Words and Worlds

My name is Nikki/Nikkil, whichever you would prefer, and I’m a storyteller. I like experimenting with new ways of combining various forms of media to see if I can tell stories that resonate with people that maybe connect with visual or physical input more than they do the written word, because everyone deserves to be able to enjoy stories in their “native language”, so to speak. I write predominately upper YA/crossover adult stuff, with a focus on science fiction and fantasy. Reoccurring worlds include No Loyal Knight, Metallic Heartbeat, The Color of Magpies, and Jericho.

[nikkil-rp]

GOBLIN MARKET: Chapter 8

GOBLIN MARKET: Chapter 8

The first time Siobhra had seen the Lady, she had been seven years old. It had been midwinter’s eve, and the hall had been packed with light and sound. The fire at the center of the hall had been burning taller than some of the children, and Siobhra couldn’t figure out where to sit. Too close, and it felt like her skin was cracking off and her lungs were turning into an oven. Too far, and she…

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[nikkil-rp]

Hello! (Writeblr Intro, 2019 Edition)

Hey everyone! It’s been pretty quiet around here lately—I guess university does that to a person. However, I’ve finished up for the summer and I’ll be taking a gap year this fall, so I’ll have way more time to dedicate toward my own projects now. I’ve started interacting with the writeblr community a bit more, so I thought now was a good time to reintroduce myself!

My name is Nikki/Nikkil, whichever you would prefer, and I’m a storyteller. I’ve been actively writing since about 2007, and drawing or painting since about 2009. I’m studying illustration and creative writing at university, along with things like acting and other nonconventional storytelling methods. I like experimenting with new ways of combining various forms of media to see if I can tell stories that resonate with people that maybe connect with visual or physical input more than they do the written word, because everyone deserves to be able to enjoy stories in their “native language”, so to speak. I write predominately upper YA/crossover adult stuff, with a focus on science fiction and fantasy.

I created this blog because I love being able to interact with people over my stories. When I was a freshman in high school, I somehow managed to write a 50,000 word story over the course of about ten months (it started as a NaNoWriMo novel, but did not end that way), and I posted the chapters on my itty bitty DeviantART account. One or two people found it and, despite its dubious quality, diligently read and commented on it all the way through to the very end, and I was over the moon about it. There’s a reason I said I’m a storyteller—for me, it’s a performance art. Having an audience and going back and forth with them, seeing what things they really enjoyed and just talking with them about my characters is a huge, huge part of what I love about writing.

I specifically named it “nikkil-rp” because, also in high school, a few friends and I started passing notebooks back and forth during our downtime in class and would have conversations between our characters, and it was really fun. I’ve got a separate Wordpress blog (nikkilbook.wordpress.com), where I put the sequential, beginning-to-end stories, but I wanted to have a place where I could ramble about my characters, organize all the art that I have/will draw of them, write little side stories, and hopefully interact with other people who are as passionate about stories as I am, whether that be in or out of character. As you can tell if you spend even half a second looking at this blog, right now it’s about 90% ask games that I wanted to have somewhere to put, since a lot of them double quite nicely as character development sheets. If you’d like, you’re welcome to ask me anything you’d like about my characters or my worlds or writing in general, or you could send me an in-character roleplay starter, and we could get something going!

In any case, I’m really happy to have you on my blog, and I can’t wait to share my worlds with you. Thanks for coming!

Important Links

Current Works-In-Progress (As of 21 May 2018)

Masterpost: Characters and Worlds

Words and Worlds (My WordPress blog, with story excerpts, poems, and nonfiction)

[malaykawrites]

My writeblr’s still hecking naked, so--

I joined writeblr a few days ago and, though it’s been fun [believe me, it has been], I sorta feel like I haven’t delved far enough into it.

Looking for writeblrs to follow, so if you write any of the following [or know anyone does], just reblog / tag them! Thank you so much.

Oh, in case you wanted to see my writeblr intro! :’D Oh, and my wip intro too!

not a huge fan of romance, but ‘enemies to lovers’, ‘i was supposed to kill you, but i’m switching sides’ and secret relationships butter my fucking croissant.

pirates & mermaids / pirates alone / mermaids alone

heists / assassinations / heavy use of disguise & cross-dressing

like those plots where royalty / nobility / heirs to the throne exist

found family, if it ain’t too much??

accurate mental health rep

anything with lgbt+ representation and has characters of color MCs. no, no, not that one gay neighbor or their favorite black classmate. real POCs

And if you have any other killer concepts, lemme know! Can’t wait to sink my teeth [and eyes, obvi] into your wip! <3 buh bye

[all-my-novels]

my current original wip focuses on animals but has POC leads eventually and also LGBT rep all over the place

[nikkil-rp]

I’ve only just started delving into the writeblr community, too. @nikkil-rp is where I try and post excerpts and talk about my characters and worlds. @nikkilbook is my main, and where my art winds up (it’s almost exclusively of my characters).

