Writing with the MICE quotient

This picture of a triangle piece of watermelon is the closest thing I have to fitting this topic...at least it's a triangle? Maybe that's an idication to my contribution to this week which is:

MICE!

Milieu

Idea

Character

Event

Jeffe did her homework and explained the MICE quotient, check it out and her links to The Writing Excuses Podcast! 

For me, I don’t consider myself a technical writer and couldn’t have told you the four elements that start a story before Sunday. I just write. I see a story in my head and I put the words down.

And if you’re curious, after reading the four options I can say I start my stories with Event—nested in character. When I write fantasy or science fiction the stories start out with something big that changes the status quo and the endings are a resolution to the new normal. 

There really can’t be a return to the old normal. Characters progress and change and when that happens normal is altered. 

I wish I had more to offer on the topic, but I'll bow out and leave a giant arrow back to Jeffe and KAK's posts. 

What element do you use in your writing? 

MICE Brackets & Story Starters

With which MICE element do I normally start my stories? 

MICE = Milieu, Idea/Inquiry, Character, Event

Check out Jeffe's wonderful explanation and examples of MICE in Sunday's post (lawd knows I consulted it many times whilst writing this post!). I absolutely love the analogy of MICE structure being similar to HTML nesting brackets as described by Mary Robinette Kowal to mean "where does the story open and where does it close."

For my Urban Fantasy series, I start with Inquiry, since the first chapter lays out The Mission and the final chapter details its completion. Whether the mission is figuring out whodunnit or howdoit, it's always mission-centric. Thus, my UF opening/closing "brackets" are Inquiry. 

For my High Fantasy Larcout, Event started and ended it. For the High Fantasy I'm currently writing, the bracket is Character. 

The argument could be made that Milieu/Setting is the appropriate starting point for any HF since world-building is so critical. However, I interpret Milieu to mean "launching from home" and the story closing with "returning home." To me, that's not the same as establishing the setting or raising the curtain. As a matter of style, I structure chapters to open with a "you are here" visual (if the setting has changed from the previous chapter), but there is no implied promise that the story will close the journey back "home."  Similarly, I might introduce the protagonist in the opening paragraph, but there's no promise that the character is going to go through a metamorphosis of fulfillment. The theme relayed in the opening chapter should echo throughout the story. Indeed, it should often be repeated to remind the reader of "this is the goal."

As the good folks over at Fantasy Faction note in their explanation of MICE: 

All stories will contain all elements, but there is usually one that dominates the others and determines the story structure. It is the element that the author cares for the most and spends the most effort on, shaping the whole narrative.

For me, using MICE structure to know how to start a story is less about the opening sentence/paragraph and more about determining the function (and limitations) of the opening chapter.

Um. Yeah.

Interesting read on ghe MICE Tool. Sadly, no time. I have deadlines. Sorry, folks.

Using the MICE Tool to Find Where the Story Begins

This week at the SFF Seven, we're asking each other which MICE quotient we usually start with in a story. I can see that the calendar queen, KAK, is anticipating my bitching about not knowing what these things are, because she helpfully provided a definition and some useful links. 

It turns out that the MICE quotient is a tool originated by Orson Scott Card (brilliant storyteller, awful human being) for categorizing story elements. MICE stands for Milieu, Idea, Character, and Event. The Writing Excuses Podcast explores the MICE technique frequently, so I was able to listen to a couple of episodes to learn about it. Here's a list of the episodes where they mention it. This episode is particularly useful, from back in 2011, as Mary Robinette Kowal explains how MICE works. The podcasters also amusingly mull that "milieu" is really setting, but that SICE isn't nearly as good of an acronym. This episode is also useful for the discussion of the MICE approach to conflict.

To summarize this approach to writing - part of my job as the one who kicks off the topic for the week - I'm borrowing heavily from the Writing Excuses episodes I cited. 

Basically these four elements can be emphasized or de-emphasized in telling a story. Short stories tend to focus on one of these elements, while longer works use several. Novels typically have all four, often in a nested approach. The tool essentially dictates how a story begins and ends. 

So, for Milieu, a story begins with the protagonists exiting or entering a space, and ends with them returning to the space. For example, The Hobbit begins with leaving The Shire and ends with returning to it. 

For Idea, or Inquiry, the story begins with a question, like in a murder murder mystery, where the question is posed of why a person is dead and who killed them. It ends with the answer.

With Character, the story begins with a protagonist who is unhappy or unfulfilled, and ends with them fulfilled--or resigned to being unfulfilled. Romance and Lit Fiction are two genres that use this tool a lot.

Finally, a story that uses Event begins with something happening that changes the status quo, and ends with either re-establishing the old normal or establishing a new normal. These kinds of stories focus on action and often disaster.

As I mentioned earlier, a novel will also use these tools in a nested fashion, which I find very interesting. Mary Robinette used the example of html code (also applicable to algebraic formulas), where you essentially close brackets in the same order that you open them.

Html coding looks like this: 

<p><b><i> “Dark Wizard is one of my top reads ever.” </i> ~ NY Times Bestselling Author Darynda Jones</b> </p>

The p opens the paragraph and /p ends it. Same with b for bolding, and i for italics, giving you this formatted result:

“Dark Wizard is one of my top reads ever.” ~ NY Times Bestselling Author Darynda Jones

So, in a novel, where you use all four elements, you'd back out the same way you entered. It might look like this:

<Character><Milieu><Inquiry><Event></Event></Inquiry></Milieu></Character>

To finally answer the question of what I start with? I'm an intuitive writer, so I don't plan these things, but it's interesting to note that I pretty much always start with character, followed closely by Milieu. The above pattern is how my book DARK WIZARD goes. The pattern also repeats within smaller sections and scenes throughout the book, but this is true of the overall pattern. Basically Character frames the overall arc, as does Milieu - then there's a lot of moving from Inquiries and Events - sometimes with smaller Milieu changes.

