Updates and More Fun in Music

Hello friends,

You've probably noticed, but I haven't been around a lot.  I've just been really busy. :D  And the busy isn't ending - not yet at least - I'm just taking a few minutes to pause and update my life. ^_^

For starters, the person who wins a free copy of my e-book short story "Blue Moon" is....

GALADRIEL!!!!!

Congratulations. ^_^  To claim your copy, please email me at silverdreams3@gmail.com. :)

On another note, I'm preparing to host another giveaway... this time for Frank Peretti's new book "Illusion".  I FINALLY received my ARC of the book about a week and a half ago... after it was already in stores. :p  But that's ok.  I'm slowly working through my copy of the book, and Simon & Schuster sent me an extra copy of the ARC as well... a book that has never, and will never see a bookstore shelf... a book that I should have been able to offer you long before the rest of the copies came out in stores, but oh well. :)

SO in the very near future, I'll be posting more info on how you can get your hands on it. ^_^

In the mean time, I've been spending WAY to much time doing things that are not related to writing novels.  In  fact, I've been writing music.  ^_^  You see, I've been playing around with the demo version of a program called FL Studios, and having an absolute BLAST with it.  I've put together three pieces of music since downloading the demo program three days ago. lol!

The first piece... needs some work. :P :P  I'll go back and edit it later.  Now that I'm getting the hang of the program, I know I can do much better than that. (even though I still like the original music. lol!)

The Second and third pieces are much better, and the third is my FAVORITE. ^_^  It's called "Beautiful Storm" and was inspired by... you guessed it... a very beautiful storm that blew over my house the other night.  I just LOVE listening to the rain on my roof at night!  And I think that this composition portrays the wonder of it fairly well... or at least I hope it does.

Enjoy!  And let me know what you think of the music.

Nichole

The Delicate Art of Torture – A Study in Conflict and Character Building

(A warning to any who read this, this post is rather long so be prepared to sit and really think about what your reading here. ^_^)

Now, if you are a writer, you’ve probably guessed what this blog post is going to be about from the title, right?  And if you are not a writer, then you probably have no idea what I’m talking about and have most likely conjured horrible bloody pictures in your head of writers using pens and pencils to stab people, flailing keyboards around like bludgeons, or else something of a similar nature to barbarianism. 

Oh please… *rolls eyes sarcastically*.  Trust me here; the art of torture requires so much more finesse than that.  >:)

Of course I’m talking about the writing process and a writer’s relationship with their characters.  It’s a very delicate balance, you see, that between creator and imaginary creation.  While the people in our stories do not have physical bodies, for say, they are very much alive in our heads.  However, until we start actually writing about them, they are usually floating around in white space waiting for something to happen.

The trick is in making something happen to them that is actually interesting.  In order to do that, a writer needs to infuse their story with conflict.  Personally, I feel that the subject of conflict is a sticky one to approach, but basically conflict is the element of the story that makes reading the story interesting.  Just recently I read a really awesome post on the subject here:

http://lydiasharp.blogspot.com/2012/01/back-to-basics-every-scene-must-have.html

That posts breaks it down nice and simple, and really drives home the importance of conflict – not just in your story, but in every scene of your story. 

Now as many writers already know, there is usually an overall conflict in any story to begin with.  I find that this is normally what the story’s overall plot is based off of. 

For instance:

1)  The girl is in love with the guy but can’t have him. (or vise versa)  

2) There is an evil magic ring that corrupts people placed in the hand of young hobbit, and a dark lord is rising up in the east.

3) A girl finds out that she has inherited the ability to read characters out of their books from her father, but what happens when her father accidentally reads a villain out of his story?

Etc…

These are all good examples of a conflict central to the story line, but there should also be a form of conflict within each and every scene of the book; something that drives the story forward continually, without leaving the reader in a lag of interest.  This is, I’m finding, not only very important for a writer to adhere to, but it’s also rather difficult to do well because it means that EVERY scene must have a goal… a set point in the plot that you are writing towards. 

If this all sounds confusing, try thinking of every scene as one thread in a tapestry.  A single thread may seem small, and on its own it doesn’t appear to be of much worth: it starts at a certain point… it ends at a certain point, and it doesn’t change colors.  Where that thread is tied off, another thread is tied on, its life span much the same as the previous one.  However, when the weaver is finished with her work, and we finally get to see the tapestry as a full picture, the life span of those two little threads suddenly makes sense.  They were aiding in the overall creation of the tapestry, strung out and woven tightly (which of course means “with tension” or in this case “with conflict”) between other threads in order that the purpose of the whole picture might be fulfilled. 

What wouldn’t have made sense was if these threads were tied on, and then just hung limply down instead of being woven in (like a scene that has no conflict in it… it doesn’t drive the story forward but just “is”).

What my friend Lydia states in her blog post is simply that without a goal, conflict is not possible.   And since conflict is what drives your story forward and makes it interesting to read, you want to have some form of it in every part of your story.  To do that, you must realize the goal of a scene (or, if you prefer, the importance of the scene and how it parallels with your plot) before or as you are writing said scene.  You can be an outliner or a pantster – in this case, it really doesn’t matter – but sooner or later, you are going to have to realize your scene’s goal.

Now, you are probably wondering at the moment what this has to do with the title of this post, but I promise that I’m getting there.

You see, I find that a great way to encourage conflict in my story is through the delicate art of torturing my characters on a regular basis.  Such evil actions can be planned out ahead of time, or they can be written in at a minute’s notice, but in my opinion, torture definitely presents itself as a form of conflict.

For example, the very definition of torture is as follows:

1.  to inflict pain on somebody: to inflict extreme pain or physical punishment on somebody 

2.  to cause somebody anguish: to cause somebody mental or physical anguish

3.  to distort something: to twist or distort something into an unnatural form 

If none of those definitions ring of conflict to you, then I don’t know what will. ;)

However, inflicting torment on a character is a sensitive business for writers.  If done wrong, the reader could be taken out of the story because the situation feels unrealistic, or (in the worst of circumstances) a writer’s characters might turn on him or her and cause a bloody massacre of said writer’s inspiration.

