101 Fan Clubers

The theme of this post is most definitely celebration. The spinning vortex that is November has been sending me into a tailspin, but I wanted very much to grab onto something solid for a moment and post about this amazing thing:

*rubs eyes* Am I dreaming? No? Hurrah! It's official: my figment fan club has reached 101 members!

This is totally a big deal. Yes, I do have a lot of followers, but for someone to enjoy my writing enough to join the group does matter a lot to me. We all know what the figment groups are like; it's hard to check updates, new comments, etc., when there's no notification system. No matter what group you join, you're left in the dark (unless you have a shameless habit of checking the groups every four minutes... in which case, not many people are like that. Trust me).

So 101 fans... thank you. Thank you so much. And while I'm at it, a hearty thank you to fellow figgie Ben Chapman who created the group way back in '11 and the admins and mods that continue to look cool, haha.

You guys give me the honey glows something awful.

To celebrate, I rearranged my schedule in order to try (and it's working so far) to write, write, write and post. As much as I love the feedback on Tread Softly, I know what you all really want is more Boys & Bees - hence, the new chapter.

We're getting to a tipping point in the story. There's the looming circus, the dead-end clues, the mysterious helper and Hedda's secret... gah! Well, cool your heels. I'm writing when I can, but until then.. here's a formspring question to tide you over.

What are the school's uniforms on B&B? and if they don't wear uniforms, what do Hedda and Lorabeth usually wear?

Clothing. Yes. This is the perfect opportunity to create some visuals. In terms of the apiology school's uniforms, the descriptions have shown up within the early chapters of Boys & Bees. The colors are mostly black and yellow, though I think the combination isn't so jarring with majority of the uniform being black. The boys and girls have different uniforms. The girls wear yellow cardigans with black blouses underneath, a plaid skirt, and knee-high stockings. The shoes shoe be black, but Lorabeth wears her beat-up boots with her uniform while other girls have nice new shoes. The boys wear black cardigans with yellow collared shirts underneath, black pants, and yellow socks. Very charming, haha.

Lorabeth Frisch

I would say that Lorabeth is a uniform-wearing girl. She barely remembers to change out of her uniform, save for the weekends (when her dirt-encrusted skirts and cardigans have piled up for the wash). Lorabeth doesn't have much clothing, fashion being a thing that doesn't matter to her. 

Her clothes are boyish, like the pants and suspenders combo she wore the day after the fire. In the latest chapter, Lorabeth unearths an old dress in the back of her closet - her mother probably picked it out for her. When I saw the collar, I thought it was perfect for bees to hide under, haha. 

Hedda Sparling

Unlike Lorabeth, Hedda is very feminine with (likely expensive clothing in soft shades of pink, cream, and other pastels. Any trinkets she has are far from tacky; her jewelry is subtle, usually with thin chains and small charms. Hedda basically wears dresses and skirts - it makes me wonder if she would ever borrow Lorabeth's pants if she had to.

I included that poster in the collage, saying "A true love story never ends" because we're still guessing what kind of feelings Hedda has in terms of love and boys. Maybe she does have hope for love - but why would she need hope when every guy has a crush on her? Heh, we'll find out.

Diamond in the Rough

Formspring time!

Am I the only one that pictured Diamond as Joseph Gordon- Levitt with his hair slicked back? *swoon*

Bwahaha.

Haha, I'm not sure how to answer that. 

I think it's wonderful that you have a clear image of who you think Diamond looks like! That's one of the most magical aspects about reading. Being able to take an author's words and spin a character's looks together in your head is just fun.

I mean, I'm sure there's some reader out there who pictured Diamond as a badger dressed in a butler uniform - and that's 100% okay!

Will the readers out there who imagine Joseph as Diamond please stand up?

*waits*

My Diamond

Now, since we're talking about looks and characters, I thought it might be the best time to talk about my own actor-inspiration for Diamond. When I create a character, they usually exist in a fluctuating manner in my head - sometimes very clear and other times quite wobbly. Finding actors and actresses to settle those wobbly thoughts is often difficult for me, but Birdcage Girl has been different. So different, perhaps, that I actually managed to make a self-indulgent dream cast, haha. Embarrassing, but true.

