Just as promised...

... I'm back with the coloured picture of my D&D character Aira Hild. This Saturday we are going to start the first session of our campaign, and I'm really looking forward to it. So of course this picture has to be ready as well, right? Again I used Sai to draw and colour this picture.
So here she is:

Something Different...

Finally, after all these weeks I am able to show you something different than my weekly writing exercises. :D

As some of my dear writing buddies from the Dead Pete Society and I have decided to play a D&D campaign together I got to create a character just for that campaign.
Our group consists of D&D beginners though; our dungeon mistress has never mastered before, the players have either never played pen&paper RPGs at all or haven't played in ages (earlier versions of D&D) or -- like me -- have only experience in different p&p RPGs.

For those, who know D&D, I play the lawful neutral Razorclaw Shifter fighter Aira Hild. And for those, who don't, you can still see how she looks like as I drew her with Sai:

 

As you can see, I only did the outlines as I was too lazy to colour her.  XD But there will be another picture in the near future, which I might colour.

Anyway, this is going to be fun! And once everyone has set up their characters we can let the dice roll. :D

Writing Exercise 084

Do you know that feeling when you want something so intensely you can alread taste it? This week's drabble is about something like that.
Enjoy!

2017/07/20 – pudding (Drabble)

Sometimes sweets is what the body needs. When you're taken by a certain craving, when your mind pulls a blank and has nothing to run on, that's the time when you should consider what to do to alleviate your sorrows. You mind formulates a thought, your mouth waters as you think you have a taste on the tip of your tongue, sweet and soft and smooth. Depending on the weather it should be hot or cold respectively, fresh from the stove or out of the fridge. It has to be. Because it tastes like home. A kingdom for some pudding!

Writing Exercise 083

Hello again!
This week I looked up the "Word of the Day" on www.thesaurus.com and decided to write a drabble in which the current word of the day is included. The drabble is about two inhabitants of my dear Neverbeen Universe, who you haven't seen for a while.
Enjoy!

2017/07/11 – word of the day: perambulator (Drabble)

“Un-fucking-believable,” Phobos exclaimed. He pushed the perambulator as Ayumu held little Crathos in her arms and shushed and cooed at him. “Why the hell did we buy this fucking thing if all the brat ever does is wail like a wimp when he is put in there?” the choleric groused.

“Because,” Ayumu emphasized, “Crathos is getting heavy. And I won't carry him for hours on end and hurt my back.”

“Can't you make him stop? This is un-fucking-bearable,” he grumbled. Ayumu sighed and rocked Crathos gently. But the baby only stopped crying when Ayumu placed him into his father's arms.

Writing Exercise 082

A new month -- a new weekly writing exercise. This time I wrote a poem. Let's see what -- or who -- this is about, shall we?
Enjoy!

2017/07/05 – the raven (poem)

Once upon an afternoon fine

I looked through a window of mine

And just on the neighbour's roof

Sat a raven, quite aloof

For a while I watched him sit

And I pondered about his wit

Concluded that he didn't lack

Seeing that he watched me back

So I nodded as a greeting

And just for a moment fleeting

I thought a cow flew over the moon

As in my mind he cawed: “Good afternoon.”

Writing Exercise 081

Another week has gone by. This is the last writing exercise in June already. Wow. Time sure flies by.
Today I have a Tanka for you and it's about a rainy day.
Here it is:

2017/06/30 – a rainy day (Tanka)

As the sky darkens

The clouds are heavy with rain

Droplets fall quietly

They are pitter-pattering

At the window of my soul

Writing Exercise 080

It's time for writing exercise number 080 already. Time sure flies by! :o
This week my task is to write a riddle. Let's see if you can find out what I'm writing about. I'm sure you will. :D

2017/06/23 – riddle

I see something you don't see,

Hanging from a willow tree,

Spinning on a single thread,

Far away from a spider's net,

It is wiggling,

it is jiggling,

Waiting for the wane of the moon,

Once it turns into a cocoon,

Tell me now, what did I see

Hanging from that willow tree?

