You’re All Going to Think I’m Crazy…

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authors, Being an Author, books, eBooks, indie authors, Indie books, Kindle, novels, On Writing, sequel, vampire books, vampire fiction, vampire novels, vampire trilogy, vampires, writing

Seriously, you are.

And I’m pretty sure you know what I am talking about.

It had been on my mind for a little while, and took a good butt kicking to get the drive going again. But I am glad that engine is roaring once more, and I doubt I am going to look back.

I am once again working on the sequel to The Dark Proposal.

Yeah. I’m certain some of you are rolling your eyes now.

After stopping, restarting and stopping again, I am giving it another go. And this time I am going to go all the way with it.

The last time I stopped was, as I explained, mainly for financial reasons. As much as I wanted to keep working on the sequel, I was concerned about how expensive it is to self-publish. But after doing a little research, I found it is not that unusual for writers to do crowd-source funding for their work. And that is what I plan to do. By the time I am done with the first draft of this book, I will start a campaign to raise money to get my book edited, get the cover made, and a few other promotional things to get the word out about it. But that won’t be until the fall, perhaps.

Some of you might be thinking that I am struggling with the main character, Claire McCormick, because I portrayed her as insecure, naive and kind of foolish, which is not easy to follow-up to in the sequel. While my intention was never to make her a strong, kick-ass female, I am finding ways to develop her strengths as well as have her face her weaknesses. Claire’s story is about personal responsibility, which ties in with the vampires’ story.

Some of you may also be wondering about my other WIP, “The Cats”. That I am setting aside until I complete my vampire trilogy. I may work on it from time to time, but my priority is my vampire stories, so once I complete them, then I’ll continue on with “The Cats”.

Yeah, being an author can be a mindboggling thing. You have to weigh-in writing what you want versus what makes since business-wise. After all, writing books is a business, whether you self-publish or go the traditional route. Money talks, and you have consider how you’re going to spend your money, or obtain the funds, to get your work out to the world. But sometimes passion talks to, and if it’s in your gut to write something, or finish something, than there are times when you have to give in. Besides, going with your gut works all the time.

So, without any further ado – onward with the sequel to The Dark Proposal.

BTW, I’ve already given it a working title: “A Light in the Darkness”.

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The Theme of My Female Characters

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authors, books, evil characters, female characters, feminism, feminist, main characters, novelists, novels, personalities, strong women, writers, writing

As I work on my WIP “The Cats”, I notice that I seem to be repeating a familiar characterization of my main character, which happens to be female. Instead of writing a kick-ass, strong female, I’ve made mine, once again, timid and unable to fully stand-up for herself. Am I starting a trend in my stories?

It seems as if the best liked female characters, especially those that are the main characters, are tough and take no crap from anyone. But the main characters in my two books – “The Dark Proposal” and the WIP, “The Cats” – are the opposite. Granted, with my current project, the main character has to be because she is bullied. Bullied people aren’t usually strong, confident people anyway. The same goes for some people who get into abusive relationships, like Claire did in “The Dark Proposal”. I also have some story ideas where the female character is either timid or troubled. Very few of my story ideas have a strong, tough female character.

What does this mean? Am I against strong women?

Image via Pixabay

Far from it. As I once mentioned before when I discussed this topic, I prefer a kind of character who’s like a phoenix rising from the ashes. Personally, I find kick-ass, strong characters to be very boring. Especially since, in the case of the female character, they are almost perfect and not complex enough. It seems like female characters are not allowed to be complex, with strengths and weaknesses like all other human beings. Male characters are allowed to be flawed, but not females.

I also have story ideas where the female character is done right evil and does terrible things. Does that make me an anti-feminist? Again, far from it! I just believe in capturing the human race as it is. Women can be awful just like men, or be spineless as anyone else. That doesn’t mean that I am against women being strong or good. I just know from life’s experiences that women can be weak or evil, just like men.

I’m aware that many readers prefer strong characters, especially when it comes to women. I know that means I may lose readers or not have a huge bestseller if I stick to my formula for female characters. Hey, I may not even get a book deal with a major publisher that way. But I truly believe writers should write what is in their heart’s desire, rather than what is popular. I’m also someone who cannot write what is in my system, so I cannot write something that is trendy or would be a worthy bestseller. It just wouldn’t come natural, and I would be bored writing the story.

