She-Wolves

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First: an update!  A week or so ago, after I had spent the first chunk of my winter break preparing for Christmas, I was at last able to break the 100,000 word mark in my rewrite of Wordcrafter.  I hadn't had many opportunities to write during the semester, as usual; during the week my mind is too engaged with schoolwork, and on the weekends I just don't want to put the energy into the whole words-putting-into-sentences-doing.  (Many, many kudos to those of you who can juggle college and writing.  You are amazing.)  Thus, while I'd written a little here and there, returning to it properly was difficult.  But progress has been made and some fun things have been written, and I'm happy with what I've been able to accomplish before a) heading to a conference and b) starting the spring semester.

Increasingly as I write this novel, I've noticed that one of its more interesting and challenging aspects is that it is the first novel I've written that features a male protagonist and a female antagonist.  The Soldier's Cross has a female protagonist and a male antagonist; the Sea Fever books have a male antagonist and male and female protagonists; and Tempus Regina has a female protagonist and male and female antagonists.  So I guess having gone through just about every other permutation, a male protagonist and a female antagonist in Wordcrafter was inevitable.  All the same, it's presented some new and unexpected problems -- especially as this rewrite finds the villain darker, more aggressive, more dangerous.  In contrast, Justin, my main character, is, well, a nice guy: a hold-the-door-for-you, carry-your-bag fellow.

Playing these two characters off one another is great fun, but it's also somewhat sticky business.  Justin's personality, as well the book's potential readership, rules out certain actions and reactions between them; whereas Tip is free to punch Lewis in the face, and whereas Regina can vent her spleen by dressing down her (female) rival, there is a code of conduct which Justin is obliged to follow.  The villain, in turn, knows it and capitalizes on it.

Sharply, I said, “You can’t hit a woman, Ethan.” 

He flicked aside my concern as I had just flicked away his. “No,” he allowed, “and one often senses them taking advantage of the fact.” 

- wordcrafter

This kind of situation demands a unique relationship between protagonist and villain.  On the one hand, the female antagonist in many ways has the upper hand; her arsenal is packed with weapons Justin can't or won't deploy.  On the other, the protagonist can't be milquetoasty, doing nothing simply because the villain is a woman [because a) that makes for a boring story and b) is super annoying]; he has to find new weapons to use.  Writing in that tension is, I'm finding, quite difficult, but it also makes for some very enjoyable, thought-provoking character dynamics.

what are some of your protagonist-antagonist pairings? which ones have been especially challenging or fun?

 

A Close of Summer Update

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"I've missed your posts in the blogosphere!"

Several people have recently, or semi-recently, brought up the lack of posts on Scribbles.  You know, seven months' worth of no posts.  Here at the end of summer, though, I thought I would write an update - and give you all some snippets of Wordcrafter.

Although I finished with the spring semester back in early May and completed a stand-alone, three-week class in early June, the last few months have still been taken up almost entirely with academic stuff.  I've been spending the summer working on a research project with one of my history professors, the goal of which is to produce a "sourcebook" of original documents from the English civil war period [Suzannah: think this Crusades reader, but probably not as big].  The specific subject?  Popular works, especially cheap eight-page pamphlets, that deal with witchcraft, comets, apparitions, monsters, and other such supernatural "prodigies."  Oh, it's very cheerful.  In fact I have really enjoyed myself - except while reading the accounts of witch-trials, which are universally depressing.

Since we made substantial headway in June and July, the work has let up a bit in the past couple of weeks as we approach the beginning of the fall semester.  In a vain attempt to fill up the excess time on my hands, I've been digging in, sometimes with relish and most times with a grim will, to that continued project that is the rewrite of Wordcrafter.  I'm not precisely sure where I was in the story at the end of the school year, but I think I've added about 20,000 words since May: not a whole lot for a story that promises to be another large one, but not too shabby, either.  We're departing faster and faster from the course of the original story, and I believe the scene I'm working on now is something of a watershed, after which the territory will be almost entirely new.  Thus, although I originally thought I could get along fine with just the structure of the first draft(s) in my head, I'm now beginning to think it would be wise to actually construct an outline.  (I write outlines for a three-page reflection essay.  I am not a pantser, people.  Outlines are gold.)

