#(yes that is dramatic but its also true rip its no longer a hobby but an obsession/addiction)

[imabiscuitinthousandworlds]

bad news: today might actually be the worst day of my life, no hyperbole

good news: i no longer want to tear out my hair and scratch off my skin and curl up in a ball and cry

[theincompetentgenius]

Hello! Can i have a “life generator” for the arcana please? :) I’m a bi 5’9 girl with curly brown hair and hazel eyes. I’m antisocial, and closed off to most people. I have a sarcastic and dirty sense of humor, and i’m childish. I love to playfully tease people. I’m a gryffindor, and quite stubborn. I get jealous easily. I LOVE animals. My hobbies are shopping, singing/piano, and archery. I’m a tomboy, and i live in hoodies. I’m honestly pretty touch starved. Thanks in advance!!

Thank you for being my first request! It took a lot longer than I expected, but I still had lots of fun doing this. I also realized how garbage my writing has become and how I lack any creativity, but that’s another issue for another time.

Thank you for your interest in the world of The Arcana! In a few moments, you will be reborn.  Loading simulation in 3 …… 2…… 1……..

B A C K G R O U N D

You were born into a wealthy family where the pressures of society were the laws of the house. Your father was attempting the climb the unspoken social latter of Vesvusia and he could not risk having his children act out of line. Fortunately, he was constantly out mingling with the high-tiers, leaving you with eons of freedom. Your mother attempted to teach you the ways of a lady, but it was not long before you turned away from the pink ribbons and ran towards the bow and arrow. She soon came to accept your differences, but you did learn to enjoy certain aspects of being a lady. However, your father soon learned of your rather rebellious behavior and sent you to a center to become more ladylike. Although you despised the suffocating corsets and endless sewing, your piano and singing lessons kept you from falling apart.

F R I E N D S  

Nadia, Navra, Nazali

As time passed, you had become one of the top pianists and vocalist in the entire community. What baffled the people was that you would only perform in a black tunic: a sign of protest against the center’s practices. The contrast in your talent and personality attracted a large audience, curious to see what you had to offer. One day, you had woken up to see the entire room emptied of its people. Gold ornaments and red carpets stood in their place. You were quickly notified that a few of the Satrinava sisters were coming to visit and your instructor wanted you to play for them. Not only were you nervous about playing in front of royal, but you were also worried about their judgy eyes analyzing your outlandish appearance. You even contemplated wearing a pink, puffy ballgown, but you chose to stay true to yourself and prepared for the event.”

“The three sisters strolled into the building, their presence more illuminating than the chandelier above your head. Once they were seated, you did not waste time with formal introductions. The audience of three listened in silence as your fingers danced on the piano keys and your voice soared across the room. You sang about your woes within the center, yearning for an ounce of freedom. Had you looked across the room, you would have noticed the wet film of their eyes. After your performance, Navra to you and grabbed your hand.

“That was the most beautiful I’ve ever heard in my life! You must play for me at my parties.” The strength of her handshake nearly ripped you apart.

“Leave the poor girl alone. You don’t want to scare her away already,” Nazali pulled her back.

Amid their bickering, you heard a cool voice from behind. “Do you feel imprisoned trying to live the life of a lady?” You spun around and saw a pair of red eyes staring back at you.

The blunt and sudden nature of the question had caught you off-guard. You had no intention of angering the princesses, but your tongue would not allow you to conform to their ways. The room went silent as the other sisters stopped their arguing and turned towards you. They were waiting for your answer.

“Yes,” You said.

The sisters exchanged glances. The pink-haired sister took the moment of silence to formally introduced herself as Nadia Satrinava, the youngest of the sisters. You curtsied in return, but her next question nearly knocked you off your feet.

“Would you like to perform at my palace? Where you are free to live as you like?”

Other friends: Portia, Mazelinka

R O M A N C E

As the royal musician, you were forced to interact with individuals who you would rather avoid after every show in the palace. Years had gone by and the only person you didn’t want to thrash was Portia. The rest were snobby, misogynistic, or outright stupid. However, there was one gem you had met during this time.

You had finished a romantic ballad for a smaller crowd that day. Nadia had asked you to perform as a part of her appreciation banquet to those working against the Red Plague. As you prepared to retire to your room, a young man with copper hair and an eye-patch appeared by your side.

