� Jan. 31, 2009
Recollections of FAD
Memories, both sad and happy...
I can remember the first day when I decided to write 'The Silent Passageway'. I was laying on top of my bed, talking to my sister, Anna. In my hands rested a piece of paper, with typed up words upon it. It must have been a scene from a previous story that I had been writing. Anna wanted me to read it to her, but me, thinking it would be a fun joke, began "read it" to her. I was really doing nothing more than making up a story as I went along.
It ran something like this:
One day, as the sun seeped though the windows of an old musty attic of an old house, walked a woman. In her hand she had a key, that led to a secret lock which nobody knew about...
Suddenly I just knew I wanted to write a book about something with a key that led to a secret passageway.
A few weeks later, I was holding in my hands, a copy of Kidnapped, by Robert Louis Stevenson. It was a red hardback, with gold embossed letters. I stood in front of my mirror and acted out a random scene of a girl who found a book such as that. She opened it, and found names of kings and all the royal line written in it. Though she was the princess, her name was not in it.
That sprang hundreds of ideas into my head, and I combined 'Flora-Anneola, Fleeing Princess of Hanaskea' with my older book, 'The Silent Passageway' and that became the very foundation of what is now called 'Faithfulness and Deceit' or FAD for short.
That was about two years ago. Then I formed another character named Lydia. Katie helped me with her for a while, and before we knew what had happened, Lydia was Katie's character and Flora was my character. Here it get's interesting, for while Lydia was basically Katie's character, Lydia was still in my book, and Katie wasn't helping write it yet.
About this time, comes an interesting argument me and Katie had which is really quiet comical. I always imagined Flora's hair to be curly and red, and Lydia's hair to be strait and black. Katie never imagined Lydia to have black hair, and I think at one point it was blond, but not for long. Soon agreement came, and Lydia had strait light brown hair, and Flora was the same curly red hair.
Then came the character named Hammon. He was Flora's twin brother. I sort of forgot about him, and at the same time created two other characters named Younger Ranger and Older Ranger. Well not really, but they didn't have names for the longest time.
The way the story went so far was that Flora and Lydia were "twin" sisters, though really Flora was the princess to the other country of Hanaskea, even though she and Lydia lived in Eterneth. (soon to become Ethernethia) The jist of the plot was that they ran away from their evil uncle Rumman, who was the king of Eterneth. On the way, they met two Hanaskean Rangers, who ended up protecting them and taking them to Hanaskea so that Flora could become queen, and where Lydia could get an army and fight against her Uncle Rumman. At this point however, Rumman's character changed. He became a nice uncle, and it was his son, Aragin who was the villan.
Meanwhile, Flora's twin brother was forgotten about, and I named the "younger ranger". His name became Rean-Hammon as shown below. :)
I must say, Rean-Hammon became one of the main characters, and the hero of the story. Then, first sugested by a friend of mine, I first added romantic stuff to it. It wasn't too bad, there are actually a few scenes I look back upon, and I still want to use.
At this point, after about a year of writing, Katie joined with me. She wrote all of Lydia's scense, and I wrote all of Flora's scenes, (by this time I had changed the name Flora-Anneola, to just plain Flora).
Also Katie introduced a character named Raindant, who was a poor stable boy who falls in love with the princess Lydia. Katie's two character's went their own way, and my plot and my two character's went a different way, although we managed to keep them together for about six more months.
The spring of '08 was when I began showing FAD to all of you. And by then, it was called Faithfulness and Deceit. The whole plot turned slightly, and turned into more of a romantic book. The first chapters took place at balls, and Flora had many suitors, after all, she was a beautiful princess.
This summer Katie and me found out major problems in the story. First of all, Katie found out that her characters, Lydia and Raindant were getting out of hand. Lydia was a wonderwoman, who could do anything! Raindant was whimpy. So she changed a bunch of things, and named the girl Adrianna and Raindant was named Callan. Katie's story took a huge upward turn, and mine seemed to be flying along.
In late July, Katie and me split our book into two seperate books. Adrianna became a gypsie, but Flora was still a princess, although not so pretty.
By October, my plot seemed to be going wonderfully, better than I had ever hoped to imagin. Then came NaNoWriMo, and the month of November. I put FAD on hold, and began writing a sequal for it. The hero of that book being, Rean-Hammon's younger brother, Kelton.
Katie and me soon realized that we had to seperate our fictional world, into two entierly different places. She went and made different countries, and I made changes to mine. I also tried to focuse on my cultures a bit more, and Rean-Hammon's name was changed for the first time. He was called Athelstan. And Flora had long ago dropped off that name and was named Amaye.
