile from Art yet. That was saying something.

A-Z Challenge #20: T is for Time

T is for Time, Inching Along

[I'm not really sure where this one came from! Haha]

The Girl watched the little bug scrunch up and straighten out, dragging its body along. It was a bright, bright green, contrasting with everything else in the building she was climbing.

She frowned.

She didn't like to think about the bug being so lost. There was nothing up this way for it to eat - no, she wasn't going to share her catch. Not that it would want any. All this struggle and effort, all this wasted time, to climb its own grave.

The Girl dropped her supplies and scooped the bug up. Briefly, she wondered what it would taste like. But she had a much bigger meal waiting so instead she just stuck in the crook of her neck and began climbing down.

For one more day, at least, she'd help it find someplace better to explore.

Later, when she was back at work, she'd sometimes stop at a window and crane her neck, trying vainly to see if she could spot it in the bushes at the bottom. Of course she couldn't, but there was no harm in trying. She was in no rush. The days were stacked up in line, all the same whether past or future. It would be another year until she would realize she was also climbing a building that would have been her lonely grave. Another year until what she was waiting for, found her.

If time had a smile, it would be as wide as the Chesire's.

*Also, one of the bigger hurdles that has kept me so busy is now over… my sister's Bridal Shower was on Sat. and she loved it! Not only that, but she was surprised! It was a lot of fun, despite the long drive there and back (she lives in CT while my family is in NJ). Hopefully now I can start working through the huge backlog of posts and chapters I've got half read or written and finish a them.*

A-Z Challenge #19: S is for Sharp Shooting

S is for Sharp Shooting, How James Meets Nick

   James meets Nick on a sunny day.
   Somehow, and he should have been suspicious from the start because his luck is never that good, James has found an apple orchard.
   James enjoys a lazy afternoon eating apples until he wants to puke, and strumming his guitar. The guitar is a beat-up, ratty thing, with half its strings missing and a crack in the neck threatening to snap the thing in two. He’s just thinking it might be time to find a place to lie down for the night, when the raiders show up. They’re an mean-looking bunch. Then again, you’re either mean in this new world, or a wimp.
   James knows what he is...
   “This is our orchard,” Tall-Dude says.
   “Just leaving,” James mutters. He turns to go.
   “What about payment for all these apples?” Rat-Faced Girl snaps, and she gestures at the cores littering the ground.
   James wants to say, ‘For being your orchard, you sort of suck at guarding it,’ but instead he offers to play a tune. “For old times’ sake,” he says. And it’s typically 50/50 whether or not that sort of thing will work.
   For these guys, they want more. They want his bag. And James is preparing to run.
   “Where do you think you’re going?” Tall-Dude grins.
   The scuffle would have been short. James hasn’t learned much fighting, since he spends most of his days running, and he’s trapped. In a stupid, last ditch effort, he climbs a tree. Rat-Faced Girl starts to climb after him, when a sound CRACK sounds. The apple closest to the girl’s hand explodes, and both her and James screech. James nearly falls out of the tree in surprise.
    The explosion turns out to be a gun-shot, and a second group of scavengers arrive. James watches the little battle unfold, not surprised that the new comers win. None of the original group seems to have a gun, and not many stick around to try and steal them.
    A young man wanders over and looks up the tree where James is still perched, too terrified to climb down. He has a narrow face, but wide smile. Skin naturally tanned, and eyes slanted.
   “Can you play that?” The stranger asks.
   “What?”
   “The guitar. Can you play it?”
   James nods.
   “Perfect. My name’s Nick.”
   “James.”
   The day James met Nick was sunny, sky blue and wide, and important, so important, that if James had known he would have refused the offer. Since he doesn’t, and only thinks it’s a little safety for a little while, James shakes Nick’s hand.


[I'm keeping my A-Z challenge entries themed. They're set in the post-apocalyptic world of my current w.i.p The Wandering Shadow. They're typically scenes featuring the four main characters - Art, James, Barnard, and Elpirt. I hope you find them entertaining and enjoy learning about the characters. Excited to be a part of the A-Z Challenge!]

A-Z Challenge #18: R is for Rusty

R is for Rusty


"Dogs are not our whole lives, but they make our lives whole" - R. Caras

A lhasa apso with a big heart to match his bigger than life attitude. Nearly took off my finger once when I tried to rescue him from chocolate. But I loved him. He's in a better place now, chowing down on chocolate, bones, and meat. I don't want to make this post too sad... we may have lost Rusty this morning, but I want to remember all the good times when he was still alive.

