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Also, for the duration of the "Five Years of Bookania" party, answering the questions also count towards the Ebook giveaway.
For those of you who haven't had a chance to read Sew yet, it's currently free on Amazon.
But anyway, we're on chapter 14 where we'll be introducing Agatha, who was interviewed today over at TomWildRose's blog. It's a short chapter, rather a filler, but there are some good puns ... I guess.
On the Road again...
Sitting in a castle reading books isn't going to help them find their Fairy Godmother, so now that Robin has "go" on the brain again, it's time for them to leave. They solve their Rosamond problem by having Doranna accompany them. Eric can't blame them for bride snatching if Rosamond is traveling with her own cousin, and Robin and Robert just happen to be in their company.
Magic is Returning
This is another point where I feel the immaturity of my writing at this time. Telling instead of showing was strong right here. Still, I do love Skewwood forest. (although, quick wonder here, did I ever actually state that this was Skewwood forest???? Eh...). Those trees. Those puns.
Geoma Tree and Faultline
Let's get some puns out of the way before Agatha comes onto the scene. Filler stuff that was supposed to be worldbuilding, and was fun to write, but I have no idea if actually contributed to the story. I don't think it did.
Geoma Tree - clearly a pun for Geometry. A tree that actually grows gems. That are accepted currency. Guess money actually does grow on trees in Bookania. Though ... if something grows on a tree, wouldn't it soon loose value? Eh ... let's leave the philosophy for later.
Faultline - After coming up with the Punchline, I wanted to make a pun on every line in existence. You'll be seeing the Assembly Line later in the book, and the sideline never made it in, but I did enjoy the faultline. Ah, good times blaming each other for tripping.
Still, filler chapters are the bane of my existence. I could have spent this time character building for Casperl! Maybe. I dunno.
More Thieves! Another Girl to Rescue!
I don't state how large this group of thieves is, but Casperl helps Robin take care of them this time. Again, I'd like to state that Robin wouldn't have killed any of them, though I don't know that I can say the same about Casperl. He was raised very differently, rather than her sheltered life in a palace, he had to survive on his own in the woods, where there are wolves, possibly bandits ...
Anyway, they rescue the girl with minimal description. I find it interesting that I have to make a note that they only bothered to rescue her at the pleas from Rosamond and Doranna. That will probably leave when I do edits, because I've since learned that Robin's code of chivalry that comes with being the best swordsman in the world wouldn't have allowed her to see a damsel in distress without offering her aid.
The Girl
The girl doesn't seem interested in talking, or in the bag of money that they find. Doranna and Rosamond seem to have a suspicion - a suspicion that seems to have something to do with Yifinna (one of the fairies, if you'll remember, and the one known to make mistakes), but they immediately dismiss.
Robin starts throwing theories, each worse than the one before it. One of them, the no-tongue theory and Rosamond's immediate dismissal (although I have no idea when Rosamond might have someone who didn't have a tongue), was inspired by the fact that I had just read the Roman Mysteries where one of the four protagonists, Lupas, didn't have a tongue.
At last, Robert remarks that he's never seen anything like this, to which Rosamond answers that they have.
Amy
Seems that they had a childhood friend named Amy. (Not a fiend, though, Doranna) Due to having a kind heart, Yifinna had blessed with gems falling from her mouth every time she spoke. Not the most practical of gifts, but one that Yifinna had seemed to like since this was the fifth girl to have received such a gift, the first two being Rosamond's and Doranna's own mothers.
And then they realize something - Yifinna had only promised to wait another hundred years before giving the gift out again, and it had been a hundred years. So they ask the girl for confirmation and, yep, she's a victim of the fairy's goodwill.
Party of Misfits
And this sparks a comment on how strange everyone in the party is and the fact that Casperl is the most normal among them. This was supposed to spark a comment about nutshells, which would lead to the reference to a fairy tale for Rosamond and Doranna's shared grandmother.
But that didn't happen.
Sign Language!
Fun fact about my family. We love sign language. My sister's rather fluent in it. (Embarrassed me at an Isaac's concert once because of it.) When I wrote Sew, we were at the height of our sign-language enthusiasm, and of course I'm going to throw that in when I have a character for whom speech is awkward.
Also, it keeps inflation down.
Favorite Lines:
On the Road again...
Sitting in a castle reading books isn't going to help them find their Fairy Godmother, so now that Robin has "go" on the brain again, it's time for them to leave. They solve their Rosamond problem by having Doranna accompany them. Eric can't blame them for bride snatching if Rosamond is traveling with her own cousin, and Robin and Robert just happen to be in their company.
Magic is Returning
This is another point where I feel the immaturity of my writing at this time. Telling instead of showing was strong right here. Still, I do love Skewwood forest. (although, quick wonder here, did I ever actually state that this was Skewwood forest???? Eh...). Those trees. Those puns.
Geoma Tree and Faultline
Let's get some puns out of the way before Agatha comes onto the scene. Filler stuff that was supposed to be worldbuilding, and was fun to write, but I have no idea if actually contributed to the story. I don't think it did.
Geoma Tree - clearly a pun for Geometry. A tree that actually grows gems. That are accepted currency. Guess money actually does grow on trees in Bookania. Though ... if something grows on a tree, wouldn't it soon loose value? Eh ... let's leave the philosophy for later.