So, the story opens as such:

Gabriel Phel crested the last ridge of the notorious Knifeblade Mountains that guarded Elal lands on nearly three sides, and faced the final barrier. The path through the mountains had been narrow, crooked, with blind endings and unexpected pitfalls.

Not unlike his life, Gabriel thought with grimly sardonic humor. 

My wizard opens the story, moving into a new Milieu - physically and metaphorically. It's also worth noting here that Milieu also refers to the larger setting of being in an alternate fantasy world, which was something I wanted to be sure to telegraph from the beginning. Gabriel has a plan to change his life, but he soon encounters many questions when he meets the heroine, Nic. It's amusing to me how I introduce her in Chapter 2.

Skirts swirling about her ankles, Lady Veronica Elal paced restlessly to the heavy velvet curtains that covered the barred windows of her round tower room, and slipped behind them. Shivering in the chill trapped there, she hooked her fingers into the slats of the shutters anyway, ignoring the cold bite of the metal. It was a ridiculous habit she’d developed over the last months of seclusion, as if she could make the spaces between the rigid slats wider, so she could glimpse just a bit more of the outside world.

Character, then Milieu. Funny, huh?

I enjoyed learning about this tool and will give it thought for future books. I can see how it would be useful for deciding where to begin a story - and for structuring a satisfying ending. 

Stupid Human Trick Glory Days

 My stupid human trick is a thing of the past. It was the product of a 20-something body and excessive physical conditioning. It was also performed for an audience during a cabaret night at Cornish College of the Arts. I hadn't volunteered, I assure you. I still don't know who put my name in the box, but two of my classmates, Scottie and Brendan, were MCing. Yeah. I absolutely suspect one of them. 

At any rate, throughout the evening, between different acts, Scottie and Brendan would pull a name from the box. The stupid human trick was also listed. So each of us called upon performed. There was no demurring. We were students in an acting conservatory. Pretending we weren't egocentric showoffs just wasn't going to fly.

My stupid human trick was crossing and interlocking my legs, fitting my forearms through that interlocked cross, and walking on my hands. Up stairs and back down. I think it's on video somewhere. A video I hope never surfaces. 

I was doing 12.5 hours of hard physical conditioning per week between stage combat classes and dance classes. I was 15lbs lighter, and, as mentioned, I was much younger. At this point in my life, I won't be 15 lbs lighter until six months after I die. So the ship of that stupid human trick has sailed.

I'll just have to come up with another one that won't land me in a local emergency department. . . 

Edit: I'm back. I'm back because when the DH asked what this week's topic was, he reminded me that I have a few other stupid human tricks up my sleeve. I take them for granted because they weren't learned tricks like the one above was. So here they are:

1. I can stand on point without toe shoes and without blowing out my feet or my ankles. 

2. From standing, I can squat all the way to the floor without ever lifting my heels from the ground. 

These, I suspect are genetic relics bequeathed to me from a long line of stolid Scottish farmer stock. Who else would need cast iron ankles?

Do Your Characters Have Talent?

 Jeffe already claimed the cherry stem trick, my only party trick. And KAK is already the master napper, I’m working my way up to that level. But what’s my stupid human trick? 

Hmm….

Back in the day I could plate out a stool sample in under two minutes. The stink, I’m telling you! Any smart laboratorian figures out how to efficiently streak those samples onto the agar, so I guess that can’t be my trick. 

I’ve spent a crazy amount of time perfecting the perfect strawberry jam! It’s taken a few years of tweaking, but I finally have a low sugar recipe that has a punch of berry flavor. Perfection. I don’t think that’d get me on America’s Got Talent though. 

I may not have a sleeve full of stupid human tricks, but I do love writing them into my characters. Why? Because it’s those idiocentric ways that make them unique, those specific actions that they’re driven to perfect—sometimes for zero reason. 

Want some examples? Find me on the socials and hit me up. My brain’s hit maximum capacity for today and I’ve gotta get up and do it all over again tomorrow. 

I'd love to know if you write charters with unusual or perfected talents. Do they play into your plot? 

Behold a writer with zero stupid human skills

Call me old if you wish, but I grew up watching David Letterman's Stupid Pet Tricks, which later became Stupid Human Tricks (example). As Letterman was careful to note, neither the pets nor the humans involved were particularly stupid, but they had spent significant time developing skills that were...unusual. I thought maybe the young'uns had evolved beyond finding these sorts of things amusing, but nope, apparently not: people watching America's Got Talent in the illuminated year of 2021 were treated to the guy who could crush a lot of walnuts with his butt. So, you know, I guess this stuff is still going on.

And all of it is so very, very impressive, but I'm humbled to say that I have never perfected a single applicable skill. No, I will never be invited to juggle jell-o before a live audience or ribbon dance with slinkies.

Which, as a writer, is a really hard thing to admit. I mean, we are supposed to write what we know, right? And I can neither light matches with a yo-yo nor make a bologna sandwich with my feet. 

Of course, I also have limited or no personal experience with space travel, murder, being a robot, fae possession, magical prognostication, international thievery, or causing an apocalypse. So, you know, maybe that write what you know business isn't the end-all of writing advice.

