#WordWeavers Sep 13: What animal would you like as a muse?
I don't suppose Yogin No Tori (ヨゲンノトリ) the two-headed crow of prophecy or Yatagarasu (八咫烏) the incarnation of Kamo Taketsunumi. What's not to like about a three-legged crow sun god?
If I have to be mundane, crow. They say there are more crow spirits in Seattle than anywhere else in the world.
I take the question as “how I deal with dialogues”. And in this case the question is the same as #wordweavers today (nice coincidence!), so here’s the link to the toot
#WordWeavers Sep 2: What could you change about your world to make it better for most people?
Racism and sexism. The world has advanced a lot in terms of declawing capitalism, which creates a huge updraft for women, poc, indigenous people, queer/trans people, etc. Economics are the tool of oppression, after all, but white supremacy and patriarchy are still implicit in all kinds of systems of power, not to mention individual prejudice.
#WordWeavers September 10: Is writing dialogue easy for you? Why / why not?
Yes, super easy. I've been talking to myself my whole life, son it comes easily.
But seriously, I do constantly daydream conversations, I've been mainlining comedian podcasts since they were created, and I've spent half my life playing D&D, so yeah. Dialogue flows like water. I'm proud of my dialogue to be point of being smug, than you very much.
#WordWeavers Day 12: Side character POV: What do you find difficult to say to other people?
"I don't, um, always know what to, because it's hard. I'm [sigh] I'm fat, and I'm big--sometimes, people want me to. I'm not a 'leader.' I don't want to. I'm quiet."
#WordWeavers Sep 13: What animal would you like as a muse and why?
I'm so confused by this question. Spiders bc they weave intricate patterns? Cats bc they're all cuddles and calmness until they strike, like a slow-burn plot? Geese bc they flock and stick together and always arrive where they're going?
#WordWeavers 9/1
Introduce your antagonist with as much sympathy as possible.
Fern is Homo vénusienne (as are MCs), a new human species genetically engineered to live in Venus's sulfuric acid clouds. Bent on purity of Homo sapiens, Earth has been trying to exterminate them in a brutal war.
Fern was born with a congenital defect: foil deficiency, lacking protection against acid. Looking like an Earther, she was horribly abused and tortured in an orphanage for children of war victims.
#WordWeavers 9/9
[MC POV] What do you hate the most about the author?
He knows way too much about me. He knows when I will be happy--and he knows when I'll be tormented. Whether I'll succeed or fail--and when, and how, I will die.
He's a remote god, pretending that he cares so much about us that he may cry. But he just keeps subjecting us to misery, a challenge after bloody challenge.
Asking him to change a thing? It won't help, will it? Just as I thought...
#WordWeavers 9/12
[Side Character POV] What do you find difficult to say to other people?
[Julio]
Few know what it's like to be a jackalope. Sorry for the slur, but I can say it—I'm one. I have inherited Dad's warrior caste, but Mom's farmer cybergenes remain partially active. It's a kind of new neurodiversity.
When cyber modules in your brain receive conflicting signals, it's no fun. People like me are usually disabled. I'm fine. But I won't lead with that when introducing myself, right?
#WordWeavers 01: Introduce your antagonist with as much sympathy as possible.
'Does Richard hate me because I shot him?' Cathy asked.
Eimear smiled. 'It goes back much further than your previous life. His parents were religious fanatics.'
'I thought he was an orphan?'
'I'm talking about the thirteenth century. They were Cathars.'
'We've known him all that time?'
'I'm afraid so. His parents were so preoccupied with the survival of their faith that they neglected him. He turned against us.'
#WordWeavers Sept 10: Is writing dialogue easy for you? Why/why not?
My characters tell me their story and let me listen to them talking to each other, so my books are heavily biased towards dialogue. To start with, I was worried there was too much and rewrote passages as reported speech. It immediately became tell not show so largely gave up on that approach. At the editing stage, I shorten scenes when it is not necessary for the reader to know everything that was said.
