Modern-Day Fairytales

Fun had in Ezra Pound

2010-09-30T22:33:00.000-07:00

I suppose any bar that calls itself Ezra Pound is going to be a bar that offers artistic types inspiration. I mean, I know that's why I went out of my way to go there while I was here in Perth.

From the red velvet couches, to the murals on the walls, to the cabinet of old books that I want to own, this place was divine. But it was one mural in particular that inspired me.

As I was sitting at the chair, sipping my red wine, the lazy laughing eyes of this mural were staring back at me, tempting me away from the conversation going on with my three companions, whispering of the story it had to tell.

For it was, betimes, an entry into the Underground; the world that had been created for the fae to skip between freely when they were cast out of Ireland. Entry ways like this exist in many places, all leading to the one Underground, sort of like the idea of the One Forest of Charles de Lint fame. The bar is a favourite for the creatures of the Underground, so close to the entryway of their home.

There were more people who walked past us in our unsuspecting chairs and did not come back out. The barman, almost certainly a magician, creates the glamour for these fae creatures in the backroom and the doorman, almost certainly a hunching goblin, escorts us out when the lights of the bar have dimmed. It's time for us to go, so that the fae can play.

Nikki.

Front Cover for The Fairy Girl

2010-09-28T20:26:00.000-07:00

Well, it's more simple than I'd imagined, but nicer than if I'd continued sticking things to it and risking it looking cluttered.

Voila!

Today's the first day that I've even seen clouds since being in Perth. As such, I've decided against going out today and am set to knock around at home. And run through the treasures I located in a Salvos scrap bag yesterday.

Exactly half of a full length dress. The front side, as you can see from the below picture, has been completely unpicked.

The lines of color are part of the material, not sewn on as I originally thought. It's a stunning blast from the past.

Insomnia & Cover designs

2010-09-27T21:27:00.000-07:00

Last night, was a lovely night. I'd just been in the spa, had two glasses of muscat, showered then sat copying out the latest story for my next chapbook. About the time it got to be able twelve, I was fairly relaxed. I wasn't exhausted, but I was happy to have some sleepy-time.

Ha ha, I realise now. Famous last words.

I commenced to lay in bed, eyes closed, wide awake, for a full hour before I got up to jot some creative ideas down. For, you see, I've recently found a couple of mixed media collages on etsy, and they have inspired me! I don't assume that I can do anything so striking as the ones you'll see there. But it occurred to me, the last picture you guys saw, my front cover was rather... blank.

Not that interesting. I knew that I could do better than that, but I just didn't know what yet. Hey presto, at just after one o'clock in the morning, I had much more of an idea, a projected sketch that I simply had to get up out of bed at one in the morning to do.

Crepe paper and ribbons and feathers and coins, brightly coloured and striking. The more I get into this craft stuff, the more I realise I miss primary school art. You know, before they started telling you how to do art *right*.

Anyway, most of the materials I want to use are at my real home, in Melbourne. So when I get back there, I'm sure to have more photos of my latest experiment.

And hopefully, by posting here, I'll manage to get to sleep tonight...

Almost a year to the day since I last posted.

2010-09-26T00:25:00.000-07:00

Today I find myself visiting a friend in Perth. Now, I knew, when I started packing for this outing, that this is a friend who tends to inspire creativity in me. And, just lucky for me, I had a project in mind.

For the past year, I've been working on a series of vignettes focused narrowly around the theme of modern-day fairytales. Much more recently, I have learned the art of Japanese book binding. With a small amount of prompting from some friends of mine, I was persuaded to the idea of writing up and binding these stories into little chapbooks that look a little something like this:

I'm pretty pleased with it. Covered with black cartridge paper, the spine has been sewn with green embroidery thread. You can see the ink and dip pen I've used to write with in the picture. For a better look at the writing itself:

The story inside is my take on W. B. Yeats' poem 'The Stolen Child', but from the fairy changeling's point of view. The next story, which I've just started working on, is about a changeling girl who's grown up with a human family and experiences some amount of disconnect. It's the writing from this story that's visible in the picture above.

Currently still deciding whether these will be put up on my etsy page. At the moment, I'm liking being able to hold and look at my new creative pretties!

Nikki.

Character sketches -- some speed writing

2009-09-29T05:09:00.000-07:00

"So you see," he said, over a glass of drink, and with the slumped shoulders of someone who had already had quite a few of them, "The situation is more than anyone could have born."

The redheaded bartender nodded her head sympathetically, and handed over another drink.

"Cheers." This time, the bartender poured herself a drink as well. As Matthew picked up his shot, his clinked it against the glass she'd poured for herself. They both drank deeply.

"Where are you staying tonight?" Charlie asked.

Dejected--looking into his drink as though there should be more--Matthew shrugged his shoulders.

"Alright then, you're staying with me." Picking up her coat, she dragged it over her shoulders. Reaching for his, she threw it onto him before leaning into the staff only section behind the bar. "I'm signing off."

The other man on shift nodded and waved his hand vaguely. He was on the phone. Charlie didn't wait. Grabbing hold of Matthew's arm, she commenced to drag him out of the Fad Bar and Gallery.

*

It wasn't easy being the one gay friend in a group of football loving yobs. Especially not around Grand Final season. They left the ground, already half pissed from drinks had all game, and then had in excess through the final quarter. He doubted they were the only St Kilda fans who were going to have a heady hang over the following day. Come to think of it, there were going to be a lot of sad Geelong fans going into work come Monday.

Now that he thought of it, he figured he might be coming down with that hang over a little bit early.

Thomas kept him standing, at least long enough to get him into the cab. Wouldn't go in there with him, of course. Wouldn't want to risk catching the gay. Gary muttered a slurred thanks he didn't really mean, and told himself that tomorrow it wouldn't matter as the cab pulled away.

Tomorrow it wouldn't matter. Until it did matter. Just the same as always. But soon, he'd be able to close his eyes and go far away into a world where none of this even mattered. In fact, Gary could feel his eyes starting to close even as the cab meter started ticking up the fare of his ride.

*

Darcy jumped awake. Her wrist was damp and she realised she'd been drooling on it; realised too that it was 4 in the morning and she had fallen asleep while trying to get an essay in on time, again. And this week it was worse, because this week it was supposed to be holidays!

Wiping the inside of her wrist absently against her tracksuit pants, Darcy moved things on her bedside table so there would be room to put her laptop when she shut it off. And didn't look at it tomorrow until after her lunch date with Matthew.

And didn't look at it tomorrow until after her lunch date with Matthew.

She sighed as her body touched down on and swiftly relaxed into the mattress of her bed. Her head felt as though it was blissfully sinking into the pillow. She sighed once more, grabbing her blankets around her, and then she fell asleep.

*

Matthew woke up to a glass of water being held up in front of him, and the indulgent look Renee baring down on him.

"I heard it was a big night last night."

Before he could reply, a full-grown Alsatian bumped into the back of Renee's leg in an effort to get to Matthew first. A couple of drops fell from the jolted glass, but the majority of liquid came from the dog's tongue, before Matthew could lift his arm to defend himself.

"Looks like you're going to wear it if you don't take it." Renee put out the water glass right near his hand again. This time, Matthew took it.

"Ah well, Grand Final night. You know how it is." He'd already had the excuse prepared. "We didn't wake you when we came in last night?"

"No." Renee left his side, and went about opening the curtains of the living room. The large dog looked torn, half stepped after Renee, then licked Matthew's arm for good measure.

Life Update.

2008-09-13T21:41:00.000-07:00

So! To catch up, I moved house in the first week of August. That move carried with it about the usual amount of stress and upheaval. Internet has and hasn't worked on my laptop, since then, fairly intermittantly, and my computer harddrive completely crashed once as well. Thankfully, I recovered everything and have a shiney new harddrive in the old machine, so that is as good as it gets!

