#wip: htberitch

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Writing a first draft and just going with the flow with minimal editing and just moving on from a scene even if it’s not really how I envisioned it in my head, really showcases how shitty my writing is.

Okay, hear me out, it’s shitty, yes... but this is the shittiest it’ll ever be. There’ll never be a shittier version of this story than the first draft. With every following rewrite it’s gonna get better. It’s going to look more and more like the story I’ve envisioned in my head.

And that’s wonderful.

#writing positivity #first draft shenanigans #wip: htberitch

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Last Line Tag

Thanks @raevenlywrites for tagging me! My last line was actually a really fitting one for today.

I fucking hate Thursdays.

tagging: @avian-writes, @theramwrites, @dontcrywrite, @fuyugomori and anyone else who wants to share their lines!

#last line tag #wip: htberitch #oc jonah #i don't know about you pals but #imo thursdays are worse than mondays

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Underwing Challenge - Day 2

Previous Posts: Day 1

Introduce the WIP you’d like to highlight this month. What’s it about? What are some themes/vibes it covers? 

The WIP I’ll be introducing is How to Break Every Rule in the Caretaker’s Handbook. Full WIP post can be found here.

It’s a contemporary story with heavy fantasy elements, but ultimately it’s a story about people coping (or struggling to cope) with grief. You want a character-driven story with strong character arcs, then this might be the thing for you!

The narrative switches between Jonah, a teenager who recently lost his Grandma and feels utterly alone in the world, and Dewdrop, a 2000-something-year-old caretaker (=~ guardian angel) who meddles far too much in the affairs of other caretakers and humans alike. Their meddling has landed them in big trouble before, leading to their permanent banishment from the caretaker community and centuries of living in exile.

How do their stories connect? Jonah doesn’t have a caretaker, or so he thinks. It’s not as if his caretaker has ever shown their face when Jonah needed them. Dewdrop is currently the caretaker of Jonah’s mother and when she grows concerned over Jonah’s well-being so does Dewdrop. They take it upon themself to help out (read: meddle) and figure out why Jonah’s caretaker is MIA (read: more meddling)

Surely that much meddling won’t backfire in their face, right?

Themes: grief, depression, (found) family, unconditional & platonic love, mortality, guilt & forgiveness,

#underwing challenge #wip: htberitch #oc dewdrop #oc jonah

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Camp Nano July 2021 - Scene 4 Excerpt

I hope you don’t mind me sharing stuff even when my scene isn’t finished yet, but I’m just too excited and can’t help myself because... letters. I adore adding letters, diary entries and other ‘written material’ to my stories.

How about you guys? Do you ever add stuff like that in your novels/stories?

This is a bit of a longer excerpt, but I think it’s worth a read.

Dear Dewdrop,

Since we agree to leave the past behind us, it would be unbecoming of me to make you feel like you're still indebted to me in any way. Under regular circumstances I might even insist you cease your extravagant gift giving, alas I've gotten a taste of those delectable plums you grow and I cannot deprive myself of such simple sweetness in life. Instead, allow me to reciprocate by gifting you a brand new edition of 'Clouds in Spring'.

Ever since reading your last letter, my mind keeps wandering back to what you told me about not experiencing any seasons or weather changes, so when I saw this title I knew I had to give it to you. This copy is yours to keep indefinitely, so you can write it in or even rip the pages out if you're inclined to do so.

If you are currently considering sending it back to me in your next gift basket, you can expect to receive your plum basket untouched in return. That's what we call a fair exchange.

My community and I are faring well. We are currently preparing for the harvest festival and other than a minor conflict between two of my full-bloomers over decorations of all things, the proceedings are moving forward without a hitch. With the next letter I may be able to send you plums of our harvest, though I doubt they'll be as sweet as yours.

Yours in eternal harmony, A.

taglist: @avian-writes,  @charlesjosephwrites, @drippingmoon, @fuyugomori, @super-writer-gal, @theramwrites (let me know if you want to be +/-)  

#wip: htberitch #dewdrop draft #wip excerpt

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Underwing Challenge - Day 3

Previous Posts: Day 1 | Day 2

Who is your main cast? Describe as many of your OCs as you can cram into one post.

