Character Aesthetic Playlist - Agatha Greenwoods (Enchanted Illusions)

Character Aesthetic Playlist - Agatha Greenwoods (Enchanted Illusions)

"She was going to follow this trail of secrets until they led her to the answers she sought, this she was certain. They had always told her she was just like her father - so here's to hoping she can be just as stubborn as he'd been."

Houdini - Aviva

Middle Finger - Bohnes

This is Me - Keala Settle, The Greatest Showman

Home - Machine Gun Kelly, X Ambassadors & Bebe Rexha 

Something Wild - Lindsey Stirling

Start a War - Klergy, Valerie Broussard

Goodbye - Ramsey

On My Father's Wings - cover by Brittany J. Smith

No Time To Die - Billie Eilish

Hands Up - City Wolf

Invisible - Zara Larsson

The Beginning of the End - Klergy, Valerie Broussard

How Does a Moment Last Forever - Celine Dion

Speechless - Naomi Scott

Two Birds On a Wire - Regina Spektor

The Nights - Avicii

Winter Nano 2023 @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 ..."

For Xarian:

face: Describe your OC's face. What's their smile like? Are their orbs cerulean? What would someone notice first when looking at them?

stature: What's your OC's body type? How tall are they? Do they wear clothing to accentuate their look or do they try to mask it?

motion: How does your OC move? How does their clothing help or hinder their range of motion? Are they flexible, coordinated, clumsy?

Thank you so much for the Ask, @clairelsonao3!

(From the OC Character Design Ask Game)

face: Describe your OC's face. What's their smile like? Are their orbs cerulean? What would someone notice first when looking at them?

Xarian has a thin and angular face, pale but tanned, slightly sharp, though there are dark circles under his eyes. His bright hazel eyes are mysterious, the tell-tale sign of someone trying not to give away anything about himself, except when he is looking at Lorelai, the love of his life - then his cold eyes turn warm, filled with endless devotion.

He is rather handsome, and he knows it. Xarian has different smiles, for different situations, usually a sly smirk or a quick taken-aback chuckle, but his genuine smile is unique - soft and radiant, truly joyful, a rare glimpse of the person he used to be, once.

The first thing someone would notice about Xarian, especially if under the right lighting, is that his hair has a slight metallic glint to it, making the curls atop of his head genuinely look like an actual mix of real silver and copper. This is due to the kind of faery he is, and his changeling nature.

stature: What's your OC's body type? How tall are they? Do they wear clothing to accentuate their look or do they try to mask it?

Xarian is thin and lanky, though muscular, and is a rather tall person. His clothing is usually meant for practicality, as Xarian doesn't really care about how he looks as long as he is moderately put together, though his leather boots make him look slightly taller than he already is.

motion: How does your OC move? How does their clothing help or hinder their range of motion? Are they flexible, coordinated, or clumsy?

Xarian moves stealthily, extremely coordinated. He is the kind of person that no one notices when he enters the room due to how quiet he is unless he wants to be noticed, and he is also very flexible and fast when he needs to be. As mentioned before, his clothes are meant to be practical, which includes allowing him a free range of motion and freedom, he dislikes clothes that make him feel trapped or uncomfortable.

WIP Intro - Realms of Loss

Tag - # wip realms of loss

Genres - dark fantasy, medieval quest, high fantasy, war

Status - Outlining, Work In Progress

Themes - war, revenge, loyalty, duty vs honor, the impact of cruelty, politics, lies, survival, betrayal, love and family, choosing one's destiny, fate vs will, prophecy, siblings, oppression, inequality and neglect, valor, forgotten histories, and sacrifice.

Synopsis -

A land forsaken by the gods, abandoned to a fate immersed in strife and forgotten magic, divided between warlords fighting for power and conquest in the remains of a ruthless and scarce world. Two kingdoms stained by the past of a bloody betrayal, trapped in an age-old feud, as chaos and war grow ever stronger outside their walls.

Life is perilous in this world, where only the strongest survive. Some are lucky enough to reside in the still-blessed inner cities of Sarythea, or Avillore, where the massive stone walls keep the encroaching darkness and war at bay, idyllic oasis in the midst of a wasteland. Most, however, are not so lucky. To those born in the ruthless and forgotten outer cities, life is a matter of who can strike first, and strike the fastest - hesitation means death.

When an ancient cursed prophecy and an army thought to have long since fallen tip the scales of this fragile stalemate, destruction seems imminent - if not inevitable - for this gods-forsaken realm.

Among many points of view, however, there might yet be a spark in the midst of this overwhelming night. A prince, born of the last blood of the gods. But with the fate of everything hanging in the balance and his life tied to a curse, will this spark be what brings back light, or the wildfire that'll bring the realms' final ruin? He will do anything to fight against his dark destiny, to bring back hope to his beloved late brother's kingdom in the midst of the growing chaos and encroaching enemies - if he can first survive those who want to see him murdered, or turned into a weapon. To do this, he'll need allies, and when the entire world is against you, beggars can't be choosers - a group of outlaws just might be his only chance.

This is the other WIP I'll be working on during the Winter Nano event!!!

@crowandmoonwriting

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

My favorite ship dynamic is "they're both extremely stupid in completely different ways and extremely smart in completely different ways, but rarely is any of that useful because they just get extra double stupid when together"