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    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012 edited
     

    I don’t know about you guys, but I’ve always found the idea of animals as personality symbols a fascinating one. For example, Rowling’s animal Patronuses and Phillip Pullman’s daemons. (I didn’t like His Dark Materials, but I found that part of his worldbuilding rather effective.) I’m kind of jealous that they thought up those ideas first.

    Basically, I’m trying to figure out a way to work the animal-as-personality-indicator thing into my WIP. I know that I’ll use it, I just don’t know how. Here’s what I’ve got so far, if that helps….

    MC: Stormie Wilson, a second-generation werewolf. Her father was bitten, and she inherited the disorder from him. Like her father, her personality is rather wolf-like: she is loyal, strong, intelligent and inquisitive, but also a loner, prone to temper fits and long periods of brooding. The mental disorders her father exhibited (paranoia, hypervigilance, an unwillingness to trust others) are echoed in Stormie.

    Villain: Don’t have a name for him yet, but I’m calling him Charlatan in my notes. He has the ability to take the life force from others and use it as his own. As such, he is incredibly old, but has never been caught as he has gone by several names since at least America’s colonial period. His cover as a faith healer allows him to get close to victims and appear as a hero to the unwary. He is best represented as a swan: a beautiful creature, long valued by society for its appearance of nobility and its seeming monogamy, but one that is actually quite cruel, territorial and demanding. (Just watch “Swan attacks Bride” or “Swan vs. Canine” to see what I mean.)

    MC’s Friend: Susan Albrecht. The daughter of a female minister in Cottage Grove, Oregon. She is best represented by a rabbit: cute and relatively sweet-tempered, but also skittish, naive, and sometimes preyed upon.

    The world, which I’m still fleshing out, is loosely based on Native American mythology and legend. Not as….naive as Avatar, I hope, where nature is always sweetness and light and nice to everyone (unless you piss it off by being an ignorant white guy) but more of a magical realism feel than some fantasy out there. I’ll try to explain it better if you need me to, but like I said, I’m still fleshing it out.

    It’s also set in the 1920s, if that helps any.

    •  
      CommentAuthorInkblot
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012
     

    Oh crap, I’m an ignorant white man! RUUNNNNN

    What, precisely, are you asking?

    If you want a way to work these animals into your story without using the “familiar” method of the two series you named, just have them hanging around in the background. If you want extra symbolism points, just have them sitting there without necessarily being pointed out by the characters.

    For instance, Susan raises rabbits. They’re just constantly being mentioned around her, but no one ever draws the obvious conclusion. It’s just kind of a background thing.

    I think that once you reveal that Stormie is a werewolf, and just keep using the same personality traits in both her incarnations, it’ll kinda click.

    (About that name… I like it, but it just sounds really… Sue. Might be just me.)

    The antagonist is the trickiest one. I guess put a reference to swans in his backstory. Or you could just have someone tell a story about a swan, like some wise old guy or something. “Ever seen a swan? Orneriest bird I ever did know. Reminds me a lot of that feller…” and so forth. Yes, it’s painfully obvious, but it could work.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012 edited
     

    What, precisely, are you asking?

    Basically, for what you just gave me: a way to work them in without ripping off Rowling or Pullman. I like your idea, though; it fits.

    About that name… I like it, but it just sounds really… Sue. Might be just me.

    That’s one of the things that made me hesitant to give it to her, but the more I thought about it, the more it fit. Espeically when I started fleshing out her dad more. He decided to name her Stormie, in honor of the storms his wife brought him through, and as a reminder that though her own life will be filled with storms, she can still survive. When he tells his wife, she just stares at him in disbelief and says she would have never given their daughter that name. For a portion of the story, Stormie goes by her middle name, Ann.

    I guess put a reference to swans in his backstory. Or you could just have someone tell a story about a swan, like some wise old guy or something. “Ever seen a swan? Orneriest bird I ever did know. Reminds me a lot of that feller…” and so forth. Yes, it’s painfully obvious, but it could work.

