Z - The End

Z - The End

Today is the official release day of the Ankulen.

*Insert confetti*

And it is released. You can head over to amazon to pick  up your kindle version, or to createspace for your paperback. I've also set both Sew and Saffron for free on kindle, so if you don't have either, you can go pick up your copy of them too, if you don't have them already.

I've drawn the winner for the memorable worlds giveaway ... but I've decided not to announce who it is until tomorrow.

Anyways, why did I title this post z - the end? Well, you see, there is nothing in the Ankulen that starts with z. Not a zebra, not a zoo, not a zither, not a zigurat. I don't think even a zipper made an appearance.

But Z is the end of the alphabet ... and that's close enough right?

It's a fitting post for today.

You see, for all of you (with the exception of my lovely beta readers) this is the beginning of The Ankulen for you. You finally get to crack open the book and read beyond the prologue and chapter 1 that I posted some weeks ago. You finally get to accompany Jen on her adventures ...

But for me ... it's the end. I'm done with the book. I wrote it, I rewrote it, I typed it into the computer, I edited ... and yesterday I hit the publish buttons on Amazon and CreateSpace. I can't write the book anymore. Read it, yes. Promote it, yes. But I can't write it anymore.

I'm done. It's the end.

But it's the beginning for all of you. So ... enjoy!

Y - Youth

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Y - Youth

Ah, youth, childhood ... it's a time of wonder and magic. Everything has the potential of an adventure. Sticks become swords, boxes become castles, and the ugly hand-me-down sack dress with a huge stain on the front? Well, that's a magnificent ball gown.

But alas! This time is fleeting, and children themselves all to often are in a hurry to be a "grown-up" and don't realize that they will lose so much when they get there.

I've mentioned that The Ankulen is about imagination, about sacrifice, about friends and family ... but it's also a farewell to childhood.

You see, even though Anka and Anku never lose their imaginations (unless of course a Polystoikhedron gets involved, but we're not here to talk about that) and they therefore never lose their ability to see life as a great adventure. But somewhere between the ages of ten and twelve, something changes.

It is no coincidence that this is also the time when most Anka and Anku are now able to string their adventures into words and sentences, and capture them with pen and paper. They now spend more time writing and less time play-acting. Most write stories, others plays. A few are artists and draw instead. (Artists often start the earliest.)

Slowly but surely they spend less and less time IN their imagination, but that doesn't mean they aren't using it. Nay, quite the contrary. Now they have finally begun using it for the purpose they were given it. By the time they are sixteen or eighteen, many don't go in anymore at all. This is not a sad thing, it's just how it is.

Jen lost her imagination at the age of seven. Before the transition time. By the time she finally gets it back, she's fifteen. She was denied the transition time, but she was not denied one last brilliant adventure. That is why I say that this book is also a farewell to childhood.

I think it's also somewhat a farewell to my own childhood. When I started plotting it, I was only fifteen. I still went outside every day and made up stories outside with my younger cousins. I was more "I need to write this down" oriented than they were, but I still was giving myself a new name and frolicking around the yard pretending I was a fairy, a queen, a dragon princess ... or even a fifteen-year-old girl who had lost her imagination.

But as I finished writing Sew, and got it published, I stared changing my outlook. My imagination was no longer just a fun place to play, but a serious business. Oh I still go in from time to time, (I'm babysitting some cousins tomorrow, so a visit to Rizkaland is scheduled) but I now spend more of my time writing ... not just imagining.

X - X Marks the Spot

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X - X Marks the Spot

Okay, so there aren't any pirates in Jen's imagination, but there aren't very many words that begin with the letter x, and none of them apply to The Ankulen in any way, form, or fashion. (Well, if you want to get technical, Jen has something like x-ray vision when she's in her imagination ... but you can hardly expect me to write up a whole post on THAT)

So we get to do x marks the spot, which is a fancy term for "Where is it?"

There are two main elements to most fantasy novels - the journey and the battle. Sew and Take are missing the battle part, but Kingdom does have one.

Bookania aside. We're talking about The Ankulen here. I've mentioned the battle before, I believe. And there's also Jen's search for her missing memories ... have I mentioned that?

So, yeah. Jen has to go search for her memories ... but she doesn't have a map with a convenient x to show here exactly where it is. But she does have the Ankulen. which she can ask to show her where stuff is. Not a commonly used feature ... so it's not it's finest. But it's there and Jen can use it to find her imagination.

Just as long as she keeps her eyes open and doesn't run into trees.

W - Wood Children

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W - Wood Children

After having Jen find her Ankulen, actually going into her imagination, and eating frog leg soup ... I had exhausted my entire plan for the beginning of the book. The next thing I had planned was her regaining her imagination - and I didn't want that to happen until at least half-way through the book. Since I was aiming for 50,000 words all total, and I hadn't reached 10,000 yet ... I knew I had to come up with something else for Jen to do for a while.