Current WIP is GOBLIN MARKET, a middle grade fantasy inspired by 10th century Ireland about Siobhra, a young girl who lives near a goblin mound and a mysterious stone circle who has to decide whether or not to take a dangerous deal to figure out where she fits.

Current Works-In-Progress (As of 21 May 2018)

(A/N): All of these are/will be posted to my Wordpress blog, nikkilbook.wordpress.com. The links below will send you to the individual proje

Masterpost: Characters and Worlds

The Color of Magpies A second world novella, on the line between steampunk and fantasy, set in a structure called the House—a gigantic orr

Words and Worlds

Words and Worlds

[nikkilbook]

🖤: what are your MC names? 💘: give us a huge spoiler

Thanks so much for the ask!

🖤: Well, there are a bunch. For all my other projects, I’ll just link to this, but for my current project (GOBLIN MARKET, middle grade fantasy), we have:

Siobhra, our main character. She’s an anxious little bean who likes to visit the goblin mound and the mysterious stone circle near her village in the moors. She doesn’t seem to fit anywhere, and this upsets her. She is one of the fosters of the hall, and never knew her parents. (Also, she is autistic! She’s my baby.)

Modhl, Siobhra’s best friend. She’s a changeling that lives in the village, but she often misses the market.

Apple Core, a young goblin boy that Siobhra likes to talk to. He helped her come up with a kind of sign language for when she can’t talk.

Aidan, a shepherd boy who lives in the village, and Aisling’s twin. Knows his way around the rules of the market and the moors. Very protective of his friends.

Aisling, a shepherd girl who lives in the village, and Aidan’s twin. Quick to empathize with others and very protective.

Warp, a young goblin girl who was close to Modhl before she was placed above ground.

Liadan, a young human girl who was swapped for a goblin three human generations ago. She’s very clever and likes to try and game the system of rules that control the market.

Momma Weaver, a old goblin woman who watches out for Siobhra and tries to figure out why the deals of the market don’t seem to work on Siobhra.

The Lady, an ethereal woman who lives in the stone circle. She cares for Siobhra, and her circle is one of the only places where Siobhra feels completely safe and like she can be herself.

The Quiet Man, a strange man who appeared in the Lady’s circle a few days ago. He seems familiar, but Siobhra doesn’t know why.

💘: (Ooh, this is like pulling teeth—aaaah!)

Siobhra isn’t human. She is part Tuatha and part Femorian. Only two people know this, and Siobhra is not one of them.

Again, thanks so much for asking! I never get to do these things. :D

[nikkil-rp]

Siobhra Imagines

Imagine a girl who isn't afraid of the dark. Not because she is fearless, but because the dark is where the world hides its stories.

Imagine a girl who keeps these stories to herself because the world did not give her the words she needed to tell them.

Imagine a girl who will hide from unexpected noises but who found a hole in the side of the old burial mound and decided to climb down the stairs that weren't supposed to be.

Imagine a girl who walked up to a goblin, gave him her name and ate his fruit, and walked away again with no strings attached.

Imagine a girl who replays stories in her head to keep herself company, because she doesn't know how to invite people into her skin.

Imagine a girl who loves with a deepness she doesn't understand, who loves human and goblin and the power that holds up the night sky, but has to work at convincing herself they love her back, because her heart can't read the shape of theirs.

Imagine a girl who knows more about the moors and the peoples who call them home than she does about herself because in ten years, no one has been able to tell her her own story.

Imagine a girl who is afraid of everything except the dark, who hopes that day she'll find her own story hidden there.

Imagine Siobhra.

[reverseblackholeofwords]

Prompt List

(Props to my Discord cutie pies for helping me out on this!)

1. “I am not a smart man.”

2. The ceiling fan crashes to the floor. “Um, I can explain.”

3. “Please shut up. You’re stupidity is making my brain hurt.”

4. “When was the last time you ate?” There’s a long pause. “You know what, if you have to think that long, you need to eat something.”

5. “Let go, or so help me, I will bite you.”

6. “Aw, they’re so cute when they’re sleeping…”

7. “Just go back to sleep. It’s okay.”

8. “So, just theoretically, do you know any good places to dump a body? Asking for a friend.”

9. Everything was falling apart. “I’m fine.” They were, of course, lying.

10. Their vision goes black, and they crumble into a heap.

11. “Listen, don’t ask any questions. I just need you to trust me on this one.”

12. “You’re too adorable. Stop it.”

13. “Calm down. Breathe. It’s okay. We’ll figure this out together.”

14. “I hope you step on a Leggo in the dark, you absolute burnt piece of toast.”

15. “That’s… moldy. Are you sure you wanna eat–? Okay, sure. Go ahead.”

16. “Can’t… breathe…”

17. “You keep sneezing. Are you sick?”

18. “Why didn’t you tell me that you got hurt?”

19. “Um, why are there bubbles everywhere?”