“What a marvelous performance! Your voice is almost as beautiful as you.” A devilish grin was plastered over his face. It seemed more slappable than most. “Excuse me, where are my manners? My name is Dr. Julian Dovarak.“

“Sir, I’d like to know how you got past security,” Your voice was stone.

“That’s just one of my many talents. Let me tell you about how I nearly decapitated a monster with simply a bow and arrow.” You began to tune him out instinctively, yet you couldn’t ignore the charisma exuding from him. As he droned on, you decided to give him a chance. It was a matter of time before you were laughing in his tales. Dramatic, but entertaining.

“I liked your story, but I’m still calling security. You did invade my privacy after all,” You said.

He put his hands in the air. “There’s no need for that. I simply thought you enjoyed my company, but I may have misread the situation. I’ll be on my way.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy your company. It’s just…. I could have it elsewhere. Especially since you seem to have no problem sneaking up on me when I’m alone”

It took him a moment to register the joke as he responded with confused laughter. Suddenly, his eyes grew wide and his cheeks were crimson. His confidence crumbled. There was nothing left of the old Julian; only a stuttering mess. You felt the muscles of your face pull an upward grin as laughter bubbled in your stomach. Never had you met someone so bold yet so flustered. So much for his bravado.

“I’m just teasing you. I wouldn’t call security on you, because you’re not as irritating as everyone else.” You laughed as he attempted to pull himself together.

He cleared his throat, prompting the return of his mischievous grin. “I’m flattered. Of course, if you would like a more private encounter, that can always be arranged.”

“I’ll look forward to it.”

F I N A L   F A T E

When the first round of accusations against Julian came around, you could not believe them. The man who had become so dear to you could not have committed murder. You weren’t sure what the details were, but your instincts told you that there was more to the story.  However, it was impossible to find reliable answers when Julian had fled the city and the only witness was Consul Valerius. You wanted to search for him, but Portia held you back.

"Chasing him will only bring you more danger.”

Although you wanted to pack your bags and take the first ship to Julian’s location, you knew it was unreasonable and irrational. During Julian’s disappearance, your relationship with Portia grew stronger. The two of you would reminisce about the good times and the best of Julian’s embarrassing moments. Soon, the two of you were able to move past Julian and make terrific memories on your own. Life began to move smoothly again. The two of you spent lots of time running errands. After a few witty exchanges, you found yourself on the floor with tears in your eyes. Portia would clutch her stomach from all the laughter. Sometimes you felt that the two of you had become delirious, but no one ever enjoyed life by staying sane.  

Yet one fateful day, you saw a flash of red and black zoom behind you. At first, you thought nothing of it. Probably some guards chasing after a thief or a child playing a game. However, the figure had stopped and you dropped your groceries. The infamous Dr. Dovarak was standing in front of you.

“Julian?”

Against your better nature, you ran after him. You already lost him once, you weren’t about to lose him again. But once you arrived at his spot, he had disappeared. You kicked the loose rubble beside you out of frustration. Your eyes had not been playing tricks on you; that was Julian. You went back to Portia and told her everything that you had seen. At first, she assumed you were messing around. However, she became uncertain as she saw the pleading look in your eyes.

That was not the last time you had seen the doctor. Your paths had crossed again when you walked into a rowdy tavern after a long day. All you wanted was a refreshing drink and some time away from the palace. Lost in your thoughts, you sat in the nearest booth and took a sip of your mug.  You nearly spat it out when you looked to your right.

“What are you doing here?”

You were face-to-face with the man who you had been searching for all this time. But now that he was in front of you, there was something off about him. He seemed tired.

“Hello darling, long time no see. How is life? I’m sure it must be dandy without me.” He flashed his famous grin that you had come to love.  A rush of anger seared in your stomach. The man had been missing for nearly three years, yet he acted as if his absence was a mere joke. Did he not realize the pain he had caused for you and his sister was unrepairable?

“No. Don’t play this game with me.” You gripped his wrist and demanded that he tell the truth. His smiley facade disappeared and he turned away. There was no way from him to explain that he had lost his memory without sounding insane or incriminating. All he could do was play the role of the villain.  

