The Eagle's Aerial Perspective

The First Campaigner Challenge of the Fourth Campaign

2012-02-23T14:25:00.000-05:00

From the host Rachael Harrie's blog:

Write a short story/flash fiction story in 200 words or less, excluding the title. It can be in any format, including a poem. Begin the story with the words, “Shadows crept across the wall”. These five words will be included in the word count.

If you want to give yourself an added challenge (optional), do one or more of these:
end the story with the words: "everything faded." (also included in the word count)
include the word "orange" in the story
write in the same genre you normally write
make your story 200 words exactly!

Shadows crept across the wall.

Terren, sittingon the chill marble floor, tried to ignore the shadows creeping across hisshoulders as well. He knew he should focus on the orange object in his hands,the hot smoldering thing he’d been told to steal, but the dragging sensation ofthe spirits hidden within those shadows kept his eyes and body shifting everyfew moments.

“You shouldn’thave taken it.”

Terren nearlydropped the object in his hands as he shoved off the floor, his feet skiddingalong its smooth dark surface.

“Who’s there?”he almost shouted, overcompensating for the fear he felt, the nervousness thatwas born from guilt and shame deep in his heart.

“Me.”

A girl steppedout from behind a stone column, her slippers barely making a sound as shewalked toward him. The moonlight shafting in through the windows above hit herface at hard, harsh angles and Terren shifted backwards as she held up a palehand.

“Sorceress,” he murmured,as the shadows moved away from his shoulders to seep across the floor and twirlaround her skirts, pooling into a gray squirming mass above her palm.

“They’re hungry,Terren,” she said. “So hungry.”

Stats:

Included the word "orange"

200 words exactly

Fantasy is a genre I commonly write in (though SF is the most common)

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What do you think of my entry? (#175 on the Linky List of Campaign Challenge participants.)

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (73)

2012-02-21T17:05:00.000-05:00

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly, bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules for participating:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire. I haven't read anything by Maguire in a while; I read Wicked and Son of a Witch almost three years ago. It's mostly because I thought some elements of both books were a little strange, and it isn't the type of Fantasy I usually read. But I always love books that turn the antagonist into the protagonist, so I decided to pick up this one.

(I don't really like the cover for the book. I think the art is detailed and interesting, but nothing really pops and says "Read Me!". I prefer this alternative cover, even if it is more generic.)

"He's taken and flattened all that is attractive in you," says Caspar. "It's like a lie that has enough resemblance to truth to convince for a brief moment."

-p. 51

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What are you reading right now? Have a teaser to share?

-----The Golden Eagle

What I Thought Of Star Trek: A Review

2012-02-20T14:29:00.000-05:00

But first, Happy Presidents Day! (Also known as Washington's Birthday, which is actually the official name of it.)

For those of you who may not know much about this American federal holiday, it was founded to celebrate the first president of the United States, George Washington, and it falls on the third Monday in February, despite the fact George Washington's real birthday is February 22. It was celebrated the 22nd up until 1971, when holidays were switched to Mondays thanks to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act.

(An aside: For some reason, all of my posts on Science Fiction in 2012 have fallen on holidays. Ah well.)

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(SOURCE)

As you may know, I started out 2012 by watching Star Wars: The Original Trilogy; you can read my posts on it HERE. Having done that, I thought about watching the Prequel Trilogy but decided I wasn't really desperate to do so.

Instead, I decided to try Star Trek. Reasons:

1. I knew very little about it, having only watched a documentary on Science Fiction TV shows, probably around a year or so earlier. They interviewed William Shatner (Captain Kirk) and other people I don't remember. Oh, and I do vaguely recall watching Reading Rainbow with LeVar Burton (Star Trek: The Next Generation) back when I was around seven or something, where they showed off the set. But that was a while ago.

2. As with Star Wars, I wanted to find out what everyone (well, almost everyone) seemed to be a big fan of.

So I took out the first DVD in The Original Series: Season One from my library and watched it the weekend before last. The first disc had The Man Trap, Charlie X, and Where No Man Has Gone Before, and I played all of them with some interest.

To generalize:

The first thing I noticed is that the episodes are all predictable. They basically follow the formula:

Strange people/aliens/what-have-you arrive --> the USS Enterprise runs into trouble --> one of the characters teleports ("beams") up or down to try and fix the problem --> some unimportant and occasionally nameless crewmembers meet a terrible fate and the situation reaches crisis point --> the problem is resolved by some plot twist and the Enterprise moves off to the next planet.

You can't really call the plot(s) spectacular, though they aren't as guessable as they could be since all the details of the enemy are withheld until that final twist. It's not a particularly bad formula, and I expected it.

I didn't know what to expect of the characters. I knew of Captain Kirk, of course, and Spock stuck in my mind before because I think he looks like an elf. The others were new to me; namely McCoy, Sulu, Uhura, and Scott.

First, I have to say, for a television series produced back in the 1960s the fact that there are Asian and African-American characters--female African-American characters--right up there with white male protagonists is impressive. I'm further glad that they have women in significant roles; even these days female characters in SF are often secondary, tertiary, or just background noise (which never fails to irritate me). And while I can't say I absolutely love any of those said Star Trek characters, the crew dynamics are interesting, as is seeing how the characters respond to different situations.

With the setting, the technology was klunky, the special effects were fairly unspectacular, and the aliens/reasons for the Enterprise's troubles were either humanoid or a bit implausible. And all the "new worlds" (how can you call them "new worlds" if the Enterprise goes around visiting planets already inhabited by people?) were Earth-like.

But my overall opinion of Star Trek? I liked it. Quite a lot. I went and watched another three episodes last weekend (The Naked Time, The Enemy Within, and Mudd's Women) and I still was happy to see them, though I could no longer call the series something new. I plan on continuing to watch through the rest of TOS: Season One, and then on to Two and Three.

I think Star Trek: The Original Series is fun. No, you can't take all the elements seriously, yes the plot is predictable, no it's not up to today's standards or culture, and heck there are repeating elements just in the six episodes I've seen, but I'd recommend it (so far).

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Have you seen any of the Star Trek series/movies? If so, what did you think of them?

And if you haven't, do you want to watch Star Trek? (In that case, I commend you for not watching it. I know I just jumped onto a rather sizeable bandwagon.)

-----The Golden Eagle

900+ FOLLOWERS!

2012-02-16T14:55:00.001-05:00

The Eagle's Aerial Perspective has reached 925 Followers!

Thank you all so much! It really made my day earlier this week when I visited by blog and realized I'd made it over 900. :)

As usual, here are the latest followers since the 800 Followers celebration post, under the names they appear in Google Friend Connect, and in the order they followed:

Justin
Sheri L. Swift
Natzers
Jenna Cooper
Hobo Annie
Marsha Sigman
Alison Miller
Ed Pilolla
Ty Johnston
Abby Fowers
Joshua
Claire Hennessy
Colleen Chen
Liza Kane
Silversolara
Cassie Mae
Tasha Seegmiller
Matt
Tammy Polen Manocchio
Pat Hatt
Uniquely Moi Books
Michael Gettel-Gilmartin
Jeremy Bates
Green Monkey
Free Book Reviews
Colin
Laura Barnes
JennaQuentin
SBJones
Book Republik Blog
J Olivarez-Mazone
Claire Chilton
Mish
Rachel Palmer
M.E.
Jon Paul
Melissa Pearl
Basil Sands
Chrissy Peebles
Lynn Hubbard
TToria
D.G. Hudson
Shelley Workinger
McKenzie McCann
Ninja Girl
Jessie
Ada Zdanowicz
Antonio Puigg
Adam Smith
Cacy Duncan
Carol Kilgore
Jay Noel
Farawayeyes
Kristy Shen
K. Turley (Clutzattack)
DL Hammons
Jen Knox
DeThrasher
Nancy
Jessica Salyer
Leigh Covington
Becky
Emma
Copyboy
K.D.
Cate Masters
The Writing Hour
Natasha
Michelle
BlueFenix
James
Tania.F.Walsh
MNHopkins
Paco Torres
Ali
Jamie Gibbs
Nick Wilford
Stacy S. Jensen
Cheshire Wildlife
Mystic2awesome
DearestDreams
Leon Kennedy
Dreadnaught
JamesFitting
Sonsuz Dekorasyon
Janice Horton
JeffO
Rachel Kester
Sharon H
Hope Roberson
Kela McClelland
Theodric the Obscure
Anthony
Gracielou
WTF Are You Reading
SherryE
Patricia Marques
CLBledsoe
Andrew
Jonyangorg
Megan Orisini
Victoria Lindstrom
Diane Gillette
Hildred
Poppy Taylor
Rebecca Belliston
Lucy V Morgan
Sarah
Veronica and Thomas
Carolyn Brown
Grumpy Bulldog, Media Mogul
Ashley Nixon
Eah
Scarlett
Heather Gilbert
Melissa sugar-gold
S. L. Hennessy
DoceanMotion
Morgan Shamy
Jack
Megan
Laurie Dennison
Susan Rocan
Honey
Nancy Thompson

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If I do not have your link (due to not finding it in your profile), linked to the wrong site, or there is another URL you'd like your name to direct people to, please leave a comment and mention it! I'll fix it as soon as I can.

You can view past follower lists here:
600-700
500-600
1-500

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I feel like throwing some kind of Follower bonanza, but I'm already in the process of celebrating my two-year blogoversary with The Evil Genius Blogfest (see top of sidebar) on February 27. So I hope you'll consider checking that out and joining in, because the evil genii will be taking over the web that day--why not be among them? :)

But in case you're not the blogfesting sort, I thought I'd open up another Q&A session, like I did HERE. I got some interesting questions last time, which I enjoyed answering; and if there's anything you've been wondering, feel free to ask!

Thanks again for supporting this blog, you awesome readers.

-----The Golden Eagle

Happy Valentine's Day! + Teaser Tuesday (72)

2012-02-14T13:17:00.001-05:00

Or, Happy Pan-Universal Be Who You Are Day, formerly titled Interplanetary Be Who You Are Day, in case you don't like Valentine's Day.

At any rate, have an awesome Tuesday!

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Teaser Tuesday is a weekly, bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. He's one of my favorite authors; you may have also heard of him as one of the brothers who runs the popular vlogbrothers YouTube channel. He signed all the pre-orders of this book, which I still struggle to comprehend because there were 150,000 of them. Wow. Geez. Anyway, on with the teaser.

I might have been nervous--what with sitting in the car of a strange boy on the way to his house, keenly aware that my crap lungs complicate efforts to fend off unwanted advances--but his driving was so astonishingly poor that I could think of nothing else.
We'd gone perhaps a mile in jagged silence before Augustus said, "I failed the driving test three times."
"You don't say."

-p. 22

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What are you reading right now? Got a teaser to share?

Also, I should have mentioned this on my blog before (bad me), but be sure to stop by My First Book since there's a guest post I wrote about Writing Relationships!

-----The Golden Eagle

The Origins Blogfest

2012-02-13T13:53:00.001-05:00

This blogfest is hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh, DL Hammons, Katie Mills, and Matthew MacNish.

About the blogfest:

On Monday, February 13th, post your own origin story. Tell us all where your writing dreams began. It could be anything from how you started making up stories as a child, or writing for the school newspaper, or even what prompted you to start a blog. How about stories about the first time somebody took an interest in your writing, or maybe the singular moment when you first started calling yourself a writer. It all started somewhere and we want you to tell us your own unique beginnings.

My writing dreams didn't so much begin in a sudden "I'm going to be a writer!" moment as evolve over time. The beginning of that evolution started one summer's day (nope, not even a dark and stormy night) when I decided to write a short story involving a 12-year-old boy, a Lord of Mortals (who wanted to become the Lord of Immortals, of course, and was willing to kill to do it), glaciers, and the underworld. Max planned page count? 10-20, longhand.

A couple months later, it had expanded into a trilogy. I wanted to pack everything possible into that trilogy; time travel, shape-shifting, telekinesis, cryokinesis, gryphons, exotic islands, and a showdown between good and evil.

Did I ever finish the trilogy--or even the first book? No. (I might try my hand at MG again and work on it; however, that's another post.) But I managed to write out over 120 pages and the writing bug occupied my brain for a while.

Then I didn't write much; the bug seemed to have abandoned me. A few short stories, a poem or two, several stalled attempts at more novels I never followed up on. But in 2009 I came across the Space Opera novel The Dragon Never Sleeps by Glen Cook at the library. At this point I hadn't read much Science Fiction (so this involves my SF origins as well), nor did I have a great desire to. But I fell in love with the cover of the book and decided to take it out based on that and the blurb.

(I'm partial to covers with ships; and yes, I know the cover is the shallowest reason for choosing a story.)

I loved the world-building in The Dragon Never Sleeps. I've forgotten most of it now (the only thing I remember for sure is that there were War Avocats who were as strange as they sound) and it felt like there was a lot of technical jargon I had to read twice to fully understand, but the story still hooked me--regardless of the fact that I wanted to chuck many of the characters into a black hole.

And so I decided to write something I really wanted to read myself, despite the fact I knew I couldn't create something as good as a published novel. I built off of (read: copied, though I went back and changed the glaring similarities) the world and happily typed away a random scene, which eventually morphed into the 1000+ page story I now call The Trilogy. During those 1 1/2 years spent writing The Trilogy is when I began to identify myself: I was not just someone who scribbled away on the back porch on a whim, but a writer who spent time on the craft. Mostly in the form of wrangling plot, arguing with stubborn and silent characters, and looking in despair at the mess of a setting I'd created, but still.

A writer.

And there you have my origins story.

What's yours?

-----The Golden Eagle

Announcing: The Evil Genius Blogfest

2012-02-10T06:00:00.000-05:00

The Who:
You, of course. With the evil genius of your choice.

The What:
Create a story, in any format whether that's flash fiction or poetry, where the aforementioned character does something qualifying them as an evil genius. You can also choose an already-existing person, perhaps from one of your favorite books or movies--just tell us why you think they're the best.

Interpret the phrase "evil genius" any way you like: For the evil, it can be a truly sinister murder or a humorous prank; a teen hacking into high-level security or a plot to foil someone's trip to the mall. And the genius? Also up to you. Just make sure there's something that makes your entry sparkle. Or skulk through the dark, as it may be.

Non-fiction what you'd like to do instead? No problem. Feel free to write a post about an evil genius from history or the present.

Word limit for entries: 400. You may go over that number--but be aware, people are less likely to read your entire post if it is long.

The Where:
Your blog/website.

The When:
February 27.

The Why:
Because The Eagle's Aerial Perspective is turning 2 years old on February 27, and that calls for celebration. Furthermore, the blog's mastermind has had this idea simmering in the back of her mind for months (part of her plot for complete web domination, you know) and she thought it was about time she took the leap and hosted her own blogfest.

And why should you sign up? Well . . . three winners will be announced on March 9th; two shall be chosen by Random.org and one by popular vote, and those entrants will win something of their choice. Nothing monetary (since this evil genius is among the rest of them: experiencing recession) but the other options are many: guest post or interview on The Eagle's Aerial Perspective (written a book? Free advertising), some graphic design (examples can be procured), an edit/critique, and even some HTML/CSS coding (for websites and so forth). Other things within her (er, limited) domain of knowledge may be negotiated. Nothing so terribly exciting as, say, free books, unfortunately.

