Beautiful People — Appearance Edition

   Greetings, kids! I kinda talked about this in my soul-baring post last month, but I finished the first draft of Children of the Nameless in April!

actually me: happy, proud, utterly exhausted

  

   Now I'm working on the second draft, with the help of my lovely betas Katie, Hannah, and Anna. Love you children. <3 The beginning of the first draft was absolute crap so I have to completely rewrite it but that's okay. It's so much better already.
   And since I've been thinking about CotN so much, and since I want to post here more often, here's a writing blog meme about my children! Go check out and/or join here!

(I'm doing this for all six kids, so forgive me for the long post.)

1. Give a brief overview of their looks. (Include a photo if you want!)

Kaleth

Basically, just combine Lucas Till, Alex Pettyfer,
and Bradley James.

Danica

Not perfect, but it's one of the the best pictures
I've found. Her hair should be longer.

Barrow

His hair should be a little more red. Honestly his
face/expression is so hard to capture.

Allorie

She also looks a lot like blonde Kristen Stewart.
(that's a real thing, I swear)

Katria

I've only found 3 pictures that even come close to looking
like her, and this is one of them. Finding POC pictures is hard.

Egin

He's basically just a short Eddie Redmayne.

2. Share a snippet that involves description of their appearance. (Okay, I'm the kind of writer that gives people a basic idea to start with, and then adds more detail as the story goes on, so I'm just going to include the first description of their appearance. Also, only Kaleth and Danica have been described in the second draft. I apologize for my first-draft writing.)

Kaleth: "the yellow-haired boy with the strong dark eyes and bright smile"

Danica: "Danica could imagine how she’d look, the pale flowers standing out against her dark hair. She imagined her face a little less plain and her grey eyes a little less dull."

Barrow: "A boy with dark red hair and a smirk"

Allorie: "tall with golden hair"

Katria: "the girl with tan skin and a murderous glare"

Egin: "one with eyes like the forest in spring and freckles like the stars in the sky"


3. What is the first thing people might notice about them?

Kaleth: how attractive/confident he is (I'm sorry but it's true)

Danica: her eyes; they're gorgeous and you can see a lot of her personality in them

Barrow: how freaking tall he is and/or his smirk

Allorie: her height; she's rather tall for a girl

Katria: her constant murderous glare; it makes up for her short stature

Egin: how small and soft and reserved he is

4. What are their unique features? (Ex: freckles, big ears, birthmark, scars, etc.)

Danica: grey eyes

Barrow: scars on his arms and chest

Katria: she has lots of scars, but I don't really know where/what they look like

Egin: lots and lots of freckles

5. How tall are they? What is their build? (Ex: stocky, slender, petite, etc.)

Kaleth: 6'1", with a broad chest and strong arms

Danica: 5'3", slender and delicate with small hands and feet

Barrow: 6'3", very lean and muscular

Allorie: 5'10", curvy and muscular

Katria: 5'2", small but incredibly strong

Egin: 5'5", pretty delicate for a boy but has strong arms from archery

6. What is their posture like? How do they usually carry themselves?

Kaleth: shoulders back and standing tall, very confident and self-assured

Danica: shy and nervous, shoulders curved in and head down

Barrow: usually slouching a little, but in a "I'm so cool and casual" way, unless he's trying to one-up Kaleth

Allorie: stands very straight because of her soldier's training

Katria: confident but guarded, always has a weapon close at hand

Egin: slouching and doing everything he can to be invisible

7. Your character has been seen on a “lazy day” (free from usual routine/expectations): what are they wearing and how do they look?

Kaleth: I don't think he understand the concept of laziness

Danica: something loose and comfortable; her hair is either very fancy because she has time, or simple because she doesn't have to take the time

Barrow: something casual but still attractive

Allorie: loose and casual hair and clothing; basically the exact opposite of her soldier uniform

Katria: loose pants, her chest binder, and a sleeveless shirt; her hair is pulled back so it doesn't get in the way while she trains

Egin: barefoot, not wearing his cloak's hood because he's out in the forest, away from everyone watching him.

8. Do they wear glasses, accessories, or jewelry on a regular basis? Do they have any article of clothing or accessory that could be considered their trademark?

Danica: she always has very pretty/elaborate braids in her hair

Katria: she keeps knives in her jacket/boot/literally anywhere she can hide them; does that count

Egin: his cloak, he almost always wears it with the hood up

9. Have they ever been bullied or shamed because of their looks? Explain!

Kaleth: nope, everybody likes him too much

Danica: she was never bullied but she was definitely ignored by most boys because she's a little plain

Barrow: only by other boys who were just jealous of his ability to get all the girls

Allorie: most of her country is short, thin, and dark-haired, and she's the opposite, so she got mocked for being different

Katria: being mean to her will result in great pain, so no

Egin: he's been teased for not being very manly

10. Are they happy with how they look? If they could change anything about their appearance, what would it be?

Kaleth: he's perfectly happy with his looks

Danica: she wishes she were prettier

Barrow: he's hot enough for the girls, so he's good

Allorie: she's never really had time to worry about her looks, but she's ashamed of her scars and bruises

Katria: she'd be happier with a more boyish figure (don't hear that often do ya)

Egin: he wishes he was stronger and less of a twig

I swear I meant to post this before the very very end of August. Sigh. At least I tried. My life is incredibly insane right now, so posting will probably be sporadic. I still love you though, I promise! <3

30 Bookish Facts About Me

   no I totally didn't steal the title from Cait what are you thinking

   In case you haven't noticed, I'm really bad at posting. But a few days ago I found a post/tag thing that seemed pretty easy, so here it is!

