WIP INTRO: Enchanted Illusions

WIP INTRO: Enchanted Illusions

Tag - # wip enchanted illusions

Genres

victorian fantasy, adventure, mystery, gothic fantasy

Status

Work In Progress

Themes

justice, love, coming of age, truth, conspiracy, prejudice, unexpected friendship. perseverance, corruption of power, change, individual vs society, kindness, mythology

Synopsis

The violent war between humans and mythical creatures is over, it has been for over a century, and human society has adjusted to welcome those they shunned for so long. Magic is no longer outlawed, and the world has thrived and progressed over the years, coming into a golden age like none seen before. But beneath the surface, all is not what it seems - as their world grew, so did the inequality within it. Though peace has been achieved, in the bustling grim streets and daily lives of the capital city, the war remains - silent and changed to exist under the gaze of all, but it is there, seeping through the cracks of a barely resolved conflict, mixing with growing prejudice. And from those cracks, rose those who would see this budding, frail balance between nations crumble. Beneath their city's perfect surface, a cruel secret society aims to undo all that has been achieved, fueling the populace's prejudice for one another and slowly taking control of the city's political landscape, looking to profit from the start of another conflict, despite the unending efforts the land's diplomats. To prevent this underground scheme from causing another war between humans and myths, it is now up to a group of city-bound misfits caught in the crossfires to investigate a centuries-old conspiracy and defeat the well-hidden Hemlock Society, hopefully in time to maintain their land's hard-earned peace.

With their city trapped in a careful political dance between good and evil, can these misfits defeat the shadows of their own past when it comes knocking down their door?

I will be participating in event, Winter Nano with this WIP!

@crowandmoonwriting

Happy STS! I'm asking about friendships and platonic relationships today, and I remember reading a snippet you posted about Evangeline and Ambrose from Enchanted Illusions. You mentioned they become best friends when Ambrose clumsily tries to steal an artifact from her mansion. Without being too spoilery, how did you decide to have them meet this way? Why did they become friends? What else do you like about their dynamic?

Happy (Late) Storyteller Saturday! I hope you don't mind my answering this a day late, I got a bit caught up on writing one of my WIPs! I love these questions.

Without being too spoilery, how did you decide to have them meet this way?

The main reason was that this was the most organic way I could think of to have these two characters from vastly different backgrounds meet, but also, there's an actual plot-related reason for this. Without exposing too much of the story - the person who hired Ambrose to steal that artifact also happens to be a serious enemy of Evangeline's family (it's worth noting that Ambrose didn't know this, he didn't even really know the person who hired him), and this unexpected connection between the duo allows Evangeline to discover a complicated conspiracy/assassination plot against her father, and allows Ambrose to finally get the chance to prove his skills as they kinda set out to ensure that conspiracy doesn't happen.

Why did they become friends?

Well, they're both incredibly intelligent but awkward cinnamon rolls with very specific interests/hobbies (who also happen to be similar). Evangeline wants a way to experience something more than her sightly suffocating noble life and Ambrose wants the chance to be the adventurer he always dreamt of being, but also pay a complicated debt. Evie wants to defeat her family's enemies before it is too late, Ambrose needs to pay his debt to the Hemlock Society (who also happen to be those enemies of hers) before they kill him (the very reason he accepted to try and steal a priceless artifact from one of the richest families in their city). At first, it's more of a "we are stuck in the same mess, so we might as well help each other", but it slowly turns into a real - and quite frankly wholesome -friendship.

What else do you like about their dynamic?

I think they match really well, as while their interests and hobbies are similar, their personalities couldn't be more different. This kinda makes for really great banter material! Evangeline is reckless and oftentimes impulsive, most of her ideas and plans being spontaneous or downright improvised, and who never really learned the concept of consequences or that planning is a thing - the personification of flying by the seat of her pants with feral confidence. Meanwhile, Ambrose is an anxious lil bean who prefers to plan every step of the way before he does something and second-guesses his decisions at least thrice before acting. So it leads to some situations where Evangeline is like "Let's do this! (has the worst, most dangerous idea on the planet which somehow works out)" and Ambrose is like "This is going to go wrong in so many different ways, please don't ..."

Happy STS!

Which OC has been taking over your mind recently? What excites you about them?

~ @tabswrites

Happy Storyteller Saturday! Thank you so much for the ask, @tabswrites!

