I think about writing while I’m in the shower in the morning, conversations between my two main characters flowing like the water from the showerhead. Dreams are what give me ideas, thoughts, conversations, pieces to carry over into fiction land. It’s like acting out a scene before writing it down. One of those poetry in motion thingys. And for me, it’s perfect. I’ve always been very hands on, sticking my nose into everything. I’ve gotta see it done first before I can write it. So if I can’t see the scene, it can’t be written the way I want it and I’m stuck. But with dreams, anything can happen. Anything in your wildest dreams. And opportunity and imagination are the two best things you can have as a writer.

So, my question to you today is: Ever have those dreams that just stick with you? The ones that when you wake up in the morning and have you thinking about your plot and characters and setting? Do you use them as a guide for your writing?

(Waterhaul, A Snow Capped Romance, 2004)

(Waterhaul II, Collisions and Castaways, 2011)

Today is the last day of National November Writing Month. There are thousands of people out there right now pounding their fingers over the worn out plastic keys of their keyboard furiously trying to hit to fifty thousand by 11:59 PM tonight.

I won’t be one of them.

Over the weekend, I completed my NaNo journey limping across the finish line at just over 51,000 words. By no means is this novel complete. Only my NaNo journey of 2011 is complete. For another year I am one of the many who warred with themselves to write 50k in 30 days. For another year I am a NaNo winner.

It wasn’t easy. I have about six different beginnings. I have a bunch of stuff I just wrote to be sitting at the computer, putting words down about something- anything- in order to keep on track with the daily word count. On the weekends I spent countless hours staring at the blinking cursor on my blank page trying to come up with anything to keep going.

I was plagued by doubts, mistrusting of my writing instinct, confused by my lack of direction.

But NaNo is not the time to second guess yourself. You just have to push through it. Work through the problems at a later date. Write whatever comes to mind, regardless of how it actually fits into the story. When you get stuck, move to a different scene. These are my mantras. Keep moving. In this instances, it is one finger after another. Keeping pounding away at the keyboard. Stop doubting yourself. Put all of your mixed emotions into the writing. Pour everything out on the page. Just don’t stop whatever you’re doing.

Hellie talked about goals on Monday. Goals are great. NaNo is a monthly goal. Every November I pledge to write 50k in 30 days. I aspire to write 20k every month outside of November. That’s 5k a week. Doable for someone like me who does most of their writing on Saturday night/Sunday morning. What keeps you going when everything seems to be heading down the drain? Do you give yourself incentives to achieve your goals? What gets you sitting in front of your monitor with your fingers on the keyboard?

My Influence: “I will wander until the end of time… torn away from you.” My Heart is Broken, Evanescence, 2011

National November Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) started YESTERDAY! I’ve been solely focused on preparing for the onslaught of the word war for the past month.

I didn’t say I got anywhere with it. I just said I was prepping for it.

In my haste to get a blog prepared (I temporarily forgot even after I told Hellion this weekend that it was my week to blog) I’ve come up with my top 5.5 ways to procrastinate during the month of November.

Yes, totally different from my top 5 ways to prepare for a successful NaNoWriMo.

 5.   Washing Dishes: Have you ever discovered the one thing you hate to do, you find yourself loving to do when you have something more important to accomplish. I absolutely can’t stand washing dishes. I loathe it with a passion. I find myself standing at the sink, gazing out the window into the backyard while daydreaming of a half naked Ranger right after I get home from work. Why, you might ask? Because right after I get home from work I should be AIS (Butt In Seat) with my fingers flying over my newly purchased external keyboard working on covering a blank document page.

But I’m not.

 4.  Working Late: Sometimes I have no choice in the matter. Usually I’m flying out the door the instant I can get out of there. I work late hours anyway. But during the month that I know I have a goal to work towards, my mind and body rebel. I find myself slothing through my usual end of day routines at the office to procrastinate leaving my desk. Hell, I could even take my down time and actually write at work. What would be the fun in that? I mean, c’mon.

3.  Errand Running: Ever leave the last thing you have to do for the day/night and realize you need to run somewhere else? I hate stores after work. I hate them during lunch. And I really hate them on the weekend. Find me during NaNo and you’re more than likely to run into me at the grocery store during the peak times I hate.

2.  Spending Quality Time with the Significant Other: I’m not quite sure I have to follow up on this reason. Though, I think my reasoning and yours probably varies quite a bit.