august snippets

Her clothing was rich, the nose- and mouth-covering heavy with embroidery and a layer of gold mesh, three medallions hanging from her turban across her forehead: even I, who had little acquaintance with Tera and none at all with the Gypsies, had no difficulty recognizing high rank. But my eye was drawn chiefly to her right hand and the weapon in it, for I had never yet seen a firearm here in Ethan’s world. It was no automatic; flintlock was more like it, the barrel and handle cased in wood, the hammer under her thumb fashioned, I thought, like a dragon. She had its twin buckled to her left hip, almost lost in her clothes, and it took me a moment to reconcile myself to the oddity. 

“I thought you were dead,” I said rudely. 

// 

 ...I was too bleary-headed to pay much attention to details, but as we came down the hill between the towering pagan stones I was conscious, almost as keenly as in that moment when I came through the shack, of a change in the world around me. It was as though I had physically passed out of the Tera I had come to know, the Tera of the Horsemen and the villa and a Mediterranean summer, and come instead into the setting of a Grimm’s fairytale. 

// 

“Well, I call that fine!” Ash cried warmly, pounding me on the back in momentary forgetfulness of my crime. “You’re not much of a fighter, but sure and you can take a hit!” 

// 

Funny how black the night seemed, here where there were no electric lights. Silent, too: my mind strained unconsciously for the sound of a car, of a train out in the distance, of voices or music on a radio, but there was nothing. Here on the threshold of the villa the world fanned out from us in layers of darkness, and it was as imperturbable and unnerving as the ocean on a night with no moon. 

 // 

When we ducked in Threshing Floor had just backed into Sure Repulse, a big red creature with a hell of a temper, and the boys were hurrying en masse to put down the fracas. It was mayhem, and I stood against one of the empty stable boxes and squinted around me with a certain amount of smug satisfaction. 

 “I could have stayed in bed a bit longer, apparently,” I observed. 

 // 

Her talk was of Marah and Our Good Fortune, of hunts here at the waning of the summer and of legends of great hunters from millennia ago who had fought monsters rather than deer and boar: easy, uncontentious conversation, light as the yellow wine her father had served us. 

// 

“I’d like to think Ash’s big mouth will get him into trouble one day,” he said, “but unfortunately he’s the sort of fellow who always manages to dodge trouble by the skin of his teeth."

'twere well it were done quickly

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"You noticed that I said I was going to put this project through tomorrow, and no doubt you wondered why I said tomorrow. Why did I, Jeeves?" 

"Because you feel that if it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well it were done quickly, sir?" 

"Partly, Jeeves, but not altogether."

- right ho, jeeves (p.g. wodehouse)

When I sat down to (finally) write a blog post, my ideas for a topic were mixed up and convoluted: I thought of doing a post on historical research and historical story-telling (a subject which has come up several times recently); I thought of doing one semi-related to a book I am working my slow way through, The Divine Challenge; I considered doing one on Wordcrafter.  I still intend to do all of those at some point, but it came to my mind that having been away from Scribbles for a month (more, really, if you consider that my last post was in fact by the inimitable Elisabeth Grace Foley), it might be well to lead into all that jazz with an update. Jenny did one of her own this morning, which you should also read, because her news is rather more ground-breaking than mine.

university

Early this month I sent in the last essay of my freshman year, so now I'm in a kind of upperclassman-limbo as I wait for the beginning of Fall semester sometime in late August.  The 2013 Fall semester seems ages ago, and yet at the same time, I can hardly believe a whole year has gone by since I crawled, terrified, into my first college class.  I fully recognize that college is not for everyone, but for my own part, I'm enjoying it immensely.  It is teaching me a great deal besides the rudiments of string theory and the identifying marks of a mature landscape; it's teaching me how to work with and around my natural shyness, to be more outgoing and friendly, to - get this - interact with people.  Social awkwardness is stereotypically a trait of homeschoolers (though I'm beginning to think it's actually a trait of Millennials as an entire generation), so I try very hard to defy expectations in the hopes that, when it does at last come out that no, I didn't attend any of the local high schools, the asker will be impressed.  I may sit in my car alone and eat the food that I brought, but I do not wear pyjamas to class, thank you so much.  You're welcome, Blimey Cow.

