Let's just get right to it...for my goal of 25,000 words written this month, I need to write 807 words each day. This means by the end of Day 21 (aka yesterday) I needed to be at 16,947.
So, what's my current word count?
7,092 words
Yeah, I'm almost 10,000 words behind. I need to catch up big time.
What else do I need to do?
Right, actually work on the project I chose to write for the month: Souls Unknowing. The only exception to this is naturally, Project Death: Revelation, because people keep asking when it will be released.
I want to get both of these books out into the world. I have a date in mind for publishing SU and I'd really like to stick to that date, so if things go poorly over the next couple months then SU will have to be pushed back to next year.
And I am definitely getting Revelation out this year. I think Thanos might be cooperating enough for me to write the last few chapters and ship the story out to my beta readers. Then it's just a matter of a quick clean-up and edit (hopefully) and then I'll have a publication date announcement.
Why have I been distracted?
Oh yeah...reading books. I realized I was about 7 books behind for my 2015 reading goal of 75 books, and I have been buying a number of books that I just really want to read, so I ignored my notebooks so I could delve into already created realms and characters, places where I could avoid the fact that my own characters didn't seem to want to participate in the storytelling process.
Maybe ignoring my characters had made them more willing to talk to me.
I can only hope.
I need to have a big writing push this weekend, and then stick to a schedule for the remainder of the month so I can finish on schedule. Or at least finish on schedule for this altered schedule that is really only half of the goal I wanted to meet.
I guess if I want next week's update post to be filled with good news, I need to get off here now and actually write.
Until next time...may the words be with you always.
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Camp NaNoWriMo July 2015: 1 Goal Change, 2 Weeks Down, and 3 WIPs?
Hey everyone! I'm going to try and keep this update post fairly brief because I really need to get a shower and then get to bed. I've already worked 32 hours this week and I have another 20 hours to go. I'm also hoping to get some writing time in this week too...because I'm still just a little bit behind.
First things first: I have changed my goal for the month because it has been a bit difficult for me to carve out time to write and real life is a bit more stressful at the moment than I thought it would be. Shooting for 50,000 words this month is not all that feasible, so I have changed my goal to 25,000 words, though I would still love to write more than that.
Second...WOW...how are we seriously already halfway through the month? Where is the time going? I mean, I feel like July just started and yet here I am writing up a blog post on July 15th and looking at the calendar for the next few weeks and feeling like I have no way to hold on to the remaining time in the hourglass compromising July. The sand just continues to run out and soon enough it will be gone.
Yikes. I really need to pick up my writing pace. Seriously. I do not want to have two failed Camp NaNoWriMos this year.
Third point to this post...I originally started the month wanting to get as much of the rewrite for Souls Unknowing finished as I could. Naturally this meant putting Project Death: Revelation to the side for a bit. Apparently this is the time that Thanos decides he wants to cooperate, and I'm not going to say no to getting words on the page, no matter what story they pertain to. Of course, I have also been having fun little daydreams about this cool science fantasy world and characters and stuff so I've been doing a little bit of world-building and plotting for that. I'm not trying to really get into writing it, but I want to have enough down that I don't have to worry about forgetting the cool idea. So, in a way, I am currently in various stages of three writing projects this month. That's fun and random and a bit chaotic.
I guess I'll just leave you with a statement of where I need to be with my word count as well as detailing my progress so far, and then I'll head off to do what I need to before I pass out. A shower is a definite must. Working in a factory is not conducive to smelling nice and clean.
With the new overall goal in mind, my word count by the end of July 14th was supposed to be 11,298 words.
My current word count is: 5,819 words. So I still have a bit of catching up to do.
Right now Camp NaNo is telling me that I need to write 1,129 words per day to finish on time. That is totally doable, so long as I can find 30 minutes to an hour of good solid writing time. When I get going on Write or Die sessions I can usually manage around 1,500 words or so in 30 minutes, which would definitely get me to my word count goal.
May the words be ever in your favor this month, Wrimos. Until next time...for now, I need to daydream and write.
First things first: I have changed my goal for the month because it has been a bit difficult for me to carve out time to write and real life is a bit more stressful at the moment than I thought it would be. Shooting for 50,000 words this month is not all that feasible, so I have changed my goal to 25,000 words, though I would still love to write more than that.
Second...WOW...how are we seriously already halfway through the month? Where is the time going? I mean, I feel like July just started and yet here I am writing up a blog post on July 15th and looking at the calendar for the next few weeks and feeling like I have no way to hold on to the remaining time in the hourglass compromising July. The sand just continues to run out and soon enough it will be gone.
Yikes. I really need to pick up my writing pace. Seriously. I do not want to have two failed Camp NaNoWriMos this year.
Third point to this post...I originally started the month wanting to get as much of the rewrite for Souls Unknowing finished as I could. Naturally this meant putting Project Death: Revelation to the side for a bit. Apparently this is the time that Thanos decides he wants to cooperate, and I'm not going to say no to getting words on the page, no matter what story they pertain to. Of course, I have also been having fun little daydreams about this cool science fantasy world and characters and stuff so I've been doing a little bit of world-building and plotting for that. I'm not trying to really get into writing it, but I want to have enough down that I don't have to worry about forgetting the cool idea. So, in a way, I am currently in various stages of three writing projects this month. That's fun and random and a bit chaotic.
I guess I'll just leave you with a statement of where I need to be with my word count as well as detailing my progress so far, and then I'll head off to do what I need to before I pass out. A shower is a definite must. Working in a factory is not conducive to smelling nice and clean.
With the new overall goal in mind, my word count by the end of July 14th was supposed to be 11,298 words.
My current word count is: 5,819 words. So I still have a bit of catching up to do.
Right now Camp NaNo is telling me that I need to write 1,129 words per day to finish on time. That is totally doable, so long as I can find 30 minutes to an hour of good solid writing time. When I get going on Write or Die sessions I can usually manage around 1,500 words or so in 30 minutes, which would definitely get me to my word count goal.
May the words be ever in your favor this month, Wrimos. Until next time...for now, I need to daydream and write.
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Camp NaNoWriMo July 2015: It's Been a Week Already?!
Technically the one week mark was yesterday, but today is the start of week two, so I think it's a good place to pause and do the one week update post.
So...my plans did not go quite as I expected. I wanted to utilize my couple days off work plus my standard weekend to get as much written on the page as possible. It should have been easy to do, at least for the first couple days. July 1st and 2nd...and half of the 3rd, I spent on my own. In those days, I managed to write 3,483 words...which is good, but still about 1,400 words behind par.
Camp NaNoWriMo in July runs just a tiny bit different from the big event NaNoWriMo in November, not just because you can set your own word count, but also because July has 31 days. Because of this, my goal of 50,000 words does not mean needing to write 1,667 words a day. Instead, to be on par for the month, the goal is 1,612 words per day. That sounds great, right? One extra day of writing? Yeah...it should be great, but somehow I turn that into the idea that I can have a day early on where I don't accomplish as much, and it's fine, because there's an extra day.
For my own goals, by the end of July 7th, I should have reached 11,284 words.
My word count as of July 7th: 5,000 words
That's just a bit behind, but it's okay. I'm starting to figure out my writing schedule for the month and working around other scheduling issues like work and sleep, etc. All I need is a couple hours of time set aside for writing each day and then I should be able to catch up and possibly even get ahead.
Obviously it is still early in the month, and a lot can happen in the next few weeks. I'm going to try and keep getting these Wednesday update posts up for you guys, but I'm also going to try to do little updates on my Twitter and my Facebook page.
Moving on to actual non-word count details of writing Souls Unknowing. Considering we are at the beginning of everything, I have spent time thinking about how I came up with this story and different conversations and scenarios that eventually led to me writing this book back in 2004-2006. In 2004, in Spanish II, I vividly recall my teacher discussing how bad it would be if there was a fire in the school, mostly because of the location of the Spanish classroom. She said that if for some reason we were trapped in that room, death would be pretty gruesome. See...the class was right across the hall from the boiler room. I just recall her talking about how if the flames reached the boiler room, the result would be a pretty decent explosion.
That image got my writer brain running and processing and I began to wonder if I could use that in a book.
At that time I was also watching shows like Tru Calling, and reading books like the Mediator series by Meg Cabot, and my brain starting putting together pieces that intrigued me, and I ended up with a fire at a school 50 years earlier, that had the unfortunate outcome of everyone dying. Fast forward to present day, and a new school was built and I put four mediators (people who can see ghosts) into this new school, which is also filled with the spirits of the deceased.
In 2005, another TV show joined my queue of to-watch shows: Ghost Whisperer. Watching that really helped me get into the mood for writing about ghosts.
So with those inspirations and of course the support of several friends and fans, I wrote this story, and realized that the characters would have more to say, which led to the creation of the Souls trilogy: Souls Unknowing, Souls Abandoned, and Souls Crossing. Strangely enough I started rewriting SA before I decided to redo SU, so there is almost 25,000 words of better writing already done for the second book. Hopefully that means I will have an easier time of finishing it, and I'll be able to put these books out one a year, instead of having the two plus year gap like I have with the Project Death series.
It has been interesting so far to re-enter this world and try to start at the beginning and write the adventure in a way that shows just how much I've grown in the past decade. Perhaps later I will post up the original prologue from Souls Unknowing, and then share the re-written prologue, just to show you (and myself) how much my writing style has developed. I know that sometimes we writers might not really think about how much progress we've made, because we are always seemingly stuck in this cycle of planning, writing, and editing. It's cool to just take a moment to appreciate where we've been and what we've accomplished.
Now...back to increasing that word count. The goal for next week's update post: 22,568 words by July 14th.
So...my plans did not go quite as I expected. I wanted to utilize my couple days off work plus my standard weekend to get as much written on the page as possible. It should have been easy to do, at least for the first couple days. July 1st and 2nd...and half of the 3rd, I spent on my own. In those days, I managed to write 3,483 words...which is good, but still about 1,400 words behind par.
Camp NaNoWriMo in July runs just a tiny bit different from the big event NaNoWriMo in November, not just because you can set your own word count, but also because July has 31 days. Because of this, my goal of 50,000 words does not mean needing to write 1,667 words a day. Instead, to be on par for the month, the goal is 1,612 words per day. That sounds great, right? One extra day of writing? Yeah...it should be great, but somehow I turn that into the idea that I can have a day early on where I don't accomplish as much, and it's fine, because there's an extra day.
For my own goals, by the end of July 7th, I should have reached 11,284 words.
My word count as of July 7th: 5,000 words
That's just a bit behind, but it's okay. I'm starting to figure out my writing schedule for the month and working around other scheduling issues like work and sleep, etc. All I need is a couple hours of time set aside for writing each day and then I should be able to catch up and possibly even get ahead.
Obviously it is still early in the month, and a lot can happen in the next few weeks. I'm going to try and keep getting these Wednesday update posts up for you guys, but I'm also going to try to do little updates on my Twitter and my Facebook page.
Moving on to actual non-word count details of writing Souls Unknowing. Considering we are at the beginning of everything, I have spent time thinking about how I came up with this story and different conversations and scenarios that eventually led to me writing this book back in 2004-2006. In 2004, in Spanish II, I vividly recall my teacher discussing how bad it would be if there was a fire in the school, mostly because of the location of the Spanish classroom. She said that if for some reason we were trapped in that room, death would be pretty gruesome. See...the class was right across the hall from the boiler room. I just recall her talking about how if the flames reached the boiler room, the result would be a pretty decent explosion.
That image got my writer brain running and processing and I began to wonder if I could use that in a book.
At that time I was also watching shows like Tru Calling, and reading books like the Mediator series by Meg Cabot, and my brain starting putting together pieces that intrigued me, and I ended up with a fire at a school 50 years earlier, that had the unfortunate outcome of everyone dying. Fast forward to present day, and a new school was built and I put four mediators (people who can see ghosts) into this new school, which is also filled with the spirits of the deceased.