Yesterday I introduced my WIP How to Break Every Rule in the Caretaker’s Handbook, now it’s time for the characters. I already talked a bit about the main two characters, but let’s get into detail now!

Dewdrop - they/them - approx. 2000 years old/Seasoned

All Dewdrop wants to do is protect the people close to them, which shouldn’t be much of an issue, except it’s Dewdrop and they don’t know when to quit. Dewdrop is protective to the extreme and selfish, because when everything has been taken away from them, isn’t it only natural for them to be possessive over whatever they have left? Their resilience is the only reason they haven’t gone insane during their centuries in exile.

Jonah - he/him - 17 years old

Jonah lets his emotions guide him most of the time. This makes him a thoughtful and sensitive soul. When his grandma dies and his best friend moves out of town, however, Jonah's emotions are all over the place and he sinks deep into sadness. Even when help eventually comes, Jonah might prefer to ignore his issues rather than resolve them.

Time for some side-characters:

Suzy - she/her - Jonah’s mum & Dewdrop’s human - 44 years old

Suzy’s stubborn and straightforward. She won’t waste time with pleasantries and doesn’t shy away from difficult situations or conversations. She’s fiercely protective of her kids and will call Dewdrop out on their bullshit.

Stormcloud - she/her - a negligent caretaker - Less than a century old/Sapling

Pretty sure you can figure out whose caretaker this is. Stormcloud is a troubled individual with some severe personal and mental issues, which prevent her from properly caring for her current human. She’s highly compassionate, but she doubts whether she can be of any use at all.

More under the cut:

During Dewdrop’s years of exile, they have accidentally acquired a couple of caretakers and taken them under their wing.

Fifi: the oldest of the five. She’s mute and loves gardening. She’s normally calm and serene, but when someone pisses her off, she doesn’t hesitate to shove them against a wall.

Echo: Oh boy... his relationship with Dewdrop is... complicated. Echo holds a 500 year old (give or take a few decades) grudge against Dewdrop and there’s no way to fix it (I’ve tried).

Helia: She’s like a little Dewdrop when it comes to sticking her nose in other people’s business. Dewdrop finds her endearing and sees a lot of themself in her. Helia is cheerful and outgoing and a little ball of fun chaos.

Plume: Plume’s perpetually busy and spends a lot of time with their human. They can come across as rather cold and callous, but they’re just tired 24/7

Violet: the youngest and baby of the group. She’s a sweetheart, she’s as curious as Helia, but has the courtesy not to push.

And then there’s him.

Sunflare: What can I say about him other than, to Dewdrop, Sunflare is the sun’s incarnate in a world without light. Dewdrop needs him, but they can’t have him and it’s excruciating. Or it would be if Dewdrop allowed themself to think about him. (I wish I could tell more about Sunflare’s personality, but spoilers)

On Jonah’s side of the story:

Ramiro: Jonah’s dad, he’s supportive, caring and the voice of reason in a world full of stubborn, emotional people.

Dominic: a charmer who’s at the same time full of life and also dead inside. He becomes Jonah’s ally (and maybe more?) in saying ‘fuck you’ to the world and ignoring emotional issues.

Polina: Jonah’s classmate. A girl with a socialist ideology and grandma clothes. She’s fascinated by caretakers and swears that she’ll meet hers properly one day. Not that she’d purposefully run into danger to do so, but still...

Hasim: Jonah’s study buddy, not by choice of course. While Hasim is a dork and way into D&D and history movies, he’s not that bad? But people need to stop telling Jonah that he’s the perfect guy for him, because Hasim’s totally not his type. Totally not.

Okay, this turned out way too long, my apologies, but I wanted to introduce as many of the relevant characters as possible.

#underwing challenge #wip: htberitch #character introductions #oc dewdrop #oc jonah #so much to say about all of these characters so if you have any questions or want to know more about anyone go ahead and ask

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

dewdrop sketch - I can’t draw them multiple times without them looking very different.

#lizzy does art #wip: htberitch #oc dewdrop #my chaotic chickpea

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

sketch of Dewdrop

#lizzy does art #when writing doesn't work switch over to some drawing #dewdrop's design is so fun to draw~ #wip: htberitch #oc dewdrop

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Up to 20 scenes in the outline, over half of the story done. Revelations happening, sad times commencing.