    I was actually already thinking about doing that, honestly.

    •  
      CommentAuthorInkblot
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012
     

    You should include a character like the Native American chief in Cowboy Bebop, who sits around lighting up the ganja and drawing sand pictures all day, utters a handful of mystic words, and falls silent for the rest of the episode. That guy was so cool it wasn’t even funny.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012
     

    Link? I kind of want to see this guy…..

    •  
      CommentAuthorApep
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012 edited
     

    Sounds interresting.

    Not sure if I can give you any adivce on integrating the animal motifs, sorry. Still, I can give you some feedback.

    I’m going to have to agree with Inkblot about the name Stormie. It sounds a bit odd, especially if you’re setting this in the 1920s. As a nickname, maybe. As a nickname, maybe, but not as a real, on-a-birth-certificate name.

    Aslo, given that you’re setting this in the ’20s, I’m wondering if/how you plan on integrating the First World War. But that’s mostly my inner history major speaking.

    Edit: Also, I’m not so sure about the ‘loner’ part of Stormie’s personality. I know there’s the whole ‘lone wolf’ thing, but I doubt that’s by choice.

    •  
      CommentAuthorKyllorac
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012 edited
     

    What’s stopping you from using animals as personality symbols outright? Cultures worldwide have a long history of associating particular animals to particular people. Totem animals, names (Richard the Lionheart), visual associations (such as personal or family crests, the animals motifs in the decoration of clothing and residence, etc.), the various zodiacs… the list goes on and on.

    Rowling and Pullman didn’t invent the use of animals to represent a person’s personality; you could actually claim that Pullman ripped off totem animals.

    If you insist on more covert methods, what about animal-themed jewelry? For instance, Charlatan could have a ring with a swan crest he always wears, or even a swan-shaped pendant. It’s unusual enough to be noticed, but not overtly so, seeing as how most men don’t wear pretty necklaces.

    but also a loner, prone to temper fits and long periods of brooding

    Wolves aren’t like that, even the lone ones. Wolves are highly social, and lone wolves actively seek out a mate (to form a new pack with), an existing pack that they may join, or even rejoin the pack they were born to. The omega wolf (lowest in the pack hierarchy) may appear to act like this, but that’s because the other wolves harass the omega to maintain their position within the pack, often driving the omega far from the main body of the pack.

    •  
      CommentAuthorInkblot
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012 edited
     

    His name is Laughing Bull.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012
     

    Wolves aren’t like that, even the lone ones. Wolves are highly social, and lone wolves actively seek out a mate (to form a new pack with), an existing pack that they may join, or even rejoin the pack they were born to. The omega wolf (lowest in the pack hierarchy) may appear to act like this, but that’s because the other wolves harass the omega to maintain their position within the pack, often driving the omega far from the main body of the pack.

    True, but only with other wolves. That’s kind of what I meant—she has a hard time getting along with everyone.

    Aslo, given that you’re setting this in the ’20s, I’m wondering if/how you plan on integrating the First World War. But that’s mostly my inner history major speaking.

    Still working on that. Any historical information would be appreciated.

    I’m going to have to agree with Inkblot about the name Stormie. It sounds a bit odd, especially if you’re setting this in the 1920s. As a nickname, maybe. As a nickname, maybe, but not as a real, on-a-birth-certificate name.

    But I like it! [/whine]

    You’re probably right, though. The last thing I want is a story full of Ribeye Clukes and Mero Corns.

    Rowling and Pullman didn’t invent the use of animals to represent a person’s personality; you could actually claim that Pullman ripped off totem animals.

    No, but the average Joe doesn’t know that. Just look at all the people claiming Harry Potter ripped off Twilight. :/

    If you insist on more covert methods, what about animal-themed jewelry? For instance, Charlatan could have a ring with a swan crest he always wears, or even a swan-shaped pendant. It’s unusual enough to be noticed, but not overtly so, seeing as how most men don’t wear pretty necklaces.