In 2005, another TV show joined my queue of to-watch shows: Ghost Whisperer. Watching that really helped me get into the mood for writing about ghosts.
So with those inspirations and of course the support of several friends and fans, I wrote this story, and realized that the characters would have more to say, which led to the creation of the Souls trilogy: Souls Unknowing, Souls Abandoned, and Souls Crossing. Strangely enough I started rewriting SA before I decided to redo SU, so there is almost 25,000 words of better writing already done for the second book. Hopefully that means I will have an easier time of finishing it, and I'll be able to put these books out one a year, instead of having the two plus year gap like I have with the Project Death series.
It has been interesting so far to re-enter this world and try to start at the beginning and write the adventure in a way that shows just how much I've grown in the past decade. Perhaps later I will post up the original prologue from Souls Unknowing, and then share the re-written prologue, just to show you (and myself) how much my writing style has developed. I know that sometimes we writers might not really think about how much progress we've made, because we are always seemingly stuck in this cycle of planning, writing, and editing. It's cool to just take a moment to appreciate where we've been and what we've accomplished.
Now...back to increasing that word count. The goal for next week's update post: 22,568 words by July 14th.
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
June Book Haul
Well, here we are at another book haul post for the month. I seem to buy about a dozen books each month, which means in a year I buy close to 150 books. That's impressive, and yet, so many of the books I buy end up sitting on the shelves waiting to be read. One would think that would make me slow down on purchases until I've read what I own, but there are just so many interesting books being published and I want to read so many of them. Plus, this way I know that if I fall on hard times and can't afford to buy books, I have a plethora of them still waiting to be read. Okay, so with the 21 books added to my collection in June, my total book purchases for the first half of 2015 stands at 93 books.
Let's get started with the June purchases then... we'll start with the hardcovers. I had three hardcover purchases, and only one of them was planned.
First we have An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. I had heard so many people talk about this book, and the summary sounded interesting to me, but for some reason I kept hesitating whenever I thought about picking it up. Then a friend of mine--who shares similar book tastes to me--finished it and I asked her her thoughts and she thought it was really good, and worth buying in hardcover, so here we are. Hopefully it doesn't disappoint. That is a pretty cool cover too.
Next is A Book of Spirits and Thieves by Morgan Rhodes. This is a spin-off of her Falling Kingdoms series and apparently alternates between modern day and this awesome magical past, so there is connection with the FK books. I really have enjoyed the books by Morgan Rhodes that I have read so far, so this one should be a good read...but I think I'm going to re-read the three currently published Falling Kingdoms books before I jump into this one.
Finally, for hardcovers, I have The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel. Every once in a while there will be a show or movie based on the book that is based on a true story, and it sounds interesting to me. This is one of those times. I have watched the first two episodes of The Astronaut Wives Club and I'm enjoying the story. Then I saw that Barnes & Noble was having a bargain sale on some hardcovers that had light markings on them, so I got this hardcover for only $3.99, which is awesome.
Next up...the paperbacks.
First I have The Fire Seer and her Quradum and Healer's Touch, both by Amy Raby. I have absolutely loved her Hearts and Thrones series; they are so good. Healer's Touch seems to be one not published by the company that published the first three novels and the novella though, so sadly the book sizes don't match, but I guess sometimes that happens. I do like matching sets though. Anyway...and I have enjoyed her Coalition of Mages series so far, though not to the same extent as Hearts and Thrones, so I guess we'll see what happens to Taya and Mandir next.
I also picked up copies of City of Fallen Angels, City of Lost Souls, City of Heavenly Fire, and Clockwork Prince, all by Cassandra Clare. The only one of these I have yet to read is CoHF, but I had been borrowing from the library so it was time to finish up the collection (for now). But with three more trilogies and the collections of side stories still to come, it will be a while before I have all of the Shadowhunter books.
I was going to wait a while before getting more Dresden Files books, but I was talking with a co-worker and her excited fangirling over the books made me want to get back to reading them. Since I own the first three, I figured it was time to pick up books four and five. Summer Knight and Death Masks by Jim Butcher continue the story of Harry Dresden, the only professional wizard in the phone book in Chicago as he helps the police with crimes that don't seem to be ordinary. I love Dresden's voice and it makes for fairly easy reading. It will be fun to keep going with this series.
Speaking of continuing on with series, I have also picked up Raven Cursed and Death's Rival by Faith Hunter, so books four and five of the Jane Yellowrock series, which follows vampire hunter and skinwalker Jane Yellowrock as she handles jobs and creatures down in New Orleans. I enjoy Jane; she is a tea snob and she rides a motorcycle that she built herself. It is a dark urban fantasy series and I really need to catch up with the books before the spinoff is released, since that sounds really cool too.
Finally, my last two paperbacks are from writer buddies of mine, and I am so glad to be able to support their writing careers.
Remedy for Memory by Brista Drake is a really true-to-life coming-of-age high-school story. I already finished reading it and posted my blog review about it here. I followed her through her editing and preparation for publication, so it was awesome to see the final product.
Then there's The Levees Can't Hold by Vince Moore. He is an English professor from Tiffin University, and I met him during my NaNoWriMo ML duties while I was at Heidelberg University in Tiffin. He became the ML after I left, but I have followed his publishing progress, and this is the third (and I believe final) book for this interesting urban fantasy series. It follows Dr. Paul Layton, who also runs a martial arts dojo, as he and other members of the dojo have to save the city of New Orleans from supernatural forces, which change by book. One had vampires and one had ghosts. I haven't read this last one yet, but I think it deals with zombies. Regardless, I'm sure it will be action packed.
And now for the e-books.
Broken by Dean Murray
Bound by Dean Murray
The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows
Jillian Spectre and the Dream Weaver by Nic Tatano
Justice Calling by Annie Bellet
Illusive by Emily Lloyd-Jones
The Dean Murray books were both free and tell two different sides to the same story, so we'll see if they're any good. If so I can buy the rest of the series. I have had The Orphan Queen on my to-read list and my most anticipated list, and it was on sale for $1.99 so it was about time to snatch it up. I really loved the first Jillian Spectre novel, so finding the second one was an auto-buy for me. Justice Calling was free and is about a witch who is also a geek, and I think has a comic book store. And I have had Illusive on my to-read list for a while because it is YA story that is touted as X-men meets Ocean's Eleven, so that just sounds cool...and it was only $2.99. The sequel is set to be released July 14th, so that also seems like perfect timing for me.
Okay...so tonight there may be a bonus post for Camp NaNoWriMo. We'll see. I'm hoping to do a lot of writing today.
Let's get started with the June purchases then... we'll start with the hardcovers. I had three hardcover purchases, and only one of them was planned.
First we have An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. I had heard so many people talk about this book, and the summary sounded interesting to me, but for some reason I kept hesitating whenever I thought about picking it up. Then a friend of mine--who shares similar book tastes to me--finished it and I asked her her thoughts and she thought it was really good, and worth buying in hardcover, so here we are. Hopefully it doesn't disappoint. That is a pretty cool cover too.
Next is A Book of Spirits and Thieves by Morgan Rhodes. This is a spin-off of her Falling Kingdoms series and apparently alternates between modern day and this awesome magical past, so there is connection with the FK books. I really have enjoyed the books by Morgan Rhodes that I have read so far, so this one should be a good read...but I think I'm going to re-read the three currently published Falling Kingdoms books before I jump into this one.
Finally, for hardcovers, I have The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel. Every once in a while there will be a show or movie based on the book that is based on a true story, and it sounds interesting to me. This is one of those times. I have watched the first two episodes of The Astronaut Wives Club and I'm enjoying the story. Then I saw that Barnes & Noble was having a bargain sale on some hardcovers that had light markings on them, so I got this hardcover for only $3.99, which is awesome.
Next up...the paperbacks.
First I have The Fire Seer and her Quradum and Healer's Touch, both by Amy Raby. I have absolutely loved her Hearts and Thrones series; they are so good. Healer's Touch seems to be one not published by the company that published the first three novels and the novella though, so sadly the book sizes don't match, but I guess sometimes that happens. I do like matching sets though. Anyway...and I have enjoyed her Coalition of Mages series so far, though not to the same extent as Hearts and Thrones, so I guess we'll see what happens to Taya and Mandir next.
I also picked up copies of City of Fallen Angels, City of Lost Souls, City of Heavenly Fire, and Clockwork Prince, all by Cassandra Clare. The only one of these I have yet to read is CoHF, but I had been borrowing from the library so it was time to finish up the collection (for now). But with three more trilogies and the collections of side stories still to come, it will be a while before I have all of the Shadowhunter books.
I was going to wait a while before getting more Dresden Files books, but I was talking with a co-worker and her excited fangirling over the books made me want to get back to reading them. Since I own the first three, I figured it was time to pick up books four and five. Summer Knight and Death Masks by Jim Butcher continue the story of Harry Dresden, the only professional wizard in the phone book in Chicago as he helps the police with crimes that don't seem to be ordinary. I love Dresden's voice and it makes for fairly easy reading. It will be fun to keep going with this series.
Speaking of continuing on with series, I have also picked up Raven Cursed and Death's Rival by Faith Hunter, so books four and five of the Jane Yellowrock series, which follows vampire hunter and skinwalker Jane Yellowrock as she handles jobs and creatures down in New Orleans. I enjoy Jane; she is a tea snob and she rides a motorcycle that she built herself. It is a dark urban fantasy series and I really need to catch up with the books before the spinoff is released, since that sounds really cool too.
Finally, my last two paperbacks are from writer buddies of mine, and I am so glad to be able to support their writing careers.
Remedy for Memory by Brista Drake is a really true-to-life coming-of-age high-school story. I already finished reading it and posted my blog review about it here. I followed her through her editing and preparation for publication, so it was awesome to see the final product.
Then there's The Levees Can't Hold by Vince Moore. He is an English professor from Tiffin University, and I met him during my NaNoWriMo ML duties while I was at Heidelberg University in Tiffin. He became the ML after I left, but I have followed his publishing progress, and this is the third (and I believe final) book for this interesting urban fantasy series. It follows Dr. Paul Layton, who also runs a martial arts dojo, as he and other members of the dojo have to save the city of New Orleans from supernatural forces, which change by book. One had vampires and one had ghosts. I haven't read this last one yet, but I think it deals with zombies. Regardless, I'm sure it will be action packed.
And now for the e-books.
Broken by Dean Murray
Bound by Dean Murray
The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows
Jillian Spectre and the Dream Weaver by Nic Tatano
Justice Calling by Annie Bellet
Illusive by Emily Lloyd-Jones
The Dean Murray books were both free and tell two different sides to the same story, so we'll see if they're any good. If so I can buy the rest of the series. I have had The Orphan Queen on my to-read list and my most anticipated list, and it was on sale for $1.99 so it was about time to snatch it up. I really loved the first Jillian Spectre novel, so finding the second one was an auto-buy for me. Justice Calling was free and is about a witch who is also a geek, and I think has a comic book store. And I have had Illusive on my to-read list for a while because it is YA story that is touted as X-men meets Ocean's Eleven, so that just sounds cool...and it was only $2.99. The sequel is set to be released July 14th, so that also seems like perfect timing for me.
Okay...so tonight there may be a bonus post for Camp NaNoWriMo. We'll see. I'm hoping to do a lot of writing today.
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Camp NaNo July 2015: Souls Unknowing Replotting
Wow guys and gals...just one more week until the start of Camp NaNoWriMo July session. I am really excited for it and I think I'm going to get off to a decent start. My work has already scheduled off days for July 2nd and 3rd, and obviously the 4th and 5th are the weekend, but there are rumors that we might get the 1st and 6th off as well, which would be amazing, and I would definitely try to write as many words as possible during that time.
