Getting to Know You Tuesday: Murder

October 18, 2011 — Rebecca Enzor

A vacuum flask, the perfect murder weapon.

Stephanie over at Scribbler to Scribe asked everyone on G+ how they would hide a body on Friday. I’ve given this a lot of thought (because I’m a WRITER, not because I’m a murderer) and my answer was: “I hide the body in the liquid nitrogen tank at work, then when it’s all super frozen I smash it into little bitty pieces (this is how we process tissue samples anyways, so it wouldn’t even LOOK suspicious!) then I put all those pieces in the oven and cook them into nothing so they fly away through the ventilation system.”

That inspired today’s Getting to Know You question: what is your favorite way to kill someone in a novel?

While you can never go wrong with a good old-fashioned throat slitting, my favorite death scene is once again work-inspired. While I was writing Phooka Tales I was trying to figure out how to blow up a vacuum flask. It should be impossible, even if you mix acids and bases inside, because the suction sweeps all the explosive gases away. While I was puzzling through this problem one of my co-workers accidentally blew up the vacuum flask. In hindsight I probably should have been more concerned for his safety and less excited about the fact that he had just done the one thing I needed to do in the book (he was fine – somehow ALL of the glass and liquid missed him). When we finally figured out what happened I wrote it in to PT.

Ever since then my favorite way to kill someone has always been Deana’s death in PT: she opens a 2.5L bottle of nitric acid to mix a reagent, and leaves it open as she turns on the vacuum flask (she’s rushed). There was a small crack in the flask that she didn’t see and the sudden pressure causes it to implode so hard that all the pieces hit each other and explode out (this is what actually happened in my lab), knocking over the bottle of acid. She’s hit with glass shrapnel and falls into the puddle of nitric acid that’s now on the floor and it eats half her face off before they find her the next morning.

Pretty nasty huh? So what’s your favorite death scene?

Posted in Grab Bag, Phooka Tales. 12 Comments »

Happy Autumn!

September 27, 2011 — Rebecca Enzor

Autumn actually started on Friday, but it’s hard to tell that it started at all in Charleston. The trees are still green, the air is still muggy and hot, and everyone’s still wearing sundresses and sandals. I plan on going to the beach at least one more time before I put my bathing suits away (yes, I have more than one. I LIVE at the beach during summer!), and while I’ve had my first pumpkin latte of the year I had to get it as a frappuccino.

But I celebrated the equinox on Friday with a harvest feast and the one thing that really makes it feel like autumn to me: the scents of fall.

Mmmmm. You can smell that can’t you? The cinnamon broom whisking all of the negativity out of the house and hanging by the door so it smells delightful every time you open the door. The candle that smells like pumpkin pie, or apple cider, or clove. The oil burner with sandalwood and frankincense. Rosemary and thyme in the kitchen. And best of all? The smell of cooler weather sneaking in at night when the sun’s gone down just a little bit earlier than last night. Take in a deep breath, and let out a happy sigh.

When I start smelling those classic scents of autumn it makes me want to curl up next to the fireplace, notebook and pen in hand, and start writing. Get lost in the woods of Fie Eoin as the leaves change color. Sit on the shore of Loch Ness and pet a kelpie. Go to a football game and snuggle in close with Apollo. Take Mikayla for a horseback ride by the river. Jump off a cliff with Neona.

What’s your favorite scent of fall? Where does it take you when you smell it?

Posted in Apollo and Daphne, Book of Souls, Grab Bag, Lane's Girl, Phooka Tales, The Nameless Warrior (Fie Eoin). Tags: , , . 14 Comments »

Top Ten Countdown – Music Blogfest!

January 24, 2011 — Rebecca Enzor

“Counting down our top tunes of all time! Music moves us. It inspires us! Now, tell the world YOUR ten favorite songs of all time. The Song, the band – why does it move you?”

Welcome to the Top Ten Countdown Music Blogfest! I have a feeling that my list is going to be wildly different from most on this blogfest, if only because I listen to different music than most of the people I know in real life. And since all of my favorite songs remind me of a character or a scene, you aren’t likely to find Casey Kasem’s Top 40 in here.

