Quote of the Month ~ April 2016

I found this one particularly encouraging as (personally) I find it super easy to forget at times. :P How about you?

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(Click here for previous Quotes of the Month on StJ!)

Heidi Peterson is a lover of wide-spreading land, summer dust, white pounding waterfalls, and mountain tops; also of good dark coffee and rich stories. Most of all she's a lover of the One who is the Word, the Word made flesh. You can visit her additional blog (where she shares more about books, movies, and further marvels of life) at: Along the Brandywine.

Visit and contact at: Sharing the Journey // Along the Brandywine // ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com

3 Things I Love in a Good Story // Emma Nikki

from Emma Nikki

1. Emotional drama 

One of my favorite experiences as a reader (or watcher) of literature is delving into the emotions of a character- finding out what makes them tick, their insecurities, battles, and backstories. It adds beautifully to the conflict and tension. I find that when an author manipulates my emotions to the point where I want the character to give up- because it’s just so hard, and they’re completely broken- then the author has accomplished something. And when the character finally wins, it adds to the victory, redemption, or whatever they’ve been fighting for.

2. Tension filled plot 

I have grown up loving the stories which make your heart beat against your chest. When the suspense and action is immense in a story, I am happy and content. So books like The Chronicles of Narnia, The Door Within trilogy, or Lord of the Rings really grab my attention, because I know they won’t let me down for one moment. They have battles for their lives at every turn, they’re captured, they learn to sword fight, all of those amazing things! Cliffhangers are also something I look forward to in an action-packed story. 

I expect to be left at a cliffhanger after each scene, and I enjoy that (I tell people I don’t, but that’s definitely not true). If a story doesn’t have much action or suspense it will fall just below the line of boring or predictable for me.

3. Beautiful nasty villains 

I expect nasty villains when I read/watch a story, and there is a certain definition to nasty villain. In my own mind, it means that the villain has a clear purpose and reason for their plan. It also means that they have their own personalities, inner battles, and conflicts for their character. I expect to see several dimensions of the villain, not just one line of emotion- they have to have just as much work on them as the heroes of the story. An example- who does an amazing job of this- is Once Upon a Time. This show has excellent classic villains- such as the Wicked Witch of the West, the Evil Queen, Rumplestiltskin, Peter Pan, etc, etc- but with depth of character to each one. You never know what the villains will be like, and that’s what I love!

(Note from Heidi: Thanks so much for sharing, Emma!)

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And... would you like to share three of your favorite things in a guest post? You don’t have to be a writer to qualify! This series is by story lovers for story lovers.
For post specifics/guidelines you can see the initial post here, then send Heidi a quick email at ladyofanorien(at)gmail(dot)com. (Don’t be shy. I’d love to have you! :))

Inkling Explorations Link-Up // April 2016

(Note: if you're interested in participating and new to the blog, you can find our link-up explanation/guidelines + more buttons here. :))

This month's selection is: A description of a lady in literature

My choice comes from G.K. Chesterton's The Ball and the Cross (which, by the way, I still haven't completely made sense of), but -- all that notwithstanding -- the words are enough to take your breath at times and the following description's fascinating.

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"Madeleine Durand was physically a sleepy young woman, and might easily have been supposed to be morally a lazy one. It is, however, certain that the work of her house was done somehow, and it is even more rapidly ascertainable that nobody else did it. The logician is, therefore, driven back upon the assumption that she did it; and that lends a sort of mysterious interest to her personality at the beginning. She had very broad, low, and level brows, which seemed even lower because her warm yellow hair clustered down to her eyebrows; and she had a face just plump enough not to look as powerful as it was. Anything that was heavy in all this was abruptly lightened by two large, light china-blue eyes, lightened all of a sudden as if it had been lifted into the air by two big blue butterflies. The rest of her was less than middle-sized, and was of a casual and comfortable sort...

"Both the father and the daughter (i.e. Madeleine) were of the sort that would normally have avoided all observation; that is, all observation in that extraordinary modern world which calls out everything except strength. Both of them had strength below the surface; they were like quiet peasants owning enormous and unquarried mines. The father with his square face and grey side whiskers, the daughter with her square face and golden fringe of hair, were both stronger than they knew; stronger than anyone knew. The father... believed in Man. The daughter believed in God; and was even stronger. They neither of them believed in themselves; for that is a decadent weakness.

"The daughter was called a devotee. She left upon ordinary people the impression -- the somewhat irritating impression -- produced by such a person; it can only be described as the sense of strong water being perpetually poured into some abyss. She did her housework easily; she achieved her social relations sweetly; she was never neglectful and never unkind. This accounted for all that was soft in her, but not for all that was hard. She trod firmly as if going somewhere; she flung her face back as if defying something; she hardly spoke a cross word, yet there was often battle in her eyes. The modern man asked doubtfully where all this silent energy went to. He would have stared still more doubtfully if he had been told that it all went into her prayers."  

Tell me! Have you read and enjoyed any Chesterton?

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Just leave your own link here in a comment and I'll add it to the post. As always, entries are open through the end of the month and I can't wait to see your selections!

Entrants:

Blessing Counter ~ Miss Lavender in Anne of Avonlea

Brona ~ May Welland & Ellen Olenska in The Age of Innocence

Chere Mama ~ Misunderstood Hepzibah in The House of Seven Gables

Cordy ~ Jo March in Little Women

Emma ~ Marguerite Blakeney in The Scarlet Pimpernel
Éowyn ~ Majesty in The Light of Western Stars

Erudessa Aranduriel ~ Marguerite Blakeney in The Scarlet Pimpernel

Hamlette ~ Five descriptions from Raymond Chandler

Jillian ~ Melanie in Gone with the Wind

Kathy ~ Lady Éowyn in The Lord of the Rings

Meredith ~ Lady Éowyn in Tolkien's The Two Towers

Miss March ~ The Fisherman's Lady

Olivia ~ Rebecca of York in Ivanhoe

Rachel ~ Kilmeny in Kilmeny of the Orchard

Rose ~ Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice

*How to do it*

1. Post the Inklings button on your sidebar.

2. Do a post on your own blog relating to the month's selection/subject (a literary excerpt as short or as long as you like AND/OR—if specified that month—a screencap from a film with an explanation of how the scene builds/develops the story). Link back here somewhere in your post.

3. Come back here and paste your link in the comments box and I'll add it to the post. Then enjoy visiting and reading everyone else's contributions!

That's all there is to it!

Up next month: A scene making beautiful use of special effects/CGI in film