    I thought about doing that—and I liked the idea—but I wasn’t sure if it would be too….obvious. Like I said, I’m going for a more magical realism feel with this story (well, except for a few elements that aren’t exactly realistic….)

    But what did you think of the rest of it? Did the basic idea sound okay? Should I set it in a different time period?

    •  
      CommentAuthorInkblot
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012
     

    Is my picture not showing?

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012
     

    Oh, no. I can see it. He looks awesome :P

    I’ll try and find a clip of him after I eat dinner.

    •  
      CommentAuthorKyllorac
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012
     

    True, but only with other wolves. That’s kind of what I meant—she has a hard time getting along with everyone.

    That makes sense.

    No, but the average Joe doesn’t know that. Just look at all the people claiming Harry Potter ripped off Twilight. :/

    And do you really care about what they think? Are they the audience you want to appeal to?

    If so, that could be problematic, but on the other hand, it could act as an introduction to the use of totem animals throughout history. Stormie is half Cheyenne, and so through her, and perhaps even her perspective, you could tie totem animals into the story.

    I thought about doing that—and I liked the idea—but I wasn’t sure if it would be too….obvious

    I think characters would naturally notice when someone fiddles with a particular item, especially jewelry. You could easily work this fiddling into his character as a visual tic that he’s thinking, or nervous, or bored, etc. That way, it works as just a piece of jewelry, and also as his animal indicator.

    But what did you think of the rest of it? Did the basic idea sound okay? Should I set it in a different time period?

    The basic idea sounds fine. As for the time period, I see no reasons why the 20s wouldn’t work, and it’s not a common setting, which makes it feel more unique than other superficially similar stories.

    You now have me very curious about how you’ll work Prohibition into the story.

  1.  

    I like animal symbolism stuff a lot and try to use it pretty frequently(though I still need to do better at it), and I feel like it’s easiest to slip in through description, dialogue and such. If you’ve got a dream sequence or something like that you, you can push it a lot further. Or, as previously mentioned, an animal as a symbol of a family is something common enough that you can point to it without it seeming unusual.

    Wolves aren’t like that, even the lone ones. Wolves are highly social, and lone wolves actively seek out a mate (to form a new pack with), an existing pack that they may join, or even rejoin the pack they were born to.

    The interesting thing about this is that I suspect the imagery/symbolism of the lone wolf was originally striking because it was so incongruous with the nature of wolves and a lone wolf was something unnatural and tragic and such. Of course, it’s been run into the ground to the point that people think wolves actually behave that way.

    I’ve got a mysterious guy that’s heavily and overtly associated with wolves whose motivations/backstory are never really explained, but the reader can hopefully infer that stuff based on the lone wolf stuff.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 12th 2012
     

    If so, that could be problematic, but on the other hand, it could act as an introduction to the use of totem animals throughout history. Stormie is half Cheyenne, and so through her, and perhaps even her perspective, you could tie totem animals into the story.

    Hmm….and then she could apply her knowledge about totem animals to the characters who are represented by them. That could be an interesting thread to tie into the story—sort of a unique way for her to think about people.

    You now have me very curious about how you’ll work Prohibition into the story.

    Prohibition was one of the reasons I decided to set it in the 1920s in the first place. So many interesting little stories—most of them quite funny—about how people broke the law. I watched a PBS special about rumrunning in Spokane and Seattle, and they told one anecdote about a highly publicized raid on a Seattle speakeasy. Twenty-six people were arrested, including two police detectives, and the liquor was confiscated. When they went to trial, the jury said they wanted to examine the evidence. The judge agreed, and the jury took the liquor into a room, locked the door, and didn’t emerge for several hours. Well, a police officer broke the door down and found the jury sprawled out on the floor, surrounded by empty bottles. The jury was hauled before the judge, and the defense attorney said, with a completely straight face, that the case should be dismissed for lack of evidence.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 13th 2012 edited
     

    OKAY. I was thinking about Anastasio Cigne for Charlatan’s name. (Anastasio means “resurrection” and Cigne means “swans.”)

