The Writerly Sibling Tag

I have a confession to make. This tag was not acquired by legitimate means. I stole it.

via GIPHY

I know. But if I did it as an excuse to tag my sister, do I get a pass? Before we get started, thanks to Rachel at R’s Loft for bringing this tag to my attention. (I may be a thief, but at least I can be a polite thief.)

And the… rules.

via GIPHY

Rules:

Rule One: Thank the blogger who tagged you and provide a link to their post (see above).
Rule Two: Answer the inquires, including any ones added by means of rule six.
Rule Three: Always use your own characters. No exception, unless you don’t actually have sibling characters (in which case you need to go write up some) or you don’t write (in which case you need to start ASAP).
Rule Four: Tag three other bloggers.
Rule Five: If you happen to have any siblings who blog, they are automatically tagged and cannot count towards your three.
Rule Six: Add one question or prompt to the list of questions the person before you answered relating to siblings and/or characters. Answer the question, and provide a list of all the questions of that you answered so far
(So, for example, someone I tag will have 11 questions to answer, one of which will be their own. The next will have 12, 10 of which are mine, 1 of which is the previous blogger’s, and 1 of which is there own. The next person will have 13, and so forth….)
Rule Seven: Close out the post making some statement or other glorifying the King of kings.

Questions:

Name the most annoying sibling character in any of your stories (Either annoying to you as the author or to any other characters)

Leafman Elfbourne. Both to me (although I love him dearly) and to his siblings. So much angstttttttt.

Name the most caring sibling character in any of your stories

Just one? Just one?

*sighs* It would be one of the Eckards… but that doesn’t lower it down much… Probably either Halder or Hayden. Since Halder often appears more caring, whereas Hayden tends to be very quiet about his care, we’ll go with Halder.

WAIT. THEN THERE’S ALSO MAKIO FROM CALLIGRAPHY GUILD AND NOW I DON’T KNOW.

Name the most entertaining sibling character in any of your stories

To me or to the characters? To the characters, Hunter Eckard probably wins this spot. To me… probably Saria Elfbourne? I’m not sure.

Name a sibling character who was inspired in some way by an actual sibling

Saria was based my oldest sister, Syb. At least in theory; I’m not sure how well 7-year-old me really captured the likeness. XD Duyên’s sister Sakura was also somewhat based on Syb, but less so; Sakura actually better resembles the next sister down. Oh! And while we’re discussing Duyên’s siblings, I drew inspiration from my own brother while writing her brother Sinh.

Name the largest character family (talking family, not family tree) in any of your stories

The Eckards. I don’t think they all get to talk in The Masked Captain, unfortunately, because… space… but there are eight siblings, plus the oldest has three kids and he and his family often spend time with his parents and siblings, so they’re kind of in the bunch, too. His kids are around the same age as his two youngest siblings. (I really like the Eckards. I need to write them more.)

Provide one to three excerpts from your sibling characters’ dialog from any of your stories

From Calligraphy Guild:

Finally, Tora murmured a question that had been on her mind all evening. “Do you think I’m strong?”
Makio wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. “Tora, you’re one of the strongest people I know.”
Tora looked up at him, even though he was barely visible in the dark. “Really?”
“Really. Your illness doesn’t define you, Tora. You’re strong in intellect, you’re strong in passion, you’re strong in determination…” He reached over and tapped her tattoo. “And you’re strong in character.”
Tora swallowed hard and nestled against Makio’s shoulder. “I hope so,” she murmured.

(I need to edit Tora’s POV and clean up some of this dialogue. :P)

From The Masked Captain:

“I didn’t get an invitation,” Rhylan said. “Usually we’re both invited.”

Rynn smirked at him. “They just like me better.”

Rhylan snorted. “Careful of that Halder fellow. You’re both nearing marrying age.” He winked.

Rynn gasped. “Rhylan!” She threw a grape at him.

Rhylan grinned and threw the grape back. That was all it took to begin a full-out food fight, though it only lasted a minute before Rayth stood.

“Enough! You’re acting like children.”

Rynn brushed eggs off her bodice. “Rhylan, you went and ruined my dress.” She put on her best mock pout.

“And you messed up my hair. I’ll have to go and wash it again.” Rhylan brushed his hair back with a twinkle in his eye.

Name three published books which have an amazing portrayal of siblings or family

  1. THE WINGFEATHER SAGA. Hands-down.
  2. Children of Blood and Bone. I didn’t like much about this book, but I liked the sibling dynamics.
  3. 100 Days of Sunlight. Weston is an older brother and he’s so sweeeeeettttttttt.
  4. Honorable mention, because three is too few: A Time to Die by Nadine Brandes. Parvin and Reid are fantastic.
  5. And another honorable mention, because I just finished The Fire Rain Chronicles by Miranda Marie and the siblings in that are also lovely and they need to get a shout-out.