So. Think you're up for some Evil Genii? Sign up below. The host looks forward to your presence on February 27.

(You may also go HERE to view the list and add your link, in case there are technical problems and the script above does not show up.)

And don't forget to take the button to display on your site (not mandatory, but it would be awesome if you did):

Code:

-----The Golden Eagle

The Fourth Writers' Platform-Building Campaign

2012-02-09T13:38:00.000-05:00

Yes, I've signed up for the Fourth Writers' Platform-Building Campaign!

Never heard of the Campaign? From the creator's, Rachael Harrie's, site:

Basically, the Campaign is a way to link those of us in the writing community together with the aim of helping to build our online platforms. The Campaigners are all bloggers in a similar position, who genuinely want to pay it forward, make connections and friends within the writing community, and help build each others' online platforms while at the same time building theirs.

Are you joining in?

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***Also: Tomorrow, I'll be announcing something special that I'm really quite excited about--a blogfest, hosted here on The Eagle's Aerial Perspective. Be sure to mark your calendars!***

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (71)

2012-02-07T13:45:00.000-05:00

Time for Teaser Tuesday, everyone! This weekly, bookish meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from Cosmic Critiques: How & Why Ten Science Fiction Stories Work. Technically it's non-fiction but there are, of course, ten stories in it.

"If you don't like what you observe?"
"Perhaps we will do something about it. Perhaps not."
He threw back his head and laughed. "You will die, die, die," he said.

-p. 43, from "Transstar" by Raymond E. Banks

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What are you reading right now? Got a teaser to share?

-----The Golden Eagle

Book Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

2012-02-05T14:32:00.001-05:00

It's been months since I last posted a book review, which is much too long. I miss talking about novels I've read recently, so book reviews are back on for The Eagle's Aerial Perspective!

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Title: The Night Circus

Author: Erin Morgenstern

Publisher: Doubleday

Genre: Fantasy

PageCount: 400

Rating: 4.7 out of 5

CoverRating: 5 out of 5. I love the way it looks like a delicate paper cut-out; also, in person, the cover is shiny and the stars on the background sort of sparkle.

Insideflap:

The circus arrives without warning.

No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors.

Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Myexpectations: Hailed as "the next Harry Potter", I wasn't quite sure what to think of this book. I don't know how many novels have been called the next big literary phenomenon, but it's a lot. However, I really liked the blurb for this one and, of course, the cover was beautiful, so I had high expectations.

The Night Circus exceeded them.

Aboutthe book: First off, let me say that this is not the next Harry Potter. The style and target age group are very different, the characters are older than HP throughout much the story, and this book will never have as large an audience. Even so, I think The Night Circus was a wonderful book with a fascinating cast and one of the most unique worlds I've come across.

Writing:

I know Erin Morgenstern's writing style has been criticized--and I can certainly see why--but personally I loved it. The description was beautiful, and it was one of those books I slowed down my reading for just to absorb the language.

Plot:

This is where I got a little confused. You see, I don't tend to pay much attention to chapter titles or the little location/date listings that authors sometimes put at the top of the page, since I assume I'll be able to pick up on where the story is.

Pay Close Attention To Them in this book. If you don't, then things will get muddled. There are a bunch of time shifts and back-and-forth between events in the characters' lives. It was an interesting way to structure the story--though toward the second half it felt like there were too many changes.

Characters:

Celia Bowen was my favorite character in the story, since she was intelligent, strong under the circumstances, and, of course, very talented as a magician.

Marco Alisdair was also a good character. I liked the way he contrasted with Celia; she'd been trained with magic all her life and was born with abilities, while he spend much of his childhood learning it. So much so that he didn't even have a name until he named himself in one spontaneous moment.

Prospero, Celia's father, was an interesting antagonist, and not only because he's her father. It was hard to tell when he would emerge and ruin things, for reasons I won't disclose here for fear of spoilers. And then there was the other antagonist Mr. A. H—, the perpetual mystery.

Setting/Elements:

I loved the setting. The world along with the magic itself was treated in a unique way and, again, Morgenstern's descriptions helped bring it to life. In addition, the circus--the focal point of the story--is the most interesting part; I really wanted to be a reveur myself and visit it by the end of the book.

Content: Sex, some violence.

Other: I hope Summit Entertainment doesn't botch up the movie, if they ever make it. It would be a tragedy to see this story ruined on the big screen.

DoI recommend this book? If you enjoy elements of Fantasy, magic, descriptive writing, and/or even romance, I absolutely recommend The Night Circus.

-----The Golden Eagle

Insecure Writer's Support Group: How Many People Know You Blog About Writing?

2012-02-01T07:54:00.000-05:00

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh. I highly recommend you check out his blog, if you haven't yet!

I'm not that shy about telling people I write. If someone asks me "Hey, what do you do for fun?", writing is usually among my answers. I'm happy to tell you about my current project, the genre it's in, even details about the characters or setting.

Blogging is a different story. I can count the number of people who know I blog on one hand (well, maybe two . . . I forget exactly, but it's a small number) and even fewer know, specifically, what my blog is about.

I'm not really sure why I don't tell people about it more often. I'm proud of my little slice of the web, and I love the bloggers I know, but there's something to blogging that I'm reluctant to talk about. I think it may be because I'm introverted in person and I worry what people will think of the internet me; that they'll interpret what I say here as stupid and/or start seeing me differently--in a bad way.

In relation to writing, perhaps it's just the fact that my writing is fictional and my blog is reality. I'm not talking about some made-up character who chatters to me in my head on the internet; I'm posting my own ideas and thoughts, so I don't have the excuse of it being "just a story".

Or maybe I'm taking the whole thing too seriously. I've been known to do that, of course.

How many people know you blog? Is it something you're willing to mention to people right off the bat? What, for you, is the more sensitive topic: writing or blogging?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (70)

2012-01-31T13:28:00.002-05:00

Hello, everyone! Teaser Tuesday again, which is a weekly, bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from Imager by L.E. Modesitt, Jr. I'm not actually reading it since I'm between fiction at the moment, but it's the next book in my library stack.

(I'm not a huge fan of this cover--the text doesn't contrast well with the painting and boy does he look crabby--but it's interesting.)

I looked at the left side of her head, just forward and above the ear. Her hair had been a problem, because it was too bright to be captured fairly by any of the earthen reds, and the madder red would fade, while vermilion would darken at the edges where it touched the skin tones.

-p. 25

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What are you reading right now? Got a teaser or thoughts on it?

-----The Golden Eagle

Final Thoughts On Star Wars: The Original Trilogy

2012-01-30T15:12:00.000-05:00

As you may know from reading my posts over the past couple of weeks, I've been watching Star Wars for the first time (go HERE for my thoughts on the first movie, and HERE for the second). I saw the final movie in the original trilogy, Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, on Saturday.

After watching three movies, I cannot say I was completely bowled over by the series. Luke did not appeal to me, I wasn't utterly enamored by any of the characters, and by the last movie it felt to me like the scenes were too long and dragged. Also, most of it felt predictable; though that's probably due to the "Hero's Journey" formula and the fact so many people have copied the story.

But I am glad I watched them. I liked several of the characters (Princess Leia, Han Solo, R2-D2, Chewbacca, and I even thought Luke was okay by the end), and being a fan of Science Fiction, the world really interested me. (Plus, there's always the fact I won't be so clueless when people talk about the series and say something stupid that makes no sense in relation to the Star Wars universe.)

Overall, I would recommend watching Star Wars, if you haven't yet. They movies are a bit predictable sometimes and the main character, Luke Skywalker, may not always appeal, but it's still an interesting SF trilogy and a good adventure story.

As for the Prequel Trilogy, I don't think I'm going to run and watch those right away. I'm pretty sure I will in the future--since even if they're bad, part of me wants to find out just how bad--but for now, the questions I have about the history of the characters can wait.

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And now what am I going to watch?

Now I think I'm going to try and tackle that other well-known Star series, Star Trek; starting with The Original Series, because that's what the library has, and I figure it can't be a terrible idea to start with the original. Right?

Rest assured, I shall be back with commentary on that as well. :)

(Unless you'd prefer I wouldn't?)

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In other, unrelated news:

The A-Z April Blogging Challenge sign-ups have begun.

For those of you who may not have heard of this before, it's a challenge hosted by several bloggers (all of which can be seen HERE) where you post for every letter of the alphabet in April, so every day except for 4 days. Last year there were over 1,300 participants (or was it more?) and there's plenty of posting madness, but it's a blast. I've already added my name--I was a participant in 2011, and I am definitely looking forward to doing it in 2012!

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How about you? What did you think of Star Wars: The Original Trilogy?

Are you signing up for the A-Z Challenge, and/or have you participated in previous years?

-----The Golden Eagle

Top Writing Blogs Nominee!

2012-01-26T13:51:00.002-05:00

I recently got an email from eCollegeFinder saying I was one of 75 blogs that made it into the voting round for the Top Writing Blogs Award.

You can view the list of 75 blogs and see each blog author's advice for students HERE.

And you can vote as many times as you want (yes, multiple times!) for your favorite writing blog on the eCollegeFinder site (there's also a button on the top of my blog, in sidebar) up until February 3, 5 PM EST.

So . . . if you find my blog a useful writing resource, I hope you'll vote for The Eagle's Aerial Perspective. :)

-----The Golden Eagle

Write Dreams

2012-01-24T13:49:00.001-05:00

I hope you'll excuse me for skipping Teaser Tuesday this week, everyone. Instead, I have an interview with Marieke from the Write Dreams auction here to talk about Write Dreams and its mission.

How would you describe Write Dreams and its goal in one sentence?
Write Dreams is a kidlit auction to raise funds for Donna's DreamHouse, a charity that helps terminally ill children, to recover froman arson attack shortly before Christmas.

What inspired you to start the auction?
Last year we organized Write Hope, to raise money for Save TheChildren, after the tsunami and earthquake in Japan. While this is amuch smaller scale disaster, it happened a lot closer to home for oneof us. Luna lives only a busride away from Blackpool and was horrifiedto hear about the arson attack, that destroyed a good part of theDream House. She asked us to help set up Write Dreams and we were morethan happy to oblige. Luna and I both know how important it is to makehappy memories when there's time. She lost both parents by the timeshe was 13, and at the same age I had spent a lot of time in hospitalsalready. Amanda, on the other hand, knows how deep seeded the fear ofone of her children contracting a terminal illness can be for amother.

What is Donna's Dream House?
Donna’s Dream House is a holiday home for children and teenagers withlife-threatening or terminal illnesses, situated in the heart ofBlackpool, UK. The Dream House is run completely by volunteers andencourages and sparks the imagination. It’s how any child wouldimagine the perfect holiday to be. It’s full of light and laughter,fun and - most importantly - life. Since it's start, Donna's DreamHouse has hosted and helped almost 380 families. 300 of those childrenhave now sadly passed away, but the families who are left behind willalways cherish the memories from Donna’s Dream House.

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The auction is currently ongoing and ends later this week, so don't forget to check it out!

-----The Golden Eagle

Chinese New Year, More Thoughts On Star Wars, And Other Random Things

2012-01-23T14:10:00.000-05:00

Happy Chinese New Year, everyone!

(SOURCE)

The year of the Dragon has arrived.

Dragons are, according to Wikipedia (and I hope you'll excuse me for using that as a source) "Honest, intelligent, straightforward, loyal, sense of justice and fair play, attractive, amicable, unpretentious, sociable, open-minded, idealistic, moralistic, practical, affectionate, sensitive, easy going. Can be cynical, lazy, cold, judgmental, pessimistic, worrier, stubborn, quarrelsome."

What's your Chinese zodiac animal?

(Me, I'm a Rat.)

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Last week, I posted my thoughts on Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope. Several of you said you wanted updates on what I thought of the movies, so here's another list of things I learned after I watched Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (and once again I shall endeavor to loose no spoilers, for readers who have not seen any Star Wars):

1. Yoda talks like Fozzie Bear--they're both done by Frank Oz, actually. I didn't know that before. My brain has trouble with this and I cannot picture that voice coming from Yoda after watching The Muppets. all I can picture is fuzzy and orange with a red and white scarf, not wise and green. This is what I was thinking while he was talking:

"Do or do not. There is no try. Wocka wocka!"

2. I don't really like Luke. He was interesting in Episode IV, but in V I just couldn't get very attached to him. Half of the time I thought he should be doing more, and during the other half I thought he should stop what he was doing.

But I suppose it is the hero's journey, after all; it's supposed to show the character struggle and make mistakes. I'm hoping I'll like him more by the end of the trilogy.

3. And on the other hand, I like Princess Leia more and more. She's my favorite character in the trilogy so far.

Only one more movie to go in the original trilogy, now--hopefully my hold will come in at the library and I'll be able to watch it next weekend.

That just leaves the question of whether I should see the prequel trilogy. I'm not quite sure--a lot of you did not seem to enjoy it, based on last week's comments, and I'd hate to let something taint my opinion of episodes IV-VI. I put up a poll in the sidebar, so if you think I should or shouldn't, feel free to vote!

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Picnik is closing down. I'm very sad. Where else am I supposed to find a photo editing service that has a status bar that says "Buttering sandwiches", "Warming breezes", and "Applying sunscreen" to go with their outdoors theme? Or find all kinds of cool fonts/effects/stickers for images? Or have a blast playing around on the homepage? That site has a fun personality. Relatively few others do.

*sniff*

(But they are giving users access to all the Premium features--something you had to pay over twenty bucks for in the past. So that's a bonus . . . until they're gone on April 19th.)

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Since I know many of you readers are fans of The Hunger Games, I thought I'd mention that the awesome Larissa over at Howling Turtle is hosting a Hunger Games Read-Along. There will be people posting on different chapters of the books and THG-themed giveaways from January 29-March 21. Hop on over and check it out!

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So, what's your opinion of the hero's journey? Do you enjoy stories that follow that path, or do you think it's cliche/overused? What did you think of Luke Skywalker, if you've seen Star Wars?

And do you know of any good photo-editing sites?

-----The Golden Eagle

I'm A Saturday Savvy Sensation!

2012-01-21T13:07:00.000-05:00

Laura Barnes at Laura B Writer has featured me HERE on her blog today.

Hope you'll stop by and check it out! (And follow her blog if you don't already, because it's awesome.)

-----The Golden Eagle

Does It Bother You If The Author Brings A Dead Character Back To Life?

2012-01-19T14:43:00.000-05:00

Say the protagonist watches the love of their life fall off a cliff.

(Lewis Clark, Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 2.0 Generic)

Or, perhaps you read along as the antagonist stabbed one of the main characters through the heart with a sword. Maybe someone got poisoned or bitten. Maybe they disappeared under terrible circumstances.

Whatever happens, there seems to be a trend where the character will (surprise!) re-emerge later on in the book as not only alive, but thriving. I can see why authors would use this as a plot twist. There's nothing like finding out someone you thought was dead is actually alive and has been for a while.

However, I find that I begin to lose faith in the author after that. Particularly if a character's death was described--s/he stopped breathing or was wounded--and the living character(s) witnessed it, I can't help but feel like nothing that happens afterwords can be trusted. And while uncertainty is great for suspense and tension, if there's too much of it, then the story turns into a jumbled mess.

