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Day 41 (1:14) of rewriting my novel
I didn't write a lot today, but that's okay. Any progress is progress.
I'm still thinking about Izi's speech in Tolftorrijv, and about what he might say. For the three-man band that is the "New Heroes," Izi fills both the Heart and the Leader, and Taguchif overlaps with him in the roles of Lancer and Smart one. I guess that makes Hota the tank, while also fulfilling some leadership roles because they're good at making plans. A well-balanced team.
I now plan on breaking that balance in Part Four, though, splitting them up. It's time for Zeneste to come under new management, anyways.
Day 40 (1:13) of rewriting my novel
I hit 50K today! For that I'm very excited.
Some liked my previous Low Zeneth translations, so I'll share another here.
Hior bv puw ijsonvn bivq
IPA: [ˈhi.or.ˈbə̃.ˈpuː.ˈiː.so.nə̃n.ˈbjə̃t͡ʃ]
Lit. Translation: wish.PRES.SMP 1ST.SNG 3RD.SNG is good.
Translation: I hope you enjoy it. (Literally: I wish it is good.)
Some notes on this: ijsonvn /ˈiːsonə̃n/ is a dummy verb for non-predicative adjectives, like the word bivq /ˈbjə̃t͡ʃ/, which can be "good," or used independently as an NP to mean "goodness."
Syntax in subordinate clauses switches to SVO, as you saw in the example above. A grouping of it might look like this.
[VP [V hope] [NP I] [VP [NP it] [V' [V is] [NP good]]]]
Maybe one day I'll get around to making a syntax tree to describe what's going on, because that grouping isn't quite accurate, but it's good enough for right now.
I’ve never read this book, I only watched the series on YouTube. I must read it at some point. David J. Peterson’s content on linguistics is immaculate.
I FOUND A BOOK
Look what we got from the library!!! Look at it! Look!
Now that we have The Book, there's no stopping us. You will all be drowning in words and grammar and scripts >:D
But seriously. If I had a flappy hands emoji, I'd be using it right now.
Day 39 (1:12) of rewriting my novel
No crazy Low Zeneth translations today, although I'm very proud of its crazy analytical grammar.
Today I'm thinking about post-novel cannon, because I find those events just as fascinating. After the novel is over, the Empire of Zeneste is completely disbanded, leaving just the state of Ir Nouzonif with Izi as its "Emperor."
Meanwhile, the White Army definitely does not finish retaking Odapir, so in post-novel canon, Izi definitely helps Heja'umak reclaim her home city of Odapir City.
Furthermore, the ruler of Tolftorrijv is pretty corrupt in the same way that President Sluwfa was...
And about her, I haven't even decided what happens to her yet. Perhaps out of desperation, she tries to combine the magic she stole inside herself? Lozerief did say it was like "replacing your lungs with lungs that were 10 liters."
I feel like the states of Ytos and Itaush would reunite, since Itaush was one of the Twin Duchies, but left the Confederacy.
Day 38 (1:11) of rewriting my novel
Ok today I gave in and started writing Part Three in reverse.
That's mostly because I know where Part Three is headed completely. I'm still debating how I want Part Four to go. I'm now anticipating (but can't predict) a Part Five. A sort-of last-ditch effort for the evil President Sluwfa.
I also wanted to write Lozerief again because she's more fun to write than most of my characters, I think. She's dark and brooding, but she's not evil by any stretch of the imagination. It's also fun to see her at her weakest: for a long time, she was regarded as the strongest Hero. I think it's fun to see her come crawling back to the people she hurt the most.
Day 37 (1:10) of Rewriting my novel
Today I mostly just want to share these crazy Low Zeneth translations:
Baan fijsesê bv hijfen ijnvn ijfo ilatsifio.
This phrase is used at a coffee shop and means "what can I do for you?" My literal translation looks like this:
what IMPF.PRES PRON.1ST.INF.SNG can do up 2ND.FOR.PL
In a more normie-friendly way:
what I could do up you?
It's worth ilatsifio is a suppletive form of "dv/dvrvt" ([də̃, ˈdə̃.rə̃t] or in phonemic notation: /də̃, ˈdə̃.rə̃t/). Like Spanish "usted" < "tu merced," ilatsifio was an old word for "teacher."
Anyways, what's interesting about this is the imperfective-simple present split here, marked with auxiliary verbs. This sentence is marked in the imperfective present because the speaker (barista) is unsure if she can actually help the listener (Izi.)
Low Zeneth, though its verbs only have reduplicative morphology, distinguishes between the present, past, and future tenses; the simple, perfective, habitual, and imperfective aspects; and one modality.