20. “Tell me again why you stole the [insert thing]?”

21. “Grab some blankets and pillows. We’re making a fort!”

22. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry! I swear I didn’t mean to do that!”

23. “Oh wow, you’re bleeding… a lot. S-sit down, okay? Don’t fall!”

24. “What do you mean they’ve been turned into a kid?”

25. “Look, I know we had an agreement because it put a strain on our relationship. But just one more time okay?” The Mario Kart theme starts playing in the background.

26. “What is it that the kids say these days? ‘Yeet’?”

27. “Please pass the salt. No, put [insert name] down!”

28. “Don’t leave me. I think I’m being followed…”

29. “Stop putting yourself in danger all the time, or I swear, I’m going to kill you!”

30. “Huh… what did you put in this ice cream again?” “That was the special ice cream, why would you eat it?”

31. “I will burn the heart and soul out of you.”

32. “What did they do to you?”

33. “So we decided to do some renovations while you were away. Ignore the giant hole in the wall. That’s on purpose.”

34. “Please put the bottle down.”

35. “I don’t want to go back there. Please, let me stay with you.”

36. “Join the club. We have hats.”

37. “Don’t you dare talk about them that way.” “They’ve killed multiple people.” “It’s just a phase.”

38. “I think I’m dying.”

39. “Why are you making pudding at 3 AM?”

40. “That didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would.”

41. “Pack your bags, nerds, we’re going to [insert place name]!”

42. “What do you mean you don’t know where they are? I thought you were with them!”

43. “You know what? I liked you better before… Yeah, never mind, I never liked you.”

44. “So I have an idea. Wh-why are you rolling your eyes? I haven’t told you what it is yet!”

45. “Just leave me alone. I’m used to it at this point anyway.”

46. “Of course I missed you.”

47. Person comes back to a burning house. “I was gone for literally five minutes, guys.”

48. “I promise I’ll never ask you for anything ever again if you just do this one thing for me.”

49. “Why are you soaking wet?” “Well, you are not gunna believe this!”

50. “It’s so cold in here.” “Stop whining. I am not cuddling with you.”

[reverseblackholeofwords]

You can use these or come up with your own prompts for the Retro today!

[hellsdemonictrinity]

Angst/Fluff Prompt List Part 2

The first one was a big hit, so I hope you’re ready for a second one! These can work with ANY fandom! Reblog if you wish! (Please give credit, to where credit is due <3)!

“I need you.”

“You’re family.”

“I care about you.”

“Can I join you.”

“You made your choice.”

“This isn’t fair!”

“How could you do this?”

“Do you hate me?”

“I could never leave you behind.”

“Come with me.”

“That’s sweet.”

“You look great.”

“Where are you going?”

“That’s new.”

“Let me help you.”

“Drop the attitude.”

“Are you okay?”

“I’ve got you.”

“I’m worried about you.”

“You don’t seem like yourself tonight.”

“Do you like it?”

“You smell nice.”

“They didn’t deserve you.”

“I trust you, do you trust me?”

“Karma is a bitch.”

“What the hell?”

“Son of a bitch.”

“I hope your day gets better.”

“I’m here if you need to talk.”

“Are you listening to me?”

“Sorry.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“Why are you acting like this?”

“How do I look?”

“Damned if I do, damned if I don’t.”

“What is this about?”

“You look like hell.”

“I haven’t seen you in a few days.”

“It’s good to see you.”

“You know, you can stay if you want to.”

“I’m not pissed, I’m hurt.”

“Truth hurts, doesn’t it?”

“I almost feel bad for you.”

“What you did was stupid.”

“No.  You listen to me.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“I know you’re scared.”

“You’re a terrible liar.”

“You’re not helping.”

“It’s not safe here.”

“You should leave.”

“Everything is fine.”

“I’ll keep you safe.”

“I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“Just go away.”

“You don’t have to act like you’re okay.”

“I’m only here to help.”

“Don’t mind if I do.”

“Don’t you think you’ve done enough?”

“Thanks for nothing.”

“I’m done.”

“You think that this is easy for me?”

“I hate seeing you like this.”

“You make me so mad.”

“I brought you dinner.”

“Say what?”

“You’ll be fine.”

“You’ve got me on your side.”

“I don’t like you…. I love you.”

“I don’t want you… I need you.”

“What are you doing here?”

“It’s okay to cry.”

“I can tell you’re lying.”

“You’re in danger.”

“You deserve better.”

“You’ve changed.”

“I think I’m in trouble.”

“You always find a way to surprise me.”

“You did what you had to do.”

“You have no idea.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

“This is just great.”

“You’re here late.”

“What’s on your mind?”

“I wanted to apologize.”

“It’s just you and me.”

“I’m just looking out for you.”

“I never meant to fall in love with you, I just did.”

“Calm down.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Oh come on.”

“No one is perfect.”

“You’ve been quiet.”

“What did you just say?”

“I’ll always be there for you.”