There are exceptions to being "alive", of course--vampires are dead to begin with and a lot of other Paranormal/Fantasy creatures are similar in that regard--but even those characters are usually subject to being killed permanently, and in many cases it sure sounds like the treatment they got was fatal.

Basically, after a certain point, it gets ridiculous. If you killed your character, they should stay dead. Unless there is a really, really good reason that goes beyond plot twists and emotional punches, you shouldn't bring someone back. (Some would argue that this is impossible in any context, furthermore, which is another issue--the characters' perceptions and beliefs on death and dying cannot suddenly change to accommodate another character's reappearance.)

What do you think? For you, how far can an author go in resurrecting characters before you lose faith in the story?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (69)

2012-01-17T17:07:00.001-05:00

Hello, everyone! Teaser Tuesday is here again. This weekly, bookish meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules for participating:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser is from Mastiff by Tamora Pierce. I love this trilogy; I've had this book on my TBR pile since I heard there was a sequel to Bloodhound.

(I don't really like this cover. It isn't the worst, but at first glance it looks like her head's on backwards and the background doesn't seem real.)

I have been in many woods since partnering with Achoo, and this was the strangest I had seen. The trees were spaced wide apart and much of the ground cover seemed to be moss, not grass. The streams had bridges that were as much ornament as structure needed for water crossing.

-p. 23

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Got a teaser or thoughts on the book you're reading? Feel free to leave them in the comments!

-----The Golden Eagle

I Finally Watched Star Wars

2012-01-16T17:52:00.001-05:00

But before I get to Star Wars, Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day to the bloggers in the USA!

(For those who may be unfamiliar with this holiday, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a federal "floating" holiday which lands on the third Monday of January, celebrating one of the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement that aimed to eliminate racial discrimination. His actual birthday is January 15--but the USA loves its three-day weekends so it's always on a Monday.)

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(DISCLAIMER: There will be no spoilers in this post, I promise. I will make no mention of the specifics of what happens in the movie.)

So, this weekend I watched Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.

I'm sure you've heard of these Science Fiction movies before. It's impossible to browse the internet without running into a reference to one character or another or the setting or the plot.

What stirred me to see them now? Eventually, I tired of wondering how many references went over my head and/or how many times I missed a joke. And since I love SF and nerdy things, I decided to watch them, in the order the movies were released. That seems to be what most people say is the best way to see them, despite the fact the prequel trilogy is labeled I-III and the original trilogy is IV-VI. Don't ask me.

Plus, I figured if I was going to come across so many spoilers, I might as well go to the source. (Thank you, world wide web, for telling me what happens and who happens to be re--ah, I'll shut up now.)

Anyway. I put a hold on it at the library and they shipped me the video. I began with a few expectations:

1. That it would be a lot like Eragon by Christopher Paolini.
2. That R2-D2 would be cute, though I wasn't sure he was in Episode IV.
3. That there would be light sabers.

And I discovered that:
1. It is rather like Eragon by Christopher Paolini. That's due, of course, to the fact Paolini drew on a lot of influences in his Inheritance Cycle (meaning he mashed together different elements from famous stories). There are, however, a few differences in the other major characters and the setting doesn't have a whole lot in common.
2. R2-D2 is indeed cute. (Reminded me of Wall-E.)
3. Light sabers are weapons used by the Jedi. I thought they could be used by, you know, everybody.

I also found out:
1. I have been pronouncing Jedi in my head wrong all this time. It isn't Jed-EE it's Jed-AI. Oops. (And yes, just in my head. I don't know, definitively, anyone who has seen Star Wars in person . . .)
2. Darth Vader talks. I thought he just wheezed.
3. Princess Leia can stand up for herself. I won't point out the multitude of SF stories that have weak female protagonists, but I can't put Star Wars in among them. Huzzah!

All in all, I thought Episode IV: A New Hope was a good movie and worth watching, with an interesting cast of characters, an overall strong plot, and a fascinating Science Fiction universe. I can see how they could build prequels out of it, because the first thing that comes onscreen is a scrolling and highly-condensed explanation of the rebellion against the Empire. There's got to be a story behind that.

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Have you seen Star Wars? What did you think of it? And if you haven't seen any of the movies, do you want to?

-----The Golden Eagle

Advice I'd Give To Students On Writing

2012-01-12T15:30:00.000-05:00

It recently came to my attention that I've been nominated for the Top Writing Blogs Award by eCollegeFinder (definitely a surprise!). Nominees are encouraged to write a blog post directed toward students about how to improve their writing skills, and while it isn't a requirement, I thought I'd do it anyway.

My advice?

Write and read as often as you can. I suppose this could really apply to a lot of writers, not just students, but it's such a staple I think it's worth saying.

Write, because writers aren't called that for people-watching, much as they do it. Write novels, short stories, novellas, flash fiction, whichever strikes your fancy, in whatever genre. Finding your niche, the genre(s) and style(s) that you're most comfortable writing and can write the best, will probably take some experimenting.

You will write horrible stuff sometimes, and other times it will feel like you'll never produce something good enough to see the light of day. But forge on, because the act of writing can inspire, and also because being a writer takes time--and work.

Another thing? Perhaps think about trying some challenges, if you're the sort who likes them (or even if you're not) and you have the time; they're a great way to test your limits and see just what and how much you can accomplish in a set amount of time, or for a specific goal.

(SOURCE)

Reading books, the other element, is also quite important, because there's a lot to learn from a book you enjoy and even from a book you hate. With a story you dislike, you can find out what it is that bothered you and why--and be sure not to make the mistake yourself in your own projects. And the good ones are excellent demonstrations of how to write.

Do think about what influenced your opinion of a story after finishing it: was it the writing, plot, setting characters? Did the author use an interesting POV or did the character have an interesting voice? Do the plot twists come as often as they should, are there holes you could drive a truck through? All of those factors are important in creating something that will appeal to readers, and they are certainly worth considering. (Book reviews can be a great way of spelling out your thoughts--there's even a demand for them).

(SOURCE)

So, again, my advice would be to write and read. They're closely interlinked. Without one, there would be no books, and without the other, we'd all be talking to an empty void. Writers write to be read, readers hope there will be writers to satiate them. Being a writer can be tough, but it's also very rewarding when you come up with something that's meaningful to you. And it's even more gratifying when a reader comes along and finds something in it as well; and the more you discover about the craft, the more likely it is that they will.

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (68)

2012-01-10T14:48:00.003-05:00

Teaser Tuesday is a bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from Black Sun Rising by C.S. Friedman.

It's . . . different. I cannot say I love it, and I get the feeling "like" might be a stretch by the time I'm done since the narrator bugs me, the other characters are all power-hungry (and one is a sadistic ex-vampire), and there is a ton of (unnecessary) description.

But the setting is unique, and that's the main reason I'm still reading. It's set on a planet colonized a thousand years ago where thoughts change the surroundings in a magical sort of way because of the planet's "fae", though some claim it isn't magic at all. There's not much science; it's all the fae, and as is indicated by the cover, their technology, customs, and clothes are rather medieval.

(I can't figure out which character this is. I'd say the narrator/MC Damien, but Gerald is the one who's sinister--and this guy looks sinister, if you ask me.)

There were more and more of them now, too many to count. They would flash bright as stars as their owners turned to assess their prey, then become invisible a moment later as the beasts turned their attention to the ground underfoot, or the Forest ahead. Whatever manner of creature they were, they were swift and seemingly tireless.

-p. 195

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Got a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

-----The Golden Eagle

My SantaFest Gift

2012-01-07T13:40:00.002-05:00

Back in 2011 (oh so long ago) I participated in the SantaFest hosted by Laura at Daily Dodo and Loralie Hall at Apathy's Hero. I thought I'd post the gift I got, because it's awesome, and I'd like to thank whoever made it:

Thank you, Secret Santa! (And if you're reading this and want to reveal yourself, feel free.)

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I hope you're having a great weekend, everyone!

-----The Golden Eagle

Insecure Writer's Support Group: Learning To Write

2012-01-04T06:58:00.000-05:00

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh. Be sure to check out his blog if you haven't already!

One of my 2012 goals was to improve how I well I write.

As I mentioned in that post, I've never read a book on writing itself--well, except for Gail Carson Levine's Writing Magic: Creating Stories That Fly and that was ages ago so I don't remember much of it.

Besides that forgotten book, the only thing I've read on writing is other blog posts; and lots and lots of fiction, if that qualifies. (I think it does; at least by reading the good and the bad you learn what works and what does not.)

And not to discount the great resource which is the blogosphere--there are some excellent posts on writing out there--I do think I could benefit from reading something formal on the subject that goes through all the details.

Do you have any suggestions on books about writing? Favorites, dislikes? And besides books, what other resources do you turn to?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (67)

2012-01-03T13:45:00.002-05:00

Hello, everyone! Teaser Tuesday has come around again. This weekly, bookish meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules for participating:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. I suppose I should have known that the description "dazzling experiment in language" equals "mind-boggling gobbledygook at first read". You'll see what I mean in the teaser.

They had no licence for selling liquor, but there was no law yet against prodding some of the new veshches which they used to put into the old moloko, so you could peet it with velocet or synthemesc or drencrom or one or two other veshches which would give you a nice quiet horrorshow fifteen minutes admiring Bog And All His Holy Angels and Saints in your left shoe with lights bursting all over your mozg. Or you could peet milk with knives in it, as we used to say, and this would sharpen you up and make you ready for a bit of dirty twenty-to-one, and that was what we were peeting this evening I'm starting off the story with.

-p. 1

Prodding? Veshches? Moloko? Mozg?

Hopefully, I will better understand this by the end.

**********

Got a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

Ever read a book where the language/slang threw you off?

-----The Golden Eagle

Goals For 2012 And Some Changes To The Blog

2012-01-02T19:06:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year!

The first blog post of 2012 on The Eagle's Aerial Perspective has arrived. Before we get to the blog changes (don't panic; I'm not leaving . . . *cue chagrin from the blogosphere*), there are a few of my goals for 2012.

Now, I meant to do this back in December, but there were other things I had to catch up on so I never got around to it. I wanted to post them here not only because A.) It's been a while since I did this much of a personal post but B.) It will probably spur me on to meet these goals if I know more people are watching. Ahem.

The List (in no particular order, and some big some small):

Do something nice for someone.

Every day. Whenever possible.

Rewrite/revise and edit my first novel and improve writing skills.

I started rewrites last year and they flopped; the product was worse than the original first draft. This time I'm going to do it--I'm going to read through those 1000+ pages of draft, I'm going to finish rewrites of the first book, and I'm going to revise and edit those rewrites. Whether those 1000+ pages are still going to be a trilogy (I usually refer to it as a single book--I should probably call it The Trilogy, and I will from now on) or a very streamlined one or two books depends on what the new outline looks like. Oh, and I want to finish rewrites/revisions/edits by June. I'm not going to beat myself up about it if I don't complete it then, but I'm not letting it extend to July/August.

And as for the second part: I've never read a book on writing, I haven't tried experimenting with different styles/POV/what have you to a great extent, and I've never really done specific exercises to hone how I write. I guess it's about time I did, right?

Read blogs and comment more often.

I need to get together some kind of time when I can blog without distractions or having to cut it off.

Make more academic progress.

End the year more physically fit/capable than I'm starting it.

I don't care if I'm skinny. It's more important to me that I can run without collapsing or dance without feeling so tired.

Finish [top secret] project and announce it here early this year.

It's top secret. I can't tell you what it's about!

**********

The blog changes are going to be small, but there will be a few, and this is what I'll be posting about in the coming 2012:

Sundays: Book/movie reviews. I used to write a book review each week and now I don't do it anymore. I want to start again, and maybe throw in a movie review here and there.

Mondays: Blank unless there's something special I want to post about (news, personal announcement, awards, etc.)

Tuesdays: Teaser Tuesday, of course.

Wednesday: Insecure Writer's Support Group first week of each month; otherwise blank

Thursdays: Writing posts

Fridays: Same as Monday

Saturdays: Same as above

So okay, I'm giving myself a lot of space. But I'm not sure I'd be able to keep to a schedule well, and I don't want to say I'll post on certain days and then not do it.

Blogfests and other online events will be posted at varying times as they emerge throughout the year. A few things that I will definitely be participating in are the A-Z April Blogging Challenge (again) and the Rule of Three Blogfest (also again).

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What are some of your goals for 2012?

Do you have a blogging schedule and if so, what is it? Got any thoughts on the plan I laid out for The Eagle's Aerial Perspective?

-----The Golden Eagle

Here's To The New Year

2011-12-31T14:53:00.000-05:00

The last day of 2011 has arrived, and out goes another year.

It feels like it was the beginning of 2011 just a few months ago . . . though in other ways it doesn't feel like it's gone that fast at all.

I've had a pretty good year. There were downs and there were ups, but some cool things happened and the bad could have been worse. There were a lot of unexpected things that I am grateful I got to experience; like finishing my first novel and writing two others, going to my first dance competition, passing a series of tests I had been worried about, getting to know some nice people.

And, of course, there's been the blogging. Blogfests (sometime I'd like to go back and count them all . . .), the A-Z Challenge (yup, I'm planning to do it next year as well), REN3 (let's give another shout-out to the great hosts), Terry Pratchett Month in September (glad to know there are other fans out there), going through NaNoWriMo with the other writers in the blogosphere, and just generally watching as people traverse their own ups and down, reach their goals, do interesting things. You people are amazing, and I'm honored to get the chance to know you, if even just through blog posts.

How was your year?

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Finally . . .

I hope you have an awesome 2012!

-----The Golden Eagle

The Great Comments Award

2011-12-29T17:34:00.002-05:00

Back in early December, I was awarded by Jenna Quentin at Meandering in a Field of Words and Richard at Writing and Living with Richard P. Hughes with the Great Comments Award:

. . . and I figured it was time I got around to awarding the commenters here on my blog. Now, the rules are to pass it on to the most recent 20 commenters--but because I was awarded twice, I haven't awarded anyone else in a while, and hey, it's still the holiday season (kinda; to me it ends on New Year's Day) I've decided to list the 40 most recent commenters instead.

Here we go (in no particular order other than recent to oldest):

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And for everyone who's come by The Eagle's Aerial Perspective and read my posts: a big thank you!

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (66)

2011-12-27T13:59:00.000-05:00

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly, bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules for participation:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week my teaser is from The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. I finished it yesterday, but it's quite good and I'm not reading anything else I haven't already given you a teaser from.

(I love the way it looks like a paper cut-out; though it would have fit the story better if there had been no red at all and just black and white. Not that I'm really complaining.)

Isobel sits in a rarely occupied chair in the corner of Marco's flat, a rainbow of silk ribbon twisted around her fingers as she attempts in vain to form it into a single elaborate braid.
"This seems so silly," she remarks, frowning at the tangle of ribbon.
"It's a simple charm," Marco says from his desk where he sits surrounded by open books. "A ribbon for each element, bound with knots and intent. It's like your cards, only influencing the subject instead of simply divining its meaning. But it won't work if you don't believe it will, you know that."

-p. 40

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Have a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

-----The Golden Eagle

I Finished My Novel! (And Other Random Stuff)

2011-12-23T14:44:00.000-05:00

At 74,696 words, my NaNoWriMo novel is DONE.

