#sanctuary calling

Thank you @winterandwords for the tag!

Rules: Share the original base ideas for your stories

The Blood Cleaners (YA Dystopia)

What if there was only one occupation of people who cleaned up blood and the the only thing they cleaned up was blood?

Sanctuary Calling (YA Dystopia) What if earth was abandoned as everyone left to live in space while the Amish were allowed to stay?

Brigid Aideen (YA Superhero Scifi Fantasy) What if there was a superhero whose only superpower was immortality?

Columbus Day (YA Scifi) The story of Pocahontas kind of like Avatar except the aliens come to earth and it's a platonic friendship not a romance.

Tagging: @kaylinalexanderbooks @agirlandherquill @buffythevampirelover @authordmalder @thelittlewritingcat

Thank you again @kaylinalexanderbooks for the tags. I'm making this for this tag but couldn't remember if that was the original post I did my first Blood Cleaners post (because Tumblr posts don't have dates....) but because of this open tag here I can say this is for that 😎❤️

Rules: post 3-5 pictures that capture a setting in your world and tell us about it! Remember to cite your sources and include image IDs to make your post accessible!

I've done this before for The Blood Cleaners link 1 link 2

Now I'm doing this for Sanctuary Calling!

Sanctuary Calling is a YA Dystopia set in a future where human civilization lives on Mars, the moon, and space stations, but only a few live on earth. It all began when human civilization was collapsing as a worldwide economic depression caused the governments of many nations to fail. The remaining few who held power formed a world government called the World Council or WC for short. One of the first measures they passed was declaring earth a reservation or "sanctuary", ordering the whole human race to evacuate earth and live in space. The only humans allowed to live on earth were societies that didn't use modern technology - the Maasai, the Inuit, the Sami, various tribal societies, and the Old Order of the Amish.

Nari is an ingenious teenage girl who has lived in a biodome on Mars her whole life. Decades after the evacuation order and many generations living in space, some humans are forming a secret rebellion to earn the right to return to earth. Nari joins the rebels who infiltrate a way back to earth. The plan goes wrong when Nari crash lands near the ruins of Cleveland. She uses her ingenuity to craft a device that flies her south, where she finds an Amish community. Nari's life has turned upside down now that she's gone from her high-tech life on Mars to a quiet electricity-less Amish farm.

Source 1 | Source 2 | Source 3 | Source 4 | Source 5

Welcome to another day of Writemas thanks to @agirlandherquill💚🤍❤️This is a tag game/writing challenge/writing prompt of her brilliant doing 🎶The rules of the tag game are here

For today's prompt I picked a lake. I decided to switch works and take advantage of this to write out a scene for my WIP Sanctuary Calling, another YA Dystopia. I realized this was the golden opportunity to write a key scene where my MC 14 year old Nari is stranded in the middle of Lake Erie on a mostly abandoned earth 😮This is the first time I started drafting for Sanctuary Calling as I was holding off drafting to first do some more research. I figured I might as well start here. This is not Chapter 1 but much further right after the Inciting Incident/Catalyst. If you're curious about the setting and what's going on, I have a post here on the world building and story of Sanctuary Calling.

_____________________________________________________

The lake is real. I shouldn’t be here. I sit in the shallow water of my raft, alone with only the pile of supplies. A sharp pain bites my leg. I don’t pay attention to the pain as I watch the escape pod sink into the dark waters along with the shuttle. There goes Etienne. I’m crying. I cry over someone who I knew for only a few hours who pretty much sacrificed himself for me. A stranger. People who truly know him, a mother and father with kin far away on Phobos, are mourning him without his body. To think that my parents could already be mourning me….

