Alix

New character time!! Meet:

Alix

I'm Alix. Just Alix. Yes, there's a story behind it. But it's none of your business, okay?

*sighs* Just had too many people ask me about it.

But who knows. Maybe you'll find out someday.

However, that's not what I'm here for. I'm here to introduce myself. As I said, my name is Alix. I'm a... Water Akarei, specializing in ice. It's okay. Best of times, helps other people. Worst of times- Well, let's just not go there.

Hm. I didn't realize that's what I looked like. Guess so. My hair doesn't have that much curl, though. Other than that, don't really care what you see me as. Because I change.

... .. ... .. ...

Let's see...

I'm different. Different in a bad way.

I didn't grow up like other people. I don't act like other people. I don't talk like other people. I don't look like other people. I don't- You get the point yet?

But off of that topic. I have too much of that.

I live with the other Akarei. It's a nice place. There's a lake out, and when it gets cold, I teach my friends to skate. There's a forest near us, and I go out there a lot. It's a nice place to...just be myself. That's something I don't get a lot of.

Hobbies. Well, I sing... But don't you tell anyone. And I'm not singing for you. But I do sing.

Among other hobbies, I'm a Water Aka, which I said already. It comes with benefits, like swimming and controlling water and skating and stuff, but it also comes with prejudices.

Not many people here like the water. I don't know why. To me, water is beautiful. It's...kind of like me. Ever-changing and fluid, going along with the flow. When water un-calms, it takes a bit. I'm like that. It takes my temper a bit to rise up, but when it does, you fear it as bad as a hurricane.
It freezes when the cold comes, to keep itself whole. I do that. I "freeze up" so I can emerge whole later. It's a survival technique. Survival is my specialty.

Well... Anything I start, I finish. That's my...thing. I start something, I finish it. I believe that you should only start a job worth doing, and if it's worth starting, then it's worth finishing.

(Have I talked enough yet?)

I love dragons. Everything from the tips of their scaly heads to the bottom of their feet to the fire coming out of their mouths. They're beautiful creatures and very fun to work with.

Don't judge me by what I do with them, though.

Don't blame me for what I do.

Because it's the only thing I can do.

.... .... .... .... ....

If I haven't scared you off already with "my version of philosophy" and my odd way of talking, maybe we could chat sometime. Don't expect me to form attachments or friendships or anything, though.

Yeah.

Well, now you've met me. Nice seeing you and all, I guess. (How do I sign off?)

Alix, over and out.

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There she is!

Alix's intro ended up being kind of different, but, as she admitted, she's different. ;)

Hope you liked her! And - also like she said - she's willing to chat with any who wants to. She'll answer questions about herself, down in the comment section. (Even though she doesn't admit it, she kind of enjoyed revealing little bits about herself. So you're welcome to ask questions. :) )

May God's blessing be on you and your writing throughout your week!

-Autumn

Writing, and Plotters and Pantsers, Oh My!

There are two main types of writers: plotters and pantsers. Today we will be going through the basic types of both.

Pantser
There are different types of pantsers. For these examples, I am going to use writing, considering this is a (mainly) writing blog. ;)

Class A - The Choosers: You choose to do other things with your time. You realize that you ought to be doing your writing, but you just choose not to. Once the day is out, you slap your hand to your forehead, and honestly regret your decisions, but don't know how to right them. (

Class B - The Forgetfuls: You honestly do not realize that you are pantsing. It's only once the time is gone that you realize that you should have written.

Class C - The Do-It-Laters: You insist that you will "do it later". Then, once the day is gone, you remember.

Those are the three main classifications of the creature commonly called the "pantser". Most pantsers are born with "pantserism", but a few contract this mysterious disease.


Plotter
Just as some writers are naturally born with this, some are naturally born "plotters".
The mysterious creature that is the plotter is an intelligent one. They plot out their stories ahead of time and plan their writing time. This one isn't found everywhere; some do not plan out when they will write.

Class A - The All-Outers: You plot out their story, allot your writing time, and make character charts/Pinterest boards all ahead of time. (Those of you who classify as an "All-Outer", I applaud you.)

Class B - The Plotters: You do not necessarily allot writing time for yourself, but you do plot out significant events of your story before you begin!

Class C - The Developers:  You develop your characters beforehand. You also flesh out where you want the story to start and where you want it to end.

I hope this has been an insightful visit on plotters and pantsers!

My Works

As a kind of "post", I got my Current Works tab up and running! However, the synopsis for it will probably be revised at least a dozen times, just to warn you. ;) This tab only has the synopsis of my largest WIP (work-in-progress), which I might be revising later. :)

Oh yes, I also added My Bookshelf to show what books I'm reading right now.
(Wow, this is a short post.) I apologize for this. Today was...confusing. :/ *sigh* I'll do better next time. Hopefully, I won't be saying that again.

Until next time,
-Autumn

Stephen

Hello again! I hereby introduce one of my (favorite) characters from my WIP:

Stephen Dwyh

 

 

__________

 

Uh, hi. What am I doing here? Oh, I'm supposed to introduce myself. My name is Stephen, Stephen Dwyh. I'm a Thunderstorm Akarei, which is definitely interesting. You can't see by that picture, but I'm always wearing a hoodie with my Aka badge pinned to it.

 

That hoodie's old. I don't even know why I still wear it. But I like old stuff. Old scrolls, old ways, old games...You name it! I'm not as much of a bookie as the healer's kid, but I don't think anyone is. She's insane.

