Monday Musings: Balancing Creativity

I’ve been writing on an intensive schedule since before November. The story is coming along good, but I hit a spot I need to do some thinking. I have my plot points clear in mind; the character arcs are there. I’m having fun with the adventure but I need to do some layering in a section. I’m letting it percolate in my mind for a while. This past week has been a much-needed break and a healthy step away from a long-term project.

 

So, instead of editing and layering my WIP I’m playing with another passion of mine, photography. I have a couple-hundred pictures I took for a wedding and for another function, both formal and candid, which need to be cropped and edited. I have other photo projects to do for various family members too. It’s a different creative process but it allows me to do something with hands while my ADD mind is thinking on another project. I’ve always enjoyed taking pictures and I love the creative process of editing them. It’s fun and relaxing for me, especially when I can add some of my favorite music. I find I need that periodically.

 

I also need to finish filling my February and March Over Coffee calendar (I’m willing to entertain suggestions on authors to have here). So when my eyes start to cross because I’m doing some concentrated detail work, I take a break and work on the calendar. Or read books I need to write reviews for which currently stands at six. Meanwhile a section of my brain is busy at work with my story. I did mention my ADD brain, right? When it’s finished processing the hows, I’ll be going ah-ha and go back to my story with a fresh perspective. It’s all good.

 

• How do you balance out your writing time? How do you relax so you come back to your project with a refreshed spirit and a mind ready to work?

•  If you don’t write, how do you relax from your daily workday?

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy The Ride

It's my pleasure to welcome back bestselling author, Stephanie Rowe, to Over Coffee. I've read Stephanie's suspense novels and enjoyed each. I'm excited to see her foray into paranormal and I'm looking forward to reading her new series.

Stephanie's topic is a good one. Taking the time to celebrate the positives in our life. It's all too easy to concentrate on all the negatives--things we didn't do, lists we didn't finish--that we forget all the things we have done. Life is not just a list of things to do and tallying check marks on things accomplished or big red X marks on those we haven't.  It's also about giving ourselves permission to stop and smell the flowers. It's a cliche, I know, but true.

When was the last time you took a moment to appreciate the sound of laughter, kittens playing, or a song that makes you feel good? Even in writing, instead of beating yourself up over what haven't gotten done, or worrying yourself over the small wall you hit, why not look at how far you've come in the story? What you like about your characters or what made you want to write this story?

How do you accomplish that change of attitude? Stephanie has a few thoughts on that.  

Stop right where you are.

Close your eyes.


Listen.



Listen.




Listen so closely, until you hear a sound you like.

It might be your daughter singing in the next room as she does her homework. It might be the silence of your car, letting you know that no one else is in there, and it's your time, your space, your world to think and be whoever you want to be. It might be the sound of wind rattling distant chimes. It might be the snoring of your dog as he chases tennis balls in his dreams. It might be the lady in line behind you, laughing as her baby gives her googly eyes. Whatever it is, there is something in your environment right in this moment that feels good, if you simply take a moment to identify it, and then enjoy it.

I have a confession to make. I'm one of those people who is always trying to push myself to the next level, to reach the next goal. I want to become a better writer. I want to write a more engaging scene. I want to be more clever in my writing. More unpredictable. I want to be a better tennis player. I want to be more fit. I'd really like to find a way to keep my house cleaner.

It's great and admirable to have goals. There are lots of workshops on how to set S.M.A.R.T. goals so that you're in the best position to vaunt your life forward by leaps and bounds. Aspire! Achieve! Mush, mush! Onward and upward! Hup, hup!

Yah, yah, that is all excellent and stuff… 'cept it's not. Not really. Not if you're like me.

See, I have this little problem. In my quest to accomplish all these things, I have a habit of dwelling on the "nots" instead of the "rock on!"

What I mean by that is, I'm never taking the time to stop and compliment myself on what I've done. I never take the time to look at myself and tell myself that I'm doing a good job. I never pause to simply enjoy what I've accomplished so far, or to notice the good stuff. Instead, I just see what I haven't done. I notice what I've screwed up. I obsess over how I've come up short yet again. I give myself grief for failing to be as outstanding as I want to be. And you know what? If you do that enough, you can become pretty darn good at making yourself feel like a pathetic underachiever with no hope of ever accomplishing anything worthwhile for the rest of your life, which then, of course, makes you feel not so hot. It's almost as if I think that the only way I will be motivated enough to keep working is if I sufficiently condemn where I am and what I've accomplished.

