Character Profile: Taryn

J.M.J.

SO, I'm starting something called "character profiles" for each of my major characters. It will help me (and you) wrap my brain around the characters' looks/general information.

First up, merely because I started a post on him already, is Taryn!

(Taryn, just in case you don't know, is the "romantic interest" for my protaganist. Without too many spoilers, they go through many trials, fall in love, and get married. Their love is deep, beautiful, selfless, genuine, endures the test of time and the pain of separation, and is all for the right reasons. It is what love should be. My goal is to show what a healthy and beautiful relationship can be and I plan on using their story to show that.)

Here are some things I have established about him recently (facts from book 1). Try not to swoon at his amazingness! ;)


-He will be introduced (even though at the end of the book) in the first book, Beneath the Black Sun.

-He will already be enlisted in the Rebellion (before Dreya is).

-He will not be raised by dwarves, nor will Dreya meet him on the dwarf island, Ceradon, though they will journey there in the second book with Aurora.

-His talents include (but are not limited to!): hunting, tracking, archery, and navigation. (he's outdoorsy)

-He will be a prisoner at the same time the good King is, and Dreya will free him, along with other agents, when she rescues the king.

-He is a great listener, compassionate, steady, fiercely loyal, intelligent, and understanding.

-He is from a very poor family, and his mother and sister live in a hovel on the outskirts of Silver Fin (capital city of Erelia). He is trying to raise money for them, and believes in the rebellion cause.

-Dreya is 16/17 (TBD) in the first book. He is 18.

-He becomes Dreya's closest friend, besides Aurora, because of their compatibility (she makes him laugh, he tells interesting stories, their families are both poor, their closeness in age, they both believe in the cause they are fighting for, etc.).

-LASTLY, he can grow stubble..................So there!



And finally, some pictures of actors* who look slightly (maybe even just one trait) like Taryn:

Hair.

Eyes and nose.

Stubble. And face. (And marry me please?)

Smile.

Hair (again). 

Eyes. (and backround!)

*Try to look past the vain poses they're striking.

OKAY. Now, do you see the Taryn I'm going for?? I told you not to swoon! teehee.

Taryn: dirty blond, straw colored hair; dark brown eyes; tall; great smile...you get it. The pictures did the talking. And now? Oh, you want me to stop talking so you can go back and admire the pictures?

 Understandable!

Anyway, that's all for now. Tune in next for Dreya's profile!

PS. I am a hopeless romantic, though I cannot write romance. At all. I promise this was not simply an excuse to post a picture of Pip from BBC's Great Expectations that recently played *cough...third picture down...cough*. It helps me to visualize my characters. I plan on profiling the others. So don't even sit there and judge me! =P

PPS. Questions about this character? Concerns? Let me know! I'd love to discuss things with you.

Ch-ch-ch-changes!

REETINGS!

Ye Lighthearted Lads and Merry Maidens,

It's about time for my monthly *annual* update on my book (the first one). (Just in case you were wondering). All the time I don't spend writing, I generally spend thinking! Ah thinking...what a dangerous habit! ;) So I've made several changes/decisions to the plot/characters that I thought were worth sharing.

Without further ado, I present. . . some changes!

1.) The characters will have very consistent personalities throughout the books. This does not mean they cannot do something out of the ordinary (for their character) every once in a while, but overall, their diction (the way they speak), their dispositions (personality) and how they interact with other people will be the same throughout. I have noticed that authors of great always make their characters consistent in word, thought, and deed and, therefore, so must I!

2.)  The central villain *insert evil thunderclap* will be Oritain, the good (and rightful) king's greedy twin brother. However, in each individual book there will be a minor villain to defeat or serious problem to overcome so that that reader can feel some kind of resolution at the end of each book. The central villain, Oritain, will be the root of most problems, but he will not necessarily appear in every book in person.

3.) Noting the above change, the villain of the first book is a dolus, a type of demon belonging to of the Order of Calvio. The Order of Calvio is a class given to only eight terrible creatures, and the Dolus Dreya (my protagonist) must face is one of those.


4.) The Dolus is sending evil dreams to Dreya, messing with her mind, making her hallucinate and see visions of terrible things all while she is traveling. All of the visions seek to deter her from her journey to destroy the Dolus and free the (good) king. It senses throughout the book that she is coming closer and closer, so the visions/dreams increase as time passes. The Dolus, in short, fears her, because it can sense it's own impending doom.




5.) Aurora can only transform three times a day (midnight to midnight). This causes some limitations to her power.



6.) Aurora's dark magic (which enables her to assume the forms of animals), and her fairy magic (of the Earth-Clan), which she was born with, are constantly at war within her. As a result she does not eat, or sleep, and is often pained. The magic within her becomes her sustenance, and keeps her alive. She hates it, but never complains. Yet she is constantly searching for a way to rid herself of one of the abilities she possesses, to find some peace.


7.) Dreya does not know about her immortality at all until Simwen tells her the day before she dies.


8.) Dreya is NOT immortal, though readers will be unsure throughout the series. She will have some kind of mark on her, that her immortal mother Leonie also possessed. This leads Leonie's friends to believe that Dreya is immortal--hence, the dangerous assignments she gets once she joins the rebellion. I have yet to decide what this mark will be.



9.) Dreya's father will not appear in the first book.



10.) Jed will become like a father-figure to Dreya. She misses her father, and he has a daughter her age.



Other changes are sure to come soon. I'll keep ya posted! Just wanted to update for those interested!

Pax!

-Kathleen

DIY in July!

Well hello again! I'm alive!

So lately, I've been filling my time with a LOT of crafting! (Not so much writing... *sigh*...but I'm enjoying myself, none the less!) It has been SO incredibly fun to take a little break from writing and rediscover some of my old hobbies (i.e. quilting, crocheting, drawing, etc.) While I don't have everything I'm crafting currently up on my blog, here are a couple of things I'm either finished with, or in the process of making.
Feast your eyes on my crafty and crazy endeavors!** And share some of what you've been up to lately! I'd love to know what YOUR summer projects are!

**Note: Yours truly here is on a serious penny-pinching budget. Which means, plainly, I have no job, therefore, no money. So everything I make is either ultra-cheap, recycled, or free! No laughing at my stinginess! ;)**

First up in this Summer's Fresh New Line from Kathleen Inc. is . . . . . . .

<><>

<><>

A Mason jar! (oooooh)

That's right! A plain, old, ordinary Mason jar.

But, given I had some extra twine-like stuff laying around, lots of time, and a recently purchased, ready-to-use hot glue gun.

Mash it all together, and what do we get??

                                                      A vase!

Add some flowers (fake) and ribbon and....presto!! Adds instant cheer to a room!

Lovely!

Next up, (less exciting, I admit) is a coaster. But! Out of PAPER!!! The comic section in the newspaper, in fact. Observe.

                                                             AND.

Next up!

A plain, ordinary looking glass!

Before.

Paper + time + tape + color

=

A colorful solution!!!

Last craft of the day. . . . .

MY QUILT!!!

I am so in love with these colors and the simplicity of this pattern, I have admired it for years  and never finished it. It has been sitting in the back of my closet, stuffed into a plastic bag. I have decided, however, that I WILL finished it this year! Backing, binding and all.

It's coming together! That's ALL for now!!!

I hope you've enjoyed a glimpse at my crafts!

Soon, hopefully, I'll get back to writing. Lately it's been a little boring slow.

And I'm planning on writing a post on some major changes I've been thinking up

in my plot.

 More on this verrrry soooooooooon.

Have a blessed week! <3