Beautiful People- May {Villain Edition}

This month, I'll be answering questions about a character villain from the latest idea stewing around in my head--Drift, a slight retelling of the original The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen. I don't have major plot points or anything yet, but I do have a basic idea of who my version of the sea witch/the Little Mermaid's Father {a.k.a. Scylla}is. 

Alright, enough chatter-- let's get on to the questions!

1. What is their motive? 

Believe it or not, to make her daughter {the MC, (name to be decided on)} happy. The problem is she's a little off her rocker. What she thinks makes her daughter happy is really constricting her internal and external goals. Also, she's obsessed with being the best Queen she can be. Her husband, Erik, was the previous ruler, and died when fishermen mistook him for a large fish and attempted to reel him in, giving him several fatal wounds which he perished to early the next morning. Knowing of his wife's {then only mildly} obsessive personality, he made her promise to make sure their daughter and the Deep were happy and safe.

2. What are they prepared to do to get what they want?

Kill. Maim. Ruin. Anything she perceives to be a danger to the MC and/or the Deep will be terminated in the most painful sense of the word.  Now, when things are fine, she rules with a strict but {fairly...} kind hand, actually making the Deep a more peaceful, protected place. For a time.

3. Are they evil to the core, or simply misunderstood? 

A combination of both. Her motives can be misunderstood, which isn't surprising if you note how twisted the outcomes are when thrust into reality.

4. What was their past like? What about their childhood? Was there one defining moment that made them embrace their evil ways?She was born to the Duke and Duchess of a mermaid duchy in the English Channel. She'd been in an arranged marriage with Erik since the age of five, and her entire childhood then after was geared towards marrying him. The entirety of her maids, nannies and governesses were female, and relatives that had sons older than her or around her age were discouraged from visiting. This was to prevent even the slightest idea that she was destined for anyone but Erik. 

5. Now that they’re evil, have they turned their back on everyone, or is there still someone in their 

life that they care for? (Brother? Daughter? Love interest? Mother? Someone who is just as evil as they are?)

Main character. Not to spoil something that's barely tangible, but after a turning point in the novel, her already obsessive, controlling definition of love goes from bad to worse.  

6. Do they like hugs?

She has no opinion on them, as she has received few in her lifetime.

7. Are they plagued by something? (Nightmares, terrible thoughts?) 

The fear that she might fail to fulfill her promise to Erik. Once you live your entire life for someone, and s/he's gone, you can't help but still cling onto the one thing that lets you carry on. That, and she's had the phrase Mother knows best drilled into her head since childhood. She think's it will apply perfectly to the MC as well... and that's the problem.

8. Who are they more similar to: Gollum or Maleficent?

I had no idea who Gollum was till I googled it and realized it was that creepy weird guy one writer joked you might end up eventually looking like if you keep at it. So... *checks Wikipedia* Maleficent.

9. If your villain could have their choice of transportation what would it be?

Hmnn, she prefers to swim, but it really depends on the situation.  

10. If you met your villain in the street, how afraid would you be? Are they evil enough to kill their creator?

It would factor on how she even got this far into land, what mood she's in and a ton of other factors. But she'd probably give me a really dirty look.

11. Does the darkside really have cookies?

Yep, but only for 'villains with the rank of Head Villain, Evil Genius or above. Wannabe Villains and Henchmen get Rich Tea biscuit', as Charley put it. ;) 

Well, that was interesting. I hope you've had as much fun reading this as I did writing it!

write on,
searching-for-a-name-for-MC

Beautiful People- April

Yesssss! This month's edition of BP came out fashionably late, but it came. I'll be doing April Lawrence {I swear, that was in no way intentional. the name just fits.  But knowing my character naming habits, it'll probably change before month ends} this time around, main character of switƆhed... which I will tell you about someday, when I figure it out.


1. What are their favorite type of shoes?


Sneakers.

2. Do they journal? 


No.

3. What’s their favorite animal? 


Cats- except for Mister Mittons.


4. What does their average day look like?

As a result of her {older} sister, she probably hasn't gotten enough sleep. Haul's self off to school, come home, avoid Stephanie, her step-mother until dinner, retreat to room with homework and book. Rinse and repeat, excluding weekends. 

5. Night owl or morning person? (Optional: What time do they usually wake up? Go to bed?) 

Morning. Which is a problem for her naturally hyper, insomniac sister Paige, 

6. Do they have a sweet tooth? 

Yes and no.

7. What colors are their bedroom? 


Green walls, white bed set, white carpet and cream curtains.  


8. Can they cook? 


Urm... if you count burning coffee, then yes. 


