Last Name Basis

And by wishes I mean...get me out of this writing slump!!!

Xmas Story Update

I have a beginning and and end. Zero words and zero...what's that thing called ? Oh, plot. This may be a New Year's Story at the rate I'm going.

Chapter Seven

So, Harlow Haley. He was one of the most "engineered"  characters I ever wrote. I knew from day one that if I ever wrote him again... he would die. It wasn't until I started writing the first few words  that I realized he was also  kind of a sociopath.

In every scene Harlow is in he is taking advantage of someone. He's predatory, controlling and vain. He's also charasmatic which is how he has such loyalty from Felix and Marco.

I don't consider myself an experimental writer, but I'm always interested in different narrative devices and one of the things I wanted  to do was have a character die during their own POV.  With Harlow's death his POV and thoughts are effectively erased (which is why Maxwell had to have a POV). This also changes Haley's identity because no one is going to be calling him Alex anymore...what can I say I love some Last Name Basis.(wink, Fierro)

*Also, to complicate things further Haley is going to randomly get an occasional third person POV, because his first person is super bland when I write it  insert writerly-smart sounding reason.

Chapter 9

This chapter. I re-wrote this chapter three times. Once when Maxwell's voice was 3rd person, once when I forgot to save it and one more time in first person.

So, fed up Harlow tries to escape Camp Harmony and is shot in the head right in front of  his brother, Alex Haley. Now Camp Harmony has its second death and wait...who exactly shot Harlow anyway ?And what's Sgt. Maxwell going to have to say about it ?

Chapter 9

Playlist

-Andulasia by Hammock

-Eyes- by Kaskade (Yes, I stole this from Lile)

Mini (TGIT-ish) Gif Posts

I can't think of a blog so.....GIF Post

On Bellum II

Me After Every Chapter (Particularly Chapter 5)

Pariphina 5eva!

My General Reaction to Paris

And Now that Seraphina is gone and he's called Isobel. Well....

™Moving on....

Plotting the Christmas Story

I've got a few scraps of ideas, but nothing full

How I Consider Ending All My Serials When I'm Desperate

One scene or line or ending in every chapter of Vice from here on out

I'd Really Like to Write Two Love Interests Like This

                                                         But They Are Always More Like This

Then This

So, I'm thinking of finally writing that OHG rewrite. Just remember:

And by people I mean SHV

But I'm Really Going to Try and Maybe I'll have something by Spring

Your Faces Right Now Since I Bring up UL Once every couple of months

It Will Be A Slow Process. Just need to limber out the UL muscles

 

Me On the Outside 

Me On the Inside

So, Muse

Also This Gif I just found, because Corinne was pretty much invented by KStew's closed lip snarl  thing in the beginning of this Gif. Also, I kind of love her Post-Twilight smile.

Let's Talk About Chapter Six
It's occurring to me it makes more sense to talk about the previous chapter that goes with this section and not just the previous chapter with the B storyline. So, I'll talk about Ch. 7 next post

Last post I talked a little bit about how yes, Rayne is the father of Sara's baby. And as the novella was supposed to hint at, Rayne and Ivy have broken up..although it's platonic so I guess it's more of a conscious uncoupling ? Even in the Veritas!world I always saw Rayne's marriage as being very cold and I couldn't figure out why and then I did...it was an arranged marriage.

Chapter Eight
Rayne and Ivy are done, Luce and Ivy both feel outsted by the baby and Minnow and Alan run into Dakota while running to get shoes for a party. What is this party about anyway ?

Chapter 8

Playlist

-1- Silhouette by Active Child w/ Ellie Goulding

-2- Don't Wake Me Up by Avicci  Remix

-3- Work Song by Hozier

Challenge Accepted ?

 
A Christmas Story ?
So, I've accepted this challenge, Lile. I will say though, I'll probably do two stories---one cracky and one a little more serious.

Okay, off to see if  the Michael Buble Christmas CD is on Spotify (it is) !

No Need To Call Maury
So, I think it is safe to say that you all get that Rayne is the father of Sara's child. Their child was actually conceived in Vice, but I wasn't sure if I was ever going to use it.

In chapter 12 of Vice everyone (including Rayne) is at Sara's apartment as she is hacking someone out of the draft. After they do that Alan leaves to go talk to Jean and Sara makes him take Luce with him leaving her alone with Rayne.

