Quick Update!

Even though I just published a post, I wanted to try to keep update and topic posts separate. Easier to find back posts if I pay more mind to the sorting!

First off, I finished a draft on a second 'short' story. This one, currently called All-Seeing Eye, falls at about 16K right now. That can change along the way. This is the first of my side stories based on UnNamed, going back to a pivotal point in the mercenary's history and (spoiler-free) after his run-in at the Uther Coliseum. As you may know, UnNamed largely dealt with an antihero that has a memory issue. The characters were described in pronouns and nouns and nicknames of an ambiguous nature, not from his point of view, but with limited narration to keep the reader hindered by his own challenges. The short story does much the same, only directly from his point of view. In this way, you get much more of his voice rather than just a narration inspired by it.

It will be compiled with the first short story I wrote as a sort of prequel to characters of my first series, called Drawn to Perfection, currently at 9K words. This follows Dinsch and Seles, Bryfolk (rabbit human hybrids) that you first encounter in the first trilogy, The Truth about Heroes (also called the Heroes Trilogy). Again, this one is written from their POV, an interesting take on how they view their history and where their impressions were both vastly different yet very much the same.

The third story I'm working on for this anthology, currently called 'Ashes, Ashes', returns to UnNamed's storyline, but explores what had happened if the mercenary didn't make a pivotal change in UnNamed. Because this one actually delves into the Maidens' back stories, I'm planning it as third person omniscient rather than multiple first person POVs. In order to be able to show how it ties to the history, the limited perspective and biases wouldn't work as well.

I believe I'll probably keep this to four stories, but only if the word count exceeds 80K for all four. The fourth is yet to be determined, but I do want to revisit characters from the first series. Yet to decide that. If I throw in a fifth, it could be Gretel's Gift (currently in a multi-author anthology, The Magical Book of Wands, but will be released back to me at the end of October), a standalone short story or I'll come up with a wild card idea. It may be another spin-off of a current series, a unique fantasy tale or even an alternative universe idea I've thought about, involving characters whose lives took a different turn. Anything goes, but I'd like to be able to decide a unifying theme before deciding how they'll be packed and published.

A little longer than I'd hope for when I said this would be 'quick' but I'm excited to do some short stories before I go back to the UnHeard behemoth. I'll probably stick to short stories for the duration of March before I focus up on the epic beast but I did a quick 70K for the draft in November and that was actually conservative. Quick math: if UnHeard were 300K words (UnSung is around 260K) and I have 10 months to write it (leaving a month to prepare it for publishing), that means (easy math there), I would only have to do 1K words a day at worse (this would also leave me with a first draft when I should have several drafts and an edit so let's not do that). The first draft should at LEAST be done in half that time so double it (2K a day). I write about 1K an hour and writing days typically mean no less than 3 hours of writing and often go a full 8. It's possible to do about 10K on a terrific day. I COULD do 300K in a month, technically, but not if I want a coherent, well-planned story, so planning doesn't really make 10K days realistic without thorough planning of all scenes written then. It's far more realistic that I do about 3-5K on most days. Having ample time to edit and draft, at least two solid months being ideal. 

Also, my life is not writing, so even if things do get hectic or I need a break, it's best to be ahead when possible. After drafting, I often walk away from the story completely for a few weeks, if only to make it easier to catch mistakes. This is sometimes not a total break, since it's a good time to write short stories. I do enjoy playing video games, so that's a nice break too.

Ahem, so... short stories for now, warming back up to the big show. I really just wanted to gush about writing because I can't withhold everything until the big finale. Talking about it helps me blurb it later too, so it's always worthwhile. Back to writing I go!

Scrubbing Day

Like Pippi Longstocking, there comes a time when sometimes the most cheering feeling comes from domestic shenanigans. After a day of cleaning the fish tank, doing a boatload of laundry, taking fifty flights of stairs, healthy eating and a lot of walking, I... am just cool with being showered, lying in a clean bed, and letting my sore but satisfied body do nothing more the rest of the day.

My head is in my unnamed world, full of named cities and continents and struggling characters, but I look at my laptop across the room, laugh cynically and pull up my tablet to write a blog post instead.

Even though my NaNo draft has been sitting untouched since, I remember some of the little side scenes I haven't gotten to draft yet, playing at the frayed edges with secret laughter, sideways smiles, and furrowed brows as I feel the untouched structure strengthen without spoiling what it will be when I finally commit to typing its first draft into existence. I think of the Young Writer challenges, where I wrote scenes and notes that would never make the book (but might find a home in my blog someday), remembering how they decided more firmly what my characters would and wouldn't be.