 1.5.  Music Playlists: Because this is really important to my well being. I must have music. And I can use this as a stall tactic simply because I NEED music to spur on my creative muse. And obviously, my music playlists are more important to my sanity than spending several hours listening to my DH make up new words to clever songs he’s heard on the radio. (See Procrastination number 2.)

And my number one top and favorite way to procrastinate:

1.  Kindle: This tiny little electronic device that allows me to read books and fan fiction with just a click of a button. The Kindle is the ultimate procrastination DEMON.

Now, I want to know the top way you procrastinate. Tell me how you do it and how you get around it.

P.S. Good luck to you all participating in NaNo or your own personal version of NaNo!

It is that time again! National November Writing Month is just around the corner. Can you feel my budding excitement?

No. Seriously. I’m excited.

So I decided to do a list of my top five things you must have to finish the race by 11:59pm on November 30. I’m hoping this will motivate you writers out there to join me on November 01 at 12:01am to start your own epic race towards the finish line.

1. Must have all your ducks in a row: This means if you don’t plot, outline, grow characters, live and breathe conflict, at least try to do some leg work ahead of time. This will allow you to write freely when you start at 12:01am on November first. I’m not what you’d call a plotter- I’m more of a pantser- but I’ve learned over the course of a few years doing NaNo that prep works helps you get a couple of restful hours of sleep a night during NaNo.
2. Calm work environment: We all have our writing quirks. Movies playing epic scores in the background. Children screaming outside in the yard. Heavy metal screamer bands blaring through your headphones (Okay, that might just be me) but we need a place where we can drop our computers, pull out the keyboards and just pound the keys. If there is a stack of bills sitting beside you, you’re going to be focusing on that. Not writing your story. So you need to clean up your designated computer space before the clock starts ticking away at the month of November.
3. Chocolate- or whatever your snack of choice is- and massive quantities of caffeine: This is probably the most important. When I get stressed out or I put myself (and my characters) in a delicate and difficult situation, I need to think. I do this by sitting back in my chaise lounge, head back, eyes closed, and munching on a Blow Pop. This is my assumed thinking position. And you must have your stress relievers on hand.
4. Procrastination is not your friend: Usually procrastination and I are hand in hand dancing through flower fields and blowing up mole hills together. We’re like this *crossing fingers*. I tell my BFF Procrastination to take a hike during November and you can too. Be determined. Be prepared to fight. And believe in yourself. Procrastination is usually stimmed from when we lack confidence in our abilities to put the right words on the page. During NaNo there is no such thing. The beauty of NaNo is the free spirit of writing for the word count, not the overall quality. Worry about that in December.
5. Remember you’re human: And that means don’t pressure yourself. Fifty K in 30 days is a helluva push for the most seasoned of typers. Sometimes we get swept up in the thought of writing, and we no longer enjoy the process. I think why I enjoy NaNo so much is that it allows me to enjoy myself. My random tangents. My quirks of writing out of order, or no order at all. NaNo is meant to be fun. Allow yourself to have that fun and enjoy it for what it is- a reason to gather your friends and see who’s the fastest BSer while writing that great American novel.

So there you have it. My Five things. What’s your one thing you have to have while writing? What’s the one thing you want to do differently this year during NaNo that you didn’t accomplish last year? And to those of you who haven’t joined us for NaNo, what are you waiting for?! Come have some fun with us!

If you’d like to friend me for NaNo here I am: christietaylor

Effective communication just isn’t your day to day conversations. You need effective communication conveyed through your characters to reach your readers.

About a month ago I attended a state conference for what I do as a day job. I needed to get some credit hours to make it seem like I keep up on the business. You could choose through a few different courses. I try to take something different every year depending on what’s offered. This year I picked two courses that really interest me as a person, not to mention I wanted to see how one could effectively help me run an office. Personality Profiling was extremely interesting. I like to dig into what makes people tick, what traits are associated with certain personalities and how to deal and defuse situations based off those traits. The course was four hours. Best four hours I’ve ever spent in a conference room. I knew my type before I went in but the course instructor had a different test than the one I’ve taken before so I enthusiastically paid attention and honestly filled out the questions.

Still the same personality.

But you can really tell what type of personalty people have by the way they assert themselves with others, by the way they take a test, by the way they interact with the rest of the class and with the instructor. You could tell the course instructor was really paying attention to this detail. Fabulous information.

