#samplewriting

Answering these ones for my brain's current obsession ... which is about a roadie for Rem's band, The Filthy Vandals, and the radio host's voice he falls in love with while trying to avoid being kidnapped by a stalker that wants to go through him to get to Rem ... more or less.

❤️: what’s the working title? Radio Waves, formerly Fast Forward to the End.

💜: where are you in the writing process? Early stages of plotting. I'm not sure I will actually write anything for it until I am done with At the Back of His Throat [where Rem originates from], after which I want to take a break to dabble back in my gothic roots ... so it might be postponed a while. Who knows, though.

🖤: what are your MC names? Jasper, Ryland, Noa, Veronica 'Vee', Rem, Ziggy, Lex, Oliver, Jade, West, Benny, Zara.

I was tagged eons ago by the lovelies @zmlorenz, @samplewriting, and @vellichor-virgo for this! So sorry for the wait, and thank you so much for the tags!!

This will be taken from my wip, Puppet Kingdom, as usual. :)

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My smile lingers before I lower my voice. “Just what are all those books for?”

“I’m sure you guessed that they’re spell books,” he says, “Each contains spells of specific branches of magic, and, as you can see, there’s quite a collection. August is a tremendously talented mage,” his eyes briefly shoot over at Cirillo as he whispers, “Though some people like to take advantage of that.”

Cirillo, who has been softly speaking to August, goes rigid.

“But,” Royal continues, “I like to think they’ll come through and help him in his time of need, if ever there is one.”

“You think so?”

“It’s nice to hope,” he mutters with a sad smile, moving to stand by August.

-----

I answered 7 here  🤍 

20: what are things you look for in a book?

I've spent a full day thinking about this and I still have no idea, to be honest :') I like character driven books and character studies, but the plot also needs to be equally important and as present, if that makes sense. I've noticed I have a trend of specifically loving redheaded characters who are complicated in the narrative and can be divisive and definitely have psychological issues, or trauma, or are deeply like me (ex: Donna Noble, Sansa Stark, Helly R)

thanks so much for the ask!! @samplewriting

17. what writing habits or rituals do you have?

i'm actually not sure?? one thing i always do is read through my notes on the following scenes before i start, and then i keep my outline doc open while writing. i also listen to music often bc my brain shuts down in complete silence kdjdkd

24. favourite genre to write and read

i've answered this before, it's high fantasy! i also really enjoy writing surrealism

41. any advice for new/beginning/young writers?

just the usual 'don't get yourself worked up over (not) getting published or writing masterpieces in no time' i guess. but also that writing is a skill, you don't have to adhere to rules and advice posts but you are going to have to learn how to use certain techniques, how to tell a story the way it's supposed to be told, all that. and that takes TIME. and practice. lots of it. so keep doing what you're doing and you'll notice how your writing's improving and most importantly changing completely and that's great!! embrace it!!!

45. how much worldbuilding do you do?

Meg just could not be arsed with seeing Laura this afternoon. The weather was awful, the train to the city was crowded and to top it all off, she had just noticed that work had failed to pay her on time, again. Great. That left twenty quid for today. Twenty quid to cover a last minute, unnecessary, unwanted brunch date with her boyfriends sister. You see Meg fell under the category of unfortunate souls that had been born without a backbone and therefore, without question, found herself uncontrollably agreeing to plans she didn't want to be part of with people she didn't particularly like time and time again. 

Jumping off at Pearse station it didnt take long for Meg to spot today’s ‘person she didn’t particularly like’. Laura was standing there, just a few feet away, picture perfect with no doubt freshly blown out hair and that goddamn Gucci bag on her arm. Where Laura went, the Gucci followed, which is fine in theory, gotta get your money’s worth after all, but the distate for the thing came from the fact that it was a strange baby sick green colour - and regardless of which outfit it was paired with, it never failed to remind Meg of that fact. 