Writing Exercise 079

Recently I feel like I'm neglecting my dear blog because I do nothing but post my weekly writing exercises each week. Which saddens me. :/
I want to give you more content, but right now I barely manage to squeeze my writing exercises into my week. And I figured, this is the least I can do.
So here is this week's drabble about twilight (not the series!):

2017/06/13 – twilight (Drabble)

Wander the tight rope, but don't fall off! Does your inner compass always show the right way? There is a fine line between light and dark, right and wrong. Sometimes that line blurs, sometimes it can't be seen anymore as it is overlaid by grey shades and ambiguity. Day turns into night, and night turns into day. Only then the sky shows its most beautiful colours, only then the light of the sun doesn't hurt your eyes and burn your skin, only then the darkness doesn't swallow your heart. Some things can only exist then. This time is called twilight.

Writing Exercise 078

I'm pretty late this week. But I do have a writing exercise for you. This time I had to write a story backwards. Interesting, don't you think? I tried to write it so it still makes at least some sense when read backwards. So here is writing exercise number 078:

2017/06/10 – tell a story backwards, from the last sentence to the first

So all was well.

It really was as good as I imagined.

At my parent's we baked the cake and I looked forward to eating it.

When it was done, I drove on.

I fetched some tools and tried to repair the car.

“Just my luck,” I groused.

When I was almost there, the car broke down again.

I grabbed my keys and started.

“Be there in a minute,” I said.

My mother called and reminded me of the cake.

It was a bright morning.

Writing exercise 077

Let's start the new month with a new writing exercise, shall we?
The weather is just beautiful; doesn't it make you want to go on holidays? But maybe this writing exercise will: it's a drabble on the topic 'journey'.
Here it is:

2017/06/01 – journey (Drabble)

On your way to a faraway place, what would you bring? Who would you take along? You see so many things. You might take a photograph, but the memory alone stays forever inside your heart – more colourful, more detailed, more charged with emotion.

So let us go towards that horizon, where the sky is blue and the land is free. Let us explore this wonderful world together, discover the places that no one has seen before. Let us leave some footprints in the sand and trailblaze a path into the heart of the deepest forests. And then return home safely.

Writing Exercise 076

Another busy week; but I still found the time to write a little something. The topic was "a day in summer" and with this poem I wish you such a day. Enjoy!

2017/05/26 – a day in summer (poem)

Roses, lilies, marigold

That's the story summer told

A butterfly flutters by

Up towards the clear blue sky

The black martins are singing

Good weather they are bringing

Over hill tops to a lake

Wanderer, which route to take?

Through long grass, under the trees

Listen to the birds and bees

Enjoy the day; it won't last

Autumn is approaching fast

Writing Exercise 075

Time sure flies by. This week my task is to restart an old project, and a dream reminded me of something back from 2014, which has not been published yet. So I revisited this very story and decided to continue it.

2017/05/15 – restart an old project (fanfiction, Naruto)

Read the first chapter of my fanfiction 'Peach Flower' on AO3: http://archiveofourown.org/works/10913244/chapters/24267126 

Writing Exercise 074

Guess what! It's time for my weekly writing exercise again. :D
This week I wrote a triple drabble; and today is a lovely day, so the topic is 'carpe diem'. Sounds fun?
Here it is:

 

2017/05/10 – carpe diem (triple drabble)

The morning is clear and bright. You feel energized to brimming and ready for action. There are so many things you want to do today. Go for a walk, go shopping, clean your home, meet your friends, call your family, complete the game you recently bought. Study and write, draw and read, set up a cupboard and do some gardening. But where to start? You want to do everything at once. If only you could clone yourself to accomplish that!

First you push the button and make yourself a nice cup of coffee; all decisions are reached faster enhanced by a cup of coffee, you believe. So where to start this lovely day? The weather is nice, but there are so many things to do at home, too. As you contemplate, a whole pot is emptied before you decide you have had enough. The afternoon is gone by the time you realize you have done nothing yet. How odd is that. You have had so many plans, yet you haven't started a single thing.

