A New Novel, Part 322 Princess Aksinya

22 August 2011, A New Novel, Part 322 Princess Aksinya

For those who haven’t been following this blog, let me introduce it a little. I am currently blogging my 21st novel that has the working title Daemon. The novel is about Aksinya, a sorceress, who, to save her family from the Bolsheviks, called and contracted the demon, Asmodeus. Her family was murdered anyway, and she fled with the demon from Russia to Austria.

Dobrushin and Aksinya married.  Aksinya and Dobrushin are in Boston, and Aksinya has come to an Orthodox girl's school looking for a job.  She is waiting for the headmistress to call on her, Stacy is called into the office first... 

After a few minutes, Stacy exited the office.  She held her features set in a look of contrition.  The moment the door closed, she gave a very American, thumbs up to Aksinya, and mouthed, “It worked.”  Then louder she said, “I hope you do teach here.”  She skipped back down the hall to her class.

The door opened a crack, “Mrs. Aksinya Andreiovna Lopuhin, please enter.” 

Aksinya stood and entered the office.  The headmistress had her back to Aksinya and walked back to her desk.  The woman seemed young.  Very young for a headmistress.  One shoulder drooped a little lower than the other, but her back was ramrod straight and her clothing was very fine, much finer than Aksinya’s. 

The desk was large and filled one end of the room.  The office was rather deep and had a fireplace on the left wall.  Some padded chairs and a simple tea table were arranged before the fireplace.  An unpadded chair sat before the desk.  Without turning, the headmistress pointed to that chair.  Aksinya stood beside it and waited for the headmistress to sit. 

The moment the headmistress turned, Aksinya dropped her briefcase.  Her mouth fell open.  She couldn’t speak.

The woman before her gave a cry, “Princess Aksinya.”  She rushed around the desk and embraced her. 

I wanted to show you how Aksinya has gone from a person who could not intentionally help anyone to a person who could not help but help.  She gives Stacy good advice.  The advice pleases Stacy and obviously made the headmistress happy.  The foreshadowing and the encouragement from Stacy is that she wants Aksinya to come teach at the school.  Can you imagine Aksinya as a teacher--not before, but perhaps now.

Then the headmistress calls Aksinya into her office.  The headmistress' back is to Aksinya--perhaps she has already written her off.  I give you some clues: the headmistress is young, one shoulder droops, but her back is straight.  Her clothing is finer than Aksinya's.  Then I set the scene and describe the room.  This is an advanced writing technique--I give you the info I want about the headmistress, then I move to the room description.  This gives you time to process the information.

Aksinya waits for the headmistress to sit.  Then I do give you a grand coincidence.  I will admit, this could be considered a Deus ex Machina.  I wanted to give a final punch to the novel and this is it.  Tomorrow, who is the headmistress.

A New Novel, Part 321 She is Quite Strict

21 August 2011, A New Novel, Part 321 She is Quite Strict

For those who haven’t been following this blog, let me introduce it a little. I am currently blogging my 21st novel that has the working title Daemon. The novel is about Aksinya, a sorceress, who, to save her family from the Bolsheviks, called and contracted the demon, Asmodeus. Her family was murdered anyway, and she fled with the demon from Russia to Austria.

Dobrushin and Aksinya married.  Aksinya and Dobrushin are in Boston, and Aksinya has come to an Orthodox girl's school looking for a job.  She is waiting for the headmistress to call on her, but she happens to be sitting next to a girl named Stacy... 

The girl, Stacy asked, “Are you going to go to school here?  Where are your mother and father?”

Aksinya laughed, “I’m applying to be a teacher here.”

The girl’s eyes widened, “You look so young.”

“I’m married,” Aksinya held out her right hand.

Stacy admired Aksinya’s plain golden ring, “Mother told me they married young in the old country.  Just how old are you?”

Aksinya laughed again, “I’m twenty-three.  I just graduated from Radcliffe.”

“Do you like school that much?”

“Yes, I like it very much.  I never was able to go when I was young.”

“You’d hate it if you were my age.”

“Why is that?”

Stacy held out her red hand, “Sister already used her ruler on my hand, and now I have to speak to the headmistress.  If she tells my mother, I’ll get the strap for sure.”

“Perhaps you should tell the headmistress you didn’t know what the words meant and beg her forgiveness.”

“I truly didn’t know what the words were, and I still don’t know what they mean.”

“Then tell her that.”

“Sister wouldn’t listen.”

“Sometimes they are like that.”