In the week of June I have remaining though, I am spending most of my time reading books to recharge my creative energies, as well as to hopefully get my book review posts ready for July. We'll see how well that goes.
But you aren't here to listen to me ramble about reading or vague plans, at least today you aren't. No, today the topic is on my replotting efforts for Souls Unknowing. Now, I wish I could say that I've spent quite a lot of time following through on the topic and writing down all of my random ideas, but the truth is that sometimes that isn't really my style. I've learned over the years that if I write down all my plot ideas then somehow my brain likes to think "but you've written that already" and then it is really difficult for me to actually write the scenes or chapters.
So, what I do instead is to just think on what I need to do and have a mental list. Yes, I have considered some plot points to change or to enhance in this rewrite, mostly because some of the plot I remember wanting to write about and then somehow I just didn't write down the scenes. For example, main character Tru spends quite a bit of time with her history teacher, Mr. Malone, and I remember wanting to actually write more scenes and conversations between them, but then I got distracted by my main plot about the ghosts and everything else sort of faded into the background. I hope to fix that issue this time around.
I also need to work on expanding on some of the characters, like fellow mediators Megan and Allie, as well as Tru's friends Tammi and Tess. These characters have lived in my mind for the past decade and I know them quite well, but I think back when I started writing this book I didn't know that much about them, and what I did know I didn't know how to express properly.
There is one really awesome scene involving Tru, Ian, and Ava that I am definitely keeping. It was one of the best moments and twists in the whole story, mostly because it started out as being completely unplanned, but after it happened I realized how much more interesting it made the book. Those of you who read SU back in high school know what I'm talking about, but please do not talk about it. I'd like to avoid spoilers if possible.
For the most part I am following the loose outline of the original draft for this story, but I always give myself room for new scenes or relationships or conversations. I like to let the characters dictate the events of the story, and considering how much everyone has developed since those early days (including me and my writing ability), I know there will probably be changes along the way.
I hope that my early readers will enjoy this new adaptation of the story. I have been thinking about how to improve the story for so long now that it will be really nice to actually follow through.
Okay, so next week I will have my June Book Haul post up on Wednesday, but I might also have a first day of Camp recap bonus post. It all depends on how many words I get on the page. Let's get ready to write.
In the week of June I have remaining though, I am spending most of my time reading books to recharge my creative energies, as well as to hopefully get my book review posts ready for July. We'll see how well that goes.
But you aren't here to listen to me ramble about reading or vague plans, at least today you aren't. No, today the topic is on my replotting efforts for Souls Unknowing. Now, I wish I could say that I've spent quite a lot of time following through on the topic and writing down all of my random ideas, but the truth is that sometimes that isn't really my style. I've learned over the years that if I write down all my plot ideas then somehow my brain likes to think "but you've written that already" and then it is really difficult for me to actually write the scenes or chapters.
So, what I do instead is to just think on what I need to do and have a mental list. Yes, I have considered some plot points to change or to enhance in this rewrite, mostly because some of the plot I remember wanting to write about and then somehow I just didn't write down the scenes. For example, main character Tru spends quite a bit of time with her history teacher, Mr. Malone, and I remember wanting to actually write more scenes and conversations between them, but then I got distracted by my main plot about the ghosts and everything else sort of faded into the background. I hope to fix that issue this time around.
I also need to work on expanding on some of the characters, like fellow mediators Megan and Allie, as well as Tru's friends Tammi and Tess. These characters have lived in my mind for the past decade and I know them quite well, but I think back when I started writing this book I didn't know that much about them, and what I did know I didn't know how to express properly.
There is one really awesome scene involving Tru, Ian, and Ava that I am definitely keeping. It was one of the best moments and twists in the whole story, mostly because it started out as being completely unplanned, but after it happened I realized how much more interesting it made the book. Those of you who read SU back in high school know what I'm talking about, but please do not talk about it. I'd like to avoid spoilers if possible.
For the most part I am following the loose outline of the original draft for this story, but I always give myself room for new scenes or relationships or conversations. I like to let the characters dictate the events of the story, and considering how much everyone has developed since those early days (including me and my writing ability), I know there will probably be changes along the way.
I hope that my early readers will enjoy this new adaptation of the story. I have been thinking about how to improve the story for so long now that it will be really nice to actually follow through.
Okay, so next week I will have my June Book Haul post up on Wednesday, but I might also have a first day of Camp recap bonus post. It all depends on how many words I get on the page. Let's get ready to write.
Friday, June 19, 2015
From the Stacks: Remedy for Memory by Brista Drake
For today's From the Stacks post, I am pleased to review the debut novel of a local writing buddy of mine. Please note that friendship with the author does not have an effect on my review. Today I am talking about Remedy for Memory by Brista Drake.
Overall rating: 4 stars
I have been following Brista's progress with writing and editing this book since I met her last year during a write-in for NaNoWriMo. Since then I have watched all of her YouTube videos and given as much helpful commentary as I could. So I am immensely proud to see another one of my region's writers reach publication status.
That being said, this book honestly surprised me with how wonderfully realistic it was. Yes, sometimes narrator Trisha jumps around and there will be plot points that are actually left unanswered, but isn't that how life works sometimes? We experience events and then forget them or brush them aside for something we think is more important, regardless of whether or not it actually is. This book did that, thanks to a journal-esque feel to the writing.
While reading it, I could also tell that it was set in the general area where both Brista Drake and I happen to live. This setting is enriched by including details such as a day trip up to Cedar Point--an amusement park--, a performance at The Historic Palace Theater, and of course, the Ohio State Fair. Look, I was completely a band geek through school, and yes, I did participate in the All-Ohio State Fair Band for three years. That, plus all the other details, and the descriptions of the interactions of these high school characters, made reading this book an interesting trip down memory lane for me.
I did note a number of typos in my paperback, but hey, I've found those in my own book, so I typically don't mark down my ratings for that, unless I have no clue what was actually meant to be said. As the typos were mostly use of the wrong homonym (your/you're, passed/past, cord/chord), I can still grasp the overall meaning.
So...I guess the reason why I took this book from a 5-star to a 4-star is because I can see the potential to achieve more greatness, and the stars are my way to show that this was a great first novel, but we can all learn from our first attempts and get better. Also, I do feel like maybe there is more to tell with this story. Most of the plot that we see occurs during Trisha's sophomore year of high school, but there are brief scenes from junior year, and a tiny bit from after she has graduated.
Would the story have been enriched further if more scenes had been added? I can't say. But, once again, that's what you get with the way some people record their lives. Stuff will be missing. That is obviously the case with how Trisha thinks about her high school relationships, particularly with Aaron.
That is the other reason the book scores 4 stars instead of 5. I think we have all had relationships that have made little sense to us, but we go through the motions and such anyway. As an outsider (the reader), I didn't really connect with Trisha and Aaron's romantic relationship on an emotional level, though part of me did remember acquaintances who were in similar relationships back in high school. So I understand the decisions and the sometimes wildly swinging spastic feelings that ruled both Trisha and Aaron's actions, but I still couldn't see them as a couple.
Okay, this is getting long, and may be a little ramble-y but what I'm saying is that this was a really good first book, and a true-to-life glimpse at a typical high school student as she tries to navigate herself and her interactions with her peers. It is a coming-of-age story and a first love story and it did have some sweet moments and some intense ones. I would recommend it to my friends, for the nostalgia factor alone. Sometimes it is nice to think back to those high school days, and then to think about how much we have all learned and grown since then.
“After some time, I could talk to people, but I couldn't say your name. I couldn't put your name next to how I was feeling. There was something broken, and I just . . . didn't think anyone could believe me.
So I wrote it down instead. I wrote this all for me . . . For you.”
If Trisha could summarize in one word her entire past relationship with Aaron, "The Baron," it'd be a long, sarcastic "thanks." For most of his life, Aaron Madison glorified being the butt of every joke, but after meeting Trisha four years ago, everything had changed.
If there was a time to speak, it was now.
Overall rating: 4 stars
I have been following Brista's progress with writing and editing this book since I met her last year during a write-in for NaNoWriMo. Since then I have watched all of her YouTube videos and given as much helpful commentary as I could. So I am immensely proud to see another one of my region's writers reach publication status.
That being said, this book honestly surprised me with how wonderfully realistic it was. Yes, sometimes narrator Trisha jumps around and there will be plot points that are actually left unanswered, but isn't that how life works sometimes? We experience events and then forget them or brush them aside for something we think is more important, regardless of whether or not it actually is. This book did that, thanks to a journal-esque feel to the writing.
While reading it, I could also tell that it was set in the general area where both Brista Drake and I happen to live. This setting is enriched by including details such as a day trip up to Cedar Point--an amusement park--, a performance at The Historic Palace Theater, and of course, the Ohio State Fair. Look, I was completely a band geek through school, and yes, I did participate in the All-Ohio State Fair Band for three years. That, plus all the other details, and the descriptions of the interactions of these high school characters, made reading this book an interesting trip down memory lane for me.
I did note a number of typos in my paperback, but hey, I've found those in my own book, so I typically don't mark down my ratings for that, unless I have no clue what was actually meant to be said. As the typos were mostly use of the wrong homonym (your/you're, passed/past, cord/chord), I can still grasp the overall meaning.
So...I guess the reason why I took this book from a 5-star to a 4-star is because I can see the potential to achieve more greatness, and the stars are my way to show that this was a great first novel, but we can all learn from our first attempts and get better. Also, I do feel like maybe there is more to tell with this story. Most of the plot that we see occurs during Trisha's sophomore year of high school, but there are brief scenes from junior year, and a tiny bit from after she has graduated.
Would the story have been enriched further if more scenes had been added? I can't say. But, once again, that's what you get with the way some people record their lives. Stuff will be missing. That is obviously the case with how Trisha thinks about her high school relationships, particularly with Aaron.
That is the other reason the book scores 4 stars instead of 5. I think we have all had relationships that have made little sense to us, but we go through the motions and such anyway. As an outsider (the reader), I didn't really connect with Trisha and Aaron's romantic relationship on an emotional level, though part of me did remember acquaintances who were in similar relationships back in high school. So I understand the decisions and the sometimes wildly swinging spastic feelings that ruled both Trisha and Aaron's actions, but I still couldn't see them as a couple.
Okay, this is getting long, and may be a little ramble-y but what I'm saying is that this was a really good first book, and a true-to-life glimpse at a typical high school student as she tries to navigate herself and her interactions with her peers. It is a coming-of-age story and a first love story and it did have some sweet moments and some intense ones. I would recommend it to my friends, for the nostalgia factor alone. Sometimes it is nice to think back to those high school days, and then to think about how much we have all learned and grown since then.
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Camp NaNo July 2015: Souls Unknowing Prep - Rewrite the draft
Okay, so in September of this year I will have another round of Basics of Writing posts, and one of those will cover revision, but today's topic is a bit different from revision. Also, today's topic is completely relevant to my prep for Camp NaNoWriMo and my project, Souls Unknowing.
I know of a number of writers who rewrite their drafts three to ten times before they are satisfied with the story. Rewriting was never that vital to my writing process. It used to be that I would write a draft, set the whole manuscript aside for at least a couple weeks and at most a few months, and then read through and scribble all over in the margins. I would make little notes about adding scenes or more details or perhaps a longer conversation, but I typically did not scrap a scene and start over from scratch.
But lately it seems like a lot of my projects are becoming unique and veering away from my typical writing process. Souls Unknowing is no exception to this. I have said it before and I will say it again: when I wrote the first draft of SU I was in high school and I thought that third person present tense was a good idea.
