New Character + Happy Halloween!!

new character + happy halloween!!

Hello friends!

This week’s post will be relatively short, probably my shortest yet. I have been very scattered with my creative writing this week as midterms have just passed and final project season is beginning. (Plus Halloween is in 2 days!! ᕱ__ᕱ) I have been working like crazy on several different creative projects for several different classes and I have gotten a lot done, it has just been mostly detail work and much of it is not something I can comprehensively show. So, for today I will simply summarize most of what I have worked on for my original story and give you the deets on a new character that I mentioned in the plot description from a few weeks ago!

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In short summary: I ironed out some naming conventions, did some more world building, came up with a bunch of new words for places, and named some characters. I’m still working on basic character descriptions for them, but fear not! You should be seeing some within the next few weeks. (Hopefully I can get some more character drawings done as well! ᕱ__ᕱ) However, I said I would give you one today, so here is a sneak peek to what you can be looking forward to! 

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Aurora of Sylvanthia [meaning]

Age 17

Human

Queen of Sylvanthia

Crowned Queen at age 16

Her mother passed from illness when she was 12  and her father soon followed

Their Council of Advisors took over as regent until she was came of age 

A corrupt faction attempted to coup her before she was even crown but she discovered their plot and reverse couped them taking her rightful place as queen 

Well loved by the people of her kingdom

Incredibly kind if strong willed and stubborn

Often underestimated for her young age and slight stature

Ruthless to those who cross her

Engaged to Kazuki of Okunseiko (Prince Pretty Boy)

Arranged marriage that they basically strong armed their parents into as children

A puppy love romance turned into reality

Her closest advisors and friends include Romulus (Golden Retriever Boy) and Sascha (Hot Spy Lady)

Her current daily routine involves fixing all the of the sh*t that the corrupt faction messed up in her kingdom, preparing her kingdom for war, and worrying about her man

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And that’s about it from me today. I wish you all a scary Spooky Season full of some tricks but mostly treats! ᕱ__ᕱ 

And just remember, dot your  your j’s and cross your t’s!

~Clementine J. Quincey 🎃🪷

a (not so) short interlude: fanfiction

Hello friends!

This week I have taken a break from working on my original story and instead wrote a piece of fanfiction. At first glance this may not seem like something unusual. In my bio I state I am a professional nerd afterall, and though I don’t believe I have ever discussed it on here, I do consume quite a bit of fanfiction along with original novels. However, the truth is that I had never actually written fanfiction. Well, before this week that is. 

In my one writing class (the same writing class I am doing this blog for in fact) we have been assigned to create a Remix, which is basically what it sounds like: taking other people’s content and cut/copy and pasting it to create something different/new. Remixes are the basis of fan-culture: fanfiction, fanart, video edits– all of these constitute as Remixes. And so, of course, my first, and strongest idea, for the assignment was to write a fanfiction. I wasn’t sure if that was allowed within the constraints of the assignment, so this week I basically asked my professor if I could write and submit a fanfiction for a class assignment. 

The things you do at university ladies and gentlefolk. 

I didn’t ask in so many words of course, and my professor was super chill about it and seems really excited for what I would come up with so that's cool. She’s going to be reading this post at some point actually so… 

Hello, Professor M! Thanks for being so awesome! ᕱ__ᕱ 

Anyway, all this to say, I was inspired to write my first fanfiction this week. It is not a part of the project I will be turning in for class, however it does introduce and develop some original characters, relationships, and conflicts that I may include in my class fanfic.

Oh! And before I let you get into it, I suppose I should let y’all know that it’s a Harry Potter fanfiction. That being said, I hope you enjoy!!

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“Muggle sports are so interesting,” Em said, swinging the pale pink baseball bat she carried up onto her shoulder with a flourish. “Don’t you think, Marcus?” She rolled her head back over her shoulder with a taunting smile to stare down Marcus Flint, who paused from where he was sauntering down the hallway with the Slytherin quidditch team, scoffing at Emma’s question.

“You think I know what the fuck your talking about, blondie? Muggle sports? As if lower myself to even touch anything associated with muggles.” His massive nose wrinkled as if he had taken a whiff of something particularly nasty, sneering down at the smaller girl. The whole hallway has frozen by this point.

“What even is that thing?” Adrian Pucey called out, “Looks like a fucked Beater’s batt,” he said, unintentionally echoing my question from earlier. “Are you sure they even use that for sport? Looks thin enough it could snap in half with one blow.” Laughter tittered through the gathered Slytherins and even some pure blood students from other houses.

