19 May 2025, Writing - part xxxx053 Bookgirl, Chapter Three
Announcement: I
still need a new publisher. However, I’ve taken the step to republish my
previously published novels. I’m starting with Centurion, and
we’ll see from there. Since previously published novels have little
chance of publication in the market (unless they are huge best sellers), I
might as well get those older novels back out. I’m going through Amazon
Publishing, and I’ll pass the information on to you.
Introduction: I wrote the
novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel
and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that
included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other
general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the
metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the
way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire
novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.
I’m using this novel as
an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel
published. I’ll keep you informed along the way.
Today’s Blog: To see the steps in
the publication process, visit my writing websites http://www.sisteroflight.com/.
The four plus two basic
rules I employ when writing:
1. Don’t confuse your readers.
2. Entertain your readers.
3. Ground your readers in the writing.
4. Don’t show (or tell) everything.
4a. Show what can be
seen, heard, felt, smelled, and tasted on the stage of the novel.
5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.
6. The initial scene is the most important scene.
These are the steps I use to write a novel
including the five discrete parts of a novel:
1. Design the initial scene
2. Develop a theme statement
(initial setting, protagonist, protagonist’s helper or antagonist, action
statement)
a. Research as required
b. Develop the initial
setting
c. Develop the characters
d. Identify the telic flaw
(internal and external)
3. Write the initial scene
(identify the output: implied setting, implied characters, implied action
movement)
4. Write the next scene(s)
to the climax (rising action)
5. Write the climax scene
6. Write the falling action
scene(s)
7. Write the dénouement
scene
I finished writing my 31st novel,
working title, Cassandra, potential title Cassandra:
Enchantment and the Warriors. The theme statement is: Deirdre and
Sorcha are redirected to French finishing school where they discover difficult
mysteries, people, and events.
I finished writing my 34th novel
(actually my 32nd completed novel), Seoirse,
potential title Seoirse: Enchantment and the Assignment. The
theme statement is: Seoirse is assigned to be Rose’s protector and helper at
Monmouth while Rose deals with five goddesses and schoolwork; unfortunately,
Seoirse has fallen in love with Rose.
Here is the cover
proposal for the third edition of Centurion:
|
Cover Proposal |
The most important scene
in any novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the
rising action. I am continuing to write on my 30th novel,
working title Red Sonja. I finished my 29th novel,
working title Detective. I finished writing number 31,
working title Cassandra: Enchantment and the Warrior. I just
finished my 32nd novel and 33rd novel: Rose:
Enchantment and the Flower, and Seoirse: Enchantment and the
Assignment.
How to begin a novel. Number one thought,
we need an entertaining idea. I usually encapsulate such an idea with a
theme statement. Since I’m writing a new novel, we need a new theme
statement. Here is an initial cut.
For novel 30: Red Sonja, a Soviet spy,
infiltrates the X-plane programs at Edwards AFB as a test pilot’s
administrative clerk, learns about freedom, and is redeemed.
For Novel 32: Shiggy Tash finds a lost girl
in the isolated Scottish safe house her organization gives her for her latest
assignment: Rose Craigie has nothing, is alone, and needs someone or something
to rescue and acknowledge her as a human being.
For novel 33, Book girl:
Siobhàn Shaw is Morven McLean’s savior—they are both attending Kilgraston
School in Scotland when Morven loses everything, her wealth, position, and
friends, and Siobhàn Shaw is the only one left to befriend and help her
discover the one thing that might save Morven’s family and existence.
For novel 34: Seoirse is assigned to
be Rose’s protector and helper at Monmouth while Rose deals with five goddesses
and schoolwork; unfortunately, Seoirse has fallen in love with Rose.
For novel 35: Eoghan, a Scottish National
Park Authority Ranger, while handing a supernatural problem in Loch Lomond and
The Trossachs National Park discovers the crypt of Aine and accidentally
releases her into the world; Eoghan wants more from the world and Aine desires
a new life and perhaps love.
Here
is the scene development outline:
1.
Scene input (comes from the previous scene output or is an initial scene)
2.
Write the scene setting (place, time, stuff, and characters)
3.
Imagine the output, creative elements, plot, telic flaw resolution (climax) and
develop the tension and release.
4.
Write the scene using the output and creative elements to build the tension.
5.
Write the release
6.
Write the kicker
Today: Let me tell you a little about writing. Writing
isn’t so much a hobby, a career, or a pastime. Writing is a habit and an
obsession. We who love to write love to write.
If
you love to write, the problem is gaining the skills to write well. We
want to write well enough to have others enjoy our writing. This is
important. No one writes just for themselves the idea is absolutely
irrational and silly. I can prove why.
In
the first place, the purpose of writing is communication—that’s the only
purpose. Writing is the abstract communication of the mind through
symbols. As time goes by, we as writers gain more and better tools and
our readers gain more and better appreciation for those tools and skills—even
if they have no idea what they are.
