Deborah O’Carroll long ago (back in September 2015–yikes!) tagged me for the 777 Writing Challenge. And I’m finally getting around to participating. Some of you might be scratching your heads and thinking, “Wait, didn’t Tracey already do the 777? Like, twice?”
You are correct. The first time can be found here, the second time here. I just realized that Deborah was the one who tagged me the first time, too–and that it was my very first tag ever. All the warm, fuzzy memories . . .
Anyway. The rules are as follows:
The 777 challenge requires you go to Page 7 of your work-in-progress, scroll down to Line 7 and share the next 7 lines in a blog post. Once you have done this, you can tag 7 other bloggers to do the same with their work-in-progress.
Buuut it’s fun to play around with the rules. I’m changing lines to paragraphs, and rather than isolating paragraph seven of page seven, I’ll give you a couple paragraphs of context as well. Just because I’m sweet like that.
Oh, I nearly forgot to mention that this snippet is coming from book 2, The Prophet’s Key. None of this is edited, so you get behold the raw, uncut glory (or mess) before I take a chisel to it. In this scene, Josiah is supposed to be waiting while his family has a meeting with his psychiatrist, Dr. Teagan. You see, the events of the first book have had big ramifications on the home lives of the protagonists. Particularly Josiah’s.
Everyone thinks he’s schizophrenic with delusions of grandeur, let’s just put it that way.
Anyway, Josiah is listening in to this family meeting from outside Dr. Teagan’s office.
~*~
“I just want my son back,” Dad snapped. “If that means giving him his meds myself, I’ll do it.”
An image of Dad forcing his jaws open and shaking a pill bottle down his throat ramped up Josiah’s inner heat to boiling.
“Monitor him, yes, but don’t antagonize him. Patients fare best when home life is stable. If he refuses to take the pills, we may consider switching him to a daily injection.”
Josiah gripped the doorknob, then paused. What would it help to barge in? To protest? Resisting would only worsen the situation.
He spun on his heel and marched down the hallway and out the front door. A blast of early summer heat washed over him. Though the very thought rankled him down to his bones, the solution was clear: play along.
~*~
In keeping with my generous (ahem, lazy) method of leaving this particular tag open, I am again saying that if you want it, take it! Share your 777 snippet on your blog, here in the comments, whatever floats your boat. Or even just share a snippet of your work-in-progress, all tag rules aside. Give me all the yummy words!
p.s. On an unrelated note, keep an eye out for a very special bloggy happening coming later this month! It involves fantasy novels, an Oscar Awards sort of idea, and YOUR participation!
Yay snippets! 🙂 The 777 is fun, isn't it. 😀 I'm glad you did it. ^_^ (And… oh, I tagged you twice? o.o Oops. XD) Heehee, I have a lot of tags I need to do from forever ago so… 😛
BUT AGH THAT SNIPPET! D: It makes me suuuuper worried for Josiah because I hate psychiatrists. XD (You haven't read The Boggart by Susan Cooper, have you? I really love that book and it's the only example I can think of like this… where fantasy stuff happens and then people think they're insane. :P) Poor Josiah. o.o I guess it WOULD be kind of weird and people would think they're nuts… >.> Heheh. Anyways, thanks for sharing and I'm definitely intrigued!
Yes, the 777 is a fun way to land on a random snippet to share with people! Though if you're like me, it's not *quite* as random as the original rules would dictate. Ahem. Oh, I have no problem at all with you tagging me twice! The first time was aaaages ago, and this is one that can easily be repeated. 🙂
BAHAHA. I mean, sorry to worry you. XD (No, I haven't! But I just added it on Goodreads.) To be honest, I would probably be among those that think Josiah is nuts. At least at first. 😛
Thanks so much! I'm hugely glad you liked it! <3
Oo, what an interesting snippet! I like it!
Aw, thanks, Ashley!
