pyroprincessaxandrela - Tumblr blog

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

Terann: Normal while on the clock

Zailie: Normal in her own mind

Namos & Vedon: Normal, relatively speaking

Lorie & Kressie: Normal if you aren't paying attention (in opposite ways somehow...)

Jedu: Normal as long as you don't mention the thing

Xandrie & Lynie: absolute disasters no matter what way you slice it

Genuses of The Normal One:

The Normal One in their own mind

The Normal One, relatively speaking

The Normal One while they're on the clock

The Normal One if you're not paying attention

The Normal One as long as you don't mention the thing

The Normal One because the subject honestly never came up

The Normal One in the sense that whatever's wrong with them perfectly counterbalances everybody else's dysfunctions

The Normal One because they own a car

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

Question, since this is a sideblog, are people able to boop me here?

(Xandrie would LOVE booping everyone)

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

Trying to find ways to communicate in my writing that no-one in the Dalem royal family speaks at a normal volume. Cause its not quite 'yell' 'shout' 'scream' or 'raised voice' at all times - such would imply an anger or disharmony that rarely exists. They’re all simply LOUD.

The castle echoes with screams of laughter and children shouting joyfully, with voices singing at the top of their lungs and the thundering of excited footsteps rushing through the halls, with instruments being learned and a dog begging for pets. There's rarely contention beyond two siblings fighting over a toy, or a child being lectured for a prank gone wrong by a parent trying very hard not to laugh. But even the library is never quiet - there's someone humming idly as they read and another eagerly rambling about what happened in their book. Even in the middle of the night the castle echoes with snores and sleep talking, and someone is definitely (still) awake and 'sneaking' to the kitchen for a snack.

By the time all 21 kids have their powers, there are THREE of them with sonokinesis living in the castle. Vedon's quiekinesis takes so long to be noticed because there is no silence, and in any other context for him to exist he wouldn't have developed this power because he is only quiet in comparison to those around him.

They're not yelling, screaming, and shouting at eachother. Their voices are not raised in anger or frustration at all. For the most part they're unaware of their volume in any way.

They are simply LOUD

And there are so many of them that it seems even louder.

It's not that they have to yell to be heard over the volume of their family, and so they are loud. It's simply that they know nothing else. They've never had true silence to compare.

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

I really want to do more colored art for this series, because although one of the laws of magic in Edramel is that it doesn’t/can't affect the physical form in any way, some of the characters you can look at and know their powers just from their appearance. Like Axandrela has heat bronzed skin, wild red curls, and carmel/amber-ish eyes that glow gold when she's overjoyed or feeling rage, and just an aura of uncontrollable yet warm energy; you look at her and you know she has fire even when there's not even a trace of ash on her person. But then we have characters like Kresint and Emailli, who both look very similar to Xan, their skin a similar base shade that just doesn't tan as easily, their eyes far darker brown, and their curls less wild yet still the same firey shade, yet they have powers over water and ice respectively. Meanwhile, Saphori is this pale and frail looking toddler with flowing waves of dark hair and startlingly bright silver eyes, yet she's the one with fire both because she needed that power to survive and it fits her. And the moment you see any of these three younger girls in action you understand why they have the powers they do, yet compared to the chaotic red & gold living flame that is Xandrie it almost seems a startling contrast.

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

...possible plot point for Xan? I mean she already gets in quite a bit of trouble in Fearless for everything she's ever said to like half of the people she sees on a daily basis being twisted half truths. Like all the other soldiers think she's a blacksmith's son named Axandrel, as opposed to Princess Axandrela, the Avenging Flame and Crown Heir of Dalem, and she has never actually lied to create that identity, just told half truths and let people misconstuct the other half of the story. The 'truth serum' wouldn't even need to cut out the possibility of lying for her to cause this sort of chaos...

The villain claims to have injected you with a truth serum. In reality the serum they injected you with only prevents you from lying and the villain will soon learn that not lying and telling the truth are two very different things.

