  Action/Adventure
This week: Environmental Influence Edited by: Legerdemain  
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Environmental Influence
In working with the pace of your story, remember that environmental influence plays a role. Think about it, if your character is moving across a desert, jungle or ice, the pace will be slower than if they are moving across flat, clear ground. Keep in mind the pace your character would maintain in the environment you've placed them in.
What level of fitness does your character have? If they normally spend their time at a desk in an office and find themselves on an ice floe, how long would they last? Probably not long without a guide. If they're not physically fit, hiking for an entire day might be achieved for one day, but not for a week. How much knowledge does your character have about the environment they're in? Would they know a poisonous snake from a harmless one? Would they know what plants are edible and which ones would be deadly?
And then there's insects... Which ones are a problem, and which ones might be edible? In Bukoba Tanzania, when the lake flies hatch and swarm like a moving fog across the landscape, some locals catch millions of the insects by swinging pans through the bug clouds and make patties from the collected masses. It's a nutritious protein for the body.
So, when you're adventuring with your character, think about what their capabilities are and what parts of the environment would challenge them and pace your story to match.
This month's question: What kinds of challenges do you like to throw in front of your character?
Send in your reply below 
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#1717233 by Not Available. |
Excerpt: He made a fist and pounded his broad chest where it bore the insignia of the Eighth Imperial Regiment of Elsati, depicting a silver-eyed lion with its front paws perched upon a stone. He drew his thick Elsati Issue Longsword (typically a two-handed weapon) with just three fingers and pointed it straight out towards that forbidding structure, staring down the length of the darkened blade with one eye shut, as though he were aiming the barrel of a rifle.
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#1672868 by Not Available. |
Excerpt: Of course, he had been in this part of the world a long time ago, but that was definitely not a vacation and those moments were stashed away in some distant recess of his memory. With his eyes closed he reached out to Linda's chair and found her hand, grasping it he murmured, "I'm going to just lay here and hold hands with this scantily clad beauty. Wake me up when its time for another Margarita."
Excerpt: "Gared! You fried the co-axial transwarp inducer!" the feminine voice shouted from inside the paneling.
The "uh huh" that came back sounded distinctly like Gared wasn't paying attention. The truth wasn't far from the implication either. In fact, he was placing virtually all his attention on the bent over figure of Talisa, ship's mechanic and captain.
"We're going to be stuck at this port for at least a sola which is going to put us even further behind in our schedule!" Talisa shouted again.
Excerpt: The week ended much as many others had. On Friday he was shoved into a locker while some of the girls' volleyball team watched and laughed at him. He pulled himself up and out of the locker and made his way home. On the way home, he stopped by the bookstore and picked up the latest issue of his favorite comic book to make himself feel better. Superheroes never had to worry about bullies or spiders or girls. They always knew what to say after saving the world. He wished he could be a superhero or maybe even just a sidekick.
Excerpt: As she flew down the ladder from the attic, the house came to life, swirling around her like something out of a nightmare.
Excerpt: Doubt enveloped me the minute I agreed to take my brother on the hiking trip. The decision weighed like a cold stone in my gut. I'd tried to provide a home for Mike after our parents were killed. His resentment quickly developed into severe emotional problems. Five years of psychiatric counseling changed nothing.
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#979429 by Not Available. |
Excerpt: It was hard to believe there had been a fierce storm last night, though the worst of it had been far out to sea. Now the sky was cloudless, and even though the sun was high in the sky, the breeze coming off the water made the air feel cool. Jerry's shoes, laces tied together, were hung around his neck, as he walked barefooted along the beach with water splashing over his feet. He carried a small canvas bag for the shells he hoped to add to his collection at home.
|  | Death Wink (13+)
First prize in two contests. A gambler encounters his addiction's end in a deadly game.
#1018243 by Kotaro  |
Excerpt: I was picking the horses for the next race when a heavy tap on my shoulder disturbed my concentration. I turned around expecting a friendly face, instead I saw my own, reflected and contorted in mirrored Ray Bans. A swarthy face on a huge crew-cut head tilted forward, grinned like a shark, and gave one of those offers you can't refuse: pay off my debt, show up for the game, or feed the fish in Tokyo Bay. Since I was still in the process of getting the money, my choice was the one the barrel-chested goon in the Armani suit anticipated; show me to the game.
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#1708671 by Not Available. |
Excerpt: Januariusz Adamczyk, Jan to those few he socialized with in Bledow, or John to those who paid him to become a sleeper agent, drove an old Volvo station wagon because it was the only type of Volvo he could get. The car behind him, a weathered, black VW Touareg rode within an inch of his bumper because that was pretty much the only type of driver Poland had. The sky was a white sheet behind the trees, the single-lane road a troubling wet sheen. Steady coats of rain lubricated the one wiper he had, driver's side. This was an unusual stretch of unblemished pavement over a deep fall with no railing, making Jan wish for the traction of a more common pebbled road. Dormant no longer, Jan had little patience for the local toughs.
Excerpt: "So, nervous?" the man asked, tightening the harness around my torso.
"Terrified," I confided. "But she finally caved, I can't back out now." I nodded toward my mother, conspiring with the helmsman. "She treats me like a child. I just want a chance to test my wings."
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This month's question: What kinds of challenges do you like to throw in front of your character?
Last month's question: How do you research places you've never been?
Shanachie responded: It depends on the place. If I have a friend or on-line buddy that lives there I will pick that person's brain and have them check over my work. If not, travel guides or travel sites on the internet work really well. Fantasy places are awesome because you can make up pretty much everything. So that's pretty much my MO.
The Huntress ~ Finding Love  says: My first action is to seek out a forum online to connect with people who have actually visited there, and email them asking if they would mind answering a few questions about their experience. Most people are excited to do this, especially when I tell them I am a writer! Then I hit the books, backing up personal impression with facts and statistics, like weather patterns and local festivals, flora and fauna, dialects, popular foods, and fashion. All this, hoping to capture a realistic representation!
A thinker never sleeps replies: I buy travel guides, research online for local newspapers and information and also look into the history of the place. Look at in two ways, the tourist view and the local view. Online blogs really help for the local view.
sarahreed answers: I do almost all of my research online. I can find a lot of pictures, descriptions, blogs and other personal viewpoints on locations this way. If I can't find much of what I'm looking for, I will turn to books and the library, but that doesn't happen very often.
Zoe Graves comments: The internet... which gets me phone numbers... which gets me to people who send me pics, answer questions, and say they'll buy my book when it's done. It's a beautiful thing.
BIG BAD WOLF is hopping  submits: When it comes to researching places, there are things like travel brochers, videos, TV shows and a few other things to help you out.
Of course with some places, you have to make things up, but using real environments help.
scribbler 's helpful response to my article on ecotourism: You may be confusing ecotourism with the overall umbrella term of sustainable tourism. They are very similar except that ecotourism puts more emphasis on the environmental aspect of it where as sustainable tourism also deals with economy, local peoples and groups as well as culture. I'm a stickler for terms because I'm currently finishing up a degree in international development with a specialty in sustainable tourism. :)
Thanks for the help!
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Action/Adventure: October 20, 2010 Issue [#4030]
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