TEASER TUESDAY XV

This is sort of a cop out post. I swear, I have one post ready and a second jingling around in my head and they will be put up. It's just I've become super dependent on coffee and since it's Ramadhan, no coffee for me. So, I've been walking around in a daze, stumbling through my day until dinner and then alternately passing out from food comas or (the horror!) doing school work. My vacation turned out to not be much of a vacation and I didn't get nearly as much work done as I would have liked - but worry not - things will be back in order soon enough! And don't forget to check out my post at Kirsten's blog, here! In the mean time: ta da!


I have been agonizing over a cover for my work in progress for weeks and months. Usually they come to me fully formed, but this just...refused to produce itself. Until this morning. Now I have a shiney cover for my work in progress (which is a new novel masquerading as a rewrite of The Scion). And with it, I have the first 600 or so words. To read the query, click here.

Behzad had known that he would be hunting her. What she hadn’t known was how fast he would find her. It made sense, though. She had left the castle half drunk more than two weeks ago and the trail she had left behind made it easy to follow. When two days passed, and then three and four, she thought she’d lost him. When the first and then second weeks had passed without any sign of him finding her, she had slowed down.

This morning, he had appeared, his Presence flickering at the edge of her mind like a candle flame; strong enough to let her know he was coming, but weak enough to obscure from where. 

Behzad stuffed her materials into her pack as quickly as she dared. She kicked dirt over what remained of the fire, taking care not to jostle her left side too much. A fall two days ago had cracked her ribs and Soul-sworn or not, it would take another two days to heal. 

It took her five minutes of fast walking to realize that she wouldn’t be able to keep up the pace necessary to stay ahead of Mihar. She had barely left her campsite behind and already there was a layer of sweat on her skin. 

“Move it, girl,” she gritted out and pushed herself off a tree. She had gotten soft in the last six months, too used to lying in a soft bed and drinking good wine. 

The stream was her breaking point. It was too deep and had too many rocks to attempt passage. The water was too cold to even drink, let alone wade through. She let her pack slide off her shoulder and considered dropping to her knees. 

The Presence that flared to life behind her nearly drove her to it. She turned around slowly and there he was, perched like some creature on a tree branch.

Mihar Mahburzin, of the House of the Moon of the territory Sardis, Steward of the De’Aldar Province in the King’s name. He was also her jailer. 

Behzad had seen this spot in her head a thousand times. There were many differences since she had been here last. For one, she had been eleven, not seventeen. Her hair had been braided tightly, not a tangled, dirty mess as it was now. She’d been wearing clean trousers, and a newly embroidered blouse. The trees had been bare and snow had covered the stream banks. 

Most important, however, was that it had been her up on a tree branch, and Mihar down by the stream.
Mihar straightened up from his crouch and stepped off the branch. His descent dislodged orange and red autumn leaves. They swirled around him when he landed and she half expected them to catch fire, his Presence was so bright. 

He watched her through narrowed eyes, his steps measured and slow as he walked towards her. She didn’t bother running; if her ribs didn’t stop her, Mihar would.

His dark skin was clear of dirt, his hair free of leaves and tied neatly at his neck. He didn’t look as if he’d spent the last two and a half weeks trekking through the mountains. Of the two of them, he certainly should have been royalty.

But no. That had been her unfortunate lot. 

“What happened?” he asked. She tried not to flinch away from his eyes. Six months ago she had been good at hiding her injuries. Now she couldn’t even walk around a minor injury. 

She didn’t answer as he picked up her bag and slung it over his shoulder. 

“Are you going to bind my wrists?” she asked.

He snorted. “I’m your caretaker, not your jailer.” 

“That’s the same thing if I can’t come and go as I please.” 

“There’s a difference between coming and going, and running away to Yanokiri.”

Images used to make this cover are credited to Auroradreams, Shinobinaku, Funerium, and Resurgere. 

TEASER TUESDAY XII

Teaser Tuesday again! This scene takes place right after Behzad's stayed up all night. She's been talking with her Familiar when her brothers' barge in. Enjoy! (Also, I will get a summary of this story up, within the week, before my life is taken over by school again.)