Well, obviously she would have had other people for her to meet other than the Old Woman so I figured that this would be a good time for one of those other people to show up.

They were in a forest of sorts, full of dead and dying trees, and at that moment, a little boy showed up claiming to be lost. So Jen ever so kindly offered to help him find his home. He said his name was Willy, and I quite contentedly followed along as Tisha and Jen tried to determine his identity. Apparently, Tisha had forgotten some people.

At last we found his "house" which proved to be a tree and in thanks, Willy gave Jen a stick. Which she put in her hair.

As they resumed their search for Jen's memories, Chris finally took pity on us girls and told us who Willy was. Apparently, he was a Wood Child, which is kinda like a dryad ... only they're kids, not pretty girls. The stick Willy gave Jen? Well, used by her or one of the Wood Children, it had the ability to grow into a a full-sized tree in seconds.

Jen and I had no idea WHY a tree might be useful, but hey - if we did need one, we'd at least have one.

Willy was the only character in the book to have his name changed from draft one to two. I liked Willy ... but I decided that I could find something a little more tree-ish ... like ... Walnut! And the spooky forest they found him in? That could be an orchard. No, not just an orchard, THE Orchard.

I loved those Wood Children the first time ... but the second time round, they were absolutely adorable. Walnut will remain ever my favorite, but some of the others are almost as sweet.

Now, I need to get back to editing. I have to have it done by tomorrow afternoon so I can upload the file to CreateSpace. I WILL get this book out on time.

V - Very Different

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V - Very Different

About a year or so ago, I was hunting down reviewing blogs to see if any of them would be interested in reviewing Sew for me. The blogs I contacted I added to my reader so that I could keep up with them. Of course, I also read them.

One of the reviewers said something about one of the authors she read that I think is one of the highest compliments an author can be paid. She had reviewed about three or so books by this author (Sarah Beth Durst. I've actually read one of her books, Out of the Wild. It was a very interesting spin on Fairy Tales) and what she said was basically this:

"Every time I read one of Sarah's Books, it's like reading a completely new author."

You see, every budding author wants to write a book that is different from every other book that has ever been written in the history of writing. And since you're a new person with unique perspective on life, that's actually not very hard to do.

But what happens when you have finished book one and must embark onto the treacherous waters of book the second? What happens then? No longer has there never been a book written by you. Most readers don't want to read the same book just with names changed. They want to embark on a completely new journey. (They don't mind so much going on a journey with the same people, though. Family reunion, you know?)

So my aim as an author is to write like Sarah. Not her style, of course, but the fact that every book she writes is new, fresh.

Do You Take This Quest? though it was in the same series as Sew, was a very different book. The protagonists were different, offering a very different perspective. (Though, I do suspect, Madeleine did have some POV in Sew, I can't prove it, though.) The goal was different, and so was the pacing. Sew took place over the course of nearly four months, Take was crammed into a mere three weeks. Sew had no villain, only a time constraint. While there was a time constraint in Take, (as well as an overdose of thyme) a human villain was introduced.

And you can expect The Ankulen, which has no connections with Sew in the least, to be very, VERY different. There are a few puns (Sir Erran of Tree) but they aren't going to punch you in the jaw. Fairy Tales are alluded to, but they don't run around. The main characters are modern day, and have completely different ideals. I tell it in first person, not third. The villain in this book was a monster that is eating Jen's imagination. While romance was a huge theme in my Bookanias, it's barely hinted at in The Ankulen. Sure there are three kisses, but two of them are between Jen's imaginary friends (on her orders after she declares them married) the other between Jen's parents. There is one scene that is kinda romantic (and oh, so sweet) but again, it's between Jen's friends ... and she cuts it short.

I decided that now was about as good a time as any for me to announce my presence. Stepping into the chamber, I cleared my throat. “Hey,” I said, “I know this is a perfectly romantic scene and all that, and I hate to interrupt, but I'd like to talk with the two of you for a minute.”

- The Ankulen 


So ... anyways. I'm not the sort of writer who writes the same book over and over again. Oh, and the Vlog will be posted tomorrow and I have a few announcements that I'll make.

U - Underground

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U - Underground

I possibly could have found a better word for U, but it was unlikely. As it is, I really don't have much to say.

A small portion of the book takes place underground. First they go to the Old Woman's cave, which has low ceilings and Jen declares them completely uncomfortable.

Later, Jen and Tisha hide in a random cave whilst Chris is fighting a dragon. During this time, the two have a deep and heartfelt (cough, cough) conversation about physical appearance and rules. I didn't describe this cave.