Next was my course on effective listening and communication. I took this course because I thought it would be a no-brainer for me. It’s no secret I’m not much of a talker in life. But I like to listen. Listening gives me the chance to learn how to communicate with others on the off chance I have to do it. Listening allows me to learn how to make my characters interact with one another. Listening is the chance to just quiet observe others. Because let’s face it, lots of people like to talk about themselves. They want to brag to anyone who will lend them an ear. And I might lend you that ear, and I might listen but that whole profiling thing from above? Yeah, I’m doing that while you’re talking so I can give you exactly what you want to hear when you finish.

So I walk into the conference room with a few other gents and ladies and take my seat at the front. I learned this a long time ago. There are certain parts of the room where you can effectively listen from and take part in a conversation. The reverse triangle effect. I need direct eye contact to effectively listen and I sure as hell was going to pass this class. So to the front I went. Effective listening is just what you think it’d be. Making eye contact, being interested and invested into the conversation. Asking questions, taking mental notes so you can relate to the conversation.

Listening is an active exercise. If you’re being lazy you aren’t listening. How many times have you said, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m listening,” then two seconds later after the person walked away you think, “Now if only I could remember what they said.”

I can effectively listen all day. Then we get to a little exercise I’d like to call Hell. There are all types of listening. When dealing with people who have issues you need to dial in a little empathy to let them know you understand what the person is dealing with and want to help. I can relate to people. Some times. So it’s no surprise the instructor calls upon me for a little exercise.

Instructor: Can you help me with something?

Me: Sure.

Instructor: Pretend I’m a teenage boy who just graduated high school. For my graduation present, my parents were supposed to buy me the brand new pick-up truck I wanted. Instead, they gifted me with a rusty old truck. How would you deal with that?

Me: Be glad they bought you anything. Thank them for being great parents to you. Stop being ungrateful for their generosity. Don’t be a brat.

The Instructor waved that off. Several people in the course agreed and added a few more comments onto mine.

Instructor: Okay, let’s try another one.

Me: Sure.

Instructor: Pretend I’m your best friend. I’ve applied for this job that I really want and I’ve interviewed twice for it. The interview process couldn’t have gone better. I was made for this job. But I’ve just found out they gave it to another girl in my office.

Me: Obvious the girl was a better fit. Better luck next time.

Instructor: Flabbergasted.

Class: Stunned silent.

I shrug and go back to my seat. Obviously, this is why I don’t have many girlfriends. Apparently, I’m lacking a whole bunch of empathy. Go figure. Remarks from instructor, “Great listener. Excellent memory. You need to work on your empathetic communication skills. Good luck.”

Bite me. I know a whole bunch of hand gestures. Do those count as empathetic communication?

So how does this work into writing? Easy. Your characters have to listen. Have to be able to communicate with one another to make the plot work. You have to weave personalities together and those people have to listen to one another. Breakdowns in communication happen all the time and everyone knows the consequences. Black moments, misunderstandings, the silent treatment. By learning how to effectively convey those abilities into our characters it gives the reader a sense of reality.

What kind of personality traits do your hero/heroine display? Do you know what type of personality you have?  And how does your personality play into the characters you write (or read)?

People ALWAYS ask me about my research. I’ll get: how do you write those scenes (with a wink, wink). The truth is, it’s the other parts that are the hardest (no pun intended). Creating the tension in daily situations, the character building …

But the other day I had a new and exciting experience in research. I’m currently writing a story with a hero who rides a motorcycle. A Harley to be exact. And since I knew NOTHING about this, I decided I needed to ride a Harley …

Hmm, riding a Harley . . . For some reason I didn’t think this would be a big deal. But first I had to find someone who was willing to be subjected to all sorts of stupid questions (doesn’t that leather chafe?) and then get him to give me a ride.

So I found a guy, through a friend of a friend of a friend. I called home and got Alpha Man on the line and said “don’t worry but I’m going on a date this afternoon with a leather-wearing, badass Harley driving dude. Okay?”

Now Alpha Man, well used to my occupation, didn’t bat an eye. “Wear a helmet” was his only comment. “And don’t forget to get milk on the way home.”

Fine. So I’d forgotten to pick up milk three days running and the kids were whining about not being able to eat cereal. That seemed insignificant in the light of this exciting adventure. So I said “I’m not kidding, you know. I’m really going riding on a Harley.”