My mother had another heart attack around the middle of August. That has meant that I haven't really been concerned about whether or not I have the internet at home, being as that my spare time hasn't really been spent on a computer in any case.

And lastly, most exciting and least stressful of the lot, my birthday occurred this weekend, on the 12th of September, making me a full rounded 25 years of age.

Anyway, I'll no doubt have much to add on fantasy and writing elements again soon enough.

Nikki.

Fairy tale submission to Dante's Heart

2008-08-09T19:10:00.000-07:00

Well, that's another short story done and submitted. This time the subject was a culmination of many tales of coming of age.

The story centers around a young girl and a wolf that she comes across. With this as the premise, it was sort of ambitious for me to try to draw it away from the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale, but I don't think I did a terrible job of keeping it distinct. It helped that my wolf was not only wolf, but also man, for a portion of the story, faintly reminiscent of the Angela Carter's take on Little Red, A Company of Wolves.

Other influences that became apparent as the story created itself were that of Alice being changed for her experiences in Wonderland, and of course of Sarah inside of Jareth's Labyrinth.

However, as I am a romantic, I had my characters leave with a happily ever after and of continued being together-ness. Okay everyone, on the count of romantic -- "Awww."

So, within 6 to 8 weeks, I should be able to find out if I have a place in Dante's Heart's autumn publication.

Fairy tales and short stories

2008-08-04T03:09:00.000-07:00

I think that retellings of old fairy tales are one of the new ways of getting them seen anew by those who haven't experienced them yet.

I've lately been reading Ancient Legends, Mystic Charms and Superstitions of Ireland, by Lady Francesca Wilde, and finding them a really great source of inspiration for my current WIP and future stories that I plan to set in the same world as Unity. Francesca Wilde, consequently, was the mother of Oscar Wilde, who I can't believe I actually haven't written about in here before now.

I've never been one for writing short stories. Short stories, to me, have always ended up as a story idea that I didn't like enough to continue with, or alternately, a prologue for a longer story. This week, I was astonished and excited to write my very first short story, within the mystical fantasy genre that I have been indulging in now for quite some time.

Obvious for me to say, this story came with quite some inspiration from Lady Francesca's work. It only came in at almost exactly 1,000 words, and after some consideration, I have decided to submit it as a short piece for a fantasy magazine that I have been eying off for a little while now, and just wishing that I had something that was self contained, which I could share with them. As I look through my tags, I realise that I have mentioned this particular ezine before now, and had high plans to send them something already. This is something I obviously haven't done, considering I forgot it until this very moment. *bites lip*

The magazine's name is Les Bonnes Fees, and their website is http://www.les-bonnes-fees.com/. They have a current issue to peruse that's really worth a look over.

As with most things I post in here, I mostly wanted a convenient place to link this for myself. ;) So if I actually get accepted here, I might actually begin my branching from the romantic fantasy niche to include a more traditional fantasy readership. Could be fun, at the very least!

Nikki Watson.

Awakening accepted!

2008-07-29T16:48:00.000-07:00

I just keep having more and more good news to post on here, don't I?

My good news for today is that I just got an email reply from my editor, informing me that I should please consider printing out the contract enclosed and send it back to the publisher for my follow up novel to Unity.

Where Unity tells the story of Darcy's first awareness of the world of Faerie, and her struggle to find balance between it and her real life, Awakening follows her story as she leaves Kinvara and tries to make a life for herself in Killarney. Little does she know that the world of Faerie will follow her down into that town, and Faerie itself will not remain so removed from her world as it used to be.

The story is set in Ireland and shares the mystical history that the land is rich with. I'm very excited to be told that this story has a tenuous release date of March, 2009. So keep a look out for it!

And Unity is still currently available at http://allromanceebooks.com/product-temperanceunity-9894-140.html

I'm a Tease author!!

Nikki Watson.

What does my Dark Tarot card mean to me?

2008-07-22T17:10:00.000-07:00

I seem to be posting a fair bit in this half of the month. Must be a sign that I have more time available to me. Or maybe, since I just started university last Monday, it's a sign that I'm starting to better manage my time.

We can hope. :D

On one of the the chat loops to promote our books, a very good question was asked. "What does your card mean to you?" And it got me thinking.

I was very lucky when I finally submitted my story into the Dark Tarot series. The Temperance card was still available to submit FOR! Unity was already on my computer and written, and I knew the sorts of themes that it explored, yet there were a few cards that I thought it could fit well under.

For me, what cinched it was the wonderful cover art. I mean, look at
it. Those colors, and patterns, my name there in the middle of it. *grins* Isn't it beautiful?

In Unity, I explore the idea of two girls falling accidentally into
the world of Faerie, a fantasy world above or behind this world. As
fairies and elves are commonly attributed to have wings at their back,
what better for me to find than a cover with that very same
illustration? Add to that the fact that the Temperance card itself
means balance -something that my girls Celeste and Darcy find through
the passage of their travels- and I was sold! I hope you all are too. ;)

I'd like to thank the creative team at Tease for creating something so
perfect. I know I'm not the only author here to think so.

Unity, published by Tease Publishing. Available Now!
http://allromanceebooks.com/product-temperanceunity-9894-140.html.

Nikki Watson.

More on my take of Fellowship of the Ring ;)

2008-07-21T04:22:00.000-07:00

I realised a little while ago that someone replied to my last post on Fellowship of the Ring, and I realised, I had more of this written, but hadn't shared it on here yet.

So, here are the chapters four to seven, just for something a little bit different and more fun. ;)

*~*

Chapter four
Frodo: You're seriously still coming with me on this quest?
Sam: The Elves told me to. 'Don't you leave him, Sam' and I don't mean to.
Frodo: I thought Gandalf said that to you...?
Sam: Do you see Gandalf anywhere around here?
Frodo: Well, that's a point.
Pippin: *wakes up*
Farmer Maggot: *hoists scythe over fields*
Frodo: Eep!
Pippin: Huh?
Frodo: You know, Farmer Maggot! Eep!
Pippin: What are you talking about? He's great, and he gives me and Merry mushrooms whenever we want!
Hobbits: Mmm ~~Angel~~ mushrooms!
Pippin: So, onwards! Farmer Maggot! It's me! Pippin! And here's Frodo Baggins, and...
Farmer Maggot: Baggins, eh? Oh, do come inside. I have mushrooms. You'll be wanting to get to Buckland soon. There's been people looking for you.
Frodo: Umm... yeah, I don't really wanna talk about it.

Chapter five
Hobbits: *arrive at Buckland*
Frodo: *still procrastinates about talking about it*
Merry: Stop shuffling, Frodo. Let me tell you your own story.
Frodo: You want to what now?
Merry: Well, once upon a time, there was a Ring, and it was bad. And then your Uncle Bilbo found it, and that was bad. But he was older and so harder to spy on, so I only really found out about everything once he gave it to you. And it was still bad.
Frodo: ... How do you know all of this?
Merry: Pippin knows too.
Frodo: I thought I had been so good at keeping the secret.
Merry: Oh, and Sam knows. It was Sam who told us everything.
Sam: ....
Frodo: ... Sam?
Sam: ... *blush* I only had your best interests in heart, Mr. Frodo.
Pippin: And now, since you're going, you realise we have to come with you.
Merry: And you can trust that we'll stick to you like glue.
Frodo: You're all coming with me?
Fredegar: I'm not!
Frodo: You're not?
Fredegar: Well I'm not going into the Old Forest! It's scary. You'll see that I'm right! Don't worry though, I'll stay behind and tell Gandalf where you went, when he finally comes. If he finally comes...