Good thing, too, because, though I can no longer do it, surely no one would want to read a story about that one weird kid on the bus who could burp the entire alphabet.

Stupid Human Trick: Level = Master

 Guys, guys, guys, you wanna know my most awesomest stupid human trick? 

leans in
whispers

I've become a 9th level master of:

If you thought "sloth," you're half right. If you thought "naps," you got the other half right too!

My stupid Human Trick

Apparenty my newest trick is editing an anthology on the fky. Later this year I'm attending a convention that is exacty one day long. There are over 70 authors in attendance, and many of them will have new books available at the convention, andsomehow I thought about this and lost my ever loving mind. One of the things I always run across at conventions is people signing program books, or having them signed because, franky, theonoy way to get all of the autoraphs you want is in the program book, It's the only olace where everybody is in attendance, barring last minute drop outs. And I thught about how neat it ouod be if someone came out with a collection where every single author in the book was actually there. Lo and behold, I decided to be stupid. So in the last ten days I have A) gotten a lsit of over a dozen authors who are willig to work on a themed anthologu=y ad give me original stories for aid anthology, WITH NO MONEY UPFRONT and B) give me said stories within 30 or so days. I have also procured original cover art and interior art for said anthology. The artist has even been kind enugh to layut the front and back cover for me. The convention takes place on October 9th. That's less than two months to 1) write a novella for the collection. 2) edit the collection. 3) layout the collection. 4) get the collection printed exclusivey for the convention. I hav commitents for two short stories and a novel in the meantime. I alsohave a day job. That, kids, is a damned stupid human trick if ever I saw one. I sense ulcers in my ear future. Here's a hint for what the theme is for the anthology....

Jeffe's Stupid Human Trick

Our topic at the SFF Seven this week is "Stupid people tricks – what’s something you know how to do?"

I feel I should qualify that that "stupid" in this topic is intended to modify the tricks, not the people. That said, want to know what mine is?

Well, besides being able to interlace my toes and tie (someone else's) shoelaces with my toes. Those are in my repertoire, but generally less suited to parties, which is pretty much the sole venue (besides this) for showing off our stupid human tricks.

My favorite trick - well suited to bars! - is that I can tie a cherry stem with my tongue. 

No, really.

You know how that was a Thing for a while? It was a salacious Thing, like that it implied sensual expertise. I don't know about that, but I did teach myself to do it in college. If you buy me a drink with a cherry - preferably a Luxardo Maraschino Cherry, though naturally it has to have a stem - I'll perform my trick.

Meanwhile, in the Happy Human Tricks Department, I've been loving the reception for BRIGHT FAMILIAR, which released on Friday. This was the best Amazon ranking I saw, but the book has been sitting pretty in the Top 100 of all its subcategories all weekend. Hooray!

I'm way prouder of this than the cherry stem Thing.

     

All Hail the Rebels

 

Sometimes, the rule of the land is meant to keep the powerless powerless. All hail the rebels who mean to change that.

~ Raina Bloodgood, The Witch Collector

Politics. Not my favorite topic. I do enjoy reading about politics in world history, as well as the causes of ancient and even more contemporary wars, but I am not one to sit and watch the news. It depresses me, every time. That being said, politics still plays into my fiction. I'm not the best at the governmental aspects of worldbuilding, I admit, probably because of my aversion to stupid people being in positions of power.

But! In The Witch Collector for instance, political tensions are a huge part of the backdrop and drive the external conflict. Since this is book one in a triology, however, and thus act one in the story arc, I narrow my lens and focus mostly on the relationship of the hero and heroine, my rebels.

Book one follows Raina Bloodgood and Alexus Thibault as they navigate the initial story problems that will later propel them from their normal worlds into a world they've either avoided (Alexus) or never seen (Raina). They live on what's called the Northland Break, a small piece of the broken empire of Tiressia, a supercontinent that experienced a tectonic shift millions of years before, and was once under the rule of a succession of human kings, each of whom answered to the gods.

But then the gods came down and took their own rule, one in the Northlands, one in the Eastland Territories, one in the Summerlands, and another in what's known as the Western Drifts. Much of the conflict that developed is of a godly nature, meaning greed, insatiable appetites for all sorts of pleasure, and complete adoration was paramount in their focus. They wanted what they wanted when they wanted it, regardless of the humans, halflings, witches, magi, and sorcerers they had to step on or destroy to sate their desires. 

As tensions rose, bad things happened and two of the gods, Asha and Neri, were condemed and buried in the Summerlands. The City of Ruin is where their bones rest, at a place called the Grove of the Gods on Mount Ulra. Another god, Urdin of the Western Drifts, the best of the deities, died battling the Eastland god, Thamaos. Both were also buried at the grove.

Part of the conflict that led to all four gods' destruction was two simple human lovers. The fallout of that romance was not only a catalyst to the gods' demise, but left the Tiressian world with two immortal rulers, a Frost King and a Fire Queen, cast north and south of one another, who would never again be able to survive the other's presence. 

In this story, greed and revenge reign, and even gods can rise again, unless a witch and a Witch Collector can become allies and prevent worldwide calamity.