So, writing not-so-strong female characters looks to be the norm for me. Maybe that would be the theme for my characters during my authorship, as in, it would be something I would be known for. And I like that 🙂

 

 

The Cat That Inspired My WIP

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abuse, bad luck, black cats, books, bullying, cats, good luck, kittens, kitties, magic, novels, shapeshifting, work in progress, writers, writing

As mentioned in my previous post, I am working on a book about a teen girl who is horrendously bullied at school because of her lack of confidence and timidity. Things start to change when black cats start to turn up in her life almost everywhere she looks.

Where did I get the idea of black cats hanging out on someone’s porch or crossing their path on the way home from school?

I initially came up with the idea nearly 20 years ago, when I was 15 and living in a small town outside of Albany, New York. I was living in that place for a couple of years, and towards the end of my time there, there was this black cat that used to hang around in our backyard.

I remember when I first saw it. I was sitting in the den, watching TV one evening, when something caught my eye. I turned to look at the sliding glass doors that led to the backyard, and saw this beautiful, plump black cat sitting at the door, peering into the house.

At first I was surprised, because who expects to find a cat being all nosy by looking into someone’s house? But I softened up when I saw how the cat looked curious about what was going on in our house. Seriously, it looked genuinely interested in the happenings inside! It also had these big greenish-yellow eyes that looked so gentle. It seemed like a very friendly cat.

Image via Flickr. Click for original photo.

I didn’t open the door to pet the cat because I didn’t want to scare it away, nor have it think it was allowed inside our house. Besides, the cat seemed quite at peace watching me watching TV.

Over the next few weeks, the cat came back a couple more times. It was a house cat with a collar. So clearly, its owner was allowing it to wander the area, and be true to a cat’s hunting ways.

About a month later, my parents and I moved back to Staten Island, and I obviously never saw that cat again. But I never forgot it. I actually was inspired to write a piece about a girl who lived in the foster care system who was rescued by the magical cats – who actually shapeshifted into gorgeous boys, lol!

I thought about writing such a story as a full length novel, but I figured one about a teen girl abused and passed from one foster home to another was a little too depressing. In addition, my first book is about relationship violence and I don’t want it to seem like abuse is the theme for all my books (although bullying is a form of abuse, but that’s a different topic).

So I chose instead to write about bullying because it is definitely an issue that needs to be addressed. And black cats are the perfect star for this book, tentatively called, “The Cats”. After all, black cats had been tormented for centuries for being associated with witchcraft and bad luck. Even today, black cats are less likely to be adopted compared to other cats, and supposedly, they are still tormented for satanic rituals these days.

But black cats are also associated with good luck. In the U.K., if a black cat crosses your path, it gives you good luck. Sailors used such cats for a good voyage. Even the Japanese see these beautiful cats as carriers of good luck.

It seems like black cats are a good symbol of things not being so bad as they seem. Which gives good prelude to what “The Cats” will be about!

 

Choosing a Sequel’s Title…Plus an Excerpt!

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authors, blood, book excerpts, books, Indie books, novel, novels, On Writing, The Dark Proposal, The End of Eternity, vampire, vampire book, vampire books, vampire fiction, vampires, writing, writing a book, writing a novel, writing a story

Yesterday marked the four year anniversary that I self-published The Dark Proposal. Since then, I’ve been taking my sweet time writing its sequel. It’s been a long road working on it, with a lot of doubt mixed in. But I’m happy to say that I’m finally getting somewhere with it, and even have a title in mind!

Actually, I have two in mind. I am split between the two prospective titles, because they both represent the story.

One of them is, Blood Ties, which illustrates how torn Claire is between the vampire world and the human world. She now has vampire blood in her, yet she is trying to hold on to her humanity. As the vampire world becomes more and more troubled, where would her loyalties lie?

The other is Between Light and Dark, which also illustrates how torn Claire is. But in this case, she is also haunted by the mistakes she made that led her to become a vampire and is seeking some hope, hence the light. Furthermore, this title goes hand in hand with its predecessor – light, dark.

The more I write, the more I will figure out the title. Who knows, I might come up with something totally different.

In the meantime, check out this excerpt! Enjoy!

She grabbed her bathrobe, and went to the bathroom. She first started a shower, but switched to the bath once she realized Daniel would want to know why she was doing that. She was a vampire, no need to cleanse herself of anything, including him. So, her bubble baths would have to do. This was something she had begun doing since returning from Paris, and was one of the rare freedoms Daniel allowed for her. These baths weren’t just moments of indulgence for her. They made her feel clean, physically and mentally.

As she stripped off her bathrobe, she caught sight of herself in the mirror. Did she recognize that person looking back at her? That person was a young woman with eyes that seemed as dead as the body she inhabited. Did she know she was staring back at herself?

