Welcome to My World: Semmre

Today was spent wandering through all the Joann's aisles at least twice while my sister and Gramma shopped, then a spending of a gift card at P. F. Chang's, and, finally, a trip to Office Depot.
I didn't know that Office Depot was in the list, and when I realized we were in that part of town, I bolted up in my car seat.

"Where are we going?"

"Office De-"

Gramma didn't even get to finish before I started rambling about how much I love notebooks and that Papermate had released a new line of pens called Inkjoy.  We went in and my sister and I made a beeline for the pens/notebooks/binders.

I exited with twenty-four Inkjoy pens, six notebooks, and a shiny, new, three-ring binder.
Of course, then I had to decide what to do with them.

I had been toying with the idea of writing a few more books that take place in Dyani's country, Semmre, for a while.  I'd even created a map:

Yes, the handwriting is terrible.  Leave me alone.

But the trip today was the turning point.

I will list everything about Semmre there is to know here.  It's perfect!  I thought on the way home, sorting the pens and putting notebooks in my binder.

When I got home I busted out the colored pencils and created a cover for my binder, as well as a crest for Semmre.

Albeit, it's an odd crest.  I'm still deciding if I like it or not.  Maybe I'll give it realistic colors or something.  Currently I'm brainstorming Semmre, even though I should be writing.

~Charlotte Grace, the Mind Traveler

Beautiful People, February

 I couldn't decide who to use, therefore I'm going to pick Dyani, Alistair and Jalem. :P

1. If your character could be played by any actor, who would it be?
Dyani: Wait, what's an actor?
Alistair: They pretend to be people in plays.
Jalem:  We're supposed to know their names?
Me: Don't answer that one.  You guys don't know about any modern day actors as it is.  Dyani would probably be a younger Jennifer Lawrence.  The other two?  I have no idea.  Let me think on that one.

2. Does your character have a specific theme song?
Dyani: No. What's the point?  I could care less about music.
Alistair: No.
Jalem: I love music, but I don't know that anything in particular comes to mind.


3. What’s their worst childhood memory?
Dyani: When my parents were murdered.  End of story.
Alistair: Watching a friend get trampled by a horse.  I took me a long time to regain the courage to ride.
Jalem: My parents arguing all the time.


4. If your character had a superpower, what would it be?
Dyani: Invisibility.
Alistair: Some way to control a certain fourteen-year-old girl.
Dyani: Not funny.
Alistair: (Laughs)
Jalem: I don't know.  Something artsy perhaps.


5. If your character crashed on an island with a bunch of other people, how would your character help the group survive?
Dyani: Riiight.
Alistair: Take control, make sure everything runs smoothly and such.
Jalem: It would depend on what needed to be done.  Follow orders.


6. Are they married? If not, do they someday wish to be?
Dyani: (laughs)  Me?  Married?  Right.
Alistair: Mandatory.  For me anyway.
Jalem: Perhaps.

7. What is a cause they would die for?
Dyani: A cause?  I can think of a person, but not really a cause.
Alistair:  My country, of course.
Jalem: Anything against tyranny.


8. Would they rather die fighting valiantly, or quietly at home?
Dyani: Fighting!
Alistair: Depends on the circumstances.
Jalem: At home.

9. If someone walked up to them and told them they were the child of the prophecy, would they believe them?
Dyani: Ha.  No.
Alistair: No.
Jalem: Not without considerable proof.  And a lot of it.

10. Do they prefer the country or the city?
All three at the same time: Country!
Alistair: Although, the city is nice too.
Dyani: Right.  You might have well just compared a stallion to a rat.
Jalem: Have you ever been to a city?
Dyani: No.
Alistair: (laughs)


~Charlotte Grace, the Mind Traveler

There Would Be No Rainbow

I've become insane enough to embark on a blogging project with four other people.  Welcome to my world.
And here it is....
There Would Be No Rainbow.  Based on the quote, "Without the rain, there would be no rainbow," by Jerry Chin.
The goal of our project is to show you guys little insights, things we've learned from life experience.  It's kind of an experiment, and if it falls apart, you can blame me.  ~sheepish grin~
My sister will take Saturdays, Meadow posts on Mondays, Emily as Wednesdays, I have Thursdays, and Krissy took Fridays.

As an afterthought, I'm debating sharing an excerpt from DQZ with you guys.  Let me know one way or another.

~Charlotte Grace, the Mind Traveler

The Craving for Adventure

Today at about 8:30 on a Facebook chat I asked one of my longest friends this question:
"Do you remember two years ago, and you'd been gone for Christmas, and you missed the first week of dance because of Missoula, and I waited for you after the show forever so I could see you again?"
It resulted in a rather long discussion on all the things we used to do together.  She and I had been fighting all last year, and only resolved the issue after a prolonged silence, when we both had a chance to think.  Both of us were at fault, of course, but that's a different story.
Still, the chance to talk about all the pretend games we used to do, exploring the sheds, hoping to find a dead body, or buried treasure (all we ever found was dust, and dust, and more dust), playing two-man baseball, law court, writing stories together...it made for a very good Valentine's Day, and it ended with this comment from me:
"You know, [Friend], I think I write stories now, because I miss playing pretend with you..."
I've always had a thrill for adventure, a yearning to find a trapdoor that led me to another world, or find out I have some mysterious power.  Not only did I play pretend with my best friend, my sister and I concocted hundreds of plots and characters with our stuffed animals, I wrote short stories, my sister and I would run around pretending to be heroes in training, Indians, or explorers all afternoon.  I still have such a fascination with knives, swords, bows and arrows, explorers, jungles, deserts, dinosaurs, outer space, that it's almost pathetic a times.
And yes, I write for the emotional impact, but also to fulfill that craving to have adventures.  Stuffed animals have lost their touch, I no longer have time to run around all day, but I can still have any adventure I want by reading and writing.
Words are a beautiful thing.

~Charlotte Grace, the Mind Traveler

Dyani: The Quest for Zuriel Cover

So, you know how yesterday I came up with the name for my OYAN?
Here is the cover for Dyani: The Quest for Zuriel (we'll call it DQZ for short).
Thoughts?

~Charlotte Grace, the Mind Traveler

Dyani: The Quest for Zuriel

To my immense pleasure, I have come up with a name for my OYAN.
Dyani: The Quest for Zuriel
Let me know if it sounds cheesy...I think it does.
Now to create a cover.  ~mutters something about a sword~

~Charlotte Grace, the Mind Traveler

Birthday Resolutions

So, my birthday is today.
I'm not quite sure what to say.

I've grown a lot in the past year.  In my thinking, my writing, my theology...

I've always thought that birthdays are better times to make resolutions than the new year, so here are some thoughts that have been flitting about in my head about what I could improve.


In my fourteenth year I want to strive to live like Jesus, especially in my family, since that's where I am lax, if disciplined at all.

I want to pour God into my writing, give it meaning.  This world is broken, and I want to help the healing process in any way I can, even if it's just in a few words on a page. 

I want to practice caring about the people around me.  I have a tendency to brush things away because I don't want to have to deal with them.  This is a selfish thing to do...and I've been beating myself up over it recently.

Lastly, I want to start thinking more positive thoughts about people.  I've always been an optimist,  but I have a tendency to start thinking about bad qualities in the people I meet, especially people I am close with.


Through this I need to remember to pray and that it won't happen overnight.
And, of course, I need to remember: One can make a difference.

"Give me yours eyes for just one second.  Give me your eyes so I can see everything that I keep missing.  Give me your love for humanity." ~Brandon Heath, Give Me Your Eyes


~Charlotte Grace, the Mind Traveler