Inspirational Prompt of the Week

When I should be doing schoolwork (heh... *hides face ashamedly*), I was on pinterest this morning checking my notifications, and I saw this writing prompt in my feed.  It struck my interest.




When I say "struck my interest", what I really mean is "I WANT TO WRITE A WHOLE BOOK BASED OFF THIS INSPIRATIONAL PROMPT".  Who knows... NaNoWriMo is coming up and I still don't have any idea of what I'm going to write.

So, imagine, away!



~Angie

WRITING PLAYLIST

I don't know about you, but when I write I HAVE to have music on in the background... It just gets my inspirational juices flowing.  I can't seem to write anything that's even decent without my groove tunes, not even school papers.  I know, I know, it seems like a problem, but it's not... to me, at least.  What I've done is made a bunch of playlists; one for school, and one for writing.  The playlist for writing has a bunch of subcategories intertwined...  For example, under writing music I have subcategories for genres in writing, such as action, emotional, ect.  It really does help, I've found, and I want to share some of my music with you. :)  And one big note, I do not always watch the movie from where some of these soundtrack songs are from... I usually find them by searching instrumental stuff... Some of the movies I listen to soundtracks from I do not agree with, watch, or even know.  Please keep that in mind as you go along with this list.  :)

So, without further ado...






(NOTE: Anything to do with the artist Audiomachine is background writing music worthy.  When you listen to them, you can just feel yourself soaring through different emotions. And Hans Zimmer, too. 'Nuff said right there.)



Music for ACTION scenes


1. Hero - Kung Fu Panda OST  // This song is more fun than action-y, really. But it's inspiring, all the same.

2. Discombobulate - Hans Zimmer (Sherlock Holmes OST) // Anything from the Sherlock Holmes (the one from the movie with RDJ) soundtrack is AMAZING and totally worth listening to.

3. Wolf Suite pt. 1 - Danny Elfman // This is a sort of ominous and fast paced one.

4. King Arthur - Hans Zimmer // If you're looking for regal and righteousness with all the trumpets and horns, this is the song for you.

5. Septimus - Ilan Eshkeri (Stardust OST) // Reminds me of a horse riding scene for some reason...

6. This is Berk - John Powell (How to Train Your Dragon OST) // Not as fast paced in the beginning, but it gets more exciting after the first part.

7. Heart of Courage - TSFH // This song... no words... okay, maybe one: INSPIRING!!!

8. The Dream Is Collapsing - Hans Zimmer (Inception OST) // Embrace the dark side... the rush of a million heart beats crying for WAR! *battle cry* Ahem, great movie, btw...

9. Revenge of the Fallen - Transformers //

10. Road To Glory - Audiomachine // The name speaks for itself, peeps.

11. Catatonic - Hans Zimmer

12. Smooth Criminal - Dallas String Quartet // The instrumental for this song is great.



Uplifting mood music:

1. Carl Goes Up - Michael Giacchino (Up OST) // It's just a given, you can never not be happy when you're listening to anything from that blessed movie. Unless you re-imagine the scene... in that case, better grab a box of tissues, preferably the ones with the lotion infused into them.

2. Where's Hiccup - John Powell (HTTYD OST) // Beautiful soundtrack... beautiful music.

3. Another Dance - Dario Marianelli (Pride and Prejudice OST) //

4. Secrets - Dallas String Quartet

5. Hey Soul Sister - Dallas String Quartet

6. Peponi - Piano Guys

7. Baba Yetu - Peter Hollens // His version is the best.  I like to use this and Peponi when I'm writing scenes that are set in like African plains and stuff like that.



RIGHTEOUS music:

1. Time - Hans Zimmer (Inception OST) // This whole soundtrack is amazing and inspirational for just... anything. Seriously, check it out.  (P.S. 2Cellos do an amazing cover of this one)

2. I AM (Creation Overture) // From the album Music From the Story: Old Testament, this song just surges with RIGHTEOUSNESS... and INSPIRATION.

