She Is the Lioness by mydearfoxy

[mydearfoxy]

Better late than never, right?

Hi lovely folks! I actually started NaNo on the first, but I didn't get around to making a nest until now  

 

 

 

 

 

SHE IS THE LIONESS

“I speak to those who know; to those who don’t my mind’s a blank. I never say a word.” - Aeschylus, Agamemnon

“Instead of asking him how much of your time is left / ask him how much of your mind” - Prince, “Let’s Go Crazy”

Question: What happens when an insecure barista teams up with the spurned prophetess Cassandra to solve a murder? 

Answer: Nothing good, that's for sure.

 

DETAILS

I'm not going to say too much about this story on here because it's OF, and if it comes out well I might eventually pursue publication. But, I will expand a little on the premise. The main character is an intern in the medical field, and a part time barista. One day she comes in for the opening shift at the coffee shop to find a local homeless woman dead in the front booth. Meanwhile, a regular customer keeps making eerily accurate predictions. The trouble is, Moira never believes them until it's too late. Together, they work to overcome this curse and solve the mystery behind the death before someone else gets hurt.

 

~ VIBES ~

 

 

 

[blackballet]

Hello hello! I am really excited by the idea of this, and I really hope it does publish someday, because I'd love to read it! Firstly, the names Moira and Cassandra just fit so well somehow as a crime-fighting pair. Secondly...this edit is giving me major vibes. The (Greek?) sculptures? The word art? The pills and all the snow?? And what does "spurned prophetess" mean...I am so curious. Of course, don't feel in any way obligated to answer these questions, as I know you are keeping it on the DL.

Hopefully these few are innocuous enough to earn a response :

If you could chose one song for the first chapter, what would it be?

What is Cassandra's go-to drink order?

What time does the cafe open in the morning? What time does it close? 

 good luck on your writing!

[mydearfoxy]

5 hours ago, blackballet said:

Hello hello! I am really excited by the idea of this, and I really hope it does publish someday, because I'd love to read it! Firstly, the names Moira and Cassandra just fit so well somehow as a crime-fighting pair. Secondly...this edit is giving me major vibes. The (Greek?) sculptures? The word art? The pills and all the snow?? And what does "spurned prophetess" mean...I am so curious. Of course, don't feel in any way obligated to answer these questions, as I know you are keeping it on the DL.

Hopefully these few are innocuous enough to earn a response :

If you could chose one song for the first chapter, what would it be?

What is Cassandra's go-to drink order?

What time does the cafe open in the morning? What time does it close? 

 good luck on your writing!

Hi Catherine!   Thank you for your enthusiasm and your questions! 

I'm glad you like the aesthetic/edit! A fun fact is that, even though I found the photo on Unsplash just searching for wintery city stuff in general, by total coincidence the photo of the street in there is actually of the city where the story takes place!

You didn't include this in your questions list, but the (yes Greek) sculptures and "spurned prophetess" refer to the Greek myth of Cassandra. Spoiler box mostly because of sexual assault-ish content --

Spoiler

She was a keeper of the temple of Apollo, and Apollo gave her the gift of foresight. However, she later refused to have sex with him. He wanted to remove her power as a punishment, but it was impossible to rescind a divine gift. So instead he cursed her so that no one ever believes the prophecies she makes, even though they're always correct. 

My character Cassandra basically transplants this scenario into a modern murder mystery. Because ~funsies~  

 

Answers!

1. I think the song for the first chapter would have to be Prince's "Purple Rain" because it's actually mentioned in the text!

2. Cassandra varies her order - this is actually explicit in the story - but I'd say her most common order is a miel. Moira's is probably an Americano.

3. The coffee shop opens at 6AM and closes at midnight. It's directly lifted from a real coffee shop I've gone to that I like because they're open late.  (edit: I did change the name of the coffee shop though)

 

Good luck back!!  

[Aphoride]

reneeeeeee i'm so excited about this story ever since you first messaged me about it  it's going to be so good and i'm so excited to see how you go with this - however slow or fast, all words count the same!! - and to hear more about this, whatever you choose to share with us  

[ineffable_season]

This is. Amazing. I love retellings (of sorts) that utilize Cassandra or allude to her in some way because there is so much you can do with her! And this idea is totally unique here And just the sort of thing I would totally walk into a bookstore and buy! 

What was your original inspiration for this story idea?

Best of luck to you & maybe I'll catch you during another write in! 
 

Courtney

[mydearfoxy]

2 hours ago, Aphoride said:

reneeeeeee i'm so excited about this story ever since you first messaged me about it  it's going to be so good and i'm so excited to see how you go with this - however slow or fast, all words count the same!! - and to hear more about this, whatever you choose to share with us  

Laura  Thank you for your excitement, it is much appreciated! I'm excited for your progress too!! 

 

1 hour ago, prideofprewett said:

This is. Amazing. I love retellings (of sorts) that utilize Cassandra or allude to her in some way because there is so much you can do with her! And this idea is totally unique here And just the sort of thing I would totally walk into a bookstore and buy! 

What was your original inspiration for this story idea?

Best of luck to you & maybe I'll catch you during another write in! 
 

Courtney

That is such a sweet thing to say, Courtney, thank you so much! 

The inspiration for this story is actually super random. I was brainstorming ideas for a novel that combines my favorite genres - fabulism and mystery. And then totally out of the blue my brain was like, "Cassandra is a good name. Cassandra shall be my protagonist." So then I googled the name to learn about it and that's how I learned about the myth, and that's how the story idea was born! 

I told you it was random  

Good luck with your story! I'll definitely be attending as many write-ins as possible.

[grumpy cat]

just sliding in here to say i fucking love that plot (and cassandra! because just,,,i always thought her problem was kinda hilarious even if the reasons for it aren't) and i hope you manage to write the words and publish it because it sounds amazing

just one question for now, and don't worry if you can't answer in case it's spoilery - does the curse have anything to do with the murder   (is it a murder?)

[Oregonian]

Hi, Renee.  I was reading your Novel Nest and feeling intrigued by your description of your story.  I had never known the reason why nobody believed Cassandra's prophecies, so it was interesting to learn about that.  So I checked your author page, figuring that the chapters of your new story probably weren't there, but it never hurts to check, right?  Sure enough, they weren't, but I decided to read some of your other stuff, just to see what your writing style was like.  I started with The Maidens and the Tower.  And yes, I really like your writing style, very straightforward, good storytelling.  and I like the characters in that story.  They are crisply drawn with distinct personalities.  It was clever how you adapted the old fairy tale so well into a modern American setting.  Will we ever see more chapters of that story?

The premise of that story --  people trapped in a restricted environment, with more dark than light and a limited store of supplies -- reminded me strongly of a YA book I read a few years back, The City of Ember, by Jeanne duPrau, a haunting story that stands out from a sea of forgettable YA novels.

(And I gotta love the arctic fox in your signature set!)

Vicki