And then Chris and Tisha hide in the Labyrinth after they lose Jen and think her dead. (Don't ask me why they thought that. They weren't thinking clearly, I guess) The Labyrinth is one of my favorite parts of Jen's imagination, and it will get a short story eventually. It may even factor into the first one I plan to release ("The Sun Jewel Adventure").

But after that, they make the playground their home base, and we don't go into any more caves (well, Jen goes back to the Old Woman's, but that doesn't count.)

So ... There's U. Short, sweet and ... U.

T - Trilogy of One

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T - Trilogy of One

You may be asking yourself - why in Bookania is this post entitled Trilogy of One? Isn't that another one of Kendra's WIP's? Isn't she going through The Ankulen? Aren't the two books completely different?

My answers. Yes, yes, and no.

You see, if it wasn't for The Trilogy of One, it's very likely I wouldn't have The Ankulen today. (Or the New Division, but that's another story.)

About four or five years ago, I found the first page of The Nine Gems of Virtue (book 1) on the back of my school list. I had no idea who wrote it, or what it was about ... but the story of the little girl who was having writer's block with a school assignment ... even though she had once been able to craft stories so well ... well it stuck with me. Later, I found out that it was my mom's writing, and convinced her to let me read it the rest of the book ... or at least the six chapters that she had written.

I loved them! I wanted mom to write more!

So ... when my young cousin and I were playing with our new stage (actually, it was part of a fancy mattress, but we weren't complaining) and were trying to come up with a play, I suggested we do my mom's book. I would play Shasta (even though I was now three years too old for the part) and Grub 1 would play Flewder (even though he was about ... sixty or so years young).

And we had the loveliest little start. I was sitting on the stage, my notebook in my lap, and I would be scribbling away most dutifully ... and dutifully tearing out pages and hurling them at the wall ... and then I would hear a knock at my closet door (actually, *cough, cough* the door to the plastic playground castle, but again, we weren't complaining) and I would open it to find the little dwarf, who would inform me that he needed my help, then I would throw some things in my backpack, and we would step through the door ... and ...

Run out of plot.

Okay, truth be known, that was only the first chapter and mom had written five more, but beyond that point, we would need more actors ... and those were a precious commodity in those days (something we did complain about). We had to cut it short.

My message of "Mom, I want to know what happens to Shasta and Flewder next" would have been clear. But ... this was also to entertain, not just for me to embarrass my mom into writing more of her book.

So ... we decided that that would be the prologue into the official play, which would open in a very similar way. I, who was now Jen, would be sitting on the side of a stream, with a notebook in my lap (why waste a perfectly good prop?) with a horrid case of writer's block. Then Grub 1 (now called Chris) would appear, and the two of us will go on a delightful little adventure.

The problem was, now we needed a script.

We never did preform that play, since we could never settle on a good ending that made sense and would work for our very limited repertoire of props and special effects. The idea, however, wouldn't go away, and eventually I started writing a rather different version.

But I'm not done with what The Trilogy of One has to do with The Ankulen.

You see, as I was writing, I discovered that there were other Anka and Anku out there. Jen was not the only person with an Ankulen, not the only person capable of bringing her imagination to life ... and a few of these other Anka and Anku show up in the course of the book. And some of them refer to the books that they are writing.

And since I'm a person who, if she gets and idea, I'll want to write it, I decided to give these Anka and Anku some of my own stories. The two books that are referred to the most are 300 Dragons (basically, whenever you hear a certain redheaded character talking about dragons, she's referring to this book's world) and ... The Trilogy of One. In fact, some of the characters from those two books are seen fleetingly during the climatic chapter!

Oh, and don't forget, I'm going to do an Ankulen-themed vlog, and I still need questions to answer, so ask what thou wilt!

Q - Queen's Necklace

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Q - Queen's Necklace

When I started writing The Ankulen, I had no idea that there was going to be mermaids ... or that those mermaids would be so important.

I had just helped a little boy, and we were wandering around wondering when Jen would stumble upon her lost memories ... when she stumbled upon the Ocean. And since I now had an Ocean, that meant I needed some Mermaids.

Princess Mynna obliged me and dutifully appeared on a rock a few feet from shore. Which was great ... until I realized that I needed a Good Reason to have her on a rock a few feet from shore. (All of Jen's imaginary friends are in hiding, you see).

So I did some quick thinking and decided that the Mermaid Queen had lost a very important item: the Queen's Necklace. (Originally, Queen Tailya was going to be Mynna's sister, but in the second draft, Mynna became the youngest of Tailya's seven daughters. Fun) Problem was, I needed a reason for the Necklace to be important ... and decided that, since Jen didn't like bending rules, and therefore didn't take Tisha and Chris underwater very often, she spent little of her time in the Ocean. Therefore, the Queen's Necklace had some of the abilities of the Ankulen, and therefore Queen Tailya could keep things running smoothly under da sea in Jen's absence.