3. Honor - Hans Zimmer // This, just this, it's beautiful! *sobs* It makes me cry from explicit emotion.

4. A Special Bus - Murray Gold // Yes, this is a song from Doctor Who, but it's powerful, nonetheless

5. Redemption - Audiomachine // RIGHTEOUS

6. Winterspell - Thomas Bergersen

7. I Am the Doctor - Murray Gold // Another DW song... I know, I bet you're thinking "ANGIE, ENOUGH!"  I'm sorry... I'm so, so sorry...

8. My Strength - District 78



Melancholy/deeply moving music:

1. Chairman's Waltz - John Williams (The Memoirs of a Geisha OST)// A lot of strings in this one.  Need I go on?

2. Illumination - Jennifer Thomas // This one is half melancholy half righteous.

3. Fall From Grace - Kerry Muzzey // I would describe this first as happyish, but then it gets darker and a bit more ominous.

4. It's Hard to Say Goodbye - Michael Ortega

5. Red Warrior - Audiomachine

6. Letting Go - Patrick Doyle (Thor OST)

7. Rain - Brian Crain



HEART WRENCHING SONGS:


1. Save a Place For Me - Matthew West

2. Last Night - Skillet

3. Without You - For King and Country

4. Saturn - Sleeping at Last

5. All of Me - Matt Hamitt

6. Fall Alseep - Jars of Clay




That's just a small notch in the compilation of songs from my "writing music library", just a few out of many.  You should seriously check some of the songs out, though, if you haven't heard them.  They are amazing.  Most of them.  :P  As always, thanks for taking time to read!


~Angie

Ask the Writer

So I thought this would be fun to do, asking the writer different questions.



1. Q: The name of my current work in progress. // A: I am working on a bunch of stuff right now, so it would be hard for me to pinpoint just one. Uhh... Let's say my fantasy novel called Alone in the Dark.

2. Q: Who is my protagonist?  //  A: A young elf, Zashta Xreeon.

3. Who is my antagonist? // A: The Dark Lord of the Mernics, Errad.

4.Q: The name of one of my secondary characters?  // A: Daraq Darkweaver, a human in a world of elves with an unusual... talent, let's say.

5. Q: My favorite author. // A: That's easy.  Wayne Thomas Batson.

6. Q: How long I have been writing. // A: Ever since I was six, but before that I was drawing stories through pictures.

7. Q: My favorite book. // A: Oh gosh, this is hard.  The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare.  AMAZING BOOK!!!  Or anything Wayne Thomas Batson, come to think of it...

8. Q: Description of current work in progress in one sentence. // A: Um... *brain fart*  A young girl who journeys with her father to find her destiny, her true calling, which has been hidden from her until a threatening of war once again with the rising Mernics forces her into action.  (I'm sorry, that was the best I could do under circumstances. :P)


Have any specific questions for me?  I'd love to answer them!


~Angie

Hello!

Hi guys! I'm so excited to start blogging on here (this is my first blog post ever!) :D

First off, I want to say thank you to Angie to inviting me. You're awesome. <3 :)

Also, the name I'm blogging under is my pen name- I'll also use it if (hopefully when) I get published.

I figured I'd tell you a little bit about my books in this post. Feel free to ask any questions :)

The book that's in my bio thingy on here is titled 'Worlds Away'. The way it got that title is SO cheesy, I'm embarrassed *~* But anywho.. It's the only novel I've finished ('finished', since I've only finished the first draft), and I /still/ don't have a synopsis for it. Basically, I describe it as Alice in Wonderland meets Lord of the Rings. I started writing it when I was 12, so it's not the best and I don't think I'll ever get it published. 

I have roughly three WIPs (work-in-progresses) right now. One of which I haven't even started writing yet. XD One of them is the first in a trilogy, all of which are collectively called the Time Trilogy. This particular book is tentatively titled Adrift in Time. I don't really have a way of explaining it. Think Doctor Who-Star Trek-ish. 