 I shake violently. I shiver. There is nothing but endless water surrounding me. The gray clouds hang low from above. I think about the classroom simulation where I sat in a shaky rowboat in the middle of a lake. The sunshine and green forests were beautiful, but motion sickness overwhelmed me. Back there, I only needed to ask the AI to turn off the simulation. I returned to the wide empty room and detached the nerve stimulators. Not here. I can’t just tell the AI to turn off everything around me. I’m so cold, I wrap my arms around myself. I can’t tell the AI to warm up the room. There was no room. The water below me is real. And it looks deep. The simulator would never drown me. I hug my life jacket.

At least my suit still functions.  

“Jin,” I say to my AI, “turn on the thermal unit.”

Instead of hearing Jin’s assuring alto voice, I hear static. My suit still works. The sleeves warm my limbs. I breathe out some relief as I slowly feel warmer inside. My heart is racing. How long will my suit last? The battery will run out. Imagining earth as the empty paradise of wilderness according to my studies, I see little hope in finding battery cells. There aren’t any solar panels on earth, are there? Then again, the Tenders need electricity whenever they make their annual drops on earth. 

My heart lifts for a moment. Could there be Tenders on earth now? Someone who could rescue me? My sinks again when I think of how Luana and her people must have picked a time of year when none of the WC would be on earth. Whatever she and her toadies plan to do.   

The pain nipping at my left leg, like little sharp thorns puncturing my calf, starts to get on my nerves. I look down. A long slimy black thing bites my calf. Apparently I hadn’t noticed a hitchhiker grasping me during my brief swim. I scream. It could be a humongous leech. I heard about them inhabiting some of earth’s murky fresh waters. Then again, the thing sinking its teeth into my leg is too big to be a leech. I grab its tail and pull. Its teeth dig deeper. I grab its head. I pull harder. I pry the little monster off, leaving a deep bite mark in the back of my calf. Its mouth resembles a suction cup with rows of sharp teeth. I toss it in the air. I never had that good of a throw, but I had to have tossed it at least a dozen meters. I look down at my bleeding calf. 

“Jin,” I say, “can you please initiate healing?” 

At this point, I feel I need to plea for Jin’s artificial life to keep going.

“Initiated,” says a fuzzy, static voice that at least proves Jin is running. For now. 

The back of my leg feels warmer as the healing starts. The nanobots in my suit speed up my body’s healing process. My skin gradually closes over the wounds. I feel better already. Then I also face the reality that if Jin stops working, I’ll have no way to heal if I get injured.

Assuming I get somewhere other than the middle of Lake Erie. 

“Jin, what was that thing? The thing that caused the wound?”

Jin came in broken. “Bite marks indicate you were bit by a sea lamprey.”

Sea lamprey. Sea lamprey.

I remember the classroom lessons and simulations where I interacted with animals from earth. There was freshwater life. Then there was ocean life.“What’s an ocean fish doing in the lake?”

Jin made beeping noises. “There is a large population here in Lake Erie. Historical archives say they are an invasive species. Their numbers likely skyrocketed when humans left earth.”

I don’t understand. “But the Tenders are supposed to care for the earth, including controlling the numbers of earth animals. I thought they were preventing invasive species from increasing their numbers.”

“I have no data on why the population in the lake is so high.” Jin sounded disappointed.

I have to move on. I’m bummed that the raft has no motor. At least I have the oars. Where to from here? 

“Jin, how could I get to the ruins of New York from here?”

A holographic image appears in front of me. A map shows my location, Lake Erie. The map draws a yellow line for the path and lists locations by their pre-Sanctuary names. I would have to go up the Erie canal, cross Lake Ontario, go up the Lawrence River, go down to Lake Champlain, and then down the Hudson River. It's more than 200 kilometers long.  

I put what muscle remains in my arms into pushing the oars. I peer at the horizon. I make out the outline of something in the distance. 

“Jin, what is directly south of me?”

I hear only static. If I lose Jin, I’m toast. Then the staticy voice speaks. 

“Directly south are the ruins of Cleveland.” Jin sounds oddly chirpy. 

“Are any of the Tenders present in the area?”

