Test-Drive Chapter: "He Came Home"

[dawn_felagund]

I promised Tarion a while back that--no matter when AMC finally ended--that I would have a Friday posting for her until she left school to go home. Since AMC ended last week and Tarion has one Friday left before going home, I have decided to share the first five pages or so of my novella-in-progress "He Came Home

Comments

[enismirdal]

Oh, gorgeous! I love your characters - the latent tension that seems to exist between Anairë and Indis is interesting. Eärwen is such a sweetheart - but I guess she'd have to be, for Finarfin to marry her! I love your Finarfin (he reminds me a bit of the one I play in RPG) - so sweet and unpretentious, a sort of kind, honest Elf who does not do this whole posh facade thing! Just...a genuine, nice Elfie!

And I really liked how the wives were almost arguing over not running the kingdom! Good on all of them for having better things to do than wave power around!

[dawn_felagund]

Thank you! :^D

These Elves are such fun to write because you don't see a lot of them in stories. (And *whispers so Nelyo doesn't hear* I have a bit of a crush on Arafinwe! ;^D)

And I really liked how the wives were almost arguing over not running the kingdom!

They're probably thinking, "We don't want this mess our husbands have left us!" They have quite a task ahead of them in the months/years to come....

I can't wait to finish this story...finally! Too many ideas, too little time! :)

[aramel_calawen]

Hmm... for some reason, I keep thinking of this as the flip side of AMC. Let me explain: AMC was from a "pro-Feanorian" POV, more or less, and this, while I hesitate to say "anti-Feanorian"... well, Earwen certainly won't be feeling too sympathetic with Feanor & co.

On a side note, I never did understand about the Kinslaying, because according to the Silm it was the Teleri who struck the first blow (unless I was reading it massively wrong...?) Granted, the Noldor did try to board the ships, but they didn't fight. Which means that the Noldor were guilty of winning. Of course, I'm probably quite mistaken, and Feanor & co commited some heinous crime at Alqualonde that's not told in the Silm.

[dawn_felagund]

I hesitate to say "anti-Feanorian"... well, Earwen certainly won't be feeling too sympathetic with Feanor & co.

In Felak!verse, actually, Earwen and Feanaro are old friends from way back....

But I agree that by this point, she probably resents most of his actions. I hope, though, that she is not outrightly condemning of Feanaro as a person and that she understands, at least, that he is mad by this point, really through no fault of his own.

I never did understand about the Kinslaying, because according to the Silm it was the Teleri who struck the first blow (unless I was reading it massively wrong...?)We had this discussion a few weeks ago on the Henneth-Annun list, so I feel somewhat qualified to answer this

[aramel_calawen]

What do I think? Well, I'm hardly trying to get the Noldor "off the hook" as it were, since Angsty(tm) Noldor are nice, but I keep thinking of what could have happened if anything had turned out differently: if Olwe had agreed; if the Telerin mariners hadn't shoved people overboard; if the Noldor hadn't been so bloody quick about rushing into a melee (and I'm just wondering why, if Feanor made the swords in secret, the other Noldor had them and could use them too), or anything. Plot-bunnies abound.

Quite randomly, I keep wondering what all the Elves who were enemies and rivals would do in the Halls of Mandos together.

[rhapsody11]

It is shelter; it draws me into it, even more so than my own empty house. My feet clatter on the walkway as I trip over flagstones in the darkness, but that single burning square of light-at the corner of the house-draws me. I am starved for it, starved for light.

I let myself into the house and grope down dark corridors, calling as I walk, lest I be mistaken for an enemy.

I love the whole feeling I get when I read this chapter. It is such a difference from AMC, yet it flows and reads so smoothly... and funny enough I have to get used to a woman's pov. Thanks for this sneak preview... when is the next chapter? ;c)

[dawn_felagund]

Thank you! :) A woman's PoV is strange for me to. I've done a few short stories from Nerdanel's PoV--and AMC chapters too, of course--but 95% of the time, my stories come from a male perspective.

After I finish Alina's bday story-turned-novella, I will probably resume work on this story. It's unfortunately the story that gets set aside whenever another project grabs my fancy. (I started it in September, and it is only 19 pages so far!) When I get steady work underway and near the ending, I'll probably start a regular posting schedule similar to what I did for AMC.

[atanwende]

This is wonderful, Dawn. I'd love to scream "More!" now, but Caranthir keeps pointing out your author's note to me, so I'll rather be civilized and simply tell you that I think it would be great to seem yet more of this. :)

[dawn_felagund]

Thank you! :) And you'll be happy to know that once I finish Alina's bday story, this will be the project to which I return (while also revising the early chapters of AMC. Yikes.) So I guarantee more in months to come. :)