Of course we want to try to avoid such drastic and bloody measures on the character’s part, so it is the writer’s job to learn how to exact their planned persecutions on the character without the character ever thinking for a moment that all of his or her troubles in life become the fault of their writer.  

But how can this be done in a graceful manner?

Well, it is a tricky business to be sure, and to fully do the subject justice, I must touch on a theme that may seem completely off subject.

World and Character building.  Especially Character building, in this case.

For those of you who have been at this for a while, what I’m saying may seem “old hat” to you, but I wonder… have you ever really considered how close your character really is to the situations that you put him or her through?  I mean, of course it is happening to them, but what do you suppose they believe is the reason it is happening?  Obviously we are trying to avoid having characters guess that it is really our fault that they are going through so much trouble, but what is the excuse that their minds make in order to deter them from thinking of us as the writers?

If you think of it this way, it might make sense: the entirety of our world is based off of the rule of cause and effect.  For every effect, there is a cause.  In order to make our stories seem real to our readers, a writer must apply this same rule to their stories and the worlds that exist there.  BUT… just as every effect must have a cause, so must every cause match its effect and vice versa.

For instance… you wouldn’t want your dog character to step into a puddle of water (the cause) and then suddenly die (the effect).  It wouldn’t match up.  If the water was just ordinary water and the dog was just an ordinary dog, as is the case with this example, then there should be no reason for the dog to die by simply touching a patch of random, normal water.

You might, however, have your dog step into a puddle of highly radioactive muck (the cause) and then turn into a super hero (the effect).  This would make sense in a story, both to the reader and to the characters, as radioactive muck is known to be toxic, in many cases deadly, and in the comic books often all-empowering.

To apply the cause and effect rule to people and the dealings of people rather than a dog is a lot more difficult though.  This is because each person has a unique story behind them that may drive their actions in a scene.  

An example would be something I’ve written into my story, “Song of the Daystar”.

In one of the scenes in SOTD, I have a very complicated meeting between Commander Olan and his brother, Caellahn, where they are discussing a movement of believers in the kingdom of Alayia.  My main character, Curron, is listening in and tries to escape without being discovered, but changes his mind when Olan grabs his friend in a drunken state and is harassing her. (Nothing overly drastic, I assure you.)  In that instance, Curron decides to stand up for his friend and gets himself thrown in prison where he awaits his trial and his death.

The question that I’m sure you are asking by now is, why would Curron’s actions warrant him death?  According to the summary above, it would seem that Curron didn’t commit a crime worthy of death… not exactly, anyway.

And the answer really does have to be as complicated as my characters are (besides the fact, of course, that Curron tries to slam a heavy mug over Olan’s head… <_<)

You see, it’s quite obvious by now that by me having Curron thrown in prison and sentenced to die, I am applying a writer’s “torture” technique to him.  But in order to do this and make it feel reasonable to the reader, I have to give each of the characters involved a background that would warrant their actions… and, not just warrant their actions, but also support their actions since it would seem that many different character backgrounds are based on each characters’ unique personality.

For example, in my story Commander Olan is not happy that his brother has returned(as is made quite evident in a fight scene that happens just before Curron is sentenced).  In fact, Olan hates his brother because Caellahn was his father’s favorite son, though he was also the youngest and illegitimate.  Also, Olan has a strong (almost instinctive) sense of following the rules… any rules set… which in this case and sense put my MC in danger.  He also doesn’t like my MC, partially because he feels that Curron’s very presence is a breach of the king’s law (for multiple reasons, of course), and partially because Curron reminds him of his brother, Caellahn. 

Caellahn, on the other hand, doesn’t have trouble with his brother so much as he had trouble with his father.  He recognized the fact that his father’s favoritism was the cause of his brother’s hatred, and once he became a believer in his younger years, he resented his father’s choice of having an illegitimate son, even if he was it.  To that end, he left the fort in an attempt to outrun his troubles, his past, and his heritage, and eventually his adventures gained him a name among Alayia’s believers.  However, he did come to forgive his father in due course, but has not yet been able to win over his brother.  Caellahn is a loner, and much more erratic than his brother, with a strong sense of right and wrong despite what the law has to say about the matter.  He can see what Olan hates about Curron (mostly that Curron reminds olan of him), and so, feeling guilty for at least part of Olan’s hate for the boy, he steps in to protect Curron, thereby furthering Olan’s wrath.

In the mean time, Curron is a young boy who doesn’t yet know where he stands one way or the other.  When he was ten he watched as his guardian was hung for her beliefs, and the event has scarred him deeply, making him doubt the way of Anahdor.  And yet, however clouded his beliefs are, he still has a young and naïve sense about him that makes him sensitive to right and wrong, and ultimately loyal, once a person had actually gained his trust.  On that same note, because of Olan’s hate for him, his guardians awful death, and the terrible treatment he has received since then, his trust is not easily earned… and that becomes both a hindrance and a blessing within the contents of the book.  He definitely has a strong sense of protectiveness that is triggered when he sees another person being wrongly mistreated, especially if he knows and is fond of that person. 

It is during such a moment that Curron decides to step up to protect his friend, thereby triggering Olan’s hate for him (based on his hate for his brother, and his inward need to uphold the law at all cost), which in turn triggers Caellahn’s need to protect Curron (partially because he recognizes the reason that Olan is targeting Curron and feels guilt), which further stokes Olan’s wrath at his brother and at Curron who reminds Olan of his hated brother, thereby causing him to throw Curron in jail and sentence him to death as a punishment to Curron and, by effect, Caellahn as well.

I’m hoping this is all starting to make sense now.  You see, it is the conflict within each character’s life and background that drives forward the conflict within the scene, which in turn ultimately drives forward the conflict of the whole story and allows me to throw in more obstacles and tortures for my characters without having to worry about Curron stepping out of the tale to berate me.  In the same way, it is how the world is built (in this case with the King’s Law driving forward most of the conflict in each of these characters’ lives) that adds to the conflict in both the scene and the story. 

And, because all of these problems are within Curron’s mental and physical background and makeup, I find that he doesn’t often question my motives because he understands the hardships within the context of the story and the backgrounds of the other characters.