Repulsion rose again and Claire had to calm down before she smashed the mirror. She let the tidal wave come, and it poured out in silent sobs. The blood tears came and flooded down her face onto the pristine sink. She didn’t care if the tears were really the blood of her victims or not. She just wanted a release.

After a few moments, she gathered herself enough to step into the tub. As she lied in the rosewood scented bubbles, the tears flowed more and she even choked a bit on her sobs. She made sure she did this quietly enough with the faucet running and the shower doors shut, so Daniel’s sharp hearing wouldn’t alert him. Luckily, he probably wasn’t even thinking about her right then.

Tilting her head back against the tub, Claire sighed and shook her head to herself. Her friends and family had no idea what she had become. She had rarely spoke to them since moving in with Daniel. The last time she spoke to her mother was on the phone two weeks ago. It was to wish her a happy birthday while explaining that she was too busy to visit. Her mother sounded frustrated, as she lately had been. But Claire also heard something else: helplessness. Her family had no clue on what was going on with her. It had to be agony for them to be lost like this. But if they ever found out, that agony would be replaced by outrage. She had put them in danger and she was now a monster. That would be it.

The same reaction would come from her two former best friends. Samantha would sound off obscenities while jabbing a finger at her, and Monica would storm off without saying a word. Claire would be left with only to turn to the vampire world she despised.

And she had to accept being a vampire.

She closed her eyes as a sob shook her. There was no way out of this. She had to be a vampire. She had to accept and live what she was now. No use in trying to maintain her humanity. Daniel was painfully right.

Claire’s body tightened. She could still feel him inside of her, using her like a masturbation device.

And she was attached to him for eternity. No matter what, he would be a big part of her life. The mere thought sickened her right to the bone, and she wanted to vomit.

A single blood tear rolled down her face, and she roughly brushed it away. Opening her eyes, she saw the bubbles and the water were tainted with blood. Blood from her tears.

Stunned, Claire stared at the bubbles and water around her. The blood was like ink, with its redness swirling around in the water, or relaxing to dye it faint red. Some of that inky crimson hue was caught in the bubbles. A large one rested near her left knee and it had that thick redness inside. It looked trapped, stuck in endless whirling, with no way of getting out, unless the bubble would burst.

Claire blinked a few times to rid herself of the shock. Even her cherished baths were blood stained. Her life was now bound by blood. Blood would be everywhere for her. Her very existence will be consumed by blood, and she will consume it, too. Blood and her were forever entwined. There was no more room for denial.

She gritted her teeth. There was no way she was going to live her life like that. She was so much better than this. She was not the sadistic killer Daniel wanted her to believe. She was not going to relish in human blood, no matter how much her new nature insisted. She was not going to embrace her vampire self.

Claire unplugged the drainer and stood to turn on the shower. Using her supernatural speed, she rinsed herself off of the ugly bubbles and water. Not only didn’t she want Daniel to hear the shower and get curious, but she also wanted to be rid of the redness as soon as she could. Claire’s anger began to crash down her regret and gain more steam. She was angry at Daniel and herself, and that anger was getting stronger with each rough stroke of her skin.

Once relieved of the bloody filth, she turned off the faucet. Glancing down at the floor of the tub, she saw the remaining bubbles and water were not fully rid of their redness. Worse, the tub’s porcelain now had a faint pink hue and might need some cleaning to be white again.

An ache suddenly came from her upper arms and torso. When she looked, she saw she had scratched herself while rubbing her skin in super-quick speed. Thin lines of blood had formed on her arms, stomach and chest.

Claire’s anger disappeared as quickly as the water going down the drain.

Letting out a sigh, she hung her head.

She was unsure of what to do that very minute, tomorrow, next week, next month, next year…

The only thing she was certain about was to lower herself onto the floor of the tub, pull her knees up, bury her forehead on them, and lose herself in her thoughts.

Blood had bound her to this world is more ways than one. She didn’t want either, but had no other choice. Only she didn’t want to follow through on that choice.

But what else could she do? There was no way out of this. It was permanent, and likely eternal, whatever that meant. She would never again be human, no matter how much she wished she still was.

All she could really do was get used to it.

But how?

 

 

 

Author Interview: Matthew D. Ryan

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authors, books, dark fantasy, novels, self-published authors, self-published books, self-publishing, trilogies, vampires, writers, writing

When I first started this blog over four years ago, one of the first people to comment on it was a self-published author named Matthew D. Ryan. He had just written a vampire story that was not in the same class as Twilight, so he showed me some support as I aimed to self-publish a vampire story that was also not like many of the other vampire stories out there.