My nano novel turned out wonderful, but when I came back to write FAD, it seemed to have lost all of it's aspects that I had loved. Athelstan (Rean-Hammon) was not the man he used to be. He was no longer the hero everyone talked about. He dissapeared. Katie's hero, Callan became the hero now for me.
Everything had changed, so so much from the small little story I had written so long ago. December was a trying month, as was the beginging of January. However, a few days ago, I have finnaly made my decision. I am no longer writing FAD. Something changed in it, although I was never sure what it was. I could never put my finger upon it. Somehow November, with the break of writing FAD, showed the book in it's true light. It was now dim, and old, no longer brilliant and new. The old hero, Rean-Hammon had dwindled down into an annoying doomful ranger. And Amaye, well, she was never that much to look at.
So here I am. How does it feel, to let two years of constant hard work, go to waist you may ask? From the ages of 14 to 16? Well, it hasn't gone to waist. I have learned so, so, so much in those two years! I learned how to make characters, I learned how you must sometimes just let your character lead the way. I have learned how a plot may change so many times, and I have learned to forget and let the past go.
It is true, many of my plot ideas, and some of my characters such as Loxlin (the older ranger) and Kelton, have lived on. Kelton (now named Edred) has his own book and someday soon, so will Loxlin (aka Ethelbert).
So where do I go from here? As many of you know, I am writing a knew story, which is on my story blog. I am enjoying working with and getting to know Latisha, and Hadrian (characters from it). I do not look at the past with regrets, but with hope for the future. I still continue to write wedding novels, with some adventure mixed in.
With that said, I am looking forward to February's challange, writing 30,000 words in my novel. By then I shall have at least 40,000 words in it, and I shall put it on hold, and in the month of March I will edit my nano novel.
From there? I do not know. I shall edit this story. I cannot say. Although I do hope that before this next November, I can have both my nano story a good way edited, and also my newest story edited. And in November, I shall start another story. Where from there?
I fondly bid you all farewell! God Bless!
~Molly
Comments
� Jan. 31, 2009
Farewell, most beloved story-friend....
Posted by PoeticMaiden
Wow.
It is amazing to read your summary of your story, from beginning to end, here at the end of it looking back. At the time you were making changes it didn't make any sense to me, and I kept wondering, "Why? How can she do that?" Now it all makes sense, at least a little more sense than it did. I still miss Rean-Hammon dreadfully, but I think I will get over it someday. *sob* Or I might just make up my own character like him.... but it could never be the same. You always had a magic touch with him that I could never have.
Anyways, I am sad to hear that you are ending FAD. It breaks my heart to know that you are leaving behind something you have been working on for so long, but if you are ok with it, then I guess it makes it all ok. Sometimes we need to let go and move on. I have done that before. I guess I just thought that FAD would never be one of those things that needed to be put down. Oh well.
*raises glass* Here's to FAD - may it rest in peace, and be remembered fondly. And here's to the future of your writing - may it be fruitful and glorious beyond compare! *drains goblet*
*smile* I love you, and I am so looking forward to doing the 30k challenge with you!!
~Cherise
P.S. Would you know, I have been visiting your blog nearly every day to listen to the Last Unicorn song you have on your playlist!! I think it is the most gorgeous thing in the world!! I have been trying to find a place to download it, but as of yet I have been unsuccessful - but I will keep looking, and until then I love visiting your blog! Have you read or watched The Last Unicorn? I did both recently, and rather surprisingly I fell in love with the story and the characters! How about you - do you have an opinion on the story?
Edited by PoeticMaiden on Jan. 31, 2009 at 5:59 PM
� Feb. 1, 2009
Untitled Comment
Posted by VintageAuthoress
*sighs*
What ever happened to Rean-Hammon? Maybe he went after Flora. "He really loved her, you know."
You must write a story with them sometime. Change them a bit, their names and so forth, but really, Flora was better than Amay.
She could be hiding out with the rangers in a cave again, and the hero can shoot her on accident. He can rush up the stairs of a castle to save her again. *sighs happily* It would be so SWEET....
~ Katie
� Feb. 4, 2009
<em>Untitled Comment</em>
Posted by chezdak
Oh, yes, so you stopped writing it... That sounds rather like whats happened to me... remember the Crescent Shaped Island? Well, I realised there was no really proper plot to it, I had been working on it for FOUR years... but I could never write it... there was something missing... as a matter of fact, there was too much missing... what was missing? But ofcourse I had to write it... I wasn't just going to give up... there must be a solution! My little sisters helped me!!! I love my little sisters so much when I remember how much they helped me... though my story has a BIG influence from being brought up with three older boys and all the girls toddlers. Well, this is how my brothers and little sisters helped me.