The syntax is even more cursed, especially for a question (like this one.) That's a story for another day.
Day 36 (1:06) of rewriting my novel
Today was a day I didn't even think would be hard for me writing-wise, but it was. The vision in my head was "and Tagif, Hota, and Izi all go to Tolftorrijv uneventfully," but I decided to torture Tagif and Izi with their father's journal.
Xajas, Izi and Tagif's father, kept a journal off and on for like 900 years, and the last entry is about him battling his cancer. Here's a quote:
I told him to be loyal to himself first. Above all else, that is what he needs. I will always regret that I was not there to be with him when he needed me most. I believe it is his love that has kept me alive since Dolgof went away. That luck has run dry.
Last month, Lozef helped me write my will. I left everything to Izi. I explained to him everything I never could. About his mother, his sister, Lozef, the Heroes, and how his mother left the throne of Zeneste to him. Lozef promised she would see to it that I got it.
But I know better than to be so blind to how lawyers work here. They're greedy. They'll rip the will to shreds if they ever get their hands on it. The courts refuse to digitize it, so once it's gone, it's gone for good. Lozef is smart, and she's clever, but she'll never be more cunning than those damn lawyers.
My only hope is that Izi is clever enough-and bold enough-to find this journal before it's all spoiled to him. That he may remember me for who I was: not through the rose-tinted glasses of a child, but through the retrospective eyes of a century-old man who died before he could ever truly know me.
And to Iziser, my loving son, if you are reading this, I owe you the world. You're a strong kid. You'll be an even stronger man. Whoever is lucky enough to share your company I adore. Relish your life while you have it, young man. There is no Hero of Life to keep us alive. Only ourselves.
Part of this is also to highlight how brutal and capitalist the Zenestian legal system is. After Xajas dies, no matter how hard Lozerief fights to protect him, everything is taken from Iziser, including his house. The lawyers destroy the will and take everything, agreeing never to speak of this. This is an unfortunately common practice in Zeneste.
Day 35 (1:05) of rewriting my novel
Today was a "bridge the gaps" day.
Yesterday, I wrote about Vimir. The day before that, I wrote about Taguchif. In order to bridge those scenes with what I already had, I wrote for, like, 4 hours and about 2,100 words piecing it all together. Now, Part Three is like 12,000 words, and I'm probably just over 1/3 of the way there? I'm staring down the barrel of probably 40,000 words necessary for Part Three.
To be clear, in no way is Meiste meant to be consumed in four parts. Later, I plan to block off chunks as chapters. But not until after I've gotten all four parts to places where they can reasonably be split off into chapters.
Part of what I mean by that is this: Part One was really rushed, comparatively. My "alpha" reader pointed out that the pacing is really rushed in Part One, and that's been on my mind this whole time, but that was really so I could work up the motivation to get through Part Two.
Part One is even, comparatively, short compared to parts Two and Three: it stands at just 12,000 words. And mostly as an introduction to the other three parts. That was a critical flaw in choosing what has become, essentially, in media res to start a fantasy novel.
I plan on adding a scene at the end, once this is all said and done, where Izi, Vimir, and his boss are all at church. With that I can do several big things:
Lay out Zenestian religion. While the Constitution of Zeneste is inherently a religious document, Zenestian government has strayed so far from its original intents to suck power from its citizens that the religion has almost become a sort-of government worship. This was one of the big reasons my "alpha" reader was confused in the first chapter by everyone just accepting that "the Constitution said Izi is Emperor, so Izi is Emperor." It's a level of Orwellian brainwashing that is crazy deep.
Lay out what Izi's world even looks like. At this point in the story, he's just an eighteen-year-old worker in a rice farm taking a single evening of rest to go and worship with his community, including his best friend and most loyal ally.
Set up the windows scene in Part One. In Part One, Izi's astounded by the lack of designs in the Old Chapel of Zeneste, and when he finds the old windows in the attic, he hires somebody to come and replace the windows for him. Since the reader doesn't have context for this, it might make Lozerief's outburst even more confusing.
Foreshadow his mom being the Hero of Life. Like, the Hero of Life appears everywhere, and I don't wanna give away Izi's mom being the Hero of Life too early, but I can afford to drop more hints.
This, alone, would add probably 2,000-3,000 words.
In addition, she recommended changing the pacing so Izi has more like a month in the palace (instead of the 3 days that I wrote in originally.) I definitely could use this to illustrate what the Zenestian government is like: a bunch of corrupt politicians figuring out how they can get more power (Lozerief is an exception).