“Fair enough.”

“When you fall, I’ll always be right there to catch you.”

“I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”

“You’re not crazy.”

“I’m not leaving.”

“I hope you’re happy.”

“You’re the only person I wanted to be with tonight.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

“You’re not going anywhere.”

“You believe me, don’t you?”

“Regardless of what they think, I know you’re an amazing person.”

“Shhh…  You need to be quiet.”

“Fuck you!”

“You don’t even know me.”

[reverseblackholeofwords]

Let’s do some fluff and hurt/comfort type stuff!

[reverseblackholeofwords]

Hurt/Comfort Prompts

(Was looking for some good prompts and couldn’t find any so here’s my first attempt at making a prompt list… So give me a prompt and a pair of Egos!)

1. “I heard you shout. Nightmares again?”

2. “Stop this. You’re just hurting yourself.”

3. “You’re going to bed. Now.”

4. “Please stay with me.”

5. “Could you come and get me?”

6. “Where are you? Tell me where you are.”

7. “Please don’t go out alone.”

8. “Look at me, okay? Breathe.”

9. “I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere.”

10. “You left me alone.”

11. “Oh my gosh, you’re bleeding.”

12. “Where did those bruises come from?”

13. “Please don’t shut me out right now.”

14. “I can’t help but blame you for this.”

15. “Will you hold my hand?”

16. “Why does everyone always leave me?”

17. “What did I do wrong this time?”

18. “I’m just a burden on everyone.”

19. “You don’t look fine to me. Why don’t you tell me what’s wrong?”

20. “Just talk to me. You can’t handle this alone.”

21. “Nobody understands what this feels like!”

22. “I just want to go back to when everything was better.”

23. “I feel stuck, like I’m going in circles.”

24. “I need to get out of here. I can’t breathe.”

25. “Give me the bottle.”

[reverseblackholeofwords]

One-word Writing Prompts

Just thought I’d make some interesting prompts to celebrate making it through the first week of the new semester! Send two characters, a word, and feel free to add additional details if you want!

Sleepy: Person A has to try to get Person B to sleep

Alone: Person A is cut off from others as Person B tries to reach them

Missing: Person A has gone missing, and Person B is determined to find them

Quiet: Person A won’t answer Person B’s questions

Laugh: Person A tries to cheer up Person B

Protect: Person A protects Person B

Argue: Person A and Person B have a disagreement

Warm: Person A comforts Person B

Sick: Person A cares for a sick Person B

Scared: Person A is suddenly scared of Person B

Injured: Person A finds Person B injured

Magic: Person A casts a spell on Person B

Food: Person A gets Person B to eat something

Gift: Person A gives a gift to Person B

Nightmares: Person A wakes up from a nightmare and finds Person B

Fight: Person A and Person B have to fight side by side (or each other)

Hero: Person A saves Person B

Help: Person A asks Person B for help

[nikkil-rp]

Hey everyone! I think I mentioned earlier that I took a creative writing class this semester that was specifically for Young Adult and Middle Grade novels. We had our finals today, and it was to read four minutes from any part of the manuscript. I had a classmate record me since I had a couple friends who couldn’t make it, and I thought I share it with you! If you’re interested in reading more about these characters, you can find the WIP here.

Transcript under the cut, and there are captions for anyone who needs them! 

VIDEO TRANSCRIPT:

Okay, so my name is Nikki Lower. My novel is called GOBLIN MARKET, and it is a middle grade novel. GOBLIN MARKET is the story of Siobhra, who is a young girl who lives in a village next to a goblin mound and a mysterious stone circle. This is the story of her first visit to the circle. 

The woman hadn’t said anything. She just sat there looking at Siobhra with eyes as deep and far away as the horizon. Normally, having someone stare at her would make Siobhra’s brain itch, but the Lady’s eyes didn’t prickle. They covered Siobhra like a heavy blanket. With each passing second, her thoughts got a little bit slower and a little bit smoother, until she could walk through them as easily as she could the stalls of the market, but without any of the bustle or chaos. She’d never felt this before. 

“Are you a goblin?”

She didn’t remember deciding to say anything. She didn’t remember lining up the thoughts and telling the muscles in her mouth to move. She just remembered hearing the words hang in the air in front of her lips. 

The woman tilted her head to the side. “Why do you ask?”

“You feel different. You look like a person, but the air feels like magic, same as the market. Are you a goblin?”

The woman shook her head. “I have never been to the kingdom under the mountain. Such as I are not welcome in the market.”

Siobhra wound her fingers into the grass and pulled, like she was brushing the tangles out of someone’s hair. “That doesn’t make sense. Modhl and Momma Weaver both say that everybody is allowed in the market. They want people to come.”

“If everybody is allowed, then I must be nobody.”

Siobhra stared at the woman. Actually stared at her—not at the air next to her face or the fabric on her shoulders. She looked at the woman’s face, letting her gaze slide across the woman’s features, trying to understand. What she’d said didn’t sound like it should be a thing, but there was something about the way she’d said it…. “What’s it like? Being a nobody?”