“Is the life insurance paid up?” he asked.

Men.

I did get my ride, and wow, there is something about the power of the beast between your legs and the roar of the engine and the danger and the wind in your hair . . . And the bugs in your teeth.

Afterwards I found myself grateful to get back into my car, thinking maybe I’m not quite as adventurous as I’d thought.

Oh, and I remembered to get milk on the way home. The glamorous, sexy lifestyle of a writer …

Oh and P.S. … I’m going to be doing a giveaway VERY soon so make sure to stop by my site (http://www.jillshalvis.com) and sign up for my newsletter, and if you have Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/jillshalvis) , come “like” me to be entered.

Grab a drink and pull up to the bar! Jill will be here to answer questions today! One lucky commenter will receive a copy of Simply Irresistible! (Paper or e-format. Winner’s choice.)

Wow. Long time no blog pirates. Thanks to the new line-up I’ve enjoyed a nice long break from over thinking.

Since I’ve not been blogging, I’ve been writing. Somewhat. I struggle from week to week on which story to work on. My adventure/suspense heroine, Kiki and her “hero” Dex have been quite talkative lately. So has the heroine’s BFF, Tory. So I’ve been working on that story. While in the midst of writing, I started to think about how my writing processes have changed since I started writing 5 years ago.

I’ve always just winged it. If I didn’t know something, I did research right then and there on the spot to incorporate it into what I was working on. If I didn’t know the proper terminology, I made it up. If I was unsure on a characterization portrayal, I worked with what I could do and edited it later. I’ve always written from chapter to chapter. Edited from chapter to chapter. Writing continuously feels…

Strange.

But I also feel like I’ve lost my enthusiasm and spirit for writing. Don’t get me wrong. There are days I stand on top of my desk with my fist clenched in the air swearing I will writing until my fingers fall off. But I get caught up in all these rules floating around in my head when I sit down. The rules beat down my spirit and my lackluster attempts to sparkle fall short. So I decided I’d do something I never do. Reread some of my old writing to recapture the feeling I had in the beginning when writing was still shiny and new. Let me tell you, it was quite the eye-opener.

While I’ve always known my beginning attempts at writing fiction were a bit jumbled and plagued with mistakes, even reading just a couple of paragraphs made the writer I am now sad. I’m a different person now. I’m a different writer. What I really mourn is my ability to write descriptions. Write the scene detail by detail until you feel like you’re standing in the middle of it all. I miss that. I need to recapture that. So I want to do an exercise today. Take one of the pictures below and describe it to me as if I’m unable to see it. Write a short paragraph about it. 

I’ve been doing this on my own and it’s helped me get some of the missing link back into my writing. Good description is work, but it’s good work and it gives our readers a sense of belonging in the story. (Or at least for me, as the reader, it does.)

And if you don’t want to describe the picture, tell us what’s changed about your writing style since you got started- the good and bad. Good luck everyone! And have some fun.

Song of the week: “Us (Walk Away)”  by Parabelle (These Electric Pages Have Been Unplugged, 2011)

A/N: If the title seems familiar, I couldn’t help it. I had to use the name of a popular song used in “Night at the Roxbury” What is Love (Baby Don’t Hurt Me) by Haddaway. It was too appropriate to pass up. This by no means means I liked or advocate watching this movie is you want any shred of sanity left afterwards.

So I had a blog. All thought out and written and even had photos for it. (I know. *stiff arming Hells* Don’t take my temperature. I’m not sick.)

Then Jane Eyre happened. More consequently, Hells and I started emailing back and forth about it. For anyone who’s been under a rock for the past couple of centuries, Jane Eyre was the second novel written by Charlotte Brontë, recently turned into a wonderful BBC film adaptation. Hells and I took our respective BFF’s and met up at Ragtag (Cinema) Monday night. I’ve been feigning to see this movie since I caught a glimpse of a trailer preview at the last movie I saw at Ragtag. (Consequently, I can’t remember what that movie was. It was some months ago.)

I’ll give you the short of the story. Jane Eyre was a governess who fell in love with her employer.

*narrowing eyes* I told you I was giving you the short. Wiki or read the book if you want more. My blog is not about Jane Eyre as much as the sentiment Hells and I found behind the story.