I expected to do a quick pop over to the Sea Castle (pictured above), then a swim over to Choral Mountain (where the Necklace was lost) so that Jen could locate the lost item, and then a swim back to the surface to continue the journey.

Well, I didn't account for the Polystoikhedron showing up.

Long story short, five out of the twenty-five chapters have portions underwater, and Queen Tailya ended up being one of the steadying factors in Jen's journey.

P - Polystoikhedron

P - Polystoikhedron

I've been waiting for this letter since I started the alphabet. You see, I finally am able to reveal the name of the monster that has been eating Jen's imagination.

The Polystoikhedron.

Actually, I can't take credit for the name. It had been eluding me during the planning stage, so I did what I always do when I'm stuck.

"Mom! I need a name for a creature that eats imagination."

"What?"

"In this book I want to write, the main character abandoned her imagination when she was seven, and eight years later, she comes back to discover that this creature's been eating it in her absence. But I need a name for it."

"I'll think about it."

A few days later ... 

"Mom, do you have a name for the imagination eater yet?"

"I do - and an appearance for it, too."

"Cool! What is it?"

"Do all your chores and I'll give you the first letter."

So we played the letter game for a few weeks, until someone erased the whiteboard where I was keeping track of the letters. Then I begged my mom, pretty please, could she just give me the rest of the letters and tell me what it looks like.

So she did.

The word she actually gave me was Polystoikhydra, but after hearing her reasoning behind it, I changed it.

Here's how I described it in The Ankulen:

Swimming towards us was the largest and most horrid creature I had ever seen. What little I could see of the body was scaly and reptilian, reminding me of a snake. The most noticeable feature, however, was its head … or rather … heads.

There were hundreds of heads, each attached to a snake-like neck. The number wasn’t the worst part, though.

The heads attached to the necks were human.

Young, old, men, women, light skin, dark skin – each head was differed, save for the expression of utter despair it wore.

- The Ankulen.

You see, Poly means "Many" stoik is a respelling of stoic, and the hydra is a muti-headed beast in Greek Mythology. However, this creature doesn't have multiple hydras it has multiple heads, so I changed it to hedron, which is latin for face (I was studying Geometry at the time).

It is pronounced Pol-lee-stoe-ick-hee-dron

The Polstoikhedra (the plural form) are not creatures that you want to meet, and you especially don't want to find one in your imagination. They're almost impossible to defeat. To Jen's knowledge, no one has fought one and lived to tell the tale. 

N - No Color

Via Pinterest (She just need glasses and
her hair pulled back in a ponytail.)

N - No color

Last week I either
a) Forgot that I hadn't done "n"
b) Forgot the "n" precedes "o" in the alphabet.
c) Decided to rearrange the alphabet to suit my own whim.

I'll let you decide.

N is for no color. That's what it's like when Jen finally finds her missing imagination. Gray. The dead grass is gray. The cloudy sky is gray. The water, the dirt, everything. Gray. Even her friends are gray.

You see, when she was seven, she learned that color came from light ... and decided to take it a step further. In order for something to have color, it must have come in contact with colored light. The color lasts for about twenty-four hours.

In the caves, light is provided by either glowbeetles, which give a bluish-green light, or by luminous gems, which can be any color. Therefore, everything is one color.

Above ground, light is provided by the sun ... and turned into color every morning as it passed by the rainbow, which is a permanent feature in the eastern sky. Let's just say that sunrises in Jen's imagination put ours to shame.

However, the rainbow was one of the first things to be eaten. There's color underground ... but that's the only place.

In the first draft, Jen retained her color when she entered her world. But I later discovered that I wanted her to be able to blend in with her people, so, in draft two, not only is she gray, she's the grayest thing there is.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Oh, and stay tuned tomorrow for a big, huge Bookanian-themed announcement!

O - Old Woman

Via Pinterest. Completely the wrong setting,
but close enough.

O - Old Woman

In Do You Take This Quest? I had the old man. In The Ankulen I have the Old Woman.

I think the Old Woman was inspired by the Good Magician Humphrey in Xanth (a series by Piers Anthony that I enjoy), but I don't really remember. I had started chapter three, Jen had found her Ankulen, and was in her imagination ... but then I went ... uhhh ... what happens now? Chris? Do you have any ideas?

Chris, being the nice character that he is, suggested that they go visit the Old Woman, and I, being the clueless author that I was, thought it a great idea.

(Yes, I pantsted much of The Ankulen. I sometimes wonder how it managed to make sense at the end. Although, that may have a good deal to do with my decision to rewrite the whole thing)

In Xanth, Humphrey is the Magician of Information. Whenever someone decides to go on a quest (i.e. a new book begins) they decide to go to him to learn what they need to do. He charges a year's service in exchange for the question, but most are willing to pay the price.

