Playing Favourites

I decided to do a different special in celebration of the fiftieth New Story Idea. This time I'll be handing out awards to my favourite character in each story—although my rationale certainly tends to vary.

In order by New Fiction Idea, we have

1. Clyde, who's adorable and quirky (and also Scottish) even after... I won't spoil it for you, but he ought to be tired of everything by the time the story starts.
2. Julian, because he's fantastically sarcastic and still helps people despite his crabbiness.
3. Joel, who's an optimistic cutie and a religious one at that.
4. Jordan, even though he's kind of majorly a jerk and needs to stop hitting on taken women.
5. The twin lady, who only vaguely surfaced as a character but is pretty kick-butt and unselfish.
6. Athena, seeing as she's the only one with a name and sort of has that Jerk with a Heart of Gold thing going on.
7. Edwin, although it's a difficult choice for this one and may just be based on his name.
8. Macbay, because his sense of humour is just off enough for me.
9. Josephine, (another difficult decision) because she's the small fighter type and a worrywart.
10. Chester, who's an utter dork and nerd and has the most fun perspective in the story.
11. Andromache, (again a close one) because she's a proper lady and still kicks butt in every sense.
12. Gavin, mostly since he's not that restrained emotionally.
13. Dobson and Crick, who apparently still count as one character and basically still have no development yet strike my fancy.
14. Ian, because he's a kook.
15. Lorenzo, who's overly dramatic and just a lot of fun.
16. Benny, for his lightly-portrayed paranoia.
17. Kaliause, who has lightened up considerably since her conception and just makes a great sidekick.
18. Peter, because he's the only one who was that interesting upon showing up.
19. Cerise, because she kicks butt and knows how to be sneaky.
20. Malcolm, due to sarcasm (being based off England never hurts).
21. Andraste, who seems like a sweetheart.
22. Lennon, because he's evil.
23. Shelton, because he's a big guy who's socially awkward.
24. M, who's sympathetic, confused, and has cool powers.
25. John, (another hard decision) for his general optimism.
26. Donny, because how can you not like a version of Don Quixote?
27. Cayman, who's sharp, sneaky, kick-butt, and surprisingly positive given her role in the udnerworld.
28. Francisco, because he's the most melodramatic dork pirate around.
29. Rachel, who kicks butt and is generally too enthusiastic in an amusing way.
30. Henry, who stands up for his morals like no other.
31. Edgard, for his pretend British side and general neuroticism.
32. Helen, (difficult choice) because she kicks butt but still needs help and is a brat on occasion.
33. Midas, because he's just cool.
34. Aiko, because she's a cutie.
35. Daniel, who's nerdy and an underdog type.
36. Natalie, because she's easily startled and I just tend to prefer side characters in general.
37. Onyekachi, who's morally myopic but stands his ground.
38. Liliána, for no solid reason.
39. Jaron, who's a dork, rock fan, and band nerd.
40. Chuck, because he's based on another character I love dearly.
41. Lola, who's weird to the point of intrigue.
42. Jenny, because she's just sort of a cool cat who knows how to handle things.
43. Chlodovech, for his childish pugnacity.
44. Alexandra, because she was a wonderful human being and makes a terrifying antagonist.
45. George, who's a dork that wants to save everyone.
46. Lazarus, the protective older brother.
47. Rithia, for her introversion.
48. Jim, because he's the only one who's really jumped out at me.
49. Vega, who just kicks butt, plain and simple.
50. Marius, because he's silly.

New Fiction Idea #35

A combination of the (never posted) Fragments "an alternate sci-fi interpretation of the word "photogate" (still taking "photo" to mean light)" and "someone with the ability to control doors (limited to locking/unlocking and switching hinges so that a pull door becomes a push door or vice versa)." Still needs a lot of work.

Working Title: Portalmancy

Genre: Fantasy/Steampunk

Protagonist: Daniel Jacobson, a 16-year-old with hazel eyes and dark brown hair that's a bit shaggy and covers his ears. Although he was raised in a fairly rich family, he considers it more of a handicap than a blessing as he wants to make a name for himself through something he accomplishes rather than inherits. He's serious but has a dry sense of humour, and he's a bit of a nerd.

Other Main Characters: Elizabeth, Daniel's smiley, 17-year-old sister. She's on her way to becoming a proper lady, but she's extremely curious about portalmancy and protective of her brother.
Hannah ("Hannes"), a 16-year-old disguising herself as a male to join the portalmancers. Her blonde hair is cut short, and her frame isn't large, but she's physically quite strong. She's a bit paranoid about her disguise failing, but she's naturally rather talkative and usually bears a wry smile.

Antagonist: The soldiers and portalmancers of enemy nations, as well as fellow soldiers-in-training who look down on Daniel and/or suspect Hannes's real identity.

Setting: The steampunk world of portalmancers, mid-war. Magic is like physical prowess: everyone has a bit, it takes training to go anywhere (and portalmancy is a strictly-guarded secret outside of the military), and different people have different knacks. All magic is based on doors, with a door being any framed structure capable of opening and closing without being damaged (so it includes sash windows and such). There is, of course, classic doorway magic, where the door opens into a completely difference place (and occassionally time if something goes wrong). There are also photogates, doors that open to an image of another place; their frames go undetected by those on the other side, but if anything blocks even a part of the doorway, the image disappears. People can walk through other doors to don perfect disguises or armour, or do quite a few other things.

