Entry 615 - On Writing

[virgo186]

...okay, as promised, back out of "serious business" stuff and back into more fun things. It's been a while since I've done one of these, and inspiration needs to happen so I can write things again. Gonna be a little tough, but let's try doing all the same.

A friend of mine is going through a similar thing, so hey, I figured this can help us both! We can swap prompts, suggest ideas, get a little writing in, and hopefully jumpstart us into other work. If anyone's still reading this and wants to join in, go for it! Just remember to play nice, no flaming or attitude. If you want to concrit, watch the language please. This is just for fun anyway, nothing pro about it.

So for ideas to get this started, let's see...some team interactions, perhaps? Two characters in the kitchen, three people in a car, a group on a picnic? Weather things, food things, clothing things? This is a good way to play with characters old and new, original or fanfic-based, crossovers or single-series. Anything goes!

Now to go dig out some of my profiles and work on those, a certain surly firebird needs to get on the ball here so I can maybe get back to that spitefic...

Let the party begin, and let the writing flow!

~Virgo

Comments

[mgnsh83]

I have somewhat of an idea, did you want to run this like an RP, or with each person doing a bit of prose as a stand-alone? I'm good either way, just let me know. :)

[virgo186]

We could easily have a thread or two of RP-style posts, if you had characters you wanted to play with. I was mostly thinking of short stories and random scenes for the most part, but one could easily have their own thread of on-going story if they wanted as well.

Pretty much anything goes, haha. :)

[virgo186]

Let's see, how to kick things off on my end...I suppose I could try doing a little bit with my Magical Rewrite cure team, they do have first names and details so they'd be good to work with.

Still have to come up with a few things for the Triforce team, only one has a first name, heh.

I suppose a thread for some PCMR to start with, and any questions that come up can be answered here as well! Solves a lot of problems that way, and it's extra writing inspiration! :)

[virgo186]

(So we'll start off with a scene for what would be the first episode of the series, where our lead cure first meets the adorable team mascot and we get things started, that seems good...)

"You're very special, Yumemi-chan."

It was hard to believe, but the sight of a little rabbit creature with crooked ears sitting on the sidewalk and talking to her...Yumemi couldn't help but stare. This was a joke, right? Was someone nearby with a camera, filming her reaction? Was she hearing someone else pretending to be a talking rabbit?

"This isn't a very good joke," Yumemi commented softly, glancing around.

"It's not a joke, Yumemi-chan."

Okay, this time she saw the rabbit's mouth move, so maybe the voice was coming from it--or her, it sounded female anyway.

"How do you know my name?"

"I was there in the shop when you introduced yourself," the rabbit explained. "I've been looking for you, actually."

"Looking for me? Why me?"

The rabbit tilted her head a bit. "You have no idea?"

What a silly question. "No, I don't know why you're looking for me,"Yumemi replied, leaving off what she wanted to add. If I did know, why would I say I didn't?

The rabbit smiled at her. "You're a very special person, and there's something great that you're a part of," she said. "I came to find you so I can help you."

That still didn't explain much. "You haven't really told me why I'm so special."

Off in the distance, there was a sound of rumbling and a few voices--screaming voices. Yumemi looked up quickly, trying to figure out where they were coming from.

"You're about to find out," the rabbit stated. "Let's go!"

(To be continued oooo~)

[virgo186]

(Blah blah blah, enemies for the first battle, blah blah blah let's have some transformation going on because I should post something and that works, right? Heh.)

"I don't even have anything I can throw at it!" Yumemi exclaimed, watching the monster lumbering ever closer to their location. "How am I supposed to get rid of it?"

"Ah, I knew I forgot something," the little rabbit answered, before twitching her nose and making a ball of pink light appear in front of the girl. "Take this."

The ball of light landed in Yumemi's open hand, and an odd-looking pen formed in its place. It had a thick barrel of gold metal, and the top held a pink heart-shaped crystal. Inside, she could just make out a small gold star.

