Digital Magic - Wrap Up

Last chapter ended suddenly.  That's where I finished Digital Magic at the end of November 2007.  I did not feel that great about the story for many, many reasons.  However, it needs to be wrapped up for closure.

Jackie and Donna have been tossed into fighting each other and trying to keep the raw magic from ripping apart the local space-time continuum.  Ripping the fabric of reality is a major occupational safety and health violation, especially if no one has the permits to do so.  It's a battle of metaphors; can Jackie's computer programming metaphor build up the magic she needs to repair things before Donna's aria builds to a climax?  Jackie has the advantage; she can set a spell off to continue without having to tweak it on the fly.  The drawback is that if she gets something wrong, reality bluescreens.

Of course, Jackie wins this battle of wills and magic, finishing with smacking Donna around with magic for a victory lap.  With the threat over, Lance reappears having rescued himeself from Donna's dungeon.  Self-rescuing damsels are more interesting, though, so Lance's escape remains offscreen.  Donna is dealt with, placed into exile.  Jackie and Lance get their happily ever after, or at least their happily ever after for now, and officially become a couple.  Weather returns to normal in Ottawa, whatever normal is.  Trish gets off Jackie's back about getting a boyfriend.

I cannot write a romance, not as an A-plot.  I got too interested in how magic works to the point where Jackie's relationships never developed.  Lance was more mentor than love interest and Steve was too slick bordering on sleazy for her to consider him for anything more than a one night stand.  Trish was the better romantic lead.  Lesson here - romance isn't my forte.

However, I do have romances building in other stories.  Nasty finally admitted to herself and to Eric how she feels about him in Crossover.  Laura and Mackenzie are a couple in Unruly, though the development of their relationship needs work.  Brenna and Officer Matt came out of nowhere in The Soul Blade and almost derailed the ending.  But the focus of those series is something else beyond the romances.  The romances are subplots, not the main plot, and I'm more comfortable with that approach.

I doubt I will get back to Digital Magic.  What I may do is mine the story for the good parts, like the eyes following on the walls and in mirrors to freak out a main character.  It's a good horror bit, adding spookiness.  I may pull Jacinda out of her video game for a new story and just handwave away how Jackie learned magic.  Odd weather as fallout from major magic is always something to have on hand.

Thank you for putting up with Digital Magic.  The blog will go into a low posting mode for a few weeks while I try to figure out the next serial.  There should be some more gaming posts to make up for the lack of story, and I have some fanfics I can pull out and dusty off if need be.

Digital Magic - Commentary n+1

Jackie rescues herself, in Digital Magic chapter n+1.

Brute force versus artistry is a battle of the ages.  Does brute force win due to its simplicity?  Or does artistry and complexity gain the upper hand in knowing how to redirect brute force away?  Jackie and Donna are coming up to the battle between youth and old age, raw power versus experience, and desperation versus focus.

Jackie is doing what she can to escape.  Natural thing to do, really.  First, try to get through to Steve's better side, something he drowned in a bathtub as a teenager.  Donna traded hers for power.  Jackie is a battery pack to her, something to drain dry and toss away, one of a number of young adults that Donna has destroyed.

The Virgin Ploy goes back to the idea of various cultures' ideas of what is best to sacrifice.  Virginity is seen by some as akin to purity.  Erzsébet Báthory went to extremes, bathing in virgin blood, but it's a theme that repeats in myth and legend.  So why not try to use it?  Jackie has already been established to have had sex before, and there may or may not be a sex scene with Lance and/or Steve in the missing part between Chapter 17 and Chapter n.  Donna doesn't care, though.  She wants power, pure, impure, whatever.

Donna's metaphor is music.  She could be a singer, though she prefers opera and classical over anything popular.  If she realized that, today, money is power, she'd find a way to have multiple singing careers.  Jackie is trying to apply brute force, knowing she can't match Donna for skill.  Music can be disrupted.  A long, loud, low note can be effective, thus the tuba.  If this was written after the FIFA World Cup of 2010, Jackie might have gone with the vuvuzela instead.  Angry bees are always disruptive.

Jackie's metaphor allows her to set off one spell and let it run autonomously.  Donna still has to conduct.  The difference lets Jackie ignore the evil sorceress long enough after hitting her.  With the flow of magic disrupted, it becomes a race between the two women to get their metaphors to come out ahead of the others'.

