I Need YOUR QUESTIONS About My Novel!

 Greetings Travelers, 

So that my post about The Mystery of the Body Thief this NaNoWrimo is not a repetition of what I have said before, I will be answering your questions about it in an upcoming blog post. Here are some examples of questions you might want to ask: questions about the characters themselves, the story, the setting (as I am world-building it), my inspiration behind the novel, my writing progress, or even fun questions, like if my novel was a movie who I would cast to play the characters? 

 If you don't know what The Mystery of the Body Thief is about, here is a quick synopsis and a link to my most recent post about it: 

Horatio wakes up from being in a coma, but he doesn't remember anything that happened before he fell into unconsciousness. All that he remembers is a name, "Annabelle!" 

Also... Detective Inspector Time finds himself having to solve a case without Lady Annabelle.
Murders have been happening throughout many different kingdoms, and no one knows who exactly is behind it all. 

You can either ask the questions you have about it down in the comments down below, or ask it in this Google form (I will be mentioning who left the questions hence the name and blog part of the form, but if you would like to be Anonymous, you can just enter "Anonymous" and entering your blog is optional (since not everyone has one)): 

-Quinley 

"There's Nothing Wrong With Me!"| A Performance From Sherlock

Hello fellow actors, I hope you're having a Happy Halloween! 

When I was searching for a monologue for an audition in 2020, (which I didn't end of doing because the monologue ended up not fitting the mood of the show) I came across this one  from BBC's Sherlock. While in the original show Sherlock is trying to prove to Watson that he is fine (with them talking back and forth), I had to change the script for audition reasons so that Sherlock was the only one talking, and is talking directly to the audience (John Watson).  

He is trying to prove to the audience (John) that he is alright. Sherlock is a very calm and collected person, so, the fact that he of all people is afraid of a "Hell hound" that he has seen is very unusual. Even Sherlock Holmes is scared. 

I think it is worth mentioning that the show I was going to be auditioning for was about the pandemic and being quarantined, and I thought this monologue perfectly captured the feeling of uncomfortableness and even the feeling of being frightened about the pandemic. I tried to show that element in the monologue, given that I feel the fear Sherlock is feeling is similar. Because the fear he has is not a fun fear the kind you get from reading a ghost story, but instead a real fear. So without further ado, I present you, my version of this monologue:

You can also watch it here 

I have been working on this monologue for a year and a little more (getting to know Sherlock Holmes as a character throughout that time), so I am glad that I finally got it to where I wanted it to be and filmed it. 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Which episode of Sherlock do you think is scarier The Hounds of Baskerville or The Abominable Bride? And, which character would you want to play in BBC's Sherlock? 

-Quinley 

Introducing Some Characters: My Dungeons and Dragons Characters (P.1)

Hello everyone, 

It's been a while since I've done my "Introducing Some Characters..." series, so I decided to revive it. I thought it was time to introduce you to my Dungeons and Dragons characters. I do have some other D&D  characters, but at the moment I am going to introduce you to the ones that I've actually played in campaigns: 

                                            Jinx Jekyll 

Bio: Jinx (which is his alias) is a half elf rogue, and he somehow manages to get a whole following of people who believe he is a god. Unfortunately for them, he has stolen most of their money, but fortunately, they  eventually find out he is not really a god and is conning them. (And the real gods weren't so happy about that either...) Jinx was orphaned and grew up on the street having to fend for himself. He doesn't know who his parents are, but if they are still alive he hopes they didn't abandon him. 

Playing history: I've only played Jinx in one campaign, I intend to play him again if I get a chance to and maybe expand on his character more than I have already, and maybe develop him to see where he goes.

                                      Aurinda Van Visser 

  

Bio: Aurinda is an elven Druid. She comes from Sleepy Hollow and is something of a story teller. For reasons the townsfolk are unsure of Aurinda has a bit of a grudge against Katrina Van Tassel. Aurinda really enjoys nature, and tends to use a spell often to turn herself into different animals, horses being her favorite to turn into. She is a firm believer in ghosts and the supernatural. Aurinda went on a journey for a while to explore other parts of the world, and then came back to Sleepy Hollow only to find out the Headless Horseman was terrorizing it. 