But more on that later, I think.

reading

I am currently in the home stretch of a Maymester on Elizabeth I of England and Philip II of Spain, which, ironically, has meant that I've had to put With the Heart of a King: Elizabeth I of England, Philip II of Spain, and the Fight for a Nation's Soul and Crown on hold.  Instead, I have been puffing through a book on Philip's grand strategy (which may have been grand, but was certainly not effective in the end).  It's quite a doorstop, but thankfully the last hundred pages or so are taken up by endnotes.

On a personal level, I've been working away at John Byl's helpful The Divine Challenge in ridiculously small increments.  Also, I meant to read something serious after Miss Buncle's Book, but then the Maymester happened and I turned instead to that wonderful fellow Wodehouse.  Very Good, Jeeves! is a cure for just about every kind of ill under the sun.  Can I get an amen?  Eh?

writing

Having written what I think will remain the first chapter of Tempus Regina (it's gone through several versions already, so don't carve that in stone), I now continue to chip away at Wordcrafter.  I cannot swear to its being any good, but it is at the very least giving me renewed respect for all those who can breezily dash off a novel in first-person: I find it deuced difficult.  It blows my mind how even a good, subjective third-person - that is to say, not omniscient - is immensely wider in scope.  Wodehouse, being comedy, is not overly helpful in this regard; I should reread Rebecca, but I went and loaned my copy to Jenny for Lamblight inspiration, so never mind that.

It is also strange to go back over old territory and, in effect, make it new.  I don't think the characters - particularly Justin, Ethan, and Jamie - are fundamentally different; they are their own people, so I think they are essentially the same as they have always been.  On the other hand, I am approaching this rewrite with a fuller knowledge of the story and thus of the characters, and, again, writing solely from Justin's perspective alters the playing field.  Additionally, more characters have been introduced and more ideas are forming, so nothing is quite the same.  The plan, though, is for it to be better, so hopefully those of you who have read the original will like the revision more (assuming I finish the blasted thing).

She did not look like Fairbairn, but she had something of his enormous personality. Pricked by a sudden thought, I asked, “You’re not stalking me for your father, are you?” 
 “Oh, no,” she said, deadpan. “For MI-6.” 

- wordcrafter

Despite the difficulties this new venture presents, I am, for the moment, enjoying myself.  After all, there's generally inspiration to be got from Pinterest, and Fleetwood Mac has been most helpful.  Nothing more is necessary.

Snippets of June

pinterest board: the white sail's shaking

First off, I'm pleased to announce that there is a sale going on throughout the month of June for The Soldier's Cross and The Shadow Things Kindle e-books.  They will each be available for 99 cents until June 29th, so if you haven't had a chance to get them yet, here it is!  For more information and updates, including a link to the free iPad "Kindle" app, you can check out my Facebook page.

On to the subject of this post, proper.  Last month I didn't participate in Katie's "Story Snippets" meme, partly because of the almost-summer rush, mostly because I forgot until about two days until the end of May.  To make up for my brainlessness, I'm getting in to the June collection a little early.  For those of you who have not investigated this blog-series yet, you can take a peek at Katie's blog at Whisperings of the Pen to join the fun.

june snippets

“Sir?”

Tip dashed the salt out of his eyes and glanced sidelong at Marta. She had turned up her collar and shrunk down into it, and she blinked cat-like at him from the little shelter her cap gave her. When he turned she held out to him a dark, damp bundle and said, “Your coat, sir.”

 - the white sail's shaking

Tip’s eyes wandered off, scanning the witching expanse of sea and the white bodies of the gulls, real ones now, whirling over it like foam. He moved, trying to keep the weight off his left leg.