#10: Baby Blue – Dave Matthews Band. Much like Wilco’s One Wing (which didn’t make the cut) this song makes me cry every time I hear it. It’s this line: “I confess I’m not quite ready to be left”. I can’t help but think of Lane watching Rebecca die (over and over and over in all those worlds, but mostly in Lane’s Girl). And if I try to stop thinking of Lane and Rebecca then Gar and Kindra crowd in and that makes me cry doubly hard. So while most of the other songs on this list make me happy, Baby Blue makes #10 because it tears my heart out and leaves it sobbing on the floor.

#9: See The World – Gomez. On to something a little happier. For years I had no idea who sang this song but whenever it came on the radio it made me think of Gar. It’s still his song, as far as I’m concerned, although I can imagine him singing it to Kindra (or, you know, thinking it at her, since she would make merciless fun of him if he sang to her).

#8: What I Wouldn’t Do – A Fine Frenzy. This song sounds like spring to me. It sounds like going on a trip with your best friends and walking in patchy sunlight under spring-green trees. It makes me think of the beginning of Book of Souls, when Neona, Sean and Alicia begin their journey and their spirits are high.

#7: Sprawl II – Arcade Fire. This is the only song on the list that doesn’t remind me of a specific scene or character. But I like it. I Love it. It’s the beat, and the slightly-wavery voice of the lead singer, and the lyrics, and the fact that it makes me want to dance circles around the living room in a frilly skirt with my dogs.

#6: Come Alive – Foo Fighters. This song started out as Holly’s for the scene when she finally snaps and attacks the manticore. Then it became Karigan’s for the scene when Bar attacks her. Then everyone started sharing it and now this song can be used for any character and any novel (although it still makes me think of Kari and Holly first). I love songs that can do double-duty like that. Plus, it’s one of those pump-you-up-and-get-you-out-of-bed-in-the-morning songs.

#5: Whoa Mule – Black Crowes. I like the weird songs on albums. The ones that most people don’t really care for or against. They tend to be my favorites, and Whoa Mule is one of these songs that most people probably don’t think about. But it’s one of my favorite songs ever.  It sounds happy, day-dreamy, like everything is going to be good if you just give it a little bit more time. It’s also Holly’s happy-song.

#4. One Sweet Love – Sara Bareilles. Before any story or character this song makes me think of my husband. He travels a lot for work, and it makes me think of sitting outside on the beach, watching the sun go down and the waves come in, and waiting for him to come back. “No ordinary wings I need, the sky itself will carry me back to you” is my favorite line and it always reminds me of him when he is gone (or when he’s here and I’m at work).

#3: The Mystic’s Dream – Loreena McKennitt. Whenever I need to calm down I put this song on. It’s relaxing, it makes me think of mountains and Fie Eoin and the twins. When it’s time to start working on FE this is the song I play, and it is often the first song I play when I get to work in the morning. It’s an easy way to get into the business of the day and get my mind in-tune.

#2: In My Head – Anna Nalick. This song makes me think of Lane in a way that almost makes him real. When we first moved to Charleston and my husband was working all summer in a different city and was only home on the weekends this was the song that brought me through that horrible, lonely time. And I can honestly say that this song started me on the path to writing as more than just a hobby. It’s because of this song, and Lane, and my loneliness that I decided I wanted to do this writing thing as well as I could. That was six years ago, and I’m still struggling to fulfill that dream, but whenever I’m lonely, and feeling down about writing, or missing my husband this song can still pull me through.

#1: All Souls Night – Loreena McKennitt. I could fill this list with just Loreena McKennitt songs and call them my top ten of all time and it would be the truth, but the two in this list stick out in my mind. All Souls Night is the sound of a festival in Fie Eoin. Any festival. It makes me want to dance around a bonfire in the middle of the night and drink wine out of a clay mug and look up at a sky full of more stars than I have ever seen.

And those are my top ten songs of all time. What are yours?

For more top ten songs, visit the Music Blogfest on Alex’s blog!

Posted in Blogfest, Book of Souls, Lane's Girl, Lane's Girl Serial, Phooka Tales, Rebecca Stories, The Nameless Warrior (Fie Eoin). 27 Comments »

NaNo Prep

October 20, 2010 — Rebecca Enzor

Back when I was a practicing Wiccan (it didn’t stick, I really sucked at being a witch. I really suck at being anything with a set practice of rituals) I read in a book on Wiccan rituals that the circle started well before calling the corners and lighting the candles. It started when you got into the mind set. It started in the preparations. And it’s the same way for NaNo. Wrimos love November because they finally get to start writing, but I love October. I love the preparation and the anticipation. I love getting in the mind set of writing like a maniac.

