Author Spotlight: HT Lyon

Greetings, everyone! Apologies for the lack of posting last month, but life got in the way and I wasn't able to get things posted like normal.

 

On the upside, today I'm bringing my last interview with HT Lyon, an author aspiring to write some near-future, hard science fiction based on technology rooted in contemporary science. His work focuses on creating as much realism as possible, so that means no FTL travel, artificial gravity, aliens, etc., but he does this with Economics as his foundation.

 
HT, thanks for joining me. First question: have you written works in collaboration with other writers, and if so: why did you decide to collaborate, and did it affect your sales?
 
HT: I have done a few collaborations for fun and it is incredibly rewarding. The main thing is to build a lot of trust early and spend time working out what each of you is good at!

Here's how they played out. In the first attempt, I was the person writing the first draft and the other person edited and embellished. We worked to our strengths and were happy with the result. The second attempt had me come in and embellish a piece already started by the other author. Finally, the other mechanism that worked well for for myself and my writing partner was to take a character each and write interlocking scenes. This required huge trust that we wouldn't try and force each other's characters into corners or constrain them. It was quick and a lot of fun indeed!
 
Sounds like it! Do you think that giving books away free works, and why?
 
HT: I think it does work and I will do it. Free samples have always been a great way to promote a product or service and books as a form of entertainment are no different. The list revenue is simply another way to fund a marketing exercise. Admittedly it works best in certain circumstances, specifically if you have a series or if it's used to have people signe up for a mailing list. There are millions of customers out there so a few free giveaways is very unlikely to hurt, especially if it does something useful like building a base of fans who have grown to like the author.
 
I think we're in agreement there. Do you have a soundtrack you write to? If so, how does this affect your prose?
 
HT: I don't have a single soundtrack. I do have soundtracks for some of my ideas. I listen to the soundtrack at the gym as I plot the novel and the good thing is that playing the soundtrack helps with recall later. It's like a little like a mental notebook.
 
What do your fans mean to you?
 
HT: I would love to have fans, people who liked my work. I really aren't interested in telling people what to think but I do care that people think for themselves. I would love to think of my fans as people who looked forward to my stories because of the way they made them re-examine their assumptions of the world. Also, if an indie author (or any author) is going to make a serious attempt at writing, then they need a fan base.
Last one, promise. Where is your favorite place to write?
 
HT: Anywhere I can get it done actually, but my most productive place is at home. Unfortunately, depending on what's going on in my life at the time, it can also be the least productive. Lunchtime is another favourite. Crank out an hour of draft over lunch works well. You need to find a quiet spot to sit, though. It really needs alone time.

***

 

HT Lyon is an aspiring writer of science fiction. A futurist with a keen interest in where our society is heading, he tends focus most of his attention on stories that examine the direction our society is taking, or that shows where we could end up. Optimistic by nature, he believes that one day we will look to settle the Solar System as we outgrow our planet, and some of his stories examine how this could look. 

Currently, HT has a number of novels underway and some short stories. His aim is to get one of these up and published before the end of the year around the other commitments that exist in his life.

You can follow him on his website or follow him on Twitter.

A writer's work is never done

And that's certainly true whenever we're trying to hammer away at an ending that's been eluding us.

I'm sure you all remember my many promises to have Comedy of Rain done long ago, but what with writer's block and my recent illness this past Spring, progress got pushed further and further back. On the plus side, at least I was able to sew up some plot holes and brainstorm how to get some of my original ideas back into the ending.

See, I had to go back and restructure things from about chapter 30 on, which included merging two POV chapters into one and giving Hipólito command of that particular plot point. This pulled the plot forward, and, while I had to cut a scene I really wanted to keep, I think this greatly improves pacing and buildup for the big reveal.

But more importantly: I'm writing again, and that means progress is being made on this draft. If the inspiration holds and the Muse stays, then I look to have this wrapped up before the end of July.

Fingers crossed.

Author Spotlight: Imogen Keeper

As part of my continuing series of spotlighting fellow authors, this month I'll be interviewing Imogen Keeper.