#WordWeavers Sep 11: What would you do if you met your antagonist?
Since I am the author, I have information about Richard that he doesn't know himself, so I have to be very careful. I'd probably play along with his laddish humour and try not to get drawn in. He will be the last character to buy into the reincarnation theory, so he is oblivious to his past sins. It has to be like that. There is a redemption path, even for him, but he is not yet ready for it.
#WordWeavers Sep 12 — SC POV: What do you find difficult to say to other people?
Eimear smiles. 'I don't know.'
'Try,' I say.
'No, "I don't know" is what I find difficult to say.'
'Why is that?' I ask.
'Because I always do know.'
Her green eyes sparkle the way they always do when she is challenging you to decide whether she is joking. She isn't.
#WordWeavers 9.13 — What animal would you like as a muse and why?
I'm going to be boring here and say dog. The function they perform is not to provide inspiration but distraction. You may disagree with the timing, but they could be right. Now IS the time to throw the ball, take them for a walk, or switch to the sofa and take their head in your lap.
For #WordWeavers tomorrow, I think I'm going to be working on a new #cyberpunk story. The MC is an original character that I've been writing for a very long time and in so many different stories. I used to RP him with friends, and still avidly do in a number of fantastic stories, but I decided to finally start a long novel with him. He originated from #CyberpunkRED and #Cyberpunk2020, tabletop RPG's / #TTRPG's. I've written him over every imaginable medium.
#WordWeavers 9.9 — MC POV: What do you hate the most about the author?.
Alexios: They're a fckin' prick. They're the reason I'm going through all of this, aren't they? Yeah, they're a twat. What do I hate most, though? It's hard to fckin' choose. I'm all riled up now. Need to calm down. They certainly seem a bit sadistic. Yeah, let's go with that one. I'd like to change that, if I can.
Me: Oi. Hush, now.
Alexios: Shut up, or I'm jumping off the bloody page and leaving.
#WordWeavers 9.10 — Is writing dialogue easy for you?
It is. That being said, sometimes I find it hard to sit down and write if my heart's not in it. Anything can be hard to do when you're just not feeling it. Dialogue has always come pretty easily for me, though.
I write a lot of wildly different stories. I listen to music, I read, etc. They're all things that get me into the zone when I'm working on something in particular, i.e. for the 50's, sci-fi, or fantasy, all for vocab/moods.
#WordWeavers 9.11 — What would you do if you met your antagonist?
Run like hell because it would mean I'm the next experiment. I have no chance. I'd rather die, honestly. The Angel of Death (AKA Dr. Death) is someone I've spoken about in this hashtag a bit. He's taken entire colonies from planets, turned them in cybernetic-filled demolition and construction workers, and sent them off to do slavery work for the Syndicate. The thought alone makes me shudder. He's a disgustingly evil man.
#WordWeavers 9.12 — SC POV: What do you find difficult to say to other people?
Junk: Um... Everything? I'm not good with emotions, choom. Never have been. I lost a lot of lovely ladies that way. They all wanted that deep soulful connection, you know? And I couldn't give it to 'em. I think Alexios knows that he's my best friend, though. I think. I should tell him one day. We're both f*ckin' rotten with telling each other how we feel.
Murk is a black cat. He's a familiar to a mystic, AKA a wizard, and he is every bit of me. He's fierce and protective, loyal to the nth degree, playful as well, love snuggles and head scritches, and enjoys naps. He would be my muse.
#WordWeavers 9.14 — Does your antagonist have any redeemable qualities?
None whatsoever. The Angel of Death will have no redemption arc to speak of. He's a horrible man without any morals and with a love for both himself and riches. He cares about the bottom line, furthering the Syndicate's reach and power, and wants them to /need/ him. No one can create soldiers/slaves like him. They call him Dr. Death for a reason. He leaves death in his wake.