This has mostly become me ranting about novel plotting, and what I have to do later, but feel free to let me know your thoughts! I'm always open to hear other peoples' opinions (except when they necessitate the disenfranchisement of others.)
Another OC Questionnaire
An open tag from @authorcoledipalo.
This time, I'm doing this with the four most integral Heroes: Izi, Hota, Tagif, and Lozef:
Would you team up with your worst enemy if it was your only option?
Izi: It depends on what, I think. I promised Vimir I would make the train tickets free, so I can't really team up with the train company to make that happen. But to save Meiste? Obviously if there's no better choice, I'd do anything to save our world.
Hota: Izi's too trusting. I make very few enemies, and I keep my closest friends near my chest. If I've decided I can't trust you, I will never decide to trust you again.
Lozef: Regrettably, I'm more like Izi on this one. I've had to swallow my pride twice and admit that I'm wrong in order to do what's right. That's what's most important, anyways.
Tagif: Hota's got the right idea. I pound my enemies into the dust!
What is your pet peeve?
Izi: Hota always tells me I don't handle people questioning my authority very well, and they're right about that.
Hota: Izi says I am such a good planner that I can't stand when there isn't a plan, mostly emphasizing that I'm not flexible enough sometimes. Izi's gung-ho attude is just as anxiety-inducing as it is refreshing.
Lozef: Ok, doing shit that pertains to me without asking first is my biggest pet peeve. It's usually pretty small-like Izi changing the windows in the chapel. I swapped them for a reason! Don't swap them back!
Tagif: I don't care about authority, I care about expertise. Like, you're going to explain to me how to to build a chestplate with bulit-in holographic computer screens? Nobody's done that, yet, but Hota and I have butted heads over political expertise.
If a monster asked you your worst nightmare what would you tell it and why?
Izi: Well, it's gotta be believable, but not something you're actually scared of, right? Otherwise the monster will terrify the living daylight out of you. So, I guess I would say something like beetles.
Hota: I think it depends on whether or not I know what this monster is capable of. If it's Tev? I'd be honest: the death of Izi-or Tagif or Lozef-would kill me mentally, I think. If it's an sort-of evil Meiste? Beetles.
Lozef: No point in lying to the damn thing, I can take it. Losing my magic is my biggest nightmare, and I grapple with how Dolgof and Pagjom must've felt every day. My second-biggest is if something happened to Tev.
Tagif: My biggest nightmare is if Heja'umak thinks I'm weird or something. I can live with that, but it would hurt a lot. I guess I'm fortunate that my biggest nightmare is just wondering if my crush likes me back?
Open tag for anyone interested!
Unorthodox Ship Tag
Open tag from @theverumproject
The rules: Post five overly specific ship dynamics for characters in your story.
Mind-reading, anxious, tall one and easygoing, head-empty-no-thoughts, short one. (Hota-Izi)
Easily-manipulated, loyal, lesbian train wreck and giant lava monster who can get down to her level. (Lozef-Tev).
Capable, sciencey, badass, magically unstable Princess and revolutionary leader with virtually no magic. (Tagif-Mostijv).
Literally pining for 900 years and the one who never realized it. (Lozef-Dolgof).
Socially well-versed older sister and awkward-but-friendly younger brother. (Tagif-Izi.) Open tag!
Day 34 (1:04 in my extended base 30/7) of rewriting my novel
Today I bring back the side character who really won't get enough love: Vimir.
Vimir's a clutz, thick and through. He's easygoing and hard not to love. He spends his time working, but when he's not working he's either making mead to drink later, or drinking his mead now.
Vimir is probably Izi's second-most loyal ally, but definitely his most loyal ally when the story begins. For years, he would spot Izi cash to be able to afford his own place. Izi's always felt guilty, but has never had a way to repay him.
Day 33 (1:03 in extended base 30/7) of re-writing my novel
I hit 40,000 words today!
I am also still chugging along and building up Taguchif's character as I go in this first draft, since she's the second least developed Hero. (The least developed Hero being the Hero of Language, Pagjom.)
I am, unfortunately, very prepared for Part Three to drag on and on for all eternity, since there's so much that needs to happen for the next really big event (that is, Lozerief returns, begging for forgiveness.) It may get to a point where I start writing backwards from that point while I trudge through the boring.
Well, I don't think it's boring, it's mostly just full of characterization of Izi and Hota that they won't get anywhere else. Not only is it for my own sake (because they're easily my favorite couple to write of my OCs: see also, Lozerief and Tev; Yessei and Stardust) but it's also for the sake of recovering from the end of Part Two.