Playing history: I ended up creating Aurinda for a Legend of Sleepy Hollow themed campaign. Aurinda was the first character I've done a full campaign with.  I would like to use her again in the future, but I will have to find a way to seperate her from the story and/or put her in another Gothic-themed Campaign. At the moment I am using her in a Legend of Sleepy Hollow retelling.          

                 Elvin (pronounced AL-vin) The Silver 

Bio: Elvin is a human wizard, who worked for a king a very long time ago and gave him wise advice. However one day upon giving a young man advice about how to treat the King, he then decided maybe it was best not to follow his own advice and insulted the King. He was thrown out of the kingdom and became a wandering wizard giving advice to anyone who would listen. Elvin is very impulsive and uses the spell FireBolt whenever he can. This spell can lead to dangerous situations, but it can also be very useful. 

Playing History: This was the first time I played a human and the first time I've played a wizard in a D&D campaign. It was a very different experience, but a fun one because I created a different character than I usually do. (Most of my characters are elves). 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Which character is your favorite? And have you ever played Dungeons and Dragons? 

-Quinley 

My Art from Inktober 2021 (Part One)

   I normally don't post two drawing posts in a row, but I recently found out about Inktober, and have been participating in it, and I wanted to share what I have been drawing. If you don't know what Inktober is, here is the link to their official website. 

To me, it's like NaNoWrimo but instead for artists, to use to draw more. I already draw a lot (as you may already know), but I like giving myself challenges. (Hence the reason I made the Using Polls to Create Art series.) So this seemed right up my alley! Also, I wanted to learn how to draw in a different medium with COPIC markers, so I am using Inktober to help me practice using them. 

 I intend to share with you each ten drawings that I draw (with eleven being the last one), so that it will be divided up into segments (for all the thirty-one drawings), so you don't get all thirty-one all at once. 

                                         Here's the prompt list for Inktober this year: 

And here are the first ten drawings of mine (some of them are Halloween-y, but that is because I am very excited for Halloween, so that influenced my drawings)...

Day #1 Crystal. I decided to draw the Crystal from The Dark Crystal. 

The character you see behind the crystal is Kira, she is a Gelfing and one of the movie's protagonists. The hands you see reaching towards the crystal are supposed to be Kira (left) and Jen (Jen being the one holding the crystal shard (right)).  I also decided it would be fun and mystical to add mist around Kira and the crystal.

Day #2  Suit. I drew Oscar Wilde. I don't know why my mind went to Oscar Wilde from the word "suit," but it did. It's probably because he is one of my favorite Gothic writers. I had a bit of trouble drawing his arms, since I was finding it difficult to figure out where it connected.  

Day #3 Vessel, my first thought was a spirit using a human as a vessel for possession.  I feel like I am probably going to (eventually) write a story about this person and spirit. 😉

Day #4 Knot, I decided to draw a Celtic knot. This made me realize how hard drawing Celtic knots is, but I am happy with how it turned out. 

Day #5 Raven, This prompt reminds me very strongly of "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe. 

So I drew something inspired by that. 

Day #6 spirit, This is the same spirit you saw possessing the person earlier, I was inspired by this cover of "Remains of the Day" (from Tim Burton's Corpse Bride) and just decided to delve into her backstory a bit. She was going to get married, but then she died, and possessed the character you see for the prompt Vessel (who was also getting married, and possibly, the ghost could have caused the wedding to happen, so that she could have that experience that she lost.)  Her plan goes as well as you can expect a possession to go...

Day #7 Fan, I wasn't sure what to draw at first but then I decided it would be fun to draw one of my characters holding a fan. I decided to draw Ophelia from The Mystery of the Body Thief fanning herself while she is at ball. This drawing is mixed media, because I used a mix of ink and water color.  

Day #8 Watch, I interpreted this prompt as a verb, as in "being watched." So I drew what could be a mermaid looking at you. This was another mixed media drawing I used the same materials as the one before. (Also this was partly inspired by Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and Ginny Di's Songs to Drown Sailors To). 

Day #9 Pressure, Crime and Punishment was the first idea that came to my mind, this may be due to the fact that I am reading it right now. All of I could think of was the pressure Raskolnikov put on himself. 