I had the pleasure of meeting Immy through a critiquing website, and by an exchange, I got to read her Sci-Fi Romance/Erotica novel, The Bonding, before she debuted it. The novel, which is about a princess sent into space in order to save her people, focuses on the unusual bonding between a tribal space warrior and said princess. A bonding rooted in collar-loosening, hand-fanning erotic pleasure. Be sure to check it out if you're looking for a smooth read.

Anyway, let's get started: why do you write?

Immy: Hmmmm . . . I should probably say something really cool and edgy like, "I write because I must," and maybe there's a component of compulsion to it. I certainly feel a writer's high when I finish a great scene, and I feel pride when I'm done editing it and I like it.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZ5MMS4/

But mostly, I write because it feels more productive to write down my fantasies. Otherwise, I'm just in my head, being lazy and self-indulgent. I'll have the fantasies and dreams no matter what, so I might as well write them down. At least that way, I'm producing something.

You mentioned being proud of your work. What are you most proud of?

Immy: Well, I won't claim that every scene I've ever written is a masterpiece, but there are a couple scenes or characters of whom I am especially proud. I have an Urban Fiction that I'm slaving away at and I have to admit, I love that story. I'm proud of just about every sentence in it, and each character feels like a gift. Like a friend or a child almost. I love those characters intensely.

From my Romance-Eroticas, there is this one scene, it's simple and not deep or anything earth-shattering. It's just about a woman running away from police in a market in a dystopian world, but the details and the wording in it, it just comes alive. It transcends the separation of word and reader and it just sucks you in. Everyone says so when they read it. I just got the balance right. I am proud of that scene. It's from a book that should come out next year, called The Claiming.

Is that what you're working on now?

Immy: Yes and no. I work on a few projects simultaneously to keep myself fresh and my world from getting stale. That is one of the (many) books I'm working on.

Good to know. Can you talk about your process? Specifically, how you go about writing?

Immy: I don't really feel like I'm experienced enough to have a set system. I've finished two books, and have three others halfway finished, and so many more only just begun. I straddle the pants/plot bridge, doing a bit of both. Usually, I get bitten by the writing bug and pound out 10-15 thousand words.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XHD3JH6/

Then I edit that and mull it over, and reread the whole story and make changes. Switch to a new project and work on that for a while. Then come back and do another round of edits, hopefully followed by a major writing session again. Fits and starts. I do force myself to do something writing-related each day. Critiquing, reading, studying, editing, writing, debating with other writers . . . whatever it is, I have to write something every single day.

I see. Last question: what happens if you don't write every day?

Immy: The sky falls down. Kidding. Nothing happens. I go to a party, or take a trip, or have an unavoidable appointment and nothing writing-related gets done. It stresses me out, though. Sometimes more than others. I have a harder time staying in the moment, focusing on real people if I don't get some writing time in.

I'm very shy, naturally. It's a constant battle to come up with something interesting to say in conversation, and I tend to forget to listen to people because I'm so in my head. I find that I'm better able to focus on people when I do get a chance to write. I can relax more, play with my kids with more creativity and energy, talk to my husband and remember to ask the right questions, or go to a party and interact with people in a way that they don't even notice I'm weird, or shy, or awkward, or have these vivid, sexy characters chattering away in my skull.

***

Imogen Keeper has a rampant imagination for all things silly, sexy and sordid. It's hard to keep it all in, so she writes down her daydreams and her night-dreams into the form of big alpha heroes and the ladies who love them.

She was born in DC, lives there now, but did go away for a stint at college where she doubled-down on Art History and Literary Analysis. An MFA, a husband, a house, and two kids later, here she is . . . writing some steamy romance. Her professors in school would laugh.

You can check out her website or follow her on Twitter.

No deadlines

Aside from the ones I make, that is.

One of the best things about being a self-publishing author is that I can pick and choose my release dates, blog dates, etc. based upon my own schedule. Being sick these past two months made me realize that more so now than before.

There's always a catch, though. For me, a fair bit of my platform is automated. In this day and age, technology makes it easy for me to prep my posts in advance, and then I just set them up to post either weekly or monthly (depending on the material) while I work on my writing.

The problem, though, is that being knocked down by allergies, a stomach flu, and general illness for two months straight meant I didn't have the focus to sit down and script new posts so that there wouldn't be any interruptions. I've been grabbing things one at a time, getting them posted last minute (or, in the case of this past week on Facebook, posting it after the fact and just backdating it).