Another one of them- I'm farther along with. It's (tentatively?) titled Five Hundred Lives. Here's the synopsis:

Aria Treader used to be an assassin for the twisted dystopian government. Since then, she's changed her ways and become part of END, an organization to help 'troubled' people and rebel against the government. It was all going pretty decent until her close friend betrays her. As her friend starts making the government stronger, END starts to crumble... Aria is forced to forget her past and face the future... Which is hard to do if you're being hunted. 

That's all about that one. 

My last one- this is the one I haven't even started writing yet. *blush* All I have so far is a couple images in my mind from Pinterest and the words 'manufactured humans'. XD But after I get some characters, I would like to start writing it relatively soon. 

Thanks for reading! 

~E.C. 

Character Personalities

Starting school two weeks ago Monday, I found that it's actually not as long and tedious and boring as I thought 12th grade would be.  It's actually been quite enjoyable.  British Literature is my FAVORITE subject as of right now, and I'm sure that won't change.  :)  As a part of my literature, I'm doing a vocabulary study and I'm enjoying it immensely!  While reading it last week, I stumbled upon ten different personality traits and their meanings.  Naturally, being a writer, as I came across the personality types and read through them, I compared them to my characters and placed my characters in the personality types.  It helped  me, in a way, see the actual MIND SET of my characters, but not necessarily their individual PERSONALITY.  Note the difference, my dear readers.  So.  Away we go.

Egoist

(Me first attitude)

This type of personality is basically, what it says in parentheses, me first.  Not necessarily conceited and stuck up, just me centered.  Not over the top selfish, but just thinking about "their" needs first, not others' need.  Self-seeking, but not over the top.

Characters of mine I would place in this category: Abigail Blackburn, Nikki Taylor, Colton Flynn, Soleil Corsetti.

Egotist

(Height of conceit)

Don't get EGOTIST confused with EGOIST.  Egotists are more intense than egoists, more self seeking, definitely stuck up, over the top selfish, and - in a way - rude.  This type is all about them, with no room for other people in their thoughts.  This can sometimes even lead to more advanced and a more intense levels of egotistic behaviors, such as egomaniacs who are basically mad.  Literally... mad.

Characters of mine I would place in this category: Owen Tracy, Alex Wayne, Alister Reynolds. 

Altruist

(Let me help you)

Altruists are the some of the kindest people, putting other's needs before their own.  They are the type of people who are always there helping, doing whatever they can to make others comfortable.  But sometimes this can lead to self negligence, not on purpose, of course.  They are so concerned with needs of others that they can forget about themselves.

Characters of mine I would place in this category: Allison Beauregard, Gareth Corsetti, June Forwen, Theodore Yeshevsky. 

Introvert 

(Leave me alone)

Think of a turtle who hides in its shell and doesn't want to see people.  That's the introvert.  The introverted personality likes to be alone, or with a small selection of close people (and when I say small collection, I mean small collection).  They're timid, shy, and quiet people, and personally one of my favorite personality types.

Characters of mine I would place in this category: Jemma Corday, Jagger Bachar, Elsa Altobelli. 

Extrovert

(Let's do it together)

Now think of the opposite of introvert - the exact opposite - and then you have the extrovert.  Extroverts are loud (and when I say loud, I only mean it in the best way - being an extrovert myself :P), exuberant, excitable, and big people lovers.  They like being with others and can't be alone for too long or else they'll go through withdrawals.  Very people oriented, extroverts are need socialization, it being crucial to their survival,

Characters of mine that I would place in this category: Mallory Steele, Riley Blackburn, Aggie Lennox. 

Ambivert

(Neither extreme) 

Neither and introvert or an extrovert, Ambiverts are a happy medium.  They're not extremely outgoing, and they're not extremely closed off people either.  They're a good balance to anyone.

