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Subplots and Storylines – November 2016

Tracey Dyck 23 Comments

I don’t know how it’s physically possible, but somehow this month seems even fuller than the last!

November opened with my birthday, which I celebrated a bit differently than other years in order to fit with my school schedule. Later on in the month, we also celebrated my lil’ sister’s birthday.

I grew a bit more in my public speaking skills: I was called to answer Q&A in one of our communicators meetings, I was the timer for another meeting, and a classmate and I got to preach a mini message to the youth volunteers.

My class and I helped build our church’s float for the city’s Santa Clause Parade, which was so fun, especially because we also got to participate in the actual parade, walking alongside our beautiful float.

There was a last-minute event I volunteered at, a youth worship night, a youth talent show, Christmas shopping, friend stuff, and my first exam of the year.

And through it all, my little corner of the world disguised itself as London, with miserable rain mixed with melting snow, and some of the densest fog I’ve ever seen.

Movies

Very little this month. I watched the last episode of Once Upon a Time Season 4 with my sisters (oh my goodness, THAT ENDING) and saw some more of Season 1 with my parents.

Books

(I searched high and low for an image of my copy. This ain’t it.)

Journey to the Center of the Earth // Jules Verne
I wanted to read one of the unread, second-hand books on my shelf, and randomly picked this one. It was more enjoyable than I expected, quite honestly. I remember not totally loving Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea during high school, and while Journey does pause now and then to dump facts on the reader, it keeps a good pace overall. And it was funny! Axel and his enthusiastic uncle, Professor Liedenbrock, make an amusing pair.

[Professor] “Do you remember a visit the famous English
chemist Humphrey Davy paid me in 1825?”
[Axel] “No, I don’t. For the very good reason that I wasn’t
born until nineteen years later.”

Was the book scientifically accurate? Probably not, seeing as it was written in the 1800s, but it was still fun to pretend that Verne’s theories could be true, to envision a whole new world beneath the earth’s crust. My biggest quibble was the ending. I don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but let’s just say the characters didn’t accomplish quite as much as I expected they would.

Prophet // R.J. Larson
I loved it! I haven’t read very many fantasies with a Biblical type of setting, so that was neat. I found it especially intriguing to follow Ela’s journey as a Prophet of the Infinite, to see how it mirrored real prophets in the Old Testament. She was so compassionate even when she had to communicate the Infinite’s judgment on people who deserved it. (That compassion is a trait I need to grow in.) I adored Kien, a charming ambassador who spends a goodly amount of time in prison and has a strong appreciation for food. Ela’s little sister, Tzana, was sweet and sympathetic.

The plot slowed down a bit once or twice, or maybe that was just me taking a long time to finish the book. There was another seventy-ish pages after the big climax, so I was expecting a plot twist, but instead I got an abrupt segment of story that might have been better left for the beginning of book two. I also had some thoughts to sort through about the Infinite, who seemed loving but also enforced a works-based sort of faith among His people . . . but then I remembered that this is, in effect, the Old Testament, and a savior is not part of the story yet. (There might be one later in the trilogy?)

Don’t let either of those things stop you from reading, though! Prophet is a wonderful, refreshing book that took the fantasy genre down a less well-trodden path. Between readings, my mind kept going back to the story–definitely the mark of a good book.

Writing

I felt a lot more productive this month than I have in quite a while! I wrote a poem for the first time in forever,* and wrote 9,497 words in The Prophet’s Key. That’s more than I’ve written since college started, so I was happy. I’m close to the halfway point in my outline, too. The villains are gaining the upper hand, so the whole situation is about to change for the worse for my protagonists!

*breaks into song (I listened to the Frozen soundtrack earlier this week, okay?)

I’ve also set my writing goals FOR THE REST OF 2016 (and a little bit more), so I am super pumped. I want to reach 80k by Christmas, which means writing almost 10k in three weeks. Then the goal is to utilize my Christmas break to add another 20k, which will bring the book to 100k. Then if I can finish the whole first draft by springtime/the end of college/sometime around there . . . I just may have enough time to rewrite The Brightest Thread into a full novel so I have something to pitch at the Realm Makers Conference.