TPK SNIPPET!!!!!!!!! *SQUEALS AND DEVOURS*
Oh, oh. Poor Josiah! D: I knew you had said his parents thought he had some mental issues, but seeing it like this. MY HEART. His image of his dad forcing pills down his throat literally made me feel a bit ill. Just…whoa. o.o The poor baby, just having to play along and let your parents think you're crazy. What a horrible fate! WELL JUST GIVE ME ALL THE FEELS TRACEY SHEESH.
Pain or not, I'm always soooooooo excited when we get glimpses inside this series. I ALREADY LOVE IT SO MUCH.
You know what? I think Celti tagged me in that same post! And I haven't done it yet myself. o.o I am the WORST about getting around to tags. Shameful.
Anyways, this was so exciting getting a snippet of your lovely writing. *huggles it* I also want to hug Josiah because it sounds like he needs it. *sniffles*
I should really start adding some spices to my writing, considering how often you devour it. 😉 XD
*flails* I DON'T KNOW WHETHER TO CHORTLE WITH GLEE OR APOLOGIZE. I'm… glad? sorry? pleased?… that it had that affect on you. Josiah feels ill thinking about it, so it's awesome that that came through. ^_^
OH, YOU SWEET GIRL. <3333
Did she? Awesome! Ahh, but don't worry, tags have a habit of piling up, but they're usually just as fun months down the road as they would be if you did them right away. 🙂
Josiah definitely could use a hug. And some way to shake sense into his dad. But a hug comes first. *nods* Thank you so much, Christine!
Ooh, I love the snippet! And poor Josiah. 🙁 *feels sorry for him* 😉
Thanks! ^_^ Yeah, Josiah has it pretty rough right now, and it's not going to get better any time soon.
Ooo, you did 777! And that snippet … I feel so bad for Josiah :(. I think I would go INSANE if I had to pretend that I was insane … and then I wouldn't be pretending anymore and everything would be a mess *sighs*. I might have to steal this tag, it seems fun!
I've heard about the fantasy Oscars thing coming up, and I'm SO curious about it and I wish it was SOONER!! I can't wait :D.
(on a totally unrelated note … I READ HMC!! You and Christine and Deborah convinced me :D)
It's a vicious cycle, isn't it? Going insane pretending to be insane? XD Yes yes yes, do steal it! (And speaking of which, I DID accept the invitation to your blog, and I DID poke around one day… but I seem to have lost/misplaced the address before properly following you. Would you mind terribly emailing me the URL again? I'm sorry, this is embarrassing after I specifically requested access.)
It's going to be FUNNNN. 😀 I can't wait either.
(YOU READ HMC. YOU READ HMC!!! AHHHH!!! Hahaha, teamwork. How did you like it?)
I did steal it! It was such fun :D. Misplaced the URL? Don't worry, I lose URLS all the time and it drives me BONKERS. Here it is:
http://scattered-scribblings.blogspot.com/
It should work :).
YES YES YES I DIIID!! And I absolutely LOVED IT (and did an entirely incoherent post about it on my blog :D). AND I got all my sisters to read it, which is always a plus *nods*.
THANK you! I just went and bombarded you with comments. ;D Including a fangirly one on your HMC post.
YES we could fangirl about HMC all day and I would be perfectly fine!! My bookworm sister Skylar and I will most definitely be doing a lot of that when she finishes the book :D.
I love it when this challenge comes up, and I get to read snippets of other people's glorious writing!
Poor Josiah! How do you deal with something like that?
Hey, you should steal it! I'd love to see a snippet of your own on To Be a Shennachie. 😉
He's taking it pretty hard. I mean, how awful would it be to be lauded as a hero in one land, only to return home and have your family disbelieve the entire thing? And call you a lunatic?
Aw poor Josiah. Cool to see a bit of your writing. ^ ^ Happy writing!
storitorigrace.blogspot.com
Thanks, Tori! Happy writing to you, too! 😀
Your writing is always so vivid!
Wow, thank you! That's very kind. <3
Love this! Josiah, poor angsty thing </3
PS I'm in the process of considering thinking about starting to reply to your email. (I'm a great mate eh?)
