The Get to Know Me Tag

So my friend Rafie tagged me for this "Get to Know Me" Tag, which I've seen circling around, and kind of avoided/kind of hoped I'd get tagged.  Cause it's cool, but a little personal?  But still fun, y'know?  In any case, I'm tagged so there's no turning back now.  (Thanks, I guess...)

The Rules

link back to the person who created the tag

thank the person who tagged you

share the tag graphic

tag eleven bloggers

Vital Stats and Appearances

Name:  As you (might) know, Julian Daventry is a penname.  The first name comes from when I was preparing to write a new story, back in 2015.  I needed a name for a female character, and as I was in the car, I started scanning road signs for inspiration.  We passed a "Julian Road" so I grabbed the name.  The story eventually was pushed aside, but at the back of my mind I liked the name.

So when I needed a name for blogging, I decided to go with Julian.  (Daventry is the last name of another character in another series of mine, no special story there.)

A couple months later, I discover Julian is pretty much a guy name...but I hate to change it and create more confusion.

Nicknames:  A number of bloggers call me Jules for short.  I've got one sister that called me Nina for a while; another sister that calls me Lana.  Evan sometimes calls me Fee (and for a short amount of time called me Goatherder for some odd reason).  People pronounce and spell my real name incorrectly all the time... 

Birthday:  That's none of your business.  Just know that I'm an adult.

Hair color and length:  Hehheh.  My hair does what it wants.  Some days it's super, super curly, and I can grab a head-band and pull off a hippie look.  Some days it's just wavy.  Other days it's more straight.  Sometimes it hangs limp, and other days it's ablaze with frizz.  Sometimes it's dark brown, other times a honey color...sometimes it'll even look auburn.  It all just depends on the weather, my shampoo, what my last shower was, and the lighting.

Eye color:  Hazel?  Kind of?  Brown - but sometimes green??

Braces/piercings/tattoos:  I had braces, but that was years ago.  All I have left is a metal wire behind my back teeth, which, according to Gray, makes me a cyborg.  Also have ear piercings.  I have lots or scars...but no tattoos.

Righty or lefty:  Both!!  I'm one of those ambidextrous folks.

Ethnicity:  Welsh-Slovak.  (Which might explain my love for bagpipes, and my ability to sound like a Russian native?)

Firsts

First novel written:  Well, the first book I wrote, Lady Knight, was under 50K.

If you're counting novel as over 50K well...that might be a little harder to decide...

After Lady Knight I started on a trilogy, called Freedom Fighters.  Those three books were 24,509; 14,651; and 27,524.  Certainly not novels on their own.  However I eventually decided to put them together as one book, with three parts - making it a 63,684 long novel.  But I don't know if that counts or not, since I put them together sometime afterward.

If that doesn't count, then maybe...um...The End of Time reached 80,961 before I got stuck on the final battle????  But it's still not completed.

First novel completed:  I actually finished Lady Knight.  It was a total of 16,419 words.

Again, if we're going by the "novel is 50K or more" rule, then...

(The Freedom Fighters merge???)

Words of Gold would be the ultimate, no-questions-asked, winner.  I'd finished a number of books before this one, but all just under 50K.  Then I switched my outlining technique, and finished strong, with a word count of 80,178.

Award for writing:  Haven't entered anything, actually.  I did, however, enter the poetry contest a year or two ago at our fair.  Not only did I win the (adult) category, but came home with the Judge's Overall Choice.  And a tiny bit of prize money.  That was exciting.  (Anyone interested in reading that poem?  I could always post it sometime.)

Publication:  I'm still an unpublished writer at the moment, sadly.  (I have, however, been featured in the local newspaper and in a magazine) for my bluegrass picking...)(Also been on the radio, TV, and in a movie...all because I play the banjo)(so don't let anyone tell you picking around on a banjo ain't gonna get you anywhere.)

Conference:  No writing conferences, sadly.  I was very close to going to Realm Makers this year, but I bought a horse instead. I hope to go sometime, though.  Maybe next year!

Query or pitch:  Just publish or read my books.  You won't regret it.  Or if you want more info, check out the About Me page.  :)

Favorites

Novel that you wrote:  Rauladin or Words of Peace.  I honestly can't pick.  Words of Peace is very dear to me, as it's the end of my trilogy and honestly is just so epic and amazing and thrilling and moving.  I shed so many tears while writing it.  It finishes a story I have spent hours upon hours working on.

But then Rauladin showed up as an idea while I was running a half-marathon race.  I never thought I would write a random, stand-alone novel, let alone one that would just strike so deep within me.  But something about this book is unexplainable - the friendships, the prayers, the ending, the storyworld - it's just beautiful.  I cried while writing this one, too.

Genre:  Fantasy, all the way!  Though I enjoy reading sci-fi or historical fiction from time to time (just not really my genre to write in).

Author:  *stares at bookshelf*  Oy.  Top shelves have Tolkien, Andrew Peterson, Shannon Hale, Jaye L. Knight, Tricia Mingerink, and Rosemary Sutcliff, so we'll go with that.

Writing Music:  I've complied a playlist with the top four tracks from allllll the MCU movies, in chronological order.  That's a favorite to write to as of late.

Time to write:  Right before bed.  Depending on the day, that can be ten minutes or two hours, lol

Writing snack/drink:  Since it's right before bed (as in, I'm in my PJ's, have brushed my teeth, and am sitting under the covers) I usually don't eat or drink...

Movie:  The Lord of the Rings trilogy (extended versions) will always be at the top.  So many childhood memories with those!!

Writing Memory:  So I was very little (possibly under 10), and my Dad took me to work with him.  He gave me a little yellow notepad and a pen to keep me occupied, and I made up a horse story...drawing a picture on each page and finally stapling it together.  It was kind of a "Black Beauty fanfiction" you might say...involving my favorite toy horse and her journeys as she goes from owner to over until she finds her perfect home.

Childhood book:  Fritz and the Beautiful Horses, by Jan Brett.  I was a horse-crazy youngster, and I have no regrets.

Currently

Reading:  I just finished Defy, by Tricia Mingerink.  Yeah, that one's epic!!

Writing:  I'm editing the first book in my trilogy, Words of Gold.  Fun times, yup, fun times.

Listening to:  That MCU playlist I mentioned earlier.  :)

Watching:  Just watched Spiderman: Homecoming.  Finally.  But wow that was really good!  The humor...the action...everything was really enjoyable.  Thanks to VidAngel for taking out the stuff I didn't want to see or hear!

Learning:  That in order for sign language to work, the person you're "speaking" to also has to know sign language...

Future

Want to be published?  Ya think????

Indie or traditional:  I would love to go traditional, cause that's the "normal" way this stuff happens.  But I also think it would be fun to publish on my own.  Ideally, I'll do both - that way I can get a taste of both and get the full writing experience.  (And also be able to give advice for both ways.)

Wildest goal:  It'd be so cool to see my trilogy as a movie.  Just sayin.

But also, simply getting published would be fulfilling a life goal.

The Re-Tag

Sarah, at Pen of a Ready Writer

Ani, at A Galaxy Far, Far Away

True, at A True Writer

Lila, at The Red-Hooded Writer

Catherine, at The Rebelling Muse

Micaiah at Notebooks and Novels

Keturah at Keturah's Korner

Quinley at Adventure Awaits

Phew!  I got 8 bloggers...think that should be enough.  I think a number of folk I know have already been tagged for it?