Tomorrow, summarizing Digital Magic.
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, RWBY, the manga anthology.
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, hiatus week to get ahead on potential reviews.

Digital Magic - Chapter n+1

Chapter n+1

"Moonrise is in ten minutes."

"Magic isn't beholden to the man-made concept of time.  Even those muscle-bound fools can feel the power building."

"Just pointing it out."

Donna rose up on my left.  "Steve, I have done this many times over the centuries.  I am well aware of the schedule, more aware than you'll ever be."  She patted my shoulder.  "Even this one with no training at all can feel what's building."  The best I can respond is to give her a whithering glare.  She's right, though.  The hair on my arms are standing on end and there's something in the air, like touching it and getting the smell of cinnamon.

"What would you like me to do, Donna?" Steve asks.  I can hear a tone of lustful want in his voice.

Digital Magic - Commentary n

Jackie in distress, in Digital Magic chapter n.

I discussed the gap before, but I should go deeper into the reasons.  The chapter was written in the final days of NaNo 2007, my second year doing NaNo.  What would now normally be a push to leave myself in a good spot to return to was then a desperate push to reach the 50k word goal.  I didn't know how to get to the ending and wound up getting advice from a fellow NaNo-er to just jump the gap.  So I did.  The change gave me that one last burst to reach goal.

Jackie's been kidnapped by Steve and is in the clutches of Donna.  Donna, despite not having appeared in person at all, though her eyes did show up earlier, had a background with motivation.  It's not a deep background, but it worked for what I needed.  Donna is an evil woman who uses the magical potential of younger women, like Jackie, to stay young and gain power.  She's been doing this for centuries, starting in Italy.  Her real name isn't Donna; she took that from a former title, Donna.  It's one way to hide her history while still feeling superior.  Jackie means nothing to Donna beyond being a battery to drain and toss away.

Keeping with the idea of magic has to be worked through metaphor, Donna's is music.  She must sing her spells.  The more complicated the spell, the more difficult the spell.  However, she's had the time to truly learn to sing.  If she wasn't so far into being an evil person, she could easily make a living in popular music.  She has the range needed to sing opera, which is probably how she learned to cast spells.

Jackie gets the required begging out of the way.  Always happens.  And the villain always denies.  It's a cliché, but that's the level of thought I was capable of at the time.  And Donna was fun to write at the time.  This sets up Jackie's rescue next chapter.  The stakes have been raised.

Tomorrow, Jackie fights back!!
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, The Orville.
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, RWBY, the manga anthology.

Digital Magic - Chapter n

Chapter n

[Author's note: Please see last week's note on why there is a gap.]

The first thing that I'm aware of is a throbbing headache, the type that makes me wish I had gone out for a night in the Market.  One where keeping my eyes closed doesn't help it, but opening them will make the headache worse.  Beyond the pain, though, I can tell I'm on a bare concrete floor, like I'm in someone's basement.  I really should look to see where I am.

Two things occur to me when I try to look.  One, I was right about not wanting to open my eyes; and, two, I wish this was just someone's basement.  The taste of whoever owns this place runs to medieval dungeon chic.  The chains on the wall just add to the dank décor.  I push myself up so I'm sitting.  The pounding in my head gets a groan from me before it starts easing to just the tom-toms instead of the full drum set.  There's no furniture, just a bare light bulb, the floor and four bare walls.  The only way out is through a windowless wooden door.

Digital Magic - Commentary 17

A chat with Lance, in Digital Magic chapter 17.

And the commentary has caught up!  Or the main story has a lag.  Doesn't matter.  The two are synchronized again.  Celebrate!

I needed Jackie and Lance to talk.  I wasn't in the mood by the time I reached this chapter to have a full dialogue with characters moving and doing things so I don't have to keep writing "Jackie said" or "Lance said".  I also established the instant messaging earlier, so an online chat made things easier.  This was written near the end of November 2007, so I was drawing deep from the well.  I couldn't figure things out so I went with the easy option.

NaNoWriMo is a beast to do, especially when starting out.  Digital Magic was my second NaNo project and in a genre I don't normally read let alone write.  I managed to get to 50 000 words, but I was pushing it in the final days.  I had to stop and figure out where I was going.  I've done that in later projects such as The Devil You Know, where I needed to step back to gain perspective.  Digital Magic, though, wound up having enough problems that there wasn't any way for me to get to where I wanted.