In essence, it is the world of the story itself which averts my characters’ wrath from me.

This post is getting a bit long now, so I’m going to try and stop very soon, but I would like to end on this note: the world as we know it is a very complex thing.  Everything within our world, including human lives and our histories, are governed by a set of unspoken and unwritten rules.  Scientists have pondered the nature of these rules for centuries, though of course there is no scientist who ever lived or is now living who could fully understand the complexities that God created and is holding this world together with.

In a sense, one might say that the very nature of humanity is conflict.  We are often fighting each other, hurting each other, even running away from each other.  From sibling rivalry to all out war, one could even say that humans are masters of discord, especially among ourselves, and as complex as the world around us may be, our very nature is even more complex.  After all, you don’t see monkeys or any of the other animals going around building cities and making world changing discoveries in technology.

The point is that while we writers can never hope to make our worlds as complete and complex as God made this one, we still must work to make our worlds as believable as possible.  To that end, we must create and write, not only our worlds, but our characters and the other inhabitance of our worlds with some sort of complexity in mind, including common rules that those worlds and people are built and live by.  Only by following what we know of this world can we ever hope to create our worlds with any sense of reality.  It’s true that we may never be able to hope for our creations to live on into eternity or take on an actual living and breathing life of their own, but that is not our goal after all: a writer’s goal is for the stories that we create to take on only some brief semblance of reality for the few precious hours that readers enjoy our books… and once we have reached that point, that’s when our characters truly step out of the white static of our minds and actually come to life… if only for a moment. 

A New Novella??

Lately I've had a flurry of writing inspiration, but strangely enough, none of it has been aimed at SOTD.  I'd like to say that SOTD has moved forward, but sadly enough it has not.  Instead, I've been filling notebooks with the ideas for a possible novella titled "Siren".

"Siren", is a story about a character named Syren.  (Obviously there is an unmistakable connection between the title of the piece and the MC's name.)  The plot is still in being worked over, but I know that the piece is going to be slightly allegorical, and yet will still explore some fun mermaid mythology. ^_^

Here's a picture of my main character at the age of the initial story:

(I'll share some of what the story is going to have in it, and then post a short excerpt of what I've written so far.)

First of all, this story is going to have two different perspectives that a reader can take... there's the face value of the story, and the allegorical value of the story, of course. :D

On the surface, I want this story to resemble one of those stories told of medieval times where the girl was offered up to the dragon, etc, etc... sort of like in the story of St. George and the Dragon.  However, it won't be like the traditional versions of the story, as Syren's village will be offering her to a sea monster rather than a dragon... and besides that, the story will also have strong allegorical ties (that may not be entirely apparent at the very first, but that will grow more recognizable as the story progresses.)

For instance (and don't laugh here... I'm totally serious), in the story Syren is sort of going to represent Christ... She's a pure, young, innocent girl that stands out from the crowd because of her different views which are truthful and honest and loving in a world filled with darkness and sin.  The sea will represent God... obviously I've named this book "Siren" for a reason... Syren has an intimate connection with the sea and can hear it speak to her, and... well, it gets more complicated than that of course. ;D  The village in which Syren has lived represents mankind; the village commits a terrible sin and for its crime it is going to be destroyed by the Monster of the Sea (which represents the devil).  The village comes to believe that the reason for the coming destruction is Syren's fault.  To abate the coming massacre, they decide so sacrifice her to the Sea Monster... but Syren knows that her sacrifice will not save the village from being destroyed unless she forgives them their transgressions against her and lays her life down willing in the stead of all of the lives within the village.

I'm hoping to make the allegorical ties much more apparent within the story itself.  :D  Hopefully the novella can be enjoyed for both of perspectives within the tale.

Here's a small excerpt of what I have so far.  It's the opening scene -- a flashback of when Syren remembers seeing the Sea for the first time.  Let me know what you think of it! :D

****

            I remember the first time I really saw the sea, as clear as if it were only yesterday.  I was six, and stood on a rocky ledge sheltered by the Cliffside, facing the water in awe and terror.    The sky rolled with dark clouds that sped across it like frightened spirits fleeing death.  The air smelled of threatened rain and salt.  Lightning flashed purple and silver within the roiling thunderhead, and wind flayed the rocky shore like a bull whip.  Blue green waves swelled up on high, towering over my tiny shelter as if they wanted a closer look at me and weren’t quite sure they liked what they saw.  When they’d had their view, they plunge back into the depths with a tremendous crash to whisper about my oddity.  I could hear their rushing, gurgling voices, even so far above them, pondering, contemplating… calling.

            What was I?

            The hand on my shoulder tightened its grip as if afraid I would wrench free and disappear into the waters below.  Rúweth had to shout in order to be heard over the pounding surf.

            “Do you know why I brought you here, Syren?  Do you understand?”

            His words were kindly, but his voice was strained.  I knew he meant well by bringing me here; somehow this was supposed to be for good – a lesson maybe, or a story: a parable.  But I did not want to be here.  This was a bad place for me… I could sense it.  I shook my head in answer to his question rather than attempting to shout over the incessant roar.  I did not know why Rúweth had brought me, and I certainly didn’t understand.  The sea was a dark and terrible thing, raw and beautiful and dangerous.  It was perfection, a flawless seductress in a world of faults.    I felt as if it would just as soon swallow me whole as allow me to look at it. 

            Rúweth’s grip on my shoulder grew firmer, and he gently pulled me closer to him as if by keeping me near he could hold back the waters that wished to devour me.

            “Syren,” he said, and though he was shouting to be heard, I recognized the underlying concern in his voice.  “Syren, do not pretend with me.  This is important.  You deny that you know why I’ve brought you here, yet I think that deep down you do indeed know.  I can see the look in your eyes, and feel the tremble in your bones: you hear the call of the waves clearer than any sea-loving man in Boatswain.    I brought you here because the sea has a stronger hold on you than on any living person I know, and I wanted to show you the dangers that it harbors.  To you, Syren, it is like a clouded and poisonous jewel, deadly in every sense of the word just as it is beautiful.  While I am here with you I can protect you from its malice, shield you from its spite…but you must promise me; promise me that you will never come out here alone to answer its call.  Promise me that you will remember its cruelness and keep far away.  For should I ever think that you would come here to look upon the sea, by yourself or otherwise, I would be forced to send you away, somewhere far inland where the water’s voices cannot reach you.  I will protect you, Syren, by any means possible, but that, my dear child, would break my heart.”