Plot: Starting his training at 16 to go into the fields at 18, Daniel struggles to master portalmancy when his only talent seems to be switching door hinges. Hannes struggles to maintain her disguise, although her training is going well. The army struggles with the other nations involved, and to keep portalmancy secret as traitors attempt to leak techniques to the enemy and the more oppressed parts of the nation. Et cetera.

Point of View: Third-person, limited to Daniel.

New Fiction Idea #32

The original random spark of an idea was using humans as trading cards, but it ended up turning out like this.

Working Title: Dead Man's Hand

Genre: Action/Adventure

Protagonist: Adrian, a twenty-something man with average-length, straight, brown hair and grey-green eyes. Fairly big-boned, he's tan but freckled. After a few years' history of killing target after target, he's trying to sort out his morals.

Other Main Character: Helen, Adrian's eighteen-year-old little sister. Tall, she has straight, dark brown hair to the middle of her back and is pretty but not beautiful. A bit of a brat sometimes (usually around her brother), she can be clingy but can take care of herself.

Antagonist: Various other members of the organisation.

Setting: Modern-day America, east coast. Adrian is part of an odd gambling organisation. It plays a card game, with cards carrying higher values than others. The players get their hands, and the one with the highest amount wins a very large amount of money. The cards are generated by a computer, which randomises 52 people—enemies of the organisation as well as a few others to disperse suspicion—and assigns them a card identity unbeknownst to the players. Players collect a hand of five cards by assassinating Cards on the list. The loser of each deal gets the blame for all deaths in the round.

Plot: Adrian continues to gamble with his organisation, hoping to win the jackpot to split his winnings with the victims of his killings. For this round of dealing, however, Helen turns out to be one of the Cards, and Adrian scrambles to her side. Between trying to assemble his own hand and continuing to hide his actions from her, keeping her alive proves to be quite a task.

Point of View: Third person, limited to Adrian.

I already have a cover idea, too—a dark background with a young woman (Helen). Her back is turned towards us, and she's wearing some sort of backless dress so that we can see the design of the Seven of Diamonds on her back, bloodlike.

Tally It Up

In honour of reaching my thirtieth New Fiction Idea, I've decided to do another special. With my current ideas, here are a few tallies:

Main Character

(3 stories with no one main character: War, The Rules, Chemists)

14 Males: Mayflies,  Macbay Transportation Services, Family of Ibro, Mount, Revolution, A Murder of Crows, NFI#17, Wanderers, Carmine, Figments, Dynblaidd, Roughhouse, The Adventures of Donny Quigley from Smudgen, Kansas, Piracy Cruise Lines
13 Females: Chasers, Crumbling, Intolerant, Entrapped, Special, The Heiress, NFI#14, A Job to Do, NFI#23, Bloom, NFI#27, Blood, Brain, Body, Home By the Sea

14 Teenagers: Mayflies, Crumbling, Intolerant, Entrapped, Special, Family of Ibro, NFI#14, NFI#17, Figments, Bloom, Roughhouse, Piracy Cruise Lines, Blood, Brain, Body, Home By the Sea
13 Adults: Chasers, Macbay Transportation Services, The Heiress, Mount, Revolution, A Murder of Crows, Wanderers, Carmine, Dynblaidd, A Job to Do, NFI#23, The Adventures of Donny Quigley from Smudgen, Kansas, NFI#27

17 Whites: Emilia, unnamed of Intolerant, Sophia, Gavin, Andromache, Theodore, Hannah, Lorenzo, Tommy, Joey, Alizarin, Malcolm, M, Hamilton, Michelle, Sherman, Felicia
2 Asians: Macbay, Ena
2 Native Americans: Jonathan and Matthew
1 Arabic: Andrea
5 Mixed: Pink (white/Hispanic), Kori (white/Native American), Aaron (werewolf/white), Danielle (white/Arabic), Donny (Asian/white)
1 Non-Human: Davey (nightingale)

Other Main Characters

32 Whites: "Red", Clyde, Cora, Jordan, Athena, Edwin, Victor, Josephine, Claudius, Shara, Angus, Daphne, Dobson and Crick, Corey, Deirdre, Jonah, Stannum, Annette, Deborah, Cerise, Corey, Galen, Enrich, Godric, Shelton, Timaeus, Lawrence, Terry, Sander, Francisco, Darla
4 Blacks: "Ink", Darrell, Crystal, Henry
3 Asians: Loretta May, Ian, John
1 Native American: Julian
1 Hispanic: Abel
8 Mixed: Joel (white/Latino), Kaliause (Vietnamese/alien), Neal (white/Arabic), Kimberley (white/Indian),  Andraste (white/elf), John (white/Thai), Cayman (black/Hispanic/Asian), Rachel (white/Japanese)
2 Non-Humans: Benny (raven), Liutas (lion-type alien)

23 Teenagers: "Red", Joel, Abel, Cora, Jordan, Athena, Edwin, Victor, Josephine, Angus, Daphne, Corey, Kaliause, Corey, Darrell, Crystal, Galen, Andraste, Lawrence, John, Terry, Rachel, Henry
29 Adults: "Ink", Clyde, Julian, Loretta May, Claudius, Shara, Dobson and Crick, Ian, Deirdre, Jonah, Benny, Stannum, Liutas, Annette, Neal, Deborah, Kimberley, Cerise, Lennon, Enrich, Godric, Shelton, Timaeus, Sander, Cayman, Francisco, Darla, John

