Tag Archives: Tina R. McSwan

by | March 10, 2011 · 10:09 am

Myth and Folklore

by Gail Z. Martin

At the last couple of conventions I attended, I was on several panels about myth and folklore.  It was a lot of fun discussing how myth and folklore show up in fantasy, as well as how as writers we use myth and folklore to create our own stories.  We talked about modern myths and how myth influences the real world, both in terms of deliberate mythmaking and pop culture/urban legend terms.  For talking about stories that were thousands of years old, the conversation sometimes got rather heated!

I like to draw inspiration from myth and folklore because I figure that if something about a trope or archetype has captured human imagination for hundreds or thousands of years, it’s good.  So I enjoy adapting and adjusting folkloric and mythic elements to make them my own, and to fit them into the world of the Winter Kingdoms.

Of course the conversation came around to vampires, werewolves and magic, which are intrinsic elements of folklore and mythology.  I mentioned how I still chuckle about the one book reviewer who was very impressed that I had “used urban fantasy tropes like vampires and werewolves” in a medieval, epic fantasy.  Of course, urban fantasy stole the tropes from medieval folklore!

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by | March 7, 2011 · 10:36 am

Goal: A Sequel that Compliments while Truly Standing Alone

by Terry Ervin

I spent a good part of the spring and into the summer figuring out how to write The Blood Sword Gambit (working title), sequel to Flank Hawk and the second novel in the First Civilization’s Legacy series.

A sequel sounds easy, right? Sure, when I typed the “The End” to Flank Hawk, I knew the basics of what would happen in the next novel, and then fleshed it out a bit while submitting Flank Hawk to publishers.

So, what’s the problem? I’m an author, right? And authors know these things. As to the first question: The problem is getting the balance just right. The second question: Yes, authors do know these things, and that’s how I went about finding a way to strike the balance.

What balance? A sequel is a complete work in itself but continues the story of the preceding novel. Blood Sword continues Krish’s story, but to do so it’s necessary for new readers to understand a bit about who Krish is, including friends, associates, and his experiences. While I’d love for those readers that start with the sequel to go back and read Flank Hawk, I want them to be able to enjoy the second novel without having to go back and read the first. But if they do so after reading Blood Sword, I want them to enjoy Flank Hawk—the conflict, struggles and excitement, and discovery of the world in which Krish lives. I also want readers of Flank Hawk to enjoy its sequel, and not to be put off by references to events in the first novel—things necessary for those who haven’t yet read and enjoyed Flank Hawk.

Okay, that’s what every author who writes a series strives to achieve. With that in mind, I went right to the source: Authors who’ve successfully done what I was preparing to attempt.

My Criteria:

a.     Writes action-filled stories, in first person, past tense.

b.     Although one story arc was completed in the first novel, a larger storyline continued to be explored.

c.     Events and choices made in the first novel impacted what happened in the next.

d.     Characters, from close friends to associates in the first novel continued to influence what happened in the second—even those that died or didn’t appear ‘on stage’ in the second novel.

Naturally, I went with authors I’d read previously and enjoyed: Steven Brust (Vlad Taltos series), Roger Zelazny (Chronicles of Amber series) and Laurell K. Hamilton (Anita Blake series).  I read and reread the first two or three novels in each series, and even listened to audio versions when possible, all the time paying close attention to when and how the authors made reference to previous information and events within the context of the second novel’s storyline.

It reaffirmed what I already knew:

1.     There’s no secret formula with respect to when and how much previous information to provide in the sequel.

2.     It’s handy for readers of previous works in the series to be reminded of past events.

3.     Linking the previous storyline with the current one as well as weaving both into the overall direction of the events for novels to follow provides a consistent and enduring foundation for readers to comprehend and recall the who, what, where, when, how and whys of the created world, conflicts and characters.

After the careful study, I also came away with examples of techniques the authors used, including methods and timing that allowed for smooth transitions from present to past and back, while foreshadowing the future.  Things like dialogue and POV character recollection, intertwined with character motivations (directly stated or implied), items and places, scenes and descriptions all played a role.

And as I work to complete The Blood Sword Gambit, I am integrating those techniques, merging them with my own storytelling method and writing style—working to get ‘that balance’ just right.

If you do give Flank Hawk a try, and/or The Blood Sword Gambit (when it’s released), either way I hope you’ll let me know if my effort was a success.