So. Yes, I use politics in my fiction. It won't show as much in book one as the next two books, because the MC has to learn the hidden history of the world she's occupied for twenty-four years and correct the thinking that three centuries of false lore have impressed upon the Northland people. This is a story of a young woman who lives a very sheltered existence and doesn't even realize it. She thinks she understands her world, and that it's the immortal king of the North who's ruining her life. Little does she know at the onset how protected she's been, and that sometimes, the world we don't see is absoutely stunning and beautiful and can open our minds to different cultures, but it can also be a rude awakening. Sometimes, the lives we think are so terrible are nothing in comparison to the trials many people live through day in and day out. My goal is to show that through Raina, to show her understanding of the complexities of Tiressia, and how those complexities affect her as an individual, deepening with every page.

If The Witch Collector sounds like a book you might like to read, I would love it if you added it to your Goodreads. If you'd like to pre-order the e-book, it's available on several platforms now. Print will be available in September!!

XOXO,

Terrible Politics

Sit back and let me tell you a terrible story. 

I have a friend who is a military veteran. This isn't hard. I grew up in a military family and on military bases. This friend is terminally ill. Doesn't matter how or with what. Just know they are. They are aware they are. This friend is also very, very poor and because of that is currently homeless and living out of a car. 

When this friend was first diagnosed, they did some mental math and decided that they'd rather die by their own hand than endure disability and increasing doses of pain medications that probably wouldn't actually dull the pain but which WOULD dull my friend. Two weeks ago Sunday, my friend emailed me their suicide note saying goodbye.

You very likely just had a visceral reaction to that. Look at it. Examine it. That reaction is political. Even if you believe it's moral or compassionate, your reaction is political because it's shaped by the culture that shaped you - a culture shaped by and that shapes the politics with which we all live. What was it? Horror over suicide? Horror over someone forced into a position where suicide seems like the best option? Or was it sadness over the recognition that this person is actively dying anyway, and deciding to take that death into their own hands seems like the final piece of control they can wrest from this world? Whatever it your reaction was, with a little thought, you can trace it to either religious conditioning, or to secular conditioning around right and wrong as defined by Western cultural and political thought.

Still, we're fortunate. Most of us can point to other cultures in the world that don't have the same suicide taboo that our Christianized culture does. We're at least aware there are other viewpoints on death in the world. My point in telling this tale is to point out how deeply entwined politics (and religion) is in our lives and our attitudes and in how we see the world. So you bet politics plays into my stories. I submit that it plays into every story and all world-building, whether we want it to or not. If you're writing romance, the notion of one person falling in love with another (and only one other) person is political. Ask anyone who's polyamorous. 

As for the story about my friend - I didn't make it up. The friend was found by the police and taken to the ER. They survived the suicide attempt, only to be denied hospice care by the VA and turned out onto the streets again today. Still terminally ill. Still homeless. Still living out of a car while I scramble for solutions for getting them housed so that Medicare can provide in-home hospice to them for however long remains.

THAT situation is also deeply political. Not to mention deeply damning of our political system.

Politics in Fiction

 

Politics. It’s all about who has what, who doesn’t have what, and who wants what. And that’s why I’d argue that politics play an important role in nearly every book, because politics are all about the conflict over power. 

Not sure how to do that? Let’s check out some examples.

I write science fiction and fantasy, two genres rife with politics, and so I give you: 

Game of Thrones—gobs of conflict over the iron throne 

The Last Astronaut—a horrific fight between us and aliens

The Twelve Kingdoms series—serious struggle over over which kingdom controls the power that forms the world

The Lady Astronaut Universe series—a struggle between those with the brains and those in control

Shadow and Bone series—a war between two powerful Grisha (power wielders) and the country stuck in the middle of it

Hopefully you’re familiar with some of these. And if you’re not, I highly suggest picking them up because these are all fantastic reads! But it really doesn’t matter if you’re unfamiliar with the plots because they’re all the same: the players without the power do three things. 

1: they strategize

2: they recruit

3: they act

But what if your inciting incident doesn’t involve a takeover/overthrow/uprising? Then I say you’re missing out on leveling up by adding in some politics. Let’s go a little deeper. My audiobook, The Mars Strain, follows this politics breakdown more than one way.

The main plot line is a Martian organism that arrives and threatens life on Earth. My heroine and her team study and figure out how they are going to counter it, they pull in assistance from the Mars Colony and the CDC, and when they’re ready they put everything they’ve got into making their plan happen. 

Excellent, right? That’s enough to carry a novel. But come on, we want a great story instead of a good one. So I added another layer.

The other thread is another entity—no I can’t say who because spoiler—who has watched the Mars Space Program from inception, utilized intrigue to recruit spies, and is now forcing the coalition to remove the program out of the US. This is big because the world is looking at the Mars Colony as the only escape pod!

What do you think? Are the politics in your story transforming the landscape of your book? 

Yeah I Said That

Very quickly, do I write politics into my books? Well, Perfect Gravity features a woman senator who overthrows a corrupt, jingoistic jerk president and his cronies. 

That book was released in November 2017. 

Exactly. 

Politics and the Protagonist

 How does politics (of the fictional world) flavor the outcome of our stories?

I'm like Jeffe in that politics is a BFD in my fictional worlds. Be it UF or HF, the underlying theme across all my stories is about changing society and social structures. After all, what is politics but the manipulation of social contracts by individuals and/or organizations? Part of the fun of worldbuilding is defining the current political landscape, then spending the next three hundred-ish pages trying to uphold or rebel against it. The protagonist's relationship to society, and, by extension, authority, is a foundational character definition. The plot unfolds from that relationship. 

I do tend to write protagonists who are in a position to affect large-scale change. Macro movers who are plagued by consequences on a micro level. The contrast keeps the character relatable while reinforcing how decisions made by the top of the food chain come to bear on individuals. That's not to say every protag has to be part of the 0.0001% of the world's elite in order to influence politics. To the contrary. The most classic hero archetype is the nobody who becomes the king/god. 

