carters-blender

[carters-blender]

Hi!

[carters-blender]

Sinamis - my OC (April 2023)

[carters-blender]

Behind the Scenes Writing Ask Game

So behind the scenes won the poll, but I thought I'd do an ask game with it!

✍️ "when did you get started writing?"

✏️"what are your current WIPs about?"

📜"how did you get started on your WIPs?"

📝"what stages are you currently in your WIPs?"

🖊️"how does your magic system work?"

🖋️"what inspired you to write your WIPs?"

📖"what has surprised you about your WIPs?"

💻"what perspectives do you write in?"

🖥️"what types of writing do you do?"

❤️"what are your favorite scenes from your WIPs?"

😭"what are the biggest challenges writing your WIPs?"

❗"how many WIPs do you have?"

‼️"what has stayed consistent across all drafts?"

⁉️"what do you do when stuck on a scene?"

❓ask anything you want!

If anyone wants to reblog this to play with too that's totally fine with me!

[carters-blender]

I have made a playlist for Winter's Army if you are interested in hearing the vibes. For some of the songs I do have specific characters in mind but mostly it is just trying to nail down the specific feeling of the story! Enjoy!

Writing Project - Winter's Army

The song list is below the cut for anyone not able to pull up the link for any reason

Through Me (The Flood) - Hozier

The Young People - Lankum

Blood Upon the Snow - Bear McCreary (and Hozier)

The Horror and the Wild - The Amazing Devils

Go Dig My Grave - Lankum

Eat Your Young - Hozier

Broken Crown - Mumford and Sons

Harpy Hare - Yaelokre

Brutus - The Buttress

De Selby (Part 1) - Hozier

Hunting the Wren - Lankum

Hartebeest - Yaelokre

Willow Tree March - The Paper Kites

The Granite Gaze - Lankum

Even the Earth - Tagalong

The Hand That Feeds - The Crane Wives

Thus Always to Tyrants - The Oh Hellos

The Avenues - Winter Grain

Ashes - The Longest Johns

[carters-blender]

"As far as the Council was concerned, the Arc might as well have been an art piece or a Puppet, not even in need of the same consideration as war dogs."

Name:

Elan (chosen) Balsa (given)

Age:

Late 20s in appearance and knowledge, created only a year ago

Profession:

Soldier, Lieutenant (Unit 0617)

Personality:

Kind, hopeful, friendly, curious, helpful

Details:

Elan is something called an Arcane (Arc for short), a full-bodied human construct made from different materials with the use of magic. He is specifically carved from ironwood and is treated with a deep reddish-brown stain and varnish. His creator (Clement) made him in the hopes that he could streamline and refine the difficult and uncertain process of creating an Arc, with the idea that the army could replace foot soldiers entirely or at least pad out their numbers. Elan isn't the perfect creation Clement had hoped for though, he's developed a personality and wishes to be recognized as a thinking feeling person. He can also be slow to act, thinking through his own action rather than doing orders exactly as they're given with no question. Worst of all, he freezes momentarily every time he is faced with having to kill or cause harm, moments that cannot be spared on a battlefield. When Elan continues to fall short Clement gives up and gives him to the General of the nearby fort in the hopes that he can fix the situation. When he arrives at the fort he finds himself moved from one task to the other, on an endless cycle of tasks no one else wants. And when he is chosen for Marsch's unit he is finally able to make a choice for himself- where does he want to be and who will he be loyal to.

Physical Description:

Flat and featureless face, no mouth, nose, ears, or brows, only eyes made out of river rock. Smooth wooden body with a chest panel, lacking features like a belly button. Short side of average height with a lean build.

Friend(s):

The whole of unit 0617

Partner(s):

Jove Marsch and Kayah May

Family:

Sylas Clement (creator)

[carters-blender]

"Kayah May had been called many things. Her mother called her meticulous. Her father called her mercurial. Her siblings called her either an idiot or an inspiration depending on the day. And Ahnah called her sharp in the prophetic sort of tone Ahnah always used. She liked to call herself strong."

Name:

Kayah May

Age:

33

Profession:

Soldier, Sergeant (Unit 0617)

Personality:

Independent, clever, loyal, head strong

Details:

Kayah May comes from a large extended family and community in the Midlands, a land slowly being encroached upon on either side by the two warring powers. She had always been a good fighter and a talented hunter so in her twenties she decided to join one side of the war, hoping that her actions could help protect and ensure her community. She isn't the only Midlander to make similar choices, but it is still rare and she is made to feel like she is an outsider at nearly every turn. She decided that that treatment was fine since she already had a community and family back home and she didn't need anyone new. She wouldn't rely on anyone. When she gets pulled into a friend group she has to face how much she might have actually been missing. When she witnesses how Elan is treated by most of the leadership she has to face some of the questionable things she has been allowing herself to turn a blind eye to. And when her new unit is sent out into the icy wilds of the Midlands she has to face just what she has lost in leaving- and the question of if she can return to the world she knew.

Physical Description:

Almond shaped dark brown eyes. Long silky black hair, typically worn in braids. Short but with a gymnast build, lean and strong muscles. Bronzed brown skin, warm undertones. High cheekbones, oval face shape, friendly resting expression.

Friend(s):

Jove Marsch, Elan, Nieve Dunn, Ferah Kamari, and Abrahan Silva

Partner(s):

Jove Marsch and Elan

Family:

Ahnah (auntie, not blood-related), Kele May (father), Tiva May (mother), Hania May (brother, older), Tawa May (brother, younger)

[carters-blender]

"He responded in that unmovable tone he used on the occasions he seemed to actually want to speak, as if he had been quiet that whole time just so that when he finally spoke it would be a universal truth."