It's my third completed project of the year, and that includes the first story I ever actually finished. I also made a new personal record: one full-length novel in 53 days, of which over 50k was for NaNoWriMo.

Right now, I'm just going to be relieved I finished the project, and I'll worry about rewrites and eliminating the word-vomit and so forth in 2012. Not just because I need some time for the novel to stew, but because I'm afraid I got a bit sick of the plot and characters by the end . . . not to mention the setting. The setting's a disaster.

But it's done, after all. Goodbye, novel, until next time!

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In other news, today is my birthday.

So, have I accomplished things in the last year? Yes. Have I done as much as I'd hoped to do? I met some of my goals, didn't meet others. Overall, though, I'd say it was a pretty good year.

And now another one's about to swing around . . .

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Have you seen The Hobbit trailer yet?

Sigh. I'd say I hope December 2012 comes fast, but then the year will rush by and I'll regret it. :P

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Finally, I'd like to wish all of you a Happy Holidays, whatever it may be that you celebrate. Have a wonderful end-of-December and a joyous new year, everyone!

-----The Golden Eagle

On YA Fiction: Political Messages

2011-12-21T07:51:00.000-05:00

Recently, I've been noticing a trend in Young Adult, particularly in Science Fiction and its sub-genres Dystopian/Futuristic Fiction. There seem to be more and more books that revolve around a central political idea: over-reaching government.

Take Matched by Allie Condie, Possession by Elana Johnson, The Giver by Lois Lowry, The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness, Birthmarked by Caragh O'Brien, Delirium by Lauren Oliver, The Maze Runner by James Dashner, Gone by Michael Grant, Little Brother and For the Win by Cory Doctorow, The Tomorrow Code by Brian Falkner, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, and I could come up with others if I had more time. I'd also mention Divergent by Veronica Roth and Wither by Lauren Destefano, since they seem to be political based on their blurbs, but I haven't read those yet so I can't say for sure.

As you may have noticed, many of those are quite popular (*cough*The Hunger Games*cough*), and in addition, many of them seem to be rather anti-government. The Giver by Lois Lowry seems to be the exception, though it could still be taken as anti-government, since POTENTIAL SPOILER ALERT one of the central characters is influential in preventing pain within the city--this, of course, also leads to more control, but everyone besides a certain few are oblivious to suffering.

Another element that repeats itself is revolutionaries/the resistance. In almost all of the above books, the main character joins or helps an organization (whether paramilitary or not) that, in turn, has some kind of showdown with the omnipresent government.

Now, while I don't mind politics in books, the constant battering of "Government Is Evil!" is beginning to make me wonder why it's cropping up so often.

Is it the political climate today, with a bad economy, constant protests, the Arab Spring, the war in Afghanistan and very recently Iraq? Is it a response to the perceived "rise of China" and Communism, the nuclear capabilities of other countries that might not have the Western world's best interests in mind?

Or is that reading too much of it, and it's just an attempt to appeal to teenagers that feel oppressed by their peers, their parents, society in general? But then again, it's not just teenagers reading YA; it attracts a wide range of readers.

What do you think?

And do you mind politics in the books you read? Is it something you're attracted or repelled by, in general?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (65)

2011-12-20T18:20:00.001-05:00

Hello, everyone! It's time for Teaser Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from a non-fiction book. A.) Because I'm not really reading fiction at the moment and B.) The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee is an excellent book. Plus, it was either this or Information Architecture, and I thought this might be a little less . . . dry.

A patient, long before he becomes the subject of medical scrutiny, is, at first, simply a storyteller, a narrator of suffering--a traveler who has visited the kingdom of the ill. To relieve an illness, one must begin, then, by unburdening its story.

-p. 46

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Got a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

-----The Golden Eagle

Deja Vu Blogfest: Signs You May Have The Writing Syndrome

2011-12-16T13:25:00.000-05:00

About this blogfest:

On December 16th all of those taking part will re-post their favorite blog offering, or one that never received the exposure it should have. Then as the day unfolds and everyone hops from one blog to another, what they will be reading is the best of the best (as determined by you). That day the blogosphere will be chock full of past writing brilliance!

Hosted by Nicole Ducleroir at One Significant Moment at a Time, DL Hammons at Cruising Altitude, Katie Mills at Creepy Query Girl, and Lydia Kang at The Word is My Oyster.

It took me a while to decide on a good post to give you here. But I finally decided, so here it is--enjoy!

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Signs You May Have the Writing Syndrome:

1. You enjoy reading books beyond what is considered normal or socially acceptable.

2. You have conversations with imaginary people in imaginary situations and who, you imagine, talk back to you and among each other.

3. You scrutinize human behavior and wonder why people do the things they do.

4. You get the urge to write things down on anything in sight when a new idea pops into your head.

5. You often fluctuate between ecstatic--as the new idea arrives in your head--and as frustrated as heck as you try to figure out what to do with the new idea.

6. You can occasionally be found talking aloud when the nearest living being is a plant.

7. You sometimes drift out of conversations to ponder the reasons behind one of the imaginary people or that new idea.

8. You go online and look up the sites of authors because you want to read their FAQs about the writing process and getting published.

9. You start analyzing the books you read and wonder how you would have done it better.

10. In the most severe cases, you actually start pouring forth words in quantities greater than that of a shopping list and create something with what's known as a plot.

If you can say you do more than three of the above, you have the Writing Syndrome.

There is no known cure.Unfortunately, the only words available are:

Welcome to the club.

-----The Golden Eagle

Google, I'd Like To Have A Word. NOW.

2011-12-14T12:00:00.000-05:00

I subscribe to a lot of blogs. Until quite recently, I had many feeds that weren't assigned to specific folders in Google Reader; I was slowly (but surely) organizing them, unsubscribing from blogs that weren't updating, etc., etc.; overall, getting things in order. It was going quite well.

Until Google Reader decided to eliminate all the unassigned subscriptions I hadn't gotten around to yet. Which means I've lost who knows how many blog feeds (certainly over one hundred) that I have no way of recovering, since Blogger's Dashboard stopped working for me and I don't keep track of which blogs I follow.

Because I'd depended on Google Reader's feature that automatically adds Blogger blogs when you follow them, unassigned or not.

ARGH.

I wouldn't be so irritated if I knew why it had happened. I thought perhaps the impending cut to Google Friend Connect for non-Blogger blogs was the cause, but that doesn't make sense, because I don't think all those lost subscriptions were for non-Blogger blogs.

So I don't know.

Has Google Reader kept your unassigned subscriptions? (And if you still have some, I'd suggest going through them and determining which ones you want to keep. Just so this doesn't happen to you as well.)

Have you ever had any problems with the service?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (64)

2011-12-13T14:37:00.001-05:00

This weekly, bookish meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules for participating:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week my teaser is from The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness.

(I love the covers to the Chaos Walking Series. I used to think they were a bit strange (sloppy-looking, even) with words scattered across the front and the font of the title, but after having read them it makes much more sense.)

"Calm yourself, my girl."
A voice--
In the brightness--
I blink open my eyes. Everything is a pure white so bright it's almost a sound and there's a voice out there in it and my head is groggy and there's a pain in my side and it's too bright and I can't think--
Wait--

-p. 71

And yes, the entire book is written in that stream-of-consciousness way. It's a bit interesting to me, because the Chaos Walking series is the first I've read in this style . . . after I finished my own novel that's also stream-of-consciousness. Huh. I'm not sure if I should feel bolstered or irritated.

**********

Have a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

-----The Golden Eagle

Are You Watching The Eclipse?

2011-12-10T08:37:00.000-05:00

It's happening right now. And if you don't happen to live where the lunar eclipse is visible (why oh why did the sun have to come up today? Okay, just kidding) I've got the live feed at the top of my blog. You can also go HERE to see it.

Sigh. I do wish I could see it in person . . . and it's the last lunar eclipse until 2014.

-----The Golden Eagle

Insecure Writer's Support Group: Reading What Came Before

2011-12-07T07:46:00.001-05:00

For the last blogfest I participated in, I remembered a character I'd used in a previous flash fiction challenge. Since I thought there was potential in writing from her perspective again, I went back and opened the file for the story, just to refresh my memory.

Oh, horror.

There were typos, the plot was odd, and the overall tone was just ridiculous. The character sounded too young, parts of what she said didn't make sense, and I really should have cut to the chase a bit faster.

That's what usually happens when I read something I haven't thought about for long, or didn't spend a lot of time editing. Some of my writing I can look at without cringing, but the rest of it . . . well, the rest of it shouldn't see the light of day. In fact, I'd be happy if it tumbled into a deep underground abyss that I'd forgotten the location of.

I try to avoid running into this. That's why you'll find me pre-writing flash fiction posts a day or several days before the actual event--or at least trying to. (The above example was written on a bit of inspiration and posted the same day.) That's also why the idea of having a a critique partner read chapters as they come out (which, I gather, some people do) scares me. I rarely if ever write something good on the first try.

Does this happen to you? How do you make sure what you write one day won't seem completely out of whack the next? And do you ever read your own writing for fun?

**********

Also, I'm guest posting today at Stuart Nager's blog Born Storyteller, about creativity. I hope you'll stop by!

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (63)

2011-12-06T18:16:00.000-05:00

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson. I have mixed feelings about his book so far (which particularly saddens me because I'd really looked forward to it when I saw Tamora Pierce's review). While the main character's personality is quite different from that of most Fantasy leads, and I love that she's unique, I can't really get attached to the plot or the setting. Furthermore, the beginning seems to be moving very slowly . . . hopefully that will pick up later.

(Again, mixed feelings seems to be my mantra. I love the flowers/trees along the corners of the book, and the lettering is to die for, but I don't like the face within the gem.)

Cosmé gapes at me like I've swallowed a scorpion. I try not to look too smug. Not only will such a task take her all day in this empty, barren place, it will give her something harmless to blather passionately about.

-p. 67

**********

Have a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

-----The Golden Eagle

The Cool As Cucumber Blogfest

2011-12-05T14:09:00.000-05:00

Madeleine at Scribble and Edit is hosting a blogfest today, based on the idea of using something writers are often told to avoid: cliches. I thought it was an intriguing idea, so I signed up.

About:

Liberally sprinkle your entries with well placed clichés or make them the twist to your tale.

Make it the twist on the punch line to your story. Or make it a witty observation: e.g. Rachel's Holiday by Marion Keyes (1997) He kept touching his hair, which, as well as being dyed to within an inch of its life, was blow dried flicked and rigid with spray.

You may choose whichever idiom you like, such as 'The cat that got the cream'; 'As cool as a cucumber'; 'As good as gold', 'Kick the bucket'. Max 400 words for Flash Fiction.

**********

I decided to go with "sprinkling" my entry with cliches instead of making mine the punch line.

Here it is:

“This ain’t worth the paper it’s written on.”

The Lieutenanttossed the sheets at my feet. I just looked at him, fury and embarrassmentturning my face red and hot.

“Why’re youstaring at me, girl? Get out. You’re useless,” he said.

I bit down thesnarl in my throat and snatched up the papers, clenching my hand and crumplingthe smooth cream-colored sheets. The heading CLASSIFIED seemed to taunt me, abold and black statement that embodied the stupid move I’d made.

“Anyone ever told you not to look a gift horsein the mouth?” the man called, as my boots tapped on the floor of his office,carrying me away as fast as they could go without running. I didn’t reply asthe steel doors to his office slammed shut behind me.

“Well?” my buddyRoger asked, catching up as I charged away.

“I was an idiot.The Lieutenant threw it in my face, and he’s right,” I said.

I’d been wrongattempting to scare up evidence that the Captain of the ship—the only man theEmpress trusted—was a traitor, a defector to the invaders at our borders.

He’d been theone to take me on as crew aboard the starship, and I had him to thank for my positionin the ranks. That’s what the Lieutenant had meant by “gift horse”.

Did that mean theCaptain was innocent? I hadn’t thought so. But the evidence—I couldn’t believeI’d been so naïve to judge a man like the Captain—was a desperate stringingtogether of events that would have been random. Unless you were someone like me,of course, searching for a conspiracy.

I tossed awaythe paper.

Roger shrugged. “Seemedpretty solid evidence to me.”

“I was wrong.”

“How do youknow?”

“I just do. Look, Roger, right now I don’tgive a damn. I’ll be lucky if the Captain—”

“What was thatabout me?”

Roger and I froze.

The Captainhimself stood in the hallway, smiling strangely. He held up the paper I’ddiscarded and my stomach plummeted through the floor.

“My my, Georgie,”he said, flipping through the sheets, “this is critical.”

He met my gaze, his expression hard. I imagined it must be the look he gave his enemies in battle.

“But let’s notbeat around the bush, shall we? You are correct. I am a traitor to theEmpire.”

(400 words)

**********

What do you think?

The winner of this blogfest will be determined by vote, so don't forget to head over to Madeleine's blog and vote for your favorite entry!

-----The Golden Eagle

When Reading A Good Book . . .

2011-12-04T14:06:00.001-05:00

. . . the conversation in my head is liable to be something like this:

"You really should be doing something else."
"Like what? Something exciting just happened to the main character!"
"Like blogging. You haven't been blogging enough."
"Monday. I'll catch up on Monday. Besides, there's still plenty of time today to return comments."
"Or writing. When was the last time you wrote? A week ago?"
"I'll have you know it was a perfectly respectable . . . um, ah, six days ago."
"See? And you wanted to have this book done later this month! You've still got a lot of plot to go!"
"But I want to know what happens."
"And you have stuff to edit. And you wanted to start working on that new project about--"
"It's taboo to mention it now! The inspiration will die!"
"My point is, the book will still be there later. You got it at the library yesterday. You still have 20 days with it, and that's without renewing."
"Are you crazy? The character just . . .!"
"Just what?"
"Never mind."
"You're overexcited. Get off that bed and do something productive."
"Reading is productive."
"Possibly, and that's in the eyes of the party involved, not outside observers. Just get up, will you? Or I'll start spilling the beans on that new project idea--"
"NO. Don't mention it!"
"Then get up."
"Darn you. This is a suspenseful book!"
"In which we return to my original point, which is that it will not vanish if you set it down for a while."
"Sigh. I guess."
"Now write a blog post. You haven't done that in too long."
"I know, I know."
"And hammer out some more words, will you?"
"All right."

**********

Have you read any good books lately?

-----The Golden Eagle

Does A Lot Of Promotion In A Blurb Deter You?

2011-12-01T15:21:00.000-05:00

Most books seem to follow this basic format when it comes to blurbs:

First line/the hook: distinguishes for the reader why this book is different, through tone/intriguing line/excerpt from the novel/etc.
First paragraph: introduces the characters, plot, and setting in a highly distilled form
Second/Third paragraph: tells a little about the consequences of the actions the MC(s) take(s)
Final Paragraph: promotional language about how excellent, riveting, and/or captivating the book is, plus some comments on the author's brilliant writing

(SOURCE)

That final paragraph is the one I'm wondering about. I have nothing against a bit of promotion, but for some books it's longer than the other contents of the blurb. In other cases the roles are reversed and the final paragraph becomes the first; the blurb starts out with promotion, and continues to go on and on about the author's talent and the book's significance.