Jin makes some beeping noises. “I’m afraid I can’t tell. My data indicates that information is classified.”

“Classified?”

“The WC does not reveal their coordinates. They keep that classified to protect the Caretakers from intruders.”

“What does that mean?”

“If the exact locations of the WC Tenders were known, enemies could use that info to find weak spots without WC presence and make unauthorized returns to earth. This would endanger the Caretakers.”

Of course. The Tenders keep their locations secret so that Luana’s little rebel group or their adult masterminds couldn’t find them and isolate them. 

To have any hope of leaving this lake of death, I have to go somewhere. I could go up the mapped route of lakes and rivers to get to Luana’s group in New York (and give them a piece of my mind). But will I be any safer? Luana’s promises of revolution seem like a delusion now. I don’t care about her revolution. I just want to survive. Not knowing the Liberator’s plans and stations, I supposed more of their people could be in Cleveland. If not, could the Tenders or Peace Arms at least be there?

I don’t care if I get arrested and sent to a WC prison. If I need to do that to escape this lake of leech fish, I’ll take my chances. 

“Jin, show me the path to Cleveland.”  

________________________________________________________

Tagging!

@sunflowerrosy @furrywrit3r @wyked-ao3 @selenekallanwriter @drchenquill

@revenantlore @whatwewrotepodcast @jay-avian @constellationandcompendium @olivescales3

@ryns-ramblings @primroseprime2019 @illarian-rambling @kaylinalexanderbooks @kitty-is-writing

@kitkins13 @buffythevampirelover @willtheweaver @poethill @acmartin

@apolline-lucy @elizaellwrites @gioiaalbanoart @orphanheirs @pluppsauthor

@cowboybrunch @leahnardo-da-veggie @dandelion-jester @aalinaaaaaa @faeriecinna

@brynwrites @somethingclevermahogony @rickie-the-storyteller @raevenlywrites @winterandwords

@happypup-kitcat24 @the-golden-comet @ddgraywrites @autism-purgatory @mxxnwishes

@tildeathiwillwrite @screamingatanemptyroom @kbwritesstuff @spookyceph @pluto-murphy-writes

@talesofsorrowandofruin @kaylark @sleepywriter00 @americanfemcel @fairy-tales-of-yesterday

@inkednotebook @the-letterbox-archives @laureleavess @simonnebethel @forthesanityofsome

@melpomene-grey @creatrackers @stephtuckerauthor @theink-stainedfolk

@g0ttest0d @infinnative @little-peril-stories @lyneidas @late-to-the-fandom

Wow day 18 already! If the 12th day of Christmas gives twelve drummers drumming, should the 18th day of Writemas give 18 writers tossing computers? 😁Thank you @agirlandherquill for setting up Writemas! 🤍❄️☃️🌟If you would like to know the rules and join, all that you need is in the invitation post

For the Day 18 writing prompt, I chose the setting prompt of a home. I decided this would be the perfect moment to write a scene from my YA Dystopia/Survival story Sanctuary Calling. Nari lives in a biodome on futuristic Mars in a community dominated by people with Korean heritage. This scene is from early in the novel, like Chapter 2. The conversations foreshadow what's in store.

___________________________________________________________

My parents and I retire to our home - room 1414 of the Pyeongchang Condominium. The building is based on the architecture of postmodern Korean buildings on earth. The lobby is a vertical garden. Vines and moss cover a wall. The fountain in the lobby releases the peaceful sound of nature, like we’re living in a forest. Inside our unit, we feel warmth and comfort. My family’s living room is full of potted plants and shelves of Korean celadons. A screen covers the entire wall near the entrance. The current image is the human avatar of our home AI who we call Cho. She looks like she could be my older sister if I had one. Whatever we need, we ask Cho and she makes it happen.

“Cho,” says my Mom. “Cook up some naengmyeon.”

