Goals for the Weekend 2019-05-10

Welcome everyone!

I'll be away from home this weekend, so I won't get much done. I am bringing along my laptop so there's a good chance I can push my streak past 30 days. I am going to have a chance to talk about my book this weekend, though, and I am very much looking forward to that!

So anyway, here's what I hope to accomplish:

• Get ANY writing done.
• Have great conversations about my book.
• Concept the last remaining art pieces for Book 2.

Peace,

-Troy

29 And Counting

Welcome everyone!

I am really pressed for time today. I've got a trip coming up and work is full of big projects at the moment. Consequently, I don't have much time to develop in-depth posts for my site. What I can tell you, though, is that I'm still getting my writing done every day.

We are at 29 days and counting, which might be the longest streak I've had yet. Some days it's only been a few sentences. Others, it's been almost a full chapter. The good news is that work on the series is coming along very consistently.

I feel very confident that if I can maintain this workload, I'll have some wonderful things to share with you by the end of this year. I'm really looking forward to the next step in our journey together.

For now, I'm just going to keep hammering away at my manuscript. Until next time, take care :)

Peace,

-Troy

Please Consider Nominating My Book

Welcome everyone!

There are a number of literary awards each year for fantasy and science fiction books. Some of them require memberships or entrance fees, but one that does not is the Dragon Awards. I have decided to have no fear and no false humility when it comes to my book, so I'm going to go for this even though the odds are long.

So, if any of my readers would be so kind as to nominate my book, The Huntsman and the She-Wolf, I would greatly appreciate it. The relevant categories would be: Best Fantasy Novel, Best Young Adult/Middle Grade Novel, or Best Horror novel. Please choose only one. There are no fees, no membership requirements, no real requirements of any kind. The Dragon Awards are totally fan driven.

So if you get a chance, here is the link to the nomination form: http://application.dragoncon.org/dc_fan_awards_nominations.php

Thanks so much!

Peace,

-Troy

Rewriting Large Sections of The Sequel

Welcome everyone!

Work on the sequel went well last night, so I'm getting over my weekend malaise. However, I have come to realize a big section of what I wrote has to be redone.

There's a few scenes involving Tristan and his trunk at the Lodge. If you've read the first book, you know what I'm talking about.

Anyway, there is a particular storyline involving the trunk that I want to start in Book 2 and carry through until the end of the series. The problem, though, is what I want to happen isn't what's best for the story.

My plan for the trunk actually prevents Tristan from growing as a character. The best parts of a story often involve a character changing, usually for the better. By focusing so much on material items in the story, I was prevent Tristan from maturing emotionally and spiritually.

Thus, I have about three chapters in Book 2 that have to be totally redone, maybe more. The prospect of doing that is deflating, but I think it's a problem many authors face.

In fact, I would hazard a guess that most authors have to rewrite significant portions of their books before sending them to print. It's just part of the process.

So there goes about 10-20 hours of work. I'll have to make sure continuity is maintained throughout the plot. When you change something early in a story, you have to make sure each succeeding chapter takes that change into account.

In the end, I think the rewrites I have to make will produce a more enjoyable narrative for the reader. Book 2 will be a bit gentler than I wanted, but there's still plenty of hardship for the characters to deal with.

Anyway, I've tried to describe all this without any spoilers. I just wanted to give an update on where I am with the sequel and to let you know I'm still well on track to release it in 2020.

Peace,

-Troy

Well, That Was Unproductive

Welcome everyone!

It wasn't a great weekend. I got a little lazy and just took a break. I probably shouldn't have, but this time of year I can get so worn out, I don't feel like doing anything at home.

I did get some writing and some editing done each day. It's not as if Saturday and Sunday were total loses, but I could have done much more. And I didn't even begin on my bonus goal. My mind was rebellions. It only wanted entertainment, and I guess sometimes you have to feed your mind to get it to do what you want.

Thankfully, I'm feeling better today. I thrive on routine, and so the more structured my day is, the more productive I become. I have a good feeling that tonight I'll be able to tackle a big chunk of the editing and maybe even get some sketches done.

Let's hope, anyway!

Peace,

-Troy

Goals for the Weekend 2019-05-03

Welcome everyone!

Right now I am in the midst of a major editing binge. I've gotten through five chapters, and I'm not even tired yet. So this weekend, I want to continue on that. I'm also trying to write new content at the same time, though that's taking a back seat right now. Mainly, I just want to reinforce the habit of writing at the same time every day.

So anyway, goals for the weekend are simple:

-Edit like crazy
-Continue writing streak
-Bonus Goal: sketch out rough drafts of scenic art I need for book 2 (we'll see if I have time for that)

Peace,

-Troy

Oops! A Day Got By Me

Welcome everyone!