Antagonist:

12 Specifically Known: The Rules, Macbay Transportation Services, Family of Ibro, NFI#17, Wanderers, Dynblaidd, Chasers, The Heiress, A Job to Do, NFI#23, Bloom, Home By the Sea
14 Generally Known: War, Mount, Revolution, Chemists, Carmine, Roughhouse, The Adventures of Donny Quigley from Smudgen, Kansas, Crumbling, Intolerant, Special, NFI#14, Figments, NFI#27, Blood, Brain, Body
4 Spoilers: Mayflies, A Murder of Crows, Piracy Cruise Lines, Entrapped

Of those characterised

14 Males: Max Webb, Clark Seeley, Peter, Kevin, Aristaeus, Lennon, John, Stuart, Stephen, Rick, William, Chester, Smith, Noah
9 Females: Vonda, Seona, Shelby, Leah, Leslie, Vanessa, Cassandra, Sharon, Cheryl

1 Child: Shelby
5 Teenagers: Kevin, Leah, Stephen, Vanessa, Chester
17 Adults: Max Webb, Clark Seeley, Vonda, Peter, Seona, Aristaeus, Lennon, John, Leslie, Stuart, Rick, Cassandra, William, Sharon, Smith, Cheryl, Noah

11 Whites: Clark Seeley, Peter, Aristaeus, Shelby, Leah, John, Stephen, Cassandra, Chester, Cheryl, Noah
2 Blacks: Stuart, Rick
2 Asians: Max Webb, Kevin
1 Indian: William
1 Arabic: Sharon
4 Mixed: Lennon (white/Native American), Leslie (white/Hispanic), Vanessa (white/Korean/Hispanic), Smith (white/black)
2 Non-Humans: Vonda (greenish humanoid alien), Seona (elf)

Primary Genre

5 Science Fiction: Crumbling, War, Chemists, NFI#17, NFI#27
4 Dystopian: Intolerant, NFI#14, Bloom, Roughhouse
4 Steampunk: Entrapped, Mount, Wanderers, Macbay Transportation Services
9 Fantasy: Chasers, Mayflies, Special, The Heiress, Carmine, Dynblaidd, NFI#23, Family of Ibro
2 Horror: Figments, The Rules, Home By the Sea
2 Action/Adventure: A Job to Do, Blood, Brain, Body
1 Mystery: A Murder of Crows
3 Comedy: Revolution, The Adventures of Donny Quigley from Smudgen, Kansas, Piracy Cruise Lines

Setting

10 Past: Mayflies, Entrapped, The Heiress, Mount, Wanderers, Carmine, Dynblaidd, NFI#23, Macbay Transportation Services, Family of Ibro
9 Present: Chasers, Special, Revolution, The Rules, A Murder of Crows, The Adventures of Donny Quigley from Smudgen, Kansas, Figments, Piracy Cruise Lines, Home By the Sea
11 Future: Crumbling, Intolerant, War, Chemists, NFI#14, NFI#17, A Job to Do, Bloom, NFI#27, Roughhouse, Blood, Brain, Body

Point of View

12 First Person: Mayflies, Special, War, Mount, The Rules, Chemists, A Murder of Crows, Wanderers, Family of Ibro, Figments, Piracy Cruise Lines, Blood, Brain, Body
12 Third Person Limited: Chasers, Intolerant, The Heiress, Carmine, Dynblaidd, A Job to Do, NFI#27, Macbay Transportation Services, NFI#14, NFI#17, Roughhouse, Home By the Sea
6 Third Person Omniscient: Crumbling, Entrapped, Revolution, NFI#23, The Adventures of Donny Quigley from Smudgen, Kansas, Bloom

New Fiction Idea #29

This one's going to be fun.

Working Title: Blood, Brain, Body

Genre: Horror/Adventure

Protagonist: Felicia, an 18-year-old vampire girl who appears about 14. She has straight, dark red hair reaching to the middle of her back and is pale with blue eyes. She's a crybaby and doesn't like that about herself, but her recent infection of vampirism has left her physically weak as well. She's generally been a bit of a loner, and the apocalypse hasn't helped.

Other Main Characters: "Rachel" (actually Rachelle, but she thinks that's too girly, French, and weak-sounding), a 19-year-old girl of mixed European and Japanese descent. Still a human, she's sarcastic but cheerful and very much a survivalist. She has no qualms about firing on attackers or engaging in cannibalism (the most extreme case of her hangup on wasting things).

John, a 20 year-old zombie man who was loose friends with Rachel during high school. He has short, black hair and amber eyes. A joker, he can be just as sarcastic as Rachel but has feelings for her.

Antagonist: Pretty much everyone they meet.

Setting: Mid-apocalyptic modern-day America, in the heat of summer. Two big plagues are going around, of the zombie and vampire varieties (both transmitted by bite). Zombies take on a mottled appearance, develop an obsession for eating brains, and become quite strong and fast. Vampires go pale, develop an obsession for drinking blood, and become quite frail. Zombies have a very limited lifespan, usually ended when they go mad enough from hunger to attempt to eat their own brains (which doesn't end well), although this can be delayed by throwing out all human nature to eat more brains. Vampires are immortal but can be murdered.