I go to my bedroom to read over the orientation chip. My room is clean as I like it. The walls populate shelves where I keep my childhood dolls and models of my plane. I keep a chest of plane parts that I plan to bring down to the shop. One wall is covered by a screen, currently featuring the human avatar of my personal AI - Jin. He’s a spunky looking boy who looks like he could be my brother if I had one. At my desk computer, I plugin the chip. The orientation holograms begin to play. I watch the reels introducing the Lunar School of Engineering and Technology. The videos came with sensory emitters that give a smell and taste of the place along with the sights and sounds. I see students working on robotics, spacecrafts, and micromachines. I smell the roses and irises of the school’s gardens. My excitement grows by the second. 

“Nari,” says Jin, smiling on the wall. “Dinner is ready.”

I go into our dining room. The robotic arms of Cho set the table. Even though Cho did the cooking, I follow the etiquette to respect my parents by saying, “I will eat well.”

My parents are pleased as we sit down. Since my dad is the oldest, he eats first, taking in a few sips of soup. My mother follows. Then me.

“You were the star of the show,” my mother says gleaming.

My dad puts down his spoon for a moment to say, “Now I’m going to brag about you with my colleagues.”

“Oh,” says my mom, “I’m going to tell Brynhild that the best student of this year is mine. Best aviator. Youngest of her class. Going to college at only fourteen.”

I smile as I take a tiny bite of rice. 

“However,” my mother lowered her voice, “I still worry about you being in a place where there’s no one your age. All adults and doing adult activities. And so far away on Luna.”

“I’ll be fine, Mom,” I say. “I’m going to be so busy studying anyway. The staff will also know my age. They’ll make sure no one bothers me. Also, I’ve heard of some other gifted students who went there early. A seventeen year old. A sixteen year old.”

My mom shakes her head. “Nari, for your safety, don’t go on dates with anyone older than you.”

I laugh. “No argument here. Like I said, studying.”

My mom nods. “That’s a smart move, Dear. You can’t let that interrupt your studies and possibly your career. As your father and I could tell you as anyone who has ever been in love can tell you, when you are in love, you’re willing to sacrifice anything for it.”

I roll my eyes. I smile as I add, “I’d only date a guy who's into airplanes, anyway.”

My mother and father look at each other. My mom nods once. My dad nods back.

“Nari, Dear,” he says to me. “Your mother and I want to tell you something.”

I had picked up my chopsticks, but now put them down. 

My dad studies each grain of rice on his dish as he says, “After you graduate from the Lunar school, you could apply for medical school and make it in quickly….”

I pick up my spoon. I bend it. The best way to imagine that I’m tearing something apart. 

Despite my anger, my mother pipes in. “You could also study only one or two years at the Lunar school before you transfer…”

I’ve just about had it. Not a meal goes by without my parents saying it’s not enough. I need to be a cardiologist like my dad. Or I need to be better than my dad and be a surgeon. I gave up trying to win the argument a long time ago. The best I can do is amuse myself.

I laugh harder. “Oh, I’m sorry. You meant to send a text to the Kang family about how their son was accepted into the Ivy Martian Medical School! Let’s go downstairs to congratulate them!”

My dad curls his lips. “Nari! This is serious. For one who accomplished so much, you’re selling yourself short.”  

I grit my teeth. “Joo is selling himself short? How can you be so judgmental!”

My mother widens her eyes. “Don’t talk to your father like that!”

I gave up a long time ago. There’s no point in letting this go on for hours. I leave my spoon and chopsticks at the side of my bowl. I haven’t followed etiquette since the few bites I took left plenty of leftovers, but I don’t care anymore.

I stand up. “I ate well!”

I storm off to my bedroom. 

I crash on my bed, taking in the warmth of my puffy white comforter. I cry as I think about how I can’t wait to go to Luna. I just want to get away from my parents. Thankfully, my scholarship includes a meal plan.  For once, I’ll finally have a meal without the arguments over how my first choice was their second choice and I was too good for the second best. 

I wish Soo was here so that I can just rant with her. 