The Old Woman in Jen's imagination is similar. She knows everything there is to know about Jen's imagination, and more about her Ankulen than any of the other imaginary friends. Whenever they decided to go on a new adventure, Jenny, Tisha, and Chris would go to her to ask what they needed to do. (A note, whenever I refer to the younger Jen, it's Jenny.) Unlike Humphrey, however, she doesn't demand service!

M - Megan

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M - Megan

The Megan of draft one was seriously underdeveloped. She just followed Jen around, acting timid until about chapter eighteen where she makes an offer ... and then she becomes slightly more developed.

In draft two, however, she really bloomed. She and Jen become instant best friends, and she even stood up to Derek on numerous occasions. As I'm tying up the last few loose ends in Chapter 25 and the Epilogue, she hasn't quite decided about whether or not Derek will make a good brother, but she adores Jen.

With both of Jen's adopted siblings, their backstories were basically nada in draft one. But with two, let's just  say that I now know the fate of their parents, and even a few younger siblings. In fact, the pair's backstories ended up being quite vital to the plot. (And I have no idea what I how I got to the end last time without discovering the identity of Megan's dad!)

Unfortunately, their backstories contain plot spoilers, so I can't tell you about them. Popcorn! Derek doesn't even let me say everything I know in the book! (If I ever decide to write a sequel though ... I will pull some people from his past to haunt him.)

Megan is childlike in many ways, her outlook on life, her awe of Jen's imagination, and her faith in Jesus. She loves dragons, especially good dragons, and is disappointed when she finds out that Jen doesn't have any good dragons in her imagination, a problem that Jen promises to rectify when possible.

Let's just say, she has become one of my favorite characters.

K - Knights

Firstly, an update on my sister. She is home, but dizzy and sore from colliding with the concrete, but other than that, fine. She did have a seizure, but we think it was because of the collision, not the cause of the fainting. We think she fainted from a combination of cooking with the propane grill last night, failing to rest between tasks, and a way too sugary breakfast. We would appreciate prayers that she doesn't have any more seizures.

Now, onto our regular programming:

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K - Knights

You would expect a girl's imaginary world to be female-dominated and boy bashing. Not Jen's. You see, being the shy child she was, she never really was exposed to the unfavorable side of her boy peers, and therefore retained her rather romanticized ideal that came from reading far too many fairy tales.

While the mermaids are female dominated (I'll deal with that in a later post), on land, girls vs. boys is pretty well even. The Cloud Shepherds are all boys, about half of the of the Wood Children, and ... okay, so the Flower Fairies and Singers are all girls, but still.

The most important of the all the men/boys in Jen's imagination are the Knights. They're the ones who have all of the adventures and protect all of the Fair Maidens (the most important of the girls.)

It is the knights who do the fighting. In fact, Fair Maidens aren't even allowed to watch their battles with the monsters. This is mostly because Jen didn't want to bother coming up with a mental image of their dragon slaying. The only time I have a girl fighting is the climatic chapter where Jen fights the imagination eater - and that's because she's the only one who can defeat the horrid creature.

I've talked about two of the knights, Sir Christofer, and Sir Erran of Tree, already. And, actually, I've only recently discovered the name of a thrid - Sir Steve the Green Knight. I'm not acquainted with any more of them ... though Jen calls Derek a knight a few times - much to his annoyance.

In case you're wondering, yes, Sir Steve is inspired by Steve of Blue's Clues. Hey! That was my favorite kid's show growing up. He's also influenced by the Green Knight of Arthurian Lore, in the fact that he is all green ... and can keep fighting even if someone cuts off his head. He's Chris's best friend.



On another note - I may have my own computer again come Sunday!!!!!!

J - Jenifer

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J - Jenifer

Of all the characters, Jen has changed the least during the creation process. Her appearance has always been frizzy brown-brown hair, blue eyes, glasses, freckles (except for a short period of time when I got her mixed up with Anthea [another character from a completely different WIP] and she had straight hair ...) Her backstory has been pretty much the same, she had a friend (Chris. He later became her brother) who disappeared when she was seven and he was eight. Even her position when the play/book opened has stayed the same: she's still sitting beside a stream, trying to make a story appear in the notebook in her lap, and makes a wild wish for Chris to show back up and tell her what happened to her imagination.

Yet at the same, she's the character who changes the most. The girl with the ultimate case of writer's block I begin with on page one is a completely different person than the Anka at the end.

I was supposed to play Jen, which is why she looks so much like me. Even now, I don't think I have a character who I've bonded so well with. I won't say that she's my favorite character *sidelong glance at Maryanne, Clara, and Robin, who are constantly vying for that position. They have sword to make their point clear ...* Indeed, I actually don't really consider her a character at all. She's more of a best friend to me, with whom I'm working on writing her story. She's my introverted and more organized half. I slip so easily into her voice and character, she may as well be the one writing the book.