My brothers' strong influence has filled it with castles blowing up, escaping from tanks, ok too much adventure... ect. But I like it that way, the very first sentence of the very first chapter begins "a flash of fire split the air, sparks scorched the ash-strewn road..." and then it describes war-torn Averonitaca.
My little sisters helped me by asking and asking me to tell them stories... my own made up ones about people like Philip and Mr Jordans and Cathy ( who seem to be their favourite characters ) that gave me tons of ideas. Then I decided to fill the book with plots from other stories I had written, well, TRIED writing anyway... the name changed from The Crescent Shaped Island to the Secret of the Seagull's Seal, from that to Avrannian Grounds: The UoU's War...... then I began writing it as that, now it has reached Chapter 8 and 52,800 words in two or three months and I am satisfied with it... my little sisters helped me so much by urging me to think more about the story. My oldest little sister wants to learn to read proper and quick so she can read it... isn't that sweet?
Also I write some of the characters a little bit like my brothers and sisters. Little Kezzy is just a little bit like Emma, but not quite andOlivia and Aranna in the book, but the characters in my book are rather exaggerated, and probably a lot crazier than my real brothers and sisters. Chatty is a little bit like Janice, Janet, and Victoria in the book. Hosey is rather like Susie. Izzy is a bit like Philip Tillismore, but not quite, as I like to write my characters different and how they are. Eli is rather a lot like Peter Jordans and Thomas. and ect. ....though I don't think I have EVER met anyone like Anthony Jordans or Great Uncle Harold yet!
I do hope you will be able to write a book and finnish it and be satisfied with it. I always have liked your way of writing though.
Thats just homeschooling for you! If I had been in school with all kids just my age I wouldn't have been able to capture a very good picture of what younger children and toddlers are like... what about cheeky little Emma Jordans? Three years old, and rather like Kezzy... I wouldn't have had enough time to see what she was like for real.
Also it was because of my little sisters always asking me to tell them stories about Avrannian Grounds whcih gave so much insparation...
I was playing with my younger brothers that inspired the main plot... as a matter of fact... it isn't the sort of story you probably would expect a girl to write... i don't exactly know... but I do think it is a bit too action-packed but all I say is, leave it that way.
I, also, have changed loads of names of the characters... but like you said... they don't Always seem the same... but why is that? Its because, well, what I found anyway, I don't know about all the other writers, well, it was because they weren't proper characters in the first places, they didn't have a really strong character to them, yet the other ones, which HAD true character, even though her name changed SO many times, she always stayed the same. And with Cathy aswell, she used to be called Sheila, and then Helen and now she is Cathy, yet she is still the same person in the book! How can that be? Yet with some of the other people, like Jerinthian... he, well, sort of disapeared off the face of the earth, he isn't in the book anymore, even though while it was The Crescent Shaped Island, he was the main character. It is sad to stop writing a book and lose all insparation for it, but strangely enough the insparation all came back in a flash with Avrannian Grounds.. I hope the same sort of thing happens with any of your books... so that the story just flies and reaches an end and you are satisfied with it... It can happen...
Looking at Fernsbrook, a book I once wrote, well, I wrote chapters and chapters and then suddenly I lost all insparation and stopped writing it ever again... and even after about three years it has left untouched... yet that made me decided to start a new book, and the new book ended up much better.
With writer's block I discovered ( I don't know if it is like this with all writers ) that it was because the book had come to some paticular bit which needs to be changed, so when ever I ran up to this, I read the last chapter and then realised what was wrong! The last chapter was boring and empty! So I backspaced all of that chapter and re-wrote it and didn't run up into writers' block until Chapter 4, then I did the same, then I ran up into writers' block again in Chapter 8, though fortunately I didn't have to backspace the whole chapter, just a few of the annoying paragraphs like merely 1,000 words then I re-wrote it... but I still saved the previous writing via copy/paste incase I should have regretted deleting it all. I don't know if it is the same for everyone, but when ever I run up to things like writers' block, I realise that it is because there is something wrong with the book that has made ME bored with it! And if I am bored withmy OWN book then how much more bored would any readers be? Well, that is why I went back and saw the faults and corrected them...
Sorry about the lenghth of this comment, its just that talking about story writing is something I am really interested in. Never mind
Chezdak = D
Edited by chezdak on Aug. 12, 2009 at 11:17 AM