Name:

Jove Marsch

Age:

32

Profession:

Soldier, Captain (Unit 0617)

Personality:

Serious, strong sense of justice, loyal, straight forward, secretly very kind and a bit awkward (difficulty showing it)

Details:

Jove Marsch was one of two children adopted by the Marsch family. His adoptive parents signed him up for a military education around the time his adoptive brother was born, on the heels of him getting in trouble for fighting people at school again. He was a quiet and withdrawn child who mostly wished to be left alone to do art and he has since grown into an equally withdrawn adult. He excels at being a soldier and following commands, though it was never what he really wanted to do he accepts it as his duty and strives to perform it well. When he meets Elan and May and begins to actually form some friendships and bonds with the people around him he begins to question a lot of the things he took for truth. When he is strong-armed into taking a captaincy he begins to learn what it might be to lose what he always assumed he would never have. And when he does lose a large chunk of his unit to monsters that shouldn't exist he begins to realize just how weighty grief and blame can be- and just how much of it he might have already been carrying with him.

Physical Description:

Hooded eyes, warm brown color. Dark brown, curly/wavy hair, grown a bit shaggy. Tall with a swimmers build, not overly muscular but definitely strong. Fair skin, prone to getting wind chapped. Aquiline nose, strong brow, sharp jawline. A little bit of stubble.

Friend(s):

Kayah May, Elan, and Nieve Dunn

Partner(s):

Elan and Kayah May

Family:

Bram and Ilsa Marsch (adoptive parents), Danya (sister, older), Maxym (adoptive brother, younger)

[carters-blender]

Project Name:

Winter's Army (may change in the future)

Genre:

Dark Fantasy (primarily), adventure, little bit of horror

Elevator Pitch:

The Alliance is at war with the growing empire of Cerain, they might have the numbers but Cerain certainly has the firepower and victory is never certain for either side- it hasn't been for years. The Midlands find themselves crushed between the two warring powers and are just trying to survive the war that seems to be going on forever.

Elan is a living weapon, a small miracle, and a failed experiment all at the same time. He was supposed to be the breakthrough that ended casualties on the Alliance's side, but now he's just trying to prove that he's even worth keeping around.

Jove Marsch is a soldier. That's all. He's good at his job and he's good at taking orders and if he isn't good at anything else that's fine, he's made peace with that. All he wants is to silently work and never be noticed, even if that means being alone forever.

Kayah May grew up in the Midlands and her home is vanishing before her eyes. She had hoped that picking a side would help her and her family's survival, but she hasn't achieved any of her goals yet.

The world is changing around them and the way war is being waged is changing with it. Everyone will need to change to survive it.

Big Questions:

What do we do when we have no community or our community is in peril?

How can we know the truth after believing propaganda for so long?

What does it mean to be a person?

How can we heal after a trauma that changes everything?

[carters-blender]

Hello, hi, welcome to the blender!

I am talking about my writing too much to my in person friends so I'm making this solely for ranting about my current projects lol. I am full of characters and projects but limited on artistic talent so I just keep yapping instead

About Me:

Hi, I go by Carter!

I am a-spec and nonbinary (please use they/them for me)

I am traveling and working and writing on the side, I have been writing for fun most of my life but now I'm trying to actually write

I am a yapper so I can almost guarantee any questions will get a full response lol, I am also happy to participate in ask/tag games

I am neurodivergent (I am comfortable talking about it if asked, but mostly I am focused on my writing here)

Most of my WIPs fall into fantasy/sci-fi, there are some darker elements or topics touched on in a few of them but everything will be tagged to the best of my ability (I will always add tags/TWs/CWs if told I missed one, no judgement)

My inbox is always open, even for silly things! Feel free to ask me anything!

My WIPs:

Winter's Army (current WIP)

dark fantasy, military story

multiple POVs

Queer-friendly world (can give more details)

soft magic system

under the tags #winters army - carter #cartersblender

Quick about: A strike force unit is set as an advance guard into "unclaimed land" during a war with an enemy empire. They discover that their enemy has created monsters and that their side is too willing to accept casualties. One of the soldiers is a wooden construct named Elan who their side treats as a weapon, spurring further questions about humanity and how someone can know what the truth actually is! It's super lighthearted and fun!

General TW/CWs for death, militarization, dehumanization, injury

Rifle and Pony

fantasy cowboys; werewolves, witches, and vampires

multiple POVs

Queer characters, neutral world

soft magic (wild, called on but not wielded by people)

under the tags #rifle and pony - carter #cartersblender

Quick about: A cowboy who had been turned into a vampire is strong armed into helping a monster hunter (who is secretly a werewolf) in order to protect his found family. They learn more about each other and grow to care for the other despite everything that tells them they probably shouldn't.

General TW/CWs for death, injury, marginalization

A Knife in Your Boot

fantasy, romance

Dual POVs

Queer characters, complicated world

no magic (as of right now anyways)

under the tags #knife in boot - carter #arranged - carter #carters blender

Quick about: Two warring nations agree to an arranged marriage for an attempt at peace. The pair is made up of Vannes- a peace-minded spare prince who holds little power in his family- and Kaj- a trans man whose parents refuse to recognize his gender and who has been training to be a fighter for years. Their pairing is a disjointed one to say the least.

General TW/CWs for injury, some transphobia (from a few side characters, not the whole society), lack of autonomy

What You'll See Here:

Writing update posts

Mood boards

World building/character info-dumps

Rare attempts at character art

Reblogs about writing

Reblogs of OC art

Tag/ask games

No NSFW

This is kind of just another void for me to scream into, but if you are a real person and here then: OMG Hello Hi!!!! Feel free to ask/interact as much or as little as you want, I will always be happy to interact back