I must admit that, when I first started typing the book up about a year ago, I didn't know much about her personality. I'm more of a plotter, not a character builder, so while I knew her reactions, I wasn't as aware of the why behind those reactions. It wasn't until she met the mermaids that I realized that she was shy, and not until she had her memories back that I realized that she had a mischievous streak a mile long.

In the second draft, her shyness is apparent much sooner ... and her mischievous streak, it turns out, could translate into cruelty if she doesn't like someone (namely Tisha and Chris). *whistles innocently*

Jen doesn't know she's a character. She knows she's part of a story, but she thinks that she's the one writing it. Which she is. I'm just letting her use my pencil.

I - Imagination

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I - Imagination

The Ankulen is the story of a girl's quest to reclaim her long-lost imaginary world, plain and simple. She lost it when she lost her temper at the age of seven, and now she has a chance to get it back.

The real world is so cut and dry and ... real. Imagination, however, while it does draw heavily on a person's own experience in the real world, is so much more. I really pity those poor people who claim that imagination is for children only. They live such dreary lives.

My mental picture of imagination is a cloud. A cloud of possibilities. Parts are bright and beautiful, while others are dark and stormy. When you write a book, you take that cloud and pull out bits and pieces, weaving them into an extraodinary (or not so extraordinary) tapestry.

I've enjoyed building Jen's world. Indeed, it's beginning to rival Rizkaland when it comes to how fascinating it is. Sometimes I wonder if it isn't too much for a girl of six and seven to have created ... but then I brush such complaints to the side and just keep on writing. Jen was a smart kid, apparently.

On another note ... I have made some interesting strides in the writing department this week. Firstly, I have decided to change the appearance of Jen's Ankulen, slightly. Instead of a gold band with floral etchings, it will be simple and black. I'm not going to tell you my reason yet, though.

Secondly, the world of The New Division has finally presented me with its name: Colluna. Interesting. I just realized that it spells co-luna - and this world has two moons. That wasn't intentional ... but far be it from me to ruin such a perfect name. This world has been intriguing me with its world building as well. I've been focusing on the Lilnan culture so far, but that's because the foursome is within the Lilnan capitol. I can't wait to learn more about the Harshia - and then the Salvia. *rubs hands eagerly.*

Oh, and one of the blogs I follow is holding a writing contest, and she just extended the deadline to the 22nd.

Go here to check it out.

H - Hide and Go Seek

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H - Hide and Go Seek

Err, well ... sorta ...

I couldn't think of any one word that began with h that was important enough in The Ankulen to warrant an entire post. Hide and Go Seek only made the title because the scene I'm currently writing involves four of the characters playing that game. It's quite an amusing chapter, to say the least.

But ... I don't think I can write an entire blog post writing about hide and go seek, even though the first half of the book is basically Jen playing hide and go seek with her memories. I'm planning on saving that topic for later

So ... I have, in desperation, pulled a dictionary off of the shelf, and will now go through it, word for word, and look for anything that was important in any way in The Ankulen so far.

Hack - Chris spends the first half of chapter 2 hacking at pricker vines and undergrowth with his sword ... as well as freaking Jen out over the fact that a eight-year-old is the one wielding that sword.

Hair - Jen has frizzy brown hair that only goes to her mid-back - if she stretches it out to full length. Tisha has wavy blond hair that falls to her feet. Chris has messy brown hair. Derek has black hair. Megan has curly red hair. Jen spends a good portion of the first half of the book running around with a stick in her hair, which provoked an interesting conversation between her and her mom.

  Mom frowned. "Why is there a stick in your hair?"
  I laughed self-consciously. "Oh, Walnut gave it to me after I helped him find his Home Tree. I'm told it can grow into a full-grown tree in minutes."
  "And why is it in your hair?"
  "Uh ... because I didn't have anywhere better to put it?"
  "Well, I hope you don't plan to make wearing sticks in your hair a habit."
  I shrugged. "Actually, I was thinking about trying to start a trend. Do you think it would take?"
  Mom shook her head. "No, I don't."
  "I thought it wouldn't." I gave a wistful sigh.

- The Ankulen

This conversation was partly inspired by my own attempts to start a "trend" as a child. Potholder hats.

Handwriting - Jen is writing The Ankulen out by hand. Errr, well, I am.

Hedgehog - Actually, no. There haven't been any hedgehogs ... yet ... *acquires that devious look that authors get when they have a plot idea*

Horse - Sir Erran rides a horse. I'm not sure about anyone else. We shall see.

Homeschooled - Jen is homeschooled. The story begins with her working on an impossible assigment that her mom is convinced she can do: write a story.

Hollow - Jen feels hollow without her imagination.

Hope - Because everyone needs some. Jen opts to take the more involved route while restoring her imagination, because it would give her imaginary people hope.