Characters of mine I would place in this category: David Cruse, Edwin Anniger, Jadon Ross Ives, Samantha Reynolds. 

Misanthrope

(People are no darn good)

Misanthropes believe that people are stupid and "no darn good!"  Everything people do is not good enough, complain worthy, and far less better than anything they could do.  Whatever someone else can do, they can do better.

Characters of mine I would place in this group: Alister Reynolds (again)

Misogynist 

(Women are no darn good)

Women haters, women dislikers, women scorners, annoyed by women... Shall I go on?

Characters of mine I would place in this group: Alex Wayne (if I had to place a character here, it would be him.  He doesn't hate women, he just thinks they're quite annoying.  Pft... Shows what he knows.)

Misogamist

("Marriage is an institution--and who wants to live in an institution?)

Free spirit is the word for this personality type.  They don't want to be tied down by obligations or priorities.  They prefer short term things, such as in the the case of relationships.

Characters of mine I would place in this category: Alva Callen 

Ascetic

(Self-denial, lonely contemplation) 

I see this type as either "woe-is-me", or the deep thinker and philosopher who contemplates life very deeply.  Self denial and living alone is the story of their life.  I wouldn't call them hermits... Well, yes I would.  They're a bit like introverts, except lonelier.

Characters of mine I would place in the category: Elsa Altobelli, Kaliana




So that's my list.  What do you think?  Where do your characters fall in these categories?

Thanks for reading!


~Angie <3

Hope

"Hope is the air our spirits breathe. Without it, our spirits suffocate."
Pandora of Athens by Barry Denenberg

It is quite tempting to let your writing be filled with a sense of hopelessness. After all, conflict is what drives the story, and it usually involves making things go "out of the frying pan and into the fire." To keep the reader engaged, you must torture your protagonist and their allies with as little mercy as your kind-hearted heart can stand. Worlds without hope are also very popular at the moment, especially dystopian worlds.

So yes, in any good story, the stakes are high. Your character must pay the price for whatever they are trying to attain. But that doesn't mean that the whole world has to be dark and awful. There is too much darkness in the world already without creating an excess of fictional darkness. Writers should create stories that bring light to readers, stories that inspire readers to make hope a reality. Don't underestimate the power of your words!
I challenge you to create stories that take place in worlds of hope. Make your futuristic stories bright with new ideas and inventions--anything that you think would make the world a better place! Put Elves in along with your Orcs (metaphorically speaking) Show the beauty of whatever world you work in, whether it's  1776 or 2076. Look at the works of Jules Verne. You never know if a whim of your imagination today might become reality and change the world! Write the change you wish to see!

Concerning Jodi

Although my books are all published under my real name, I chose to blog under the name of one of my characters, Jodi Fairforest, partly for safety and partly because we have a lot in common.

Jodi is the co-star of my newest book, The Gallant. Like me, she is a writer, but a much more successful one. She lives in the semi-fictional* town of Avalon Beach, Florida, the famous "Home of Real Superheroes." Her life, if not exactly ordinary, is pleasant and mildly exciting until she uses the town's slogan as inspiration for her (fictionally) bestselling novel, The Gallant. Everything changes one morning when a man who looks exactly like her main character, the dashing Sir Errol the Gallant, shows up at her apartment. It turns out that there are real superheroes in Avalon, almost exactly as she has described them in her book. Unfortunately, there is also a very real supervillain with dark plans for Avalon Beach. The most wonderful thing that ever happened to Jodi might also be the death of her...

*I took a great deal of creative license in describing Avalon in my book because I honestly didn't know it existed. In the book it is a combination of quaint beach town and thriving metropolis. In reality, it is just a quaint beach town.

You can find out more about Jodi Fairforest here:

 http://www.lulu.com/shop/olivia-taylor/the-gallant-2nd-edition/paperback/product-21751674.html