Welcome to Gaia! ::

The writer

Name: Gloria McDonald

Age: 75

Gender: Female

Physical description: Gloria looks like a typical grandmother, but that may be because she is one! She's short, never having reached above 5'1", and is thick all over. She's a woman who has given birth to multiple children and successfully survived menopause. She has broad hips, a big bust, and a wide, full-cheeked face. Her expression is usually a cheerful one and like most grandmothers, she has an out of style, upswept mass of hair. The length of her white hair exceeds what her beehive style makes it appear to be. Gloria wears slightly frumpy and out of date dresses (or jogging suits) and fuzzy slippers, sandals, or orthopedic sneakers. She always has twinkle in her blue eyes and wears a pair of reading glasses which she hasn't changed since the 50's.

Personality: Gloria is the most giving and loving woman you could ever meet. In fact she is so giving, so loving and so trusting that she has found herself being taken advantage of her whole life. It's not that anything horrible has ever happened to her, just that she's never really done anything for herself. Gloria is every inch a mother figure. She will can and will mend your clothes, make you a meal or just be an ear for your sad tales. She does not have a dominating personality and almost no temper to speak of. Gloria would rather back down than have anything turn into an argument. She has a slight difficulty with modern technology (she took a computer class at the senior center once... but conveniently managed to master TiVo). A lot of modern ideas continue to elude her (gay marriage? huh?). Gloria tries to keep an open mind but there are only so many new tricks that this old dog is willing to learn.

History/background: Gloria has lived a very fulfilling and somewhat uneventful life. She grew up as an averagely attractive young woman and married an averagely attractive man named Jim McDonald. He was a union man and she was a housewife. They lived a morally sound Irish Catholic life together. They had 3 children (Jim Jr, Mary Anne and Tom), raised and sent them to college, and saw them marry and have their own children. Gloria was everything her husband could want and they loved each other very much. She always had dinner on the table when he got home from work, she always had his slippers waiting for him, and always put his blanket on him when he fell asleep on the couch with his arm around her shoulders. It wasn't a burden he put upon her. It was just her. They always gave each other what the other wanted: love and security. Gloria put aside all of her small ambitions in exchange for this secure and wonderful life. Gloria was at Jim's side until the very last day. He died of lung cancer in 1998.

It's been a decade since Jim's death and Gloria has spent her time frugally living off of the comfortable pension and life insurance that her husband left her. Their house had been long paid off so her only expenses are utilities, food and the home shopping network. Gloria's life long dream has been to write an adventure-romance to fulfill all the fantasies of intrigue, passion and adventure that she has never experienced herself.

Why they applied: Writing is something that she always put to the side as she cared for her husband and raised her children. It is also something she hadn't the heart for in her mourning years following Jim’s death. Gloria told her family that she was applying for this workshop to aid her writing ambitions. Her children have all wished her luck but none of them truly realize how serious their mother has always been about this particular story. Gloria has been scribbling pieces of her novel on napkins, food packages (while cooking dinner) and on post-its for years. With such a busy life and so many children (and grandchildren!) she has collected a box full of these notes over time. Only now, in the autumn of her life, has she begun to finally piece these scraps together. She is very eager to complete her epic tale in a more definite, less scattered form. Even if she never gets published, Gloria is eager for assistance from a famous writer (she's read ALL of his books!) and to see her life's fantasy take shape. For Gloria, the bottom line is also to do something for herself, finally, in as unselfish a way possible.

The story:

Gloria's tale is one of exaggeratedly passionate romance and adventure on the high seas in a fantastical realm! It will be cheesy, bawdy and a romping all-around good time! It’s a story more meant to be picked up in the grocery store than it is to be found at the top of the best-seller list. Gloria is well aware of this.

- Princess Salacia's 100th birthday party. Her own prank, foiled by her vigilant family, throws her more easily into a previously unknown plot to kidnap her.

- A human crew is hired by a mysterious baddie to carry out the kidnapping. Sally fights her imprisonment but the ship is run by a cruelly jealous female captain.

- Sally meets the dashing first mate. He finds her obnoxious and spoiled. She finds him filthy, yet handsome. ^_~

- The human crew, as instructed, demand a ransom from the kingdom of Neptunus: Sally in exchange for rare magical artifacts rumored to be used to raise a mystical, long-buried undersea army.

- Sally and the first mate begin to flirt, eventually admitting they are fond of one another. Meanwhile, internal strife within Neptunus’ ruling structure lead to the magical artifacts being sent to the pirate crew!

- Sally finds out about the first mate’s longstanding affair with the vicious female captain of the ship! But they realize, despite their personal problems, both the human and mermaid empires are in danger as kingdoms clash, politics become twisted, an ancient army is raised and Sally finds herself maturing. She knows she must save her kingdom and feels her inevitable destiny approaching.

- Sally and her rugged new lover must mutiny, form their own crew, and with their band of misfits, save the kingdoms from the ultimate evil while looking good and falling in passionate love!

Will they save the world? Will Sally finally embrace true love as well as her destiny? What of her forbidden love to a low born surface dweller?!

Growth Requirement

Writer > stage 1
Arrival rp [X]
2 journal entries or pd's [X][X]
Complete Workshop [X]


stage 1 > stage 2
2 journal entries
2 pd's
2 mini quests ( based on your story's plot)
growth quest



stage 2> stage 3
3 journal entries
3 pd's
3 mini quests ( based on your story's plot)
growth quest

heart

heart

xp