A Teaser About My New Project/Series

Cast of Characters

Sam – Female Cat. Gray. Captain of a Lobster-Class ship. Augmented Senses. Augmented Bone Structure (Including Claws). Formerly worked with Max (Captain of a Crab-Class ship), a Male Dog (Chihuahua). There was some romantic interest between them. They parted due to a difference of opinions regarding salvage ethics.

Gavin – Male Duck. Very gifted. He's a polyglot and acts as Science and Navigation on the ship. He's Sam's un/official first mate. He has an eidetic memory, a tendency to disagree with Cameron (Male Chameleon; Ship's Mechanic), and a love of Turkey Jerky.

Luci – Female Praying Mantis. She's the ship's Pilot. She controls the ship via a sensory HUD system. She is a self-taught street fighter and definitely does not know Kung Fu. She has an Enhanced Exoskeleton, and Augmented Claws that can discharge kinetic energy (shocks) and allows increased adhesive ability. She hates scorpions.

Cameron – Male Chameleon. He's the ship's Mechanic, and is at odds with Gavin about the “right” was to repair/maintain the ship. Gavin believes it is a Science, while Cameron believes it is an Art. Cameron's methods usually work out for the best. He has an Enhanced Chameleon Ability that allows him to affect objects other than just himself.

Max – Male Dog. Chihuahua. Captain of a Crab-Class ship. Formerly partners with Sam until they had a difference of opinions. Tends to bend the rules a little more than he should, almost to breaking point. He has a patch over his left eye. This eye is Augmented to pick-up wavelengths and frequencies that normal vision can't. He is currently romantically involved with Winona (Female Rat; Ship's Navigator and Mechanic.

Winona – Female Rat. She acts as the ship's Navigator and Mechanic. She is currently involved with Max. She has Enhanced and Augmented Senses that allow her to map and visualize things as if from an external viewpoint, for a real 360 degree view.

Dwayne – Male Scorpion. He acts as Security for the ship. He has an Augmented Carapace and his stinger can inject a variety of different chemicals. He's a very nasty piece of work.

Jess – Female Kiwi. She's the ship's Pilot. She is new to the crew. She is the quiet type. 

Somethingopath

This is where I am venting about my insanity these days

Of course, that doesn't mean I love y'all any less - just trying something new. Oh - and it's free!

Do Short Stories Sell?

So far, in my experience, the answer to this question is no.

My novel, Eria, sold quite solidly for a first novel from a nobody (well, in my opinion at least). Not enough to quit my day job and live on a tropical island somewhere, but that was never my expectation. I was glad to have something out there, and for people to read it, comment on it, and hopefully like it.

My first short stories (or novella, I suppose), The Dragon's Spine, was much better than Eria - it read better, the interactions were better, and it was quite a solid piece. Sales were slow and awful. At one stage Eria was outselling it, despite the difference in pricing and the fact that Eria had been around for quite a while. It left me scratching my head.

Now with Dren out, I'm getting the same kind of sales as I had with The Dragon's Spine. Slow, almost non-existent.

Is it that there is so much stuff at 99 cents that people either fail to see things at that price? Is there still the idea that if it's that cheap there must be something wrong with it? Or is it simply that short stories, by themselves do not sell?

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Not Dead!

It has been a very long time since I updated this. A lot of it had to do with me not feeling on top of the world. Some of it had to do with me feeling like I had nothing to say. Some of it had to do with me not having real internet. At least one of these problems has been resolved.

For those that might not have noticed it, my latest short story, Dren, is now available on Amazon. The link should be at the top of the page. I'm also working with Bygone Futures to get Dren and Eria up on DriveThruFiction the same way The Dragon's Spine is.

Why? Well, DriveThruFiction allows for us to make the stories available in multiple formats, to take into consideration that not everyone has something that is a Kindle reader. Also, some people prefer not to let Amazon have their business. Additionally, the returns from DriveThruFiction are better. Finally, it doesn't hurt to have something available in multiple places for people to locate. As and when they become available on DriveThruFiction, I'll let you know here, and be sure to add the links to the top of the page, as well.

What else have I been working on? Well, I'd love to say heaps, but that's not entirely true. I have been thinking a lot about writing, and have started a new story that is not Eria-based. It's a Sci-Fi story, but I'll say more about this later. For now I just wanted to say : NOT DEAD!

What's Going On?