PPS I finished TCATT.4 on Tuesday?!!!
PPPS Aaand here is my 777 XD
The crowd cheers and hoots; the boy laughs as bright sparks flow from his palms, a river that spins across the stage and bursts into the front row in a shower of coloured sweets. Children squeal, grabbing them from the ground, and the boy – Freddie – rolls back and forth on the balls of his feet. His is moving his hands, shaping the air, pulling it into a glass which fills with water. He reaches into his pocket, pulls out a silver coin, flips it: it is a fish, darting in the glass. I am gaping and clapping with the rest, mesmerised by the sparks of power as he turns the glass into a bowl. Freddie bows, placing it in the hands of a boy in the front row who yells with delight. The crowd roars its appreciation.
“Does anyone here have a delph?” he shouts. “I turned my only one into a fish!”
The crowd laughs, and the money appears, passed forward to his outstretched hand.
“Thanks very much!” Freddie says and pockets it, and we cheer for his audacity. He performs feat after feat, sometimes floating around the stage to jubilant shouts, turning linen into a dove, a stick into a knife into a flute that he plays. The Selectors stop taking notes, staring, amazed; we are enthralled by this boy who creates life with his hands. I forget to feel the rising sickness of knowing it’s my turn soon: it is a joy to watch one with a gift, with all its carnival glamour. It makes me happy to see him so happy, bending the air to his will.
But on the crowd’s fringe I catch sight of the girl who performed her tricks earlier, and I see her cold, set face. She has no pleasure in watching; through her mind endless comparisons run, and the truth rushes back to me, that Freddie is our competitor, not our entertainment. As if a new light falls on the crowd I see hard faces among those that cheer. Not all love magic; it is an unknown. It is a threat.
“Gypsy!” somebody shouts.
That was six paragraphs and came from p7-8, SUE ME. Anyway that's Freddie aka my #1 true love. It's very odd reading that scene where he's introduced, because now I know him so well, and Corrie knows him so well, but then he is an unknown to her. Weird.
Thank you! "Poor guy" is right. The terrible things I put him through… *shakes head*
P.S. THANK YOU again for that wonderful email! ^_^
P.P.S. YOU DID?! Oh my goodness, hooray! You're fast. I feel like just yesterday you were talking about starting the fourth draft. Congrats!!!
P.P.P.S. You have reminded me why I love your writing style. o.o GOODNESS, GIRL. That is gorgeous! And it's making me want to read TCATT even more. Freddie is such a showman. XD
PS YOU'RE WELCOME
PPS It did go pretty fast! I can't believe it! It will be hitting up your inbox pretty soon if that's all right XD
PPPS THANK YOU YOU'RE SO KIND. I can't wait for you to read it. And yes he is, bless his heart! (Though he does later tell Corrie that he doesn't really like that kind of showy carnival magic, because a) it's cheapening his art, dahling, and b) it isn't really real. I think I've talked to you about this before. Corrie says here she's "enthralled by this boy who creates life with his hands" but ofc he isn't actually creating life, because that is playing God and generally NOT OK. (Because if he can make a fish and a bird, why can't he solve world hunger?) So actually he's just manipulating light and shizz (he does explain it properly) to make these illusions. And he doesn't really like having to "lie" like that, but he needs to get Selected.)
PPPPS How weird to start a comment with a PS. It doesn't actually make sense, because I'm not post any script. But that's the comment thread life isn't it?
PPS Quite alright! I look forward to it. 😀
PPPS D'awww, I like him even more now. And I also love the way you're dealing with the magic and making it manipulation of light and whatnot rather than actual creation. Solves a lot of problems, I can imagine! XD
PPPPS Even weirder to start with a PPS! XD That's how it goes here in the wacky world of comments.
Your poor character! Loved reading the snippet. Maybe (maybe) I'll pick this tag up and do it myself in the near future. XD
The things I put him through. XD Thanks! Oh, you should pick it up! I haven't read your writing in such a long time.