So I'm going to share a happy memory:

One time my boyfriend and I were walking Rusty, watching him for my dad and whatnot, and we're walking along, all casual, and Rusty is this tiny little guy. This HUGE dog playing outside with his family gets away from the kids and starts leaping around and charging towards us. I'm flipping out more than Rusty. Rusty just sort of snorts and turns on his heel, all, 'What's this dude think he can do to me? Pff...'

Haha, that was Rusty.....  <3

A-Z Challenge #17: Q is for Quest

AN: First off, I'm a little behind on replying to comments. Never fear, I will catch up! Though I wonder why Blogger doesn't have the ability to make the replies to comments alert worthy? Maybe they do and I haven't found the option yet...

Also, I have stared at this snippet for quite awhile... and I'm fairly certain the tenses in the first part don't match the rest. This is because tenses are my mortal enemies, and they like it when I embarrass myself by showing off my lack of comprehension. If by some miracle they do match... well... I guess I win this one, eh tenses?

Q is for Quest, Of Which There are Many

Quest #72

   “You're... you're...” The woman gasps for air, but he didn't loosen his hold. This was their first lead in days, and he'd die before leaving without the information he was after.

   They're both covered in sweat and grime. The smell in the air is enough to make him swallow down bile incessantly. He thinks about never exploring the old, mutating sewer system again. He's had enough of slick floors making his footsteps squelch, and molting people with wandering memories and wart covered skin. He's had enough of sludge glowing in the dark, and snapping turtles more fierce than rats.

   “Ch-Ch-Chessss-”

   “Chester,” he snaps, pent up anger and fear adding an almost physical bite to his words. She flinches and flounders in his hold, face swelling as she struggles for air. He thinks she could pass for a witch, maybe something worse. “The Bard. Perhaps you've heard of The Wandering Shadows?”

   Her breathing comes out in sick wheezes.

   “Well!”

   “Yes. I-I-we have.”

   Cool relief floods his body. “Good. Then maybe you can help me. Where are they keeping him?”

   She shakes, trying to protest. “Who, who ah-ah-ah're you-”

   Chester has no time for games. “I want to know where they've taken Art. I want to know now.”

[I'm keeping my A-Z challenge entries themed. They're set in the post-apocalyptic world of my current w.i.p The Wandering Shadow. They're typically scenes featuring the four main characters - Art, James, Barnard, and Elpirt. I hope you find them entertaining and enjoy learning about the characters. Excited to be a part of the A-Z Challenge!]

A-Z Challenge #16: P is for People

P is for People, Shadows of the World

[Went a little experimental again... I think it fell a little flat, hmm... let me know what you think!]

    They had been loud.

    There had been cars that guzzled, and the heavy hammering of buildings sprouting up like concrete trees. There had been music, always music, playing through cracked windows somewhere. And shouting, often shouting, of strangers or lovers or others. And if there wasn't screaming there was laughter, whether the small sort of children or the deep sort of adults. Footsteps, whistles, sirens, bells, honks, horns, rings and hums.

    Now they are quiet.

    Now the earth is the loud one.

    Time sending concrete jungles to the ground, overrun with vines and plants and the tiny steps of rodents. Music is scarce, and laughter even rarer. Shouting still happens, from time to time, but it is desperate most often, and short. The people duck into nooks and crannies and lean against one another and wait. What are they waiting for?

    They move like shadows. Quiet, solemn, and waning.

[I'm keeping my A-Z challenge entries themed. They're set in the post-apocalyptic world of my current w.i.p The Wandering Shadow. They're typically scenes featuring the four main characters - Art, James, Barnard, and Elpirt. I hope you find them entertaining and enjoy learning about the characters. Excited to be a part of the A-Z Challenge!]

A-Z Challenge #15: O is for Omitting

O is for Omitting, A Short Conversation

   “Thanks.” Why are you here?
   “It wasn’t any trouble.” I’m sorry.
   “Elpirt says the wound’s not that bad.” Why did you leave?
   “Ellie would know.” I was stupid.
   “We’re going to head out tomorrow.” What do you want?
   “I’ve already helped Barnard pack.” Can you forgive me.
   “I fought a lion!” Of course. And you called me an idiot?
   “I saw it. I was surprised to see one alive.” Thank you. Thank you.
   “Let’s have a feast! Lots of celebrating to do now. Hey, tell Elpirt I should be allowed to get up. We’ve got to eat lots of food and, hey, you got a new guitar? Music! We need music and -” Well, you were stupid, but families forgive stupid stuff.
   “Stop moving! The bandages, geez, Art lie back down!” Family.


[I'm keeping my A-Z challenge entries themed. They're set in the post-apocalyptic world of my current w.i.p The Wandering Shadow. They're typically scenes featuring the four main characters - Art, James, Barnard, and Elpirt. I hope you find them entertaining and enjoy learning about the characters. Excited to be a part of the A-Z Challenge!]