I've been going through a lot for the last little while. I've had some physical health problems (there have been some nasty bugs going around), but I've also been having some mental health issues, as well.

Last weekend (and that seems like an eternity to me now) I was close to taking my own life. I wasn't going to do it because I wanted the attention, or to cause pain to anyone, but for the simple reason that I wanted the pain that I've been suffering with to end. To disappear. For it to finally be over.

Obviously, I didn't do anything. I fought very hard against it, and I'm still here. Since then I've seen a doctor about things. I've started a course of medication, which will likely run for two to three years (at least), and I meet up again with my doctor on Friday to discuss therapists and the like.

It's not going to be an easy road, but hopefully it'll get me to a better place. A place where I can begin to enjoy life again, rather than just endure it by breaking it down into little slivers that I have to make it through every day.

Depression isn't a new thing for me. I've been dealing with it my entire adult life. Some times I deal with it better than others. Some times I do a good job of hiding it from the rest of the world, and indeed myself. But it's always there. It'll probably always be there, but I hope to get on top of it, or at least learn to deal with it in a better way.

I was hesitant to mention it here, because this is supposed to be a blog about writing, my novels, stories, and the like, but I find more and more that I'm sharing about my life, and I wanted to keep everyone that reads this in the loop.

I don't want people to take pity on me, and rush out and buy my stuff because it might cheer me up, or make me feel better. I want people to understand what I'm going through. If people want to buy my stuff, I want them to do it because they want to, because they enjoy it, or because they want to read it.

Anyway, that's all I have to say about stuff at the moment. Thanks for reading (if you made it this far!).

Short Stories

My new job sees me spending some time on the train to get to and from work. At first I filled the time by reading Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels. I'd never read them before (it's a long and not very interesting story that basically boils down to me being stubborn in the face of someone telling constantly how awesome they were and why I should read them every day for an extended period of time - don't get me wrong, I like people suggesting new stuff for me to read - what I don't like is someone practically shoving something into my hands and wanting to sit by me to make sure I read it), so they are a new experience for me. I quite like them, but after the first few, I ran out of ones to read, unless I bought more, and moving house, car insurance, new internet set-up, among other things, has really made a dent in my finances. So, I thought I'd give writing on the train a go.

It's actually been working rather well. Even though I'm commuting around peak-hour, most of the time I have no one sitting next to me on the train, or, if I do, it's not for the whole trip, or I still have enough room to type a bit.

I started off by getting back to a short story I started just after I finished The Dragon's Spine. For anyone who has read Eria you'll probably remember Elrath's cat, Dren. Well, this story is all about Dren. It's the lead up to what Dren was up to before he came into Elrath's life. I've finished the first draft, and I'm going to put it to one side while I work on another short story. The second one is similar to the Dren short story, but it will focus on Baedyr. Once that one has reached the first draft stage, and after I make another pass of Dren, I'm going to get started on Zelton. For those with a good memory, Zelton was Elrath's master's master.

Ideally, I'm going to release them one at a time over the period of a couple of months. I've already got some cover art in the works for Dren, and once I'm happy with that, I'll do the same with the others.

It's good to be writing again, even if it is for short bursts before and after work. Hopefully once I get settled into my new job and my new house I'll be able to find the time to get some more writing done in the evenings and on the weekends. And to update this blog more often, too, to let you all know what I've been up to. Not having a reliable internet connection kinda hurts the whole being active online thing.

Anyway, that's where I'm at at the moment. Until next time!

Sequel Names and Other Stuff

I've really painted myself into a corner with this one. When I write a sequel to Eria what am I going to call it? Eria II just sounds awful. It really does, and it'll do no justice to the original. For now, it'll have to do, I suppose.

Of course, the questions that I'll have to answer will be "what's going to be in this novel?", "will it be better than the first one?", "will Dren be in this one?".

Great stuff, yes and yes are the answers to these questions.

I love the characters from Eria - I have so much more planned for them. Bethany has some growth, Elrath has a lot to do and Baedyr will feature pretty large in this novel.

And Dren. Well, that cat's something I can't contain...

Eria - Six Months On

It's been six months to the day since I released Eria on Amazon. Originally I'd planned on releasing it on my birthday, but some last minute formatting issues and finalizing the cover art delayed that. In the end I was happy to have it out before Xmas.