Even this blog post is behind from what I would normally post (noon), but at least I'm getting it out the same day, right?

All things considered, I'm getting back in the grove post-illness, so posts are getting scheduled now, and the manuscripts—gods, the manuscripts—are being worked on again. In fact, I've been on a binge this past week, and I've made it through twelve chapters of Comedy of Rain in my efforts to cut NaNoWriMo word vomit, as well as fill in the gaps for ideas that weren't as fleshed out as they should have been.

Here's hoping that I can keep up this progress through this long weekend.

Catch you all again soon!

Stay tuned for a word from our author . . .

Apologies everyone, but this spring has been killer for allergies and stomach bugs, and I'm behind on so much (blog posts included). No major updates to report, so I'm going to finish mending and getting back into the groove of editing Comedy of Rain. Chat soon!

Road to recovery

April was a bad month for me. I went from a sinus infection to fluid buildup on my ears to a horrible stomach virus. Needless to say, my writing has been suffering because of it.

When I last left off, I was deep into the edits of Comedy of Rain, compiling notes for major changes, altering snippets here and there, cleaning up verbosity, and—most importantly—seeding Kadiza's proper motivation where it was lacking. It's starting to feel more like Kadiza's story, as it should, and I'm so happy for that. Franklin, I think, still undergoes the most change, but that's only because he's finally reaching a place where he's comfortable with both Kadiza and Hipólito. We'll see how that goes, of course, as things move on.

Just as soon as I get through this draft and get the ending wrapped up (yay for Gambit Pileups!), I'll get back to finalizing Tragedy of Ice for eventual publishing. Seriously looking forward to that, since it'll be my debut novel.

Anyway, I'm getting back to the grind, so I will keep you folks updated accordingly.

Ciao!

Author Spotlight: Tullio Pontecorvo

As part of my continuing series of spotlighting fellow authors, this month I'll be interviewing Tullio Pontecorvo.

Tullio's an author who believes the greatest virtue of speculative fiction is the Socratic exercise. Suppose blank: what are your choices, what are your beliefs? In his view, a good speculative story can tell you more about yourself as a reader than about the author who crafted it, because it doesn't beat you on the head with a stick: it confronts you with a complex situation akin to those we face in every day real life. That's what goes into his writing.

So, let me start with an obvious one. What are you working on?

Tullio: Hello, Ash! Let me just say I'm very happy to be here. My main WIP is a sci-fi novel, sprinkled with alternate history. The setting is the result of WW2 ending on white peace that allowed all major combatants to survive, and led to a fractured, multi-polar international order. Throw in an alien invasion that is not really what it seems, and a wide cast of characters of different ideologies that need to learn how to work together in order to uncover mysteries far bigger than humanity, and you've pretty much got my vision on paper. I'm nearing first draft completion.

That's a lot of detail. Did you have to do much research?

Tullio: Yup, and actually a lot of it is still underway! But no biggie. I love contemporary history and international relations in and of themselves; that they influence my narrative and world building is perhaps an even bigger testament to that.

Drafting and researching? Sounds like you might be a pantser!

Tullio: Indeed! Or a gardener, as GRRM would have it. It's given me plenty of headaches – but also the burning desire to see this story through.

Glad to hear it. So why do you believe stories are so important to us, both as writers and readers?

Tullio: In my view, stories are just models of our reality. Maybe they served some very particular purpose in the darkness of the long nights of prehistory . . . I don't know. But stories are older than writing (just look at the Aboriginal Dreamtime). And they're powerful. We might have gone forward to develop more refined models with philosophy and science, but stories retain the power to convey and explain reality in scale, in bites that we can consume. Of course, the less granular a model is, the more detail you lose, and that's why, at the end of the day, it's fiction.

That sounds cool! And finally, do you have any advice for writers who are starting out their journey?

Tullio: Yes: learn structure, even if you're a pantser. Not a whole lot has changed in this regard since Aristotle, and while structure shouldn't be a straitjacket, or something you necessarily plan against, it should at least help you diagnose your story beats. There's a reason why some structures are prevalent – they are designed to keep the reader interested, and raise the stakes when appropriate.