Day 32 (1:02 in extended-base 30-7) of re-writing my novel
Yeah ok today I couldn't help myself and I cut to the chase: introducing Taguchif, the Hero of Doom, and easily the character who would beat all the others in a full-blown battle.
(Also, I never answer it anywhere, but Zenestian surnames are always first: In, Ihine, and Eheste are the most common surnames I write about.)
In Taguchif
19 year old Taguchif (nick. Tagif) is the Princess of Atepsi and the Sixth Hero, and therefore the last one needed to save Meiste. Due to other circumstances, her Realization isn't what sets Meiste's return to normalcy in motion. That will come later. She's Izi's sister, tech god, and explosive (in a literal sense).
She's about 5' 10", and goes around wearing her metal chestplate with gauntlets, wearing gray sweat pants and sneakers. Her midriff is usually exposed, as well as her arms up to her elbow. Her skin is darker than Izi's (whose is already pretty dark), and she has green eyes with long, wavy hair.
Backstory
Taguchif and Iziser were separated once Izi was born, and Taguchif was raised with her mother in Atepsi city as an only child. She was never aware her mother, Ihine Dolgof, was the Hero of Life.
As a child, she gained a knack for working with technology, and she came up with her best invention, termed the 'technoplate.' It's a chestplate and gauntlets designed initially to harness magic, but later designed to suppress it.
Speaking of suppressing magic, Doom can be a volatile magic, and Taguchif's Realization is no different. When she turned fifteen, she started seeing signs, but it got progressively worse until her final Realization when she's with Izi and Hota.
In addition to being Hero of Doom, though, she's also the Princess of Atepsi, and a very influential figurehead, though powerless under the Atepsi Constitution.
Abilities
Fire is one of the key symbols of Doom. She breathes fire out of her mouth and her eyes glow orange.
But also there's poison skin, so don't touch her unless she says it's okay.
She can also shapeshift, but it takes a lot of energy, especially to get a lot larger.
Those are the main three for now.
Quotes
"Too late...you're cooked."
"Huh...nice."
"Oh! You want to hear about the holograms!" Yaps for 30 mins uninterrupted.
Day 31 (1:01 in extended base 30 base 7) of rewriting my conlang.
Poll at the end!
Groups of thirty days are easier to count than pure groups of seven days, so I will now be implementing an extended base 30 where the first digit will go up to 42 (30 in base 10) and the next digit will count in base 12. A complicated way of approximating the number of years:months:weeks-days I've been writing.
Today I remembered that I'm writing my novel and can do what I want, so I added a pretty direct form of foreshadowing by mentioning that Mostijv was going to find a huge lava monster (named Tev) who would help her rebel against the oppressive, Odapir government and form the White Army.
Today, I fleshed out more of the Western Zenestian languages, but I'm not done with sound changes and grammar yet, so be on the lookout for that.
Also,
OC Open Tag Questionaire
Open tag from @fantasy-things-and-such
I'll do this with three of my main OCs: Iziser, Hotautebz, and Lozerief.
1) Are you a night owl or a morning lark
Izi: Normally, I hear the phrase as "night owl or morning star." I sleep in too late to be a morning star, though.
Hota: Izi thinks he sleeps in late? 10 AM? Rookie numbers.
Lozerief: I don't sleep. I once went a period of two weeks without sleeping before my body had enough and I slept on the floor. My sleep schedule is so irreconcilably bad that I can't, in good conscience, answer this question.
2) what is/would be your favorite kind of cheese
Izi: I'm lactose intolerant! I hear they make good brie in the highlands, though.
Hota: I feel bad for Izi. He's missing out on the wonders of mozzarella.
Lozerief: I grew up on a dairy farm. I had a brief stint selling cheese. I can't stand the stuff anymore-cheese, milk, butter, you name it! I guess my favorite at the time was well-aged gouda. I put my heart and soul into making gouda, let me tell you.
3) whats your favorite letter?*
Izi: This question is terribly unspecific! What language? Because my favorite "normal" letter is "rr." It looks like this: 工.
Hota: Again, poor Izi doesn't know the horrors of trying to learn to write Ytos. That being said, my favorite letter is the regular "r" in Ipol, which looks like this: 口.
Lozerief: Depends on the language, mostly, and script. Like, I'm old enough to remember the Classical Zispoel abugida that Pagjom invented, like, nine hundred years ago! It's hard to choose a favorite, especially in modern Ipol, which simplified the old abugida tremendously, down into an abjad. But, "f" is my favorite letter: Π.
*Sidenote: these are relative approximations of the actual characters in the Ipol Abjad, which I may later make a post on.