Now, for some authors, 3rd person present tense works as a POV, but looking back at that old draft now, I cringe while trying to read it. I am not one of those people. I can do 1st person present tense, but not 3rd. Looking at that old draft, I also cringe at how simplistic it is in a lot of ways. Sure, I ended up with a bit over 50,000 words, but about 75-80% of the draft is dialogue. I know I need to add a lot more description into this story.
So...for the first time, a complete rewrite seems to be in order.
Thankfully, SU was written about three computers ago and was saved on floppy discs and such, which means I have no digital copy available to me so my old way of revision wouldn't work even if I wanted to pursue that option.
I do have a complete printed out copy of the original draft, so I have something I can refer to while writing, but honestly, unless it is absolutely necessary, I think I'm just going to go with the flow and write...see where the adventure takes me this time.
I know my characters and I know the major plot points I need to hit this time around. But other than that, I think the best path moving forward is to try and treat this like a first draft again. I have grown so much as a person and a writer, and I have a much better understanding of the writing process now. It would be a shame to miss out on some great writing possibilities just because I'm trying to stick completely to the ideal of that decade old draft.
So, I may still call this a rewrite, and I may still reference that draft from high school, but I think when I do my writing updates in July that I'm just going to talk about my current writing and the progress I'm making for the duration of Camp NaNoWriMo.
That being said, I guess the question to address is...how do you handle writing a full draft of a book? The answer sounds so simple but is so extraordinarily difficult...you just write. Write down one word followed by another followed by another until you reach the end. Then you go through that draft and read it, with a critical eye as if it was written by somebody else, and make commentary and notes for how to improve the draft. Then you follow those notes and revise the draft. You repeat this as many times as are necessary to make it feel like the best book it can be. And then maybe you do it one more time just to be sure.
Writing and publishing is a long and tiring process, but that feeling of accomplishment at the end is totally worth it.
I know of a number of writers who rewrite their drafts three to ten times before they are satisfied with the story. Rewriting was never that vital to my writing process. It used to be that I would write a draft, set the whole manuscript aside for at least a couple weeks and at most a few months, and then read through and scribble all over in the margins. I would make little notes about adding scenes or more details or perhaps a longer conversation, but I typically did not scrap a scene and start over from scratch.
But lately it seems like a lot of my projects are becoming unique and veering away from my typical writing process. Souls Unknowing is no exception to this. I have said it before and I will say it again: when I wrote the first draft of SU I was in high school and I thought that third person present tense was a good idea.
Now, for some authors, 3rd person present tense works as a POV, but looking back at that old draft now, I cringe while trying to read it. I am not one of those people. I can do 1st person present tense, but not 3rd. Looking at that old draft, I also cringe at how simplistic it is in a lot of ways. Sure, I ended up with a bit over 50,000 words, but about 75-80% of the draft is dialogue. I know I need to add a lot more description into this story.
So...for the first time, a complete rewrite seems to be in order.
Thankfully, SU was written about three computers ago and was saved on floppy discs and such, which means I have no digital copy available to me so my old way of revision wouldn't work even if I wanted to pursue that option.
I do have a complete printed out copy of the original draft, so I have something I can refer to while writing, but honestly, unless it is absolutely necessary, I think I'm just going to go with the flow and write...see where the adventure takes me this time.
I know my characters and I know the major plot points I need to hit this time around. But other than that, I think the best path moving forward is to try and treat this like a first draft again. I have grown so much as a person and a writer, and I have a much better understanding of the writing process now. It would be a shame to miss out on some great writing possibilities just because I'm trying to stick completely to the ideal of that decade old draft.
So, I may still call this a rewrite, and I may still reference that draft from high school, but I think when I do my writing updates in July that I'm just going to talk about my current writing and the progress I'm making for the duration of Camp NaNoWriMo.
That being said, I guess the question to address is...how do you handle writing a full draft of a book? The answer sounds so simple but is so extraordinarily difficult...you just write. Write down one word followed by another followed by another until you reach the end. Then you go through that draft and read it, with a critical eye as if it was written by somebody else, and make commentary and notes for how to improve the draft. Then you follow those notes and revise the draft. You repeat this as many times as are necessary to make it feel like the best book it can be. And then maybe you do it one more time just to be sure.
Writing and publishing is a long and tiring process, but that feeling of accomplishment at the end is totally worth it.
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Camp NaNo July 2015: Souls Unknowing Prep
There are only 20 more days until the next session of Camp NaNoWriMo, and that means that it is time to start prepping and planning so I can focus on the writing in July.
Obviously this first post will talk about some of the preparation I am doing so I'm ready to work on Souls Unknowing again. I haven't worked on my Souls trilogy in a couple years, so one of the most important aspects of prep is reading over my original draft which has good bones but is otherwise pretty awful. I'm glad to see how much my writing has improved since high school. When I finished SU then, the draft was 95 pages single spaced and came in around 50,000 or so words. It was an amazing accomplishment at that time, but now most of my novels tend to clock in around 80-90,000 words.
Reading through that first draft also comes complete with the need to review character details. When I was writing this book, I think most of my background information and such was saved on floppy discs...which obviously aren't compatible with my laptop. Some of the work may have been saved on a thumb drive, but I don't know which one, so I'm basically starting from scratch.
One of the more fun parts of prepping for Camp NaNo is getting myself into the mood for writing a ghost story. That can actually be divided into two segments. First: watching Ghost Whisperer. I loved the show when it was on during my high school years and the character development as well as the portrayal of ghosts really helps to inspire me. Of course, in the show the story follows Melinda Gordon, who only shares her gift with her mother and grandmother, but in my trilogy I have a small group of people who can see and speak to the dead, so don't think that I'm trying to copy something I loved years ago.
The second segment of fun prep is doing some actual ghost hunting myself. Back in March, a friend took me to a public ghost hunt at the Mansfield Reformatory, which is also where they shot the movie Shawshank Redemption. We had an awesome time and that sparked some ideas for when I finally came back around to the Souls trilogy, so much so that I decided that I wanted to do another hunt closer to this session of Camp.
Unfortunately, the ghost hunts sell out pretty quickly, so I couldn't get in anytime in June, and in July I'd rather be trying to write as much as I can for Camp. However, there is a ghost hunt scheduled for August 1st, which is also my birthday, so that's a bonus. I'll get to do some more ghost box sessions and see if I can get some good ghostly photos (mostly orbs showing up in the image). It'll really help as I continue my writing process.
Now, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that not all prep is completely focused on Souls Unknowing. I also need to re-organize my office and desk. Having a sense of cleanliness and order will be very beneficial to the writing process and will help my mind to not be so cluttered.
And a random bit of prep for Camp NaNo is that I informed my usual lunch buddies at work that during the month of July I will not be joining them to eat, because I will instead be sitting by myself and trying to get as many words on the page as I can. Thankfully, letting them know in advance means I don't have to worry about accidentally blowing them off come July. Letting other people know about your participation in Camp NaNoWriMo also gives you people to whom you are accountable. If people know that you are supposed to be writing, then they will regularly ask for status updates, which for me is super helpful because it keeps me on track with my word count.
Another prep point that has nothing to do with writing or planning is to try and read a few books so I can have my From the Stacks review posts ready for you. I may or may not be all that successful with this one, and if I fail then I will have the posts up after the writing process is over. These past couple months I have been trying to focus more on writing than on reading and reviewing. I do have my review posts planned through the end of August though, so I just need to read the books and write the reviews.
SU Prep also means that I am thinking long term for the writing and publication process. If all goes well then I will write this book in July and August, and then it can be shipped off to my lovely beta readers and critique partners in September. I'm hoping that you all will help keep me focused and motivated on this timeline, because I have put this book off for too many years already and it needs to be done.
If all goes well then I will have Souls Unknowing out to the world this year, with Souls Abandoned to follow next year, and with any luck I can have Souls Crossing out in 2017. We'll see. First I have to get back to all of my prepping and organizing and rewrite the story so it can be so much better than my original concepts.
Are any of you participating in Camp NaNoWriMo in July? If so, how are you prepping for the month? Are you a serious plotter, or do you go with the more adrenaline inducing pantser method? And what writing project(s) are you working on for the month?
Obviously this first post will talk about some of the preparation I am doing so I'm ready to work on Souls Unknowing again. I haven't worked on my Souls trilogy in a couple years, so one of the most important aspects of prep is reading over my original draft which has good bones but is otherwise pretty awful. I'm glad to see how much my writing has improved since high school. When I finished SU then, the draft was 95 pages single spaced and came in around 50,000 or so words. It was an amazing accomplishment at that time, but now most of my novels tend to clock in around 80-90,000 words.
Reading through that first draft also comes complete with the need to review character details. When I was writing this book, I think most of my background information and such was saved on floppy discs...which obviously aren't compatible with my laptop. Some of the work may have been saved on a thumb drive, but I don't know which one, so I'm basically starting from scratch.
One of the more fun parts of prepping for Camp NaNo is getting myself into the mood for writing a ghost story. That can actually be divided into two segments. First: watching Ghost Whisperer. I loved the show when it was on during my high school years and the character development as well as the portrayal of ghosts really helps to inspire me. Of course, in the show the story follows Melinda Gordon, who only shares her gift with her mother and grandmother, but in my trilogy I have a small group of people who can see and speak to the dead, so don't think that I'm trying to copy something I loved years ago.
The second segment of fun prep is doing some actual ghost hunting myself. Back in March, a friend took me to a public ghost hunt at the Mansfield Reformatory, which is also where they shot the movie Shawshank Redemption. We had an awesome time and that sparked some ideas for when I finally came back around to the Souls trilogy, so much so that I decided that I wanted to do another hunt closer to this session of Camp.
Unfortunately, the ghost hunts sell out pretty quickly, so I couldn't get in anytime in June, and in July I'd rather be trying to write as much as I can for Camp. However, there is a ghost hunt scheduled for August 1st, which is also my birthday, so that's a bonus. I'll get to do some more ghost box sessions and see if I can get some good ghostly photos (mostly orbs showing up in the image). It'll really help as I continue my writing process.
Now, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that not all prep is completely focused on Souls Unknowing. I also need to re-organize my office and desk. Having a sense of cleanliness and order will be very beneficial to the writing process and will help my mind to not be so cluttered.
And a random bit of prep for Camp NaNo is that I informed my usual lunch buddies at work that during the month of July I will not be joining them to eat, because I will instead be sitting by myself and trying to get as many words on the page as I can. Thankfully, letting them know in advance means I don't have to worry about accidentally blowing them off come July. Letting other people know about your participation in Camp NaNoWriMo also gives you people to whom you are accountable. If people know that you are supposed to be writing, then they will regularly ask for status updates, which for me is super helpful because it keeps me on track with my word count.
Another prep point that has nothing to do with writing or planning is to try and read a few books so I can have my From the Stacks review posts ready for you. I may or may not be all that successful with this one, and if I fail then I will have the posts up after the writing process is over. These past couple months I have been trying to focus more on writing than on reading and reviewing. I do have my review posts planned through the end of August though, so I just need to read the books and write the reviews.
SU Prep also means that I am thinking long term for the writing and publication process. If all goes well then I will write this book in July and August, and then it can be shipped off to my lovely beta readers and critique partners in September. I'm hoping that you all will help keep me focused and motivated on this timeline, because I have put this book off for too many years already and it needs to be done.
If all goes well then I will have Souls Unknowing out to the world this year, with Souls Abandoned to follow next year, and with any luck I can have Souls Crossing out in 2017. We'll see. First I have to get back to all of my prepping and organizing and rewrite the story so it can be so much better than my original concepts.
Are any of you participating in Camp NaNoWriMo in July? If so, how are you prepping for the month? Are you a serious plotter, or do you go with the more adrenaline inducing pantser method? And what writing project(s) are you working on for the month?