I see the ending already written but still so distant, so lightly molded, as it will eventually be baked into its final form from the paths leading there that will decide its shape. I see my side stories more firmly resolving the character of the enigmatic asshole I wanted to create, not just through his own actions and circumstances, but the people around him as well. I see each of them as main characters and side characters, significant yet just as easily buried in the ever-stretching sands of time. They are the deserts that grow over time, the stubborn oases that keep such deserts from being unsurvivable wastelands, the cities lost and found and lost again. They are sentience and constance and vigilance and everything in between.

When their journey ends, I will still step into their stories and more besides, time and again, even as I move onto other projects. They may not stay so prominent in my memory, but pieces will resurface because faded is not forgotten. While some things are blurry as our minds build anew, some become the foundations of a greater curiosity the writer will explore over and over.

In my own future, there is hope in the long haul rather than any frustration for the present. I eschewed expectation, managed to create a place where I'm not discouraged from my goals.

Palate cleansed, I patiently coax my muse to return, to feel the natural flow, so I still write daily, regardless of whether it goes towards my goals. Sometimes I bleed on the pages, sometimes they keep my blood thrumming happily in my veins, words filling my lungs and releasing, coaxing my breath when the story leaves me breathless. I do not dare to dread the finite time, but grip it both firmly and gently, my unpredictable steed to guide. Whether it takes me all over the world and into old age, or it bucks and I break my neck, I know that this is life and I was never in control of anything but hope.

When I begin again, for hope at least speaks in whens not ifs, it is always time.

Short Stories and Shorter Stories

Even though I originally posted the news a couple weeks ago on my FaceBook page, I'm keenly aware that not everyone (meaning all but maybe two people) follows ALL of my outlets so I like to sprinkle the news over sci-fi-like timelines of no particular order.

Ever since the anthology, that saw published my first marketed short story, came out, I've been wondering what I might do with it after its one-year run is up. More short stories based on it? I thought of maybe making it a three-part story, coming it at a sort of 50-60K novella length. Which I might still spin-off the idea in the future, but I've always had the niggling urge to do a sort of sampler of my two published series but with wholly original entries.

Well, one night a couple of weeks ago, I'd sat down to do a quick outline of one of those spin-offs and within a handful (I'm ableist trash so that's five) of hours, I'd ended up with an almost 10K word draft for a The Truth about Heroes spin-off story. Whether you're new to the series or you've actually read it already, the story follows my star-crossed Bryfolk characters, Dinsch and Seles, and their rather unconventional love affair before they parted ways. (Think Song of Solomon, written by an atheist, and with all the juicy parts uncensored. Also, they're not married and it's not a happy ending.) Because it's a sort of prequel to where the books' events take place, the spoilers are actually few and may give you a different sort of appreciation than the reader that read them in a different order.

Either way, it inspired a new idea-- to maybe write some other spin-off stories for my adult collection. There will be triggering themes, but the playground is still in made-up worlds so it won't be my intent to include any current events parallels, just some nice adult fun. While some of my stories can be romance-centric, it's never the entire reason for the plots, every generic piece revolving around sex. In the same vein, there's plenty of sex. Why? Because I find there are powerful psychological motivations in even the most seemingly casual encounters and it's another layer to our growth as people.

And this coming from an asexual, in case you missed me saying that ever. Despite my own disinterest in a physical partner, I don't have trouble understanding, appreciating, and enjoying the intimate human connections and how they drive people. In the same way that I understand why people embrace religion, even being an atheist, it doesn't mean I don't have parallel drives to balance morals, observations, and moods just like anyone else. In fact, if there's anything I have difficulty understanding, it's how people can enjoy lying. I've never liked the taste of one myself. If I can't be honest, I shut the hell up.

Despite the stick-up-your-ass wannabe gatekeepers throwing sex into the category of literary trash though? Eh, fuck 'em. And fuck the people who are swear-Nazis while we're at it. The idea that I'm somehow simpler or baser or unsophisticated for 'going there' is ignorance. I deal with enough of that when people treat me like I'm retarded when they find out I'm high-functioning. At least until I'm dropping that knowledge. Sure, if I was some kid flexing my rebellious right to swear and fuck, I'll even agree it's tacky. It doesn't change the fact that many adults are capable of using adult themes to a story's advantage. I like to think I'm one of them, but those people will find any reason to be right so I'll let them gnaw on their wheat crackers and call it a cookie.