I tag @theothersideofthewoods @oldfashionedidiot and @authorcoledipalo + open tag. Your questions are:
What's your favorite restaurant? If you don't have one, what's your favorite food?
How many languages do you speak? Do you speak English? How many forms of those languages do you speak?
What does magic mean for you?
Day 30 (42 in base 7) of rewriting my novel
Today I explored Tolftorrijv and Zenée. Both are very important places in Zenestian history, as they linguistically diverged from Ir Nouzonif in radically different ways. Culturally, while they're still pretty similar, the linguistic differences instigated a large, cultural divide which broke out into civil war.
Tolftorrijv (language unnamed), Zãth, and Zenée are all members of the Western Zenestian languages, characterized by nasal vowels and round, front vowels as well as an increasingly analytical grammar (contrasting with the fusional grammar of Ipol.)
Day 29 (41 in base 7) of re-writing my novel
Yeah today everyone remembers that, all the way back in Part One, Lozerief offhandedly said that Izi could render the Constitution of Zeneste completely void if he said so. I find this very amusing for several reasons.
The President is (effectively) the Emperor after she removes Iziser as Emperor.
If Iziser renders the Constitution void, the President and the two houses can write a new constitution which doesn't include the Emperor as a role, or any connection to the Hero of Life.
Furthermore, they can write the role of Vice President out entirely and hold special "elections" (mass voter fraud/suppression) and oust Lozerief, the only sane politician left, while she's isolated from the other two (three) Heroes.
This is a rather Orwellian (see 1984) take on how this will turn out, but President Sluwfa has to then convince the masses that a) this is what the Hero of Life would've wanted, and b) In Iziser, the rice farmer who became Emperor, was actually an enemy of the state the whole time. As a result, policing in Ir Nouzonif (both the city and the state) increases drastically, but (as you may already know from my previous posts,) many remain sympathetic to In Iziser, anyways.
Day 28 (40 in base 7) of re-writing my novel ft. The Great Coalition
Four weeks officially! This is so exciting!
Part Three is coming along greatly and I'm still so excited for its completion. As a follow-up to my post earlier today, let's talk about the Great Coalition.
The Great Coalition
The only change to the flag was the black background on the right being added as symbolism for the Hero of Earth.
With the sole goal of recapturing Ir Nouzonif, Zenée, Tolftorrijv, Atepsi, Ytos, and Itaush all form the Great Coalition.
The Recapture of Ir Nouzonif
The White Army and Atepsi stage their armies at the Odapir border. Rebel groups in Pisteeks stage the Tolftijv army, and in Sedrosteks the Zenée army will set up on the border with Ir Nouzonif.
The Hero of Earth revealed that the President stole her technology to put an anti-magic barrier around Ir Nouzonif, so nobody will have their Gift once inside the city limits.
Ytos, Itaush, and the Atepsi navy are sent to guard the Eastern Sea and ensure that the President doesn't escape that way. Everyone knows her goal is to escape with the magic and the Heros of Life and Language's bodies. None of the four remaining Heroes can let that happen.
The Coalition
This most is mostly an info-dump about a part of Part Three (and Part Four) that I'm working on, but if you'd like, keep reading for spoilers!
The Western Zenestian Coalition
The Western Zenestian Coalition was founded with the sole purpose of recapturing Ir Nouzonif. The founding document dictates that, though it itself is not a governed nation, all states that participate must agree to build a militia, refuse to fight amidst themselves, and plan to recapture Ir Nouzonif under the leadership of the Three Heroes (Iziser, Taguchif, and Hota.) The founding member states were the state of Zenée and Tolftorrijv.
The white symbolizes Cognition (and, later, the White Army of Odapir.) The yellow symbolizes Doom, and the teal symbolizes Mind. These are the colors of the Three Heroes.
Speaking of the White Army, they seceded from Odapir before the coalition was founded, but they later join once they secure control of the border with Ir Nouzonif province. Another state is allowed to join with the approval of a simple majority of current member states.
The founding document also dictates that, upon the capture of Ir Nouzonif, all member states will be independent and recognized by all others. This is mostly for Zenée and Tolftorrijv, since they are states of Zeneste, and the White Army, who seceded from Odapir.
The Great Coalition
After the Hero of Earth joins the coalition in leadership, the states of Ytos, Itaush, and Atepsi, as well as the rebellion group in Pisteeks, the coalition grows into being most of the world, all with the goal of capturing Ir Nouzonif. Maybe I'll make a follow-up post about the Great Coalition.
Day 27 (36 in base 7) of re-writing my novel
I started Part Three today. Progress still in progress.
