Over the summer I will be updating author’s details in the Cafe and Bookstore and also sharing their bios, books and recent reviews with you in this …
Smorgasbord Cafe and Bookstore – Meet the Authors 2021 – #Fantasy Charles E. Yallowitz, #Crime Fiona Tarr, #Family Christa Polkinhorn
Parent? Author? Teaching Assistant? Blogger? Tired? Mover? I’m pretty sure I was all of these and more this week. Couldn’t really tell you what I did last weekend either, but I think I was busy. Feels like months ago too.
The parenting side was spending time with my son doing our usual unless he was at camp, which was the whole week. Last week of art camp to be specific, so we’ll see how he does with the other camp on Monday. This summer is going to be a wild rollercoaster for the little guy. 2 camps then splitting the remainder with me and his mom as well as a long road trip. A Mets game falls into the mix too. Oh, we also have 2 birthday parties next weekend and his own the follow weekend. Feels like only yesterday I was getting a smash cake for his first birthday. Time certainly flies.
I subbed at my school for 2 days, which created a good break between editing War of Nytefall: Anarchy and starting Slumberlord Chronicles: Darwin & the Fate Bracelet. I’ll get to those in a bit, but I don’t have much to say about working since I can’t on here. It was nice to see the students and coworkers again. Weird seeing some in summer clothes and walking around in casual clothes too. Almost felt like I was in the wrong place at times. This did leave me tired by the end of the day, especially since I had to hang around and wait 2 hours until I could pick up my son down the block. No wonder I was so sleepy by Friday.
The constant drama didn’t help . . . That’s enough about that.
Let’s get to the meat of the week. I finished the editing of War of Nytefall: Anarchy and took some time to dive into the new series. You can see that I switched ‘Slumberlord Tales’ for ‘Slumberlord Chronicles’, which I actually did weeks ago when I made the Word file. I’ve only written the prologue, so Darwin won’t be debuting on paper until this morning. It was clear that I had to get some of the War of Nytefall violence out of my system, but this creates an interesting contrast. It’s a dark world and adventure that Darwin is walking into with his happy, optimistic, helpful nature. Really hoping he comes out right because he’ll be such a challenge.
The thing that is worrying me a lot about Darwin is that my confidence keeps getting derailed. People go on about not liking heroes who stumble into victory after acting like an idiot? That’s how Darwin operates. People don’t think main characters should double as comic relief? Uh-oh. People don’t think I should give him habits that hint at him having autism? Crap. I feel like I’m stuck only because Darwin’s charm always came from him being different. He wasn’t a charming, brave, intuitive, risk-tasking warrior like Luke Callindor. He wasn’t a cunning, powerful, intimidating monster like Clyde. He was a goofball with magic who wanted to help people, had no knowledge of the world, trusted nearly everyone, and worked off a really childish sense of logic. Darwin is actually like Fizzle, but with a more mature speech pattern and much less common sense. Maybe I’ll post his debut on Tuesday to see how it comes off? We’ll see how my confidence goes.
The rest of my week was spent getting small projects done. All posts through September have been written and scheduled. I can’t touch October until some August polls get answers. Gives me time to write, get back into school come September, and develop a topic list for November. Beyond that, I watched ‘Leverage: Redemption’, which is a continuation of the original series. Most of the actors came back and it was really good, so it acted as a treat at the end of the day. With a new book in the works, I decided to start watching ‘Burn Notice’ again since I’ve seen it so often that I can use it as a mental cleanser between scenes. I have to throw something else in there to watch between seasons, so I don’t get bored. I’ll figure something out.
Goals of the next week?
Hero– I’m rather torn on this subject.
Villain– I flat out hate the thing. Almost as much as not having a name for this skit.
Hero– We can agree on that second problem.
Villain– Hear me out on eucatastrophe. It sucks. I spend all this time before the story begins and while it’s going on to prepare for this schmuck-
Hero– Hey!
Villain– I don’t like you, so shut up while I’m talking. Anyway, I spend an ungodly amount of time and money on my plans. I do what I can to stop this . . . gentleman from getting in my way. Then, he shows up, I’m on the verge of victory, and some ridiculous event hands him the win. Imagine training for a race, you’re almost at the finish line, and then someone goes by on a rocket bike which became legal while you running the last quarter mile.
Hero– That was a clumsy analogy.
Villain– So’s your face.
Hero– Rude . . . I kind of enjoy eucatastrophe in that I can win and avoid death. All heroes like that option. We can live happily ever after. Well, maybe not that. Many of us develop PTSD thanks to our ordeals, but that’s not on the page. The eucatastrophe doesn’t have anything to do with that.
Villain– Why have a I not stabbed your rambling face?
Hero– Because the guy writing this didn’t give you weapons.
Villain– Bastard.
