Writer Switch! 😍

So I already did a couple…

I hope you girls wanted these XD Or at least, want them now.

Because these took me the best of my afternoon, no joke.

I really enjoyed trying to imitate you guys, and I think I learned from the experience, especially constraining my own style and thinking, “what would they write?” I probably didn’t write these scenes as perfectly as I could have, but it was fun.

So think of these as AUs, and not actually accurate to your WIPs. These are not my characters or stories, just fanfic.

 

 

@mineralizedwritings

Notes: For some reason, I can sense a lot of texture in your story’s settings – like the feeling of rock and metal, and the scrape of work boots against the floor. Although maybe that’s because I’m picturing a mine XD Anyway, I can very clearly feel those textures. Sometimes I can almost hear the tools picking away at the stone. On top of that (or should I say the bottom), you have a steady foundation of words. I never feel like we haven’t gotten enough information on the characters’ actions. There’s always enough there. I never feel like the characters are floating in an empty oblivion – they are always firmly rooted to the world around them. Also I think you’re the only writer here who uses present tense.

For this fanfic, I wanted to explore Tauren and Lesli a little bit more, but I wasn’t sure on whether to put them in the mines, or somewhere else. I finally decided I wanted to see them out in the big world, trying to live in the woods. You’ve always enjoyed a sense of wonder, Min, and I thought I should include that as best as I could 🙂

Road Trip

I should find Lesli… She said we shouldn’t be separated for long.

Tauren slings on his faded leather satchel, picks up the walking stick by the cabin door, and grasps the scratched up doorknob.

As Tauren swings open the door, he almost sees the familiar, shadowy, lightbulb-lit mine, walled abruptly with dusty stone.

But instead he sees green – more green than he has ever seen, before leaving the bunker.

It feels strange, and Tauren brushes back his floppy curls, his gut twisting a little, before heading out.

He pulls out the map Lesli made the day before, smoothing out the brown wrinkles, and tries to get his bearings without tripping over any roots.

She said she would be exploring this area over here, by the lake. I hope she’s still there.

Tauren walks on and on, until the ground turns mushy and wet, dotted here and there with moss and reeds.

At some point, he is wading through thin mud, the damp smell invading his senses. A chirping sound erupts from a nearby tree stump, making him almost fall over.

Luckily I still have my mining boots. My feet shouldn’t get too soggy.

But where is she?

Tauren can’t imagine her going too far.

The edge of the lake is shallow, and by stepping along the shallows, Tauren can get a good picture of the high dirt bank alongside.

He trails his fingers along the sandy minerals, letting it crumble at his touch.

He gets a firm footing, then pulls himself up over the edge, heels scrambling against loose rocks and slippery grass.

“Woah!”

He falls, face pressed against the sweet-smelling earth.

“Sh!”

Lesli lays next to him, one arm wrapping around a tree, warm brown eyes lit with surprise. “Tauren – what are you doing?”

“I was looking for you. What are you doing?”

Lesli puts her finger to her lips, and points. She smiles. “Animals.”

Tauren peers over, and his eyes widen.

The ground falls into a little hole, and in the hole, wedged between two trees and surrounded with ribbons of yellow grass, is a large metal contraption, with rusty, crooked wheels.

It looks as if it had been banged against the trees a long, long time ago, and left to be washed away by rain and light. The paint has long since disappeared, leaving only a dull brown color, dented here and there.

Inside the machine curls up a tiny litter of reddish-orange animals, fur rising and falling in soft sleep. They have tapered ears, dipped in brown, flickering as if listening to dreams.

Lesli’s entire face beams, and she stands up slowly, creeping towards the machine to get a better look at the fuzzy family.

“Aren’t they so pretty?” Lesli says. “I won’t touch them, Tauren, but… they’re so sweet.”

Maybe we should leave. What if other animals are near? What if that machine comes to life?

But then Tauren gets an idea.

Stumbling to his feet, Tauren rushes away – to the right – ignoring Lesli’s exclamation.

He dashes around trees and leaps over bushes with his long legs, going ever farther away, but also coming closer and closer.

That machine had come from somewhere.

He pushes leaves away, and falls into a waterfall of sunlight, streaming over his grease-streaked face, and over the pale, dust-coated overalls.

Tauren comes to stand still, facing something he has never seen before.

“Tauren,” Lesli pants, coming to a stop next to him and pulling twigs out of her blond hair, “why did you run off like that?”

“We weren’t the first ones,” Tauren whispers. “And… this isn’t the only place to be.”

Then Lesli sees it too.

A huge, wide trail, made with crushed gray rock. Glaring in the hot sun. Stretching its way along the side of the forest, and on across the horizon, into the distance.

“Where… does it go?”