Sorry I didn't have much of a post today. I'm in the midst of editing several chapters, and I just got on a roll. I've been hammering away all day today, including before leaving for work and during lunch.

That'll happen sometimes. All it means is that I'll just have more good stuff to share later ;)

Peace,

-Troy

New Characters vs. Reusing Characters

Welcome everyone!

As I work my way through the sequel to The Huntsman and the She-Wolf, I am frequently presented with a particular choice: introduce a new character to the series OR reuse an old character the audience knows.

Characters are constantly moving in and out of the narrative. The setting is a small but very productive village and a surrounding valley full of colorful personalities. So, if I want to add a character to the main character's troupe, what do I do?

When it comes to the protagonist and his allies, I've decided to reuse as many characters as possible. When it comes to the antagonists, I prefer a mix. 

I had already started outlining and working on Book 2 in my series while Book 1 was with my beta readers. I was examining how the plot in the sequel would go, and I realized I needed a character with a connection to both Aranka (the librarian) and Garrov (the mad inventor). 

As a result, I created Syra. She's a minor character but fills an important role for me. I introduced her to my character list for Book 2 as a new character, but then I got to thinking. Why in the world would the audience care about her? I knew I needed to establish some past history to draw the reader in.

My solution was to introduce Syra in book one as a helper to Aranka with aspirations to follow in Garrov's footsteps. Syra's interactions in the library make it clear she'd rather be somewhere else, but because of Aranka's peculiarities, Syra is needed in the Lodge much of the time.

To me, that makes her likable and compelling for a supporting character. Syra has a very small role in Book 1, appearing for only one chapter, I believe. But her presence establishes that character for the audience.

Going into Book 2, the reader knows Syra is: young, ambitious, hating her job, and filled with aspirations in the fields of forging metal and inventing contraptions. 

Naturally, I'll have to remind the reader of that in the course of Book 2. I don't expect anyone to remember the characters with that sort of detail, but if I jog their memories correctly, Syra's arc will be much more engrossing than someone they never met before.

Now, a good time to introduce a new character is with the villains. Something new is always intimidating for people since humans are naturally afraid of the unknown.

Introducing a new threat is a powerful literary device because the audience actually feels the same confusion and dread as the characters. Who is this new threat? What are its powers? How will anyone escape?

That's fantastic! There are certainly times to reuse old villains, though, and I'll talk more about the new and old antagonists in a future post.

For now, I just want to celebrate 23 consecutive days of writing!!!!!!!! Let's hope I can keep that going.

Peace,

-Troy

Motifs I Like and Want To Use #1 - The Magic Mirror

Welcome everyone!

Today I want to talk start a series of posts about Motifs I've enjoyed from the literature I've read and how I might use them in my own writing should the occasion allow. I'm going to start with just one.

#1: The Magic Mirror

Thinking of mirrors as portals are as old as mirrors themselves. There's something mystical about their very nature. They reflect reality, but aren't reality - I mean, other than the fact they they are made of glass and silver.

The fact that fairy tales like Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, or Alice in Wonderland use magic mirrors so effectively shows how deep in the psyche the association with magic this common object has.

Personally, I love that. I also love the idea of putting two mirrors facing each other and creating a tunnel that goes to infinity. What adventures could await someone down those dark paths? Alternate settings? Time Travel?

I won't force the use of a magic mirror in my stories. It'll have to arise naturally. I think the plot would have to call for a portal of some kind in order to justify the use of a mirror in that way. However, as I outline out the rest of my Hunter's Rose series, I'll be looking for ways to do this.

It's fun, IMHO, to include ancient and resonate motifs in my stories. I think that makes them more relatable to my readers. I'll expand on that observation more when I write about The Rose.

Anyway, take care of each other out there. :)

Peace,

-Troy

A Podcast I Really Enjoy

Welcome everyone!

One of the things I feel I have to do as a writer is keep educating myself about the art of writing. There are a lot of resources out there, and I think I'll try to highlight the ones I use most in the coming months.

One that I really enjoy is a podcast series called Writing Excuses. Their episodes come out each week and are highly focused on a single topic. They also keep their episodes short, which is appreciated since I (and no doubt others) are very busy.

They have a list of their essential episodes. I'll post that HERE. I think any writer would be well served by listening to what these authors have to say.

Anyway, moving on to a personal update, I was able to meet all my goals for the weekend. It was such a busy weekend. I don't like weekends like that. I really need my downtime. The wedding was wonderful, though. I loved seeing the happiness of the bride and groom. Naturally, it made me appreciate my marriage all the more.

