A review of Graham Austin-King's Faithless

 I'm going to get a little personal with you here, guys. I've been really, incredibly poor for a couple of years now. Virtually everything I earn, after basic necessities, has been going towards getting my degree. Why am I telling you this in a book review? To explain why I don't do book reviews. Put simply, I don't buy books to read for pleasure, nowadays, because that's a luxury I've had to put on hold. No books means no book reviews.

While this kept me sane during the first SPFBO (when you can't read the competition, you can avoid obsessing about whether another's prose is better or worse), it's been a bit of a disappointment since then. I wanted to read everyone's SPFBO books, afterward. And someday I will. After the degree is paid for.

So along comes Graham Austin-King the other day (one of my SPFBO cohort), and he says “Psst, hey kid, wanna read an advance copy of Faithless?” To which I replied “Yup.” And then he said “So let it be written, so let it be done.” (Okay, I might be paraphrasing.) It didn't hurt a bit that Sarah Chorn had edited it. Sarah was, is and will be one of the ten bloggers who judge the SPFBO, if you aren't aware, and while “Trouble's Braids” wasn't one of her favorite books from the competition, her review of it is one of my favorite reviews to this day.

Wow, okay, that's three paragraphs and I still haven't started talking about the book. I should probably do that.

Faithless is a lot of things. It's an exercise in word-building, an exploration of faith and the loss of faith, and perhaps especially, it's a kind of meditation on morality. All of this is experienced through the lens of Wynn, a boy sold by his father to the Temple of the Forgefather to be an “aspirant” – one who might someday become a priest. As Wynn quickly learns, what this really means is he's to be a slave in the mines below the temple. And while there's a real, if pathetically slender, chance of him making it out of the mines and up to the temple, the troubles he would leave behind underground would only be swapped for other, less straightforward dangers in the temple's candle-lit halls. There is a very good reason that the religion of the god of smiths has gone into steep decline, and why the Forgefather turned his face away from his priesthood.

I'm a writer. I can't help but read with a writer's eye. To me, the most striking thing about Faithless is the world building. Graham has created, in Faithless, a meticulous microcosm of a world where the wider, outside world is barely a rumor. There is a claustrophobic, inward-turning flavor to the book that, while uncomfortable, is perfect for the material. The world of Faithless is divided into three parts: The Temple of the Forge Father, the makeshift cavern-town of Aspiration below it, and the mines and caverns below that. And for the first book in a possible series, that's quite enough. Wynn's world is grim, and literally and figuratively dark.

In such a world, it's little wonder that the main character is often faced with terrible choices. It's also not surprising that some of the choices he makes echo the title of the book. In the world Wynn finds himself in, the placing of faith in others is a necessity for survival – but keeping faith others have placed in you means never escaping a hellish existence. Ultimately Wynn is an engaging protagonist because of his flaws, his faithlessness, and his own recognition of them.

So, to sum up, I found Faithless to be an engaging fantasy in an unusual, well-executed secondary world, which is something that I love. I also have a fondness for the exploration of religion in fantasy, which is often glossed over. In Faithless, religion is one of the main themes, and it provides the central mystery and the basis for a creepy and bloody third act. What's not to like?

Many thanks to Graham Austin-King for providing an advance reading copy. I truly enjoyed it. I hope Graham continues the story.

Ye Olde Writing Update

So I've got two projects that I plan to finish by the end of February. Here's where we're at on both of them, and after:

Prayers in Steel

This is a rewrite/expansion of the Blood Tempered novella and its unreleased sequel, Weaving Steel. I'm going back and reworking the terse style and fleshing out secondary characters, as well as giving it a more 'epic' tone. It's sitting at about 48,000 words, and I estimate it'll clock in at roughly 80,000 when it's finished.

The Last God

Four interconnected connected short stories set in the Amra Thetys universe, told from the point of view of Lhiewyn, Sage of Lucernis and Grumpy Old Man. It isn't necessary to have read the Amra series to enjoy this one, but it is meant as a sort of companion piece. For those who have read the Amra books, you'll find an Easter egg or two. Also, I'm writing it in Google Docs, so you can follow along if you'd like. Currently at 7,000 words of an estimated 30,000.

After February

Here's what the calendar looks like: Once the first four are back in my control and out of Ragnarok's, I'll release How To Make A Killing In Kirabor, an Amra prequel novelette. Why not release it now? I don't want people to buy the book and be tempted to purchase the Ragnarok editions. I have no faith that I'll ever see those royalties.

I am of course working on the fifth Amra book. If all goes well, you can look for that one around August or September. I'll update as things get more firm.

I'm also considering whether to revive/continue the Comes the Conqueror series. It was an experiment with serialized fiction. I personally really like the story, but readers weren't interested, possibly because of the serial format.

Finally, there are a crap-load of Amra side story ideas that pop into my head on a regular basis. Two of them continue to pester me as I drift off to sleep.