“And would they even hit anything with it?” Malfoy cut in, snidely. “They’re not as developed as wizards, with their inferior reflexes. Clumsy oafs.” He sniffed with derision and the Slytherin’s laughter grew, through the rest of the students had piped down. Emma’s smile had dropped.

Flint’s sneer turned into a cruel grin “I’d think you would know that quite well, what with the spectacle your relatives made last year.” 

He was, of course, referring to when Emma had gotten caught up in the Chamber of secrets mess and had been petrified. Her muggle aunt had some to visit all the way from America and was in hysterics, though, rightfully so. Ems had to wait until near the end of the term for the mandrake draught to age to be cured as the Hogwarts Board had not seen it fit to allot a budget to import some from overseas. 

As Pucey, Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherin team snickered, Flint continued on, striking his final blow, “Poor little mudblood.” 

He leaned back, apparently satisfied with himself as Ems spun on her heel to face him fully, steel in her eyes and stone faced, the pink bat still on her shoulder. 

The thing about Emma that many people still don’t get, even though we are well into our Fourth Year at Hogwarts, is that though she may be a Hufflepuff, she is never one to back down from a challenge. Especially if she initiated it. Especially if it deals insults to her family and friends.

A sickeningly sweet smile rose to her face. “Oh, I’m so sorry, Marcus,” she simpered, false concern evident in her voice, “I forget sometimes that some people are so uneducated on this side of the pond.” Flint's face dropped and his relaxed pose faltered. “I’ll make sure to speak slowly for you, don’t worry.” That gained Ems a few snickers of her own from the other students in the crowded hall, but the Slytherins all tensed and a few people left to go grab a Professor.

Emma took a step forward as if nothing was wrong, smile still in place, but fire in her eyes. “This is called a baseball bat. It’s used in a sport called baseball. It’s very popular in America, even among the wizarding community. I unfortunately don’t think I have the skills to explain the whole game to you in a way that you would understand, but a baseball bat functions similarly to a beater bat. However, the ball that one must hit is much smaller than a bludger.” Emma paused here to take another step forward, her smile growing into something sharper. “What that means, Marcus, is that a baseball bat is much, much better for hitting,” she glanced down his body, making sure he saw the direction of her gaze when she looked back into his eyes a few seconds later, “smaller targets.”

Marcus inhaled sharply and the Slytherin team stood frozen as several students in the hall burst into laughter. Emma stepped back, her smile turning into a much more genuine smirk. “And for the record Marcus, I’m very grateful my aunt came all the way from America to visit me when I was attacked by the Heir of Slytherin. I’m very lucky to have such wonderful family. I’m sure your father would have done the same for you.” Flint flinched back slightly, hurt flashing across his face, though it was quickly covered by a scowl. Now that was a bit of a low blow, though arguably it was deserved. It was the worst kept secret in Slytherin that Marcus and his father did not get along, to put it lightly. 

Just then, a Ravenclaw prefect rounded the corner with Professors McGonagall and Snape in tow. Students very quickly began to disperse, including the rest of the Slytherin team, as Professor Snape raised an eyebrow at the scene. “Just what is going on here?” 

“Nothing, professors,” Emma bounced on her heels as she turned towards Snape and McGonagall, beaming at them. I could have sworn I heard Professor Snape mutter “too bright” under his breath, but I could be mistaken. “I was just telling Marcus about the American muggle sport called baseball,” she gestured to the bat on her shoulder.

Then, she turned to look at Flint again. “I’m so sorry to cut this riveting conversation short but I really do have to go and check on some of my plants. I’m sure Professor Burbage would be happy to continue to explain baseball to you if you ask politely. Though, that may be a challenge for you,” she nodded gravely to herself, “You should work on that. I hear that adequate etiquette skills are needed in pure blood circles, but I’m sure I wouldn’t know anything about that, being muggleborn myself.” 

She smirked at Flint, daring him to say anything and reveal the fact that he had called her a slur. Flint looked down and glared at the floor. Ems shifted her gaze back to the bewildered professors. “I was actually raised in the wizarding world, professors. It’s actually quite interesting! The American magical government is a little less strict about no-maj, sorry, muggle separation and my muggle aunt did marry a wizard.” 

“When my parents passed away and my aunt and uncle took me in, they revealed the world of magic to me. My aunt still works in the muggle world, but my uncle works for MACUSA.” Ems grinned. “That’s how it was so easy for me to get approval to study abroad here at Hogwarts. It’s where my uncle went. Anyway, I really do have to go. See you in transfiguration tomorrow Professor MacGonagal, bye!” With that Emma skipped away.

