Word Counts Update

I haven't written any blog posts since last January, a bad habit I've fallen into over the past year but one I intend to fix right quick. The lack of blog posts does not translate into an absence of work, however.

I recently finished writing new scenes for the upcoming reissue of The Twain Shall Meet, which will occur later this summer (probably August). Word count for the material topped just over 30,000.

Nearly 100% of the new scenes focus on main characters Scott Page and Shannon Larkin at the beginning of their relationship. The writing binge went on for well over two months earlier this year, wearing me down in the process (as usually happens). I'm currently inserting the scenes into the existing book, and then I'll be onto editing the material in its entirety a dozen or so times before considering it complete. A new book cover for the novel will also be forthcoming, but I can't say much more for the time being.

*POSTSCRIPT (05/31/16): Just sent off the revised manuscript of The Twain Shall Meet to my publisher. Keep your fingers crossed she likes the changes. Upon its original publication in 2012, the ms had 234 pages with a word count of 131,628. The new edition has 296 pages and a word count of 161,931. Not bad!  :)

*POSTSCRIPT (06/06/16): I'm so excited I can barely sit still! My publisher got back to me about the new material for TheTwain Shall Meet, with the message: "I've always loved your work, especially this series (Collective Obsessions Saga). As an editor, there are some stories that just stay with you long after they've been published, and you keep hoping to return to those particular worlds - this series was like that for me, so I look forward to revisiting." Print-on-Demand and new Goth covers for all eight books in the series are also being discussed. I never take being published for granted, and I never assume everyone will like the work. I remember all too well how long and hard the road to being published was, so every time it happens I'm still astonished. Somehow it makes the self-imposed social isolation and writing binges late into the night all worthwhile. ;)

Progress Report

I'm currently five chapters into Bloodlust. I hope to have the novel complete and released by this time next year, but I'm not making any definite promises. Personal loss and health struggles have set me back quite a bit over the last twenty-four months, although I'm keeping my fingers crossed for the best. Staying positive and driven has become my priority rather than focusing on the onslaught of negative. I think it's half the battle sometimes.

 

Bloodlust is book #2 in the Bloodline Trilogy. The novel will follow the exploits of Kate Grady, daughter of Noel Gatsby and Pim Grady from Bloodfrost (book #1 in the Bloodline Trilogy).

 

Current story description of Bloodlust: Kate Grady has unusual powers which allow her to bend people to her will. At first she uses her gifts wisely, but then goes astray after falling in love with the diabolical Kirk Lester, whom she follows down an ugly path of debauchery and evil.

I have two "openings" written for Bloodlust, but haven't decided which one to use yet. Both are important to the storyline and both will be in the book regardless. However, I can't choose which one to launch the story with a bang. Knowing me, I'll decide at the last minute after the book is finished and ready to go.

Stay tuned!

Autumn Update

I will not look back on the summer of 2014 with undiluted pleasure. As mentioned in my blog post Bad & Good (06/09/14), both of my elderly parents suffered multiple medical issues throughout the year. My father passed away on September 17th, which was a shock despite his ongoing health problems. I never expected him to die, thinking most of his issues could be fixed by consistent medical attention. It was not to be.

As their only child, I was left to deal with all formal details and financial matters. It is not a task I'd ever wish on anyone.

As stated before, circumstances have forced me to reevaluate the release schedules for both Bloodlust and Blood & Soul. As it stands at the moment, I've had to push back the estimated book releases to 2015 and 2016, respectively.

I'm currently fighting a relentless chest cold, spending most of my time drinking hot tea and reading rather than writing. I just can't muster the energy or creativity to write at the moment.

My latest reads? Elizabeth of York by Alison Weir and Edge of Eternity by Ken Follett, which is the final part of his Century Trilogy.

 

Reading keeps my mind occupied. It helps me cope with the recent heavy stress.

Revisiting Larkin

Just when I think writing new material for Collective Obsessions is behind me…

The next book due for release in the saga is The Twilight (tentatively scheduled for early summer). Last week, it was decided some new scenes needed to be added for two specific characters, so I put my "collective" hat back on.

