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Post by Birdy on Sept 30, 2020 23:09:39 GMT -5
Welcome to the OCtober thread for 2020! Previous years can be found here (with more info and such): OCtober | OCtober IIThis thread will act as the hub for OCtober on the NTWF - feel free to chat about the event, or, if you so desire, share the results of your prompting endeavours! We'd love to read them. <3 What's OCtober, I hear you ask? It's simple! Below you will find a list of 31 prompts - one for each day of the month. The idea is to create something about an Original Character ("OC") of yours pertaining to the theme for that day. Interpretations of the prompt can be as literal or as loose as you want! And, if you participate, you are eligible for the shiny October Creative Challenge badge! Speaking of, there are more October Creative Challenges than just this one! Find out more by clicking the links below! Artober 2020NTWFtober 2020And so without further ado, here is the prompt list! (With thanks to Gelquie , Moni , Thorn , and Blueysicle for their suggestions! And then I just went and tacked a few other prompts on the end to get us to 31, ehheh...) - Decision
- Comfort
- Fiasco
- Cross Over
- Sickness/disease
- Lavender
- Silence
- Winter
- Introduction
- Conversation
- Assistant
- Emotion
- Temperature
- Research
- Trust
- Borrow
- Compete
- Influence
- Frightened
- Elegant
- Aggressive
- Frantic
- Opposite
- Midnight
- What If...
- Weather
- Memory
- News
- Noise
- Treachery
- Magic
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Post by Kat on Oct 1, 2020 8:53:23 GMT -5
Prompt 1 done! This is really, really quick because I have to go to bed but woo.
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Post by Moni on Oct 1, 2020 10:55:08 GMT -5
based on a true story:
"Where do you want to go to eat out?" asked Ari
"Don't know."
"Well, I'm apathetic about it, so don't feel like you need to be shy."
He thinks about it for a moment. "I don't know, I'm feeling that maybe Indian food would be nice."
"Indian food? I don't really want that. How about some Chinese takeout?"
"Listen, if we're getting food from outside, we'd better eat-in somewhere nice. No Bamboo Bistro crap."
(This exchange lasts for 40 minutes. In the end, they decide to eat a pizza.)
(apparently there are real restaurants named 'bamboo bistro,' but to be fair, it's hard to come up with a name that's very chinese-american-food-ey and doesn't already exist.) |
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Post by Blueysicle on Oct 1, 2020 11:27:18 GMT -5
...shoot. It's October already?
Boy, this kind of snuck up on me. I know I did decent with last year's OCtober, but I was able to mentally prepare myself for it then. This time, I completely forgot about it in the time between posting prompt suggestions and now. Glancing them over, a few of these prompts do stick out to me, so I'll try to knock off at least a few. I think my presence this year will be a bit more sporadic, though, since I did get kind of burned out last year.
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Post by Kat on Oct 1, 2020 17:47:58 GMT -5
Oh sweet mother of Meepits. I had to edit the link in my previous post. I was so sleepy and rushing. ANYWAY that is correct now and goes to my very fast piece. I will be posting all the prompts I do on my funky writing thread. I will be doing both original characters and Neo OCs. |
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Post by Thorn on Oct 3, 2020 6:09:33 GMT -5
Here is my piece for day one and two: decision and comfort! A very nonserious, noncanon, rough conversation between a teenage Astrophelle (my aasimar paladin) and her angelic guide Evlavei. My brother and I were discussing the other day how Evlavei insists he is there to help Astro become her best self, but...he has been there as long as she can remember, influencing her, and thus so much of her idea as to what constitutes her best self is based on what Evlavei thinks that means. Which is an interesting thought that I hope I get to prod at over the course of this campaign. Maybe the 'best' version of Astrophelle...whatever that means...would be someone else entirely. “I just don’t know if it was the right choice.”
Astrophelle fumbled with her bracelet, the charms clinking softly against that silver chain. Her guide watched her closely. It occurred to Astrophelle that she hadn’t been wearing this bracelet when she went to sleep, and yet here it was in her dream. Evlavei had put it there precisely because he knew it would comfort her. That in itself was reassuring.
“He burned her homework. That was bad. But she...tripped him the other week, deliberately, during sports, and like. He got really badly cut up! I get why he was annoyed. So I don’t know whether it was right for me to take her side, and tell him it was wrong to burn her homework. These people take my opinion very seriously, right? And was I...indicating...that I think it’s okay to trip people up and hurt them? I did express disapproval at the time, but didn’t bring it up today. And he looked so hurt by my reaction.”
Evlavei didn’t respond. That was the frustrating bit: he didn’t always reply when Astrophelle wanted him to do so. She wondered whether they were all like this. She hadn’t met enough angels to do anything more than vaguely speculate.
“Ev, should I have said nothing? I mean, it wasn’t even worth an actual grade.”
“I’m not doing the work for you,” he said. “You need to figure this out for yourself.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Consider how you might feel if you hadn’t said it was wrong to burn that homework.”
She only had to think about it a moment. “I would have felt pretty bad. She was up all night, differential equations, y’know and stuff.”