That book Ryan self-published was called Drasmyr, and it is the prologue to a dark fantasy trilogy called From The Ashes of Ruin, involving a vampire, wizards, sorcerers and so much more. His latest book just came out, so I decided to feature Matthew D. Ryan on my blog.

Here he is!

MC: What inspired you to be a writer?
MDR: I kind of ran out of other options and just fell into it. I studied philosophy and mathematics—not English—in college, earning a B.A. in both. Yet, even then, I knew I didn’t want to be a teacher (which is about the only thing you can use a
philosophy degree for). Immediately afterward, I moved to Boston to work at my brother’s cellular phone business. After a year, I decided that I didn’t want to remain in a company where I was “the boss’ brother” and I was only lukewarm toward the job, anyway. So, a friend and I did a little bit of traveling around the country. When I got back, I wrote a short story about a vampire who seeks revenge on a wizard who has betrayed him. That short story eventually became the prologue to “Drasmyr.” I shopped “Drasmyr” around a little bit, but failed to get it published at a traditional publisher. So, I put it on the back-burner and went on with my life.

I struggled for a while, looking for meaningful work. All I could really find were temp jobs and other low-level positions. Eventually, I went back to school to get a computer science degree. Almost completed it, too. But at the end, I decided my heart wasn’t in it, so I bailed. I also tried martial arts for a while (I have a black belt), but that, too, only held my interest for a short time. So, I went back to writing. So far, my interest has held up, but it certainly hasn’t proven very lucrative. I’ve always enjoyed reading, so writing came naturally to me. I’ve also always been a big fan of the fantasy genre—I played AD&D for thirty-some years. So, you know what genre I prefer to write in. Still, I’m not making much money at it, and that can be very dispiriting at times. I know you shouldn’t write just for money, but I’d like to make enough to at least earn a

Anyway, that’s about the way I wound up doing what I do.

MC: Why did you choose the self-published route?
MDR: I tried the traditional route first a number of different times. Unfortunately, the competition is extremely fierce, particularly for vampire novels. I polished and polished and polished only to receive rejection after rejection for a variety of different reasons … or no reason at all (which is the most frustrating). Then my brother self-published his first novel. I was … envious. And it stirred my spirit up. So, I figured I’d give it a go. I even selected the same two publishing venues as my brother: Smashwords and Lulu.

Oh, I almost forgot. In between the first draft of “Drasmyr” and its final publication on-line, I also wrote and self-published a short book on mental illness (I’m diagnosed as having schizoaffective disorder—which is lots of fun … Not!). But that has little to do with my fantasy career (or does it? :)).

MC: Your vampire, Drasmyr, is the Bram Stoker-kind. What made you go with the traditional vampire rather than be innovative as other writers are with their vampires?
MDR: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. No, seriously, I have has always liked the traditional conception of the vampire. Perhaps it is my fascination with evil, but I really like the conception of the vampire as an almost demonic entity. It comes with a host of powers that can be augmented or tweaked without losing its diabolical flavoring. The traditional vampire can shapeshift, pass through the narrowest of cracks, control weather, control animals, mesmerize mortals, and more. They also have an array of specific weaknesses that enrich the creature and round out its uniqueness.

Although other writers feel inclined to innovate on the nature of the vampire, I feel the traditional vampire is rich enough in complexity and diversity as is. I particularly enjoy the way it threatens one’s characters with eternal damnation—something which seems to have gotten lost in many modern tales. Indeed, nowadays it seems people want to become vampires, or at least date them. And that, I find particularly strange. No, I far prefer vampires as embodiments of evil. And the Bram Stoker conception of such is just hard to improve upon without radically changing the creature in unnecessary ways. So, why not keep it as is, tweak it occasionally, but only if necessary. That’s the vampire I like.

MC: What is it about dark fantasy do you think is appealing to readers?
MDR: It’s a mix of horror and fantasy, two genres dealing with impossible, or at the very least, improbable situations and creatures. It can be used to blend magic and evil in fascinating ways. Courtesy of fantasy, both the foes and the heroes can be augmented in spectacular, intriguing ways. Yet, even so, the darker element allows for the sense of the macabre and horrific. Because it is dark fantasy, it is a way to reign in the power of fantasy’s super-humans. They become, in spite of their augmented abilities—like spells and magic weapons—as imperiled and vulnerable as we sometimes find ourselves in modern life. In that way, it becomes something of a cathartic experience, yet it still satisfies a yearning for the fantastic.

