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Etzador
02-14-2006, 06:48 AM
OK this is the introduction to a story I wrote. It's only a draft and i'm not the best of writers. But I'd apreciate any advice. It's also not exactly Warhammer related, but i hope that doesn't matter.

---Updated version is at the bottom of the pageish---

Introduction

Upon the horse sat a young man, of sixteen summers or so. He had blonde hair, which whipped past his face as he rode, with deep brown eyes, the type of eyes that look wise, yet friendly too. He was well built, wearing simple garments, which suggested at his poverty. His most distinguishable feature was a scar, which stretched down from his temple, to his cheekbone. Other than that he was in perfect condition. Over his shoulder he slung a longbow and quiver, this was his pride and joy, he had crafted it himself a few months ago, since that time he had quickly escalated in skill. At first it had been a frustrating ordeal, missing the entire targets from short distances, but one day something clicked, and all of a sudden he could hit a bull’s eye, and since then he had lengthened his range considerably. This mans name was Etzador, and he had no idea of the fate which lay before him.

The sun was beginning to sink below the horizon; a few feeble rays of light gave the landscape before him an orange glow. Golden-yellow leaves floated gracefully from the boughs of the trees and a warm breeze gently ruffled his fair hair. Etzador longed to stay in this spot forever, he felt totally at peace here. He loved the way that the undemanding dirt path wound away into the distance, the way that the humble mounds gently nudged the landscape into absorbing patterns, the way that the trees dotted the landscape, adding texture and decoration to the sight. But most of all, Etzador loved the backdrop, in the distance the ice capped mountains rose above everything, they seemed like an authority upon the countryside for miles around, frowning upon every bad deed committed in the serene location.

Etzador spurred his horse into action, and they galloped through the scenic stretch of heaven, the speed of the flight making his eyes water. Birds erupted from their nests in the dwindling leaves as he sped by and the very grass quivered as they passed, as if it were overwhelmed at their combined speed and power.

As the sun set, a cheerless farm, which was also Etzador’s home came into view. It was as if fate was saying; welcome back to hell. This was the only civilisation for miles around; Etzador felt his deepest sympathy for any traveller who happened to wonder across this foul abode. His foster parents had wanted a secluded location, for their son’s safety, but this simply depressed Etzador. He longed to see the fabled cities of old one day and wished that perhaps in the future, the cities could be renowned because of his own great deeds too. But those hopes faded many-a-summer-ago. He wasn’t that great an archer, thousands were better than him, but it was an entertaining hobby, and it kept his mind off of the filthy life at home. On the left was a stone barn, Etzador’s training had started as an excuse to get away from that dank place, he’d often had to clean muck out from the pigs’ pen, or mend the thatched roof in the rainy periods. His foster parents wanted him to “get some exercise”, instead of wondering around the farm and getting in the way. But once he realised his arching potential he hadn’t missed a day of training, rain or shine. On the right was a wattle and daub house, beams zigzagged the exterior of the building to give it extra support. Yet these beams seemed to make little difference, as the rickety shack looked as though a gust of wind could upturn it. As worthless as the house was, it was still home, so with a sigh Etzador left the plains of his dreams, dismounted, and led his horse by the reins to the barn.

Inside the barn was worse than the outside, it was damp and gloomy, the walls were caked in dirt and any form of cleaning just ended up plaguing the rag with filth. Etzador ushered his steed into the stable and locked the gate. He patted her head; she had jet black fur, with a pure white diamond on her forehead. Hence her name - Diamond. Etzador kissed her forehead and turned to leave; he pushed the two barn doors together and placed the bar in to keep it shut tight. As he trudged towards the house he gave a final look around,
“Until tomorrow”, he said to the world, as he stepped inside towards a certain boredom.

Isilecet
02-14-2006, 02:21 PM
not a bad intro. heres a few tips

1. paragraphs. put some spaces between them. its difficult to read when its all clumped up and a bit much on the eyes. you want people to enjoy your writing, so these little things help alot.

2. starting the sentence with "he", "him", "Etzador". don't feel bad. i got(get) scolded on this many times before i got(have yet to get) better at it. if you repeatedly start sentences with the same words, then it gets a clunky feel. try using other words, or even try starting the sentence in a different way. for example you wrote:

"He had blonde hair, which whipped past his face as he rode, with deep brown eyes, the type of eyes that look wise, yet friendly too. He was well built, wearing simple garments, which suggested at his poverty."

instead try:

"Blond hair whipped past his face as he rode, his deep brown eyes gazed calmly down the path. A glimmer of understanding shone as his eyes glanced down to his mount Diamond, encouraging her on with a whispered word and light pat. His simple garments covered a well built frame, though to a careful eye small imperfections could be seen in the entire picture; a tear here, a stain there....a subtle sign of his social standing in this life. "

3. i like your imagery. good imagination and setting. depending on how into your characters mind you want to go you can take it a step further. either give your characters feelings (inner monologue, dialogue, physical descriptions, blah blah) or by feeding loaded words to your reader. (vile, putrid, for bad things: luxurious, decadent for slaanesh....you get the idea)

keep it up and i hope to see you in the RP forum ;)

Isilecet.

