LAST MINUTE REQUEST FOR HELP ON NANOWRIMO 2013
The poll is now closed.
For the twelfth year in a row, I'll be participating in NaNoWriMo and have decided to revisit and "reboot" one of two ideas I've worked with in previous years. Both have been discussed here before.
Below, I have an excerpt from each project to give you an idea of which things I'm considering. Both involve lesbian-based relationships.
What I'd like now is for you to read over those excerpts, and then go fill out the handy-dandy survey to pick which one you'd rather see I focus on for the month of November.
VOTE HERE TO HELP ME DECIDE WHICH TO WRITE
Project #1 :: Laikhostra
"Oh no, Zandra, I can't do this."
She laughs softly, an actual sympathetic sound, and gently tugs at my hand. "Yes, you can, my heart. There have been far too many negotiations made to ensure this transportation. This is the best option we have right now, such as it is."
"I heard that, Knight."
Zandra turns slowly to face the petite woman coming toward us, and I can see that great hulking cat of hers twining sinuously between her legs. Mandrigor's rumble from within his crystal on my cane is echoed by my Bond-mate.
"Captain Riverfray," I say, voice only quavering slightly, "how good to see you. I was wondering if there was any chance that we could delay this departure? The weather seems to be conspiring against us. I believe that Woman is requesting that we wait for a time."
Kamryn's husky laughter strips the storm of its power for the briefest of moments. "Are you a monk or a quivering mouse? Do you honestly think that Woman would allow one of Her monks to come to harm when the great Kamryn Riverfray is at the helm of the greatest river boat in existence? Or have you lost your faith?"
All eyes are on me suddenly and the sensation is stifling. Stepping on that ship will change my life forever, and nothing will ever be the same again. We may not come back from this journey. This may well be the very last time my eyes ever take in the sight of Valley Green.
Is this really any different from the path you chose when you were abandoned to the streets of Valley Green? Or when you chose to step aside as Maiomehaylen to share your life in Soulstone Bonding with Zandra?
Unable to fight with that inner voice's logic, I draw a deep, cleansing breath and meet the captain's gaze. "You have no idea what my faith is, Captain Riverfray, but your words have given me the impetus I needed." My fingers thread together with Zandra's in a show of bravado I don't completely feel, and we make our way down the long dock to the ship waiting to take us to our destiny.
Once onboard, Zandra and Ferret take to the task of stowing our gear away in our cabin. I watch this small, but obviously competent, crew as preparations are finalized to make way on our journey. They move as one, each as a limb, the ship itself as the heart of their body. Even that beast they call a cat has a job to do.
But my own body remains tense, the faint stirrings of a headache growing behind my eyes. My preference would be to blame it on the lack of something to do, but that would be a lie. Fear gnaws at my thoughts, and I want nothing more than to flee to the enclosed safety of the archives of the monastery, destiny be damned.
"You're brooding, my heart." Zandra's soft, warm voice precedes her arms wrapping around my waist from behind by mere seconds. Her very nearness is a soothing balm to my frazzled nerves and I sink back into her embrace willingly. "We'll be back. Have faith in the Four Deities--"
"Five." The word comes unbidden, almost as if compelled to be heard. "Even if others have all but given up the guise of worshipping the Great Mother, She cannot be forgotten."
"My apologies, beloved monk. I stand corrected." She nuzzles at the nape of my neck for a moment, the fingers of her left hand moving automatically to stroke against my Soulstone. The movement soothes me almost instantly, as time has proven repeatedly for us, and we fall into a comfortable silence as we await our destiny.
"Goodbye," glides whisper-soft across my lips as the ship pulls away from the dock, but I don't dare look back or this will all be for naught.
Project #2 :: Untitled Lesbian Selkie Romance
Two months, three weeks, four days, eighteen hours, five minutes, and thirty-one seconds. Thirty-two seconds. Thirty-three seconds.
Kat O'Malley stares at the second hand of her grandfather's pocket watch, willing herself to time her breathing with the passing of time. All joking of hypnotism aside, it's one of the easiest triggers for her meditations.