The heavy blanket of the woman’s gaze weighed down even more. “It takes some getting used to. No matter how many anybodies there are, you’ll never make an everybody, and even somebody eventually moves on, because nobody wants to be alone.”

Siobhra heard the sounds coming toward her, could tell they were making word shapes, but for a few moments, all she heard was a wall of indecipherable sound. Eventually, the sounds connected with the pile of words in her head, and she was able to put together what she’d just heard. Even after sound had given way to complete sentences, however, Siobhra still had to struggle to understand. 

“Do…do you want to be alone?” Do you want me to leave?

The woman’s head tilted slightly. “Do you?”

She thought of the hall, with all its noise and light and heat. She thought of the cool press of bodies and the thrumming pulse of music that filled the goblin market. She thought of the way her feet had carried her away from all that. She thought of lying down with no one but the stars for company. 

She thought of figures riding up to the door. 

“No.” The woman nodded. It wasn’t one of those nods that said yes so much as one of those that the lord or his wife gave when the bard told a particularly good story. “Did you have a purpose in coming to the circle?”

Siobhra didn’t know how to answer that. She’d wanted to be somewhere that didn’t have so much everything all at once. Did that count as a purpose? Or was the woman looking for something specific? What words she had scattered like tufts of cottongrass in the wind. “I…don’t know?”

Neither of them spoke. The silence stretched between them, and so did the space. When Siobhra remembered this first visit, she couldn’t tell whether anything had actually changed, but she would swear tha the circle had become as big as the whole world, that it was the world, and she and the Lady were on opposite ends of it. 

[a-blrofonesown]

Prepping for a Critique—Call for Readers

Hey all! So I’m up for a critique of my second chapter in my creative writing class on Monday, and I’m working through the revisions this weekend. I would really appreciate a few sets of eyes on it, especially fresh ones. I always work better when I can get the story out of my head and into the wild.

This novel’s a middle grade fantasy, currently titled GOBLIN MARKET, about a girl named Siobhra, who lives in a village near a goblin mound, who has to choose whether or not to make a dangerous deal to find out where she belongs. The setting is inspired by 10th Century Ireland, so if there are any history buffs out there, I’d love your eyes on this!

If you’re interested, shoot me a message/comment below/reblog this and lemme know, and I’ll send you the link to the Google Doc. Normally I’d use my WordPress blog for this, but the prose is in such constant flux at this point I thought it would be more hassle than it was worth.

Thanks!

(p.s. - This story features one of my autistic characters. If you are also autistic, I’d love to hear how the descriptions and characterization worked for you. I’m autistic, but I’m also only one person, so I’d like to crowdsource this a bit.)

[nikkil-rp]

THE COLOR OF MAGPIES: Chapter 2

THE COLOR OF MAGPIES: Chapter 2

The tall leaded windows of the infirmary sphere cast a shadow play against the whitewashed inner walls. Light from the evening sun and lines of shadow from the boughs of the Mother Tree and the distant tracks and spheres of the House danced with one another, painting themselves across the sterile infirmary. Metal-framed beds with starched white curtains to either side created corridors of silence…

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[nikkil-rp]

THE COLOR OF MAGPIES: Chapter 1

Back pressed against the exterior wall of the tenement sphere, Magatha squeezed her eyes shut and tried to breathe. She gripped the catwalk railing with one hand, her fist so tight that the bones o…

Hey Writeblrs! (ConCrit Request)

Hi, all! I’ve started working on the novella expansion of my short story, The Color of Magpies. Some of you may have seen the crosspost for this chapter last week or so--I’ve made a couple changes based on an IRL writing group I attend. However, the people in my group have a bit of pre-existing knowledge about the story, so I’m trying to get some fresh eyes on it to see how well the scene fires. If you have the time, I’d really appreciate some feedback. It doesn’t have to be anything extensive. An answer to any of these questions would be great!

What kind of story do you think I am promising you? What story would you expect to follow this opening?

How do you feel about Magatha as a main character? Would you be interested in reading a whole story from her perspective?

Were you ever confused or bored? If so, where?

Is there anything you thought was really cool and would like to see more of?

You can post your answers wherever--on the WordPress post, on this post, in a message, wherever you feel most comfortable! Thanks!

[nikkil-rp]

OFF Day 4 - Quotes

(A/N): For @originalficfest . This has been a heck of a scavenger hunt, particularly for the NO LOYAL KNIGHT ones. I only have the first one or two chapters written for each of these stories (all of which can be read here), so I had to go digging through old drafts for some of these quotes. Pardon the quality on the NLK v2 quotes--Those were all written in 2013, with all the melodrama of a high school senior. I’ve included as many introductory quotes as I can, either from the character’s first appearance or their first POV scene, as well as a couple of quotes that really sum up the heart of the character or their story as a whole. You can read more about all these projects on my WIP page and my Characters and Worlds masterpost. Enjoy!