Then when they get chased back an hour later Rayne  is gone and Sara is alone and taking a nap on the couch (because she is...tired *wink) and then Sara doesn't ever drink the rest of the serial.

Chapter 7 or Things I've Googled That Have Me on A Watch List
So, this is another short chapter and the last super short one I see in the forecast. I was just getting my bearings in these early chapters  so that's why there are so many in the beginning.

So, back to Fort Harmony. Alex refused an offer from Sgt. Maxwell to go home and has settled into being a model prisoner while Harlow was given two weeks in solitary for refusing to work and talking back...

Chapter 7 (also, I just realized I re-used a line from a previous serial...see if you can spot it. I felt like I was having dejavu everytime I read it until it finally clicked.)
Playlist
-1- Your Hand in Mine by Explosions in The Sky
-2- Wait by M83 (either i've used this before, or I've been waiting forever to use this song)

I've Run Out of Things to Blog About

In law school I’d been attracted to one of the professors and we’d had a number of tumbles in the sheets. I’d drink in his opinions on law and politics in bed all night. My sexual appetite had grown with the stress and competition of law school.  I’d had a number of lovers and discovered quite a few kinks.


So, I do a lot of re-reading when I'm working on a serial, particularly with this one. After I post a chapter I usually start re-reading from the point before I write more. And while I'm re-reading I usually change and edit things.I'll change names, descriptions and wording or even add stuff.

For chapter 5, I was looking at the above paragraph and I originally had the word fetish instead of kink. I assumed fetish and kink meant the same thing, but I looked it up and they actually mean two different things; a kink in about partner intimacy and a fetish isn't.

Anyway, in the process I stumbled across wikipedia's page on paraphilia and I have to say there are some interesting ones like Autassassinophilia, sexual arousal from almost being killed and somnophilia which is sexual arousal from seeing people sleep...I don't think any of these will be making appearances in my serial, but I did go down a sexual health rabbit hole.

Actually, it's interesting homosexuality was legitimately  considered a type of sexual disorder 40 years ago so in 85 years who knows what our culture will have to change it's mind about.

Also they rarely find women who have paraphillic disorders and if they do they are usually sadists, which is interesting.

BTW, I don't suggest reading this paraphilia page because there are a lot of gross ones. I mean really.

Chapter 4 -5
So, we finally put Haley and Maxwell together...but things are different. One of the things I don't think got across in Sundays is that Maxwell is putting on an act a lot of the time.  He's self-concious and unsure and is trying to stay under the radar so he doesn't get in anymore trouble. But Maxwell is also super smart so when given a job he's to smart for...well, who knows what might happen.

I originally was going to have Harlow make someone eat a bug and I just couldn't do it. I had some dark plans for this serial, but I've been wimping out a lot. More on this later.

Chapter Six
So, this chapter was one chapter that was split in half so it's more of a set up. This is also the one with two mini flash fics.

We're back to Alan, who has become fully entrenched in cartel life...and is fighting with Minnow for reasons he doesn't remember...also Sara has a baby ? Daddywatch 2100

Chapter Six (It's a shortie)
Playlist
-1- We Might Be Dead by Tomorrow by Soko (should have named the serial this...)
-2- Finally Moving by Pretty Lights

Shawna Found the Model Tags on Tumblr

This is my Maxwell picspiration...any guesses who this is ?

It's beardless Joe Manginello !

The Original Crew Characters

Alan, 20

I found Otto Seppalainen on the Tumblr model tag

Sara Grace (32) & Luce Grace (14) Natalie Portman (Except, red head.)

Asa Butterfield

Jean Dory (24) Minnow Dory (17)

Jared Leto

Ashley Greene

 Persephone (20) and El ( late 30's ?)  (They don't show up a lot)

Blake Lively (mostly, her hair)

David Beckham

  The B Storyline Characters

 Kenneth Maxwell, 33

Did I mention Maxwell has a body model...

Thomas Sangters unique face.... that let's him play 13 in GoT when he's 23 !

Emil Andersson's preeety hair. Also Dane Deehan's eyes

Harlow Haley,  22

Young Sebastian Stan.

Isla Haley, 21 (She doesn't show up a lot)

Jane Levy

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Thomas Sangster is the third picspiration that happened to be in the Maze Runner film. If you're keeping count that's Dylan O'Brien (Rhett Clark) Kaya Scoldero (Corinne) and Thomas Sansgter (Haley)

DOUBLE CHAPTER POST !!!!

