3 Days + Word Of The Day & Character Of The Week

Hey, hope you've had enough older posts to keep you busy in my absence! Still with me? Trust me, I won't post if I don't have anything to say.
What I will say is that I start back up with my editing in just 3 days! Since I've been reading a lot of important writing books, I'd say that I'm good and ready to kick things back into action. In these last few days, as well as throughout next month, I'll continue reading. After all, how can I not share it with you?

Here's your Word Of The Day:

Reconciliation:
The reestablishing of cordial relations.


Not to be mistaken with Reconnaissance. (I jest!)

Character Of The Week:


Mr. Shay:
Mr. Shay is an especially stumpy Miniature Schnauzer who goes around walking on his back legs, wearing a plaid vest and, on his own personal special occasions, a black bowler hat.
He carries many bottles and boxes full of suspicious substances that he apparently finds quite handy in his unknown line of work, along with a small scanner-like thing that has infinite uses and capabilities.
He sneaks around, mainly unseen and unheard, and is unbearably mischievous and troublesome. He is terribly obnoxious, nosy, and is quite the busybody. On top of that, he is invincible, though not without a few peculiar weaknesses.
He originated in an old (and very strange) story (of mine) about a world called Dog Earth where canines ruled instead of humans. He was just a side character who gave advice to the protagonist, but in later time, he took off on his own and began his true story elsewhere.

 Lately these days, I'm not entirely convinced that Mr. Shay is just fictional. O_o

Wolf

Haven't Budged... + Word Of The Day & Character Of The Week

Still haven't budged with my editing... Maybe I'll keep waiting, until, say, March 1st. :D
Here's the Word Of The Day:


Apathy:
Lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern.

And your Character Of The Week:

Albira the Dawnwolf
Albira is an exceptionally undersized wolf who hails from Tanakosk. She has a snow-white coat decorated with pink and gold splotches and smudges all over, and her eyes, too, are gold.
She's kind, friendly and quite outgoing, not to mention happy-go-lucky. She is usually gentle, but can be fierce when defending what or who she loves, such as threatened livestock or humans.
She doesn't talk, but is expressive in her natural wolfish ways. However, she also displays some some peculiar, human-like behavior that she picked up from being around them all the time. She is above the average intelligence, but is not much of a genius.
She is a protector of the land, rising at dawn and departing somewhere unknown when late twilight falls.
Albira is the deuteragonist of the (my) novel, "The Dawnwolf", the constant companion of the protagonist.


Wolf

Editing "The Dawnwolf" + Word Of The Day & Writing Tip

I plan to pick up the editing again for my novel either today or tomorrow. I think I'm about ready to hit it!
I'm going to continue reading up on description and emotion in order to up my skills, but I think I've learned enough to keep me going for the second edit.

With that said, here's your Word Of The Day:

Iridescence
Producing a display of lustrous, rainbowlike colors/Brilliant, lustrous, or colorful in effect or appearance.

Writing Tip: 
Ever heard of the term "Show, Don't Tell"?
When writing, I've learned that you shouldn't just say that "So-And-So was angry" or "So-And-So was worried". Instead of telling your reader how the character feels, you should show them. For an example, if your character is angry, you should express it through dialogue and body language. Depending on the character's level of anger as well as their personality, they could be shouting, bellowing, growling or just being sharp and terse, and they'd likely be clenching their fists/teeth, shaking, glaring, biting their lip, etc..
Same goes for every other emotion. Express it!
Body language is what normally shows the feeling of worry in particular; the character might be wringing their hands, wrinkling their brow, chewing/nibbling their lip, and so on. The possibilities are endless, so why not explore?
When you exercise this in description, it's important to help your readers fully experience the story through the five senses; see, smell, hear, touch/feel, and taste.
Too often people use sight only. Make sure you're expressive in what (or even how) the character feels, hears, smells, and tastes. But it's not always the character who tastes or smells something, but, for an example: "The gentle breeze carried the aroma of roses through the clean air". When you read that, you can see that it's something that can be "smelled", rather than just saying "So-And-So smelled roses".
With the rest of the senses, these general suggestions continue to apply.
As one last thing, let me say something about sight; again, be descriptive. Don't just say "So-And-So saw a dog"; describe it! Even a dog can help to give the reader a vision of the environment itself, whether it be a shaggy, dirty dog or a fluffy, well-groomed one. That's just an example-- see what else you can use, but don't overdo it.

Edit: This isn't to say that you shouldn't use telling at all. Telling is quite important in itself, as long as you pick the right words. While many do say "Show, Don't Tell", yes, it's really more of a guideline than a rule. I suggest you use both showing and telling in a balanced manner.
This writing tip is based mainly on character expression, so I will shine more light on other ways you can use it, like when describing a character and a place. Keep yourself updated and the rest will come up soon!