Day #10 Pick, a lock pick. I drew my D&D character Jinx, he is a rogue and knows how to pick locks (and pockets). I had to redraw this one, because I messed up the coloring of the previous one. This also made me realize I should practice on working on foreshortening in figure drawing, since I had difficulty with the arms again. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Which drawing is your favorite? And are you participating in Inktober? 

-Quinley 

Using Polls to Create Art #5

                                                    Previous parts: #1, #2, #3, and #4 

Greetings Adventurers! 

Here are some more drawings I made using polls, I had a lot of fun drawing these, unless otherwise stated the drawings in this post came out of majority votes: 

I wanted to draw Marigold because I don't have many drawings of her, so I did a poll. And Marigold with a dragon ended up winning the majority vote. This is my favorite drawing of her, because I feel it really captures her personality. 

Felix pictured at a masquerade. I had a lot of fun making his mask, because I wanted it to hint at something that happened to him in his story. It was also fun to draw Felix in clothes other than his black suit. 

Vallara, a character from the same world as Annabelle (but in a very different part of it) at an archery contest. The last time I drew her was in this post, I felt it was about time to redraw characters from that post, but I was unsure which one so I had the voters vote on who I should redraw and Vallara ended up winning. 

Matilda with a ghost (girl). I feel the voters were a lot more nicer to Felix than they were to Matilda, but I know she would enjoy meeting a ghost, so I doubt she would complain. 😊

A drawing of Ophelia and Horatio. I decided to do a drawing inspired by Howl's Moving Castle, and had the pollers vote on which two characters would take the places of Howl and Sophie, Horatio and Ophelia ended up winning. 

This wasn't a majority vote, someone had an idea of a crossover, and thought it would be fun if I drew the scene from Howl's Moving Castle but with Ophelia and Gletta. Though Gletta and Ophelia live in completely different worlds, the idea of them ever meeting each other seemed fun to me, so I had to draw it. 

My idea for what happened and how they met was that Ophelia used her magic (given to her by gods) to rescue Gletta from being nearly killed in a battle. Gletta is just a bit upset that she was pulled out of the battle when she thought she was going to defeat whoever was trying to kill her. (Hence the reason she is so annoyed at Ophelia). 

I also find it interesting that Ophelia takes the place of Howl in both drawings. She isn't like him in terms of personality, but in abilities she is. After all Howl is a wizard and Ophelia has magic, and could be considered a sorceress. (The only thing she doesn't have is a moving castle. 😉) 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Which drawing is your favorite? And which would you rather meet a ghost or a dragon?

-Quinley 

Jolly Sailor Bold | A Cover

 "Jolly Sailor Bold." was originally from Pirates of the Caribbean (but is older than that, I believe because only part of the song was actually sung in the movie, and there are many variations of it). The song is what one of the mermaids uses to trick the sailor into coming to her, when she intends to drown him. 

And this is my take on it: 

 

                                 You can also listen to it here 

I always create backstories for songs I am singing or listening to. For this one I came up with a backstory about a siren named Oceana, who poses as a merchant's daughter and uses the alias "Maria" to lure sailors to her rocks. Oceana is also the character behind the song, The Waves Come Crushing.  In creating the character, Oceana,  I decided to go for a more Greek bird-like siren, and gave her feathers all over her body and scales under her eyes. 

I also plan to film a music video for the song, hopefully once I finish the three video projects I am currently working on. But for now I wanted you to get the musical sound of it and your own visualization, because I know I visualize things when I listen to music.

A funny story behind recording this song is that I recorded it in my bathroom (my bathroom has good acoustics), and I was pretending to be a siren there, trying to lure sailors to my rocks....er...my bathroom sink, but rocks, totally rocks. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Would you rather be a siren or a sailor? Have you seen Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides? 

-Quinley 

Running Wild in Impractical Outfits Tag

(Images used are from Pixabay, I normally use my own photos but I didn't have a picture of a closet). 

 I was tagged by McKayla at Tales of a Triple Threat. Thank you so much, McKayla. This tag sounds so fun, it actually reminds me a bit of a conversation I had with a friend once about something somewhat similar to this. 

The Rules

-Put a link to her blog, Autumn Ink

-Put a link to your post in the comments section of the original post

-Tag people if you want to

-Have fun with this tag, and feel free to add things, change locations, or whatever you want

-The outfits you choose can be from anywhere you like [movies, books, TV shows, real life, etc.], and they can be as practical or as impractical as you want. Choose with as much flagrant disregard or custom for the rules as you choose. 

