GLQ's 2010 Nano

[Gelquie]

So, despite all of my workload, I've decided to do this again this year! Because it's still fun, even if I don't finish. ^^

This year, I've had multiple thoughts about what I could do. One thing I could do is continue the unfinished NaNo I started last year. For awhile, that's what I thought I was going to do.

But then I had the amazing idea to write down my dreams. That's where one of my Nanos is coming from. It's a little bit cliche, and the idea has been done before, but I'm still loving the mental image I'm getting from it. So that's what I'll expand.

The dream itself didn't have a plot, but I have a vague idea on what it'll center around. I still need a huge plot to tie things all together, but for now, I'm just putting ideas together.
.oO(But GLQ, you said that plot is one of the most important parts of the story.)
And it still is. I have a vague one. It'll be expanded, I promise.

Anyway, my untitled story idea!

SPOILER: Click to show

(Based on a dream I had on 6/7/2010.)

First, there's a very steep hill; of such that one would have much trouble if they were to try to climb it, though it is climbable by hand if the person has patience. The hill is the start of a mountain, which reaches high up into the sky, though it is not immediately apparent from the base that the mountain is indeed a mountain.

If the person were to successfully reach the top, they'd find a large building; an Academy. This is a secluded academy for magic users of all different types. They come to this place to practice their magic; young or old, they can be taught (but most of the members are young). There are masters of various sorts of magic who will lend a hand in teaching their pupils.

The uniforms the students receive depend upon what type of magic they have; specifically, it's color-coded. Different types of students are given one color uniform for their profession. However, the students can mostly dress in whatever they want, with one exception: headbands. These headbands have different colors for different magics, and must be worn at all times to determine what the student's magic type is. (Each student can only learn one type of magic. No exceptions; there will be no plot to change that.)

That's what I have for basic information so far. The dream in question involved a girl who knew light magic, who came to the school for the first time. She may become the protagonist.

Nothing's set in stone so far, but I think I can flesh something out from that.

EDIT: The above story idea is shelved until further notice, but not forgotten. I will focus on a new idea.

Stay tuned!

[Rikku]

=D Magic academies! I love those, there's so much you can do with 'em.

[Gelquie]

Indeed, magic academies are indeed awesome. ^^

However... I've decided to put that idea on the shelf for now. I may get back to it, but I want to let the idea fester first, and I don't have enough time to do that.

Besides... I have a better idea, now.
It's this one story that I've been planning to write for years. It's semi-fantasy, but mostly a drama. I'd been putting it on the shelf because I wasn't quite sure how I should end it, and how things should end for the protagonists.

However... Now I do.
So now... The first draft of this story. Whether or not I finish, I highly anticipate this.

I will post more details tomorrow.

[Rikku]

That's great! ^_^ It's always good when you have a story that's been stewing for a while; actually getting the dratted thing written is wondrously satisfying, even if things don't go according to plan.

[Gelquie]

It's indeed very satisfying. ^^ Of course, this would only be a rough draft. There may be some things changed dramatically by the final draft. XD;

Anyway, I finally took a moment to sit down and think about stuff for the plot. My original thought was to sit down and figured out the names for my characters and places. This expanded to going into more detail about each thing.

The story has 3 prominent protagonists, aside from the main one. I will denote them for now as K, D, and R, because I still don't have names for any of the characters. XD;

SPOILER: Click to show

K is the main character of the story, and the most naive of the three protagonists. He grew up in some sort of side village, which seems to be of some strange import to the kingdom despite its normalness. He works hard and is an optimist, but at the same time, has never really had anything terribly bad happen to him. As stuff gets figured out, he begins writing letters to the palace, and gets frequent responses from the princess, Rhiana. Eventually, K and D have to travel to the palace to further figure things out. Also keeps sending letters to the princess as well as receiving status reports, whenever the two get the chance. (The direction they must travel differs from the expedient direction messengers take, as they must take notes of other places as they travel.)

D is K's friend, having known him since he first came with his family and clan into the village. His home village had at one point started to migrate from place to place, and so is used to the harshness of life. As a result, he's the type to always prepare for the worst. His clan one day migrated to the village and then decided to stay, for reasons which are not clear to D. When D arrived, he was a teen, so he already had a slightly different view of the world. But he still managed to become friends with K. When it comes time for K to come to the palace, D decides to accompany him.

Rhiana is the least prominent protagonist in the story, and for the first part of the novel, everything that we know about her comes from word of mouth and mostly letters of correspondence between K and Rhiana. None of the characters ever meet her in person until much later, though we do get a good idea of what she's like before then. Rhiana is the princess of the kingdom, and though she's not ruler yet, she commands so much of a respect among her people that many come to her anyway. Is slated to become queen after her father dies, but is in no rush. She is proving to be a strong leader, doing what she can for the good of her kingdom, keeping a poker face through any tribulations (though she does get more harsh and stubborn in her debates if things go really bad), but overall keeps her followers in high regard, even if she must lord over them and be commanding. Her qualities are attributed towards the king doing a wonderful job teaching his daughter. Is there more than meets the eye, though?

These three aren't the only prominent characters I have, but I did the most character work with them today.

Also, I need a title. XD; It should have "song" somewhere in it, because a lot of the scenes have been inspired by song.

[Gelquie]

Oh man oh man, I'm SO bad with names... I still haven't even come up with names for the 3 aforementioned main characters!

I came up with a whole list of names for the Princess, so I think I'll be fine trying to decide something from that. But if anyone has any suggestions for K and D, I'd like to hear them. Even if I don't use them, I may use part of it.

Also, the title of my NaNo is Melody Enflamed. ...But that title is tentative because it's so cheesy. XD;

Went to a write-in today. Did a write-off and got a lot of my word debt out of the way, but I'm still behind. It's mostly exposition so far. If I this weren't a rough draft, I'd just store the exposition and start over; show, don't tell, as they say. XD;