Sunday, June 7, 2015
Musical Writing Inspiration Part Two
Welcome back to another musical inspiration post. If you somehow missed my other Project Death: Revelation lyric inspiration posts, you can find them here and here. I've already discussed the wonderful music of Epica and Kamelot, so today I am shifting focus a bit to Amaranthe. Now all three bands are considered metal bands, but have different sub-genres, and Amaranthe is fun because there's is a bit dance/techno/pop. They're just unique and I thoroughly enjoy them, and so need to get to a concert sometime. Anyway, their newest album is Massive Addictive and it is their best thus far. I enjoyed their previous album, The Nexus, too but this one has more songs I gravitate towards. So let's jump into the lyrics then. As with the previous times I'll give you the lyrics and then talk about their relevance to my Project Death series.
Light the fuse, see the sign
Unbalanced heart
I'm in my prime
Get out of here while there is still time
I'm reaching overload
I'm going right on top
While you abide my dynamite
- "Dynamite" by Amaranthe
The more Thanos thinks on his past, the more he sees how unbalanced everything is, especially with the actual unbalance going on in the present as well, and that makes him feel overwhelmed. Honestly, it's fun to see what happens as he teeters on the edge, and see if he gets pushed towards doing something he has worked so hard to control for so long. You can only fight against the darkness of Death for so long, and Thanos has been struggling with his position for over a hundred years. He really is like a stick of dynamite ready to explode.
Can't you see I'm a slave to the darkness
Cutting down
And I know I have done this before
As I stare into the wall
And no it's time to let it shine
Cause don't you know I'm addicted
Massive addictive
And suddenly I'm greatly affected
Like burning fire inside
My cyanide
Scared of losing my mind
Massive addictive
I'm totally completely afflicted
As I inspire the lie like a lullaby
Crawling around in my mind
- "Massive Addictive" by Amaranthe
Yesterday I posted about Kamelot's song "My Therapy" and how Tam is Thanos's antidote. Well, you only need an antidote if you are sick in some way, and Thanos is a bit of an addict, just not in the way you would think. This starts being addressed in the first chapter of Revelation (which you can read here if you'd like. Warning there are spoilers if you haven't read Resurrection yet). Speaking of, you can get an e-book of Resurrection for FREE until August 2015 here. As Thanos's story continues, he fights against his addiction as it starts to affect him more and more. It is an issue I already know won't be resolved by the end of the book, especially since I plan on writing a couple short stories revolving around that particular plot point.
Before the darkness gets me I will spread my wings and fly
I transcend from the chaos and the darkness turns to light
This is the time
For chasing my desires
What's in my heart is true
And if my dreams set everything on fire
Then I would still belong to you
I never doubt the feelings that I had
Could bring me through
And every teardrop leaving me
Was leaving me for you
If all my instincts screamed to me
And tried to guide me through
Would I long for an eternity
Or just come back to you
- "True" by Amaranthe
So much of the first book and then continuing on in this second one seems to be pulling Thanos and Tam apart, and for Thanos particularly he has to take the time to sort out his thoughts and feelings and realize that this is exactly the time that he needs to fight for what he wants. Or else he could potentially lose it all. He knows that his position as Death is one without end and so he has to figure out what eternity means if he doesn't have a companion to keep him from losing himself.
You can try to defeat me, you won't win
You won't beat me on the field
My fortitude beyond unreal
If you dare interfere me
Slow me down or impede me
My vengeance will be so unreal
- "Unreal" by Amaranthe
Thanos can be pretty scary. I mean, come on, he is Death, and he can stop the Resurrectors without even trying. Do we even remember how many of them he killed in the first book? Answer: quite a few. I think even I sometimes forget that because he just seems so uptight and proper most of the time. Several times during the course of writing Revelation, I have seen sparks of the rage dwelling deep inside Thanos, and hints of what it could be like if something happened and he sought justice or vengeance for it. I don't think it would be pretty. Honestly, it does not seem like a good idea to do something to tick off Death, just saying.
Danger
It's dangerous
I am out of control
Will I ever return
And it burns
Til I open my eyes
Danger - Dangerous
I fear what I'd become
I see the danger in
Falling back to giving everything
All away, I've fought it back now
Always on the run
Living in a danger zone
I am alone, I am invisible
To the forces of duality
All I want is what I can't get now
Gotta get up and gotta get away now
- "Danger Zone" by Amaranthe
Thanos stands on the edge of control, so close to just plummeting off the cliff and going on a rampage of destruction. Because of that he has spent so much time pushing people away from him, but now he has Tam, and he has become friendly with the Reapers, and so that makes him feel like even more of a danger, because there are people who could be harmed due to his actions. And of course, being Death, he is working to maintain Balance, working for the duality of life and death. He is constantly trying to see the big picture, which is difficult because he is only Death. It is really Fate who sees everything. I don't know. It might be fun to write an alternate version of events from Revelation, just to see what it would be like if Thanos truly exploded. Hmm...maybe someday.
With unlimited options
It has just begun
I've done things that you won't
I wish I'd never done
As I look through the eyes of
What is my design
You're taken the
Ascendancy
Shaking me, saving me
In the darkest hour
Fear was a part of me
Growing stronger
Breaking into my soul
Let me see eternity
- "Exhale" by Amaranthe
What I love about Revelation is that it is simultaneously a prequel and a sequel to Resurrection, because there are so many flashbacks to Thanos's transition to Death. It forces him to muse on some events from his past that he is not particularly fond of, and even worse, he has now been ordered to tell Tam everything, which means he has to tell her all the awful things he has done. Thanos fears that telling her all of this will make her leave, and while he wouldn't blame her, he doesn't want to be alone. Despite everything he hopes that she will break him out of this fear and darkness swirling deep within him.
Really though, it is all of Thanos's inner turmoil and his reluctance to disclose all the details of his past that has made writing this book take as long as it has. In the end, it will all be worth it, and I feel pretty certain that the book will be so much better than my first, but I have to reach "the end" first. It is coming, and trust me, I will be shouting it on all of my social media platforms when that happens.
So there you go...a peek into my writing process, in particular, the music behind the writing. If you guys enjoy these, let me know, and I'll try to continue with these posts in the future.
Really though, it is all of Thanos's inner turmoil and his reluctance to disclose all the details of his past that has made writing this book take as long as it has. In the end, it will all be worth it, and I feel pretty certain that the book will be so much better than my first, but I have to reach "the end" first. It is coming, and trust me, I will be shouting it on all of my social media platforms when that happens.
So there you go...a peek into my writing process, in particular, the music behind the writing. If you guys enjoy these, let me know, and I'll try to continue with these posts in the future.
Saturday, June 6, 2015
Musical Writing Inspiration Part One
In the April session of Camp NaNoWriMo I wrote about some of the music inspiring me as I worked to finish Project Death: Revelation, and it averaged more views than typical, so I figured I would come back and do another post. Unfortunately, I realized there were probably too many songs for one post...so there will be two. First up, I have been listening to the new Kamelot album, Haven, quite a bit and much like with the previous album, Silverthorn, many of the songs spoke to Thanos and Tam's story. Like last time I will post the lyrics and then a little description of why it is relevant to the story or what about it calls forth that writing inspiration.
It becomes clear in Revelation while Thanos is thinking of his past that he has done quite a bit of lying and deceiving, and this song sort of highlights that aspect of his life, while also reflecting his position as Death. The new Kamelot album has been full of amazing songs, and add that to songs from Silverthorn, like "Sacrimony," "Ashes to Ashes," and "Torn" (just to name a few), and I know that Kamelot will continue to be a band that inspires my writing in the future. I so can't wait to see them in concert again this November. It will be amazing.
Part two of this musical inspiration post will be up soon, and it highlights another band whose music inspires my writing. See you then.
Sometimes I'm lost in the silence of empathy
A moment I can reflect
Sometimes I feel I am losing control
And feed on the essence of hate
Walking this world like animals
And into the dark we're wading
You are my reason to stay
Even if daylight's a lifetime away
- "Fallen Star" by Kamelot
The more I re-read over what I have written and think about what I still have to write, I can see a great deal of Thanos's struggles with the darkness inside him, and it really is something he has to fight to control. With Revelation we can see him starting to spiral towards destruction and darkness and he still hopes for a light at the end of a very long tunnel, and he hopes that the "daylight" he envisions includes Tam. I think a lot of these songs I've included in this list speak to the darkness and demons within Thanos and how it is dragging him down to where he could be the greatest threat of all to all life and death.
When the darkness brings the cold
To draw me under
I am caught between
The chapters of a dream
Something is reaching out and
My entire world is crumbling
And it whispers that I am
The chosen one...
Can you hear me...?
When the night begins to fall
I watch the shadows growing tall
Feeding my insomnia
Like a fly on the wall
- "Insomnia" by Kamelot
I think it is mentioned in the summary for this book, but something starts happening to Tam in this book and that makes Thanos feel trapped and helpless and like this life he has created with her and now with the Reapers is in jeopardy. At the same time he keeps thinking back to how he became Death in the first place, and that time of transition was one that crumbled his entire world and he had to rebuild himself. Now it becomes a question of if he can stand to do that again, or if this time he will self-destruct.
My dear I promise
Death comes to all
In a heartbeat...Only silence
Let's play with the fire
That runs in our veins
Trust in the might of a miracle
Now winter has come
And I stand in the snow
I don't feel the cold
And it is all that I will ever need
To believe
- "Veil of Elysium" by Kamelot
Obviously songs that talk about death and solitude and potential for danger really resonates for not just this book, but the whole series. In Resurrection Tam felt quite isolated, and then in Revelation, Thanos becomes Death and separates himself from everyone he had ever known, and from the little bit I've written for book three, Redemption, Julianne (Jules) is alone and hoping for a miracle, so this song really speaks to the series as a whole, and I love when I find songs that resonate that much with what I'm doing and the mood and feeling I'm aiming for with the books and characters.
You may call me a dreamer
Call me a fool
Just a blue eyed believer in you
But I'll die for that someone
In the blink of an eye
So tell me...Please tell me
Just what kind of fool am I
- "Under Grey Skies" by Kamelot
I still need to actually write this scene because I've been putting it off, but there's this great scene towards the end of the book where Thanos actually confronts his father, something he has thought about doing for over a century, but he finally reaches a point where he doesn't care about the consequences or if he steps over the line and does something completely against the Balance and just kills him. Thanos's dad always disapproved of Thanos and while not out-right calling him a fool, it was certainly implied. I have thought about this scene for quite some time and it's nice to have Thanos basically stand up and tell the man that he isn't a fool and that he is willing to die for his beliefs if necessary. I can't wait for you all to read this. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
Who fears the ticking of the clock
When centuries are passing in seconds
Black is the color of my past
A product of society's abuse
Come and take me off my daily dose of pain
Take me off and shelter me
From this static nothing
You're the antidote
For solitude injected in my veins
May the touch of you hand forever be
My therapy
- "My Therapy" by Kamelot
Every time I hear this song I can't help but think of Thanos and Tamesis. Seriously, when she became the Angel of Death and he started to really develop feelings for her and everything, she became this antidote for the solitude he had felt for so long, and it makes this song kind of perfect.
Would you pray if I said you were dying
Would you be a little stronger
Or fall down on your knees
Would you stay with me
If you knew that I was lying
Would you walk away
Or turn the other cheek
- "Liar Liar" by Kamelot
It becomes clear in Revelation while Thanos is thinking of his past that he has done quite a bit of lying and deceiving, and this song sort of highlights that aspect of his life, while also reflecting his position as Death. The new Kamelot album has been full of amazing songs, and add that to songs from Silverthorn, like "Sacrimony," "Ashes to Ashes," and "Torn" (just to name a few), and I know that Kamelot will continue to be a band that inspires my writing in the future. I so can't wait to see them in concert again this November. It will be amazing.
Part two of this musical inspiration post will be up soon, and it highlights another band whose music inspires my writing. See you then.