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

I've joked a few times about how Vedon is just a himbo in the making and that the only reason he isn't a himbo yet is that he's only 13yo even at the end of the series so he's still working on the 'abs of steel' part of himbo. But the brother of mine who he is based on is 20yo now and has started posting workout pics on his Instagram between motivational quotes and 'I love my mama and sisters!' posts, and this is only proving my point.

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

This is why in Edramel its been about 300y since their last war when the Cazalymex (aka source of magic) went missing, and they're sitting there with most of the continent lulled into a false sense of security despite magic slowly fading, while everyone in both Dalem and Cona who realizes how history usually works is vibrating with a seemingly paranoid anxiety wondering when the other shoe is gonna drop because 'something big should have happened already... why hasn't something insane happened yet...'

And then these 11-16yo kids decide they're going on an adventure! And all the adults facepalm or scream in panic because 'NO!'

The way fantasy writers talk about a thousand years as this uneventful amount of time is really funny to me because like—in less than 1000 years we went from the Norman Invasion of England to Skibidi Toilet.

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

When I started writing this series the inspiration for Kresint was 7yo and bouncing off the walls in delight that she got to be in Edramel in any way. In the 10y that I've been working on this series it has been a regular occurrence to see groups of my like 5-12yo relatives running around playing at being in my books. Like Edramel is an escapist fantasy world where children get superpowers, technology is powered by magic, you live in a magical castle that has secret tunnels with all your loved ones, get to train as a knight and/or go to enchanted balls if you wish, and neurodivergencies are so normalized that no-one bats an eye at things considered 'odd' in the real world. And there are tiny dragons that can fit in your pocket and will be your pets if you befriend them correctly! I haven't met a single 7yo of any nationality who doesn't think it's awesome.

On a scale of Wonderland to Narnia, how delighted would a seven-year-old British girl be to find herself in your fantasy world?

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

Xandrie nearly literally burning herself up to save Kressie (or any other little sibling) Kressie dousing and healing Xandrie, (or healing another idiot sibling) then immediately passing out from the strain. Xandrie nearly literally burning herself up to save Kressie...

best trope is the one where the character’s godlike power is also killing them btw. they don’t even lift a hand to kill the monster but now they’re delirious with fever. they save a friend’s life and said friend immediately finds them emergency medical care. they raze the enemy to nothing and it takes far too long to find their pulse with all the bruising. their friends just constantly having to patch them up and worrying over which feat will be their last. et cetera

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

And this is why this blog exists...

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

Here is the 2018 version cleaned up slightly and roughly digitalized, and with Xan's red now you can actually find Saphori easily!

First pic from 2016 (left to right: Rann, Xan & Saphori, Lyne, Zai, Mos) and the second pic a re-draw from this summer (Mos, Zai, Xan & Saphori, Rann, Lyne) I’d say my drawing skills improved! Finding Saphori in either picture is a bit challenging though…

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

As I said a few months ago, I've had this in my 'to draw' list for years, so here is:

Dalem's 'Soldier, Poet, King' Trio

Scan of my unedited lineart:

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

Rann & Xan Sketch Dump

Plus a couple Xan (and tiny Saphori) sketches that I (very) roughly digitalized

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

I realized recently that for all I ramble about and sketch my these disaster kids all the time, I haven't done much of either of those things regarding any of the adults in Edramel

So, may I present undoubtedly the coolest adult not only in Dalem, but all of Edramel:

Princess General Carty of Dalem

Middle daughter of King Gregorin and Queen Lindal of Dalem, Carty is one of Dalem's top Generals alongside her brothers. She wields twin short swords, Electrokenisis and Psychometry, making her an absolute force to be reckoned with, both strategically and physically in battle. She has never married, and instead is simply an instigator and enabler of the chaos her neices and nephews cause.

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

I just realized that the reason I want her to do this stems halfway from Mia's thing with her maids in Princess Diaries 2, and halfway from Leo Valdez in the Heroes of Olympus books, and I can't decide if this knowledge makes me want to include it more or not...

The urge to have Xandrie just do finger guns, that mouth click thing, and walk backwards out of every awkward situation is so strong that I genuinely don't know how I'm gonna stop myself.