To keep up with pacing, we're going back to Alex and Harlow.  Harlow tries to frame Alex for stealing a pair of shoes, but now they've both been arrested with two of Harlow's friends for stealing a pair of shoes. To make matters worse, Harlow has drugs in the pocket of the jacket Alex was wearing...

Chapter 4 + Chapter 5
Playlist

Chapter 4
-1- Highway by Olafur Arnalds
-2- Dark Becomes Light by The Album Leaf

Chapter 5
-1- Broken Arrow by The Album Leaf

Brotherly Love ?

I Said It'd Never Be Done
So...here we are, there are two POVs going on in Compulsion and one of them has the characters from Sundays, told through the perspective of Harlow. Why Harlow ? Because honestly in TDOSH I learned that Haley's POV is really lacking. Also I have another reason, but we will get to that later...


You guys, I wrote Sundays nearly 4 years ago and after I posted it I'd convinced myself I'd never look at it again. But after TDOSH I  just kept thinking, and thinking and thinking and suddenly I had an actual story for those characters.

I was writing Compulsion!Harlow/Alex at the same time I was writing Jonah/Ethan so there relationships kind of parallels but the Harlow/Alex one is a huge extrapolation to Jonah/Ethan dynamic.


BTW LiLe, Harlow Haley (HH) has been making some appearances on your blog , agreeing with all the messed up things the character do.I'm surprised I didn't get called out on this...

HHOctober 17, 2014 at 11:25 PM

Lol, that blunt object joke was some dark humor…but I thought it was hilarious.

Reply

Replies

Linda LeighOctober 17, 2014 at 11:32 PM
I could get darker, lol.




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HHOctober 13, 2014 at 6:19 PM
Lile, maybe this is meta, but do you think Martin could have ever been good or did his parents completely screw that up for him ? It seems like he could have been decent if Clierro weren't in the picture.

Also, you love Claudia, but I kind of love Derek.
Reply


Replies





Linda LeighOctober 13, 2014 at 7:17 PM
I agree, I think Martin's parents ruined him. I mean they killed someone and covered and up and got married becuase they. . . had to. . . and Roger was a drunk . . . wait.




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HHSeptember 26, 2014 at 11:49 PM

I just don’t hate Fierro here, he is doing and saying what he needs to to survive...
Reply
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NYCBaristaOctober 18, 2014 at 11:44 PM
Helios is such a condescending do*chebag. I wonder why he has to show off all the time...also what do you imagine he is talking about with those guys ? I mean don't SGI have to keep most of what they do secret ?
Reply
Replies


HHOctober 18, 2014 at 11:45 PM

And yet..I don’t hate him.

Linda LeighOctober 18, 2014 at 11:48 PM
@ NYCBarista - hmm, maybe they want him to get rid of some vampires at CVS... or maybe they want his help to take down a new drug cartel that just came on the scene. IDK ?

@HH - I like him too. . . kind of... this comment is on to something tiny.


 
 (Harlow is supposed to be a little bit crazy, so I'm concerned with how much you agree with him.)

Ahead of the Game
Fun fact; I finally took my chapters from Word and put them in Yola and I have 10 chapters done..now because this is two stories it's more like 3 chapters each, but it's a record for me to be this far ahead. I'm not sure if this means I will be able to post faster, because I want to stay ahead, but it's a nice start.
 
Compulsion 3
So to recap; Alan is turning 20 and dodging bar shoot outs and Haley is being arrested... 


Compulsion 3
Playlist
-1- Suspects by Olafur Arnulds
-2- Au Revior by One Republic ( I will make use of the entire Native Album)

Shaking Things Up and Building the World of Vice

Let's talk about world building....

Building Vice
I'm going to talk a little bit about worldbuilding. I'm not sure the exact moment I decided Vice/Veritas would be a cyberpunk story, but when I began this cyberpunk venture world building wasn't really on my mind. As I've read and researched more I've started to think more on how to build a world.

I've been actively thinking on how this future would look.It's a future that exists several decades after a war, but still along our own timeline. I resist making Vice all "futuristic-y" because Vice only takes place about 85 years in the future. And while things do evolve, some familiar things stay. I mean 85 years ago from now was1929 and I mean alot of things that existed back then still exits: Maybelline mascara, Levi jeans, Ford Cars, The Great Gastby etc.