One of my Wiccan friends told me that she uses a certain CD to get in the mind set for a ritual. Her ritual starts when she turns on the CD and begins to prepare for the circle. And her brain is now hard-wired to get into that mind set whenever she hears those songs, even if it’s the middle of a random Tuesday. So I tried that, and it worked. To this day when I hear the Prologue to “The Book of Secrets”, by Loreena McKennit, I am immediately put in the frame of mind of the ritual. And I can do the same for my writing. “The Mystic’s Dream” or “All Souls Night” (also Loreena McKennit) puts me right into Fie Eoin, wherever I am. Most of Loreena’s songs put me in Fie Eoin. Mat Kearney conjures up Apollo and his crew. “Come Alive” by the Foo Fighters makes me think of Holly and the Manticore, or Karigan and Bar depending on my mood. Many Dave Matthews songs make me think of Rebecca and Lane. And “What I Wouldn’t Do” by A Fine Frenzy or “St Stephen’s Cross” by Vienna Teng makes me think of Neona and Book of Souls.

It’s a convenient little trick, using music to put you in the right frame of mind. When I want to work on Fie Eoin – no matter what I’m doing – I can turn on the playlist and I’m there, ready to listen to Kindra and Kaye. And when I’m planning Book of Souls this month and writing it next month I’ll play A Fine Frenzy, Vienna Teng, and the Avatar soundtrack (I happened to be storylining BoS when I first listened to the soundtrack, so instead of reminding me of the movie it now puts me straight into Neona’s world. Unfortunately the CD doesn’t work in my car or on my work computer :/).

What about you? Do you have any rituals to prepare and get yourself in the writing mind frame? Are there any albums or songs that remind you of your characters and your worlds?

Don’t forget to visit the other Wrimos in the blogchain and find out how they prepare for NaNoWriMo!

Posted in Apollo and Daphne, Book of Souls, NaNoWriMo, Phooka Tales, Rebecca Stories, The Nameless Warrior (Fie Eoin). 8 Comments »

Writing Compelling Characters

September 24, 2010 — Rebecca Enzor

Today’s topic comes courtesy of The Great Blogging Experiment. Go check it out, because there are (at the time of this post) 174 bloggers signed up to write about the same topic in one giant chain of character blogginess. Shutup, spellcheck, that is too a word.

As anyone popping over from the Experiment may not know, this blog is almost all character-related. I talk about my characters. I talk about what makes them tick, why I love them, and why other people love them. I splash in a little bit of world-building and the occasional writing advice, but mostly this is a blog about the way my characters are developing. How I am trying to make them grow and learn and become compelling characters to read about.

So what do I think makes a compelling character? Struggle. There must be some internal struggle that lets you know they aren’t just a cut and paste paper doll. Kindra struggles with what she wants in life versus what she promised her father. Rebecca struggles with her secrets (so many secrets and lies). Apollo struggles with guilt, Holly struggles with stress of all sorts. Everyone has a problem that they have to learn to deal with, and none of them gets it right the first time. Or even the second time. They aren’t perfect. They all struggle with life and they all struggle with balancing what they want to do with what they should do. Just like you and me.

That’s really what makes a character feel real. That’s what makes them compelling.

For other takes on what makes a character compelling, don’t forget to check out The Great Blogging Experiment!

Posted in Apollo and Daphne, Blogfest, Grab Bag, Phooka Tales, Rebecca Stories, The Nameless Warrior (Fie Eoin). 24 Comments »

Point of view. Or rather, a certain point that I view things from.

May 26, 2010 — Rebecca Enzor

I’m starting to think that I might be kind of weird.

No, hear me out now.  Really.