___________________________________________________________

Tagging mutuals! (No obligation to join) 🎁🔔🛷🐑🍬🕯️🦌🎼🍂

@sleepyrxsetea @edstoriesblog @thecomfywriter @pen-for-sword @toribookworm22

@sunflowerrosy @furrywrit3r @wyked-ao3 @selenekallanwriter @drchenquill

@revenantlore @whatwewrotepodcast @jay-avian @constellationandcompendium @olivescales3

@ryns-ramblings @primroseprime2019 @illarian-rambling @kaylinalexanderbooks @kitty-is-writing

@kitkins13 @buffythevampirelover @willtheweaver @poethill @acmartin

@apolline-lucy @elizaellwrites @gioiaalbanoart @orphanheirs @pluppsauthor

@cowboybrunch @leahnardo-da-veggie @dandelion-jester @aalinaaaaaa @faeriecinna

@brynwrites @somethingclevermahogony @rickie-the-storyteller @raevenlywrites @winterandwords

@happypup-kitcat24 @the-golden-comet @ddgraywrites @autism-purgatory @mxxnwishes

@tildeathiwillwrite @screamingatanemptyroom @kbwritesstuff @spookyceph @pluto-murphy-writes

@talesofsorrowandofruin @kaylark @sleepywriter00 @americanfemcel @fairy-tales-of-yesterday

@inkednotebook @the-letterbox-archives @laureleavess @simonnebethel @forthesanityofsome

@melpomene-grey @creatrackers @stephtuckerauthor @theink-stainedfolk

@g0ttest0d @infinnative @little-peril-stories @lyneidas @late-to-the-fandom

@author-a-holmes @alinacapellabooks @stesierra @stephtuckerauthor @unrepentantcheeseaddict

@csdarkfantasy @watermeezer @distortedsense @sarahlizziewrites @ceph-the-ghost-writer

It is now Christmas Eve! The last day of Writemas is here! Thank you so much @agirlandherquill for making Writemas possible!🫂 It helped me reach my writing goals, be productive, and get creative. I've enjoyed posting snippets of my writing. Thank you to all who have complimented and accepted this gift! 🤗

For the 24th Day of Writemas I chose the prompt "One day, everything we know will be gone. Until that time, you owe it to history to enjoy it." I liked how this and a couple of the dialogue prompts fit in with my YA Dystopias where a character speaks up against the oppressive region. I realized that it was something my Sanctuary Calling OC Luana would say in the scene where she invites Nari to join her cause, especially with the context of how the two enjoyed VR simulations with historic periods. This was a great excuse to write a scene I wanted to write for so long. I hope you all enjoy this girl 🎀🎁

___________________________________________________________

Luana sits in my tea table chair while I sit in my desk chair. She glances around at the old toys, Korean decor, and plane models. 

She looks at me as she says, "One day, everything we know will be gone. Until that time, you owe it to history to enjoy it."

I rarely hear something like this, if ever. The WC’s media focuses on the immortality of a civilization they believe will last for thousands of years. They describe humanity’s ancestors as fools who defiled Sanctuary’s beauty as a basis for how the WC will foster a greater humanity. 

“Yes,” I agree. “We wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for the hard work and sacrifices of our ancestors. We can’t take life for granted.”

I watch Luana’s face, taking in every detail of her long dark hair, observant dark eyes, floral crown and leis. A feeling tells me there’s something inside her, brewing in her mind. I have no idea. I brush it aside. 

She points at the models of my planes. “Is that why you do what you do? Making the most for our future just as our ancestors did?”

“Of course,” I say. “I mean I love it. From the time my father first taught me. I was really little. And if I can use what I love to create a better life, a better future for humanity, why not?”

Luana nods. “I…I should be honest with you.” Her voice draws melancholy. “I overheard that argument with your parents. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop….”

I sigh. “Oh, it’s fine. I was afraid you heard it. I’m not surprised. Honestly, that’s how it is every night.”

