Ialfa

Pavane in Pearl and Emerald no longer has anybody or anything in it named ????.

Finally.

The next time I decide to write a story from the point of view of a courtier, will someone please sit on me, or hit me over the head, or something. Kide knows everybody in the Coral Palace — If not by name then as so-and-so’s cousin, or whatever, which gives me two walk-on characters to enter into the database, instead of just one.

There are, however, surprisingly few descriptions of anyone’s clothing other than his own.
And many fewer weird dance terms than there were weird music terms in Cantata.
Although, to make up for the lack, we get the names of over a dozen different kinds of flowers.::rueful grin::

I’m still rather delighted with their flower language though. (Am I allowed to admit that?) I wonder if it would be possible to turn it into a web-toy somehow? “Build your own bouquets and send cryptic and ambiguous messages to all your friends”, or something that that?

“To the most eminent [recipient], a courtier named [so-and-so] has ordered the following bouquet for you. It means either ‘I hope you are feeling better’ or ‘My, aren’t you athletic!’ We trust such a cultured and insightful person as yourself will have no difficulty guessing which was intended. Humbly at your service, the Coral Palace gardeners.”

The new personal copy of Cantata (printed up in book form via lulu) arrived today (I needed a new personal copy because my sister bought the old one off me and hauled it off to Canada with her), and my son Ben grabbed it right away, and a minute ago he read one of the amusing bits out loud, like he does when he’s reading Bujold or Pratchett.:)

I was reading Romancing the Blog (because I can't find the oompha to do anything) and happened on this discussion of romantic hero archetypes listed as being: Chief, Bad Boy, Best Friend, Lost Soul, Charmer, Professor, Swashbuckler and Warrior.

And I found myself thinking: “Is Silver a Lost Soul? I hope not, because Heathcliff is the listed example, and I couldn't stand Heathcliff. And yet, Silver is a Lost Soul. Phooey! And Blood is a Bad Boy, another archtype I despise. Grumble. That isn't all they are, though… they are both Chiefs. And, both Professors…”

Bad Boy Professor. Lost Soul Chief.
Bwahahaha!
Okay, realizing that you have put together some unusual combinations is sort of fun…

…but mostly I don't get the attraction of classifying one's heroes this way. If, say, Darcy from _Pride and Prejudice_ is a Chief and my Ikhsior from Cantata is a Chief, where does that get me? Trying to equate the two in my head just makes me go :glurk!: Other than that they both have a commanding presence (as they would say at the Coral Palace) what have they got in common, and why should I care? (Actually, I think Silver has a lot more in common with Darcy, although I would not classify Darcy as a Lost Soul.)

But, for the record, as close as I can figure, my hero's archetypes
Ikhsior: Chief (That seems so inadequate, but what else fits?)
Asond: Chief (Those two are the *same* archetype? Pardon me while I glurk again.) Professor
Algernon: Swashbuckler
Kide: Charmer
Silver: Lost Soul, Chief, Professor
Blood: Bad Boy, Professor, Chief
Talon: Charmer, Chief, Swashbuckler
Turner: Swashbuckler, er… Turner's reflexes are so fast and deadly that he tends to kill people without really meaning to. Does that make him a Warrior, a Bad Boy, or a Lost Soul?
Harchung: Chief
Cabal: Lost Soul, Professor, Warrior

I'm a bit short on Best Friends. Maybe because I married one?

I think the overabundance of Chiefs is not a romantic issue but something else entirely. It goes back to the question “Why are the main characters in fantasies almost always royalty?” If I take that one on it probably ought to be a different post.

Thank you very much for all the congrats and woohoos everyone.

I am always very happy to get to the end of a book, firstly for the joy of completion (yes, I know there are still revisions to be done, that's beside the point, there are always revisions to be done), and secondly because it means I'm allowed to switch to a different project. >:)

So long, elegant-and-witty-court-intrigue! Hello again action-oriented-space-opera-pastiche starring Bambi Wysorickovitz the barbie-doll-blonde investigator with purple eyes.

Kind of cool that I'll be back to working on this one just when the anthology with the related short story comes out. (So that no one coming in late will get confused, I am referring to “Frozen Witness” which will appear in stores as part of the POLARIS anthology shortly. The story is published as hard science fiction, and is not intended to be humorous, but nonetheless makes reference to a Dr. Wysorickovitz…)

Pavane in Pearl and Emerald
Word count: 112651

First draft completed!

Pavane in Pearl and Emerald
Word count: 105815

Kide's political career is in ascendancy, his heart is desolate, and the twelve-year-old girl who adores him is crying on his shoulder.

Oh, and he's develloping a real humdinger of a black eye.

Tsk, tsk! And him a consummate courtier. How could he have gotten himself into this mess? >:)

Pavane in Pearl and Emerald
Word count: 101509

I've been wondering when the rush to the finish phase would hit and I would find myself regularly going way over my daily quota (which I'm most particularly not supposed to do, but at the end of a book I just can't seem to help myself.)

It finally did. Nearly double my daily quota yesterday, and nearly triple today. Alarums and kerfuffles have taken place and next Kide will be handed the very last piece of the puzzle, and will then masterfully solve everything except his romantic difficulties, which, of course, he is going to make worse than ever by solving everything else. Bwahaha!
:bounce, bounce, bounce:
Wheee! Love endings! Love happy endings…
…Love getting to the end.

:Hits ground: Oh-oh…
I am way over my weekly quota and therefore am not supposed to write again until next week.
:whines: But I'm at the best part!

But the rule is there to protect my health, which is vital if I want to get anything done.

Blah!

Pavane in Pearl and Emerald
Word count: 95846

Also, two more tshirts.

Pavane in Pearl and Emerald
Word Count: 90750

Pavane in Pearl and Emerald
Word Count: 80794

Got to write some fun romantic revelation type stuff this week. (Fun for me anyway, my main characters seem somewhat distraught — bwahahaha!)

I also got my first ever personal note from an agent. Yay!
I probably ought to send him a query for something else.

And, Boyd's copy of Cantata in Coral and Ivory arrived from Lulu today.
It looks remarkably like a book.