    •  
      CommentAuthorBeldam
    • CommentTimeJan 13th 2012
     

    The 20s was awesome, there’s so much you can talk about. Also depends on when during the twenties. Roaring twenties was all jazz, flapper girls, people spending money on crap they didn’t need, automobiles, the American Dream, airplanes and in conjunction Lucky Lindy, world war 1, prohibition, bootloogers, mafia, commercials and stupid adverts became huge as did new household inventions, and then, at the very tail end, the Great Depression, as we all know. Stuff was just going on all the time during this period. Plus, the clothes were badass. Hey, if this is the 20s, will your main character just be a regular old girl? Or a flapper-type trying to get free of the stuffy traditionalism of the previous generation and do something?

    Anyway, about motifs. Lessee, Cigne could occasionally hang out at the park (if you wanted him to seem innocuous enough) and swans gather round him/he feeds them/nice to swans and hates ducks. Or, where he’s introduced some swans or something could fly over honking. Or, if you want to be cliche but still awesome, he’s somewhere with lots of swans, someone comes up to him and he turns around, startling them, and then they fly up behind him making him look like he has wings. Cliche? Yeah. Cool? Very.

    Also, some characters can have nicknames that have to do with their nature, jewlerry and ornaments was already said, having them hang around that animal. Some way could be find to evoke the power but, that would be tough…. Oh, maybe the friend can drink bunnyhugs! XD I mean, its period correct, but it’s also the ultimate alcoholic drink so maybe not… Also, perhaps when Cigne soulsucks, in the brief moment of transition perhaps a person can see the animal spirt (?) moving out of its original owner and into him.

    Anyway, good luck!

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 13th 2012 edited
     

    Plus, the clothes were badass.

    HECK YES.

    Try and beat THAT with your stupid jeans and T-shirts. I DARE you.

    Hey, if this is the 20s, will your main character just be a regular old girl? Or a flapper-type trying to get free of the stuffy traditionalism of the previous generation and do something?

    More of a regular old girl. She (her name is Stormie for now, though I’m looking for a suitable substitute for her fun yet Sueish name) has too much going on in her life (most of it related, though she doesn’t know it, to Cigne) to bother with the flapper culture. Though I am considering having her bob her hair.

    Anyway, about motifs. Lessee, Cigne could occasionally hang out at the park (if you wanted him to seem innocuous enough) and swans gather round him/he feeds them/nice to swans and hates ducks.

    I like it. Reminds me of the time I went to this pond in the middle of a park downtown. On the opposite shore there were at least a hundred birds—swans, geese, and ducks. Well, the birds saw us, realized we might give them food, and all swam over at once. (In case you’re wondering, yes, it was a little terrifying, and I’m not even afraid of birds!) As they made their way to our side of the pond, the ducks and geese all gave the swans a wide berth. One poor duck swam too close and the swan leaned down and bit it on the head. Not hard enough to injure, but the duck left in a hurry anyway.

    Or, if you want to be cliche but still awesome, he’s somewhere with lots of swans, someone comes up to him and he turns around, startling them, and then they fly up behind him making him look like he has wings. Cliche? Yeah. Cool? Very.

    Agreed. That’s downright awesome.

    Oh, maybe the friend can drink bunnyhugs!

    I like the idea, but I don’t drink much, so I don’t know what those are….

    To Google!

    EDIT: HOLY COW THAT’S A LOT OF ALCOHOL.

    Also, perhaps when Cigne soulsucks, in the brief moment of transition perhaps a person can see the animal spirt (?) moving out of its original owner and into him.

    It’s not really soulsucking so much as it is taking their energy. I haven’t quite hashed out all the details yet….

    Thank you!

    •  
      CommentAuthorBeldam
    • CommentTimeJan 13th 2012
     

    YOU KNOW WHAT. If you like the twenties/thirties, you should read this webcomic if you don’t already. Shameless plugging aside, I doubt you will be dissapointed!