You can listen to the audio from when Terry was a guest of Blog Host, Gail Z. Martin’s Ghost in the Machine podcast here:  https://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WBpTSY07

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by | March 4, 2011 · 9:59 am

Freebie Friday from Jeffrey Thomas

Our guest blogger, Jeffrey Thomas has graciously offered to share the Punktown-based short story “The Dance of Ugghiutu,” from his short story collection VOICES FROM PUNKTOWN, here: https://www.darkregions.com/template/samples/voices_from_punktown_sample.pdf

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by | March 3, 2011 · 10:08 am

Caught Between Zones

by Gail Z. Martin

When I’m actively working on a book, I’ve found that I don’t like to read epic fantasy.  Part of it is not wanting to be subconsciously influenced by anything I’m reading.  Part of it is probably a desire for something different from what I’ve spent all day working on.  The difficulty is, now that I’m writing two fantasy books a year, it either means I have to figure out a new way to approach the problem or I won’t get to read any epics at all!

Lately, I’ve been enjoying urban fantasy, paranormal mysteries and cross-genre stuff like the Undead and Unwed series (a little of both with some paranormal romance thrown in, though with an emphasis on action/humor).  Since I often spend my time mentally living in the middle ages, it’s fun to spend my free time reading books that are so thoroughly modern.  Although, as I’ve mentioned to a couple of my friends who write paranormal mysteries, what is it with the Internet?  How come people don’t just Google what they need to know, like in real life, as opposed to saying, “Gee, we can’t catch the bad guy because we need to know something and the library is closed until Monday!”  I often will check the copyright date if characters in a book are stuck with only the library as a research tool or if they don’t use a cell phone.  I’ve also chuckled at some of the ways authors have managed to avoid a slam-dunk rescue by putting the hero out of cell phone range or making a point that the cell phone is dead.

On the other hand, over on the epic side of things, I often have to face the reality of how slowly information could get from one place to another in the pre-telephone/telegraph/email days.  Throughout history, battles were often fought weeks after the treaty had been signed because no one could get the word out to the troops in time!  As someone living in the modern world, I have to constantly remind myself that it would take weeks or months to send the fastest messenger, meaning that there’s no way characters separated by distance can know what’s going on with each other (unless there’s a magical alternative).

Writing books set in a time period other than the one I live in does make for an interesting feeling of being caught between zones.  Don’t even get me started on word origins

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by | February 28, 2011 · 11:00 am

A Healthy Future

by Jeffrey Thomas

In early 2007, Gail Z. Martin and I were among the first wave of authors to release books through the then brand new imprint, Solaris Books. Well, actually Gail headed that wave, as her novel THE SUMMONER was the first novel released by Solaris. My own novel was DEADSTOCK, a science fiction thriller set in my multiverse, Punktown, with a private eye named Jeremy Stake at its center. Gail continued her Chronicles of the Necromancer series through Solaris, and they let me bring Jeremy Stake back for a second outing with BLUE WAR.

Since then, we have both gone on with other books for other publishers. My next novel set in the gritty and dangerous far-future city of Punktown – close on the heels of BLUE WAR – was HEALTH AGENT (Raw Dog Screaming Press, 2008). HEALTH AGENT also took the form of a noir thriller, but this time starring “health agent” Montgomery Black, whose role is preventing the manifold health risks Punktown can fall prey to. Black and his partner/lover are given the task of investigating a brilliant but sociopathic performance artist who calls himself Toll Loveland. Loveland’s approach to art takes the form of biological terrorist acts, such as infecting people with a lethal disease. After attending one of his performances, before Loveland’s threat is fully comprehended, both Black and his partner are exposed to and contract the aforementioned deadly plague. With time running out as the disease ravages him, Black hopes to both avenge himself and his lover, and protect the rest of Punktown’s citizens from Loveland’s threats. But Loveland’s monstrous games have only just begun…

Actually, HEALTH AGENT was written in the late eighties, but languished as a handwritten manuscript for years. At the time of its writing, the AIDS epidemic was still something new in the public eye. But this fact should hardly date HEALTH AGENT; I don’t recall AIDS having yet been eliminated, and we are always dreading the next avian flu or even biological attack by some hostile group. Another interesting fact is that I took a year off in the middle of writing HEALTH AGENT, in order to write another novel, but somehow was able to come right back into what may well be the most twisty, tricky, labyrinthine plot I’ve yet devised. In fact, HEALTH AGENT might just be my favorite of my Punktown novels to date.

