Introducing the Character Directory

Ladies, gentlemen, and non-binary folk, please allow me to introduce you to a brand-new feature of this website: the Character Directory!

Yes, now whenever you hear me go on and on about a character about whom you know absolutely nothing, just head over to the Character Directory page and click on the character's name to get a detailed profile—or, for those pressed for time, a 140-character summary of their personality, Twitter-style.

Alas, previous few of the detailed profiles are actually complete, but I will continue to work on them, because apparently writing about my characters in purely theoretical terms is more appealing than actually working on my novel.

Here's a quick example of a completed profile, for a certain Arkady fe Normonne:

ARKADY 

Full name: Princess Arkadya Magati fa Normonne Prince Arkady Magati fe Normonne 

Age: 20

Gender: Male (Transgender) 

Appearance: 5'5" with pale skin, thin build, and long limbs and fingers. Dark brown/black hair cropped military-style. Dark eyes with epicanthic folds. Small, straight nose typical of fe Normonne ancestry. Small, bound breasts, the left of which has a scar under it. Muscled back and calloused fingers from archery. 

In 140 Characters: Shapeshifter, earth mage, trans man, and reluctant heir to the throne. Tries to avoid politics by running away to forest. Bad decision-maker. 

In More Than 140 Characters: Arkady is the only child and heir of King Mathylde of Kevarya. Because of his gender identity, his relationship with his mother—and with the entire royal court—is fraught with political tension. Introverted and guarded, Arkady does not trust easily and never has. He is fiercely intelligent with a deep hunger for knowledge and an observant eye, but beneath his quiet exterior lies an insecure and emotionally sensitive young man. Although he comes across as antisocial, Arkady is quite empathetic, especially in matters concerning the oppressed. He hates binaries, especially of gender, and has a personalized idea of masculinity to which he ascribes, entirely separate from society's definition of masculinity. To Arkady, gender is an individual creed, and a creed which he takes seriously. If you try to strip him of his identity or take away his freedom to be himself, hell hath no fury like Arkady fe Normonne.

Sound exciting? Well then, head on over and read more!

Valentines

Ah, Valentine's Day. A day to celebrate love in all its different forms. Though, come to think of it, Saint Valentine is also the patron saint of beekeeping, epilepsy, and the plague... and I'm sick in bed this Valentine's Day. Thank you ever so much, Saint Valentine. I'd better not have the actual plague.

Anyway, here are some... unique valentines my characters have sent and received this year.

To Willow Quince, from everyone's favorite bisexual scythe-and-swordswoman:

To a certain Creatrix, from Paris's most dangerous wannabe goddess:

To Sebastian Antonyve, from the Highest Adviser of Kevarya:

To Silias Longwood, from a notorious pyromaniacal rebel leader:

To Morian Redfern, from the resident drunken Scotsman:

And finally, to Geneviève Sondheim, from a brilliant neurologist who's a bit too morally gray for comfort:

Video: Control

What if the two most dangerous villains Amanda has ever created fought each other?

When Siona Donne breaks through the barrier between universes in search of information on a ritual to make her a goddess, Roderigo must learn how to access all the power of his formidable brain in order to protect himself and his family from the necromancer. // Higher-resolution video here. Siona played by Lara Pulver, Roderigo by Anthony Stewart Head. Shout-out to Katrina S. and Jay B., both of whom helped me forge these characters and their universes. I own none of these video clips.

To Avis Ladongale, On the Subject of Fixing Time

A banner made by myself, featuring the beautiful actress Jenna Coleman as the titular character in this upcoming piece. Why Jenna Coleman? Let's just say it has something to do with time...

I'm just gonna come out and say it: this is one of the stories that I consider dead. I've taken the concept as far as it can go and submitted it to several publications, all rejected. I suspect it has something to do with the universe being very highly-developed in my own head but underdeveloped on the page. But "To Avis Ladongale" is in essence a bare-bones piece, more of a prose poem than a story, and to flesh out the text would take it in an entirely different direction than I feel it was meant to go. Perhaps I'll write that other story someday.

To give credit where credit is due, my brilliant friend Katrina S. is the creator of Avis Ladongale herself and my partner, along with Jay B., in creating this strangest of universes in which the piece takes place.

To Avis Ladongale, On the Subject of Fixing Time