Honor - The Valiant Knights talk about honor a lot.

Human - Because Jen is only human, after all.

F - Friends and Family

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F - Friends and Family

The Ankulen is, up front and foremost, a story of a girl and her long-lost imaginary friends. That's what it had been from the first, and it never changed. Yet, as I wrote it, I discovered that it was also a story about family.

The first half of The Ankulen is primarily about friendship. True, Tisha is posing as Jen's adopted sister, but she's still her imaginary friend. The only real family member you meet in the fist half of the book is Jen's mom, and that's only briefly in chapter eight.

The second half of the book focuses more on family. In the second half, Jen is trying to get to know her two new siblings, as well rethinking her behavior to her own parents growing up.

Relationships are probably one of my favorite parts of writing. The complexity of human nature and how people so different can be best friends just fascinates me. And tossing up otherwise mortal enemies into a family? No wonder my characters think I torture them.

There are really only six important secondary characters in The Ankulen, and Jen's relationship with each is different.

Chris: Chris was Jen's protector, her valiant knight. Her safety, and Tisha's, are his first priority. Her memories of him are mixed. She can't remember anything negative about him, but ... for the longest time after his disappearance, she hated him. Since then, she's managed to tame the hatred into more of a wariness, and, by the time he makes his appearance, she's willing to work with him. His relationship with Lady Jenifer has always been rather on the formal side.

Tisha: Letitia was the first thing Jen brought to life after receiving her Ankulen, and was always the closest to her. Letitia knew all of Jen's secrets, all of her worries, all of her cares ... until she and Chris called Jen's wrath upon their heads. Now ... well, let's just say Jen barely speaks to her, let alone entrusts her with valuable secrets. Tisha finds this painful - possibly the most painful part of their punishment.

Mom: Jen's mom (whose name I still don't know ...) is the one person who never gave up on Jen getting her imagination back. There are times when Jen resents this - as she puts it,

It's easier to squeeze juice out of a rock than it is to squeeze a story out of my brain.

- The Ankulen

but she really does want her imagination back, and, when she goes home for lunch in chapter eight, she thanks her mother for doing it.

Derek: Derek and Jen's relationship has a very rocky start. She's an odd combination of shyness and mischief, and he finds her as confusing as much as she finds him intimidating. It's not until nearly the end of the book that they develop a sort of alliance ... and even a tiny bit of sibling trust.

Megan: Megan and Jen hit it off well right from the start. Megan is in awe of Jen's imaginative powers, while Jen is refreshed by Megan's innocence. She tries to be a bit of a peacemaker between Jen and Derek, and, while Jen listens ... Derek doesn't always.

E - Erran

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E - Sir Erran

When I wrote about Sir Christofer, I mentioned that there are few people who question the fact that Chris is the finest knight in the land.

Sir Erran is one of those few people.

I don't remember planning Sir Erran, though I might have. I was at a dum dee dum dee dum part of the story, and I wanted Jen to meet one more person from her imagination before a Really Important Event happened.

So I thought, hey! Chris had indicated earlier that there were other knights - why don't I have her get attacked by dragons so one of the other knights could help her?

So ... that's what I did. The scene that followed provided Jen with both amusement - and frustration. You see, at that point in the story, Chris and Tisha aren't with her, so she doesn't have their side of the story, just Sir Errans. Also, Sir Erran doesn't realize that she is Lady Jenifer and insists on helping her on the quest that she won't tell him about.

"It is a blight to the honor of every knight that you are without protection," Sir Erran Declared, striking a heroic pose. "No, I cannot allow you to continue alone. If you insist on endangering yourself, then I must insist on accompanying you so that I may protect you."

"I would much prefer continuing on my own," I countered.

"But I insist!"

I gave a defeated sigh. "Fine. If you insist."

- The Ankulen

According to the story he tells Jen on the way, she made him up as competition for Sir Christofer. From time to time, the two bold knights would meet, and Sir Erran would challenge Sir Chris's position. Lady Jenifer would then set up a competition.

Because Chris was Jen's favorite, he always won.

Sir Erran represents those people who rebel against God because if He were a loving God, surely he wouldn't let this happen to them, or that happen to their neighbors.

Oh, he knows that Lady Jenifer exists - he's met her several times in person - but he thinks that she is unfair and plays favorites. As Jen points out however,

"But she was behind him, what of that? She couldn't choose every knight to he her personal protector. She didn't even need one."

- The Ankulen

C - Christofer

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C - Christofer

Of all the characters in The Ankulen, Sir Christofer, or Chris as he is usually called, changed the most in development.

When this was a play that my cousin and I were going to perform in the backyard, Chris was Jen's co-make-upper and as human as she was. Sure the part where the two had had a fight and she had locked him in her imagination for eight years was still there, and the fact that he didn't age, but he was reality then, and capable of putting things back in order once Jen managed to get him out and he had the Ankulen.