MC:Is there anything that you did while self-publishing that you wouldn’t do again? If so, why?
MDR: That’s easy, although my answer would apply the same if I had gone the traditional route. I would not have started my writing career with a series. I would have written a number of stand-alone novels first. Although I really enjoyed writing my novels, they, with the exception of “Drasmyr,” all tell a single contiguous story. Only “Drasmyr” could be regarded as anything approaching a stand-alone: It ends leaving the reader with something of a sense of closure, yet a suspicion that there may more to come. The others, though, are written as cliff-hangers. I only intend to write four of them, so they won’t inconvenience readers’ sense of closure too much. I’m on the third (or the fourth, if you include “Drasmyr”) such novel, so I’m getting near the end. Anyway, in terms of brand exposure and sympathetic tendencies toward the reading public, I think advertising efforts might be more lucrative if I had limited myself to one-shot stories. In other words, the fact that it’s a contiguous series makes it more difficult to schedule blog tours—since some touring companies might not schedule book 3 in a four book series because it’s not a complete story—and to take advantage of other similar advertising venues. If I had to do it over, I would have done my next series—which I intend to consist of five stand-alone stories– first. Looking back, it seems to be almost a kind of hubris to start writing with a contiguous series spanning several novels. It’s a lot of extra work developing a series instead of single tale. But it’s fun, and I enjoy it, and I intend to keep at it.

MC: What is next for your series?
MDR: The next instalment in my series is entitled “The Citadel.” It picks up where the prior novel left off. I don’t want to reveal too much—that might ruin the
surprise. But I’ll give you this much: Gaelan’s internal struggle continues as he grapples with his burdens and prepares to undertake his self-appointed task, a task that may yet destroy him completely. Coragan and his group continue with their struggles as they undertake a dark quest in a forbidding realm: Morgelliard, the planeshard holding Morgulan’s ancient, impregnable fortress known as simply The Citadel. Korina continues her own machinations as she closes in on the Sceptre of Morgulan. Meanwhile, back in Drisdak, Ambrisia, Regecon, and Galladrin prepare to engage the dark cult known as The Children of Lubrochius while at the same time, playing a dangerous game with the other powers of the city: the nobility who rule during the day, and the Shadowhand that comes out and rules the night. All these threads intertwine and play off of each other like a castle’s ancient tapestry: the whole, far, far more than the sum of its many parts.

Interested in his books? Matthew D. Ryan is offering coupons on two of his books until Friday, June 10th, on Smashwords:
The Children of Lubrochius: SA88Z
The Sceptre of Morgulan: VW73X.

To learn more about Matthew D. Ryan and his books, check out these links:

Drasmyr:  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/131156
The Children of Lubrochius: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/415779

And The Sceptre of Morgulan: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/574196

Check Out His Blog: https://matthewdryan.com

Outlining Your Story Using Spreadsheets

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authors, Being an Author, books, Excel, novels, plots, spreadsheets, story plots, storytelling, subplots, writers, writing, writing a book, writing a novel

I’ll be the first to say that I am a Spreadsheet Queen. I can’t live without spreadsheets. Whether it is to keep track of finances, freelance work, or plans for the summer, spreadsheets is the way to go for me, and likely for many other people.

That probably also includes fellow authors outlining their next book. Some authors choose between outlining or flying by the seat of their pants when it comes to writing. I myself have debated this issue. But lately, due to my crazy schedule, I find it best to outline. And I’ve made that possible for myself through spreadsheets.

How do I outline using spreadsheets? Simple. I make each column represent each chapter. So when you see my sheet, you’ll see Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3… all lined up in columns. Next, I put the scenes of each chapter in the rows. This is a good way to figure out which scene should end or begin a chapter, or which scene belongs in which chapter.

Photo by Craig Chew-Moulding on Flickr via Creative Commons

Doing this has made the planning of my sequel very easy. Granted, I do not stick to it religiously; I have moved a few scenes around and added a few more without consulting my spreadsheet. But overall, spreadsheets has been helping me keep track of the scenes of my second book.

It is not unusual for authors to use this to help plot their books. JK Rowling plotted her Harry Potter books using spreadsheets, and I’ve seen a few other, less-known authors do the same thing.

Because life can be so busy sometimes, I recommend authors to outline their stories. It is too easy to come up with an idea, only to not be able to write it down because either you’re at work, going to or from work, or busy with home life. Also, writing is a discipline, and if you are working on a book, you need to be organized and professional about your craft and your story. I was not like this when I wrote my first book, but then again, I was unemployed at the time. That meant having plenty of time to write whenever I pleased, as much as I wanted.