When I built the original Veritas world I played more closely to the classic cyberpunk tropes; drugs, hacking, technology, crapsack world, rampant immorality than I did to the future building and I kept that same spirit in Vice.

So, that is to say I may have car makes with made up  models, a few invented technologies, but I just don't see the Vice world as everyone on hoverboard with jetpacks.

Does that make sense ? This all started because I wasn't sure if I should use the word radio or not. I mean, would radios still exist ? This happens a lot when I wonder if a certain item would still exists and when I try and come up with fashion. It just makes my brain hurt sometimes.

Compulsion 2 / Moving On™
I forgot to include rhat Moving On in the last post. We've re-met our gang and now things are about to get interesting....

Compulsion 2
Playlist (still haven't kicked the top 40)
-1- Magic by Coldplay (I was so in love with this song when I heard it first, it could reallyfit into any of my serials)
-2- Pills N Potions by Nicki Minaj
-3- Coming of Age by Foster The People

*Deep Breath*....Let's Try Something

It's time for Compulsion....

 

Let's Try Something....Familiar ?
So, we've made it to a Vice sequel where no one died in the last installment, so with that Vice 2 is going to have a very different vibe from Hidden.

Things do get different and a little crazy, but we're going to ease in slowly and figure this all out together.

Here is a quick (poorly done) recap of Vice

In the year 2100 in the Western Republic;

Alan Gray is kidnapped from his home in the Eastern State by a group of assassins for the Shinjuku Cartel, a chrome cartel led by Rayne Washington.When Alan has a dangerous overdose he must join the cartel to keep himself alive

In a turn of events, Alan discovers he isn't human at all, but an android made by his mother in an secret illlegal Tempus project that cost her her identity. His disspeareace caught the attention of the government and now he must remain,um..Hidden. (hmm)

Sara Grace is an assassian and hacker for the Shy Cartel and brings in millions by being the only person who can hack the Republican Liberation Army draft. And others are noticing.

Jean and Minnow Dory are siblings caught up in the cartel lifestyle. Jean, a popular male escort who sticks by Sara's side and Minnow a teen drug addict and escort who stands by Jean and the Cartel but not trusted enough to join it herself.

Luce Grace, Sara's son who is part cyborg and is pushed by his mother to live a normal life for however long his cybernetic surgeries will keep him alive.

But now the  Republic is changing. A war between East and West for power and control has started and after a corruption is discovered the  newly formed RLA has been put in charge of the government.

Compulsion 1
Playlist (Guess I still haven't kicked the Top 40 artists habit)
-1- Money on My Mind by Sam Smith
-2- Wasted by Tiesto

Vice 2 Title Reveal... and More Flash Fics

ARE YOU READY ?

After coming off HMLIS this title felt a little one-wordy, but I kept coming back to it so...ta da ! However, I still like the idea of shorthanding it as V2.

I really enjoyed the HMLIS world, but coming back to the Vice world always feels right. I've been living in this story for a while and I'm excited to share it. I think a lot of what I liked about writing HMLIS like different POVs, mystery elements and of course family drama (and how) will all come back in Vice 2.

I think I'm usurping LiLe as the giant hype machine.... 

Vice 2 Updates
So, I now have 53 songs on my playlist, I have no idea when that happened ! I'm still a little apprehensive about how to start posting this story, I think this is something we will have to figure out together.

And I don't mean to hype, but just about every chapter in Vice (after the first few introductory ones) I wonder if I've gone too far...

Novella Time ! 
So, these two novellas tell the story of the two mothers of the Vice Universe. I didn't do it this way on purpose, it just happened.

The Answer is Yes
This one is a little bit... weird, I'm not even sure how I got the idea, the first words  just kind of came to me. This story is about Alan's mother and I kind of had to be creative with her not calling him by his name because  I'm not sure I even know his name and I like it not being canon...yet. So just to clear it up; she calls him some names, but none of those are his name.

Also I do a minor retcon

The Answer is Yes
Playlist Here
- Tunglio- by Olfaur Arnalds




Last Regrets (Originally titled We All Fall Down, which explains the link name.)
This story is all the backstory I couldn't put into Vice. It was a lot of fun to work with ! 

