First off, I was supposed to be continuing edits on Secret of the Hazel Tree. And let me see... haven't touched it all summer.
I was also supposed to be finishing up the rough draft for Spindle Dreams. Uhh... well, I opened up the doc a few times in the last couple of months.
And, I was planning on finishing the first draft of the second Dragon Tamer book by Christmas. Hmmm... oh! I did work on that one a little bit at the beginning of the summer.
What was NOT on the agenda was a Snow White retelling.
Well, yes. You see this happened...
And then this happened...
And then it was all downhill from there.
And so, while my Little Writer is fuming at me, I'm going to take this opportunity to share a few snippets. I may do an informational post about the story sometime soon (maybe a character post as well), but for now - here's snippets from Snow and Copper (title change very probable, since I don't have anything about snow in the actual story).
Ahem, anyway.
~*~*~*~
Gwen Weiss was the only child at Lohr Manor to grow up never having worked in the copper mines. It wasn’t that she couldn’t work; she was just the daughter of the late Lord Weiss, and such a privilege tended to hinder the need to work. No one would allow her to step into the mines anyway, much to her chagrin. Having the heir to the largest estate in Ebbenhout killed in a cave-in or other mining disaster was not a risk anyone wanted to take.
Gwen, however, liked to keep busy. By seventeen, she’d already read all of the interesting books in her father’s old library, learned how to bake seven different kinds of cake, knitted thirty-nine and a half scarves, and basically run out of new things to do at home. So that’s why she was currently chasing little Adva out of the road.
~*~*~*~
Isaak and Katrin hurried away, leaving Gwen alone with a spoon, a boiling pot of potato stew, and two shouting children. Thankfully, Rochen and Adva were content to resume their chase around the maze of tables and chairs. The problems of grownups were hardly worth fussing over at their age, but Gwen couldn’t hold down the irritation rising in her heart. With one last glance to ascertain Rochen and Adva were fine, she stomped back to the kitchen and plunged the spoon into the heart of the stew. The mines technically were hers. It wasn’t fair that she was the only person on the entire manor not to have even seen them.
She sloshed the spoon violently around in the pot, sending splashes of stew into the fire below with each turn. Turning eighteen would do a lot more for her than simply getting her inheritance. She was going to enjoy her new title and the new power it came with as much as she could.
“One more month,” she muttered to herself. “And then they can’t deny me anymore.”
~*~*~*~
Gwen woke the next morning to the unpleasing sound of rain beating against the window. Isaak had been right. She scowled.
Of course, he’s always right.
~*~*~*~
Gwen leaned back in her chair, wondering what to do next. That was the problem with being rich; there were often too many things to do and look at in one’s house that it became very boring very quickly. Guess it’s back to the library, then.
~*~*~*~
A soft laugh came from the closet. “Then it is Gwen. Do come in, and let me see you.”
Gwen reached for the closet door and slowly swung it open. She wasn’t sure exactly what to expect and, truthfully, what she saw was the last thing she had ever dreamed to expect.
The closet was empty save for a large mirror standing upright against the far wall. It was taller than Gwen and looked old - very old. Thick, gold trim encased the edges and delicate designs had been carved into the metal, making it even more beautiful. If it had been a normal mirror, Gwen should have been easily able to see her entire body in the glass; but this was not a normal mirror. Instead of her own reflection looking back at her, when she looked into the mirror she saw the face and form of a strange woman.
~*~*~*~
God bless!