We
are in the modern era. In this time, the action and dialog style along
with the push of technology forced novels into the form of third person, past
tense, action and dialog style, implying the future. This is the modern
style of the novel. I also showed how the end of literature created the
reflected worldview. We have three possible worldviews for a novel: the
real, the reflected, and the created. I choose to work in the reflected
worldview.
Why
don’t we go back to the basics and just writing a novel? I can tell you
what I do, and show you how I go about putting a novel together. We can
start with developing an idea then move into the details of the writing.
Ideas. We need ideas. Ideas allow us
to figure out the protagonist and the telic flaw. Ideas don’t come fully
armed from the mind of Zeus. We need to cultivate ideas.
1. Read novels.
2. Fill your mind with good
stuff—basically the stuff you want to write about.
3. Figure out what will
build ideas in your mind and what will kill ideas in your mind.
4. Study.
5. Teach.
6. Make the catharsis.
7. Write.
The development of ideas is based on study and
research, but it is also based on creativity. Creativity is the
extrapolation of older ideas to form new ones or to present old ideas in a new
form. It is a reflection of something new created with ties to the
history, science, and logic (the intellect). Creativity requires
consuming, thinking, and producing.
If we have filled our mind with all kinds of
information and ideas, we are ready to become creative. Creativity means
the extrapolation of older ideas to form new ones or to present old ideas in a
new form. Literally, we are seeing the world in a new way, or actually,
we are seeing some part of the world in a new way.
The beginning of creativity is study and
effort. We can use this to extrapolate to creativity. In addition,
we need to look at recording ideas and working with ideas.
With that said, where should we go? Should
I delve into ideas and creativity again, or should we just move into the novel
again? Should I develop a new protagonist, which, we know, will result in
a new novel. I’ve got an idea, but it went stale. Let’s look at the
outline for a novel again:
1. The initial scene
2. The rising action scenes
3. The climax scene
4. The falling action
scene(s)
5. The dénouement scene(s)
Right now, I want to
write bookgirl. That’s the working title
of my novel with the following theme statement:
For novel 33, Book girl:
Siobhàn Shaw is Morven McLean’s savior—they are both attending Kilgraston
School in Scotland when Morven loses everything, her wealth, position, and
friends, and Siobhàn Shaw is the only one left to befriend and help her
discover the one thing that might save Morven’s family and existence.
I’ve already developed the protagonist and
the protagonist’s helper for this novel.
I’ll remind you with their descriptions:
Siobhàn Shaw was a very tall and slender
girl. She didn’t sit or stand, she
folded and unfolded. Normal chairs and
furniture didn’t seem to fit her properly, but no onlooker could really tell
why—she wasn’t basketball tall, and she never sat in an unladylike or informal
way. Perhaps it was her approach to
sitting and standing. It made her
standout in ways she never wanted to stand out.
Her dark brown hair was long and always looked a little stringy. She pulled it up into a highly unpopular and
old-fashioned bun, that frizzed at every side.
She didn’t know any other way to put up her hair. Her face was a classic oval, but that did her
no good. It wasn’t long, just slightly
short and she had a high, broad forehead with a widow’s peak that was a little
lopsided to the left. Her eyes were
large but slopped a little down at the outside corners so she always looked a
little sad even when she smiled. Her
smile was made her cheeks go up without any nice dimples, and her chin was
round. Well that’s what oval means. She was lucky her brows weren’t like her
father’s. They were evident but not connected and well shaped
except they followed the sad droop of her eyes.
That only made her look a little sadder all the time. The only problem was that she was never
really very sad at all. Her lips and her
nose were nicely formed. The nose small
and a little blunt, and her lips wide and pink.
Her complexion was light like a peach and the real redeeming feature was
the constant blush on her cheeks. That
also made her stand out in ways she didn’t wish. Her clothing was always a little frumpy. It was hard to fit a girl as tall as she
was--too tall, but not tall enough, and there never was enough money to have
anything that was new. The used clothing
and charity shops were all she could afford.
Even her school uniform was used, and didn’t fit her well. The ones for tall girls were too big to fit
her slender frame and the ones that fit her size were all too short. Her skirt looked strange and too large, and
her blouse a little too short. At least
her skirt, a kilt, was the Shaw tartan, mostly blue and green with a think red
line, it matched the coat and her sweater.
Still, the sleeves on her dark blue coat were always too short and the
coat too large. She disappeared in it,
and it bulged in all the wrong places.
Only her emerald green sweater fit her properly. That’s because she has an extra large one
that had been through the wash one too many times—the wool had shrunk. She didn’t have many sewing skills, so she
couldn’t do much to fix her clothing.
Her shoes always looked a little off because she had to repair them with
book glue and polish them with ink. Then
there was the thing that made her always stand out. Siobhàn Shaw always carried a book in her
hand. A book in one hand and her
official bookbag in the other. The book
is what set her apart. That’s why they
never called her Siobhàn, just book girl.
Always book girl.