Last night I was writing some Fie Eoin, because I sorta, kinda, am really in love with it, and I realized that I always look at Fie Eoin from the southeast.  Whenever I see Fie Eoin in my mind, I’m looking from the southeast.  No matter where I am in the village.  If I’m in the center of the village then Kindra’s tent is directly to the left of me, the High Priestess’ two over to the right.  The HP’s tent is directly east (where the sun rises – woah boy the symbolism!), but I always kind of look between the two.  Even inside the tents I look from the southeast at the tent.  I never stand in the doorway and look into the tent – I’m always looking from behind a cot.  It’s the weirdest thing.  And I just realized it last night.

The only time I look from another direction is during the wedding scene (who gets married? I’m not telling!) when I look from the southwest.  I only do it for a moment before I’m back in the east.  I only look that way while Susan is being killed, because I wouldn’t be able to see her from the southeast (and who doesn’t want to watch someone being killed at a wedding?).  It’s the same in Aleda – I look from the southeast.  Same in Gaerlom (you would think I’d look at the village from the ocean, but no, I look from the forest which makes no real sense).  Same in Fie Obsid.  Same all throughout Pike’s Revenge.  What is this obsession with the southeast?

I started thinking of other stories, and what direction I look at them from.  Let’s see, Apollo? Southeast, unless you are in his house, where it changes to northeast.  After Ancient? Southeast until they get to the Mississippi Ocean.  Phooka Tales?  hmmmm, yep, southeast.  Even the manor is on the southeastern shore of the Loch Ness.  Lane’s Girl? Ah Ha!  I look at Lane’s Girl from the north.  I can prove it, just take a look at the drawing of Archein I made on a sticky.  The main gate is to the north, and the hidden gate to the west, and this is always the way I look at Archein – from the north.

So really this post has no reason behind it, other than to illustrate the face that I don’t like to look at things from the west.  Unless I’m standing on Sullivan’s Island Beach, which I will be doing all next week!  Don’t expect any posts from me while I’m on vacation ;)

Posted in After Ancient, Apollo and Daphne, Lane's Girl, Phooka Tales, Rebecca Stories, The Nameless Warrior (Fie Eoin). Leave a Comment »

Sticky #55

May 24, 2010 — Rebecca Enzor

 

I’m pretty sure that everyone who writes has that one phrase that they rely on and always turn to in every story.  It’s kind of like having that one character that you kill in every story (what? I’m the only one who does that?).  It’s the fall-back phrase, or something that rings so true for one character, but then also rings true for another character…and another…and that one too.  In any case, I have one of those phrases, and mine is “I’m stronger than you think”.

I don’t know why that’s my go-to phrase of choice.  Maybe because my characters like to fight.  In this sticky, Kaye from Fie Eoin is saying it, but I know Lane Morgan says it in one of the Rebecca Stories, Holly Thompson may not say it in Phooka Tales but she could, and I’m pretty sure one of my newest characters says it also (whether it’s Anna or Neona I can’t say, because I keep getting them confused).  In any case, all of my characters are stronger than you think (except Rebecca, who is weaker than she lets on), and so am I.  It makes me feel good to write that sentence.  It makes me feel – well – strong.  To be inside someone’s head as they challenge another person with their strength – that’s how I’d like to think I am.  I’m the person who is stronger than you think.  I’m the person who has this deep well of strength (whether physical, mental, emotional, ect) that bubbles up at the least expected times.  I’m the one who can finish what you can’t finish and can plow through when everyone else sits out at the sidelines. 

I’m the one who is going to finish against all odds and write this book and EDIT this book and eventually get published.  I know I will.  Because I’m stronger then you think I am.

Posted in Book of Souls, Lane's Girl, Phooka Tales, Rebecca Stories, Sticky Notes, The Nameless Warrior (Fie Eoin). 2 Comments »

Writing Meme, Day 30

April 30, 2010 — Rebecca Enzor

30. Final question! Tag someone! And tell us what you like about that person as a writer and/or about one of his/her characters!

I have decided to ignore Question #30 and instead focus a little bit more on what’s next.  So, new Question #30: What’s next?