Chapter six
Old Forest: We.... don't............like....................you......... here.................
Merry: Okay, I respect your right to say that, but I don't think you really needed 10 pages to do it, do you? Carry on everyone!
Pippin: Yeah, I really don't like it here after all. Fredegar was right. :(
Merry: I'm sleepy.
Pippin: Yeah, me too.
Sam: *looks sleepy*
Frodo: Don't be sleepy! We have to get.... I'm sleepy...
Hobbits: *falls asleep*
Sam: Well, I guess if everyone else is going to let the horses go free, I'll have to be the one what goes after them.
Frodo: *splash!*
Sam: Frodo!
Frodo: The tree tried to drown me!!
Sam: Now Frodo, are you sure you weren't dreaming?
Frodo: No, I... well, maybe... Hey, where are Merry and Pippin?
Sam: The tree! The tree swallowed them!
Frodo: Doesn't seem so strange that the tree tried to drown me now, does it?
Sam: Let's burn them out!
Frodo: You know, burning things just doesn't work in these situations...
Merry: Stop, stop the burning! He'll kill me!!
Frodo: See. Told you.
Tom: *sings*
Frodo: Eh?
Tom: *SINGS*
Frodo: Help!!
Tom: Oh! What are you doing here? Rather silly to get caught in tree roots, don't you think? Here, let me help you out. Now, follow me, but I'm going to run faster than you can follow. Come on, follow, it's getting derry dol dark!

Chapter seven
Goldberry: Hello, I'm Goldberry the River-daughter. Tom will be back soon, and then you can sleep safely here.
Tom: Oh now, look at that weather. Don't think we'll be seeing much of the sun today.
Frodo: Yay weather, now we don't have to go anywhere further just yet. In fact, I'm sick of all this traveling. My feet hurt already.
Tom: Then let me tell you a story! It's about the age of trees, and of men, and of the kingdoms, and wars they fought, and in the beginning, only the Elf-sires were awake....
Frodo: I think he's falling asleep...
Tom: Not asleep. I am older than you, and was here before Big or Little People arrived. I was here before the kings and those kingdoms. Before the Elves and before the Dark Lord...
Goldberry: Alright, that's enough of that. How about some food, hmm?
Tom: Yes! Food! And then we can talk about you. Like your Shire, and the flight from it, and the Riders, and oh, hey, that reminds me, let me have a look at your Ring.
Frodo: Sure, here you go.
Tom: Thanks!
Frodo: ... Hang on...
Tom: Haha, look at me juggle and look at me wear it and lo, I have not disappeared, and oh dear, where has it gone?
Frodo: Where has it gone!
Tom: Fooled you. Here it is. :D
Frodo: Is that still my ring...? *puts it on*
Merry: Hey Frodo... Hey, where did you go?
Frodo: He he he.
Tom: Now now, not everyone is as cool as me. I can still see you and I say take it off.
Frodo: Okay.
Tom: Good. Now, where were we? Ah yes, completely belittling the power of the Ring...

Nikki Watson.

Unity Release!

2008-07-17T03:36:00.000-07:00

Well, it's that time you've all been waiting for. Well, it's what I've been waiting for, at least!

All Romance eBooks now has my novel Unity on sale. http://allromanceebooks.com/product-temperanceunity-9894-140.html or click on the picture to the right for the buy link.

Now that I've wet your appetite for that much, let me share with you an excerpt from the novel.

***

Night art classes were held at the local dojo twice a week. Celeste's teacher was a slight blonde woman who had missed her calling as a teenage cheerleader and, through affiliation with the younger--and therefore cooler--students of the class, was trying to recapture her youth. Currently, Susanna was strolling up and down between the crooked rows of canvases in her class, murmuring, “Yes, very good, very good”.

When Susanna arrived by Celeste's canvas, the dark haired girl looked at her expectantly. As Susanna stared at the half finished painting, Celeste expected her to make some original comment. When Susanna only smiled accommodatingly and told her to “Carry on”, Celeste deduced her teacher was quite blind or very deluded. She had been trying for something abstract against the central figure, but the perspective was all wrong, the colors didn't quite mesh, and there was a weird thing going on with the eyes that she couldn't quite seem to fix.

'Creepy, 'Leste,'

Jasper said to her, taking some time apart from his current work of art as Susanna moved on to another round of appreciative, “Ooh, very good” to other students.

Celeste shot him a sideways look at his sudden appearance there. Jasper shrugged.

'So, who's he supposed to be?'

Celeste looked back at the canvas. There was no salvaging it now. The best she could hope for was that Susanna's blind streak would continue into the marking phase, but at the same time, she didn't really want to depend on an ignorant eye for the benefit of her marks.

'I think I saw it in a dream.'

Celeste answered him shortly, pulling the canvas down from the board and turning to the paints on the table behind her to start putting them away. From the floor, the man stared out in all his magnificence, garbed in a medieval style tunic bearing some sort of intricately designed crest on the front of it.

As Celeste moved away and started sorting through the brushes she was going to have to wash, Jasper stepped closer to the discarded canvas, still staring, bringing his hand to cup his jaw as he studied Celeste's work.

'His gaze is striking… and the colors…'

'You're my friend; you have to say that,'

Her words were dismissive. Celeste walked to the sinks and started soaking her brushes before washing them there.

'Anyway, are we on for tonight?'

'Photography at the beach? Wouldn't miss that for the world. What time were we meeting up again?'

Jasper didn't pause at her change of subject as he answered. He straightened, easily coming back to remembering there was a whole other world outside of Celeste's painting.

All paints were packed, and Celeste stuffed the ones that were hers in her bag. The others she returned to the cupboard in the back of the room.

'After dark. Say about ten?'

Jasper nodded. When she returned to the stand she had borrowed, Jasper had her canvas in his hands and was holding it up to her attention with curiosity.

'So, what are you going to do with this?'

'Nothing. I'm heading off now. It's not like I'm going to get anything more from today. If you want to come around to my place early, Natalia's making chicken curry, mild.'

Celeste was busy picking the canvas and the stand up as she spoke. She laid the stand next to the others on the rack and then the canvas, she put with the rest of the used canvases, ready to be painted over and used anew. Jasper had his eyebrows raised; she was not usually so dismissive of any artwork she made. However, he returned his expression to normal well before she turned to look at him again.

'Ooh, just the way I like it. Tell her to make lots. I'll definitely be there.'

Unity, published by Tease Publishing. Available Now!

Nikki Watson.

Line Edits -- Check!

2008-07-01T22:24:00.000-07:00

I have just handed in my line edits for Unity and I'm feeling just fine!

It's getting close now. Just look on the right hand side of this actual blog for the cover image of Unity, due out in e-book later this month, and only a little longer for those people who absolutely love the print books (like me!)

And here's a synopsis for anyone who's missed it previously posted:

Obstinate Darcy and artistic Celeste lives cross, starting them both on a path into the world of Faerie, which draws them in and comes alive for them. Their lives become those of true ladies, of balls and gorgeous men in dark cathedrals, as the world of abusive stepfathers and fits of depression are left behind them. As they change for their experiences, they realise that they a balance must be found between their Faerie travels, which they visit in their dreams, and the Real Life of their waking world.

Reader/Writers

2008-06-24T22:40:00.001-07:00

I still would like to maintain, that after the last three years that I've been finding ePublishers around the place who want to publish my writing, the best part about the ePub industry are the people you come to meet and get to know. It's hardly a controversial statement to make that ePubs open and close, will give you grief and tears of happiness, but the friends you make, people who you can trust to read your work and give you an honest opinion, and the people who's work you can read in return, are the most valuable part of the ePublishing industry, and indeed, the most valuable part of any writer's art.

Having just finished a previous project (a project set after Unity, titled Awakening) which took me the better part of half a year to write to its completion, I have recently started on a new project, the next in that series. I like to think that the series I am creating has something of a Charles De Lint slant. I've spoken about him before. Just check the tags for previous posts I've made about the fantasy author. All of the stories I am writing right now are a part of the same universe, but the characters who are main shift and change and accommodate include new characters that bring new life and interest to a series that I think would be much less if it depended on previous novels.

But these are my novels. Of course I think they are something special.