Initially sales were good, as you'd expect. I put most of the sales in the first month down to friends picking up a copy. It was still nice. It was satisfying to see people getting behind me and my novel.

The next couple of months were just as good, and I was quite impressed. I couldn't put all the sales down to just friends because, and let's be honest, I don't really have that many friends.

In those first three months I got some reviews (which are always nice - I can't stress enough how much I love reviews), and some nice feedback from people on places like Google + and Facebook.

Since then things have kind of petered off. I knew it would happen, but it is still a little disheartening. In the last three months my total sales of Eria have been what the monthly average sales for the first three months was. I love that people are still picking up copies, and I'd like to think that it's through word of mouth, people discovering this blog, or maybe my presence on the social media sites. Not that I just pimp my stuff there (I find it a huge turn off when other people do that), but I do post often on those sites.

I launched my novella The Dragon's Spine in April, not really a prequel as much as a story set in the same world a few hundred years earlier. It was good fun to write, and I hope it was good fun to read, as well.

I've definitely learnt a few things over the last six months, but I might leave that for another post, as lack of sleep is kicking my ass...

Writing and Bread Making

I've been making bread lately. No - that is not an euphemism, Australian slang, or anything else like that. It is just something that I've been doing. Because I have a bread maker. It doesn't mean I have been making money hand over fist, either. It is, however, a good analogy for writing, the creative process and so forth. If you found this blog because you Googled bread making feel free to keep reading, because I will actually talk about bread making.

Anyway...

The new bread maker came into the house. I'd been talking about getting one for a while. Talking about how I like fresh bread. But I'd never really made bread before, or owned a bread maker. Maybe I just liked the idea of having a machine that could make bread at will. Or maybe I just hadn't thought the whole thing through.

My flatmate brought home the bread maker, much to my surprise, and almost to my chagrin - I'd been mouthing off about the bread I'd make if I had one. I guess she called my bluff.

Naturally, she expected me to know how to use it. Know how to make good bread. And expected we'd never need to buy bread ever again.

So, I did what anyone would do - I went to the supermarket and bought pre-packaged bread maker bread stuff. I read the instructions on the packet - Water, Bread Stuff, Yeast. In that order. Do not mix them up, add them in a different order - just do that.

I did, and, probably because I had done it with my own hands, watched the whole process, and held the freshly baked loaf in my hot little hands, I exclaimed to the world that I had made the best loaf ever. I feasted on that loaf. It was pretty damn good. It was the best loaf of bread I had had in a while.

The bread stuff I had bought at the supermarket had more bread stuff than required to make one loaf - it had enough for four loaves. I could have just repeated the process four times and had the same bread four times over, but my flat mate had some feedback - she wanted to some bread with cheese and sun-dried tomato. I looked for a recipe in the book that came with the bread maker, and there wasn't one. But there were a few similar ones. And I figured they were close enough to the pre-packaged stuff, that all I needed to do was chop up the sun-dried tomato and add the grated cheese. That became the best bread ever.

I still had the means to make another two loaves of basic bread. All I had to do was follow three steps, and I was done. I bought sliced bread. It was easier. It cost less. I just picked it up at the supermarket, and took it home. It tasted okay, but it was nothing at all like the bread I'd made, either the first or second time. Sure, it was bread, but I'd grown to expect more.

Tonight I decided to make more bread. I used the third of the bread stuff, and improvised a bit more. I had more sun-dried tomato, so I wanted to add those. I had black olives, so I used those. I had some ham, so I sliced those up, told them they would be bacon, and used those. The only cheese I had was sliced, so I took a knife and turned it into a fine diced cheese. I loaded the machine, but I knew I wasn't going to be awake when it all came together and made the next loaf. So, I set the bread maker to pause starting. Everything is still there, still ready, but it will start cooking, and finish cooking, at a time that suits me, not the bread.

I still have a long way to come with my bread making. I can make everything from scratch, for instance. Not use a bread maker. There are a lot of other steps I can take to make my bread better, or more original. But for now, I am happy with how this bread making is turning out.

Writing and Philosophy

Years ago a friend and I were discussing writing a Philosophical novel, and what it would look like. We were both studying Philosophy at the time, and it seemed like a good idea. Nothing ever came of it. I think we both got bogged down in the Philosophy side of it, and, quite frankly, nobody would want to read a novel that was just Philosophy. Because it wouldn't have really been a novel - it would have been a Philosophical text.