Luana closes her eyes for a second, then opens them. “I take it your parents have a different view of what’s best for the future than you do?”

“Well, yeah,” I say because of how obvious it is. “My parents are biased. They’re from families full of doctors. They believe medicine is superior. They believe I need to save as many lives as my father has to continue the family legacy.”

“I’m sorry,” Luana says softly. “Having to put up with that every night. I can’t imagine.”

I nod. “That's why it’s so important to go to the Lunar School. I’ll finally leave them behind. Do what I want to do.”

Luana tightens her lips. “Will it ever end though? What if five years from now, you’re an aerodynamics engineer and one of the best in the field. Will your parents talk about how proud they are of you? Or will they talk about what could have been?”

I hang my mouth open. I try to process. All that had dreamed the Lunar School would give me seems to drift away. “I never thought about it but…” But yes. For all that I envisioned of going to school, graduating, and designing the flying machines of the future, there’s not a light at the end of the tunnel when my parents are standing where the light should be. I know them well enough to know they will spend the rest of their lives ranting about what could have been, even if I develop the fastest flying land vehicle ever. 

I raise my voice a little. “Why are you saying this?” I almost forget the wonderful day we spent in the simulators with Myeongseong and Liliʻuokalani. I now wonder who this exchange student is who had to come into my life. 

Luana slowly looks around the room.

“Well?” I ask, losing my patience.

“Nari,” Luana says gently. “Are you able to turn off the home AI?”

“Oh, sure,” I say. I’m not supposed to cut Cho off from my bedroom, but my parents won’t notice if it’s only for a few minutes. If we’re going to keep talking about my parents behind their backs, it makes sense. “Jin, turn off Cho’s connection in this room.”

“As you wish!” Jin chirps giddily. 

“Also,” Luana adds, “are you fine with turning off your quant?”

I blink. I’ve never heard that phrase before. I suppose it makes sense for a few minutes if we want a private conversion. “Um, okay. Jin, turn my quant off.” I’ll have to manually turn it back on when we’re done, but I’ll live. 

Luana smiles satisfactorily. “Sorry for the secrecy. I have to be extra cautious with your parents. They’re so close to the Chancellor that I’d say they’re friends.” 

I chuckle. “My mom is friends with the Chancellor!”

Luana nods. “So I had to be careful.” She stands up. “Nari, what if I were to tell you that you have the chance to connect the roots of our ancestors with the present for a better future?”

I tilt my head. “I would ask what does that mean?”

Luana strides around me. I watch. 

“Nari, you are very different from everyone else. The speech you gave at the student aviation show. Everything that I’ve seen you do and say today. You have a good head on your shoulders. And a good heart. That’s why I’m trusting you with a secret. What if I was part of a group who knew a way to free you from your parents while freeing all of humanity? Giving you the chance to live your dreams? Giving your chance to walk where your ancestors walked? Enjoying the beauty of this universe?”

I freeze. I feel tingling. Butterflies in my stomach. Chills running up my veins. “I would ask what’s the catch?”

I turn to watch as Luana sits on my bed. “It doesn’t come free. It comes with a lot of sacrifice, but it’s worth it.”

I peer at her. I’m catching on to what our visitor is really about. I should have known back when I saw her profile’s bold bio line: You deserve to be free.

“Come on,” I say. “If you’re part of the Return to Earth Initiative, just say it!”

Luana laughs. “You’re smart Nari! Nice of you to call us that instead of the not so nice names the WC calls us.”

I tap my knee. “Look, I have no interest in reporting you. But I believe you’re barking up the wrong tree. Whatever you’re asking of me, forget it.”

Luana leaned forward. “I can walk away. I appreciate you keeping this a secret. If you give me a chance to make my case, will you listen? I think you want to hear it.”

“Ok,” I say amused. “I’m listening.”