After coming out the other end of a horrible stint of writer's block, with the help of one of my reader/writer friends, I only want to thank all of the people who are patient with me, who love to read my writing, who love that I read theirs. I think that all of you know who you are. I dearly appreciate you.

Thank you.

On Fairies and pod casts

2008-05-19T17:13:00.001-07:00

Owing to a friend of mine, I have been listening to a couple of pod casts on Celtic mythology. As I myself am writing, more in contemporary Ireland, I'm always interested in the folklore of the country, which I already knew was rich.

As a pagan myself, I'm not ignorant of the celebrations of Beltane and Samhain. This was the main topic being spoke of in this pod cast. For the entirity of the pod cast, http://celticmythpodshow.com/Shownotes/episodeSP01.php It's an hour long. Usually, they only go for about half an hour.

But these are points that I found of interest myself:

Children who die in April are abducted and taken away by fairies who watch to wait for children they can thusly take away. They are held back by primroses, picked before sunrise, on the threshold. Evil spirits can't touch these or iron.

Fairies are in best humor on May eve. It is then they carry of young people to join in their revels. Of women who danced really well, it used to be said, 'She danced to fairy music on the hill'.

Fire and salt, butter and milk are not given away on May day. They are sacred, and the former two used for wards against evil spirits. The witches, however, will take great pride in stealing the milk, and if they do so, then the luck and the prosperity of the milk with belong to the fairies until the next May eve. Mountain ash is the best safeguard against witches and evil work.

It's dangerous to sleep out in the open in the month of May, for that is when the fairies are most prominent. It is then that they take the most beautiful of women to be their brides and nurses for fairies babes, while the men are taken to be as husbands.

In one story, a man appeared dead, but was instead taken to the fairy land from our world. They knew this because when they left food out for him, it was always gone by the morning. So they sent someone after him, who said that he could get the man out in nine days. When the townspeople waited for the man to be born back into life from fairy land, instead of coming back, he spoke from fairy land to say 'I am happy with my fairy bride, leave me be where I am.' And his parents and the people were content with that.

Proofreading

2008-05-16T22:46:00.000-07:00

On the heels of a couple of different sicknesses, some really terrible whether, a lot of homework, and much stressing and pulling out of hair, I have had the most productive week. These come in waves, and I'm quite conscious that this one won't last indefinitely, but I'll enjoy it while it's here.

To start with, I returned, with carefully annotated notes, the manuscripts of a couple of friends who I had promised to proofread. I feel really nice when I get emails back from those people saying that my humble comments have helped. It's something that every writer needs, I think; a bunch of people who aren't afraid to look through your manuscript and go 'You know, this isn't working, I think you should scrap the whole thing and start again'. >.< No, really, I love proofreading, and I know some pretty talented writers, so it's not a chore at all.

On top of that, feeling like I was quite reasonably allowed to spend my time on my own work after this, I have started the long mission of merging the drafts of two separate word documents, as well as one excersise book, and a wordpad document of notes, into one cohesive manuscript that I hope to send off to submissions at Tease come the first week of July.

I'm the proud owner of 41,000 words out of 70,000 in a single document, with paaaages more already written so far. ;) When this is all done, I think I'll be the one needing a proofreader! :D

Nikki Watson.

Les Bonnes Fees

2008-05-10T03:02:00.000-07:00

My, it has been a long time since I last wrote here. I must admit, I'm very embarrassed, noticing the date of the last time that I wrote something. All I can say is that time got away from me, as it often does, I am still here, but extremely busy between school work and writing my next project, which I'm hoping might get picked up by Tease Publishing.

The subject that has brought me back into my blog to post for the first time this fine month is not actually something to do with my writing. Well, perhaps in time (what time, I seriously have none!) it will have something to do with my writing, by which I mean I may send something to it, but in the meantime, I would just like to plug this little site because I think their idea is a good one.

Les Bonnes Fees, a new zine that is coming out on the subject of fairies, folklore, and everything in between, as they say. Obviously I and they have some common interests. I already have a couple of articles and reviews around about that I might think of sending to them. I might want to polish them up.

Ah, time, how I wish I had some more of that...

Nikki Watson.

Danae's story

2008-04-21T00:32:00.001-07:00

I am one those people who believe that every person has a novel in them. As a writer, I write novels all the time. Not all of them are especially good, and those are the ones that I hope good editors will help me pick up, or inform me that I need to do massive rewrites before I will even look at them.

For me, this concept that I am looking forward towards has the feel of that one great novel that every person will, or has the capacity to write in their lifetime.

In reference to the novel I spoke about in my last post -we will give it here the working title of Danae's story- I have sat down to discover a split narrative in the beginning that was never present in any of the previous incarnations of the writing of the story. This has presented some problems, as well as some obvious excitement.

One - The split narrative encompasses the story of the main character's parents. This is great, as both of her parents come from minor races within Danae's world, and in following their stories up to, and just following Danae's birth, this will give me a chance to look at a part of the world that would not have been immediately visible through the eyes of the character, Mikael, in the scene I depicted last time.

Two - Always before, Mikael started the story just before coming across the four year old girl child, Danae, whom he is to take a guardianship of. This potentially causes me some issues with reconciling the original timeline to what I have now, but I have faith that it will be something through which I can persevere.

I've also been doing some reading on politics for my Liberal Arts course this week, and that can only help me with the political situation of the main cities of Danae's story.

Nikki Watson.

On the beginnings of a doctorate...

2008-04-18T20:38:00.000-07:00

I'm looking at doing a novel for my PhD. I know. I must first get past my degree, then into a year of honors, and after that, if my work is seen as good enough, only then will I be accepted into a PhD. But I've always believed in looking ahead, something like five years ahead in his instance. It's good to keep perspective.

And so I have a novel in mind. It's a novel which has been bouncing around in my head, on and off, since I was about 16. Of course, at 16, my writing was terrible. But there was a lot of thought that went into that terrible writing, so that now, at 24, I think I'm starting to build enough world understanding, and writing experience, and together, combined, I might actually be able to make something truly magnificent out of this story.

Or maybe I'm fooling myself, but it might be an interesting discovery to document in the world of blogging either way.

On Wednesday this week, I sat down to my computer, ignored my internet connection for a couple of hours, and set about just writing one scene of, what I hope might end up, my proposed doctorate. It went well.

The scene that I wrote encompassed a lot of backstory that was drawn from a bit of context that I know about the world from having written in it for the last eight years. Making the realisation that the "plot" starts about half way through the original "story" means that I need to contextualise things slightly different. For example, the cities that this story unfolds within. There are three of them: the first city, which has just come out from under the thumb of a dictatorship; the second city, which was destroyed in a magical war several generations before my narrative starts up, and the third city, one built with water, and trade in mind in the foremost.

I think that the main moment I expressed, when getting this one scene down this week, was a feeling of understanding the wider scope of what does and does not, what has and has not, made cities in various agricultural areas work over the span of our history. I am currently enrolled in a Liberal Arts course, and that's got everything you're ever going to need to get into second year at university. It has your history, your literature, sociology, politics, etc, and then, of course, it goes into how all of these disciplines interconnect with each other. Now my novel is an alternative history, fantasy novel, but I think that some of the same rules do apply. A city that is built with a coast of water on most sides should prosper. But if it is far away from the two first cities, and is the last to come into its own, then that gives explanation as to why it is only the third, and presumedly least important, of the three cities.

The scene that I got written was more than 2,000 words, which is good for me, as I too often have a tendency to write shorter scenes than I would like. It's something I'm working on. But perhaps, if this rule to only write one scene in a sitting, for this novel, takes hold, then I'll find a lot more writing being put into each scene.

Anyway, I like the idea of keeping track of my progress, so that means you all will get to too.

Happy weekend!

Nikki Watson.

Fellowship of the Rings, a beginning. ;)

2008-04-11T20:13:00.000-07:00

Right, so I said I was reading the Lord of the Rings for the first time, right? Starting with Fellowship. Well, here is what I think so far...