“What,” she croaked out. “What are you two doing up?”

If possible, Adil’s brow rose higher.

“Fajr,” he said matter-of-factly. She stared.

“You know,” he continued. “The dawn prayer.”

Blink.

“Oh,” she said.

“Definitely awkward,” Annahya chuckled. The last time that Behzad had been in a masjid was May. The last time she had prayed? When she was eleven. She knew Mihangel prayed. But then Mihangel did everything he was supposed to.

She was her father’s bastard child. Even if he had been Muslim, she doubted he would have prayed regularly, if at all.

“So what crazy psycho is messing with your head?” Ali asked, taking a hesitant sip from her coffee. “And is that why you’re up?”

She eyed him for a minute before taking the mug from him and taking a gulp.

“I’m up because I never sleep,” she responded, and dropped her cigarette into the ash tray. “Want one?”

He took the proffered cigarette and the lighter.

“Adil?” He put up his hand as if to fend her off and shook his head.

“He smokes to cope. I don’t need to cope. I deal.”

“I didn’t ask for why,” she muttered. “So damn snippy.”

“Isn’t he?” Ali grinned and took a drag. “Damn, I needed that.”

Annahya scooted back hastily, moving out of the way before he sat on – or through – her. “So you don’t sleep?” Adil asked, taking a seat next to his brother. “Ever?”

“I dose every now and then,” she said dryly.

“Hmm.” He frowned and leaned forward, his legs swinging over the edge of the table. “Interesting.”

“Not really,” Ali chuckled. Adil grinned tucking a stray hair behind his ear. They had the same hair, curly and black. But where hers was long, his was cropped short and held at the nape of his neck. Ali’s was a mess that seemed to defy control, falling around his face.

“Tried pills?” Ali asked, leaning back and blowing out a stream of smoke.

“The old man won’t let me. Says I have a problem with addiction.” That didn’t bother her. Much. She didn’t want sleep. Sleep meant nightmares and demons and terrifying half faces that she knew but couldn’t digest.

What she wanted was to forget everything. The kidnapping. The four years. The six months that she’d spent on the run. She wanted to pretend that she was twelve years old again and could spend her days running through the woods, being chased by her father. She wanted warm fires and good books and thinking she was special.

You don’t always get what you want.

She put the cigarette out and hopped off the table, heading for the coffee machine.

No. You definitely didn’t get what you wanted.

“Do you have an extra mug?” Ali asked. He looked hopeful, a shy smile lighting up his features, cigarette dangling from between chapped, thin fingers.

Guilt reared up in her throat, blocking it, swelling like a tumor. Ali didn’t care that she wasn’t twelve anymore.

“I, uh, I,” she gestured dumbly to the china cabinets. “I’ve got goblets.”

He shrugged. “Sounds good.”

“I’ll have one, too,” Adil said. He had scooted back until his spine was pressed up against the glass. His bare feet stuck out over the edge, at the end of long, thin legs. They knocked together haphazardly, moving to some silent rhythm in his head.

“Sure,” she said, turning away quickly. The pot was filled to the rim with coffee. The china cabinet was locked and after a moments consideration she broke the lock, twisting the delicate looking knob sharply.

“Won’t someone be angry?” Ali asked. She glanced over her shoulder – he was puffing nervously again.

“Stop doing that,” she replied. “You look like a fish. And no. They expect me to be a crazy bitch.”

TEASER TUESDAY XI

I cannot believe that I've been doing Teaser Tuesday for so long, now. It's strange and amazing and I've gotten to know so many wonderful, amazing people through this. (I really should write a thank you post one day...) Today is another excerpt from The Scion. Oh. Also - the picture today is different. Because I was fooling around in Photoshop today instead of writing, I conjured up a cover for my book. I always do it - for some reason, it makes the writing process more complete for me.

Don't judge me. Anyway, on to the teaser!

“This is not the balcony,” Annahya said from her spot beside her.