Recently, I decided that it was time to break the cycle. I want to feel GOOD. I want to skip down the hall, basking in the fact I wrote 3000 words, not berating myself for the fact I didn't write 4000. I want to spend time enjoying the good reviews I get, instead of worrying about writing that next book. I know that next book will get written. I know that kitchen will get clean before anyone of significance sees it. But when I enjoy the ride, instead of obsessing over it, then those words get written by someone who is happy, and oh, boy, do those words come out so much more beautifully when I'm feeling good. It feels magnificent to take the time to pat yourself on the back. It's marvelous to pause to enjoy the lovely song on the radio instead of gnashing your teeth at the traffic. Don't we all owe it to ourselves to learn to enjoy the ride a little more?

Hell, yeah, we do!

So, pause for a moment, sit back in your chair and think about three things you did or experienced today that were just great. Feel proud. Chuckle. Bask. And then, when you have thoroughly milked those three things for a good five minutes, notice that your heart feels a little lighter, your mind feels a little clearer, and suddenly the story you were so frustrated with seems to write a little easier. That's because everything is better when you feel better inside. It only takes a minute to slow down, look around, and find a few things that make you feel good.

Try it. Five minutes every two hours. See how your day unfolds. It'll be worth every minute.

Enjoy the ride.

Start now. Look around. Think about your day. Tell us about something in your life, something that you did or saw or experienced, that makes you feel good.

Will you start the ball rolling?

HE NEEDED A KILLER WOMAN... Blaine Underhill was one lucky man. Having recently escaped a century and a half of imprisonment at the hands of an evil witch, he's determined to save his still-enslaved friend. But in order to do so, he'll need the help of one of the world's most lethal women. SHE WAS DROP DEAD GORGEOUS, LITERALLY... Trinity Harpswell is sick and tired of being a Black Widow. Having managed to go three years without accidentally killing anyone she loves, she's one short week away from freeing herself from this killer curse forever. When Blaine tracks her down and convinces her to help him, little does Trinity know that the next seven days are going to be murder! Excerpt Buy: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books aMillion,  Borders  ~*~*~*~

Four-time RITA® Award nominee and Golden Heart® Award winner Stephanie Rowe is a nationally bestselling author of more than twenty books. A life-long reader, she began crafting stories at age ten, but didn't realize it was her dream until she was an adult.

Once the light dawned, she immediately left behind "work" as the world defines it and went to "work" as she defines it, which means getting up every morning with a smile in her heart so she can spend the day doing that which makes her spirit sing.

Stephanie believes in learning to listen to your heart in order to figure out what your dreams are, and then opening yourself to the inspiration that will direct you there. She believes we all deserve the right to enjoy life, that the ride should be as easy as we want it to be, and that we all should accept nothing less than making our dreams come true. Stephanie lives in New England, and spends every day doing her best to fill it with people, observations and activities that uplift her soul, which include writing, tennis, friends, and her amazing family.

Visit Stephanie on the web at http://www.stephanierowe.com/.

Writing Historical Fiction--Susan Higginbotham

My guest is the award winning historical fiction author, Susan Higginbotham. Susan writes biographical historical fiction.

I've always loved history. Some of my favorite authors (Roberta Gellis, for one) could keep me enthralled for hours happily visiting medieval Europe. Those sort of epics completely immersed me in the culture of the times. I remember something Roberta Gellis once said about historical fiction. To para phrase, she said that history is a beautiful tapestry, rich with characters and events. The skilled author merely weaves a story in the existing threads of history.

So what’s the difference between an author who writes historicals and biographical historical fiction? I asked Susan that very question. I was curious what drew her to this type of fiction. She indulged my curiosity, with the following:   

All of my four historical novels have been biographical historical fiction—that is, historical fiction centered around actual historical figures, as opposed to fiction that’s set in the past but where the main characters are entirely fictional.


So what draws me to biographical fiction? For one thing, for the lazy plotter, it’s a godsend. The outline of my story is there; all I have to do is add the fun stuff—the dialogue, the motivations, the characterizations. For another, it gives me a chance to go where the responsible historian dare not tread: I can resolve unsolved mysteries, choose which conflicting account of an event to believe, explain a character’s actions where the historian can only speculate.

