Subplots and Storylines - October 2015

You know those chunks of narrative in certain novels (particularly fantasy) that detail a long journey? Like those insanely long walks Frodo and company are always taking, or the Pevensies trekking around the island of ruined Cair Paravel in Prince Caspian? Not a whole awful lot happens, but the characters walk and walk and walk . . . or ride . . . or fly . . . or zap through portals . . . or something.

Anyway. That was my October. What I did this month was not varied, but there was a lot of it. Like walking day after day toward some epic destination, except I wasn't carrying the One Ring or discovering my castle in ruins. No. Not quite.

Basically, October was Work and Editing. Of the first there is little to say, aside from the fact that hours are picking up now that Christmas is around the corner (say what?!), so I've been getting closer to a full-time schedule. This is good. Also busy.

Of the second item, Editing, there is much to say. Too much for this particular blog post, so you will just have to twiddle your thumbs and wait for the next post. (Who twiddles their thumbs while waiting, anyway? I don't. I just shift position a lot and try to get comfortable. Or stand/sit with good posture. Sometimes those two things are not synonymous. . . . Wow. Where was I going with this?)

Moving along!

Of course, Frodo and company encounter obstacles and meet people and do interesting things along the way--they don't just walk. And the Pevensies find a creek and eat squashed sandwiches and get hot and tired and look for a way to the Narnia mainland. Little events do happen during those drawn-out narrative journeys, and little things have sprinkled my month too.

*pulls out day planner*

What, you don't keep a day planner?

Ahem. *flips through to remind herself of October happenings*

Happenings

Well, there was Thanksgiving, which I celebrated at three gatherings, and which prompted a post about the many things we can be thankful for.

Mid-October, I got together with a family friend (someone whom I consider an honorary aunt and a fantastic person) to set up her blog. She wants to start one and asked me--me, a fledgling blogger myself--for help. So we had fun all afternoon, trying to get the template to work right, messing up, and then doing the work all over again. But it's a good start, and hopefully one day soon, once she's launched her blog, I can introduce her here!

Another happening on this long walk called October was a local book faire I attended, where I found three specimens.

• The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde. (No, the last name is not a typo.) Mint condition. Cover displays a bug car parked on dragon skin, so . . . very large dragons may be contained within? The blurb looked interesting--main character works at an employment agency for magicians, but the land's magic is drying up. (Let's hope the dollar store sticker on the back doesn't mean it's a cheap story.)
• Deep Secret by Diana Wynne Jones. Previously a library book. Cover looks very 90's. But ever since I heard a bunch of friends raving over Howl's Moving Castle, I've been scouring every book faire for anything by this author. This is obviously not HMC. But it is Diana Wynne Jones.
• Cyndere's Midnight by Jeffrey Overstreet. Almost mint condition. And I adore the series, so I was thrilled to find the second installment for $4.50 instead of $15.99. Have any of you read the Auralia's Colors books, by the way? What did you think about them?

 

 

Adventures of a Film-ish Variety

Avengers: Age of Ultron: I'd already seen it in theaters, but the very day it released to DVD, my brother and I hurried out to buy it . . . and proceeded to watch it twice in the same weekend. No regrets. Pure awesomeness all the way.

Disney's Descendants: Watched it with my two sisters, chuckled at some parts, winced at some of the songs.

Tomorrowland: I was pleasantly surprised! It wasn't what I expected, but it was nevertheless quite good. Even funny at times. And one scene near the climax was incredibly thought-provoking. I was hanging on every word of the villain's monologue. (Yes, there was a villain monologue. But it did offer some intriguing food for thought about how we give power to what we focus on.) I'd definitely recommend this film!

Adventures of a Bookish Variety

I read five this month! That's about my average, so it feels better than the measly three I managed last month.

Messenger by Lois Lowry: It wasn't bad. It also wasn't super amazingly good, either. I feel like so far, the first book (The Giver) was the best, Gathering Blue was second-best, and this one settled into third place. Let's hope that Son, book 4, changes this downward slope. Although I do have to admit that the trading concept in Messenger was interesting, and the ending was somewhat unexpected.

Paige Rewritten by Erynn Mangum: Funny! Romantic! Fluffy without feeling like cotton candy! As in, it was fluffy without being overly sappy or sugary or . . . You know what, my analogies are just not functioning today. Never mind.

Mrs. Jeffries Reveals Her Art by Emily Brightwell: Apparently I haven't read any of these mysteries since last winter. Oops. There's a ton of books in this series, and I'm progressing through it at a rather sedate pace. Every now and then, a good old London mystery is a nice way to deviate from my usual genres. I thought I predicted the outcome this time--I truly did--but I was completely wrong. Again. Am I the only one who tries to figure out the mystery before the characters do? And am I the only one who tends to fail miserably? I gauge the suspects, but I also gauge the author. "I think this character is the murderer, but is that because the author wants me to think that? And if she wants me to think it's him, that means it's probably someone else, right? Like that person over there--he doesn't seem suspicious at all. IT'S PROBABLY HIM. But then, it could be the obvious choice, hiding right under my nose . . ."

Emissary by Thomas Locke: Hands down, this was my favorite read this month! It took me a bit to get into it, for whatever reason, but once I did, my goodness. It was a tightly packed bundle of so much high fantasy awesomeness, I don't even know where to start. First off, a good fantasy instantly makes me feel at home in some way, which Emissary did. And then there was the spine-tingling magic! I wouldn't say it functioned in a particularly unique way, but its vibrancy definitely made up for that. But the plot! And the characters! So good! Interestingly enough, I had a bit of trouble connecting to Hyam, the main character, at first. But as the book progressed, I fell in love with him and the others . . . Joelle, Master Trace (hah! it's almost my name!), the elves . . . Basically everyone. The POV was handled a bit more distantly than perhaps I'm used to, but Hyam's selfless actions spoke louder than his thoughts or words. He is wonderful. Go read this book. And then wait impatiently with me for the sequel coming out next year.

A Templar's Apprentice by Kat Black: This was a reread, but seeing as I read it eons ago, my memory of it didn't outpace my reading. Meaning, certain things were familiar as I came upon them, but not once did my recollections spoil the ending for me. Ha. Funny how that works sometimes. Anyway, it's a good little book that begins in medieval Scotland, and follows thirteen-year-old Tormod as he becomes apprenticed to a Knight Templar. There was a teensy bit of language, as well as some sketchy spirituality. (After meeting some Arabs who serve Allah, Tormod concludes that everyone worships the same God in different but entirely acceptable ways. This message doesn't have a lot of bearing on the story, though.)

In Summary

October didn't seem to fly by as rapidly as previous months, but it didn't stick around for long, either. I managed to read and watch some epic things to go along with my not-quite-as-epic walk, a.k.a. Work and Editing. Plus there were some fun goings-on in between. Oh! And if you missed it, I hosted my very first interview with a talented artist last week. You can read it HERE. So all in all, October was a satisfying month.

 

How was yours? Busy? Quiet? Were you trekking across the Misty Mountains, slogging on one step at a time, feeling as if no end was in sight? Or was the plot of your life more like all the interesting and varied and rapid-fire bits of a tale? (I think I just need to shut off my analogy side for a while. NONE of the analogies in this post have made much sense.) And perhaps the biggest question of all: are you participating in NaNoWriMo National Leave Your Sanity Behind Month? (I, sadly, am not. I never have. Yet. One of these years, I shall!)

 

Do tell in the comments!