- the white sail's shaking

[Marta] was off-duty and Tip found her with a half-dozen other seamen, sitting and talking round a table while Scipio waddled between them and vied for every man’s attention at once. One of the ordinaries and the carpenter’s mate were playing a game, but the sharp staccato of their dice halted when they caught sight of Tip; the gossip dithered into awkward silence. Only Scipio went right on being coy, coming over and attempting to shimmy up his master’s leg.

- the white sail's shaking

His vision blurred; the shadows had gone strange and elongated, peppered by brilliant flashes of red that burned behind his eyes. You’re a fool, Tip Brighton, he thought; but that was nothing new, and he ignored himself.

- the white sail's shaking

Decatur eyed him sideways, more as though he were solving for the variable of an equation than as though Tip was of any concern to him.

- the white sail's shaking

“I told you I was a c…oward,” he said, holding the c with his tongue so that it would not catch. “You didn’t believe me.”

- the white sail's shaking

The world split.  Pain drove through Regina's heart like cold fire; her thoughts shattered to the far corners of her mind.  Screaming and roaring, snatches of discordant songs, battered her in wind and waves and darkness.  There was nothing beneath her, nothing above her, nothing around her - there was no her.  The dragon had opened its jaws, and the void of its mouth consumed identity, consumed existence.  Of Regina there was nothing left.

- tempus regina

The Soldier's Cross in Dutch

Last year a contract was signed with De Banier Publishing to translate my novel The Soldier's Cross into Dutch. Today I received an email from my publisher informing me that their copies had arrived - a huge and delightful surprise for me, naturally! Eager to see whether anything about the "packaging" had been changed, I took a look at the website...

...and got to revel in the sight of a cover all over again. Here it is, my own novel in a language I can't even read (although I'm going to take a wild guess that it says "Soldier's Cross"), and with as gorgeous and atmospheric a cover as the English copy has. And hopefully tomorrow I'll actually be able to hold it myself.

Beautiful People and...

...an update on The Soldier's Cross! For those of you who love those little technological gadgets that would make my eyes bleed out of my head, I'm here to announce that both The Soldier's Cross and The Shadow Things are now available for Kindle downloads from Amazon. Both are only $9.99. You can also read the first chapter of each for free on your computer by checking out the green Kindle gadget over on the right. Or is that a widget? Oh well, you get the idea. You can now cart our novels about on your Kindle, Android, Blackberry, iPod, iPhone, and iDon'tKnowWhatElse, so enjoy!

And now, because it's still June, and because I love these questionnaires, and because poor Scipio has been sadly neglected of late (seeing as I'm editing the beginning sections of White Sail's and he, unfortunately, doesn't arrive until Much Later), I'm doing another Beautiful People Post. These questions have been pulled together by Georgie Penn and Sky:

Once a month Sky and [Georgie] will be posting a list of 10 questions for you to answer about your characters. You can use the same character every month, or choose a new one for each set of questions. Your call. You can answer all the questions, just one, or however many you have the time and energy to answer. Just go for it and have fun.

As with Tip's questionnaire, this one will be a compilation of the questions to date. And so let me introduce you to Scipio, the Barbary macaque.

1. What is your character’s full name?

Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus Africanus Numantinus. Scipio the Younger.

2. Does his name have a special meaning?

With a name that long, you would think it had a special meaning...but it doesn’t.

3. Does your character have a methodical or disorganized personality?

Quite disorganized. Scipio’s favourite pastime is wreaking havoc.

4. Does he think inside himself more than he talks out loud to his friends? (more importantly, does he actually have friends?)

Scipio doesn’t speak, but I’m also not sure he thinks very much.

5. Is there something he is afraid of?

Blood. Scipio is terrified of the sight of blood.

6. Does he write, dream, dance, sing, or photograph?

None of the above, although I would love to see a monkey singing.

7. What is his favorite book? (or genre of book)

The ones that taste the best. He likes that particular dusty taste that old books get, and prefers leather covers to cloth ones. Cloth gets stuck in his throat.