But not today. There's a restlessness that she just can't quite shake. Not that it necessarily surprises her. It's barely been three months since she numbly fled the OR in the wake of that terrible tragedy that ultimately brought her halfway across the country. Not that she's regretted a single minute she's been in Washington. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Sadie's plaintive mewling grabs Kat's attention and she gladly abandons the idea of meditation. With a long, luxurious stretch, she unwinds from her lotus position and reaches for the fluffy tuxedo cat she'd rescued four years earlier. Sadie only struggles briefly at first before going boneless in that uniquely feline way in her human's light grip.
"You're such an attention slut, Sadie girl," Kat muses, rubbing at the exposed belly. "What would I do without you?" At the answering meow, she stands and heads into the kitchen. Sadie sits perfectly still next to her mat until the dish of wet food is set down and Kat takes a step back.
Without thought, the redhead turns effortlessly on her heel and heads into the bedroom to change into warmer sweats and her running shoes before tossing her beach shoes and a towel into her little backpack. The comfortable fleece sweatshirt is slipped on as she heads out of her rental home. The not so light rain falling down on her barely registers as she makes her way down the road to the public beach. Thankfully the rain has stopped pretty much everyone from visiting the lighthouse there and Kat practically has the beach to herself. She pauses next to the lighthouse for a moment, gazing out at the waters of Puget Sound before making her way down to the driftwood-strewn beach.
Taking off at an easy pace, she carefully tests the sand's solidity. Once satisfied it's not too soupy, she increases her speed and continues to head south on the beach for the half mile to the large rock that usually signals her turnaround point. Today, she continues on around to the far point, another mile and a half down the way, relishing the solitude of this beach she's come to adore. Once there, she turns back to study the way she's come and takes a few slow deep breaths before bending over to stretch a bit more.
The gulls and crows chatter aimlessly around her, a sound she's grown quite accustomed to already. Straightening again, Kat is just about to start back toward her starting point when the birds suddenly go silent and a sleek head with soulfully dark eyes pops up out of the water. Kat stills instantly, mesmerized by the harbor seal watching her from perhaps only thirty feet away. She barely breathes for fear of scaring the animal away, fingers itching to glide across what has to be soft fur in the most beautiful pewter grey color. The seal is so close, she can see its nostrils flaring, its eyes blinking languidly at her.
"Hello there," she whispers softly. "Such a beauty you are. Are you hunting today? Catching anything good?" And then the seal's head slips back under the surface. "No, no! Don't go! Come back!"
Kat waits another couple of moments, scanning the water for signs of the seal surfacing again, but to no avail. With a heavy sigh, she heads back up the shore toward the lighthouse again. As she runs, the cadence of her footfalls becomes her sole focus, to the exclusion of practically everything else. Which is why she doesn't see the seal pacing just slightly ahead of her, but at that same distance from their first meeting, as if drawn to her.
Once Kat reaches the rock again, she pauses a moment to study the water again before walking toward her point of origin. Turning the corner, she heads down along the more publicly accessed area of the beach, intending to rest for a short while on her favorite driftwood log. The rain isn't even bothering her at this point, so what would a little more water on her already soaked body be? The sight of someone sitting at the water's edge in front of that same log brings Kat to a dead stop.
The woman has long dark hair, currently plastered to her head from the rain, and Kat can't help but wonder if that hair curls at all when it's dry. Moving closer, Kat notices that the woman's hair appears to go to her waist and seems to have strands of seaweed woven into it. The woman's low chanting makes its way to Kat's ears, but none of the words make any sense to her.
Movement to her right draws Kat's eyes further out into the water where she can see half a dozen harbor seals no more than twenty-five feet away from the mystery woman. Every single one of them is staring intently at the brunette with the faintly dusky skin.
Until Kat gasps at the sight. As one, the seals turn to look at her and disappear under the water as if they've never been there. And before she can fully register they're gone, she hears another splash and the mystery woman is gone.