Part Three will be particularly hard to write because of how loosey-goosey it is right now, but I'm nailing the plan down. At least the first several thousand words should be planned-out, for now. This part may be very long, like 30-40,000 words.
But it starts off in a particularly dark place. Spoilers ahead, for anyone who cares.
Part Three begins with Iziser reconsidering why he ever trusted Lozerief to begin with, and why she would turn on them. He initially believes its his fault. He also jogs a memory from being back in the only place he ever called "home," and he realizes Lozerief was fighting for him on the sidelines all the while. Why, now, would she go and take his magic?
But Lozerief comes around out of necessity in the end of Part Three. Will I use Lozerief to answer every question? Definitely not, there's still one more Part! And she doesn't have all the answers, only most of them. Including some of the biggest ones that she keeps hidden away from everyone...
Day 26 (35 in base 7) of re-writing my novel
I finished Part Two today! I will celebrate tomorrow (somehow). It is ~21,000 words.
The very end of Part Two explores what it is like to exist as a body without magic. Check out the following excerpt. Keep in mind, there are a TON of spoilers right here.
I blinked again, and Dolgof was on the ground.
I staggered back, clawing for Hota's arm, pulling them back as well as I stared at the Hero of Life's limp body, laying up against the lemon tree. Behind her stood the Hero of Earth. She gripped a syringe with white knuckles.
"What did you do," I shouted, "you killed her!"
Fangs bared, she kicked the Hero of Life. "Go on, tell him your dirty lie," she growled.
"Come," Dolgof whispered. "She won't hurt you."
Against my better judgment, I knelt down beside her. Her breathing slowed. Her hand laid over her stomach. Her cheeks drooped with fatigue. She was barely alive now, and she wouldn't be for much longer.
"I hid so much from you," she continued. "I hid myself from you for eighteen years. Only now-" she coughed "-only now do I tell you that, In Iziser."
She struggled for a breath. I lifted her head up. "What, what," I cried. My body shook, tears forming behind my eyes. "What is it?"
"You're my son."
No.
"I'm your mother, Izi."
I gasped and staggered back, hands covering my mouth until I fell hard on the ground. Hota picked me up. Still wielding her syringe, I begged the Hero of Earth, "what did you do to her?""I took her magic," she snarled. "I took the Hero of Language's, too. I'm going to combine them all, myself, and save Meiste. That's the easiest-no, only-way."
A body without magic is, too, aimless and stumbling through existence. An existence without the magic that fundamentally makes people people in Meiste is a painful one. Dolgof, once the Hero of Life, will remain a vegetable until the end of the novel, once they're able to reunite her and her magic.
Day 25 (34 in base 7) of re-writing my novel
Today I explored one of two very important concepts in my novel: what does magic look like without a body to bind to it? Read ahead to learn more, but there are technically spoilers here.
"No," I decided. "It's-" A foul stench slashed at my nose, popping my eyes open. "What the hell?" I stood and plugged my nose, sticking out my hand. "I don't smell it." Hota stood beside me, hands in their pockets while they looked around. From the forest came a rotting buck the size of a semi truck. I could see its skull from beneath the skin that had fallen away, and only one eye remained on it. "I don't see that." Hota gulped and stood behind me. The buck wasn't real, I realized. The buck was made of magic. This was the consequence of failing to restore magical balance quickly enough. This putrid thing, made from unguided magic, wandering aimlessly in a world where it couldn't interact. Had I failed? Would Meiste soon perish?
Magic without a body is aimless. It is undead. It has no will nor way, rhyme nor reason, nothing like that. In fact, the perception of that magic is what caused it to take a form in the first place. It is only putrid-smelling because Izi perceived it that way, and it only looks like a rotting deer because that's what Izi saw.
Day 24 (33 in base 7) of re-writing my novel
Since google docs (my primary writing tool, accompanied by my note-taking journal) doesn't quite accurately describe my true word count, today I will celebrate 30,000 words like I promised yesterday, because it's close enough to be within a 5% error.
I wrote more today, including getting deep in the weeds with the relationship between Izi, Hero of Cognition, and Dolgof, the Hero of Life. Without sharing very many spoilers, they're in very similar situations. Or, have been.
Izi, the current Emperor of Zeneste, has never been in a position of power before, nor has he been a proper leader. Dolgof had been in his position during the drafting of the Constitution of Zeneste, but she never became a good leader.
I like this dynamic between them. Not only does Izi have someone to discuss what being a leader means with, he also has someone to juxtapose himself against, however unhealthy that may be.