            The last words choked in Rúweth’s throat, and his arms encircled me in a tight embrace as he bent his wizened face to kiss the top of my curly head.  I felt his tears drip into my hair and tickle my scalp.  Around the side of his arm I saw another wave rise up from the sea, towering green and glistening in all of its majestic horror.  And I could have sworn then that the smooth surface of the wave transformed into a long face with a frothy beard, as a spout of water stretched forth like an arm to beckon me come.  I could almost feel the wave-creature’s longing, almost hear its fluid and rippling voice calling out to me, begging me to return…

            And there I promised Rúweth that I would never come back to the sea.  Not alone – not ever.  I would by no means return to gaze out at the vast watery expanse because deep down I knew that should I ever come back, I would not return to the village of Boatswain, my home, or my dear Rúweth again.

***

Blogging with a New Perspective

I have been reading a book by John Locke recently about online marketing titled "How I sold 1 Million Ebooks in 5 Months".   One of the things that this book highlights is the importance of blogging and how it effects you as a writer, a reader, a businessman, and basically a person.    I've found it very eye opening.

Since starting the book, I've gone back over some of the blog posts I've written in the past, and there's one thing I've noticed about these posts that remains consistent.  They all scream "off the cuff"... as if I didn't spend much time thinking about what I was going to write about.  I don't like that thought... not at all. Several of these posts seem chaotic and disorganized... a rambling mess of thoughts thrown out in no particular order.  Other posts appear more thought through and consistent, but perhaps they are too long (I seem to like posts that sit somewhere over 1,000 words at least. :P) or maybe they shy off topic near the end.

No more.  It's time I start blogging with a new perspective... a more thoughtful perspective.  It's time that my blog lives up to the passion I hold for my craft.  No more rambling posts; no more halfhearted attempts to update the P&P with small, uninteresting facts about my life that don't pertain to anything in particular.

As a writer, I know that I should be doing better than this.  In fact, I know that I could be doing better than this, and all of you deserve better.

As a writer who is also an avid reader, I know what others who are like me or who share my interests might find engaging.  I know all of this... and it's time I start putting this knowledge to work.  The way things are around here will be changing in the near future, hopefully for the better.  It's time that I made the change.

Thank you, John Locke, for the inspiration your book provided me.  I may not have read any of your other works, but I will hand you this: you sure know how to write!  Every writer I know should get this book and study it thoroughly. It's well worth the price, I'll tell you that!

Nichole
"Blue Moon" by Nichole White


*

Excerpts From My Life

Hello friends,


This post is sort of a mix of an update and a mix of something else - I'm not exactly sure what. :P


On the "Update" side, I have some exciting news. ^_^  If you've been reading my posts, and you've read through the comments on the post "Updates on my life... and no, I'm not dead yet", then you might have noticed that I've mentioned I was in the middle of an experimental project in which I prepare several of my short stories for publications through Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords.

Well, step one in said experiment is now complete... which means, in essence, that the first of a set of my short stories is now available on Amazon for Kindle. ^_^  The first object of the experiment is to test my text formatting and type setting skills when it comes to digital publication, so that I'm 100% prepared for Magpie Eclectic Press' first title.  Well, according to my kindle, I have a good handle on the type setting and formatting for amazon.  Now I just have to prepare the book for Smashwords and B&N.


The second (and currently less important) object (which I will explain about in a moment), is to test my online marketing skills.  The book just went live a little over 12 hours ago, and the story is only 4k long.  It's also one of my older pieces, but it's one that I still really like and I've been "tweaking" it. :D


Here is the cover and the blurb:


(Note about the cover: My name is really dim on purpose, because I didn't want the extra words to take away from the picture's effect.  However, if you find this troublesome, please let me know. :D)

ZI Mara is an elite soldier in the F.A.H (that's Faeries Among Humans for those of you without fae blood).  When an enraged male ghoul escapes the faerie realms and begins on a rampage for Chicago, Mara and her friend, Officer Lee Moker, are the only ones who can stop the monster and save the humans from disaster.  However, the ghoul has already taken a large bite out of Mara's shoulder and its venom is slowly rendering her immobile.  The only hope for the people of Chicago rests in Mara's hands... and that hope could cost her her life.

(A disclaimer for those of you who are a bit more sensitive, the word "heck" is used several times throughout the story.)

The book is now available for $0.99 on Kindle. ^_^  It was not released under Magpie Eclectic Press, as it is more of an experimental personal project.

As the story is only 4k, and hasn't been previously advertised before release (which would be standard procedure with a novel), I don't expect the story to really "take off", but I still hope it does well.  I don't write short stories very often, and this is definitely one of my better pieces.  Hopefully it will help me gain a few new readers and maybe even a couple of fans... which, of course, would be nice and encouraging. :)

Here's the Amazon link:

"Blue Moon" by Nichole White

In other news, school is going well and so is the progress on Magpie's new site. :D  It's not live yet, but it's coming.  In the mean time I've been working on a new writing post called "The Delicate Art of Torture", which is about conflict and torturing your characters... *evil look*

I've also been working on more jewelry... really fun pieces which are all twisty and beaded. :)  I've created an FB page for them, and I'm working to set up an etsy shop. Here's the FB page if any of you are interested:

Handmade wire wrapped jewelry

And in between that, music theory homework, and life in general, I've also found some time to squeeze writing in through the cracks of my crazy, wonderful life.  I have a few more book reviews due to be up within a couple of weeks, and I'm really, REALLY hoping that this will be the last "update" post in a while (meaning that instead, I will be posting more book reviews, writing posts, and perhaps even hosting a contest in the near future... ^_^)

In the mean time, how about a giveaway... The prize is either a PDF or Kindle Formated author review copy of my short story "Blue Moon" (which is exactly the same as the published version, only you will be getting it for free. :D)

To join, you must:
1) follow this blog (1 pnt)

2) Post a comment (1)

To earn more points, you can:

1) Post to FB (1) 

2) Tweet about it (1)

3) blog about it (something thoughtful if possible) and post the link in the comments (2)

4) get a friend to follow the P&P (and for this to count, your friend must post a comment saying who it was that referred them) (3)

I wonder who will win this contest. :D  I've never hosted one like this before, so it should be interesting... good luck to you all! 