When I sat down to write Eria I tried to include a few Philosophical themes. Most of them are to do with Environmental Ethics and related concerns, and they are really rather subtle - if I hadn't mentioned it just now, you probably would have missed them. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I like to know that they're there, and I mention it so people that want to look for them can find them.

Environmental Ethics was something I enjoyed at university. Not as much as other areas of Ethics, but as far as some of the Applied Ethics fields go, Environmental Ethics is interesting in so much as it involves a thing rather than a person, and raises all kinds of interesting notions there. But I'm not going to talk too much about that here - just mentioning it, really.

When the time came to write my novella The Dragon's Spine there were a couple of ways I could have gone with it. Indeed, I toyed around with a couple of different endings (if you want to know which way I went, you're just going to have to read it). In the end I decided to go with Identity. Theories and notions of Identity were also something that I liked studying and talking about in Philosophy. I suppose if they weren't, I wouldn't have taken those courses, right?

So, I explored them a little in The Dragon's Spine - to be honest, I think I did a better job in the novella than I did in the novel. Whether that's because I'm getting better as a writer, or because the vehicle of the novella's story was better, I guess is up to you to decide.

The one thing I do know is that as I continue writing I'll be including more of my little Philosophical ideas into the mix. Not in a "beat-the-reader-over-the-head" way, but in a nicer, more subtle, more organic way.

If you want to discuss your favorite Philosophical ideas, feel free to mention them in the comments, or say "hi" to me on  Google +. I'm not going to say I'm always up for a chat, and I'm definitely not going to say I love to get into heated arguments about things, but I do like to hear people's takes on various Philosophical notions.

The Dragon's Spine - Another Excerpt

When I was writing The Dragon's Spine I wrote three flashback scenes. I wanted to add a bit more to Krullus's back story and history, and I thought this was the best way to do it. Also, I rather like flashbacks - I'm not sure why, but I find them useful, interesting, and if used well (which I hope I have) they don't feel like you're shoving information down a reader's throat. I know I hate that feeling as a reader (and a consumer). So, this is the last of the flashback scenes, and the last of the excerpts from The Dragon's Spine that I'll be putting up here. I hope you enjoy.

“You know you don't have to go, my son,” his father said. The man was older now; weak with age and illness.

The young man was now just that – a man. His red hair was wild and long, down to his shoulders. His face sported the beginning of a fine beard.

“You remember I asked you a question a long time ago,” it was a statement from the young man, not a question.

“I remember, my son,” his father replied. “It was 'why do people kill other people?'. We spoke about it a couple of times.”

His son nodded, fastening his chain armor securely. He picked his sword off the table, testing the new blade's balance, before sheathing it in his scabbard.

“It was something I'd hoped to answer properly before a day like this came,” his father continued. “So you'd be ready.”

“I think you answered it as best you could, sir,” the young man said.

“But it wasn't really the answer you were looking for.”

The young man looked to his father, placed a strong but kind hand on the older man's shoulder.

“It taught me something, though,” he said. “You taught me something important.”

“And what is it you've learnt, my son?”

“Sometimes the answers we receive are not the ones we want to hear. But they are answers just the same.”

His father nodded, his gaze following his son as he picked his pack up, tested its weight, and slung it over his shoulders.

“The important thing is to ask the questions we need to ask, and to deal with the answers we receive as best we can,” the young man said. “And if we can, to find a truth we can live with.”

“Why do people kill other people, my son?” his father asked after a long pause.

“It doesn't matter what other people do,” the young man said. “I cannot control that. I can only control my own actions, and answer for them when asked.”

His father thought about this, as his son made his way to the door.

“Why will you kill other people?” his father asked at last.

“Because I must,” Krullus said as he left, closing the door behind him.

The Literary Challenge

I have accepted a challenge from a fellow writer +Vince Kingston. We both have novellas out (as per our Gentlemen's Agreement I have linked his novella here) and we both got to talking about them. Not that either of the novellas are bad (hell, I think mine is the best thing I have on Amazon to date!), but we have challenged each other to rewrite the other's novella!

I don't think this kind of literary competition has ever been tried before (if it has, be sure to let both of us know), and I, for one, know I am taking it seriously. I'll keep you posted as to how I am going, and I'll even let you know how +Vince Kingston is going.

Strap yourself in - this ought to be fun!