Hero– The real downside is that I don’t really feel like the victory was mine. I’m happy to live and the world is safe, but a part of me wonders what all of the work was for. It helps if it’s shown that I did something to help the eucatastrophe to occur. That isn’t always the case, which is sad.
Villain– Sounds similar to what I said. These things can really make the idea of training and growing stronger become moot. Not really for me because one can assume I grew too powerful for the original plan to work. That is a decent reason for a eucatastrophe to occur, but really only once.
Hero– That doesn’t make me look good.
Villain– It is realistic in that you won’t know exactly what I’m capable of or what I’m doing until we meet. So, there’s no way to perfectly prepare. An outside force may be what’s needed to at least weaken me.
Hero– So, a eucatastrophe can also open the door for me to create the win by my own hand.
Villain– I don’t see why it can’t since it’s all part of the same event. You’ve been brought from the brink of destruction, but that doesn’t mean the threat is entirely gone. Only that you’re in a better position to act.
Hero– I changed my mind. I like eucatastrophes.
Villain– I still hate it.
Author– I hate typing the word. Glad this topic is over.
(Disclaimer: A warning to those who continue. This is a sequel to a previous story. Both of these were written in the mid-1990’s. While the first one was slightly edited and vanity press published, this one has not been touched in over 20 years. I figure I should do something with it and people may get a laugh or fright from how I used to be. Every author comes from somewhere, so this is part of my origin. To that end, I am deeply sorry for whatever nightmares I will inflict on the literary world and the American English language. Enjoy?)
The house was like every other house on the block. Blue siding and a flower garden in front of the porch. A concrete walkway goes from the driveway to the front porch. The front door has been recently painted creamy white and the number has been painted gold above an eyehole.
Adriana is standing on the front step for a few minutes before someone opens the door. She has changed into a dark red dress suit and she carries a leather briefcase in her right hand. Her hair has been tied up and a pair of thin glasses is on her face. A police badge and identification are in her. Both of these items she stole from a cop in one of the mall’s she visited.
“Can I help you?” asks the small woman that answers the door. Behind her is a stern looking man with dark black hair on his head and chin.
“Yes. My name is Jennifer Haley. I’m an investigator for the local police. A few people at the local high school have been wondering about your son. He has been missing for a very long time. I was sent to ask you and your husband some questions. Do you mind if I come in?” asks Adriana in a serious tone.
“Not at all. Please come in. Edward has been gone for over a year. Why are you investigating his disappearance now?”
Adriana takes a seat at the dining room table and fixes her skirt. “The department has been kept busy searching for the Mandervale child. They have a lot of pull with the community, so we have been unable to get any other missing people investigations done until recently. You and your husband have also been making up excuses for the disappearance that have put many people at ease. Am I correct?”
“Yes. For awhile, we thought Edward had just run away or was pulling another of his pranks. That boy can be such a handful with his antics. We were told that he had run away from several families beforehand,” explains Mr. Slane. He sits across from Adriana and crosses his arms on the table.
“Then, why did you not report it sooner?”
Mrs. Slane clears her throat before replying, “Edward tended to disappear for days before this last time. He was old enough to take care of himself, so we couldn’t do anything to stop him. My husband and I have a lot of faith in the fact that he can take care of himself. Besides, it isn’t like we are his real parents. There’s only so much influence we can have on him.”
Adriana takes off her glasses and puts them in a jacket pocket. “So, he isn’t your natural child. Can you tell me anything about his parents? He could have gone back to his old home or gone off in search of them.”
“I’m sorry we can’t be much help there. We adopted him from an orphanage outside of New York City. I don’t remember the name offhand because it was so long ago. They would know more about the parents than we do,” says Mrs. Slane. Adriana pulls out a pad and starts to write some notes on it.
“Is Edward in any trouble?” The question catches Adriana off-guard and she stops for a brief second.
“I’m not sure. I have only been asked to investigate his disappearance and try to locate him. I can’t tell if he would be in trouble or not. Would he be in some kind of trouble? They told me very little about him before I came out here. Does he have any problems with drugs or does he have a record?”
Mrs. Slane walks out of the room before she starts to break down, but her husband stays at the table. “I’m sorry. She grew very attached to Edward while he was with us. He was a troublemaker and had been caught for shoplifting and trespassing. I doubt he was into any type of drugs. Can I just say something about all this?”
“Go ahead.”
“I think you and your department should just leave him alone. It’s been over a year and the police had problems finding Edward in the past. Since he doesn’t want to be found, you should let him stay lost. He is always welcome in this house and I will not turn him away. But he’s had a tough life, so he deserves to be left alone,” mentions Mr. Slane.
“We have all had tough lives at some point,” says Adriana.
“Not like him. His father has been dead since he was brought to a hospital at the age of five. Most of the families that he lived with just wanted the money that came with him. He’s been abused and neglected for a very long time, which is why it is nearly impossible to control him. That is why I think you and your department should leave him alone. He’s been through enough already,” explains Mr. Slane.