The door cracked open, and a call came from inside the office.  It was Russian accented English and sounded very pleasant, “Miss Anastasiya please come inside.”  To Aksinya, the voice seemed slightly familiar.

As Stacy passed Aksinya, she whispered in Russian, “Don’t let her voice fool you, she is quite strict.”

Aksinya nodded.

More advanced techniques.  At the beginning of this dialog, I describe Aksinya to you through the eyes of Stacy, but I don't use a single word of description.  Stacy asks if Aksinya is going to school there and where are her parents.  This indicates that Aksinya still looks like a teen to Stacy, plus there is just so much wrapped up in this comment.  It drives to the core of Aksinya's previous lack of confidence.  Look how she handles it now--she simply answers the girl as though nothing were amiss.  This indicates her maturity. 

Perhaps Aksinya gets this kind of reaction all the time, because she answers it in an interesting way.  She shows her ring and indicates she is married.  Note, the ring is on the right hand and not the left.  In general in Europe, the wedding ring goes on the right hand, in the US, it is the left hand.

Stacy attributes this to the old country, but notice the admiration--all women (and girls) in this era admired those who were married--it indicated a level of maturity, worth, and wealth.  This lets me move on to give Aksinya's age and again that she graduated from Radcliffe.  The reason for this is a setup to give the point about school.  Aksinya loves school--she never got to go except in Wien for a few short months, and then Radcliffe.  That idea is a lead in to Stacy's complaint about the Sister.  I show you Stacy's hand and Stacy tells you that the sister struck her with a ruler--this was a common punishment for girls at the time.  Poor Stacy knows that the headmistress will tell her mom and Stacy will get the strap.  Again, not an uncommon punishment at the time.

Aksinya's advice comes directly from her own experience.  This is supposed to be a small parallel.  This sets up the conversation for a couple of jokes, one about the sister not listening and the other about Stacy not knowing what the dreaded words meant.

Then, the headmistress calls for Stacy.  She speaks English.  The fact that the voice is familiar is a foreshadowing.  Stacy has accepted Aksinya as an intimate--she passes on some advice herself.  Tomorrow, the result of Stacy's interview.

A New Novel, Part 320 What were the Words?

20 August 2011, A New Novel, Part 320 What were the Words?

For those who haven’t been following this blog, let me introduce it a little. I am currently blogging my 21st novel that has the working title Daemon. The novel is about Aksinya, a sorceress, who, to save her family from the Bolsheviks, called and contracted the demon, Asmodeus. Her family was murdered anyway, and she fled with the demon from Russia to Austria.

Dobrushin and Aksinya married.  Aksinya and Dobrushin are in Boston, and Aksinya has come to an Orthodox girl's school looking for a job.  She is waiting for the headmistress to call on her, but she happens to be sitting next to a student... 

The maid turned a stern look at the girl then pointed to the seats.  Aksinya sat next to the girl.  The maid knocked at the office, entered and closed the door behind her.  She exited just a moment later, “The headmistress will call for you in a moment.”

Aksinya answered “Thank you.”

The girl beside her stared at Aksinya.

Aksinya stared back, “I’m Aksinya Andreiovna Lopuhin, and you are?”

The girl answered, “I’m Anastasiya, but everyone calls me Stacy.”  Her Russian was from Moscow, but the name Stacy was said purely in English.

Aksinya laughed, “Do you speak English?”

“Not well.  We’re supposed to learn it here.”

“Are you?”

“Too well.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“My brother taught me some words and the Sister didn’t like me to say them at all.”

“What were the words?”

Stacy motioned for Aksinya to lower her head a little and whispered into her ear.

Aksinya blushed, “Is that why you are here to speak to the headmistress?”

Stacy nodded woefully.

“You have a Nun teaching here?”

“Yes, she is Orthodox but not from Russia.”

“What does she teach?”

“English, German, and French, but mostly German.”

“I see.”

All right, here is an advanced method to show you about a character.  I set up a situation.  Here is a girl who is being punished for some misdeed.  I sit Aksinya next to her.  The ensuing conversation allows me to tell you something about the school, but even more about Aksinya.  This is a method to get across information to your readers without telling them anything.  Plus, you can use this type of conversational scene to get under the skin of your character a little. 

The first glance is interesting enough--the girl stares at Aksinya.  Aksinya looks odd enough for a child to stare at her.  We will discover why, but the point should be made that the girl feels comfortable about Aksinya--comfortable enough to stare.  Aksinya stares back--that's just Aksinya.  She introduces herself, and the girl, Stacy responds. 