Which OC has been taking over your mind recently? What excites you about them?

Cailean Telkerly from Enchanted Illusions, Ahren Ellara from Tales of Wilted Flowers, and Adaria Vytris from Realms of Loss. Lemme explain (:

CAILEAN TELKERLY -

Cailean is one of my favorite characters in that book, being the rogue with a heart of gold archetype that I really, really love in fiction! Since I've been working on his POV backstory a lot lately, I've gotten to know his history a lot better, which only made me love this character even more. I'm excited about quite a lot of things about him, from his intricate past to his personality. He is a classy and witty con man/thief who specializes in stealing from the nobility and overall big targets. To make a very long story short, he agrees to help one of the protagonists (Agatha) because he believes using this partnership will get him rich (and because they have a common enemy), but ends up really falling in love with her in the process (which complicates and screws up his "this partnership is strictly business" plan quite a lot), which leads to a very much "star-crossed lovers" situation sometimes. Plus, he is really adorable in personality, because even though he is a petty criminal, he is also a really good person deep down beneath the opportunistic exterior he carefully crafted throughout the years - and is someone very charmingly sarcastic at that. Writing the growth of his relationship with Agatha, from strangers to partners/friends to lovers, is really, really rewarding, especially given their vastly different worldviews and experiences (and how much they fall in love with each other).

AHREN ELLARA -

I really like writing about Ahren because of his complexity, and his character arc in the first book - which goes from a hesitant good character to a morally grey character, as he ends up doing the wrong things for good reasons (as he was led to believe he had no other choice). He's a really tragic character and a good example of how a chaotic environment and constant pressure can change even the most resilient of people. Ahren had everything, and in the matter of one fateful night, he lost it all. He would do anything to restore his family name and keep his cousin safe, even if it takes making not-so-great choices and morally convoluted deals. The impact of the losses he suffered and the hardships he endured turned Ahren into someone slightly bitter and paranoid, certain that everyone was "out to get him" and that he had to be ruthless before the world has the chance to be ruthless to him - having a "the world was never fair to me, why should I be?" mindset. He is a good person and tried with every fiber of his being to remain so, but eventually, it all becomes too much for him to handle alone, which defines a turning point for his character in Book 1. Overall, a very compelling POV that has taken over a lot of my mind these days!

ADARIA VYTRIS -

There's something I really like about her backstory and motivations throughout the book, they feel very specific and genuine to her. I love writing about underdog characters who beat the odds and decide to take a stand about a system that has wronged them. Adaria is also incredibly loyal and protective of her family, which is the whole reason she embarks on this journey in the first place - to save her siblings. Her relationship with them is also a huge part of why I love her backstory so much! Adaria is a very hopeful character, preferring to believe that one day the future will be brighter - and she will fight to make sure that happens. The odds were always against her - she was just another street kid from the freezing outer cities, probably destined to starve or vanish, like so many before her, but she wanted more than that world could give her, she wanted to be more. To live, not just survive. She decided to challenge her destiny, with what tools she was given and will do whatever it takes to ensure this future for herself and those she loves. Another thing I really like about her is her friendship with Kassien Vann, a knight from Sarythea tasked with protecting a weapon she sets out to steal - their relationship goes from rivals to hesitant allies and finally friends, I really like it!

SONGS Tag Game!

I was tagged by @forthesanityofsome for this one, here! Thanks!

Rules: put 5 songs you actually listen to, then tag 10 people.

From my most repeated playlist on YouTube -

Husavik - Will Ferell & My Marianne

Gods - League of Legends, New Jeans

At the Beginning - Anastasia

Fighter - The Score

Killing Butterflies - Lewis Blissett

Tagging: @the-mindless, @crowandmoonwriting, @writernopal, @moonluringfrost, @lassiesandiego, @elshells, @cabbojage, @hrmkingizzy, @unstablewifiaccess, and @doublegoblin

Character Aesthetic Playlist - Marcus Kallihan (Enchanted Illusions)

"His hands and guns were drenched in enough blood to haunt lifetimes. To Marcus, this never mattered, and never will - as long as each polluted drop gets him closer to his sweet revenge, he'll keep pulling the trigger."

Russian Roullete - Charlie Who ?

