Rachel R. Smith's Blog, page 23

Another Hazard Discovered or in other vvords: “VVhy me?”

I’m starting to feel like the universe is trying to sabotage me today. Here I am, merrily typing avvay on book 2 and suddenly, vvith no vvarning, off pops the ‘vv’ key. I vvould say that it could be vvorse, but since my keyboard doesn’t have a ‘vv’ at the moment, I just have to make due vvith a double ‘vv’ instead. VVe are not amused.

VVish me luck reattaching the key vvithout breaking it!

The Hidden Dangers of Being a Writer

During my time working in materials science, my job required me to wear a variety of personal protective equipment. Lab coats, safety glasses, all manner of gloves, face masks, steel-toed shoes, bunny suits (the clean room kind, not the Playboy kind), ear plugs–you name it, I’ve had to wear it. And I looked cute doing it too, I assure you. ^_-

No one talks about the dangers associated with being a writer. Granted, based on my personal observations the risks are very low. But today I encountered one of those hazards, quite unexpectedly. It’s gruesome. It’s painful. Those of you with weak stomachs might want to turn away (not really, the picture is totally tame). Behold:

The fearsome paper cut! T_T It’s tiny. It’s not even deep. Why does it feel like my pinky finger has been dealt a mortal wound?!?

And, yes, that is a Minions band-aid. Almost makes it worth the paper cut…almost.

Renatus’ Calendar

The calendar used in the world of Renatus differs from ours in some ways. Since the people of Renatus, particularly those of Chiyo, are in tune with the rhythms of nature, I wanted to use a calendar system based around natural and astronomical events rather than use our own. I ended up choosing a system with 13 months consisting of 28 days each (loosely based on the International Fixed Calendar). It’s an imperfect set-up since there needs to be an extra day at the end of every year. Occasionally, additional extra days would be needed to allow corrections so that the months remain properly aligned with the solstices and equinoxes. These extra-monthly days are called the New Year’s holidays. They are celebrated between the last day of the 13th month and the first day of the 1st month. The first day of the 1st month falls on the date of the vernal (spring) equinox.

This calendar is convenient for many reasons. Each date occurs on the same day of the week every month (so the 1st is always on the second day of the week, every month). I want to make sure even small details like the phase of the moon are as consistent as possible throughout the story. Since this calendar also roughly follows the lunar phases, it makes it easier to keep track of what the phase should be at a given time period. I realize that our moon cycle isn’t exactly 28 days, but, while Renatus is intentionally Earth-like, it isn’t necessarily meant to be on Earth.

I also want to accurately keep track of the significant events that take place in the story, both in terms of the relative timing to one another as well as in relation to the seasons. In order to help me track the timing, I constructed a calendar that overlays Renatus’ calendar with our own. I mark various events, holidays, character birthdays etc, by color coding dates and entering specific details in the comments (like you see in the image). Although I’ve created this for my own reference, I don’t intend for the reader to have to be aware of how the days relate to our own calendar.

There are four major holidays in Renatus, along with numerous minor holidays and festivals (such as the Masquerade night) that are observed regionally. These major holidays are New Year’s day(s), the Festival of Fans (summer solstice), the Festival of Flames (winter solstice), and King’s Day (the first day of the 1st month). I plan to go into more detail on these holidays and how they are celebrated in future posts! I’ll also mark the occasion by posting on character’s birthdays, so keep an eye out to learn when your favorite characters’ birthdays are! (Hint: Cole and Eloc are coming up next!)

Random Things You Find While Doing Research

Researching topics for a book can lead a writer to come across a myriad of unusual and unexpected things. Tonight, I came across this:

I didn’t start out looking for information on frogs, but somehow I ended up finding this little guy’s video. If any frog really could be kissed to turn into a prince, that one would be my pick. ;)

What is the most random turn your research efforts have taken?

“Award-winning” TBT

Something that the average person may not know about me is that I am, in fact, already an award-winning author and illustrator. You might ask: “Why not include such prestigious information in your author bio?”

Well, when those awards come from the Young Authors program in fifth grade, they aren’t exactly applicable to professional pursuits. It is, however, good for a few laughs. For your reading pleasure: I present the award-winning Spring Then and Now. Let’s not get bogged down by details like plot and character development. There are more important things to point out.