Plot: Rachel and John take an SUV across America for sightseeing before the apocalypse (they call themselves the "Bucket List Gang"). Rachel takes pity on Felicia and lets her join (mostly because she looks so young and innocent), and happy murderous times ensue.

Point of View: First person (Felicia).

New Fiction Idea #27

Definitely not a complete idea yet, but something I felt needed noting down.

Working Title: Crime or Punishment

Genre: Sci-Fi/Suspense

Protagonist: Michelle, a 22-year-old tall woman with long, dirty blonde hair she keeps in a low ponytail. She's fierce but quiet and a very good shot. While she ha a certain fondness for long skirts, she's usually in her police uniform.

Other Main Character: Cayman, a 22-year-old mixed-heritage woman with short, dark hair kept braided. She smiles a lot and can be very talkative, especially when she's bragging, and she's very much an adrenaline junkie. She's excellent as disguise and avoiding detection. Technically her boyfriend is the leader of her new crime organisation, but she really holds the reins.

Antagonists: Various members of both organisations.

Setting: A futuristic American city and some of its suburbs. Population density is very high, and all non-foot traffic is kept underground. Cost of living is high due to energy shortages. An experimental new form of energy occurs in normal battery-size units; it can power an average house for a week or, alternatively, can be opened up and its contents used as a potent stimulant. Cayman's organisation deals in this product.

Plot: The local police are determined to stop Cayman's organisation while they still can. Michelle is one of those sent to fight this battle; however, she is addicted to the energy drug being dealt (it's not widespread enough yet for police drug testing to catch it). Struggling to keep with her assignment without losing her source of fuel, Michelle works with Cayman (an early childhood friend she knew well through middle school) to keep the crime organisation stable but stunted without raising suspicions from either side.

Point of View: Third-person, alternatively limited to Michelle or Cayman.

New Fiction Idea #25

This somehow happened after listening to "The Boxer" and "Gypsy" in succession (although I didn't pay attention to the lyrics).

Working Title: Roughhouse

Genre: Action/Adventure

Protagonist: Hamilton (only to his friends since it's not a great fighting name; in the ring, he's Ingram), a compact sixteen-year-old with dirty blonde hair (in both meanings of the phrase) and blue-grey eyes. He's quite responsible but has trouble being optimistic or relaxing around friends.

Other Main Characters: John, a fifteen-year-old of Caucasian and Thai heritage. He smiles a lot and is pretty darn scary when he gets serious. He's a bit bigger than Hamilton but not as skilled.
Terry, a thirteen-year-old boy with dark red hair and amber eyes. He's tan but still rather freckled, and he's definitely the lightest of the group. He's affectionate but easily scared off.

Antagonist: Various other fighters, mostly teenagers, possibly one recurring. Officers seeking to shut down rings. Upper-class people who can't fathom why the boys don't have parents or real jobs.

Setting: Dystopia with plenty of dirty cities and plenty of people, but not enough jobs. Orphanages are overcrowded and only hold up to age twelve. There is a gaping hole where the middle class would otherwise be. Fighting rings are relatively popular but frowned upon.

Plot: Each without a blood family, Hamilton and John struggle to survive and support their makeshift family of three. Battles are brutal enough, but the government has started to crack down on the fighting rings, so Hamilton & co. are forced to drift from town to town to keep up the only job (that they consider moral enough) they can get.

Point of View: Third person, limited to Hamilton.

I feel like this would be a good opportunity to work on developing characters' fighting styles, which I've yet to do even in my Hunger Games fan fictions. This is still too vague to actually work on, but it could happen.

New Fiction Idea #24

Original idea from a phrase in my history textbook. I had no idea what to do with it until inspiration suddenly struck me in Japan. Hey, whatever works.

Working Title: Bloom

Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Protagonist: M, a teenage girl with long, straight blonde hair and blue-green eyes. She's slender and weak and not that good at interacting with others after spending most of her life in a sort of solitary confinement. Various plants bloom at her touch, and she develops similar powers as the story goes on.

Other Main Character: Lawrence, a young man with messy, black hair and dark brown eyes. He's short and sturdy and rather tan. He can be quite clueless but is capable of acting under stress. He suffers (really) from bipolar disorder.

Antagonist: Smith, a 36-year-old government worker who does not smile. He's tall and muscular, though not excessively so.

Setting: A"sterile jungle of glass and metal." No plants are left; all things are synthesized. The city is rather soulless.

Plot: M has been locked up since about the age of four. Now she fights to escape to some sort of safety, with Lawrence tagging along.

Point of View: Third-person, omniscient.

New Fiction Idea #23

This idea is very much incomplete, but enough to worth noting down.

Working Title: Check

Genre: Fantasy

Protagonist: Ena, a twenty-two-year-old woman with sharp features and thin, black hair in a series of ponytails. She's fast and strong, prefers to use a spear, and is personally devoted to Enric.