Opening Character Lines:

Koltor Bryant (MH)

Koltor cried out. He couldn’t move. They had him tied down, and intense pain pulsed through the right side of his body. He pulled against the restraints, but they refused to give.

He jerked his right arm and heard something rip. The unexpected release of tension set him off balance, and a loud thunk met his fall to the floor. The impact startled him the rest of the way awake. His breath came in short gasps, and every time the air rushed past the back of his throat, he felt a sharp prickle accompanied by the bitter taste of copper. He’d been shouting in his sleep again.

DiPersia Iaonsen (MH)

Di swung her legs over the edge of the catwalk and slid under the guard rails. She crouched low as her feet hit one of the long cylindrical pipelines that fed pressurized steam from one end of the engine to the next. Snapping one of her carabiners onto the safety wires almost as an afterthought, Di scurried over to one of the feedback panels set into the outer shell of the boiler.

Jericho (J)

This must be what the inside of an ice grinder feels like, Jericho thought dully. The dust-turned-ice storm had blown in quickly, and the temperature on the surface was well below freezing. Shards of ice howled around him in miniature tornadoes that felt like they were made of dull knives, and the oxygen converter on his face felt like it was about to short out at any second.

Ania Kyatei (NLK v3)

A leaf blew across the book on Ania’s lap, sticking in the crease between the pages. She brushed it away, and read the last line again. To understand yourself is to understand your opponent, and to understand is to respect. This is the meaning of victory.

Magatha Briggs (CofM)

Back pressed against the exterior wall of the tenement sphere, Magatha squeezed her eyes shut and tried to breathe. She gripped the catwalk railing with one hand, her fist so tight that the bones of her hand threatened to come apart at the joints. The blue morning light filtering through the leaves of the distant Mother Tree at the center of the spheres of the House was at odds with the black pit inside her chest. She was dizzy, and everything was out of focus. She had to hurry. The people inside the sphere needed her.

Kaelan West (CofM)

The speaker—a man about her age—was dichromatic, more so than any other person she could remember ever having seen. The dual skin tones, a deep brown and a paler beige, swirled around each other, like two dyes dropped into a beaker of water, frozen in that fraction of a moment before the solution diffused to a single color. 

Randen Derris (NLK v2)

Randen sat on the mattress with his shirt in his hands, and looked down at the scratches that covered his tan arms. Most of them were fairly shallow, but more than one was still a deep crimson, with white, enflamed skin puckering about the edges.  He couldn't really feel the pain – he'd pushed it to the back of his mind, where it was nothing more than a dull buzz – but just looking at the cuts brought back the wrenching fear that had filled his gut the night before. 

Elyys Faye (NLK v2)

His mother had always told him that he was useless, and he was incapable of doing anything, but he couldn't remember if he'd ever done anything besides just being a boy to prove her right. There had been a man among those three blood soldier. He hadn't seemed weaker than the others. In fact, he seemed like he was their equal.  

His mother had sent him here to die. He never had to see her again. He didn't have to live up to anything she thought ever again.  

"I decide who I am," he whispered. "I decide." 

Skaught Farstrend (NLK v2)

He fell to his knees as a scream forced its way out of his throat. His arm was on fire. It felt like the bone had shattered and was trying to force its way out through his old scar. The back of his neck was filled with shooting sparks of pain until his mind had nearly shut completely down. He'd never felt this much pain before. His heart started skipping beats. It couldn't keep up with the waves of pain that were shooting out of his arm.  

Mya Tohgis (NLK v2)

She yanked her knife out of one of the figures, twisting it on the way out the same way she did when slaughtering an animal back at home. She had a sick taste in her mouth, and it wasn't from the pale dust that covered her blade and hands where there should have been slick red blood. Strength? That girl obviously knew nothing of strength. There was no strength in words, only actions. There was power in knowing she could do anything to anyone and no one could stop her. That was why she was here – to have that power.

Quintessential Character Quotes:

Ania Kyatei (NLK v2)

"Oh, come now, Master – I thought tricks were what you were looking for," she shouted to the darkness. "Who can jump the highest, last the longest, fight the hardest? Who can be the best blood soldier? That's what you want me to be, isn't? You want me to be just like you!" With a vicious stab, she got rid of another black cloak, this time before it had even raised a weapon. "But that's the problem – you don't even know what you are! You think you're blood soldiers. You think you're apathetic, and apart from everything. You think nothing concerns you anymore. You think that you're above everything, and that even if you wanted to, there's nothing you could do to help anyone but yourselves!" She yanked her spear out of the gut of another black cloak. Her voice grew louder and louder with each word until it sounded like it was coming from the mouth of a giant. "That's what everyone else believes about you, and now you believe it, too. You think that just because someone expects it of you, that's what you have to be. And now you think you can do it to me. You think that you can decide who and what I am just because of a name, or what you think is most important. Well, let me tell you – I won't let you! I still believe in what Knights are, even if you don't. I believe in helping people, even if they are scared of what I am. You can't take that away from me, because I won't let you. You can't define who I am – I do that. You think I'm weak. You think I'm naive. But I still believe in myself, and that's all the strength I need!" 