__________________________________________________________

@sleepyrxsetea @edstoriesblog @thecomfywriter @pen-for-sword @toribookworm22

@sunflowerrosy @furrywrit3r @wyked-ao3 @selenekallanwriter @drchenquill

@revenantlore @whatwewrotepodcast @jay-avian @constellationandcompendium @olivescales3

@ryns-ramblings @primroseprime2019 @illarian-rambling @kaylinalexanderbooks @kitty-is-writing

@kitkins13 @buffythevampirelover @willtheweaver @poethill @acmartin

@apolline-lucy @elizaellwrites @gioiaalbanoart @orphanheirs @pluppsauthor

@cowboybrunch @leahnardo-da-veggie @dandelion-jester @aalinaaaaaa @faeriecinna

@brynwrites @somethingclevermahogony @rickie-the-storyteller @raevenlywrites @winterandwords

@happypup-kitcat24 @the-golden-comet @ddgraywrites @autism-purgatory @mxxnwishes

@tildeathiwillwrite @screamingatanemptyroom @kbwritesstuff @spookyceph @pluto-murphy-writes

@talesofsorrowandofruin @kaylark @sleepywriter00 @americanfemcel @fairy-tales-of-yesterday

@inkednotebook @the-letterbox-archives @laureleavess @simonnebethel @forthesanityofsome

@melpomene-grey @creatrackers @stephtuckerauthor @theink-stainedfolk

@g0ttest0d @infinnative @little-peril-stories @lyneidas @late-to-the-fandom

@author-a-holmes @alinacapellabooks @stesierra @stephtuckerauthor @unrepentantcheeseaddict

@csdarkfantasy @watermeezer @distortedsense @sarahlizziewrites @ceph-the-ghost-writer

Thank you for the tag @willtheweaver 😎

My Questions are:

1. What would it take for you to admit you were wrong?

2. Are you forgetful? If so, how do you remind yourself to do things?

3. Do you consider yourself a neat freak?

I sent the questionnaire to the main couples of my two YA Dystopia books I'm working on, namely Justin and Joselyn from The Blood Cleaners and Nari and Abe from Sanctuary Calling.

1. What would it take for you to admit you were wrong?

Justin: When I am puzzled to not get the results I expected.

Joselyn: When I see someone I love suffer.

Abe: When I’m dying.

Nari: When others pay the price for what I did.

2. Are you forgetful? If so, how do you remind yourself to do things?

Justin: I’m not forgetful because I could get my hide tanned if I wasn’t. Not to mention I don’t want some jerks to forget what they did to me. 

Joselyn: I am the one reminding my sisters and co-workers of what to do.

Abe: I can be. My sisters often send me reminders. I also follow our routine on the farm to the tee. 

Nari: I’m not forgetful. I credit my calendar and chart I carry in my smart watch wherever I go. I have every hour of my day planned out.

3. Do you consider yourself a neat freak?

Justin: My job involves cleaning things sixteen hours a day. No way I’m going to clean things up when I’m not working. Well, unless Mamá asks me.

Joselyn: Not a neat freak, but I make sure my sisters clean their rooms, mine is tidy, and the house is clean. It helps keep my parents from exploding (they already do, but this way they have one less excuse to)

Abe: I’m messy, but I feel bad if my Mutter and sisters clean up after me. 

Nari: Yes, everything has to be spotless! After I get my homework done, I don’t get anything else done until I’ve cleaned up everything to a tee!

Tagging (not required): @cowboybrunch @duckingwriting @poethill @kaylinalexanderbooks @buffythevampirelover @apolline-lucy @melpomene-grey

Your questions:

Have you ever gone against your morals? What got you to or would get you to make that decision?

Did you have any speech disorders as a child?

Thank you @tildeathiwillwrite and @willtheweaver for the tags! 👩‍💻

I'm answering for my main characters Nari and Abraham of Sanctuary Calling.