Ahem, anyways, I've mentioned the idea of UnNamed spin-offs before and I may pick a couple for this teaser anthology in the future. Insofar, the prevailing theme is just adult fantasy, so anyone who appreciates my mix of adult romance and far-reaching fantasy themes will be right at home with this one. If I have to cite any influences in this work, think of it in the vein of writers like Karen Marie Moning and Laurell K. Hamilton, only not so much only urban-ish fantasy since insofar, only Gretel's Gift flirts with real-world parallels. All the same, I'm a woman who likes deep and sexy and supernatural/mystical themes, so that's the nearest comparison I could throw at you.

Personally, I'm a fan of Moning's Fever series (even though her other titles fell flat for me) and Hamilton's Anita Blake series, though that one fell off after the fifth book for me. All the same, they use a lot of investigative themes, who-dunnits if you will, that also appeal to what I like to write, so that's where you'll see my influences. Other than that, compare at your leisure.

The biggest challenge in maintaining a blog is that they're absolutely nothing like what I enjoy as a novelist and it's harder than I make it look to figure out how much to talk about myself, how much to claim any proficiency, how closely I should bother sticking to a topic. I like the organic flow and the rambling here and there, if only because it's a departure from weaving words I care to edit over and over and over again before slapping a price on it.

I do delight in what I'm learning about short stories. I like the way it challenges me to get right down to the point, to cut that beginning, middle and end down from my usual epic build into a complete story that might tempt the reader to imagine beyond it on their own.

So far, I have Gretel's Gift and Drawn to Perfection. Haven't thought about working titles for the other possible stories, but I'm thinking of calling the anthology Sword Romance. No, I'm not; I'm just fucking with you. I really haven't thought of a cohesive title and won't until I've gotten all of them drafted at the very least.

You're welcome to use Sword Romance as your title. But seriously, it's super lame. Probably don't do that. Even if your Sword Romance becomes an international best seller, I'm just going to make fun of the title. Promise.

Upcoming Anthology: The Magical Book of Wands

In case you're not hip. myself and 11 other talented fantasy authors have teamed up to contribute our short stories to an anthology with the theme of 'wands'. At this point, I don't have the actual order the stories are compiled in but I do have the author and story names to share with you.

The Tiniest Spark - Nils Visser

Spellbinders: Judas Mirror - Bryan Rainey

Magen - Edward Buatois

The Long Way Home - Guy Donovan

The Keeper of Callister Space - Shakyra Dunn

A Wand Needs a Witch - Victoria Raschke

An Ill Wind - Devorah Fox

The Wand Whisperer- J Steven Tasicas-Young

The Dragonbone Wand- Ellen Pedigo Clark

Gretel's Gift - Krista Gossett

The Wand of Luminance - Rick Haynes

The Enchanted Sword - Raven M. Williams

As far as I know, this is the final roster. The anthology will be up for preorder soon, to be released October 31st. There will be both paperback and digital versions available. Remember, these anthologies are only available for one year. After that, permissions are released back to the original authors for us to choose a more permanent home. Many of these are spin-offs of the authors' series but some are standalone entries. It's a great way to get a huge bargain and decide if you'd like to see more from indie authors.

I'll be excited to post more teasers and information as they become available. I will be posting across many accounts, but if you have questions about the anthology, contact me via email, comment or PM and I'll do my best to answer it.

Mark your calendars for October 31st!

The Truth about Heroes: A Short Story that Grew Up

I didn't love every Final Fantasy game ever made blindly. My preorder history shows a rather embarrassing trail of chances given before the burns created hesitation. However, Final Fantasy XII, though vilified in the fandom, was a romantic playground for my budding imagination. It took the recurring theme of airships to a new level, adding dimension to the bad guys of the sky, making sky pirates three-dimensional-- beyond just the beautiful graphic Square always pioneered. Many of the characters felt... kind of flat though, aside from the charismatic Balthier but there was a short cutscene involving the Princess Ashelia that hit the nerve.