Last Regrets
Playlist Here
-1- I Lose Myself by Core Gray Madilyn Bailey
-2- We Are Young by Boyce Avenue

Let's Just Talk About Vice 2

So, a little bird (so,Erik) told me you all have been made some wishlists for Vice 2. I thought I'd give my 10 cents:

15 Qs and Some As

1. Some undercover scheme that involves Sara having to pretend to be a stripper.
I haven't written it, but I imagine something like this does actually happen.But not with Sara.

2. On the serious side I would seriously love for Maxwell to show up again, maybe get a little mini origin story with him. I would also want Hayley to show up. . . but I'm rooting hard for him.
This is what I get for TDOSHing Sundays instead of leaving the door closed isn't it ?

3. Also I think Dakota would be am interesting advisary
He does show up in an adversarial way

4. Alan's real last name. Or at least a tiny inkling
I don't know what it is to be honest and I kind of like it better that way. Juggling not saying his real name does come up and I had to find an...interesting way to get around it. More on this later.

5. Finding out that Tempus made a live evil twin version of Alan and then he can have a side series
This does not happen. Sorry !

6. A love interest for Sara because she has a sad backstory
Hmm...

7. A love interest for Luce because that clashing with Sara would be funny ! LOL
As far as I know this does not happen, but I can only imagine the crack.  Although Luce has a HUGE crush on Minnow if it isn't obvious by how mean he is to her.
 
8. MORE MINNIE. That is all
In Vice 2 Minnie steps up a lot and I'd like to think takes a level in badass

9.  I also think Dakota would be a cool antagonist along with Bell
Some of this conflict is in there...

10. More new characters
And how. Please send ideas for cool / futuristic names.

11.  A fun side story with Mrs. Washington and Sara from the past
Kind of... I mean minus the fun.   

12. A cameo as a super-cool hacker, black market doctor or maybe a high class hooker. I'm flexible 
Sure. done ! Internal monologue: ....what the hell am I writing ?

13. Imagine Dragons !
Well, there is lots of  Coldplay, Hozier and Sam Smith

14. CHAPTER ONE. If I could just see that . . .
If I could just figure out which one is going to be Chapter 1...

15. Perhaps some more literary quotes ! In Veritas we had Twilight and in Vice we of course had Slaughterhouse Five.
I don't have any of these right now. HMLIS kind of literary quoted me out.  
 

HMLIS Goodies

I have two HMLIS bonuses to share. One is a flash fic (and I mean flash) at the link below and the other is about 500 words of  chapter 1 with a third person POV. Also, I've done some small updates to the site.

The Truth About Bridges
Playlist: - Photograph- by Ed Sheerhan (My new ES Fave!)

HMLIS Chapter 1 in 3rd person.

Bellum Gif Post and...things

It's a Bellum GIF Post !!!!

So, can we talk Bellum  for a sec ?

My general  reaction to Ariel

My General Reaction to Helios

When Seraphina showed her allegiance to the Demons

 

When Pariphina Happened

"She finally looks into my eyes.

Oh, she wasn’t done with me yet."

 When Paris Said He Loved Seraphina

But Then Sera didn't say she loved Paris

Then I was like:

Seriously, Lile

As for you Parisobel Shippers

Now, Listen Up Lile

About Bellum II

So, about Vice 2. Some days I feel all:

But mostly I'm

Oh, one more thing guys.....

Everybody Calm Down

 First things first this is a novella. And not just any novella, but an AU-crackfic-noncannonical-vault-worthy novella. 

21 Love 

See that little heart in the corner ? That's the logo for 21 Love a romance imprint from my friend Olivia Jeffrey. She publishes love stories for the 21st century.

What does that mean about UL ? Nothing much

 I have however agreed to let her include any other UL related novellas I may/may not write into her anthologies with the expectation  that I own the online rights to the stories. To help cross promote 21Love I'm going to put this on her blog. She's not doing much with the blog, but if the right idea comes along, I could make a serial for that blog.

More ?

You probably want to know if there is more UL novellas planned. As of right now, I'm deep in Vice 2 so I don't have any UL things planned, but one day in the future I will finish and do something with the mess that was OHG. I have the perfect concept, but I need to figure out the execution.

Meet Olivia

Ready for UL Promises ? Check it out on Olivia's blog !

If you want to comment, OJ and I will both be checking them on my blog since hers is still in development !