8. Who is his favorite author and/or someone that inspires him?

Those that inspire him to keep going to the back cover.

9. Favorite flavor of ice cream?

Thank goodness, Scipio has never had it; if once he had tasted it, he would probably pine away for lack of it.

10. Favorite season of the year?

It’s all the same to Scipio.

11. How old is he?

Scipio is only a few months old when he comes into the story.

12. What does he do in his spare time?

Tries not to get into trouble, gets into trouble, and tries to look as though he didn’t get into trouble. Story of his life.

13. Does he see the big picture, or live in the moment?

Scipio definitely lives in the moment.

14. Is he a perfectionist?

Yes, he likes his world to be a certain way and gets quite confused when things change.

15. What does his handwriting look like? (round, slanted, curly, skinny, sloppy, neat, decorative, etc)

Well... I should think a monkey’s handwriting would be very sloppy indeed.

16. Favorite animal?

Scipio is fond of the ship’s cat.

17. Does he have any pets?

At least two: Tip and Charlie.

18. Does he have any siblings, how many, and where does he fit in?

Scipio remembers nothing of his family (so touching, isn’t it? I love that angst aspect).

19. Does he have a "life verse" and if so what is it?

Proverbs 12:10—“A righteous man regards the life of his animal, but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.”

20. Favorite writing utensil?

I refer you to number 15.

21. What type of laugh does he have?

Scipio shrieks when amused. It’s quite deafening.

22. Who is his best friend?

Tip Brighton.

23. What is his family like?

We’re sorry, the answer to this question is not available now. This page will redirect to number 18 in five (5) seconds.

24. Is he a Christian, or will he eventually find Jesus?

As he is an animal and has no need of salvation, this question is not applicable.

25. Does he believe in fairies?

I don’t think Scipio has ever heard of fairies, poor dear.

26. Does he like hedgehogs?

If he met one, I have a feeling Scipio would be scared out of his skin.

27. Favorite kind of weather?

Anything without rain. Scipio dislikes rain.

28. Does he have a good sense of humor? If so what kind? (Slapstick, wit, sarcasm, etc.?)

Scipio has a very good sense of humor. He probably has the best sense of humor of anyone in the book.

29. How did he do in school, or any kind of education he might have had?

Scipio is enrolled in the School of Hard Knocks.

30. Any strange hobbies?

Playing with or eating Charlie’s buttons; playing with or eating Charlie’s queue; playing with or eating bugs; playing with or—well, he doesn’t eat the ship’s cat. His life basically revolves around either playing or eating. Or sleeping. But mostly playing or eating.

Day One

Day One of the busy weekend is officially over, and though it was quite tiring, it was also immensely satisfying.

In the morning Jenny and I had a TV interview with the Channel 7 spot Your Carolina. It was a short segment, but it's certainly interesting to be able to say that I have been on TV. And, unlike Mike of "Monsters, Inc." fame, Jack and Kimberley were kind enough not to put the logo over my face. You can view the clip on the Your Carolina website.

The afternoon was, I am grateful to say, uneventful. At 7:00 we had a booksigning at Barnes & Noble, and we occupied a table right by the door for over two hours. It was very enjoyable and rewarding to talk with the people who came to look at the books and the evening was a success, so thank you to everyone who managed to come - and I hope you enjoy your books!

Tonight is Spill the Beans downtown. A booksigning at a cafe on a winter evening has a cozy sound to it, doesn't it?

December Book Signings

November and NaNoWriMo are over, introducing the month of December, which is promising to be still more eventful. Jenny and I have three book signings coming up in one weekend and a TV interview with Your Carolina as well, so the schedule looks like this -

FRIDAY DECEMBER 17TH 7-9PM SIGNING
Barnes and Noble
The Shops at Greenridge
1125 Woodruff Road Suite 1810,
Greenville, SC 29607

SATURDAY DECEMBER 18TH 5-6PM LAUNCH/SIGNING EVENT
Spill The Beans (coffee shop)
531 South Main Street
Greenville, SC 29601
Spill The Beans is also offering free regular coffee to those who buy books - a plus for all caffeine-lovers who want to stay up late reading the novels!

