#WritingtheSensesChallenge & #FantasyWIPJanuary Weekend

Our weekend was pretty busy and rather than rush to post on Saturday and Sunday, I just decided to focus on resting up for next week which is already promising to offer new challenges. But no more about that! Instead let me share my responses to Saturday's and Sunday's prompts.

#writingthesenseschallenge Days 19 & 20

Day 19 - Things Felt (either by touch or with the heart): Sketches to Details

Those false deities…they brought only chaos and disarray to Genzet. She stopped to catch her breath near a tree and spat with disgust. It was incredible to think she might never be able to live with her child because of imaginary deities. But surely there would be a way to visit the youngling from time to time. Thanks be to Andurdrao for small mercies!
She reached the far side of the clearing. Pounding footsteps behind her sent her into quick hiding. Just as another pain hit, a leather booted leg stepped into her hiding spot. Through tears of pain, she scanned upward until she saw the gentle soft gray eyes that had lowered to her level.
“Tor Gervell! It’s been a long time but, I must speak with you. It’s urgen…” Her voice trailed off in a groan. She doubled over with the force of this one. Her precious, impatient child would not wait long. When she could speak again, she begged, “Please, Tor! There is no one else.”
Before she finished her plea, he knelt by her side. He knew what was happening and could see what needed to be done. “I beg your forgiveness,” he whispered as he lifted Jema easily. Tor carried her to a sheltered cave only a few steps away from the path she’d been following. It wasn’t the best shelter but it would have to do. The next pang hit violently and she whined, doing her best to keep it quiet.

Day 20 - New Concepts: Sketches to Details (These are things imagined you'll add to your project.)

He’d gone only twenty long strides before he encountered the beast. Zec’s limp form hung from one of the tail tentacles. The drakmaugh gave even the most experienced hunter reason to pause. Tor was no different but he had to act quickly or Zec would be lost forever.
The beast had no need of eyes, being a dark-dweller. Large vertical slits encircled the top of its bulbous head. They opened and closed as needed to catch the most distant noise.  The one facing Tor opened just as the Master stepped into range.
The beast growled low in its throat and one paw the size of the Tor’s chest shot out, its ring of tentacles writhing and grasping for any hold.

As you can see, both these sections need tons of work. But that's the point. No story starts out with words that are perfectly put together. That why there's a process to follow. And this is just the beautiful, messy, glorious beginning.
If you've never seen it, you should check out the animated movie "Whispers of the Heart". In that tale, a sort of coming of age tale, a young girl decides to do what she can while the boy she is interested in is in a foreign country following his passion. It's a great story and beautifully animated. Studio Ghibli is hard to beat, in my opinion. I'd give you guys a link but Disney's more stingy than ever these days. I couldn't even find the movie trailer on YouTube! o.o

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#fantasywipjanuary Days 19 & 20

Day 19 - Shout-out Saturday! Share the love for your favorite author/reader IG accounts.

I'm not going to share all my shoutouts here. I unfortunately do not have the time to go to each account and share all their links here. But if you follow me on IG, you can see my posts for yesterday. There are two because there were two accounts I forgot to mention. :) Some of them are new but there are several I've tagged before in previous posts. 

Day 20 - If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?

To be honest, I could find something interesting to see in almost any state or country and be overjoyed. I haven't been able to travel much throughout my life but ancient ruins and architecture interest me, as do different cultures and their history. My youngest groans anytime I get the TV remote because if I had my way all the time, we'd watch documentaries almost exclusively.

PS I will be super annoyed if any travel companies start sending me 'deals' about vacations because the fact of the matter is, I cannot afford to go to our closest National Park for the day. I'm finally convinced writing full time is my vocational calling, but it's a good thing we don't have to rely solely on my income. Hoping that will improve with time and dedication. :)

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So if you're following along with the challenge, how did you fare this week so far? Care to share any of your work for days 19-20? Feel free to do so (judgment free!) in the comments. Believe me! I'm having a hard time sharing such rough patches of my work. It's a scary thing showing people the awful work you've done. LOL Also, if you share on IG, be sure to use the hashtag (#writingthesenseschallenge). I'll check it periodically to see who's joined in. :)