Today is a big day!
First, it's Fragmented's anniversary. Actually, it's a double anniversary.
A year ago today, on September 9, I began posting the first chapters of Fragmented. But a year before that, I first began writing the novel, penning the first few chapters in a notebook. It's been a wild ride.
But this day is important for a couple other reasons.
One, it's my birthday! But more importantly, it's also Noa's birthday!
Happy birthday, Noa!
Noa Igarashi was born on September 9, 1987, to Wendy and Makoto Igarashi. Within the Fragmented timeframe, he's briefly 16, until his birthday occurs around the tenth chapter and he turns 17. As of today, in 2024, he would be turning 37. His sign is Virgo.
Noa is the youngest of the main group of characters. It's something that's briefly touched on, but I tried to create that impression through the rest of the cast. Even Rion, Noa's best friend, recognizes Noa as the youngest and feels some responsibility for him.
Noa was a complicated character to work with. He's reserved, stoic, and he rarely speaks. If Fragmented were a comic or a show, it would be much easier to present his personality visually. In writing, you need to rely on description and impression. Noa was challenging to write, especially when he had a reason to go non-verbal.
But that's also what makes him interesting.
Noa's circumstances in the story are also unique, with him living with family after what happened with his parents. He has a complicated history and that has a pretty big effect on him as a person.
Noa's also artistic. And not just in a drawing sense. He does papercrafts, models with clay, and even model kits. He genuinely enjoys creating stuff in all kinds of mediums.
Also, I gave him a specific fascination for hands.
Any artist I've ever known has struggled with drawing hands at some point. I'm no artist and I finds hands to be a nightmare to draw. But Noa keeps his head down a lot, meaning that he notices hands before faces. He genuinely enjoys drawing hands too, so he got good at it.
I guess I can't talk about Noa without mentioning a few more things about his relationship with Rion.
Noa and Rion are best friends. The best of best friends. To Noa, pretty much everyone else comes second to Rion.
I'll have more to say about this when it comes to Rion (because Rion has some very complicated feelings about Noa), but Noa's feelings regarding Rion are very pure. He has completely faith in Rion and trusts him with everything. Even when they argue or don't get along.
Friendships like that are pretty rare in real life. At least in my experience. I have a couple really close friends, and I really, really treasure those relationships.
When you have a friend - a real friend that you can completely trust - that's a special thing. If you can make that kind of connection with someone, it's worth fighting for.
Noa also has some pretty good relationships with the Murphys. He's probably the closest to Peter, since Peter treats him kind of like a younger brother.
Funnily enough, Noa is ambivalent towards most of the other characters. It isn't that he dislikes them. In fact, he would probably say that he likes Jesse, Celeste, and Danny if anyone asked him. But he doesn't have a strong attachment to them either.
But there is one character that Noa dislikes. And that's Sarina. (Sorry, Sarina!)
Anyway, that's all about Noa for now!
The next birthday will be later this month. Then we'll only have a couple more. And after that… Well, after the last birthday, Fragmented should be wrapping up. But we've got a ways to go yet!
…
I also wanted to add… Thanks for taking the time to read this.
Most of the time, I feel like I'm writing to myself. But if you're here reading this… That's really cool. I appreciate anyone who takes time out of their life to read my writing. Even if you hate it, I'm still grateful.
I write for myself. There was a time when I wasn't sure that I would post Fragmented anywhere. It seemed dumb and pointless to share. So, it's a little weird to go through all this effort and think that I'm actually putting my writing out there for people to read.
(Also, sorry for any errors. I don't have an editor. I only have a handful of alpha and beta readers.)
I'm a really shy person. I struggle to communicate sometimes. I lose my words and I don't know what to say. So, I really appreciate anyone who will stay and listen for a while.
But yeah. Thanks again! And happy reading!