It's in such cases as those when I become less and and less inclined to turn the page. I want to know what the book is about; who the character's are, what they're up against, whether I should look forward to hyperspace jumps or magic runes. In addition, while I find reviews by major reviewers such as The New York Times, Kirkus Reviews, Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA) interesting in their own right, I don't really pay much attention to them when they're on the front flap; which is where they're placed for a lot of blurbs.

One exception to promotion is when I've read something by the author before. I wouldn't mind a paragraph about a writer I really liked in a blurb--though I still prefer it if they mention "NYT Bestselling Author" at the bottom, after the information about the story. A novel should stand on its own regardless of who wrote it.

What do you think? How much promotion is too much for you when you're browsing and looking for something to read?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (62)

2011-11-29T13:23:00.001-05:00

Teaser Tuesday has come around again. This weekly meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from Before Ever After by Samantha Sotto. I'd actually been following her blog for a while when I noticed that she had a book coming out; a little while later I saw it in Barnes & Noble; and shortly after that I found my library had it. Huzzah!

"Oh, I'm sorry. Um, maybe we should have started with the eggs instead."
"It's okay. Chickens saved the day."
"Pardon me?"
"French chicks, to be exact," Paolo said. "Luckily for tiny premature me, as my grandfather often liked to remind me, the French chicks and their ingenious incubators at the Paris zoo inspired a doctor in the late 1800s to develop a similar incubating apparatus for humans. And so here I am today, fully indoctrinated with my nonno's fervent belief that you can get through life's tightest jams if you are fortunate enough to have a chicken on hand."

-p. 22

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Got a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

-----The Golden Eagle

Okay, So I Hoard Awards . . .

2011-11-28T18:43:00.000-05:00

Hello, everyone! It's award time, since I've had these tucked away for months, waiting for a moment when there weren't several blogfests going on or I wasn't trying to keep up with NaNoWriMo.

First, the 7x7 Link Award from Cherie at Cherie Writes.... Thanks, Cherie!

As I've done this one before, I'm just going to link to that post.

Second, the One Lovely Blog Award from Murees Dupé at Daily Drama of an Aspiring Writer.

Unlike the usual rules where I have to list 7 things about myself, this one just asks you thank the person who gave it to you. Thank you, Murees!

Third, the Versatile Blogger Award from M.E. at Breaking Fantasy. Thanks for the award, M.E.!

Rules:

Share 7 random facts about yourself and nominate newly discovered bloggers for the award.

Fourth, and finally, the Friendly Blogger Award from Madeleine at Scribble and Edit. Thank you, Madeleine. :)

And now . . . I think I'm going to skip awarding people until some other date, as I'm running low on time (that seems to be happening a lot more than it used to these days). I really appreciate the awards, though, so another thank you to those who awarded me!

**********

How are things going at your end?

And if you're a participant in NaNoWriMo, how's your novel coming?

Have a great week, everyone!

-----The Golden Eagle

NaNoWriMo Video Songfest!

2011-11-25T18:00:00.000-05:00

This blog event is hosted by Jon Paul at Where Sky Meets Ground.

The Goal of the NaNoWriMo Video Songfest (from his blog):

Have a total blast!
Share some awesome NaNo writing music, and get a chance to hear the tunes everyone else finds groovy.
Give everyone one stop shopping for a right rockin' video playlist throughout the month. With any luck, the combined energy of all that awesome music will help us get across that 50k word finish line just a little bit faster! Who knows, maybe that really moving snippet of music posted by a fellow writer helps you nail a difficult scene or understand a character better.
Even if you're not doing NaNo this year, why not throw one of your favorite videos into the mix to support your fellow writers and let everyone else benefit from your good taste!

I had meant to post this earlier in the month, but then I forgot about it somewhere in the midst of things--I really must start paying more attention to my own Current Participation page. :P

But anyway, here's the video:

Not exactly a song, I know, but Beethoven rarely fails to get me feeling at least a little bit more energized. Particularly toward writing Science Fiction, though I'm not sure why.

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Do you have any favorite music to listen to before/when you're writing?

-----The Golden Eagle

To Those Celebrating: Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-23T18:06:00.000-05:00

To those not celebrating, have a great Thursday. :)

And, since I think it's always a good idea to not take anything for granted, I thought I'd list a few of the (many and varied) things I'm thankful for here (really, I cannot pack everything into a single list):

Blogging--in particular, the other bloggers (i.e. you awesome people reading this post).
Writing--being able to express myself in so many ways.
Dance--it can be hard, but there's no substitute.
Family--Mom, you rock.
Life--because there are things to do and see that are still out there.
. . . finally, I am thankful I don't have to write tomorrow for NaNoWriMo. I reached 50,014 words on Monday (hooray!). And while we're planning to spend the holiday at home, it's nice not to have to do anything in particular that day.

What are you thankful for?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (61)

2011-11-22T14:54:00.000-05:00

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly, bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules for participating:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from The Isle of Blood by Rick Yancey.

Jacob Torrance downed his glass of whiskey, smoothed his neatly trimmed mustache, and then proceeded to drum his fingers aggressively on the arm of the wingback chair. His ruby red signet ring, stamped with the motto of the Society (Nil timendum est), sparked and and spat back the light.

-p. 203

**********

Got a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

-----The Golden Eagle

NaNoWriMo Update (And Some Random Stuff)

2011-11-17T19:04:00.000-05:00

Exactly one year ago I won NaNoWriMo 2010, with a total of 50183 words.

I had hoped to beat (or at least make) that this year, but I'm currently sitting at 40110 words, despite writing 7,096 words today:

40110 / 50000 words. 80% done!

. . . and there's no way I'm writing 10k before midnight. I'm happy with my current word count, anyway--it might not be 50k, but there are still 13 days to go in November. Plenty of time.

**********

You know, I never really noticed my character's body language/behavior as being repetitive in first drafts before, but suddenly they seem to be doing a lot of staring and glaring and eyeing things. In addition to the raising of eyebrows and shooting of murderous looks. It has not degraded to the batting of eyelashes yet, but you never know . . .

Ah well. What is editing for?

**********

As you may have noticed, I haven't been around the blogosphere much lately; I haven't even replied to comments yet from Tuesday. I will be catching up this evening (hopefully), as I have time to blog (hooray!).

**********

I have to ask: Did anyone else catch My Life As A Turkey on Nature?

Watch My Life as a Turkey - Preview on PBS. See more from NATURE.

And I must link to this program, too, if I'm going to bring up Nature, since it's about eagles. I love eagles. :)

Oh, and I can hardly bring up Nature without mentioning NOVA. I need to get my hands on a copy of The Fabric of the Universe. Because that's one awesome TV series based on it.

**********

If you're doing NaNoWriMo, how's it going? If not, what are you working on now?

Have you come across anything interesting lately?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (60)

2011-11-15T13:38:00.000-05:00

Teaser Tuesday again!

(I know I missed last week--trying to keep up with NaNoWriMo and blogging at the same time.)

This weekly meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from Goliath by Scott Westerfeld. I love this series; the setting is amazing, and the main characters are some of my favorites.

The Clanker airship was losing altitude quickly now, its shredded gasbag fluttering in the breeze. The other zeppelin was much farther back, hovering over the Kaiserin Elizabeth and raining metal darts onto the frenzied kappa.

-p. 185

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Have a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading?

-----The Golden Eagle

Villains Are Fun: Guest Post by Ty Johnston

2011-11-11T08:00:00.000-05:00

Today I have the honor of hosting author Ty Johnston here on my blog, as part of his blog tour running from November 1st-30th.

Villains are fun

Heroes are not only the stuff of legend, but generally they’re also the stuff of fiction. If one searches or just happens to read a lot, eventually you could come across a novel that does not contain a true hero, but these are rare and usually involve a protagonist of a rare, other sort.

People tend to like heroes. Many have their favorites. Some like the spandex-wearing super heroes of comic books while others enjoy the dashing love interest of many romance novels. There are a lot of different types of heroes out there, but they all share one common trait, their heroism. In some form or another, at one point within a story, the hero must become heroic, must stand up for what is right or face down some evil.

On the other hand, villains tend to be much more diverse than heroes. Can one truly say all villains share in villainy? That simply wouldn’t be true. Many villains of fiction often aren’t really all that bad. They’re not necessarily evil. They simply are opposed to the hero at large of a given tale.

Obviously some villains do seem to be out-and-out evil, but if one knows the past of most villains, generally there is a story there that brought this character to the point of being a villain. Otherwise, it’s usually a boring villain.

For example, where would Darth Vader be without his tragic past? He would be a rather flat character. Even in the very first Star Wars movie, in which the original viewers knew nothing of Vader’s personal past, there were still hints that Vader was not always the great big bad guy he appeared to be on the screen. Kenobi talked a little about Vader’s history, and Grand Moff Tarkin hinted here and there of some knowledge.

As a writer, I tend to love villains. Often times I love them more than heroes. Perhaps that’s one reason why many of my own heroes tend to be more of the brutal sort, almost villains in their own right.

Why do I love villains so much? Several reasons. You know a hero is sooner or later going to do something heroic, but you can never be sure exactly what a villain is going to do. Also, villains tend to act while heroes tend to react.

I’m being overly simplistic, of course, because there are all kinds of heroes and villains who don’t fit into the cozy little definitions I’m tossing out. In those cases, readers often discover a pleasant surprise, though sometimes it’s not a nice surprise. It takes a skilled author who can create truly unique heroes and villains.

Another reason I love villains so much is because they are fun to write, at least for me. I love writing scenes in which my villains appear. Villains can get away with a lot more than can a hero. For instance, a hero usually isn’t going to seriously harm someone they simply find annoying, but a villain can do all kinds of nasty things to such a person. Again, there are exceptions, but often enough they fall flat unless there’s great storytelling and/or a truly iconic character. Batman could get away with such, for example, but Robin? Probably not.

In much of fantasy literature, heroes tend to follow a path. I call it the "farm boy" syndrome, and it generally follows the outline of a hero given by the famous Joseph Campbell. Basically, the hero starts out as someone seemingly unimportant. He or she is offered a chance to become a hero, initially refusing such an opportunity before fate somehow forces their hand. Eventually, the hero saves the day.

Fantasy villains are not weighed down by such restraints. The only requirement for a fantasy villain is that the villain must oppose the hero. Otherwise, the villain can follow a million different paths, even creating his or her own path.

I like that. I like characters who can make decisions without simply always reacting to something. Maybe that’s why I’m drawn to villains.

They can get away with so much more.

**********

About this blog tour:

Fantasy author Ty Johnston’s blog tour 2011 is running from November 1 through November 30. His novels include City of Rogues, Bayne’s Climb and More than Kin, all of which are available for the Kindle, the Nook, and online at Smashwords. His latest novel, Ghosts of the Asylum, will be available for e-books on November 21. To find out more, follow him at his blog tyjohnston.blogspot.com.

-----The Golden Eagle

NaNoWriMo Update

2011-11-10T16:01:00.000-05:00

10th day in, and one third of NaNoWriMo has passed.

Unfortunately, I am way behind.

Well, okay, it's not desperate desperate. I'll finish on December 5th at my current pace according to my Stats, and I can make up the difference by writing several thousand words, provided I churn out that much a few days in a row.

The only problem is, it feels like my novel is going in the wrong direction. This is, most likely, just the stage in the writing process where despair sets in and misery takes over and the plot and characters and setting turn obstinate and laconic in your head, but darn it, nothing seems to be coming out right.

Of course, if it is the despair and misery faze that's putting me into that mindset, the only thing that will get me enthusiastic again is writing . . . and yes, I'm pretty sure I've had this conversation with myself before. I just need to get over it.

Getting over it has, in the past, come in the form of an internal, shouted "Write, you blasted fool!" and an attempt at terminating all procrastination.

So I will begin such procedures this evening, after I blog.

Or tomorrow.

Or, you know, over the weekend. I can write a lot over the weekend.

But, of course, I've got stuff to do this weekend. Stuff I've been meaning to get to.

And surely I can fit in more writing during the week, right? It's what I did before.

And then there's always the weekend after next to consider . . . but I've got a lot of stuff happening that weekend!

Therefore, the only time I will be able to write is--

AHEM.

Yes, yes, the writing. I'll get to it. After I blog. Today.

Seriously.

End melodrama. :P

How's NaNoWriMo going for you, if you're participating? If not, what are you working on--and how's it coming?

Ever had this sort of conversation with yourself?

-----The Golden Eagle

Blog Tour Book Review: Exiled by RaShelle Workman

2011-11-07T08:00:00.000-05:00

Title: Connected Series Book 1: Exiled

Author: RaShelle Workman

Release date 11-11-11 through Polished Pen Press in cooperation with Literary Underground.

Genre: YA/Science Fiction

Page Count: 307

Rating: 4 out of 5

Cover Rating: 4 out of 5. I really liked this cover the first time I saw it, because it's different and a bit striking. It manages to include the Science Fiction-feel of the novel, along with the story's romantic side.

Book Summary:

Stubborn, sixteen-year-old Princess Venus of Kelari wants one thing, to become immortal, that is, until someone exiles her to Earth, kills her irrihunter and takes her family.
Now she wants revenge.
First she’s got to get home. But before she can return to Kelari, the Gods have commanded her to help an arrogant boy named Michael find his soul mate.
Only she doesn't know the first thing about love.
Rather quickly, her inexperience with human emotion is obscured by other matters—alien-controlled psychotic teens that are out to kill her, and a government group that is set on capturing and dissecting her.
Worst of all, Venus will suffer a painful death-by-poisoning, thanks to Earth’s atmosphere, if she remains on the planet longer than one week.
Still, Venus is a Princess and she's got a plan. Surely, with her help, Michael will fall in love with a human.
But time is running out and Michael is falling for the wrong girl—her.

My expectations: High. I was intrigued by the blurb and the trailer, mentions of the story on the author's blog, and the other reviews I'd come across.

I'm happy to be able to say Exiled met those expectations.

About the book: This book is unique. That's one thing I really enjoyed about the story; I've never come across another YA book all that similar to it, particularly because it has SF and Romance as two central themes, not a usual combination. The writing, while occasionally awkward, is strong overall; I liked the way things were described, along with the dialogue.

Plot:

Surprising. There were plenty of twists and turns in this book, from start to finish.

Characters:

I liked Venus a lot more than I thought I would. She was strong and determined to complete the mission assigned to her by the gods, and she kept trying, even as she physically weakened due to Earth's atmosphere.

Michael was an interesting character. He didn't appeal at the beginning, but by the end of the novel, I was rooting for him.

Dervinias, also known as "Vinny", was a great antagonist. Excellent at keeping secrets, he was a formidable adversary, and a sinister one at that.

Setting/Elements:

At the beginning, many of the alien words confused me. It does put the reader straight into the story without preamble, but I felt like I'd missed some kind of explanation that happened earlier on. However, the Science Fiction world in this book is detailed and, as I mentioned before, unique; Kelari is similar to Earth, but very different in other ways, and the contrast between the two is intriguing.

Other: Violence, sexual content.

Do I recommend this book? If you like Romance and Science Fiction, I definitely recommend this book.

Trailer:

About the Author:

RASHELLE WORKMAN lives with her husband, three children and three dogs. When she gets a quiet moment alone, she enjoys reading about faraway places. And, in case you were wondering, yes, she does believe there is other life out in the Universe.