-You have to bring a different fictional character of your choosing to each location.

                                                              At The Beach 

(Image from Disney Wiki, https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Ariel/Gallery?file=Little_mermaid_large.jpg)

I would wear this mermaid tail, given that it would be fun to wear on the beach.

While I don't know if it is water proof, I could always create one that is.

(Image from Davonna Juroe,https://www.davonnajuroe.com/the-little-mermaid-ariels-purple-dress/)

Once I've dried off, I would wear the dress that Ariel wears at the end of The Little Mermaid. 

I would invite Diana Prince (Wonder Woman) to come with me and maybe train on the beach with her. 

                                                             Car Wash

(Image from wiki, https://tangled.fandom.com/wiki/Varian%27s_Outfits?file=Varian_Vertical.jpg)

I'm going to assume that I'd be the one washing the cars, so I would wear what Varian wears in Tangled: The Series. Given that he wears it when he does alchemy, it wouldn't get messed up while washing cars. And I would bring Pippi Longstocking with me, because I'm sure she would find a way to make the car wash really really fun. 

                                                        University of Glasglow

(Image from BBC, https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zxhf82p/revision/2)

This outfit from the play Frankenstein is in essence what I wear often (well sort of: I wear modern clothes with, 18th-19th century looking  jackets, so not exactly the same). But either way, this would be something I would totally wear to the University of Glasglow.

I would bring either Victor or the Creature with me to the college, given that Victor Frankenstein is a college dropout.

                                                          Abandoned Castle

I am writing a story that is set in a castle that had previously been abandoned, so I really like this question...particularly because it makes me think of something from a Gothic book.... 

So I have two different clothing pieces that I would wear: 

                                                        

(Image from IMdb, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053925/mediaviewer/rm409376768/)

This is from The Fall of the House of Usher. I really like the jacket and the vest and everything in this outfit, and it would be fun to wear in an abandoned castle. 

(Image from IMDb, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1229822/mediaviewer/rm1726462464/) 

                                                         

I would wear this outfit from Jane Eyre and just alternate between wearing both those outfits while I stay in this abandoned (probably haunted) castle.

 And I would bring Dorian Gray and Basil Hallward with me from The Picture of Dorian Gray. I feel it would be very fitting given the overall mood of their book. 

                                                       Summer Picnic

(Image from wiki fandom, https://anne-with-an-e.fandom.com/wiki/Anne_Shirley_Cuthbert?file=3x03-04-Anne.jpg#Season_3)

I would wear Anne's outfit from Anne with an E. It seems perfect for a summer picnic. I would invite Igraine from Igraine the Brave to come with me, since it would be fun to talk to her. 

                                                     Summer Roadtrip

                                   

(Image from BBC America, https://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2011/07/how-to-dress-like-the-eleventh-doctor)

                                                            

I would be in the car for a long time I assume, so I would wear something comfortable. I would choose the 11th Doctor's outfit. I would invite Crowley and Aziraphale from Good Omens to come with me. They would make the road trip extra fun. (And we would probably ride in Crowley's Bentley). 

                                                             In The Woods

(Image from Twitter, https://twitter.com/LindseyStirling/status/1176908608438599680/photo/2)

I love Lindsey Stirling's take on the Greek goddess, Artemis. Artemis is the goddess of the hunt and wild-life, so of course I would wear this outfit. It would be so cool to walk around the woods wearing this, because it's so pretty. 💚  And I would invite Kira and Jen from The Dark Crystal to come with me. I think Kira would be a good choice because she knows how to talk to animals. 

                   

                                                   Dancing In The Rain

(Image from Retro Fairy, https://www.retro-fairy.com/products/cottagecore-prairie-lace-up-vintage-green-dress?variant=39302054051895&currency=USD&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic)

The issue with dancing in the rain is that your clothes are likely to get really really wet. So I wouldn't want to wear something too layered or from a movie I really like. Instead I would wear this pretty dress. Even though I like it I would be fine with it getting wet. 

I would invite Katara to come with me from Avatar: The Last Airbender. Given that she is a water bender I think she would be the perfect person to invite with me to dance out in the rain. 