It's strange that I haven't blogged about Diamond yet... now that I think about it. Hm.

This.

The handsome young butler I pictured while writing Birdcage Girl stayed pretty solid on the British actor Alex Wyndham. I remember seeing him in the movie As You Like It (2006), playing the comically lovelorn shepherd named Silvius. I had no idea he was British until I found him on IMDb because he played a Japanese shepherd (If you haven't seen this adaptation of Shakespeare's play, you need to. It's brilliant). 

Yeah, Shakespearean Shepherds!

In some of his other roles as well, Wyndham is a bit a chameleon. I like that about him and how that aspect relates to Diamond. After all, Diamond's background leaves much of his heritage in the dark; I've always pictured Diamond being sort of muttish in that way.

Becoming a Butler

Speaking of Diamond, it's been a while since I updated his side-story, right? 

Because two photos are never enough.

My thesis work has officially taken over my life, making it, clearly, difficult to write my other projects. But the good news is that I'm almost finished. Three more chapters and I can call draft one officially over. Hopefully that will be this weekend (aka, major celebrating).

My first act, upon being freed from the thesis, is to conclude "Becoming a Butler." The poll has indeed influenced what will happen to Diamond and I can't wait to finally reveal with happens to him at the Butler Academy. Hang tight, guys!


QUESTION FOR YOU:

How did you picture Diamond when you read Birdcage Girl?

Can you please talk about your experiences thus far with attempting to publish BG?


Sure! I've been quiet on that front because there's not much going on right now. At the beginning of summer, I had gathered a list of agents that I admire and would love to work with and sent out my queries to them.

So far, I've gotten a few rejections (and one really nice one that I think I'll frame), but mostly I'm still waiting to hear back from the others. There's one partial out and three fulls. I'm crossing my fingers for good news, but agents are very busy; it can take weeks (understandably) for them to respond.

Flappers and Narwhals: A Thesis Adventure!

Formspring time!

How is your thesis book coming along?

Very well, thank you. It's a little slow at times, but I'm only a few weeks away from writing the conclusion.

If anyone's been checking my Figment page over the last few months, you've probably noticed that besides the occasional contests, my updates have slowed down considerably.  There's a good reason for that. 

My third and final year of graduate school is approaching and in order to earn my diploma, there is one last epic task that I must complete: writing a finished, polished manuscript. My thesis. 

No matter what genre you work in - whether it be fiction, nonfiction, or poetry - this is the usual requirement for graduation (besides, you know, getting good grades and all that). Fiction writers have the option of either writing a novel manuscript or a short story collection manuscript for their thesis. 

After much deliberation, I decided to take on a novel. 

The last year is usually spent working closely with one's thesis director and committee; we gather together, talk about revisions, and then I go back to my office and scratch my head until I figure out the best plan to attack my editing. In order to this successfully, and get the best feedback I can, I must complete the first draft of my thesis before returning to school.

So that's what this summer is for. I have been writing every single day to reach that goal.

Because it's a school-related writing project, I'm not able to share it. However, I can tell you a little about it. 

My thesis is set in a fantasy world inspired by the 1920's. There is a girl who studies shipwrecks and lore. There is a boy who speaks to numbers. 

This novel is bursting with flappers, lighthouses, gramophones, an adventurer's club, deaths, narwhals, pocket watches, keys, wooden props, a castle, islands, witching waves, candy floss, ocean liners, violets, a carnival city, squash racket matches, captains, sailors, saltwater swimming pools, childhood crushes, fire, and foul storms. 

I've been listening to a lot of The Hush Sound and A Fine Frenzy, two bands I've adored for a while. I've also been filling my iPod with a ton of electro swing. 

My research books include, but are not limited to a 1927 reproduction of a Sears catalogue and an early history of ocean liners. 

And of course, there's always bits of inspiration to be found along the way: 

Richard Barthelmess, you're terribly cute.

The anatomy of a 20's girl!

Narwhals!

And of course, a happy helping of Fatty Arbuckle and Buster Keaton's misadventures.