"Twist the barrel."

Yumemi did as told, twisting the pen until she could see a stylus tip glowing with pink light. "Is this thing--?"

"Draw a five-point star in front of you."

As ridiculous as it sounded, Yumemi figured she didn't have any other ideas. She waved the pen as she would any other, drawing a star in the air and watching lines of pink light emerge. "Now what?"

"Hold up the pen and say the words that come to you!"

Yumemi almost wanted to ask just what she meant, but the moment she opened her mouth...

"Pretty Cure! Starting New Chapter!"

Someone once said that only those who have experienced a transformation can truly explain how it feels. The sensations, the emotions, everything seems to change all at once, time seems to pass slowly but also in an instant. Yumemi had no idea what to expect, and indeed, had no idea what had just taken place.

All she knew now was that her outfit had changed into some kind of pink and white costume, and her hair was now longer and pulled up. She reached out--and found two light pink tails, not her usual hair at all.

The little rabbit looked very proud of her. "Well done!"

Of course, just when Yumemi wanted to ask her something again, this time the monster had noticed her. It had stopped in place, staring at her as if confused. Perhaps it was, just like her.

"You've awakened your power," the rabbit spoke up again. "Now you have the power to defeat evil, Cure Memory!"

"Cure Memory?" That sounded like a really odd name...but then, the costume was just as odd, maybe it fit. Of course, there was something about the name that brought up even more questions...

"Renga?" Yumemi asked. "Does this make me...am I...

...am I a magical girl now?"

(...okay yeah it's not very long and it might differ from the 'official' version, but hey, it's funny. I hope.

The rabbit-type fairy, Renga, takes her name from a story-style poetry form I learned about way back, in school, and I thought it'd fit here with the story-telling theme.)

[virgo186]

So in this other thread here, to keep my stuff organized, I figure I'll share some moments from a completely ridiculous thing I came up with out of sheer boredom one day...well, okay, I think it's kinda fun but others may not agree.

A team of twenty-somethings getting to dress as game characters and save the world, because nerdy never goes out of style.

Make way for the hunter agent trio, this is their thread! :)

(As above, if there are any questions or comments for this one, feel free to add them to this thread, I'll answer anything~)

[virgo186]

(So okay, before we get into anything, my brain once tried coming up with one of those "back of the book here's a bit of sneak-peek" type of blurb things. It's ridiculous, but I still wanted to try it, so here we go...)

It all started with a coffee maker...

Who says that growing up means giving up games with costumes? Does giving up really mean putting the dressing up away? When the going gets tough, the tough...get nerdy! A trio of adults with a strong nerd side suit up to save their city from villains who may be just as nerdy as they are. Finding allies in the strangest places (like a retail shop) and training in unusual ways (a day at the mall?), the team has a big job on their hands, one that could challenge even the most determined gamers.

This one, of course, doesn't come with an infinite life cheat.

Nor do they get endless continues.

It might take a lot of caffeine and determination, but this team is up to the task. Luckily, they know their material!

Who says being a nerd means you can't do something cool?

Join the Hunter Agents on their journey, and follow along as they fight together for everlasting peace!

(To think, it all started with a coffee maker...)

---

(...yup, I'm a nerd and it's a nerdy idea with nerds. Go nerds.)

[virgo186]

(Okay, maybe the entire story didn't start with a coffee maker, but the guys heading out and recruiting their third hunter did, so that counts, right? Let's see how that got going...)

It was never a good sign when something was dismantled in the kitchen.

It was especially bad when that something, in this case, was the coffee maker.

The basket and carafe sat in the sink, the lid of the brewer open, and Elise stood over the machine with screwdriver in hand, frowning into the water tank. Definitely bad.

"Another one?" Shadow asked simply.

Elise looked up at him and nodded. "It's amazing it lasted this long, really," she explained. "Looks like an internal break, we'll have to see about getting a new one."