Koltor Bryant (MH)

He hadn’t slept in five months. Sure, he’d close his eyes, and sometimes he’d slide in and out of consciousness, but the exhaustion was still there every time he crawled out of bed. Instead of resetting every night, the days strung together like a single never-ending nightmare. There was a dry ache in his left eye socket, and a dull pressure just behind his brow ridge, but those had been there long before the coma. Sleep had always been a rare commodity on deployment, but this was worse. He was used to “tired”, not this bone-melting exhaustion. He had no reason to be awake any more. Everything was so silent, like he’d been buried alive. His cabin was just a proactive coffin.

Sometimes, just before he woke up, he’d hear breathing near him, and he’d feel the heat of twenty bodies around him. He’d hear the snap as wind caught the edges of the tent. He’d feel the ground rumble beneath him, feel the weight of his rifle on the cot with him. But then the air conditioning unit would switch on, and he’d realize the rumbling he felt was the engines of the cityship Arboretum, and he was back in his cabin, alone, the same way he had been every day for the last five months.

Kaelan West (CofM)

“I thought these black and white birds were the most beautiful things in the sky. When they fly, they’re focused, like nothing in the world can stop them. When the sun catches their feathers, they shine like a stained glass window. They’re more than just black and white, but the starkness of their feathers is only emphasized by the iridescence.” The bird adjusted its wings, and Magatha saw it—a flash of the deepest greens and blues. “They are beautiful because they are different, but even that doesn’t matter. They are simply themselves.”

The magpie hopped up onto Kaelan’s hand, and he lifted the bird to his eye level. “I’ve noticed that the people of the House have a tendency to think in binaries, with no thought to the true nature of things. They see only the black and white, not the color that makes those things beautiful. Black, white. Success, failure. It isn’t all or nothing. Success isn’t dependent on you running yourself into the ground, trying to save the world all by yourself. Maybe everyone else sees you as the only one who can do this, but that isn’t the way the world works. There is nuance there, just like the color of a magpie’s wings.”

Jericho (J)

“If I say yes, will you stop disturbing the peace?”

“And let you die of boredom?” Jericho laughed as Joshua rolled his eyes, but then his voice turned quiet. “I’ve told you before, Joshua. I don’t disturb the peace. No one in their right mind can disturb true peace.”

“Oh? Then what do you do?”

“I make people notice things.” Jericho met the young man’s eyes. “But you already notice most of the important things. If you were in charge, something tells me that those shackles up top wouldn’t see use for a very long time.”

[nikkil-rp]

OFF Day 6 - Pictures

(A/N): For @originalficfest. This is where I gripe that I haven’t drawn as many pictures as I would like of my characters. I have a few, but not as many as you would think, what with me being an illustration major. I try to pick things from my stories as school projects as often as I can, but I haven’t had the chance to work on an explicitly personal art project in a very long time. I definitely want to do it more often, and I have one or two ideas right now. First on the list is a cover for NO LOYAL KNIGHT, followed by an updated cover for METALLIC HEARTBEAT. Also, if any of you are interested, I’d be more than happy to talk with you about making custom artwork for your own projects. You can read more about NO LOYAL KNIGHT, METALLIC HEARTBEAT, and THE COLOR OF MAGPIES on my WIP page and my Characters and Worlds masterpost. Enjoy!

NO LOYAL KNIGHT

Top Row, left to right: Elyys Faye, my cheerful boi; Ania Kyatei, my main girl; Randen Derris, my someone-please-hug-him boi

Bottom Row, left to right: Alecgorn Eldan, my Responsible Adult(TM); Skaught Farstrend, my overstressed and angery boi; Mya Tohgis, my why-would-you-do-that-why-are-you-this-way

Design for the Palace in Magani, the Jewelled City.

METALLIC HEARTBEAT

Left to right: Koltor Bryant, my overstressed and in need of therapy cyborg boi; DiPersia (Di) Iaonsen, my capable but also super done with your crap cyborg girl. 

THE COLOR OF MAGPIES

Cover art, featuring Magatha, one of her magpie bros, the Mother Tree, and the rings of the House in the distance.

More Magathas and magpies that I did for a school project. Let it be known that I really hate Adobe Illustrator. 

[nikkil-rp]

OFF Day 5 - Music

(A/N): I was really excited when I saw this particular prompt on the @originalficfest list. Attaching characters and scenes to music is something that has helped me conceptualize my writing for a couple of years now, and it’s really fun. I’ve got YouTube playlists for both NO LOYAL KNIGHT and THE COLOR OF MAGPIES, and I try to add to it whenever I find a new song. Fun fact: I find Broadway soundtracks often fit better than other songs, because they seem to carry a stronger sense of story. Their specificity translates into a more universal application—which is actually a writing technique. Go figure. :) You can read more about NO LOYAL KNIGHT and THE COLOR OF MAGPIES on my WIP page and my Characters and Worlds masterpost. Enjoy!