Chapter One.
Hobbits: Yay, Gandalf is awesome!!
Bilbo: Gandalf, my old friend.
Gandalf: Bilbo, give me the ring.
Bilbo: Don't wanna. :(
Gandalf: Bilbo...
Bilbo: Don't wanna! >:(
Gandalf: Bilbo!
Bilbo: Okay. Oh, I feel better now. Right, I'm heading off now.

Chapter Two.
Hobbits: Ooh, don't know if we trust that strange Gandolf character since Bilbo went and disappeared. Bilbo always was real crazy.
Sam: But I hear that there are Elves nearby, and they are so cool.
Hobbits: Yes Sam.
Gandalf: *reappears*
Frodo: Gandalf, my old friend!
Gandalf: Have you got the ring?
Frodo: Yes...
Gandalf: You must destroy it.
Frodo: *throws in the fire*
Gandalf: That won't work.
Frodo: *gives it to Gandalf*
Gandalf: Frodo!
Frodo: Fine, I'll carry it.
Sam: Yay, we'll get to see Elves!!

Chapter Three.
Gandalf: Hurry, go from here, I'll really, really be back to see you before you go.
Frodo: Really?
Gandalf: Yes really. *goes*
Frodo: Where's Gandalf?
Sam: Elves!! Let's go, quickly, Elves!!
Frodo: No seriously, where's Gandalf?
Sam: But Eeeelves!!
Frodo: Okay, guess we'll see Gandalf on the way...
Sam: Eep, a Black Rider!
Pippin: Was that really a Black Rider?
Frodo: Of course he was. Didn't you see that sniffing thing he did??
Pippin: Ooh! Eep, another Black Rider.
Gildor: Hello! I am an Elf. You should travel with us, because Gandalf is not here and with us, you will be safe.
Sam: (Yay, *squee*, Elves!!)

Nikki Watson. ;)

On Conventions

2008-04-09T03:27:00.000-07:00

I've given a lot of thought to promotions in person. More thought recently, that is, in the last month, since I know that Tease Publishing his heavy on author promotions. So I've been looking into a few conventions, namely Context 21 in Ohio, USA.

Now, a friend of mine who grew up in American, has been recently looking at ticket prices for a visit back home on holiday. Obviously, the off season tickets will be cheaper than peak season. Still, from Melbourne, Australia, the cost to Ohio would be steep, and that's without looking at hotel accommodations and the like.

This is where we get to thinking that writing from Australia to an American market is not unlike shooting oneself in the foot.

But no! I have been following the Australian Romance Readers Convention on Blogger (Yes, I am another person who is utterly addicted to the thing) and not only do I find that they are holding the convention -not in Sydney, but in Melbourne- I find that they are holding it, literally, within walking distance from my house.

Held on February 20-22, 2009. Of course, by that stage, I'll almost certainly have moved house to somewhere a little further out of the city, but okay, I'll be taking a train five stops instead of walking. I don't think I look fussed by that. On the whole, I feel excited!!

One of the speakers already picked up is Sherrilyn Kenyon, and for sure there will be the usual panels and various convention details that make conventions so exciting.

So. I'll definitely be going to that, picking up tickets as soon as they are available. I just have to wait for it to roll around, now.

Nikki Watson.

The Lord of the Rings

2008-04-08T18:08:00.000-07:00

I've just started reading the Fellowship of the Ring recently, for as a fantasy writer myself, it seems quite bad to have never read the series in its entirety. This isn't the first time that I have started at this project, but it is the first time that I have gotten so far into it without getting distracted by other things.

I'm really enjoying it so far. No doubt it'll be another of those things that I end up putting impressions of as I go along. :D

Nikki Watson.

Tease Tarot Acceptance!!

2008-04-07T03:53:00.001-07:00

I just found out the best news in the most bizarre of ways! My novel submission for the Tease Tarot line with Tease Publishing has been accepted! Unfortunately for me, the acceptance letter was caught up in my spam folder, but I found it anyway but accidentally putting something else there and having to dig it out!

Color this the face of someone who's very excited! And luckily for me, this letter doesn't seem to be dated more than a day ago. Phew!

See this post from a little under a month ago for more information about the story: Unity - by Nikki Watson

Ben Jonson - The Jackman's Song

2008-03-30T02:47:00.001-07:00

Just a piece of poetry for today, for I am tired, but I found this, and wanted to share it. Ben Jonson poet was a poet in the time of William Shakespeare, and competed with him, writing plays, poetry and epigrams.

The Jackman's Song
by Ben Jonson. (1572-1637)

The faiery beame upon you,
The starres to glister on you,
A Moone of light,
In the Noone of night,
Till the Fire-Drake hath o're-gone you.

The Wheele of Fortune guide you,
The Boy with the Bow beside you,
Runne aye in the way
Till the Bird of day,
And the luckyer lot betide you.

Nikki Watson.

Brother and Sister - Another story courtesy of the Brothers Grimm

2008-03-28T04:07:00.000-07:00

Continuing to read through my bible-like Brothers Grimm, I have found another story that is one of my favorites from childhood, though I don't remember then that it was given the name simply Brother and Sister. So I will try to give a simple outline of it here.

The brother, once leaving the family home with his sister, gets turned into a roebuck by the evil machinations of token evil step mother, but come the King's hunt, he can't resist being a part of it. He wants to go, but the sister stays him in their house, giving him the password of 'My little sister, let me in.' He goes, and is chased, but on the second day, one of the King's men follow him and tell the King of the apparent roebuck's words. On the third day, the King comes to the house before the brother, says the password, and the sister opens the door. He is, of course, overwhelmed by her beauty and sweet disposition and asks her to marry him, she of course says yes, and when the step mother is killed for her evil deeds, the brother reverts back to his human form.

I'd like to add this as a second fairy tale to my list that I would like to rewrite... sometime.

Nikki Watson.

The Frog Prince

2008-03-25T22:47:00.000-07:00

"Princess! youngest princess!
Open the door for me!
Do you not know what you said to me
Yesterday by the cool waters of the well?
Princess, youngest princess!
Open the door for me!"

Continuing on my fairy tale kick, I have started reading my Grimm Complete Fairy Tales. Specifically here, The Frog Prince, which I have half plans to write up as part of a retold fairy tales anthology. Maybe this will kick my arse in gear on another project that I keep putting off.

There are way too many of those. ;)

Nikki Watson.

The Snow Queen

2008-03-25T03:12:00.000-07:00

And I'm back from the beach and reading up on my very own copy of The Grimm Brothers, Complete Fairy tales, which does, in fact, include the elusive story, The Juniper Tree. Apparently, that's been excluded from several editions because there was no way to soften it. Can't say that I'm familiar with the story just yet, but no doubt I'll report back on here when I have gotten to it and read it.

Funnily enough, it was thinking of Hans Christian Anderson that got me to picking up the Grimm Brothers again. I know some people have their fairy tale teller favorites, but for me, I just like them both.

I've noticed lately, however, much to my horror, that there are people out there who aren't familiar with my favorite of Hans Christian Anderson's stories, The Snow Queen.

Growing up, this was my very favorite fairy tale. I was endlessly sad every time Disney came out with a new adaption to a fairy tale and it wasn't The Snow Queen, because I'm an unrelenting Disney fan too. Or at least, a fan of the old school cartoon movies, anyway.

I had a picture book that told fairy tales through the seasons, so it started with the Spring relevant stories, went through Summer fairy tales, on to Autumn fairy tales, and finally to Winter, where my beloved Snow Queen fairy tale was located. I must have read that every other week when I was little. I unfortunately don't know where that picture book ended up, and I've never been able to find it since, but my memory of it is still pretty potent.