Shadow only nodded, reaching for his keys. "Where's the place you bought that one?"

Silver blinked, staring at his partner. "Wait a minute, you're going out now? It's just a coffee maker, you have one at home, right?"

"Not the point."

Elise tried to hide her smile. She knew, for a fact, that the coffee maker couldn't wait. "There's a store out in the mall area that has a good selection and decent prices, and I believe that's where this one came from," she replied, giving them the name. "At least, I believe they should still have some."

"You really can't just get take-out coffee or something and go tomorrow?" Silver asked. "Traffic out there this time of day is crazy, we just got back--"

Shadow only stared at him. "I'm leaving without you if you don't make up your mind."

Silver sighed. "I'm coming, I'm coming."

"Good luck!" Elise called to them, waiting until the door closed before gazing at the machine once more. At least this could potentially be turned into a doorstop, or perhaps the pieces could be used for home repairs...

---

(...yup, Agent Shadow (assumed name) takes his coffee very seriously. Agent Silver (also a fake name, he plays one of the spitefic not-twins) is still relatively new at this point, it's been a year or so but he's still learning a bit. Elise, while technically not exactly an active hunter agent, is still useful--she hangs out at the "base" (which is actually a rather nice house) and provides info on things...and runs the kitchen. She gets actual battle time later in the series--her first time is the holiday special!)

[virgo186]

(Oh, what they hey, let's skip ahead a bit towards the first actual on-screen battle, huh? Also introducing our third member of the trio, a rookie among the veterans but still not too bad...)

"Aren't all the coffee makers the same, anyway? It shouldn't matter how much they cost, it's all the same parts, right?"

"Not the point."

They had managed to find the store Elise had suggested, and spent a few minutes wandering around before they found the right department. Luckily, someone had been working in the shoe section, not too far away, and she had directed them to where they needed to be.

The problem now was waiting for Shadow to pick just the right machine for the base kitchen, and that would take a while.

"Well, they all look the same to me," Silver commented, picking up a nearby thermal mug and turning it around a couple of times. "What's the difference besides the price?"

"Some are bigger than others," Shadow answered simply, lifting the lid on a display model and gazing into the water tank. "We need one that will hold enough for a full day."

"Why not look into one of those big industrial things, then?"

Shadow closed the display's lid and stared at him blankly for a moment. "Out of anyone's price range, let alone our own."

Silver shrugged. "It'd hold enough, anyway."

Shadow sighed, moving to another display and inspecting the carafe this time. "Hmm..."

Setting the mug down, Silver turned and glanced around. He'd never been into shopping for kitchen stuff--it wasn't his thing. He was starting to wonder why he'd even bothered to tag along...

...until Shadow set the carafe back into the display and spoke two very familiar words:

"Something's coming."

There was that instinct, kicking in--something Silver had learned early on, during his first few battles, Shadow's sense of looming danger before the actual first signs appeared. So far, it had always been accurate.

Sure enough, the overhead music cut out, and the lights dimmed --a sure sign that an enemy was in the area. A quick look around revealed no civilians standing by, stuck in place. That was a good thing.

Well, until they heard a door close nearby, and the worker they'd seen in the shoe department came out into the walkway, frantically looking around trying to see what was happening.

"Let's go," Shadow spoke up, walking over and gesturing that Silver should follow.

The worker spotted them first, running up to them. "Do you guys know what's going on?" she asked. "I didn't hear a storm or anything--"

The answer to the question, at that moment, appeared around the corner, slowly moving in their direction. Granted, some of the enemy units up to now had been ridiculous, Silver admitted, but this one...this one really took the cake. It looked like a giant robotic scorpion...almost familiar, really.

The worker spoke up first. "So do you guys know why the demented scorpion-bot is hanging out in my store instead of on a highway somewhere?"

"So that's why this thing looks so familiar," Shadow said, almost sarcastic. "I suppose it had to come up sometime."