There are two other reasons that writing biographical fiction especially appeals to me, however. First, through biographical historical fiction, a novelist can bring to life a little-known historical figure—one who might not be important enough to merit more than a line or two in history books, but whose life was fascinating or inspiring. For instance, my first novel, The Traitor’s Wife, features Eleanor de Clare, the niece of Edward II and the wife of his notorious favorite Hugh le Despenser the younger. Eleanor survived her husband’s horrific execution, her own imprisonment in the Tower, and the forced veiling of her daughters; she was also the subject of litigation challenging the validity of her second marriage. How did she find the strength to endure these ordeals, any one of which might have overwhelmed a lesser woman? The Traitor’s Wife allowed me to answer this question. In doing so, I hope it shed some light not only on Eleanor’s courage, but on the incredible strength of medieval women in general. They were no damsels in distress, waiting for their shining knight in armor.

Another reason for writing biographical historical fiction is the chance to portray a maligned figure in a sympathetic light. Margaret of Anjou, the heroine of The Queen of Last Hopes, has been vilified by everyone from her Yorkist opponents to modern novelists. Yet when I encountered her in researching my third novel, The Stolen Crown, I got a picture of a very different woman: a woman who struggled against overwhelming odds to uphold the rights of her husband and her son to the English crown. Only when all was lost did she give up—and even then, her fight laid the foundation for the Tudor dynasty.

Writing this biographical novel about Margaret allowed me to share my own view of the woman I had come to deeply respect and to admire—and, I hope, to change the minds of those who have seen her portrayed in fiction only as an insanely vengeful, twisted she-wolf.

But if those aren’t good enough reasons to write biographical historical fiction, I can suggest five more:

• 1.  If your hero is riddled with angst, it'll be because someone is trying to overthrow him, not because he is having a mid-life crisis.

• 2. You can buy all sorts of books in your field of interest and tell your spouse that they are for research purposes.

• 3. You will not have to write 400 pages about a woman who is juggling her family and her career.

• 4. You can kill off your main character once you get tired of him or her, and blame it all on history.

• 5. You’ll never be at a loss as to what to name your main characters.

~*~*~*~

The Queen of Last Hopes--Story of Margaret of Anjou

When fifteen-year-old Margaret of Anjou journeys from France to marry England’s Henry VI, she hopes that her wedding will mean a lasting peace between England and France. Instead, England’s losses of French territory infuriate the people, resulting in the horrific murder of Margaret’s first friend in England, William de la Pole.


Pregnant at last after eight years of marriage, Margaret places her hopes in her coming child. Then the worst happens: the gentle, ineffectual Henry suddenly goes mad and cannot even recognize his longed-for son. As feuding nobles rush to exploit the situation, Margaret determines to protect the rights of her husband and her child.


Undaunted by exile, poverty, danger, and the slanders of her enemies, Margaret remains loyal to her cause even as those around her falter in their allegiances. For the man and the boy she loves best, she will risk everything—her reputation, her safety, and the future of England itself. Excerpt

"A beautiful blending of turbulent history and deeply felt fiction, Susan Higginbotham, brings alive an amazing woman often overlooked or slandered by historians...a gift to treasure." 

Buy: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books a Million

So which do you prefer, historical fiction about real historical figures or historical fiction about purely fictional ones?
 
 

Susan Higginbotham's meticulously researched historical fiction brought to life by her heartfelt writing delights readers. Higginbotham runs her own historical fiction/history blog and is a contributor to the blog "Yesterday Revisited." Susan has written four historical novels, including The Traitor's Wife and The Stolen Crown.

Susan has awarded for her historical fiction: Gold Medalist, Historical/Military Fiction, 2008 Independent Publisher Book Awards. Silver Award, Historical Fiction, ForeWord Magazine's 2005 Book of the Year Awards.

She has worked as an editor and an attorney and lives in Apex, North Carolina, with her family.

You can visit Susan's blog: Medieval Woman, Website, Facebook

Monday Musings: Odds and Ends

I’m finally feeling more human than not.