First, the idea of writing stories/novels about the villains that appear throughout, like Red Hand, and the Sorcerer King, and the Telemarch. They've all got back stories, and we only get to see them at the end. They're all tragic heroes, in their own way, like Oedipus or Hamlet. None of them started off as villains.

Second, there's a lot going on with Theiner/Moc Mien. He's actually worthy of a series of his own.

So… I'm contemplating. I don't know if there's a market big enough for these stories. Not that that's ever stopped me before.

Until next time,

mm

Publishing and self publishing: more straight talk from Uncle Mike

I've got some more things to say. Once again, some of it won't be very popular, but I believe it to be true. Better you hear it from me than find out on your own.

1: Embrace the suck

This is army speak for the inevitability of ending up in a situation that sucks, and the attitude that will see you through it. Complaining, time honored though it may be, will not extricate you from the suck. Pretending you are not in the suck will not extricate you from the suck. Flailing around in a panic will definitely not get your suck-stuck behind out of the suck. What will extricate you from the suck is realizing and admitting that you are mired in suckitude, plotting a course to get away from the suck, and then implementing your plan. This is true whether you are a self publisher or traditionally published.

Wow, I don't think I've written the word 'suck' that many times ever.

2: Talk is cheap

Whether it's a publisher, an agent, or a so-called indie publishing expert that you're listening to, remain skeptical. They are in the business of making money from your books. They will say what you want to hear, and it'll sound really good. Just like your prom date. Yeah, exactly. We all know how that turned out.

The point here: get it in writing, and make sure you understand what it says, and what it means, before you agree to anything. Also remember that money should flow to the author in all traditional publishing scenarios. If you're an indie and money is leaving your bank account, it had better do so for specific reasons with measurable outcomes. For example, a book cover.

3: People love to make excuses

You know what? Crappy things happen to people. They miss deadlines. It's an imperfect world. I get that. But you are not immortal. Your time on this earth is finite. And people who constantly make excuses for failing to live up to agreements are stealing your time.

Scrape them off.

4: Don't be a cheap talker or an excuse maker

You want publishing success, however you define it? You are ultimately responsible for making it happen. Treat others, and especially yourself, with the same respect you want to be given. Don't make excuses that you have no time to write if you just binge-watched Luke Cake or Downton Abbey. Don't throw up your hands and say you don't know where to start if you have access to Google. And don't call yourself a writer if you keep polishing the same 1/3 of a manuscript over and over for months or years.

Yeah, this writing thing is hard. See point 1 above. It's first for a reason – because it will get you through everything else that happens to you along the way.

Give the Suck a big ole hug, and get writing.

An important announcement

Hi folks,

I've got some disheartening news to share with you this time around, I'm afraid. I've decided to take the rights to the Amra Thetys series back from Ragnarok Publications. The reasons are business-related, and boil down to this: I doubt I'll ever actually get paid the royalties due me for sales of the Ragnarok editions of the books. They seem to be in a pretty big mess over there, so I've decided to cut my losses. I wish I didn't think it were necessary.

So what does this mean? Well, for the next 3-4 months, Ragnarok will continue to sell the first four Amra Thetys books. I'd ask you not to buy them, if you haven't already, for the simple reason that my portion of the money you spend on those editions may well never make it to me. If you'd like to show your support, you could purchase the ebook edition of my short story collection on Amazon, or you could check out Ace of Swords, which is a fantasy geared for slightly younger readers. It's available both in print and electronic format.

Wha does this mean for Amra, going forward, you ask? I'll tell ya :) Of course I'm working on Amra 5, never fear. I've also got one Amra novelette pretty much completed that I've been holding back – How to Make a Killing in Kirabor. Once I've gotten the rights back to Amra 1-4 I'll be releasing it.

I'm also currently working on a series of short stories from cranky old Lhiewyn's point of view. I'm doing something different with this one: I'm writing the first draft in Google Docs, which means you can check in on its progress, make comments, point out my awful typing skills and generally kibitz during the whole process if you like. Sort of like watching the guy at the Italian restaurant make your pizza. I love that guy.

If you like/tolerate Facebook, I'm there. It's where writing things get talked about the most.

And that's about it for this newsletter. I do wish I had better news to report, folks, but the main thing is, the stories are still coming, and as I return to self publishing, they will come at a more frequent rate.

Awkward hugs,

mm

November brings the fourth Amra book. October brings an apology.

Yes, it's finally (almost) here.

Little did I know, when I wrote 'the end' at the end of The Thief Who Wasn't There, that it would take nearly a year and a half for it to reach readers. Much changed right around that time -- Trouble's Braids won Mark Lawrence's inaugural SPFBO competition, and I was offered a publishing contract.

Both of these things were good things, of course. But handing over the Amra Thetys series to a publisher has meant delays for the fourth book. This is in some ways quite unfortunate, since Sorrow's Gate ended on what, essentially, was a cliffhanger. When I wrote it that way. I "knew" that the fourth book would be following in short order. And then of course everything changed. Looking back, the title of the fourth Amra book was entirely too prescient.

