A few questions before we get started
1. Are you going to intensively outline this like you have the others?
No. Let's do a pantsers thing. They've got to have something going for them, also if I outline this too much I'll start to hate it and that's just unacceptable.
2. Why doesn't Odette just call the cops on her cell phone when it becomes clear she's trapped?
She tried and Bard cloaked the island. All they saw was a couple of swans going nuts on the lake.
3. Where exactly does all this take place?
Well, I know the California area pretty well, so let's go with that. Napa county or some such, something where there's gorgeous landscape and wealthy folks.
4. Is the Cygnette family immortal?
No, they have regular human lifespans. They are wealthy, but stay out of muggle view where possible so as not to attract riffraff. Dr. Bard does manage a prestigious school for boys, ultimately with the idea that if there's a little bit of magic going to touch muggle lives, it might as well be a small piece that touches the future powerful ones, to make them smarter, or better people,or more creative, something that's good for humanity that you can't get by being a merely good teacher.
5. Why a swan?
Tradition. The swan has been the Cygnette family patron time out of mind, all the way back to ancient Finland. Bard himself was once punished alongside his ten brothers with the shape of a swan, so quit complaining it's not so bad. It's practically a rite of passage at this point.
6. What does Ferdie want to do with his life?
He's expected to follow in his family footsteps as well, and go into politics. Being that he is seventeen and has had exactly no time for anything besides his schoolwork, he has no idea what he does want to do with his life. His mother really isn't offering any choices besides that, but his secret motive for getting such good grades is for his own benefit, not hers: he could get a full ride scholarship anywhere in the world, major in whatever he wanted, drop her name shamelessly, and actually do whatever he wants whenever he decides what that is.
7. Does Senator Astor approve of Odette?
nope. With so much unknown about her, especially seeing that their relationship is almost entirely online based, she's a liability.
ooo! At some point senator Astor should trace the IP address of her son's incoming emails, and discover the calls are coming from inside the house messages are coming from the campus! What a tweest!
8. Tell me about the gala.
Well, it's prom. Ferdie isn't prom king, kee-riste we are not writing that story. But Odile does show up in all her finery, and proceeds to come on to him really strong, as in sexy too strong, partly out of her deal with Bard to break up the couple, partly out of spite towards Odette, mostly because she just got her body back and is going crazy with sensations.
9. What is the nature of Odile and Bard's deal, anyway?
Bard has found out about Ferdie's plan to help Odette escape the island and cheat her out of the curse. He's all set to take matters into his own hands, but his estranged daughter shows up from wherever it is that young magical ladies go when they feel like it. He offers to stop forcing her to come home in exchange for her breaking up Odette and Ferdie's relationship. He means for them to just stop flirting, Odile totally misinterprets it somehow as RUIN EVERYTHING HARDCORE and not only does a great job of breaking them up, but also breaking the school, and several people.
10. Is Bard actually an evil enchanter?
No. He's just trying to do the right thing and going about it the wrong way. He does love his daughters but has confused "protecting them from muggles" with "controlling their lives." Actually, he and Senator Astor are quite alike in that regard.
11. How are you going to do this, exactly?
I was thinking nano, but that's ages away and I've got to do something soon. Thirty days has September, so it wouldn't be impossible to try a solo nano then, even if several days are spoken for. That would leave November open for the Necromancer story, and October for Fold editing. Right, time for a year-long plan entry.
No. Let's do a pantsers thing. They've got to have something going for them, also if I outline this too much I'll start to hate it and that's just unacceptable.
2. Why doesn't Odette just call the cops on her cell phone when it becomes clear she's trapped?
She tried and Bard cloaked the island. All they saw was a couple of swans going nuts on the lake.
3. Where exactly does all this take place?
Well, I know the California area pretty well, so let's go with that. Napa county or some such, something where there's gorgeous landscape and wealthy folks.
4. Is the Cygnette family immortal?
No, they have regular human lifespans. They are wealthy, but stay out of muggle view where possible so as not to attract riffraff. Dr. Bard does manage a prestigious school for boys, ultimately with the idea that if there's a little bit of magic going to touch muggle lives, it might as well be a small piece that touches the future powerful ones, to make them smarter, or better people,or more creative, something that's good for humanity that you can't get by being a merely good teacher.
5. Why a swan?
Tradition. The swan has been the Cygnette family patron time out of mind, all the way back to ancient Finland. Bard himself was once punished alongside his ten brothers with the shape of a swan, so quit complaining it's not so bad. It's practically a rite of passage at this point.
6. What does Ferdie want to do with his life?
He's expected to follow in his family footsteps as well, and go into politics. Being that he is seventeen and has had exactly no time for anything besides his schoolwork, he has no idea what he does want to do with his life. His mother really isn't offering any choices besides that, but his secret motive for getting such good grades is for his own benefit, not hers: he could get a full ride scholarship anywhere in the world, major in whatever he wanted, drop her name shamelessly, and actually do whatever he wants whenever he decides what that is.
7. Does Senator Astor approve of Odette?
nope. With so much unknown about her, especially seeing that their relationship is almost entirely online based, she's a liability.
ooo! At some point senator Astor should trace the IP address of her son's incoming emails, and discover the calls are coming from inside the house messages are coming from the campus! What a tweest!
8. Tell me about the gala.
Well, it's prom. Ferdie isn't prom king, kee-riste we are not writing that story. But Odile does show up in all her finery, and proceeds to come on to him really strong, as in sexy too strong, partly out of her deal with Bard to break up the couple, partly out of spite towards Odette, mostly because she just got her body back and is going crazy with sensations.
9. What is the nature of Odile and Bard's deal, anyway?
Bard has found out about Ferdie's plan to help Odette escape the island and cheat her out of the curse. He's all set to take matters into his own hands, but his estranged daughter shows up from wherever it is that young magical ladies go when they feel like it. He offers to stop forcing her to come home in exchange for her breaking up Odette and Ferdie's relationship. He means for them to just stop flirting, Odile totally misinterprets it somehow as RUIN EVERYTHING HARDCORE and not only does a great job of breaking them up, but also breaking the school, and several people.
10. Is Bard actually an evil enchanter?
No. He's just trying to do the right thing and going about it the wrong way. He does love his daughters but has confused "protecting them from muggles" with "controlling their lives." Actually, he and Senator Astor are quite alike in that regard.
11. How are you going to do this, exactly?
I was thinking nano, but that's ages away and I've got to do something soon. Thirty days has September, so it wouldn't be impossible to try a solo nano then, even if several days are spoken for. That would leave November open for the Necromancer story, and October for Fold editing. Right, time for a year-long plan entry.