Etzador
02-14-2006, 03:27 PM
Cool thanks. It's nice to be in a community where people give you good feedback. I sent it to a couple of friends all i got was "that's good". I can actually change something thanks to your help.

P.S. I did have the spaces between paragraphs in my version i have on word. It just didnt copy through properly. It should be fine now. I don't have time to repost the rest yet, but i will tomorrow.

Etzador
02-24-2006, 11:56 AM
---Updated Version---

Introduction

Upon the horse sat a young man, of sixteen summers or so, blond hair whipped past his face as he rode. Wise brown eyes occasionally flickered down to his mount Diamond, she was a fine horse, and carried her rider with speed and care. Garments hung loosely from his strong frame, and upon closer viewing you could see small faults, which suggested at his poverty; a small scar on his right cheek, a burn blemishing his arm and lightly tattered clothes. Despite his social status, he was in flawless condition, muscles rippled beneath his clothes, and upon his back he slung his prize possession – a longbow. This was his pride and joy. Crafted a few months ago, this bow had seen more blood than many war veterans'. At first archery had been a frustrating ordeal, with the man missing from short distances, but one day something clicked, and all of a sudden he could hit a bull’s eye, since then he had lengthened his range considerably. This mans name was Etzador, and he had no idea of the fate which lay before him.

The sun was beginning to sink below the horizon; the few remaining rays of light gave the landscape before him an orange glow. Golden-yellow leaves floated gracefully from the boughs of the trees and a warm breeze gently ruffled his fair hair. Etzador longed to stay in this spot forever, he felt totally at peace here. He loved the way that the undemanding dirt path wound away into the distance, the way that the humble mounds gently nudged the landscape into absorbing patterns, the way that the trees dotted the landscape, adding texture and decoration to the sight. But most of all, Etzador loved the backdrop, in the distance the ice capped mountains rose above everything, they seemed like an authority upon the countryside for miles around, frowning upon every bad deed committed in the serene location.

As they galloped through the scenic stretch of heaven, the speed of the flight made his eyes water. Birds erupted from their nests in the dwindling leaves as he sped by and the very grass quivered as they passed, as if it were overwhelmed at their combined speed and power.

As the sun set, a cheerless farm, which was also Etzador’s home drifted into view. It was as if fate was saying, “welcome back to hell.” This was the only civilisation for miles around; and feeling his deepest sympathy for any traveller who happened to wonder across this foul abode, he resentfully neared the farm. After hunting for a secluded location, his foster parents, whom he despised, had selected this pit as a home. But Etzador longed to see the fabled cities of old one day; there he could pay his respects to the warriors who had so faithfully defended Occasus from the hordes of twisted Men and filthy Orcs thousands of years ago. As a child he’d often wished to be able to join their ranks, and often spent hours imagining he was one of the agile Elasian archers, or one of the fearless Occasion knights. But those hopes faded many-a-summer-ago. There was no way that he was the best archer in the world, and he highly doubted that god would have chosen him amidst the many mighty ranks of archers that already existed in the world, yet it was an entertaining hobby, and he often wondered where he’d be without it - Bored no doubt. As he drifted out of his thoughts he saw on the left; a stone barn, Etzador’s training had started as an excuse to get away from that dank place, he’d often had to clean muck out from the pigs’ pen, or mend the thatched roof in the rainy periods. His foster parents wanted him to “get some exercise”, instead of wondering around the home and getting in the way. But once he realised his arching potential he hadn’t missed a day of training, rain or shine. On the right was a wattle and daub house, beams zigzagged the exterior of the building to give it extra support. Yet these beams seemed to make little difference, as the rickety shack looked as though a gust of wind could upturn it. Anyhow as worthless as the house was, it was still home, so with a sigh Etzador left the plains of his dreams, dismounted, and led his horse by the reins to the barn.

Inside the barn was worse than the outside, it was damp and gloomy, the walls were caked in dirt and any form of cleaning just ended up plaguing the rag with filth. Etzador ushered his steed into the stable and locked the gate. Patting her head he looked over her jet-black fur, and the pure white diamond on her forehead. Sighing with resentment to his parents, he kissed her forehead and turned to leave. As he trudged towards the house he gave a final look around,

“Until tomorrow”, he said to the world, as he stepped inside towards a certain boredom.

Etzador
03-01-2006, 02:11 PM
Wow thanks for the advice Isilcet, thanks to that my English teacher thinks I'm some sort of star pupil yay!