O.O

Yeah.

I’m that crazy.

And as I look at the things filling up my December calendar, I’m questioning the sanity of that plan even more. But if you shoot for the moon and miss, you still land among the stars and all that jazz.*

*Except not really. Because the stars are light-years away. So if I miss the moon, you can find me floating aimlessly in space or headfirst in a crater on earth somewhere.

Learning



Just trying out a new feature in S&S. We’ll see if I have enough material for it each month.

I learned about the DISC personality system in college, and found out that I’m a CSD. To give you some background, D=dominant/driver/determined, I=influencing/inspiring/impulsive, C=compliant/correct/cautious, and S=supportive/stable/steady. A CSD is otherwise known as a Contemplator. Basically, I like to get things done, and get them done well. I’m detailed and logical; have high standards; precise but competitive; sensitive to others around me; a natural peacemaker; etc. Reading through the full descriptions, I was amazed at how accurate most of it was! Now that I know the personalities of my other classmates, I hope to develop better ways to communicate with all of them.

I started experimenting with bullet journaling in an old notebook of mine, just to see if I like it. So far I do, though I’m not quite happy with the layout. Hence the term experiment. Come the new year, if I’m still enjoying the practice, I’ll start fresh in a brand new notebook and go from there.

So how was your November? Anything out of the ordinary, or perhaps ordinary but still worth mentioning? Have you ever taken the DISC test? All ye lionhearted NaNo’ers–how did it go? And who’s all cranking the Christmas carols now that we’re in December?

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Infinity Dreams Award – VLOG STYLE

Tracey Dyck 29 Comments

And now, questers, announcing that “brand new thing I’ve never done before” I referenced in the last post: my very first (and possibly only because it’s mildly terrifying) vlog. Yes. I braved the camera for the sake of a challenge given to me by Emily @ Ink, Inc.* She’s a fabulous blogger with a dry wit and love of books. And she writes prettiful things, so go check out her blog!

*link leads to the post in which she tagged me


The rules are simple: 11 facts, 11 questions, 11 nominees (but I’m doing less).

11 Facts
  1. I love watching lightning storms.
  2. If watermelon is an available candy flavor, that’s the one I’ll likely pick.
  3. My travels are not extensive; so far I’ve been to only five provinces and three states.
  4. There is a spider trap in my room that has been rather successful of late. Three dead spiders are sitting there in plain sight. Pleasant. (But rather there than running freely.)
  5. I quite like bookmarks, but I don’t use some of my favorites because I want to keep them nice.
  6. Christmas candy lasts me months. I still have a jar of licorice allsorts on my shelf.
  7. My favorite tea is vanilla chai.
  8. I can pull off a halfway decent English accent, but my Scottish, Irish, and pirate voices seem to blend together.
  9. If I start a journal using blue pen, I hesitate to ever use black in the same notebook, and vice versa.
  10. I keep shoeboxes, with the intent of using them to store knickknacks and whatnot. Sadly, there is a stack of shoeboxes I have yet to assign a use for, and the knickknacks are still running wild.
  11. As a child, the word interrupt brought to mind the picture of a trumpet.
11 Questions Answered in Vlog Form

This is a momentous occasion. And like I said, a little freaky? Obviously you all have seen my face before. It’s right there on the sidebar. And I don’t mind going one step further and letting you hear my voice. You guys are friends! You’re wonderful people! It’s just the thought of random people strolling through the internet and happening upon my blog and watching this video that gives me pause. Stranger danger, you know.

Ahem. All that aside, I was going to edit the video to make it a bit shorter and therefore more manageable, because everyone’s busy and time is scarce, but my program was giving me technical difficulties . . . so this is unedited, imperfect, and at some spots, a little repetitious. C’est la vie. Just proves I’m a human bean.*

*I like saying bean instead of being. And the sunburn I’m sporting is also proof of my humanity.

So here it is. Enjoy!