As I have mentioned, HEALTH AGENT was released several years ago, but I hope it will garner more readers; maybe those who read and enjoyed the more widely distributed DEADSTOCK and BLUE WAR would be willing to check it out. I think they’ll find themselves in for a healthy dose of thrills, scares, and suspense.

So I thank Gail – not to mention J.F. Lewis, Sabrina Lewis, and Tina McSwain — for letting me stand at the podium for a while. Gail’s been very supportive of me over the past few years, by featuring me in her podcasts, so she’s well deserving of my gratitude and indebtedness. Now back to you, guys!

P.S. — If you’re interested in purchasing HEALTH AGENT, please head on over to the publisher’s web site, here: https://www.rawdogscreaming.com/agent.html

You can listen to the audio from when Jeffrey was a guest of Blog Host, Gail Z. Martin’s Ghost in the Machine podcast here:  https://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WXnzLmn4

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by | February 25, 2011 · 10:00 am

Freebie Friday from Mur Lafferty

Our guest bloggers this week, Mur Lafferty has graciously agreed to share a free excerpt of Marco and the Red Granny at Smashwords!

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/31661

Hear it free at Hub- https://www.hubfiction.com/2010/09/new-hub-podcast-serial-by-mur-lafferty/

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by | February 24, 2011 · 10:07 am

A Life of Their Own

by Gail Z. Martin

Long-running series can be lots of fun because they take on a life of their own.  At the same time, it can be intimidating for new readers because once several books in the series are out, it can be daunting to get “caught up.”  That was the challenge I faced when I wrote The Sworn, which just came out in stores at the end of January.  It’s my fifth novel, and it’s set in my world of the Winter Kingdoms with many of the same characters as my first four books.  But I wanted to create a gateway into the world where someone new could enter without having to read the first four books (of course, I hope they’ll decide to do that later) and still enjoy the book.

Creating that kind of gateway changes how you write, because you can’t take for granted that every reader has the same collective memory about the places, events and characters.  At the same time, since you’re hoping that many of the people who’ve read your other books will want to read your new one, you don’t want to bore them by spending too much time recapping what went on before or re-introducing characters they already know.  It’s quite a challenge.

Before I wrote The Sworn, I paid attention to how other series writers handled the issue.  I noticed how they referred to important past events that had spoiler potential but which had to be explained at least in passing.  I noticed how subsequent books introduced long-running characters.  And I tried to examine from a reader’s perspective where I thought the situation was handled well and where it left me confused or bored.

I learn a lot from paying attention to how other authors handle certain types of plot issues.  It brings a whole new dimension to the way I read, because on one hand, I’m reading for plot and action just like a “regular” reader.  Then the writer side of me is busy looking under the hood to see how the other author handled the “mechanics” of the story.  I guess it’s like eating out at a restaurant when you’re also a chef.  You enjoy eating food that tastes good, but you can’t help wanting to peek into the kitchen to see how it’s cooked!

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by | February 21, 2011 · 10:00 am

The Birth of Ideas

by Mur Lafferty

It’s become a cliche by now- people always want to know where writers get their ideas, and writers never know what to say. They joke that they buy them at a store, or get them from a guy in Poughkeepsie. The people always seem very impressed that such a wonderful idea would come from such a creative mind. But really. We do know where ideas come from, but that’s like saying “where do you buy all of your clothing?” You buy some things from one store, wacky t shirts from cons, fun socks online, and more. All sorts of places.

Ideas do have a generation point, though, and I simply call it a “what if.” For me, it’s triggered by something slightly odd, and then I take it as far as I possibly can. I’m offering my latest novella, Marco and the Red Granny (available via audio at Hub magazine and via Kindle and Smashwords in ebook form), up as a subject for idea generation.

Fact- writers, while creative individuals, stimulate the imagination, not the five senses. More than one person can view a painting, or taste a pastry, or hear music, or watch dancing, but writing, and reading, are solitary. And although you can use eyes and/or ears to take in a book, the true beauty of the art takes place in your head, not on the page you’re looking at. No one wants to watch a writer create. The closest thing we get to pleasing audiences is live readings, and even then we rarely get to read the whole work. Sometimes this makes me bitter.

