#NaNoWriMo Day 25: The Quintessence Of The Abstract

Day 25
Word count:47,267 words
Word count goal: 50,000 words
Mapping the Hero’s Journey: Encore
Save The Cat: Finale

#vss very short story

Finding herself lost in abstraction, Kara began losing definitions. Sure, she had her beliefs and all the time in the world, but she lost her cat, her shoes and her fingers.

Plotting with Tarot

my hero's journey

Here we enter an exciting day in our journey: The whole journey out on the table.

  1. The Ordinary World: Ace Of Pentacles
  2. Call to Adventure: King of Cups
  3. The Refusal: Page of Cups
  4. Mentor: The Magician reversed
  5. Crossing The Threshold: Four of Swords reversed
  6. Tests, Allies and Enemies: High Priestess
  7. Approach to the Inmost Cave: The Empress reversed
  8. The Ordeal: Page of Swords
  9. Reward: The Emperor
  10. The Road Back: The Tower
  11. The Resurrection: Seven of Wands
  12. Return With The Elixir: Knight of Cups

In Mapping the Hero’s Journey With Tarot: 33 Days To Finish Your Book Arwen Lynch says Mary K. Greer’s book Tarot for Your Self is one of the most significant Tarot books of her life.
She outlines Mary K. Greer’s method for finding the quintessence card or theme of your story like this:

  • Lay out your arch of the Hero’s Journey. (pictured above)
  • Write down the numbers for each card. Use 1 as the value for the Ace.The court cards and the Fool are numberless.
  • Add up your cards. If you get a number higher than 22, add those numbers together. For instance, 102 would be 1+0+2 = 3. Your number is one of the cards from the Major Arcana.

Let’s see what our theme card is using this method: 1+1+4+2+3+4+16+7=38>22 so 3+8=11

11 is Justice so my story theme by this method is Justice. theme justice

The Justice Card: alignment and balance; negotiation and truth. Getting exactly what you deserve; reaping what you sowed. I like this meaning from teachmetarot.com

It is a time for you to sit down and think about your lot and what you have said and done. Be honest with yourself first and then be honest with those around you. It is time for you to account for your actions.

This is a great theme for a story about a man who has recently retired and thinks he’s lived a “correct” life only to find he has been deluded. I have a lot to think about.

Ask Your Character

  • Is there someone to whom you have something to prove?
  • What are your favorite family traditions?
  • What topics do you try to avoid in conversation?

Word Of The Day

frisson: n. a moment of intense excitement; a shudder; an emotional thrill

8 Action Verbs:

articulated           compiled           described          explored

invented            originated          restored          trained

Poem prompt

inspired by a prompt from litbridge.com

Have your MC write a love poem to his or her favorite book.

My Service Manuals

As I have stated clearly
Though you cannot seem to hear me
I would never write a poem
A love poem to my favorite tome

Not that I won’t read a book
I’ve got one now, a thick one, look
I’ll tear through the newest Lee Child
Anything not dull or mild

But if you want to know the truth
The books where I can sink a tooth
The work of words that fully attracts
Is a service manual thick with facts

The one most wrinkled and thick with grease
Pages browned with coffee and creased
Covered in phone numbers to parts shops
These books aren’t table props or doorstops

They are the books I read again and again
I turn to them for advice like a friend
My favorite book, I have to say
Is the one on fixing this car today

Awesome Sentence Challenge

Collective nouns:

Collective nouns are a collection or number of people, places or things. An Exaltation of Larks by James Lipton is a wonderful book that is a collection of collective nouns. For today’s challenge, study some collective nouns then make up you own. Here’s the formula: A (or an)______________(singular) of _______________(plural).

Example: A growling of monsters.

A suitcase of travelers.

A cavity of candies.

Have fun with it. Where can you use collective nouns in your stories?

Today’s Simple Task

MC recognizes his or her fatal flaw.

Warm-up Exercise

Your MC is being irrational. Set your timer to 15 minutes. Write a scene where your MC acts irrationally.

Recommended Word Crawl

Today feels like a good day for The Self-Care Crawl.

Happy Reading and Writing!

Published by marialberg

I am a fiction writer, poet and lyricist inspired by a life of leaping without hesitation. I was quoted and pictured in Ernie K-Doe: The R & B Emperor of New Orleans by Ben Sandmel. My short stories have been published in Five on the Fifth, Waking Writer, and Fictional Pairings. I am the author and photo-illustrator of Gator McBumpypants picturebooks. I enjoy clothing, costume and puzzle design.

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