My schtick is that I like to show the repercussions of forced change. The ugly consequences of shattering social contracts. The unrest stemming from ambiguity. The insecurity of crumbling of boundaries. The conflicts of redefining social expectations. That's the reason I write series instead of standalones. I'm fascinated by what happens after the hero achieves the initial win. Not just how the hero changes, but how society changes for better and worse. How are the new rules decided, and who cements them? How does the political landscape shift and can it ever be stabilized?

In-world politics, even when subtly displayed, is the spinal disk amid the backbone of my stories. 

Worldbuilding and Political Landscapes

 

Our topic at the SFF Seven this week is politics and - no, wait! Come back!!

Politics in FICTION, okay???

We're asking how politics and the political landscape of the world flavor the outcome of stories.

This is my particular catnip as the political landscape of my books is always as important - if not more so - than other facets of the worlds I build. I even teach a workshop called "Worldbuilding: Political Systems in Conflict." Why politics? Because they are about the conflicts that affect an entire society - and societies beyond them, too. As we've all learned from the political turmoil of recent years, politics affects the bedrock of our lives, our very rights as sentient beings. 

So, I argue that the political landscape is always going to flavor a story, perhaps more profoundly than the actual landscape. Sure, some stories try to present themselves as absent of politics, but basics aspects of the characters' lives - access to food, housing, education, etc. - are always going to be influenced by the political landscape.

Right now I'm looking at the release of Book #2 in my Bonds of Magic series - BRIGHT FAMILIAR releases on July 9! - and so I'm getting impassioned messages from early readers. Often when I wake up in the morning, because they're staying awake all night reading it. (Best compliment there is!) Many of them are commenting about the power dynamics and how much resonance they have - on a personal and sexual basis, but also on a societal level. When I set out to write Book #1, DARK WIZARD, I wanted to portray an entire society based on a fundamental, incontrovertible power imbalance. In the Convocation, all political power derives from the ability to wield magic. Wizards can. Familiars have magic, but can't use it - so they become the ones who are used. 

As with all of us, the politics of who has the power affects what rights we have - and which we don't. In life, love, and the pursuit of all that is worthwhile. 

     

He wanted her with consuming passion... and so did the monster within.

Lady Veronica Elal has been freed from her tower—and entered a life of servitude. It doesn’t matter that her wizard master has odd ideas about circumventing Convocation tradition and making their relationship equal. Nic prides herself on her practicality and that means not pretending her marriage is full of hearts and flowers. Besides she understands that, despite her new husband’s idealism, they face obstacles so great the pair of them could be crushed to nothing, even without dashing themselves brainless trying to fight the Convocation.

Lord Gabriel Phel has come this far against impossible odds. He was born with powerful wizard magic, the first in his family in generations. He’s managed to begin the process of reinstating his fallen house. And—having staked his family’s meager fortune to win a familiar to amplify his magic, a highborn daughter to be mother to his children, his lady, and lover—he rescued Nic in a distant land, successfully bringing her home to House Phel. Though she’s cynical about their chances of success, he’s certain they can defy their enemies and flourish. Together.

But, the more Gabriel discovers about working with the fiery Nic, attempting to learn the finer points of wizardry and marriage, the more illicit fantasies plague him. His need for Nic—and the dark cravings she stirs in his black wizard’s heart—grow daily. Though Nic has reconciled herself to being possessed by Gabriel—and indeed yearns for even more from her brooding and reluctant master—creating a new life for herself isn’t easy. Especially when Gabriel seems determined to subvert the foundation of her world. Starting with her father.

What the Froth?

When I saw the topic for this week, I laughed. I'd just finished writing a really tough chapter with lots of dark elements. I'm guessing frothy means light, and I'm kinda the opposite. So instead of talking about what my writing isn't, I thought I'd share what it IS. There's always lots of magick, romance, usually some myth that's part of the worldbuilding, and heroes that maybe shouldn't be heroes in their book but aren't toxic jerks that force you into marriage or bed or any of that annoying stuff I see too often in novels. I also write lots of female characters with varying abilities and stories, and I aim to create worlds that are diverse with none of the societal prejudices we have in the real world. That's the goal.

I have a novel coming out in November titled The Witch Collector and the cover reveal is next Wednesday, 7/7.  I thought I'd share the blurb today and the link to Goodreads if you want to add it to your lists!

                                      

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙒𝙞𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙤𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙈𝙤𝙤𝙣. 𝙃𝙚’𝙨 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚. 𝙐𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡 𝙣𝙤𝙬.

 

𝙍𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙖 𝘽𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙙𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙…

Eight years ago, the Witch Collector stole her sister. Ever since, Raina has wanted one thing: her family, together and free. Now she longs for something more: the Frost King and his Witch Collector. Dead. And today, she’ll make her wish come true.

 

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙒𝙞𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙤𝙧…

Every autumn, Alexus Thibault travels from Winterhold to select a witch from each village for the Frost King’s service. This time he rides to collect Raina Bloodgood, a young woman whose face he cannot forget, and whose secrets could save them all.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘽𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙏𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣…

Thrust into an age-old story of ice, fire, and buried gods, Raina must abandon vengeance and join Alexus in a quest to save the Frost King, or let their world be destroyed. But when the lines between good and evil blur, how can she fulfill her vow—to kill the Witch Collector—when he’s no longer the man who stole her sister, but the hero who’s stealing her heart?