Original post @ Dreamwidth with
comments. Commenting is welcome on either post.
For the twelfth year in a row, I'll be participating in NaNoWriMo and have decided to revisit and "reboot" one of two ideas I've worked with in previous years. Both have been discussed here before.
Below, I have an excerpt from each project to give you an idea of which things I'm considering. Both involve lesbian-based relationships.
What I'd like now is for you to read over those excerpts, and then go fill out the handy-dandy survey to pick which one you'd rather see I focus on for the month of November.
VOTE HERE TO HELP ME DECIDE WHICH TO WRITE
Project #1 :: Laikhostra
"Oh no, Zandra, I can't do this."
She laughs softly, an actual sympathetic sound, and gently tugs at my hand. "Yes, you can, my heart. There have been far too many negotiations made to ensure this transportation. This is the best option we have right now, such as it is."
"I heard that, Knight."
Zandra turns slowly to face the petite woman coming toward us, and I can see that great hulking cat of hers twining sinuously between her legs. Mandrigor's rumble from within his crystal on my cane is echoed by my Bond-mate.
"Captain Riverfray," I say, voice only quavering slightly, "how good to see you. I was wondering if there was any chance that we could delay this departure? The weather seems to be conspiring against us. I believe that Woman is requesting that we wait for a time."
Kamryn's husky laughter strips the storm of its power for the briefest of moments. "Are you a monk or a quivering mouse? Do you honestly think that Woman would allow one of Her monks to come to harm when the great Kamryn Riverfray is at the helm of the greatest river boat in existence? Or have you lost your faith?"
All eyes are on me suddenly and the sensation is stifling. Stepping on that ship will change my life forever, and nothing will ever be the same again. We may not come back from this journey. This may well be the very last time my eyes ever take in the sight of Valley Green.
Is this really any different from the path you chose when you were abandoned to the streets of Valley Green? Or when you chose to step aside as Maiomehaylen to share your life in Soulstone Bonding with Zandra?
Unable to fight with that inner voice's logic, I draw a deep, cleansing breath and meet the captain's gaze. "You have no idea what my faith is, Captain Riverfray, but your words have given me the impetus I needed." My fingers thread together with Zandra's in a show of bravado I don't completely feel, and we make our way down the long dock to the ship waiting to take us to our destiny.
Once onboard, Zandra and Ferret take to the task of stowing our gear away in our cabin. I watch this small, but obviously competent, crew as preparations are finalized to make way on our journey. They move as one, each as a limb, the ship itself as the heart of their body. Even that beast they call a cat has a job to do.
But my own body remains tense, the faint stirrings of a headache growing behind my eyes. My preference would be to blame it on the lack of something to do, but that would be a lie. Fear gnaws at my thoughts, and I want nothing more than to flee to the enclosed safety of the archives of the monastery, destiny be damned.
"You're brooding, my heart." Zandra's soft, warm voice precedes her arms wrapping around my waist from behind by mere seconds. Her very nearness is a soothing balm to my frazzled nerves and I sink back into her embrace willingly. "We'll be back. Have faith in the Four Deities--"
"Five." The word comes unbidden, almost as if compelled to be heard. "Even if others have all but given up the guise of worshipping the Great Mother, She cannot be forgotten."
"My apologies, beloved monk. I stand corrected." She nuzzles at the nape of my neck for a moment, the fingers of her left hand moving automatically to stroke against my Soulstone. The movement soothes me almost instantly, as time has proven repeatedly for us, and we fall into a comfortable silence as we await our destiny.
"Goodbye," glides whisper-soft across my lips as the ship pulls away from the dock, but I don't dare look back or this will all be for naught.
Project #2 :: Untitled Lesbian Selkie Romance
Two months, three weeks, four days, eighteen hours, five minutes, and thirty-one seconds. Thirty-two seconds. Thirty-three seconds.
Kat O'Malley stares at the second hand of her grandfather's pocket watch, willing herself to time her breathing with the passing of time. All joking of hypnotism aside, it's one of the easiest triggers for her meditations.