Snape shook his head slightly and turned back to Flint. “Do you have anything to add to Miss Williams’ account, Mr Flint.”

Flint’s mouth pinched and his shoulders hunched but he just shook his head and said, “No, Professor.”

MacGonagal huffed a short breath. “Right, then. Everything seems to be in order.” She  shooed Flint off. “Away with you Mr Flint, there’s no need to dawdle in the corridors. And thank you Mr Turner for grabbing us to deescalate the situation,” she said turning to the prefect, “2 points to Ravenclaw.”

Flint shuffled off, as MacGonagal left with the Ravenclaw prefect, Turner, who was asking her about something or other transfiguration related. Only Snape remained in the hall, and when both parties turned opposite corners, he spoke again. “Miss Woodward.”

I remained hidden. 

He sighed. “Miss Woodward I would like an account of these events from your own perspective this evening. Please arrive at my office after dinner, no later than 7.” With that he turned and stalked off.

I stepped out from the tapestry I was hiding behind and made a mental note to send Ems a note thanking her. I myself then turned and made my way to the courtyard despite the winter chill, resolved to avoid the dungeons and my head of house until after dinner.

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I’m quite proud of what I have written here and for my first fanfiction ever I don’t think I’ve done too shabby of a job. But, with that, since this post is a little longer than normal, I shall let you go.

Remember: dot your  your j’s and cross your t’s! ᕱ__ᕱ 

~Clementine J. Quincey 🪷

Percy Jackson is the best book boyfriend and one of the main reasons my standards for relationships in both fiction (my own original work and work I consume) as well as real life are so incredibly high

We do not talk about this passage enough, this is so sweet

happy holidays!! 🎊

Hello friends!

Happy New Year!! I hope you all had a wonderful, restful holiday season! Next week I will get back to the normal weekly posts, but for now, here’s to new beginnings in this new year! See y’all in 2024!

Just remember to dot your j’s and cross your t’s!

 ~Clementine J. Quincey 🪷

i need a fanfic stat

do yall think there is a universe where Jason was given to one direction instead of the wolves

the creative process & writing sh*t

Hello friends!

This week, as I get back into the swing of working on my original story and the challenge I’ve set for myself with tackling the seemingly insurmountable task of worldbuilding, I’ve been thinking a lot about how I’m going to approach crafting my fantasy world. I’ve been kicking around the interwebs for a bit for some guidance (how-to videos and blogs, inspirational content, etc.) and I’ve not had much luck. I’ve been looking into a few courses (mainly https://rmarcher.com/resource-library/the-worldbuilding-toolbox/) and resources (mainly https://milanote.com/guide/worldbuilding & https://inkarnate.com/) but I’m not sure about any of them. 

(^ me this week)

I’ve said before that I am not Tolkien (though I wish). I have never built a world with the extent of detail and specificity and concreteness to which I need to build the one in which my story takes place. I have no idea what I’m doing. 

I think, however, that's part of the creative process, though it pains me to say. I like when outcomes are known and things are in order (though life rarely ever truly is). I’m gonna admit something to y’all….  I am a total perfectionist. I like things the way that I like things, and I don't like not being able to make things the way I want them to be. 

But part of writing, as I am slowly coming to learn and accept, is creating complete sh*t. And if you create enough sh*t then every so often you’ll stumble across something that's gold. All you need to do is have the courage to dive in and the willingness to get messy.

Therefore, what I really need to do to start building this world for my story, is to just dive in and mess around. That scares the crap out of me because I know some of the stuff (maybe even most of the stuff) that I’m going to make will be terrible. But with all the terrible stuff, there is going to be some stuff that is awesome. And, I don’t know about you, but for me a lot of terrible stuff and a little bit of awesome stuff is better than no stuff at all. 

As I’ve been cutting down on procrastination, I’ve been trying to make intentional space to be creative. So, as I continue to make time to do my other creative hobbies like crocheting and graphic design, I am going to make time to write as well. I’m going to throw myself head first into this whole worldbuilding thing and just try stuff out. I may use worldbuilding resources or aids, but for the most part I’m just going to write. I want to  make the commitment to do this thing, but also give myself space to let my creativity grow. 

So, I will keep you all updated as I go along. Hopefully I'll have enough good stuff to share (because I don’t want to bog down my feed with crap), but we shall see. That’s all from me today, I guess.

And remember, dot your j’s and cross your t’s (even when your writing sh*t ᕱ__<)!

~Clementine J. Quincey 🪷