Ross Lawhead's "The Realms Thereunder"

Hello and welcome to the blog tour for Ross Lawhead's book "The Realm's Thereunder". Ross Lawhead is the son of well known British Speculative Fiction writer, Steven Lawhead, and let's make no mistake, he has definitely decided to follow in the footsteps of his literary father. To date, He has collaborated with his father on a trilogy of speculative fiction, written and illustrated a graphic novel, and published two volumes of “awful” poetry in a series called “The Colour Papers.” He lives in Oxford, England and "The Realms Thereunder" is his first full-length novel.

Ok, I have to be extremely honest here: I am not very familiar with many of Steven Lawhead's books, and I know that's awful since I love speculative fiction -- especially Arthurian fiction -- and time travel and British literature intrigue me. I actually have quite a few of Mr. Lawhead's books at home, but haven't gotten around to reading them yet, as sad as that is. In the past I have read Mr. Lawhead's book "The Skin Map" and reviewed it here on the P&P, and I also received a copy of the second book in that series titled "The House of Bones", which I am planning to review hopefully soon. (I was supposed to review it a while ago, but I'm still picking my way through it; I find it -- eh -- dense, as in the book is rather thick, and it's content really needs to be thought over thoroughly. Dense books always take me longer to get through. :P) I like what I've read of Mr. Lawhead's books, even if I find the works a bit "scattered". Perhaps that's just me though. It's hard to tell sometimes. *shrug*

When I saw that Mr. Lawhead's son had written and published a novel, taking after his father, I was very intrigued. I decided that I should definitely try the book out and see if I liked it, and I figured I probably would, especially after having read the blurb for the book. Here it is:



Ancient legend tells of an army of knights that will remain sleeping until the last days.

The knights are waking up.

A homeless man is stalked by a pale, wraithlike creature with a mouthful of needle-sharp teeth. Maimed animals and a host of suicides cluster around a mountain in Scotland. And deep beneath the cobbled streets of Oxford, a malicious hoard besieges a hidden city.

Freya Reynolds is a university student with a touch of OCD and an obsession with myth and folklore. Daniel Tully is living rough on the streets of Oxford, waging a secret war against an enemy only he can identify. Years ago, they found themselves in a world few know is real. They have since gone their separate ways and tried to put that adventure behind them.

But the mythical world is now bleeding into our reality-a dark spiritual evil that is manifesting itself in forgotten corners of the British Isles. Alex Simpson is a Scottish police officer who specializes in hunting mythical creatures. Together, they must confront the past, the present, and points beyond to defeat the ultimate threat to humanity.

Nothing they've seen so far prepares them for what awaits . . . in The Realms Thereunder.

Now come on, you have to admit that this sounds like a cool story, am I right? ^_^ So I was very happy when I had the chance to get the book from the CSFF blog tour and read through it. Currently I'm almost 80% through the book, and still reading. This review is on what I have read of the book so far and what I think of it to date. It may be that I have to update this review after I get the book completely finished, but we'll just have to see. :)

My thoughts:

Ross Lawhead definitely takes after his father, no question. He is a good writer, and his prose are well placed, and engaging. He certainly has many good ideas and knows how to put interesting details into his stories that help flesh out characters, places and scenes. And I do like his style of writing... it has a definite "British" air about it, and I often find myself reading it aloud with an accent. *smirk*

However (and I think this is unfortunate), I find this work to be as scattered as I find his father's works to be, to date.

I don't say that to seem mean or rude, and like I said, it could just be me. I'm not sure. But let me try to explain what I mean. Up to this point in the story, the book has worked to juggle four different story lines: one for Daniel at this point in time, one for Freya at this point in time, one for Alex at this point in time, and one for Fraya and Daniel when they were children. Each story line is different -- unique to say the very least -- and thoroughly engaging. HOWEVER, at this moment I find it difficult to see how the four different story lines relate to each other. At 80% through the book, I have yet to see the story lines mesh so that the characters can meet and work together to defeat this ancient evil that threatens the world, as is stated will happen in the second to last paragraph of the blurb. Right now, Daniel is currently in another world altogether; Freya is completely spacing out, and coming to every few years or so (maybe... it's difficult to tell what's going on there); Alex was almost killed by a dragon in the modern world; and back in time, Freya and Daniel are searching for an evil heart of some sort.

Now, the author has 20% of the book left to convince me that these storylines will all eventually work together and the story will align. I'm definitely going to keep reading. But at this moment this doesn't feel like one good story; it feels like four good stories, that may have similarities involved, but that really don't have much in common. I'll just have to wait and see what happens closer to the end of the book -- reserve my final judgment until I get the whole picture. Perhaps I will end up changing my thoughts and will have to come back and change my opinions in this review. I don't know.

On another note, I have two copies of this book in reality - a paperback copy that was given to me for the blog tour, and then after I bought my new kindle I went ahead and got an e-book version as well. I've been switching on and off between the two versions of the book, and while I have so far had no real troubles with the physical copy, I've found several formatting issues with the digital copy. These aren't grammatical errors that I'm talking about; these are more like cut offs in the middle of a sentence while the rest of the sentence starts a new paragraph, or paragraphs doing much the same thing. It's rather annoying. :P And to be quite honest, for a book that came out through Thomas Nelson, I expected a better job. I don't know if others have noticed the same problems or not, but it's definitely something that troubles me. I wish it were different.

