End of Week 2 Write-a-ton Word count: 5008
A huge thanks to all the people who have sponsored me. I am totally awed by your generosity.
Tons and tons of dialogue last week. Needs work, I know. But this week, I feel like I'm getting somewhere.
An excerpt here:
...“I don’t know how I can help. I’m not a healer.”
“Oh, but you are,” Madam Veen said. “All of us with power are healers. It’s merely a matter of training. Of focus.”
As convincing as Madam Veen’s argument sounded, Ju did not trust any of it. She turned away, looked over the river to the burnished rooftops of Upper Slik.
“There’s nothing for you out there,” Madam Veen said. “Ronto may well be a petty criminal, but he’s smart enough to recognise an investment when he sees one. He’s got men looking for you even as we speak. Have you seen what happens to people who overindulge in Urstone? Have you heard about the miners of Ur?”
“My father was one of them,” Ju said.
“Before or after you were born?”
Ju realized that if she answered truthfully she’d be walking on the edge of a trap. Yet if she lied, there’d be no escape. “Before,” she said in a small voice. “Long before.” She looked at Madam Veen.
The woman raised her eyebrows fluidly. “Well, that explains everything, doesn’t it?”
Ju shrugged. “I’m tainted.”
“Unfortunate for a woman of low status. Your options are not great.”
Ju snorted and looked away.
“You need to learn how to focus your power,” Madam Veen continued. “I will not force potions and machines on you, like Sir Mathias would. Prove your worth to him before he discovers you and I assure you things will work out.”
Ju shook her head. “I’m a commoner. The law doesn’t allow-”
“The laws can be bent. The king will turn a blind eye to the illegal use of power if it can be put to his own advantage.”
“I don’t-”
Madam Veen took hold of Ju’s shoulders and swung her around to face her. “You’ve not been listening so I’ll spell it out. If I don’t help you, you’ll either end your life in prison or be forced to work for Sir Mathias. Ronto will not even get a look in. There’ll come a time when you wished that he had.”...
Tons and tons of dialogue last week. Needs work, I know. But this week, I feel like I'm getting somewhere.
An excerpt here:
...“I don’t know how I can help. I’m not a healer.”
“Oh, but you are,” Madam Veen said. “All of us with power are healers. It’s merely a matter of training. Of focus.”
As convincing as Madam Veen’s argument sounded, Ju did not trust any of it. She turned away, looked over the river to the burnished rooftops of Upper Slik.
“There’s nothing for you out there,” Madam Veen said. “Ronto may well be a petty criminal, but he’s smart enough to recognise an investment when he sees one. He’s got men looking for you even as we speak. Have you seen what happens to people who overindulge in Urstone? Have you heard about the miners of Ur?”
“My father was one of them,” Ju said.
“Before or after you were born?”
Ju realized that if she answered truthfully she’d be walking on the edge of a trap. Yet if she lied, there’d be no escape. “Before,” she said in a small voice. “Long before.” She looked at Madam Veen.
The woman raised her eyebrows fluidly. “Well, that explains everything, doesn’t it?”
Ju shrugged. “I’m tainted.”
“Unfortunate for a woman of low status. Your options are not great.”
Ju snorted and looked away.
“You need to learn how to focus your power,” Madam Veen continued. “I will not force potions and machines on you, like Sir Mathias would. Prove your worth to him before he discovers you and I assure you things will work out.”
Ju shook her head. “I’m a commoner. The law doesn’t allow-”
“The laws can be bent. The king will turn a blind eye to the illegal use of power if it can be put to his own advantage.”
“I don’t-”
Madam Veen took hold of Ju’s shoulders and swung her around to face her. “You’ve not been listening so I’ll spell it out. If I don’t help you, you’ll either end your life in prison or be forced to work for Sir Mathias. Ronto will not even get a look in. There’ll come a time when you wished that he had.”...