***

Tullio Pontecorvo is an aspiring science fiction author. He studies political science and international relations, and is currently working on a near-future sci-fi novel that explores the relationship between the individual and the ideological in a complex geopolitical environment. He's also a freelance journalist.

You can follow him on his blog and Facebook page. You can also check out the article he wrote for Earth Island Journal under a different name.

Author Spotlight: CL Feindel

As part of my continuing series of spotlighting fellow authors, this month I'll be interviewing Christina "CL" Feindel.

Christina is the author of The Revenant, book one of a sci-fi series about Grayson Delamere, a mechanic living on the fringe of the Trisolar System, who makes her living aboard any ship that will have her. That is, until someone blackmails her into helping recover the ghost ship Revenant and rekindling the fires of rebellion against the all-powerful Federation. If Grayson wants to survive, she'll have to stay ahead of a corrupt government, her elusive blackmailer, and her own dark secrets.

To start us off, Christina, could you please tell us about your preferred tools of choice for writing?

Christina: I can only write on a laptop. My brain just rebels at having to use a desktop, tablet, or anything else. For this project, I started using Scrivener. I’m kind of a hyper-organized person, so I really love the tools a program like that offers. After using it for this, I can’t imagine going back to a typical word processor or, heaven forbid, a notepad like I used when I was in school.

I see, and do you aim for a set amount of words or pages per day?

Christina: I consider it a good day if I get at least 1,500 words on the page or, if I’m working on edits, get through a whole chapter (which is usually about 3,000 words). But most of the time, that doesn’t happen. I write when I can, as much as I can. I’ll get where I’m going eventually.

Interesting. Can you tell us a little about your views on social media marketing, and which platforms have worked best for you?

Christina: I used to work as a social media marketer for a bestselling non-fiction author, and I learned a lot from her. I don't believe you can have a successful campaign without social media anymore. Part of your success in pitching a book or a TV show or any other creative project these days lies in how big your audience already is. I think the thing that works best is just being active and available and honest. You’re building a community, not a sales funnel. People want to connect with you. Encourage that and you might just find successful sales along the way.

I agree! What would you say are the main advantages and disadvantages of self-publishing?

Christina: I don’t have personal experience with both, but I’ve been on the sidelines of traditional publication. It would be nice to have that kind of support from start to finish, and the resources to create a high-quality product that gets widely distributed. But you still wind up doing most of your own marketing, which is probably the part of the process beginning authors need the most help with, so the main advantage of self-publishing is retaining a larger percentage of the profits for all of the hard, often uncomfortable work of advertising yourself.

Okay, final question for today, and this is the hard one. How do you relax?

Christina: I’m kind of a workaholic. I tend to feel a little guilty if I’m not working, writing, or getting some chore off my to-do list. I also feel really good when I’m accomplishing something (even if it’s just cleaning the bathtub). So I have to kind of force myself to slow down and appreciate just being still and enjoying the current moment. Reading is a great way to do that, and I also try to work in some yoga and meditation every day.

***

Christina Feindel resides in central Texas with her multi-talented husband, Noah. While traversing academia, civil service, and chronic illness in early adulthood, she founded the whole-foods blog ACleanPlate.com and now works as a cook, photographer, and educator.

She pens fiction in her spare time, with a particular passion for character development and genre-blending. More info about her and her debut novel, The Revenant, can be found at her author website.

Author Spotlight: Zeta Lordes

As part of my continuing series of spotlighting fellow authors, this month I'll be interviewing Zeta Lordes.

Zeta is currently working on a Sci-Fi novella that follows the adventures of a team of Galactic Peacekeepers. The first in a planned series of books, it will follow the efforts of a cadet trying to qualify for field duty, despite the odds being stacked against her. Like many authors before her, Zeta has written a world with endless possibilities, and is planning multiple works within the same fictional universe.

Let's get started now, shall we? Zeta, do you ever model your story characters on real life people?

Zeta: Not consciously, no. Of course all characters are a compilation of real life people, but I don’t think of people in terms of… “gosh they would make a fascinating character to write about”. My characters are strictly the stuff of imaginings.

Do you strive for diversity in your characters?