When I turned the then-untitled play into a book, I retained the idea of him being human, and, for a while, entertained the idea of making the story into a trilogy ... but I couldn't get the story to go anywhere. The ideas were good ... but there wasn't the magic spark that turns a story idea into a story. 

That magic spark came along when I got the brilliant idea of making Chris one of Jen's imaginary friends, specifically, her favorite knight that always accompanied her and her best friend on their adventures.

In The Ankulen, Chris is the Adam of Jen's Imagination. He and Tisha are closest to her of all her imaginary friends, so when they break an important rule ... well, Jen did not react well. Perhaps had it been someone else, Jen would have been a bit more lenient and rational ... but it was them, and she didn't react well.

Chris's punishment was to be locked in her imagination. However, it turned out to be a far worse punishment than even she had anticipated. Unbeknownst to her, a imagination eating creature was lurking in the corners, just waiting for her to be out of the picture.

Sir Christofer, the valiant protector of Lady Jenifer was forced to watch his world crumble around him ... and know that it was his fault. He, the one whose sword and bow could fend off any dragon or ogre who might want to scare his friends, was left powerless in the face of a creature who would eat him weapons and all if it caught him.

Because Chris is Jen's imaginary friend, his age isn't exactly consistent with his actions. He only looks eight, a year older than what Jen and Tisha had been, but his questing expertise is unparalleled in his land. One of his titles is "The Finest Knight in The Land" and few question it.

My inspiration for Chris comes from Grub 1, the cousin who was going to play him all those years ago. (Wait, that was only three years ago ... hum ...), and his personality I could best describe as either a more mature Peter Pan, or a childish Robin Hood.

My cousin still doesn't like the fact that I made Chris part of Jen's imagination, rather than her co-imaginer, but he's getting used to it. The story wasn't working the other way ... and well, I'm almost half-way through the second draft this way. I like it, and I'm sure that, once he reads it, G1 will like it too.

Oh, and the misspelling of Christofer is intentional. Hey, a seven-year-old named him. It's lucky an h made its way into his name.

B - Battle

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B - Battle

When The Ankulen was a play and Chris was as real as Jen, I wasn't sure how it was going to end. I thought, perhaps, that they would find someone who would sort the craziness out for them and then they go home happy as clams ...

When I turned it into a book and made Chris one of Jen's imaginary friends ... I added the imagination eater.

And I suddenly knew that the ending would involve a climatic battle scene.

Allow me to let you in on one of my little secrets:

I'm not big on battle scenes.

Really! I'm not! Sure, I love swordplay and archery and other stuff like that ... but in a safe environment where no one can get hurt. Also, I'm more of a conversationalist ... and battle scenes tend to be mostly action. I don't like reading them, I don't like writing them. (I don't like long, drawn-out kissing scenes, either ... but that's another issue)

So I really wasn't sure what I was going to do.

However, as I look over my list of WIP's, I have a lot of them that will probably have some sort of battle scene in them. Why? Because I do enjoy setting them up.

There's a certain thrill that I get out of lining up the villain's men against the good guy's. It's even more fun if I'm setting it up so that it'll be one on one. Yet, actually following through and writing that battle scene ... not so much fun.

So I dreaded the climatic scene, and my dread only grew with each word I typed. When I actually got there, I closed my computer and wanted to cry.

Lots of Pretty Eggs

At the time, I had only ever written one other battle scene, and it had been two years, at least, since then. Sure there was that one part of that scene that I enjoy writing over and over and over again ... (unfortunately, I can't share the nature of that part, since it's the scene where all secrets are revealed ... hence why I like it), but for the most part, I hadn't really written a good, action-packed battle scene.

But you know something? If an author stays in their comfort zone and just writes stuff they're good at ... they'll never grow, and they'll never achieve greatness. After an agonizing night of "Oh what am I going to do???" I went back, opened my computer again, and started writing again.

I wrote the entire chapter in one sitting. I'm quite pleased with it, too. There isn't much conversation beyond some threats that are hurled, and there is quite a bit of action. It ended up being completely not what I expected, but I love how it turned out.

I've since written a battle scene in book three of Bookania, and it's quite likely that one is rapidly approaching in the notebook version of Water Princess, Fire Prince. And you know what? I'm looking forward to writing it. No, I don't put in page after page of sword thrusts and arrow wounds and Riadids coming over the walls to eat you alive ... I keep it short and to the point.

But I'm not going to let a simple battle scene scare me away from writing the book that is asking to be written. (However, as I've stated before, kissing scenes are another issue. Sorry, my romantic friends, a simple "he bent over and stole a kiss, then placed her on her horse" is all the more you're going to get out of me - and that's only if they're married to each other.)