 

𝘼 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙨𝙮 𝙙𝙚𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙡𝙤𝙜𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙢𝙮𝙩𝙝, 𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙘𝙠, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚, 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙉𝙖𝙤𝙢𝙞 𝙉𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙠, 𝘼𝙢𝙮 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙢𝙤𝙣, 𝙎𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙝 𝙅. 𝙈𝙖𝙖𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙅𝙚𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙛𝙚𝙧 𝙇. 𝘼𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙛𝙖𝙣𝙨.

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Frothy is for rootbeer

When I measured my age in single digits, one of my favorite things in the world was root beer. There were ads touting a frosty mug of frothy, ice cold root beer on TV in those days (and this WAS before color TV.) Dad had introduced me to root beer early in life and by the time I was 5, I was addicted. He would finish work before Mom did, so he'd pick my sister and me up from the babysitter and take us to the A&W Drive-in. We'd get great big chunky glass mugs of root beer brought to the car. The ice would have already formed on the outside of the mugs - even in the heat of the Las Vegas desert. The three of us would sit there freezing our hands and chugging enough root beer to float small nations.

A&W closed it's restaurants. They bottle their root beer now. It's not the same. The flavor is flatter. It's no where near as rich and spicy. 

So while I doubt there's a single person alive or dead who'd describe me or what I write as frothy, if we extend the root beer story out to metaphor, I might could get by with dark, rich, and spicy with a sweet creamy finish.

But frothy as in bubbly and effervescent?

I don't think my train stops at that station. The tracks do take long winding paths through sarcasm and smart-assery, though. Does that count?

Who knows where there's still an A&W brick and mortar hold out? I need a frosty mug.

What does frothy mean?

Helloooooo, Wednesday. Today I'm supposed to be talking about the frothiest thing I've ever written, but honestly? No idea what "frothy" means. Like...fluffy? Funny? Lighthearted? Something in that range? Most of my stuff is a rollercoaster mix of funny-ish smacking right into stone-cold angst and then unraveling itself out again, and I have no idea if any of it qualifies as a summery beach read type thing. So, instead of educating myself on the definition and canon of froth, I'll just leave a scenelet from my work in progress, a Regency-flavored space opera that is mostly banter and desperately needs a better title:

Ash stared hard at the duvet. “Did you not notice how few people are here? No staff whatsoever, and just one governess for five young ladies, at least two of whom are treasures of their incredibly important families and indubitably have staffs numbering in the dozens back home? Yet they are here, even without their personal guards.”

He had a point, but… “Maybe it’s simply a very exclusive mart? Isolating a young lady before her debut is not uncommon.” 

He was kind enough not to remind her that such isolation used to be less common, before her own debut. 

“But governesses who go missing and are thereafter completely unmentioned sort of are uncommon,” he said.

“What? Who went missing?”

“Your predecessors. You were not the first governess hired here, Hestia. What’s more, Mrs. Basselhurst used to have a Mr. Basselhurst, which is why that provision about spouses was even in Eidolon’s charter.”

“Let me guess: the planet ate him, too?”

Ash raised both eyebrows, as if she had overdramatized the matter. She had not. Evil planets were evil.

“Did she tell you all of this while you two enjoyed your tête-à-tête?”

He did something then that surprised her utterly. He groaned, ran his hands through his hair, and flopped back onto the bed. The gesture was so casual, so familiar, so un-him that it jumbled Hestia’s thoughts momentarily. It wasn’t like she had never imagined this man lying in her bed. She just had never expected it to happen in the context of dynastic matches and murderous planets.

“Leaving me alone with her was cruel, but you knew that. You torment me deliberately.”

She really did.

“However, yes, I was able to get a good deal of alarming information out of the very chatty Mrs. Basselhurst. And none of it makes sense.”

If Hestia stretched her feet out beneath the duvet, she could touch him with her toes. Of course, there were more direct ways to initiate contact, but he had been skittish in the past. Best not to alarm him. Best to sneak up on him, as it were.

He didn’t even flinch. “Did you just kick me?”

Protag Face-Off: Bigger Funny Bone

Our topic this week is "Our Frothiest Book." 

Bwahahaha!
clears throat

While I crack jokes aplenty in my books, I don't know that any of them meet the "frothy" threshold. Though, when it comes down to choosing which of my protagonists has a more robust sense of humor, I think Bix, an old AF cosmic entity, leading the Immortal Spy UF series has a bigger funny bone than Vadrigyn, the parasite-wielding fire warrior starring in LARCOUT. It's not that Vadrigyn doesn't find shit amusing, it's just that when she says she's going to slay you, she means that literally...language barriers being what they are and all.

Bix being her charming self:

Tobek held her gaze as he detached his prosthetic arm and handed it off. His expression took on a hint of wariness.

She wagged a finger at the rough puckers of his amputated flesh and whispered loudly, “Where are the alien worms?”

His brows drew together. 

She couldn’t stop the snort-giggle. “With that kind of a buildup, I expected some sort of secondary life form. At least a dozen. Maybe purple and covered in mucus? Lots of teeth, no eyes? A regular shortened arm is kind of disappointing, frankly.”

Vadrigyn trying her best to blend in:

Vadrigyn pivoted. Her fist connected squarely with the nose of the closest fool…and punched through the back of his skull. Blood and brain oozed down her wrist and stained her vambrace. The body reduced to sand, leaving her with a skull bracelet.

Fragile blood-beings.

All progress toward Sana ceased. Silence filled the orchard save for the keening wind. Sana wiped gore from her face then abruptly twisted away, vomiting.