Day 23 (32 in base 7) of Rewriting my Novel
I was on a plane again today, so I wrote a bunch. If I didn't crack 30,000 today, I'll crack 30,000 tomorrow. Yay!
I finally got around to writing an introduction for this blog, which was long overdue. I'm definitely not only shouting off into the void of binary while I continue to write.
Neither Odapir nor Ipol are to a point where I would feel comfortable publishing a dictionary, but they're to a point where I can translate as I need to and derive words on the fly. If I ever get to a point where I have 1,500-2,000 words, I'll publish a dictionary, then. Probably online.
A Proper Introduction
It only now occurs to me that I haven't properly introduced myself (or this blog!) Welcome. I'm happy to have y'all. I'm Lex (they/them) (18+), your local siren, programmer, writer, worldbuilder, conlanger, composer, and gardener. I speak with a bit of a Southern accent.
This is my main (and only, for now) blog, where I mostly post about my writing endeavors and worldbuilding "woes" (I make myself suffer for fun.) In the future, I may make blogs devoted to specific conlangs or concultures, but I will probably make a website for that, first. If that happens, I will post it here. I follow other blogs I like ad nauseam.
Additionally, I'm always taking translation suggestions for any of my conlangs in any of my WIPs. At the moment, I only have two WIPs, which I'll list below, but I'm really only working on one right now.
My WIPs are:
It Will Hurt: And There Will be no Fire - (On hold) A story about a vegan big-V Vampire, her sister, her cofee bar, and a lot of people who want her power for themselves.
Meiste - (Current) A story about several Heroes running around and trying to restore "magical balance" while also navigating political and economic strife.
Moreover, current conlangs I'm accepting translation ideas for:
Ipol (and Sinezo 'speer)
Odapir
Atepsi
Kwalinu and Kwaleynnũ
Ytos and Itaush
Katla-Khi
Bumpe Nende
Knál Bnú and Kanál Banáu
I'm normally down for connecting with writing buddies, so if you're interested, feel free to DM me! I am also willing to proofread/edit others' works, in addition to helping however I can. I can make websites, make languages, and make music lol.
I promise I wrote today, so there will also be an update following this. Take care, y'all.
Day 22 (31 in base 7) of rewriting my novel
Today I wrote some more and did some more plotting.
While we're on the topic of plotting, let's talk about the newest character (referenced yesterday) whose name is Mostijv in Ipol and Heja'umak (/hɛ.jə.u.mək/) in Odapir.
Her character has suddenly become very important for the fate of Odapir. She, along with local, lesbian, giant lava monster, Tev, are introduced by Dolgof. They both decide to team up to overthrow the tyrannical, Odapirian dictatorship, but it becomes a hard-fought, very long battle. One that extends past the novel's canon. (I.e. the "White Army" of Tev and Mostijv and the "Purple Army" of the Odapirian dictatorship are still fighting when the novel ends.)
Mostijv and Izi butt heads a lot, but they're fundamentally allies through mutual respect. Hota, since they're constantly trying to keep the peace, gets along fine with Mostijv.
Mostijv's magic is Doom, specifically some basic fire-making.
As Promised
I filled out one of these character sheets I found for In Iziser, Hero of Cognition and Emperor of Zeneste, as a writing warm-up.
General Info
Name: In Iziser
Nicknames:
• Most prominent: Nuwrrite Emeete, "Hero of Cognition," Nuwrrite sis Nistemiks pijn.
Called Izi by all his friends.
Pronouns: he/him
Age: 18
Gender: Cis Man
Sexuality: Pan
Species: Human
Place Of Birth: Outside of Ir Nouzonif, Zeneste
Current Home: Ir Nouzonif, Zeneste
Big spoilers ahead of here, be warned!
Appearance
Izi has short, brown hair and brown skin and a flat-ish nose. His eyes are green, and he stands at around 5' 6" (167 cm). He doesn't appear particularly fit or trim, but the mass on his bones is definitely muscle from tilling and harvesting rice fields.
Normally, he'll be seen wearing jeans and long-sleeves, even in >100 F (37 C) heat-indexes, since Ir Nouzonif is a very humid place. He's no stickler for colors matching, and often his clothes are permanently stained with dirt.
Personality
Though mostly cheery, he can becomes aggravated easier than normal. Moreover, he can be overzealous and overconfident. He's very openly trusting, although he keeps his early history close to his chest. He's not altogether too proud, though he hates to receive charity, even when he's down on his luck. He looks up to his father, and remembers his words a lot.