11 New Questions
[stealing some from Emily because her questions were great]
  1. What’s your current favorite song?
  2. In the context of either reading or writing (or both): do you prefer standalones or series?
  3. Have you ever met a book or movie character who was a lot like you? If so, who?
  4. What’s your biggest pet peeve as a reader?
  5. Favorite meal: breakfast, lunch, or supper?
  6. What’s been inspiring you this week?
  7. What does a perfect day look like for you?
  8. If the world was flat, and you came to the edge of it, what would you like to find there?
  9. If you could tell your younger self one thing, what would it be?
  10. With what word would you like others to describe you?
  11. What’s one book that changed your life?
And I tag . . .
Whether you answer the questions in a vlog or just in a regular post is up to you! Of course you’re not obligated to do the tag at all, but it’s here should you want to.
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summer bucket list, belated

Tracey Dyck 35 Comments

It’s the middle of summer . . . sounds a lot better than halfway through summer, doesn’t it? (I’m in denial about the swift passage of time, okay.) Usually if people talk about their summer bucket lists, they do so at the beginning of the season, but I don’t follow crowds, so here’s my middle-of-the-summer list.

It’s half wishful thinking, a quarter to-do list, and two-thirds “this will keep my feet on the ground and head in the clouds and sanity intact.”*

*And that was not a normal whole number, but we’re all about living life to the fullest, so if my fractions add up to more than the number one,** that’s the way it should be.


**Which I’m fully aware they do. (Wow. A footnote of a footnote. Just when I thought I couldn’t get stranger.)


Anyway, with the season being in full swing, and my schedule feeling as full as ever, I’ve been longing for time off, time away, a drop of real summertime, a holiday of any sort, etc. Hence this post.


have a picnic
bike to a park and do devotions & journaling there
color in my coloring book
paint a picture (I have an idea in mind to use lyrics
from this song–go have a listen; it’s amazing)
take an afternoon to read a stack of children’s books
go to bed earlier
arrange a guest post with someone (you know who you are!)
plan at least two month’s worth of post ideas for
when college busyness hits
win the 100-for-100 challenge (we’re a third
of the way there . . . we can do thissss)
go swimming at least once
do at least two sessions of The Creative Way each month
finish going through the agent listings in the book I bought
send out first batch of queries (!!!) (this may be
the wishful thinking part)
watch Mockingjay Part 2
bask in the sun
paint my toenails because the current pink polish is half gone
read Peter Pan for the first time
actually use my people watching journal . . .
. . . and my quotes journal
take a few days off work to just chill
remember first drafts are messy
remember to have fun
remember to find joy
~*~
Besides the to-do items, it looks like I’m longing for the summers of my childhood. I can’t recreate them, but maybe I can rediscover some of the simple things I used to have time for. It’ll be interesting to come back to this list in a couple months and hold it up to what reality actually brings.
What are you doing this summer? What’s on your to-do list, or longings-of-the-heart list? Are you going anywhere or staying home? If you could return to a childhood summer memory, what would it be and why?

P.S. Voting for the Silmarillion Awards is open until July 14th! Don’t forget to cast yours! 🙂
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Subplots and Storylines – March 2016

Tracey Dyck 29 Comments

Sometimes life walks along calmly, sedately, hands in its pockets, whistling as it goes. And sometimes life dashes willy-nilly down the street, hat flying clear away and feet slapping a staccato rhythm on the pavement. My March was more like the latter. New subplots sprang up on the page at the same time old ones wrapped up, and I’m sitting here today blinking at the calendar and wondering how in the world a whole month is over already.

The weavings of life’s subplots . . .

March began as it usually does, and as all months tend to do: on the first. But this first of March was special. The long-awaited announcement of the Five Magic Spindles contest had arrived! I was scheduled to work an early shift that day, and wasn’t sure if the news would be posted before I left. Fortunately, it was up in time. With my brother (who’d entered that awesome Japanese samurai story I mentioned a while back) looking over my shoulder, I scrolled down . . . and saw five names that were not ours, nor those of any of my friends who had entered.
Naturally, we were disappointed. But then I checked the list of the Top Ten Finalists–AND MY NAME WAS LISTED.

I could hardly believe it. Me? Among the top ten?