Morven McLean was elegant looking. Everything about her was elegant
looking. She was perfectly formed—not
too tall, not too short, not too thin, and not too curvy. She was the perfect physical balance that
girl’s desired and boys followed greedily with their eyes. Her face was oval, but with that little
well-formed chin that made her look, yes, elegant. Her cheeks rose sweet and gently high, not
too plump, and not too thin with a natural shadow of pink. Her lips were nicely molded around perfectly
white and straight teeth. They were
exactly the correct balance to her nose and her large upward inclined eyes and
delicate brow. Her Scottish hair was the
exact shade of red with brown that made her standout in the way she usually
wanted to stand out. Her brow was not
too large and not too broad. Her hair
was controlled exactly where she placed it and how she placed it. She kept it long and free and brushed into
perfection. Not a lock was out of place
and not a single strand of her hair dared disobey where she put it. Her clothing was what you expected from a
model. Always the haute couture and
always fit to her form so it revealed her to perfection and not to distraction. Even her uniform looked good on her from the
top of her head to the tip of her toes.
She was always happy that her McLean tartan was mostly red, and made her
standout like almost none of the other girls.
These two young ladies are already
connected. They will soon be embroiled
in even more connections. I’ll get to
that, next.
Setting:
Kilgraston School in Scotland. This is a Scottish boarding school near Perth
and Bridge of Earn. The school is one of
the best in Scotland. It has closed down
since I researched it—so sad, but I think I’ll still use it.
I chose and researched this school for a
couple of reasons. First, I wanted a
woman’s boarding school. My protagonist
is a girl of limited means who is very bright and hard working. She lives and came from Bridge of Earn where
her father owns a bookstore. She has a
problem with books, she can’t stop reading them. This is the source of her knowledge, skills,
and intelligence.
Second, I wanted to set my novel in
Scotland because of cultural and social reasons. I was looking for a little exotic yet
familiar for my English readers and my American readers.
Third, a girl’s boarding school provides
many positives and many negatives. The
negatives are those cultural and social issues that affect all schools and
especially boarding schools. These are
exacerbated in a girl’s school, plus the pathos creation is very powerful. You can have a bullied boy in the boy’s
school or boarding school, but that doesn’t generate the same pathos in your
readers. I’m sure boys can be as cruel
as girls in any environment, but we expect boys to defend themselves and we
culturally consider them wimps if they don’t.
Girls on the other hand are culturally
different. They are not necessarily
expected to fight physically to defend themselves and we tend to see them as
victims. This builds pathos. When a girl responds and gets back at her
bullies, we also see that as a powerful statement of action. We expect this from boys, we don’t
necessarily expect it from girls. In
fact, a girl responding physically to bullying, can be expelled. We do that with boys today too, but that’s
another problem.
Suffice to say, I an researching
Kilgraston as the setting for my novel.
This is the initial setting and will be unless I discover something that
would greatly affect its usefulness as a setting—even then I might just fake
the rest. It’s fiction, after all. We want to use real settings, but they can be
fictionalized for entertainment and use.
Telic Flaw:
The telic flaw comes with the protagonist,
but what if it doesn’t. I’d argue that
the telic flaw must always reside with the protagonist, but I am proposing a
novel where the protagonist and the protagonist’s helper strongly
interact. The telic flaw is theirs
together. Just what is this telic flaw?
I’m proposing a telic flaw concerning the
family and library of the protagonist’s helper.
Morven McLean has a problem. She isn’t the protagonist, but she has lost
everything. That is her family has lost
everything. She never really had
anything except what her family did, but now she has nothing. Ultimately, one of the books from her library
includes a cryptic message. The message
will lead the protagonist and her to the resolution of the novel, but we have
to get there.
This will be a mystery novel, and the
mystery will be about Morven McLean and her family. Siobhàn Shaw, the protagonist will eventually
resolve and solve the mystery using her skill as the book girl, but the telic flaw
comes from the protagonist’s helper and not the protagonist.
This is an interestingly set up
novel. So, the telic flaw is the mystery
regarding Morven McLean and her family.
I also am contemplating another telic flaw
and piece to this novel. I’m debating
how I will make these work together or which I will make the main telic
flaw. I’m contemplating that Siobhàn has
every possibility of being a model.
Morven realizes this and also realizes that she has been jealous of Siobhàn
from the beginning because she is really so elegant. Siobhàn still has real issues that she must
personally contend with because of her personality and her life. I’d like to have Morven realize her own
negative affect on Siobhàn and desire to make up for it. Basically, Siobhàn and her father will take
Morven into their circle and family because Morven’s family has abandoned
her. The changes in Morvan will cascade
to Siobhàn and the actions of Siobhàn will cascade to Morvan. We’ll see how this works when I finally get
around to writing the novel.
Initial Scene:
I didn’t write much about the initial
scene for bookgirl working title Books. I’m certain you’d like to know more about the
initial scene for Books. I’d like to
know too.