Other Main Characters: Enrich, a twenty-four-year-old man with short, brown hair and hazel-green eyes. He's small in stature and a bit scared of most things, but he gets along well with others and can easily put their needs first.
Godric, a spindly man who lacks basic proficiency with weaponry. He's a trickster, though, and very skilled at deception of all types. As such, it's difficult to trust him, but he's friendly enough with those he chooses for them to at least mostly accept him.
Shelton, a barrel-chested twenty-four-year-old who's the quiet type. He's strong and good with horses and other animals, but he's subject to vertigo and doesn't always get along with people.
Timaeus, a tall twenty-ear-old with light hair kept a bit long. He's an archer with high endurance and generally good aim (especially compared to some of the others in the setting). He can be a bit haughty due to his heritage, but he's easily embarrassed and a loyal and determined fighter.

Antagonists: The Shadows, inverted images of the main characters with the same abilities, though without much thought process beyond instinct and strategy.

Setting: Medieval fantasy land, with most of the action just a stone's throw away from the mouth of a dragon's cave. Magic is limited to magical creatures and occasionally places.

Plot: Ena and company seek to destroy a dragon that has already incinerated a group of foot soldiers. Before they can get close enough to the lair to do any good, they're met by their Shadows and must take them down first.

Point of View: Third person, omniscient.

Based on chess pieces. First got the idea from TV Tropes's Useless Facts on chess (which I can no longer find for some reason).

New Fiction Idea #21

Because the vampires get all of the attention these days.

Working Title: Dynblaidd

Genre: Fantasy

Protagonist: Aaron, a half-Dyn with wavy, dark brown hair. He's rather tan, with hazel eyes and a crooked but white smile. While he's very friendly, sometimes even a doormat, to those he considers his family (which in this world encompasses close friends), he's cold to others and rarely lets them in. He still smiles a lot at them, but when it comes to aristocrats he can't even manage that much. He pursues Robin-Hood-like fantasies as well.

Other Main Characters: Galen, an aristocrat with very dark, reddish hair. His eyebrows would be thick enough to warrant suspicion he's not entirely human if he weren't the eldest son of his very noble (human) family. He's incredibly hostile towards the Dyn of any variety and does not smile in public (it's doubtful he would in private, either). He's engaged to the daughter of the wealthiest family, though he's never met her, and as such has been practising to become the effective ruler.
Andraste, a quarter-elf with platinum blonde hair and violet eyes. She's very quiet but is eager to help anyone that makes requests of her. As far as racism goes, she's extremely open-minded for her time.

Antagonist: Seona, a blonde elf of an averagely pale complexion with light blue eyes. She's indiscriminately hospitable, but she's excellent at ensnaring people. She's very protective of her family but can be irresponsible when it comes to her extreme prejudice of the Northwest.

Setting: A large island, separated into the Northwest and Southeast by the River Tell. The Northwest is populated by a vast majority of humans, and the Dynblaidd (Dyn for short). The Dynblaidd appear mostly human, but with thicker hair and eyebrows, as well as claws of steel-like consistency; a larger but more stooped stature; tails about half the length of their forearms; and long, sharp teeth with slightly larger canines. Their strength waxes and wanes with the moon; the new moon has them near death, while any sliver of moon has them about the same strength of humans and the full moon at about thrice the strength of humans. Regardless of other heritages mixed in, all have a taste for human flesh (whether pureblood human or human-Dyn "mutt") but can resist to degrees varying from Dyn to Dyn. They've occupied the lowest castes of society since a group of technologically-superior humans drove them to near extinction. The Northeast is an aristocracy with a fairly high quality of life, for humans.
The Southeast is populated by a majority of elves, and humans. While every species has access to magic, the elves are particularly skilled at it. The Southeast is broken up by mountains into city-states, but a king claims control over its entirety.
The two sides of the island have finally stopped warring some forty years ago. The Northwest has yet to fully recover and still distrusts and fears the other side, particularly the elves. Little commerce or communication is carried out between them, and immigration more or less doesn't exist.

Plot: A starving Aaron finally secures a job as one of many servants in Galen's household. He uses the position to his advantage, Robin-Hood-ing it every chance he gets, and slowly makes the unfriendly acquaintance of the young master. Eventually the two antagonize each other enough a private fight ensues, and Aaron pulls the expensive, heavily-jewelled family amulet off Galen's neck to discover it had been repressing Galen's Dyn nature. Now under threat of death, Aaron is forced to assist the young master in finding the elven woman who cursed him to be Dyn before it becomes permanent and hereditary.

Point of View: Third-person, limited to Aaron.

It seems sort of counter-intuitive to have werewolves vs. elves instead of the more traditional lineups, but I'm hoping that can turn out to be a good thing.

One of the Lukes has suggested it needs another element to not be hackneyed. I've been able to come up with two, one of which would only amount to a twist ending, and other being a conversion of the story to fan fiction (and I'm sure we all know who would have to be Galen).

New Fiction Idea #20

Look, something else that started as a Hetalia fan fiction! This one's actually fairly old, but I'm excited that I suddenly remembered it.

Working Title: Figments

Genre: Horror

Protagonist: Malcolm, a freshman Business major who's extremely sarcastic. He's rather thin and self-conscious about it, with short, brown hair and pale green eyes. He has always had the ability to see and interact with ghosts.

Other Main Characters: Corey, a freshman Art major who's been Malcolm's neighbour and best friend for years. He has shaggy-ish blonde hair and ambiguously-coloured eyes. Friendly but a bit squirrelly at times, he's terribly afraid of ghosts (to Malcolm's annoyance) despite being unable to really see them.
Darrell, a sophomore Biology major (aiming to be a physical therapist) who's intentionally annoying quite often but is generally likeable. He's a dark umber, with a good build.
Crystal, a sophomore Nursing major who's been Darrell's girlfriend for about three months. She's a good few shades lighter than him and keeps her hair in a low, short ponytail of braids. She's not that comfortable around other people, but she's working on it.

