Read All About It!

I found this very cool blog meme/blogging thingy where you answer questions about the book you are currently writing. Technically you're supposed to get tagged for this but it looked like so much fun that I couldn't resist.

Please feel free to steal this idea and put it on your blog.

1: What is the working title of your book?

As I'm writing several books, I'll just choose the one that I am the most excited about at the moment. The working title (and probably the permanent title) is The Sorceress.

2: Where did the idea come from for the book?

I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure that finishing The Song of the Lioness series by Tamora Pierce had something to do with it, along with reading The Hunger Games.

3: What genre does your book come under?

YA (or middle grade, but I'm not sure which) medieval fantasy.

4: Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Ooh, that's a tough one. I still don't know a ton of actors and actresses, but I guess for my main character (Anya Perriwinkle) I'd choose Jennifer Lawrence. Anya looks a lot like Katniss (minus the braid) in my opinion.

Anya Perriwinkle (Sorry for the slight blurriness. This was the best picture I could find that looked like Anya).

I couldn't find anyone for my secondary character (Ronald Smith), but Josh Hutcherson is the closest person I could find that looked like him, and even then he isn't what I pictured. Ronald is tall, has sandy brown hair, and brown eyes.

I couldn't find any other good actors or actresses for my other characters. I can picture a lot of my characters as people from The Hunger Games for some reason (for instance, my villain--Lional--looks a bit like Cato), but I didn't think oh my gosh, this person looks exactly like this character! with anyone except for Jennifer Lawrence.

5: What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

16-year-old Anya Perriwinkle tries to find a way to join the king's army, despite being a girl, while also trying to save the kingdom of Stormcastle from a power-hungry group of goblins and thieves.

That synopsis is something I just cooked up. I'm not very good at being brief.

6: Is your book self-published, published by an independent publisher, or represented by an agency?

Ha ha. It's not even finished yet, but I hope it can get represented by an agency!

7: How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

I haven't finished it yet, but it's taken me at least six months of me writing on and off to work out the first 40,000 words (or 114 pages).

8: What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

The Song of the Lioness series by Tamora Pierce and I guess sort of The Lord of the Rings series by J. R. R. Tolkien. It's definitely more like Tamora Pierce's books, though.

9: Who or what inspired you to write this book?



I think this is a lot like the second question, but Tamora Pierce inspired me. I love her novels, which are all medieval fantasy. She--like J. K. Rowling and so many others--has created her own world so easily and with so much detail.

10: What are some of the big differences between this book and other books you've written?

This book is one of the few books I've written that's in the third person. It was actually very enjoyable. I liked it more than I thought I would.

11: What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

This book has a strong, female protagonist, unique characters, magic, and battles meant to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Now for the first chapter. Sorry for the weird formatting. Blogger doesn't like me today. Tell me what you think in the comments! :D

Chapter 1
Anya ran through the woods, fear beating against her heart in a
rhythm worthy of a drum.
She wiped sweat off her forehead, breathing hard. She was sure the
goblins had seen her. How could they not have noticed the unmistakable
glint of green as she stole the emerald?
Anya quickly climbed a tree and removed her pack. She pulled out the
precious emerald and clutched it tightly, hardly daring to believe that it was
real. Was this the actual emerald she had been attempting to steal for months
now? Anya pressed her ear to the emerald. Sure enough the familiar buzz of
energy was there. The emerald was real.
Anya replaced the gem carefully, wrapping it in the cloth she had with
her. She closed her pack and slid down the tree, scratching her elbow as she
went.
Anya heard a branch snap and leapt behind a bush, landing lightly on
her feet. She moved a few branches out of the way so she could peer
through.
Ten naked green creatures were running through the woods on all
fours. They were extremely skinny and their arms and legs were long and
fragile looking. Their ears were long and pointed like an elf’s. Their eyes
were small and black. Their voices were either very high-pitched or very
low. It was never in between. They were obviously angry.
Anya squinted her eyes and strained to hear what the goblins were
talking about. They were speaking in loud whispers. One goblin was
pushing another to the ground angrily and seemed to be accusing him of
something. The other eight were huddled in a circle, talking a little more
calmly. They seemed to be plotting something.
“I told you to stay by the emerald!” a goblin said to another lying in
the dirt. “You were supposed to be on guard!”
“I—I—was guarding the C-Captain,” the goblin in the dirt
stammered. “H-he needed p-protection.”
“No he didn’t, you brainless git. We can get another Captain. What
we can’t do is get another emerald!”
“Please! Please!” A goblin armed with a smaller version of the sword
Anya held pulled the goblin off of the terrified creature cowering on the
ground.
“Stop wasting time, Snorc,” the deep-voiced goblin growled. He
grabbed Snorc’s arm. “We need to find the human.”
Snorc pulled his arm away from the other goblin and bared his teeth.
“I want to make sure I don’t get punished for this,” Snorc said. “When
we inform the Captain of what happened, I want it to be made clear that I
didn’t do anything.”
Goblins, Anya thought. Always looking out for others.
“We might not have to tell him anything if we find that girl fast and
get the emerald back.”
“You don’t understand,” Snorc protested, fear visible in his eyes.
“You don’t have to be scared of anything. The Captain won’t punish his
second in command. You don’t know the means of torture he punishes us
with.”
“I know full well what the Captain does for punishment,” the goblin
retorted. Anya saw his ugly green face change from green to yellow. He
gulped and continued. “And I agree with his methods completely. Now let’s get a move on.”
Anya waited with baited breath for the goblins to gallop off into the
woods. They were headed toward the king's castle, the same way Anya
needed to go. Anya gritted her teeth and hoped they wouldn’t actually go to
the castle.
Anya peeked around the bush for any remaining goblins and spotting
no danger, set off down the woods, landing lightly on the balls of her feet.
Anya stuck to the shadows, hoping if she ran into trouble that the goblins
wouldn’t notice her in the darkness.
Any noise that Anya heard made her jump: a squirrel scurrying across
the leaves, a bird singing loudly, or an occasional deer that snapped a branch
in half.
The woods were darkening faster and faster as the sun set. The trees
rich with leaves blocked out most of the sunlight, making it harder to
navigate through the large woods.
Anya had no trouble though. She could walk through the woods with
her eyes shut and her feet would take her right where she needed to go.
Anya couldn’t keep track of how many times she had walked this path. She
had come to these woods many times to hunt for food with a poorly made
bow and arrow before the king had sought her help. Those days were the
worst. Anya remembered the times where she had to beg for scraps from the
garbage can and people felt bad for her and tossed her change for food. She
remembered when her ribs were poking through her skin and half a loaf of
stale bread was a feast. She remembered a soldier coming through the
woods on horseback and watched her fight off two goblins with swords. She
remembered his stunned face as she finished them off with a flourish. The
soldier didn’t explain anything but told her to climb on behind him. She was
taken to the castle and was given a bath, some proper clothing, and more
food than she could ever imagine she’d be able to eat. Then she was brought
to the king and the soldier was right next to him. She listened to the soldier
explain to the king what he had seen her do. The king had listened
thoughtfully and then told her all about the emerald and the goblins want to
take over the kingdom. He had told her that the emerald gives the holder
magical powers and that the king needed it back so the goblins wouldn’t
over throw him and leave the kingdom in ruins.
Anya reached the entrance of the forest and saw no goblins. Hoping
they wouldn’t see her and follow her, she hurried down the lane and into
town where most of the shops were closing up for the day. The sun hadn’t
quite set and she ran to the castle, gave her name, and the guards let her in,
closing the door behind her.


More about Cosmo coming soon! :D