Sometimes I read a blog post.
I type a comment.
Then I think, “Wow. I am so triggered right now.”
So I delete the comment without posting and close the page.
No one will understand anyway.
Better to just write it into a story.
Alicia’s Booties knitting pattern
“I’ll tell you what, dear, … I’ve got some leftover yarn from my grandbaby’s blanket, and I can have some booties knitted up in a jiffy.”
Alice and the Warden, by Autumn Rain
Materials
Worsted weight yarn
Markers
Yarn needle
0-3 months: Size 3 needles
3-6 months: Size 4 needles
6-9 months: Size 5 needles
9-12 months: Size 6 needles
Sole
CO 26
Odd rows: sl1, k to end
Row 2: k1, m1, k11, pm, m1, k1, m1, k1, m1, pm, (5 sts total between markers) k11, m1, k1
Row 4: sl1, k1, m1, k11, (sl marker), m1, k2, m1, k3, m1, (sl marker), k11, m1, k2
Row 6: sl1, k2, m1, k11, (sl marker), m1, k4, m1, k4, m1, (sl marker), k11, m1, k3
Row 8: sl1, k3, m1, k11, (sl marker), m1, k5, m1, k6, m1, (sl marker), k11, m1, k4
Row 10: sl1, k4, m1, k11, (sl marker), m1, k7, m1, k7, m1, (sl marker), k11, m1, k5
Row 11: sl1, k to end (remove markers)
Foot
Rows 12-18: stockinette stitch (k odd rows, p even rows)
Row 19: sl1, k28, ssk, turn
Even rows: sl1, p7, p2tog, turn
Odd rows: sl1, k7, ssk, turn
Continue short rows until there are 36 sts on needles.
sl1, k to end
sl1, p to end
Eyelet row: sl1, (yo, k2tog, k) repeat to end (12 yo total)
sl1, p to end
Cuff
Continue in 2×2 ribbing (k2, p2) until 2x desired length
End after even row
BO3, (sl st to left needle, CO2, BO6) repeat across
Note: Picots are supposed to be centered over P sts in ribbing
Cut yarn with long tail to sew up the back of bootie (~2ft)
Weave in ends
Thread yarn or ribbon for a shoe lace through eyelet row, fold over cuff
Decorate!
Note: Little hands like to grab things! Tuck the laces under the cuff to protect them, and make sure decorations like pompoms are attached securely.
Thank you for sharing my work!
Unhappy Woman
Thank you for sharing my work!
Discord Channel – By Autumn Rain
I’ve been talked into creating a Discord channel.
I haven’t the slightest clue who’d want to talk to me, but it exists. I’ll probably post pictures of my cats.
If you want, you can ask me to read the first chapter of your novel, or for insider gossip about my fictional characters, or tell me that I’m the best person to ever exist (lawl jk).
Of course, as an FYI, I only get around to conversing when I feel good and ready to, so don’t expect me to be constantly plugged in 24/7.
Also, I can’t figure anything out. I am not super internet-literate.
Thank you for sharing my work!
Deep Fried
I burnt out on movies, so I switched over to watching Youtube whenever I needed to mindlessly veg for a bit.
So, the other day I was watching a food channel, and the person said something along the lines of, “Fried foods absorb oil, and that’s bad for you.”
Something inside of me snapped.
Like, “Fuck it. I’m buying a deep fryer.”
Gonna eat beignets for breakfast every single day.
Actually, I’m way too stingy to buy a deep fryer when I have a perfectly good pot and a stove, but the sentiment still stands. People have been frying foods in oil for literally ages, so I think it’s okay for me to eat something without you getting all up in my business. There’s too much of that going around.
Deal with it.
Thank you for sharing my work!
Study Psychology
I keep an eye on current creative writing practices, even though I think that it’s shallow and inane. Yeah, I know, I’m a total snob about this. Egotistical. Et cetera.
But srsly
When the masses are saying, “Make sure that your characters act like real people,” I can’t help but scratch my cheek with a sense of bafflement. Okay. Yeah. Sure. Sounds solid.
BUT HOW DO REAL PEOPLE ACT?
I know it sounds silly on the surface, but it’s a legitimate question. When was the last time you went out of your way to watch real people, see what they do, and wonder why? (probably not since March 2020, snerk)
Which is why I say, “Study psychology.”
Personally, I like self help books, since they’re easier for individual study and are written with “real world application” in mind. I have a huge number of books on marriage and relationships, and also topics like manipulation, business, “how to be happy”, spirituality, etc (I’m a knowledge junkie, so I’ve never been all that picky). Heck, even developing an understanding of astrology will give you a good base for creating characters, not to mention the Myers-briggs personality types.
No, it doesn’t wrap up neatly for a bullet point in an article. You can’t churn out a story, look at it and say, “Yeah, that’s totally how real people act,” then give yourself a pat on the back. When it comes to truly understanding people, you never cross the finish line. People are beautifully complex and unique like that.
And ultimately, fictional characters are supposed to be larger than life anyway.
Thank you for sharing my work!
Uncommitted Ally
Finished the first draft
I finished writing the first draft of Alice and the Warden.
I was sorely tempted to procrastinate with writing the last few chapters just to draw the process out longer, but I figured I shouldn’t slip into that trap. Besides, there’s still the second draft to do.
So
I’ve got 70 chapters total, and I most recently posted 52. Rather than make everyone plod along over the next 18 weeks to get to the end, I’ve decided to start posting 2 chapters a weeks.
Heck, I’m tempted to create a pdf of the entire novel for downloading, and I might do that as well. As I’ve said before, this is the first draft and hasn’t had any editing yet, so don’t expect to be blown away — it’s still very much a work in progress. It’s just that I’ve got a feeling. Probably nothing, but I’ve learned to always listen to my feelings.
I just don’t want anything to rob you of being able to read the ending after all of this time, and the world is very chaotic right now.
Thank you for sharing my work!
What AatW isn’t…
My husband and I like each other, so we tend to talk a lot. Like, for at least a couple of hours every day. We’re serious BFFs.
Recently, my husband said, “The only reason Hackett isn’t a cuck is because of his sense of dignity.”
I both laughed and felt mortified.
Because for the last eleven months that I’ve been working on this story, I’ve been worried that it was going to be misconstrued as a cuckolding fantasy, or the MGTOW narration of, “Girl gets pregnant by sexy alpha, then dupes nice guy into financially providing for her.”
It’s not.
One of the main themes of the novel is the value of self-worth. Hackett comes in with a strong sense of who he is, and doesn’t let others belittle or manipulate him. Alice, on the other hand, starts off struggling to figure out her identity, while dealing with the aftermath of “living like she was disposable.” Essentially, Hackett becomes the example that inspires her.
Hackett still expects fidelity, and to be treated fairly and respectfully. He ain’t no cuck.
But I can see how the same scenario with a weak male lead would very easily be along those lines.
By Autumn Rain 