I think I’ve won the battle on the ‘flu front. A week living in two layers of everything, plus a heavy full length winter housecoat (thank you hubs for it’s use) and nestled in a down comforter, I’m now down to only two layers of socks, a pair of flannel wool blend lounge pants, and a heavy thermal shirt. This is progress.

I swear I can’t remember a time when I’ve been so cold that I couldn’t get warm. My sister suggested hot baths, but that would necessitate first taking off clothes—not my first choice. Mom said a heating pad. It helped. Some. I’m not one that gets stuff like this easily. I think the poor immune system had been overworked with an infection prior to this and so I was more susceptible. I’m on round two of Bactrin and I’ll be seeing the doctor for a check up next week, if not before. Between the two, I find myself in dire need of a new energizer battery pack, lol!

So, if you’ve been missing me on your blogs it’s because half the time I couldn’t think beyond, ‘I’m so friggin’ cold’ or ‘damn, I’m so tired’. The former seems better and I’m still wrestling with the latter.

I read a good book recently, called Brooklyn Knight, by CJ Henderson. Sort of an old time pulp adventure with a paranormal bent. Piers Knight is a bit like Indiana Jones only his adventure happens in modern times and in New York. I really enjoyed Piers. He’s a well-developed character, a bit eccentric, very intelligent, witty, and a bit old fashioned. The story is well told. There’s definitely a mystery surrounding Piers and I have some theories. I’m looking forward to Central Park Knight. I’d also love to have CJ on Over Coffee. He has had a very interesting career. I need to write a review of this one!

A question to my readers: Who would you like to see featured on Over Coffee. Let me know and I’ll do my best to get them here.

As soon as Robin Kaye and I are able, we’ll pick the winners for her latest book I let the winners know.

Some upcoming guests this week are Susan Higginbotham and Stephanie Rowe. I’m looking forward to both of them.

Meanwhile, have a great week. Stay healthy. :-)

 

A Fascination For Independent Heroes

My guest is contemporary romance author, Robin Kaye. She has a fascination for, what she terms, Domestic Gods. Her fascination gives me a read with lots laughter and always a great Happily Ever After.

Ahhh, those are the best kind of reads, aren't they? 

I asked Robin; what is the fascination with hot looking men who can cook and clean? I hope you enjoy her answer as much as I did. :-)



Independence is sexy and there’s nothing sexier than a man who can cook and clean and look good doing it. I figure if that’s what I want in a hero, that’s what a lot of women want and I have to write heroes with whom I’d fall head over heels in love otherwise it would never be believable. I love every one of my heroes.

So how did I get so hung up on guys with skills you might ask?

I dated a guy from Chicago, let’s call him Dick (and no, Dick was not his real name) I was living in Florida at the time and Dick came down often to golf. He looked just like Sting, knew how to dress, was a great dancer, and owned his own apartment building as well as a seat on the Board of Trade. Dick was young, successful, intelligent, fun to be with, and I thought he was everything I was looking for in a man until I spent a weekend with him. I was making breakfast and asked if he’d like to split an omelet. He said no, and proceeded to order breakfast, including fresh squeezed orange juice. I made a joke and he didn’t see the humor. He was actually serious.

Dick wasn’t shopping for a girlfriend or a wife, he was shopping for a maid with benefits. No matter how good looking or fun he was, I could never be with a man who would treat me like a servant. Needless to say, that relationship changed what I looked for in a significant other.

Let’s face it, in contemporary romance and real life, most women have careers and busy lives. They come home from work exhausted. After a terrible day is there anything more wonderful to hear than a deep voiced, gorgeous man ask, “Why don’t you get comfortable while I start dinner?” I don’t think so!

I married a Domestic God. When my husband and I were dating I always had to clean the house on Saturdays. He lived 60 miles away from me so he’d spend every weekend at my house (sleeping on the couch of course) under the watchful eye of my mother. Unfortunately, the house still needed cleaning. That first week when he offered to help I almost fell over with shock. Not only was he willing, he was an amazing cleaner--much better than I’d ever be! One day Stephen and I were cleaning and I ran into my mom’s room to tell her something. Together my mom and I walked into the living room and there was Stephen lifting the couch with one hand while vacuuming under it. My mother turned to me and said, “Marry him.” so I did.