But you were not giving up so quickly. Although you couldn’t get Julian to give you the information you wanted, the two of you began to meet more often (despite the risk of Julian getting caught). As he worked through his layers of problems, you stood by his side and helped lighten his darker days

You notified Nadia that you were no longer going to play for the palace and packed your bags, joining Julian in his quest to clear his name and learn the truth about Lucio’s murder. During this time, Julian was able to look past his fears and learned to confide in you. It was not long before you two had declared your love for each other and secured a relationship.

After Julian’s name had been cleared and the second wave of the Red Plague disappeared, the two of you decided to become pirates. After the drama in Vesuvia died down, Julian was craving some form of adventure. He asked you to come along with him as he could not see himself doing anything without your support. Although you were unsure of the chaos the new lifestyle would bring, you decided to join him. Julian bought a new boat while you recruited crewmates to keep the ship running smoothly. It was not long before you and Julian set out for the seas, enjoying the wild adventures each day would bring.

T H E   E N D

[hopevalley]

I’m back, and with the usual nonsense. 

I’ve been thinking about that potential novelization again. Heck, I dreamed a while back that I was going to tweet Hallmark to ask “permission” to do it (but ended up tweeting them in the dream to novelize the Wedding March series instead). It’s fanfic. I don’t need permission to write it!!! (Dream!Me was stressed out at the idea that Hallmark could say yes, because then I’d be locked into writing it. I’m still marveling at Dream!Me’s confidence.)

I’m gonna ramble about the potential for a novelization of When Calls the Heart here, just ‘cause I can. I have a lot of thoughts and feelings and nowhere to put them. Read on if you’d like!

I like When Calls the Heart! I really do. It’s had its ups and downs, but overall things have been pretty darn awesome.

I don’t think any of us would be here if there wasn’t something about the show that really captured us, took us by storm. For some people it was the romance. For others, the friendships. I know people who watch the show for specific characters or character arcs (Henry comes to mind), or because they like the feel-good nature of the series while it deals with some realistically awful situations/issues; the Lee and Rosemary and the infertility plotline that popped up in S6 comes to mind, here.

Honestly, I wish I could trust someone else to novelize the tv series the way I’d like to see it done. Unfortunately I’m a picky baby and I have very specific ideas of what these characters are like from a more intimate POV than we get with the show, so...if I want it done, I gotta do it myself. (RIP my free time, though.)

The biggest roadblock, though is...feedback.

This fandom is notorious for being terrible about ‘participating’ and fanfic isn’t everyone’s cup of tea anyway. Imagine working your tail off to produce a well-crafted novelization of the series only for it to get ignored. I’d probably never write again...and that’s not me being dramatic, either. I think it’s fair to say “my time is worth something” and stick to that. It is. My time is worth a lot to me. I could use it to clean the house, do dishes, spend time with my husband, play with the cats, clean the yard, do gardening, work longer hours and get paid, play video games, crochet, et cetera. I have an endless supply of hobbies! It’s harder than it sounds, because it means I can’t ever dedicate tons of time to just, you know, one of them. On the plus side it means I’ve got something waiting in the wings no matter what mood I’m in!

The possibility exists that the story would be a surprise success, too. I mean, I doubt it (judging by the numbers, fanfic for this series isn’t that popular), but...you never know! Jack and Elizabeth are a focal point of the first few seasons and a novelization of the series would also support this.

Anyway, I think I said before that I was toying with the idea of pre-writing five chapters, posting them a week or two apart, and gauging interest based off of that. If people aren’t interested, I can abandon the project early enough into it that nobody has to feel sad about it. If people are into the idea, and take the time to comment on the chapters... Well, it looks like I’d have to keep going.

It’s just a struggle to get started.

For two reasons. 

The first is the possibility of failure. Now, you could say it’s not a failure if you complete the project, or no time spent on a hobby is wasted, but for me that just isn’t true—at least not completely. Writing is a hobby, but it’s a very personal hobby. I pour a lot of myself into those stories, into storytelling, and the very point of writing for me, especially when I post it online, is the social aspect of it. Fanfiction is a social hobby! When nobody comments on the story, nobody favorites it, nobody bookmarks it... 

Well, I might as well have just left it all in my head and not taken the time to write it down.