 

…

@godlyfantasy12

Notes: You are enthusiastic with your characters’ body language! You have a constant pulling between anxiety/insecurity, versus comfort – for example, when Paxton needs snuggles. Basically, it’s all about the character’s well-being. Sometimes that’s physical, but a lot of the time, it’s emotions. The characters are infused with backstory (which is usually traumatic XD), and so it’s hard for me to picture them without those story details. When I think of Jocelyn, I think of her story. When I think of November, I think of his story. Finally, it’s always easy to tell what the characters look like – because, like I said before, you enjoy body language, and you always manage to slip colors and details in. This all makes your characters very memorable.

So for my fanfic, I envisioned the gang traveling through a cold area (I think you’ve mentioned them traveling through a snowy region before), and November and Paxton get divided from the others, lost in the snow. I have NO idea when November gets his fire powers, but I thought they would come in handy here, so I used them. Hope you don’t mind 😛

Fireflies

November stared over the icy white skyline, worry creasing his brow, rubbing his fingers together inside his thick mittens.

The snowflakes swirled in front of them – him and the shivering little Paxton – blowing them in the faces, and turning their noses red and raw from the bite.

“Ara?” The older boy called into the wind. It was immediately thrown back.

This was bad. They had all known to stay together, or else they would… freeze to death. But somehow, a blizzard wall had split their paths, and now two of them were isolated from the group – isolated from their friends.

Paxton pressed against November’s coat, a trembling whimper frosting his lips.

Where should they go?

Should they go?

Would he… ever find Ara in this world of sharp white?

At the thought of Ara, November nervously reached for one of his ginger curls, dangling over his eye – but found it stiff with ice.

He had to focus. He had to be the better November for once, and protect Pax.

But he only felt like a bumbling, stupid little boy, stuck to his knees in snow. If he tried to walk, he would be sure to fall.

Paxton stared up at him, round face circled in fleece. His eyelashes fluttered weakly, and he reached for November’s arm, tucking his head under it like a baby bird under its mother’s wing, searching for warmth he would most likely not find.

“Pax?” November tried to keep his voice steady, and pulled the boy close. “It’s going to be okay.”

Paxton shook his head, face still pressed into November’s stomach.

He was quivering, quivering much harder than before.

November, realizing this for the first time, brushed back Pax’s hood.

The tiny child’s lips were an unnaturally sparkling blue. His eyes glinted with the light bouncing off the sheets of snow, and his cheeks were sprinkled with fuzzy frost, crystalizing right before November’s gaze.

November shook his head wildly. “You’re going to freeze… and it’s all my fault…”

“No…” Paxton closed his eyes, breathing in the frigid air. “N-Not… f-f-fault… N-N-o…”

November unbuttoned his coat, and stuffed the weak child into it. It barely fit them both, and November had to pull it closed.

They huddled together against the wind.

Waiting.

November smiled, tears freezing over his cheeks and chin, rubbing the little one’s back.

Pax bent in the wind, turning stiff and cold.

Waiting.

Resting.

Living. Only just.

November apologized. Over and over in his head.

Apologized for all the dumb things he had done.

Apologized for never being enough.

Apologized for not being the best friend he could have been to Ara – for not being confident, or royal, or anything special in particular.

Apologized for every time he tripped over his own toes.

Apologized until he felt his love burn in his chest, seeping into his feet and hands, like liquid fire.

Pax shifted a little.

November opened his eyes – and almost jumped in his fur-lined boots.

Golden embers twisted in the air, blown away into the stormy gray sky, glittering like fireflies.

November’s mouth opened wide with surprise.

His hands shimmered with an inner, orange-tinted fire, like burning hot coals.

He hesitated for a second, then pressed them against Pax’s thin, trembling back.

Slowly – oh so slowly – the frozen boy eased into a different position, arms dangling at his sides. Limp, but alive.

A wolf howled.

@esther-c

Aw thanks! And yeah, stylizing your writing seems to be a thing with me right now too, so I guess we’re all in the same boat, yeah?

 

@mineralizedwritings

YEEEEESSS, I was worried you wouldn’t see this!! *hugsies* 🥰

I’m glad I got your style details mostly right! And yeah, I had a bit of trouble with the present tense XD I noticed the way your writing processed the characters’ thoughts, and I figured there must be a reason why you write that way, so… I rolled with it. Heh.

Oh, is that why your characters’ actions are always clear? Because you’re writing a comic, and you want the visual beats easy to translate from words to pictures?

Yeess, I was reading through my Godly fanfic, and thought something was off – so I added the snappy lines, and –

It looked good.

MWAHAHAHAHAHA

 

@freedomwriter76

I KNOW!!! This’ll encourage looking at each other’s writing, and trying to understand each other’s POVs! …Which is hard XD BUT everyone has a style (including YOU) and it’s really beneficial to coax those styles out!!

 

@hybridlore

Can’t wait to see what you come up with, Hybrid!!

 

@acancello

Ooh, you should post more of your work, yeah? Tag me if you do, okay?