Nowadays, I do not have that luxury and I have to rely on spreadsheets to make my next book possible. It is funny how being a professional these days has made me rely on a program intended for professionals, in order to be more professional with my story!

Raise your hand if you use spreadsheets to help organize your story!

 

Choosing the Appearances of My Characters

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authors, blond hair, blue eyes, books, brown eyes, brown hair, characterdescription, eye color, fictional characters, fictious characters, hair color, novels, writers, writing, writing a novel

I was meeting with my writer’s group this week, and as always, we discussed our latest projects and what we are doing with them. Somehow, the topic of characters’ physical descriptions came up and it lead to an in-depth discussion on how authors describe the appearance of their characters.

This is a topic I’ve seen pop up on Goodreads, Google+ and other places where writers gather to chat. It intrigues me that something that seems trivial sparks such debate, as akin to writing in present or past tense, how explicit a sex scene should be, and so on. I say this because I am the type of writer who likes to describe the appearance of my characters.

Not that I go into total detail, right down to a small freckle or chipped tooth. But I do like to tell a reader what color is the hair and eyes of my characters. I do this because I find it fun to imagine what my characters look like. I’m the kind of author who often wonders what actors would play them, if my book or other story ideas were to ever be made into a movie or TV show.

In addition, I believe hair and eye color say a lot about how that person would be perceived by readers. Whether we like it or not, people are judged by their hair and eye color. Dark haired men are seen as seductive and masculine, while blond men are seen as boyish and playful. Blond women are seen as youthful, fun and a target for casual sex. Brunettes are serious and good for long-term relationships. Redheads are vivacious and easy to remember. Blue eyes represent innocence, while brown eyes represent seriousness.

Granted, these are all stereotypes that can be largely untrue. But color represents something, especially when it comes to hair and eyes. And the aforementioned stereotypes do come to mind more often than we admit (the saying “blonds have more fun!” is a popular theory). So, when I am deciding what my characters look like, I can’t help but consider what hair and eye color represent.

Photo by Matlachu via Pixabay

My main character, Claire McCormick, has brown hair and blue eyes. I deliberately chose that because I wanted a mix of innocence and seriousness for her. She’s a 22 year-old college grad who is naive and insecure in a lot of ways, but has room to grow and be tough. She’s also not an aimless, carefree person. So with that, I gave her brown hair and blue eyes.

Now, imagine I made her a blond. That would change your perception of her, yes? It could also change your expectations of her. Red hair just wouldn’t work, and neither would jet black hair. Don’t get me started on pink, lavender or gray hair.

Some would point out that if light-haired men with light-colored eyes appear harmless, why did I make the evil Daniel Poncher, Claire’s vampire boyfriend, look like that? Because I wanted to through my readers off. Since Daniel is practically the abusive boyfriend, giving him dark hair and eyes might make readers more fearful or angrier at him than they need to be. He might also come across as too sinister than he already is. So by having him with light brown hair and blue-green eyes, he’s less threatening, even though he is a threatening character. I simply wanted to have a contradiction for Daniel, and it also makes it easier for me to write about him. Having him tall, dark and handsome (OK, he is a handsome guy) just wouldn’t have worked for me.

Now let’s look at height. Daniel is medium height, about 5’8″ while Claire is a medium sized girl at about 5’5″. This is the first time I ever mentioned their exact heights; I only mention that they are of medium height once in The Dark Proposal. I left it vague because I did want my readers to figure out their exact heights on their own, and also because the exact measurements weren’t too important. But did it matter to mention that both Claire and Daniel were of medium heights for a man and a woman? Yes, because I feel with those heights they are both less threatening and more likely to be taken seriously by readers. If Claire was something like 5’2′, readers would probably fear more for her physical safety in the hands of Daniel. But if she were 5’10”, they would probably feel she should beat him up in retaliation (then again, relationship violence can happen to anyone of any size). At the same time, I feel having them as medium sized makes them easier to relate to and are more approachable as characters.

There’s a lot of explore with this topic. So much goes into why authors make their characters look a certain way, or choose not to give any description at all. It is perhaps a bigger topic than choosing to write in present or past tense, or writing violent or explicit scenes. It gives a whole new meaning to the saying, “To be or not to be?”

What are your thoughts? Do you think certain hair and eye colors effect how you see characters? Does it matter or not? Or is it all subconscious?