The second is...Elizabeth, and by extension, Jack. And, uh, by extension of that, Jack/Elizabeth.

Hear me out!

I think both characters have some good foundations going for them. Season 2 shattered a lot of the good things they had going on for the Dramaz (which I wholeheartedly disagree with), but I feel fully capable of warping the S2 events to better suit the characters we ended up with (and to avoid some of the unnecessary meaningless drama that never did sit right with me). I just feel like both characters are...a little bit...empty? And especially for focal characters, they need depth that the show just simply refused to provide outside of Dramatic Situations.

I’ve been working through some of that in my head. Something I always liked about Elizabeth was how she unapologetically enjoyed being rich! Whether she was in Coal Valley or Hamilton she sported fashionable things. She loved going shopping with her sisters, dressing up for dinner, et cetera. Her vague ignorance of people like Abigail visiting (welcome in the house, but definitely unaware of ‘dressing for dinner’) was this really nifty mix of like...endearing and frustrating. I think playing that up a little further, or rather...bringing it to the forefront, might be a great idea.

--

Speaking of Abigail, I think the character was an excellent addition to the series in the beginning and I’d prefer to continue along those lines, here. I’d fully plan to include her, but with my own slight twist on things; she stays Abigail. No Lorigail.

I can’t decide exactly what to do with some of the other characters, though. I greatly enjoyed Cat and her children, and as Emily is still around later I feel like I’d want to keep her around, but she needs a role to fill and it doesn’t feel quite right to relegate her to the very background when Elizabeth spent the first season going up to bat for her. I think I could figure it out easily enough, but it’s another consideration I’m up against.

--

Of course, this is all kind of hinging on the idea that the first five chapters would be met with some measure of success, because if people kind of shrugged over them it won’t matter what I do with Cat or anyone else.

Anyway I feel like it should be stated outright that I have no real intentions of completely altering anything...at this time. That could definitely change, though, if the readerbase wanted it badly enough and I felt it was appropriate. There are some things that I think need more attention, but that’s not the same as altering events, per se. Bill as a character comes on really mysterious but what’s the point of writing him that way when the entire potential readerbase already knows he’s married? Already knows about the counterfeit plotline? It might actually be more fun to get into his head and write some of those scenes from his perspective (third person limited, not first person; I despise first person). Then we have his reasoning (stupid or not) instead of the mystery.

Therein lies the reasoning necessary for anyone to actually start reading it in the first place: it offers something the tv show doesn’t (because text-based mediums can get into people’s heads and narratively examine their psyche) but doesn’t actually deviate hard from what people already know and like about the show. I guess you could say that it’s giving them more of what they like?

--

I think the difficult part of balancing a novelization has to do with the points of view; do you pick a few and stick with those? Do you GRRM it up and everyone gets it sometimes, or do you choose the scenes and select the narrative based specifically on how that scene would best be told, which could result in some people having more scenes than others?

I’m leaning a little toward the latter with the idea that some characters will probably never get their own scenes, because if a character is only allowed to have one, why bother even giving them that? I’m not sold on the idea though, because I can’t even choose a character who wouldn’t get a scene. Probably characters who just aren’t around enough for it to matter? I’m thinking about characters like Greta (the investor) or Jenkins (bank manager) more than I am even characters like Ray Wyatt, ‘cause at least Ray sticks around in the story for a reasonable period of time (and therefore might deserve a scene or two along the way).

(Though I mean, I can’t say for sure. We all know what happens to these characters, so maybe I’d have to stick with giving characters scenes who will eventually join the ensemble of Hope Valley? Hm.)

I guess it’s something to think about.

--

Rolling again with the assumption that the story is a success (let’s just be confident, here!) there are future aspects of the series that didn’t really do it any favors and/or weren’t presented in a satisfactory manner.

I’ll give a few examples off the top of my head: Season 2′s drama, Lorigail, AJ and Bill’s weird relationship dynamic, wedding drama for Jack and Elizabeth.

I can swallow a lot of nonsense! I like drama...when it’s interesting and done well. What I don’t appreciate is the cheap stuff, designed to fling a roadblock in the way of a romantic couple. Jack and Elizabeth didn’t need Charles to make things feel off/weird/bad, or for Jack to be made to feel unwelcome. I personally think the entirety of the S2 plot could be better shaped and molded for the characters. We can still have drama, but not at the expense of the characters’ integrity!