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

I made this years ago, but in addition to Xan badly playing the ukulele, kalimba, bes'bev (in Edramel all other fictional universes exist as fictional so yes, she custom built her own Mandalorian stabby-flute) and spiraly pan-flute type thing, she now ACTUALLY plays the ocarina. She is still absolutely forbidden to play any of her instruments inside the castle. (And yes, I had actually decided this - and taught myself to play both 6 & 12 hole ocarinas as well - long before I ever played any Legend of Zelda games)

Stereotypical Princesses: Yes, I play the harp/flute/piano/organ and sing

Axandrela: I play these! Not well... and mostly sea shanties... or just random patterns that I like...

Axandrela: But I do sing well! And my repertoire of vocal music is quite vast! And I never stop singing...

[pyroprincessaxandrela]

... and now neither of these characters are seeming right for being Xandrie’s love-interest.

Based on the genre, and her age, she needs to have one by the end of the series. The main characters' already married parents and grandparents can't be the main couples in the story. And Rann's and Zailie’s love storys are already worked out completely and set in stone by the fact that the people they're based on are married now.

Rann's love story happens afrer the final scene in the last book, and is told to Xan via letter she receives in the epilogue, from his assignment as an ambassador to an allied nation; just as I learned of my now sister-in-law from a text of "I think I'm in love" (after 6m of silent treatment) while my big brother was in Africa for two years. I can't change the timing or circumstances of them falling in love, because that would change everything. So their story stays in the epilogue and any sequel short stories I may write.

And Zai's romance arc I've already changed slightly by shifting when they meet to include him at all. Her love story is in the books, particularly the last one where she meets her future husband, but is in some ways a cautionary tale. Cause in the real world when she was 17 and fell in love with a 25yo, after major heartbreaks for both, it was yikes, but them being a year and a half younger makes it even more yikes, cause now she's only almost 16. So Ezailabeth and (Cabbage) can't be the main couple because their love story both doesn't fit the Youth Fantasy genre (though it would if it was YA Fantasy) and accompanies her little moral descent arc.

But Xan is fighting any attempt to give her even a casual love interest. Nieraf almost works because he's based on my first ever crush (who I met at 18, rather than Xan's 17) and his inclusion flows with the story and allows for Cabbage to meet Zai too. And Veli (Healer man) almost works because he's based on my first serious boyfriend, and his inclusion in the world just flows naturally, but the timing is off. And Xan needs a love interest to some degree at some point in the series, but none that have shown up are part of her 'Happily Ever After', and real life isn't being helpful in this context, and as someone who firmly believes in OTPs its very frustrating for me...

Cause I could have Nieraf remain Xan's main love interest as was always the plan. Or I could add in Veli for those softer healing moments. But she’s not going to end up with either of them. Regardless, Xan's 'Happily Ever After' is sitting on her garden swing, with a baby cousin in her arms, reading peacefully on an almost-summer afternoon. I was just hoping for a 'prince charming' of some sort to join her too though...

As both a reader and a writer I hate love triangles with a burning passion, but a new character has been inspired in my mind, and unless I can figure out how to write my way out of it, Xandrie's now in the center of a love triangle between a Bard and a Healer.

Since I realized she needed a love interest it's always been the Bard who wants to be a knight who she meets on the front lines as such, and only in the final book. But then her uncle decided to play matchmaker and invite a young lord to a ball - that's going to have to be in book 3 - and now several scenes are re-writing themselves so this Healer turned Combat Medic is there instead. And I can't just merge the two into one character as they're far too different, nor can I merely cut one of them out as they would serve vastly different roles.

And to put it simply, I don't know what to do. I could leave things as they've been progressing and keep Nieraf as her love interest, but by the epilogue they seem too have drifted apart anyway. I could keep the story the same, but add this new character in and deal with the ensuing mess that is a love triangle. Or I could cut back on Xandrie's time with her disaster soldier squad, have her get separated from them and end up with a different squad? get injured and left behind at a med tent? and somehow end up with this new character as the most familiar face, and go from there...

I genuinely don't know what to do...