The gap between Chapter 17 and the chapter coming tomorrow is the result of me giving up on a linear plot and having no idea on how to get to the ending I finally had in mind.  I worked out a general idea of what happened, barring the romances that just weren't coming together.  No details, just what I needed to get to where I wanted to be.  Then I jumped to there.

Tomorrow, Jackie in trouble!
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, "Galactic Battles". a fan-made four setting crossover.
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, The Orville.

Digital Magic - Interregnum

Interregnum

There is a gap between Chapter 17 and what will be coming next.  What follows is the infill that I need to do.

If you've been reading the commentaries, I've mentioned a few times that the romance aspect of the romance novel that Digital Magic/ was trying to be wasn't quite working.  By Chapter 17, I had worked out who was behind the magical weirdness and figured out the plot.  A little late, and this plot should've been the B-plot despite me setting things in motion from almost the beginning.  I dumped dealing with the romance because it was getting bogged down into Jackie not taking hints and caring more about magic than romance.

I figured out what I needed for the end.  I had the main villain, her motivation, her goals all worked out.  Donna, the villain, went the evil sorceress route, wanting power and longevity.  What good is ultimate power if you can still die?  Jackie is perfect for her plans to stay alive and gain power.  Donna wants to drain the magic and youth from Jackie.

Steve was never the brains of the operation.  He's working for Donna and is not a nice person.  He asks Jackie out, then kidnaps her on Donna's orders.  Lance is out of action during this.  He gets to be the dude in distress here.  When the action picks up next week, Jackie has been kidnapped and is unaware of her surroundings.  She is aware of Steve's double dealings with her.

Digital Magic - Commentary 16

Trish knows Jackie too well, in Digital Magic chapter 16.

Just a reminder that the commentary will be a week behind for a few weeks.  Eventually, there will be a catch up, but not right away.

Trish wants Jackie to be happy, like a good friend would.  Trish has also seen Jackie's lack of love life.  Trish has an active dating life and is happy with it.  Naturally, she sees the best way for Jackie to be happy is for her to find someone.  And Jackie is happy after seeing Lance.  Trish makes the obvious conclusion.  I just wish that the story had gone that way.  But Trish is acting as the gauge on who Jackie should end with at the end of the story.

The threat of Trish becoming Columbo is a dire one.  Columbo's method of investigation is to find the key clue, then hound the murderer until they break.  The murderers didn't have Columbo living with them.  Trish is going to find out the truth or break Jackie in the interrogation.  Knowing this, Jackie crumbled.  And Trish gets to smack her with reality.

Strange weather isn't odd for Ottawa.  The city gets weather extremes, often over the course of two or three days.  Imagine a day where the high is -30° Celcius and the low is -40°, then the next day, the temperature goes up 20-30 degrees, stays around or even just above freezing for a day or three, then plunges back down to -30°.  That was Winter 2018-2019.  I have seen rain clouds completely miss parts of the city.  Weather trackers mention the Ottawa "rain shield".  One year, the grass was greener a few days before Christmas than in June.  I have been in a low-hanging cloud bank pretending to be fog on the Queensway that would stay on the highway, even if there were exits to lower roads.  Those lower roads were clear.  Oh, and three tornadoes hitting populated areas that weren't trailer parks last year have to count for something.  So making the weather strange for Ottawa meant trying to work out what would be odd.

It's late fall in Digital Magic, so temperatures jumping around isn't that odd.  A weather system getting stopped at city limits is, especially when city limits follow township lines and not geographic features in the west end.  Weather cares not for man-made limits and should just blow through, barring the above-mentioned rain shield.  Here, though, there's a block.

Lightning during a snowstorm does happen.  Ottawa gets thundersnow during winters, but they're always the actinic blue of regular lightning, not the rainbow of colours Trish and Jackie saw.

The blackout Jackie mentions is the 2003 blackout that saw Ontario and several northeastern states lose power.  Quebec, since it runs on its own power system that needs transformers to interact with the rest of the continent's power grid, wasn't affected.  Prior to that one, there was Ice Storm 1998 that caused blackouts by the sheer mass of ice on power lines.  In 2003, I had just left work to go meet with an investment broker of sorts and was sitting with her at a Tim Horton's when everything went off.  The sun was still out as it was the start of rush hour, so that wasn't a problem.  I saw the crowds building, so decided to wait to let them die down a bit.  I even went to the counter to get another drink and fortunately, I had cash.  Everyone was going home.  When I left, I saw downtown had no power.  I get home, still no power, and I lived on the 20th floor at the time.  That was a hike.  Had to stop twice to catch my breath.  Got home, no power, no water pressure, and once the sun set, not much to do except go to bed in the dark with the cats.  Fun.