Vadrigyn recited a Morsam litany. Soft blows, barely more than a swat at the air, would suffice to incapacitate a blood-being. She knew that. Gentle. She must be gentle in combat.

How absurd.

Winter Magic in Summer - THE LONG NIGHT OF THE CRYSTALLINE MOON

At the SFF Seven this week, we're recommending our frothiest books for a light summer read. Well, if you're one of those who likes to celebrate the midwinter holidays in the heat of summer, I've got one for you!

Just out today, I give you THE LONG NIGHT OF THE CRYSTALLINE MOON.

This is a prequel novella to my Heirs of Magic series, previously published in the UNDER A WINTER SKY anthology, and now available as a standalone. If you want a bit of wintery magic, this story will transport you to a fantasy world where the longest night is celebrated at Castle Ordnung. A circle of grown-up childhood friends gather to dance, drink, celebrate the rare sighting of the full Crystalline Moon - and perhaps attempt to rekindle a long-lost love affair. 

For a short time, you can snag this novella for only 0.99c from my website store. As the retailer links go live, you'll find them here - THE LONG NIGHT OF THE CRYSTALLINE MOON - and the price goes up. 

Peanut Butter and Mayo Sandwiches

 

Y'all this is about as controversial as I get. With unpopular opinions being the topic here on the SFF Seven this week, I honestly couldn't think of many options for this post. I guess I never think about what's popular? *insert introverted laughter

Opinions are opinions. When people stand up against facts (real ones, btw) is when I get a little louder.

But! This is not that, and it's not writerly in any way. This is smooth, creamy peanut butter with some mayo (or even Miracle Whip) slathered on white bread. It's so good, though it's been many years since I've eaten it. When I tell people how fabulous it is, I unfailingly get the most disgusted looks shot back at me. :)

My grandmother was born in 1910 and therefore lived through the Great Depression. Many of my childhood meals were a result of her experience, the PB & Mayo Sandwich included.

I dare you to try it.

**OH, and James is on point with his post this week. Listen to your editors, people. We aren't dedicating hours and hours of our lives to your work for the paycheck, trust me on this. Editors are usually genuinely trying to help you succeed and produce your best work. If you don't like your editor, then that's an issue. If you don't like anyone touching your work and you're clinging to your darlings, learn to let that stuff go. 

Happy writing! And PB & Mayo Sandwiches!

Unpopular Opinions? Welcome to my TED Talk.

1. Insomnia's not so bad.
   No, really! It has its limited, mind-numbing, exhausting uses. I mean, I finally got on Tik-Tok and followed people who slay me. Laughing my ass off without waking my family or peeing my pants in the middle of the night counts as exercise, right?
   RIGHT?
2. Being warm is overrated.
   Those of you not enduring a scorching heatwave right now, hear me out. Moving to a warm climate where a good, hard frost is perishingly rare just ain't all it's cracked up to be. Ask the allergic asthmatic how they know.
3. Firefly.
   I'm team Vivien on this one. It can be problematic as hell - just like most human beings I'd posit. But y'know, it did a lot right from a scripting and conflict standpoint. Mostly, I just remember it as a really good time that ended too soon. Of course, had it come out today, it's possible I'd have liked it less because of the yuck factors associated with it.
   
4. Snakes.
   Don't care. I like 'em. Not in my house necessarily, but I like seeing them. I like knowing they're out there in the world doing snake things. 
5. Old cats are the best.
   
   Sure kittens are cute and adorable, but they grow up. Old cats are opinionated, cranky, eccentric as hell, and set in their ways. They might be stiff with arthritis and their hearing may be gone. They might live for another few weeks or for years - getting more assertive and opinionated each day. But they are the cats who appreciate everything you do for them. They're suckers for a warm lap and a few soft pets. The relationship you've forged with them is settled and established. As their worlds get smaller, you move closer and closer to the center of it.
6. Having your parents live with you can be a win.
   Don't think I'm not aware of the incredible privilege I enjoy - my relationship with my folks is pretty damned good and a lot of people aren't that fortunate. In this case, it's even more privileged than that. I get to have this time with a parent who's becoming frailer and whose world is (like the elderly cat's) getting smaller. When we moved my parents into the house, it was to help them age in place and to never need a nursing home. That's a pretty big gift to give and to get. I hope we can sustain it. Are there hard days? Oh, yeah. But you know what? One of the parents brings me tea at random intervals throughout the day and makes fake ice cream every afternoon. It's the little things.
   
7. Pronouns are no big deal.
   Ask what people prefer. Use the preferred pronouns. Mess it up? Correct yourself. No flailing or apology or groveling necessary. Correct. Move on. Impacted people care that you're trying - though at some point - trying needs to move into habit. Otherwise, affected people may be forgiven for bringing an air horn into the conversation to provide demotivating commentary on being misgendered for the thousandth time.
8. Book lights don't actually light up books.
   I'd like to think this isn't an age thing, but it could totally be an age thing. Those tiny LED book lights that so cleverly clip to your book cover and adjust to illuminate the pages you're reading? Yeah, they don't. Sure, I can see the pages and that there are letters on the pages. But provide enough contrast to actually allow my migraine addled brain and eyes to bring those letters into focus so they can be seen, read, and registered? Not a chance. The book light is enough to keep me from killing a cat or dying because I tripped over a cat in the middle of the night, though. So there is that.

 TikTok comedy anyone?

Popular/Unpopular—Find What You Love

 

We’re nearing the end of June and I’ve been absent from the blog for a couple of weeks. Life has been busy and demanding, and my mental bandwidth has been maxed out. 