Is it any wonder I write about men who cook and clean and know how to take care of their women? Stephen isn’t much of a cook, he can follow a recipe and as he says, he hasn’t killed anyone yet. When I’m home and not on deadline, I usually cook which is fine with me. I enjoy it. He does the cleaning which is also fine with me. When I started writing toward publication, he sat me down and told that since I had two jobs--I stay home with the kids and I write—and he only had one, he thought he should take over the laundry. Now to a harried mom of three who is always running around like a chick with her head cut off, there are no sexier words. Sigh…That’s why I love writing heroes like my husband. He might not cook like the Galloping Gourmet, but hey, it’s fiction. A girl can dream, can’t she?

Yours For The Taking Blurb:

He might be too good to be true...

Ben Walsh should be single. Handsome and wealthy, Ben is equally at home in Idaho where he grew up and in Manhattan where he's now an art dealer. Suave and successful with impeccable taste, he normally has women beating down his door. But the one woman he wants can't be convinced that he's for real...


And she doesn't have the luxury of believing in fairy tales...

Gina Reyez has fought for every bit of her success, and it's about time for things to start going her way. So when Ben makes a proposal that will allow her to take care of her family the way she wants to, she agrees. Besides, a guy this perfect would never be interested in her...right?

By the time Gina figures out that she's read Ben all wrong, their lives have become intertwined, and seriously complicated... Excerpt 

Buy: Amazon Barnes and Noble

Borders 

Sia – Thanks so much for inviting me! I’ll give 2 lucky commenters a copy of my new release, Yours For The Taking and I’ll be checking back frequently so if anyone has questions, just ask away!

~*~*~*~

Robin Kaye was born in Brooklyn, New York, and grew up in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge next door to her Sicilian grandparents.

Living with an extended family that's a cross between Gilligan's Island and The Sopranos, minus the desert isle and illegal activities, explains both her comedic timing and the cast of quirky characters in her books.

She's lived in half a dozen states from Idaho to Florida, but the romance of Brooklyn has never left her heart.

She currently resides in Maryland with her husband, three children, two dogs, and a three-legged cat with attitude.

Robin is the author of; Breakfast In Bed, Too Hot To Handle, Romeo Romeo.

Negotiating with God (Humor)

~John Philipp~

It is a new year and time to get down to business. Normally at the beginning of each year I review the previous 12 months to see what I might improve upon. This year, I decided to review my entire life and I discovered a disquieting fact.

Looking back, I’m sure I made more than one deal with God, especially during my hypochondriac phase that lasted several decades and, while not cured, is currently in semi-retirement. Generally the deal took the form of “I’ll do X if You’ll let me live to be this old.”

Now I am this old and I find I'm not ready to go. Not quite yet. I still have things to do. The leaves need to be raked, I promised I’d fix the leaky faucet and I still haven’t learned conversational Lithuanian.

My last serious negotiation with God was conducted either at my confirmation or perhaps in my name by my parents when I was baptized — also known as contracting by proxy. But those negotiations were made in the context of how I understood God and the world. Things are different now, the world is different now and it’s time to update those contracts.

My first questions were: Do I need an agent to negotiate with God? Will my literary agent take this on? Could it be a whole new “genre” for him? I mentioned this to my agent. He told me that unless God has his own section at Borders, he doesn’t have the time.

Making a contract with God isn’t the same as making a contract with the devil. When you contract with the devil you are contracting for your afterlife. When you contract with God, you are contracting for this life — how long it lasts and the quality thereof.

Contracts with the devil are always suspect. The devil appears to you as a nice, regular guy with a hell of a deal (pardon the play on words) like “sign here and you will become a best-selling author” or “you will become rich” or “you will never suffer the heartbreak of psoriasis.”

There is always a catch when you deal with the devil. Once you have achieved your dream, he takes your immortal soul and, in hindsight, ten years on the New York Times best-seller list seems a high price to pay for an eternity of hellfire, which I have on good authority is a lot worse than psoriasis.

With God, you ask for a favor. In exchange, you promise to do something such as go to church every Sunday — even if the playoffs are on, always take out the garbage or stop hitting your sister on the head. If you renege on your promise to God, you won’t burn for eternity but you might get a “time out” in purgatory. At minimum, you will not get a cloud in heaven with a great view.

