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Act 1: The Maid
Act 2: The Intermission
Act 2: The Princess
Act 3: The Queen
Basic Information
Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGsKB80XPuS
Subgenres: Drama, Medieval, Royalty, Slice of Life52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ838QSzmYKN
Status: Complete (fifth draft)52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNaQF2Ud20
Estimated reading time: 37 hours, 10 minutes52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1eTIkvVe4F
Concept
The one, the only, the original story! Woo hoo!
I first wrote ADT right after I finished Chev’s romantic route in the game. It was the first route I’d played, and I didn’t have a good handle on any of the characters (looking back, not even him). I came away from the game loving his character, though, but I thought Belle was far too weak for him, and with what I knew of his character from the game, I didn’t think she should have even caught his eye. I also had concerns about the whole dynamic of their relationship, where he was continually mocking and belittling her, and she just took that, determined to change him somehow by tolerating his bad behavior, or even telling herself he meant something different underneath it all.
Not a healthy relationship. At all. And not good inspiration for people in real life, because going into a relationship thinking you can change the other person doesn’t work. The only person you can change is yourself.
So, I started thinking about a female character who would catch Chev's eye. A sassy little maid who always knew exactly what to say or do, one who wouldn’t tolerate any insults or mockery from him. One who didn’t want a relationship with him at all and had no interest in him. One who he would have to work for if he really wanted her affection.
And Ivetta was born.
The first draft was about 25k words long. Each chapter corresponded to a 24-hour period, and the first thirteen chapters introduced one prince/character from the game per chapter. The reader never saw Ivetta’s background or life outside of the palace until the climatic moment when Chev had to rescue her (from a cellar in an abandoned farmhouse, by the way). When he and the rest of the princes discovered what she was hiding, that was when the reader discovered it, too.
My mom complained about that. She wanted to see Ivetta outside of the palace. She wanted to know more about her.
So, in the second draft, I did that. I also doubled the word count to 50k and started to get away from the 24-hour period per chapter. I’d played Leon’s romantic route in the game by then, and maybe Clavis’, too, and I fixed their characters, as well as some problems in the plot that a genius like Chev would have foreseen and prevented from even happening.
Mom wanted more descriptions. Aside from the images I added throughout the story from the game, there wasn’t much descriptive detail.
Third draft. I’d read Yves’ and maybe Nokto’s romantic routes. Fixed characters. Doubled the word count again. The plot was getting more and more complex. Emphasis on a "mask and a dance," Ivetta learning how to play the part everybody expected from her in public and being her true self only when she was alone with Chev.
I think this is where I started wondering what the story would be like from Chev’s perspective. It was here or after the second draft. Either way, I wrote the first draft of A Beast’s Tale, rewriting ADT as I went to maintain a chapter-for-chapter match.
The current version is the fifth draft, I think. I’d read Licht’s romantic route and was starting on Jin’s when I began the rewrite, and by the time I finished, I’d read Luke’s, Sariel’s, Rio’s, Gilbert’s, and Keith’s. Emphasis on portraying realistic consequences to Ivetta's mental and emotional health after everything I put her through, with the bonus of showing Chev learning how to help her cope and get through it.
Basically, I’m going for canon compliance on steroids. I want each character to be true to the game. I want as much of their backstories tied into my plot as possible. I want all the extra details throughout the game, too: the world building, the lore, the tidbits of info I glean from side stories.
And the more I learn, the bigger and more complicated the story gets.
I’m reading Silvio's romantic route right now. And I’ll be working on this story for a long, long time. I'm not sure if I'll ever consider it complete.52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIJpp9DQfOX
Logline
When Ivetta takes a job as a maid at the palace, she ends up in the employ of Prince Chevalier Michel. There’s more to the Brutal Beast than meets the eye, and an unlikely romance blossoms.
Story Description
All Ivetta wants is a steady paycheck and consistent hours. Her mother’s health is failing fast, and she has to earn enough money to keep paying the mounting doctor's bills. Getting a job as a palace maid seems like the answer she needs, even if she has a long commute.
Prince Chevalier, the Second Prince of Rhodolite, has a reputation for being a cruel, heartless monster. If it weren’t for her circumstances, Ivetta would have quit after the first day.
She never expects him to come to her rescue when disaster strikes.
Suddenly, he’s the only person with whom she truly feels safe, allowing the roots of an unlikely and impossible romance to take hold. Threats force them closer together, and the mysteries of the past come to bear. A glimmer of hope for a brighter future blossoms in the darkness.
Maybe, on the other side of pain and heartbreak, is the fairytale ending Ivetta never dreamed was possible.
Act 1: The Maid
Estimated reading time: 14 hours, 44 minutes52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lHhiZQjou
I'm splitting the story into multiple volumes, and in the future, I'll have unique story descriptions and intro info for each Act. Act 1 will encompass everything up to Ivetta's abduction and rescue (chapters 1-75 in the current draft).
Act 2: The Intermission
Estimated reading time: 4 hours, 53 minutes52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMmoPvQ2e91
This will encompass Ivetta’s recovery time, including her first weeks as a princess while she’s still under doctor supervision (chapters 76-101 in the current draft).
Act 3: The Princess
Estimated reading time: 11 hours, 57 minutes52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8XFI3dl48
This will start right before the coronation ceremony and end right before the wedding (chapters 102-161 in the current draft).
Act 4: The Queen
Estimated reading time: Coming soon52Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7i498KB96w
And Act 4 will start with the wedding and then finish the story out (chapters 162-194 in the current draft, plus the epilogue).
Content/Trigger Warnings
None of my stories contain profanity or explicit sexual content, but this book contains mature themes and content, including depictions or mentions of:
- Abuse and Relationships: arranged marriage, child abuse, emotional abuse, infidelity, physical abuse, verbal abuse
- Alcohol and Drugs: alcohol consumption
- Animal Death and Cruelty: animal death
- Blood, Injury & Medical: blood, chronic illness, dismemberment, gore, life-changing injury, medical treatment, physical injuries, scars, weight loss
- Death and Loss: death, death of a loved one, grief depiction
- Hate, Discrimination & Oppression: classism, poverty, sexism, slavery, workplace harassment, xenophobia
- Mental Health and Suicide: anxiety, anxiety attacks, attempted suicide, cutting, depression, eating disorders, nightmares, panic attacks, post-traumatic stress disorder, self-harm, sleep disorders, suicide, suicidal ideation, trauma
- Pregnancy and Childbirth: breastfeeding, childbirth, pregnancy
- Sex and Sexual Violence: non-explicit sexual content, rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment, sexual predator, sex work, sex-worker shaming
- Violence and Crime: abduction, attempted murder, captivity, confinement, disappearance of a loved one, knives, murder, physical assault, poisoning, stalking, swords, torture, whipping
- War and Genocide: massacres, military service, military violence, war themes
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