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The Return of the 777 Writing Challenge

Tracey Dyck 11 Comments

Over a month ago, I became one of the “seven souls doomed to be tagged” over at Stori Tori’s Blog. The reason I waited so long to walk to my doom was because . . . well, I had no project to drag with me. I had just used book one for this tag, and book two wasn’t exactly at a good stage for it. (I’d prefer to post a snippet of current writing, as opposed to terrible, three-years-old writing.)

But I am happily going to my doom now, because, ta-da, my entry for Rooglewood’s Five Enchanted Spindles contest is being written!


So. Onto the rules of doom.

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.

My entry is yet untitled, which makes for clumsy reference. “Five Enchanted Spindles entry” or “Sleeping Beauty retelling” don’t quite roll off the tongue. But I’m sure something will float to the surface of my inspiration bog, and I shall wash all the boggy goop off of it and give it a nice home at the beginning of my Word document.

Ahem. On with the show. This scene is from the perspective of Aleida (pronounced Ah-LIE-dah), the fairy steward of the nation of Iror.

~*~



But death?
Could such a thing be softened?


[Aleida] clenched her eyes shut. I am not skilled enough. I can barely monitor Iror’s
borders, much less reverse the spell of a fairy so powerful. A trembling
began, starting in her hands and moving up her arms, down her body. If the
princess would die in sixteen years, there would be no heir.

~*~
Thanks again for the tag, Victoria! I shall leave this ‘doom’ floating here should anyone care to walk the plank themselves. (I don’t know why, but the whole doom thing brought a mental image of a pirate’s plank.) Let me know if ye should choose this fate, matey!*
*Ayiyi. What is with me? Doom and pirates and bogs of inspiration?

 And not to worry, I still have a post scheduled for tomorrow morning.

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Liebster Award

Tracey Dyck 10 Comments

My, my, another tag! How fun! This one comes from Skye Hoffert over at Ink Castles. Go check out her Liebster post. She had some great answers.

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And now on to her questions (which are also great!):

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1. Why do you write?

Because I can’t not write—story is in my bones. Whenever I take a hiatus, by the time it’s over, I am positively itching to get back to writing. But the biggest reason I write is because I believe God planted this seed in me, and I want to develop this gift and use it to glorify Him. Stories are powerful vessels of truth. They pierce the heart like nothing else and deposit eternal treasure there. If I can use a tale to make someone think, to inspire them or give them courage . . . I’ve done my job.

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2. Favorite fictional character this month?

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Ooh, that’s a hard one. I’d have to say Tris, because I just reread Divergent. (Insurgent is waiting quite impatiently on my stack of books to read.) I admire her bravery and identify somewhat with her angsty “what-should-I-choose” moments. Not that I agree with everything she does, but she’s spunky and fascinating, I’ll give her that.

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3. What summer songs are you listening to?

Owl City’s Ocean Eyes: Deluxe Edition, which I just recently bought. His music is perfect for summer! Also Hawk Nelson’s new album, Diamonds. Fun music, encouraging lyrics.


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4. Favorite book you’ve read this month?

Skye, please, are you trying to torture me?? Ahh, fine. Outlaw by Ted Dekker.

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5. What is a movie or TV show you would recommend?

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, for sure. I watched it last year and it impacted me so much. It’s one of those movies that you can’t just walk away from; I sat through the credits and didn’t move for a while after it stopped, reeling from the blow. It’s an incredible portrait of humanity, war, and family. (And yes, I did cry.)

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6. What is your favorite summer activity?

Vacationing with my family and just lazing in the sun with a good book. Oh wait, can I pick two?

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7. What is something you admire about yourself?

My efforts to encourage those around me, or, I suppose, my determination/focus in certain areas.

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8. Favorite Bible verse?

One of my favorites is Isaiah 41:10. “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”

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9. Do you play video games? If so, what are your favorite games?

No, not really. Or at least, I don’t consider myself a gamer. All those buttons and attacks to remember! I fail epically at anything resembling Super Smash Bros Brawl, for instance. I’m more of an Animal Crossing type of girl. Simple, no frantic fighting . . . But no, I don’t play video games that often.

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10. What is something you’re scared to do?

Jump off a cliff, parachute, swim with sharks, get within a twenty-foot radius of a tarantula . . . Oh, you mean something deep and serious? Okay. Well, some days thoughts about the unknown future can be scary. (Hello there, college/career/BIG LIFE DECISIONS.) But it’s another one of those areas where I’m learning to trust God. His plan for me is far better than anything I can dream up.

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11. What is your goal this month?

May is almost over—where does time go?! But I do have a goal for the remainder of this month, and that is to finish outlining book 2, which I’m about to rewrite. Whether I make that goal or not depends on how many snags I run into during this plotting phase. But here’s hoping that wave after wave of brilliance carries this outline to the smooth, sandy shore of epic story-ness!

