#which that on itself prob also serves to limit him but still its something

[darabeatha]

/ I THINK- I think I found a faceclaim for L.ucifer/S.atan

[tsainami]

wip prep tag #2

tagged by: @isherwrites​ tysm!! sorry it took this long to get to.

rules: answer the questions and then tag as many writers as there are questions answered (or as many as you can) to spread the positivity! even if these questions are not explicitly brought up in the novel, they are still good to keep in mind when writing.

last time i did this it was for cheat (which you can find here), this time i’ll do grave mercy.

FIRST LOOK

1. describe your novel in 1-2 sentences (elevator pitch).

a girl against a theocracy (but for its religion) and a boy against its religion (but for the theocracy) who have very ? confusing ? backgrounds ? (and are vampires) somehow end up meeting while investigating a cannibalistic angel. they end up doing something ridiculous together: unraveling ‘god.’

2. How long do you plan for your novel to be? (Is it a novella, single book, book series, etc.)

as far as i can see where the plot’s going, probably a trilogy.

3. What is your novel’s aesthetic?

vampires. religious ones! in priestly/nun-ly (not a word) clothing! which comes in mostly white or bright colors because they’re not fans of black vestments. black armor yes, black clothes no. and since there’s vampires, there’s blood. but also gore. and also cults. and devils, angels, monsters, conspiracy! plus a lot of french gothic architecture.

4. What other stories inspire your novel?

book of the ancestor trilogy by mark lawrence. if you’ve read it, it’s probably obvious.

5. Share 3+ images that give a feel for your novel.

i haven’t done any edits for this a whole either rip. it’s not much right now, but here’s its pinterest board.

MAIN CHARACTER

6. Who is your protagonist?

my main protagonist is a girl called ines nenci. she’s a novice at a convent known (or, unknown) to reform young girls whose faith are tainted.

7. Who is their closest ally?

her closest friend is this younger novice named dafne who she constantly worries about and is very protective of. she views dafne as her closest ally, and throughout the story she retains that sentiment. objectively speaking though, it’s probably reuven. after they meet and her fight or flight response when it comes to him calms down lol.

8. Who is their enemy?

the theocracy. namely the ava santi who sits at its head. and also herself.

9. What do they want more than anything?

this is going to sound anticlimactic maybe, but emotional comfort and security. ines really just wants to stop having to be scared all the time. stop having to hold on to anger and allow herself to finally express her hurt and pain after all the years she’s spent oppressing it. she wants to depend on someone and be able to trust them instead of just being the one depended on while in truth she’s just being manipulated. she honestly just. wants. inner peace (lol).

10. Why can’t they have it?

there are many reasons. let’s start with a few minor obstacles in the shape of people who keep her alive solely for the purpose of using her to further their ambitions: 1. the abbess of the convent. this chick keeps ines in her house only to serve as a tool in her plot of overthrowing the theocracy. the convent’s pretty much a facade for this group of heretics to eventually hold some sort of rebellion. but they’re being really dirty about it. 2. the ava santi (aka ye olde pope). he killed her dad. he was also supposed to kill her, but this amazing idea popped up in his brain and he decided “nay, send her to the convent dear men o’mine.” reasons for this is because a) he hates that fucking place and has wanted it dead for years and b) he can’t touch that fucking place because politics and also One Deep and Dark Secret that would cost his position and probs life should it be exposed. 3. the so-called cannibalistic angel she meets, whose reasons for using her are too spoilery to share at the moment. but it’s got something to do with the one ‘god’ of their faith.

11. What do they wrongly believe about themselves?

that she’s cursed. it’s repeated a lot in the first chapter, actually. her dad’s death and some of his last words really drilled it in her. and it makes sense, because her existence is scorned by the faith and she learns more and more about this (with the misfortune of having to witness her papa burn ffs as lesson 1 of all things) as she grows up.

12. Draw your protagonist! (Or share a description)

she’s got thick, wavy black hair. pretty long (goes up to mid-back i think) and it’s always braided and then tied up into a low bun. she’s always wearing her habit (which is white) and even if she isn’t she tries to wear something close (usually white too) because it makes her feel secure. she has a black cloak she wears when she goes walking around the capital or the woods (that she really and i mean really knows how to work, especially when she’s killing something so not too much of nasty stuff stains her clothes). usually armed to the teeth. hidden blades everywhere. though you can’t really see that i guess. 

sometimes, she carries a sword.

PLOT POINTS

13. What is the internal conflict?

ines is moroi, which is a race that is treated little better than rabid dogs are in montevena. there aren’t many moroi in existence any more because of wars that involved genocide long ago + the fact that as moroi all you have to do to get sentenced to death sometimes is to accidentally bump into someone. anyway, her internal conflict mostly revolves around her struggle between hating what she is and yet having to depend so heavily on it. she wants to separate herself from being moroi, but that’s impossible since she has to face it everyday. even if people weren’t there to remind her, her body can’t lie. she really, really hates it but there’s no other choice but to live with it.