So when President Obama was having his big inauguration hurrahs, I heard a news report on a nobody fashion designer who was an overnight sensation because Michelle Obama chose his dress to wear to one of the balls. And I imagined being the name someone shouted out when someone cried out “who are you wearing?” But no one can wear a novel.

Or can they?

So that was my trigger, my “what if” moment. What if you could wear a novel? not wear it like making a dress of the paper from a book, but to experience the novel in a dress as if you could experience a painting screen printed onto fabric. Well, we couldn’t do it, but probably some alien people could. Then my mind concocted Marco, a down and out artist, who couldn’t get a break. And the break was a literal ticket to the moon, to get a patronage from these aliens who had created the new cultural artistic hub of humankind, Sally Ride Lunar Base, nicknamed “Mollywood.”

So yay. I had Marco, bitter and hungover and not sure why he got called on to get a patronage while he’s at the low point of his career, on a shuttle. I wanted his seat companion to be an irritating old woman, and I based her on a woman I once sat next to on a plane who took my “leave me alone” headphones to mean “Please touch this woman on the arm to get her attention so you can tell her the important news that a Macy’s is coming to Raleigh.” But I after they talk a while, I realize I want this woman to be more than she appeared, something that you don’t expect from a little old lady.

What if she were violent? No, better, famous for her violence. A reality show star. A gladiator? On the moon, the low gravity would allow for a little old lady to excel in hand to hand combat.

And the Red Granny was born.

Introduce some aliens who view art and reality shows – anything that creates passion within the human soul – on equal footing, and I had a story.

Ah yes- one more weird trigger. Remember that Marco was hungover during his shuttle flight? Well, the shuttle does a short jump to the moon, and I remembered beloved SF author Douglas Adams’ character from Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Ford Prefect, suggesting that beer cushions the systems of people who are transferred through space. I used that, and then the Red Granny said the throwaway phrase about the Alcoholic’s Guild and how she hoped the wouldn’t find out that hangovers were removed by shuttle jumps.

Whoa. Alcoholics Guild?

Incidentally, this is why I can’t be an outliner. Because stuff like this doesn’t come to me when I outline. I have to be writing and have a character say something throwaway and then realize they are mentioning things that will change the course of the book. My ideas work like Dominoes- I get an idea and push one over, and then follow the stream of falling bricks to see where it goes.

So that’s where ideas come from. Mine, at least. For this novella, at least. What about yours?

You can listen to the audio from when Mur was a guest of Blog Host, Gail Z. Martin’s Ghost in the Machine podcast here:  https://www.audioacrobat.com/play/Wy6cjX0k

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by | February 18, 2011 · 10:00 am

Freebie Friday from James Maxey

Our guest blogger this week, James Maxey, has agreed to share a reprint of his professional short story, “Empire of Dreams and Miracles.” Empire is set in a futuristic Atlantis, similar to the one on display in my dragon novels, Bitterwood, Dragonforge, and Dragonseed.  The link to the webpage is:

https://empireofdreamsandmiracles.blogspot.com/

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by | February 17, 2011 · 10:07 am

News on The Sworn

by Gail Z. Martin

The Sworn is on bookstore shelves, and I am in bookstores doing signings and meeting with readers.  I really enjoy going to stores and conventions because it’s fun to talk with other people who enjoy reading.  It’s also fun to see how books find their way into people’s hands.  Many times, the person who will buy a signed book from me is buying for someone else.  I can’t count the number of times someone has said, “wait right here, I need to bring my {wife, sister, daughter, husband, brother, son, etc.} over to meet you—he/she likes that kind of book.”  I’ve seen people call someone on a cell phone or drag them down the mall or across the store because I’ve got “their kind of book.”  It’s also fun to think of my books being someone’s present for a birthday, Christmas, or another holiday or a care package sent to troops overseas.  I remember one man came into a bookstore just before Valentine’s Day last year with his son.  The man looked lost, and I asked if he was looking for a gift.  When I told him about my books (which I happened to be signing that day), he lit up like I had just solved his problem and bought all four that were out at the time!

Books are often considered to be less personal than a gift of clothing or jewelry, but picking the right book for someone is intensely personal if you really want to find a book that the person will care about.  It also often requires the buyer to set aside his/her preferences to get something the other person will enjoy.  The gift of the perfect book is a statement that the giver really knows you well.  It’s fun to be part of that chain!

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