(*cough* Remember that thing I said about guidelines? ;P)

Name another author’s character family that you wouldn’t mind jumping into

The Igibys. Actually, what’s one with an older brother… Y’know what, maybe the Blackwaters from A Time to Die. Except… spoilers… Hm… I don’t know. I can’t think of any that are quite the right fit.

Provide an excerpt of sibling drama or camaraderie from any title (though be sure to credit it)

Excerpt from 100 Days of Sunlight by Abbie Emmons

Name two characters from two unrelated books that you feel would make for great literary siblings (whether in terms of getting along, or being a constant head-to-head combat)

Ooooh boy… (Is this one supposed to be drawing from my books or published works?) Ummm… Is pairing Sherlock Holmes and R.F. Jackaby too much of a cop-out? XD I feel like they would connect so much over people never understanding them and their methods, but they’d also argue a ton over what is or isn’t reasonable detective work… XD

What sibling trope would you like to write in the future?

Protective big sister. I write this trope quite rarely, for being an oldest sibling and sister myself. Come to think of it, I do have a story in the wings that has an awesome big sister character, but I’ve barely written it. (Actually, looking over my notes, I have several unwritten books with awesome big sisters. I need to write some of those.)

I don’t plan on stopping with the protective big brother trope or the kind-of-annoying-but-you-love-him-anyway little brother trope anytime soon, either.

Which of your own sibling groups would you love to join?

THE ECKARDS. Or maybe the Lôis. But I think I’d fit in a lot better with the Eckards. I’ll just be part of the Eckard family and then be friends with the Lôis so I can adopt Tora and Makio as additional honorary older siblings. ;D

My question: If you could adopt only one of your fictional siblings as your own sibling, who would it be?

Oh… I have to answer this now, don’t I…

And now I have to decide if I want Makio or Hunter Eckard as my older brother… This is tough… But I think Hunter wins by a teeny tiny margin.

Tagging:

Syberyah at atTAGirl (by default, ’cause she’s my sister)

Edna at Bleeding Ink

Maple at Maple Quill Penning Magic

Allie at Of Rainy Days and Stardust Veins

Question List:

Name the most annoying sibling character in any of your stories (Either annoying to you as the author or to any other characters)

Name the most caring sibling character in any of your stories

Name the most entertaining sibling character in any of your stories

Name a sibling character who was inspired in some way by an actual sibling

Name the largest character family (talking family, not family tree) in any of your stories

Provide one to three excerpts from your sibling characters’ dialog from any of your stories

Name three published books which have an amazing portrayal of siblings or family

Name another author’s character family that you wouldn’t mind jumping into

Provide an excerpt of sibling drama or camaraderie from any title (though be sure to credit it)

Name two characters from two unrelated books that you feel would make for great literary siblings (whether in terms of getting along, or being a constant head-to-head combat)

What sibling trope would you like to write in the future?

Which of your own sibling groups would you love to join?

If you could adopt only one of your fictional siblings as your own sibling, who would it be?


And to close out, I thank God for my real-life siblings and for placing me in the family He did and using them to shape me through the good and bad.

(And now I need to go hug my siblings and tell them I love them, ’cause I don’t do that enough.)

Who are your favorite fictional siblings? Do you have favorite sibling tropes?

8 thoughts on “The Writerly Sibling Tag

  1. This is so wholesome; I love it (also as soon as I read “Name three published books which have an amazing portrayal of siblings or family” my mind went to “The Fire Rain Chronicles :D” XD)

    Also yessss Calligraphy Guild exxcerrpttt!

    Thanks for tagging me!

  2. Fun post! And thought-provoking, too. I think my favorite relationships to write are those between siblings, especially brothers and sisters.

    1. Siblings are so fun to write! There can be so many different dynamics between siblings, so they’re also incredibly versatile in storytelling. There’s just so much to love about sibling relationships.

  3. Favorite fictional siblings? I have to PICK ONE!!!! Honestly, my mind is now drawing a blank and the only thing coming to my mind is the Gallagher Girls. I know they’re not technically real siblings, but they have this sisterhood that I think is really cool and sweet. And, even though I didn’t like the book a ton, I also really liked the sister relationship between Quinnen and Haley in The Distance to Home by Jen Bishop. It was sooo sweet!! I LOVE THE OLDER PROTECTIVE BROTHER TROPE. IT IS MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE!!!!!!!!!!!! Don’t ask me why, ’cause I have no clue. I’m also really thankful for all of my sisters brother. They are just the most encouraging, supportive, and sweetest people I know!!!!! Anyway, GREAT POST!!!!! TOTALLY enjoyed this one!!!! As always!

    1. Yesss, protective older brothers are the best! I think maybe I like them so much because they tend to exemplify all that real men should be? They tend to be a healthy balance of strong and caring, and they use their strength well, and when those characters can be hard to find that trope provides a place to look. :)

  4. This tag is amazing! It is so fun and positive, showing appreciation for both fictional and real siblings!
    Excuse me while I go cry after reading that except from 100 Days of Sunlight.

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