Entertain Me (Janet)

Janet was very easy to talk to. She seemed very relaxed, and perhaps easier to read than a lot of other people. Of course, Clara was never confident in her people-reading skills, so it was possible her judgement was completely off, but it seemed to her that Janet was very open and honest, which Clara appreciated. It made speaking with her less exhausting, as she didn't have to spend the whole time searching for subtext. She always liked those rare people who said exactly what they meant.

"What's your book about?" Although she wasn't really a writer herself, Clara certainly loved books, so the topic was of some interest to her. It would help her understand Janet's personality more as well, if she knew what the other girl liked to write about, and which genres she enjoyed. And, since Clara read just about everything, she was sure she could find some common ground talking about books.

Clara was relieved when she entered the pub to find it not nearly as crowded as she had imagined it would be. She followed Janet over to a table in the back corner, glancing around the establishment and taking note of everything from the menu to the patrons. It seemed a friendly enough place, and not too noisy--though judging by Janet's comment, that would change at lunchtime. It wasn't too uncomfortable at the moment, so she took a seat across from Janet, and set her package down on the the table.

Janet lowered her parcels on the ground beside her and put her wand away, smiling as she thought of her book. "It's a science fiction book. It's about a princess from another planet whose parents died when she was really little. She grew up with her aunt, who she recently found out was planning on finding a way to keep the title of queen. The whole book is about the princess escaping the castle and living in the nearby forest, and finding a way to get back her crown."

She smiles and waves at the waitress as she walks over with a pad and hands them a couple menus. "So, the chips are housemade and really good here. This guy taught me earlier this year that they are really good with salt and vinegar. Therefore, I'm totally getting some because I do everytime I come here. You want to share them with me?" Janet raises one eyebrow at the younger girl with a lopsided grin.

Clara nodded along to Janet's description of her book. It was a simple storyline--not outstandingly original or unheard of--but depending on her skill as a writer, the complexity of her characters, and what her world building was able to add, it could be a very good book for light reading. The basic story was rather classic, but could be spun in a number of ways, so Clara regarded it with interest. After all, Hamlet had a similar plot, and it was her favourite Shakespeare play. It could certainly work.

"How does the science fiction fit in, besides being set on another planet? What's the planet like?"

She found herself genuinely interested, trying to gauge the quality of Janet's story, and actually rather hoping the older girl was talented enough to pull it off. The world needed more good books.

Clara accepted the menu from the waitress, although she wasn't all that hungry, and didn't really have enough money on her to pay for a meal anyway. At the mention of sharing, Clara gave a slight nod. "Sure."

Sharing was probably the best option. She could just take one or two, and not have to worry about any of the problems that came with ordering her own food. She did have enough money for a drink though, so she ordered a butterbeer for herself. She'd had it once or twice before, and enjoyed it, so she took the opportunity while she was here.

Janet grinned as Clara asked more about the book. She hadn't told anyone else about it yet so it was certainly exciting that someone seemed to be curious about it. "Well it mostly is because of the fact it's on a different planet, but I've been toying with some more "science-fictiony" ideas for the later books in the series. If you want to hear them that is."

"The planet is somewhat like ours, though the colors are different, bright purple trees, blue grass, etc. There also is different species of plants and animals and such, though the "people" look much like us, though they tend to have... more excentric eye colors."

Janet smiled at the waitress before ordering the chips for the two of them and a butterbeer for herself. She grinned at Clara and tilted her head. "So you know about my writing, what something you like to do?" She found herself wanting to get to know the younger witch better, and smiled at the thought of them doing something like this in the future.

Clara hummed at the description of Janet's world. The route she was going seemed a little cliche, if she was being honest.

"I think there's a lot of potential in science-fiction that you may be missing out on. Since your storyline by itself is rather simple, you're leaving most of the opportunity for creativity in the world building. The world you create needs to be engaging and original if you want your story to stand out in a fresh way. You should focus more on exploring that and fleshing out the culture of the planet, since, with a book like that, the setting is a defining feature of the story. The larger the role that it plays, the easier it will be to make the story your own."

She didn't know if her writing advice would be a appreciated. She wasn't an experienced author by any means, but she did read quite a lot, and she knew what she appreciated in literature. She wanted to see Janet succeed, and she genuinely thought she was being helpful, but having not read the book, she admitted that she wasn't exactly in a position to judge. Still, the advice was out in the open. Janet could take it or leave it.

Clara shrugged at the question. She didn't have many "hobbies" in the typical sense of the word--artistic endeavors and the like. She enjoyed sketching, but it wasn't something she was passionate about, and that was the closest she really got to the arts. She read. She studied. She conducted experiments. Over the years, she'd learned that many people didn't really understand her passion for science outside of school. It wasn't what most people did for fun.

But, Janet hadn't asked about most people, she'd asked about Clara, so Clara saw no reason not to be honest.

"I do science experiments, and research a lot of things. I like solving puzzles, and teaching myself new concepts by reading, or collecting empirical evidence."

Janet frowned and tilted her head slightly as she listed, thinking about how she could fit the advice into her storyline. She then, of course, realized it seemed like she was frowning at the fact Clara was giving her advice and smiled somewhat sheepishly.

"That's a great idea! Though I'm not exactly sue how I would go about doing that. What did you have in mind? I had toyed with the thought of something later in the books having to do with the sun on the verge of exploding and Katherine having to figure out how to save the planet's citizens as her aunt tried to hide it from them so she could go to the galactic coucil, claim to be the queen, and rciave a new planet in which she would have complete control over."