 

What? This post is supposed to be about me?! I don't like talking about myself. When you're me, it solves a lot of problems to just lay low. Of course, when you're me, it's also hard to do just that.

 

No, I am not purposefully diverting the subject away from myself.

 

*Stephen takes a long breath* Ok, so here's the deal. I have some stuff that nobody needs to know about. And I like it that way.

 

What again? Oh, back to the introduction.

 

Well, I said I'm a Thunderstorm Aka. I get to control thunder, pouring rain, and lightning bolts. I've gotten into some....trouble when I get mad. The other person is always more injured than I am. The Thunders are known for getting into fights. But I never really mean to. It just...happens. Believe me, if I could stop it from happening, I would, I really would. I've gotten it under control, but only for- Wait, am I allowed to tell them that? No? Okay, so I guess you'll just find out eventually. I mean, the whole school knows.

 

Just because I get into fights and I don't like talking about myself doesn't mean that I don't like to joke around. Not at all. Once I find friends, I'm like a normal kid. I've been told I'm a sarcastic joker, which is cool.

 

I like going out to the woods. I'm the best tracker in the school, and my syah says I'll be famous for rounding up dragons when I get old enough. So I practice a lot. There's lots of stray dragons out in the woods. Nobody even knows how many I've found. Different types than anyone's seen before. It's really cool.

 

What else should you know... I'm not sure if you would call me 'easygoing' or not. I worry a lot, but what I show people is different from what I actually am.

 

Oh, yeah. Uh... *Stephen scratches his neck embarrassedly* Not exactly psyched about telling you this, but I'm clumsy. Knocked over too many things to keep track of. Bookcases, people, you name it.

 

So. That's me. Nice to meet you all. Maybe sometime we could hang out? That would be super cool. Well, I've gotta go now. Uh, again, nice meeting you, and I hope you enjoyed meeting me. Bye!

 

__________

 



That was Stephen Dwyh, from my novel! Did you enjoy meeting him? I hope so. :)

I've said this before, but if you ever want to chat with any of them, post it down in the comments! I love hearing from you, and so do they.

 

-Autumn



Can You Run Out of Creativity?

You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have. -Maya Angelou

Hello! :) This is our quote of the week, as you've probably guessed. ;)

The first thing I thought of when I read this quote was love. Why? Because the more love you give away, the more you have.

Do you think this is true? The more creativity you use, the more you have? One could argue that this makes no sense; how can you have more of something after using it? Well, this isn't exactly an easy question to answer.

The first thing that I thought of was love. It's not exactly an answer, but it reminds you that not all of your questions can be answered. Not everything can be used up. Love - and creativity - aren't material, therefore you can't run out of them.

If you aren't satisfied with that, let me give you another answer. :)

When you are creative, you are making room for more creativity. In other words, creativity inspires itself. When you write, you are being creative. And if you never start, then you won't be able to be creative further. In turn, when you are creative, you are able to be creative further.

So don't worry that you'll ever run out of ideas. You simply can't!

-Autumn



Introductions

So, I realized that I never really did an introductory post. There's always my About Autumn, so you can check that out, but I still thought it would be nice to introduce myself. :)

Her name is Autumn Browne. She's a teenager with a passion for writing, because you don't have to be an adult to love to write! Known for her daydreaming talents, Autumn loves curling up in a thunderstorm with a good book, some chocolate, and a box of tissues.

She's a newly beginning blogger, and admits how glad she is that she started, for she has learned how to schedule and how to "practice what you preach." :)

Currently, Autumn is working on a novel entitled Immortal Fire, began in November 2014 and is on the fourth draft, having stopped and restarted numerous times. More information about Immortal Fire can be found under the Current Works tab, which *ahem* is under renovations (aka, it will be up soon.). She's only written short stories and poetry before, but she says that she loves noveling, although it is a challenge.

Autumn is an avid reader. She reads many genres including fantasy, science fiction, and Christian. If you meet her on the street, don't be surprised if she is carrying a book. "If you'd ever like to chat over books sometime," Autumn says, "I'd love that! But watch out, because once you start me, I may never stop!"

She also enjoys drawing and calligraphy, being a true artist at heart. Autumn loves dogs, especially Shih Tzus and even more especially, Mal-Shihs. She also wishes desperately for a pet dragon, but her house isn't large enough. So dragons frequently influence her writing because who doesn't love dragons? ;)

On that happy note, we return you to your regularly scheduled blogging. Autumn loves blogging for you lovely people, and hopes you come back soon!

-Autumn

Character Names

One of the first things you pin down in character development is their name. (Note: I said one. ;) There are many 'first things'.) But names are essential. Your character has to have a name. That's how you keep track of them, and make them more relatable to your audience.

On rare occasions, your characters will practically name themselves, or you create them already knowing their name. But what do you do when they don't?

I enjoy using baby name generators and books. Nameberry and Behind The Name are just two examples. Also SheKnows and various blogs.
A simple Google search will do the trick in this case. Search "baby name generator" and add "male/boy" or "female/girl" depending on the gender you're looking for. If you have any more specifics in what you're looking for, type that in as well! It never hurts to be more specific. :)

In my fantasy, I often make up names for them. Sometimes, I take a popular name and twist it, changing it somehow to create a whole different name. Another method is to try out sounds, joining them together to create a name you like.

One thing to avoid while naming characters:
Don't name them after famous people, or similar characters in other books. This just leads to confusion and annoyance on the part of your readers.

I hope this helps you! I know I often need help when it comes to naming. :)
-Autumn