Having thought I put all of the characters to bed with the physical completion of Megan's Legacy in 2011, it was odd to suddenly jump back into the saga mindset (especially considering my work schedule of late with Bloodlust, which has nothing to do with the saga). However, after a few hours, I began to enjoy myself. Keep in mind it took an on-off period of more than twenty years for me to write all eight books in the Collective Obsessions Saga, so revisiting my fictional places and characters was actually rather pleasurable.

While all eight books in the saga were complete and contracted in 2010-2011, they have been incrementally released by my publisher since.

1. Passion Forsaken (released 2011)
2. Quixotic Crossings (released 2011)
3. The Twain Shall Meet (released 2012)
4. Enthrallment (released 2012)
5. The Keeper's Journal (released 2012)
6. Hearts Desires (released 2013)
7. TheTwilight (coming in 2013)
8. Megan's Legacy (coming in 2013)

It kind of reminds me of movie releases. Films are made one year, and then released the next or the one after that. You work on a project for a long time, giving it your heart and soul, and then move on after it's finished. Revisiting the project a year or more later – whether it's a book or film - is almost surreal.

Whatever the case, I managed to write the requested new scenes for The Twilight within four days and delivered them electronically to my publisher.

So now it's back to my Bloodlust writing schedule.

Not So Fictional Pets

Even though I'm a fiction writer first and foremost, more than once I've integrated the physical appearance or character traits of real people into my writing. These people can be family members, friends or complete strangers who just happen to catch my eye during the course of a normal day. The aforementioned people rarely recognize themselves after I've written fictional accounts around their characters, unless I choose to tell them about it.

Animals and treasured pets also figure into the mix on occasion. My beloved pooch Foofer, who passed away in 2007, makes his appearance in The Keeper's Journal where he is discovered abandoned by Jamie Page. Jamie, who is also a veterinarian, adopts Foofer. The two become inseparable, exemplifying the master and devoted canine relationship. That being said, there is more to Foofer's seemingly casual presence in the book, which is scant when compared to the unfolding human drama in the storyline. Foofer is Jamie's vigilant protector in Hearts Desires (due for release in spring 2013), where he distrusts his master's new friend Jack Sansovino with keen canine instinct.

 

 

However, Foofer's true purpose becomes quite clear in Megan's Legacy, the final book in the Collective Obsessions Saga (due for release near the end of 2013).

My demonic feline Kiki also appears in Megan's Legacy, where she is found abandoned by the main character Megan Larkin. Kiki is mentioned fleetingly throughout the book, but she is part of the dramatic saga finale albeit in subtle fashion.

 

 

I have yet to find a fictional place for my darling Rainee, the Black Lab mix I adopted in Spokane in 2004. I've felt bad about it, wondering why something for her hasn't come to mind. Not to worry, though. I recently came up with the perfect story-bound scenario for her, although it probably won't see the light of day for a few years.

 

 

Rainee is streamlined, elegant and behaves with purpose. Even as a puppy in 2004, she feared nothing in her path (including Foofer, who at the time was 109 pounds to her wispy but lively 13 pounds). Her main focus is food, followed by her desire for daily trips in the car. She loves nothing better than to stick her head out the window as we tool down the road, although I'm careful not to give her too much leeway. She's a living doll.

Since Foofer's passing, Rainee and Kiki have been at odds with one another so I have to keep them separated for the most part. Both seem to think they inherited the mantle of dominance after Foofer left us, which has resulted in several hysterical confrontations.

Both female, neither Rainee nor Kiki give an inch to each other.  I love them both to bits, so it's our way of life for now. I liken it to having two very different – and difficult - children. The more difficult they become, the more I seem to treasure them.

 

Unconditional love is a wondrous and rare thing.

Evolving Character

Kate Grady was just a baby near the end of Bloodfrost, first book in the Bloodline Trilogy. There was something quite different about her from the get-go. I made no secret about her continuation in Bloodlust (book two in the trilogy); therefore her character development is now progressing in my current writing.