😭 time to cry

#wip: htberitch #i have a new low-key fav character #because they are taking no shit and talking sense and that's what i like in a person

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Underwing Challenge - Day 4

Previous Posts: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3

What’s the world of your WIP like? 

The world of How to Break Every Rule in the Caretaker’s Handbook is very similar to our own. The only difference is that caretakers exist and humans are aware of their existence.

This would probably have some implications in the world, like daredevils purposefully seeking out danger in order to meet their caretaker or people with chronic illnesses having a better relationship with their caretakers because they spend more time together. And of course there would be novels written about the forbidden love between a human and a caretaker.

Caretakers live on a different plane of existence that is completely out of the range of humans. It’s like a parallel world that’s based on the human world, but more vibrant and calm like a dream. (I don’t know how else to describe it)

Caretaker have a couple of ‘supernatural abilities’. They can shape-shift into the appearance of one of their previous humans or their current one and they can teleport from their own plane of existence to the human world and back. Caretakers can’t stay in the human world for a long time, because it makes them very tired.

I’m mostly making up rules and world-building as I go along with the story, so some things might change in the future, but as of now, this is a little glimpse into what the world looks like.

#underwing challenge #wip: htberitch #first time i'm actually talking a bit about the world-building

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Dewdrop Draft - Scene 4 is done

Scene 4/28

Scene word count: 1.6k

Total word count: 7.6k/60k

This scene is a mess I’ll just have to edit a lot in the next draft.

My personal favourite line:

She's unable to remain seated and begins pacing the room. I watch her while leaning against the kitchen counter, arms crossed over each other.

"It's been eight years. Eight fucking years before you showed your face again."

She walks up to me and grips my biceps with her hands. Her touch would be strong enough to bruise me if I were a human.

"I thought,” she takes a shaky breath, “I thought you'd left me for good."

taglist: @avian-writes,  @charlesjosephwrites, @drippingmoon,  @super-writer-gal, @theramwrites (let me know if you want to be +/-)

#wip: htberitch #dewdrop draft #convo's between suzy and dew are always so difficult because i'm not sure of their dynamic yet

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Dewdrop Draft - Scene 3 is done!

Scene 3/28

Scene word count: 2.3k

Total word count: 6k/60k

One tenth of the way done(?) This whole scene was a wild ride, Echo is a whole hot mess and I love him.

My personal favourite line:

Echo swims up to me and as he comes closer, his appearance starts to change. His brown skin turns into a pale beige, his black locs unravel and become brown wavy hair that reaches his now narrower waist. His body shifts from angular and sturdy to soft curves and delicate features. He purposefully drags this transformation out, like he's putting on a show for me.

Once he's close enough to touch, he inspects my face, intently with a hint of vulnerability. His eyes - now hazel instead of dark brown - glare when he doesn't find what he's looking for.

taglist: @avian-writes, @charlesjosephwrites, @drippingmoon, @super-writer-gal, @theramwrites (let me know if you want to be +/-)

#wip: htberitch #dewdrop draft #i had so many fun lines in this scene so it was difficult to choose #dew & echo have issues #and their dynamic is so strange #probably because they have the same flaws and they are aware of that and hate each other for it

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

My wrist is starting to hurt, so it’s time to stop my ‘It’s past midnight so technically camp nano July started’ writing session.

And with that I’ve reached my daily writing goal and introduced a new character (I can’t wait for you guys to see more of him, he’s... a problem)

#wip: htberitch #dewdrop draft #i might even finish scene 3 tomorrow (today?)

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Underwing Challenge - Day 5

Previous Posts: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4

What’s your favorite excerpt from this WIP so far?

This part of scene 7 is probably my favourite one so far and the main reason I began writing from Jonah’s pov.

The ceremony starts and I feel like I'm being submerged in water. I see the priest talking, but what he says is lost to me.

Grandma was raised catholic and as a little girl she went to a strict boarding school where she had to go to church every day. It shaped who she was as a person, in both good and bad way, I guess.