Because I thought that everyone should be familiar with The Snow Queen, I took the three seconds on Google to find a copy of it on onlineliterature.com

The Snow Queen, by Hans Christian Anderson

Nikki Watson

Easter Break

2008-03-20T03:43:00.000-07:00

I'm going away tomorrow for the Easter weekend. As I am in Melbourne, and Melbourne is highly known for its unpredictable weather, it is still summer-ish in this state. Although that has had it's days of being annoying up till now, I must say, it is terribly convenient, for I am going to be going to a beach house for the next four days!!

Wonderfully well wishes to everyone here, and I will be back again after the holiday.

xx

Nikki Watson. ;)

Opinions on Writing

2008-03-14T04:15:00.001-07:00

I've just written a scene in my latest WIP that makes me wonder about the evolution of characters. How they start on a page with one fairly distinct personality, but within a scene can suddenly embody a person that you actually know, or just appear in a slightly different light than the one in which you had originally viewed your character.

I think I'm going to state that this is a good thing. Suddenly you have this character on a page that you are going to get to know. While you are on the train, you might hear his or her opinion to something that you are seeing out the window, and you might have a little bit of a chuckle. Sure, the people in the seats around you might think you are crazy, but you know that you are just a writer. And that this is the way that things just happen to us sometimes. ;)

Things like this signal, at least to me, that the characters you have chosen, out of all the possible choices, are the right ones, and that, like real people, they are multi-faceted. They should be. I like it when my characters do something that surprises me. Sure, in the next moment I then have to get out my notes and figure out how I'm going to suit any future scenes I may have in mind to suit this new character development, but yeah, overall, it's a good thing.

Likewise, I like to have the ending of my stories kept from me until I am very near the end. This sounds really silly to some people, because how can you write a story when you don't know how it's going to end, right? Wrong. At least for me, it is. I have a vague idea, maybe three main plot points through the story that I know I'm going to have to cover, but the very end result to come out of these things? That's as much a mystery to me as to the reader. At least I hope so. I like to think that my stories do not have predictable endings.

Nikki Watson.

Changeling: Of Elves and Men. Excerpt Two

2008-03-12T02:17:00.000-07:00

It's been a little while since I posted an excerpt from my urban fantasy novel Changeling: Of Elves and Men, so I might just take this occasion to do that now. For anyone new to this blog since the last time I posted one, you can click on the 'excerpt' tag to take you to the last excerpt.

Shane and Ivy are my main characters in this novel, and their love/hate relationship is one I got great entertainment out of writing. I'm in a particularly fluffy mood today, so here is a rather amorous scene between the two of them. Hopefully you will get some entertainment out of them too.

* * *

Changeling: Of Elves and Men. Available Now! from New Concepts Publishing.

Shane never once looked over his shoulder to acknowledge Ivy there so close behind him. Only once he strode in through the French doors and into the hall where the bedrooms were located, did he spin around to face her.

“Damnit, Ivy. I told you you weren’t to come tonight.”

“And I told you what you want has nothing at all to do with me!”

Looking up into his raging eyes, Ivy lifted her head higher and reminded herself that she was not afraid of his fury. She had just followed him back here to tell him that he had no right to tell her what to do, that was all.

With a growl, Shane took a step forward and wrapped an arm around her waist before she could step back nimbly to avoid him. As his lips crushed hers, he felt any resistance she felt toward him wavering. This hadn’t been what he had planned to have happen at all. When they pulled away from each other, Shane’s eyes raked over her body, taking in her reddened lips that looked like they had been well kissed.

His jaw tightened, as he told himself to stand away from her.

“If you followed me just because you wanted to sleep with me, there were better ways of doing that,” he said, trying to turn his frustration into sardonic amusement.

This time, it was Ivy’s turn to growl her frustration. “You stupid, stupid man!” she told him, though Shane noted with interest that it was not exactly a denial of his supposition.

With the hint of a smile playing the edges of his lips, he stepped toward her again, curious to see if she would dodge him the second time around. His fingers found her hand, and silkily, laced their way between her fingers. The simmering heat in his eyes drew her in despite herself, and when the door closed soundly, Shane wasn’t the only one behind it.

Again, he swept towards her, and ravaged her lips, forcing them to move under his as he wished them to, claiming them for his own. Ivy would have moaned if she had been given the breath to do so. As it was, she had to press her body against his to keep herself upright. The rising bulge at the crotch of his jeans told her he didn’t seem to mind. Eventually, she would have to go back to using her own balance to keep her upright. She wasn’t quite sure how she felt about that.

Shane maneuvered them slowly around in a half circle, directing them ever intentionally toward the bed where they would make their consummation of this union. Ivy’s eyes fluttered shut, and she allowed him to guide her where he would. Within the strength of his arms around her, the thought occurred to her that she had never felt safer.

Her breath rushed out of her when Shane picked her up. A second later, she was placed reverently on the bed, a throw back, she thought, of the injuries he was so convinced he needed to protect her from. Before she could complain, Shane began to undo the buttons of her shirt. She arched up a moment later, so that he could cast first it, and then her bra, aside, somewhere between the bed and the door. Then she was reaching up to him, and his kisses moved down from her lips, to her neck, in an unrelenting trail to the waistband of her pants.

He looked up at her for a moment, as if waiting for Ivy’s signal that it was okay for him to go on. Willingly, she gave it to him, and her tight, black pants were unbuttoned, then eased down her shapely legs, and forgotten on the floor beside the bed.

Morning found the two bodies still entwined around each other. It was Shane who woke up first, lifting his finger to flick a strand of Ivy’s dark hair out of her face, which in turn woke her up, too. He had a ready smile on his features, even as Ivy looked around herself in disorientation.

“What I want has nothing to do with you, huh?” Shane asked. It was the ill-timedness of her comment, just before they had fallen into bed with each other, that amused him.

Because it so clearly amused him, it angered her, and Ivy immediately pushed him away from her, as much as she could with their legs still entwined. Another moments’ trouble took care of that problem, too. She sat up, grabbing the pale sheet against her chest.

The smile never left Shane’s lips. “I reckon it’s too late to do that now,” he said to her with a wink that made her flush with embarrassment and anger at the same time.

Buy Changeling: Of Elves and Men here!

Violin Faery - Emilie Autumn

2008-03-07T19:58:00.000-08:00

I'm lying in my bedroom. The Lady of Avalon lies open beside me, and the pages of the exercise book that I'm writing my current fairy story in are on the other side of me, with the pen marking the page.

On my bedside table, my dragon lamp is on and my lady candle holder with pretty wings has two candles burning. Amongst all this, there seems to be a heavy energy of magic and fantasy lingering in the room.

I've just brought music into my room. I'm not sure how much other writers use music to get into the mindset of their stories and/or characters. I know some writers who swear by soundtracks for particular stories of theirs, and can't write a word without one soundtrack or other playing in the background.

Me, I'm nowhere near that particular. Don't get me wrong, I love creating a magical atmosphere around me (see above, right? *grins*) but when it comes to music, I can pretty much put my whole playlist on random and let it do its thing.

One song that has just come on though, is Swallow by Punktorian, Violin Faery, musical artist, Emilie Autumn. For anyone who hasn't heard of this beautiful songstress and violinist, here, let me just say this:

I'm not a fairy but I need,
More of this life so I became,
This creature representing more to you than,
Just another girl,
And if I had a chance to change my mind,
I wouldn't for the world.

Not only is she gorgeous and incredibly talented, but she currently has two CDs out in completely different musical styles. Enchant holds towards a ye olde Victorian majesty, with such songs as Chambermaid and Rose Red, and the tune to Greensleeves is part of her song Juliet. Her second CD, named Opheliac, is inspired by Nine Inch Nails and has everything from Shakespeare quotes in the lyrics of the title track, to her own take on the Lolita story in Gothic Lolita.

But don't just take my word. You can listen to her music at her myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/emilieautumn

Buy this lady. She is awesome and inspiring!

Nikki Watson.