Antagonists: A group of ghosts, of overall ebony coloration, with rather long claw-like fingers. Their faces are mannequin-like, smoothed-out and without mouth or eyes, but they are still able to speak. To Malcolm's confusion, they are perfectly visible to everyone. They float, their forms fragmenting away about where mid-thigh would be. They feed on sanity to avoid a second death that would send them at last to Hell.

Setting: An old, rickety, bed-and-breakfast kind of building about a ten-minute drive from the local university. It's abandoned and rumoured (correctly) to be haunted.

Plot: As a sort of initiation ritual into a fraternity, Malcolm, Corey, and Darrell are "dared" to stay in the haunted house the week before school. Crystal tags along for moral support. They are not informed that no one has remained the whole time yet and they're not actually expected to last more than a day. But as the ghosts appear on and off and the group of students find themselves slipping from reality, it's up to Malcolm to keep them from losing all hope of recovery.

Point of View: First person (Malcolm).

I might default it back to fan fiction, but I kind of like how Malcolm (whose name could change) is turning out so far.

New Fiction Idea #19

Inspired by an unfocused glance over a part of my history book I actually didn't have to read. Barely even an idea at this point, but worth scribbling down.

Working Title: Carmine

Genre: Fantasy/Romance

Protagonist: Alizarin, a twenty-something man with shoulder-length indigo hair and an unassuming build. He's an excellent actor and quite charismatic. He has some training in magic, but it's limited so it doesn't prevent him from carrying out his job.

Other Main Characters: Cerise, Alizarin's preferred assassin. She has shoulder blade-length red hair and is quite attractive despite having muscle tone. She enjoys playing on others' lust, and she's also a very powerful sorceress and skilled assassin.
Alizarin has several other assassins with equally "colourful" names. [rimshot]

Antagonist: The local government, which has gone to great lengths to clamp down on the assassinations.

Setting: Mesopotamian-like, low-tech world. Magic is hereditary (though not weakened by non-consanguinous marriage) and always creates more energy than is used. Fantastic hair colours are the norm.

Plot: Alizarin's beloved national espionage organization has been hit hard by the security measures put in place by the opposing government. Only those with weak or no magic are able to get within a certain range of their leaders because of new barrier magic. But the spies have found another weapon: masks. By transforming their assassins into inanimate masks with only a small amount of magic radiating from them, they are able to get them inside the barrier. From there, the assistant (Alizarin) slips on the mask and transforms into the assassin. Once the deed is done, the assassin can return to mask form, bringing the assistant back. The story follows Alizarin in his dutiful assassinations and his growing attraction towards Cerise.

Point of View: Third person, limited to whatever character is appropriate.

The "red" theme is due to "Masque of the Red Death." Because Poe allusions automatically make a piece better, right?

(And where in the world is Carmine? Hehe)

New Fiction Idea #18

Somehow inspired by seeing two flyovers on levels on top of each other. The world came before anything else.

Working Title: Wanderers

Genre: Steampunk/Mystery

Protagonist: Joey, a twenty-something man who is rather short. He dresses as well as anyone else and keeps his brown hair short, with bangs slicked back. He's rather easygoing and really a bit lazy, but he really loves people. His specialty is cobbling, but he's fit enough to help in construction crews and other ventures.

Other Main Characters: Annette, Peter's wife. She has dirty blonde hair kept under a flowery hat and is on the thin side. She's sweet but very quiet. She prefers to work with children, but she'll lend a hand in what she can.
Neal, Joey's single brother. He has curly, brown hair he keeps a bit too long for the times, but he still dresses normally. He has a passion for architecture and is a bit of a trickster.
Deborah, Annette's 18-year-old best friend since childhood. She has impeccably straight red hair kept shoulder-length, and she very much likes dresses although it's unusual for women to wear them for long periods of time. She's outgoing but a bit too susceptible to imbibing. She specialises in clothing design and hatmaking.
Kimberley, Deborah's best friend and boyfriend. He's dark-skinned and dark-haired, and he's confined to a wheelchair. He's only talkative around friends, but he doesn't have an indoor voice. He's a born tinkerer, though he also enjoys teaching.

Antagonist: Peter, a kleptomaniac who steals mostly loose clothing articles. He sees himself as the bad guy, but he's a bit too skilled at getting away with robberies. He has a bit of a drinking problem but incidentally can contribute to the operations of breweries he crosses.

Setting: A land of bridges and little else. On the ground live ranchers (and a few others), but it's exceptionally rare to get a glimpse of them. Bridges, mostly spanning from one bridge to another, cross the world and up into the sky. Various shops, hotel-like houses, schools, churches, and other amenities dot the sides and intersections of bridges, but there are no towns. Everyone walks (or otherwise moves), all of the time, getting food and contributing what they can whenever they run across the proper facility. "Settling down" and "home" are entirely unheard of.

Plot: Overall, everything is peaceful and there is little crime. Joey has finally separated from his parents and his main group of friends to marry Annette, who is now expecting. Then Peter swipes Annette's light jacket (containing some precious family heirloom) and runs. None of their group can quite catch up, and it's exceptionally difficult to track someone who doesn't want to be found.