1) Currently reading? Hattie Big Sky. It's a cute story about a girl homesteading during World War One, but...historical fiction is just not my thing. I'm only reading it because I've got nothing else at the moment.

2) Should’ve read, like, yesterday? The Neptune Project. I saw it at Half Price Books foreverrrr ago, but never got around to it. AND THEN I BOUGHT IT AND DEVOURED IT IN A DAY AND A HALF. WOW. WHERE IS THE SEQUEL BECAUSE I NEED IT.

3) Book that impacted you? The Giver, wow. I know it's so stereotypical to love this book, but I love it. It makes you think and really question the world around you. (And I cried like twice during the movie so you should watch that too.)

4) Hyped vs backlist titles? I...actually don't read that many popular books/series? I love finding random, unadored books and then sobbing over the lack of fanbase/shoving them in everyone's faces.

5) Current series crush? THE LUNAR CHRONICLES, FOREVER AND EVER. I'm so obsessed; it's a problem.

6) How strong is your self-control around books? My mother is my self-control. Every time we go to the bookstore or the library, I come back with like ten books and she talks me out of most of them. It's very annoying but also good for my money/time.

7) Plot vs characters? Characters. Always. A good plot can't redeem lame characters.

8) Would you write under a pseudonym? I've actually considered it, but that's something I'll figure out later.

9) Would you marry your bookshelf? Actually, my bookshelves are rather...boring? I have no pretty organization. But I do have them organized by genre. Well, I did, before we had to pack them up to move.

10) Do you ever get sick of reading? Who doesn't? I get sick of everything sometimes.

11) Random bookish memory? When I was a small child and still lived in California, we would go over to my grandparents every Sunday for dinner with all the aunts and uncles and cousins. My sister would usually end up wrestling with the cousin her age, while I would read the picture books my grandma had. #bookwormfromthewomb

12) Character you relate to? Abigail Rook from Jackaby, honestly. I adore her. And Cress from (who would have guessed) Cress.

13) Do you own bookish merchandise? I've got a Gryffindor t-shirt, but other than that, my life is sadly bookish-merchandise-free. But there's this artist I know on Tumblr, and she has pictures of Cress, Cinder, Scarlet, and Winter as the four seasons, and sells them on redbubble. And, because I'm ridiculously obsessed with mugs for someone who never drinks coffee or tea, I'm going to get all four mugs eventually.

14) Controversial opinion? I do not care about Divergent. At all. Or The Mortal Instruments.

15) NOTP? Laia and Elias from An Ember in the Ashes. Please. Do not.

16) Why didn’t I love this? The School for Good and Evil. As Mia Thermopolis said very wisely, "The concept is grasped. The execution is a little...elusive."

17) Hardcover vs paperback? Hardcovers are heavier and harder to hold, but this also increases the damage when you hit someone with them. Or when you drop it on your face. They are very pretty, but so are paperbacks. Basically I have no opinions someone help me

18) Do you ever like villains? I am one of those rare people who doesn't like villains because they're, y'know, evil, and usually trying to kill the characters I actually care about.

19) Cringeable reads? Honestly? Fahrenheit 451. I read it freshman year and kinda hated it. I'm thinking about reading it again, though, because my 14-year-old self was a cranky little muffin about school, and also not all that smart.

20) Where do you get your books from? Half Price Books, because I am poor.

21) Haunting read? Challenger Deep. If you've ever read this, you know what I mean. It's about a boy's struggle with mental illness, and, to be honest, I probably shouldn't have read this while my own mental health was shaky. Because it left me very weird and freaked out for a few days. But dang, it was good.

22) Highly anticipated upcoming release? Heartless by Marissa Meyer. I NEED THIS AND I NEED IT NOW.

23) Annoying character qualities? When they don't see very obvious things that are staring them in the face. When they spend forever moping over stupid things. WHEN THE GIRL CHOOSES THE BAD BOY IN HER LOVE TRIANGLE, AGAINST HER WILL AND BETTER JUDGEMENT, BECAUSE HE'S HOT. OR SOMETHING.

24) Least favorite genre? Well, I've never read horror, and I probably never will. Historical fiction definitely isn't my favorite, but I'll read it sometimes.

25) Best tropes? If I'm being perfectly honest, I'm still not quite sure what a trope is.

26) Rereading? Reread alllllll the things. Always. I love rereads(and since I rarely buy books or go to the library, I have to reread a lot).

27) Have you abused a book? I HAD TO SHOVE A PAPERBACK INTO MY BACKPACK VERY FAST AND WHEN I GOT IT OUT AGAIN, THE COVER HAD FOLDED OVER AND IS FOREVER CREASED AND I STILL SOB ABOUT IT SOMETIMES.

28) Series you quit on? When I started Ember In The Ashes and Legend, I couldn't stop...then I finished them, set them aside, thought about them, and realized that I just didn't care. I don't hate them, but they're very "meh" books and I definitely don't care enough to finish the series. And OH MY, HOW I WISHED I HAD DNF'ED THE MATCHED SERIES. I enjoyed the first book, but everything just went downhill and none of my ships sailed and THE ENDING! I'm still bitter about that.

29) Wish it wasn’t a standalone? Book Of A Thousand Days. I don't even know what it would be about, but I want more of Dasthi and Khan Tegus and Saren and everythingggg.

30) Bad bookworm side-effects? Increased vocabulary, lack of satisfaction with one's boring life, the urge to write a bestselling novel, staying up late because "one more chapter", incoherent rambling, and more.

What character(s) do you relate to? What book impacted you? What's your favorite series? Are you glad I'm back or should I stay in the deep dark hole of blog-less-ness?