Back to basics. I wrote and write that the meeting of the
protagonist with the antagonist or the protagonist’s helper makes the best
novel initial scene. There are other
ways to do this, but this is the way to make it work. This brings conflict directly into the novel
as well as the telic flaw. Since the
telic flaw is what the novel is all about, that’s the way to begin.
I already developed the protagonist and
the protagonist’s helper—that’s Siobhàn Shaw and Morven McLean. We know enough about these girls to begin to
write. Their meeting as protagonist and
protagonist’s helper are what we want to focus on. The question is how to write it, and how to
set it properly.
This is a little difficult initial
scene. The question for me, as the
writer, is how to compose it. I want
this to be the reveal about Morven’s loss of wealth. The elegant Morven is shown to be a
pauper. The where and when are
important. The realization for Morven is
important. The point is to bring out the
greatest pathos possible. The perfect
situation would be a television announcement or a public announcement that
tells the world that Morven is broke.
That might be what I begin with.
Perhaps Morven and her current friends
learn about it from the tele and Siobhàn finds out through reading the
news. Something like that. Morven receives a call from her father telling
her to walk home. Perhaps the day should
begin with Morven coming to school in her family’s Mercedes touring car or
better yet, their Rolls Royce with a chauffeur.
She bullies Siobhàn personally.
Maybe they run into each other.
Siobhàn’s lunch gets stepped on or something. Then she is harassed at
lunch. This would allow us to see
Siobhàn and Morven in action.
The moment of truth is the televised
announcement that the McLean family factory or industry or bank or whatever (I
need to research) is bankrupt. We see
Mr. McLean being escorted off the premises.
Morven calls her father, and he tells her to walk home, but her phone is
suddenly cut off.
We have a situation, where Morven is
completely devastated. Siobhàn walks
with her to her house, estate actually.
When they get there the police will not allow Morven inside. She has a breakdown. Siobhàn invites her to her house. We see a domestic supper scene. Siobhàn helps Morven. They get up in the morning, have
breakfast. She gives Morven a lunch like
hers.
When they arrive at school, when the girls
try to bully Siobhàn, Morven steps in, and that is the consummation of their
friendship. We have a great lunch and
communication scene.
Okay, that’s more than just the initial
scene. Perhaps we should try to expand
on the initial part of the initial scene.
That’s just where we are at the moment.
We have reached the point of writing the
initial scene.
I started the initial scene. I’m not sure how I will put the entire scene
together. I just started with Siobhàn
and her movement from class to outside.
I think I need to build more description in the scene, and I’ll bring in
Morven. I’d like to show some of the
bullying that Siobhàn does through, and then zap Morven. I need to actually write the scene to really
get it together. I might show you the
details just for grins but it may take a little while to get it all
together. As I wrote before, the best
initial scene is either the meeting of the protagonist and the antagonist or
the protagonist and the protagonist’s helper.
I might need to find the antagonist for this novel, but I’m not sure
they could fit into the initial scene.
The true power in the initial scene is the
interaction of the characters and especially the interaction of the protagonist
I their world. Part of the development
of the initial scene is the initial setting and the telic flaw—specifically,
the circumstances of the overall novel.
The events of the initial scene develop and design the entire
novel. It sets in place the action,
secrets, and mystery of the novel. It
asks and develops questions that only can be answered in the context of the
novel. That’s what gives power to the
initial scene.
I started it. I’d like to finish it today. We shall see.
I didn’t even work on it—ouch. I did start the setting development. My plan was to create a circumstance that
would lead to Morven’s revelation as well as Siobhàn’s initial bullying. I will plan to lead both of them
outside. However, in retrospect, the
revelation of Morven’s great loss might be best revealed with a broadcast.
Perhaps, I’ll have Siobhàn wandering
around while revealing the character and her background. This might be a good way to show off the
school and the character. When Morven
comes to school. Morven might be pulled
off by her girlfriends to witness the broadcast. Before that, I’ll need to have Morven and her
friends bully Siobhàn a little before all this happens. Perhaps there is some means to bring them all
together. When I write it, I plan to
share it with you. It will be the first
run of the initial scene.
It's very important that the initial scene
really touch the reader and bring the novel to life. The characters and the place should come to
life just like the characters, and all the problems, or a large portion of the
problems of the protagonist should be made obvious. All these are not necessarily resolved by the
climax or the resolution of the telic flaw, but they are part of the life and
revelation of the protagonist through the novel. This also doesn’t mean the writer makes an
information dump about the protagonist—there are many secrets to keep about the
protagonist and to reveal in the proper time and sequence. One of the great secrets I want to reveal
about Siobhàn is brought out by Morven.
Morven realizes that Siobhàn is a very
elegant and beautiful girl, but who has never had a teacher or the opportunity
to learn about beauty and herself.
Morven becomes the power building the new life of Siobhàn. How this will happen with no money and other
issues is still up in the air. We shall
see.