Friday, June 5, 2015
From the Stacks: The Shattered Court by M.J. Scott
Today's From the Stacks review is the first book in a new fantasy series by M.J. Scott. The Shattered Court is the first of the Four Arts novels, and has so many of the elements I enjoyed from her Half-Light City novels.
First in a new fantasy series from the author of the Novels of the Half-Light City.
Entangled in a court ruled by tradition and intrigue, a young witch must come to terms with newfound power and desire—and a choice between loyalty and survival.…
The royal witches of Anglion have bowed to tradition for centuries. If a woman of royal blood manifests powers, she is immediately bound by rites of marriage. She will serve her lord by practicing the tamer magics of the earth—ensuring good harvests and predicting the weather. Any magic more dangerous is forbidden.
Lady Sophia Kendall, thirty-second in line to the throne, is only days away from finding out if she will be blessed—or perhaps cursed—with magic. When a vicious attack by Anglion’s ancient enemies leaves the kingdom in chaos, Sophia is forced to flee the court. Her protector by happenstance is Lieutenant Cameron Mackenzie, a member of the royal guard, raised all his life to be fiercely loyal to the Crown.
Then Sophia’s powers manifest stronger than she ever imagined they would, and Cameron and she are inextricably linked in the process. As a witch unbound by marriage rites, Sophia is not only a threat to the established order of her country, but is also a weapon for those who seek to destroy it. Faced with old secrets and new truths, she must decide if she will fight for her country or succumb to the delicious temptation of power.Overall rating: 5 stars
Let me preface this by saying that The Shattered Court is most definitely a first novel, in that it spends a lot of time setting up the world and the characters, and a great deal of the plot is really laying down groundwork for what will likely be a tense and action packed rest of the series. The first 85% of the book had very little action to it, but that did not keep the story from being interesting to me.
Yes, most of the book is spent on: a birthday, a funeral, a coronation, a wedding, and a belated birthday ball. The middle section has a bit of intrigue that sets up the end nicely, but it was that last 15% that really sold the book for me. The pace picked up considerably and all the plot threads started to really weave together in a complex tapestry of awesomeness.
The concept of magic in this world is interesting, and I really can't wait to learn more about all of the four magical arts in this fantastical world. And the romance was pretty good, although yes, there were times when the couple seemed to doubt one another, which I guess makes it more realistic.
Every once in a while, I enjoy reading a book that is more character driven than plot driven. It allows you to delve into the characters' thoughts and emotions and desires in a way that doesn't always happen when an author feels that they have to put action plot scenes in constantly. The change of pace is rather refreshing and allows us to connect to the characters and the world more. Instead of having to jump from action point to action point, we get to almost join in on the day to day journey and life in the world and inhabit it for a while. The escape from reality is something I really look for in the books I read.
I actually like Cam and Sophie both, and I am supremely curious about what will happen next. The book ended with Cam and Sophie in a place completely foreign to them, and they are very unsure of what will happen next. That really works because that is how we the readers feel after finishing the book as well.
The world building and foundations of the magical systems were well done and I really do feel like this series can only get better. I am very much looking forward to the next book, even if I have to wait another year for its release.
Magic, romance, intrigue...what's not to enjoy in this book?
Okay, so I can honestly say that so far, I enjoyed the Half-Light City novels more, but those books also focused on a different couple with each book, whereas I think that this series will mostly focus on Sophie and Cam, so we'll see what effect the different approach has on the over-arching story arc.
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Feedback Needed: Blogging and Vlogging
Hey everyone...this is actually going to be a super short post, but I had a question and I'm hoping for some feedback on this.
I try to get on Blogger fairly regularly and check my stats, and I'm always looking for ways to increase viewership and of course, reader participation. That's why I linked this blog to my Google+ and why I post about it on my Twitter and Facebook.
Anyway, for most posts I typically receive between 12 and 30 views, which isn't bad...but I only get comments on maybe one out of every 20 posts. I would like to be able to interact with my readers and fans more.
Lately I have been thinking about the pros and cons of vlogging (as in video blogging in case for some reason you didn't know that). I'm wondering if being able to connect a face and voice with the person behind the computer (aka me) would be more beneficial.
Of course, that has me wondering what to do if you guys would prefer a vlog. Do I then stop blogging and just move all my content over to YouTube...or do I blog and vlog? If I do both then they would cover the same content (likely almost word for word), but would give the reader/viewer the option of whether they want to watch/listen or just read.
So that's my question: would you prefer my writing and From the Stacks posts in written format or video format?
***
Oh, and I'll have my regular From the Stacks review post up tomorrow, and then two special music related writing posts up this weekend (one on Saturday and one on Sunday). Yay for lots of new content.
I try to get on Blogger fairly regularly and check my stats, and I'm always looking for ways to increase viewership and of course, reader participation. That's why I linked this blog to my Google+ and why I post about it on my Twitter and Facebook.
Anyway, for most posts I typically receive between 12 and 30 views, which isn't bad...but I only get comments on maybe one out of every 20 posts. I would like to be able to interact with my readers and fans more.
Lately I have been thinking about the pros and cons of vlogging (as in video blogging in case for some reason you didn't know that). I'm wondering if being able to connect a face and voice with the person behind the computer (aka me) would be more beneficial.
Of course, that has me wondering what to do if you guys would prefer a vlog. Do I then stop blogging and just move all my content over to YouTube...or do I blog and vlog? If I do both then they would cover the same content (likely almost word for word), but would give the reader/viewer the option of whether they want to watch/listen or just read.
So that's my question: would you prefer my writing and From the Stacks posts in written format or video format?
***
Oh, and I'll have my regular From the Stacks review post up tomorrow, and then two special music related writing posts up this weekend (one on Saturday and one on Sunday). Yay for lots of new content.
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
May Book Haul
Well, hello there. I guess I'm starting the month of June off by showing you my book haul from the month of May. For the remainder of the month I'll be talking Camp NaNoWriMo prep for my complete rewrite of my book Souls Unknowing. More on that next week though.
First up, we have the hardcovers.
I have loved every book I have read by Sarah J Maas, and A Court of Thorns and Roses is no exception. I'll have the review up on Friday, but I just have to say that it was well worth the price to own this amazing book in hardcover. So good. It's fae meets the classic tale of Beauty and the Beast.
Julie Kagawa is another one of those authors whose books I tend to devour, which is probably why I waited so long to get into Talon. But now Rogue is out too, so at least I can read both of them in quick succession. It'll be interesting to see how the story develops as we learn more about the dragons and everything going on between Talon and the Order of St. George. I'm already waiting the release of the third book, Soldier.
Okay, and now for the paperbacks:
Citadel of the Sky by Chrysoula Tzavelas. I think I actually bought this back in March, but it was through a Kickstarter campaign, so I had to wait for the formatting and such to be finished before I received my copy. I was introduced to the campaign by an author I love, C.E. Murphy, so since she gushed about the book, I decided to give it a try. Come on, the royal family has magic, but it makes them go mad, so they all have protectors called Regents to try to help with the madness. Then when Regents keep dying, Princess Tiana decides to investigate. Along the way she makes a pact with a telepathic demon who is possessing a magical sword. That just sounds interesting.
Shattered by Kevin Hearne. This is the seventh book in the Iron Druid Chronicles, and I have to say that I just love Atticus's voice in these books. Kevin Hearne brings an amazing amount of depth and humor to these stories of a badass Druid. This is an auto-buy to me, even though I had to wait so long for the paperback release. This was the first book to get a hardcover release and I have to have matching sets, which meant waiting.
The Fire Seer by Amy Raby. I have read Amy Raby's Hearts and Thrones series and have thoroughly enjoyed them. I've heard mixed reviews on this book, but I'm willing to give it a shot since I've loved her other books. The second one in the series is out too, so if all goes well then I'll have another book to buy.
Ice Kissed by Amanda Hocking. The only Amanda Hocking books I don't own so far are the Watersong series, which I have on my to-buy list and I'll get around to them eventually, but at least I can say that I've read them. Her books are such easy quick reads for me that it makes it nice when I need something relatively light and simple. Not that these books are completely simple, but compared to some books I read (Song of Ice and Fire books, Sword of Truth books, Wheel of Time books), these seem a lot less complex. They're still amazing though.
Grave Phantoms by Jenn Bennett. Come on now, that cover is gorgeous, and I love Jenn Bennett's books. Plus, as I've stated before, these take place in the 1920s, and they include stuff like ghosts and visions. And naturally, good romance.
The Shattered Court by M.J. Scott. The review for this book is coming on Friday, so I won't say too much about it right here, but I thoroughly enjoyed M.J. Scott's Half-Light City books because of the interesting world-building and wonderful character relationships. This book seems to set up the series nicely, and I'm very much looking forward to the next one.
Time's Edge by Rysa Walker. I waited quite a while before I got a copy of Timebound to read, but man was it good. Now I have to know what happens next, so I'm delving into this book fairly soon.
Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy. Every now and again I just like to pick up a classic that I haven't read. Even though I have a degree in English Literature and I took more Brit Lit classes than anything else, there are a lot of great novels I was never assigned to read. It is a lengthy process to get through them all, but it is always helpful when a movie adaptation comes around. I don't like to see adaptations without reading the book first, ergo, I have purchased the book. See how easy that is. Yep, so simple.
And finally, the e-books:
Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld
Claimed by Sarah Fine
First World by Jaymin Eve
Courtlight Boxed Set (Books 1,2, and 3) by Terah Edun
No One's Surrender by Kelly Walker
Basically all of the e-books were on sale for really cheap ($1.99) or for free, so that made them easy choices. I've been wanting to read Afterworlds because it is related to NaNoWriMo which is cool. Sarah Fine is an interesting author, but I have to stray out into Kindle territory to read her most of the time; thankfully this first book in a new series was free so Kindle format it is. First World was free as well, and is a sci-fi book, something I typically read occasionally so why not try it? I already had the first book of the Courtlight series downloaded from a couple years ago, but since I got the first three for free, I guess it's worth having two copies of the same book on my NOOK. And No One's Surrender is the third book of Kelly Walker's Chadwell Hearts series. This one follows Chelsea, and boy is she a pistol. I reviewed the book at the very beginning of the year, so it's about time that I bought my own copy.
Well that's it for May's books. The other three weeks this month I will be talking about my preparations for writing Souls Unknowing during the July session of Camp NaNoWriMo, my thought process for completely rewriting a draft, and what it's like to re-plot a book to make the plot develop better and to get deeper into the characters. Then in July I'll be keeping you updated on my Camp NaNo progress. It's going to be a fun couple of months. Now, because of the focus on writing, I may or may not fall behind on my book reviews. Don't worry; I will make up for them, especially since I have a schedule figured out for book reviews until August. The reviews may be a bit late, but they will eventually be posted.
First up, we have the hardcovers.
I have loved every book I have read by Sarah J Maas, and A Court of Thorns and Roses is no exception. I'll have the review up on Friday, but I just have to say that it was well worth the price to own this amazing book in hardcover. So good. It's fae meets the classic tale of Beauty and the Beast.
Julie Kagawa is another one of those authors whose books I tend to devour, which is probably why I waited so long to get into Talon. But now Rogue is out too, so at least I can read both of them in quick succession. It'll be interesting to see how the story develops as we learn more about the dragons and everything going on between Talon and the Order of St. George. I'm already waiting the release of the third book, Soldier.
Okay, and now for the paperbacks:
Citadel of the Sky by Chrysoula Tzavelas. I think I actually bought this back in March, but it was through a Kickstarter campaign, so I had to wait for the formatting and such to be finished before I received my copy. I was introduced to the campaign by an author I love, C.E. Murphy, so since she gushed about the book, I decided to give it a try. Come on, the royal family has magic, but it makes them go mad, so they all have protectors called Regents to try to help with the madness. Then when Regents keep dying, Princess Tiana decides to investigate. Along the way she makes a pact with a telepathic demon who is possessing a magical sword. That just sounds interesting.