Tomorrow, a quick discussion on the story's direction.
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, hiatus week.
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, a fan-made four setting crossover.

Digital Magic - Chapter 17

Chapter 17

[Author's note: The formatting really should remind readers of some sort of instant messaging system.  A blog might not be the best way to do this.]

Jacinda_9: Lance, are you there?
Lance179: Hi, Jackie.  Be right with you.
Lance179: Sorry about that.  What's up?
Jacinda_9: You saw the storm last night?
* Lance179 nods.
Lance179: How bad was it in your neighbourhood?
Jacinda_9: Lots of snow and hail and wind.  It was kinda pretty, though, with all the colours.
Jacinda_9: What was it?
Lance179: Colours, huh?  That was a mage storm.  The weather is so hosed around here because of some sort of magic that it had to reset somehow.
Jacinda_9: And that's what the mage storm did, try to fix the weather to what passes as normal here?
Lance179: Something like that.  The ley lines are still bright, though.
Jacinda_9: You've probably thought of this, but if they're like a river, can't you trace the flow downstream?
Jacinda_9: Geez, that sounds so basic that just suggesting it makes me feel dumb.
Lance179: Don't beat yourself up.  Yes, we tried.  We wound up in a loop after going all around town.
Jacinda_9: *phew*  Hey, when you went around town, did you actually leave Ottawa at all or were you always within city limits?
Lance179: I don't think we did, but I can't be sure.  Why?
Jacinda_9: The weather's been contained in the city.  I'm wondering if there is a connection.
Lance179: There is.
Jacinda_9: . . .
Jacinda_9: You can't leave it there like that, Lance.
Lance179: You won't be able to help, Jackie.
Jacinda_9: Why not?
Lance179: It's too dangerous.
Jacinda_9: That doesn't answer my question.
Lance179: ...
Lance179: Okay, then you're still learning.  You're not ready to deal with this.
Jacinda_9: Lance, I think I'd know if I'm ready or not.
Lance179: You're still thinking about what you're doing when you cast a spell.  You've picked up on what to do faster than I've seen anyone else, but you don't have the practice.
Jacinda_9: ...
Lance179: Jackie, I don't want to get you hurt.
Jacinda_9: Then hurry on the teaching.  You might need me.
Lance179: Patience, Jackie.  This isn't like learning mathematics.
Jacinda_9: I don't know.  I had to do multiplication drills.  This seems similar to me.  Practice practice practice until I get carpal tunnel.
Lance179: I promise you won't get carpal tunnel, Jackie.
Jacinda_9: Good.
Lance179: And when you're needed, I won't hesitate to call you in.  You're learning quickly.  I just don't want to get you in over your head.
Jacinda_9: It's frustrating, you know?  I feel like I should be able to help.
Lance179: And you will, when you've gotten used to being a magician.  You've just discovered your abilities.  Wait until you've discovered what you can do.  You'll be amazed at your potential.
Jacinda_9: *sigh*  Alright

Are we still on for tomorrow?
Lance179: Sure.  Want me to pick you up or would you prefer to meet me at the Bridgehead downtown again?
Jacinda_9: The coffee shop sounds good.  I'll see you there when I'm done class.
Lance179: Great! :D

Digital Magic - Commentary 15

More lessons with Lance, in Digital Magic chapter 15.

Just a reminder that the commentary will be a week behind for a few weeks.  Eventually, there will be a catch up, but not right away.

Another session with Jackie and Lance.  There's no chemistry here.  Jackie is more about learning magic than learning about Lance.  Lance is almost in the role of expendable mentor, which would really cut a romance short.  But as a couple?  They're not quite at that point, and after fifteen chapters in a story that's trying to be a romance, there should be strong hints, like Public Displays of Affection,.or at least pet names.  But they're not there.  Jackie's more interested in figuring out magic and Lance is working on recruiting new wizards.

I was starting to figure out that maybe romance is not something I was comfortable writing, at least as the A-plot.  Later works introduce a romantic subplot, which I found easier.  The characters had other reasons to be in the story and things bloomed naturally.  Here, I'm trying to force a romance and I'm rebelling against myself.  The original lessons from Digital Magic was "don't even try a romance," which then becamse, "introduce potentials, but don't force anything."  I let my characters make the decisions.