I find that once you start writing, things
change. In the first place, I’m rather
happy with the development of Siobhàn and Morven in the initial scene and first
chapter. What is interesting is what
changed, and what I discovered about these two.
In the first place, the real advancement
is the idea about modeling. I fancied
this idea from the beginning when I developed the Siobhàn character. She is a girl who is totally unaware of her effect
on people. She has no idea how special
and beautiful she is. One of the main
points of the novel is to show the development of Siobhàn from a quiet
wallflower to a powerful young woman. The
way I expected to accomplish this was through Morven.
Morven changed a little. I envisioned her as similar to Siobhàn in
some ways, but I decided to make her significantly different to explain her
bullying and attitude. Morven is much
like her father. She cares little about others and mostly about herself, but
she is self-aware enough to realize many of her own faults. Thus, when she loses everything, she
understands how she can regain some of her own stature and value. She sees that through Siobhàn, she might
regain something—at the moment, this is the only thing she can hold onto. I haven’t shown this much yet, but this is
one of the great character ideas for this novel and for Morven. She is a person desperate for a certain type
of attention as well as a certain type of success. She also has a cruelty streak, a degree of
badness that gives her a feeling of superiority, but she realizes where her emotions
come from—in a certain way. This is part
of the discovery in the novel.
Also, I needed a reason for Morven’s
knowledge as well as the perverseness of her emotions. Her father is a basis, but her mother and her
second mother are the reasons. The
occupations and success of her mothers provided her knowledge, but also her
mother gave her a stature and a build that makes modeling impossible for her,
but the knowledge that will (might) allow her to make something of Siobhàn.
That’s one of the main plots of the
novel. I intend to build on this idea of
modeling. The second main plot of the
novel hasn’t happened yet. This is
supposed move forward when the books from Morven’s estate come into Siobhàn’s
bookstore and they find the book. I’m
not sure how this will work out, but I’m planning to move into this in the
third chapter. Should I begin giving you
the second chapter? Perhaps that’s next.
As I wrote, the main plot of this novel
has moved a little. In my primary development
of the novel, I planned for a book related premise and a mystery based on a
specific book and mystery concerning Morven and her family. Siobhàn would be the main force resolving
this mystery and saving Morven.
In the writing of the initial scene and
chapter, some of this changed because of the natural features I discovered in
my own character development as well as the ideas behind the characters and
their background. In addition, there is
a third part or plot I would like to integrate into these two major plots: the
modeling success plot and the book mystery plot. This third plot is the connection of Morven
and Siobhàn to the supernatural.
Why the supernatural? Most if not all of my Enchantment novels
incorporate the redemption of some supernatural being. I write my novels in the reflected worldview,
so the supernatural can exist. I don’t
usually write about the supernatural as the supernatural, although Rose is
half-Fae, but Rose lives in the real world with flashes and interactions with
the reflected (supernatural) world from time to time. That’s the point of the reflected
worldview. The world is the normal world
we all experience while the reflected part of the world is the world we see in
the shadows. It’s the world we think
could exist, but we aren’t certain exists.
It is the world we really wish could and might exist, but that is
usually hidden completely from us.
In my novels, I like to show this
reflected world just more evident than we are used to. Sometimes the characteristics of this world
are in the shadows and sometimes they are evident and explained. I’d like to create a question in the mind of
my readers—the question: does this supernatural world really exist? And, am I just missing some of the evidence?
This reflected
worldview is something I’d like to bring into Bookgirl. I’d also like to connect Bookgirl to my
broader universe in the Enchanted novels.
How I will do this might have to wait for more writing and opportunities
in the work. We shall see. The question at hand is should I show you the
draft second chapter. Perhaps I will, and I did. Here is chapter three, well the first scene:
September 2016, Friarton Bookstore,
Kintillo, Scotland, Great
Britain
Again,
they arrived at the Friarton Bookstore in Kintillo later than Siobhàn usually
did. Her father didn’t look much less
worried than the day before. He bit his
lip and didn’t say anything, but he did appear a little concerned.
Morven
stepped directly into the fray, “Mr. Shaw, there is no reason to be
alarmed. Bookgirl was simply helping me
again today.”
Callum
moved his lips to the side and let out a tentative smile, “Then I shouldn’t be troubled?”
Morven
put her hands on her hips, “You should certainly be troubled if I’m included,
but not if Bookgirl is involved.”
His
brow rose at that.
The
girls pulled the suitcases to the kitchen where Siobhàn placed the frozen food
in the small freezer. “It will take too
long to defrost for tonight.”
Morven
nodded. She wanted to get into the
bedroom right away.
They
entered Siobhàn’s bedroom, and like the day before, Morven unpacked her
clothing and hung it where she could.
She took the very fine clothing for Siobhàn and put that as carefully as
she could on the rack and over whatever hanging place she could find. Finally, she remarked, “Really, Bookgirl, we
need some more hanging spots. My things
can be as wrinkled as a pug, but your new clothing must be perfect.”