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Now ’tis my turn to come up with eleven questions and tag some more bloggers. I’m borrowing a couple of Skye’s questions, but the rest are my own.

1. What’s one of your favorite summer reads?
2. What’s your favorite way to cool off on a hot summer day?
3. What’s a combination of three authors’ “special somethings” that you’d like to emulate in your own writing? (E.g., Tolkien’s worldbuilding, Lewis’s appeal to both children and adults with Narnia, and Bryan Davis’s characters.)
4. What music are you currently listening to?
5. Which superhero (from either Marvel or DC) are you most like?
6. What’s your favorite fantasy creature you’ve ever read about?
7. Chocolate or vanilla?
8. What’s something you admire about yourself?
9. Which do you prefer: writing by hand or typing?
10. If failing was impossible, what would you do?
11. What’s something God has taught you recently, new or rediscovered?

I hereby tag . . . you.

I would be specific, truly I would, but this time around, many of the bloggers I would’ve picked have already been tagged. So I leave it open to all of you reading this! If you’ve never had the Liebster tag, grab it. If you’ve done it too many times to count and want to do it again, grab it. If you suddenly have the urge to answer all 11 questions, or maybe just one or two catch your attention—doesn’t matter. You can snatch any or all of them and do with them as you please. 🙂 Or even just answer some in the comments. I’m curious to see what your responses are!

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Favorite Screen Characters Tag

Tracey Dyck 14 Comments
Hark, I have been tagged by Victoria Grace Howell! The rules are simple:
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-List your ten favorite screen characters (from movies and TV; but since I don’t really watch TV, we’ll stick to movies).
-Tag ten other bloggers.
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Narrowing it down to only ten—that part is not so simple. I could list twice as many. In fact, it would be so much easier if we could define the category further. Ten favorite superheroes, for example. Or ten favorite female characters, male characters, animated characters, villains, supporting characters, funny characters, or favorite despised characters! I mean, really, I have at least ten favorites in all those categories. Probably more.
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But I am forced to pick just ten. *le sigh* Here we go!
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1. CAPTAIN AMERICA

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Favorite. Superhero. Ever. He’s upright and courageous, one of the only heroes who consistently holds to his morals. (Not the only one, but pretty close.) He’s not perfect, but he does his best. Grounded in “old-fashioned” values, he does his
job with humility and commitment. Plus, he’s got the best one-liners.
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“I know I’m asking a lot. But the price of freedom is high. It always has been.

And it’s a price I’m willing to pay. And if I’m the only one, then so be it.

But I’m willing to bet I’m not.”
 

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2. TOOTHLESS

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I adore dragons, and an uber-fast dragon with powerful breath, adorable personality, and an affinity for fish will instantly steal my heart. Look at that face—how can you not love that face? I want my own Toothless.

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3. BILBO BAGGINS

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I confess, I have a bit of hobbit in me. Home is my favorite place in the world, and I enjoy the comforts found there. So, like Bilbo, I sometimes need a Gandalf to knock on my door and drag me into an adventure. All that aside, Martin Freeman pulled off Bilbo’s character perfectly. His mannerisms and personality—everything. And our dear little hobbit turns out to have a giant load of courage.
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“I just need to sit quietly for a moment.”

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4. SPIDER-MAN

I specifically mean the amazing Spider-Man. (Don’t get me wrong, Tobey Maguire really brought out Spidey’s awkward and geeky side. That’s lovable. But the new Spider-Man played by Andrew Garfield is just awesome.) Cap may be my top favorite hero, but Spider-Man comes pretty close. He’s young, he makes mistakes sometimes, but he puts his life on the line for the sake of helping others. And his humor. Oh, his humor.

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“I like to think Spider-Man gives people hope.”


5. WINNIE THE POOH 

I know, he doesn’t seem to be in the same league as superheroes, dragons, and burglar hobbits, but this bear with a very little brain has a special place in my heart. I have never outgrown the Hundred Acre Wood; I’ve laughed harder at Pooh movies in the last five years than I did as a child. Pooh is a rather straightforward sort of person: the most important things in life are honey and friends. Silly old bear.

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“Think, think, think…”

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6. FLYNN RIDER, a.k.a EUGENE FITZHERBERT

This guy is impossible to dislike. He’s handsome, charming, full of himself, hilarious, and deep down . . . a really great guy with a soft heart. He may have started out with ulterior motives, but in the end, he sacrifices for the ones he loves. And did I mention he’s hilarious?

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“They just can’t get my nose right!”

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7. EUSTACE CLARENCE SCRUBB

Aha, so not all of my favorites are the nice guys. Eustace is a complete brat, at least at first. But he’s the kind of brat you love to despise, until he begins to
change, and then somehow, you find yourself liking him quite a bit. His
character arc is fabulous. (And I was very sad to see the Narnia movies halted,
because I so wanted Will Poulter to play in The Silver Chair.)