By now it is too late for shopping or going for a walk or gardening. Disappointed and disheartened you sit down and try to write or draw, but you can't force creativity. So the paper stays as blank as your mind, and you set the idea about creativity aside. The instructions tell you, you need some help to set up the cupboard, and you don't want to bother your friends and family so late. As you sit down to study you feel tired and find it hard to concentrate. So reading is not an option either. You remember why you stopped playing that game, as you are stuck, and you don't want to clean any more either.

Nobody said it was easy to seize the day.

Writing Exercise 073

This week's topic for my writing exercise was the question 'What did you dream last night?'. I waited for a memorable dream and wrote everything down in a hurry, so I didn't forget about it right away. What I made of it is this poem:

2017/05/05 – What did you dream last night? (poem)

Last night I had a nightmarish dream.

On my way to uni I went through the city,

Looking forward to the lecture I felt quite witty.

A lot of people were running about;

Suddenly I could hear frightened voices shout.

Amongst the panicked mob there was gunfire.

A civil war – my heart sank like a piece of lead;

I saw people tumble and fall, they were dead.

So getting out of there was my strongest desire.

But there was no going back; the road was blocked.

A sudden pain – the blood on my hands was hot,

I looked at the barrel of a gun and knew I was shot.

Realising I was dying I was quite shocked.

Then I woke with a silent scream.

Dembelo's discussions

As I've mentioned, I've been to the authors' bar camp at the Unperfekthaus in Essen last Saturday.

The Dembelo team, which I am part of, had a lot to set up before the event could start at 3 o'clock in the afternoon. The workshop room had to be prepared, the buffet had to be organised, posters and logos had to be hung up, the reception had to be set up as well as the exhibition desk. But we managed everything on time!

When finally a total of 42 participants, coming from all over Germany, had arrived, the authors' bar camp could oficially start. At first we introduced our project, then explained how the bar camp functioned and collected the topics the participants wanted to address.
These topics were summed up into six workshops, two of them held parallelly each throughout the bar camp.
These workshops were:

• The future of reading and writing
• Writing skills
• Cooperative writing
• Readings
• Selfpublishing
• What to do after the first draft

During my shifts I moderated two of these workshops, Cooperative writing and Readings. I was very excited, but it worked out pretty awesomely. Together with the participants some interesting and intensive discussions unfolded; the important points were noted on a flip chart, so the results could be presented at the plenum at the end of the authors' bar camp and before the midnight writing workshop began at half past eleven.

And in between the authors could hold readings, which were broadcasted via life stream.

So later, when only the participants of the midnight writing workshop were left, we moved to the shared appartment hotel of the Unperfekthaus to write all night.
Well, I wrote until half past three, then I was totally exhausted. At least I managed to write one and a half decent chapters for one of my WIPs.

But after retreating to the room I shared with my fellow Dembelo teammates I couldn't sleep at all. Not even for a few minutes! So many impressions kept me awake, and the appartment hotel was also pretty badly soundproofed.
So the next morning during brunch I felt like a zombie. But still it was a very successful weekend for the Dembelo team, and for me personally. I would totally do it again and am looking forward to next year's authors' bar camp! :D

Writing Exercises 071 and 072

I'm late again; there is just so much on my mind lately that I feel scatter-brained. I thought I uploaded last week's writing exercise, but I didn't. I'm sorry. :(
So this week you get to read two drabbles. I hope you like them.
Here is last week's drabble:

2017/04/23 – a good story (Drabble)

A story has brought you to this place; and a story might leave with you, even have you return. Because everyone likes to hear a good story. There is much to tell, and a story wants to be told. But what makes a good story good? It is clearly not only a happy ending – because a story doesn't have to end well to be good. There is more to it: the things a good story does to you. Sometimes it grips you, sometimes it lingers on your mind, sometimes it becomes a part of you. It leaves you wanting more.