Siobhàn
didn’t know what to say to that. She
stepped out of the small room and went to the bookstore storage area. She returned with some large wall hangers,
“We use these in the shop. They should
work for clothing, but I’m still not clear about the things you brought for
me.”
Morven
ignored her and hung up the clothing so it covered the walls and the back of
the door. Finally she licked her lips,
“It’s not like you are using the walls for anything else like art.”
Siobhàn
shrugged.
When
all the large clothing was put away, Morven pulled out the lingerie she had
gathered from her second mother’s closet, “Take all your knickers and bras out
of your drawers?”
Siobhàn
glanced up, startled, “Everything?”
“Yes,
everything. I’m not asking you to throw
it out, yet, but you need to understand what we are aiming for, and what you
will wear.”
“What
will I wear?”
“Glad
you asked, Bookgirl. Take off
everything.”
“Everything?”
“Do
I need to repeat myself?”
Siobhàn
compliantly began to remove her uniform.
Morven was changing too. Morven
hung up her uniform and Siobhàn’s then put on a frock and jumper, but Siobhàn
stopped short of removing her old knickers and sport bra. Morven stood with her fists on her hips,
“Take off the rest, and put this on.”
She tossed Siobhàn a pair of very sexy blue silk and lace knickers with
a matching fancy bra.
Without
thinking, Siobhàn quickly removed her bottoms and top and replaced it with the
new ones.
Morven
stood back in admiration, “Do you see now why I told you to tighten up your
lady bits.”
Siobhàn
was mortified, “The knickers barely cover anything, and you can see my nips
through the lace.”
Morven
rolled her eyes, “You aren’t supposed to flash them to the world. Their purpose is to cover your naughty bits
as necessary and to give you a little support, although you are pretty firm in
the booby business.”
“That’s
why I wear sport bras.”
“Plus,
they’re cheap, right.”
“I
get them second hand, so they aren’t very expensive at all.”
Morven
shivered, “Ewe, your knickers too?”
“Of
course. Aren’t these second hand as
well?” Siobhàn pointed at the blue slips of silk and lace.
Morven
made a face, “Second mum was getting a little wide in the hips. She wore only spanx and other very confining
control wear. She loved these
stupendously wonderful bits of silk that are tickling your fancy, so to speak,
but she couldn’t wear them—so they’re all brand new, and your second hand,
yuck, intimates can officially go in the trash.”
Siobhàn
glanced down, “It’s all I could afford before.”
“Well,
no more. We will definitely throw out
your hand-me-downs. Get used to wearing
this kind of underclothing all the time.”
“Even
with a thin bit of cloth going up my buttocks?”
Morven
rolled her eyes again, “Especially then.
I need to be confident in this kind of clothing.”
“You
don’t intend for me to model it?”
“Not
any time soon, but you will be in a room with a group of other ladies competing
for these kinds of jobs, plus the director or the producer is many times a
woman—they or some woman representative of theirs will be watching you.”
“In
my knickers?”
“Yes,
love, many times in your knickers. Your
very sexy and wonderful knickers and sometimes in the nude. The first thing they will look for is the
untidy bits. If they see any, I can
assure you, you’ll be out. Next, they
will look for how you wear the clothing.
They’ll ask themselves: does this woman know how to wear her
intimates? Lastly, they’ll look for your
elegance and deportment. If you appear
like a country gowk, they’ll think you can’t display their clothing well.”
Siobhàn
glanced down at her body, “All that from your knickers and bra?”
“All
of that, love. Now put on these heels
and walk around the room.”
“There
is nowhere to walk around.”
Morven
frowned, “Just walk up and down the center of the room—you can surely do that.”
Siobhàn
pulled on the heels and began walking up and down the room. Morven stopped her and corrected her leg and
hip placement a couple of times. She
instructed Siobhàn on how to walk and after about a hundred transitions. She began instructing her on shots—that is,
poses for photos.
Siobhàn
asked, “Do I just start making these poses?”
“Not
exactly. When they bring out the camera
and begin taking pictures, just keep moving.
If they ask you to stop, fall into a natural pose. You’ve got to give them a good look,
something photo worthy and that shows off your best.”
“How
do I do that?”
“Look
at your face in the mirror. Unless they
ask you for a smile, don’t smile. Give
me a neutral look. Raise your chin and
tilt your head a little…yeah, just like that.
You’re a natural. Your face and
spontaneous expressions are perfect.”
“I
need to start dinner, and pa will wonder what I’ve been up to.”
Morven
tossed her a pair of jeans and a top, “Wear these, and the heels. Try to keep them nice. I picked the cheapest of the lot, but they’re
easily worth a thousand pounds.”
Siobhàn
was pulling on the jeans—she stopped, “Will the police be looking for these?”
“They
haven’t begun to sell off the stuff, plus, until the courts make some decision
or actually prosecute my father, it’s all up for grabs.”