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“That giant rat thing just tried to claw my face off!”

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8. LUCY PEVENSIE

Can I list two from the same storyworld? Lucy is an amazing girl. Her faith in Aslan never wavers, even when she can’t see him, even when others doubt, even when it doesn’t make sense. And if it wasn’t for her, the Pevensies would never have found Narnia! Oh, and her struggle with temptation in Voyage of the Dawn Treader is also inspiring, as she learns to accept herself and goes on to encourage
another girl to do the same.

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“When you grow up, you should be just like you.”

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9. TADASHI HAMADA

What a hero! And he officially broke my heart. I won’t give any spoilers, but . . . he did make me cry. I’m not a very weepy movie-watcher, but his role in Big Hero 6 was a bit of a tear-jerker. He’s a great older brother to Hiro, protecting him, teaching him, looking out for him. Tadashi is the kind of big sibling that I aspire to be.

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“Welcome to nerd school, nerd.”

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10. LOKI

See, here’s another really not so nice guy. Loki has got to be one of my favorite villains. There’s just no explanation needed. He’s terribly evil, yet with a sympathetic backstory, and in the middle of his diabolical plots, he manages to make me laugh. Is that not perfect? He is also an extremely quotable character.

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“You’ll kill me? Evidently there will be a line.”

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That was hard! I have so many other characters that almost made the list. Brave ones like Katniss Everdeen or Captain Nichollsen of War Horse or Gandalf.

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Funny ones like Larry the Cucumber, Radagast the Brown, Olaf, Gru and his minions, Dory of Finding Nemo, Mater, Jack Sparrow, and Baymax. Heartbreaking ones like Bucky.

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Inspiring ones like Aslan. Miscellaneous ones like Thranduil, Jack Frost, Mary
Poppins, Gwen Stacey, or Diaval of Maleficent. So many!

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(And I just realized how few girls actually made my top ten—only Lucy. Hm. That makes it sound as if I don’t like the female characters, which is completely untrue. Somehow the males dominated this list.)

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On to the tagging! I choose these wonderful gals:

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To all you adventurers: who are some of your favorite screen characters? Do any of the ones on my list make yours too? Regale me!

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777 Writing Challenge

Tracey Dyck 13 Comments

The ever-delightful Deborah O’Carroll has tagged me for the 777 Writing Challenge. (Shout out to you, Deb, for giving me my first tag!) I’m supposed to go to the seventh page of my current work-in-progress, seven lines down, and then post the following seven lines. I’m interpreting ‘lines’ as sentences.

My WIP happens to be Book One of that secret project hinted at on my Writings page, but this tag was too fun to pass up, so I’ll divulge a snippet anyway.

Ever since I saw this tag floating around the blogosphere, I wondered what sort of epic scrap of story I might land on.

And what I landed on was not at all a good representation of my novel. Nothing’s wrong with the snippet at all; it’s just somewhat ambiguous, taken out of its context the way it is. It features my female protagonist, Aileen, and one of her closest friends. That friendship plays only a small part in the grand scheme of things—like I said, not the best representation of the story.

Couldn’t I have landed on something a little more enticing? Ah, well, enticing or not, here it is:

Brenna tossed her thick, blonde hair over her shoulder. “Anyway. Do continue.”
“He just asked me the names of my parents and both sets of grandparents.”
“That’s it?”
“Well, then he said that we seemed to care a lot about human trafficking.” Aileen rested her head on the back of the seat. “No mention of dragons though.” It was true—he’d never talked about the shapes that had appeared.
 
(Yes, that was nine sentences, not seven. It worked better that way.)
There’s a twist on the rules that allows one to go the seventh chapter, seven pages in, seven lines down, etc. So I tried that. The result is more interesting, but a tad spoilery. Kind of. Well, okay, it involves things that will probably be revealed on the back cover one day, so I guess I’m just being paranoid. I can cheat and post two snippets, right?
A short introduction: main characters Josiah and Aileen have just been called hatchlings by their trainer, who happens to be a dragon. Josiah and Aileen also happen to be dragons at this point, but that involves the spoilery thing I mentioned so . . . that’s all I’ll say for now.
Josiah stood and swung his tail gingerly. It didn’t feel broken, just bruised.
“That’s not what you are, though.” Dauntless inhaled deeply. “I only used that term to motivate you to prove me wrong. It’s like calling you infants, understand? Now it looks as if I’ll have to find a new term, one that’s actually lower than the age your behavior suggests!”
There you have it! I did break a couple rules along the way, but this way you get two glimpses into my secret project. Together they provide a slightly better feel for the book than the first one did on its own.
Now would be the time I tag seven more bloggers, but let’s make it a free-for-all this time, shall we? To all you wanderers: feel free to grab this tag and run
with it! And if you do, be sure to let me know in the comments. I’d love to see
what sort of snippets you might land on.
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