The upside of the situation is the fact that all the books in the series will now be available in bookstores, world-wide (you should go down to your local bookstore and demand that they stock their shelves with Amra goodness!) There's even the possibility of foreign language editions -- we'll see how that goes.

But let me get to what I really want to talk about today: My apology.

If you're reading this, it most likely means you've got an interest in the Amra Thetys series. And that most likely means you've been waiting for sixteen months to read book four. I'm sorry about that, truly. It was President Truman, I believe, who had the sign on his desk that said "The buck stops here." When it comes to my books, written by me, I feel I have to do the same. There are plenty of reasons the book has been delayed, and each time a new delay came up, I had a choice to make: agree with it and let the process continue, or say 'enough' and pull my books and go back to self-publishing. I made the decision, each time, to accept the delay. I did so each time because I felt, on balance, that the ultimate reward for patience was being able to reach a wider audience. Sometimes adulting is no fun.

There's one more delay, friends.

The release date is supposed to be November 8th (some places it is listed as November 1st). There are good odds that the book will not be released on that day.

I am told that we are not talking about a delay of months, or even one month; but I know that some of you have expressed frustration at the state of affairs. Believe me, I share that frustration.

Traditional publishing suffers from the fact that there is no one person who is both accountable and empowered, Self publishing lets the author make virtually every decision, and grants control, along with the responsibility to deliver a good book on time. Self publishing does not, however, give an author access to brick and mortar bookstores.

On balance, and after a couple of sleepless nights, I decided to accept one last delay. I hope that you will do the same, because I personally feel that this fourth Amra book is the best I've written.

When you finally get the chance to read it, I hope you'll agree.

A little straight talk from Uncle Mike for new self publishers

I've got some things to say. Some of it won't be very popular, but I believe all of it is true. This only applies to fiction writers, and specifically fantasy and science fiction writers. If you don't agree with me, that's okay. I'm still right, though.

• 80% of what's self published isn't worth paying for. A lot of people like to compare the price of an ebook to the price of a cup of coffee. Let me extend the comparison: If my cup of coffee has a hair or a dead fly in it, I'm not going to enjoy it, however delicious it might be otherwise. Even if I get my money back, I've lost time and had an unpleasant experience. A bad book is the same. Be in the 20%. 
• If it's free and you hate it, you shouldn't complain. (because writers are readers, too.) I mean, really. Continuing with the coffee thing: You didn't enjoy it? Toss it out and move on with your day. Or you could be like people who leave one star ratings, and complain to literally the whole world. No, you aren't doing other readers a service and it isn't some noble, self-sacrificing deed; you're expressing your subjective opinion. Also, you look kinda petty.
• Writers are not owed good reviews. Or any reviews for that matter. You write. You publish. After that, what people think or don't think isn't frigging up to you, so stay out of it. Are we still having this conversation in 2016?
• Readers are not very good at spotting great books. They are excellent, however, at knowing what they enjoy and finding more like it. Writers can draw their own conclusions as to what they should do with this nugget.
• Writers are delusional about the quality of their work. Especially young writers, and new writers. You wrote a book. Good for you. Finishing doesn't mean winning, and doesn't automatically come with accolades. Stop being millennial. Shorter: It's probably not that good. Write more. Each one you finish moves you closer to realizing your writing potential.
• No, you DON'T have to pay for editing, covers and formatting. Not if you're willing to learn how to do these things yourself, and are able to pay in time and learning curve what you can't in cash. Other writers will tell you that you "must" pay professionals for these things. They have obviously never been in a situation where that simply wasn't an option. If you try to explain it to them, they'll talk about budgeting and savings plans and prioritizing. They just don't fucking get it. They never will. Ignore them. Do what you can with what you have, and constantly improve.
• It doesn't matter if a book has a beautiful cover, zero typos and impeccable formatting, if it sucks ass. A turd is still a turd, even if it's covered in gold leaf. Write a good story first. Readers will forgive a number of sins if you give them a kick-ass story. You shouldn't forgive yourself for those sins, however, until you've corrected them.
• If you did your cover and editing yourself, it probably sucks. Mine certainly did at first. But I wasn't delusional about it. I knew it, but it was the absolute best I could do at the time. I kept working on my skills. I kept improving. I kept getting better. You will too, if you're serious about it. If not, you'll sink deeper and deeper into the deep, deep ocean trench that is Amazon's algorithm, never to be heard from again.
• Other writers are not your enemies, but they may not be your friends either. Writing is ego-intensive. Some writers will do weird, nasty things to anyone they perceive as competition. Best keep your distance.

Yes, I'm a little grumpy today. But everything above is the honest truth as far as I have seen and experienced. I hope it helps someone.

Oh, look, the beginning of a new series!

A few years ago, my eldest started reading a series of books called Beast Quest. I was very happy he was reading, and fantasy, no less - but one thing bothered the crap out of me: It didn't seem to matter to him what order he read them in. It made no sense - how could he follow the plot if he read book five before he read book three? Or book seventeen before book nine?