9. What is their favorite household chore? 

Anything outside.

10. Favorite kind of tea?


Peppermint. 


Hehehe. This is probably the vaguest BP post ever. I can't decide whether it makes April sound boring or if I just sound a little short. Oh, well, time to list every angel, human and demon in her novel now... 

{PS} Angels and demons are a hint about what her book's about. *wiggles eyebrows*

Beautiful People- Demi and Galen

Yay! It's time for Beautiful People once again. Since it's BP's one year anniversary, this month's questions are about two characters- or more accurately, their relationship. I've noticed a lot of people do this in interview format, so I'll be trying that out to let my characters speak for themselves. 

***

Me: Do you believe in anything that most people think is impossible? 

D: Well, that depends on your definition of impossible... 

G: What she means is... I have no idea what she means. I guess since I believe in Demi, and since by your terms her existence is impossible... then yes, I do.

Me: Are you strong, or the "damsel/knight in distress" sort? 

G: I hate to say it, but I'm probably the 'knight in distress', sadly. 

D: Oh, I wasn't aware of that. Thanks. *smirks*

G: Really? I believe your solar plexus would beg to differ.... 

Me: Do you have a special place? (e.g. a corner in his/her bedroom, under a tree...)

D: No... not yet. Olympus in general, where we both live, maybe. We spent most of the novel away from there, though. 

Me: What occupation do you have, or plan on having? 

D: Does demigoddess count...?

G: Parents, maybe.

D: *glares* I wasn't completely aware of that.

G: *raises eyebrow* So you... don't want kids. Or kids with me, anyways.

D: What?! I never- grrrr. Galen?

G: Yes?

D: You reserve the right to shut up now. 

Me: Describe your current place of residence. 

D: Oh, very temperate. Lots of flowers, trees and tons of marble. A lot of it has gold, purple or turquoise veins in it, though. Not much marble of that nature on Earth, I believe. 

Me: Explain your last crisis. How had you changed when you came out of it? 

D: Well... a more accurate description would be my crisis, but... I guess I was less smitten with him-

G: What?! Well, I-

D: -in a good way! I mean, I was less... tongue tied. And less shy, definitely.  

G: Less tongue tied alright. Very. 

D: Galen...

Me: If you could drive any kind of car you wanted, what would it be? 

D: Excuse me- but what is a... car exactly?

Me:  How do you deal with change? 

D: We weather through. Most change is for the best, though...

G: Yeah. See if she means that when things are changing for real. 

D: *facepalm* 

Me: If you had to amputate one body part, which one would you choose? 

D: I have had... experience with knives. But if I must answer this, then my hair.

G: And I know that sounds like a loophole, but she considers her hair her only nice feature. I would beg to differ, though. I would have to go with the same, really. Loosing any body part doesn't seem very appealing.

Me: What is your favorite food?

D: Pomegranates.

G:...It depends, really. 

Me: How did you meet? 

D: Oh, we've always known each other- but the earliest memory I have was the time I was upset about... something (I really don't remember what, even though I have an idea of who caused it) and he made me feel better. 

G: Yeah, I think that's right. 

Me:  How do you two deal with conflict? 

G: We don't.

D: What he means is: we don't fight because I saved his life. So he can't disagree with me.

G: *frowns* Righttt....

Me: Do you have a special song, phrase, item, or place? 

G: Demi.

D:  I am not yours. And Galen, do you have anything... else?

G: We need to work on that, I guess. 

Me: What kind of things do you like to do together? 

G: Kis-

D: *blushes* Galen, do not  finish that sentence. Ever.

Me: Describe your relationship as a whole in 3 words, or less.  

D: Always working together.

G: She scares me.

D: What?!

G: Sorry. I was nervous...  

D: *sigh* Thanks for the interview, Annika. I had fun- and I think Galen did too. *smiles* 

***

Well, quite a pair these two are, eh? I was seriously cracking up while writing this. It's so amazing how much characters keep growing even after a novel ends. I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did, and I'd love to see what you think of this... couple. XDDDD

What's In a Name?

   "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."- Shakespeare 

Hiya! Annika here. Today, we're going to talk about names. Despite the wide range of people a name can cover, certain things come to mind when you hear certain names.

What do you think of when you hear Esmeralda?

Billie Jean?

Colette?

Analiese?

Imogen?

Juliet?

Ivy?

Anne?

Helen?

Madison?

Tess(a)?

See? Different things come to mind. For example, Analiese makes me think of a princess. Billie Jean perhaps a turn of the century cowgirl. Juliet- well, Wizards of Waverly Place, to be frank.
But people's perceptions of names are very different. Did you know that some people dislike the name Lucy because they somehow see it related to the name Lucifer? I find this odd, as Lucy Pevensie, one of the most innocent characters I've ever read about, is named this. So in step, I have come to associate the name with innocence.