    Birds can be super scary, can’t they? I had similar experiences at this one pond as a kid. Except they were all geese. And they had teeth. And they would hiss at you if you didn’t give them food. People underestimate them because they’re soft and fluffy but they’re all really dinosaurs underneath. I really like the idea of a swan physically assaulting a wayward duck in such an, “Out of my way, peasant!” fashion. What great animals XD. Though, I’m surprised ducks take that kind of action. I mean ducks are…surprisingly ferocious towards their own kind, mallards in particular. And I’m talking rape-and-murder type ferocious, they’re really nasty. Definitely, that’s why making a villain a swan is so great. Birds are wonderfully innocuous to look at, but aren’t exactly disinclined to a little bloodshed either.

    Anyway, glad I could be of some help!

    •  
      CommentAuthorInkblot
    • CommentTimeJan 13th 2012
     

    That comic strip is awesome.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 13th 2012 edited
     

    That comic strip is awesome.

    Seconded.

    I really like the idea of a swan physically assaulting a wayward duck in such an, “Out of my way, peasant!” fashion. What great animals XD.

    I decided they’re like the Mafia bosses of the bird world—pretty and even respectable on the outside, but ruthless and elitist on the inside. There’s this one Youtube vid where a guy is feeding swans, and he sets a piece of popcorn on the ledge for the male. The bird looks down at the kernel, then back up at the guy, and snaps his beak once or twice. The guy puts another kernel down, and the swan does it again. Not until there are three kernels does the swan accept it. You can almost hear him say, “C’mon, Vinnie, I heard ‘bout that raise….”

    Though, I’m surprised ducks take that kind of action.

    It might’ve been because the swan was at least four times his size and already in a bad mood. I know I’d stay away. :P

    Definitely, that’s why making a villain a swan is so great. Birds are wonderfully innocuous to look at, but aren’t exactly disinclined to a little bloodshed either.

    Oh, good! I’m glad you like the idea. I was afraid people would be all “You’re making him a swan? As in, the same bird from Swan Lake? What’s he gonna do, kill people with his prettiness?”

    •  
      CommentAuthorBeldam
    • CommentTimeJan 14th 2012
     

    That comic strip is awesome.

    Seconded.

    This is makes me very glad. It means we will be able to continue having a working relationship.

    Oh, good! I’m glad you like the idea. I was afraid people would be all “You’re making him a swan? As in, the same bird from Swan Lake? What’s he gonna do, kill people with his prettiness?”

    Alas, the thing is, many are limited by their own impressions of things and don’t often go out and look further than the surface. I mean, I hate to do this, but in Eragon there was that red sapphire and everyone was all, “What an idiot, there’s no such thing!” Only to look it up and be like, “Oh. Well, I bet he didn’t know that.” So I think there probably will be people like that, who assume your ignorance instead of acknowledging their own. However, that means you just have to prove those guys wrong with the most awesome villain the world has ever known! Or something.

    •  
      CommentAuthorTakuGifian
    • CommentTimeJan 14th 2012
     

    Definitely, that’s why making a villain a swan is so great. Birds are wonderfully innocuous to look at, but aren’t exactly disinclined to a little bloodshed either.

    The ducks in Australia have disturbingly-phallic poison barbs, and shoot lightning from their nostrils. Also they are furry and have wide, flat tails. Swans tend to avoid them.

    Come to that, pretty much everything in Australia is either poisonous, disturbingly phallic, or born of chthonic nightmares.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 14th 2012
     

    Come to that, pretty much everything in Australia is either poisonous, disturbingly phallic, or born of chthonic nightmares.

    After watching many a nature show and reading many a National Geographic article, we Yanks have determined that everything in Australia wants to kill you.

    Alas, the thing is, many are limited by their own impressions of things and don’t often go out and look further than the surface. I mean, I hate to do this, but in Eragon there was that red sapphire and everyone was all, “What an idiot, there’s no such thing!” Only to look it up and be like, “Oh. Well, I bet he didn’t know that.”