Then I actually read a Beast Quest book. He was right. It really didn't matter much at all, since each book was essentially the same book, but with a different Beast to contend with. Each book was about ten thousand words, and profusely if poorly illustrated.

I thought to myself "I could do that in my sleep. Well, not the illustrating part; even kids have standards. But I could write a series for kids like him, and I could do it better in just about every sense."

Well, long story short, I've started the series. No illustrations, apart from a map, but I've made up for it by making each book roughly forty thousand words. Maybe down the road I can get someone interested in illustrating. That would be awesome. And that's also the great thing about self-publishing; when you come to a place where you can improve the book, you don't need anyone's permission. You can just go and do it.

But let's see how this edition fares first.

You can pick up copies in these fine virtual establishments, with more on the way:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Amazon CA

Amazon OZ

5 years, 100,000 free. Time to change tack.

I started self-publishing in 2011. I've made a little bit of money; nothing approaching minimum wage. But I've also had hiatuses and sabbaticals in the last five years. Still and all, I've had a lot of downloads. Especially free downloads.

Across all channels, I've given away roughly 100,000 ebooks since 2011.

Inarguably, this has resulted in a fair few people finding my work, and going on to purchasing other ebooks I've written.

I'll be generous and say I've had about a 5% conversion rate. Which is actually pretty terrible, if you ask me. I've though long and hard about why the conversion rate is so atrocious. The first and most obvious possible reason is that my writing is godawful. But my ratings simply don't bear that out. Sure, there are those who don't find it their cup of tea; you can't please everyone. But I maintain a consistently good to great average everywhere my books are available, and on Goodreads.

No, I've come to the conclusion that readers interested in free books are primarily interested in the free part, rather than the book part, and when 'free' is replaced with another word, like '$2.99', they quickly lose interest.

So. Starting today, I'll be charging for my work, barring the Comes the Conqueror serial and the works I have on Wattpad.

I've given free five year's worth of a fair shake. Now let's see how paid treats me :)

2016: What to expect, writing-wise, from moi

First off, there are two more covers to reveal in the Amra Thetys reboot, but instead of showing them here, I'll just direct you Ragnarok's Amra Thetys page. Luscious, ain't they?

So in 2016, Book 4 of the Amra Thetys series will be released (The Thief Who Wasn't There), probably sometime around September. The other books will be re-released March-ish? When I know, I'll certainly tell you!

In addition, here's what I've got on my plate, and hope to accomplish in 2016:

I've already started on the fifth book in the Amra Thetys series, but realistically, it won't see publication in 2016 considering book 4's late release. I don't have a title yet, clever or otherwise, unless "The Thief Who Did Something" counts.

I've got two urban fantasies that I'd like to get out of my system, one set in Singapore and the other in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. They share Southeast Asia as a setting, so I might well put one out under a pen name. I'll let the market decide which I should turn into a series, if it comes to that.

I'll be publishing at least two Amra Thetys novelettes, and hopefully more, to fill in the long lag between books 1-3 re-release and book 4's release. The first is called "How To Make A Killing In Kirabor"and is set before Amra met Holgren, when she was still fairly new to Lucernis. The second will likely be a peek into Holgren's past, just to balance things out. Or if the writing gods smile, I might manage to write a little series of interconnected novelettes focusing on Amra's actual thieving exploits.

I've got a short story in the works set after the events of Amra 4, so I'd best say not much about it, other than that it follows the fates of a few minor characters from books 3 and 4. If you liked Keel, you'll probably like this story, though :D

I'm also committed to finishing a very different kind of fantasy tale this year, for personal reasons. It's called "All That Glitters." This one is a lot more intimate, and it goes back to fantasy's fairy tale roots as inspiration rather than sword & sorcery action/adventure. It's bittersweet.

I'm currently cleaning up the mess I made of the Sword Monk 2: Weaving Steel. I'll re-release that one when I am satisfied it won't embarrass me to do so. When I released it originally, I must have been out of my mind. I was definitely sleep deprived and emotionally low, but that's really no excuse. I'm fixing it, and I will prod Amazon to push the updated version to those kind souls who bought it the first time around.


If there's still some free time (ha!) I've got lots of other projects I could be getting on with. I've been threatening for years to write a sequel for Waste Land, my free sci fi story that does so well at the iBookstore. I've made several stabs at it, but haven't been satisfied. It's a difficult story. Maybe it just hasn't fully germinated in my subconscious yet.

And that, as they say, is enough to be getting on with for 2016.

Cover reveal #2: The NEW Thief Who Spat in Luck's Good Eye

Behold! (that's me trying to make an eye joke)

The second Shawn King cover for the series re-release. When I first saw the covers I told him they were so good I wanted to eat them. His response was, paraphrased, 'I don't approve, but you do you.'