Zeta: Absolutely. With the caveat that diversity can mean many things both in and out of socioeconomic parameters. Since I mostly write Speculative Fiction, I have a lot of opportunities to write outside stereotype considerations and address diversity from different perspectives. I love messing with how people perceive the lines between differences and likenesses.

What are your favorite types of female characters to write?

Zeta: I almost exclusively write autonomous female characters. Whether they start from a position of strength or weakness, their stories are about their choices and the consequences of those choices. Even when outside forces pummel them beyond endurance (I try to do that a lot), it’s their choice how they live with that. Of course, I often use their own flaws, and even their strengths, against them but ultimately I want to expose the strength and resiliency of character… male or female.

What are your favorite types of male characters to write?

Zeta: I confess I love the Alpha type males to both read and write. No shrinking violets for me. Of course, they have to be true Alphas who deserve and give respect in appropriate proportions and situations. I recently read a book by James Scott Bell called Manliness: The Robert Mitchum Way. It was a fascinating study of the Alpha male. Sometimes a little dated, but never in areas that really count. Like my female characters, I want my male characters to come out at the end a better, wiser [fictional] person than when they started.

Last question! Is there anything you’d like to add about character writing?

Zeta: I think characters are probably the most difficult, and satisfying, aspect of storytelling from both a writing and reading perspective. That includes both protagonists and antagonists. Crawling into a stranger’s head and telling their story in a memorable way, is both liberating and limiting. Obviously it’s more work with primary characters, but I try to make nearly every character shine through in some way. It’s a complex balancing act. Ultimately it’ll be up to the reader how well I do.

***

Zeta Lordes is an author of Science Fiction and Paranormal Fantasy flavored with plenty of suspense and romance.  When she’s not writing, she’s often playing with photo projects, including book covers for herself and other author friends. She lives alone in a rambling house littered with three generations of passed down books and three cats—who have their own litter.

She’s just started reaching out on social media. You can follow her website and Facebook.

Author Spotlight: JR Creaden

In continuing with my spotlight of fellow authors, this month I'm interviewing JR Creaden.

JR is an author of Young Adult Science Fiction, and is working to publish RE: MORSE, a novel set in the distant future, which follows the journey of Hugo, a gentle teen who must become fierce to protect four aliens who've won his heart. Re: Morse is a space opera with time travel, a troublesome AI, and a mad teen scientist, and explores issues of friendship, identity, freedom, and consent.

To start us off: would you consider Contact Files to be hard or soft Science Fiction? Are there elements that cross into Fantasy?

JR: Contact Files is soft science fiction, for certain. The plot hinges on the existence and use of a time travel device (a temporal quantum field engine), and there's no such thing. Yet. Alongside time travel, there are site-to-site teleportation devices, and these coincide with matter resequencers. While these are all well-established scifi tech norms, I realize they're pushing the boundaries of true science. For now. I'm a believer in possibility.

The aliens have some quasi-fantastic traits that sit on that narrow fence between hard and soft science fiction. Telepathy, temporal "control", and meta-consciousness are all featured in the first book.

At the same time, the reality created in the book (aside from those mentioned) are drawn directly from hard science. Issues of stellar entropy, genetic diversity, biological evolution, and cosmic life cycles are at the root of the problems the characters must solve.

What do you find is the hardest thing about writing?

JR: All parts of writing come with their own challenges from my experience. In the planning stage, there's the struggle for looking for that balance between a unique hook and a familiar or believable setting. During the writing, there's the challenge of getting lost in tangent, of finding the best scenes and the best way to frame them. Once I'm editing, the hardest part is listening to critique and making the hard choices to cut or expand, rewrite or erase.

I find I push boundaries with each writing stage, honestly, so perhaps these things would be easier if I stopped trying to fight every battle at once?

Have you written works in collaboration with other writers, and if so: why did you decide to collaborate, and did it affect your sales?

JR: I'm currently ghostwriting a story for an engineer, but that project is still in development, so I don't have any sales projections. I decided to work with him, because I found his ideas surprising and strange. It seemed a shame that, since he "doesn’t write", his story would never be told without help. I'm a helper.

When I started Contact Files, I knew right away that this was an enormous task for one writer. Can I do it? Of course I can, but it may take me a decade to pour everything out. I'd love to find other writers to work with on the later books or adapting the books to screenplay.