Billiard balls are used in physics classes to teach momentum and angular direction.  Being as close to perfectly spherical as possible and meant to maximize energy transfer in a game of billiards, the balls have a uniform mass.  For teaching magic, using billiard balls removes the same variables as their use in physics classes does.  The game is also familiar to Jackie, so she can figure things out on her own if needed.  Visually, flinging billiard balls around is an amusing sight,

Discussing the weird weather, in Digital Magic Chapter 17.
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, RWBY, the manga.
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, hiatus week.

Digital Magic - Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Trish is waiting for me when I get step inside the apartment.  "Why didn't you call?"

"I didn't think I was going to be this late.  Besides, you could have called me.  I had my cell."

"I did call."

I fish my cell phone out of my backpack.  The phone shows that I missed seven calls tonight.  "I never-  Sorry, Trish, I didn't have my pack in with me."

"You better have a reason for making me worry, especially after last week with you freaking out over every bump in the night."

I hesitate to point out Trish's exaggerations.  It wouldn't help her mood.  "I was studying, sort of."

"Sort of?"  Trish puts her hands on her hips the way our teachers did when they scolded us.  "How do you sort of study?"  Her expression lightens.  "Who is he?"

Digital Magic - Commentary 14

Family and fallout, in Digital Magic chapter 14.

Just a reminder that the commentary will be a week behind for a few weeks.  Eventually, there will be a catch up, but not right away.

What's this?  Jackie can catch the train in Ottawa?  What gives?  Well, at the time of writing, the O-Train, now Line 2, was a massive improvement in public transit to Carleton University.  The fact it was an improvement says it all.  Carleton tended to get service cut over and over until it was impossible to get on campus.  The O-Train provided reliable access.  Line 2 is not the trouble-plagued Line 1.  Line 2 runs.  Line 1 is in its fourth week not running with a "full" complement of trains.  "Full" meaning 13 double-trains, not the 15 that's needed but still not available.  Right now, it's easier to get to Carleton by light rail than to the University of Ottawa.

The question of what to do with a renegade wizard has come up.  It's not an easy answer.  If it was, Lance wouldn't be as interesting to me writing him.  What can be done with a renegade who is capable of making making physics sit up, roll over, and play dead?  Locking the wizard away just delays the problem for as long as the renegade decides to stay in jail.  Termination is excessive, but Lance's Circle keeps it on hand for the more extreme problems.

Lance confirms that the time hiccup was the fallout from a massive spell.  When one manipulates energy beyond the ken of humanity, something will break.  At least Jackie didn't have a full Groundhog Day event.  But there is something bigger happening and it is connected to the eyes watching Jackie.

The rules of magic needed to be set down, as much for me as for potential readers.  Ley lines are useful; they allow for the flow of magical energy.  Where ley lines cross, magical energy pools, perfect for someone to use as a source.  If a pool is in an area that gets negative emotions over, such as a jail, the magical energy gets tainted.  It works the other way, too; positive emotions clease the magic.  The Nicholas Street Gaol was not a pleasant place.  On the flip side, a holy site known for miracles that has a magical pool is going to be pure, and unable to be used to harm someone.  Magic has a flavour.

Jackie's approach to spellcasting is similar to her approach to computer programming.  There are good ways to program and bad ways.  Spaghetti code is to be avoided.  Memory should be released.  Jackie is trying to set up everything the spell needs before she casts it.  She's actually compiling the spell so she doesn't have to watch over the spell as it runs.  She could go with an interpreted approach, but she'd have to direct the magic while the spell runs.  The advantage of the latter, though, is that she can adjust the spell on the fly.  There's advantages and drawbacks of both in spellcasting in the setting.

Objects having their own magical resonance was an idea I had while writing the chapter.  Oranges having a natural sine wave was spur of the moment.  I had no plans involving this factoid yet.  I just thought it'd be neat.

Trish tries to get through to Jackie, in Digital Magic Chapter 16.
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, The Simpsons Movie.
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, RWBY, the manga.

Digital Magic - Chapter 15

Chapter 15

I have the car today.  The engine might be sounding rough, or it might be my imagination and guilt for magicking it without having a clue of what I was doing.  The Honda should be okay for what I want to do, though.  It'll be parked at Carleton all day until I go meet Lance at the warehouse, then it'll be in moderate traffic that moves fairly steadily instead of the stop-and-go of Bank Street.