Cover Reveal #1: The NEW Thief Who Pulled on Trouble's Braids

So as you folks know, the Amra Thetys series has been picked up by Ragnarok Publications and will be re-released this year. It'll be available to bookstores and libraries and suchlike, even!

As part of this new chapter in the life of the series, the books have gotten a new cover treatment, thanks to Shawn King, cover designer extraordinaire!

Here is the new cover for "Trouble's Braids" just to give you a taste :)

Hard post

There may be a few of these over the next few weeks. We'll see.

This one has to do with Sword Monk #2 - Weaving Steel, which was recently released on Amazon.

Frankly, I think it sucks, so I'm pulling it.

Longer form is like this: I got in a rush to complete the instalment before the preorder was due to go live and released a book I'm not proud of. I should have delayed it.

For those who bought it, I apologize. When it's up to a standard that is acceptable, I will post a link to a free copy here on the blog alongside SM #1.

Sorry guys. Won't happen again. I'd rather people were unhappy that they had to wait for something good than disappoint.

Genre and same-old same-old: random pondering

Occasionally I see reviews (not my own yet) that say something to the effect of "while this story doesn't bring anything new to the genre..." and it always gets me to thinking. Is it the default opinion out there of reviewers that a genre story should always be pushing boundaries? And if so, when did that happen? I sort of understand the mentality when it comes to sci fi. I mean, really the whole genre is about pushing boundaries, or at least can be legitimately be seen in that light. But for fantasy,  I've never seen the reinvention of the genre as a critical function of the writers of said genre. And yet, change, carefully applied, can be a breath of fresh air in a stale genre.

Tropes vs cliches

Now to be sure, I'm not talking about cliche'd writing being okay. I'm personally sick of farm boys who are destined to blah blah, at least in adult fiction (juvenile fiction is another matter. Those kinds of stories are important to young readers, in that starting with someone they have a chance of identifying with hooks them as lifelong readers. But even juvenile fantasy could use some diversifying). I'm not saying no one should write that kind of story anymore, but I am saying it's such a tired trope that it has become a cliche. And when a trope becomes a cliche, the writer is almost obligated to bring a twist to it so that it has new life for the reader.

But fantasy tropes, especially in sub-genres, aren't something that can be dispensed with or in my opinion even messed with over-much, else you risk writing something that's missing what the reader came to the book for in the first place. You have to respect what came before and change only what is necessary to tell your story, the story that only you can write.

(I'm gonna talk about my own writing now for a minute, simply because I know it best)

Take Amra Thetys, for example. I love Sword & Sorcery. But I wanted to avoid many of the tropes that had become cliches. The two main characters of the series do not sling swords. They are not barbarians. They do not delight in battle. One is a female thief and the other is a mage who doesn't particularly like magic. And yet their adventures, even if I do say so myself, are often every bit as insanely gory and over the top weird as anything Conan or Fafhrd and the Mouser got up to.

Or my new series, the Sword Monk. Here we have a main character whose skill with a sword borders on caricature, but what defines him is his wrestling with his faith. We also have an antagonist who starts, at least notionally, as a damsel in distress, but who has taken the idea of empowerment so much to heart that she verges on becoming a monster. And yet this series is even more true to its pulp S&S roots than Amra Thetys.

I suppose my point is this: Sometimes there is no reason to change what works. I would be ecstatic to read a newly discovered Conan story. But sometimes it's awesome to read things with a new spin.

And sometimes it's not what you add to a genre story, but what you (carefully) cut away that makes for a good read.

A craft post

Recently I received an email from a reader (hi Steven!) who is in the process of wrestling his own first novel into some sort of of obedience. He wondered what sort of plotting techniques I used. He mentioned snowflake methods and beat sheets and other assorted alchemies that I have heard of, but know nothing about beyond the fact of their existence.

Not being one to waste words that can be reused, I thought I would excerpt my reply here, for those who might be interested in how I make the alphabet turn into a novel:


I generally write from a character base rather than a plot base. I know that sounds weird considering the kind of stuff I write, but bear with me here.

Because as a reader I get serious attention deficit when I don't care about characters, I try really hard to make everybody in the story interesting for me to write about in some way, either through personality, motivation or circumstance. I figure if they're interesting to write about, then they stand a better chance not to be boring to read about. And because as a writer I kill any desire to actually write a book by outlining it, that leaves me moving through the darkness of plot, as Cory Doctorow sort-of said, with a flashlight. Just enough light to see what I need to in order to keep moving.

I start with a beginning (the closest I can get to the point where the Rube Goldberg device swings into action) (ok ok, the inciting event) in mind, and a vague notion of what kind of ending I want, and maybe a scene or three of "that would be frigging awesome/horrible hahaha." and that's it in the way of plotting for me.

What I DO do is take pains at the scene/sequel level to keep the tension at an appropriate, er, level. I make sure each scene has a question to be answered (does the character get what they want in this scene?) and I make sure that the answer is almost never yes. Yes, but... No... No, and furthermore... are the stock answers. How rough the answers are for the pov character depends on how far along the story is, of course. Since I generally write 60-80k books, it's not hard to gauge if the tension has gone off the boil. Or, uh, 'peaked' way too early.