MONDAY DECEMBER 20TH 6-8PM SIGNING
BOOKS-A-MILLION
2465 Laurens Road
Greenville, SC 29607

December is looking very interesting right now, between these events, editing and sending out queries for Wordcrafter, and working on White Sail's Shaking. Not to mention Christmas. NaNo seems tame in comparison!

NaNo: Pros, Cons, and News From the Front

Photo by vonslatt, Flickr.

National Novel Writing Month is the incredibly fun, incredibly insane time of year where writers attempt to bang out 50,000 words of a novel from day one of November to day thirty, hoping to get something good from their efforts. This is my third year participating in it and watching others participate in it, and the pros and cons of it become pretty apparent the first or second year; a home-school curriculum that my family once used listed in its catalog who would benefit from using their material, but also who wouldn't. And it is true that while NaNo is very fun, it may not help everyone with their writing. So here are some of the pros and cons that I've noticed while doing NaNo myself.

Pro: The primary goal of National Novel Writing Month is to get people to just write - to sit down and finally bang out whatever story has been itching in their brains. This is very helpful for those who want to write but believe that they don't have the time; it will amaze you how much time you realize you actually have when you've got a deadline.

Con: What you bang out may be abominable. I know the organizers of NaNo would probably say that this isn't the point, but it's true: what you write may be riddled with grammatical flaws, plot holes, and characters who appear to have schizophrenia. You may cringe at the thought of editing the thing.

Pro: But chances are, you'll come out with something good, even if it's a diamond in the rough. You're at least writing the outline of a story that can be expanded and revised after November comes to a close, and if nothing else, it's at least good practice for people just starting to stretch their wings in writing.

Pro: The goal is reasonable. It's not like the Write-Or-Die program that threatens to delete your document if you don't type like a rabid squirrel. 50,000 words sounds very daunting when taken as a whole, but once you break it down and realize that the daily count only has to be 1,667 words, it doesn't seem so large anymore. Plus, you have the encouragement of watching your wordcount rise.

Con: Targeting a certain amount of words in a certain amount of time does lend itself to manuscripts full of what is called "adjective-padding," "adverb abuse," and what my friend calls "blargh-spackling" - the making up of nonsense words to boost one's wordcount. This really isn't a decent way to do NaNo, especially when even the creators of NaNo try to make it clear that the wordcount isn't the purpose of the organization. If you end up with 50,006 words, 35,629 of which do not aid the plot and 1,885 of which border on blargh-spackling, your month of typing was in vain. What you've ended up with is fluff, not a story. Don't. Blargh-Spackle.

Con: After you get through that month-long rush of creativity in November, you may hit a slump. It's easy to lose interest and set your partially-finished novel aside, especially if you feel like what you wrote is rubbish. Many people squeak by 50,000 during November or even get a larger wordcount, but stop writing on December 1. Since that date is outside the jurisdiction of NaNo, technically this is an acceptable way of doing it; however, if you won't stick to it and make something of what you've been wrestling with for a month, NaNo has been a failure and a waste of time. Don't do NaNo if you don't have some reason for writing that will keep you going.

And now, news from the front.

Novel in Progress: The White Sail's Shaking

Genre: Historical Fiction

Time Period: 1803-1804, set during America's First Barbary War

Favourite Theme: The Chariot Race, Prince of Egypt Soundtrack

Wordcount as of 10:45 am November 8: 17,010

Sneak Peak and Updates

Here is the map I have drawn up (or GIMP'd up) for the front pages of my book The Soldier's Cross, to give readers a feeling of where the locations - historical and fictional - are in the novel.

In other news, the layout for the insides of both my book and Jenny's have been mostly completed and the project is moving along wonderfully. The cover design should be complete soon and there will be an option on the sidebar of Scribbles and Ink Stains to pre-order however many copies you would like, which will be shipped out upon publication of the book (late October to early- or mid-November).