I do hit the gym today, giving myself a good workout to try to work off all the calories I picked up thanks to the parties over the weekend.  My arms and legs will feel it later tonight, but the shower helps mitigate the expected stiffness.  Refreshed from both the workout and the shower, I run off to class.

Most of the lecture is taken up by the return of the previous assignment and questions about it.  Once it's done, I rush out, trying to beat the bulk of the crowd.  Okay, I'm a little excited over what Lance wants me to try tonight.  I managed to try a few things last night before Trish got home.  Nothing big, though; I didn't want to have to explain broken lights and such to her.  Even then, I almost took out the balcony door.  I stopped after that.

Digital Magic - Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Dinner went well.  Hannah's cooking skill has greatly improved.  Nick figured out how to use utensils somewhere and doesn't embarrass himself or anyone else.  There wasn't as much wine as the previous few days, but my liver could use the break.  I let Trish drive us back.  She uses the back way, using Baseline Road instead of the Queensway.  It's really for the best for my poor little abused Honda.

I turned in before it got too late.  The sleep felt good, except for the waking up with the alarm part.  I've never liked that aspect of Mondays, even when I have the day off.  I get through the morning ritual without a hassle.  Showered, clothed, caffeinated, even got in a bite of toast before I ran out for the bus.

Trish needs the car again today.  She's aware of the need to take it easy with the wee beastie and won't tax it.  Seems odd having to treat a mass of metal as if it was as fragile as a coffee mug.  The problem isn't major, according to Uncle Larry, just potentially expensive.  I should be able to coax my car along until the new year.

I arrive at Carleton and dash up to my classroom.  There are no eyes in windows watching me as I run up the stairs.  Always a good thing.  Normally, I'd have stopped at one of the Tim Hortons in the Unicentre.  Today, though, I want to see if I can catch Lance before class and arrange a tutoring schedule.  It never occurred to me to figure one out on Saturday when I was with him.  In fact, it only occurred to me on the bus ride in to school.

I get my laptop started up and connected to the university's wireless network.  I log into my instant messenger and send Lance a note.  For good measure, I send an email from Jacinda's Hotmail account.  Redundancy, it's not just for backing up data and schoolwork.  I open a window to write down notes from the class and keep my email and IM available in case Lance replies.

Digital Magic - Commentary 12

Recovery day, in Digital Magic chapter 12.

The commentary will lag a week for the next little bit.  Eventually, there will be a catch up, but not right away.

Digital Magic is still in a raw first draft version.  I have marks I use for later passes to fix later.  In NaNo. the idea is to get the words written, not agonized over.  If I don't like a word but can't think of the one I want, I'll leave a special character that wouldn't normally appear, like $, or block out the word or phase with {} or [].  On an edit pass, these stand out.

I didn't want to write out the party and all the events happening during it.  Not even as a montage.  It wasn't plot or characterization critical, even with me trying to get Jackie and Steve together.  The aftermath is more interesting and lets readers fill in their own details.  Everyone has a different definition of a wild party.

Speaking on chemistry, Jackie and Trish's nameless classmate might have more chemistry than the intended potential pairings, Steve and Lance.  Again, romance be hard, yo.  I try to challenge myself, but this went beyond my skill level.  Some planning might have helped, but even when I do some primitive outlines, things change as the story decides to go elsewhere.  It's something that came up with other stories I've posted that had large gaps before the last few chapters were done.  But I thought I had the characters thought out for Digital Magic.  Just not thought out enough.

The hookups mentioned were mainly for the fun of wrapping up the party.  They also emphasize that Jackie hasn't paired up yet.  Adding in Gary and Liam was an early attempt by me to show some diversity.  At the time, it was something I just tossed in.  Why not?  Chances are good that at least one of Trish's classmates is gay.  No use in denying or whitewashing it.  Someone else can write their story, though.  I'm having enough problems with a heterosexual romance.

Jackie's training session with Lance covers three elements.  One, that he is in the running with Steve for Jackie's affection.  Two, that Jackie is developing her own approach.  Magic, at least in this setting, changes from caster to caster.  Three, Lance is part of a larger group of people.  One-person operations don't really need a warehouse.  And the B-plot comes out, finally.  I think, on retrospect, I would've been better off getting the B-plot out sooner and making it the A-plot.  Hindsight is, much like this year, 2020.  The B-plot gave me a structure to work in, one that I can build out from.  The Soul Blade went this route.  The romance in that story came organically.  That, ultimately, is the problem with Digital Magic.  The romantic elements aren't organic and Jackie is resisting being paired off as a result.

