Friday, August 6, 2010

Change Blogfest

Smack me with a noodle!  I forgot to put up a post for Elizabeth Mueller's Change Blogfest

Sheesh, where is my head these days?  Actually, I know where it is.  My brains are tangled up like a bowl of the aforementioned noodles between returning from our vacation, looking for a new job, preparing for the upcoming semester, dealing with various family crises, working on my writing course and trying to entertain a grumpy, bored little boy.

So, with my apologies, here is a scene from my novel in which a character changes physical appearance.  It was quite fun to write.
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Brambleburr bowed deeply and gestured for them to enter.  They stared at the door, which, though the right size for them, was much too small for the bear to enter.

“Ho-hum! I nearly forgot.”  He shook himself all over, like a dog shedding water, and grew a little smaller. Then he shook himself again, and grew smaller still. One more time, and he was almost small enough to fit through the door. Then he reached up to his throat, opened the bear skin like a jacket, pushed the head back like a hood, and stepped out of it. There before them stood a little old man with a lined, brown face, tawny brown hair and a beard. His eyes were hazel-colored and bright, his back straight, his hands gnarled but strong. He was dressed in a soft brown suit, with a green embroidered waistcoat, and shiny black boots. Eyes twinkling, he picked up the bear skin and rolled it up. It became the size of a handkerchief, and he put it into his pocket.

“Now,” he said, flinging the door open, “let us all go inside.”

11 comments:

  1. Ha I love how he takes the change in his stride and is totally unfazed! I assume the character changes appearance a lot, then?

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  2. Ha, nice. It seemed like a natural thing.

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  3. Thank you for your comments! Sangu, no he doesn't change appearance a lot. Up to this point, they've taken him for granted as a strange but helpful talking bear. But at this point the protagonists are too exhausted, physically and emotionally wounded, and just plain overwhelmed to question the source of any help they receive.

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  4. Christine, wow! This is so cute! I love it! I hope life slows down a bit so you can breathe. I appreciate your participation. Have a great weekend. <3

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  5. That was kinda cool! Not something I would expect and everything about the very short scene works. It's great.

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  6. Good luck looking for a new job! That's really exciting and stressful. I guess getting smacked with a noodle wouldn't hurt that much, but it might be sticky.

    I love the name Brambleburr!!!

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  7. What a charming, adorable change, and an excellent description. I can totally see this guy in my mind's eye.

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  8. Thank you so much, all of you, for your encouraging comments! Don't forget to join my contest. :-D

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  9. That was great! I love the matter-of-fact way you tell us about his change. I can almost see the protagonist(s) watching this with (exhausted) blank faces, blinking at it maybe, but unable to make a fuss because Brambleburr doesn't, either.

    Great stuff! (and what a change!)

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  10. Heheh, this was fun. I guess he simply slippped into something more comfortable -rawr?
    And when he dons the bear suit he slips into something less comfortable - roar! ; j

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  11. That's a lovely, imaginative passage. Thanks for sharing it.

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I apologize for the word verification. I hate it, but the spammers made me do it.