“If your heart tells you that would be wrong, then there’s something in that. You have a good heart, Astrophelle. Revenge is rarely the answer.”
“Okay. I should...follow my heart? And trust myself when I think a thing is right?”
“It is my job to help you do this.”
Astrophelle bit her lip. “I still feel bad for Alex. But...I suppose...burning stuff is an extreme reaction.”
She fiddled with the bracelet again. “Thanks Ev. And thanks for listening.”
He kissed her forehead. “You’re doing just fine, Astrophelle.” |
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Post by Thorn on Oct 8, 2020 6:49:12 GMT -5
Wrote for (5) Sickness, and (7) Silence. Wrangled some EuroAtlantis NPCs into these pieces, but don't take this as absolute canon, etc etc. Was exploring character interactions and possible situations, because as you all know by now that is My Jam (it's probably easier to count the scribblings I've shared that aren't just two characters talking.) (5) Sickness (Runaka, Usavias.)Since I knew they were feeling pretty sick when in Lustross, Usavias was the easiest NPC for this prompt. Plus I've written them a few times before so that's pretty easy by this stage. Runaka I have never written before, and never even roleplayed her in a session, so if the party ever encounter Runaka she may be quite different from how she is here! But she is definitely a curious person, interested in different people and places. Kind of Khametty maybe??? They'd probably get along well. (Ends sort of abruptly, but ah well! I have done so little of OCtober I wanted to count this piece anyway.) “Good morning,” Runaka said to the thoroughly miserable elf.
“Good morning, princess,” the elf replied, with a decent attempt at mirroring her cheeriness.
Runaka joined them at the window seat. It was cooler here. Outside, the princess could see little blueish birds flittering between trees and flowers. She thought Usavias was watching one, but when it flitted elsewhere their eyes didn’t move, and she realised they were watching the actual tree. Or maybe just one of the branches- the ground was dappled ever so prettily, through all those gently rustling green leaves. They were a wood elf, she recalled, and wood elves liked trees especially.
She tried to imagine what they were thinking. Could they see plants grow? Could they hear photosynthesis? She’d heard all sorts of interesting things about these people. There might be at least some small truth to the rumours.
Usavias sighed, rubbing at their eyes as they tilted their head back into the early morning sun. They looked tired, and ill, and just generally thoroughly miserable. Maybe Runaka could help take their mind off things? At the very least, she probably wouldn't make them feel any worse.
“Why do you stare at trees?” Runaka asked. “Are you watching them grow?”
“Sometimes. Not this one. I’m observing the movements of branch and leaf, obscuring the light, or permitting it. One leaf falls, but the tree soon forgets. It’s never the same for long.”
This sounded incredibly dull. Runaka was almost sorry she'd asked. Almost. “Why?”
“To contemplate the impermanence of all things. To remind myself that everything changes. Nothing stays the same forever. We should not expect that of anything, least of all ourselves. It is an exercise in perspective.”
Runaka wasn’t sure why the elf needed to stare at a tree to draw this conclusion, but who was she to judge? She changed the topic.
“Please tell me about Cai Shaan.”
“Cai Shaan is best known for the Institute of the Third Eye, and for its beautiful temples,” Usavias said. “The former is a wizarding school, all grey stone, tall and austere. The temples vary: the Everqueen’s is built of gleaming white stone, Nesuna’s half-submerged and crafted from coral, and Vinistra’s dark stone adorned with flowers and ivy.”
“What is Cai Shaan like, for you?”
They hesitated. “Princess, please forgive me for being slow to understand. Are you asking what Cai Shaan is like, for me personally?”
“Is that impolite for me to ask, Lord Usavias?”
“Not at all.”
One hand moved, Elvish gestures accompanying their next words. “It is a beautiful place, with rich ocean sunsets, shifting blue sea stretching to the horizon, and quiet verdant gardens. These are my favourite things about the city. When the sea glitters at sunset, and the world is bathed in red and gold, Cai Shaan is like nowhere else I have seen. It is a great jewel. I am very proud of it.”
“It sounds lovely,” Runaka said.
Usavias suddenly smiled. “It certainly is.”
“I wish I could see the ocean more often.”
"I have always loved it. When we were children we would take stones from the tideline, make a wish; and then build a little castle from these stones, and watch the waves knock it down.”
“We preferred hitting each other with sticks,” Runaka said. “Your childhood sounds much gentler.”
They laughed. “Perhaps. Probably not.”
They had smiled and laughed! Runaka was clearly making progress, much to her relief. She thought she probably liked this elf, and in any case she certainly didn't want them to be unhappy. Maybe she couldn't do anything about their persistent nausea, but if she could make them laugh like that even this once, that was a good sign. (7) Silence (Damira, Will.) When half the world seems hopelessly infatuated with Khamet, you get nonsense like this. Don't squint too closely- some of this barely makes sense!! “Checkmate.”
Will was frowning at Damira’s remaining rook. The silence stretched on. He couldn’t actually do anything, it was definitely checkmate, but watching the fiend try was at least entertaining.
Will leaned back, biting his lip and folding his arms. He still didn’t speak. Damira wasn't surprised- he didn't like losing to her, after all, and here he was- losing again.
