History Literature / ThroughTheMotions

The first chapter was posted on February 15, 2019, and can be read at [[https://scrawlbeforeyouwrite.com/through-the-motions the author's website]], with mirrors on [[https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/23241/through-the-motions Royal Road]], [[https://archiveofourown.org/works/17804621 Archive of Our Own]], [[https://www.fictionpress.com/s/3334490/1/Through-the-Motions FictionPress]], and [[https://www.wattpad.com/story/176289835-through-the-motions Wattpad]].

The first volume of the story, covering Chapters 1-21, was finished on December 5, 2019. A second volume chronicling Deanna's attempts to manage her new hobby, her art, and her work and social lives, started in January 2020 but went on an unannounced hiatus in late February 2020 as the author's other writing project, ''Fanfic/TheGhostOfOchs'', gained in popularity.

The first chapter was posted on February 15, 2019, and can be read at [[https://ttmserial.wordpress.com/ the author's website]], with mirrors on [[https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/23241/through-the-motions Royal Road]], [[https://archiveofourown.org/works/17804621 Archive of Our Own]], [[https://www.fictionpress.com/s/3334490/1/Through-the-Motions FictionPress]], and [[https://www.wattpad.com/story/176289835-through-the-motions Wattpad]].

The first volume of the story, covering Chapters 1-21, was finished on December 5, 2019. A second volume chronicling Deanna's attempts to manage her new hobby, her art, and her work and social lives, is currently in progress.

The story used to be updated on a biweekly basis, but has become [[ScheduleSlip more sporadic]] as the author tried to juggle [[Fanfic/TheGhostOfOchs two writing projects]] at once.

The first chapter was posted on February 15, 2019, with new chapters added biweekly. The story can be read at [[https://ttmserial.wordpress.com/ the author's website]], with mirrors on [[https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/23241/through-the-motions Royal Road]], [[https://archiveofourown.org/works/17804621 Archive of Our Own]], [[https://www.fictionpress.com/s/3334490/1/Through-the-Motions FictionPress]], and [[https://www.wattpad.com/story/176289835-through-the-motions Wattpad]].

The first volume of the story, covering Chapters 1-21, was finished on December 5, 2019. A second volume chronicling Deanna's attempts to manage her new hobby, her art hobby, and her work and social lives, is currently in progress.

* AwesomeMcCoolName: Lillian's last name is Silverthorne, an appropriate name for a young woman who runs her own private WizardingSchool. She is very proud of her family name, and her parents would only bless her marriage when her fianceé told them he'd let her keep her last name.

The first volume of the story, covering Chapters 1-21, was finished on December 5, 2019. The author hopes to continue the story with a second volume in early 2020.

* AwesomeMcCoolName: Lillian's last name is Silverthorne, an appropriate name for a young woman who runs her own private WizardingSchool.

''Through the Motions'' is a work-in-progress UrbanFantasy WebSerialNovel written by Walter Williams (a.k.a. Tropers/WillyFourEyes).

* SpellBook: Sharonia's local magic shop, the Blank Scroll, sells spellbooks for mages of all levels. Sol complains to Deanna about them being sold separately from the magic wands, as she thinks that having one would have helped her unlock her powers earlier. Before she got hers, she cribbed notes for some practice spells on the Internet.

It tells the story of Deanna Richardson, a young artist from a quiet suburban town called Sharonia. After visiting a nearby consignment shop to sell one of her paintings, she runs into a young witch-in-training who goes by the name "Sol" (not a StellarName; it's short for "Marisol"). When Sol asks for help activating a new magic wand, Deanna accepts the offer, and is eventually given the wand as a gift [[spoiler:once they discover Deanna was accidentally "bonded" to the wand during their exchange, preventing Sol from using it]]. Driven by curiosity and an artist's innate thirst for inspiration, Deanna strives to learn more about her new powers and the ins and outs of magic in general.

The first chapter was posted on February 15, 2019, with new chapters added biweekly. The story can be read at [[https://ttmserial.wordpress.com/ the author's website]], with mirrors on [[https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/23241/through-the-motions Royal Road]], [[https://archiveofourown.org/works/17804621 Archive of Our Own]], and [[https://www.wattpad.com/story/176289835-through-the-motions Wattpad]].

* BeginnersLuck: Deanna, who had never seen magic before meeting Sol, is able to (partially) charge Sol's magic wand by doing her own version of the magic dance. Subverted in that [[spoiler:neither of the girls was aware at the time that they had to touch the wand's PowerCrystal to unlock its potential]].
* DistinguishingMark: Magic users can easily be spotted by strange markings on their hands and/or fingers called "enchanter's signs", which are obtained by making direct contact with a source of magical power. Deanna discovers hers in Chapter 3.

* LookBehindYou: ZigZagged - a customer (whom Deanna only refers to as "Jacket Guy") tries to distract her by pointing out the window behind them. She doesn't fall for it, but her co-worker does, only to quickly turn around and catch Jacket Guy try to steal gum. It isn't until her co-worker keeps an eye on Jacket Guy that Deanna turns around to look and find out that there really ''was'' something behind her - [[spoiler:the blue-cloaked woman she waited on earlier, walking through the rain without an umbrella, apparently having cast a spell to keep herself dry]].

* MagicDance: Sol is told that her newly-bought wand requires her to dance outdoors to "draw upon the power of the earth" to charge its [[{{Mana}} magical energy]]. It doesn't work until [[spoiler:she accidentally breaks the seal on the wand when she hands it to Deanna, allowing her to partially recharge it by doing her own version of the dance.]]

* NoNameGiven: In Chapter 6, Deanna meets two peculiar customers at work she hasn't been formally introduced to yet. She refers to them as "Jacket Guy" and "Blue Cloak Lady" for their distinguishing clothing.

* TitleDrop: When Deanna is asked how she successfully manages to pull of the "Lift" spell, she says:
--> "All I did was think of the spell in my head, go '''through the motions''' you drew on the paper, and that's when the crystal lit up."

* LookBehindYou: ZigZagged - a customer (whom Deanna only refers to as "Jacket Guy") tries to distract her by pointing out the window behind them. She doesn't fall for it, but her co-worker does, only to quickly turn around and catch Jacket Guy try to steal gum. It isn't until her co-worker keeps an eye on Jacket Guy that Deanna turns around to look and find out that there really ''was'' something behind her - the blue-cloaked woman she waited on earlier, walking through the rain without an umbrella, apparently having cast a spell to keep herself dry.

* MagicalGesture: Some spells, such as the "Lift" spell, require simple but specific magic wand motions to cast.

* FlatWhat: Deanna's reaction to Dr. Keller's completely straight-faced question about her newly-discovered "enchanter's sign".