The nature of ley lines, in Digital Magic Chapter 14.
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, History of Adaptations, 2010-2019..
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, Archie Meets Batman '66.

Digital Magic - Chapter 13

Chapter 13

We had dinner in Little Italy, in a small restaurant on Preston Street.  Wine flowed freely as we celebrated Hannah's engagement to her lump.  Mom took advantage of not having to drive and had about a bottle's worth of the house wine on her own.  My aunt and uncle tried to pace her, but fell short.  Literally, in my aunt's case.  She fell off her chair during dessert.  The only thing she hurt, though, was her pride.  I kept to a more moderate four glasses.  Nick had less than that, and Hannah and Dad only drank coffee except for the toast.

Hannah gave me a ride back home.  Nick helped me up to my apartment, even though I could manage it myself.  Up doesn't always have to be in a straight line.  Trish was already home when I got in.  I heard her and Simon in her bedroom.  Bah.

Sunday morning, I woke up with yesterday's drummer adding a snare drum to his kit.  My mouth had fur inside it that desperately needed either to be shaved or combed.  I open one eye and look on the floor near my bed for half-naked women.  Mind, I'd prefer a half-naked guy there instead, but since the last man I saw last night was Nick, I settle for seeing my pants and shirt lying on the rug instead.  I roll out of bed.  I'm pleased to see that I did manage to change into my night clothes, though my shirt is backwards.

Digital Magic - Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Saturday morning starts far too early and far too bright.  At least I'm in my own bed.  I open one eye to look at my alarm clock.  Oh, look, it's the afternoon, shortly past one.  I should get out of bed.  I really, really should.

I roll on to my side.  A drummer starts using my temples as his bass drum.  A moan escapes my lips.  Its echo comes from below.  With an effort, I roll over to see why my bedroom was replaced by a canyon.  The floor is still there, though a wave of dizziness through me has me wondering why the ceiling has carpeting.  Doesn't explain why Sarah is curled up half-dressed.  I'm fairly sure that I wouldn't have slept through an orgy in my room.  To be sure, I look down to see what I'm wearing; I don't trust my body's feedback right now.  My shirt and jeans are still on though somewhat wrinkled.

I swing my legs out of bed, letting my feet dangle above the rug.  The drummer doesn't punish me any further for that, so I try to sit up.  There, almost up.  That leaves the actual standing up left.  Piece of cake.  Other than a scratchy throat, I feel better already.  The real problem is going to be finding a place to put my feet.  Sarah's underwear-clad body is in my way and I don't want to risk waking her up.  Some people wake up without too much problem.  Others can be down right nasty about it.  I don't know which Sarah is.

Sarah groans again.  Her eyelids flutter open.  "What," she starts, her voice a dry rasp.  She lifts her head and clears her throat.  "What time . . .?" is all she manages to say.

Digital Magic - Commentary 11

Magical mishap, in Digital Magic chapter 11.

Several things come up here on re-reading the chapter.  The first is that, for all Jackie thinks Trish is her bff, there's some resentment that has shown up from time to time, a hint of jealousy.  Trish, at least from Jackie's point of view, has her life together.  Of course, since the story is written from Jackie's view, we don't get Trish's side of the story, where she is worried about her friend who spends so much of her time working on assignments and needs to be pushed at times.  The scene of Jackie and Trish in the car where Trish gets to unburden herself of what's stressing her.  Trish isn't as perfect as Jackie thinks.

I'm thinking that the video game should've been the focus of the story.  I do have an idea for the characters where Jacinda appears in the real world, one without the romantic leanings.  It's being kept on the back burner for now.  I like the idea of Jacinda rebelling against her creator, so it's something I'll play with for a bit.

Jackie is referencing "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" when she considers cleaning the apartment magically.  She's well aware that uncontrolled magic can cause problems, especially for rookies.  Naturally, when she's trying to rush, she completely forgets the lessons from TV and film.  The Honda doesn't react well to magic.  I didn't want to have technology to have an inherent resistance to magic, especially since Jackie is learning through a computer game.