Point of View: First person (Annette).

I really just now made up all of the characters and plot. It could change to just about anything; I just want to play with this world.

New Fiction Idea #16

Ah, wordplay, what you inspire...

Working Title: A Murder of Crows

Genre: Mystery

Protagonist: Davey, a nightingale detective. He's fairly standard as far as the "hard-boiled detective" archetype goes, but he does have a fondness for food in general.

Other Main Characters: Benny, a raven with some sort of paranoid complex. He's the favoured suspect of the murders (killings, not the remaining crows) and hires Davey to make him a case.

Antagonist: It's... a mystery. But someone's certainly wanting to make Benny look guilty... And it's entirely possible they'll strike again.

Setting: A 1920s city and its outskirts, including a large meadow and some farms. All bird species can communicate with each other. The community of birds is ruled by a parliament of owls.

Plot: A murder of crows... has been murdered. While the local unkindness of ravens is the first to be blamed, a party of jays, a cast of hawks, a cauldron of raptors, a clamour of rooks, a deceit of lapwings (and so on) aren't safe from blame, either. It's up to Davey to find the perpetrator before he/she/it/they can strike again.

Point of View: First person (Davey).

Because puns.

New Fiction Idea #15

This seems to be one of my more light-hearted novel ideas. It stemmed from my mother calling someone with a deflated-looking chef's hat "an exiled chef" and my father saying we should eat our ice cream while watching people in the gym through the front window of the building like a zoo exhibit.

Working Title: Revolution

Genre: ...Humour?

Protagonist: Lorenzo Emmerich, a twenty-something man with thin, auburn hair. He's overweight, quite annoying, and not very handsome. He does, however, have a passion and a talent for cooking.

Other Main Characters: Deirdre, an inhabitant of Sterven Island who is overweight from a glandular issue. She's not very self-confident, but she's kind and more likely to be amused than annoyed by antics.
Jonah, an inhabitant of Sterven Island who is as fit as the rest but is also an exile. He works at the port and is thus able to do some smuggling. He's a bit too much of a ladies' man, but he's not self-centered.

Antagonist: The other inhabitants of Sterven Island, who mock the exiles and cling stubbornly to their ways of life.

Setting: Sterven Island, a place where everyone is raised from birth to be a health nut and is appalled by anything remotely unhealthy and its possible effects. It is modern-day, although no one's willing to sit in front of a screen for long. Print newspapers are still popular. The island is very much secluded but is under the jurisdiction of the more normal continental landmass of Himins.

Plot: Lorenzo manages to annoy most of the officials of Himins to death (not literally), and, as punishment, they exile him to Sterven Island. Completely rejected and without a job, he wanders destitute through the streets before befriending Dierdre and Jonah, and together they decide to erase the health-freak inhibitions of the islanders, but it won't be easy. Much weirdness, "Fat Pride" parades, and artery-clogging ensues.

Point of View: Third-person, omniscient.

Certainly it would be something silly. We'll see if I ever decide to play with it more.

(Also, 50th post! Hooray! I think.)

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.

New Fiction Idea #12

Inspired by a painting, curiously enough.

Title: Family of Ibro (could be changed)

Genre: Fantasy

Protagonist: Gavin Ibro, a 16-year-old with the family's typical short, dark hair and green eyes. He can be quite impulsive but is very compassionate. He's very easily upset and not afraid to cry. He has a good build, though he wouldn't dare hit anyone.

Other Main Characters: Shara, Gavin's mother. She's sweet but strong and devoted entirely to the family's cause. She's rather gaunt and naturally has an accumulation of scars.
Angus, Gavin's 18-year-old brother. Though they have many siblings, Angus is the closest to Gavin and has the best sense of humour.

Antagonist: Clark Seeley, a military leader who seeks revenge against a political faction, and those who work for him.

Setting: Typical medieval fantasy. Magic-users are a fairly large minority, and each brand of magic is limited to one family, with foreign blood somewhat diluting the power. The Ibros (and they're always Ibros—if a man marries into the family, he must change his surname) have the ability to take upon themselves the sufferings, physical and emotional, of others, including madness and death. This ability is relatively automatic when sufferers are close, though for others farther away, each Ibro can establish a connection to one or many people and erase their suffering even after they have moved away. Over the generations, the Ibros have built familial philosophies and systems dedicating themselves to this work.

Plot: Clark wishes death on those who stunted his rise to power, but he cannot do any harm to them while the Ibros are in town. He drives most of the family away, but Gavin and most of his household, along with a few very dedicated cousins, remain. They try to set up connections with Clark's political rivals while avoiding detection, for at this point Clark has vowed to kill any lingering Ibros.

Point of View: Undecided. Likely one centred on Gavin, though.

I feel like this could turn out to be quite interesting. I certainly don't have time to write it at the moment, but I may try writing some random scenes and seeing how I like it (and posting them here, of course).

New Fiction Idea #9

This is one I started a while ago. It was very strictly structured—I had to end each chapter with a cliffhanger within three pages—but hardly planned out at all. One of my friends read some chapters and liked it (though I didn't give a good enough impression of the main characters' ages), but I sort of ran out of steam somewhere in the teen chapters. I doubt I'll come back to it, but there's somewhat of a chance.