14. What is the external conflict?

everyone is against the theocracy for their own reasons and the theocracy is against everyone. the teams switch up sometimes though and things get wild when a cannibalistic angel appears and the OG residents of the world, the devil-gods, get weaved into the mayhem (did i mention this takes place in an au hell? because it does).

15. What is the worst thing that could happen to your protagonist?  

if ines is put through what she went through as a child, having her world break like that (it wasn’t only her dad’s death, it was all the things about the world she was totally clueless about because up until then her dad had limited her knowledge of it, so her whole life was a big fat lie), it would be B A D. the people currently capable of hurting her that way is an older nun from the abbey named sister aura and dafne.

16. What secret will be revealed that changes the course of the story?

huge spoilers so i’ll be vague. something monumentally of relevance to not just ines or reuven, but the whole world is a total sham. also if you can believe it or not, aliens are involved (but it totally isn’t what it sounds like lmao).

17. Do you know how it ends?

a little, but not too well right now.

BITS AND BOBS

18. What is the theme?  

there’s an absolute truth to everything. but a lot of the times it gets corrupted by people with ill-bred intentions. that doesn’t mean the truth itself is horrible, though. so it’s always good to discriminate and keep in mind that, just like that guy who yells about global warming but clearly doesn’t know what he’s talking about while he goes ‘round the world in private jets that secrete shit tons of shit, sometimes we don’t know everything either.

19. What is a recurring symbol?  

i have no idea. (yet)

20. Where is the story set? (Share a description!)

a city-state called montevena which is loosely based off of vatican city but much more french gothic and kinda creepy. later the story moves through parts of canza, one of the three sanctified states that reuven is from.

21. Do you have any images or scenes in your mind already?

yes. predominantly one that occurs in a cave.

22. What excited you about this story?  

the development of the characters. particularly ines, reuven, gabriele, dafne, hazael, mirta and other supporting characters (including the abbess and the ava). it’s just... so interesting. i low-key had a mindfuck about it.

23. Tell us about your usual writing method!  

a copy paste from my previous post on this:

my method is freak out! write a sentence. think about useless things (why would a pigeon be at the city square at night? that doesn't make sense? is it a normal pigeon? what is the purpose of its life?). try not to get distracted (i always do though) and write another sentence. 

the day i’m 92 is the day i finally have two fully written novels with my name plastered all over them in my arms.

TAGGING: @brekkerings @pilipalea @apollchiles (if you guys haven’t done this yet) and anyone else who wants to.

[kindabraveandlittlestupid]

Everyone needs a good cry. I am not saying I cry often but when I do it’s something worth crying over. I suppose I went through that same masculine numbness that men feel they should put on in their youth. As I got older and realized I could care less what other men think about me I tapped into that emotional depth more willingly exploring sadness and joy, compassion and love with more fervor. Of the things, I do cry about, one is my romantic entanglements (usually at an unwanted end to a relationship) and the second, is a good scene on the silver screen. Today I explore the latter of the two and share some things I cried about in the past because why the fuck not.

**Spoilers Below**

Rome - Titus Pollo Arena Scene

Possibly one of the greatest bromances on screen was that of Titus Pollo and Lucius Vorenus in the show Rome. Legionnaires of Ceasars Army they basically venture through the show as two men who start off as hating each other and slowly become brothers over the seasons. If you haven’t watched this show, I can't recommend this series enough.

The scene that pulled on my emotions comes after Titus had worked as a hired thug/debt collector and killed another man in cold blood for coin. He was eventually sentenced to death by arena combat and stood alone fighting a group of gladiators for his life. Being a veteran soldier and unique luck at avoiding death (which is a theme for Lucius and Titus for the series) he manages to dispatch various gladiators in the arena, all the while crying out “13″ for the Legion he was once apart of.

Meanwhile among the people watching is Lucius Vorenus who was raised up in political status and could not act to help his friend. His eyes burning with tears as he watched on watching the slow death of his friend. By the end of the scene a large gladiator steps out to kill Titus but Lucius is unable to watch any longer and joins his former brother in arms yelling out “13″ to kill the last Gladiator while breaking the law and his status as a newly anointed Senator.

If you do tackle this scene (which is linked above) I suggest watching the show first and develop a depth/understanding for these men relationships to one another. I perhaps blame the music for moving me to tears but its well-executed TV and remains unforgettable in my mind.

Farscape - The Death of Aeryn Sun

Perhaps my favorite scifi show of all time, Farscape. This show was pretty formulaic in regards to late 90′s to early 2000′s television but where this show did well was flexing its creative muscle by building an original universe and investing heavily into puppets instead of CG. Believe me, the work done here is the highest quality and does a better job making those alien puppets feel real then CG can presently muster.