                                                                          Paris

(Images from Rotten tomatoes, https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/phantom_of_the_opera/pictures)

I would alternate between wearing Christine's dress from "Think of Me" and Raul's jacket from "Masquerade." I think if anything I would wear Christine's dress for festive celebrations and Raul's jacket while I am casually walking around Paris. (I have a jacket similar to Raul's minus the gold embroidery that I wear casually).  

I would invite Lady Pole, Jonathon Strange, and John Segundus from Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell to come with me. I'm sure the trip to Paris would be magical if they came. 

                                

                                              In a cottage with a garden

(Image from Rotten Tomatoes, https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_hobbit_an_unexpected_journey/pictures)

Since it is a cottage, I would wear something comfortable and that at the same time feels “cottage-y." I'd wear what Bilbo Baggins wears in the first Hobbit movie. And I would invite Newt Scamander from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them over, (I don't like the author's recent problematic behavior, but I like the character).  It would be fun to hang out with Newt in the garden. 

                                                        Circus or Masquerade

I'm going to assume it's a historical masquerade (just to be more fun) and that it goes on for several nights. In those several nights I would wear...

(Image from Rotten Tomatoes, https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/william_shakespeares_romeo_and_juliet#&gid=1&pid=19)

This really cool knight costume that Romeo wears in Romeo and Juliet. I think it would be really cool to wear for a masquerade. 

(Image from IMDb, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120631/mediaviewer/rm3426499840/)

Next, I would this dress from Ever After: A Cinderella Story, because it is so pretty looking and also perfect for a masquerade. And I would invite Sonora from Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep to come with me, because why not? 

                                                             On the Moor

(Image from IMDb, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1238834/mediaviewer/rm2811567872/)

This question reminds me so much of Kate Bush's Wuthering Heights .  So I would wear an outfit from a movie version of Wuthering Heights, and I would walk around the moor at night wearing it and holding a single lit candle and imagine myself in a Gothic setting. Then the second outfit I would wear would be...

(Image from IMDb, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0347149/mediaviewer/rm2714125056/)

...the outfit Howl wears in Howl's Moving Castle when he rescues Sophie. And walk around the moor wearing it with the jacket just on my shoulders blowing in the wind. Just to be dramatic. 

And during this trip to the moor (which I am going to assume is near a haunted location of some kind), I'd bring Catherine Morland with me from Northhanger Abbey.  I think she would really enjoy the Gothic setting. 

It's the '20s [or some other era], and your husband's been mysteriously murdered. What's your outfit?

 Why do I feel like I would be the one behind the murder?  I mean my husband "mysteriously" died it seems like you're hinting that I'm behind it. *wink* 

(Image from Cluedo wiki fandom, https://cluedo.fandom.com/wiki/Mrs._Peacock?file=Peacock+Mobile.jpg)

This question reminded me of the board game Clue, which I have played a lot of times and while there is a movie version I feel Miss Peacock's outfits don't capture what I'm trying to get with this one. I would instead wear Miss Peacock's outfit from the board game for when I'm not talking to the detective and am just free from the marriage. 

(Image from IMDB, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3402236/mediaviewer/rm1844531712/)

And then I would wear this outfit from The Murder on the Orient Express when I'm talking to the detective. And I would bring Vera Claythorne from And Then Were None with me. If I am going to be suspicious I may as well be suspicious with someone who is more suspicious than me.

I tag: 

Maith at Maith's Musings 

Maeve at Books By Maeve 

Vanya at Chirps of a Forest Bird 

Gauri at Brighter Alleys 

Peachy at Just Peachy 

Natalie at Natalie Can't Write 

Annika at Annika Larriane 

And anyone who wants to do it. 

The questions (for copy and pasting purposes): 

                                    At The Beach

                                     Car Wash

                                 University of Glasglow

                                     

                                     Abandoned Castle

                                    Summer Picnic

                                  Summer Roadtrip

                                      In The Woods

                               Dancing In The Rain

                                   

                                      Paris

                              In a cottage with a garden

                            Circus or Masquerade

                                 On the Moor

Bonus question: It's the '20s [or some other era], and your husband's been mysteriously murdered. What's your outfit?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Which of the outfits I chose is your favorite? And which location would you like to visit? 

-Quinley