No. No it wasn’t. The only thing she could think that was even remotely similar to this landscape was desert. Barren, hard ground spread in all directions around her. Skeletons of what she thought once might have been trees rose out of the ground to spear and scratch at a burned sky. Thorny brambles hung like snakes from their branches and littered the ground.

“No,” Behzad said shakily as she rose to her feet. “Definitely not.”

“Don’t you like it?”

She spun around and nearly fell over. Her legs felt like jelly, unsure and wobbly. Annahya gripped her forearm, steadying her.

“You,” Behzad breathed. All she could see was the white hair and blue robes; everything else seemed to blur. She squinted, trying to bring his face into focus, but it remained blurry, like an image seen through wet glass.

“Indeed,” he laughed. “Me.”

This wasn’t a drunk delusion. She was sure of that. Mostly sure. It was more vivid than anything she’d ever imagined before. Even the heat of scorched land and air burned her lungs.

If this is a delusion, it’s a damn good one.

“You don’t know, do you?” He chuckled and swayed a little. “No one’s told you what a ride you’re in for?”

“Yeah – you are definitely a product of my mind,” she muttered and stepped back.

“So they’re letting you think you’re crazy?”

“I’m letting myself think I’m crazy.”

“What a sad girl you are. Much sadder than you were four years ago. At least then you had a little drive.”

“Girls who’d rather be dead tend to lack that,” she quipped and stepped back yet again.

“Oh, don’t do that,” he said with a laugh and beckoned her with his hand. With a sick, twisting feeling in her stomach she watched the space between shrink without either of them taking a step.

“Much better.”

“This is the worst hallucination I’ve ever had,” she muttered.

“I suppose it would be,” he was chuckling again, his voice smooth and heavy. “But the next one is going to be a little bit worse, I think. Something to convince you that I am real.”

“I can’t wait.”

TEASER TUESDAY X

I can't believe I actually have something to post this Tuesday! Luckily, I have finally started up on my plan to write this break, and even got in on some of the FNW action at Absolute Write. I'll be getting to everybody elses as soon as I can!

“You keep going that slow,” she said. “And I’ll keep letting you hit me.”

He scowled at her, incensed that a drunk sixteen year old girl was toying with him and moved faster. For a moment, Behzad considered letting him get in the faster hit, but the choice was taken out of her hands. He clipped her in the jaw, and she reeled back, shocked that he’d actually landed a hit without her letting him.

Murmurs spread like ripples through a pond. She growled, shaking her head, trying to get rid of the ringing in her ears that had started all of a sudden.

His next move came faster and he nearly slammed his fist into his nose. Annahya would probably claim that luck was the only reason she even managed to catch his wrist before it connected. With a snarl that sounded vicious, even to her, she jerked him forward and kneed him in the stomach. He grunted at the force she was able to pack in one movement, but she wasn’t done. Her hands gripped the side of his head, and she slammed it against her knee, before bringing it with a forceful boom to the floor.

She was squatting now, her hand still tangled in his hair, and noticed the blood. With a sigh, she jerked his head up. His nose was broken, blood sliding out of it in dark rivulets. His mouth, which hung open, was also filled with blood. His eyes were glazed over and unfocused.

Behzad sighed in disgust and let his head drop back to the floor. She stumbled to her feet and put her hands out to steady her as the floor tilted up. When she was on her feet, she realized the room had emptied. The outcome of the fight had been faster than what most had wanted, and in the time that it had taken her to stand and steady herself, they had collected their bets and left.

Most of them anyway.

It took her a moment to realize who was leaning against the far wall, arms crossed against his chest. But the moment she did, she groaned. Mihangel, or rather, General Mihangel.

“Looking for this?” he asked, holding up her bottle of rum. Whoever she had handed it to had finished off half of what was left. Not a lot to work with when she still had six hours of daylight to contend with.

“Are you going to give it back?” she asked, walking towards him.

“Considering the fact that you shouldn’t be drinking?” He raised a skeptical eyebrow before upending the bottle and the rest of her day’s coping mechanism. “No.”