But the main thing isn't really the scenes, but the sequels. That's where the character has to count the cost of the previous scene, be it in confusion, frustration, rage, humiliation, or ever-popular blood. That's where the character's character is revealed. That's where the writer's greatest chance lies in snaring the reader and convincing them to care about the *next* scene. Lather, rinse, repeat until you get to the climax, and the answer to the overarching story question.

Then, when I've got a manuscript that's got all the moving parts of a book, I go back and do all the usual editing stuff, with a special emphasis on cutting anything that makes my eyes glaze over. I'm pretty brutal about it. I pay for this in terms of world-building, but the reward is a more propulsive reading experience. There are no non-utilitarian bells or whistles, however pleasing their sound might be. This is also a risk/reward scenario inherent in writing 1st person pov. If the character doesn't know or care about something, it can be difficult to bring it up in general conversation without resorting to the dreaded info dump. So I work around it or I do without.

And there you have it. Except I'm gonna add more to my original thoughts:

I'm the youngest of three kids. My brother's six years older, and my sister eight years older. Also we moved around a lot, so I never made all that many friends. Despite these handicaps, I would, without fail every birthday and Christmas, beg and plead for board games requiring multiple players. I have no idea why.

I played a lot of board games by myself, against myself. I still occasionally play chess against myself. Yeah, I know.

To bring this back around to plot, I don't know if I'd say I plot unconsciously so much as I take on the role of the protagonists' unseen, Moriarity-esque opponent. Scene by scene, they make their moves in a way that fits their personality and situation, and then I deliberate on how their plans can be frustrated in the most interesting way. It really is a move-by-move sort of thing, for me.

Sure, there's a maguffin. There's always a maguffin. Who killed Corbin, does Thagoth really hold the secret of immortality, who sent Borold's noggin... but when I start the book, I honestly don't know the answers. Sometimes, maybe even every time, the answers become less important as the book rolls along and the deeper plot is revealed. The original inciting event and the ostensible story question is really just a crowbar to get Amra out of her door and into the story. Because as far as Amra is concerned, an adventure can go, uh, pleasure itself. It's like the "rules" for survival in 28 Days Later -- never do x... unless you got no choice.


Also, when I say 'deeper plot is revealed,' I mean revealed to me, as I write it. Now granted, some of this stuff comes from the vague, hazy series plot that I keep in a dusty corner of my head. There is an endgame here; ultimately this is all about Amra vs the 8fold goddess. But again, I think in terms of character. I know the 8fold's story, what she/they want, and why she/they want it. But the road traveled so far in the first 4 books is all that has been mapped. I know the destination, I can see it like Mt Fuji in the distance. There's no way I can walk there in a straight line, though, because I don't know what the terrain is between here and there. And I don't want to know; not until I write it.

Why? Because I write fantasy for much the same reason I read it. I want to be amazed. I don't want to paint by numbers, even if I'm the one who put the numbers on the canvas to begin with. Because writing, no joke, is often hard, tedious work, and what makes it worthwhile to me is writing a scene that's freaking awesome (at least in my mind).

SPOILER ALERT

One of my favorite scenes to write in Trouble's Braids was Amra's duel with Red Hand, and her meeting with the Guardian directly after. I knew going into that scene that Amra couldn't win, just as I knew she'd still instigate it. But I didn't know until I wrote it that Heirus would take a knife in the throat just to fuck with Amra. As soon as he did it, I knew it was perfect, and I knew exactly how Amra would react.

I also didn't know until I wrote it that the Weeping Mother statue was the Guardian of the Dead. I'd thrown in a couple mentions of the statue previously, thinking it a good bit of scenery and a nice touch of world building. But as soon as Amra wiped the blood from the back of her hand onto the grass, there the Guardian was, and it was just right. It was  an incredibly satisfying moment for me, as a writer.

Maybe I'd have come up with it if I'd plotted out the book beforehand. But I genuinely doubt it.

So. I said once before a long time ago that birds don't teach other birds how to fly. But sometimes it's helpful to observe, even if it only leads a bird to say 'fuck that noise, I'd fall outta the sky if I tried to do it that way.'

I hope all this blathering serves at least as a negative example.

And that's enough blathering for one post.

Paranormal romance/erotica has invaded my beloved Sword & Sorcery, and I'm pissed off

First let me be clear: I have nothing against paranormal romance or erotica. Hell, I've got nothing against dinosaur erotica. If that's what scratches your itch, then scratch away, my friend.

No, what makes me angry is when authors of paranormal erotica/romance stuff their obviously non-Sword & Sorcery books into the Sword & sorcery categories at retailers such as Amazon, iBooks and Barnes & Noble.