Website/Blog: http://www.rashelleworkman.com/

Facebook: RaShelle Workman author
Twitter: RaShelleWorkman
Goodreads: Exiled

**********

Exiled is part of the Dark C.A.R.M.A blog tour:

-----The Golden Eagle

The Rule of Three Blogfest Shortlist!

2011-11-07T07:48:00.000-05:00

Well, the REN3 shortlist has been released.

And I'm a finalist!

This time, the winner will be chosen by voters. Go HERE to read the six finalist entries and vote for your favorite! The poll closes at 11.59PM GMT on Friday November 11, and the winner will be announced on Monday, November 14.

-----The Golden Eagle

The Rule of Three Blogfest: My Story's Been Longlisted!

2011-11-04T15:08:00.002-04:00

As I'm on the longlist for the Rule of Three Blogfest (the longlist! AAAH!), one of the requirements is to bring together all four installments posted during the month of October into a single story.

The shortlist will be announced on Monday, November 7, and then people will get to vote on their favorite of six entries.

Oh yes, I'm anxiously awaiting the results on the 7th.

But right now, here are all four of my entries together:

From Corey Pendergraft's perspective:

I ran along the trail, quiver banging against my shoulderblades in a rhythmic—and rather painful—thump, thump, thump.

I gripped thehilt of my sword, also conveniently knocking against my hipbone, and scowled.

Why in allRenaissance did Marcor have to tell my father I wasn’t actually scouting the Villeinroute all those afternoon hours? I never told on Marcor when he went offscouting for the prettiest girls by the water well, when he was supposed to bestanding guard by the town gates.

“I’ll get him,”I muttered to myself, dodging a branch that extended over the trail.

A horse whinniedin the distance, and I stumbled to a halt, scanning the forest.

Movement. Overthere, in the trees to the left.

I dived into thesparse underbrush by the side of the trail and laid low, glad I was wearinggreen and brown and not those idiotic red-and-gold tunics my father oftendemanded I put on.

“Is anyonethere?” a voice called.

No. There iscertainly not anyone there and I suggest you get out of here. Hell’s about tobreak loose and all that.

“Hello?”

Goodbye. Whyaren’t you going away yet?

“I could’vesworn I heard someone,” I heard the girl mutter—it was definitely a girl fromher voice.

Her horsesnorted.

“What is it,Broman?”

The horse didn’treply. Good horse.

“Come on,Broman.”

I heard thesound of a horse heading down the trail. I relaxed.

Inching upwards,I peered over the top of the bushes.

The girl stood onthe trail, an arrow nocked in my direction.

We stared ateach other, and then I had my own arrow out and aimed at her. I walked out ontothe trail and faced her, less than thirty paces apart.

“You’re fast,”she said, indicating my bow and arrow.

“You’re sneaky,”I replied.

“What?” Shelooked confused.

“Never mind. Whoare you?”

She shifted herbow. “And why should I tell you that?”

“Because I havean arrow pointed at you.”

“So do I.”

“That’sirrelevant.”

“It is not!”

“Yes, it is.”

She shook herhead. “Just tell me where I can find the town of Renaissance, and I’ll put downmy bow.”

“Really. Well,since you had to force me upon pain of death to get me to say, the town’s furtherdown this trail.”

She nodded.“Thank you.” A pause. “Why were you running from it?”

“You heard me?Why didn’t you say ‘come out, come out, wherever you are’, then?”

“Because thatwould be stupid. Broman,” she called, and her horse emerged from the trees.

“A fine animal,”I said, looking Broman over.

“You say thatlike you don’t mean it.”

I shrugged.“Horses can’t compare to riding the imbrangilae.”

“Imbrangilae?”

“You’ve neverheard of them?”

“They can’t berode.”

“Yes, they can.I’ve done it.” And my father thinks I’m a fat, stinking liar because I told himso.

“Do you know whothe leader of this town is?”

“There’s noleader. There’s just a council of old fogies.”

She snorted.Then, as if in some kind of accord, we put down our bows.

“I need to speakwith these fogies.”

“Why do you needto speak with them?” I didn’t add my father was one of them.

“Because there’san army coming.”

I stared at her.

“An army?”

“Yes. Down theVillein.”

I cursed. Anarmy was coming down the Villein—just the road I had avoided on scoutingmissions for the past three months.

From Alejandra Digiovanni's perspective:

I expected him to ask how many soldiersthere were.

But instead he looked behind me.

“Question.”

“Yes?” I shifted, impatient to get toRenaissance.

“Hope you don’t mind imbrangilae.Because one’s flying toward us.”

I whirled and spotted the descendingblack form.

“Oh no,” I whispered.

I ran down the path, toward the boy—whojust stood as the rhythmic beat of wings grew deafening.

“Get out of the way!” I shouted.

“I told you! I can ride theimbrangilae!”

“Don’t be idiotic!”

I grabbed him and tried to drag himaway, but he was too strong.

The imbrangilae landed on the path,cold air blowing past as it exhaled, and I pulled close to the boy.

Hoping, by some miracle, he reallycould handle the thing.

It was a hideous creature. Mismatchedeyes, bulbous skin, wings like they’d been chewed by rats and mended byspiders.

The boy grinned.

“Nabil,” he said.

I sucked in a breath as the creatureextended its head, leaning close.

And closer, until I thought my spinewould crack with not moving.

It nudged him, blasting more chill asit snorted.

The boy shook free of my grip andwalked around the imbrangilae, stroking its hide. Then he climbed, using itsjoints to hoist himself up just in front of the wings.
I expected the creature to buck. But it didn’t—it sat there,cleaning its face.

“How many soldiers are there?” hecalled.

“Around two thousand.”

“Renaissance has 333 people.”

“So precise?”

“My father’s chronic about it.”

“Your father?”

“He’s, um, one of the councilpersons.”

I stared at him.

“You’re not Corey Pendergraft, areyou?”

His head flew up.

“How’d you know?”

“I’m Alejandra Digiovanni. From theEspadon River clan?”

“Oh.”

His face turned guilty. “I know I disappearedwhen you visited Renaissance before, but—“

“You were supposed to marry me!”

“Does it matter to you?”

“No. But . . .”

“But?”

I sighed. “Every suitor I see tells meI’m ugly. You didn’t even bother.”

“You’re not ugly. You’re—pretty.Beautiful, I—“

“Just tell me how to get to thecouncil.”

“Get up here.”

I violently shook my head.

“Why not?”

“For one, I can’t just leave Broman—“

“He seems like a smart horse. Andimbrangilae will be faster.”

“But—“

“You won’t fall.”

“I’m not worried about falling—“

An arrow whipped past and hit the sideof the imbrangilae—it bounced right off the skin—making it scream like metal onstone.

Other arrows hit the dirt and a nearbytree, just missing Corey.

I spun around, searching frantically,but couldn’t see anyone.

Then a woman jumped down from a branchoverhead, arrow nocked.

I gasped, recognizing the symbol on hershoulder: Chiavona Desert Clan.

She circled me as four others landed onthe path, swords out and flashing.

The imbrangilae roared, an angry,dangerous sound.

The snipers paused and it whipped itstail, slamming a man into a rock. A concentrated gust of freezing air turned asecond of the five into an icicle, and she collapsed.

Corey unsheathed his sword and hit twoof the snipers on the head with the hilt. I grabbed a knife in my boot,throwing it at the nearest attacker.

It cut her shoulder and she staggered,but she lunged with a dagger and nearly stabbed me. The imbrangilae screamedagain and struck her with a claw.

“Get up here!” Corey shouted.

I grabbed one of the imbrangilae’sknobbles, climbing up and sliding in behind him.

“Up, Nabil!”

“Are you sure about this—“

“To Renaissance!” he cried.

From Nabil's (the imbrangilae's) perspective:

I shrieked again as another arrow hit my leg.

“To my father’shouse!” Corey shouted.

I twisted aroundand looked at him. He hated his father.

“Trust me, Nabil.”

Fine, then.

The humanslurched against my neck as I tore through the clouds, the freezing airenveloping the lot of us.

“Is this creatureinsane?” the female screamed, and I could sense her fear.

“Nabil alwaystravels through the clouds!” Corey shouted back. “I don’t know why!”

It was a shorttrip to Renaissance. I landed in the central square, and the people nearby screamedand ran.

I sighed. Gonewere the days when humans trusted us.

Corey jumped offand ran toward his father’s building.

I helped thefemale down my back by leaning to one side as she dismounted, earning a yelp.

She glared at me as she marched away.

I gave her agrin made of incisors.

“Father!” Coreyexclaimed, as his father marched out of a nearby building.

I walked closerto my human, sending a cool breeze into the approaching man’s face.

“Who is thisgirl?” he demanded.

“AlejandraDigiovanni. Who am I addressing?”

“Sir AndersonPendergraft,” the man said. Then he turned to his son. “Corey, I want to knowexactly what you think you were doing by running away!”

“Having fun.”

He glared.

I snorted indisapproval.

“Oh, be still,you cumbersome animal.”

A strangelyhuman idea, but I got the impulse to throw something at his head.

“An army is headedthis way,” the girl declared.

“Is there?” theman asked.

“Two thousandsoldiers, at least. Your son said 333 people live here, so I would advise immediateevacuation.”

“Miss Digiovanni,our affairs—“

I rolled overonto my side, convulsing. A few people who’d gathered in the square hoppedaway, scattering like leaves.

“Is somethingwrong with that animal?”

“Um . . . areyou all right, Nabil?” Corey asked.

I grinned again.I couldn’t believe they didn’t know, when it was such common knowledgeto any imbrangilae.

“Er . . .”

“Speak up! Iwill not have you mumbling like alley rubbish,” the man snapped.

“Nabil seems tobe . . . laughing.”

“Laughing,” thefemale said. “Of all the things to do, that creature—“

“Is there areason, Father?”

“You trust thatanimal more than me?”

“Yes.”

The man sighed.

“Yes, there is areason. No one can attack Renaissance,” he said.

I got to my feetagain. Now things were beginning to make sense.

“What?”Corey demanded.

“The imbrangilaeprotect it. They and the humans here made an agreement several hundred yearsago that they would shelter us. No one has attacked this town in decades, henceit was never obvious to the current citizens of Renaissance.”

“And what do theimbrangilae get in return?” my human asked.

Silence.

I glared at theman.

“The humansaren’t holding up their part of the deal,” the girl offered.

“That’sdisgraceful!” Corey cried.

“—Butregardless, doesn’t anyone care about the army?” she continued.

Corey’s fatherreplied, “If I know the imbrangilae, they’ll have run them off by now.”

I grunted inaffirmation.

“What’s thatsound?” someone in the crowd called out.

“It sounds likea number of imbrangilae flying toward us,” Corey said.

The humans inthe square were flustered enough, but the prospect of so many of us sent thempanicking.

“Why are theycoming?” Corey shouted to his father, over the screams and yells.

“To settle theagreement! They’ve decided it’s time we paid for not keeping our side of the bargain.”

From Corey Pendergraft's perspective yet again:

A huge imbrangilae landed in the square, and several morelanded in the streets, filling Renaissance with creatures practically everyonedespised. More hovered above, their freezing breath chilling the air.

“They’ll killus,” Alejandra whispered.

“Don’t beridiculous,” I replied. “Killing is the least the imbrangilae could do.”

She shook my arm.

“Shut up!”

“Well, you—“

“Estant,” myfather called.

The largestimbrangilae roared.

“I apologize forour past disregard of the treaty.”

“You . . .”Estant rasped, in a horrible, ripping voice that should never have come fromsomething living, “. . . have broken that treaty more times . . . than weimbrangilae remember. Your history lies in the dead . . . forms of imbrangilae. . . who we trusted to you.”

“I know,Estant,” my father murmured.

“Humans must paythe price . . . of their actions.”

The crowd wasquick on the uptake.

“Kill them all!”someone shouted.

“Burn them!”screamed another. “We won’t die!”

“SILENCE,” boomedEstant. “Did I ever mention . . . dying?”

“It wasimplied,” my father said mildly.

“I will not haveyour . . . insinuations. What I propose . . . is a trade. We imbrangilae . . .want five of your . . . offspring.”

An outragedwoman cried, “They want our children?”

“We want totrain you . . . to understand us. I know we are ugly by . . . your standards.But with knowledge, perhaps . . . we can come . . . to an alliance, howevertenuous.”

“Estant,” myfather said, “do you realize what you’re asking? To send children to your lairs,to live with your kind?”

“Yes. Humanskilled seventeen imbrangilae . . . in the past century. Is that not . . . fair?We would never . . . kill one of you.”

Silence.

“I volunteer,” Isaid. “I will travel to your home.”

“You . . .volunteer?” Estant rasped.

“I do, too,”Alejandra declared.

“Two,” theimbrangilae said. “There must be . . . three more.”

“We’ll go.”

I turned to seetwins emerge from the crowd, a sister and brother, identical except for a longscar down the girl’s face.

I knew them.Outcasts, forced to scrounge in alleys for food. I’d tried to speak to them,but they’d spurned me, expecting to get bullied or tricked.

“That will do,”Estant said. “Forget the fifth.”

“They’ll die!” aman shouted.

“We won’t,” Isaid. “We’ll be just fine with the imbrangilae.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I trustNabil.”

I don’t think he understood our speech, butNabil shrieked.

I smiled.

“Then we have anagreement,” Estant roared, rearing. “You humans will . . . forget this day, asyou forget . . . everything else. But there will . . . be a time when you mustremember . . . and do not overlook the detail the imbrangilae could kill youall.”

He took off.

“Good luck, Corey!”my father shouted, as Nabil walked up.

“Goodbye,Father.”

I jumped ontoNabil’s back as Alejandra awkwardly hoisted herself onto another imbrangilae.

The twins, I hadto notice, were more graceful.

Nabil lifted upand soared into the clouds, but not before I peered back down at Renaissance.

Such a smallplace.

I couldn’t waitto see the rest of the world through the imbrangilae’s eyes.

**********

And, finally, I'd like to give a big shout-out to the hosts of REN3: Stuart Nager, Lisa Vooght, J.C. Martin, and Damyanti Biswas. Because they've been amazing throughout this blogfest.

-----The Golden Eagle

Insecure Writer's Support Group

2011-11-02T17:13:00.003-04:00

Sorry this post is so late in the day, everyone. I didn't have time to write it this morning, and had stuff going on for the rest of the afternoon.

But to the post topic, which is on being entirely unoriginal.

There have been times when I've thought of something, then realized that it sounded very similar (or at least on the same plane) to a blurb or book I'd read but forgot about temporarily. Sometimes I even forget which story I've taken it from, but I'll remember later it's not new.

This bothers me for several reasons. One, I don't like that sense I'm using someone else's idea. I enjoy coming up with my own stuff, ridiculous as it may be. Two, IF I was ever to be published, then I don't want the author thinking I used their idea. Even similarities I don't see, someone else might find. Three, I also think it might just be a lack of effort. There are so many possibilities when it comes to all ideas, so there's really no excuse for copying another one.

Every once in a while, though, I feel like I've come up with a good idea. An example: for the setting of my current project, it's influenced by other things, and it might be entirely in the realm of Science Fiction, but I can't think of anything that's really close to it.

Of course, some famous author will probably publish a book with a similar idea a week after I publish this post. :P

Do you worry about originality?