Unity - a novel for Tease Publishing's imprint?

2008-03-06T21:41:00.000-08:00

I just spent a bit of today lurking around The Romance Room, watching as the ladies there handed it over to the authors of Tease Publishing. And I gotta say, I'm pretty impressed by the standard of work that seems to be there.

And the diversity.

So, I sent them my submission for their Dark Tarot imprint yesterday afternoon. I suppose now, I have to think of a kind of synopsis to give them if it's accepted.

When obstinate Darcy and artistic Celeste lives first crossed, they couldn't have known that would start them on the path into the fantasy worlds they both had an interest in. In their sleep, the world of Faerie draws them in, and comes alive for them. They are drawn into the lives true ladies, of balls and gorgeous men in dark cathedrals and the world of abusive stepfathers and fits of depression are left behind them. As they change for the experiences of their dreams, they realise that they a balance must be found between their Faerie travels, which they visit in their dreams, and the Real Life of their waking world.

Like all my favorite authors and poets at the moment, I have tried to tell a tale that mixes real life with fantasy elements to create the novel Unity.

I finally chuffed myself up and made all the last edits I wanted in there, finished writing the cover letter, then pushed the send button. Then I heard back from the editor in chief at Tease this morning. She told me they are looking over submissions this week and I should hear back from them next week.

Holding my breath until then sounds like a plan, yes? :D

Charles de Lint, author of the 'Newford' novels.

2008-03-05T20:39:00.000-08:00

Charles de Lint is an author of 54 novels, novellas and short stories. His novel by the name of Trader was the first one I ever read, and it was a part of the series that de Lint sets in the mythological town by the name of Newford.

Trader brings us the idea of a man who is in the body of another person, a not very much liked person, and how he deals with that dilemma. While not as involved in the various fairy worlds of European and Native American folklore, the very nature of someone waking up one morning in another man's body is not so untypical for a book coming from Charles de Lint. When you pick up a book by this author, you come to expect the unexpected, and for it to be delivered to you in a way that is believable, in a world, and with characters, who are believable, and who you could actually know in real life.

In other books in his Newford 'series', it is easy enough to pick any of them up out of order. Things that you can expect can range from trading bodies, to ghosts, fights between fairies from different countries, to men who turn into dogs, or deer, or birds. Some of his books are aimed towards young adults, and others towards adult readers. There's a broad range of fantasy and fairy tale stories covered in his books, and just a look at the back cover blurb will tell you all you need to know before turning over that first page. :)

Nikki Watson.

World building and submissions

2008-03-02T20:44:00.000-08:00

For my works in progress, I have lately been working on the next series of stories that I plan to release after the three Of Elves and Men titles are released and doing well. :)

I have said before that the Of Elves and Men trilogy was based on the idea of following the passage of magic through the ages: -- contemporary, Dark Ages, and Georgian Age. I've done that, and I'm very pleased with the mythology and characters created around that idea. I also think that that series has opened the way for what I'm working on now.

The books I am working on now do not share the same world as Of Elves and Men. I think this is a good idea, because there always gets to a point in a series of an author's books where the reader just starts to lose interest, and so stops buying. I think three or four books in a series is the perfect amount, before the author should pick up his or her pen and start on a new idea.

It has also crossed my mind that one of my new series of fairy stories might fit in with Tease Publishing's Dark Tarot submissions call. There is one big reason why this tempts me, and I'll tell you what it is: If I get accepted by Tease, this book might be released sooner than it would with New Concepts Publishing after my books Ascent and Haunted come out with them. Tease's Tarot submission call is open till March 31st of this year, which means that I am likely to hear back from them regarding an acceptance or rejection before I hear back from New Concepts even hinting that they might be ready for a new title from me.

This new idea I currently have is not so structured as Of Elves and Men. I had such trouble in finishing the third book in that trilogy, and didn't want to put myself in the situation again where I had an obligation to the publishing house, and to myself, and my readers, to finish what I had started. This series is open ended. In just choosing to follow through an established mythology, I feel as though I am going to take a leaf out of Canadian urban fantasy author, Charles de Lint's, writing style.

As I like his books set in Newford, and the world building evident in these books, I can't complain.

Sick mummy :(

2008-02-28T23:28:00.001-08:00

I've been away from the internet for a little bit. My mother just had a minor heart attack. Rest assured, she will be well. We have figured out what the causes were and she should be going back home this weekend.

But there is a lot of time being spent around the mother this week. And so, less time online.

I will be back to post many more wondrous things anon. :)

Fairies vs Superstition

2008-02-24T23:52:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I happened upon a situation where I was just so glad that I'd thought to write up my current WIP, a mature aged fairy story, down in long hand. I'd had my morning hot chocolate, put on some music, sat in front of the computer, and double clicked on the Word version of my document when it told me it didn't exist.

......

I held my breath, and tried again, very calmly, and on second try, it turned out it was there after all.*

Now, when I started my current project, I told myself that I knew there would be a higher likelihood of technology blunders during the creation process. While perhaps elves, and the Sidhe, are considered more elegant, even regal, in their manner, the little calf high fairies are constantly seen for their mischief making.

This is not something I have ever had cause to dispute. Lost keys, blame it on the fairies. Lights in the house turned on when you know they were all off the last time you were there, fairies. And while my writing of this story hasn't exactly changed my mind about the subject of mischief making fairies, I did question myself as to whether it was my own suggestion that something would go wrong that made it more likely that it did, rather than the fairies trying to sabotage a story that is being written about them.

*(Of course, it was more likely to be my virtual memory running low at that exact moment in time that caused the trouble...)

Ancient Civilisations: Celts

2008-02-23T16:34:00.000-08:00

I'm doing some research at the moment for a paper that's due in in around a month's time. I thought that writing some of my findings up here might make me do a little bit more work on the actual project, or at the very least, help me come up with some more interesting ideas.

In the 3rd century AD, the Gauls were taken over by the Romans and given the name Cisalpine Gaul, meaning 'Gaul this side of the alps'. Before that time, the Celtic Gauls were a race of people whose laws and stories and religious rituals were passed on by oral tradition. Priests and lawgivers were the druids and if a boy wished to become a druid, he had to train for 20 years to grow up to that level. Most of that time would be spent learning things by heart. Druids were the most highly respected and important part of the Gallic society. Their secrets were well guarded to utmost secrecy. They were the ones in charge of defining aristocracy; they also had the right to determine war and peace.

The Celtic Gauls worshipped in sacred groves and sanctuaries that were built of stone. Their worship was to the earth, and to the living spirits who lived in and of the earth. They practiced the belief that all objects are inhabited with a soul. In accordance to their religion, lakes, streams, mountains, etc, were imbued with human characteristics and almost divine status. The worship of animals was not uncommon; indeed, it is only a recent development in culture that says we must not be able to respect or worship the animals which are killed for us to eat.

Many of the gods the Celtic Gauls gave worship to were related in some way to the gods worshipped in Greece at the time. The primary god that was worshipped at the arrival of the Romans was Teutates; the Gallic equivalent to the Greek god Hermes.

Of course, as with most ancient -and some less than ancient- cultures and religions, their belief in trees and rivers being imbued with soul and divine spirit was stamped out near the beginning of the Roman takeover.

Nikki Watson.

Changeling: Of Elves and Men. Excerpt One

2008-02-21T03:32:00.000-08:00

It seems like this post has been waiting for ages to get posted. I've been meaning to put up an excerpt of my writing since my third post. Of course, as this is my fifth post in this blog, that's almost twice the length of time I expected it to take.

I've been talking a lot about my new release Changeling: Of Elves and Men, which I suppose is fair enough, since I would ideally like it to be well enough publicized that it makes me at least a little bit of money. ;) I have a couple of excerpts from the novel floating around. Looking through them, I don't think any of those is completely right for the community I'm starting to set up here. So I'm going to post a new excerpt, one before now unseen unless you have picked up the book. :)

This is my take on fairy and magic culture meeting a present day setting. As promised, in my last post, I give you one excerpt from Changeling: Of Elves and Men.