“I’m not good at chess,” he said, at length.
“You’re not the worst I’ve played,” Damira moved to reset the board.
“Mmm. It’s just, this whole looking-three-moves-ahead. I’ve never been much good at that.”
Oh? Damira was confident he would elaborate if she gave it time and, after several drawn-out moments, he did.
“Like your friend Khamet,” Will said. “I don’t know where he’s going. Or what he’s about. He was concerned I would hurt you. He is also good to me. Even seeing his soul, I can’t reconcile...everything.”
“He can be tricky like that,” she admitted. "I've felt it too."
“He’s so sweet, though.”
Silence again. Damira finished with the chess set and put it to one side. She went to get herself a glass of water. Will rested his head on his arms and closed his eyes.
“Do you want anything?”
“No. Thanks.”
He spat out a small cloud of flies. Damira poured him a glass in case he changed his mind. Will thanked her absently, sipped the water, and sighed.
“What is it?” Damira asked out of habit, because he was behaving very human-like and she’d become accustomed to addressing those as of late.
“I have heartburn and it sucks.”
“That’s not everything.”
He half-smiled. “And I’m still thinking about Khamet.”
“He has that effect on people. It's becoming a nuisance.”
I have the next few days off, so may scribble at a few more (I did half-write something for Astro and 'lavender' I could try finish, and there are other tasty prompts besides.) |
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Post by Thorn on Oct 8, 2020 19:39:25 GMT -5
(8) Winter (Ursh)Decided to write something more like an internal monologue/solo piece, since as previously mentioned I mostly write conversations between two characters. Very short and quick so I can try tackle some other prompts (and also prep for Sunday D&D, wheeeee.) One winter morning, Ursh rose early and stoked the fire in the inn's hearth. The abdominal scar from the final battle against Notkriv ached with the cold, and they rubbed their hands together, drawing the ice from their fingertips. They couldn't imagine spending a winter out in the forest now. It had been far too long. They wondered if the spirits would be happy with the progress they'd made, or disappointed at how soft they'd become.
Maybe it wasn't so much softness. Aeston could be harsh in its own ways too. Even if you ignored the fact that Andry was very clearly running a crime ring out of the basement.
Some mornings they missed Tsuki almost more than they could bear. The girl who didn't sleep was always the first to rise, and together they would reminisce on everything that had happened since they journeyed to Itora aboard the same vessel. Since Ursh had fought seasickness for weeks, so that they could fight and die, again and again, in this hostile land. They'd driven back the fiends and undead together right from the start. Along with Kriv, who was long gone, and who was harder and harder to remember by the day now that Tsuki, the third member of that once so hopeful trio, was gone as well.
Spring would soon arrive, and with it part of Ursh hoped Tsuki might return. The orc doubted it. But hopefully wherever she was, she was doing better than when she wrote that final letter. That was all that really mattered now. (Old commissioned art of Tsuki and Ursh together, verysweet.)
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Post by Thorn on Oct 11, 2020 3:33:32 GMT -5
A few more! All written very quickly, with an hour or so at most dedicated to each. Lavender (Lysanthos, EuroAtlantis) Lysanthos bit his lip. “I can’t decide. Lavender, or lilac?”
His brother rolled his eyes. “Is there even a difference?”
“There is to me. And this is really very important, okay? I’ve never been to the gala before. I need people to like me.”
“As long as you don’t humiliate anyone or break anything, and as long as you don't...I dunno, dance on any tables...you should be fine.”
Lysanthos nodded. “Right. Okay, well...the lavender is a nicer cut, but the lilac goes better with this tie-”
“-it’s practically the same colour, dude-”
“-and this azure one...ah, with that grey shirt! It would be perfect!”
His brother rolled his eyes again, in the opposite direction this time for added effect.
“What about this green one?”
He was being sarcastic, but Lysanthos’ eyes lit up.
“Oh! I like that too.”
“Vin, this is torturous. I’ll be outside if you need me.”
Introduction (Astrophelle) “My name is Astrophelle Valentina Alektos, and I’m an aasimar paladin.”
The young woman smiled at him brightly. The shopkeeper smiled back, albeit more hesitantly.
“Is that relevant?”
“Is what relevant?”
“That you are a paladin.”
She shrugged. “I think it’s best to cover all my bases, you know? What if you really needed help with somethin'? Wouldn’ it be helpful to know a paladin was right here in your store, buyin' supplies?” Conversation (Lu'hais and Murai, EuroAtlantis) “I think it’s about time we had this conversation,” Lu’hais said, totally straightfaced. “Thank-you for broaching the topic.”
Murai sighed. “I'm only asking what your favourite colour is.”
"After nearly three months. This is an incredibly serious issue that should have been addressed sooner. What if my favourite colour was yellow?"
"What's wrong with yellow?" Murai asked.
"What isn't wrong with yellow?"
"What if it's my favourite colour?"
She frowned, mockingly severe. Lu'hais eyed her sideways.
"Then I would continue to embrace you for who you are. Trying though that would be."
"Jerk." |
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Post by Kat on Oct 17, 2020 2:40:02 GMT -5
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