I honestly must say that I HATE to give negative reviews of any sort. And I especially hate to give negative reviews to good writers, because the truth of the matter is that Ross Lawhead is ABSOLUTELY a good writer. I've kept reading, after all, and I'm going to continue reading to the end. Truth to tell, it's a catchy story, even if it makes no sense to me at the moment. But that's just it: it makes no sense to me at the moment. I may keep reading, and I may even like what I'm reading (which I do), but I can't pretend I know what's going on, even so far into the book. It's confusing right now, scattered all over the place, and the plot lines just don't match up. Hopefully things will improve by the time I reach the end.

Don't let my review deter you from checking out this book for yourself though. For more reviews on this book and other Christian Speculative titles, please visit a few of the links below. I'm sure that others' opinions will differ. :)


Also, you can find more about Ross and his book at: http://www.rosslawhead.com/blog/


and:


http://www.amazon.com/Realms-Thereunder-Ancient-Earth/dp/1595549099/

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Writing Days -- An Excerpt from "Song of the Daystar"

It has been a very LONG time since I've posted a writing excerpt. :)  I thought it would be fun to start doing that again, especially since work on SOTD has started to pick up once more.

As many of you already know, I'm working on a new rewrite for SOTD... I started after I got the reply from the publisher who was looking at my manuscript.  They thought I had a good story concept, but they thought that I didn't do it justice.  It took me a couple months of setting SOTD aside before I realized that they were right and I decided to start fresh... same characters, improved concept, story, and writing.

That was about a year ago, and since then I've been in a long stall... only three new chapters were turned out in a whole year, and everything's been on hold since.  My love of writing never digressed, but suddenly it became so much easier to put it off, and put it off, until I really had no more good excuses... just the fact that I didn't want to do it right then.

(This will lead up to a new post on Procrastination, I'm thinking... perhaps I'll be able to get that up in a day or two. ^_^)

But last weekend I decided it was time to stop stalling.  I went back and read over the three chapters I had rewritten previously, and decided that the first chapter started a little too late into the story.  So I started writing a new first chapter... one that really does start at the beginning where it should, instead of jumping right into the action where everything has to be laid out and explained in back story and the like.  This chapter is much truer to what I envisioned the beginning of the story to look and sound like, and already it's made it easier for me to plan out the next few moves. (That was one problem I had with the other rewrite... I got to a point where I felt like I couldn't move forward because there was still too much to go back and explain. :P)

I was able to write 1,513 words for the new first chapter on Sunday, and now I'm going to share them with you. :)  Note that this excerpt ends in a rather odd place, since I truly have not had time to work on the piece until today.  I'm hoping to get more done on it this afternoon after I finish the 8 measure composition due tomorrow morning for my Music Theory class, and finish the errands that my mom has me running for.

Until then, though, here's what I have up to this point:

Chapter 1

The Boy with a Secret

            The stable was cold and steeped in darkness when Curron stepped in and drew the door shut behind him.  Soft nickers drifted out to him from the stalls, followed by several welcoming snorts.  Shivering from his early morning walk, Curron latched the door with his free hand and reached out to grab the old lantern from its post.  The cold metal handle bit into the palm of his skin sending tingles up his arms, and for the hundredth time Curron wished he could afford a set of gloves.  He tipped his candle to the lantern’s wick and warm light flooded the walkway before him.  Several long muzzles poked into the aisle and dark eyes glistened at him from the cubicles lining either side of the path.  

Holding the lantern out in front, Curron made his way to the back wall where the feed was barreled.  The horses shifted to follow his progress, snorting quiet greetings and stretching their noses over stall doors for him to fondle as he passed.  A few reached out and yanked his clothing with their teeth, asking after the wrinkled apples hidden in his pockets. 

Curron winced each time he heard the fibers of his shirt pop.  The mornings were growing colder as the autumn months progressed.  Sooner or later he’d have to ask Téagh for another set of clothes if he didn’t want to catch frostbite or worse in the winter months, and it was inevitable that Téagh would be annoyed.  Téagh was annoyed at most things.  Only two winters had passed since the last time the old stable master had bartered a boy’s shirt and leggings off a servant for Curron’s sake.  The clothes had been too big for Curron then, at only twelve, but now the pants were up to his shins and the shirt stretched taught over his back.  He was afraid that someday soon the shirt might rip open, leaving him in nothing but his trousers and his skin.  Then how would he manage through winter? 

At the back of the barn, he hung the lantern on the nail protruding above the grain bins, picked up the pitchfork leaning against the wall, and turned back to his charges.  Cold and dark as it was, it was still worth rising before dawn each day to spend time alone in the stables.  It was the one place he was free to be entirely himself, the one place he could escape his nightmares. Horses always listened and were never judgmental; they didn’t care if you were a prince or a pauper, so long as they were treated with kindness and respect.  Which was good since Curron was far from princely.

“Alright then,” he said to no one in particular. “Who’s hungry?”  Grabbing up a fistful of oats from the nearest barrel, he approached the first stall and held his arm out to the occupant.  “How about you, Nathahl?” he crooned.  “Is your belly sticking to your ribs yet?”

Large dark eyes winked out at Curron from the shadows of the stall.  Several moments later the eyes drew nearer and a warm, velvety nose found its way into his palm to lip timidly at the grains.      

Calm flooded Curron’s senses at the familiar touch, easing the worry that still lingered from his bad dreams.  Setting the pitchfork against the stall door, he reached up, threaded his fingers through Nathahl’s dark mane, and sighed.  The horse’s warmth seeped into his cold hands and up through his shivering arms.  His muscles relaxed as the heat spread to his shoulders and rolled through his back. To Curron, there was nothing so consoling as the feel and smell of horse.  His charges were like family. 

It was humans who were strange, even if he must count himself among them.

            Curron closed his eyes and leaned forward, pressing his head against the small white star on the bridge of Nathahl’s nose, allowing his emotions to uncoil.  The Black knew of his dreams, of course; it wasn’t something Curron could hide from him.   The nightmares had been growing steadily worse, and Nathahl sensed them as deeply as Curron did.  He often woke hours before dawn now, panting and sweating through his bedclothes though the hearth’s fire had long since retreated into the coals and the room was cold and still.  Several months before, in a rare moment of visible concern, Téagh had insisted Curron visit the Fort Infirmary, but none of the Healers’ treatments improved the dreams or eased his sleep. Commander Olan had berated him for valuable time lost. 