UNBREAKABLE BY FIREFLIGHT

I hate leaving my blog unattended. So I thought I'd share the above video with you. While (or instead of) studying, I've been trying to get back into Behzad's head so that I can start on The Scion again. The song is very representative of who and where she is when the story starts and her mindset as the story goes on. Enjoy - the lead singer has a powerful voice and beautiful lyrics.

Teaser Tuesday III

Another Tuesday Teaser. This is from just after Behzad (MC) meets Mihangel. It's shorter than what I usually post, but I figured if I keep posting long snippets, I'll run out of things to put up, lol. Anyway, enjoy!

Snipped.

Teaser Tuesday II

It's time for another Teaser Tuesday. I decided to post something from the beginning. This is when Behzad and Styxx first meet. Enjoy!

Snipped.

Coffee fixes everything

No, it really does. Coffee (especially Starbucks coffee) somehow manages to jump start my entire system. Even if my hands are shaking, when I'm on a coffee induced caffeine high, I can write for hours at a time. Really. It's pretty awesome. Unfortunately, my doctor has forbade me from drinking coffee on a regular basis, and I've been forced to rely on caffeine laced tea. It's not nearly so potent, but he says that if I want my heart to not explode, it would be in my best interest to stop the coffee every morning routine. -sigh- How very unfortunate, right?

Last night I wrote nearly 1k, which I'm very proud of. And I've crossed from chapter 22, to chapter 23 which is the final chapter in this part of Behzad' s life! I'm so excited, and a little intimidated. Because, as soon as I wrap this chapter up (hopefully before the end of the month) there are going to be a sequence of torture scenes, one right after the other. I'm a little apprehensive. I've always been a little scared of writing really emotional material and I just want to be able to convey the horror and emotional trauma that needs to come through. Here's to hoping I can do it.

I was thinking of adding The Raven Desk @ Wordpress to thewrite.com to get some more traffic, but I don't want to until I'm sure I'm going to be able to keep up with it. Also, I need some more ideas I need for things to write articles on. -goes to brainstorm-

My own space

This is where I do all of my work, where I sit for hours and hours on end trying to make magic (failing tragically, as of late). It'll change in September since I'll be going back to university then and will have to set up a new creative space in my dorm room. But for now, this place works. :) I got the idea to post it up from seeing whereiwrite.org. I can't remember where I found the link (I think it was on Nathan Bradsford's blog), but there it was and I've been trying to get my hands on my sister's camera ever since. It's nowhere near as impressive as some of theirs (I lack the millions of books and vast library they all seem to possess) but it works for me.

As far as writing goes, I hit a road block yesterday after writing about 200 words (ultimate fail) but found a way around it, so as soon as I head out to the library, I'll start writing again. I'm really, really excited because this part is the closing section of the main character's childhood. After that, there's a three year jump and I get to start writing about a fifteen year old with several types of psychosis! It'll be awesome fun. And it'll be much darker and grittier than the first half of the novel, which I'm much better at writing.

I'm faced with one problem - I have no idea if I should classify it as young adult, science fiction, or what. It's such a weird mixture of so many different genres I don't know where to put it. Hopefully, when I get beta readers, they'll be able to tell me what to classify it as. Anyway, to writing and all that. Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Location, location, location

Isn't that just beautiful? Can you believe that it's in a desert in Tunisia? I googled 'Oasis in Tunisia' and got the most stunning pictures! When I picture desert I think a small pond-ish body of water (or possibly no pond at all, maybe a well...), a few palm trees and a village built around it. Beautiful waterfalls, flowing water and wonderful rock formations never even entered my mind when considering how to imagine an oasis. This particular beauty is from a small village in the mountains of Tunisia (I didn't even know oasis could exist in mountains!) called Chebika. It has a population of a few hundred people.

Why am I looking at pictures of oases? Because, I need it for a little world-building for the next part of my book (which I'm supposed to be working on right now! eep!). Behzad and company go to vacation at an oasis in Tunisia, which in turn leads to much craziness and pain. But, I wanted the setting to be real, and to base my oasis off of an existing one. Chebika seems like the perfect place!

Now, to write this segment...