Disheartened

Writing isn't all reviews and sales. It's not all great fun, hammering away at the keyboard, watching the words and images in your mind appear on the screen and having that feeling that you've created something good, something that people might want to read, and actually enjoy.

There's a lot of crap that goes with it to. Some of it is stuff that you can control, and some of it isn't. Most of the time I like to think that I can tell the difference, and not worry about the stuff that's beyond my control, and just get on with the stuff that I can. But, I'm only human. Things happen. Things get to me.

I've moved house (hell, I've moved interstate) and I'm still getting settled. My new bed only just arrived today, I've still got crap scattered across the floor of my room (I need to add some more furniture so I can put it all away), I still haven't got a job (I've had a couple of interviews, and Easter did get in the way, I suppose), and I still haven't got into a routine here (it doesn't help that my flatmate is a shift worker).

So, I guess maybe I've been dwelling on things instead of just getting on with things.

Sales of Eria have dried up. I had a couple of "solid" months, with February being the best of them. I was positive. I thought maybe things were picking up. March was just awful. This month hasn't been much better. Maybe all the people that are going to buy it have already done so. Maybe all the friends and family had finally caught up with it, and that's it. I released The Dragon's Spine and I was pretty happy with it. It felt good writing it, and it reads well. If anything, I think it's better than Eria. I think, as a writer, I'm getting better. Sales of The Dragon's Spine, to be honest, are just woeful. Maybe people are just sick of me talking about it, building it up, or, after reading Eria and about the novella, they just aren't interested. Maybe they are put off by the 99 cent price tag.

There are a lot of maybes in there, and, at the end of the day, I just don't know. It's disheartening, really. It just seems like another thing that's not quite going right for me at the moment.

I know I should just dust myself off, get back to "writing the good write" (which was my status message on some IMs for a while), and let things flow. But there's always that nagging little voice in the back of my mind that asks whether or not it's worth it.

The Dragon's Spine - An Excerpt

With The Dragon's Spine now being available from a variety of sources (see here for information) I realized that Amazon doesn't actually provide the Look Inside option for this like it did for Eria. So, I decided to make another except available. The first excerpt can be found here. Enjoy!

“Do you remember once asking me why people killed other people, my son?” his father asked.

His son, now in his mid-teens, almost as large a man as his father, nodded.

“Back then we were hunting animals. Since then you've learnt that sometimes we don't just hunt animals. Sometimes we have to defend against animals. Like the wolves that attacked the sheep flocks outside of Stalam last season. Or the bears that were killing travelers on the road to Tenford a few years back.”

“Didn't we have to hunt the bears?” his son asked. “We tracked them down, like we would the animals we hunt for food.”

“True,” his father said. “We did track them, and use all the skills we use when we hunt. The difference was our motivation.”

His son thought this over for a while before speaking again.

“We hunted the bears because they were hunting us,” he said. “We don't normally hunt them for food. We hunted them for our survival.”

“Exactly!” his father said. “In some cases we kill other people for survival. There are situations when we have no choice. If someone attacks us with the intent of killing us, we either defend ourselves, or we die.”

His son nodded again. His father could see that he had other questions to ask, so he continued.

“That doesn't answer the real question you asked, though, does it, my son?”

“No, sir.”

“I think the important thing to consider is the motivation behind the act of killing,” his father said. “Killing a person is about emotion. For some the emotion is greed – they want what the other person has. For others it is hate – they don't like the other person. People kill out of fear, envy, vengeance. Kings send whole armies of people out to kill others to satisfy their emotions.”

“Why do the armies fight?” his son asked. “Each soldier doesn't feel the same emotion of the King.”

“True,” his father said. “Other emotions drive the soldiers. Loyalty, pride, patriotism. Sometimes, though, they fight because they need to feed their families, or, if the King is wicked, to protect their family from him.”

He looked at his son for a long time before continuing.

“At the end of the day, what I said to you the last time still holds true, though. Some people kill simply because they can.”

A Lot Goes On (But Nothing Happens)

I've had a song by Ben Lee stuck in my head lately. The title is ripped from the chorus of the song. Most of you will probably not know who Ben Lee is, but that's okay. I can wait here while you open a new tab, search him out on Google, and maybe watch a YouTube clip or two. I find, despite his age (and I know age doesn't mean squat sometimes compared to talent and ability) that some of his stuff is rather insightful.