This, I noticed, doesn't just apply to novels, but to a lot of other kinds of writing. If you already knew this, I hope this gives you a slight reminder to help keep your creativity flowing.

Wolf

Editing "The Dawnwolf" + Character Of The Week & Word Of The Day

Hey, sorry I haven't posted in a while-- I've been taking a much-needed small break from editing my novel, you see. If you're editing one of your own right now, I highly recommend that you take breaks yourself.
So far, I've redone the first, introductory scene in "The Dawnwolf". It flows much easier than the first one, I'll have you know, but I'll still go over it again later.
I'm still trying to find a name to replace my antagonist's slapped-on, out-of-place name-- no offense to you if your name happens to be Adolphus! If it is, well, you just won an award.
Moving on, there are some other interesting changes that I plan to make, such as some character conflict that wasn't there before, and some changes in the character's personalities and manner of speech.
The description and emotion in the book could use some work as well.
I'll probably pick back up in a week, so you won't hear much from me in the meantime. I'll try to post more writing tips and words consistently until something good comes up!

With that out of the way, here's your new Character Of The Week!
Who is, in fact:

Zard
Zard is an elf sorcerer from the Dark World of Jadina. He was a main villain in (my) MUCH older stories, but never surfaced in a real novel. He has light purple-tinged skin, dark, shoulder-length purple hair, and red eyes.
He has a mild nature, oddly enough, but on the contrary, has a rather savage and vicious side. He's also terribly emotional.
He excels greatly in magic, so if he's unpredictable whether you'll be burned to a crisp or frozen to death upon distressing him...

Okay, that was unexpected... Here's your Word Of The Day:

Thanksgiving:
The act of giving thanks.

Wolf 

Editing "The Dawnwolf" + Word Of The Day

As I continue the first edit of "The Dawnwolf" from the beginning to the middle, I'm changing the names of my characters as well. I had changed Ven's name to Vern, but I'm going to make him Ven again.
Since this is Tanakosk, in a different world entirely, I'm not concerned about the names being so, for lack of a better word, random.
I'm changing Adolphus' name since it's too unusual and might cause some problems... I have yet to decide what it should be, though...
When I think about it, Adolphus is the only one who needs his name changed. I'd totally have to change everyone's name if they lived on Earth, but since this is my world, it's no big deal.
If I have a specific theme I'm going for, I'll make the names go with to it, whether they be real or made up. Who knows if "Anastasia" could mean something completely different in Evagren than somewhere on Earth? ...Me, that's who! For all you know, the Evarans might even pronounce it differently... >:D
Anyway, that's besides the point. I need to change the Antagonist of "The Dawnwolf"'s name...
Here's your Word Of The Day:

Preposterous:
Contrary to reason or common sense; utterly absurd or ridiculous.

Wolf

Editing "The Dawnwolf" + Character Of The Week & Word Of The Day

I've basically completed the first edit of "The Dawnwolf". By "basically", I mean I've gone over all the scenes in the project, but I need to go back over the first half again and fix some extra errors before I can call it done.
And then I'll have the second edit... The real deal, I'd imagine, but one of the most satisfying "stages" of editing. I'll cover more description, emotion, action and more, and as stated before, I'll be changing some scenes, taking some out, and putting some in. After this first edit, I really think this story is lacking something... I'm sure I'll find out what it is in due time.

That said, I have your Character Of The Week, as promised!
This week's character is:

Kikki (Kikean, Ancient of Emotion)
Kikki is one of the Ancients who hold power over every element in Planet Crichianadiie. She is one who holds power over Emotion. She resembles something close to a tan-colored squirrel and a fox both, and the maroon aura that glows around her changes color with her own emotions. She's spunky, sassy and quite often bad-tempered, and refuses to be called by her actual name, thus forcing people to call her "Kikki".
In the "Lirin Bahonan" series, she's one of the protagonist's main companions.

And finally, your Word Of The Day:

Reconnaissance 

A preliminary survey to gain information; esp. an exploratory military survey of enemy territory.

Wolf

Word Of The Day & Writing Tip

Nothing new to report at this present time, so I'll cut right to your Word Of The Day:

Erroneous:
Wrong; incorrect. (Sometimes "Mistaken")


Writing Tip:
Beware of putting in too many characters in your story! It's mutually difficult for both the writer and the reader to keep track of too many. When you create characters and place them in the story, they should all have their own purposes, roles, and goals. Don't drag "cool" characters around in your story if they don't have a reason to be there!
It's important that you put in as little or as many as you really need. There's a difference between "a lot" and "too many", as you and I should very well know. Some come and go, while others stay, but the number doesn't matter as long as you make it so that both you and the reader can keep track, and again, that your characters all have their own roles to play. If you do have a lot, depending on that you're doing, I suggest alternating between two separate parties throughout the course of the story if its too much to cram them all together in one place, and remember; not all of them are major characters. Some who persist in the storyline should be minor like their roles.


Wolf