Shattered by Kevin Hearne. This is the seventh book in the Iron Druid Chronicles, and I have to say that I just love Atticus's voice in these books. Kevin Hearne brings an amazing amount of depth and humor to these stories of a badass Druid. This is an auto-buy to me, even though I had to wait so long for the paperback release. This was the first book to get a hardcover release and I have to have matching sets, which meant waiting.
The Fire Seer by Amy Raby. I have read Amy Raby's Hearts and Thrones series and have thoroughly enjoyed them. I've heard mixed reviews on this book, but I'm willing to give it a shot since I've loved her other books. The second one in the series is out too, so if all goes well then I'll have another book to buy.
Ice Kissed by Amanda Hocking. The only Amanda Hocking books I don't own so far are the Watersong series, which I have on my to-buy list and I'll get around to them eventually, but at least I can say that I've read them. Her books are such easy quick reads for me that it makes it nice when I need something relatively light and simple. Not that these books are completely simple, but compared to some books I read (Song of Ice and Fire books, Sword of Truth books, Wheel of Time books), these seem a lot less complex. They're still amazing though.
Grave Phantoms by Jenn Bennett. Come on now, that cover is gorgeous, and I love Jenn Bennett's books. Plus, as I've stated before, these take place in the 1920s, and they include stuff like ghosts and visions. And naturally, good romance.
The Shattered Court by M.J. Scott. The review for this book is coming on Friday, so I won't say too much about it right here, but I thoroughly enjoyed M.J. Scott's Half-Light City books because of the interesting world-building and wonderful character relationships. This book seems to set up the series nicely, and I'm very much looking forward to the next one.
Time's Edge by Rysa Walker. I waited quite a while before I got a copy of Timebound to read, but man was it good. Now I have to know what happens next, so I'm delving into this book fairly soon.
Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy. Every now and again I just like to pick up a classic that I haven't read. Even though I have a degree in English Literature and I took more Brit Lit classes than anything else, there are a lot of great novels I was never assigned to read. It is a lengthy process to get through them all, but it is always helpful when a movie adaptation comes around. I don't like to see adaptations without reading the book first, ergo, I have purchased the book. See how easy that is. Yep, so simple.
And finally, the e-books:
Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld
Claimed by Sarah Fine
First World by Jaymin Eve
Courtlight Boxed Set (Books 1,2, and 3) by Terah Edun
No One's Surrender by Kelly Walker
Basically all of the e-books were on sale for really cheap ($1.99) or for free, so that made them easy choices. I've been wanting to read Afterworlds because it is related to NaNoWriMo which is cool. Sarah Fine is an interesting author, but I have to stray out into Kindle territory to read her most of the time; thankfully this first book in a new series was free so Kindle format it is. First World was free as well, and is a sci-fi book, something I typically read occasionally so why not try it? I already had the first book of the Courtlight series downloaded from a couple years ago, but since I got the first three for free, I guess it's worth having two copies of the same book on my NOOK. And No One's Surrender is the third book of Kelly Walker's Chadwell Hearts series. This one follows Chelsea, and boy is she a pistol. I reviewed the book at the very beginning of the year, so it's about time that I bought my own copy.
Well that's it for May's books. The other three weeks this month I will be talking about my preparations for writing Souls Unknowing during the July session of Camp NaNoWriMo, my thought process for completely rewriting a draft, and what it's like to re-plot a book to make the plot develop better and to get deeper into the characters. Then in July I'll be keeping you updated on my Camp NaNo progress. It's going to be a fun couple of months. Now, because of the focus on writing, I may or may not fall behind on my book reviews. Don't worry; I will make up for them, especially since I have a schedule figured out for book reviews until August. The reviews may be a bit late, but they will eventually be posted.
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Most Anticipated Books of 2015 - Summer Reads (June, July, and August)
Welcome back to another post about the books I am looking forward to reading. This time I'm looking at summer releases, as in books released in the months of June, July, and August. Here are some books I'm really looking forward to buying and reading.
Hidden Huntress by Danielle L. Jensen
I absolutely loved reading Stolen Songbird, the first book in this trilogy, and I waited in anxious anticipation for any news regarding the sequel. Naturally this included practically stalking NetGalley in order to get an ARC...which I did, so the review will be up soon. These books are wonderful and I can't wait to see how the story concludes in the final installment next year.
2 June 2015
A Book of Spirits and Thieves by Morgan Rhodes
Okay, so this book is a spin-off of Morgan Rhodes' Falling Kingdoms series, and I already have enjoyed reading the first three (and the fourth is on my most anticipated winter books) so delving into a spin-off sounds like a good idea. We'll see what happens when introduced to new characters, and to see how Morgan Rhodes handles new elements, like having some modern young adults from our world venture to the magical realm created in the FK books. It should at least be interesting.
23 June 2015
The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
I've read a couple books by Jennifer Lynn Barnes and I have enjoyed them. This one is advertised as being Scandal meets Veronica Mars. Some have said that it is perfect for fans of Pretty Little Liars or Heist Society. I love Veronica Mars and I adored reading the Heist Society books. So, we'll see if this book rises up to meet the hype.
7 July 2015
Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine
I don't care that this book is basically being aimed at a 12-15 year old audience. It is a book revolving around the idea that the great Library of Alexandria survived. Everyone can access the Great Library's information, but personal ownership of books is illegal. I can be drawn into any book if it has an interesting angle on librarianship and access to information, so I am looking forward to seeing exactly what this book is about.
7 July 2015
Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee
Do I really need to say anything about why I'm excited about this book? It is what Harper Lee wrote before To Kill a Mockingbird and features a grown-up Scout Finch. IT IS A NEW HARPER LEE BOOK. I am so darn excited about this! Seriously, this is awesome.
14 July 2015
Spider's Trap by Jennifer Estep
Okay, so I'm only on book 6 of this series, and this is book 13, but I'm still really enjoying the characters and the setting and the plot, so I already know that I'm looking forward to reading this latest installment in the Elemental Assassin series. I want to see what happens to Gin next, and I can't wait to see what tantalizing food descriptions lie between the covers. These are not books to read on an empty stomach.
28 July 2015
Crystal Kingdom by Amanda Hocking
Obviously if I had the first two books in the trilogy on my most anticipated lists, then this final book of the Kanin Chronicles is on the list as well. I am amazed that Amanda Hocking can write so quickly and write well enough to have three books published in a year. It is a dedication and skill that I aspire to achieve. Really, I would just like to have two books out a year. Anyway, I loved the Trylle trilogy, and to get to see another side of the same world with the Kanin is pretty darn cool. Now I wonder what Amanda Hocking will create next.
4 August 2015
You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day
It's Felicia Day's memoir! She is a geek girl goddess. I am a subscriber to the Geek & Sundry YouTube channel and I follow Felicia all over social media, and I'm also a member of her Vaginal Fantasy Book Club, which has introduced me to a lot of really fun books. So getting to read a book by Felicia that is all about her growing up and becoming the amazing and successful geek girl that she is today is something I am super excited about. I'm also looking forward to her announcing her book tour, because if she gets within 4 hours of me, I am going to the signing. Meeting Felicia is definitely one of the top items on my bucket list.
11 August 2015
Hidden Huntress by Danielle L. Jensen
I absolutely loved reading Stolen Songbird, the first book in this trilogy, and I waited in anxious anticipation for any news regarding the sequel. Naturally this included practically stalking NetGalley in order to get an ARC...which I did, so the review will be up soon. These books are wonderful and I can't wait to see how the story concludes in the final installment next year.
2 June 2015
A Book of Spirits and Thieves by Morgan Rhodes
Okay, so this book is a spin-off of Morgan Rhodes' Falling Kingdoms series, and I already have enjoyed reading the first three (and the fourth is on my most anticipated winter books) so delving into a spin-off sounds like a good idea. We'll see what happens when introduced to new characters, and to see how Morgan Rhodes handles new elements, like having some modern young adults from our world venture to the magical realm created in the FK books. It should at least be interesting.
23 June 2015
The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
I've read a couple books by Jennifer Lynn Barnes and I have enjoyed them. This one is advertised as being Scandal meets Veronica Mars. Some have said that it is perfect for fans of Pretty Little Liars or Heist Society. I love Veronica Mars and I adored reading the Heist Society books. So, we'll see if this book rises up to meet the hype.
7 July 2015
Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine
I don't care that this book is basically being aimed at a 12-15 year old audience. It is a book revolving around the idea that the great Library of Alexandria survived. Everyone can access the Great Library's information, but personal ownership of books is illegal. I can be drawn into any book if it has an interesting angle on librarianship and access to information, so I am looking forward to seeing exactly what this book is about.
7 July 2015
Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee
Do I really need to say anything about why I'm excited about this book? It is what Harper Lee wrote before To Kill a Mockingbird and features a grown-up Scout Finch. IT IS A NEW HARPER LEE BOOK. I am so darn excited about this! Seriously, this is awesome.
14 July 2015
Spider's Trap by Jennifer Estep
Okay, so I'm only on book 6 of this series, and this is book 13, but I'm still really enjoying the characters and the setting and the plot, so I already know that I'm looking forward to reading this latest installment in the Elemental Assassin series. I want to see what happens to Gin next, and I can't wait to see what tantalizing food descriptions lie between the covers. These are not books to read on an empty stomach.
28 July 2015
Crystal Kingdom by Amanda Hocking
Obviously if I had the first two books in the trilogy on my most anticipated lists, then this final book of the Kanin Chronicles is on the list as well. I am amazed that Amanda Hocking can write so quickly and write well enough to have three books published in a year. It is a dedication and skill that I aspire to achieve. Really, I would just like to have two books out a year. Anyway, I loved the Trylle trilogy, and to get to see another side of the same world with the Kanin is pretty darn cool. Now I wonder what Amanda Hocking will create next.
4 August 2015
You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day
It's Felicia Day's memoir! She is a geek girl goddess. I am a subscriber to the Geek & Sundry YouTube channel and I follow Felicia all over social media, and I'm also a member of her Vaginal Fantasy Book Club, which has introduced me to a lot of really fun books. So getting to read a book by Felicia that is all about her growing up and becoming the amazing and successful geek girl that she is today is something I am super excited about. I'm also looking forward to her announcing her book tour, because if she gets within 4 hours of me, I am going to the signing. Meeting Felicia is definitely one of the top items on my bucket list.
11 August 2015
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
Basics of Writing: Setting
Welcome back to another Basics of Writing post. This week my topic is setting, and it is something I have actually been thinking about quite a bit lately. Let's be honest, I only really thought about the most basic details of setting in the past, but that's changing now.
First, though, let's look at the definition of setting. Here's the definition according to dictionary.com:
noun
2. the surroundings or environment of anything:
The garden was a perfect setting for the house.
5. the locale or period in which the action of a novel, play, film, etc., takes place:Setting can refer to place, as in specific and definite location of a story. This means the planet, continent, country, state, city, neighborhood, street, etc. What details of setting ground the story into a sense of space.
The setting of this story is Verona in the 15th century.
Setting can also refer to time. This is relevant because the concept of time can have an effect of technology, speech patterns, class, race, and gender norms, traveling methods etc.
Finally, setting can alter the mood or emotional scale of the story. A story set out in a dilapidated manor in the middle of a gloomy forest already adds a sense of isolation, loneliness, bleakness, and possibly even danger. Likewise, a story set in a sunny coastal tourist-filled town or city might seem a little more jovial and filled with life and excitement.
Obviously, setting can and should be a rather important part of the writing process, but I only really focused on locations if they were needed for a fantasy scene or two in the early stages of my writing. My original setting for Souls Unknowing was a made up place in Pennsylvania, but since I spent 95% of the story at the boarding school, I never cared to delve any deeper. And as for the Project Death series, the setting is unimportant to most of the narrators. They live in these facilities that aren't actually on Earth.