    It’s funny, though; when I first read Eragon, I already knew that some sappires are red, so I didn’t bat an eye. I did wonder why, if he wanted a gigantic red gem the dwarves used as a ceiling, he didn’t just make it a ruby.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 14th 2012
     

    And a half-hour stroll through the local cemetery gave me a new name for my MC: Emma Grace.

    •  
      CommentAuthorKyllorac
    • CommentTimeJan 14th 2012
     

    I mean, I hate to do this, but in Eragon there was that red sapphire and everyone was all, “What an idiot, there’s no such thing!” Only to look it up and be like, “Oh. Well, I bet he didn’t know that.”

    That’s because naturally-occurring red corundum is always called ruby. The only times you have so-called red sapphire is if a sapphire has been heat-treated with beryllium to become red (to distinguish it from a natural ruby), or they’re an off-red (like red-orange or reddish-pink), in which case it can be called either a sapphire or ruby.

    Since presumably the stone is all-natural, calling it a red sapphire, especially since I recall it being described as being blood-red rather than off-red, makes no sense when the proper name for red corundum is ruby.

    /tangent

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 15th 2012
     

    Since presumably the stone is all-natural, calling it a red sapphire, especially since I recall it being described as being blood-red rather than off-red, makes no sense when the proper name for red corundum is ruby.

    I think Paolini just wanted to impress the masses with how much he knew. It’s almost as if he’s saying, “Look, you guys! Sapphires can be blue OR red! I learned that today and I thought it was neat and now I know so much!” Kind of sad, really; it’s a hallmark of an inexperienced writer.

    • CommentAuthorDeborah
    • CommentTimeJan 15th 2012
     

    And a half-hour stroll through the local cemetery gave me a new name for my MC: Emma Grace.

    That is a really pretty name.
    I like the idea of the animal motifs, too. And I agree about the swans. Lots of other animals look pretty, but can be really mean. Take hummingbirds, for example.

    •  
      CommentAuthorBeldam
    • CommentTimeJan 15th 2012
     

    Hummingbirds are mean?! WHAT.

    • CommentAuthorDeborah
    • CommentTimeJan 15th 2012
     

    Yes. They can be rather territorial, and swoop on each other like little dive-bombers.

    •  
      CommentAuthorBeldam
    • CommentTimeJan 15th 2012
     

    Somehow, even while being bombarded by small, pointy birds, I feel like it would just seem really, really cute. I mean, the things are the size of erasers, they’re adorable. I would totally forgive one even if it impaled me with its pointy little beak.

    • CommentAuthorMnemone
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012 edited
     
    Do you guys remember in *Harry Potter* when Hermione sends a hail of budgies described as "fat golden bullets" at Ron? Or Daphne Du Maurier's story "The Birds"? (Yes, the inspiration for Mr Hitchcock, Tippi Hedren, etc.)

    I affirm that swans are nasty, vicious birds.
    • CommentAuthorDeborah
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    Having had budgies for about the past decade, I can assure that budgies’ beaks HURT. One of them used to chew the skin on my knuckles whenever I tried to pick him up. OW.

    •  
      CommentAuthorInkblot
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    Danielle: What were the birth and death dates of the original Emma Grace, along with any other info on the tombstone? I really like reading headstones for some reason. It’s so… peaceful.

    •  
      CommentAuthorKyllorac
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    All birds hate me. Except hummingbirds and crows. They like me. I think.

    Needless to say, I like hummingbirds and crows. Particularly crows.

    Budgies are evil.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    Danielle: What were the birth and death dates of the original Emma Grace, along with any other info on the tombstone? I really like reading headstones for some reason. It’s so… peaceful.

    There wasn’t an original Emma Grace, really. I knew her middle name would be Grace when I walked through the gates; all I had to do was find her first name. I strolled past at least ten graves bearing the name Emma before I spied a rust-streaked marble marker bearing the name Emmeline. I thought, that’s it! But when I tested it, it didn’t sound quite right, so in the car on my way back I finally settled on Emma Grace Wilson.