Now, when it comes to naming characters, sometimes a name can indicate something they don't realize or keep buried. Oddly enough, my nanowrimo novel's protagonist was named Demi, even though she proves to be anything but by the ending. Her name is Demetria, but for some reason she is always called Demi, even going so far as to prefer it over her true name.

Other times it is because they can't stand their full name. For example, George Fayne from the Nancy Drew Mysteries real name is Georgia, but she prefers George. This is justified, as even when the original books were written, she was shown to have tomboyish tendencies.

Something that has always annoyed me in Fantasy and Sci-Fi is that some writers go over the top with names. Even in fantasy, I'd rather use slightly less common Earth names. Or if I make up one, I make sure to still keep it simple. I'd actually use Ivy or Tess(a) or Ava instead of something crazy like Elfiria or Mcedomen.

Here are some great naming resources:

The Baby Name Wizard
Nameberry
Behind the Name
Social Security Administration: Popular Baby Names



But what do you think? Do you have any favorite names or traditions for finding names for your characters?

Snippets of Story- February

Hiya! Annika here. I found this lovely little 'Monthly Blog Thingy' as Kate from Whisperings of the Pen calls it through The Director's blog . You have to post snippets of things you've written, including fanfiction if you want, as long as it's your own. So, here we are:

"Roll call!" Ms. Polowski said in her gruff, biker-esque voice. Her beady eyes swept over the entire 7th grade English class, stopping on me briefly. For some reason, I was a trouble maker in her eyes, even though I was almost always framed or no one could prove I did whatever I was being accused of. It started in first grade, when someone broke one of the schools toys and blamed me. That teacher told another, the another, all the way up to  Ms. Polowski, 7th grade torturer extraordinaire . But you almost couldn't blame her. Even though I was far from a delinquent, I looked the part. Not extreme punk, but lots of black. On black. With black. Even my hair was black.- Zoe Knight, Night's Prophecy 

“Why is it so cold?” Victoire shivered. “My toes feel as if they’re made of stone.” She wiggled her toes in her boots for emphasis, even though no one could see.“You really are very childish for a twelve year old girl, do know that?” Agnès smirked.“Yes, and you are very serious for a seventeen year old girl. Now, answer my question: why is it so cold?” The girl’s breath came out in a foggy cloud.“It’s cold because the sun hasn't risen and it’s winter.” Victoire nodded, showing that her sister’s answer was satisfying. Even though she now understood why it was so cold; it didn’t really seem to make the crisp November air any warmer. She sighed, glancing at the gray winter sky and early morning fog.- Victoire Leroux, Victoire, a Novel 

“Hey, Carrot Hair!” Stella’s 16 year old brother Cameron teased her the moment she had crossed the threshold. He had called her that since she was eight; when his eighth grade English teacher had made his entire class read Anne of Green Gables.      “Hey, Tinsel Teeth.” She said, smirking at his braces.  Cameron went red in the face. He was very sensitive about his braces. “Oh yeah-!” he started, but was cut off by his sister, who was standing on the landing above them.  “Put a sock in it, Cameron,” Stella called down. “Come on up here, Rory.” - Rorina Stevenson-Homer, Time Traveling Tweens 

Thanks for reading! Even though I wrote some of this stuff in Summer 2011, I'd love some feedback :D

Beautiful People January Edition: Marcelle Williams

I know I already posted today, but the January Edition of Beautiful People is out! :D I'm doing my latest character, Marcelle 'Marcie/Elle' Williams. 


1. If character's house burned down, and they were left with nothing but the clothes on their back, what would they do? Where would they go? 
Well... she would probably go her friend's, (Claire) house and plan from there.
 2. Are they happy with where they are in life, or would they like to move on? 
She loves her life.
 3. Are they well-paid? 
She's 15 :)
 4. Can they read? 
Yes
 5. What languages do they speak? 
English and some Mandarin
 6. What is their biggest mistake? 
She trusts too easily. This gets her into the year 3000, mind you.
 7. What did they play with most as a child? 
Legoes and science kits
 8. What are their thoughts on politics? 
She doesn't really care as long as they don't mess with science. She threw a fit when they stripped Pluto of is planetary rights.
 9. What is their expected life time? 
About 80-90 years
 10. If they were falsely accused of murder, what would they do? How would they react?
She would get a lawyer and then quickly proceed to build a case. She would be shocked and a little disgusted with a mild edge of panic.