Before Laura had a chance to spot her, Meg turned her back to her, quickly texting her boyfriend to ask for a bank transfer of another 20 - just in case. James of all people knew that his sister had expensive taste, so it shouldn't be a problem, but that didn't stop Meg from feeling awkward for having to ask. 

I learned something about intuition today—that I knew already on some level—but today, for the first time perceived in depth, in a new light. I learned that intuition can steer me in the right direction when I am trying to reach a tough decision, reach out to people in my deepest moments of indecision, or inspiration...if I ask it to from within. But first I must blatantly seek to be enlightened by whatever imaginative idea that crosses the landscape of my heart and mind. Perhaps this is transcendental.  

Or perhaps it is proof that everything is interconnected through energy which cannot die but only transfer into the ebbing and flowing of the universe. It could be both. I shrug at the thought, because the answer is not in my control either way. All I know is that I know nothing with utter certainty or clarity, and am a student forever bound to the task of learning my mastery. Further still I must learn how I can contribute it to the greater good of humanity, taking into consideration all things that are thrust upon man in order that we might coexist. If life is a question of purpose that we as individuals must answer, then the answer to the question is mine to choose. How my story will unfold to the response of that query is ultimately up to me. I can only reply with complete transparency within myself, willingness to grow personally, using the tools I have been given, and eventually expound on that which already exists in the world.  

The alternative is to reproduce what is comfortable and "safe" but will yield the same unfruitful results that the mass of humanity beguiles itself into believing has created change in individuality or the collective whole. Humanity is woven together through multifaceted chains of social hierarchy's that have fooled some into believing that their gift is not worthy of contributing to the rest of the world. Or worse yet, that they as an individual have no gift to begin with. But that is not true.  

We each have an eternal compass that can, if we choose to seek to initiate it, guide us to our mastery task in life. The unique gift(s) within us have the potential to leave the world exponentially different than when we arrived. The activation of this internal compass will ignite a fire that is fiercely indifferent to the grueling hours of energy it will take to hone it. Our fire within us is unquenchable, and will burn within us all the way to our grave whether we have shared it or not. One must fan the fire to see it's true significance, how large it can become, and how fast it can spread. It will not be easy. No master of anything has ever been free of indecision, self-doubt or distractions. It is inevitable that the people that we admire, love, and are surrounded by will influence us even if only through a crevice that sinks into our subconscious sublimity.  

Has Drake Saved Hip-hop?

Whoa.

 Big claim? Sure. Is it the truth? I’ll let you decide.

Picture hip hop in 2003. Baggy jeans, oversized jerseys, excessive gold jewelry, du-rags! America’s catastrophe. But in retrospect it was our gospel. Rappers such as 50 Cent and Fabolous let us know they came from the streets and that was the only way to be.

Fast forward to 2006. An actor of the “Degrassi: Next Generation” fame drops a mixtape titled Room for Improvement. He was Canadian and “wheelchair Jimmy” so the hip hop community patted him on his back and sent him on his way. Then he drops Comeback Season. Packed with a strong r&b influence, he knocked on the doors of hip hop and some answered.

Singing and rapping? We heard of it before. Extremely emotional and insightful on life? We had rappers of that persona too. All wrapped into one? Uh oh. No one had ever packaged themselves as such. So a tempted risk he remained.

Then the Holy Grail came to fame, So Far Gone. With the smash Best I Ever Had, Houstelantavegas, and a co-sign from Lil Wayne, Drake propelled into fame. He was the new voice of rap. We no longer had to be shot 9 times or struggle with 10 baby mothers – we could be in tune with our feelings and sing Jon B samples with the upmost respect.

Time and time again they try to tear down what is the base of Drake. “He’s too emotional, he’s Canadian, he’s soft” and yet, he’s paid. Any and every song he’s on is in the top 100 (Ask Rick Ross, French Montana, Big Sean).

Kids of suburbia and the hood can join and rap of their relationship issues with no shame. Drake erased the concept of soft being detrimental to mainstream.

Ask yourself, how long can you rap and exploit the street life after a third album?