I usually have a plan when I write. An outline. A direction.
Sometimes that starts with a scene, or a bit of dialogue, or a dream that leaves me with a snippet of inspiration.
But one of my favorite things about writing is not being fully in control of the process. I honestly don't know how I come up with half of what I write. Characters evolve in my mind and take over the narrative.
And that's the way I like it.
This is my post for the Ladies of Hive Community Contest this week, and likely my random appearance on Hive for the month before I skip off into my imaginary world and get some writing done for the contract I have with Heart's Choice, a publisher of interactive fiction games and the romance division of Choice of Games.
I've been working steadily on my second interactive fiction game for HC and having a lot of fun with it. But I'm roughly 100,000 words in and needed to take a break.
Sometimes, getting sidetracked is the best thing for creativity.
Last week I saw a post on the Choice of Games forum announcing a romance game jam for February and I said to myself, "Hey, why don't I try writing a super simple playful little game as a palate cleanser."
That is what I did.
I quietly released it two nights ago on itch.io, and as of tonight it's had over 500 browser plays and 1100 views. I did not expect that. I haven't even entered it into the game jam yet because it doesn't open until Feb 1st. 🤣
dance around a bonfire beneath the moon
in this bite-sized game.
Poetry & Passion
It's a full moon and your crush is making you dinner, but the meal is only the start of tonight's festivities. Be playful, discover your inner poet, and surrender to the magic of the evening.
- Play as male, female, or nonbinary.
- Enjoy delicious food.
- Write poetry together.
- Swoon, laugh, kiss, and moan.
- Dance around a bonfire as moonlight makes the waves sparkle.
This fantasy romance is short, sweet, and spicy, with a NSFW end choice. (18+)
I give you, Poetry & Passion.
This is my first try at writing a short piece of interactive fiction, AND my first real go at writing cozy fantasy. I mean, there are always cozy moments in my stories, but there’s usually epic stakes. It was freeing to write this little game around a dinner date that evolves into writing poetry together.
This game is free to play and takes ten, maybe fifteen minutes total. Short, sweet, and sexy.
The story is set on the same island as my WIP for Heart’s Choice, so there’s some similar worldbuilding, though the characters are completely different.
Inspiration
The Ladies of Hive question I chose this week was "In which aspects of your life you are grateful for not being 100% in control?"
My answer would be that I'm grateful to not be fully in control of inspiration. I think there's a lot to be said for being open to the creative flow, and if you hold on too hard or are too rigid, it can restrict that flow.
Inspiration feels like something I have very little control over, and I like that very much.
It's a ride.
It's a rush.
When I've been kissed by a story muse, I'm in my happy place.
I've shared a good amount of my creative work on this blockchain over the years. Poetry, music, short stories. Y'all have helped me grow as a writer and an artist, so I'll thank you for that. Though I might not post here as consistently as I once did, all of that growth helped me become the writer I am today, and I'm really pleased with how far I've come.
I love game writing. I never thought I'd say this when I was halfway through the first game, but writing this second game I seem to have leveled up.
A lot of that leveling up is practice, but it's also experience listening to my characters and letting inspiration lead the way. It's trusting that the words will come out and letting them do so.
Sure, sometimes I have to force myself to sit down and start writing. Sometimes I have to reach for the right phrase or precise word. Sometimes thesaurus.com is only reason I'm able to keep moving forward.
But most of the time, inspiration flows. My characters play along. The words flow.
And for that I am grateful.
Thank you for reading! 💖
That was fun! Thanks to the amazing community at Ladies of Hive for the inspiration. This was me taking a tiny break from writing my game to share with you my side project and I ended up getting philosophical. Yay!
If you play Poetry & Passion, let me know what you think!
P.S At the suggestion of a member of the CoG forum, I put my purple hat on the illustration by Adrien Valdes for my HC game and made a new profile picture! More creativity. Huzzah!
Peace @Katrina-Ariel / @LeiaTalon
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Wow! It must be good!
Creativity is best uncontrolled, yes?
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@katrina-ariel! Your Content Is Awesome so I just sent 1 $BBH (Bitcoin Backed Hive) to your account on behalf of @silversaver888. (1/20)
Definitely. And thank you! Everyone who has played it so far has said they've enjoyed it. 💖
This is superb, and I love how you incorporated it into the LOH contest! 😁
Hopefully, you will have some additional players from PYPT!
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