Let’s just say it was a good thing my work shift was short, and even better that I was working in the back room the whole time. I seriously doubt I would’ve been much help to customers. My brain was running in ecstatic circles, screaming the same thing over and over: “I’m a finalist!” As if repetition would make it sink in.

Needless to say, that was an amazing way to start my month!

The next subplot of life to be woven in was a week-long trip my parents took, during which I ran the household. Not that it needed much running. My siblings are fantastic and helped out a lot. (Love you guys!)

The morning after my parents returned, I packed up and headed out of town for my dear friend’s wedding. I got there the day before to help set up and decorate. The wedding was gorgeous. The weather was perfect for outdoor pictures (meaning I didn’t go completely numb like I’d expected), I had so much fun with the bride and my fellow bridesmaids, and the ceremony and reception were beautiful! My friend has found an amazing, godly young man. They’re perfect together. I was honored to celebrate their special day with them. And you know how most weddings have something that goes wrong? There was nothing like that for theirs. Crazy amazing.

(I snagged a couple pictures off the photographers’ Facebook.)

The happy couple!
If you look really closely at the left picture,
I’m the bridesmaid on the far right. 
a collage of my own pictures
My Bible study group began a series on the heroes of the faith listed in Hebrews 11. We started with Rahab, and guess what? If you check the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1, you’ll see that Rahab married a guy named Salmon. Multiple historical sources say that Salmon was one of the two spies that Rahab hid in her house! How cool is that?! We’ve also spent two sessions studying Gideon, which was quite inspiring.

Spring is well on its way. Only a teensy tiny bit of snow is left on the yard, and we’ve had some sunny, warm days, which is very welcome. (And also snow. Falling from the sky. That’s just Manitoba for ya.)

You know that quick decision I made that just felt right? Well, that decision was to sign up for a writing course offered by an author I respect and admire. What he’s already posted freely online has helped me gain new perspectives, so I’m excited to dive into the actual course material soon.

My brother and I attended a college info night. The application is sitting on my desk, waiting for me to fill it out. I’m honestly so excited for fall!

And basically there were Easter gatherings, long walks, errands, way too much pizza, journaling like crazy last weekend to try to sum up my month, and falling behind on my inbox and blog reading. (So sorry, folks.)

Storylines on screen

As you can see, life’s goings-on didn’t leave a lot of room for media, but I did watch a few things.

  • Epic (rewatch): I love this movie about tiny leaf men who ride hummingbirds, and a villain rotting the forest, and a young girl trying to connect to her absentminded father. This time around, I found myself paying more attention the storytelling techniques, and appreciating the strong chain of cause and effect.
  • The Scorch Trials: I haven’t read the books, so I don’t know how much it deviated from the source material, but I thought it was good. My biggest problem was with the frequent swearing. Not too sure what I think about the Cranks, either. I couldn’t decide if they were so exaggeratedly creepy that they were almost comical, or if they were simply creepy. Either way, they are wince-worthy. But I did really enjoy certain characters, especially Thomas, Minho, and Newt. (I don’t even know why, but I’ve loved Minho’s character since The Maze Runner.) With fast pacing, awesome scenery, and even a difficult and thought-provoking ethical dilemma, The Scorch Trials was a great sequel.
  • Once Upon a Time (part of Season 3): You probably saw this coming, huh? My sisters and I are quite enjoying this season! We’re about halfway through, and lots is happening. Lots. I have a few minor complaints, but most of it is fantastic. Peter Pan. The Wicked Witch. And the development happening in some of the key characters makes me a really happy Oncer. (Is that what they’re called? I don’t even know.)

Storylines on the page

Only two books this month. To be fair, I am 100 pages into my third book, but seeing as I’ll finish it in April, it doesn’t count.

  • Cinder by Marissa Meyer: I’ve heard mixed reviews on this one, so finally I picked it up for myself. And I loved it! The whole cyborg element was a fresh twist on Cinderella, and it was fun to pick out the references to the original fairy tale, such as the old fashioned orange car (aka pumpkin coach). This novel was by turns intriguing, heart wrenching, and adorable. Seriously, I ship Cinder and Kai SO MUCH. With every chapter I finished, I kept wanting to write up a fangirly email to send the author, but then I remembered this was published and I wasn’t beta reading a friend’s book. For some reason it felt like I was. Anyway. If I starred books, I’d probably give this one four and a half!
  • Paige Turned by Erynn Mangum: This is the final instalment of the Paige Alder trilogy that I started last summer, and it continued to be what the first two books were: fun, lighthearted romance with surprisingly profound moments. Paige is such a relatable character. I was rooting for her all the way. It was great to see her finally doing what she’s always wanted to do, and finally dating the “right guy.” And the ending was perfect!