 

 

 

Here’s an excerpt. Written in MS Word? Oh, no! Not in 1990. That’s genuine Commodore 64 output on a dot matrix printer. High tech stuff! It was riddled with misspellings and mediocre grammar, but I was 11.

 

 

 

 

But if I’m really being honest, the best stuff is at the end in the About the Author section. Names and locations have been blacked out, because what’s the point of a pen name if I don’t? Not that anyone would even notice with that groovy picture of me and my giant, late 80’s permed hair front and center. Sadly, we are still trying to locate “Midnight Superstar” but so far my first “novel” is nowhere to be found.

I also created a collection of poetry. It was creatively titled Planet Poems. Look forward to excerpts from that in future #TBT posts. Until then, I leave you with this gem:

 

 

 

 

 

Anyone else remember Pogo Balls? ^_-

Thank you & Book 2 Title Reveal

A huge thank you to everyone who downloaded copies of Shattered Sugar Dreams during the promo period this weekend! With your help, the story reached a sales ranking of #4 in the Teen & Young Adult Short Stories category and #9 in the Kindle Short Reads for Teen & Young Adult category.

To celebrate, I wanted to share the title for the next book in the Records of the Ohanzee series. Book #2, Reflection: Harbinger of the Phoenix, will be released in early September!

I hope that everyone who read Shattered Sugar Dreams enjoyed this brief introduction to Nerissa and the world of Renatus. If you feel so inclined, please leave a review on the Amazon product page. I am planning a second short story to be released in mid-August, just a few weeks before Harbinger of the Phoenix!

Free today on Amazon

Here’s that reminder I promised! Shattered Sugar Dreams, the first Records of the Ohanzee short story is available today and tomorrow for free on Amazon. That’s right: FREE, $0.00, no dollars, zip, zero, zilch!

You can get your copy here: Shattered Sugar Dreams on Amazon

I will be deeply grateful to everyone who downloads a copy (and most especially to anyone who is kind enough to take the time to leave a review)!

Here’s the synopsis one more time:

It’s Charis’ birthday and Nerissa, the Heiress of Chiyo, wants to bake her best friend a cake. Nerissa has never made a cake before, but with the help of Pan, the best baker in Chiyo, how hard could it be?

Note: Shattered Sugar Dreams is a (hopefully) humorous short story (~3500 words) that is set three months before the beginning of Reflection: The Stranger in the Mirror. The events that take place are outside of the main plot line of the Records of the Ohanzee series, so it is not necessary to have read Reflection to understand and enjoy this story!

The other side of the laptop

I’ve been writing all afternoon. Even though I am happy with my progress, not everyone in the house is. Someone has realized that barking, licking, and walking across the keyboard for attention (or distraction, depending on your perspective) is futile. That furry little someone has now resorted to randomly kicking the back of my laptop screen. Some may argue that the kicking isn’t intentional, but is instead just a reflex while dreaming. Well, that’s believable until you see the view on the other side of the laptop…

The guilty party:

I guess it’s time to go outside and play fetch for awhile. ^_-

Looking for some light reading?

It’s Charis’ birthday and Nerissa, the Heiress of Chiyo, wants to bake her best friend a cake. Nerissa has never made a cake before, but with the help of Pan, the best baker in Chiyo, how hard could it be?

Note: Shattered Sugar Dreams is a (hopefully) humorous short story (~3500 words) that is set three months before the beginning of Reflection: The Stranger in the Mirror. The events that take place are outside of the main plot line of the Records of the Ohanzee series, so it is not necessary to have read Reflection to understand and enjoy this story!

Shattered Sugar Dreams is now available on Amazon for $0.99. Grab your copy now (I won’t complain) or check back later this week (Friday and Saturday June 26 and 27) to get it free. If you read it and post a review it would make my day!

And don’t worry, I’ll post a reminder on Friday!

If Sumo wrote a personal ad…

My name is Sumo. I like chasing tennis balls, my Blue Dog, playing outside for 10 minute increments, and chicken liver flavored cookies. Looking to meet someone who will rub my tummy with reckless abandon.