Getting Past the Third Chapter

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art of writing, author, books, creative writing, fiction writing, novel, novelists, novels, On Writing, writers, writing, writing a book, writing a novel, writing fiction

I did it. I finally did it.

Earlier this month, I finally did something I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to do.

I completed the third chapter of my sequel.

Holy crap. I did it!

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

I always felt the third chapter should be the springboard in a story. It certainly was with “The Dark Proposal”, and I wanted the same with its sequel. The first two chapters were like a gathering of information, an intro to what the book will be based on. The third chapter feels like it will build on all of that, and set off the rest of the book. But for a long time, every time I worked on the sequel, I just couldn’t get past the third chapter.

This was due to a lot of reasons. There were times where I wasn’t fully sure with what I wanted from my story and characters. It is tough to write a sequel because you have to improve on a lot of things from the first book. You have to delve deeper into the story, develop the main characters (and possibly other characters) more, and really improve on your storytelling skills. In other words, a sequel is a step up from the previous story in many ways.

Then came times when I wasn’t sure if I was really over the hurdle. Meaning, I would read over the third chapter again and again, revising and revising it, trying to make sure it was good enough. Was it as much of a springboard that it needed to be? Did it really prepare the reader for the rest of the book? Was the chapter strong enough for me to move on to the rest of the story?

Well, a couple of weeks ago, I felt that way. I felt my third chapter was satisfying enough for me to continue writing the story. The springboard had a bounce to it.

While it will obviously go through rewrites and revisions like the rest of the book, I felt it was good enough for me journey on. I had gotten past the hurdle.

And boy, what a relief that is.

 

 

The Joy of Writing About Vampires

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Anne Rice, authors, books, interview with the vampire, novels, paranormal, paranormal books, vampire books, vampire novels, vampires, writing, writing a novel

As I work on my sequel, I find myself overcome with excitement at times. Sometimes it is due to the thrill of a good scene, or feeling as though I’m on the right track. But other times, it is because I am creating a world filled with many possibilities.

I have often wondered what is the appeal about vampires, and the list can have a variety of appeals. Sometimes it’s the sexuality, the idea of being alive for centuries, being a night creature with supernatural abilities, and so on. But as I write the sequel to The Dark Proposal, I realize there’s a long list of why writing about vampires is so much fun. Aside from what I just mentioned, I think it also is because when an author writes about vampires, they are also writing about a whole different world.

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Vampires are not human, and don’t live like humans. Therefore, their world is entirely different from ours and their sense of self is equally different. That being said, an author would have to be very creative when coming up with a world unlike ours. It is one thing to write about vampires from the outside looking in, but when it is time to write about the vampire world from the inside, a lot of creativity and fun can come in.

Think about it. Vampires are their own specie, or even their own tribe. They have cultural norms different from human norms, and possibly even have a hierarchy or political system unlike most humans. Since vampires often live separately from humans, their world will not, and even cannot, be like ours. Imagine, as an author, what fun it can be to create a totally different world!

And ideas and angles to tackle! A vampire author could write about the political system of vampires, or the gender issues vampires face, if any. A writer could tell a story about the religious beliefs of vampires, if any. Or they could write about how vampires make money and become rich (or live simply) while not being too involved in the human world. A writer could write the complexities of being a new vampire, or a very old vampire. Or create a world where centuries-old ties and bonds create harmony or friction among the vampires. Imagine digging back hundreds of years to figure out what went wrong between a couple, or what has kept them going for so many long years.

The possibilities are endless – and its great!

There are so many different topics and angles to write about when it comes to vampires. More so than romance and love, though that can take on different angles in terms of gender, sexuality and longevity. The thing is, writing about vampires is so much fun because it allows an author to create a world on his or her terms, and it depends on what subject they want to tackle. And in the case of vampires, it could be any subject.

The one risk that comes up is getting too involved in this different world. There have been times when I had to take a step back and re-evaluate a couple of characters, scenes, notes and outlines. This is because I got in too deep with what I was exploring. For example, I was exploring the relationship between Daniel and his makers, Hilde and Michel. It started off being very exciting because I got a chance to go through history, the personalities of each character, the politics of the vampire world, and how it has dealt with human hunters over the years. Unfortunately, I got so wrapped up in this, I lost track of what I was doing, and had to stop and erase what I had done. It was disappointing. Writing about centuries-old creatures that have their own social norms is fun, but it can get too much fun, and then you’ll have to start over again.

Maybe, if necessary, novellas and short stories about certain characters may come in handy down the line. Kind of like how Anne Rice keeps writing about her vampires, years after she wrote Interview With The Vampire. She created a whole new world with colorful characters, and she built a career around them. From a business standpoint, that’s not a bad idea!