What I'm saying here is that setting is an area I need to focus on more. Currently it is one of my weakest points. But in my planning for the Souls Unknowing rewrite, I am doing research on locations and trying to make my school seem more realistic by giving it a sense of community. The same can be said for work on Project Death: Redemption, as the narrator was human and obviously did have a home and friends.
So, what's important when writing about setting?
There are numerous possible answers, but it all boils down to what is important for the story. In a city or out in the countryside? Does the reader need to know that the location has stores or houses or plants? You want to paint a picture of the surroundings but that picture will vary depending on your narrator/POV.
Think about it: would a painter observe the world in the same way as a detective? No. What about if the narrator happens to be blind or dear? How does that change how the setting is written? A teenager would not see the same world as a senior citizen. These are all points to remember for any writing project.
When writing urban fantasy, the setting is very important. It is why the genre is called urban fantasy, because the city is almost like a character too. So for UF a writer needs to write the city with enough detail that the reader believes everything. This is true regardless of whether the city is real or imagined. Books like Faith Hunter's Jane Yellowrock series make New Orleans come alive, with the addition of vampires and other paranormal creatures, while Jennifer Estep created the city of Ashland, Tennessee at the border of Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia, which feels just as real as New Orleans in the Jane Yellowrock books. Plus Estep has a way with describing the food in the region that just makes you hungry for some good Southern barbecue.
With epic fantasy, which takes place in a completely made up world, everything still needs to feel real. Maps can come in handy for this genres. There should be cities, towns, villages, forests, plains, mountains, deserts, whatever fits into the created universe. The setting can be vague and general or very specific and detailed. Setting defines other important aspects of world-building as well, including trade, religion, weather, race, temperament, clothing, flora and fauna, and even government. All of this just to make a believable world.
Science fiction likewise can use reality and imagination. The setting could be on a known world, a created world, or just on a spaceship. Just like with fantasy, there are so many elements to be utilized to make the world feel real. This is especially true if alien races are involved as well.
Historical stories need to be aware of not just the location but also the time. As mentioned above, setting is not just about places but also era and atmosphere. England in the 1800s would be quite different from America at the same time.
See what I mean about how expansive setting is? I have a lot to think about with future novels, and it's all thanks to thinking about these Basics of Writing posts.
Next week: Relationships in stories. See you then.
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Basics of Writing: POV
When I started thinking about my blog posts for this year, I realized that about half of my writing posts were about getting ready for NaNoWriMo, or participating in NaNo or Camp NaNo. Basically, those months sort of have a theme. Because of that, other theme-like ideas came to me. For the next few Wednesday posts, I will be going back to the basics and discussing topics to consider not just while planning a story, but also through every step of the writing and editing processes.
Today's topic is a big one: Point of View.
Technically this can also be tied into the topic of Voice as well, but I will save that for a later date, because I don't want to throw too many concepts into the same post.
First, we should probably define Point of View. The point of view (POV) is from whose eyes we see the story^1. That is a pretty basic definition, but there is so much more to POV than that. Henry James called the point of view in fiction a "central intelligence." By this, he meant that point of view operates as eyes, ears, memory, and understanding through which the narrative makes its progress^2.
Point of View is very important for writers, and often POV has an effect on everything else within the story. It sets parameters for the voice or voices, for the writing tense, and even on how some readers feel or react while reading.
Think about it: How many stories have you read using 2nd person POV? Probably not many. 2nd is difficult to pull off well in most scenarios and can be confusing to many readers. The obvious exception to this is Choose Your Own Adventure books. They almost always seem to be in 2nd person. "You walk down a hallway. At the end are two doors. You look at each in turn, knowing you must go through one of them, but which leads to safety?" The use of "you" puts the reader into the adventure in a way the other POVs don't.
Most stories will either be in 1st person (I) or 3rd person (he/she) and each have their own pros and cons. In fact, I know there are readers out there who prefer to read only 1st or only 3rd. So let's take a closer look at the two most popular points of view.
1st person POV is actually quite popular in many genres, but I see it used a lot in YA, romance, and urban fantasy/paranormal. This particular POV allows the reader to get inside a character's head. We get to read the character's thoughts, feelings, and actions first hand. Of course, this does not always mean that a reader feels connected to the narrator, but that once again deals with voice more than anything.
1st person can be limited to one character or a few characters, but it is usually not wise to utilize 1st person POV if writing from the perspective of say ten characters. Imagine reading George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series if each chapter was in 1st person. It is hard enough to give each character a distinct speaking voice, let alone continuing that in thought as well. One of my favorite childhood book series, K.A. Applegate's Animorphs featured five--later six--different main characters and each book is in 1st person POV. However, that POV is limited to one main character per book, with the exception of the Megamorph's books and the final book in the series. Those specialty books change narrator each chapter.
1st person can be written in either present or past tense, with benefits and limitations to each. Obviously present tense makes everything that happens feel more immediate, whereas past tense gives a little distance. My Project Death books are written in 1st person past tense, changing narrator with each book. My narrator for book three wants to tell her story in present tense though. And in the fourth and final book the 1st person POV alternates between two characters. I feel that this gives each book distinction from the others.
Finally there is 3rd person, which has a plethora of uses and benefits. With 3rd person POV, readers may be limited to following one character, a small handful of characters, or even an omniscient/omnipresent narrator. This all depends on the story being told by the writer. For example, what fun would a mystery novel be if the 3rd person narrator already knew everything? Mysteries tend to limit the reader to following one character of a couple. This can be seen in the books by "Richard Castle," Based on the TV series Castle. In those books the POV is 3rd person, past tense, and the reader gets to follow Nikki Heat, Jameson Rook, and occasionally Detectives Raley and Ochoa. The reader learns information at the same time as the characters, which is nice.
3rd person allows for a little distance from the characters too. You can get glimpses into their thoughts but don't live in them like what happens with 1st person. 3rd person seems to delve deeper into description of setting and action as well, as it is not limited to what the 1st person narrator might observe. This also makes covering a large cast of characters simpler, as the same voice can be used for narration throughout. It is why GRRM can handle having a large cast and spending chapters focusing on one at a time (for example, some chapters focus on Tyrion, or Arya, or Dany, or Jon). In the first of the series-- A Game of Thrones--chapters rotate through nine characters, but by the fifth book--A Dance With Dragons--we have 31 different POV characters.
My upcoming Souls trilogy utilizes 3rd person POV because I don't want to limit myself to the thoughts of one character at a time or throughout. I like the idea of having a little bit of distance from their minds, and won't have to dive so deep into a character's consciousness like I have in other series. When I started the trilogy in high school I wrote it in 3rd person present tense, which I know realize was a horrible mistake. That only works if you know how to do it right, like James Patterson.
Obviously this post only covers the most basic information on POVs. For more information search online or look through books on writing. There is so much to study about writing, and so much to consider with any story.
My other Basics of Writing posts this month will cover Setting and then Relationships. If there are other Basics you would like to learn more about, let me know. Finally, I will wrap the month up with a post on my Most Anticipated Summer Reads.
See you next time.
^1 Your First Novel by Ann Rittenberg and Laura Whitcomb, 2006.
^2 What If? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers 2nd edition by Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter, 2004
Today's topic is a big one: Point of View.
Technically this can also be tied into the topic of Voice as well, but I will save that for a later date, because I don't want to throw too many concepts into the same post.
First, we should probably define Point of View. The point of view (POV) is from whose eyes we see the story^1. That is a pretty basic definition, but there is so much more to POV than that. Henry James called the point of view in fiction a "central intelligence." By this, he meant that point of view operates as eyes, ears, memory, and understanding through which the narrative makes its progress^2.
Point of View is very important for writers, and often POV has an effect on everything else within the story. It sets parameters for the voice or voices, for the writing tense, and even on how some readers feel or react while reading.
Think about it: How many stories have you read using 2nd person POV? Probably not many. 2nd is difficult to pull off well in most scenarios and can be confusing to many readers. The obvious exception to this is Choose Your Own Adventure books. They almost always seem to be in 2nd person. "You walk down a hallway. At the end are two doors. You look at each in turn, knowing you must go through one of them, but which leads to safety?" The use of "you" puts the reader into the adventure in a way the other POVs don't.
Most stories will either be in 1st person (I) or 3rd person (he/she) and each have their own pros and cons. In fact, I know there are readers out there who prefer to read only 1st or only 3rd. So let's take a closer look at the two most popular points of view.
1st person POV is actually quite popular in many genres, but I see it used a lot in YA, romance, and urban fantasy/paranormal. This particular POV allows the reader to get inside a character's head. We get to read the character's thoughts, feelings, and actions first hand. Of course, this does not always mean that a reader feels connected to the narrator, but that once again deals with voice more than anything.
1st person can be limited to one character or a few characters, but it is usually not wise to utilize 1st person POV if writing from the perspective of say ten characters. Imagine reading George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series if each chapter was in 1st person. It is hard enough to give each character a distinct speaking voice, let alone continuing that in thought as well. One of my favorite childhood book series, K.A. Applegate's Animorphs featured five--later six--different main characters and each book is in 1st person POV. However, that POV is limited to one main character per book, with the exception of the Megamorph's books and the final book in the series. Those specialty books change narrator each chapter.
1st person can be written in either present or past tense, with benefits and limitations to each. Obviously present tense makes everything that happens feel more immediate, whereas past tense gives a little distance. My Project Death books are written in 1st person past tense, changing narrator with each book. My narrator for book three wants to tell her story in present tense though. And in the fourth and final book the 1st person POV alternates between two characters. I feel that this gives each book distinction from the others.
Finally there is 3rd person, which has a plethora of uses and benefits. With 3rd person POV, readers may be limited to following one character, a small handful of characters, or even an omniscient/omnipresent narrator. This all depends on the story being told by the writer. For example, what fun would a mystery novel be if the 3rd person narrator already knew everything? Mysteries tend to limit the reader to following one character of a couple. This can be seen in the books by "Richard Castle," Based on the TV series Castle. In those books the POV is 3rd person, past tense, and the reader gets to follow Nikki Heat, Jameson Rook, and occasionally Detectives Raley and Ochoa. The reader learns information at the same time as the characters, which is nice.
3rd person allows for a little distance from the characters too. You can get glimpses into their thoughts but don't live in them like what happens with 1st person. 3rd person seems to delve deeper into description of setting and action as well, as it is not limited to what the 1st person narrator might observe. This also makes covering a large cast of characters simpler, as the same voice can be used for narration throughout. It is why GRRM can handle having a large cast and spending chapters focusing on one at a time (for example, some chapters focus on Tyrion, or Arya, or Dany, or Jon). In the first of the series-- A Game of Thrones--chapters rotate through nine characters, but by the fifth book--A Dance With Dragons--we have 31 different POV characters.
My upcoming Souls trilogy utilizes 3rd person POV because I don't want to limit myself to the thoughts of one character at a time or throughout. I like the idea of having a little bit of distance from their minds, and won't have to dive so deep into a character's consciousness like I have in other series. When I started the trilogy in high school I wrote it in 3rd person present tense, which I know realize was a horrible mistake. That only works if you know how to do it right, like James Patterson.
Obviously this post only covers the most basic information on POVs. For more information search online or look through books on writing. There is so much to study about writing, and so much to consider with any story.
My other Basics of Writing posts this month will cover Setting and then Relationships. If there are other Basics you would like to learn more about, let me know. Finally, I will wrap the month up with a post on my Most Anticipated Summer Reads.
See you next time.
^1 Your First Novel by Ann Rittenberg and Laura Whitcomb, 2006.
^2 What If? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers 2nd edition by Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter, 2004
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