Janet tilted her head, nodding as she listened. "Interesting. I'm with you on the reading and the puzzles, though science was never my very best subject. What kind of science experiments do you do? Like potions or magic or something else?" She frowned slightly. Empirical evidence? What in the world was that? She gives Clara a quizzical look before asking sheepishly "Erm, what is empirical evidence?"

Clara considered Janet's plan twisting her lip thoughtfully.

"Well, that sort of idea counts as what I had in mind. The sun exploding would a be problem unique to that planet, justifying your reasoning for setting the story someplace other than Earth. The idea could use some tweaking perhaps, and more details, but it falls under the umbrella of world-building.

"What I was really thinking of was establishing the culture of the people. Things like history and language. The name 'Katherine' for instance, strikes me as very human. I'd suggest either changing it, or providing an explanation as to why her name comes from Earth. Some things physiologically different about the alien race would also make sense, and could be worth exploring, as well as differences in technology, and unique customs or traditions. Something that gives your story a reason that it can't be set on Earth. Most of all, don't be afraid to stand out. Small things won't entice your readers, you need to make bold decisions."

Clara had cast off all worries about overstepping. Janet asked a question, Clara answered. As far as she was concerned, she had done exactly as she was supposed to. Of course, she'd also added some of her own opinion, but it seemed to her that it needed to be said, for Janet's own benefit. Clara was helping.

Clara was used to hearing science referred to as simply a subject, so she didn't bother correcting Janet. Of course, science was more than just a class. It was a way of thought, a lens through which one viewed the world. Science was the world, in a way, and her personal raison d'être. But Janet was like most people, and probably wouldn't understand.

"I do all sorts of experiments. Often with potions and magic, but also with chemical reactions, and engineering, and even people sometimes." Most of the things she did were some form of experiment. That was how one figured things out after all.

Janet's ignorance of science was made clear in her next question. Clara bit back a sigh, reminding herself that she couldn't expect people to understand if they hadn't been raised like her.

"Empirical evidence is data gathered from an experiment," she explained.

Janet's eyes sparkled with enthusiasm and inspiration and she nodded excitedly. "That's a great idea! I definitely think all of that could work. I agree I need to add in some more differences, especially in the culture and appearance. I think it's a wonderful idea to change up the names some. I will absolutely put some thought into that."

Janet thought for a moment, a small frown appearing on her face at first before fading into a grin. "I'm not amazing at making up history and everything but I'm always interested in places culture and can probably contribute some of my favorite things I've found from around our world and add them in as well as make some stuff up."

"As for technology I have some stuff in mind. I'm considering adding some sort of special ability her species have like, I don't know, the ability to see someone's mood or something like that. I just don't want to go too overboard." Janet shook her head, grinning. "Gosh, these are some great ideas. I wish I had a notebook or something with me."

At that sentence Janet paused for a moment and took a second to rifle through her many bags, pulling out a muggle pen and some parchment, scribbling away madly. When she was done she grinned at Clara. "Thanks for all the good ideas. I felt like the story was getting dull and this gives me a lot I can expand upon."

Janet nodded and smiled, impressed. "Wow, that's so cool. I haven't ever gotten too interested in chemical reactions, but then again I had a bad teacher back then. I've heard that can make a world of difference. I'm ok with potions, though there are some I can't really seem to ever get right. Magic, however, I'm with you there. I've never tried experimenting with it much, mostly out of fear of blowing something up."

"Honestly that's why I don't do any sort of experiments in the first place. In my mind, one wrong move and my eyebrows are gone, or something worse. So when you experiment how do you keep it from getting dangerous?"

"What kind of experiments do you do on people?" Janet tilted her head, eyes trained on Clara curiously. She herself had taken to studying muggles and enjoyed watching their movies, amused and intrigued by their version or view on magic.

Clara was happy that her advice seemed to be met with a positive response. As Janet suggested incorporating some already existing traditions, Clara pursed her lips.

"That's good for inspiration, though I would try not to make any allusions too obvious unless you're specifically trying to make a statement. Your intentions may be benign, but misrepresentation of culture is taken much more seriously nowadays than it once was, and I'm not sure what sort of message it would send to compare someone's real traditions to an alien culture. I could help you with language and stuff, if you want. I've studied a bit of linguistics, and there are some basic patterns that languages often follow."

She may have been getting a bit ahead of herself, but she found herself rather liking the idea of making up a new language. That would be a fun challenge. In fact, even if Janet refused her help, she might just do it anyway on her own time.

"Yes, you wouldn't want the species to seem overpowered. But one or two decisive traits can go a long way."

She watched as Janet scribbled down some ideas, and nodded her acknowledgement of the other girl's thanks.

"Yes, I've been fortunate enough to have been surrounded by good teachers all of my life. My parents are both professors, so I spend a lot of time at the university. The chemistry professor is a family friend, so I can get special access to the lab when it's not in use."

She nodded at Janet's reservations about experimenting with magic.

"You do have to be careful when experimenting with magic. I generally stick to just theory until I'm reasonably certain I'm not going to blow anything up. Usually dangerous results are preceded by dangerous behavior. As long as you don't do anything stupid, the risk of spontaneous combustion is significantly lower."

Clara shrugged at Janet's next question. "Social experiments are generally subtle. I like to observe psychological phenomena when I interact with people. For example, I can observe the primacy and recency effects if I tell someone a list of things and ask them to repeat it back to me, or I can observe operant conditioning if I periodically reward people's behavior. It's nothing extreme, I just find it interesting."