Likes:
• Rice bowls. They're his favorite food because they're a) easy to make, b) versatile, and c) filling with the right ingredients. He mostly just adds a couple of fried eggs to his rice bowls.
• Spending time with Hotautebz, the Hero of Mind. Since there's no point in holding back from Hota, Izi feels most like himself when he's with them. Hota's not too judgemental, thankfully.
• His local general store. It's the place where he does most of his shopping, since he knows the price is relatively cheap for the quality of clothing and other daily goods.
Dislikes:
• His authority being questioned. Though he's very insecure about being a leader (in more ways than one), he wouldn't give up the title for his life. He often finds ways to reassert his own authority in that way.
• Lounging around. Izi is restless and likes to me moving about. He likes to rest when he's tired, but he doesn't stay stagnant for too long.
• Burned rice. He believes rice is one of the easiest things to cook, and one of the hardest things to mess up, since it's so versatile.
Known Abilities
Cognition Magic
Cognition magic is the magic of the Irrealis-that which is not real, or cannot be known. Quantum physics lends itself really well to this, as well as knowledge of magic, itself. At a base level, Izi can teleport, become "ghost-like," and sense another person's magic.
Besides that, his skill with the scythe and sickle have been honed for the years since he worked in the rice fields.
Relationships
Family:
• (Mother) Ihine Dolgof, Hero of Life. (Not present during his upbringing.) (See! I told you there would be big spoilers.)
(Father) Äs Xajas. Raised Izi alone. Deceased
(Sister) In Taguchif, Hero of Redacted. Raised by her mother (Ihine Dolgof) in Atepsi to become the Princess of Atepsi.
Friends/Allies:
• Vimir, roommate and best friend. Worked in the rice fields together. Complete airhead.
Eheste Lozerief, Hero of Earth. Simultaneously an ally and enemy.
Hotautebz Az, Hero of Mind. Izi and Hota fit together like the first two tunes in Ralph Vaughan Williams' Sea Songs.
Enemies:
President Sluwfa of Zeneste. The big bad.
Eheste Lozerief. Marginally less bad.
In Taguchif. Even less bad.
Backstory
Izi was born the second of two to the Hero of Life and Xajas. Deciding she couldn't raise two children, Ihine Dolgof forced Xajas to divorce and split their children, since Taguchif was just two, and Izi had just been born. As a result, Izi was raised alone.
He went through elementary school in the rural area outside of Ir Nouzonif until his father died in the hospital with stage four lung cancer. After that, the lawyers who were supposed to transcribe his inheritance and set up a fund, based on his father's will, stole it all for themselves, leaving the, now twelve years old, Iziser to find work for himself.
Fun Facts
• Izi's accent of Ipol has the voiceless uvular fricative, [χ], as the realization of the voiced uvular trill, [ʀ] phonemically /ʀ/. Additionally, his /s/ is realized as [h] in most contexts. In summary, he speaks like a farmer.
• Izi has a big fat crush on Hota for most of the novel. That's really all there is to say on the matter.
• Izi never quite realizes why the lemon tree is so significant for Dolgof and Lozerief.
Day 21 (30 in base 7) of re-writing my novel.
Wow, three weeks and ~27,000 words. Time flies.
Today I added double my normal word count to Part Two. I finally started writing the Hero of Life into this nonsense.
I will also provide an Odapir translation for today, used in canon:
Omoi odáo o tavishy ko. Wá áso asiren omoi táotsoi ko. Ymaktaviji tá taviji umak.
The translation is "Arriving in Tavishy. Take care when exiting the train. Ymaktaviji is the next stop."
Day 20 (26 in base 7) of rewriting my novel.
I did a lot of planning today, but I didn’t add any words to the novel today.
Also, a new character just kinda… popped out of nowhere yesterday while I was writing?
Day 19 (25 in base 7) of rewriting my novel.
I wrote another 1,000 words ish. I've been adding roughly 1,000 words per day, and as a result, I'm somewhere along the order of 24,000 or so words total.
Today, I also completed a grambank table for Ipol! A while ago, @dedalvs created a grambank spreadsheet for conlangs that has been very helpful for documenting my conlangs' grammars (so I don't forget them,) and today I finished a "draft" of a finalized one for Ipol.
I will link it here:
Submit any questions about it that you might have, or submit translations! I'm always looking to expand the lexicon.
That's all for now.
EDIT: I mistakenly credited David J. Peterson with creating this spreadsheet, but he's just who I heard it from! It is actually by Jessie Peterson.
Edit 2: I knew David Peterson and Jesse Peterson were married, but I didn’t piece together that it was Jesse Peterson who created the grambank spreadsheet.