You Can Run - Adam Jones

Running - NF

Laplace's Angel (Hurt People? Hurt People!) - Will Wood

99 Problems - Hugo

I'm Dangerous - The Everlove

Sarcasm - Get Scared

Take Me to Church - Hozier

Twisted - MISSIO

Popular Monster - Falling In Reverse

Hey Brother - Jakob Samuel

Killing Butterflies - Lewis Blissett

Fighter - The Score

Birthday Cake - Dylan Conrique

Mind Is a Prison - Alec Benjamin

Monster - Startset

Winter Nano 2023 @crowandmoonwriting

Thank you so much for the tag! I'll go with some of the main cast from my WIPs Enchanted Illusions and Realms of Loss for this one. I hope I got this right!

As matches for your OCs (respectively) - from Enchanted Illusions

Ambrose Prosper- He likes optimistic people, and those who can match his absurdly high energy level (in the sense he rarely ever feels tired of constantly doing stuff or never feels overwhelmed and likes an intellectually stimulating company). However, he tends to overlook his own safety and needs while being so focused on his goals and studies and new inventions, so having someone who can offer him support and remind him to take breaks/care for himself, would help a lot.

Clarence Van Sterlling - Your OCs short temper might take him aback at first, but if there's someone who is persistent and patient once he decides he wants someone's friendship, that's him. He is a very sheltered vampire and has trouble navigating social cues- sometimes to his own peril - so having someone to protect him during those moments is great, especially because he is more than willing to furiously protect his partner should need be.

Harriet Sharppe - Oh boy, oh boy, does this girl like to have someone to talk to or share stories with. She is very extroverted, and since she spends most of her time in her mansion with her very introverted and quiet cousin, she has a lot of pent-up talking-energy and stories she wants to tell.

For the next person to find a match to - from Realms of Loss

Viktoras Aeravi - He is an honor-bound bastard son (which means he has some heavy emotional baggage no one else knows about) and is determined to bring peace to his father's lands while in exile. He likes people who have a moral code (as in, someone who wouldn't betray or lie to others), brave and kind people, plus anyone who is light-hearted/has a good sense of humor. Viktoras might be a bit conflicted about his feelings and insecurities at first, but as soon as he gets to warm up to that person, he becomes a hopelessly romantic and loyal partner.

Prince Archyvel - Personality-wise, Archyvel is a good person, but his upbringing, made him slightly vain and very unprepared for the real world - though he is determined to do the right thing. He likes someone with confidence, who believes in themselves (mostly because he wants to be able to cheer them on, which is a very "golden retriever" side of his personality) - he falls in love fast, and is very nervous about it (since he is afraid of actually showing his feelings and it not being mutual). He would be a very doting partner if given a chance.

Adaria Vytris - Due to how her oldest brother raised her, Adaria became someone who believes in being the most efficient/cutthroat in the room, and considers any hesitation or uncertainty as a weakness - this allowed her to survive in the ruthless outer cities they grew up in, but made her a rather mistrusting and very skittish person to actually get emotionally close to. This means, when it comes to any kind of relationship, she has no patience for those who can't keep up with her goals, and neither does she suffer fools, but is someone incredibly sweet (in an awkward way) and ruthlessly protective once the person proves themselves worthy of her trust and time - and if they can have the patience to actually see through her emotional walls, she is actually very kind.

Tagging: @doublegoblin, @oh-no-another-idea, @sm-writes-chaos, @aziz-reads, @clairelsonao3, and @gummybugg

Tag Game: OC Speed Dating

I decided I'd try out coming up with a new tag game, I think thats something I'm allowed to do?

So I'm going to to put some of my OCs forward and say what they look for in a person. And then, the next person can pick some of their OCs who might be a good match for them (Don't worry, it's just for fun). Then put something that OC might look for for in a person, for the next person to find a match for?

So if I say: Zhu Lin - Lin is cheerful and energetic, and likes to look out for people. She'd be looking for someone who needs someone to support them, so she can offer that support to someone.

Jacinda Caçador - Jacinda is a bit short tempered and has trust issues because of her past. She would be looking for someone patient who can bear with her as she warms up to them, before becoming their vigilant guard dog.

Naveed Sahin Hassan - Naveed runs a bar, in part because it lets him meet a lot of people and hear their stories. so he'd be looking for someone with a lot of stories to tell, who doesn't mind sharing them, and generally likes to talk a lot.

And then I'll tag: @ember-writer, @thatndginger, @mysticstarlightduck, @dogmomwrites and @fleurtygurl, if you fancy joining in on this one?