Why does this yank my chain? Because what they're doing is a disservice both to readers and to fellow authors. Specifically, they are taking spots away from actual Sword & Sorcery authors and invading Sword & Sorcery best-seller lists. Because, you see, they list their dragon/werewolf/shifter BBW paranormal urban romance fantasy in as many categories as Amazon & other retailers will fall for. And if the book does reasonably well in paranormal romance lists, it's going to absolutely rock it in S&S lists, as Sword & Sorcery is a much smaller pool.

They're gaming the system via inappropriate use of keywords, making it harder for readers to find real S&S, and they're sucking the oxygen, discoverability-wise, out of the room for actual Sword & Sorcery writers.

And I'm angry about it.

Here is Lin Carter's definition of Sword & Sorcery:

We call a story sword and sorcery when it is an action tale, derived from the traditions of the pulp magazine adventure story, set in a land, age, or world of the author's invention--a milieu in which magic actually works and the gods are real--a story, moreover, which pits a stalwart warrior in direct conflict with the forces of supernatural evil.

And now I present to you a selection of the top 100 free in kindle Sword & Sorcery stories (UK):

Moon Chosen #1 (BBW Werewolf / Shifter Romance)

Shadow of the Moon #1 (Werewolf / Shifter Romance)

Healed by the Dragon: Part One (A Scottish Dragon-shifter Paranormal Romance) 

I'm not saying that Paranormal Romance can never also be classsifie.... who am I kidding? Yes, yes I am.

Paranormal Romance can never be cross-classified as Sword & Sorcery

Let me put this another way. I hope Jessie Donovan, Mac Flynn and all the other authors who are miscategorizing their books find this, and pay attention:

You have a dragon, a werewolf, a shapeshifter in your story? Maybe somebody who uses a sword? Maybe even some sorcery? 

THAT DOESN'T MAKE IT S&S ANY MORE THAN CONAN FALLING IN LOVE WITH A PRINCESS MAKES HIS ADVENTURES PARANORMAL ROMANCE.

But of course these authors already know that. That's what makes my blood boil. They're just trying to game the system and get a bestseller in a category--any category. They don't care.

So every time I find a Paranormal Fantasy in the Sword & Sorcery subcategory, I report it.

And so should you.

Blood Tempered has been released into the wild

So Blood Tempered is live. What's Blood Tempered, you ask?

• It's the first book in a five part series called The Sword Monk Saga
• It's super-uber sword & sorcery pulp, and unabashedly so
• It's multiple POV, and not 1st person. That's a new thing for me
• It's $2.99
• It's available at all the usual suspects

Here's the big thing I'm working on next

Yes, I'm still hard at work on the Amra Thetys series. I'm also putting out the first book of the Sword Monk saga in a couple of weeks--June 6th is the release date for that one. And I've got a couple of longstanding projects that are puttering along as well (Comes the Conqueror, Tarot Quest).

But this is the next full-length novel series I'll be putting out:

It's urban fantasy, set in Singapore. Here's a bit about the protagonist:

My name is William Langston King. You can call me Will if you really feel the need, but skip Bill or Billy or god forbid Willy, unless you want me to call you something nasty right back.

I used to be one of the Magi; unarguably powerful, supposedly wise. I have had dealings with powers and dominions whose names have never been spoken, because they are impossible for a mortal mouth to speak. I have traveled kingdoms and principalities you will never find on any map. I know things, I have seen things... well, let's just leave it at that.

Now I'm just an uncanny gumshoe, a supernatural private eye. Most of my power has been stripped from me, one way or another. Now I'm in Singapore, hiding from a doom that I couldn't beat or trick or buy off. The Ban Sidhe spoke my name, and all the Seelie and Unseelie Courts, and all their allies, are bound to heed that call and end my life. But Singapore is the Switzerland of the supernatural realm. As long as I stay within the boundaries of this ultra-modern city-state, all those would-be assassins can go pound sand.

But I still need to make a living. So now, instead of putting my thumb on the scales of power, I chase off things that go bump in the night. Then I chase clients for payment. When I have clients to chase, at least.

I am many things, just as we all are. But what I got printed on my business card is “Private Supernatural Detective.” If you want something done right, you generally have to do it yourself. Except when it comes to dealing with all the many deadly, nasty, dangerous Others. And printing. I tried making business cards at home on the little laser printer, and man did they look like crap.

The Book That Wasn't There

There are now 32 people in the whole wide world who own The Thief Who Wasn't There. They're the only people who will, until October. That's when Ragnarok Publications will re-release the first four Amra Thetys books, with awesome cover art and professional editing.

So, you know, in case you were wondering why you can't buy book 4 and stuff, that's why. And also you should totally sign up for the mailing list if you haven't, so I can let you know what's going on as it goes on. It's right here: http://eepurl.com/xEVIr

And that's alls I gots right now.

Amra 5 snippet

***Minor spoilers for Book 4 below***





“Right, then, let's see what a mage packs when he goes to hells.” I stuck a hand in his pack, and was met with a sticky, tacky residue of something that seemed to cover everything inside it. “What the hells got in here?” I asked, pulling my hand out and wiping it on the rag.