“Then
why not take the really expensive clothing and sell it off yourself?”
“A
little pilfering won’t be missed. If
they ask me, I’ll say second mum gave it away.
A ten thousand pound gown will really get their attention, and I won’t
be able to explain that one. I don’t
think they’ll come after my clothing either.
Second mum never bought me anything designer. She saw me as a little girl and
competition. Plus, I can tell the police
I took my things with me when I left the house.
Personal property at the clothing level won’t draw much attention.”
Siobhàn
finished pulling on the jeans and the top, “They fit me perfectly. I’ve never had anything as nice as
this.” She put back on the heels.
Morven
stood at the door. She pushed it open,
“Come on then, and walk in the shop and kitchen like we practiced in your
room.”
Siobhàn
went to the shop storage and put on an apron.
She went to the kitchen and pulled out the pressure cooker, noodles,
peas, and a large cup of chicken parts.
Morven followed her and put on an apron too. She looked over Siobhàn’s shoulder, “What’s
up for supper tonight?”
Siobhàn
moved her mouth from side to side, “Sorry to say, it’s gizzard and heart
night. It’s one of my favorites, but not
to everyone’s taste.”
Morven’s
eyes widened, “Gizzard and hearts?
What’s that exactly.”
Siobhàn
stood at the kitchen sink and cleaned the chicken parts from the large cup on
the counter. She cleaned them and
plopped them in the pressure cooker, “Well, to be precise, these are chicken
gizzards and hearts. They’re really
cheap by the pound, and most people don’t want them.”
“But
you do?”
“They
really taste good if you cook them right, but not everyone is happy with their
texture or the idea of eating them.”
“How
are you going to cook them?”
“I’ll
clean them really well cause gizzard can have grit in them and the hearts can
have clotted blood.” She glanced at
Morven, “Sorry, maybe I shouldn’t have been so descriptive.”
“I
can handle anything, Bookgirl, go on…”
“I’ll
cook it with some broth and spices, mostly salt and pepper, then I’ll pressure
cook it all until it’s tender and make a good gravy with the drippings in the
pot. Finally, I’ll put it over big
noodles with peas on the side. Pop likes
to mix his peas in.”
“What’s
it taste like?”
“Rich
chicken over noodles. The texture is a
little firmer than regular chicken, but it tastes really good to me.”
“I’ll
look forward to it.”
Siobhàn
started the pressure cooker and checked on it from time to time from the
bookstore. She spent her time in the
shop the same as before. If anyone
noticed she wore high heels and jeans no one said anything, not even pa—though
he did push his cap back a little.
When
supper rolled around, the food did smell very inviting. Morven just pretended she was eating a fine
French dinner—the things she’d eaten with her parents on vaca were much more
exotic than the very delicious chicken gizzards and hearts over noodles with
peas. She was actually surprised at how
good it tasted, once she got over the idea and the texture.
After
supper, they showered, and the hot water remained hot. Morven made Siobhàn show her that her parts
were at an approved level of trim. Siobhàn
just shaved it all off. She didn’t
care. No one else was looking. Morven allowed Siobhàn to wear her trackies
to bed again—she just didn’t say anything about it. In the morning, they dressed for school and
Morven handed Siobhàn a little less risqué knickers. They were still blue silk and more high cut
than Siobhàn felt comfortable wearing especially under a skirt.
When
they arrived at school, Morven’s usual toadies stood near the front drive
obviously watching for her. Morven
didn’t say a word to them, she pulled out her ruler and hit the flat of her
hand a couple of times, then whispered to Siobhàn, “Make a pushing motion.”
“Like
pushing a person?”
“Yeah.”
Siobhàn
did, and alarmed, the girls quickly disappeared.
Morven
continued whispering, “Stay close today.
We don’t need any accidents, and we don’t need to let them get the jump
on us.”
“What’s
that mean?”
“Don’t
let them corner you. If I keep you
close, I can keep you safe.”
Siobhàn
gave the much smaller Morven an odd look.
No
one bothered them at school that day or the rest of the week. Siobhàn attended Adoration which was Mass on
Thursday after regular classes, and Morven tagged along. Morven made Siobhàn practice walking in the
heels and poses every evening. Morven
didn’t feel the need to express just how well Siobhàn accomplished all she
asked. It was as if the girl was
perfectly suited to walking and moving like a professional. Morven couldn’t wrap her head around the very
idea—this usually took most women years to learn and perfect. Siobhàn just did it and did it well without
much thought.
Friday
and then Saturday rolled around and Morven prepped Siobhàn on Friday night for
what to expect. Friday night before bed
and after supper, they both sat on Siobhàn’s bed in their night clothes. Morven lay back against the wall. She had to move some of the hanging clothing
to the side. Every bit of wall space now
held hanging clothing, mostly for Siobhàn.
Morven
pursed her lips together, “Tomorrow, you will dress in nude underclothing with the
Altar'd State Emma blue floral mini dress over it.”