Today is a new day and this week we’re talking about unpopular opinions. I’d like to say…wait for it…I think I’m full of popular opinions! 

Strawberries are summertime and should be enjoyed in large quantities.

Sunsets are for taking a breath and being thankful for what the day has brought. 

Coffee is for quiet, book contemplations.

Furry side-kicks are for cuddling.

And wine is for sharing the patio with friends! 

What’s a popular opinion you’re in love with right now? 

I hope your week is filled with inspiration!

Unpopular opinions of an unpopular person

I was not a popular kid in school. Not that I was bullied or anything, just mostly ignored, and since I lived chiefly inside my own imagination and books, that didn't bother me as much as it should have. Being awkward and a loner, I never really caught the wave of popular opinion, so it was only years later that I realized most of the things I loved were shoved into niche fandoms or heckled by mainstream popular culture. And then of course, there were the things I loved that were later shown to be problematic or created by problematic people. But try as I might, I couldn't just turn off the deep affection. Turns out love is a really hard thing to kill. 

So anyhow, "unpopular opinion" week on SFF Seven has given me an excuse to list a few of my personal loves that are very, very not loved by others (and that's okay*): 

• Firefly. Yes, it's Whedon, yes it's weird in that a bunch of non-Chinese-looking people speak Chinese even when there are no Chinese-looking characters in the show. Yes, that joke about Shepherd Book's hair was uncomfortably racist. I know these things. I know we can do better. And I still love the show.
• 80s rock n' roll with its avalanche of problematic lyrics. "He must've been about seventeen," in "I Love Rock n Roll," pretty much the entirety of "Dude Looks Like a Lady," the slut shaming in "Once Bitten Twice Shy," and the creepy pedo vibe in, well, several Police songs. I am embarrassed to admit I still sing along with these -- and others -- when I'm alone. 
• Midriff-baring shirts and low-rise bell-bottoms from the 90s. Man, I thought I looked good. (You can laugh. It's okay.)
• Reylo. Okay, yes, the relationship was toxic, and yes, Rey would have been much better off with Finn who is a cinnamon roll and a hero and better looking, and no I do not appreciate how this issue has divided the fandom because it really isn't that important, but also the chemistry onscreen was delicious and has spawned more fanfiction than I want to confess to right at this moment.
• Orson Scott Card. I think he's a brilliant writer, whatever else he might be in his private, non-storytelling life. His early allegories are especially gorgeous. 
• The Oxford Comma. I'm sorry, the serial comma is semantically necessary and none of you AP-Style-loving heathens will ever convince me otherwise.
• English desperately needs a second-person plural, and "y'all" is right there, doing the work. Might as well make it official. (I also like "all y'all" as an extension.)
• Stephen King will be remembered as the 20th century literary great of the English language just like Shakespeare. Updike can suck it. 
• Chihuahuas can be the sweetest little dogs. I don't care how many times you got bitten by your neighbor's toothy deathhound, my Chihuahuas are tiny pacifists who just want treats and a nap. Proof:

* Omitting the serial comma is actually not okay, no matter what I said up there (photo from a page of Steven Pinker's The Sense of Style): 

Unpopular Opinion: A Bit Morbid

 As I sit here surrounded by various medical reports for my hairy beastie's recently discovered $%&# cancer while waiting on more test results and debating whether to subject her to chemo, I can't help but think about quality versus quantity of life. Our society prioritizes quantity. We demand that even those enduring great suffering with no hope of reprieve continue to exist to appease the conscience of others and to continue to pay the ever-hungry capitalist machine...even after we pass on. We, justifiably, fear our fellow man will kill us without our consent, thus we leave no space for exiting with dignity.  

Yes, there are 9 states and DC with Aid-In-Dying laws for those who have a terminal illness with life expectancy not to exceed 6 months. If your terminal illness is a long-haul affair, too bad, so sad. Suck it up. But don't get addicted to the pain killers. Assuming you can pay for them. Better to be a burden on your family than to cause an inconvenient passing thought to a transient legislator. Waste away, would you? Quietly. But not in a place with a hot real estate market. Your decaying flesh bag isn't worth as much as the square footage occupied by your bed. Hang in there until your savings is spent and bankruptcy makes you inconvenient. Long-term hospice? You should've bought into the insurance plan for that. Too late now, though. You don't qualify. Don't you know a dignified death is only for those who can afford for it?

Quality of life, well, if we were to assert that as a priority, we'd break the institutions that blame the immigrant for "stealing jobs" instead of the CEO who suppresses wages to earn his multi-million dollar bonus. We'd break the system of education that teaches children to sit still, be quiet, pay attention, don't ask too many questions, don't make mistakes, don't dare fail, don't be the bent tine in the fork. Accept the scripture of process and precedent. Stay in your assigned lane. Be a good drone. We'd expose the fallacy that hard work earns just rewards. Money would no longer be king. The rules of power would be redefined and accessible to the masses.

My unpopular opinion is that humanity has a broken relationship with both the sanctity of life and the mercy of death. The desire for control drives the former, while the fear of losing it enables the latter. Both are wielded by unscrupulous powers to great cruelty. It'll take more than a social revolution to change that. Sadly.

And now to piss off everyone...

Okay, not really. I actually had a long rambling post, but looking it over I realized that I don't agree with what I said. Sometimes being cntrary for no good reason is a waste of time. Here's my NEW disagreeable rant: editors serve a vital purpose and shoud be listned to in most cases.