He coughed slightly and shifted himself higher in the bed, then leaned back against the pillows. “There was a river of blood. I had to cross it.”

“Oh.” What do you say to that? I opened the pack wider and started to pulling things out, wiping them cleanish as I went.

“Oh, look. A monster's head under glass.”

“Amra, meet Halfmoon. Halfmoon, Amra. He's not very nice. He wants to eat my brain.”

“Well who wouldn't? It's a very clever brain.” The thing blinked its dozen eyes and ran a long, gray-blue tongue along the glass. I shuddered and put it aside. Facing the wall. “Mages,” I muttered. I rooted around a bit more and came up with a small glass vial.

“Anonymous powder,” I said. “Let me guess, an ingredient for a spell.”

“No, that's a jar full of the Road.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes.”

I shook my head and threw it in the fire. “What, wine just not scratching the itch anymore? I take back what I said about your brain.”

“Well I never opened it,” he said, peevishly.

“Thank Vosto.”

“Yes, as a matter of fact.”

“Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

“What was that like?”

“He compared me to a turtle stuck on its back, intimated that I was pathetic and ridiculous, told me I was in his debt, then told me to bugger off. Also, he really seemed to enjoy calling me a fool.”

“Sounds like my kind of god.”

“Meeting a divine being not threatening or actively trying to kill me was a nice change of pace.”

I rooted around some more in the bloody goop inside the pack, but couldn't find anything else. “Is that it?”

“All that's left, anyway.”

“You could have told me instead of letting me play with hell blood!”

“I could have. But you said hurtful things about my brain.”

“When you get better I'm going to smother you in your sleep.”

So yeah, book 4 is a wrap.

Just a few thoughts from the other side of writing The Thief Who Wasn't There. You know, if you're interested in that sort of thing:

Holgren

Holgren, Holgen, Holgren. I think everybody should be thankful you're at least a few shades of gray closer to the light than the dark. One reviewer recently commented on Trouble's Braids that Holgren seemed a bit over-powerful, and that it might cause problems later on in the series.

Heh.

One of the reasons I wanted to write Wasn't There was to show just how much of a badass Holgren really is. But I had to do it from his point of view, otherwise you wouldn't get to see the interior cost. The fact is, if Holgren had been born into an age that wasn't as magic-poor, he could have rivaled the likes of the Sorcerer-King. As it is, magic is fading, and he's still a bad-ass. He'll need to be, to face what's coming.

The other thing about Holgren that I wanted to explore a bit is that he's just as fucked up by his past as Amra is by hers. There's a line in Luck's Good Eye where the Sorcerer-King is whining about his childhood, and Amra tells him "Everybody's got it hard growing up." Coming from her, it's less sarcasm and more simple, if biased, observation: "Sure, you were born deformed and barely in control of your body. I watched my mom get killed by my dad, I killed him, then I got hunted by death squads."

In Wasn't There we get a peek into Holgren's past as well. It's not that much better.

Voice

After three books living in Amra's head, it was a little difficult to switch gears and get into Holgren's brainspace. For the first third of the book, maybe. What Amra says in three words, he'll say in five. Where Amra will leave out unnecessary words and cut to the meat of the meaning, Holgren will be more precise and deliberate. Where Amra is self-deprecating, Holgren is a little more morose, a touch more self-involved. And in many ways harder and colder. Amra cares; Holgren chooses to care, or not to care.

Tone/Structure

This book is definitely an Amra Thetys joint, don't get me wrong. Each of the three preceding books had a slightly different tone, a different focus. Book 1 was a whodunnit/revenge tale, book 2 a balls to the wall sword & sorcery roller coaster. Book 3 -- I'm not sure how to describe book 3 actually. But book 4 is something else. It's sort of an odyssey tale, I guess is the best way to describe it.

All of which is a roundabout way of saying I never ever want to fall into the trap of writing the same book but with different antagonists. I've seen that happen to too many series. Amra's not Bruce Banner, wandering from town to town. She isn't David Carradine in Kung Fu.

The series has an arc. It has an end-game. It's all leading towards something. I swear to Kerf.

Publication

It's not official, as in there hasn't been a press release, but by now most people know that the series has been picked up by Ragnarok Publications. They plan to release all of the first four books at once, in October. The deal happened after I'd put Wasn't There on pre-order at Amazon. So I put a little disclaimer urging folks not to buy the pre-order, but to wait until October when the prettily covered and professionally edited version comes out.

"Yeah, nah," said a bunch of folks, "I'm ordering this bad boy raht naow." I guess that's why Bezos created one-click ordering--people are not fond of waiting. I love you all, rebel pre-orderers. But don't come after me about typos.


And that's more or less what I got right now. I'm now finishing up the first book in a new series. I've been trying to get this one done for a few years now. I swore I'd get it done, so I'm getting it done.

But I also wrote 1200 words of Amra 5 today.  Like a warm bath, I tell ya.