Siobhàn
held her knees, “It’s a pretty short dress.”
“Your
legs are wonderfully long, and the top is not revealing. Boobs are not your assets, that’s not to say
they aren’t a total positive with your body type. The dress isn’t very expensive, but on you,
it will look stupendous. I don’t want
you too appear too sexy, just a little sultry.
We’ve been practicing that, and I’ve been taking pictures.”
“Really?”
“You
haven’t noticed. I put together your book
and some comp cards. I haven’t had an
opportunity to print the comp cards yet, but we can do that tomorrow.”
Siobhàn
scratched her nose, “What is a book and comp cards?”
“A
book is a photo book, basically a portfolio of your looks in different clothing
and poses…”
“Can
I see it?”
“Sure
you can. You need to be familiar with
what’s in it anyway.” Morven took out
her phone and pulled up a folder filled with pictures. She flipped slowly through them while Siobhàn
looked.
Siobhàn
moved her lips to the side, “How did you get the backgrounds? I remember the clothing, but it isn’t my room
at all.”
Morven
let out a small smile, “I keep my eyes open.
I remember my mother’s photoshoots very well. First mom had them for all her clothing—she
wasn’t the model. Second mum was
modeling. The backgrounds are just
photoshopped into the picture. It’s
pretty easy to do, even on a phone, but I used the school computers. That’s one of the first things we need to get
is a computer for the business.”
Siobhàn
gave a sigh, “Seems like a worthy goal, but expensive.”
“It
will be cheap based on our work.”
Siobhàn
suddenly sat up and pointed, “You took pictures of me in lingerie?”
Morven
rolled her eyes, “I did, and put them in your book. They don’t show anything untoward at all—it
just looks like you in a swimsuit.”
“Let
me look closer. I’m not really
comfortable being photographed in a swimsuit or lingerie.” Siobhàn took a slow and careful perusal of the
more risqué pictures, “You’re right.
They don’t show anything, you made the lighting cover it over or the
poses hide anything untoward.”
“I
told you I learned a lot about this business.
We want to entice the casting director and producer, not seduce them.”
“I
certainly hope not seduce them.”
Morven
nodded, “Pack your bag with a pair of jeans, a top, your trainers, and the
heels. You can wear the flats with the
dress and over it the long coat I gave you.
When we get to the casting call, we register you, give them your book
and comp cards, get you a number, and find a place to wait. By the way, pack us both a lunch, like
school.”
Siobhàn
raised and lowered her shoulders, “Then what happens?”
“They
will call you, perhaps twice. The first
time will likely be an interview. They
will ask you about yourself. You need to
be outgoing. You can talk about how much
you love reading, and how that makes you want to be a model. Just think about what you will say and answer
their questions candidly and with some enthusiasm. Remember, your experience in modeling is: yes,
local, and not documented.”
Siobhàn
sighed and leaned forward, “I’ll probably fail at the very beginning.”
“Look,
Bookgirl, I didn’t choose you just because of your looks, and they won’t
either. There is a reason you are the
smartest girl in school.”
Siobhàn
wagged her head.
“After
the interview, they will bring you in for the shots. It will be a catwalk and photoshoot just like
I’ve been doing for the last few days.”
Siobhàn
gave a deep sigh, “I hadn’t even noticed what you were doing.”
“That’s
the point, dummy. Just move, walk, pose,
and look like you did for me. I’ll try
to stay in the background and give you some directions, but if you ignore me
and the photographer, that will be perfect.
You are what they will want.”
Siobhàn
smiled a little, “I suspect they’ll send me packing, and then where will you
be?”
Morven
gave a sly smile, “I expect you will be surprised with their response.”
Siobhàn
raised her eyebrows, “I do hope, but I won’t lose any sleep over it. Pa will be upset if I can’t help around the
shop all day tomorrow.”
“Do
your early work and then we’ll scamper off to the casting call. We’ll be back in the early afternoon. We can help in the shop the rest of the day.”
“If
you say so.” Siobhàn yawned, “I guess
it’s time for bed. By the way, the steak
was wonderful.”
Morven
thought Siobhàn’s mouth was going to water, “You only cooked one of them.”
“To
make them last. Did you really expect to
eat a whole steak by yourself.”
“I
hadn’t thought about it before, but one between three was about right. My family just usually ate a steak apiece.”
“That
seems overly extravagant to me.”
Morven
rolled her eyes again. They got into bed
with Morven on the inside and were both quickly fast asleep.
There’s more.
I want to write another book based on Rose
and Seoirse, and the topic will be the raising of Ceridwen—at least that’s my
plan. Before I get to that, I want to write another novel about
dependency as a theme. We shall see.
More
tomorrow.
For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel
websites:
http://www.ancientlight.com/
http://www.aegyptnovel.com/
http://www.centurionnovel.com
http://www.thesecondmission.com/
http://www.theendofhonor.com/
http://www.thefoxshonor.com
http://www.aseasonofhonor.com
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