I’m a sap for unrequited love. I don’t know why. The longing. The feeling of desperate hopelessness. Of the world ending as you know it. It all inspires me in a dark twisted way. But that’s not what this is about either.

I’ve been researching how men speak to one another. Actual nitty gritty speak. Not the cleaned up version they present to us women when we’re in the vicinity. And as crude and rude as I can be, I can’t hold a candle to the Undead Monkey’s man speak. The phrasing and delivery is different when uttered from a woman’s lips. Currently, I’m reading a fan fiction on a manga I really enjoy (a Shonen- more focused towards a male audience) about death gods. It is a male dominated manga and the man speak is very hardcore. So when I went looking for fan fiction in this genre, I went looking with the intent of finding a fic where the author obviously understood “man” speak. I find a few female authors understand this speech pattern. Pamela Clare and JR Ward usually come to mind. Lara Adrian does a great job. But it’s done to a certain extent. When our audiences are predominantly females, you lose the appreciation of male dominated crude speech. We soften it up a bit. We soften what we think they actually think about. Even I do it. I’m not going to deny that.

Banter between two characters is what makes a reader fall in love with the their story. The sly looks, the one liners, even in anger, these lines delivered between your hero and heroine keep your reader on the edge of their seat waiting for what will happen next. It’s the passion between them that sparks enough to keep them coming back to one another. Passion makes you feel alive and wanting. Except emotion has no boundaries. Emotion doesn’t care if you have morals or ideals. Once emotion starts to burn hot inside your chest it only kindles, gathering steam until it has you so twisted you no longer know what is right or wrong. You only know how to feel in the moment. Trying to back out of that is nothing short of an emotional death. In the matters of emotions, conflicts have always been the same. Emotion is embedded in our souls from the first time we experience it. Whether the emotion be good or bad, once we learn of it, we can’t step away from it. No matter how cynical and jaded you become.

Dare you run away with your heart’s desire or cling to your ideas, beliefs and take a gamble at never having what you truly want?

As men and women we deal with emotions differently. (Or maybe we’re the same and outwardly deal in a different ways.) How do you write your characters to deal with love? As a female writer, do you soften down your man’s inclination towards crude statements? Make him more direct when facing deeper emotion? Make him show it easier? Make him softer in his outward showing of love? (And for our male audience, just reverse the “him” to “her”.) Has anyone else seen Jane Eyre? What did you think?

PS. Sorry. This blog got away from me and my original intent. Original intent was to discuss the difference between forbidden love centuries ago and how that’s changed over the years. Maybe next time.

Music: I’m almost ashamed to say this aloud. “E.T” by Katy Perry (Please put me out of my misery now.)

One of my favorite ongoing manga series is about a teenager who’s a method actress. She is always evolving into a completely different character from her true nature. She changes like a chameleon. While it works great for her jobs, it’s hard for her to get her name out into the spotlight because she never looks the same. While writing and acting are two separate jobs, I think they have the same mindsets. This got me to thinking about how I write and wondering how everyone else writes.

I’ve always been absorbed into my own little world. Since I dislike socializing, I tend to people watch more than participate. The way you lean against the wall. The one arm braced against the wallpaper as you casually sip your coffee. The way your eyes are locked onto the couple across the room. I watch you watch their conversation. The way they interact with one another. The way your eyes seem to catch every little detail.

Characteristics and human expressions are my favorite things to catch in action. The way you wave your hand. The way your face twists up when you taste something sour. The crinkles around your eyes while you laugh. The way your face turns six shades of red when someone whispers in your ear. The intimate smile playing on your lips when you see your significant other across the room. All these nuances play into how I write. I visualize exactly how the character looks in that moment. I write down in detail how it plays out.

Some actors fall into what is described as “method” acting. When they read a part in a script, they become that character. In this actor’s world, this character is living and breathing. They are no longer the actor playing the part. They are the part. Certainly, knowing how to do the things described within the script helps make the movie seem authentic and real to the viewer. But the amount of power and emotion you bring to the scenes completely depends on the grasp you have over your character. Even if you’ve not experienced the same emotional mindset as your character, you still need to draw from deep within yourself to play the part.

As a writer, I need to draw deep within myself to pull out every little emotion from the reader. My job is to make you, the reader, feel you can see this scene as if it played out right in front of you. I need you to believe this story is true. That my characters are real people you could meet on the street, pass, and never know they were anything more than a person you passed on the street. There is a magnetism that draws your eyes to them, but they are oblivious to your attention.