She thanked God for her good health and lit candles whenever we 'needed a little extra luck from above'. I'm not one to believe in divine intervention. My courage never came from any God, but from her. She always believed in me.

And now she's gone.

Something is very wrong with the world.

Mum, aunt Lydia and now Grandpa...

Why aren't you angrier about it? You should be demanding an explanation with your eulogies. You should be screaming and shouting. Instead of celebrating her life, ask why her life had to end so soon in the first place? If her life was so special and important, and she was so loving and loved by so many friends and family... why take her away from all of us?

I had so much left to tell her.

Nothing I could sum up in five minutes, in a couple of lines of written text. I want to tell her about my week, about my flunked history test and how I really don't like my new study buddy but I'll put up with him because I don't want my exams to go as badly as they did last year. I want to tell her all this and then I want her to smile at me like she thinks I'm acting silly and tell me about her week.

Because that's what we do every week.

Did.

It's what we did and we'll never get the chance to do it again.

My mind drifts off. Even as eventually the funeral ends and we're all supposed to head out in an orderly line. It's Maxine, who grabs my hand and urges me to get up. My thigh hurts from where I'd been unconsciously gripping it tight all this time.

I squint my eyes when we get outside and the sun is peering out through the clouds. I don't stop squinting until we're back in the car and heading to the venue.

Mum has turned on the radio and is chatting with Noelle about our cousins. Dad chimes in once in a while to tell her that obviously the cousins on his side of the family won't be here today. Noelle sinks back in her seat, disappointed.

Maxine is quiet, but the second a song comes on she really likes, she's bobbing her head along with the beat.

Something suddenly pops up in my head and I ask, "Wait, weren't we supposed to go to the graveyard?"

Mum and Dad glance at each other, I can see their concern. Maxine's head stops bobbing. Both my sisters look at me like I've lost my mind and in their defence, I probably have.

"We already have, darling," Mum says, in that typical 'I'm really getting worried about you' tone.

"Oh." Now that I think about it, I do have a vague recollection of standing in front of a gravestone with my grandma's name on it. I don’t want to think about it anymore.

"How long until we're there?" asks Noelle and just like that, things go back to normal.

Not.

#underwing challenge #writing excerpt #wip: htberitch #oc jonah

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Heads Up, 7 Up

Thanks for the tag, Loop @loopyhoopywrites! I just finished writing these lines, so I’d love to share them.

As soon as I step outside I hear a squelching sound under my sandal. A couple of seconds later a second plum rolls onto the path and stops directly next to my foot.

I lift my gaze and peer into the trees. The rustling of the leaves gives away the person hidden in the canopy. I cross my arms and say, "Didn't I tell you to stay out of my plum trees, Helia?"

The cheeky girl pokes her head through the thicket and throws another plum at me. It arcs through the air and lands directly in my hands. The impact causes the skin to break and the fruit's juices start flowing.

I give her an unimpressed look and Helia grins sheepishly in return. "Sorry! It fell out of my hands."

I’ll be tagging: @dontcrywrite, @nikkywrites, and an open tag for anyone else who wants to do this!

#heads up 7 up #tag game #wip: htberitch #dewdrop draft #wip excerpt

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Camp Nano April 2021 - Day 28

WIP How to Break Every Rule in the Caretaker’s Handbook - First Draft

Current word count: 30.1k/30k (Today: 750)

#camp nano 2021 #wip: htberitch #camp nano

[notwritinganyflufftoday]

Dewdrop Draft - Scene 2 is done!

Scene 2/28

Scene word count: 1.8k

Total word count: 3.7k/60k

Camp Nano July is getting really close, but I’m not really making any extra preparations, because with the monthly word count goals I’m setting for myself, it’s like I’m doing camp nano every month.

My personal favourite line:

"Why do you only ever show up when my life has gone to shit?"

Despite it being formulated as a question, I don’t think she wants me to answer that.

taglist: @super-writer-gal, @theramwrites, @charlesjosephwrites (let me know if you want to be +/-)

#wip: htberitch #dewdrop draft #i'm totally up for being camp nano buddies and cheering people on (whether they participate or not) so good luck and have fun writing!