Changeling: Of Elves and Men

The inside of 'Omniscience' was like no other place she had seen before. Her eyes widened even as Rhys led her around the small clusters of people who were already inside. There was no one dancing in the room Emily entered. People milled around the stage where there were mistresses in high stiletto boots circling those who had volunteered to be bound. In a cage, in the corner of the room, three men lay on their backs, while a woman walked and danced and swung all over their half naked bodies as they writhed in pleasure and brazenly begged for her to dig her heels into the crevices of their bodies, which she did. Emily walked passively through the myriad of pleasures, her eyes taking in all the beauty of the forms around her, while Rhys walked with a predator-like grace at her front.

She didn't ask any questions on what she was seeing. She wouldn't have known where to start.

"Do you want to dance?" Rhys asked her.

There was still nobody dancing. Emily leaned a shy glance toward the area where she thought there would be dancing when people started doing it. Without Rhys by her side, she would never have considered being the first one to go up there. It must have been his confidence that encouraged her to throw away her precautions.

They danced, at first, with a small expanse between them. As the music groaned on, Emily hardly noticed the distance between them lessening. His fingers started slowly kneading her back, and she leaned her body into his. They were not the only two dancing for long, if what each of them were doing could still be termed as 'dancing'. Rhys had an expression of dark delight on his features, an expression which Emily could not help but mimic herself.

When Mark arrived at the club, it was not his aim to do more than locate Emily first up. His decision of a stiff drink had already been made before he arrived. From the position he took on a bar stool, he could quite clearly make out the close proximity with which Rhys and Emily were dancing, could all but see the weaves of empathy and coercion that Rhys was spinning around the two of them. Without knowing why— probably without ever noticing—none of those dancing around them ever bumped into the two changelings Mark watched.

* * *

"Changeling: Of Elves and Men" Now Available at NCP
http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/changeling.htm

Holly Black's new UK covers!

2008-02-20T02:51:00.001-08:00

I was going to leave off posting until tomorrow with an excerpt from Changeling: Of Elves and Men, because it's late over here, and I'm tired.

However! I just saw news from one of my favored 'faerie' fiction writers, the lovely Holly Black, and her titles "Tithe" and "Ironside" are being published in the UK with sparkling new covers. Here, take a look

Ironside: "In the realm of Faerie, the time has come for Roiben’s coronation. Uneasy in the midst of the malevolent Unseelie Court, pixie Kaye is sure only of one thing--her love for Roiben. But when Kaye, drunk on faerie wine, declares herself to him, he sends her on a seemingly impossible quest. Now Kaye can’t see or speak with Roiben unless she can find the one thing she knows doesn’t exist: a faerie who can tell a lie."

To check out Holly's original post, look no further than here:
http://blackholly.livejournal.com/

Nikki Watson.

William Butler Yeats and fairy lore

2008-02-19T00:43:00.000-08:00

I mentioned, in my last post, a little bit about William Butler Yeats. In addition to my interests of fairy folklore, I happen to be quite interested in the history of occult practice. Very obviously, our move towards an anthropocentric culture, away from an animistic world view, has had far reaching consequences where we're no longer open to seeing a tree as a spiritual being or home of the fairies. We don't need fanciful stories that will make the questions of the world more easily understandable to us.

We don't need them, perhaps. But many of us want to.

It is said W. B. Yeats very deeply believed in the reality of fairies, in fact, it was quoted that he "was fully aware of the 'everyday aspect' of fairy lore and had great respect for it." Ireland, and its people, are still today one of the regions who most believe in the existence of supernatural creatures. It's a large part of why I so love the chance to set novels in Ireland. There's a piece of that suspension of disbelief that seems to come from the country itself to aid in the acceptance of fantasy aspects of a book set in Ireland, or medieval Europe. The number of fantasy novels written in a nondescript medieval fantasy location would tend to give proof to this argument.

To give a taste of W. B. Yeats' writing inspired by what he believed of the fairy folk, this is his poem, The Hosting of the Sidhe

The host is riding from Knocknarea
And over the grave of Clooth-na-Bare;
Caoilte tossing his burning hair,
And Niamh calling Away, come away:
Empty your heart of its mortal dream.
The winds awaken, the leaves whirl round,
Our cheeks are pale, our hair is unbound,
Our breasts are heaving, our eyes are agleam,
Our arms are waving, our lips are apart;
And if any gaze on our rushing band,
We come between him and the dead of his hand,
We come between him and the hope of his heart.
The host is rushing 'twixt night and day,
And where is there hope or ded as fair?
Caoilte tossing his burning hair,
And Niamh calling Away, come away.

Fairy Folklore

2008-02-17T22:36:00.000-08:00

I don't know when it was that my interest in the fantasy genre became a little bit more particular. I remember it wasn't that long ago that I couldn't conceive of a workable urban or mythical fantasy story. It was like the perfect vampire story. I'm intrigued by the idea of writing an epic vampire novel. I just don't think that what I could put out there could compete with the multitudes of vampire fiction already in circulation. Maybe one day...

When I started with my "Of Elves and Men" trilogy, I remember taking a very loose look at the difference between such a magical race as the elves, in comparison to the men who perhaps were less magically inclined, and how the interrelation between the two kinds would work in a modern setting. That was the premise for "Changeling". I spent hardly any time going into the background of the magic used. I gave more time to the background mythology, which I suppose was why I couldn't leave it there, and soon went back in time, to approximately the Dark Ages, where "Ascent" starts. I endeavored to write a story over how magic was first passed between elves and men and how it was kept from being abused. "Haunted" will be the third book in that trilogy, and that tells of how the magic was lost in the rush forward of technology, within a Georgian setting.

I only ever meant for that to be a standalone trilogy of three books, but this idea of another race existing alongside our one is something that still fascinates me, even now I've finished writing the "Of Elves and Men" books. There is still so much on the subject to be said. Not to mention read about, and researched, and explored. All things I delight in doing every time I find an interesting subject! :D

In Celtic mythology, the Sidhe (pronounced "shee") are seen almost as gods, or spirits of ancestors and nature of that culture. European folklore sees fairy kind as the sort who would steal human children and sometimes leave one of their own in their place. There have been countless stories and poems written around this folklore, including

"The Stolen Child" by Keith Donohue, based on the William Butler Yeats' poem of the same name. William Butler Yeats wrote "The Stolen Child" in 1886 and it was not the only thing he wrote on the Fairy Folk. "Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry" and "Fairy Folk Tales of Ireland" were written in 1888 and 1892 respectively. He was an Irish poet who grew up in Sligo.

Nikki Watson.
http://nikkiwatson.blogspot.com/

"Changeling: Of Elves and Men" Now Available at NCP
http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/changeling.htm

First Post.

2008-02-16T17:04:00.000-08:00

So here I am at blogger. This site comes highly recommended to me by my friend, Katrina Strauss. I figure I might give it a try, considering as how I have a blogger account from my gmail address.

Hi, all! I'm Nikki Watson and you can find my work over at http://www.newconceptspublishing.com I currently have one book out with them, called "Changeling: Of Elves and Men" and have just contracted my second book with NCP, called "Ascent: Of Elves and Men".

As you can tell from the titles, I'm a bit of a fan of the fantasy elements. I'm not quite sure when that started. I could probably blame it on the multitudes of beautiful artwork I am a fan of.

John William Waterhouse perhaps.

No, truthfully, I just like fantasy. Let's face it, you can get away with more within the constraints of a fantasy world. The lines of good and evil are blurred. That gives the writer a lot to play with.

So, this is my blog at blogger. I hope that I'll end up using it productively, instead of as a procrastinating tactic when I'm at a loss at what to write in my current novel. I guess we'll see.

Until next time, my sweets.