**********

***I'm also guest posting HERE at Orchid's blog The Haunting of Orchid Forsythia, about The Inheritance Cycle (don't forget the last book comes out on November 8th!).***

And speaking of that current project, I'm off to write some more in my NaNoWriMo novel . . . though I will be replying to comments and visiting as many blogs as I can.

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (59)

2011-11-01T14:14:00.001-04:00

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly, bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules for participation:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from This Dark Endeavor by Kenneth Oppel, because it's next on my TBR pile. I love his books--he's written some of my favorite novels/series. I'm really looking forward to digging into this one . . .

An eternal night spent tossing and turning, shivering and sweating. When awake, I lay in the grips of terror; and when I slept, it was only in cruel snatches, and my dreams were foul.

-p. 42

**********

Got a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading? Are there any authors who've written several books you love?

-----The Golden Eagle

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T15:04:00.001-04:00

(SOURCE)

Whether you're going trick-or-treating or no, I hope you all have a great October 31st!

And to the fellow NaNoWriMo participants out there: GOOD LUCK.

-----The Golden Eagle

It Snowed Yesterday. Geez.

2011-10-30T14:23:00.000-04:00

It didn't accumulate much, and it's certainly melted away by now, but I usually think of there being more time from the start of fall to the first snow . . .

Ah well. It isn't nearly so bad that I'm going to be singing this again (that I'm reserving for March. Or even April) and a little snow in the morning looks rather pretty.

(SOURCE)

Do you get snow, and if so, have you had any yet? Do you like winter at all?

(And yes, I'm trying to come up with topics for the last stretch of NaBloWriMo. Only one day left in October, which is a fairly scary thing. Got to go work some more on my NaNoWriMo novel.)

-----The Golden Eagle

Answers To Reader Questions: Post No. 4

2011-10-29T13:04:00.001-04:00

***My Halloween Bloghop post is below, in case you're looking for it!***

Following up on my answer HERE about college, some bloggers wanted to know more, so here we go:

Sarah Pearson asked:

What do you think you might study in college?

Science. Physics, biology, something along those lines . . . though I've thought about a lot of different possibilities. Architecture/engineering still sounds like fun.

Alex J. Cavanaugh asked:

Any colleges catch your eye yet?

Er, I haven't really looked at many--I know, I know--but as far as things look right now, I'll probably end up going to a local college.

Misha asked:

Are you planning on studying further once you're done with school?

After high school, definitely. And I'd certainly like to get a degree.

Shelly asked:

Do you believe homeschooling has made you tighter with your parents?

Parent, actually. I was adopted (don't know who my birth parents were) and my mom never married, so it's just me and her (or is it her and me?), and I do think it's made us tighter. Though I'm certain we'd be tight regardless of homeschooling. :)

**********

And some other catch-up things: Several people have awarded me in the past couple of weeks--just so you don't think I've forgotten, I'll be posting about them sometime early in November!

I also got a couple Google friend requests in the past month. The problem is, they only showed up once when I followed a blog, and I can't find them again; usually they come up whenever I "join" a site, visit my Follower dashboard, or check site settings. So, to the people who sent requests: I'm not ignoring you, just can't figure out how to accept! Sorry about that . . .

**********

Hope you're having a great weekend!

-----The Golden Eagle

Halloween Hop!

2011-10-28T14:51:00.000-04:00

This bloghop is hosted by Jeremy Bates.

About:

1) Add your blog to the list below. (See linky list on Jeremy's site)
2) Over the Halloween weekend (October 28-31) visit as many of the other blogs listed below as you wish.
3) Be sure to mention your favorite monster movie or book and your Halloween costume this year.
4) If you like the blog, follow it!
5) Grab the badge here and stick it on your blog for a few weeks to spread the word! (If you scratch it, it smells like pumpkin).

My answers:

Favorite monster book: I don't actually read that many monster books; they aren't my forte, though I don't mind a few of them here and there. So if I had to pick . . . Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Jane Austen and Ben H. Winters.

(Ahem. I love Quirk Books . . .)

EDIT: I just remembered Rick Yancey's Monstrumologist series. Excellent, chilling books, those.

Costume: Not dressing up for Halloween this time around. I haven't in years. :P

**********

What's your favorite monster movie or book? Are you dressing up this year, and if so, what as?

-----The Golden Eagle

National Novel Writing Month: To Start With An Outline Or Not (+ 600 Posts!)

2011-10-27T14:46:00.001-04:00

For participants in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), it's only 4 days away now, and as such, there's still time to plan that November novel. It may be 1700 words a day for 30 days, but there are lots of strategies for getting prepared with plot outlines, character sheets, research, and by figuring out all the details about the novel that will be written (by hook or by crook!).

On the other hand, there's the school of thought that NaNoWriMo is a month where you start utterly and completely from scratch--you're already restricted to not writing anything before it starts (technically . . . there are "rebels", and I was one last year, who break that rule and work on something they've already begun), but some writers just plunge in without any preparation, other than an idea.

Me, I'm planning to compromise, as I find that if I think too hard about something for too long I'll drive out the enthusiasm I had for it, and if I don't plan a thing then I'll lose steam and get completely lost. At the moment I have a very rough outline, and I have character and setting inspiration, but I'm leaving a lot of room for improvisation as I go along this November.

After all, that's where a bit of the fun lies.

If you're doing NaNoWriMo, where you do fall? Plotter, pantser, in-between? What do you think is the best approach?

**********

And also, this is my 601st post! I didn't even notice until today when I glanced at the list of posts I'd published. NaBloWriMo has helped that, of course . . . and speaking of NaBloWriMo, it's almost over. Sadly.

-----The Golden Eagle

South of Charm Blog Tour: Interview With Elliot Grace

2011-10-26T07:34:00.000-04:00

***REN3 post below, if you've come by for that.***

Today I have the honor of interviewing Elliot Grace, author of South of Charm, here on my blog.

-Whatinspired you to write South of Charm?

When Iwas still quite young, a second or third grader if memory serves, my familymoved north from Sarasota, to the lesser populated Holmes County countrysidesof Ohio, and roughly a mile or two south of a town called Charm. Manyhave written over the years of a certain nostalgia associated with growing upin quaint mid-western towns where the grass grows a bit slower, and where theretired salesman on the corner lot, is on a first name basis with the youngfamily of four at the end of the block. My goal was to capture some ofthat rural magic from yesteryear, garnish it with a healthy dose of familydysfunction, and sit back, allowing them to figure things out on theirown.

-Areany of the events in your book based on real-life experiences?

Forevery event that takes place in a story, there's a spark of personalinspiration that has somehow breathed life into the words on that page,regardless of the genre or subject matter. Danny Kaufman, the maincharacter, is a ten year old boy whose life slowly unravels around him. As I wrote "Charm," I held his hand and walked him through someof the tough spots in the story, for many of them were snippets of my childhoodas well. Memories in need of an outlet. The experience was refreshing forthe both of us ;)

-Howdid you come up with the title?

"Southof Charm" was actually the third title of the book. After decidingagainst the previous two, my editor and I kicked around several dozen ideasbefore this one snuck up on me during a production meeting at work one day. I excused myself from the room, called David from my office, whisperedthe words, "How about South of Charm?" into the mouthpiece, heard himsqueal in delight, and returned to an otherwise forgettable meeting at the dayjob. I'm a fan of titles that may or may not suggest a double meaning. Charm is an actual place, a tiny inkblot on an atlas. However,there are many scenes in the story that one would consider far less thancharming. It took longer to decide on the title than to write the story,but once figured out, we were confident that we'd nailed it.

-Whichauthors do you think had the greatest influence in your writing, and who areyour favorite writers?

As ayoungster, the work of Terry Brooks and Robert Cormier kept me up way past mycurfew on most nights. I hold those two responsible for the late hours Ikeep, drumming the keyboard. Along with them, John Sandford stands aloneatop my favorite list of authors.

-Howlong have you been writing?

I wrotemy first story, "Terror Castle," during Write to Read Week inelementary school. If memory serves, it was penned in the third grade. That book earned me a face to face meet and greet with an actual writerwho visited the school, and later read my story to the entire student body. I haven't stopped writing since.

-Whatdo you find is the most important element of a book? Is it the plot,characters, setting, writing style, something else?

Mytastes have changed with age. There was once a time when every book Iread simply had to carry me to faraway lands, mystic planets littered with evildruids, and heroes wielding swords of flame, an ancient wizard at their sidefor good measure. Nowadays, it's all about the penmanship. When Iopen a book for the first time, it's not the story that concerns me, but howthe picture has been painted. I wouldn't hesitate in reading a storydeemed "utterly boring" by many, if the writing is amasterpiece.

-Isthere any advice you would give to other writers?

Bewilling to accept criticism. Truly listen to the advice of peers, andthose who've read your work. And lastly, remember that some of the bestwriters are also admitted bookworms. There are no high dollar critiquegroups capable of improving one's work, like that of a good book from anexcellent storyteller.

-Do youhave any new projects in the works at the moment?

I'mcurrently several chapters into a YA novel about a group of boys up to no good in,"The Fellas." To be quite honest though, I've recentlywhispered an idea past my editor that's been nipping at my train of thoughtover the summer. This one's about a girl. Her name's Derby, and tobe frank, she's been keeping me up at night, desperate for attention. This girl has quite a story to tell...I think perhaps I'll tag along forthe ride ;)

**********

An excerpt from South of Charm:

We're huddled in the far corner of my bedroom. Arms wrapped around our knees in the dark. The approaching footsteps grow louder. Ominous thuds. Our mother, but somehow not. She's standing outside my door. We listen to the creak of the hinges. My sister clenches my arm. "She's coming," she whispers. "She's broken."

Links to purchase:
Kindle Edition of South of Charm
Paperback version

And if you'd like to find out more about him, Elliot Grace blogs at So close, but.... He's also hosting a giveaway, the details of which are HERE.

Thank you so much for coming by, Elliot!

-----The Golden Eagle

The Rule of Three Blogfest: Final Renaissance Story

2011-10-26T07:32:00.000-04:00

Read the FIRST, SECOND, and THIRD entries.

“They’ll killus,” Alejandra whispered.

“Don’t beridiculous,” I replied. “Killing is the least the imbrangilae could do.”

She shook my arm.

“Shut up!”

“Well, you—“

“Estant,” myfather called.

The largestimbrangilae roared.

“I apologize forour past disregard of the treaty.”

“I know,Estant,” my father murmured.

“Humans must paythe price . . . of their actions.”

The crowd wasquick on the uptake.

“Kill them all!”someone shouted.

“Burn them!”screamed another. “We won’t die!”

“SILENCE,”boomed Estant. “Did I ever mention . . . dying?”

“It wasimplied,” my father said mildly.

“I will not haveyour . . . insinuations. What I propose . . . is a trade. We imbrangilae . . .want five of your . . . offspring.”

An outragedwoman cried, “They want our children?”

“We want totrain you . . . to understand us. I know we are ugly by . . . your standards.But with knowledge, perhaps . . . we can come . . . to an alliance, howevertenuous.”

“Estant,” myfather said, “do you realize what you’re asking? To send children to your lairs,to live with your kind?”

“Yes. Humanskilled seventeen imbrangilae . . . in the past century. Is that not . . . fair?We would never . . . kill one of you.”

Silence.

“I volunteer,” Isaid. “I will travel to your home.”

“You . . .volunteer?” Estant rasped.

“I do, too,”Alejandra declared.

“Two,” theimbrangilae said. “There must be . . . three more.”

“We’ll go.”

I turned to seetwins emerge from the crowd, a sister and brother, identical except for a longscar down the girl’s face.

I knew them.Outcasts, forced to scrounge in alleys for food. I’d tried to speak to them,but they’d spurned me, expecting to get bullied or tricked.

“That will do,”Estant said. “Forget the fifth.”

“They’ll die!” aman shouted.

“We won’t,” Isaid. “We’ll be just fine with the imbrangilae.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I trustNabil.”

I don’t think he understood our speech, butNabil shrieked.

I smiled.

He took off.

“Good luck, Corey!”my father shouted, as Nabil walked up.

“Goodbye,Father.”

I jumped ontoNabil’s back as Alejandra awkwardly hoisted herself onto another imbrangilae.

The twins, I hadto notice, were more graceful.

Nabil lifted upand soared into the clouds, but not before I peered back down at Renaissance.

Such a smallplace.

I couldn’t waitto see the rest of the world through the imbrangilae’s eyes.

(580 words. For some reason, Word counts all the periods in the ellipses.)

Final prompts:

The misfortune is resolved/accepted. (check)
Relationships mend/are torn asunder.
The final event becomes another secret for generations to come. (check)
There is a new arrival in town.

**********

About the REN3 Blogfest:

Hosts:

Stuart Nager at Tale Spinning, Damyanti Biswas at Daily (W)rite, Lisa Vooght at Flash Fiction, JC Martin at Fighter Writer.

A. What is the Rule of Three?

The “rule of three” is a principle in writing that suggests that things that come in threes are inherently funnier, more satisfying, or more effective than other numbers of things. The reader/audience of this form of text is also more likely to consume information if it is written in groups of threes. A series of three is often used to create a progression in which the tension is created, then built up, built up even more, and finally released. –Wikipedia

B. How does the Rule of Three work in this blogfest?
The Rule of Three is a month-long fiction blogfest, where we’ve created a ‘world’, the town of Renaissance, and challenged you to create a story within it. The story will feature 3 characters of your creation, who will be showcased on your blog on 3 different Wednesdays or Thursdays, following the Rule of Three. The 4th Wednesday/Thursday posting you’ll have the culminating scene.

C. What is the Shared World of Rule of Three? Welcome to Renaissance.
Renaissance is an outpost town in the middle of nowhere, but many routes pass through or beside it. The desert is encroaching on one side (to the West), a once-lush forest lies to the East and South. A large river runs through the forest, but it is not close to the town. Mountains are to the North, far, far away, and when you look towards them you don’t know if they are an illusion or real. Closer by are the smaller hill chains that fed the mining, creating caverns and passages underground.
The town has had a number of identities throughout its history: A trading post; a mining town; a ghost town until it was rediscovered; a thriving community; the scene of a number of great battles; the scene of one great tragedy (that led to its Ghost Town standing); a town of great joys and celebrations, and so much more. At this point in time, there is a general population of 333. A mixture of a community. It boasts families that have lived there for generations upon generations, but they are in the minority, and are not in positions of power. There are traders who have come back here, at the end of their many travails, to settle in. The new families and power-players have taken this as a last refuge for themselves, hoping to rebuild lives torn apart on the way here. Everyone has a secret. Welcome to Renaissance. Enjoy your stay.

**********

And so ends the Rule of Three Blogfest--which I'm going to miss, because I've had an awful lot of fun writing my posts this past October.

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (58)

2011-10-25T14:38:00.000-04:00

Time for Teaser Tuesday, everyone! This weekly meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules for participating:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from Sourcery by Terry Pratchett.

"Did you do that?" he demanded.
"Stand aside, oaf," said the wizard, three words which in the opinion of Ardrothy gave him the ongoing life expectancy of a glass cymbal.
"I hates wizards," said Koble. "I really hates wizards. So I am going to hit you, all right?"

-p. 83

**********

Got a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading? Feel free to leave them in the comments!