Sort of in the reading department–I went to a book faire and scrounged up four books to bring home. Tada!

Clockwise from top left: Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge, Storm Siren by Mary Weber, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke, and Greatest Adventures by Jules Verne (a 2-book collection including Journey to the Center of the Earth and Round the World in 80 Days.)

I bought Captivating because I enjoyed it so much earlier this year, but didn’t have my own copy. Storm Siren because I’ve heard many people like it, so for a couple dollars, why not? (Also that cover!!) Strange & Norrell because my good friend Sarah recommended it numerous times. And the Jules Verne book because . . . well, mainly because of that delicious old cover. And because owning classics makes me feel smart. Hey, just being honest!

With every book faire I go to, I keep my eyes open for any Diana Wynne Jones books–specifically Howl’s Moving Castle–and have had no such luck. This time was just as fruitless in the DWJ department as all the times before. Sigh.

Subplots of my own making

According to my monthly goals, March was to be the month I began drafting (or redrafting, to be more accurate) book 2 of my YA fantasy series. I didn’t get as far into it as I might have liked, but considering the circumstances, I’m quite pleased with the 7,786 words I wrote. I’m on chapter three by now. Things be happening, folks.

I feel like I’m starting to hit my stride. The beginning of a writing project is usually the slowest for me–I’m getting used to the story, oftentimes reorienting my brain into drafting mode (instead of editing or planning mode), and figuring out what I’m doing. But I’m beginning to get back into it, and I have high hopes for April’s writing.

Once I’m further along–perhaps once I’ve finished writing this book and started editing–which means like *cough* a year from now?–I may have to write a more in-depth post about sequels. It’s so weird to write one! I’ve been stuck on book 1 for so long, in which I’ve been able to mentally check off all the techniques and elements needed in a first book. “Yep, this sets up that plot thread. Here’s the incident that motivates Character A to do this. And there’s the foreshadowing for that . . .”

It’s all different, and yet all somehow similar, in a sequel. There’s a whole book behind you to build on. It’s a blessing and a curse, a pro and a con. You don’t have to set up everything all over again, yet you have to reference the first book in a clear, concise way that moves this story along. Your characters have grown, so they’re better at what they used to struggle with, but at the same time, they’re struggling even harder with other things. It’s fun, but definitely not easy.

Also in writing news is something I’ve mentioned already: I was featured in a guest post on Stori Tori’s Blog called So Your Character is From Canada. I had tons of fun participating, as well as getting to interact with commenters afterwards. If you haven’t checked it out yet, there’s lots of great stuff to learn from all three of us who were interviewed! Kudos to Tori for such a brilliant series of posts. There’ll be more on other countries yet.

Oh yeah, and I wrote a poem for the first time in months, which you can find here.

And I did a bit more agent research too. The list of potentials is slowly growing . . .

March was a whirlwind, but I’m still alive.

Actually, it was an amazing whirlwind. Tiring on some days, but when I look back on just how much was packed into this month, I’m–what? Content? Excited? Satisfied? Looking forward to April? Is there a word that combines all of the above? I don’t know. March was a good month.

So how about your wonderful selves? Was March like a lamb or lion for you–tame or wild? (Or some other animal, such as a platypus. Interpret that creature simile as you wish.) I’ve blabbered on quite long enough about my own life. Now I want to hear something about yours!

P.S. Today marks one year since Adventure Awaits began! I had grand plans of posting this S&S yesterday, and having a blogoversary post ready for today, but I overestimated the time involved and underestimated my schedule. So hopefully I’ll have a late blogoversary thingamajig ready for this weekend sometime. Stick around–it should be fuuuun . . .

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