The creature spotted them at that moment, and the trio had only a moment to quickly dive out of the way. There was no choice now--they had to fight it, and first, they had to get the worker awakened.

Silver pulled the blue metal key from his pocket, noticing that across the way, Shadow had done the same with his own red key. They had nothing for the worker...not until Silver's key began to glow, and after a moment, another key had appeared next to it. A purple key, presumably for the worker.

He slid the key across the tiled walkway in her direction, watching as she caught it. "Follow our lead!" he directed, holding his key up as the others did the same...

---

(Hahaha cliffhanger for transformation purposes since this was getting long. Yup, our duo becomes a trio, and for those who know the nerdy source material...yeah, scorpion-bot and a purple rookie. No horrible dubbing or ridiculous whiny "screw work I quit now" plotlines, but eh. To be continued~)

[virgo186]

(Okay yeah getting back to this thing and skipping the transformation sequence because this is also still in progress so blah blah transform blah moving on okay...)

Silver was used to how the blue armor felt around him. To a point, it was comforting--a sign he was ready to take on whatever was thrown his way. He imagined Shadow feeling the same, and glanced over. Sure enough, the other Hunter was in his own red armor, sword drawn, waiting for the next move.

Then, of course, there was their newbie, and well...

"You're our third one?"

She blinked at Silver, as if she couldn't believe his question, before looking down at the purple and black armor she now wore. "I guess so," she answered. "Not bad, heh."

"But you're a girl." The statement was out before he could even realize he'd thought of it.

The worker's blank stare said quite a bit. "Your point?"

"Fight now, bicker later," Shadow directed, herding the rookie behind a fixture loaded with shoeboxes. "We need a strategy."

Okay, a strategy sounded like a really good idea, and the closer that thing got, the less time they had to react.

"Anyone remember what the right thing is to hit, and what's just going to make it really angry?" Silver asked, hiding behind a rack of hanging clothing.

"Three of us and one of them," the rookie spoke up. "How about we just aim for everything we can, and hope something works?"

Shadow glanced over at Silver with a shrug. "Sound good to you?"

Three against one, decent odds. Maybe the rookie wasn't too bad. At least she wasn't trying to run away like some girls would. Of course, he added to himself, she was the first girl he'd actually seen fighting with them, so maybe it was too soon. He hadn't even seen Elise join them, and she was probably--

"Move!" Shadow directed, leaping from his spot and running forward. The rookie was behind him for a moment before ducking behind another fixture and heading for a spot near the enemy's back end.

Silver took up the same idea, quickly leaving his location and heading for the monster's rear on the other side of the aisle. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad, trying to fight in here. They could use enough hiding places.

The rookie nodded to him from her spot, raising the twin pistols her costume came with. She was ready.

Silver nodded back. Ready as well.

They'd wait until Shadow got the ball rolling...

...and maybe after the battle, he'd finally get her name.

---

(Yeah, more cliffhanger, just a short one. The rookie does have a codename, just not released yet--she's Agent Blaze, to keep the theme going. To a point, she's based on yours truly, hehehe. If anything else comes up for questions, ask away! More to come~)

[virgo186]

Just in case I do get any ideas for the other precure fan-series I have in the works, this will be the thread for any of that stuff! Keeping the nerd train rolling with Trinity Force Pretty Cure (or just triforce precure, or TFPC for super-short because either way nerd stuff).

Still working on details and such for this one, but if I do come up with anything to share, it'll be here.

Breaking things down seems to help. :)

(I just feel so weird, though, like I'm spamming...)

[virgo186]

Oh man, I have yet another fan-series in the works, where do I get all of these? More with the Precure, this one is looking to be a music-based one. Still a lot to work on, but the three main girls have first names and cure names, so it's something.

Soon to be live on stage, coming to an online post near you, be ready for Let's Rockin'! Pretty Cure and all their shenanigans.

(...I really do need to figure out how to get all this stuff done...)