Knowing what you do now, what advice would you give to your younger self?

JR: Don't marry a narcissist; it's detrimental to your health and purpose. Be wary of toxic people of all kinds, because you will attract them like flies as you stomp unawares through life. Stay light-hearted and open-minded, that's who you are, but don't be afraid to say "no" or to stand up for yourself.

Back up every draft, so you don't end up rewriting the same chapter five times. Seriously, losing work is extremely frustrating.

Last one: if you could only read one book for the rest of your life, which would it be?

JR: Tom Robbins' Still Life With Woodpecker. If you only get one book, it might as well be a book prepared to sell you on the value of a "single" thing.

***

JR began her writing career as a child disgruntled with song lyrics. After some early success with poetry and essays, she spent decades distracted by songwriting and academia until her story dreams became too interesting to keep to herself. Her current YA space opera series Contact Files will soon be ready for public consumption or vivisection.

Her goal is to share stories that inspire readers to embrace cultural diversity, the promise of science, and the value of humor and imagination to build a future that's more Star Trek and less 1984. When she's not writing, JR enjoys exchanging "your mama" jokes with her children, floating in lakes, and slaying virtual dragons. You can follow her on her Website, Twitter, and Facebook.

Author Spotlight: Alasdair Shaw

In continuing with my spotlight of fellow authors, this month I'm interviewing Alasdair Shaw.

Alasdair is the author of The Two Democracies: Revolution science fiction series, which starts with Independence, and continues with Liberty. The third story, Equality, will hopefully be released in summer 2017, followed by Fraternity the year after.

Give us an insight into your main character. What does he/she do that is so special?

Alasdair: The Two Democracies: Revolution series has two equal main characters.

One is Indie, the primary AI personality of the ship The Indescribable Joy of Destruction. He is the first known sentient AI, something of a taboo in the existing society. He was accidentally liberated by the other main character, Commander Olivia Johnson. She is an inspiring officer, despite having battled depression since she was a young girl. Even though they come from opposing sides in a generations-long civil war, they become close friends, helping each other overcome their inner daemons.

If you could place Indie in any other fictional world, which would he most enjoy?

Alasdair: Most certainly the Culture. The respect given to the Minds, and the rights afforded to all artificial intelligences, would make him very happy. I see him working towards establishing just such a society in the future.

What drew you to write in this genre?

Alasdair: I have always enjoyed reading science fiction, especially space opera and military SF. As a physicist, I find describing the technology entertaining. As an Army Reserve officer, I am intrigued by the possibilities of future combat.

Do you have any advice for other authors on how to market their books?

Alasdair: By and large, you get what you pay for. Returns tend to scale disproportionately, so a small increase in cost frequently relates to a large increase in effectiveness. There are some effective free or $5 promos, but they are few and far between.

Make good use of your KDP countdown deals. If you are writing a series, there is an added bonus of sell-through to your paid books when you put your first one on free.

Even if trad publishing, you should market your book. One author I heard recommended spending your whole first advance on advertising. Your publisher is more likely to throw their A-game advertising at it if they see it selling well.

 

Finally, take part in multi-author cross promo opportunities. These can range from discounted book listings (like Patty Jansen’s Science Fiction and Fantasy Promotions) to anthologies and boxed sets (like The Newcomer collection of science fiction short stories that I just edited).

What is your guilty pleasure?

Alasdair: Butter. I never really had much of an affection for it until I became lactose intolerant. Now, lactose-free butter is heaven. Lashings of it on granary baguette, or on whole-grain crackers – divine.

***

Alasdair Shaw grew up in Lancashire, within easy reach of the Yorkshire Dales, Pennines, Lake District and Snowdonia. After stints living in Cambridge, North Wales, and the Cotswolds, he has lived in Somerset since 2002.

 

He has been rock climbing, mountaineering, caving, kayaking and skiing as long as he can remember. Growing up, he spent most of his spare time in the hills. Recently he has been practicing his skills ready for the winter climbing season.

 

Alasdair studied at the University of Cambridge, leaving in 2000 with an MA in Natural Sciences and an MSci in Experimental and Theoretical Physics. He went on to earn a PGCE, specialising in Science and Physics, from the University of Bangor.