I've moved house. I made the long drive north (about 16 hours all told, that I managed in one go) to be closer to my daughter (who I may or may not get to see more often now), to increase my chances of finding not only a good job, but one that pays good money (I've had a couple of interviews for one job that will pay more than I've ever been paid before), and to get away from the place I was staying (things were becoming a little crowded and claustrophobic for me). One of my friends once (well, more than once, but you know what I mean) that it doesn't matter where you go, or who you spend your time with, you're always there, and you have to learn to love yourself. Most of the time I tolerate myself, but I'm pretty sure that's not what she means.

I'm still really settling in here - it hasn't even been two weeks yet. I still need to make the space I have my own, get back into a bit of a routine with my writing (which, sadly, has been on the back burner trying to get settled here), and get a bed (something which is a more expensive endeavor than I had thought).

I'm well and truly no longer engaged. I'm not really sure where I am even at with that relationship. I still love the girl, want to spend the rest of my life with her, but she's in the USA and I am not, and she's in a state of transition (after a fashion) herself. I spend some of my days sad, lonely, and wondering what I'm doing. Is it any wonder I want to escape into a world of fantasy that I (mostly) control?

The Dragon's Spine is now up for sale at a variety of places. The Amazon link is at the top of the page (and through the magic of technology, you can just click on the name!), as is the Eria link. You can also find it at Drive Thru Fiction and Bygone Futures. I've teamed up with the wonderful Vince Kingston from Bygone Futures for this, and future projects, because I like what Vince does, and he's a wonderful guy. You should check out his stuff. I think he's really going to go places. The Drive Thru Fiction and Bygone Futures versions include a couple of formats, because not everyone has/uses a Kindle or Kindle software (or so I've been told). Eria will also be re-released through both of those sites soon, so, if that's been a concern for some people, be concerned no more!

Lastly, but not leastly, there is already a wonderful review of The Dragon's Spine on the Amazon site (but you would have noticed that when you clicked on the link to check it out, right?). I've said it before, and I'll keep saying it until people tell me to stop (well, maybe once or twice after that) - I love reviews. They really give me a warm and fuzzy feeling. It's great to know that someone not only enjoyed something that I've created, but they also took the time to tell the world at large about it.

Okay, that's me done rambling again. Hopefully the next update will be less of a ramble, and by then (hopefully) I'll have some exciting writing news, a new bed, a job, or a combination of those things.

The Dragon's Spine

Today I finished the "first draft" of the story I was working on (the working title was Krullus, but the actual title will be) The Dragon's Spine. It also went from a short story to a novella. It seems I seriously underestimated the length of the story, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

It needs a few runs through the editing machine, but so far I'm quite happy with it. The editing process, I think, should be fairly painless this time around, partially due to the length (it weighs in at just over 13,000 words), and partially due to the way it was written.

With The Dragon's Spine I was really editing as I was writing. Initially, as I was sitting down to write for the day, I would start at the beginning, reading and editing as I went, to get the creative juices well and truly flowing, as well as to tighten the whole thing up. As things progressed, I would start at a story break, rather than at the beginning. When I reached the end of the "editing" part, I found I just flowed straight into the writing for the day. It was quite seamless. It was also a good way to write, at least for me, on this particular story.

So, what's it about?

The story is set in the Eria universe, several hundred years before the novel. It focuses on a young warrior Krullus, and his two companions - a mage, Aldor, and a rogue, Nystar, and their trip to The Dragon's Spine Mountains. Rumors abound about the mountains, and Krullus, having found no one that claims to have been to the mountains, decides to go there himself. Why has no one else been there before? Is there really a dragon under the mountain?

I'm not going to give away any more than that - where would the fun in that be?

I will say, however, that I went in to the final phases of the story with two possible endings in mind, and in the end (after a fashion) used both. Yeah - I didn't think it was possible, but it was, and it worked, I think. I guess we'll find out in a couple of weeks when it hits the Kindle bookshop!

How I Write

Someone asked me the other day how I write - plan things out in advance, or just sit down and write. This is the response I gave (more or less):


 I used to sit down and see where things went - for a long time I had a great deal of success (for want of a better word) with it - I found just writing would lead my characters on their own adventures, and things would crop up that I hadn't considered before, and that'd be fun. But there was also a lot of time spent staring at the keyboard, or blank page, or whatever medium I was using.

