Snoink's NovMo26: The Glass Hill

THERE IS NO WAY I CAN FINISH NOVMO THIS YEAR.

NONE WHATSOEVER.

I am super pregnant, can barely think straight, and have totally gotten out of the habit of writing lately.

Still! I am sooooo excited for this story.

Think: Norwegian Fairy Tale about the Princess and the Glass Hill (kind of a gender flipped Cinderella)

BUT:

- The princess has actual AGENCY and isn't merely a passive prize to be won. In fact, the whole reason why she's on the glass hill on the first place is because she is trying to give herself some sort of power, instead of just being forced to marry whatever man her father wants to put her with.

- The boy is kind of a soft cinnamon roll who only goes up the glass hill at first to stick it to his awful brothers... but when he sees the princess, he quickly panics and realizes he is way over his head about everything.

ALSO. More stuff about hay farming because, as someone who owns a hay farm... well... I feel pretty happy to talk about this stuff, lololol.

ANYWAY. I said I have no way of finishing this... and this is still 100% true. But I have to say, I've tried. I actually have an outline this time, which cannot be said about my last NovMo. So, even though there's no friggin' way I can finish this and write 50k words, short of a miracle, I am going to my best to have fun and see how far I can go anyway.

WISH ME LUCK!

Snoink! Me too! There's no way in heck I'm gonna be able to do NaNo but!

I'm writing a dragon mage fantasy novel about a warrior displaced in time by Death and having to navigate a whole group of soulmates alongside the changes in the thousands of years she's been displaced. But old enemies and futures are marching forward regardless! A lot of this series is inspired by Chera Carmichael's Dragel Verse <3

We're like an unofficial club where we want and plan to write so much, but life seems to be holding us back. I'll be giving my all too, and my best to you!! Love the plot you've got going, I've written some poems on a spooky Cinderella retelling myself. But your version sounds so intriguing >.>

Snoink, that sounds very cool, I hope you get a big chunk of writing done this month!

Ahhh, thanks guys!

So. Like. I'm terrible at beginnings, lol. So Day 1 was mostly spent flailing around. By the time the words came flowing, it was bedtime. So I got to 1047, lol.

Here's the beginning:

“The answer is no!” Birgitte said, storming down the stone hallways of the castle. For the fortieth time that day, she wished her soft princess slippers would clatter down the hallway and echo with the same force as her father’s boots. “I will not entertain any more stupid boys today.”

“But your highness!” Ingrid, her lady in waiting, said, panting as she ran to keep up with her. With distaste, Birgitte noted that her shoes, only wooden clogs, echoed more than her footfalls. “They aren’t boys! They’re your suitors!”

“More the reason to ignore them,” Birgitte retorted, walking faster, remembering how they had ogled her when she had entered the room. “Perhaps they’ll go away!”

“But Your Highness!” Ingrid wailed, scrambling to keep up. She sounded positively alarmed – a fact that amused Birgitte nearly as much as it annoyed her.

Still, Birgitte knew better than to chide Ingrid for bringing her into such a disastrous situation. It wasn’t Ingrid’s fault that Birgitte had been ambushed the way that she had.

The fault firmly fell on her meddling Aunt Astrid.

Anyway, things are heating up!

Hehehe I see you have a type! But this time we're getting the lady's pov :3
Love the footwear segment, very relatable!

Ahhh omg, I didn't even think about how closely she resembled Alainna, hahaha. Maybe I am just cursed to write Cinderella retellings. XD

Okay, gonna call it a night because I FINISHED THE FIRST CHAPTER!!! WOOOO!

I am now ahead of word count with exactly 3973 words. Which makes me happy.

Favorite part:

Her father cocked his head, looking distinctly annoyed. “Then who would you choose for yourself then, if these men can’t win your heart?”

Birgitte paused, feeling a headache come on. Truthfully, she had been so busy preparing herself for her inevitable rule that she hadn’t spent time trying to figure out what she wanted for herself. She knew vaguely that she wanted someone who would understand her and would support her – but if she said that, she was certain that her father would point out that his choices for her had been exactly what she had wanted.

Except his choices for her hadn’t been what she wanted. Not really! She had wanted to love her and support her, no matter what. Someone with a servant’s heart that would appreciate the sacrifices that she made and, instead of taking over and subduing her, serve alongside her as an equal

But how was she supposed to explain that to her father?

Feeling helpless, she gritted her teeth and said, “I want someone who loves this country, just as much as I do, and will do whatever it takes to serve this country.”

Her father raised his eyebrow. “So you want a hero?”

Birgitte shrugged, suddenly feeling silly at the obviousness of his statement, as well as how shallow it made her seem. Feeling her face flush, she added, “It is, perhaps, an impossible demand to make.”

Her father suddenly laughed, his entire face brightening. “No, not at all! It is a good demand. After all, there are many men who can promise things. But few are the men that will stand up and actually do something.”

Birgitte stared at him, feeling a sense of dread come over her. “Well, it is a silly demand to make, in any case,” she said, trying to sound nonchalant. “After all, heroes are not born, but made, and it would be nearly impossible to find a hero.”

“It would be difficult, not impossible!” her father said, straightening up. He nodded to Birgitte. “Pray tell, what would your hero do?”

Birgitte shrugged, feeling even sillier. “I don’t know,” she admitted, watching her father wait for her answer intently and somehow feeling she were setting up a trap for herself. “He would find a way to do anything he needed to, I suppose.” She flipped her hair, trying to seem nonchalant. “I were to tell him I needed a mountain move, he might not be able to magically whisk it away. But I suppose he could come up with a team who might love him enough that they would work with him to do it for him all the same.”

Her father grinned even more. “A charismatic administrator would make a wonderful king.”

Birgitte blinked at him, then gritted her teeth. “Still, it would be impossible to find such a hero. Not in a timely manner, anyway.”

Her father laughed. “Not at all! All we need is a feat! For what hero would not attempt the impossible to win the hand of his future queen?”

His words only made Birgitte feel even more alarmed. She thought of several competitions she had read about in books – archery competitions and jousting – that had served as a battlefield for a princess’s heart, then felt her head ache more. “I won’t have men play silly games for my hand,” she warned her father. “I don’t want a little boy who is more concerned with winning petty games for prizes. I want someone who will love me for who I am.”

“And indeed you shall!” her father said, grinning widely now. “Just name the feat, and it will be done just as you require!”

SET UP FOR THE FAIRY TALE FEAT! Mwhahahahaha.

Next chapter is where I introduce Elis.

WISH ME LUCK.

Aww I like this! I like how you set up why she needs a hero (hehehe)
Happy writing~