“Thank you for that insight, Mr. Slane. But I have a job to do and I have to see it through to the end. Have a nice day, sir,” says Adriana. She picks up her stuff and sees herself outside. Without looking back, she goes across the street and makes her way to the local park. When she finds a secluded spot, Adriana pulls her regular clothing out of the briefcase and changes into them.
“Did you discover anything?” ask Tegam as he appears next to her. She jumps back and takes a fighting stance before she realizes who it is.
“Geez. Don’t do that to me, jester. I’m on edge enough as it is with two crazy guardians in the same galaxy. But I didn’t really discover anything new. Fate was adopted and was more of a delinquent than a hero. I did get the distinct feeling that those two were hiding something. It was like they didn’t want anyone to find Fate, but I don’t know why,” explains Adriana as she sits on the ground. A spider lands on her shoulder and she let’s in wander around until it touches her hair. Then he flicks the thing off and sends it sailing across the park.
“Maybe they know the truth,” says Tegam.
“What truth?” asks Adriana. Her voice has a tinge of nervousness behind it, but she quickly covers it up with a cough.
“He could have come to them after our first meeting and told them about him being an immortal. They might know everything about us and that is why they were protecting him.”
“Don’t make me laugh, Tegam. They wouldn’t know everything about us even if Fate had told them about the guardians. We don’t have time to figure out if that is true or not. I hope you got some information while walking around the house. Did you get an address?” asks Adriana as she gets up.
“I couldn’t take the paper, but I know where to go. Follow me,” says Tegam as he turns invisible. Adriana just stands there with her arms crossed.
“I should have taken Cybro with me. At least I can turn him off when he does something stupid,” she mutters.
As we established on Monday, eucatastrophe is when a story ends with the protagonist being rescued from the clutches of doom by an event beyond their control. So, how can you use it intentionally?
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay Hi SErs! Harmony here 🙂 Today, I’d like to introduce a series of posts on how to write Point of View (POV). Below…
How to Write Point of View, Part 1, Overview
Gollum
Coined by J.R.R. Tolkien, this type of event is one that closely resembles Deus Ex Machina. That means people don’t like it. Tolkien did say that this could happen with the use of Deus Ex Machina, but that isn’t easy to pull off. So, what is it?
Eucatastrophe– Combining the ‘Eu’ prefix for good with ‘Catastrophe’, this is when a sudden event at the end of story helps the protagonist. It ensures that the hero doesn’t fail or die. For example, Frodo having succumbing to The Ring still accomplishes his goal due to Gollum taking it, and the connected finger, into the volcano. Clearly, that wasn’t the intention, but it saved the day.
It really is hard to see how this is different from Deus Ex Machina if you are only looking at the basics. That would be the hero being saved by an event that is out of their control, which is how they both operate. Frodo is not in control of Gollum’s actions or aware of the attack being what saves the day. In this way, many people get the two types of endings mixed up.
The big difference is that eucatastrophe is plausible even if it happens beyond the control of the hero. It doesn’t come from nowhere. We know Gollum wants The Ring and will do anything to get it back. We can believe that he would pounce to stop it from being destroyed and claim it for himself. We can believe him biting Frodo’s finger off even though it gets him killed since his obsession is shown to be all-consuming. Nothing that happens at the end of this story is implausible. Surprising and unexpected? Yes. Yet, still possible under the rules and continuity of the story.
Another aspect of eucatastrophe is that it’s optimistic. Hence, the ‘eu’ or good prefix. It’s basically a disaster in favor of the hero. Weird way of putting it, but that’s how the word kind of translates. This connects the term to ‘Plot Armor’ as well, but it’s not as blunt and ridiculous. Again, there is evidence that the event can occur even if you have to read a second time to see it. It also means that this is a ‘happy ending’, which can strengthen the Deus Ex Machina idea. Such a delicate literary term, but I think it’s because you don’t see it very often outside of certain circles.
I don’t think this is as difficult a trick to pull off either. For a Plotter, you have the good ending in your head and know how to set the stage. Even if you switch to another idea, it will probably be something else that turned up and proved to be a better option. For a Pantser, it could end up being a cool idea that comes up from something else you did. There’s some connection to what’s been established, which is what eucatastrophe is built upon.
So, what do you think about Eucatastrophe? Have you ever used it even by accident?
The last year and a half have been brutal. More so for me if you count the divorce stuff beforehand. Anyway, I noticed a few songs really grabbed me during the pandemic and hit me harder than others. Part of the reason was that I had been paying a lot more attention to lyrics and my own mental state. I’m sure I’ve used most of these on the blog at least once. They’re all Alternative/Pop/Rock too. So, nothing old school because I typically don’t run into those songs when driving. Sorry.
Legends of Windemere 