Curron breathed in deep and let his mind brushed against Nathahl’s consciousness, light and airy as the tips of feathers.  The thoughts and feelings of the other horses crowded forward, eager to comfort him, eager to grab his attention, but he didn’t immerse himself.  Not this time.  He touched each of their minds and gave them all one order.

Be still.  You will get your turns in a bit.

Their wild blood pressed against the boundaries of his command, but he shielded his thoughts from them.  They were wild, yes, but he was strong… thanks to Nathahl’s guidance.  If Commander Olan ever discovered his secret, it might be the death of him, but the Black had taught him well.  Nathahl humbly shook his neck as Curron let his thanks touch the Black’s mind.  He nipped the cuff of Curron’s sleeve and nickered softly in his ear.

 Curron had no idea how long he’d been standing like that – an hour, maybe, or a few minutes – when a draft of cold air broke his concentration.  Nathahl snorted uneasily, stamping a hoof to the ground.  Curron opened his eyes and the Black jerked its head away.  The horse grunted at something over Curron’s shoulder and pranced back into the shadows of its stall.

SCREEEE!!!

            The sound erupted from nowhere and echoed through the rafters, rending the silence in two and sending the rest of the horses into frenzy.  Curron spun around, stretching out his mind to quiet them.  He caught snatches of their thoughts and his muscles tensed.

            Stranger! they warned.  Predator.  Bloodlust. 

            Unnatural.  

            Curron’s eyes skimmed the shadows for danger as he moved down the line, placing his hand on each horse’s muzzle to calm it.  He’d never seen them so uneasy before; not in their own stalls, not while he was near.  Their minds resisted him until finally he had to force his way in between the cracks of their fears and compel comforting thoughts to take the place of terror.  It was no easy task.  By the time he reached the end of the stalls, his chest hurt and he felt like he hadn’t slept in a week.  

            He turned back toward the lantern and the pitchfork he’d left leaning against Nathahl’s stall.  It seemed so far away now, but if he finished his work quickly, maybe he’d still have an hour or two to rest before Téagh was up and yelling for him.  He took a step forward, sagged against a support beam, and yelped as a large rust-colored bird swooped down over his shoulder, missing him by inches. It lifted into the rafters and stared down at him with golden predatory eyes as if unsure what it wanted to do with him.

            “Now that’s some trick you’ve got there,” a deep, rich voice commented from somewhere behind him. 

            Curron spun, searching the shadows for the source of the voice.  His eyes roved over the cubicles one by one, but found nothing.  The lantern’s light, once offering warmth and comfort, now splayed across the floor in a pitiful pool of insipid gold reflecting like flames in the eyes of the raptor perched aloft.      

            “The horses,” the voice explained, “They respond to you like none I’ve seen.  ‘Tis a rare talent, that.  A pity it’s wasted in such a place as this.  But then again, Olan never was one to recognize ability.” 

A dark figure pealed itself away from one shadowed corner and stepped forward.  It had a slight frame draped in the dark billows of a traveler’s cloak with the hood pulled up to hide most of its features.  Only the lower part of its face was completely visible, dark ginger stubble shadowing its chin and upper lip.  A twinkle of eyes glimmered out at Curron from the darkness beneath the hood, assessing him, judging him…

Curron glanced up as the hawk warbled a few curious notes and tilted its head at him.  It followed his movements closely, shuffling back and forth on its post, its talons scratching along the beams. 

The stranger tipped his head back to follow Curron’s gaze.  “Ah,” he said.  “That’s just Aigneis.  You needn’t fear her, if that’s what you’re so anxious about.  She’ll fight like the guardians of Grimwryld themselves if I ask her, and she’s got a call to chill the blood, but she won’t attack without incentive.”  He lifted an arm and the hawk screeched again, spreading its wings and drifting down to alight on its master’s shoulder.  

Updates on my life… And no, I’m not Dead Yet

It has been a long time since I’ve posted something meaningful on this blog, and I truly am sorry for that.  I honestly can’t say why that would be, either.  It’s not that I don’t have lots of interesting things to talk about, because I do… I suppose.  And it’s not necessarily that I don’t have time for it either, because I suppose I have that as well. 

 

Perhaps it’s just sheer procrastination.  I’m not sure anymore.  I’m busy, as always, but that is really no excuse.  I’ve just plain been avoiding it, I guess.  On a side note, I’m in some pretty desperate need of a solid job, and though I’ve been applying all over and have had several interviews, I’ve yet to be hired.  It’s rather discouraging, to be truthful, but people keep telling me that perhaps it’s because I just haven’t found the right job yet, and that God knows which one I need.  I keep praying about it.  Hopefully something will come up soon.

But speaking of interesting jobs and what not, there’s been no end to creative release for my overly active mind.  Over the holidays I made a TON of new jewelry.  I also lost my camera, which is why there have been no pictures of them, but I found it the other day so hopefully I’ll be able to post new pictures soon.  I honestly don’t know what I find so fascinating and fun about twisting wire and adding beads, but I find it soothing… something for my hands to do without my mind having to process a whole lot of information, guess.  It’s comforting.

On the other hand, I’ve also picked up a few new commission jobs; some exciting ones at that. :)  I know that some of you out there are writing friends and followers of Jake Buller over at his blog “Teenage Writer”.  And if you follow Jake, then you’re probably aware of his novella “The War Horn” which has been in progress for a while now, and has been discussed on his blog several times.  Jake is quite the talented writer, I must say, and I was excited when he let me read through part of his first draft for TWH.  But I was totally honored when he came to me a few weeks ago and asked if I would do his cover art for him.  Jake currently lives in Liberia, having just moved there with his family from Kansas.  He is planning to publish TWH for kindle through Amazon, and the proceedings from the book will help fund his way back to the States for a writing conference that he really wants to attend.  Right now he’s waiting for feedback from his ARC’s, but the book should be available to purchase sometime near the end of February.  Here’s a look at his cover art, in case you are interested.  If what I’ve read and what he described for me was anything to go by, the book should definitely be worth looking into.