And this is what I've written this week:

 

2017/04/27 – thoughts on thoughts (Drabble)

If you think you think, you'll only think you think. But what is a thought? A spark of neurons, electric impulses and a few chemical reactions. Yet there is more to it. Thousands of thoughts rush through our heads day to day. Some of them repetitive and charged with emotions, others so fleeting they are forgotten the moment they spring into creation. A brain processes so much information, so many impressions. We might say intelligence is essential to formulate thoughts, and thinking is an attribute to being human. Yet thoughts are more than clever sentences, and less than unfinished words.

Midnight Writing

Next week, on the 29th and 30th to be exact, I'm going to participate in an authors' bar camp held by the Dembelo team, which I am part of, at the Unperfekthaus in Essen, and I'm pretty excited about it. :D
So what is this authors' bar camp?
This event is about everything writing related. Authors from all around the area meet and attend workshops where they discuss different topics ranging from the very first idea for a story to publishing and marketing, and everything in between. The bar camp lasts all Saturday, and a particular dozen may stay the night and attend a writing workshop and work on their stories. Pretty exciting, isn't it?
I am one of those few, and I'm relly looking forward to meet other authors, talk to them and polish our stories together. I am really happy I joined the Dembelo team. Anyhow, I'm sure I will return with a lot of impressions from that bar camp! Maybe I'll even meet you there? ;)

Writing exercise 070

I know I'm a bit early topicwise, but it is this time of year and maybe you're about to go on Easter holiday -- in which case I wish you a nice holiday! -- so that now is just the right time to upload my Easter drabble. This writing exercise turned out a bit more controversial. Yet I hope you still like it. ;)
Here it is:

2017/04/13 – Easter Drabble

Let us not talk about belief, or if a man can rise from the dead. Because belief divides us, turns us against each other in a time when unity and peace are rare goods. Let us not talk about hard-boiled animal children and tons of sweets deployed in a game of hide and seek. Because we usually forget about those who suffer from hunger while we play with our food. Let us then talk about congregating and celebrating together. Because we can meet our loved ones, our friends and families, and enjoy the personally really important things. Anyhow, happy Easter!

Writing Exercises 068 and 069

I'm awfully sorry I have been absent. The reason is that I still don't have internet access at my new flat. :(
How can I upload this blogpost then? Well, I use my mobile to create a temporary hotspot. Just to let you know I'm still alive and writing. ;)

So today's update consists of both writing exercises for this and the previous week. Last week's exercise is a drabble about tenacity and this week I wrote a poem titled "good morning".
So here is writing exercise 068:

2017/04/02 – tenacity (Drabble)

Feeling like I have been running for ages I am exhausted, wasted. Is there finally an end in sight? All strength has left me. I feel it in my aching bones, I feel it in my tired head. Yet I still have to go on, have to move. “I am almost there,” I tell myself. “Just a bit more. Just a bit further. Just a bit of everything that is still left in me.” But how far can you get with that attitude? Pretty far, in my experience. Farther than you should have come, farther than you were meant to.

And here is writing exercise 069:

2017/04/08 – good morning

Mist arises from the lake

As the early morning dew

Twinkles in the first sun's rays.

How to start the days

Better than with this view

And a cup of tea to fully wake?

On the move...

I'm pretty late for an update. The reason is: I'm moving. Very excited about that. :D

Today I transported a total of 40 boxes from my old flat to the new one. And all of them were books and manga. Too much, you think? On the contrary, one can never have too many stuff to read. :D
I don't remember who said it, but I second the statement: "Nothing is as sexy as a room filled with books."

Be that as it may, I don't know if I'm going to be able to update my writing exercise on time or if I'm going to have internet access next week, but I'll try. Because writers should be able to make time to write, right?
Even if everything is packed up in boxes, which pile up to the ceiling, even if you hardly take a break from moving stuff, even if you're almost out the door and still not at your new home yet. Inspiration can still happen in between. Take that break -- because you need it -- and just sit down and let it flow. You might be surprised what you can achieve. ;)