Title: Special

Genre: Science Fiction

Protagonist: Kori, a 15-year-old thin girl with long, dark hair. She's good at running and of above average intelligence. She comes to the story as an amnesiac, but she comes to find out that she is a Special—in her case, her blood is highly corrosive to anything but her insides, including her skin.

Other Main Characters: Victor, a 17-year-old boy of Russian heritage with platinum blonde hair. He has a good build. He tends to be grave and not that chatty, and he also doesn't remember being a Special, but he's the first to find out from the Black Suits' computers. If his hands are uncovered (he wears gloves), he quickly becomes encoated in ice, with frozen claws, and will destroy everything he can until his hands are covered again.
Josephine, a 15-year-old blonde with twin low ponytails. She's quite small in stature. She is also a Special—she exhales large amounts of carbon monoxide, and she has an increased tolerance for it.

Antagonists: The Black Suits (at least, Kori names them this after their formal dress), members of a private agency seeking to contain the Specials, or at least those committed to their facility. They're normally armed, and their preferred vehicles are black Jeeps.

Setting: Modern day America, Nevada as far as I can remember. Specials live among humans, including their parents, but many of their abilities are more trouble than they're worth, or more trouble than their loved ones think they're worth. There exists a facility to which several Specials are committed, where the agency experiments on them in search of cures.

Plot: Kori is on the run from some very unfriendly, gun-pointing Black Suits. She's also trying to figure out who, what, where, and why she is. Her only clue is the melted-looking knife in her shoulder bag until Victor finds her. Both of them continue running, defeating the Black Suits when necessary, and befriending Josephine. I didn't write much past that point, but they go on to figure out the facility, meet with Price (the Special responsible for freeing them), find the corruption in the system, and somehow correct it.

Point of View: First person (Kori).

This was originally a  complete rip-off of X-Men, and it's still quite a bit like that. Overall, it just doesn't feel that original to me, so it'll need some spicing up if I plan to get back to it.

New Fiction Idea #6

This is a vague idea I've had for a while. It's a bit too theme-heavy for my tastes, so I probably won't write it.

Title: Intolerant

Genre: U/Dystopian Fiction (is that a genre?)

Protagonist: As-yet unnamed female teenager. She has long, curly blonde hair under a pink knit cap, a puffy jacket she keeps zipped up unless it's absolutely too hot, and jeans and beaten-up running shoes. She has a distinct sense of right and wrong, isn't afraid to be stubborn about it, and holds to Christian values though she hasn't been baptised for reasons that should be rather clear.

Other Main Characters: Athena, a teenage girl with dark brown hair and generally ratty clothing. She's a rather acidic atheist, but she does have a conscience and will act on it.

Antagonists: Er... The world. More specifically, the city authorities, I suppose. I envision one of the leaders being a blonde lady named Laura. She has black glasses.

Setting: As-yet unspecified city in future America. Cities are places of work in factories and artificial futuristic greenhouse/farm things. Suburbs are places of residence. Both are secure from the wilderness and unwanted weather (for the most part). There are no laws but absolute tolerance, which is generally achieved through brainwashing. Crime (if anyone was silly enough to think such acts should be controlled, stifling the "criminal's" true self) is rampant.

Plot: MC never quite understood how everyone else wanted her to be. Despite everything she'd been taught, she always had the feeling there really was a right and wrong for everyone, not just for each one. As long as she went to the required sessions when she acted on these beliefs inappropriately, she was fine. But when she found a Bible that had escaped the Burnings, she liked what she read. It was only a matter of time before she acted up more and, after many attempts at reprogramming her, the authorities finally labelled her Intolerant and banned her from the enclosed network that was society. She struggles to survive in the wilderness, eventually (sort of) befriending Athena, a fellow Intolerant and a much better survivalist. I'm not entirely sure what happens after that.

Point of View: Most likely third-person limited to MC. Could be first person instead.

Yeah... Given the theme, a modern audience would hate it to bits, and I don't think it would have a high enough death toll for me to be interested in putting it together. Ah, well. I thought little harm could come of throwing it out there.

New Fiction Idea #5

I've toyed with this one for a while. I tried putting it through the Novelist's Boot Camp techniques, but the way I wanted to format it didn't really work out with that, and I put it to the side in favour of Macbay Transportation Services. I've gone through more of the book's exercises with it, though I'm still doing some world-building before I try to jump into it. This one hasn't seen much action since.

Title: War (could be changed)

Genre: Sci-Fi/Action

Protagonists: Several, including people fighting and leading on both sides of the war. No particularly main characters have yet been developed/established.

Antagonists: See protagonists. Good guy/bad guy distinctions aren't really made most of the time.

Setting: Very far into the future, on Earth, mostly in the trenches of a dry and dusty battlefield. All soldiers have a series of nanobots in their bloodstreams for instant healing and brain chips for telepathic communication purposes.

Plot: Beyond the two sides fighting is an organization of pacifists. This organization has managed to hack the technology within the soldiers so that each soldier on one side is connected to one on another side; if one of the pair is killed, the other will die. The story follows the soldiers and those above them as they fight, discover what's going on, and try to figure out what to do about it.

Point of View: First person, switching between quite a few characters.

Just an idea to toy with at this point. We'll see if I ever try to flesh it out someday.