Faultline - After coming up with the Punchline, I wanted to make a pun on every line in existence. You'll be seeing the Assembly Line later in the book, and the sideline never made it in, but I did enjoy the faultline. Ah, good times blaming each other for tripping.
Still, filler chapters are the bane of my existence. I could have spent this time character building for Casperl! Maybe. I dunno.
More Thieves! Another Girl to Rescue!
I don't state how large this group of thieves is, but Casperl helps Robin take care of them this time. Again, I'd like to state that Robin wouldn't have killed any of them, though I don't know that I can say the same about Casperl. He was raised very differently, rather than her sheltered life in a palace, he had to survive on his own in the woods, where there are wolves, possibly bandits ...
Anyway, they rescue the girl with minimal description. I find it interesting that I have to make a note that they only bothered to rescue her at the pleas from Rosamond and Doranna. That will probably leave when I do edits, because I've since learned that Robin's code of chivalry that comes with being the best swordsman in the world wouldn't have allowed her to see a damsel in distress without offering her aid.
The Girl
The girl doesn't seem interested in talking, or in the bag of money that they find. Doranna and Rosamond seem to have a suspicion - a suspicion that seems to have something to do with Yifinna (one of the fairies, if you'll remember, and the one known to make mistakes), but they immediately dismiss.
Robin starts throwing theories, each worse than the one before it. One of them, the no-tongue theory and Rosamond's immediate dismissal (although I have no idea when Rosamond might have someone who didn't have a tongue), was inspired by the fact that I had just read the Roman Mysteries where one of the four protagonists, Lupas, didn't have a tongue.
At last, Robert remarks that he's never seen anything like this, to which Rosamond answers that they have.
Amy
Seems that they had a childhood friend named Amy. (Not a fiend, though, Doranna) Due to having a kind heart, Yifinna had blessed with gems falling from her mouth every time she spoke. Not the most practical of gifts, but one that Yifinna had seemed to like since this was the fifth girl to have received such a gift, the first two being Rosamond's and Doranna's own mothers.
And then they realize something - Yifinna had only promised to wait another hundred years before giving the gift out again, and it had been a hundred years. So they ask the girl for confirmation and, yep, she's a victim of the fairy's goodwill.
Party of Misfits
And this sparks a comment on how strange everyone in the party is and the fact that Casperl is the most normal among them. This was supposed to spark a comment about nutshells, which would lead to the reference to a fairy tale for Rosamond and Doranna's shared grandmother.
But that didn't happen.
Sign Language!
Fun fact about my family. We love sign language. My sister's rather fluent in it. (Embarrassed me at an Isaac's concert once because of it.) When I wrote Sew, we were at the height of our sign-language enthusiasm, and of course I'm going to throw that in when I have a character for whom speech is awkward.
Also, it keeps inflation down.
Favorite Lines:
That night, as they were setting up camp, Robin tripped. “Robert!” she exclaimed, “Why’d you do that!”
“Do what?” Robert asked.
“Trip me!”
“Uh, I don’t think I did that,” he said, confused, “I’m kind of over here, and you’re kind of over there.”
“Well it must have been one of you,” Robin exclaimed, whirling on the other three, she had gotten back on her feet by this point.
“I don’t think I did,” said Casperl, “In fact, no one was by you when you fell.”
Rosamond and Doranna started laughing. “Faultline,” they said together.
As they sat down to eat, Robin started making up stories, trying to figure out what, exactly, was the reason for the girls silence.
“Maybe she’s an escaped prisoner,” she suggested, “who had her tongue removed for some devious crime.”
“Look at the way she eats,” Rosamond cautioned, “People who have not tongues eat very differently.”
“Okay…” said Robin with a roll of her eyes, “Maybe she was mute from birth, and ran away from someone after stealing their jewels, that would explain why she doesn’t want to associate with them.”
“Then why did she admit that they were hers?” asked Doranna. “If I had stolen gems, and were to be in the situation she’s in, I wouldst have made it out that the gems had been stolen by the bees.”
On and on the theories went, and each were disproved.
“Back when we were much younger,” said Doranna, “One of our best fiends wast a girl named Amy. Amy had been born a pheasant, and her stepmother and stepsister had treated her cruelly. Rosamond, thou must tell it, thou art the better starry feller.
Discussion Questions!!
1. How are you on writing filler? Fail like me?
2. Quick! Tell me a pun and make me laugh!
3. Any favorite lines?
I think I'd like to meet a starry feller.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid I'm writing a lot of story filler at the moment. Despite writing more per day I'm not progressing through the story quicker on the rewrite. It's kind of frustrating.
Ummmmmm....my filler writing skills are close to non-existent!
ReplyDeleteSpitting Images. Example: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/9e/0a/72/9e0a7223ec6db36bdb06ac4c092d6ee8.jpg
“If I had stolen gems, and were to be in the situation she’s in, I wouldst have made it out that the gems had been stolen by the bees.”
That is one of my favorite lines because the thought of trying to make someone believe that a bag full of gems belonged to BEES (and yes I know Doranna meant THIEVES) is very amusing!