1. Is there any boundary you will not cross?

Nari: I would never kill someone. I would never sacrifice the things I love the most, like my hobby and dream job of aerospace engineering. 

Abraham: I would never kill, cause physical harm, or fight back even if someone is trying to hurt me. 

2. Do you believe that your government/laws are just? Why or why not?

Nari: Our government is controlling, but it keeps our community organized. I don’t like the restraints on my freedom, but I am a perfectionist. I love that my home is orderly. One part of me says I should say that our government is unfair. Another part says our government isn’t responsible for all of our problems. 

Abraham: In the town we live in, the elders are strict with enforcing the rules of our faith. I find it unfair when people are banished and I myself could be banished for following my dream, yet I think banishment is better than the cruel punishments of other societies. 

3. What does peace mean to you?

Nari: The things that anger people and cause heartache are gone. Our government claims to keep the peace, yet I feel if the government loosened up, less people would be angry.

Abraham: People willingly live humbly and peacefully, not out of force. Everyone understands the need to be humble and acts humble rather than worrying about the actions of others. The rest of the world is like my peaceful town because people pursue peace rather than revenge, anger, and pride. 

If you could change the past, would you?

Nari: Yes. Before the story begins, I would have changed the past to prevent my friend Soo from breaking up with me. During the story, I would change the past to not go on the journey that got me into this trouble.

Abraham: No, I believe as my parents do that it’s better to accept what’s done is done. What happens is God’s will and happens for a reason. 

Do you trust the ones supposed to protect you?

Nari: My parents are supposed to protect me. I trust them for the most part. They give me food and shelter. They raised me well. They care for me. Yet they want to control my life, telling me what I should be. I’m less happy with them each day as they try to control my future.

Abraham: My parents protect me. I trust them. They’ve never let me down. If there’s danger, I can depend on them. If I get hurt, I can depend on them. Our homestead is safe because of them.

Are you at fault?

Nari: I own my mistakes. If my plan has a malfunction or breaks, I check to see what I did wrong. I get myself into a mess that’s my fault, but I still have the right to be mad at those who helped get me there. Those rebels are still at fault for convincing me to join. My parents are at fault for making me want to get away from them. Our teachers are at fault for not honestly teaching how dangerous the earth is. Now that I think about it, I don’t own this mess as much as I thought.

Abraham: I’m expected to be honest and humble. Yes, I am at fault. But to be fair, my siblings are also at fault….

No pressure tagging: @kaylinalexanderbooks @buffythevampirelover @kaylark @g0ttest0d @ddgraywrites @mk-writes-stuff @illarian-rambling @leahnardo-da-veggie @drchenquill

Your questions:

What is your favorite song/book/movie/show/game/story/tale/other media form to quote from?

If you could replace one person in your life, who would it be?

Thank you @somethingclevermahogony for the tag here

Rules: Rephrase the line in the voice of your characters.

Since I’m working on character development, world building, and outlining for my new YA Dystopia, Sanctuary Calling, I decided to do this for as many characters as I could to get to know them better.

My line is: "Well, I guess we're both losers, huh?"

Nari: Okay fine, epic fail for us.

Abraham: We're both on the bottom, but we can still appreciate what we have.

Rachel: We are nobodies. It's humbling, isn't it?

Anna: God is not smiling on either of us.

Rebecca: See, we're both just as bad off.

Obadiah: How funny it is that God’s will is we're both on the losing end.

Gyeong: Hey, if things are bad for you, it's no better for me.

Dae-Jung: I'm not surprised I'm a loser, but you on the other hand….

Luanne: We’re losers, but we are who we are no matter what the status quo says.

Brynhild Gunnarsdottir: We’re both losers just as we all are losers.

Zeke: Haha! I'm a loser but you are too!

Tagging (no pressure): @kaylinalexanderbooks @buffythevampirelover @willtheweaver @the-golden-comet @winterandwords @charlesmoffat @sunset-a-story @faeriecinna @aalinaaaaaa