You can sign up to Alasdair Shaw’s mailing list at https://app.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/k9x9t2  and see what else he gets up to on his website.

The Two Democracies universe intersects with our own at Twitter and Facebook.

Watching a story evolve

There's nothing more exciting than getting back into the groove of things. Working on the revisions for Tragedy of Ice has made me appreciate the overall story even more. 

Having worked on Comedy of Rain for NaNoWriMo, and seen my characters after a substantial time skip, I really appreciate their personal growth. Franklin is so utterly young in Tragedy of Ice, and has grown up so much by the beginning of Comedy of Rain; Kadiza's gone from being closed off to others, and has built quite the support group for herself by book 2; Hipólito's no longer the aloof outsider, having been given his own POV, so we finally know what's in his head and how he sees the others. 

It's just amazing watching them grow. My characters really are my children, and I put them through so much. And they are the better for it, believe me.

I've yet to hook up my second monitor, so until then, my Surface functions as my work screen.

I also realized that Tragedy of Ice and Comedy of Rain are substantially different, in terms of the type of action, but that's a good thing. Tragedy of Ice is very physical, from the conflicts to the trauma. Comedy of Rain is psychological, with lots of mental abuse to go around. Yeah, there are still some physical altercations, but the cerebral mindscrew of a rabbit hole gets deeper and darker with the changes ISA makes in book 2.

At first, this had me worried, because the two books are so drastically different in terms of content when I compare them side by side. But the more I go back and forth between them, plotting and planning future scenes and arranging connections from the first book to the second, I understand how wonderful this turn is. The books have to stand on their own—that's a given—but they need to approach the same major plot point from different angles, without sacrificing quality.

I think if I had tried to shoehorn the plot of book 2 to match more with book 1, it would have ruined it. Readers would've gotten a rehash of Tragedy of Ice, just with a different cast and setting. I can't have that. The story has to evolve (naturally, organically), and while they say "history repeats itself", that can't happen with two works so closely aligned. They have to be different. The stories have to be different. Or else what's the point?

And as I continue to work on the two, I realize something else: I still need to come up with a sodding series name! lol

I'm alive, I swear!

Yikes! My last post was the tail-end of June, and here I'd promised more frequent updates. My apologies, folks.

Lessee . . . bringing you up to speed, I'm taking a break from editing Tragedy of Ice at the moment while I work on a romantic short story for an anthology called The Bowman's Inn. I'll be submitting a short for their Autumn collection, which is on schedule to be published in October of this year.

The short story exploded, too. I wrote out the short, then decided before doing revisions to do some free-writing, to get a better handle on the main characters. Well, it became 11,000 words of back story. Then another 18,000 words of back story. Now it's 54,000+ words (including the word count for the short story), and I can still do more with it.

I've decided that once the publishing rights revert back to me for the short story, I'm going to release it as an expanded romance novel. I'm looking forward to it, as I think it'll be a great treat for those who want to read more about the characters' shared history.

Aside from that, I've got to get back to my Appalachian Dream Tales soon. If I want to stay with my publishing schedule for those, then the next one, "Comeuppance", will be out in February 2016. Once I'm through the milestone with my Bowman's Inn short story (which, btw, the name for it is "No Signal"), I'll be back on course, doing the revisions for "Comeuppance" and getting the story cover ready to premiere.

That said, I doubt I'll be able to do much writing this weekend, as it's the holiday and family is in visiting from out of state. Going forward, I think what I'll try to do for the next few months is bring you folks a bi-monthly update. I'll shoot for every 15 days, so look for my next post near September 20th.

See you then!

Plot, and making sure it moves forward

I'm in the second draft revisions of Tragedy of Ice, and I'm taking my time with them since I have plenty of feedback from my critics to consider. And it seems most of them are in agreement about one particular issue: openings.

Something I've always known is that I have a problem starting scenes, but no trouble finishing them. Beginnings are my weakest point, whether it's chapter 1, or the opening scene to chapter 35. I'm like an old car, having to take my time to rev up speed -- though once I get there, I'm fine. But I'm having to teach myself new techniques on the go to make the openings just as active and strong as my middles and endings.