    It is kind of peaceful. And the cemetery I went to is beautiful—it’s on a hilltop, nestled in a grove of pine trees, with endless wheat fields beyond. It was founded in 1893, so you see some really old headstones. Some of them tell stories. For example, I saw one tiny marble marker bearing nothing but initials. A few feet away was a larger granite marker carved with a Bible verse and the person’s actual name and dates. So I think that woman died poor (and pretty young) but later on, when her family became more prosperous, they decided to put up a larger monument for her, which is pretty cool.

    Other stories were sadder. There was one marble spire—shaped like the steeple of a church, but smaller. One side bore the name of a little boy who lived from 1896 to 1898, and the opposite side bore the name of a boy who was born in 1900 and died in 1904. Between them was a Bible verse, and on the last side were the words, “The children of Mr. and Mrs. Hayworth.” I looked all around for another Hayworth marker—one bearing a different name and more space between the dates—but I never found one. Although, I never found the Hayworth parents, either, so I wonder if they didn’t move to another area.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    And now I’m stumped. What’s a good animal for a female minister? I know her husband is a horse (hard working, patient with those who know what they’re doing, intelligent). I thought about making her a bluejay, but they can be pretty mean, too.

    •  
      CommentAuthorBeldam
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    Make her a kiwi. There’s no way those can be mean.

    If you want a serious answer, then there’s the obvious one: pigeon. Or dove, whichever. All the ones I’ve met have been super chill. Not too bright, but lovable.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    I want her to be smart, though…..Maybe a dog? A German shepherd, maybe….

    • CommentAuthorSen
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    The first thing I thought of was fox, for some reason. Looking at “female minister” made me think of someone with a cunning look to her eye and with fur wrapped around her neck. I don’t know why.

    •  
      CommentAuthorBeldam
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    Well, I guess the pertinent question would be what is she like? You say you want her to be smart, so there’s one. The german shepherd implies you want her to be loyal as well. Anything else?

    • CommentAuthorWiseWillow
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    Pigeons get mean too. You could try a dove, perhaps. Or an arctic fox- very shy. Dog sounds very wrong.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    I like the fox thing, actually. I don’t think the arctic fox quite fits—she’s more outspoken than that—but I do like it.

    • CommentAuthorSen
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    Hm. Maybe white, and whatever other light colours the arctic fox may come in, is too tame? You should probably associate the character with the colour red often enough. Or maybe auburn or any other bold shades (for outspoken). I’m suggesting this because splashes of colour here and there is very important in my own writing and I use little references to them if I’m trying to either bring across a certain mood or say something about someone’s personality without being too outright about it. I won’t necessarily have them wearing the colour, but have it somewhere around. Either in what they may be holding or by focusing on some object within the room, or even the lighting of the room; cold, dim, warm, golden, etc.

    • CommentAuthorDeborah
    • CommentTimeJan 16th 2012
     

    Maybe an owl? Those are associated with wisdom.

    • CommentAuthorDanielle
    • CommentTimeJan 17th 2012
     

    Sen—Y’know, I honestly hadn’t given much thought to color. But it makes sense; Maggie (that’s her name) has auburn hair, and now that you mention it, I think I’ll start being more intentional about adding color. But not too intentional :P

    Deborah—I thought about using an owl, but it didn’t quite fit. She’s more playful than that, and a good deal more sarcastic. I don’t know why; I’ve just always thought of foxes as very sarcastic, somewhat passive-aggressive creatures who respond to controversy with a saccharine smile and a witty retort. Maybe I’ve just read too much Brian Jaques.

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      CommentAuthorInkblot
    • CommentTimeJan 17th 2012
     

    Agreed. I always thought foxes were cool. But I guess inherent dishonesty is a pretty reasonable disqualifier.

    Use a fox then. As an ignorant white suburbanite, that sounds more Native American-y to me anyway.