-----The Golden Eagle

Casting Call Character Bloghop

2011-10-24T14:48:00.001-04:00

This bloghop is hosted by Carrie Butler, Melodie Wright, and Lisa L. Regan.

About:

All you'll need to do is write one post (the week of the 24th) featuring a few characters from your book or WIP, using some kind of visual aid. (You're already picturing your post, aren't you?)

Possible Ways to Participate:

Photo montage - Grab photos online, and post them with small descriptions of your characters. Let's be safe/smart about this. Don't take copyrighted photos without permission, provide attribution on photos with a Creative Commons license, etc. Basically, give credit, where credit is due. I'm sure most of you do that with your posts, anyway. :)
Book trailer - You've seen them online, right? This is the perfect excuse to try one of your own!
Paintings/Drawings/Doodles on Napkins - C'mon, we won't make fun of your art skills. It's all for fun. :)

For an example, check out Melodie's photo-centric post.

Quick Details:

WHO: All the cool kids. (We're serious. Join us, and you'll be you cool...ish.)

WHAT: See explanation above

WHERE: Your blog. My blog. Everyone's blog! (We hope.)

WHEN: October 24th through 28th

WHY: Because it's Campaign season, we're awesome, and we can. 'Nuff said, right?

HOW: Use the Linky List below to sign up as a participant. Come the week of the 24th, share your post, then hop around to the others. Simple, right? There'll even be a giveaway, featuring a critiquish prize!

**********

For this bloghop, I decided to post some photos and inspiration for my NaNoWriMo project. I think I may have finally decided on an idea to work with for November (hooray!), but I'm still hammering out the details, so there won't be a ton of stuff in this post.

Now, onward with the images!

First, since participants aren't limited to people, the setting of my novel. For it, Moshe Safdie's architecture has been perfect. It's exactly the kind of geometric, precise structure that I was thinking of.

(SOURCE)

Sigh. I love architecture. :)

And this little object is something that really got me thinking setting-wise:

(SOURCE)

As for my characters:

MC (Ben Barnes):

(SOURCE)

Supporting character (Alan Rickman):

(SOURCE)

Supporting character (Jeremy Irons):

(SOURCE)

Supporting character (Cate Blanchett):

(SOURCE)

And there you have my (rather short) cast. I don't want to give away much about the project, but I will say that it's going to be Science Fiction. I had thought about writing Fantasy . . . but then inspiration hit for a SF novel.

And a DISCLAIMER: All images are from Wikimedia Commons.

**********

So what about you? Who would you like cast as one of your characters--or would you want to base a character on? Any favorite architects?

-----The Golden Eagle

Those Sudden Bursts of Inspiration

2011-10-23T15:05:00.000-04:00

(SOURCE)

Don't you just love 'em?

-----The Golden Eagle

Answers To Reader Questions: Post No. 3

2011-10-22T12:21:00.002-04:00

I was actually supposed to do this a week ago, but I forgot and only remembered after I'd posted last Saturday. Sorry, everyone!

Emily Rose asked:

Do you plan to home school until college? Are you taking college courses at the moment?

Yes, and no. I do plan on being homeschooled until college, unless we move to a district with really good schools or something like that, which is highly unlikely. And I'm not taking any college courses at the moment, though I have done (and am currently doing) some programs at Learner.org.

(SOURCE)

Got any other questions, bloggers?

(I really do like answering them. :) And it gives me material to post about on Saturdays for NaBloWriMo.)

-----The Golden Eagle

Third Campaigner Challenge: Show Not Tell

2011-10-21T14:59:00.001-04:00

A long, trembling scream made me sit up and open my eyes.I’d been lying there, arms spread out, trying in vain to find something tooccupy my mind.

Cool, soft airblew a piece of hair across my face, and I looked around, eyes traveling fromthe gray and distant mountains to the water sliding and rushing along the blacksand in front of me.

A delicate tingeof yellow and orange showed above the mountain ridge, and I sighed, theexhalation sharp and hard enough to startle a nearby bird. It emitted anotherscream and launched itself into the air, wings beating in a rhythmic whump,whump, whump.

I rubbed wateroff my face with the back of my hand, salt and dirt hitting my tongue. Then Istarted to stand, the breeze growing stronger—and suddenly my throatconstricted, lungs refusing to take in any more air. I fell back and gagged,wondering what on this planet could smell so awful.

I reached outand drew a finger through the sand. The pattern I left glowed for just second,leaving a pale afterimage when I closed my eyes.

The smell receded,thanks to the charm, and I breathed again. I turned, and saw a brown lump onthe ground a few meters away.

It looked like asynbatec egg.

I knew this wastheir home planet, and I knew they bred on the sand. But I’d only heard of themin hidden files my mentor didn’t know I could access, watched one hatching in avid—the dark creature inside had been ugly and fascinating.

“Tacise!”

I turned, andsaw my mentor storming toward me.

“Did you touchit?”

“No, why—“

He grabs my arm.“Because synbatecs kill the nearest living thing when they hatch.”

(299 words)

**********

About this challenge:

Write a blog post in 300 words or less, excluding the title. The post can be in any format, whether flash fiction, non-fiction, humorous blog musings, poem, etc. The blog post should show:

that it’s morning (check)
that a man or a woman (or both) is at the beach (check)
that the MC (main character) is bored (check)
that something stinks behind where he/she is sitting (check)
that something surprising happens (check)

Just for fun, see if you can involve all five senses AND include these random words: "synbatec," "wastopaneer," and "tacise." (NB. these words are completely made up and are not intended to have any meaning other than the one you give them).

I didn't use "wastopaneer" . . . I couldn't really think of a way to get it in there and still sound natural.

**********

What do you think? How'd I do on the "show not tell"?

And if you enjoyed my entry, you can vote for it HERE: I'm #95 in the Linky List, under The Eagle's Aerial Perspective. Just click the "like" button below my link.

-----The Golden Eagle

Novel: Finito

2011-10-20T15:26:00.000-04:00

Yes, that's right. I FINISHED MY NOVEL THIS MORNING.

Woot.

It ended up at 75,860 words, which is 15,000 less than I originally planned for.

But I like it where it is. Also, while I usually write thick first drafts, this one has a lot of stuff that needs to be added later--description, backstory, details that were perfectly clear in my mind that don't come across for the reader. Most of the reason for that is because it's largely dialogue; I would say that over 75% is just people talking to each other (hopefully in a non-boring way, of course) so it will almost definitely be thicker once I've done rewrites/revisions/edits.

Assuming I get around to those. I'd actually be pretty happy if this novel never saw the light of day again . . . it's not my most favorite project. It (I still have not come up with the right title) was good practice, though. Plus, it was my second novel of the year, and my second finished novel; I like being able to say that, yes indeed, I have written more than one book.

Anyway. Now I have to really start worrying about NaNoWriMo. I don't have a plot outline, I don't have clearly-defined characters, I don't have all the details of the world set straight. And it's only 11 days away.

Therefore, I'm paying extra attention to posts about outlining and such . . . I never had much trouble with it before, but THIS particular idea is going to challenge me plot-wise.

Time to get crackin'.

Got any plotting advice? How do you plan your stories?

***Also, I am guest posting about blogfests over at I Am Writer . . . Hear Me Roar!, and I'd love it if you hopped over to check it out.***

-----The Golden Eagle

The Rule of Three Blogfest: Third Renaissance Story

2011-10-19T07:59:00.001-04:00

Read the first story HERE and the second HERE.

I shrieked again as another arrow hit my leg.

“To my father’shouse!” Corey shouted.

I twisted aroundand looked at him. He hated his father.

“Trust me, Nabil.”

Fine, then.

The humanslurched against my neck as I tore through the clouds, the freezing airenveloping the lot of us.

“Is this creatureinsane?” the female screamed, and I could sense her fear.

“Nabil alwaystravels through the clouds!” Corey shouted back. “I don’t know why!”

It was a shorttrip to Renaissance. I landed in the central square, and the people nearby screamedand ran.

I sighed. Gonewere the days when humans trusted us.

Corey jumped offand ran toward his father’s building.

I helped thefemale down my back by leaning to one side as she dismounted, earning a yelp.

She glared at meas she marched away.

I gave her agrin made of incisors.

“Father!” Coreyexclaimed, as his father marched out of a nearby building.

I walked closerto my human, sending a cool breeze into the approaching man’s face.

“Who is thisgirl?” he demanded.

“AlejandraDigiovanni. Who am I addressing?”

“Sir AndersonPendergraft,” the man said. Then he turned to his son. “Corey, I want to knowexactly what you think you were doing by running away!”

“Having fun.”

He glared.

I snorted indisapproval.

“Oh, be still,you cumbersome animal.”

A strangelyhuman idea, but I got the impulse to throw something at his head.

“An army is headedthis way,” the girl declared.

“Is there?” theman asked.

“Two thousandsoldiers, at least. Your son said 333 people live here, so I would advise immediateevacuation.”

“Miss Digiovanni,our affairs—“

I rolled overonto my side, convulsing. A few people who’d gathered in the square hoppedaway, scattering like leaves.

“Is somethingwrong with that animal?”

“Um . . . areyou all right, Nabil?” Corey asked.

I grinned again.I couldn’t believe they didn’t know, when it was such common knowledgeto any imbrangilae.

“Er . . .”

“Speak up! Iwill not have you mumbling like alley rubbish,” the man snapped.

“Nabil seems tobe . . . laughing.”

“Laughing,” thefemale said. “Of all the things to do, that creature—“

“Is there areason, Father?”

“You trust thatanimal more than me?”

“Yes.”

The man sighed.

“Yes, there is areason. No one can attack Renaissance,” he said.

I got to my feetagain. Now things were beginning to make sense.

“What?”Corey demanded.

“And what do theimbrangilae get in return?” my human asked.

Silence.

I glared at theman.

“The humansaren’t holding up their part of the deal,” the girl offered.

“That’sdisgraceful!” Corey cried.

“—Butregardless, doesn’t anyone care about the army?” she continued.

Corey’s fatherreplied, “If I know the imbrangilae, they’ll have run them off by now.”

I grunted inaffirmation.

“What’s thatsound?” someone in the crowd called out.

“It sounds likea number of imbrangilae flying toward us,” Corey said.

The humans inthe square were flustered enough, but the prospect of so many of us sent thempanicking.

“Why are theycoming?” Corey shouted to his father, over the screams and yells.

“To settle theagreement! They’ve decided it’s time we paid for not keeping our side of the bargain.”

(596 words)

This week's prompts:

The impending misfortune foreshadowed in the 1st prompt comes to pass, but one or more characters laugh at it. (check)

Betrayal is in the air. (check)

Relationships unravel or strengthen.

A long-kept secret is revealed. (check)

**********

About the REN3 Blogfest:

Hosts:

Stuart Nager at Tale Spinning, Damyanti Biswas at Daily (W)rite, Lisa Vooght at Flash Fiction, JC Martin at Fighter Writer.

A. What is the Rule of Three?

The “rule of three” is a principle in writing that suggests that things that come in threes are inherently funnier, more satisfying, or more effective than other numbers of things. The reader/audience of this form of text is also more likely to consume information if it is written in groups of threes. A series of three is often used to create a progression in which the tension is created, then built up, built up even more, and finally released. –Wikipedia

B. How does the Rule of Three work in this blogfest?
The Rule of Three is a month-long fiction blogfest, where we’ve created a ‘world’, the town of Renaissance, and challenged you to create a story within it. The story will feature 3 characters of your creation, who will be showcased on your blog on 3 different Wednesdays or Thursdays, following the Rule of Three. The 4th Wednesday/Thursday posting you’ll have the culminating scene.

C. What is the Shared World of Rule of Three? Welcome to Renaissance.
Renaissance is an outpost town in the middle of nowhere, but many routes pass through or beside it. The desert is encroaching on one side (to the West), a once-lush forest lies to the East and South. A large river runs through the forest, but it is not close to the town. Mountains are to the North, far, far away, and when you look towards them you don’t know if they are an illusion or real. Closer by are the smaller hill chains that fed the mining, creating caverns and passages underground.
The town has had a number of identities throughout its history: A trading post; a mining town; a ghost town until it was rediscovered; a thriving community; the scene of a number of great battles; the scene of one great tragedy (that led to its Ghost Town standing); a town of great joys and celebrations, and so much more.At this point in time, there is a general population of 333. A mixture of a community. It boasts families that have lived there for generations upon generations, but they are in the minority, and are not in positions of power. There are traders who have come back here, at the end of their many travails, to settle in. The new families and power-players have taken this as a last refuge for themselves, hoping to rebuild lives torn apart on the way here.Everyone has a secret. Welcome to Renaissance. Enjoy your stay.

**********

What do you think of my story?

-----The Golden Eagle

Teaser Tuesday (57)

2011-10-18T14:41:00.000-04:00

Teaser Tuesday again, everyone. This weekly meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

Rules:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week, my teaser is from a book I started a while ago but never got around to actually reading beyond the first few pages. I really should read Dune, by Frank Herbert, but there are just so many other books in my TBR pile it's ridiculous . . .

She parted a jungle overlapping of leaves, looked through to the center of the room. A low fountain stood there, small with fluted lips. The rhythmic noise was a peeling, spooling arc of water falling thud-a-gallop onto the metal bowl.

-p. 70

**********

Have a teaser, or thoughts on the book you're reading? Feel free to leave them in the comments!

-----The Golden Eagle

Twilight And Tuck Everlasting: Similarities And Differences

2011-10-17T14:34:00.003-04:00

I watched Tuck Everlasting on Saturday, since I enjoyed the book but had never seen the movie. It was okay, but the book is far better.

While I was watching it, I couldn't help but notice the number of things Tuck Everlasting and Twilight have in common.

A list of the similarities:

The families of the male main character:
Move around a lot
Live out in the woods
Avoid people
Include a mother who welcomes the idea of another family member
Include a father who is warier of other people
Include a sibling who strongly opposes telling anyone about their existence
Include a brother who is older and stronger
(In Twilight, the last two are Rosalie and Emmett; in Tuck Everlasting they're combined in Miles)

The love interests Edward and Jesse:
Are the same actual age: 104
Are the same physical age: 17
Both seem to fall instantly in love with the main character

The main character:
Parent(s) is/are in a position of authority
Feels confined

Plot-wise:
There is someone hunting the supernatural family and main character
There is a threat of death
There is a risk of the family being exposed
One of the characters/character hunting the family dies
The family leaves (this happens later in The Twilight Saga)

But where the differences end is in the female main character.

Bella Swan from Twilight decides to spend her immortal life with Edward Cullen; Winnie Foster from Tuck Everlasting turns down the chance to live with Jesse and, instead, becomes a wife and mother (according to the movie) and lives a mortal life. In addition, when the love interest leaves, the two characters respond very differently: Bella curls up and wallows in misery, while Winnie goes on with her life.

All in all, I'm a much bigger fan of Winnie Foster than I am of Bella Swan. If you ask me, she made the more down-to-earth decision by deciding to die and live without Jesse. It was a strong, independent choice, and it carries a message with it of living your life to the fullest.

Have you read/watched Twilight or Tuck Everlasting? If you read/watched both, did you notice similarities between the works? Which do you like better?

Are there any other stories that you find are similar in plot, character, and/or setting?

-----The Golden Eagle