If you’ve been reading my Twitter Feed or Facebook Page you know I’m feeling a little bit overwhelmed as of late with all the stories running around my brain.  I’ve got Fie Eoin, which I’m trying to organize by ripping all of the hand-written pages out of the notebooks they are scattered in and putting them in some kind of order in a hard-backed folder.  Then I can figure out what has already been typed up and what still needs to make it into the computer.  This has always been the biggest challenge of Fie Eoin – I write it all over the place and then type it up out of order and then don’t know what has to be typed and what doesn’t.  So then I start re-writing it in some sort of order, but then get out of order again and it becomes a vicious cycle.  I went through two big folders last night and ripped out all the pages of Fie Eoin, papercliped them into sections that make some amount of linear sense to me, and stuck them in the folder.  Tomorrow I’ve got two or three more large folders, and then I’ll start on all the little folders.  Luckily I’m much better at typing up the little folders as I write them (it doesn’t seem as daunting, for some reason) so most of that is already in the computer.  Then I have to finish re-writing Kaye scenes, because I’ve pretty much exhausted Kindra scenes (yes I play favorites).

I’m editing Phooka Tales this year with my writing group, and finding it easier to re-write most of the beginning.  I’m hoping to have this ready to go out to agents by early next year.  Top Secret Project is slowly being outlined and written – I’m trying to re-write the first scene already because it seems rushed.  But this is a work-on-it-when-I’m-inspired type of thing right now.  I’ve also got a brand spanking new story to work on when I feel like it.  I’m sure I’ll have some stickies about that soon.

And speaking of stickies, I’ve got some ideas for the blog as well.  I still want to put up a sticky every Sunday (or at least once a week), but on top of that I’m going to be doing some book reviews, and (hopefully) serializing a story to post weekly.  Right now I’m debating between Lane’s Girl (which I don’t plan on getting published traditionally at this point) and Aleda’s story from Fie Eoin’s world (also don’t plan on publishing traditionally).  If you have a preference please let me know!

Posted in Book of Souls, Ideas, Lane's Girl, Phooka Tales, The Nameless Warrior (Fie Eoin). Leave a Comment »

Writing Meme, Day 28

April 28, 2010 — Rebecca Enzor

28. Have you ever written a character with physical or mental disabilities? Describe them, and if there’s nothing major to speak of, tell us a few smaller ones.

The only character I can think of with a major disability (and it doesn’t inhibit her in life, just in her chosen profession) is Alicia from TSP, who was born blind in one eye.  Of course she wants to be in the army, and the army requires two eyes.

I do harm Kindra to the point that she can’t use her right arm for half of the book.  That really annoys her, since she is a warrior and she hates being weak.

I have written a character who went crazy before, and that was actually pretty fun (it was a fanfic character, so I won’t bother elaborating).  And for a little while Holly kind of loses her mind (when the manticore first attacks her), but I switched the book to Brett’s POV to make it easier to read for that part.

Posted in Book of Souls, Phooka Tales, The Nameless Warrior (Fie Eoin). Leave a Comment »

Writing Meme, Day 27

April 27, 2010 — Rebecca Enzor

27. Along similar lines, do appearances play a big role in your stories? Tell us about them, or if not, how you go about designing your characters.

I would have to say that I do get an idea of what my characters look like (see yesterday’s post), but I’m not so concerned with giving a detailed description of each.  I give a few details (mostly hair, because I generally recognize people by the hair) that I think make them stand out and give the reader an idea of what they look like.  Each person will see each character a little differently, and can change their exact look to fit their own needs.  Holly, for instance, is a blond, blue-eyed, petite woman.  But what does she look like beyond that?  Well, I know a lot of blond, blue-eyed, petite women who don’t look anything alike, so to me she looks the most like the one she acts like (a girl I used to work with who has the same temperament as Holly).  To you she may look completely different.

I think primarily I’m concerned with what the character feels like.  Holly feels like the girl I used to work with, so she ended up having the same physical appearance.  I could tell you the temperament of a character and you would get an idea of that character without me giving you any hint of what they look like – but you might see a completely different physical appearance then I would.  But does that matter?  No.  Not unless something about their appearance is distinct and needed for the story.

Although I will tell you that Lane looks like Christian Bale.  Somehow Lane as Christian Bale has become so embedded in my mind that I cannot separate the two.  Which isn’t so bad.  I certainly don’t mind Christian Bale hanging around in my head (and in The New World when he says “Rebecca” in that whispery, sexy voice of his you better believe I melted in my chair).

Posted in Lane's Girl, Phooka Tales. Leave a Comment »
« Older posts
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 1,927 other followers