So how does one fall into method writing? I feel that all of us writers fall somewhat into that category. We do our research. We draw from deep within ourselves and pull out buried emotions and feelings. I know I’ve spent hours with my characters learning them, becoming them. We become so absorbed into our worlds we’ve created, whether its the world we live in or created by our own brain power, until we see nothing else. Time passes us by in just the blink of an eye. Your fingers fly over the keys as you pound out every move. You see the production in front of you with such clarity it’s hard to believe with just a few words mumbled no one else knows what the hell you’re talking about.

As a reader do you often find yourself imagining the characters as if they were standing in front of you acting out the book you’re reading? Of the authors you read, who do you think makes you visualize the characters the most? Writers do you envision yourself as the characters and become one with your story while you’re writing it? If you don’t know something you’re writing, what’s your first course of action to rectify that?

PS. How is everyone’s writing going this month?

Music: In anticipation of getting Parabelle’s acoustic CD early- “Saturnalia” by Evans Blue (w/ Kevin Matisyn) I’ve got my fingers crossed that the secret song on the CD is this one.

It’s the first week of May, which means Mayawrapawrimo is in full swing. (Is that how we’re spelling it? *dismissive gesture* Meh, it’s close enough that you get the point.) We’re all brimming full with promise of massive quantities of pages about to be written. Positive energy is practically oozing from your pores like pheromones calling out to other writers. This will be a great month for all of us. I’m sure of it.

I love writing. Ever since I decided to go for it, I’ve found joy with creating situations for characters and using the characters to do my evil bidding- I mean, goody two-shoeing- for fun. It’s fun to see characters and stories come to life from your imagination. It’s easy to remember as a kid having a grand imagination and using it for all sorts of childish endeavors. I spent my entire childhood outside chasing after one story to the next. It was only after I became an adult (I use that term loosely) and was inspired that I decided it was time to put my imagination to work.

Fat lot of good that’s done me.

So as I struggle along trying to finish one manuscript after the next, I go back to those days when my imagination ran wild amongst the black-eyed susans and honeysuckle and purple clover. When I could climb a tree and pretend I was almost touching the sky. Imagination is meant to be fun. I sometimes lose sight of that when I’m struggling to bring my characters to life.

I know most of you do some sort of story boarding and character interviewing to understand your story better. Especially when you’re first starting out. Those questions we ask all have a point that steers the story towards the end. It helps you know your characters reactions and thought processes. It’s all rational. How about some silly stuff? I want to chill out with my character today. Not that any interaction with your character won’t help you know them better. But how about today we have some fun?

I decided over the weekend while I could rally the pirates and friends for the Mayawrapawrimo, we really don’t need a firm boot planting this early on. So let’s have some exercise. I’ll ask some questions and write your first response from your character’s perspective.

I’m going to use my heroine for my YA whom I’m working with right now. We don’t need to know the age or name or situation the character is in. The point of the exercise is fun and just finish the sentence with the first character thought that comes to mind.

Example:

Question 1. My alarm goes off in the morning and I…?

Answer: I beat it with my fist until it shuts the hell up.

Question 2: What’s the first thought in your mind when you wake up?

Question 3. All you have is rotten eggs and ketchup in the fridge and you’re starved… what happens next?

Question 4: Someone is calling you by a nickname. What is it?

Question 5: You hear a noise in the middle of the night. It wakes you from a dead sleep. What’s your first move?

Answer: It would have to be one helluva noise to wake me from a dead sleep.

Me: *eye roll* Just go with it.

Answer: Well, there’s all kinds of noise in the shelter. Are we talking like mass chaos, broken glass and screaming or atomic bombs and tanks rolling through the living room?

Me: *giving the look* The kind that means trouble, smart ass.

Question 6: You can go anywhere and do anything. What’s first?

Question 7: It’s a quiet night and you’re home with nothing to do. What’s your game plan?

Question 8: A person is interested in you and you’ve taken notice. What happens next?

You don’t have to answer all of them. The question might not pertain to your character’s situation. Ry’s in a world where there’s not much of an option to go anywhere and do anything. Or have a quiet night at “home”. Just answer the ones that jump out at you and your character.

PS. Pamela Clare’s newest I-Team book, Breaking Point, released yesterday. Don’t forget to pick it up if you’re an I-Team fan!