But that’s not the only exciting piece I’ve started work on.  I know that many of you are followers of Jill Williamson and her “Blood of King’s” trilogy Published through Marcher Lord Press.  Her newest book “Replication” just hit shelves in January, and I wrote a review for it here on the P&P.  It was quite a page turner, I’ll tell you!  Now, Marcher Lord is preparing to release yet another of her books in the fall, and GUESS WHO’S WORKING ON THE MAP FOR IT!!!  ^_^

 I seriously cannot tell you how excited I am. :D 

Jill Williamson is one of my most favorite, if not THE most favorite Speculative Christian Author on my list today.  Her “Blood of Kings” trilogy is really phenomenal, as is her new book “Replication”, and I’m sure that her latest book will be just as awesome.  On the flip side of the coin, Marcher Lord Press is the premier indie publisher of Christian Speculative fiction in the world.  They’ve published some truly spectacular material, and picked up some big names in the last few years with Sharon Hink’s “Restorer” books, and Kathy Tiers’ “Firebird” trilogy.  And they continue to grow.  It’s just a little mind boggling for me to think that if all goes well, one of my maps might actually be in an MLP book… and not just any MLP book, but the book of my favorite Christian author to date (besides Tolkien and Lewis, of course.)  It’s a little frightening and a whole lot of tingly.

I gotta tell you, God is amazing. ^_^

And speaking of God and books, I finally, FINALLY moved forward with Magpie Eclectic Press.  We are now open to submissions. :D  However, I’ve decided that the company’s official launch date won’t be until we actually release a book for market.  Because, after all, we definitely want people to see what we can offer them.  ^_^

Still, for now, Magpie is up and running and we are on our way.  And at the moment, I’m just trying to get the word out about the open submissions.  I have several online interviews lined up to talk about what the company is about, how we differ from other houses, why we are different from self publishing and vanity presses, etc…  The types of questions that authors want to know the answers to before looking at a publisher, as well as the types of questions all curious authors want to ask about the publishing business itself.

I must be honest, it’s daunting to look at some of the questions being asked.  I believe I’m ready for them – I honestly and truly do – but this is still a big first step for me.  Do I have the answers to all of them, and if I do, are they the right ones?  I won’t lie, I’ve already wondered if I might have opened the company too soon, or if I should have opened it at all.  Can I truly handle this, or was it never meant to be? 

Well, I believe it was certainly meant to be.  I believe that the idea for it was planted and watered by God, and I believe that I have the passion and knowledge to carry it forward.  But I’ve disillusioned myself.  I said from the beginning that I couldn’t do it alone, and I stick by that instinct; I’m hiring out for help.  No way could I complete everything by myself and do it well… God has placed many talented people in this world and in my path, and I’m so grateful for his provision.

But do I actually have the answers to the questions that people are going ask me in these interviews?  Am I really ready for this?  Will the authors see and understand from my answers that I will really WORK for their books… that I truly want to, and will pour my heart into it?  Will they understand that my passion goes beyond these words into the actions and the steps that I will take for them… or will they just see a girl pretending to be something as if this were all just a dream?  Will they read what I have to say and take me and this company seriously? 

I guess that’s what I’m really worried about.

But I’ve done my research and thought long and hard on everything that this huge endeavor is going to take.  I’ve hosted and read interviews on the subjects involved, read articles, watched and listened to news casts, read books, searched blogs, studied publishing companies, their methods, and their markets, written papers and articles on the subject, blogged about it… I’m even studying to be an English Major simply because I know that I’m supposed to be working in the publishing industry, and I might decide to take on a publishing major afterward.  I’m not even going to try to pretend like I know everything now, but I know a lot and I’ve answered questions like these before.  Like I’ve said, this is a large first step for me, but I know I have God on my side, and my passion is for words.  I desperately want to help other writers bring their words and stories into the world so that readers can enjoy them too.  I want Magpie Eclectic to be trusted as a source of good, strong Christian Speculative fiction all over the U.S. and hopefully beyond.  I mean, truly, it’s all about the stories and coming together as a writing/publishing family, based on Christian morals and standards.

So yes… I think I’m ready.  God willing, I’m ready.  Prayers are welcomed, as I work to get Magpie securely anchored on its feet.   But you can’t take a step forward without standing first, and that’s why I’ve opened Magpie for submissions.  That’s why I knew it was time.

(And sorry if this all sounds like a bunch of rambling thrown out to form some sort of pep talk.  If you don’t understand what I’m going on about, no worries.  I simply think best when I’m typing freely, and I do THAT best when I’m blogging. ;D)

If, by any chance, you are interested in submitting to Magpie Eclectic Press, you can visit our temporary Website at www.wix.com/nichole_white/magpie-eclectic-press.  Please ignore any missing apostrophes or the like that you may stumble across… I haven’t figured out exactly WHY the site is refusing to leave them in, even after I go back through and insert them all again.  I know it looks very unprofessional without them, and its driving me insane!  But I am working with someone to prepare a more professional and polished website for the company… one that will have no problem leaving punctuation in its proper place.  Aside from that, however, this site does have our terms laid out for any who wish to submit something to us.  If you are interested, go ahead and take a look. :)

And now… well, I think I’m going to go ahead and end this blog post for now, and I might go ahead and write another one for another time.  Perhaps one that doesn’t feel quite so jointed together.  Maybe even one on the writing process.  It’s been a while since I’ve done one of those, and I’ve started to have more success with SOTD again as well, so perhaps it’s time for me to dig through my notes and actually write something about writing again.  :D  We’ll see.

In the mean time, what are your thoughts on traditional publishing verses self publishing?  What do you think of Indie Presses like Marcher Lord Press, Splashdown Books, and Port Yonder Press?  What are your thoughts on Indie Authors who go it alone?  Are you for them?  Against them?  Why or why not?  Do you prefer E-books or physical books, and what are your thoughts on the way the publishing market of today is turning out? 

Let me know what you’re thinking.  I love to hear all the interesting things everybody has to say. ^_^

Goodbye for now, and happy writing!

 Nichole