If you watch this show you will find one of the best romantic arcs between two TV characters ever on TV. That is the relationship between the Earth Astronaut John Crichton and Peacekeeper Sebacean Aeryn Sun which was (in my opinion) a best-written love affair in TV history between a badass alien woman with superior genetics/combat training and an earth scientist/pilot who proves himself to be more clever and useful then his alien companions care to admit.

The scene that left my eyes wet was the Season 2 finale where John has a neural prob placed in his head that has both probing/collecting his memories but also introducing a second personality of his enemy that is slowly taking over his mind (this is a scifi show remember). As the second personality emerges it becomes more dominant and takes control of him for periods of time. Crichton losing control too this alien personality betrays his friends and tries to escape. Aeryn refusing to let John escape while possessed by this alien tech chases Crichton over an icy world only to be ambushed by him and driving his landing gear into her cockpit and forcing her to eject from her ship.

While it seems like she might land safely on the ground below she is actually over a lake of ice and Crichton assumes control of his mind again only to watch the woman he loves crash through the ice to submerge into a freezing lake. Crichton eventually lands and surrenders himself to the care of his friends before he hurt someone else and they all say their goodbyes to their dead friend while she lays in a cryogenic coffin to preserve her body.

I won't tell you what happens later as I don't want to spoil the show. It’s great TV that deserves to be watched from beginning to end. Like Rome its worth your time and I promise you its a fandom that is worth having in your wheelhouse of notable science fiction. 

Seven Years In Tibet - Returning the Watch

This was supposed to be a cinema post but here I am talking about TV shows and no movies yet! If you know movies (or more importantly books) you would have heard the title Seven Years In Tibet which is a true story about  Austrian mountaineer Heinrich Harrer who traveled across the globe to climb  Himalayan peak only to have World War 2 start and force him into a prison camp.

In the story, Heinrich escapes is prison and travels across Tibet with his ‘friend’  Peter Aufschnaiter trying not to be captured again and if at all possible work out a way to get back home. It’s a pretty amazing and moving tale in which a man who seeks renown and prestige for himself finds humility and maturity while taking residence in a Holy City next to a young Dalia Lama no less.

The particular scenes that made me emotional in this movie come in a set of two, one establishing the emotional payoff of the other. In the early part of the movie after Heinrich and Peter escaped their POW camp, they use watches to trade for goods and services to help them survive with the native people. Heinrich, still being a selfish individual, convinces Peter to sell a sentimental for some provisions they needed. Only after the trade takes place Peter discovers Heinrich had a dozen stolen watches stashed away which could have also been traded.

After a fair amount of time in the Holy City/Capital of Tibet, Lhasa. The two men grow as Peter falls in love with Tibetan woman and becomes more integrated into the Tibetan society and Heinrich serves as a sort of Western influence for the Dalai Lama sharing with the young spiritual leader his culture. Towards the end of the film, Heinrich and Peter celebrate Christmas (I believe) and Heinrich delivers the watch which he convinced Peter to barter away years before. It’s touching in the sense that while Heinrich was responsible for making Peter trade the watch away, he silently amended his wrongdoing by taking on a great effort to have the watch found in a country with thousands of people. This scene alone isn't so much about the relationship developed between the two men but rather forgiveness, personal growth and sentimental gestures with deep meaning.

Wall-E - Memory Erased

Wouldnt be a proper list without a Pixar movie making the cut somewhere on here. I know some people cried in the movie UP and I admit Inside Out had me at some moments itself but above all else, the movie Wall-E hit me right in the ticker when I watched it. If you don’t know what this movie is, then you should probably get out more because when it came out (like all Pixar movies) it was a big deal.

What makes this particular movie stand out in my mind isn't just the sad moment that pulls on your heart strings (which I will talk about) but also the fact the movie basically gets you to care about a character who has a limited set of words and portrays his emotions through tone and physical movements. Allowing a very physical interpretation of his personality. You have to admit that is a pretty clever animation to make the audience get so invested in a sentient machine.

The scene that really got to me was just at the end of the movie. As I stated above spoilers galore down here but this one sits at the end of the film so if you havent seen Wall-E I suggest stopping now... are you gone? Good only us movie watchers left. The scene, of course, is Wall-E having his memory reset. If you weren't ready for this scene it could fuck you up as I remember watching this in my room and having a few stray tears roll down my cheeks when EVA realized how much affection the little trash bot had for her only to find that he was reset back to factory settings.

Of course, Disney doesn't like movies with bad ends and let a small smark sharked between the two machines be the magical touch that perhaps allowed Wall-E to tap into his long-developed personality and allowed him to remember how into her he actually was. It's a cute movie and deserves its spot on this list along the rest.

The Wrap Up

That's all I care to write for now on this topic. It's basically the 4 biggest tearful moments I can think of. The Red Wedding would have made the list but honestly that filled me with Depression and Anxiety more then it did bring tears to my eyes. I may add more movies to this post later OR I might just make a part 2 post if more movies come to mind that pulled an emotional reaction from me. Thanks for reading. Thanks for letting me share. Now go watch some of these scenes.

Regards, Michael California