Prompt Writing #6

A shorter one, it seems.

Prompt: [Forward Motion Writers generator]

"Where would your character hide if they needed to disappear? Where could they blend into the crowd and, hopefully, vanish in plain sight?

Today, give your character a reason to hide, and then help them find a way to go underground until the storm blows over.

If they can."

Randomly Selected Story and Characters: Mount, Dobson and Crick

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

It didn't take their genius IQs to recognise that there was a problem. As a matter of fact, even Theodore and his sister seemed concerned.

Granted, several tribesmen were readying their spears with no targets but the railroaders in sight.

Supposing that that carving Theodore took was quite important to the natives.

Dobson and Crick were currently bringing up the lead in the fleeing party, despite the latter's short legs. The luxury expandable shelters were far too soft to be proper cover; the single railroad car was solid if relatively lightweight, but there were too many windows. The rock face ahead—the actual start point of the mission—was, however, considerably solid. 

It was also considerably distant.

The engineers forged ahead regardless. There were few trees and other obstacles on the way, and, while there was no hope of tripping up their pursuers, there was little risk of tripping up themselves. 

The spears, at least, seemed to be a mere threat rather than, well, a threat. Surely natives that hunted animals were capable of throwing spears at moving targets. They were merely trying to frighten the railroadmen into returning the artifact.

Shame that Theodore had already sent it back to his home.

It was a wooden relief, not particularly large, from one of the trees that were the predominant type in this area. A good number even crept up the side of the mountain.

Surely it would be a simple matter to replicate. With the engineers' attention to detail, they could recall every swipe of the blade that created the medicine man's profile. As long as they could shelter in a spot of the mountain for a while, they could resurface with the "artifact," hand it over, and go on their way. Of course, they would need supplies. And most likely their benefactors out of the way or, even better, as a distraction.

No problem. If anyone could orchestrate such a complex cover-up, it was Dobson and Crick, the genius engineers of their century.

As long as they could outrun the natives first.

Must Stop Fangirling over my Own Characters

Since I seem to have issues when it comes to being a fangirl of characters that I created myself (which may not be the best thing when I'm trying to write stories that don't necessarily revolve around them), I decided to make a list of the victims of my affection. It's not ordered.

• Cahokia: The cutest Britt (man from the nation of Brittack, as it were) on the list by far. He's rather weak and not that determined a character, but he's so much of a literature nerd and overall eccentric that I can't bear to leave him behind, even if Man in the Blade is never drawn up.
• The Gentleman: No, he has nothing to do with certain other characters who qualify themselves as gentlemen. He's just quite the chivalrous character, but hardly in a way that patronises the females. He's also a calm psychopath. And he kills people using a rapier, an umbrella, or most often his hat. That is all.
• English (of my silly little webcomic of personified language): I don't know; he just turned out really cute. And he's sort of the lonely type (since he beats up other languages so much according to the old joke), so he's a bit of a woobie.
• Master Fire: He would be more on the hot side than cute, I suppose (no pun intended). I'm not entirely sure why I fangirl over him, because he's more of the bad-boy type and a devoted drunk, but I guess he has enough snark to keep his character afloat. And I like his hair.
• Clyde: Oh, Clyde. Who would have known that I would turn out fangirling over someone based off a Pac-Man ghost? He's just kind of cute and sassy, and, to avoid spoilers, I'll just say he's been through an awful lot to be as cheerful as he is.
• Francisco: He's just so eccentric; I don't know. He certainly has the joy of life about him, and the ease with which he puts on his air of self-confidence is pretty cool when, outside the cruise ship he's really nothing special.
• Dobson and Crick: They're not even really characterised. Yet here they are. Cute accompaniment, I guess...
• Macbay: He's kind of grimy, but in more of a way that makes you smile and shake your head than frown at him. Although that happens, too. He's not very attractive, but his powers are quite excellent, and, oh, I don't know. He has enough of a sarcastic streak for me.

Genre Schmenre

I've never been good at figuring out precisely what genres I write. In fact, when a professor asked me what kind of stories I write, I took a moment and replied, "Anything that could never happen in real life."

Of course, that mostly puts me in science fiction and fantasy, but now there are so many subgenres of those that I still don't know where I fit. Steampunk is more of a cosy niche, but those I label with that genre can be questionable because most of them really aren't that "punk." Macbay, of course, would have to count because he goes against the government basically his whole life and for the whole story, but Mount? I think it only follows the steampunk aesthetic without really being a steampunk story. So what on earth does that make it?

Then there are the handful of story ideas that don't even fall into one of those broader categories. Generally, I'll label them horror because, being myself, I usually end up killing or otherwise harming everyone. But is that really what constitutes a horror novel? What about thriller? Where's the line? Four Walls is trying to be literary—can that even work hand-in-hand with the horror genre? Or is it horror at all?

And what difference does it really make? I'll judge a book by its cover and synopsis before I ever see what genre it's assigned, but I suppose those in turn are based on the genre. But what if it's more of a general feel of the book? Is that or genre more important? And how does genre affect audiences on ebook sites, like Smashwords, where I'll be publishing? If I label my books incorrectly, will those interested not be able to find it? How specific a genre/subgenre does the average reader prefer?

Basically, genres confuse me, but they're necessary. Do tell me about them, if you like.

New Fiction Idea #13

Somehow came to me while doing the environmental unit in chemistry (which makes me happy for the sole reason I haven't already had those lessons).

Title: Mount (could be changed)

Genre: Steampunk

Protagonist: Theodore Florence, a twenty-something young man with dark hair, olive skin, and hazel eyes. He's tall but skinny and dresses very well. His family is filthy-rich, and he's grown up in a sheltered place that let him stay cheerfully naive. He has an extremely positive view of human progress. He is stubborn and may be prone to challenging others to a duel-to-the-death if he doesn't get what he wants.

Other Main Characters: Daphne, Theodore's 19-year-old sister. Her skin and hair are lighter than her brother's, but they certainly have a family resemblance. She keeps her very long hair in a fancy updo and has a weakness for elaborate dresses and hats. She's very sympathetic towards others. She's just as naive as her brother but handles affronts to her fantasy world a bit better.
Dobson and Crick, two high-class engineers in the Florences' service. They're both well-built geniuses (though Dobson is a bit on the short side) that have fallen on hard times. They'll happily work on foolish projects just for the money.

Antagonist: At this point, nature and the laws of physics. There could be other opposition as the story progresses.

Setting: Typical steampunk universe. The actual story takes place in a Himalaya-type area, specifically their world's largest mountain. It has enough areas of vegetation to support some wildlife and peoples but is mostly rock face. The incline generally increases as the mountain goes up, and there are no roads beyond a few simple foot trails.

Plot: Theodore wants to build a railroad straight up the side of the mountain, more or less just because he can. Given the track and train won't be serving any real jobs, Dobson and Crick  manage to work some steampunk engineering magic (depending of the advice of my engineer friends, it could involve actual magic if necessary) and start building the rails. The trip does not go smoothly, however, and Theodore's insistence on watching the entire process—and Daphne's tendency to follow him everywhere—starts to take a toll as the comforts available drop off. Still the Florences and their workers continue, challenging themselves to get past natural obstacles and the troublesome natives until they reach the summit.

Point of View: First person (Theodore).

Seems like pretty standard steampunk stuff. If the physics is a bit too much, I could make them try to get to the top to build a zeppelin airport, but that seems a little less fun.