If you haven't played the game, the scene shows her political marriage to the dashing prince Rasler but while the marriage was still in its infancy, a war breaks out and he is killed. Ashelia's lackluster reaction might have made it forgettable but something stuck (and not for lack of great story-building. I'll link you so you can read the full story HERE). I saw Ashelia become Rienna and envisioned a smiliarly strong young woman who struggled to find her place, not a princess but the daughter of the Commander of the King's Army and her disjointed relationship with the young man her father favored to follow his footsteps someday. I lowered the expectations of entire kingdoms on their shoulders; my retelling didn't feel like one of power and prestige but the raw emotion of young people reaching for happiness. I was a young one myself, romanticizing a troubled love with doomed aspects to lament its interruption.  I rolled it out in a montage, flashes of past and present and the big day becoming a dark stain on far more lives than her own.

It wasn't a chapter when I wrote it, but a one off bit of prose that repainted the scene. I threw it on a CD and labeled it Blazing Paths.

When I came back to it months later, I read it again. This time I looked at the space after and felt an ache and centered the text in the blank space.

Chapter 2

It's not over.

Rienna had fled on the guard Captain's horse, revenge mobilizing her in the numbness of unsorted chaos. She saw his face, the man responsible, and questions flew rapid fire and lava hot in her mind. She knew him. She remembered the heated words exchanged before he left. There wasn't a single excuse he could give her that would spare him from her wrath once she found him.

Two more characters make their way in. She's not thrilled about having company along for her schemes. She needed a tracker to find where the attackers went but that bargain unwillingly gained the loyalty of her tracker's best friend.

In the beginning, I thought this story might be hers, but plans changed. The world grew. There were more people in it, more pieces to the story.

Ashe returned, not as a princess but as a miscreant who sneaks into a circus tent. He watches the performers, drawn to a young man who fights in the same rare style he uses, only he has no memory of why he knows it. Like Rienna, he thinks it is a day for closure until the shit hits the fan and another city is torn down.

Somewhere along the way, it started to become The Truth about Heroes. I got into the heads and lives of people who are not just heroes leveling up in orderly fashion but often pawns struggling for a sense of free will. There are absent gods, people without souls, tribes with dual magical affinities and the shaky pacts of elementals who promise power at a steep price.

It's not about romance or war or magic. It's about the large and small scale effects, pieces that struggle to reform and fit in the shifts of time. The world moves from the grueling concerns of one person's aspirations to the grand 'fate of the world' and often the unbalanced hands that claim to know what's best.

It's philosophy without the definite bias. It's psychology that doesn't play nicely with the DSM-V (or rather shows why brain sciences have a pseudo side). It's character development behind the scenes and laid bare, flaws and all. Above all, it's fantasy-- magic, mythical creatures, new rules and discovery. Oh, the struggle to blurb this one because it's not just a neatly packaged entourage, a party of fast friends with clear roles. It's a series about adaptation and growth. It doesn't tell you how to feel and the characters are only kind of sure about what is true even when they spout it as fact.

Up to that pivotal point, I was about poems and short stories. I was about comics in blue-lined spiral notebooks. I was always about stories but until that point, when chapters became books and books became series, I didn't know I'd be a serial novelist. I didn't know I'd have that kind of discipline and desire to grow a world from a few choice scenes. I didn't know I'd renew my love of drawing through writing. To start envisioning comics again.

Maybe it's not quite as laser focused as it could be. I know that between the three-- comics, writing and illustrating--there's going to come a point where I'll have to choose. I follow the muse but I follow the opportunities. I've seen so many people sink themselves into vast voids of marketing and networking to try to get their babies noticed, but I feel the freedom of ninja production. The flitting between all the plans I once only dreamed of. 

I feel the pulsing edges of finished things. I say finished, but in truth, those edges whisper the possibility of more. I still see the flashes of the War of Black Violets and the ogre uprising. I still see the past antics of my unnamed mercenary in the series I have yet to finish. I see them in comic, movie and video game form. I see a possible future where people open up to my ideas and my voice, but right now?

I see the forest for the trees. I build small fires on still cool nights and write lip-biting tales.

There's the romantic again. Because I'm also growling at computer screens in epic battles of editing and formatting. Every epic brain is tied to a frustratingly finite body that succumbs to eye strain, wrist cramps, neck and back slumps and the need to eat, sleep and human.

However, I once battled a borog on the way to picking up my nephews from school. Storytelling is everywhere!

It's okay if you didn't know you wanted to be a writer since you could hold a pencil. It's okay if you don't find your muse until you're 50. You don't have to have big plans to end up with big stories. Just that little torch that keeps burning with the promise of more.