Anyway, writing about vampires is tons of fun, and for good reason. Imagine creating a world of blood-sucking night creatures that can do things humans cannot and can live forever. Imagine what its like to be one, and there’s others like you. Now imagine what that existence would be like, especially if that existence has been around for centuries or even millennia. Sounds amazing, right?

Now go ahead and write that down! Just maintain your focus and you’ll be on your way!

 

Book Review: “Kushiel’s Avatar” by Jacqueline Carey

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book reviews, books, Jacqueline Carey, Kushiel Trilogy, Kushiel's Avatar, novels, reading, reading a book, reviews, trilogies, Trilogy

While I was reading “On Writing” by Stephen King, I was also reading the final book of Jacqueline Carey’s trilogy about Phèdre nó Delaunay, the famed courtesan of Terre d’Ange, an alternative look at the history of France and the rest of the world. You may remember that I didn’t particularly enjoy the second book in this trilogy, but I just had to find out what happened to certain characters in the third book, “Kushiel’s Avatar”.

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Like its predecessors, “Avatar” is long, and slow moving in some parts. There’s a lot going on, a lot of history, and a lot of traveling. There’s a lot of characters, but only some are hard to remember. It’s a wild journey here, that includes some moments that are tender, fascinating or intense. Even more so, there are moments that are difficult to read because of the brutal abuse done to Phèdre and other characters. Remember, Phèdre has been chosen by the angel-diety, Kushiel, to experience pain and pleasure as one. And she has a mission to fulfill as the deities of Terre d’Ange guide her to stop an evil presence, so her tendency to experience pain and pleasure come in handy – for better or for worse. For this reader, it was for worse.

At the same time, Phèdre is on her own quest to free her childhood friend from a curse. This quest leads her to find the true name of God from a forgotten tribe and to risk her own safety by revealing that name at the appropriate time. While we never know what the true name of God is, we are hinted it through translations from various people who overheard.

The book then ends with a festival in Phèdre’s honor, who is at peace after nearly 15 years of defending her country, freeing her friend, seeing the world, and enduring pain that she sadly found pleasurable at times.

I found this book to be more entertaining than “Chosen”, mainly because Phèdre is more tolerable here. She is not the arrogant, foolish character she was in the previous book. Here, she is more humble, though probably because she endures suffering beyond many people’s comprehension. I still found her to be boring, however. I don’t know, Phèdre is just not an interesting character to me. She seems flat at times, with no real personality. I found many of the other characters, particularly Joscelin, Queen Ysandre, Hyacinthe, Kaneka, and the villianness Melisande Shahrizai, to be more fun to read about. I guess it had something to do with the narrative. Maybe Phèdre just isn’t a good narrator for her story, but she is for others.

The philosophy of this trilogy, love as thou wilt, also doesn’t seem to be fully shaped. Maybe I didn’t get it or something, but I also think because Phèdre is not an interesting character, it is hard to see what love as thou wilt means. I do like how the author, Jacqueline Carey, is trying to create a world where love is the law, and love rules. Or at least I think she is. I don’t know, I just felt confused at times.

What I did love about this book was the numerous countries explored here. Places that are obviously Egypt, Iraq, Ethiopia and the Congo, are lavishly described and one can imagine these places as being very beautiful – or in the place we know as Iraq, very ugly and horrifying.  I found it interesting while reading this book that the place we call Iraq, but known as Darsanga here, has a great evil coming from it that could destroy the world, and yet in our world, ISIS is the great evil hurting the world, and its coming from Iraq. Not that I think Jacqueline Carey foresaw the future, but what irony!

Anyway, the book ends happily and peacefully. The best part of this trilogy, for me at least, were the many countries and cultures explored and reimagined. I also liked Phèdre and Joscelin’s enduring love. In the previous book, those two were strained, and Joscelin did a lot of pouting, it seemed. Here, he is more vibrant and stronger, and you could feel the love between those two from the pages. It’s real, with its ups and downs and trials.

There are more books about Terre d’Ange from Jacqueline Carey, but I am not sure if I would read them. I feel as if I’ve explored the world she created enough, and its time for me to read about other worlds. It’s been a great journey, really, even though I wished Phèdre was better guide. I still recommend this series, though I do warn the reader about its shortcomings. What I believe is as soon as a reader finds what they like about the adventures of Phèdre no Delaunay, they’ll be able to read past what they don’t like about her story. One thing for sure, they’ll be in for a wild ride!