The contracts I made with God were specific: let me live until this age, or make sure this pain in my stomach isn’t cancer or tell Mary Sue to like me and I’ll never swear again, or I will always do my homework before turning on the television or I will stop doing that thing my mother says will cost me my eyesight.

Most of those promises had a life expectancy of a New Year’s resolution made with a lampshade on my head.

Given my checkered performance, it seems logical that when God has a chance to catch up on his paperwork, he might simply lift my life-extension guarantee and tell Saint Peter to expect a new guest.

So I prayed that God would give me a list to remind me of what I had promised to do and what we might work out as a settlement — one that requires I hang around here for a while to fulfill. I’m waiting for an answer.

If you break a contract with God, you’ll get no sympathy from your friends and relatives. Whereas, if you can figure out a way to break a contract with the devil, everyone is impressed with how clever you were to outwit Satan on his own court.

Your choice.

However you decide, good luck and have a Happy and Prosperous New Year.

~*~*~*~

John Philipp is a weekly humor columnist for four Marin County, California newspapers and has won numerous humor and memoir writing awards.

His humor columns are posted at http://johnphilipphumor.gather.com/

Paranormal: A Search For Heroes?

Charles Dickens began his book, A Tale of Two Cities, with the words: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness…it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness…”


I got to thinking, the other day, about the times I live in and how those times are reflected in what I read and what I write.

I’m drawn to paranormal and truth be told, I always have been. As a kid, back when I predominately drew my stories; I did a piece on a cemetery. There were ghosts and monsters but the girl in the story made friends with one of the monster beasts and the ghost he traveled with. When the girl went to bed she had an invisible cadre of animals who lay on her bed. They were her protectors. Yes, I was a strange child, lol! I also lived next door to a cemetery at the time.

I’ve always loved stories set around mythical beings and special abilities. It’s probably why I was drawn to Sci-fi. It was a blending of some of my favorite things—mythology, adventure, tough characters and an element of romance. That depended upon the author, of course.

I think I read everything Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Jules Verne wrote. Loved their imagination and the golden age of adventures. I also read all of what Andre Norton wrote (she also loved animals and I loved her alien cats). I also loved Alan Dean Foster. I love how he can entertain me and make me laugh. I have to admit a special fondness for Pip (a mini Drag)—big surprise I’m sure. But then I discovered an author (whose name I can’t recall and I’d have to search my stored books to find) from the late 70’s who wrote a series with a rather sexual woman heroine. Oh, how cool sex, romance, and sci-fi? Woohoo!

Even my favorite romances had elements of otherworldly before it was popularly coined paranormal. While I read and enjoyed Ann Rice’s Vampire series, it left me wanting a bit more romance. Who remembers Draycott Abbey stories by Christina Sky? Or Knight In Shining Armor? Breathe of Magic? I devoured those stories. I’ll admit I fell hard with Christine Feehan’s 1999 Dark Prince and the world of Carpathians. What did I love about them? Strong women dangerous men.

I’ve since read many paranormals, dark and light, serious and funny (I enjoy Kerryln Sparks, Judi Fennell, Linda Wisdom’s Hex series, and Gabi Stevens. I also love Sherrilyn Kenyon’s sense of humor although I wouldn’t classify hers as light).

I’m a sucker for strong women characters able to take care of themselves, some who are warriors themselves—like Jax in one of Feehan’s stories, or Tabitha in Kenyon’s book. Both men and women can be dangerous in Christine Feehan’s books. How about those female and male Ghostwalkers in Feehan’s series? I like dangerous men who can be tamed, okay slightly domesticated, by love. Strong enough to be faithful and cherishing while kicking ass on the bad guys.

I think the appeal of Para, at least for me, is while there may be monsters but they can be defeated. Those monsters can be damn scary, too. God knows we have enough scary and evil beings living in our real world. Perhaps we gravitate to those sorts of stories because we need to know the bogeymen can be beaten and conquered. That love is just as strong and can conquer and modify a person. I guess in darker times we need heroes tough enough to fight the forces of darkness but aren’t bad themselves.

Perhaps we need to feel evil can be defeated although it may take special powers to conquer some evil. In dark times we need things to laugh about, too. We look for books and movies that make us feel good. We need to believe in the power of love.

• What do you think? What makes you feel good?
• 
  
• What are some of your favorite otherworldly characters? Or movie characters?