Just throwing ideas out there, but in the novels Elizabeth’s original contract was only for a year, so when that year was up and it was the summer break from school, she returned to Hamilton and waited to hear from Coal Valley to find out if she’d be invited back there for the next school term. I’m not against Elizabeth’s mother falling ill to get her back to Hamilton, but I’d prefer if her...extended stay there didn’t hinge of iffy (flimsy) health stuff. They resolved that way too neatly and it was just... I don’t know. It could have been better done, maybe to offset the potential for drama.

As far as Lorigail goes, I think Abigail taking on a role in town as part of the town council and eventually stepping up as mayor should come at a cost, and those costs eventually lead to her giving up her role as mayor (which would take care of a lot of the lorigail issues of her just being involved in everything). Obviously this is so far in the future it’d hinge on a very successful story overall, but I’m busy being confident so I’m willing to entertain the idea that someday I’d have to address this. 

AJ also doesn’t show up for a very long time but her introduction was pretty mediocre, and Bill’s reaction to her (not chasing her down instantly) didn’t make a lick of sense. Bill isn’t easily swayed by anyone’s dumb opinion, and he’s not a romantic in the traditional sense so it’s hard to imagine a kiss from a stranger made him slack on his job duties. An easy fix here would just be to show the good moments that had to have existed between the bad ones. The only reason Bill would let AJ go without even trying to find her is if he feels that 1) she doesn’t deserve to be jailed, and/or 2) she’s safer if she’s free. It’s not a huge issue in the grand scheme of things but I think it’d be a real shame not to ‘fix’ the issue while possible.

Finally, with the wedding drama... Honestly they didn’t need any of it. The church didn’t need to burn. If we want wholesome content: there’s been a bit of a drought and there aren’t any nice flowers for the wedding, so Elizabeth’s dad remembers that his girls used to like making paper flowers and organizes everyone to use colored paper to make them so they can string them up in the church. I mean, something little like that doesn’t really change the backbone of the story we’re getting (I mean, we’re here for Jack and Elizabeth’s wedding, a celebration of happiness, not for the drama that ends up being completely meaningless). Cute mishaps on the wedding day would be much better/more interesting/tell a better story.

(Or maybe Bill just about completely misses the wedding and then we get Lee and Rosie’s rings being used, which sort of ties in with how close Elizabeth gets with them in S6 storylines...)

--

The more I think about it, the more potential for an amazing story I find in this, and the more excited I get. 

Henry is SUCH an interesting character; it would be amazing to get into his head early on.

Imagine getting to see Elizabeth and Abigail’s friendship actually form.

Clara’s relationship with other people, like Abigail and Elizabeth, but also exploring the specific kind of grief she feels vs. the grief Abigail feels and how that might clash/be different.

Exploring the different relationships the women in town had with their husbands. Some were obviously still in love, some not so much, others ready to move on quickly and a few completely closed to the idea.

A schoolhouse/group of kids that isn’t replaced every ten seconds and remains somewhat consistent...

Getting to write Jack and Elizabeth actually falling in love over the big and the little things. 

Elizabeth as a passionate teacher.

Characters dealing with nightmares, good dreams, dreams about their friends or potential love interests... I want to see real raw human emotion, here! The good stuff, definitely, but maybe some of the bad, too, because writing the different ways they deal with it could be...fun.

Abigail being Abigail and staying Abigail... ♥

HOBBIES being a part of everyday life!!

CHURCH!!!!! SERMONS! Worship! Gathering together for meals! 

Rewriting some of the dangerous scenes to actually FEEL dangerous.

Writing in Julie’s perspective would be SO much fun.

Including travel time for the big events and shaping the world into a place where time MATTERS aaaaaa that’s so fun too!

--

Anyway, I’m rambling. I just really, really love the idea of writing this. I have so many thoughts and ideas I want to do, all without deviating too far from the source material that we all love so much.

It’s just hard to feel like I should spend my free time on it...but lately it’s really been gnawing at me, so...

We’ll see! It could be a lot of fun just to try. At least if I try, I’ll know. If I don’t, I’ll probably always wonder what might have happened if I had.