And I think it's a good thing I chose now to finally watch Attack on Titan, an anime that I've only ever heard folks rave about. Well, it does have a great premise, but the execution of the story is so poorly done that the plot stagnates and putters to a halt by the end. What muddies everything is the overuse of flashbacks (especially short-term flashbacks that could've easily been part of the linear plot 2-3 episodes earlier), side stories for characters that aren't integral to the plot (the military police side story in particular towards the end of the series), and history lessons meant to explain things about the Titans that could've easily been covered during the training episodes (again, as part of the linear plot).

So while I don't use flashbacks or side stories that deviate from my two POV characters (Franklin and Kadiza), I do have to make sure I don't stall my plot with exposition that would turn the reader off to the whole novel. It's okay that my characters experience setbacks, just like it's okay for the characters of Attack on Titan to experience setbacks, but it's important that the plot moves forward even if the characters are struggling. If everything comes to a standstill, then there's nothing to hold my interest as a writer, and by extension there's nothing to hold your interest as the reader.

I have to make sure things move forward, and that's doubly important during these second draft revisions, as I have to make sure I'm not over zealously adding new character interactions that will weigh down the plot instead of advancing it. I've got to find that perfect balance, but that's a topic for another day.

For now, I need to get back to editing, as I'm sure you're all more interested in reading the finished work rather than my ramblings about finishing the work. I'll check in again soon (still struggling to get back into a blogging groove, but Tragedy of Ice is keeping my attention laser-focused), but in the meanwhile, here's a link to Hipólito's character sheet.

Until next time! :)

A much needed update . . .

Yes. I know. I haven't been around the last three months. I blame my muse -- she's been holding my feet to the fire.

Tragedy of Ice is going, well, swimmingly. This story, unlike any I've written before, has come to me so clearly, I can't begin to explain how elated I am. I've gone straight from the raw draft to the first round of edits, and the plot is only tightening to a more cohesive unit. Since I can't say much about the ongoing plot of the story right now, I think what I'll do instead is give the big picture overview of what I've been working with:

Earth is on borrowed time – has been for the last 28 years, and so the nations of the world have pooled their resources and settled on the terraformation of Mars as the best chance of survival for the human race. 900 are chosen to undertake the EURTHA mission to Jupiter's moon Europa, a mission that will inevitably bring water and valuable minerals to the MARTHA colony on Mars. 

What should have been an 11-month mission to land moon-side has extended to two years. EURTHA has been plagued with one setback after another, as seismic activity on Europa's surface has scrubbed primary and secondary landing sites. Stuck in Europa's orbit, some fear turning back, others fear proceeding, leading to a rise in disenfranchisement and dissent among the colonists. 

Since launch, a feud has pitted Kadiza and Franklin against one another, but when renegade colonists shoot their mutual friend, Suresh, and steal one of his 3D printers, Kadiza and Franklin independently devise ways to avenge their friend. Each upgrades their NVR mechsuits, and assumes the respective identities of Voyager Crux and Peace Win. 

Not knowing who the other is beneath the suit, Kadiza and Franklin take a stand to defend the colony they've come to call home.

I like to think of this story as a tribute to my Transformers and anime upbringing, but also a nod to the scientific advances we're currently undertaking. It's over 105,000 words, and I'm still in the process of editing the last six chapters, so that number may fluctuate before I reach the end.

Alas, I must return to the grind, but hopefully my updates will become more steady again.

Cheers!

Been a busy litte beaver

I mentioned last blog that I'd gotten the inspiration for a story that I planned to keep for NaNoWriMo this year.

Hah.

I gave into the muse and wrote it. Mostly wrote it. I'm currently on chapter 32 of a planned 34 chapters. Whew. 76,000+ words so far, and so much more to go back and add to this space opera.

I know so much more about this story--Tragedy of Ice--now that I've expanded on what I dreamed up during a nap in February. So much, in fact, that I may be able to go directly into editing after I finish the raw draft. Heck, I may even try to self-publish this story this year just to see if I can do the turnaround. :)

Alrighty, now that I've checked in with you all, I'm going to duck out and try to finish this raw draft this weekend. I'll try to check back in next weekend to get back on a normal schedule for updates.

Cheers!