So this coming week, I hope to get more writing done. With the NBA playoffs here, it's not easy to focus (Round 2 of the playoffs has four fantastic match-ups). But still, time to sally forth and slay evil!

Peace,

-Troy

Weekend Nature Post #7 - Quest for the Giants Part 3

Welcome everyone!

When we last met, I was tracking down the legendary giants of Bernheim Forest. I discovered a swamp where they are said to lurk and one of their footprints nearby. This week, as I followed the clues, I knew I must be getting close. The Eye of Sauron was looking down on me, and where there is a great eye floating in the air, evil minions such as giants must be nearby!

Peace,

-Troy

Goals for the Weekend 2019-26-04

Welcome everyone!

This week I am CRAZY busy. I have to attend a wedding AND a wedding shower! Also, there are a couple local activities I'll be involved with Friday evening and Sunday afternoon. Man, I hate it when life gets this busy.

However, I'm still going to try to get some work done. So here are my goals:

-Continue my consecutive days of writing
-Renew my marketing projects which were terrifically successful this week

Peace,

-Troy

What Does Mersha's Weapon Look Like?

Welcome everyone,

A while back I did a post on Tristan's weapon. Today, I was sent a question asking what makes Mersha's a "flanged mace" rather than a "regular" mace.

First, I am absolutely NO expert in medieval and renaissance weaponry. I have a rudimentary understanding, and that's all. So whatever you do, don't take my word as gospel. Investigate it for yourself.

With that out of the way, let me explain maces as best I can. There are many different types from the very basic stone-on-a-stick to super ornate flanged maces. First, here's a spiked mace:

The spikes are meant to help it puncture armor, particularly plate armor. The small metal globe in the center helps to give the spikes some added force as they try to pierce metal. Next is a more basic mace, that has no spikes or flanges at all:

This type of mace would be most useful for attacking an enemy in chain mail armor. Chain mail is great for stopping slashing weapons like a sword or axe and isn't bad at stopping arrows with a broad head either. However, it is no defense whatsoever against a heavy round ball like this. Your ribs are going crack no matter what if you get his with this wearing just chain mail.

Finally, this is how I envision Mersha's mace:

It combines the heavy hitting power AND the puncturing power of the first two into one design. I can't say if a flanged mace like this is the best design for a mace, but it's the one I felt was most appropriate for her.

Anyway, I hope this helps you imagine the story a bit better. Take care of each other out there :)

Peace,

-Troy

Pushing Through A Tough Scene

Welcome everyone!

I'm on 16 consecutive days of writing new content! Woohoo! However, not all is good news. I'm struggling at the moment with a scene I shouldn't be.

Without giving any spoilers, I'm writing a part where the characters are facing a series of diverse challenges to get to a remote location. This should be a lot of fun to write since it involves so many different angles of adversity.

But it's not. When I read my notes, the whole thing looks hokey to me. It doesn't feel "real" enough. It's not as if there aren't lasting consequences for the challenges. There most certainly are. Permanent ones, and usually that's enough to interest me.

Right now, though, it isn't. So what does one do? Keep writing is the answer. Even when you look at what you're writing and think it's garbage, you keep going. Even if you think you'll rewrite everything, keep going. Giving up the worst option, so I'm not going to take it.

I'll finish this scene soon, then I'll come back and make it good once the book is finished. Sometimes, the words come effortlessly. Sometimes you have to strive for them. This is one of those cases where I'll have to strive.

I wish the words were coming easier, but hey, we can't get everything we wish for. Right?

Peace,

-Troy

Moving On with Book 2 Artwork

Welcome everyone!

I've started the process of getting artwork done for Book 2 in my Hunter's Rose series. While the book is not finished yet, I do have a solid idea of what I want illustrated.

I've received a good deal of positive feedback on the roses that are included in the interior of the novella. Therefore, you can expect to see five more in Book 2. None of the roses will be a repeat from Book 1, so new artwork all around.

When it comes to setting illustrations, Book 1 had three: The Lodge, The Mines, and The Six Axemen. For Book 2, I may increase the number of setting arts to five. I'm not sure about that yet, but it's looking good.

It can take up to two weeks for each piece, so that gives you an idea about the timeline I'm looking at. I really want Book 2 to be out next February or March, so it makes perfect sense to me to start working now. I wish I had started sooner on Book 1.

I also want to do a better job of building up to my book launch. The launch for Book 1 went much better than I ever imagined, but I think that was mostly because of the wonderful people who support me. I want to hold up my end better for Book 2.

Anyway, that's just a brief update on where I am. Oh, and I've now worked on my sequel (actually writing, not just revising) for 15 consecutive days. Some days I've gotten 1500 words, and some days I've only done 100. But I've gotten something.

And I'm very glad about that.

Peace,

-Troy