The point I wanted you to get here is that the girl is from Moscow, but she is acclimating to America.  Stacy is certainly not a Russian diminutive for Anastasiya.  Stacy was pronounced so well in English, Aksinya asks about is, and we learn that part of this school's focus--English and assimilation.  Then we learn why Stacy is waiting to speak to the headmistress.  Notice, I never tell you the words--don't have to.  Your imagination provides them for me.  This also lets me bring up the point of a nun teaching at the school.  This is a foreshadowing, and one part of the reason I wanted to put in this scene.  We get a little information about this nun.  Tomorrow, more about Stacy.

A New Novel, Part 319 The Headmistress Will Call for You in a Moment

19 August 2011, A New Novel, Part 319 The Headmistress Will Call for You in a Moment

For those who haven’t been following this blog, let me introduce it a little. I am currently blogging my 21st novel that has the working title Daemon. The novel is about Aksinya, a sorceress, who, to save her family from the Bolsheviks, called and contracted the demon, Asmodeus. Her family was murdered anyway, and she fled with the demon from Russia to Austria.

Dobrushin and Aksinya married.  Aksinya and Dobrushin are in Boston, and Aksinya has come to an Orthodox girl's school looking for a job... 

Aksinya pulled the bell.  After a couple of minutes a matronly woman dressed as a chamber maid answered the door.  She was pleasant looking.  Aksinya smiled and announced in English, “I am Mrs. Aksinya Andreiovna Lopuhin.”

The maid responded in broken English, “This is a Russian academy, are you certain you are at the right place?  We don’t accept married students.”

Aksinya changed to Russian, “I am here to apply for the position of English and linguistics teacher.  You posted it with the Russian exchange office.”

“Yes, so we did.”  The woman frowned and looked Aksinya up and down.

“Is there a problem?”

“None at all.”  The woman’s tone of voice said there was.  “I’ll take you to see the headmistress.  She is also the wife of the owner of this school.”

The building was similar to many of the row houses Aksinya was familiar with in Boston.  The foyer wasn’t large.  It opened to a stairway that led up into the building and a hall that led to the rear.  A parlor was on the right and a classroom on the left.  Aksinya could hear the teacher lecturing through the closed door. 

The maid didn’t lead Aksinya into the parlor or upstairs but rather headed down the hall on the first floor.  They passed a second and a third classroom on the left and right and finally arrived at a large dining room and kitchen.  They were also on the left.  On the right was a door labeled Office of the Headmistress.  The door was closed.  Outside the door sat four hardback chairs in a row.  A girl of about twelve slumped in one of the seats.  She didn’t seem very happy.

The maid turned a stern look at the girl then pointed to the seats.  Aksinya sat next to the girl.  The maid knocked at the office, entered and closed the door behind her.  She exited just a moment later, “The headmistress will call for you in a moment.”

Aksinya answered “Thank you.”

The scene setting is complete and notice I move directly into conversation.  Aksinya announces herself in such a way that she doesn't give her title or her rank.  She uses her husband's name.  This might catch the modern reader off guard.  A noble woman would continue to use her title.  Aksinya has given up her nobility--just as Dobrushin gave up his profession and Church rank.

The maid responds in broken English--this way you know she is Russian.  I don't have to tell you this--I show it to you.  The maid mistakes Aksinya for an American, and she punctuates Aksinya's fears by thinking Aksinya is seeking to be a student there.  This is another reminder of Aksinya's appearance.  Notice the advanced writing technique used to show this.

Aksinya changes to Russian--another reminder of the maid's language.  She announces her intentions.  I give you a little historical knowledge.  There were no Russian embassies.  The USSR was not acknowledged by the USA.  The best there were was exchange offices.  The maids attention to Aksinya builds the tension.  The woman finally decides to take Aksinya to the headmistress, but she isn't happy about it.  I give you a little information as a foreshadowing that the headmistress is the wife of the owner of the school.  A little history here too--men usually owned the property of their wives.

Now, I give you scene setting of the inside of the building.  It is a typical row house that incorporates a school.  The rest is a tour of the lower floor to the headmistress' office.  Outside the office are chairs for waiting and a girl is sitting in one of the chairs.  You can guess already why the girl is there.  I don't tell you anything--I show you: she is slumped and not happy, and the maid gives her a stern look.

Aksinya sits next to the girl.  You knew Aksinya would--that is her personality.  The maid announces Aksinya.  Tomorrow, conversation with the girl.