But not today. There's a restlessness that she just can't quite shake. Not that it necessarily surprises her. It's barely been three months since she numbly fled the OR in the wake of that terrible tragedy that ultimately brought her halfway across the country. Not that she's regretted a single minute she's been in Washington. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Sadie's plaintive mewling grabs Kat's attention and she gladly abandons the idea of meditation. With a long, luxurious stretch, she unwinds from her lotus position and reaches for the fluffy tuxedo cat she'd rescued four years earlier. Sadie only struggles briefly at first before going boneless in that uniquely feline way in her human's light grip.
"You're such an attention slut, Sadie girl," Kat muses, rubbing at the exposed belly. "What would I do without you?" At the answering meow, she stands and heads into the kitchen. Sadie sits perfectly still next to her mat until the dish of wet food is set down and Kat takes a step back.
Without thought, the redhead turns effortlessly on her heel and heads into the bedroom to change into warmer sweats and her running shoes before tossing her beach shoes and a towel into her little backpack. The comfortable fleece sweatshirt is slipped on as she heads out of her rental home. The not so light rain falling down on her barely registers as she makes her way down the road to the public beach. Thankfully the rain has stopped pretty much everyone from visiting the lighthouse there and Kat practically has the beach to herself. She pauses next to the lighthouse for a moment, gazing out at the waters of Puget Sound before making her way down to the driftwood-strewn beach.
Taking off at an easy pace, she carefully tests the sand's solidity. Once satisfied it's not too soupy, she increases her speed and continues to head south on the beach for the half mile to the large rock that usually signals her turnaround point. Today, she continues on around to the far point, another mile and a half down the way, relishing the solitude of this beach she's come to adore. Once there, she turns back to study the way she's come and takes a few slow deep breaths before bending over to stretch a bit more.
The gulls and crows chatter aimlessly around her, a sound she's grown quite accustomed to already. Straightening again, Kat is just about to start back toward her starting point when the birds suddenly go silent and a sleek head with soulfully dark eyes pops up out of the water. Kat stills instantly, mesmerized by the harbor seal watching her from perhaps only thirty feet away. She barely breathes for fear of scaring the animal away, fingers itching to glide across what has to be soft fur in the most beautiful pewter grey color. The seal is so close, she can see its nostrils flaring, its eyes blinking languidly at her.
"Hello there," she whispers softly. "Such a beauty you are. Are you hunting today? Catching anything good?" And then the seal's head slips back under the surface. "No, no! Don't go! Come back!"
Kat waits another couple of moments, scanning the water for signs of the seal surfacing again, but to no avail. With a heavy sigh, she heads back up the shore toward the lighthouse again. As she runs, the cadence of her footfalls becomes her sole focus, to the exclusion of practically everything else. Which is why she doesn't see the seal pacing just slightly ahead of her, but at that same distance from their first meeting, as if drawn to her.
Once Kat reaches the rock again, she pauses a moment to study the water again before walking toward her point of origin. Turning the corner, she heads down along the more publicly accessed area of the beach, intending to rest for a short while on her favorite driftwood log. The rain isn't even bothering her at this point, so what would a little more water on her already soaked body be? The sight of someone sitting at the water's edge in front of that same log brings Kat to a dead stop.
The woman has long dark hair, currently plastered to her head from the rain, and Kat can't help but wonder if that hair curls at all when it's dry. Moving closer, Kat notices that the woman's hair appears to go to her waist and seems to have strands of seaweed woven into it. The woman's low chanting makes its way to Kat's ears, but none of the words make any sense to her.
Movement to her right draws Kat's eyes further out into the water where she can see half a dozen harbor seals no more than twenty-five feet away from the mystery woman. Every single one of them is staring intently at the brunette with the faintly dusky skin.
Until Kat gasps at the sight. As one, the seals turn to look at her and disappear under the water as if they've never been there. And before she can fully register they're gone, she hears another splash and the mystery woman is gone.
Original post @ Dreamwidth with
comments. Commenting is welcome on either post.