NO LOYAL KNIGHT Soundtrack

The Script - Hall of Fame ft. will.i.am (Ania)

Lindsey Stirling - Something Wild ft. Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness (Randen)

Radical Face - The Mute (Randen)

Imagine Dragons - Bleeding Out (Skaught)

Loren Allred - Never Enough (Abagael, Skaught, and Amirone)

Rachel Platten - Better Place (Ania, Randen, Elyys)

Phillip Phillips - Gone, Gone, Gone (Ania, Randen)

Dear Evan Hansen - Good for You (Ania, the youngbloods)

Ben Platt - Words Fail (Ania)

Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Platt - Found/Tonight (Ania, the youngbloods)

Halsey - Castle (Mya)

Regina Spektor - The Call (Ania)

THE COLOR OF MAGPIES Soundtrack

Noteworthy/X-Ambassadors - Unsteady (Magatha)

Ben Platt - Waving Through a Window (Magatha)

Sara Barielles, Jason Mraz - You Matter to Me (Magatha, Kaelan)

Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks [Alternate Version] (Magatha, Kaelan)

Set It Off - Why Worry (Magatha)

Keala Settle - This is Me (Magatha)

[nikkil-rp]

OFF Day 2 - Romances

(A/N): I waffled a bit trying to decide what to share for @originalficfest ‘s Romantic Relationships Day. A few of the romances in my current projects are slow burns and a little spoilery. But one relationship, from my No Loyal Knight series, is, while a slow burn, basically the first thing you’ll hear me talk about if you are around me and my stuff for more than five minutes (#rania). Once upon a time, I was given the prompt to write a story that contained at least one cheesy pick-up line. I had to go digging for it, seeing as it is nearly six years old at this point, but it’s still cute, and I love these two. You can read more about No Loyal Knight and Ania and Randen on my WIP page and my Characters and Worlds masterpost. Enjoy!

“Be still, my beating heart.”

Ania turned, a smile on her face, to where Randen was leaning against the door frame. The sunlight spilling through the window made his white tunic glow like the bright edges of a cloud on a summer day and the gold embroidery and sash shine like the surface of the ocean. His storm-blue eyes glimmered like ice on water, a mischievous glint dancing just out of reach. He opened his arms, inviting, and it was only a few short strides before he held her tight, her long white dress drawn out behind her.

After an eternity that was entirely too short, Randen pulled back, his eyes tracing the lines of her face, drawing the picture of her that only he could see. He brushed his fingertips over the string of diamonds and black pearls that hung delicately across her forehead and long, black hair. At his touch, Ania’s chest filled with light, and she reached up to run her thumb gently along his cheek, smiling at the thought of everything that had brought them to this moment.

“Did it hurt?” he asked softly.

Her brow knit together in confusion. “What…?”

“When you fell down from heaven, did it hurt?”As he spoke, the mischievous glint in his eye spread to his mouth, his lips spreading in a grin.

Ania rolled her eyes and swatted him on the shoulder. “I cannot believe you just said that.” She tried to look stern, but one look at his infectious smile had her laughing despite her best efforts. He always had been able to do that. “How do you even come up with these things?”

“I’ve had nearly ten years to figure out which ones you’d like best.” The light in his eyes changed, and his brow wrinkled the tiniest bit, as he tried to tell her something he couldn’t quite find the words for. A lock of her hair fell down in front of her eyes, and he brushed it tenderly aside. “I... I always loved making you laugh.”

She cupped his face in her hands and gently tapped her finger three times against his cheek. She understood. “Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you for everything.”

“Let’s call it even.” Storm-blue eyes glistening, he bent to kiss her.

“Don’t you two even think of messing up my hard work.” A voice rang unexpectedly from the corner of the room. Looking up, Ania wasn’t terribly surprised to see Raea, carrying the sheer veil that was about to go in Ania’s hair. Glancing back at Randen, Ania wanted to cry. Instead of drawing into himself, like he would have only a few years ago, he was standing tall, with all the quiet confidence that he’d only dared show her in their moments alone. She was so proud of him. He didn’t even bother to look abashed at being caught in the bride’s room before the ceremony. He looked like he might even try to stay there until Raea started to physically herd him out the door. “Go on, Master Randen. There’ll be plenty of time for that at the altar. Now shoo!”

Randen paused just outside the door, pulling something from one of his coat pockets. Expertly dodging Raea’s arms, he gently threaded the stem of a white rosebud into Ania’s thick black hair. Looking at her one last time before he turned to leave, he all but whispered, “The sea itself would be jealous of your beauty, my angel.” And with that, he turned, walking towards their future.