These days I plan somewhat. I have a distinct ending in mind, a good idea of where I want to start, and normally a few things along the way that connect all the dots. That's not to say that I don't surprise myself from time to time - I think that will always happen. I don't plan nearly as much as some people I know - I don't have (when I'm writing a novel) a hard chapter by chapter breakdown and word count in mind when I start. Sometimes I don't even have everything I need plotted out. I have enough, though, to know the kind of story that I want to tell.

I think if I plan, plot, and layout everything, it kills off some of the creative urge, because it feels like I've already written the damn thing (even if it is only in bullet point form). 


There are, I will admit, advantages to both styles. I think at the moment, the hybrid style I use is the right "fit" for me. I take the "sitting and just writing" step before I sit and write more often than not these days. I find myself thinking about a story before I go to bed, or before I take a nap, etc., and make a few notes on my cell phone (it's always with me, so it's just easier this way).

Like last night - I rolled over and grabbed my phone a few times to make some notes about some short stories I've been thinking about (or had just thought about), and a couple of novels (or longer works). I was tempted to jump up and grab the netbook, but I like doing it this way (as I said, for now). 

A Long Overdue Update

I've been away on holidays. I know the internet doesn't take a holiday, but I'm human, haven't been away for over a year, and so I took a couple of weeks off. I had planned on posting while I was away, but the internet gods were not happy at all with my mobile internet device, which was both odd and annoying.

So, what did I get up to? Lots of driving (15 hours each way, plus a few smaller trips of 2 to 4 hours thrown in for good measure), visiting my daughter that I haven't seen in nearly 2 years (yes, I have a daughter - she'll be 5 this year), catching up with a variety of old friends (school, old gaming friends, ex-house mates), visiting the places I once lived and frequented, and some good old fashioned chillaxing.

It wasn't all fun, though. My return trip was interrupted by a series of floods, and I came up close and personal with some floodwater (which is not good in the early hours of the morning when you've been driving all night and hit it at highway speeds). That which does not kill me can only clean my car.

As a result of my trip, one of my friends has offered me her spare room if I want to move back to that part of the world, which I will more than likely be taking her up on. I lived in Brisbane for the best part of 2 decades, most of my Australian friends live there (or close by), and the employment opportunities are (at a rough estimate) about 50 times what I have here. Don't get me wrong, living here has allowed me to pay off debts and save a wad of money, but my social life has been non-existent, and of late I have just felt myself getting in more and more of a rut. A big, ugly, frustrating rut. So, unless a brilliant, high paying, challenging, rewarding job with room for advancement comes my way by Easter, I'm moving.

Enough about me.

February was my best full month for sales of Eria, which is just awesome. It's nice to know that people are still buying and (hopefully) reading my novel. Additionally, I had a couple of reviews, which is very nice. It's a great feeling.

My current story about Krullus is moving along nicely. I really like the way it is coming together. It's longer than I'd anticipated at the outset, but it's still in short(ish) story country. All going well, I'd like to have it finished and out there by the end of the month. Watch this space - I'll be sure to keep y'all posted.

I've also been making a few notes about a follow-up story featuring Krullus. There's more to say about him that just doesn't fit with the current story (well, not without making it feel forced). My only concern (if that is the right choice of words) now is that it might not be a short story, or a series of short stories, but a full blown novel. We'll see once I lay out all the notes and ideas.

As well as Krullus, I've been making some notes for a sequel to Eria. There's some good stuff in there, and I'm definitely interested in pursuing it. I'm not going to say much more about that just yet, however.

Last, but by no means least, I've got some ideas for 3 short stories. One is a playful little story about Dren. The second is a less-playful story about Bædyr. And the final one is about Zelton. More about those later, when they are more than just ideas, and I have something better to say about them.


That's where things stand at the moment. Busy, exciting times ahead, for me, and for my writing. Hopefully I'll have something fun for y'all to read soon!

Krullus - An Excerpt

Since I've been posting a lot of old stories I've written, I thought today I'd post an excerpt from something I'm currently working on. It's a flashback scene from the short story I'm writing. I quite like it. Whether or not it makes it into the final version remains to be seen...

“Sometimes killing can be the easy part,” his father said. “Just keep in mind that skinning and butchering the animal is what is important. You can kill a dozen boars, but if you don't have the stomach, or the knowledge, to get the meat, you've wasted your time.”