The Honda is based on a car a friend in university had, a Honda Civic hatchback.  He pushed that car to the limits.  Ultimately, he slightly melted the engine.  Jackie isn't going that far with the car, magical mishap notwithstanding, but it's a car that a university student can afford.  It's not going to be in the best shape, especially under benign neglect..

What's the worst thing to do when naming characters takes an effort?  Introduce a bunch of them at once.  I use a few locations in trying to figure out names.  For minor characters, first place is the lists of popular names by year, including official sources.  I'll also hit up the Seventh Sanctum's quick character name generator and mix and match results.  When I'm aiming for a specific culture, I'll just make a quick Google search on culture and gender and grab what looks good.  Some cultures, though, have an easier approach; Slavic names are easier to find checking hockey team line ups, for example.

I tried to create chemistry between Jackie and Steve.  They even danced again.  I wasn't up to the romance aspects of the romance when I wrote Digital Magic.  I tried, but the magic element was more interesting.  I can work romance in as a subplot, but I'll let romance writers write romance.

The afternoon after the night before, in Digital Magic Chapter 12.
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, CHiPs.
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, Good Omens.

Digital Magic - Chapter 11

Chapter 11

The week passes without anything else going horribly wrong for me.  Carleton's maintenance people managed to get the heat going for the campus by Wednesday morning.  Classes Wednesday and Thursday went well, though the number of assignments grew.  Mid-term exams got scheduled, too, though far enough away that the assignments are more critical.  I didn't see eyes in windows or mirrors, so either Lance's trick worked or I was completely paranoid.  I don't know which to hope for.

Thursday afternoon had me in a co-op placement meeting, so Trish had the car to go shopping for the barbeque tonight.  I hope that she doesn't wind up inviting some guy in line along because she think he's hot.  The invites are out, though.  Really informal, just saying, "Hey, barbeque, bring what you want."  Usually works for the guys I know in res.  Anything beats what gets served there, even a burger thats burnt black on the outside and still cold in the middle.  Oh, and I'm not cooking tonight.  I can cook for myself, but I know when to let someone else take over.  Trish can go out in this weather and fulfill the role of chef tonight.

I have the car this afternoon.  Makes getting the beer back home easier.  A case of twenty-four Canadian, a case of Labatt's Double Blue, half Blue, half Blue Light, and I'm set.  The line at the Beer Store isn't bad yet, the main reason why I came here in the middle of the afternoon instead of after four o'clock.  The bottles clink as I put the cases into the Honda's trunk.  I slam down the hatchback so I can begin the trip home.

My phone trills.  I learned my lesson earlier this week and moved it to my backpack.  I unlock and open the driver's door to my car and reach across to grab the cell out of the pack's side pocket.  I flip the phone open in the middle of the third ring.  "Beer delivery," I answer.

Digital Magic - Commentary 10

Jackie and Steve try to have chemistry, in Digital Magic chapter 10.

Sign that Digital Magic is written by a man - Jackie's skirt has pockets.  It wasn't something that occurred to me when I wrote the story, but women's clothing isn't designed for pockets.  It's the little details that make or break a story.

Steve returns.  Jackie's call was a bait-and-switch.  She calls, gets voice mail, stammers something, done.  Trish can then chide her on her lack of romantic skill.  I slipped in details of the night Jackie danced away with Steve, more than Jackie remembers.  Trish remembers more of the night than Jackie.  Yet, Jackie didn't overindulge.  Again, I may be getting too subtle with what's happening.  Explanation will happen, eventually.

Other details are key during the phone call, like the other telephone ringing.  Sure, it's possible that Steve has a personal cell and a work landline, and that was possible in 2007.  Today, he might not have a landline.  Cut the cable initiatives mean that landlines are becoming an endangered species.  Someone in a high position may not want to be tied to a landline when expecting an important call.  At the time, I expected Steve to be slightly ahead of business norms.  Today, he's lagging a bit.

The mouse returns.  Jackie much preferred the original colour of her mouse.  It's a way to show that Jackie is starting to understand her magical metaphor.  She's majoring in Computer Science, so she uses programming and user interfaces as her metaphor.  Undo is a critical element in most programs, so Jackie working it out is a key step.  Of course, if Jackie can move from computer interface to computer programming with her metaphor, she may become one of the more powerful magicians in the setting.

Magic doesn't always simplify life, in Digital Magic Chapter 11.
Friday, over at Psycho Drive-In, The Mandalorian.
Saturday, over at The Seventh Sanctum, CHiPs.