Bloodlust begins when Kate is a teenager, attending English High School in Boston. Despite her penchant for "Goth" apparel and accessories, she is an outstanding student who is also responsible and compassionate. She feels great love and admiration for both her parents (Noel and Pim from Bloodfrost), and is secure in her life and friendships.

I outlined the Bloodline Trilogy last year via private scribbled notes, so I know where I need to take Kate in the continuation of the story. From birth, she has possessed a unique ability to bend people to her will (a result of Noel and Pim's experiences in Bloodfrost, which is hinted at in the first book). For most of her life up to high school, Kate has used her gift to help people rather than harm them.

The current blurb for Bloodlust: Noel and Pim's daughter Kate Grady has unusual powers which allow her to bend people to her will. At first she uses her gifts wisely, but then goes astray after falling in love with the diabolical Kirk Lester, whom she follows down an ugly path of debauchery and evil...

Taking a decent-themed character and transforming them into somewhat of a monster is a challenge, but very enjoyable to write. As any serious author is likely to agree, creating the hideous rather than the mundane is much more satisfying. At the moment, I'm just beginning to push Kate off the cliff into the proverbial abyss. It's an exciting part of the story, and I'm relishing every minute of writing it. I can't wait to see where my imagination takes me as I go around the next corner...

Call me crazy, but that's the way of it.

Midnight Churnings

The strangest thing happened to me last Friday. I was working on the first book in my new-but-as-yet-unnamed trilogy – a long day which began around four in the morning and started winding down around ten at night – when I suddenly received a spurt of inspiration for the second story in the trilogy. I was dead-tired, with a splitting headache to boot, but rather than crawl off to bed I created a new document and began putting my inspiration to text.

I already know how all three books will begin and end in my head, but so far have only been writing steadily on the first story. Switching gears to start work on the second book is out of character for me, but I decided to go with the flow. Needless to say, my long day grew even longer but before I knew it I had the first chapter written for Book #2.

"Before I knew it" is a relative term, actually, because I didn't hit the hay until well after two in the morning - two hours short of being up and adam for twenty-four hours. May the saints preserve me!

However, I'm very happy with the results of my "sudden" inspiration for Book #2.  It makes me all the more eager to continue and finish all three stories, sleep be damned…

Writing Habits

When I began developing my new-but-as-yet-unnamed trilogy last November, I wasn't sure it would go beyond the planning stage even after I created a general outline. The premise of the story is based on a dream I've frequently experienced over the last few years, which has rarely varied in its appearance.  While I don't entertain every story idea that pops into my head, I try to keep track of random thoughts just in case they grow larger in substance from my jotted post-it notes and scribbles on the back of envelopes.

"Book One" in the new trilogy is nearing the halfway mark, so I hope to have a completed first draft before summertime. As is my habit, I handwrite at night (on quadrille paper) and then input my notes during the day. I'm not a natural typist, so I find my quirky writing habits the easiest way in which to manage content.  In addition, typing from my notes sometimes gives me new ideas for the story as I go or makes obvious necessary cuts (ouch!) that need to be made. There must be a method to my madness, because the specific writing process has always worked quite well for me.

Another strange habit of mine is to create characters which seem to have no place in the storyline at first, but as my writing progresses their function suddenly becomes very clear. It's as if their purpose is settled into the back of my brain for a reason, which only becomes evident as I move the story along. I know it sounds odd, but creative epiphanies have always happened that way for me whether it's for character development or storyline details.

I'm not normally a big fan of science fiction or supernatural genres as a whole, but my new trilogy does contain elements of the unknown. They are not necessarily other-worldly in the sense of their appearance, yet they are part of the main character's oft-had dreams that insinuate themselves into the first storyline. Her experiences have a domino effect, which flow over into the second and third books in the trilogy.

I realize I'm being a tad vague about the new trilogy, but I'm not ready to reveal too much just yet – at least not before I finish the first story. As I said before, the books will not be as lengthy as the novels found in the Collective Obsessions Saga. The trilogy titles will probably run 200-300 pages per book, which is definitely short-fiction to me.

Time will tell. As with all fiction works, it's not over until the final manuscript gets a seal of approval. Anything can happen from now until then…