The young boy nodded, brushing his red hair out of his eyes as his father pulled the spear from the dead boar.

“I'll show you how it's done this time, but pay attention, because the next time we go out hunting it'll be your turn.” He smiled at the boy. “And we wouldn't want your mother going hungry, would we?”

“No, sir,” he said, the boy crouching beside his father as he took out his knives and began showing his son how to work on the carcass.

“Some people use all of the beast – the skin, the meat, the organs, the eyes – all of it,” he said as he sliced through the boar's hide and into the flesh underneath. “And some people use very little. The people of Vagross, for example. Sure, they use the hides to make their packs, saddles, armor and the like, but they only take the meat when they need it. Sometimes they don't take it at all.”

“Why is that, sir?”

“They don't think they need it, I suppose. They figure that the hides are what are important, at least to them. I guess they figure there will always be enough animals to skin, and not all of them need to be eaten.”

“It seems like a waste.”

“Some people don't take anything at all,” his father said. “They hunt for fun. Or for sport. That's the real waste.”

The boy nodded, and they crouched in silence for a while, his father working on dividing the carcass into sections, getting the boy to wrap the pieces in cloth to keep the flies and other insects from getting to the meat. When they were done, there was little left except for the blood soaked earth where the dead boar had once lain.

“Why do people kill other people?” the boy asked at last, as they packed the wrapped boar into wet sacks to keep it cool for the trip back home.

His father thought for a long time before answering.

“That's a much bigger question,” he said at last. “The answer can be very long and very complicated.”

The boy nodded once more.

“We should probably talk about it properly soon, though,” his father said. “It's important that you know. For now I'll give you the short answer.”

The boy looked expectantly at his father, brushing his hair out of his eyes once more.

“Because they can,” he simply said.

A Random Story Written on Toilet Paper

Along with the two stories that I shared in my last two posts, there was this, written on toilet paper. I'll copy the whole thing below. It's exactly as was written, and gets a little different towards the end. Keep in mind, I was at university at the time, so who knows what frame of mind I was in...

Toilet paper notes: It actually isn't that hard to write on toilet paper. Once the pen starts to move, and your thoughts start to flow, the hardest part will probably end up being coping with the impressions left on the sheets underneath or perhaps the fact of re-rolling the roll once it's finished.
Someone (probably herself) was once telling me that Cate had written a letter on a roll of toilet paper for Matt. I have often toyed with the idea myself, and now is my first attempt. It 'tis a very curious feeling writing like this. It'll take some getting used to. Perhaps next time I should use thicker toilet paper, as this one ply stuff feels a little soft, thin and spongy.
Experimentation seems to be in order.

Storytime.

Once upon a time in a land just over the horizon lived a good and fair king. He lived in a big castle with his wife and his beautiful young daughter.
When the time for his daughter to get married came around, the king sent word all around the kingdom so that all the brave young men would come to see his daughter and ask for her hand in marriage.
Fine young men came from many lands to wed the beautiful princess. The king looked at them, and one after  one he would turn them away, finding a flaw with each.
After all the men had been seen, only two men remained. The king could not decide which one should marry the princess, so he decided that he would give them a set of tasks to complete. The one who passed the most tasks would marry the princess.
The first suitor was a good and kindly prince. He very much loved the princess and wanted to marry her. She loved him as well, but could say nothing as her father had to choose her husband.
The second suitor was an evil man. But he was very cunning. He did not love the princess, but wanted to marry her so he could get all her money, and one day rule the kingdom. The princess hated the evil suitor.
The first test that the king set was to present each suitor with a large sum of money to leave and not marry his daughter.
The good prince turned the money down, as he cared not for the money, as he loved the princess very much.
The evil suitor turned the money down also, as he knew that he could have it once he married the princess.
The king set a second test, but the evil suitor could contain himself no longer. He pulled out an Israeli sub-machine gun and slew the king, the good prince, and took the beautiful princess.
The princess said she would never marry the evil suitor, so he raped her and then sacrificed her to a Pagan God for the powers of the occult. The evil suitor decimated the kingdom and leveled the planet, joining the Pagan God as his one true son.
The planet was soon repopulated by foul demons, and the Pagan God lived in ecstasy for eternity.

THE END

What a lovely story! Would you like to hear a poem? Yes? Well fuck-off! I don't do requests!